NBA Previews

The Minnesota Timberwolves, minus one of their stars, will go for their third win in a row when they visit the Cleveland Cavaliers on short rest Friday night. Minnesota is coming off a hard-fought, 113-111 win over the Indiana Pacers on Thursday in Indianapolis. It marked the Timberwolves’ first game since losing Karl-Anthony Towns to a torn meniscus in his left knee. Towns will undergo surgery next week, and he could miss the rest of

Eager to get back on track after seeing their winning streak come to an end, the Milwaukee Bucks take their four-game California road trip to Los Angeles on Friday to face the Lakers. The Bucks finally have some cohesion now under new head coach Doc Rivers, but a six-game win streak came crashing down Wednesday in a 125-90 setback to the Golden State Warriors. Playing with a renewed energy of late on the defensive end,

A piecemeal starting lineup Wednesday night was enough to help the Orlando Magic leapfrog the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference standings. The Knicks hope they’re almost done with the days of mixing and matching lineups due to injuries. The surging Magic and skidding Knicks hope to welcome back key players Friday when Orlando visits New York in a potential playoff preview. The Magic won their fifth straight game Wednesday by overcoming a 21-point

The Charlotte Hornets have their share of problems, yet they get a rare crack at a team with a worse record than theirs during Friday’s matchup with the host Washington Wizards. The teams enter with a combined 24 victories this season, 15 for the Hornets and nine for the Wizards. Washington led by 18 points Wednesday but lost its 16th consecutive game with a 119-109 home setback to the Orlando Magic, who defeated Charlotte a

The Philadelphia 76ers once held championship aspirations. After a series of injuries, most notably to reigning Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid, the Sixers since have careened into the race for a play-in berth. The Sixers blew a 15-point lead and fell 115-109 to the depleted Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday for their second loss in a row. The short-handed Sixers also played without Tyrese Maxey (concussion), Kyle Lowry (rest), De’Anthony Melton (back) and Robert Covington (knee).

The Sacramento Kings know that every game remaining in the season is an important one for playoff seeding. That makes their clash at home against the struggling San Antonio Spurs on Thursday just as important as any contest versus one of the league’s upper-echelon teams. If anything, defeating the Spurs is a must. San Antonio rookie phenom Victor Wembanyama will miss the game with a sprained right ankle. It’s the second of a road-home back-to-back

Two teams coming off emotional wins get an opportunity to demonstrate which has more left in the tank when the Chicago Bulls visit the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night in San Francisco. The Bulls will be seeking a third straight win on their four-game Western swing after outfinishing the Utah Jazz 119-117 on the road in a tense affair Wednesday night. DeMar DeRozan had 29 points and Coby White 25 for Chicago, but they

The Phoenix Suns, fresh off a scintillating win, will now look to avoid a letdown against one of the NBA’s weaker teams. After taking down the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets on Tuesday, the Suns aim for another victory when they host the beleaguered Toronto Raptors on Thursday night. Phoenix sits in the sixth position in the Western Conference but is just a half-game ahead of the Sacramento Kings, who hold the top play-in spot.

The Minnesota Timberwolves will carry a four-game road winning streak into Thursday’s contest when they open a season-high six-game trip against the Indiana Pacers in Indianapolis. The Timberwolves won the final four contests of a five-game road trip early last month before posting a 4-3 record during their season-long seven-game homestand that ended Monday against Portland. Rudy Gobert collected 25 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks in Minnesota’s 119-114 win over the Trail Blazers. Gobert’s