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Ringo HW Chiu / Associated Press
The NBA 2020-21 season opener on December 22 will feature a star-studded double on TNT as the Golden State Warriors take on the Brooklyn Nets, followed by the Los Angeles rivalry taking center stage with the defending champion Lakers grappling with the Clippers.
Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic reported the provisional schedule on Wednesday.
The first game will feature the Nets debut of Kevin Durant, who missed the 2019-20 campaign while recovering from an Achilles injury, alongside Kyrie Irving. Durant spent the previous three seasons with the Warriors, winning two championships.
On the other hand, Golden State is set to welcome Stephen Curry again after playing just five games last season due to a hand injury. Klay Thompson was also on track to return, but suffered an Achilles tear in a training session and will miss the year.
The hype surrounding the game could come to a head if the Nets pull off a successful trade for James Harden of the Houston Rockets, which was the subject of widespread pre-season trade rumors.
Overnight, the Lakers will open their title defense against one of the biggest threats to dethrone them in the Clippers. It will once again be LeBron James and Anthony Davis who take on Kawhi Leonard and Paul George in a clash of superstar duos.
The offseason added further intrigue to the rivalry when the Lakers signed free agent forward Montrezl Harrell, the sixth man of the year last season, away from the Clippers.
It was part of a roster revitalization that also included the arrivals of Wesley Matthews, Marc Gasol and Dennis Schroder, solidifying the Lakers as a team to beat again.
The NBA will release the full 2020-2021 schedule in two parts, with the first half of the season announced soon and the second half in the later stages of the first half.
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