NBA Friday is a weekly presentation of National Basketball Association

National Basketball Association

The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

 games on ESPN. Formerly known as NBA Friday Coast to Coast during doubleheader nights, the program starts the first Friday of the NBA season, and typically runs uninterrupted throughout the entire season. In 2006

2005-06 NBA season

The 2005–06 NBA season was the 60th season of the National Basketball Association. It began on November 1, 2005 and ran through April 19, 2006...

, NBA Friday was preempted from March 10 to March 31, due to ESPN deciding against counter programming the NCAA Tournament

NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship

The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...

. Nearly all NBA Friday telecasts consist of a doubleheader, with one game typically from the east coast

East Coast of the United States

The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...

 at 8:00 p.m and the west coast

West Coast of the United States

West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...

 at 10:30 p.m.

The KIA NBA Shootaround

NBA Shootaround

NBA Shootaround is a pregame show for ESPN's coverage of the National Basketball Association . Typically, the program airs at 7:30 p.m, prior to ESPN's presentation of NBA Friday, though it does occasionally air prior to ESPN's NBA Wednesday coverage...

 Pregame Show, the Toyota Halftime Show, and the Target

Target Corporation

Target Corporation, doing business as Target, is an American retailing company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the second-largest discount retailer in the United States, behind Walmart. The company is ranked at number 33 on the Fortune 500 and is a component of the Standard & Poor's...

 Postgame Show are the studio shows that occur before, during, and after the NBA Friday Games.

NBA Friday on ESPN is not exclusive; local sports networks may still air the game in their market. In that case, the ESPN broadcast on these markets is subject to blackout and SportsCenter

SportsCenter

SportsCenter is a daily sports news television show, and the flagship program of American cable network ESPN since the network launched on September 7, 1979. Originally broadcast only daily, SportsCenter is now shown up to twelve times a day, replaying the day's scores and highlights from major...

 is usually aired instead.

Notable games

• December 5, 2002 - The Los Angeles Lakers
  Los Angeles Lakers
  The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
  
   come back from a 30 point deficit (including a 28-point fourth quarter deficit) to defeat the then 17–1 Dallas Mavericks
  Dallas Mavericks
  The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
  
   http://www.nba.com/games/20021206/DALLAL/recap.html.
• January 17, 2003 - The first meeting between then-Los Angeles Laker
  Los Angeles Lakers
  The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
  
   Shaquille O'Neal
  Shaquille O'Neal
  Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal , nicknamed "Shaq" , is a former American professional basketball player. Standing tall and weighing , he was one of the heaviest players ever to play in the NBA...
  
   and then-Houston Rockets
  Houston Rockets
  The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1967, and played in San Diego, California for four years, before being...
  
   rookie Yao Ming
  Yao Ming
  Yao Ming is a retired Chinese professional basketball player who last played for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association...
  
  . The game was the second highest rated NBA game on cable ever at the time.
• January 31, 2003 - NBA legend Michael Jordan
  Michael Jordan
  Michael Jeffrey Jordan is a former American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats...
  
   plays his final game in Chicago, Illinois as the Washington Wizards
  Washington Wizards
  The Washington Wizards are a professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C., previously known as Washington Bullets. They play in the National Basketball Association .-Early years:...
  
   play the Chicago Bulls
  Chicago Bulls
  The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
  
  . The game airs on ESPN2, though ESPN pre-empted programming to air the starting lineups.
• November 19, 2004 - Pacers–Pistons brawl.