NBA Games December Start Times Changed; Portland Trail Blazers Affected

Attention Portland Trail Blazers fans! NBC has some exciting news for those of us who prefer getting to bed a little earlier this month. Starting now, NBC is changing the start times for its NBA doubleheaders to 5 and 7:30 p.m. PT for the rest of December. This means that the Blazers game against the Dallas Mavericks on Monday, Dec. 29, will now air on NBC/Peacock at 7:30 p.m. instead of the original 8 p.m. start time.

These adjusted start times are a departure from the usual 5 and 8 p.m. PT slot for NBC’s doubleheaders this season. The network has been following a “Coast 2 Coast” format, according to Jon Lewis of Sports Media Watch. This setup means that the games aren’t true nationwide doubleheaders. The 8 p.m. start time for the second game is actually the latest for nationally televised NBA games in nearly two decades.

The upcoming games will be the first true doubleheaders on NBC since Opening Night. In the meantime, all other game windows have been part of the “Coast 2 Coast Tuesday” format, with different time zones getting games at different times. For those of us in the Pacific time zone, this means an 11 p.m. ET game.

If you’re loving the change from 8 p.m. start times, enjoy it while you can! According to Lewis, it’s unlikely that the NBA will abandon the Coast 2 Coast format after December due to the disruption it causes to local newscasts and late-night programming.

Looking ahead, the Blazers have four more NBC games scheduled to start at 8 p.m. during the 2025-26 season:

– Blazers @ Golden State Warriors; Tuesday, Jan. 13 @ 8 p.m.; NBC
– Blazers vs. Phoenix Suns; Tuesday, Feb. 3 @ 8 p.m.; NBC
– Blazers vs. Minnesota Timberwolves; Tuesday, Feb. 24 @ 8 p.m.; NBC
– Blazers @ LA Clippers; Tuesday, March 31 @ 8 p.m.; NBC

So mark your calendars and enjoy the earlier start times while you can, fans! Let’s support our Blazers and make the most of these upcoming games.