The NBA schedule for the upcoming 2022-23 season hasn’t been released yet, but there have been a few leaks in terms of big matchups.
This always seems to be standard fare in the NBA, where a few matchups, such as those on opening night and on Christmas Day, will be leaked before the entire schedule is released to the public.
The Los Angeles Lakers may not be a championship contender this coming season, and depending on how healthy they are, there is a chance they will even miss the playoffs again.
But as long as they have LeBron James and Anthony Davis, they will always be must-see TV, at least to a certain extent.
L.A. will face the defending world champion Golden State Warriors on opening night, and now two more key matchups have been leaked.
Lakers first game vs. Clippers
Ever since Paul George and Kawhi Leonard went to the Los Angeles Clippers three years ago, seemingly everyone in town has been looking to manufacture a rivalry between them and the Lakers.
It hasn’t materialized, at least not yet, as both teams haven’t gotten deep into the playoffs at the same time.
Leonard missed all of last season with a knee injury, but he is expected back for the start of this coming season.
The (presumably) full-strength Clippers will take on James and crew on Oct. 20, just two days after the Lakers’ opening night tilt versus the Warriors.
While many consider the Lakers to be merely a lower-tier playoff team, the Clippers are expected to be title contenders.
They have added to an already-strong roster by acquiring 3-and-D forward Robert Covington and guard Norman Powell, a strong scoring threat, last season while signing former All-Star point guard John Wall several weeks ago.
Christmas Day In The Lone Star State
Christmas Day is a huge marquee day for the NBA, much as Thanksgiving is for the NFL, and the Lakers have always been a fixture of yuletide NBA basketball.
The Purple and Gold usually host a contest on that holiday, but this time, the team will travel to Texas to take on Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks.
The Mavs unexpectedly made it to the Western Conference Finals a few months ago, but they were unable to do anything of note there, as the Warriors took them down in five games.
Dallas lost up-and-coming guard Jalen Brunson in free agency to the New York Knicks, but it was able to snag big man Christian Wood, who averaged an efficient 17.9 points plus 10.1 rebounds a game this past season.
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Story originally appeared on LeBron Wire
