Sports News
NBA, Knicks FINALLY Release 2011-2012 Schedule
With the NBA lockout fully in the rearview mirror, it’s time to start thinking about the Knicks. And, to get all of us excited about the start of basketball, the NBA released the 2011-2012 schedule Tuesday. The shortened 66-game season will tax each team in the league, making the season more of a sprint than a marathon.
What are the big matchups Knicks fans have to look forward to? Let’s take a look at some of the highlights for the upcoming season.
-The Knicks open up the season on Christmas Day at Madison Square Garden against the Boston Celtics. The matchup pits the Knicks against the team that swept them out of the playoffs last season. It will be interesting to see how the Knicks match up so early in the season against the team that handled them so easily in the postseason.
- The Knicks host the Denver Nuggets on January 21. Though the Knicks don’t travel to Denver, there will be plenty of familiar faces when Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov and possibly Wilson Chandler return to the Garden, while Carmelo Anthony faces his former team.
-New York hosts the Miami Heat just once this season on April 15 and travels to Miami twice on January 27 and February 23. LeBron James has said he doesn’t want to be a villain anymore, but I doubt Knicks fans will give him the pleasure.
- Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets face the Knicks on February 17. This is only intriguing if Chris Paul is still on the Hornets.
- The Knicks host the Chicago Bulls on February 2 and April 8, and host the Nets on February 4 and February 20.
- One of the Knicks’ toughest stretches, if not the toughest stretch, occurs at the beginning of February. The Knicks play three games in a row for the only time this season, hosting the Bulls before heading to Boston to play the Celtics and then returning home to face the Nets. There are also four stretches of four games played in five days. Overall, NBA teams will play 3.9 games per week, which is up from the usual 3.5 games per week. This averages out to about two more games per month.
- The Knicks play 21 back-to-back games this season. The played the same number last year, but those were spread out over 82 games.
- After the opening game against Boston, the Knicks head west before playing their second home game after New Years on January 2 against Toronto.
Photo Credits: Chris Trotman/Getty Images North America
FACEBOOK COMMENTS