The NBA will unveil the full 2025–26 regular-season schedule this Thursday, August 14, but the Dallas Mavericks already know they’ll be playing on some of the league’s biggest stages — and those games come loaded with storylines.
Dallas opens the season Wednesday, October 22, at the American Airlines Center against the San Antonio Spurs in a nationally televised matchup on ESPN. This isn’t just any opener — it’s a highly anticipated rookie showdown between the Mavericks’ No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg and the Spurs’ No. 2 overall pick Dylan Harper. Both come into the league with sky-high expectations, and this first meeting could set the tone for a rivalry that runs for years.
On Christmas Day, the Mavericks will visit the Golden State Warriors in a matchup featuring plenty of star power. It’s Klay Thompson’s return to Chase Center for the first time on the holiday stage since joining Dallas, and while he faced Golden State last season, the added spotlight of Christmas Day gives the reunion a bigger national platform. The emotion of the day, combined with the history between Thompson and the Warriors, ensures this will be one of the league’s most talked-about games.
The Mavericks’ spotlight stretch continues on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Monday, January 19, 2026, when they travel to Madison Square Garden to play the New York Knicks in an afternoon game on NBC/Peacock. This could also mark the long-awaited return of Kyrie Irving from the ACL injury that sidelined him last season. If healthy, Irving’s comeback — and the chance to see him on the Garden floor — would add even more intrigue to a day already steeped in significance for the league.
While the rest of the Mavericks’ schedule will be revealed Thursday, these early matchups make one thing clear: Dallas will be in the national spotlight throughout the season, with a mix of new beginnings, emotional reunions, and potentially dramatic comebacks setting the stage for a compelling year.
