Mark down October 29th if you are a hoops junkie chomping to take a bite from the NBA pie.

That's opening night in the National Basketball Association. It features three games. Two will be nationally televised. Somehow, the Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers didn't make the cut for national TV. Don't fret, though, we will see plenty of Pacers basketball this year and hopefully not much of the Magic. Jason Maxiell, be damned!

Here is what we will see opening night, along with other special events and games.

On opening night, the Miami Heat will get their rings and a chance to beat the Bulls followed by the Lakers and Clippers in a battle of Los Angeles. Get ready, America, for too much Lakers basketball on national TV this year.

Memo to TV stations: The Lake Show is old, thin, hurt, and not very good. Watching the antiquated Steve Nash, lame Pau Gasol, and valiant but hungry Kobe Bryant isn't a smart plan. I am just saying.

As for other special games and days, Christmas day is owned by the NBA and it will feature five games for wall to wall hoops with your family. For some reason Lakers vs. Heat gets the prime spot at 5 p.m. ET. The five game festival starts at noon with Brooklyn hosting Chicago, a nice appetizer pitting the two teams that battled for seven games in the first round of the Eastern playoffs last season.

Following that game, the Knicks will host Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder.

After the Lakers/Heat game, a nice nightcap of two games featuring Western conference foes. First it is Dwight Howard and the Rockets visiting the Alamo city for a battle with the San Antonio Spurs. Following that the LA Clippers and Golden State Warriors hook up outside of Oakland.

Other notable games include the Nets of Brooklyn, with their new acquisitions Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Jason Terry, opening their campaign at Cleveland on October 30th. Dwight Howard starts his Houston Rockets career against the Charlotte Bobcats (not yet back as the Hornets) on the 30th.

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