NBA Previews

The Trail Blazers haven’t won a game since Nov. 3 while the Utah Jazz’s last triumph came eight days ago against Portland. The two struggling Western Conference teams will meet up Wednesday night in Portland, one night after taking their lumps on the road against more-talented squads. The Trail Blazers lost 120-107 to the Phoenix Suns for their eighth consecutive setback and 11th in 14 games this season. Utah took a much more severe beating

The Minnesota Timberwolves will look to maintain their torrid start to the season when they face the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves have won 10 of their first 13 games to jump to the top of the Western Conference standings. Minnesota is coming off back-to-back victories over the New Orleans Pelicans and New York Knicks, and it has won nine of its past 10. The next test comes against the powerful

The Indiana Pacers will try to maintain their hot shooting Wednesday night when the oppose the Toronto Raptors in Indianapolis. The Pacers are coming off a 157-152 road win over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night in an NBA in-season tournament game in which they shot 60.6 percent from the floor. Indiana has won all three of its tournament games and has clinched a quarterfinal spot with one game remaining. The Raptors will complete a

The Denver Nuggets overcame the early departure of their best player to snap a four-game road skid in their last outing. With two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic back in the lineup, the Nuggets will look to record their second straight win on Wednesday night when they visit an Orlando Magic team that is on the rise. Denver weathered the storm after Jokic was ejected in the first half and pulled out a 107-103 victory over

The Atlanta Hawks will continue to search for their identity and end a three-game losing streak on Wednesday when they host the Brooklyn Nets in the second half of a back-to-back. The Hawks blew a 20-point lead to the Indiana Pacers and lost 157-152 on Tuesday night, even though they set a franchise record with 86 points in the first half. Atlanta has lost four straight at home and has been eliminated from the NBA

Charlotte’s fourth-quarter comeback and eventual overtime victory against the visiting Boston Celtics on Monday night were the highlights of the season so far for the Hornets. The challenge will be doing it again. The first chance for that comes on Wednesday against the visiting Washington Wizards. “They know this. We talk about it all the time,” Charlotte coach Steve Clifford said. “This league isn’t about a great win. This league is about, ‘Can we come

Giannis Antetokounmpo will have an opportunity to score at least 40 points for the third straight game when the Milwaukee Bucks visit the Boston Celtics in a matchup of division leaders Wednesday night. Antetokounmpo tossed in 40 during Milwaukee’s 132-125 victory over the visiting Dallas Mavericks on Saturday and followed up that performance by scoring 42 in a 142-129 win against the host Washington Wizards on Monday night. Antetokounmpo, who is averaging 30.2 points per

The Atlanta Hawks will try to end a three-game, home-court losing streak on Tuesday night when they face the Indiana Pacers in the NBA in-season tournament. This will be the first of four regular-season meetings between Atlanta and Indiana. The Hawks won two of three against the Pacers last season. The Hawks have lost two straight and three of their last four after Friday’s 126-116 home loss to Philadelphia in the in-season tournament. Indiana is

The Golden State Warriors will get an opportunity to pick on one of their favorite guests when they host the Houston Rockets on Monday night in San Francisco. The Warriors have dropped six in a row, including the first five contests of a six-game homestand. The last two defeats have come without Draymond Green, who is out on suspension for his role in an altercation vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night. Golden State is