NBA releases 2009-10 schedule

NEW YORK, Aug. 4 (UPI) -- The NBA said Tuesday it will tip off its 2009-2010 season with a doubleheader featuring reigning league champion Los Angeles Lakers against the LA Clippers.

The intra-city rivalry will have the Lakers' Kobe Bryant going against Blake Griffin, the top pick in this year's NBA draft in the second game of the Oct. 27 doubleheader. The first opening-night game will pit Boston, the 2008 champion, against Cleveland.

Orlando, which fell to the Lakers in the finals in five games, will open its season Oct. 28 at home against Philadelphia.

The first of two games between the Magic and Lakers will be Jan. 18 in Los Angeles.

The league's All-Star Game will be Feb. 14 at the new stadium of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas.

ABC will exclusively broadcast the NBA Finals for a seventh straight season in June.