Two teams that enjoyed successful season-opening victories hook up on Halloween night when the Boston Celtics host the Chicago Bulls in the first game of an ESPN pro basketball doubleheader. The Celtics will be dressed up as defending NBA champions, while the Bulls will attempt to play more tricks on the home team than they did last season.

The San Antonio Spurs have eliminated the Phoenix Suns from postseason play in three of the past four seasons. So it may be fitting that the two Western Conference foes meet Wednesday in the NBA opener for both clubs. The Suns will attempt to reverse that losing trend against the Spurs with new coach Terry Porter directing the attack.

A pair of young and promising starting centers will help open the NBA season Tuesday when Andrew Bynum and the Los Angeles Lakers host Greg Oden and the Portland Trail Blazers. Both centers are coming off injury-plagued seasons, with Oden missing the entire campaign. Portland is 21-5 ATS in its last 26 meetings versus the Lakers.

Not surprisingly, the two teams involved in last year’s NBA Finals top this season’s ‘over/under’ win total list. The defending champion Boston Celtics won 66 games last year, while the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers registered 57 victories. Both clubs have been assigned an ‘over/under’ win total of 56 ½ games for the upcoming campaign.