The NBA has shrunk the preseason schedule to an NFL-like length four games, the Phoenix Suns in particular opening up on October 8, vs the Minnesota Timberwolves, and ending just six days later vs the Denver Nuggets.
The length seems awfully short to most fans who grew up watching the NBA regularly scheduling an eight-game exhibition season, a slate that took up the better part of the month of October before opening the regular season late that month, or in early November.
However, while fans may have enjoyed it (I will never forget listening to the first preseason game of 1999 with the introduction of Penny Hardaway next to Jason Kidd and being ridiculously excited), players haven’t always been fans; even back in an era in which professional leagues ran extended preseasons that lasted much longer than even younger fans are accustomed to:
In the 1950s and 60s, the NBA used to run a college-season worth of preseason games, scheduling upwards of 25 games, while the NFL used to make their players fight through a minimum of six games that did not count towards their regular season schedule.