Detroit Pistons release 2020-21 first-half schedule, open Dec. 23 at Timberwolves
We finally have a date and opponent for the start of the Detroit Pistons' 2020-21 season.
The Pistons open Wednesday, Dec. 23 at the Minnesota Timberwolves at 8 p.m., more than nine months since their last game.
The home opener at Little Caesars Arena is Saturday, Dec. 26 against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Andre Drummond (7 p.m.).
The Pistons host the Golden State Warriors on Dec. 29, then host back-to-back visits from the Boston Celtics on Jan. 1 and Jan. 3.
On Friday, the NBA released the first half schedule of the season, which runs Dec. 22-March 4 — see the Pistons' first half schedule below.
The 72-game schedule release confirms a long-awaited return to play for the Pistons, who saw their 2019-20 season end prematurely on March 11 when Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19. The NBA resumed play with 22 teams in July. The Pistons, who were out of the playoff race, stayed home.
READ MORE: What I liked and didn't like about Troy Weaver's moves
Detroit enters the season with a revamped roster, with only five players returning from last season — Blake Griffin, Derrick Rose, Sekou Doumbouya, Svi Mykhailiuk and two-way forward Louis King. Jerami Grant, who signed a three-year, $60 million contract, and Killian Hayes, the seventh pick of the draft, headline the new additions to the roster.
The Pistons are undergoing a "retooling" after general manager Troy Weaver was hired in June. He said the goal for the team is to compete, and to develop a culture that fans can buy into following a decade without playoff success.
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"It's a shortened season dealing with the pandemic, but the whole goal is to put a competitive team on the floor, that the city and the community can be proud of," Weaver said. "And we'll let the chips fall after that. We want to be competitive and we want a team with an identity that fits Detroit. I think we're headed in the right direction."
More NBA dates:
All-Star break: March 5-10, 2021.
Second half of regular season: March 11-May 16, 2021.
Play-in tournament: May 18-21, 2021.
NBA playoffs: May 22-July 22, 2021.
Pistons' schedule, first half
Dec. 23: at Minnesota, 8
Dec. 26: Cleveland, 7
Dec. 28: at Atlanta, 7:30
Dec. 29: Golden State, 7
Jan. 1: Boston, 7
Jan. 3: Boston, 3, NBATV
Jan. 4: at Milwaukee, 8
Jan. 6: at Milwaukee, 8
Jan. 8: Phoenix, 7
Jan. 10: Utah, 3, NBATV
Jan. 13: Milwaukee, 7
Jan. 15: Washington, 7
Jan. 16: at Miami, 8
Jan. 18: at Miami, 3
Jan. 20: at Atlanta, 7:30
Jan. 22: Houston, 7
Jan. 23: Philadelphia, 7
Jan. 25: Philadelphia, 7
Jan. 27: at Cleveland, 7
Jan. 28: L.A. Lakers, 7
Jan. 30: at Golden State, 8:30
Feb. 1: at Denver, 9
Feb. 2: at Utah, 9
Feb. 5: at Phoenix, 9
Feb. 6: at L.A. Lakers, 10
Feb. 9: Brooklyn, 7
Feb. 11: Indiana, 7
Feb. 14: at Boston, 6
Feb. 16: San Antonio, 7
Feb. 17: at Dallas, 8:30
Feb. 19: at Memphis, 8
Feb. 21: at Orlando, 6
Feb. 23: at Orlando, 7
Feb. 24: at New Orleans, 8
Feb. 26: Sacramento, 7
Feb. 28: New York, 6
Mar. 2: at Toronto, 7:30, in Tampa, Fla.
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @omarisankofa. Read more on the Detroit Pistons and sign up for our Pistons newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons release 2020-21 schedule, open Dec. 23 at Timberwolves
