The NBA 2K League has officially unveiled its 2021 regular-season schedule, which begins on May 19 with The Tipoff.
The 2021 season will run from May 19 to Sept. 4, concluding with the DoorDash NBA 2K League Finals. In total, all 23 teams will play 28 regular-season games apiece over 16 weeks.
This will be the first season the 2K League is implementing conferences. The playoffs have also been expanded to 12 teams and will start on Aug. 26.
Modeled after the NBA, every team has been sorted into the Eastern Conference or the Western Conference, though they’ll still play against every team in the league.
Here are how the conferences have been split up.
Eastern Conference
- 76ers GC
- Celtics Crossover Gaming
- Gen.G Tigers of Shanghai
- Grizz Gaming
- Hawks Talon GC
- Heat Check Gaming
- Hornets Venom GT
- Knicks Gaming
- Magic Gaming
- Nets GC
- Raptors Uprising GC
- Wizards District Gaming
Western Conference
- Bucks Gaming
- Blazer5 Gaming
- Cavs Legion GC
- Jazz Gaming
- Kings Guard Gaming
- Lakers Gaming
- Mavs Gaming
- Pacers Gaming
- Pistons GT
- T-Wolves Gaming
- Warriors Gaming Squad
The 2021 season will feature three in-season tournaments, starting with The Tipoff to begin the competition on May 19. That will be followed by The Turn and The Ticket later this year as part of The Banner Chain, powered by AT&T.
All 23 teams will compete in both The Tipoff and The Turn. The top five teams in each conference at the end of the regular season will qualify for the playoffs, while the remaining 13 teams will compete in The Ticket for the final two playoff spots.
In total, the prize pool for The Tipoff, The Turn, and the playoffs is set at $1.5 million.
To begin the 2021 season, all teams will play remotely from their local markets.
Each game will be simulcast on the 2K League’s Twitch and YouTube channels, with availability on Dash Radio, ESRevolution, and Loco in India, and Sport1 in Europe. Streams will be hosted on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights starting at 6pm CT.
