With another gold medal in the bag, the U.S men’s basketball dream team returned to the States on the ultimate high. They had been put through their paces, twice by Serbia, in the group stage and in the semifinal, while France remained in the fight until the last buzzer in the final. It was unthinkable that a team with the combined talents of LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Anthony Edwards, and Anthony Davis, just to mention a few, could fail to pick up a 17th gold medal in Olympics history.
Seeing the star-studded squad in action in the men’s final was one of the hottest tickets going over the course of the Games in Paris, but with the dust from the triumph settled, the attention of basketball fans switches to the upcoming 2024/25 NBA season, which kicks off towards the end of September with the first practice days.
The legends that combined to claim gold in Paris will go back to the usual grind and duke it out against each other for a chance to overthrow the Boston Celtics as champions. Three of 12 in the Olympics roster were plucked from the Celtics, and the side from Boston are already hot favorites with NBA betting odds at Cloudbet to retain their championship. However, after falling short in Paris, Serbian Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets will want to have their say. With the countdown to the first game between Boston Celtics and New York Knicks on October 22 already started, here are a couple of other moments to watch out for during the 2024/25 NBA season.
NBA on the road again
Even before the first match of the regular season, the NBA will visit Abu Dhabi and Canada as part of the preseason preparations. On the 4th and 6th of October, Jokić will get his first look at the reigning 18-time champions as the Boston Celtics take on his 2023 champions Denver Nuggets. This will be the third year running that the NBA takes its brand to the United Arab Emirates as the association continues to grow their brand in other markets around the world.
Closer to home, the NBA Canada Series sees the Toronto Raptors take on Washington Wizards in Montreal on October 6th. Unfortunately for both teams, the 2023/24 season was one largely to forget with the Raptors finishing in 12th in the Eastern Conference, ending the season on a four-match losing streak. The Wizards finished even lower, in 14th, and closed their campaign with six straight defeats.
Back to familiar surroundings
Once the regular season gets going, the 12th regular season match to be hosted by neighbors, Mexico, will take place on November 2nd. The Washington Wizards are on the road again, but this time, they face Miami Heat who fared slightly better in the Eastern Conference, finishing in 8th. Erik Spoelstra’s side lost to eventual champions, Boston Celtics, in the 1st playoff round. But in Mexico, they will be looking to stir their fanbase into life and entertain the ever-passionate Mexican NBA following.
