NBA: Five best opening day games of all time ft. Lakers, Warriors and Miami Heat
PHOENIX, AZ - FEBRUARY 19: Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers adjusts his jersey during the NBA game against the Phoenix Suns at US Airways Center on February 19, 2012 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Lakers 102-90.
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By Kit Espina - givemesport.com
Published Jul 25, 2023
The NBA 2023-24 season is coming soon, and fans will finally get their basketball fix before we reach the end of October. Along with the expected storylines, such as LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers' quest for a ring, or waiting to discover if the Phoenix Suns can make their superteam work, there’s also the much-awaited debut of Victor Wembanyama for the San Antonio Spurs.
But before the league returns for the new season’s opening night, it’s worth remembering some of the best matches that have become legendary over the years.
With that said, we take a look below at the best NBA opening day games ever and why they stand out among the rest.
5.
2010-11: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets
Even toward the final years of his career, Kobe Bryant always made it a point to give fans a show to remember. That was exactly the case back when the 2010-11 season started, just a couple of months after the Los Angeles Lakers won the championship.
In that particular opening night match against the Houston Rockets, Bryant faced a squad led by Yao Ming. On that fateful October night fans got a battle to remember as the Black Mamba showed everyone why he was the NBA’s best player during that time.
With Paul Gasol, Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher, and Metta World Peace starting with Bryant for the Lakers, their first match of the season against Houston was nothing less than a nail-biter. The late All-Star shooting guard notched 27 points, five rebounds, and seven assists to put their opponents down.
The real kicker of the game here was when Bryant passed the ball to a wide-open Steve Blake, who then knocked the long-distance bomb from the 3-point lane to secure the 112-110 win for L.A. With a reputation such as Bryant’s, no one would have expected the game-winning shot to be made by no one else but him, a detail that makes this opening night match even more special.
4.
2011-12: Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls, and New York Knicks
It’s pretty hard to choose between these three opening night matches when the 2011-12 NBA season kicked off. Thanks to a shortened lockout season, the league scheduled the opening night on Christmas Day itself with a series of exciting matchups.
The first of which was the Miami Heat against the Dallas Mavericks. The Heat had LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh getting revenge over the same Mavs team that beat them a couple of months prior for the NBA championship, in a 105-94 contest.
In another opening night game between Chicago Bulls and the Bryant-led Lakers at the latter’s home, fans saw Derrick Rose step up by pouring 22 points on 69 percent shooting from the field, including the game-winning shot. The end result of this exciting game was a close 88-87 win for the Bulls, all thanks to an MVP-level star in Rose.
Last, but definitely not the least, is another Eastern Conference match-up between the New York Knicks, and a Boston Celtics team with Kevin Garnett, Rajon Rondo, and Ray Allen in it. With the home crowd backing him up, Carmelo Anthony went beast mode by scoring 37 points, and recording eight rebounds and three assists to secure a 106-104 dub over Beantown.
This trio of close matches between iconic stars in their prime during Christmas was a treat basketball fans had the chance to enjoy back then. As it stands, it looks like there’s little chance for this kind of action happening again on an opening night in December.
3.
2015-16: Golden State Warriors vs. New Orleans Pelicans
The 2015-16 season lives on as one of the best in recent memory due to a number of factors, such as Kobe Bryant’s last year in the league, the Golden State Warriors achieving the best regular season record, and a championship run by LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
But before all of those things took place, the Warriors faced off against the Anthony Davis-led New Orleans Pelicans on opening night. In that contest, Curry exploded for 40 points, seven assists, six rebounds, and two steals to get the 111-95 win. Looking back, that first game to the season marked the start of Curry’s unanimous MVP season and the Warriors’ dominant performance that year.
2.
2016-17: San Antonio Spurs vs. Golden State Warriors
After the Dubs lost the 3-1 advantage over LeBron’s Cavs, and eventually the 2016 NBA championship, Golden State took their roster to another level by signing Kevin Durant. With this massive signing, all eyes were on the new superteam to make a statement win once the 2016-17 season started.
While the Warriors were planning to do just that, Kawhi Leonard and the San Antonio Spurs had a different idea. The Klaw decided to spoil the party by dropping 35 points, five rebounds, three assists, and five steals to give the new Death Lineup a big loss. This led to a surprising 129-100 victory by the Spurs and an embarrassing start to Durant’s time in the Bay.
1.
2014-15: Houston Rockets vs. L.A. Lakers
After a disappointing stint with the Lakers, Dwight Howard was now with the Houston Rockets, alongside James Harden. Things weren’t particularly amicable between the All-Star center and his former team, especially the intense beef he had with Kobe Bryant.
The NBA capitalized on that brewing rivalry by booking both teams for the 2014-15 season’s opening night. As such, it had all the elements to kickstart the new campaign in a very enticing manner. It had two former teammates on opposite sides of the fence, a Lakers team with the home crowd behind them against a rising Rockets squad led by The Beard, and all the bright lights of Los Angeles on them.
While everyone favored the Black Mamba’s team at home, Harden had a different plan by dropping 32 points and six assists to lead Houston to a 108-90 victory. Although the game ended, it sparked an exciting season for fans all over the world.
With the 2023-24 season set to start soon, the hype is slowly building up for the NBA. Be on the lookout as the scheduled games will soon be released by the league so fans can plan their opening night right away.
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