By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

The 2021-22 NBA season officially tips off tonight in major cities across the United States but all three Bahamian players will make their season debuts on Wednesday night, hoping to open the regular season on a positive note.

Deandre Ayton and the defending Western Conference champion Phoenix Suns will host the Denver Nuggets in their regular season opener at Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona.

Scheduled for 10pm local time and broadcast live on ESPN, it will be the first of the franchise’s record 34 nationally televised games this season, an increase from 13 last season.

In the preseason, Ayton averaged 10.2 points and 8.5 rebounds in just over 17 minutes per game. He shot 54 percent, from the floor and also posted a pair of double doubles.

Buddy Hield and the Sacramento Kings will begin the regular season on the road tomorrow night against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.

Hield averaged 23.2 minutes per game in the preseason and produced 12.7 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists, per game on 31 percent from the field and 29 percent from three point range.

Kai Jones and the Charlotte Hornets will open the regular season with a 7pm tipoff at home when they host the Indiana Pacers at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North, Carolina.

In four preseason games, Jones appeared in just over 11.1 minutes per contest and averaged 3.2 points and 3.1 rebounds per game on 33 percent shooting.

Ayton and Hield will face each other four times as Pacific Division rivals in the Western Conference while Jones, playing out of the Eastern Conference, will square off against both Hield and Ayton twice over the course of the regular season.

The Suns will host the first of the four meetings against the Kings, October 27 at Footprint Center in Phoenix Arizona.

The Kings will host the second matchup, November 8, as the venue shifts to the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. Sacramento will also host game three on Sunday, March 20 and the Suns will host the final regular-season meeting between the teams on April 10.

Jones will have his first All-Bahamian matchup on November 5 when the Hornets will travel to Sacramento to face the Kings at the Golden 1 Center. The Hornets will then host the Kings at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina on December 10.

The Hornets will travel to face the Suns at the Footprint Center on December 19 and will host the Suns at the Spectrum Center on January 2.

This year the Suns will play on ESPN 11 times, TNT nine times, ABC three times, and NBATV 11 times. Their 34 nationally televised games rank fifth in the league. Charlotte will have four nationally televised games this season, up from three last year. They will also be featured in four games broadcast on NBA TV. The Kings are one of just four teams this season without a single nationally televised game.

The Suns finished last season 51-21 en route to their first Pacific Division title for the first time in 14 years. They also earned a postseason berth in 11 years and their first NBA Finals in 28 years.

The Kings finished the 2020-21 season 31-41, the franchise’s 15th consecutive season without a playoff berth which tied an NBA record.

The Hornets finished last season 33-39, 10th place in the Eastern Conference, an improvement on their 23-42 finish in the previous season.