2008-2009 NBA TNT Schedule Announced
The NBA Returns to TNT with an Opening Night Doubleheader as Turner Sports
Tips off the 2008-09 NBA Season with its 25th Year of Coverage
Boston, Cleveland, L.A. Lakers and Phoenix Top TNT’s Appearances
It’s a new year Reggie
Turner Network Television (TNT) announced today its NBA regular season schedule, marking Turner Broadcasting’s 25th season of NBA basketball coverage. TNT’s full slate of regular season games includes 10 appearances each by the Cleveland Cavaliers, L.A. Lakers and Phoenix Suns and nine appearances by the defending NBA Champion Boston Celtics. The network will televise 53 regular season primetime NBA games for the 2008-09 season - 47 of which will be part of its Thursday night exclusive doubleheaders, including doubleheaders on Thanksgiving and Christmas and a tripleheader on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Once again, TNT’s entire NBA preseason, regular and postseason telecasts will air in high-definition as part of “TNT in HD.”
TNT’s coverage begins on Tuesday, Oct. 28, with a special one-hour preview show, NBA Tip-Off ‘08 presented by Autotrader.com, featuring the Celtics’ championship ring ceremony at 7 p.m. ET, followed at 8 p.m. with an exclusive opening night doubleheader. The first game will feature 2007-08 NBA scoring champion LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers taking on the defending NBA World Champion Boston Celtics and the “Big Three” combo of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. Game two features the first regular season game for 2007 NBA Draft #1 overall selection Greg Oden and the Portland Trail Blazers as they visit reigning NBA MVP Kobe Bryant and the defending Western Conference champion L.A. Lakers at 10:30 p.m. ET.
Opening Week continues on TNT on Thursday, Oct. 30 as Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming and the Houston Rockets take on Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd and the Dallas Mavericks at 8 p.m. ET, followed by a duel between All-Star point guards as Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns host Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets at 10:30 p.m. ET.
TNT tips off its coverage with two preseason contests including the first outdoor NBA game in more than 35 years when the Phoenix Suns take on the Denver Nuggets from Indian Wells, California on Saturday, Oct. 11 at 10 p.m. ET. The second pre-season contest will pit the Charlotte Bobcats against the L.A. Lakers from Anaheim, California on Thursday, Oct. 23 at 10 p.m. ET.
Along with its Opening Week doubleheaders, TNT’s schedule includes a number of marquee match-ups, including:
- Nov. 20 - A rematch of the 2008 Eastern Conference Finals when Chauncey Billups and the Detroit Pistons visit Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics (8 p.m. ET), followed by Shaquille O’Neal and the Phoenix Suns hosting Kobe Bryant and the L.A. Lakers (10:30 p.m. ET).
- Dec. 18 - A night of battling big men as Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs takes on Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic (8 p.m. ET) followed by Shaquille O’Neal and the Phoenix Suns visiting Greg Oden and the Portland Trail Blazers (10:30 p.m. ET).
- Dec. 25 - A Christmas night doubleheader will feature Gilbert Arenas and the Washington Wizards traveling to Cleveland to face LeBron James and the Cavaliers (8 p.m. ET) followed by Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks visiting Brandon Roy and the Portland Trail Blazers (10:30 p.m. ET).
- Jan. 19 - A star-studded MLK Day tripleheader including Chauncey Billups and the Detroit Pistons taking on Rudy Gay and the Memphis Grizzlies (5:30 p.m. ET), Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns facing Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics (8 p.m. ET) followed by LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers visiting Kobe Bryant and the L.A. Lakers (10:30 p.m. ET).
- Feb. 5 -A 2008 NBA Finals rematch featuring Paul Pierce and the Boston Celtics hosting Kobe Bryant and the L.A. Lakers (8 p.m. ET).
- Feb. 12 - The top two picks in the 2008 NBA Draft go head-to-head as No. 1 pick Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls host No. 2 pick Michael Beasley and the Miami Heat (7 p.m. ET).
- Feb. 26 - Former teammates face each other for the second time this season on TNT as Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers host Shaquille O’Neal and the Phoenix Suns (10:30 p.m. ET).
TNT will once again serve as the exclusive home for NBA All-Star 2009, airing all the action on NBA All-Star Friday, NBA All-Star Saturday events and the 2009 NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 15 from Phoenix, Arizona. In addition, the network will also air 40 or more NBA playoff games including, on an exclusive basis, conference semi-finals games and the Eastern Conference Finals.
The NBA on TNT’s marquee roster of NBA announcers include the studio team of two-time Emmy® award-winning host Ernie Johnson, Hall of Famer Charles Barkley and two-time NBA Champion Kenny Smith. On-site game announcers will include Marv Albert (play-by-play), Kevin Harlan (play-by-play), Reggie Miller (analyst) Doug Collins (analyst), Mike Fratello (analyst), David Aldridge (reporter), Cheryl Miller (reporter) and Craig Sager (reporter).
TNT is in its 20th consecutive year of NBA coverage. Sister network TBS aired the NBA exclusively for Turner Broadcasting from 1984-89, with TNT serving as Turner’s sole NBA cable home from 1990-94. Both networks aired NBA games from 1994-2002.
28-Oct
Tuesday
7 p.m.
NBA Tip-Off ‘08 presented by Autotrader.com - Celtics Ring Ceremony
8 p.m.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Boston Celtics
10:30 p.m.
Portland Trail Blazers @ L.A. Lakers
30-Oct
Thursday
8 p.m.
Houston Rockets @ Dallas Mavericks
10:30 p.m.
New Orleans Hornets @ Phoenix Suns
6-Nov
Thursday
8 p.m.
Philadelphia 76ers @ Orlando Magic
10:30 p.m.
Houston Rockets @ Portland Trail Blazers
13-Nov
Thursday
7 p.m.
Denver Nuggets @ Cleveland Cavaliers
9:30 p.m.
Dallas Mavericks @ Chicago Bulls
20-Nov
Thursday
8 p.m.
Detroit Pistons @ Boston Celtics
10:30 p.m.
L.A. Lakers @ Phoenix Suns
27-Nov
Thursday
8 p.m.
Orlando Magic @ Washington Wizards
10:30 p.m.
New Orleans Hornets @ Denver Nuggets
4-Dec
Thursday
8 p.m.
Phoenix Suns @ Dallas Mavericks
10:30 p.m.
San Antonio Spurs @ Denver Nuggets
11-Dec
Thursday
8 p.m.
Boston Celtics @ Washington Wizards
10:30 p.m.
Portland Trail Blazers @ Utah Jazz
18-Dec
Thursday
8 p.m.
San Antonio Spurs @ Orlando Magic
10:30 p.m.
Phoenix Suns @ Portland Trail Blazers
25-Dec
Thursday
8 p.m.
Washington Wizards @ Cleveland Cavaliers
10:30 p.m.
Dallas Mavericks @ Portland Trail Blazers
15-Jan
Thursday
8 p.m.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Chicago Bulls
10:30 p.m.
Phoenix Suns @ Denver Nuggets
19-Jan
Monday
5:30 p.m.
Detroit Pistons @ Memphis Grizzlies
8:00 p.m.
Phoenix Suns @ Boston Celtics
10:30 p.m.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ L.A. Lakers
22-Jan
Thursday
8:00 p.m.
Boston Celtics @ Orlando Magic
10:30 p.m.
Washington Wizards @ L.A. Lakers
29-Jan
Thursday
8 p.m.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Orlando Magic
10:30 p.m
San Antonio Spurs @ Phoenix Suns
5-Feb
Thursday
8 p.m.
L.A. Lakers @ Boston Celtics
10:30 p.m.
Dallas Mavericks @ Utah Jazz
12-Feb
Thursday
7 p.m.
Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls
9:30 p.m.
Boston Celtics @ Dallas Mavericks
******************************NBA ALL-STAR 2009
13-Feb
Friday
NBA Rookie Challenge
14-Feb
Saturday
NBA All-Star Saturday
15-Feb
Sunday
2009 NBA All-Star Game from Phoenix, Arizona
**************************************************
19-Feb
Thursday
8 p.m.
San Antonio Spurs @ Detroit Pistons
10:30 p.m.
Boston Celtics @ Utah Jazz
26-Feb
Thursday
8 p.m.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Houston Rockets
10:30 p.m.
Phoenix Suns @ L.A. Lakers
5-Mar
Thursday
8 p.m.
Dallas Mavericks @ New Orleans Hornets
10:30 p.m.
Portland Trail Blazers @ Denver Nuggets
12-Mar
Thursday
8 p.m.
L.A. Lakers @ San Antonio Spurs
10:30 p.m.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Phoenix Suns
19-Mar
Thursday
8 p.m.
Portland Trail Blazers @ Cleveland Cavaliers
10:30 p.m.
Golden State Warriors @ L.A. Lakers
24-Mar
Tuesday
8 p.m.
Detroit Pistons @ Chicago Bulls
10:30 p.m.
Houston Rockets @ Utah Jazz
26-Mar
Thursday
8 p.m.
Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls
10:30 p.m.
Phoenix Suns @ Portland Trail Blazers
2-Apr
Thursday
8 p.m.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Washington Wizards
10:30 p.m.
Utah Jazz @ Denver Nuggets
9-Apr
Thursday
8 p.m.
Philadelphia 76ers @ Chicago Bulls
10:30 p.m.
Denver Nuggets @ L.A. Lakers
14-Apr
Thursday
8 p.m.
Boston Celtics @ Philadelphia 76ers
10:30 p.m.
Utah Jazz @ L.A. Lakers
Team Appearances:
| Cleveland | 10 | Orlando | 5 |
| L.A. Lakers | 10 | San Antonio | 5 |
| Phoenix | 10 | Washington | 5 |
| Boston | 9 | Detroit | 4 |
| Portland | 8 | Houston | 4 |
| Dallas | 7 | New Orleans | 3 |
| Denver | 7 | Philadelphia | 3 |
| Chicago | 6 | Miami | 2 |
| Utah | 6 | Golden State | 1 |
| Memphis | 1 |
Sphere: Related Content
August 6th, 2008 at 8:55 pm
Great opening doubleheader, I can’t wait.
August 6th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
Man I can’t wait the NBA league pass is so much better to me then the NFL. For the simple fact that the NBA plays a 82 game schedule. Man this pass season I was watching a game a night at the least and at the most I could flip through 12 games in a night. Man I was in heaven.
And my wife was gonna kill me by the end of the week.
Hurry up NBA season and get here!!!!!!!
August 7th, 2008 at 2:04 am
[...] 2008-2009 NBA TNT Schedule Announced By Mizzo Turner Network Television (TNT) announced today its NBA regular season schedule, marking Turner Broadcasting’s 25th season of NBA basketball coverage. TNT’s full slate of regular season games includes 10 appearances each by the … The Starting Five - http://thestartingfive.net/ [...]
August 7th, 2008 at 2:17 am
Hey! What about C-Webb? Isn’t he part of the cast Mizzo?
August 7th, 2008 at 8:57 am
I’ll find out asap after I speak with him Michelle.
August 7th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
I’m looking at the schedule and am glad that Shaq & Co., also called the Suns, have 10 appearances. He may be fading but he’s still a draw. Yes, I “stan” for the Diesel even in his waning years.
But I also look forward to seeing Chris Webber as part of the crew. He’s an intelligent man who seems to draw from his experiences and not hard on the eyes at all.
October 26th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
[...] I worked as a lighting director and a director of photography for Turner Network Television (TNT) in Waltham, Massachusetts. I was asked to help setup and shoot a sit down interview with John [...]
October 31st, 2008 at 5:41 am
TNT is dumb and wack. How can they not broadcast any Atlanta Hawks games and here is a team that had one of the most exciting playoffs in the post season last year. They have a ton of talent and are a fun team to watch on SportSouth. ESPN should be ashamed of themselves as well. But at least ESPN has the hawks on once. The stupid thing about TNT is that the cameras and announcers are right there in Atlanta-They just dumb as hell.
November 13th, 2008 at 12:17 am
I have always enjoyed watching the nba on tnt, especially the playoffs. They have the best everything for the nba in my opinion. I always found they had a unique way of doin eveything, even displaying the score in the bottom right….i see this year they changed that but hope they go back to the way it was last season… anyways its great to see that the nba will still be on tnt this season