NBA Previews

Philadelphia 76ers coach Nick Nurse and guard Kyle Lowry will bring a reminder of better times when they visit the Toronto Raptors on Sunday. Nurse and Lowry played key roles in the Raptors’ 2019 NBA championship. The depleted Raptors (23-50) have since fallen, and they take a 12-game losing streak into their clash with the 76ers (39-35). The Raptors have been beset with injuries to players such as Scottie Barnes (hand) and Jakob Poeltl (finger).

The Los Angeles Clippers have been getting it done in a variety of ways in their recent successes, perhaps most notably on defense. That’s likely a discouraging sign for the Charlotte Hornets, who have endured a bunch of offensive shortcomings. The teams meet Sunday night in Charlotte. “I love our defense,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said after Friday night’s 100-97 triumph at Orlando. “Another tough, gritty win for us coming down the stretch. Finding a

While the Los Angeles Lakers admitted their energy was lacking on Friday, the Brooklyn Nets had no such issues during one of the NBA’s top 3-point shooting displays of the season. The Lakers hope their intensity is improved and they can stop the Brooklyn Nets from dominating behind the arc Sunday night when the teams get together in New York. Los Angeles (41-33) sits ninth in the Western Conference with a 1 1/2 game lead

The Orlando Magic are entering uncharted territory as they look to secure their first playoff berth since the 2019-20 season. The past few weeks have been a learning experience for the Magic (42-31), who will host the Memphis Grizzlies (24-49) on Saturday night. The injury-plagued Grizzlies lost for the sixth time in their last seven games with a 136-124 setback at home to the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday. Memphis will begin a three-game trip

Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic combined for 56 points, Dante Exum broke a late tie with a 3-pointer and the Dallas Mavericks completed a two-game road sweep of the Sacramento Kings with a 107-103 victory Friday night. Irving led the way with 30 points and Doncic completed a double-double with 26 points and a game-high 12 assists for the Mavericks (44-29), who had won 132-96 in the opener of the four-day double-header on Tuesday. Domantas

The Boston Celtics have lost consecutive games for just the third time all season. They’ll try to avoid their first three-game losing streak of 2023-24 when they visit the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday. The Celtics (57-16) still have the NBA’s best record and had won nine games in a row before losing twice in three nights to the Hawks in Atlanta. They lost a 30-point lead in a 120-118 loss Monday and dropped a

The Philadelphia 76ers still have the opportunity to improve their playoff position with only nine games remaining in the regular season. The Sixers fell 108-107 to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday, and the frustration bubbled over as coach Nick Nurse and guard Kelly Oubre Jr. angrily yelled at the referees after the loss. Oubre appeared to be fouled on a final shot but nothing was called. Philadelphia (39-34), which sits in eighth place in

After beating the Portland Trail Blazers on March 18, the Chicago Bulls were tantalizingly close to surpassing the .500 mark for the first time in more than a year. Then they dropped three straight, but the slide did not cost them the ninth spot in the Eastern Conference. The Bulls attempt to solidify their standing in the third play-in spot Friday night when they visit the Brooklyn Nets. The Bulls (35-38) head into their second

A little over two weeks ago, the Detroit Pistons overtook the Washington Wizards in the race to avoid the NBA’s worst record. Since then, the Wizards are playing better while the Pistons are skidding again. The NBA’s two worst teams get together for the final time Friday night when the Wizards host the Pistons. The Wizards (14-59) were ahead of the Pistons in victories until March 12 and fell one game back when Detroit earned