Keith Pompey: Sixers' exclusion from NBA's opening week, Christmas and MLK Day showcases far from surprising

Keith Pompey, The Philadelphia Inquirer on Aug 12, 2025

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PHILADELPHIA — Kevin Durant is debuting for the Houston Rockets at his old stomping grounds against the defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder. The Golden State Warriors are taking on LeBron James and Luka Dončić, the new face of the Los Angeles Lakers. The future of the East — the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks — ignites what could be one of the NBA’s best rivalries in a wide-open conference.

NBA fans, looking for any hint of basketball news, got a chance to fantasize about the upcoming season Tuesday when the national TV schedules were released for the opening week, Christmas Day and Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The league will reveal 80 of each team’s full 82-game schedules on Thursday.

The early schedule release provided a glimpse of which teams the NBA expects to carry the torch in the 2025-26 season. And it shows the league is not betting heavily on the 76ers reemerging as championship contenders.

For the first time in four seasons, the Sixers were excluded from the league’s annual Christmas slate. Nor will they partake in national TV games on the opening week or play on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The biggest hit is not competing on Christmas Day, a major regular-season showcase that traditionally features the NBA’s biggest stars and top teams.

The games are viewed as a key event that can be leveraged to attract casual fans. They also give teams a chance to gain national exposure while providing opportunities for players to make statements on a high-profile stage.

The NBA will feature five Christmas games on ABC and ESPN, starting with the Cavaliers visiting the Knicks at noon. Then the Thunder will host the San Antonio Spurs at 2:30 p.m., followed by the Dallas Mavericks at the Warriors at 5 p.m., the Rockets at the Lakers at 8 p.m., and the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Denver Nuggets at 10:30 p.m.

The 2025-26 season will begin on Oct. 21 with opening night on NBC/Peacock, featuring the Thunder hosting the Rockets at 7:30 p.m., and the Lakers entertaining the Warriors at 10 p.m.

ESPN will begin its regular-season coverage with opening-week doubleheaders the following two days.

On Oct. 22, the Knicks will entertain the Cavs at 7 p.m., while the Mavs will host the Spurs at 9:30 p.m. Then on Oct. 23, the Thunder will travel to the Indiana Pacers in a rematch of the NBA Finals at 7:30 p.m., while the Nuggets will visit the Warriors at 10 p.m.

And the NBA’s first Peacock exclusive on Oct. 27 will feature the Cavs at the Detroit Pistons at 7 p.m., followed by Nuggets at the Timberwolves at 9:30 p.m.

NBC and Peacock will also televise the MLK Day games on Jan. 19: Milwaukee Bucks at Atlanta Hawks (1 p.m.), Thunder at Cavs (2:30 p.m.), Mavs at Knicks (5 p.m.), and Boston Celtics at Pistons (8 p.m.).

The Sixers’ exclusion from these showcases is far from surprising.

FanDuel lists the team’s over-under win total for this season at 41.5 games. And NBA.com ranks the Sixers as the East’s seventh-best team in the website’s offseason power rankings.

That’s because a team that lost 31 of its final 36 games last season hasn’t changed anything since it tanked to the NBA’s fifth-worst record of 24-58.

The NBA draft selection of VJ Edgecombe did give the Sixers a breath of fresh air, adding an athletic perimeter player who brings to mind a young Victor Oladipo.

However, to get the Sixers where they need to be, Daryl Morey, the team’s president of basketball operations, told reporters on July 11 that the Big Three of Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Paul George would have to be healthy.

Three days later, the Sixers announced that the often-injured George underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.

George was ruled out for the remainder of the 2024-25 season on March 17, the day he received injections in the left adductor muscle in his groin and left knee.

The team and George will be cautious with this injury, leading to speculation about whether he’ll be ready by the start of the season.

To make matters worse, Embiid revealed that he wasn’t rushing back from his left knee injury in a July 16 ESPN article. So he might not be ready to return from arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in April..

A season ago, the 2023 MVP and seven-time All-Star missed the entire preseason and the first six games while managing a left knee injury, then served a three-game suspension before ultimately appearing in just 19 contests.

Meanwhile, George missed the first five games of the Sixers’ regular season after hyperextending his left knee in an exhibition game against the Atlanta Hawks on Oct. 14. He played in only 41 games.

“I don’t think we can do it without that,” Morey said of Embiid, George and Maxey being healthy. “I would like to say that, but I don’t see it. So, yeah, I do think we’re very dependent on all those guys, including Joel.”