After an unprecedented 2020 NBA season due to the pandemic — marked by play inside the Orlando bubble, a compressed schedule, upsets galore in the playoffs and the Lakers capturing the championship in October — the new 2020-2021 season is underway just over two months later.
Unlike the bubble, in which only teams that had a shot at the playoffs were invited to participate, all teams are back in action at the NBA’s home courts. All except the Toronto Raptors, who have relocated to Tampa due to Canadian COVID-19 travel restrictions. Tampa and a few other locations will have fans to start the season, but the majority of games are taking place in mostly empty venues.
The season tipped off earlier this week and the NBA’s Christmas Day tradition continues today with a slate of five games that began at 9 a.m. PT on ABC and ESPN. Here’s the full lineup of the day’s remaining games:
- Brooklyn Nets vs. Boston Celtics at 2 p.m. PT on ABC
- Dallas Mavericks vs. Los Angeles Lakers at 5 p.m. PT on ABC
- Los Angeles Clippers vs. Denver Nuggets at 7:30 p.m. PT on ESPN
Read more: NBA streaming: Best ways to watch the 2021 season without cable
Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets take on the Celtics in the third game of the NBA’s Christmas showcase.
Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images
How can I watch the NBA on TV live without cable?
Four of the five major live TV streaming services offer ESPN, TNT and ABC (all but Sling TV), but not every service carries your local ABC station, so check the links below to make sure it’s available in your area.
If you want maximum coverage, you’ll also want to make sure you have NBA TV (which airs some games nationally each week) and your regional sports network (which air the bulk of a team’s local games). Most regional sports networks are only widely available via streaming on AT&T’s TV Now Max offering, which runs $80 per month.
At that price, you may want to just consider getting regular cable.
Read more: How to cut the cable TV cord in 2020
AT&T TV Now’s $80-a-month Max package includes all the major national channels as well as many of the regional sports networks. You can use its channel lookup tool to see which local channels are available where you live.
Read our AT&T TV Now review.
YouTube TV costs $65 a month and includes all the major NBA channels. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to see which local networks are available in your area.
Read our YouTube TV review.
FuboTV’s $65-a-month Family package includes ABC and ESPN. TNT, however, is not included and NBA TV costs extra. Click here to see which local channels you get.
Read our FuboTV review.
Sling TV’s Orange package has ESPN and TNT, but not ABC, for $30 per month. NBA TV is available for an extra $15 per month as part of Sling’s Sports Extra package.
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