TNT's 2011 - 12 NBA Regular Season Tips Off Christmas Day

Turner's 28th Season of NBA Coverage tips off Christmas Day on TNT with the Boston Celtics @ New York Knicks (Noon ET) followed by exclusive doubleheaders on December 27th and 29th.

Turner Sports, marking its 28th year of coverage of the NBA, today announced that TNT will broadcast a total of 45 games during its coverage of the 2011-12 NBA regular season. TNT's slate of games will be highlighted by 10 scheduled appearances each by the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers, as well as nine by the defending Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat. Also, the defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks and the New York Knicks are scheduled for eight appearances. The network will feature 44 games in primetime, with 32 being part of TNT's Thursday night doubleheaders (full schedule listed below).

On Sunday, Dec. 25, TNT will once again tip off the NBA regular season. The day will begin with a special hour-long preview show, TNT NBA Tip-Off presented by AutoTrader.com at 11 a.m. (ET) with two-time Emmy(R) award-winning host Ernie Johnson, along with analysts Hall of Famer Charles Barkley, four-time NBA Champion Shaquille O'Neal and two-time NBA Champion Kenny Smith. The pre-game show will be followed at Noon (ET) with exclusive coverage of the Celtics visiting the Knicks to tip off the 2011-12 NBA season.

NBA on TNT Premiere Week Presented by AutoTrader.com continues on Tuesday, Dec. 27, with an exclusive doubleheader featuring the Celtics @ Heat (8 p.m. ET) followed by the Utah Jazz @ Lakers (10:30 p.m. ET). The action will continue on Thursday, Dec. 29, with another exclusive doubleheader featuring the Mavericks @ Oklahoma City Thunder (8 p.m. ET) followed by the Knicks @ Lakers (10:30 p.m. ET).

In addition to the games scheduled during NBA on TNT Premiere Week Presented by AutoTrader.com, the network's schedule features a number of marquee match-ups, including:

Monday, Jan. 16 - A special MLK Day doubleheader featuring the Thunder @ Celtics followed by the Lakers hosting the Mavericks (10:30 p.m. ET).

Thursday, Jan. 19 - Kobe Bryant and the Lakers travel to South Beach to take on LeBron James and the Heat (8 p.m. ET).

Thursday, Feb. 23 - A star-studded doubleheader featuring Dwyane Wade and the Heat hosting Amar'e Stoudemire and the Knicks (7 p.m. ET) followed by Pau Gasol and the Lakers visiting Kevin Durant and the Thunder (9:30 p.m. ET).

Thursday, Mar. 29 - A 2011 NBA Finals rematch featuring the Heat hosting the Mavericks (8 p.m. ET) followed by the Thunder @ Lakers (10:30 p.m.).

Tuesday, Apr. 24 - In a battle of the past two Eastern Conference champions, the Heat will travel to Boston to face the Celtics at 8 p.m. (ET).

"We look forward to another highly anticipated NBA season getting underway on TNT with a fantastic matchup on Christmas Day and two great doubleheaders during opening week," said David Levy, president of sales, distribution and sports, Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. "With a schedule featuring marquee doubleheaders and multiple appearances by some of the league's most prominent teams, combined with our roster of talented and experienced announcers and analysts, TNT will once again be a weekly destination for fans, players and coaches during the NBA regular season."

Additional programming highlights include the network serving as the exclusive home for NBA All-Star 2012 from Feb. 24-26. TNT is slated to air all the action on NBA All-Star Friday, NBA All-Star Saturday and the 2012 NBA All-Star Game in Orlando. The network also will air more than 40 NBA playoff games including exclusive coverage of the conference semi-finals and the Western Conference Finals.

As part of its broadband coverage on TNT OverTime on NBA.com, TNT Overtime Extra, an interactive application will feature an enhanced live stream that will provide users with an HD-quality experience, as well as DVR functionality and alternate camera angles for TNT games.

The NBA on TNT's marquee roster of NBA announcers include: Marv Albert (play-by-play), Kevin Harlan (play-by-play), five-time NBA Champion Steve Kerr (analyst), four-time All-Star Reggie Miller (analyst), former NBA coach Mike Fratello (analyst), David Aldridge (reporter), Basketball Hall of Famer Cheryl Miller (reporter) and Craig Sager (reporter).

TNT is in its 24th consecutive year of NBA coverage. Sister network TBS aired the NBA exclusively for Turner Broadcasting System from 1984-89, with TNT serving as Turner's sole NBA cable home from 1990-94. Both networks aired NBA games from 1994-2002. Once again, TNT's entire regular and postseason telecasts will air in high definition.

Turner Sports, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., is an industry leader in televised and online sports programming, airing championship level sporting events on TBS, TNT and truTV, and managing some of the most popular sports sites on the Internet. Turner Sports' television line-up includes the NBA, Major League Baseball, the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship, NASCAR and professional golf. The company's digital portfolio includes SI.com, NASCAR.COM, NCAA.com, PGATOUR.COM, GOLF.com and PGA.com, as well as an accompanying collection of mobile websites and connected device apps. Turner Sports and the NBA also jointly manage NBA Digital, which includes NBA TV, NBA.com, NBA LEAGUE PASS, NBA Mobile, the NBA Game Time App, NBADLEAGUE.com and WNBA.com.

TNT, one of cable's top-rated networks, is television's destination for drama. Seen in 99 million households, the network is home to such original series as The Closer, starring Emmy(R) winner Kyra Sedgwick; Rizzoli & Isles, starring Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander; Falling Skies, starring Noah Wyle; Franklin & Bash, with Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Breckin Meyer; Leverage, starring Timothy Hutton; and Southland, from Emmy-winning producer John Wells, as well as the upcoming series Major Crimes, Dallas and Perception. TNT also presents compelling original movies, including a slate of thrillers set to premiere this winter in The TNT Mystery Movie Night showcase. TNT is the cable home to powerful dramas like The Mentalist, Bones, Supernatural, Las Vegas, Law & Order, CSI: NY, Cold Case and, starting next year, Castle; primetime specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards(R); blockbuster movies; and championship sports coverage, including NASCAR, the NBA and the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship. TNT is available in high-definition.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news; entertainment; animation and young adult; and sports media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world. Turner brands and businesses include CNN/U.S., CNN International, CNN.com and HLN; TBS, TNT, truTV and Turner Classic Movies; Cartoon Network, Boomerang and Adult Swim; and Turner Sports.

TNT 2011-2012 NBA REGULAR SEASON TELECAST SCHEDULE

Dec. 25 Sunday 12 p.m. Boston Celtics @ New York Knicks

Dec. 27 Tuesday 8 p.m. Boston Celtics @ Miami Heat 10:30 p.m. Utah Jazz @ Los Angeles Lakers

Dec. 29 Thursday 8 p.m. Dallas Mavericks @ Oklahoma City Thunder 10:30 p.m. New York Knicks @ Los Angeles Lakers

Jan. 5 Thursday 8 p.m. Miami Heat @ Atlanta Hawks 10:30 p.m. Los Angeles Lakers @ Portland Trail Blazers

Jan. 12 Thursday 8 p.m. New York Knicks @ Memphis Grizzlies 10:30 p.m. Orlando Magic @ Golden State Warriors

Jan. 16 Monday 8 p.m. Oklahoma City Thunder @ Boston Celtics 10:30 p.m. Dallas Mavericks @ Los Angeles Lakers

Jan. 19 Thursday 8 p.m. Los Angeles Lakers @ Miami Heat 10:30 p.m. Dallas Mavericks @ Utah Jazz

Jan. 26 Thursday 8 p.m. Boston Celtics @ Orlando Magic 10:30 p.m. Memphis Grizzlies @ Los Angeles Clippers

Feb. 2 Thursday 8 p.m. Chicago Bulls @ New York Knicks 10:30 p.m. Denver Nuggets @ Los Angeles Clippers

Feb. 9 Thursday 8 p.m. Los Angeles Lakers @ Boston Celtics 10:30 p.m. Oklahoma City Thunder @ Sacramento Kings

Feb. 16 Thursday 8 p.m. Boston Celtics @ Chicago Bulls 10:30 p.m. Los Angeles Clippers @ Portland Trail Blazers

Feb. 20 Monday 8 p.m. Boston Celtics @ Dallas Mavericks 10:30 p.m. Portland Trail Blazers @ Los Angeles Lakers

Feb. 23 Thursday 7 p.m. New York Knicks @ Miami Heat 9:30 p.m. Los Angeles Lakers @ Oklahoma City Thunder

NBA ALL-STAR 2012

Feb. 24 Friday NBA Rookie Challenge

Feb. 25 Saturday NBA All-Star Saturday

Feb. 26 Sunday 2012 NBA All-Star Game from Orlando

Mar. 1 Thursday 8 p.m. Oklahoma City Thunder @ Orlando Magic 10:30 p.m. Miami Heat @ Portland Trail Blazers

Mar. 8 Thursday 8 p.m. Orlando Magic @ Chicago Bulls 10:30 p.m. Dallas Mavericks @ Phoenix Suns

Mar. 19 Monday 8 p.m. Chicago Bulls @ Orlando Magic 10:30 p.m. Dallas Mavericks @ Denver Nuggets

Mar. 29 Thursday 8 p.m. Dallas Mavericks @ Miami Heat 10:30 p.m. Oklahoma City Thunder @ Los Angeles Lakers

Apr. 5 Thursday 7 p.m. New York Knicks @ Orlando Magic 9:30 p.m. Boston Celtics @ Chicago Bulls

Apr. 12 Thursday 8 p.m. Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls 10:30 p.m. Dallas Mavericks @ Golden State Warriors

Apr. 17 Tuesday 8 p.m. Boston Celtics @ New York Knicks 10:30 p.m. San Antonio Spurs @ Los Angeles Lakers

Apr. 19 Thursday 8 p.m. Chicago Bulls @ Miami Heat 10:30 p.m. Los Angeles Clippers @ Phoenix Suns

Apr. 24 Tuesday 8 p.m. Miami Heat @ Boston Celtics 10:30 p.m. New Orleans Hornets @ Golden State Warriors

Apr. 26 Thursday 8 p.m. New York Knicks @ Charlotte Bobcats 10:30 p.m. San Antonio Spurs @ Golden State Warriors

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