Photo: Peter Baba

The Los Angeles Lakers are preparing for their first season without LeBron James since 2017-18, but the NBA still considers the Luka Doncic-led franchise one of its biggest national attractions.

The Lakers will appear in 34 nationally televised games during the 2026-27 season, tied for the league lead with the Knicks, Spurs and 76ers.

Los Angeles will have 10 games on NBC, 10 on Prime Video, nine on ESPN and five on ABC.

Their season begins October 21 against the Golden State Warriors at Crypto.com Arena on ESPN.

Two more nationally televised games follow that month against Portland and Golden State.

One of the biggest dates comes on Christmas Day, when James returns to Los Angeles with the Philadelphia 76ers.

It will mark his first game against his former team and his first matchup against his son Bronny.

The Lakers will visit Philadelphia for the rematch on March 4.

They also have nationally televised matchups against several contenders, including the defending champion Knicks, Spurs and Celtics.

Despite James’ departure, the Lakers’ national TV schedule shows the league still expects Doncic and the team to attract plenty of viewers.

Lakers set for surprising amount of national TV games despite LeBron James' exit https://t.co/mGMY9Ovgov pic.twitter.com/qLtAtrH35z