The first Abu Dhabi Games clash between the two is scheduled for Friday, October 4th at 12:00 p.m. ET, with the second scheduled for Sunday, September 6th at 10:00 a.m. ET. Both games will take place at the Etihad Arena and will be broadcast on NBC Sports Boston.

While the trip will require additional travel for the Celtics, coach Joe Mazzulla didn’t seem bothered by the adjustment.

“It’s not really a challenge” Mazzulla told reporters. “You just adapt accordingly. This is also something you deal with over the course of a season. When you travel, you start a little earlier. So it’s not much different.”

Celtics guard Jrue Holiday played in the Milwaukee Bucks’ preseason games in Abu Dhabi in 2022. He said the experience of immersing himself in a different culture and playing in front of new fans could be valuable.

“I feel like training camp and preseason are often about bonding with the team, staying focused and staying in one place and going through the difficult situation together.” Holiday told reporters. “You share that with a completely different country, a completely different place, so to speak, eight hours difference. I think that’s a really good thing.”

Even though there isn’t technically much at stake, the series still features the last two NBA champions. Expect the stars to play some, but not much, as the two go head-to-head.

Denver won both games against Boston last year, prevailing 102-100 in January and 115-109 in March.

The Celtics’ roster looks essentially the same, although they will be without Kristaps Porzingis for the foreseeable future. The Nuggets acquired Russell Westbrook to complement Nikola Jokic and the rest of the roster.

The games could give Celtics players like Neemias Queta, Jaden Springer and rookie Baylor Scheierman a chance to showcase their skills.

A day of fan appreciation will feature entertainment, skills competitions and appearances from Celtics and Nuggets players, Shaquille O’Neal and other NBA legends.