Bulls will open season Dec. 23 against Atlanta
The Bulls will open the delayed regular season Dec. 23 against Atlanta at the United Center, a game that will feature the return of new Hawks, old Bulls Kris Dunn, Rajon Rondo and Tony Snell.
That's the first leg of a three-game homestand to start things off. The Bulls will host Indiana Dec. 26 and Golden State Dec. 27.
The NBA released the first half of the 2020-21 schedule Friday. The Bulls were scheduled for 37 games through March 3 out of a planned 72-game season. The league will then hold an all-star break with no actual All-Star Game. The second-half schedule will be released later and include any games postponed due to COVID, in theory.
The Bulls have had a long layoff, not playing an actual game since March 10 when they beat Cleveland at the United Center. They'll return to action next week with preseason games against Houston at the UC on Dec. 11 and 13.
The Bulls also confirmed there will be no fans inside the arena at the start of the season. A few NBA teams have made plans to include a few thousand fans at home games.
One new feature of the NBA schedule is two-game series, designed to cut down on travel. The Bulls will host the Knicks for a two-game series Feb. 1 and 3. They'll play two games at Washington (Dec. 29-31) and Orlando (Feb. 5-6). It appears the Bulls will play Southeast division teams twice on the road, and Atlantic division teams twice at home.
The Bulls will still play home-and-home series with every team in the Western Conference. The first-half schedule includes a four-game trip to Portland, Sacramento, the Lakers and Clippers in January. A week later, they're back on the road in Oklahoma City and Dallas. The Bulls will host Antonio Davis and the defending champion Lakers Jan. 23.
After opening with three straight home games, the Bulls will play 10 of the next 13 on the road. Their first-half schedule includes one road game and nothing at home against Milwaukee and two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
There are no games on the schedule yet against Jimmy Butler and the defending Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat. The Bulls also won't see Central division rivals Detroit or Cleveland in the first half.
The Bulls were scheduled for just one national TV broadcast, Feb. 19, at Philadelphia on ESPN.