NBA Notebook: Breaking down the Celtics and 2025-26 league schedule

The Celtics and the rest of the NBA received their full schedules earlier this week, and on the surface Boston caught numerous breaks. Their 13 back-to-backs tied for the fewest in the NBA while ESPN assessed their strength of schedule as the easiest in the NBA. Of course, we won't know how much the Celtics' opponents and the order they meet them in will matter until we discover how good their team is without Jayson Tatum and all the departing players from this offseason. 

They do receive some breaks early. It's hard to imagine Joel Embiid and Paul George playing on opening night following their surgeries earlier this summer. The Celtics see the 76ers three times in three weeks to begin the season. Elsewhere, they host a Cavs team probably missing Darius Garland (toe), a Pistons group trying to make sense of life without Malik Beasley and the Pelicans returning rookie Derik Queen and Herb Jones from procedures. It's a mixed bag early for Boston. Tough Rockets and Knicks teams highlight the home dates before what could become a grueling mini-series in Orlando. For whatever relief the early Sixers games provide, the Celtics see the Magic three times too. 

They also see the breaks that could keep them afloat in the east, tanking Jazz and Wizards teams visiting Boston to begin November. 

Jaylen Brown and Neemias Queta appear good to go following their knee scopes, so Boston should start the season healthy aside from Tatum's Achilles. They also play five games in seven days early, complicating what would've proven a difficult transition to this season regardless of the early opponents or travel. Later in the schedule, they have a back-to-back between Minnesota and Cleveland to close November, visit Toronto twice in three weeks around the NBA Cup in early December, then hit Indiana, Portland, Utah, Sacramento and the Intuit Dome in a rare Los Angeles trip that doesn't include both teams. That could be a win, with the long week in LA rarely good for the road team. Boston spends New Year's Eve in the Bay Area. By then, we should have a good sense of where the season is going with 19 games left until the trade deadline on Feb. 5, which follows a trip to Dallas and Houston. 

The NBA dumped its massive home stands and road trips, Boston's in March stretching six games that they swept, which always felt forced despite the positives for logistics. The Celtics still wrap most of their travel around the all-star break, coming out of their week off in San Francisco, LA, Phoenix and Denver, then splitting four of their next eight home and away. Boston benefited from the fewest back-to-backs but they also see the fewest opponents playing on back-to-backs themselves (11), a tradeoff that may not prove as beneficial as in the past where they actually lost players in back-to-back situations like Al Horford. The Celtics will inevitably need some breaks with their own health and from opponents where they can find them to have the best case scenario this season. 

If that plays out, they'll face the Hawks twice, Heat, Bucks and Raptors in potentially significant seeding games ahead of the play-in tournament they'll probably need to reach the postseason. They close against the Hornets, Knicks and Pelicans on a back-to-back between New York and Boston, then face a Magic team that like the Knicks could have their seeding secured before game 82. Dallas, Cleveland, Oklahoma City twice along with the Warriors, Grizzlies and Timberwolves could also have a say in where the Celtics end up late in the season to begin March. In a worst-case scenario, Boston is angling with Charlotte through their final two games against each other for lottery positioning. 

A reminder also about the new TV dynamic this season after TNT lost its rights that Prime and NBC picked up. The Celtics still have a significant number of national games (25) between those networks, ESPN and NBA TV, which will go on for at least this season. NBC will host Tuesday games starting on opening night, ESPN will hold onto Wednesday and its weekend ABC showcases. Prime will host streaming-only Friday games on Amazon's platforms, while Peacock, NBC's streaming platform, picked up a Monday exclusive. Prime will also break into some Thursday and Saturday games following football season while NBC does the same on Sundays. The thinking is to have some national games every day of the week throughout the season, while avoiding football of course. 

The Celtics' streaming-exclusive games come on Oct. 24 (@NYK, Prime), Oct. 31 (@PHI, Prime), Dec. 5 (vs. LAL, Prime), Dec. 26 (@IND, Prime), Jan. 12 (@IND, Peacock), Jrue Holiday's return game on Jan. 26 (vs. POR, Peacock), their potential first game against Horford on Feb. 19 (@GSW, Prime), Mar. 2 (@MIL, Peacock), Mar. 12 (@OKC, Prime), Mar 16 (vs. PHX, Peacock) and Apr. 9 (@NYK, Prime). Boston plays on ABC on Feb. 8 against the Knicks and Mar. 8 in Cleveland. They have six games each on ESPN and NBC. 

Here are some other games to watch for: 

• Oct. 21: Rockets at Thunder - Kevin Durant's Rockets debut and return to Oklahoma City on the night the Thunder raise their first banner and receive their rings. 
• Oct. 21: Warriors at Lakers - Marcus Smart's Lakers debut and Al Horford's Warriors debut if he agrees to a deal with Golden State as expected. 
• Oct. 22: Cavaliers at Knicks - Likely Eastern Conference Finals preview and Mike Brown's coaching debut for the Knicks.
• Oct. 22: Heat at Magic - Norman Powell's Heat debut and Desmond Bane's Magic debut.
• Oct. 22: Raptors at Hawks - Brandon Ingram's Raptors debut and Kristaps Porziņģis' Hawks debut. 
• Oct. 22: 76ers at Celtics - No. 3 overall pick VJ Edgecombe's NBA debut. 
• Oct. 22: Spurs at Mavericks - No. 2 overall pick Dylan Harper against No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg in their NBA debuts. 
• Oct. 22: Timberwolves at Blazers - Jrue Holiday's Trail Blazers debut and Robert Williams III's likely return from his latest injury. 
• Oct. 23: Thunder at Pacers - NBA Finals rematch. 
• Nov. 3: Bucks at Pacers - Myles Turner's first game back in Indianapolis since leaving the Pacers. 
• Nov. 6: Clippers at Suns - Bradley Beal returns to Phoenix in a likely hostile environment after his tumultuous tenure there ended with a buyout. 
• Nov. 24: Rockets at Suns - Kevin Durant returns to Phoenix with the Rockets in first game at his former Suns. 
• Nov. 26: Rockets at Warriors - Kevin Durant returns to the Bay with his new Rockets team in a potential playoff preview and rematch of last year's first round series. 
• Nov. 28: Mavericks at Lakers - Anthony Davis, Cooper Flagg visit the Lakers in Los Angeles in Davis' first game playing at his former Lakers team. 
• Jan. 2: Hawks at Knicks - Kristaps Porziņģis joins Trae Young as New York villains at Madison Square Garden. 
• Jan. 18: Magic at Grizzlies - Desmond Bane returns to Memphis for the first time since being traded to the Magic. 
• Jan. 19: Thunder at Cavaliers - Potential NBA Finals preview. 
• Jan. 24: Lakers at Mavericks - Luka Dončić returns to Dallas for the second time with his new Lakers team. Possible Kyrie Irving is back from injury. 
• Jan. 28: Lakers at Cavaliers - LeBron James' potential final game in Cleveland. 
• Feb. 1: Thunder at Nuggets - First meeting this season between MVP frontrunners Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokić, potential west finals preview. 
• Feb. 5: NBA Trade Deadline. 
• Mar. 4: Thunder at Knicks - Potential NBA Finals preview. 
• Mar. 29: Clippers at Bucks - Brook Lopez returns to Milwaukee for the first time since signing with the Clippers. 

Here's what else happened around the NBA this week...

Atlanta: Kristaps Porziņģis returned to the floor for the first time since his illness derailed the end of his Celtics career before his trade to the Hawks. He scored 20 points with six rebounds and two assists for Team Latvia in an exhibition win, 100-88, over Luka Dončić and Slovenia. He'll lead Latvia through EuroBasket beginning later this month, when the team hopes to have key contributors Artūrs Žagars and Rodions Kurucs back from injury. Porziņģis will make his return to TD Garden on Jan. 28, 2026. He'll face the Celtics for the first time in Atlanta on Jan. 17. 

Boston: Finalized their training camp roster for now by signing rookie Amari Williams to their final two-way spot after waiving Miles Norris. Ron Harper Jr. signed to their final training camp roster spot for now, placing the Celtics at their maximum 21 players for the preseason. Harper Jr. played with the Maine Celtics after attending Boston's camp and Summer League last year. The Detroit Pistons later signed him to a two-way contract. Harper Jr. shot 117-for-303 from three (38.6% 3PT) between Maine and Motor City in his comeback season from shoulder surgery. He's the brother of Spurs guard Dylan Harper, the No. 2 overall pick in June's draft, and son of NBA champion Ron Harper Sr. ... The NBA approved the sale of the Celtics to Bill Chisholm, who will become governor as their lead shareholder. Wyc Grousbeck, who was originally slated to stay on as governor for some time, will now serve in a CEO role holding just under 15%, per ESPN, through 2028. ... Neemias Queta is averaging 13.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game through four EuroBasket scrimmages for Portugal. He returned from an injury scare against the Spanish B team to show off new moves against Iceland. The Celtics only dropped from 34 to 25 national games this season. 

Brooklyn: Now have 17 players under contract after acquiring Haywood Highsmith in a salary dump from the Heat. With Cam Thomas still in free agency and Day'Ron Sharpe returning alongside Ziaire Williams, they still have work to do to finalize their roster for the season. They still have $20.4 million in cap space and hold team options that can get them to $43.2 million, depending on what they want to do in the final stages of the offseason. Continue to look at them as a salary dumping ground, while Keon Johnson, Jalen Wilson, Tyrese Martin and Drew Timme could shake free as intriguing young players from last season in Brooklyn. Boston and the Nets play a home-and-home on Nov. 18-21, then in Brooklyn on Jan. 23 and Boston on Feb. 27. 

Cleveland: Visit the Celtics for an early-season matchup on Oct. 29 before hosting Boston on Nov. 30 and Mar. 8, when Darius Garland should be back from offseason toe surgery. It's one of a number of injury breaks the Celtics will catch early in their schedule. One reporter believes it's a guarantee that LeBron James returns to Cleveland if the Cavs don't make the Finals this season. Cleveland is currently a slight favorite to win the east over New York after back-to-back second-round exits against Boston and Indiana. 

Dallas: Cooper Flagg will return to New England for the first time with the Mavericks on Mar. 6 against the Celtics. Kyrie Irving should also be back from ACL surgery by then, setting up one of the most compelling home games on Boston's calendar. The Celtics see Flagg for the first time in Dallas on Feb. 3. The Mavs open the preseason at home against the Thunder on Oct. 6 and their regular season opener comes on Oct. 22 at home against No. 2 pick Dylan Harper, Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs on the second day of opening week. 

Denver: Russell Westbrook is not expected to return to the Nuggets, according to ESPN. Westbrook rode highs and lows with Denver in his lone season there, averaging 13.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG and 6.1 APG in 75 games, finishing seventh in Sixth Man of the Year voting for the second consecutive season. He'll now join his sixth team over the last seven years at age 37 for his 18th NBA season. The Nuggets will fill his minutes between Bruce Brown, Christian Braun, Julian Strawther, Peyton Watson and Tim Hardaway Jr. Nikola Jokić and the Nuggets visit the Celtics in Boston on Jan. 7. He enters the season as the favorite again to win MVP. 

Detroit: Former Celtic Javonte Green signed with the Pistons on a one-year deal guaranteed $925K. Green made his NBA comeback after multiple injury-riddled seasons and a G-League stint in Golden State to play 68 games between New Orleans and Cleveland, where he was traded at the deadline. He averaged 5.1 PPG, 3.2 RPG and shot 42.9% FG. 

Golden State: ESPN reported that Jonathan Kuminga's aversion to signing the two-year, $45 million offer on the table from the Warriors is becoming a pawn for the team between the lack of a no-trade clause and the second-year team option that Golden State has included. Kuminga has until Oct. 1 to pick up his qualifying offer, a one-year, $7.9 million deal that comes with a no-trade clause and returns him to unrestricted free agency next summer. In the meantime, Al Horford and other deals the Warriors have pursued this summer are on hold. If Horford signs with Golden State as expected, he'll make his return to Boston on Mar. 18. The Celtics visit the Warriors in San Francisco on Feb. 19. 

Houston: Have no sense of urgency to get a contract extension done with Kevin Durant entering his age-37 season. Durant has one-year, $54.7 million left on his contract after his trade from Phoenix, making him an unrestricted free agent next summer. He's eligible for a two-year, $122 million extension, though he's not expected to earn that maximum amount. Durant and the Rockets have until June 30 next summer to agree to a deal. Durant and the Rockets visit the Celtics in Boston early in the season on Nov. 1. 

Indiana: Tyrese Haliburton moved on from his walking boot he's worn since tearing his Achilles in Game 7 of the NBA Finals in June. It's a similar milestone to one Jayson Tatum achieved recently, who was walking comfortably and climbing stairs in Providence during a community event earlier this month. Haliburton told Bleacher Report that he's working his tail off to get healthy as soon as possible, though he's been ruled out for the 2025-26 season. The Pacers received a national TV hit following the injury, only receiving nine games and getting knocked off Christmas. They will, however, appear in an opening week showcase for a Finals rematch against the Thunder on Oct. 23. They meet in Oklahoma City on Jan. 23. 

“Everyone is going to step up in some way,” Haliburton said. “I’m excited to see Andrew Nembhard slide into becoming the full-time point guard with me out. Everyone’s role grows with me out, I don’t think it’s a thing where we have to replace me necessarily, but everybody’s role increases. … There are a lot of guys, but Andrew is who I’m most excited to watch filling in at my position. I’ll be trying to help as much as I can.”

Lakers: Luka Dončić avoided an injury scare in his first EuroBasket exhibition with Slovenia, falling backward and banging knees with a teammate before exiting for the rest of a game. Multiple reports indicated that he avoided major injury, and he was later diagnosed with a knee contusion. Dončić, who's touted his renewed fitness throughout the summer, dropped 26 points, five assists and four rebounds on Latvia in the first half of Slovenia's eventual loss. It's unclear if he'll now be ready for the country's EuroBasket opener against Poland on Aug. 28, though he's remaining with the team and expected to practice on Sunday. Slovenia plays another exhibition on Tuesday against Great Britain. The Lakers visit the Celtics on Dec. 5, potentially Marcus Smart's second game playing at TD Garden since his trade from Boston and LeBron James' potential final game at TD Garden. They meet in LA on Feb. 22. 

Miami: Traded Haywood Highsmith to the Nets to get below the luxury tax line and sign guard prospect Dru Smith, who's worked through injuries and limited opportunities for three years on a two-way contract. He agreed to a three-year standard contract with Miami. Smith tore his ACL in 2024 before tearing his achilles this past season. Smith averaged 6.2 PPG, 2.6 RPG and 1.5 SPG in 19.2 minutes per night in 14 appearances in 2025. He shot 51% FG and 53% 3PT. The Heat now have 14 standard roster spots filled. 

Minnesota: Former Timberwolves center Luka Garza, who's joining the Celtics this season, described the impact Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Naz Reid and other former teammates had on him, laying out the blueprint for him becoming an NBA rotation player after seeing limited opportunities early in his career. Garza spoke following his Jr. Celtics camp appearance last week. He said he'll continue leaning into his three-point shooting while learning the new focuses and areas on the floor the Celtics want him to play in. His defense remains a work in progress. The Timberwolves reportedly did not block Donte DiVincenzo from playing for Italy in EuroBasket. He backed out last month, citing a physical issue. Danilo Gallinari will lead the Italians in his final competition with the team before he retires, Gallinari said. Minnesota visits Boston on Mar. 22 this season. 

New York: Host the Celtics in the first game ever on Prime, who will host national NBA games on Fridays alongside ESPN and NBC this season. New York hosts Boston for the first time since their playoff series on Oct. 24 after the Knicks open at home two days earlier against the Cavs. The Celtics then don't return to Madison Square Garden until Apr. 9. The Knicks visit TD Garden on Dec. 2 and Feb. 8. New York leads the NBA with 34 national games this season. New addition Guerschon Yabusele will play a significant role for France at EuroBasket with Victor Wembanyama, Rudy Gobert and now Vincent Poirier sitting out this summer's competition. 

Oklahoma City: Open the NBA season against the Rockets on ring night in Oklahoma City on Oct. 21. They'll head to Indiana for a Finals rematch two days later before visiting Cooper Flagg and the Mavs on Oct. 27. They host the Celtics on Mar. 12 and visit Boston on Mar. 25 after beating them twice last season. The Thunder, Lakers, Warriors and Knicks all have 34 games shown nationally this season. 

Philadelphia: Open the NBA season in Boston on Oct. 22, where they'll play without Paul George following his offseason surgery. Joel Embiid's status for opening night is unclear, though the severity of his knee ailment and offseason surgery point toward there at least being a chance he starts the season on the bench. The Sixers have played up his readiness for training camp. Boston and Philadelphia meet early and often in the schedule, playing their NBA Cup group stage game in Philadelphia on Oct. 31 before another game there on Nov. 11. Those could become crucial swing games for two teams likely to finish on the edge of the playoff mix in the east this season, and the Celtics could benefit from seeing the 76ers shorthanded in three of their four matchups. Nick Nurse said in a radio interview that all news is positive surrounding Embiid's recovery so far. 

"I know he's working very, very hard and I think things look good. Whether he's ready for training camp or not, I think there's maybe a lot more decisions than that to make before we get there. But our main thing is that he's healthy to play and play to his nearest capabilities, because he's awesome, no doubt about that."

Portland: Jrue Holiday returns to Boston on Jan. 26 for the first time since his trade to Portland. It could also mark Robert Willliams III's first game playing in TD Garden since his trade there for Holiday in 2023 if he's healthy. It comes two days before Porziņģis' return to Boston with the Hawks. The Celtics will visit them in Portland on Dec. 28 as part of the Celtics' first extended road trip following Christmas. The Blazers open on Oct. 22 against the Timberwolves. The long effort to sell the Blazers following former owner Paul Allen's death in 2018 concluded last week when Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon agreed to purchase the team and keep them in Portland for just over $4 billion. The Blazers and Portland agreed to a new lease through 2030 and a renovation project on the Moda Center before the sale. Allen's estate will continue owning the Seattle Seahawks and a 25% stake in the MLS' Seattle Sounders. 

San Antonio: Luke Kornet will become the first former Celtic to return to TD Garden this season on Jan. 10 with the Spurs. Kornet spent parts of five seasons with Boston before signing with San Antonio this offseason. That will also mark Victor Wembanyama's lone visit to Boston before they play again in Texas on Mar. 10. The Spurs have a light early schedule after opening at Dallas, only facing one playoff team from last year until their Nov. 5 road game at the Lakers.