NBA Previews

The Orlando Magic get a soft spot in their schedule this week, a welcome sight for a playoff contender. Orlando will play the Eastern Conference’s three worst teams in succession, starting with Sunday’s meeting with the visiting Detroit Pistons. After playing Detroit, the Magic will hit the road to face the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday before taking on the Washington Wizards on Wednesday as part of a three-game trip. On Sunday, Orlando can complete a

One night after the visiting Portland Trail Blazers ended a nine-game losing streak with a dominant win over the Grizzlies, the teams will meet again on Saturday in Memphis. Dalano Banton scored a season-high 19 points, Jabari Walker also had 19 and Duop Reath added 18 in Portland’s 122-92 win over the Grizzlies on Friday. The Blazers led by as many as 33 points in the second half. Jake LaRavia scored a career-high 21 points

The Miami Heat return home from a six-game road swing Saturday, looking to start a new winning streak when they host the sputtering Utah Jazz. Miami closed its lengthy road odyssey, split by the All-Star break, with a 103-97 loss Thursday to the Denver Nuggets. The defeat snapped a five-game winning streak and denied the Heat a perfect road trip. Despite the loss, Bam Adebayo said battling back from a 16-point first-quarter deficit can be

On Thursday, the Brooklyn Nets played with the mentality of a team facing an elimination game and delivered one of their best performances of a season. The Nets will attempt to display a similar type of performance when they play the second of two straight home games against the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday afternoon. Brooklyn is three games behind the 10th-place Hawks for the final play-in spot and can claim the head-to-head tiebreaker with another

The Los Angeles Clippers will search for answers in order to recover from their post All-Star-break funk when they host the Washington Wizards on Friday night. The Clippers have lost three of four games since the break, with the latest defeat coming in devastating fashion after they squandered a 21-point lead in the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday. The Clippers were rolling with a crisp offense and the return to the

The Milwaukee Bucks have won four consecutive games for the first time since the calendar turned to 2024. Milwaukee will look to match its second-longest winning streak of the season when it visits the Chicago Bulls on Friday night. The Bucks have won their past three games by an average of 23.7 points, including a home-and-home sweep of the Charlotte Hornets. Milwaukee won the road portion 111-99 on Thursday to finish off a four-game season

The Philadelphia 76ers, entering a Friday home game against the struggling Charlotte Hornets, are searching for ways to win games without reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid. Since Embiid went down with a left knee injury that necessitated surgery, the Sixers are 4-8. At this rate, they might wind up out of the top six spots in the Eastern Conference and compete in the postseason play-in tournament. Philadelphia is currently tied with the Orlando

As a playoff contender seeking the best possible seed, the Cleveland Cavaliers always welcome a matchup with Central Division rival Detroit. The Cavaliers have won the last eight meetings, including three this season. Cleveland will look to extend that streak and secure a four-game season series sweep when they visit Detroit on Friday night. Both teams played at Chicago in their most recent outings but the results were somewhat surprising. The Pistons captured their ninth

Mired in a 12-game losing streak, the Washington Wizards at least will have the advantage of a day of rest when they visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday. For the Lakers, it will be the second game in two nights following a furious fourth-quarter rally in a 116-112 victory against the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday. In dire need of consistency, the Lakers are giving their latest lineup an extended look. Rui Hachimura received