Jun 16, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates winning in game six of the NBA Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Scott Horlbeck
The 2015-2016 NBA schedules are out!!!
Just kidding about the exclamation points. I’m actually not that excited for the new schedules. 41 home games, 41 road games, a dope Christmas line-up, a couple devilish Free Agent vs. Old Team match ups, and a few teams that get blanked on national TV games (Denver, Detroit, Philly). It’s pretty much the same every year, but nowadays it seems like you’re supposed to get excited for the schedule announcement, so… here you go, excitement!!!!
Going through the Warriors schedule, here are the highlights:
- First off, the Warriors have 25 nationally televised games (ESPN, ABC, TNT), the most of anyone in the league, and the most allowed by the NBA for one team. The only other team with 25 nationally televised games is the Cavs. The Thunder and Clippers both have 24.
- The Warriors will start their season on Oct. 27th by raising a banner in Oracle then taking on Alvin Gentry and the New Orleans Pelicans at 7:30 PM PT on TNT. A fun to way say goodbye to traitor Alvin. (kidding)
- The Warriors will be the primetime game on Christmas day, taking on the Cavaliers at 2 PM PST on ABC.
- The Warriors play a league high 20 back-to-back games this year which makes it tougher. They will also travel the most miles this season. Okay, now I’m starting to get mad. On top of that, their first five games are against New Orleans, Houston, New Orleans, Memphis, Clippers. Who made this damn schedule, Daryl Morey???
You know what, I’m going to go watch some Bachelor in Paradise and cool down for a sec. What did you think out the Dubs schedule?
Sam Esfandiari
THE WARRIORS GOT SCREWED BY BACK TO BACKS!
Sorry, I blacked out on Fitz-juice for a second.
Jokes aside, the schedule is what it is. There are some exciting games, and then there are the Philadelphia 76ers.
On the back to backs, Ethan Strauss of ESPN summed it up best:
If you’re happy about the Warriors getting on national TV 25 times and bummed about 20 back-to-backs: Those 2 things are connected
— Ethan Strauss (@SherwoodStrauss) August 12, 2015
When you’re one of the 3-4 franchises the league wants to promote, you will be stuck with some unenviable back to backs to get you on TV. It is what it is. I’m not too concerned or lets put it this way, if five extra back to backs is what determines Golden States repeating or not, they were never going to.
Onto games I’m excited about:
- Christmas v. LeBron and the LeBronettes is the first one that jumps out at you. The hype around it will be huge. The atmosphere will be electric. Oracle on Christmas has produced some excellent games in recent years. And LeBron has played some of his best games at Oracle (2 buzzer beaters since 2009).
- Every Clipper game because:
- But what I’m most excited about are these ABC Saturday night games. Brian Windhorst of ESPN notes:
“The new Saturday night package on ABC starts on Jan. 23 with the Bulls visiting the Cavs. There’s an effort to make Saturday a big basketball night with numerous high-profile matchups, including Cavs-Spurs, Warriors-Clippers and Warriors-Thunder, as it becomes a feature on the schedule from late-January onward.”
The Warriors will face:
- Los Angeles Clippers 2/20
- Oklahoma City Thunder 3/6
- San Antonio Spurs 3/19
All games will be at 5:30pm on Saturday. High profile match ups at an ideal time on Saturday to meet your friends, order a pizza, and have a few beers while you watch some of the NBA’s best teams be showcased on national TV. For the Warriors all 3 opponents present unique challenge and entertaining basketball. I know I’m making these dates for a quality guy’s night.
What are your thoughts on the schedules?
Scott Horlbeck
Sam comes out FIRING in Part 2, I like it! Take no prisoners Sam. If they’re not with us they’re against us.
In all seriousness though, how about a moment of silence for the fans of Denver, Detroit and Philly.
…..
Thank you.
It can’t be easy watching the NBA treat your favorite team like Meg from Family Guy.
Strauss’ point on back-to-backs makes sense. The Warriors are one of the most marketable teams in the league, so having a few more double headers as a result of 25 national TV games seems like a fair trade off.
But don’t think that will stop me from pumping out conspiracy propaganda in mid-January after the Warriors drop a road game in Charlotte on the back end of a double header.
“Don’t believe everything you hear. Real eyes, realize, real lies.” – Tupac
You make a great point though about these Saturday night ABC games. There’s nothing better than getting the squad together and drunkenly screaming at the TV while you shove pizza in your face.
If you think about it, Adam Silver is really on a roll. College Football releases Saturday night from it’s death grip in early January, so why not jump in and claim that scheduling window for the next three months.
Along with that, Silver and the league decreased the number of four-games-in five-nights by 61%, put Anthony Davis on national TV 13 times (should be a law), and apparently reduced the overall number of travel miles for teams.
Sam Esfandiari
I think it’s messed up Denver and Detroit didn’t get a single game. Particularly Detroit. They have some interesting talent and after the rough start, Stan Van Gundy had them playing respectable ball. They should be in the playoff hunt and have a potential All-Star or two. Denver also, while in a mini-rebuild, is no worse than a bunch of teams who did get national TV games. Phili on the other hand should, not only should get no national tv games, but no share of revenue.
You ask about Silver. If Silver was real, he’d push to have Philly’s share of revenue revoked. They are losing money for every team in the NBA. Every team has to sell tickets below market value when they come to town. They really are just a fungus on the NBA. At least other teams in rebuilt have a watchable product. Did I mention I really despise what Philly is doing? And I’m not even going into treatment of players (aka de-humanizing), which is my main issue.
Anyway, back to Silver. I think he’s done some positive things. I also think he’s getting a bit too much credit for no brainer moves. Like was there really any other option with Sterling? Are we supposed to praise him just because he’s not Roger Goodell?
In terms of the schedule I like what they’re doing with Saturday games. I’d like to see an expansion of Sunday games, post-NFL too. The one thing I’d REALLY like to see is NBA TV and local broadcasts NOT blacked out on league pass. If they weren’t I’d cancel my cable, buy subscriptions to league pass and the channels I want. That’s also why the NBA doesn’t do it, but I can wish.
Back to Warriors schedule; which stretches do you see as most challenging? Which stretch do you see as vital to team success?
Scott Horlbeck
Wow! I guess Hinkie and the Private Equity D-Bags should be happy you’re not running the league, huh. Revenue revoked! What did you put in your coffee this morning Sam, lighter fluid?
Unpopular opinion alert – I kind of like what Philly is doing. Now, stay calm. I’m not talking about the blatant tanking or the willingness to sabotage multiple seasons and a time. That sucks.
What I’m talking about is the idea of a team trying something new, something that’s never been done before (to this degree), something incredibly polarizing and fascinating and debatable. Something that may work, or something that may be a complete disaster.
My four years of college (2008-2012) were spent in the stands watching Chip Kelly and the Ducks drop 50 bombs on teams weekly. How’d they do it? They sped up the tempo, never huddled, used crazy formations and went for it on 4th down. People hated it, didn’t understand it, said it was ruining the game, said it wouldn’t last, and now everyone does it.
I’m not saying #TrustTheProcess will work, but I think it’s makes the league more interesting.
Back to the Warriors schedule.
Hardest stretch of the season? The first five games of the year aren’t exactly a cake walk (mentioned earlier), and neither are the last four (San Antonio, Memphis, San Antonio, Memphis).
But I’d probably say the month of February is the toughest, or maybe, “the most important” stretch of the season. They’ll play 10 games in the short month, the last seven of which coming on the road. Eight of the 10 teams they’ll face were in the playoffs last year, and the only two that weren’t – Orlando and Phoenix – are road games on the tail end of back to backs.
Sam Esfandiari
The schedule has some similarities to last season (road heavy early, lots of home games later on). I’m looking at December as a key month for Golden State. 8 of 13 games v. Eastern Conference teams. They only play 2 teams who won over 50 games that month (Houston and Cleveland). This will be a big month for Golden state to gain separation from the West.
The Warriors close with 15 of 21 at home so the more separation from the back they can create early the better. They will likely have a strong close to the season as they proved near impossible to beat at Oracle last season.
Hardest stretch might be directly after the All-Star break. They have to go on a 6 game road trip with a quick West coast back to back then fly to the Southeast. Six games in 8 nights, cross county flights, multiple playoff teams and contenders. There won’t be any time for a hang over if Golden State wants to hold ground with the West.