The NBA released its Opening Night schedule for the 2026-27 NBA season on Tuesday, and you bet, Los Angeles Lakers great Magic Johnson had something to say about it.
There are three games on tap on Oct. 20 to start the new season, beginning with the showdown. The Boston Celtics and the Detroit Pistons share the court, while the New York Knicks and the new-look Philadelphia 76ers face off in another marquee matchup.
That game between the reigning NBA champion Knicks and the 76ers, who acquired both Jaylen Brown and LeBron James in the offseason, is arguably the best game on Opening Night, but Johnson says people should not be sleeping on the Western Conference Finals rematch featuring the Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs.
“If you thought the Knicks vs. 76ers match up was great, the second game may be even better as the San Antonio Spurs take on the Oklahoma City Thunder!” the three-time NBA MVP wrote in a post on X.
The Thunder must be aching to get back at San Antonio after the Spurs dethroned the then-reigning NBA champions in a seven-game series in the 2026 Western Conference Finals. However, Victor Wembanyama and company failed to complete their mission, as they lost in the NBA Finals to the Knicks, who ended a championship drought that lasted more than five decades.
With plenty of intriguing storylines to follow leading into the first day of the new NBA season, expect Johnson to voice more of his basketball opinions.
