Cavs To Open Home Season Vs. Pistons, Old Friend JB Bickerstaff

August 15, 2024

Well, we all knew J.B. Bickerstaff would have to come back to Cleveland and visit the Cavaliers sometime. So why not get it out of the way?

That was the NBA’s decision, as the Cavaliers are set to open the 2024-25 season at home against Bickerstaff and the Detroit Pistons. This is not to be confused with the actual SEASON opener — and for the Cavs, that takes place on the road.

So, to be clear, their first game comes Wednesday, Oct. 23 at Toronto. Bickerstaff and the Pistons come to town on Friday, Oct. 25.

Bickerstaff, of course, coached the Cavs for five-plus seasons before being fired after the playoffs. Cleveland advanced to the first round of the playoffs two years ago and the Eastern Conference semifinals this past season. That wasn’t enough for the Cavs to make the change to new coach Kenny Atkinson. Bickerstaff wound up in Detroit, another rebuilding program that has high hopes of improvement.

Anyway, the Cavaliers have more than those two games, of course. As in, 80 more. They have decided to run it back with the so-called Core Four of Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, with Max Strus again the likely starting small forward. Right now, the only mystery seems to be what becomes of restricted free agent wing Isaac Okoro (though many suspect he’ll return).

As for Bickerstaff, the Cavs will actually face him for the first time in the preseason in Detroit. (Full story.)

You can check out the Cavaliers’ full printable schedule for 2024-25 right here.

Per the team press release, the Cavs have four nationally televised games:

4 games on TNT (Nov. 19 at BOS, Jan. 14 at IND, Feb. 25 at ORL, April 10 at IND).
4 games on ESPN (Nov. 1 vs. ORL, Feb. 21 vs. NYK, Feb. 28 at BOS, March 5 vs. MIA).
8 games on NBA TV (Nov. 4 vs. MIL, Nov. 9 vs. BKN, Nov. 29 at ATL, Dec. 5 vs. DEN, Dec. 20 vs. MIL, Jan. 27 vs. DET, March 2 vs. POR and April 11 at NYK).

The Cavs added: “Highlights of the home schedule for the 2024-25 season include visits from the NBA champion Boston Celtics on Dec. 1 and Feb. 4 and a visit from the Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks on Feb. 2. Cleveland will also host the Phoenix Suns for a special Martin Luther King Jr. Day game on Jan. 20. Additional marquee opponents coming to Cleveland only once this season include the Los Angeles Lakers on Oct. 30, the Golden State Warriors on Nov. 8, the Denver Nuggets on Dec. 5, the Oklahoma City Thunder on Jan. 8, the Minnesota Timberwolves on Feb. 10 and the San Antonio Spurs on March 27.”