2026-27 NBA Miles Traveled: 30 Teams To Cover Nearly 1.3 Million Miles
DraftKings Sports Welcome Offer Ts and Cs: GAMBLING PROBLEM? CALL 1-800-GAMBLER or 1-800-MY-RESET, (800) 327-5050 or visit gamblinghelplinema.org (MA). Please Gamble Responsibly. 888-789-7777/visit ccpg.org (CT), or visit www.mdgamblinghelp.org (MD), 1-800-981-0023 (PR). 21+ and present in most states. (18+ DC/NH/PR/WY). Void in CAN. Eligibility restrictions apply. On behalf of Boot Hill Casino (KS). Pass-thru of per wager tax may apply in IL. 1 per new DraftKings customer. $5+ first-time bet req. Max. $150 issued as non-withdrawable Bonus Bets that expire in 7 days after issuance. Stake removed from payout. Reward issued as $50 in Bonus Bets every 7 days via click-to-claim for 14 days. 7 days = 168hrs. Terms: sportsbook.draftkings.com/promos. Ends 8/23/26 at 11:59 PM ET. Sponsored by DK.
NBA teams will cover nearly 1.3 million miles in 2026-27. Bookies.com again tracks the 2026-27 NBA Miles Traveled for every team. The New Orleans Pelicans travel the most distance this season at 55,581.9 miles. That's thanks in part to a two-game series with the San Antonio Spurs in France and England. The Spurs are close behind in second at 54,123.5 miles. In all, the 30 NBA teams combine for 1,293,650 miles across 1,096 time zones this season.
The Miami Heat travel the most miles of any team not leaving North America at 49,540.2 miles. That's nearly twice the distance around the earth at the Equator. The Toronto Raptors travel the fewest miles this upcoming season at just 35,133.9, followed closely by the Knicks at 35,181.6.
The 81st NBA season begins on Tuesday, October 20, at 3 p.m. when the Boston Celtics visit the Detroit Pistons. That unique starting time signals something will be different this year. The Association continues its international push with games in Paris, Mexico City, and Manchester, England.
Our mileage totals do not include the Emirates Cup Knockout Round, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, or Finals games because they have yet to be determined..
2026-27 NBA Miles Traveled: Team By Team Breakdown
Here's the team-by-team breakdown of each NBA team's miles traveled this season. Mileage is a calculated using Vincenty's formulae in determining the air miles between each venue.
Long Trips Home & Abroad
The Spurs and Pelicans visit Paris on Jan. 14, and Manchester, England, three days later. San Antonio travels 10,417 miles on that journey, while the Pelicans cover 9,695. The Spurs and Pelicans each traverse 14 time zones.
The Lakers have the longest domestic road trip: 7 games covering 6,334.1 miles. From January 28 to February 6, they bounce from Indianapolis → New York → Charlotte → Boston → Brooklyn → San Antonio → Phoenix.
Overseas Games Rewrite Leaderboard
New Orleans (Paris & Manchester) and San Antonio (Paris, Manchester, and two Austin relocations) sit 1st and 2nd almost entirely because of games most teams never play. Strip those out and both fall toward the middle of the pack.
Miles ≠ Time Zones
Miami flies far but barely changes clocks. The Heat cover 3rd-most miles (49,540) but the lowest TZ count of any top-10 team (24) — almost every trip just runs up and down the Eastern seaboard.
Kings Top Time Zone Crossings
The Kings log 54 time zone crossings, the most of any team, despite ranking only 5th in raw mileage — a Pacific-time team, every road trip east costs at least one zone change.
East Coast Bias
The bottom five all cluster in one corridor: Toronto, New York, Chicago, Washington, Detroit. They're all Eastern/Central teams with dense in-conference scheduling and short in-conference hops.
NBA Calendar Highlights & Postseason Setup
NBA International Games
NBA International Games
The full slate of 2026-27 NBA games played outside the United States — venues, matchups & travel itineraries.
The NBA plays in five different countries this season: U.S., Canada, Mexico, France and England. On Nov. 7 in Mexico City, the Denver Nuggets face the Indiana Pacers in Mexico City, in addition to the two games in France and England noted above.
Those times zones are calculated based on the U.S. returning to Standard Time on November 1. If the U.S. keeps Daylight Savings Times, the number of times zones would be cut to 12 apiece.
Holidays, Rivalries & More
The NBA offers 5 games on Christmas Day. The Association finds itself in direct competition with the NFL Shield for eyeballs on the holiday. Play begins at noon Eastern and runs non-stop until the final game on the West Coast that begins at 10:30 p.m.
On Martin Luther King Day, all 30 NBA teams usually take the court, providing fans and users of betting apps with a packed schedule to follow.
The NBA is expected to bring back its Rivalry Week this season. Last season, it showcased 10 nationally televised games during the final full week of January.
The NBA offers a scheduling quirk to maintain competitive balance heading into the playoffs. All 30 teams play on the third-to-last day of the regular season and the final day of the regular season. On that day. all the Eastern Conference Games begin at 1 p.m., while the interconference game and the Western Conference Games tip at 3:30 p.m.
Have A Holly, Jolly Christmas
The NBA hit back at the NFL this year on Christmas Day. This year is perhaps the best Yuletide offering of games since the days of Jordan, Kobe and Shaq.
This year, it delivers a five-game extravaganza filled with intriguing storylines featuring past and present champions, regular-season MVPs, Finals MVPs, All-Stars and All-NBA selections.
Here is the Christmas Day schedule:
- San Antonio Spurs vs. New York Knicks (12 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN)
- Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics (2:30 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN)
- Philadelphia 76ers vs. Los Angeles Lakers (5 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN)
- Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (8 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN)
- Denver Nuggets vs. Golden State Warriors (10:30 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN)
Among the Christmas storylines that Santa has stuffed into your stocking.
NBA Finals Rematch
The Knicks and Spurs resume hostilities at MSG. The Spurs may never recover from their NBA Finals loss in Game 4. They blew a 27-point halftime lead in that one with a chance to tie the series at 2-2. The Knicks are a Christmas Day mainstay. They’ve played on the holiday 59 times, with 51 of those games hosted at the World’s Most Famous Arena. No matter the iteration.
The Giannis Bowl
The Boston Celtics entertain the Miami Heat at TD Garden. Miami swiped Giannis Antetokounmpo from right under Brad Stevens’ nose this offseason. For those inclined to wager, the Heat are 9-0 on Christmas Day under Erik Spoelstra and 12-2 outright overall.
LeBron vs Lakers/Bronny?
The locked-and-loaded Philadelphia 76ers visit the Lakers. LeBron James faces his most-recent employer. And – possibly – his son in what will be his 21st Christmas Day game. However, Bronny has been the subject of trade rumors to none other than Philly. So this may be just another ho-hum Sixers-Lakers contest.
Jolly St. Nikola
Denver’s Nikola Jokic enjoys giving on Christmas. In his six Christmas games, he’s clocked three triple doubles – including that 56/16/15 performance last season in OT against Minnesota.
BOS Celtics
DET Pistons
PHI 76ers
NY Knicks
OKC ThunderSA SpursSA SpursNY Knicks
MIA HeatBOS CelticsPHI 76ers
LA LakersOKC Thunder
MIN TimberwolvesDEN Nuggets
GS Warriors2026-27 NBA Key Dates
Oct. 19: Rosters set for NBA Opening Day (5 p.m. ET)
Oct. 20: Start of NBA regular season.
Oct. 30: Emirates NBA Cup 2026 | Group Play tips off on Prime Video
Nov. 7: NBA Mexico City Game: Denver Nuggets vs. Indiana Pacers | Arena CDMX
Nov. 27: Emirates NBA Cup 2026 | Group Play concludes
Dec. 4-5: Emirates NBA Cup 2026 | Knockout Rounds | Quarterfinals
Dec. 8 and/or Dec. 9: Emirates NBA Cup 2026 | Knockout Rounds | Semifinals
Dec. 11: Emirates NBA Cup 2026 | Championship | Hinkle Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
Jan. 14, 2027: NBA Paris Game: San Antonio Spurs vs. New Orleans Pelicans | Accor Arena
Jan. 17: NBA Manchester Game: San Antonio Spurs vs. New Orleans Pelicans | Co-op Live
Feb. 19-21: NBA All-Star 2027 | Phoenix, AZ
Feb. 19-24: NBA All-Star break
The 30 NBA Cup teams play in six different 5-team groups that are based on teams within their conference that had the closest winning percentage last season. Those games in Indy are TBA and not included in our total.
Midnite Casino Sign Up Offer October 2026: Wager £20 Get 100 Free Spins 
Coral Welcome Bonus October 2026: Get £30 in Free Bets 
JeffBet Free Bets October 2026: Get £30 in Free Bets 
BetMGM Casino Bonus Code For UK New Customers October 2026 
Bonus Buy Casino Sites October 2026: Where to Play Bonus Buy Slots in the UK 
Big Bass Bonanza Free Spins Offers & Big Bass Splash Free Spins Bonuses October 2026
Comments