2021-22 NBA schedule release: LeBron James vs. Stephen Curry on opening night; Lakers vs. Nets on Christmas

Here's everything you need to know about the 2021-22 NBA schedule

With most of the offseason wrapped up, we're turning the page to the 2021-22 season, which starts with the announcement of the NBA schedule which the league revealed Friday afternoon. We already knew some key dates on the calendar, as the NBA announced the Christmas Day slate of games on Tuesday, in addition to the two opening night games when the season starts on Oct. 19. But now we know the entire regular season schedule which includes some special highlights as the NBA celebrates its 75th anniversary. In celebration of that anniversary, the league will have "classic matchups" that pay homage to the first season back in 1946. The first of those classic matchups will be between the New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors on Nov. 1, to mark the 75th anniversary to date of when the NBA held its first regular season game. The league will also celebrate the three franchises who have played in every NBA season -- the Knicks, Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors (previously the Philadelphia Warriors) -- by holding three nationally televised games between those three teams over a five-day span in December. The final "classic matchup" will happen on Jan. 7 between the Los Angeles Lakers and Atlanta Hawks, which marks the 50th anniversary of when the Lakers beat the Hawks for their 33rd-straight win, which is still the longest winning streak in NBA history.