Deadlines and Commitments - Closing In Edition

Two weeks from Sunday, the Brooklyn Nets open preseason vs. the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center. A month from Sunday, they open regular season vs. the (NBA champion) Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum. It’s thisclose.

So in the interest of keeping you up-to-date, here’s the latest on the lead-up to those games ... and beyond, including some of the big games as well as “revenge games.” Not to mention updates on the New York Liberty, Long Island Nets and even the Nets Gaming Crew! It all starts with a busy week.

One thing to look for early is how New York’s order requiring fans, staff and players to have at least one dose of the COVID vaccine will play out, starting with Media Day on September 27.

—September 21 - Sean Marks and Steve Nash hold their annual pre-season press conference at HSS Training Center.

—September 22 - BK Block auditions from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. ET. Here’s the link.

—September 23 - WNBA Playoffs begin. New York Liberty plays Phoenix Mercury in a single elimination first round contest in Arizona.

—September 25 - NBA 2K All-Star Game at Brooklyn Steel in East Williamsburg. Also, the announcement of the NBA 2K MVP. Josh “Choc” Humphries, star of the Nets Gaming Crew, is one of the finalists.

—September 25 - Long Island Nets first open tryout at LIU Brooklyn, first of two tryouts. Details here. Vaccinations will be required at tryouts as well.

—September 26 - Long Island Nets second open tryout at LIU Post, Brookville, N.Y. Four players went from open tryouts to the Long Island roster.

—September 27 - NBA Media Day for 2021-22 season at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Training camp roster becomes official. Nets leave for California after Media Day ends. It’s an in-person event, so Mayor Bill deBlasio’s vaccine mandate on indoor venues, which includes “team activities,” would seem to apply.

—September 28 - Training camp opens in San Diego. Nets will train at the University of San Diego campus, across town from Joe and Clara Wu Tsai’s home in La Jolla. The Denver Nuggets will train at the University of California, San Diego.

—October 3 - Preseason opens with Nets traveling from San Diego to Los Angeles for 3:30 p.m. ET game vs. Lakers ... and a reunion with DeAndre Jordan. YES Network will have preseason coverage as it begins its 20th season broadcasting Nets Basketball. Details to come.

—October 8 - Preseason home opener. Nets vs. Milwaukee Bucks, 7:30 p.m. ET. First Nets game in which mayor’s order on vaccination applies.

—October 11 - Preseason game vs. 76ers in Philadelphia, 7:00 p.m. ET

—October 14 - Last preseason game vs. Minnesota Timberwolves at Barclays Center, 7:30 p.m. ET

—October 18 - Cutdown day. Nets must get down to 17 roster spots, 15 standard NBA deals and two two-ways by the end of the business day. Also, deadline for rookie contract extensions to be signed, which could apply to Sekou Doumbouya and his $5.5 million option for 2022-23.

—October 19: Last possible WNBA Finals date

—October 19 - Regular season starts with Nets in Milwaukee for nationally televised rematch of Game 7 of NBA quarter-finals.

—October 24 - Regular season home opener at Barclays Center vs. Charlotte Hornets, 7:30 p.m. ET

—October 25 - First “revenge” game of the season when the Wizards — and Spencer Dinwiddie — travel to Brooklyn for a 7:30 p.m. ET game.

—October 29 - “Swagger,” a new series inspired by Kevin Durant’s life, is set to globally debut on AppleTV+. The series will be comprised of 10 episodes, with the first three episodes debuting on October 29.

—November 6 - Long Island Nets open 2020-21 season vs. Delaware Blue Coats in Delaware.

—November 10 - Long Island opens at home — Nassau Coliseum — vs. Capital City Go-Go

—November 16 - Nets host Golden State, 7:30 p.m. ET

—November 30 - Nets and Knicks square off for the first time at Barclays, 7:30 p.m. ET

—December 6 - New York State is expected to award operating licenses for sports betting. Nets have aligned themselves with Fanatics Sports Book and others in one of the bids.

—December 8 - James Harden returns to Houston for the first time with a full house of fans in the stands. 8 p.m. ET

—December 11 - Regular season opener for Long Island Nets, back at the Nassau Coliseum.

—December 15 - DeAndre’ Bembry contract guaranteed up to $1.25 million. He previously received a guarantee of $750,000 on signing in early August.

—December 15 - First day free agent contracts signed in August can be traded.

—December 19 - Jeff Green returns to Brooklyn with Denver Nuggets for “revenge game.” 7:30 p.m. ET.

—December 25 - Nets and Lakers square off in the marquee game of Christmas Day in L.A., 8:00 p.m. ET. DeAndre Jordan “revenge game.”

—January 7 - Nets host the Giannis Antetokounmpo, and the Bucks for the first time at Barclays Center. 7:30 p.m. ET

—January 10 - DeAndre’ Bembry contract fully guaranteed as are all non-guaranteed and partially guaranteed deal.

—January 25 - Nets host Lakers at Barclays. 7:30 p.m. ET — exactly one month after the two squads go head-to-head on Christmas Day.

—January 29 - Kevin Durant returns to Golden State for the first time with fans in the stands. 8:30 p.m. ET. Warriors have promised to retire his jersey. Will it take place this night?

—February 8 - Ime Udoka, former Nets assistant, brings his Boston Celtics to Barclays Center for first time. 7:30 p.m. ET

—February 13 - Super Bowl ... Target date for opening of New York sports books.

—February 18-20 - NBA All-Star 2022 (Cleveland, OH)

—February 22 - NBA trade deadline, 3:00 p.m. ET. In European soccer culture, the semi-annual “transfer portals,” analogous to the NBA trade deadline, are busy time for sports betting. Will that carry over to sports books in the U.S.?

—April 10 - Regular season concludes vs. Pacers at Barclays Center.

—April 12-15 - NBA Play-In Tournament

—April 16 - NBA Playoffs begin.

—June 2 - NBA Finals begin.

—June 19 - Game 7 of NBA Finals (if necessary)

—June 23 - NBA Draft

—July 7 - Traditional date by which NBA teams must pay the luxury tax.

—August 6 - The Nets $11.45 million Traded Player Exception generated by the Spencer Dinwiddie trade expires, one year after Dinwiddie trade.

—August 19 - The Nets $6.27 million Traded Player Exception generated by the DeAndre Jordan trade expires, one year after Jordan trade.