Like ABC, TNT will lean heavily on star teams during the 2012-13 NBA season.
The Heat, Thunder, Knicks, Lakers, Clippers, Celtics and Mavericks — seven of the eight teams that exclusively make up ABC’s NBA schedule for the coming season — will have the most appearances on TNT during the 2012-13 NBA regular season.
In fact, at least one of the the ‘ABC eight’ (which also includes the Chicago Bulls) will appear in 49 of the 52 NBA telecasts on TNT this season. The only three games that will not involve one of those eight are Nuggets/Warriors on November 29 (10:30 PM ET), Spurs/Trail Blazers on December 13 (10:30 PM), and Spurs/76ers on Martin Luther King Day (7 PM).
With that said, at the very least the star teams will have a diverse selection of opponents. The Timberwolves will appear on TNT three times (against the Thunder, Clippers and Lakers), the Pacers will appear twice (against the Knicks and Celtics), and the Grizzlies get one appearance (against the Thunder).
TNT will begin the season on October 30 with a Celtics/Heat and Mavericks/Lakers doubleheader. A Knicks/Nets and Thunder/Spurs doubleheader follows two nights later.
(Schedule from Turner Sports)
