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Thursday was another big day on the NBA calendar, with the league revealing 80 of the 82 regular-season games each team will play. The two games that aren’t included depend on the results of the Emirates NBA Cup (formerly known as the In-Season Tournament), which will impact Week 8 of the schedule.
Twenty-eight of the 30 teams will play two games that count for fantasy (and league record) purposes during that week, with eight advancing to the quarterfinals on December 10 and 11 and the other 22 playing games against opponents that the league will determine. The semifinals will be played on December 14 in Las Vegas. Also, there is a bit of a twist that will be of interest to fantasy managers who have Knicks or Raptors players rostered.
Those two teams will meet on Monday, December 9, in a game that is not part of the NBA Cup. That means the Knicks and Raptors will play three games that count toward fantasy basketball that week, while the rest of the league gets two. The championship game is scheduled for Tuesday, December 17, and that game will (as was the case last season) not count toward league win/loss records or statistics.
Here are some takeaways from the schedule reveal and how fantasy basketball will be impacted.
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– The champion Celtics only play 13 back-to-backs
The league average for back-to-backs per team rose slightly compared to last season, with that number moving up to 14.9. One team that came in below that number is Boston, which will have 13 back-to-backs to navigate. That will be important for the team’s frontcourt, as Kristaps Porzingis will miss 5-6 months after undergoing left leg surgery this summer. Add that Al Horford did not play both ends of any back-to-backs last season, and the veteran center’s fantasy value may have been preserved to a certain extent. Luke Kornet and Xavier Tillman Sr. will have added value on nights when Porzingis and Horford are unavailable.
– Eleven teams are scheduled to play 16 back-to-backs
Eleven teams will play 16 back-to-backs, and the Clippers may be the most concerning fantasy-wise due to…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/2024-25-nba-regular-season-001039637.html
Author : NBC Sports
Publish date : 2024-08-16 00:10:39
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