Back to the Illinois Fighting Illini Newsfeed

NBA 2024-25 opening night: Experts' picks for East, West and NBA champs

Like

425

Fire

3

Interesting

2

Celebrate

1

The 2024-25 NBA season is officially here!

The Boston Celtics begin their quest for back-to-back titles against the New York Knicks to kick off the NBA season (7:30 p.m. ET). After a dominant run through the playoffs, the Celtics enter this season as the favorites, but the depth of competition in the league won't make it easy for Boston to repeat.

The Knicks' busy offseason, which included bringing in Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns, has title hopes high in New York, while the Philadelphia 76ers signed Paul George this offseason to maximize the prime of 2022-23 MVP Joel Embiid.