
The 2024-25 NBA season, which began on October 22, 2024, and ended on April 13, 2025, was the 79th season of the National Basketball Association. The NBA held an in-season tournament, the Emirates NBA Cup, for the second year in a row. The NBA season typically starts in October, with the preseason ending in mid-October and the regular season beginning soon after. The non-conference portion of the college basketball season usually starts in early November and lasts until the end of December. The NBA season is followed by the play-in tournament, playoffs, and the NBA Finals, which take place in June.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| 2024-25 NBA season start date | October 22, 2024 |
| NBA Preseason end date | October 18, 2024 |
| NBA regular season start date | October 22, 2024 |
| College basketball season start date | First week of November |
| NBA Playoffs start date | April 19, 2025 |
| NBA Finals start date | June 5, 2025 |
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What You'll Learn

The 2024-25 NBA season
The season will also feature several notable events, including the NBA G League Draft on October 26 and the Mexico City Game on November 2, where the Miami Heat will face the Washington Wizards. November 4 will be a busy day, with all 30 teams in action, and games starting 15 minutes apart from 7 p.m. ET onwards. The NBA will take a break from games on Election Day, November 5, and the G League Training Camp will run from October 28 to November 7. Rosters for the NBA G League Opening Day will be set on November 7, with the tip-off tournament beginning the next day.
The Emirates NBA Cup will kick off on November 12, with the group stage concluding on December 3. The quarterfinals will be held on December 10 and 11, with the Magic facing the Bucks and the Mavericks taking on the Thunder on the first day, followed by the Hawks vs. Knicks and Warriors vs. Rockets on the second day. Christmas Day will feature an exciting lineup of games, including Spurs vs. Knicks, Timberwolves vs. Mavericks, Sixers vs. Celtics, Lakers vs. Warriors, and Nuggets vs. Suns, with coverage on ABC, ESPN, ESPN+, and Disney+. The NBA G League 34-game regular season will tip off on December 27.
The new year will bring more basketball action, with January 5, 2025, marking the first day 10-day contracts can be signed. All NBA contracts will be guaranteed for the remainder of the season as of January 10. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, on January 20, will feature games between the Mavericks and Hornets, Timberwolves and Grizzlies, and Celtics and Warriors. The Castrol Rising Stars Draft will take place on February 4, followed by the NBA Trade Deadline and the All-Star Draft on February 6. The NBA will take a break for the All-Star Game from February 14 to 19. The NBA Regular Season will conclude on April 13, with the SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament taking place from April 15 to 18. The first round of the NBA Playoffs will tip off on April 19, and the 2025 NBA Finals, presented by YouTube TV, will commence on June 5, 2025, with ABC as the exclusive broadcaster.
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The 2025 NBA Playoffs
The 2024-25 NBA season will be the 79th NBA regular season and will tip off on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, and conclude on Sunday, April 13, 2025. The SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament 2025 will take place from Tuesday, April 15, to Friday, April 18, followed by the start of the NBA Playoffs 2025 on Saturday, April 19. The NBA Playoffs will be presented by Google Pixel.
The NBA Finals 2025 will be presented by YouTube TV and will be exclusively televised by ABC. The Western Conference Finals 2025 will be televised by ESPN/ABC. TNT will exclusively air the Eastern Conference Finals 2025 and the NBA All-Star Game 2025, which will be played on Sunday, February 16, at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
The rosters for the NBA Playoffs 2025 will be set on April 14, 2025, at 3 pm. The NBA Draft Lottery will be presented by State Farm on May 12, 2025, at 6:30 pm or 7 pm ET on ESPN. The NBA Draft will take place on June 25-26, 2025, at 8 pm ET on ABC and ESPN.
The NBA Playoffs will feature the top six seeds from each conference, while the next four seeds will participate in a Page playoff system tournament. The 7th-place team will host the 8th-place team in the double-chance round, needing to win one game to advance. The winner will clinch the 7th seed in the playoffs. The 9th-place team will host the 10th-place team in the elimination round, requiring two wins to advance, with the loser being eliminated from contention.
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College basketball season
The college basketball season in the US typically begins in early November and concludes in late March or early April. The 2024-25 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, for instance, started on November 4, 2024, and ended with the championship game on April 7, 2025. The regular season ended on March 16, 2025, followed by the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, which began on March 18.
The college basketball season can be divided into two main parts: the non-conference portion and the conference play. The non-conference portion usually runs from the first week of November to the last week of December. During this period, teams compete against a variety of opponents from different conferences. The results of these games can impact a team's ranking and their chances of securing a spot in the NCAA Tournament, also known as "March Madness".
Following the non-conference portion, conference play begins in January. This is when teams play against opponents within their own conference to determine conference standings and rankings. Conference tournaments typically start in late February or early March, and they play a crucial role in determining the automatic bids for the NCAA Tournament.
The NCAA Tournament, or "March Madness", is one of the most exciting and anticipated events in college basketball. It features a field of 68 teams, selected by the NCAA Tournament committee, and includes automatic qualifiers from conference tournaments as well as at-large bids for teams that did not win their conferences. The tournament is single-elimination, adding to the excitement and unpredictability of the competition. The 2024-25 NCAA Tournament, for example, included 32 teams that were invited to participate in the National Invitation Tournament after the field was announced.
As the college basketball season progresses, teams and players alike strive for excellence, both on and off the court. The 2024-25 season witnessed several milestones, including Oakland basketball coach Greg Kampe becoming the winningest coach in conference games in Horizon history, and Temple becoming the sixth college basketball program to earn 2,000 all-time wins.
With the conclusion of the college basketball season, universities and colleges begin preparations for the upcoming year. This includes announcing ticket pricing and season ticket renewals, as well as making adjustments to scholarship programs and team rosters.
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NBA preseason
The NBA preseason is an exciting time for basketball fans, offering a first look at the teams and players that will compete in the upcoming season. For the 2024-25 NBA season, the preseason is packed with action, including international games and the participation of all 30 teams in the league.
The preseason schedule for the 2024-25 NBA season was recently announced, with training camps opening for teams playing preseason games outside North America on September 25, 2024. This was followed by media days for individual teams, with the remaining 28 teams holding theirs on September 30. October 1 marked the opening of NBA training camps, signalling the start of more intensive preparations for the preseason and the regular season ahead.
The NBA preseason games officially tip off on October 4, with the Celtics taking on the Nuggets in Abu Dhabi, UAE, as part of the NBA Abu Dhabi Games 2024. This international showcase is followed by another global contest, as the Toronto Raptors face the Washington Wizards in Montreal, Canada, on October 6. These games provide a unique opportunity for fans outside the US to experience NBA action up close and personal.
The preseason continues with a packed schedule, including the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Weekend in Springfield, Massachusetts, on October 12-13. This event honours the greatest players and contributors to the sport, recognising their impact on the game. The preseason concludes on October 18, with teams finalising their rosters and making last-minute adjustments before the start of the regular season on October 22.
The 2024-25 NBA preseason promises to be an exciting warm-up to the regular season, with teams looking to find their rhythm, test their off-season improvements, and build momentum ahead of the competitive league games to come.
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NBA Draft
The NBA season for 2024-25 is set to start on October 22, 2024, with the regular season ending in April 2025. The NBA Draft is an annual event that dates back to 1947, where teams that didn't make the playoffs participate in a state-lottery-style process to determine the order of player picks for the draft. The NBA introduced the lottery process in 1985.
The NBA Draft is a chance for teams to select players who have declared for the draft and are eligible to join their organisation. Each of the 30 teams in the NBA gets at least one draft pick across the two rounds of the draft. Typically, college basketball players make up the majority of those drafted, but players are also increasingly selected from international professional leagues, the G League Ignite team, and youth professional basketball leagues.
The NBA Draft Lottery uses a "lottery-style ping-pong ball machine with 14 balls numbered 1-14, and 1,000 four-digit combinations are assigned to the 14 lottery teams." Historically, the team with the worst record received the best odds of receiving the first pick, but since 2019, the three worst-performing teams have had equal odds of winning the top pick. After the first four picks are determined, the remaining teams are ordered in reverse based on their previous season's record.
The 2025 NBA Draft will be held on June 25 and 26, with the Draft Lottery taking place on May 12, 2025, in Chicago.
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Frequently asked questions
The 2024-25 NBA season started on October 22, 2024.
The non-conference portion of the college basketball season usually starts in the first week of November and ends in the last week of December.
The NBA preseason usually ends in mid-October. For example, in 2024, it ended on October 18.
The NBA Finals usually begin in June. For example, in 2025, Game 1 of the NBA Finals will be held on June 5.











































