When the NBA unveiled its full slate of games Monday for the 2017-18 season, the league made sure to jump-start things with marquee players in marquee games early in the season.
And for those fans in Los Angeles, the NBA put the trending Lakers and Lonzo Ball against the steady Clippers and Blake Griffin in the season opener for both at Staples Center on Oct. 19.
The season starts Oct. 17 off with LeBron James — with or without Kyrie Irving — and the Cleveland Cavaliers hosting the Boston Celtics and Isaiah Thomas and free-agent signee Gordon Hayward in a rematch of last season’s Eastern Conference finals.