Yes, the Detroit Pistons will play in the first 2026-27 regular-season game when they host the Celtics at 3 p.m. ET on Oct. 20, which is fun yet also strange because of the start time. They won't play on the biggest day of the year, though, as once again they won't be in action on Christmas Day. Apparently, finishing at the top of the East this past season with 60 wins wasn't good enough.
This is nothing new, as the last time the Pistons didn't play on Dec. 25 was in 2005, when Cade Cunningham was just four years old.
Detroit didn't need the reassurance of playing on Christmas to know it's already a top team in the league, but it would've been a nice recognition. If the Pistons are feeling a little disrespected, though, they can use that as fuel as they prepare to start a season that everyone hopes will at least feature a run to the conference finals for the first time since 2008.
Maybe if Detroit can do a better job of translating its regular-season success into the playoffs, 2027 will be the year the Christmas drought is snapped, but still, it should've happened in 2026.
The Pistons don't have the same history as the Celtics and Heat, but you can make a good case that it would've made more sense for Detroit to play Miami than Boston.
NBA Christmas Day 2026 on ABC and ESPN:
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 11, 2026
- Spurs @ Knicks
- Heat @ Celtics
- 76ers @ Lakers
- Thunder @ Timberwolves
- Nuggets @ Warriors
Pistons should be playing on Christmas Day
It was a given that New York, Philadelphia (LeBron was enough of a reason), and Miami would represent the East on Dec. 25. If Boston hadn't traded Jaylen Brown to the Sixers, the Celtics would've also been in that category as a write-in, but the league still believed that they were worthy enough of being in that position.
No matter that the Pistons made it further in the playoffs this past season than the Celtics, who were eliminated in Game 7 of the first round by the Sixers. Detroit didn't make the kind of splashy move many were anticipating this offseason (as if Cunningham isn't enough of a draw), and maybe if it had, it would have been featured on the holiday.
Hopefully, it will be impossible for the NBA to overlook the Pistons next season, and maybe, to take it a step further, Detroit will even be able to host a Christmas Day game. All they need to do is raise their win total to 65 and advance past the second round. Sounds easy enough, right?
In all seriousness, at least Detroit will play on opening night — more like afternoon. The Pistons deserve more than that, though.
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