NBA Previews

The Indiana Pacers will look to overcome the absence of All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton on Wednesday when they host the Washington Wizards in Indianapolis. Haliburton injured his left hamstring while driving to the basket during the second quarter of Indiana’s 133-131 victory over the Boston Celtics on Monday. The Pacers announced Tuesday that an MRI exam determined that Haliburton had a left hamstring strain. The club didn’t offer a timetable for his return. The

The Philadelphia 76ers aren’t sure if reigning league MVP Joel Embiid will be available on Wednesday when they go on the road to play the Atlanta Hawks. Embiid missed Saturday’s loss against the Utah Jazz because of swelling in his left knee following an incident during Friday’s loss to the New York Knicks. He did not participate in practice on Monday or Tuesday. When asked if Embiid would be available to play against the Hawks,

The Orlando Magic will go for their third win in a row when they host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night. Orlando is coming off a 117-110 overtime win against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday evening, which followed a road victory over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night. The Magic are looking for their first three-game winning streak since stacking up nine wins in a row from Nov. 15-Dec. 1. Paolo Banchero scored 35 points

With a much-needed victory after a difficult week, the Los Angeles Lakers will look to build off the success when the Toronto Raptors visit Tuesday. The Lakers ended a four-game losing streak with a hard-fought 106-103 victory over the surging Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday as LeBron James scored 25 points with eight rebounds and seven assists. Anthony Davis added 22 points with 10 rebounds as the team’s stars took the lead in changing the

The Dallas Mavericks aim to extend their perfect start to their season-long seven-game homestand when they host the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night. The Mavericks gave their home fans a thrill with a pair of lopsided victories over the Portland Trail Blazers before recording a 115-108 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday. Kyrie Irving, who scored 35 points against the Timberwolves, has averaged 29.3 points and 8.7 rebounds during the team’s current win streak.

After the New York Knicks improved to 14-1 against opponents with losing records, Julius Randle provided an insight into the team’s mentality. “Don’t play with your food,” Randle said Saturday following a 121-105 win in Washington. “Take care of what you’re supposed to take care of and just keep improving. Basketball gods got a funny way of rewarding you or humbling you. We just try to approach each game the right way and play basketball

Mike Brown will not have to apologize to ticket-buying Sacramento Kings fans after Tuesday’s game. The head coach felt bad for the paying customers who witnessed the Kings’ 133-100 home loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday. The Kings will be far from their home court on Tuesday, when they will be in Detroit to begin a five-game road trip. The Pelicans led by as many as 50 points while defeating the Kings for

The Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Clippers will look to leave a pair of disappointing defeats behind them when the Western Conference rivals meet Monday at Los Angeles. Despite a 121-115 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies in which they faded late, the Suns still have been playing better, with five victories in their past seven games following a disappointing 3-9 stretch. Now Phoenix hits the road in search of a little revenge after they fell

The Utah Jazz have only won six road games all season and lost by 29 points to Boston over the weekend, but that might not make the Milwaukee Bucks feel too confident when they host them on Monday night. Not only have the Bucks lost three of four games, but they dropped a 112-108 decision to the host Houston Rockets on Saturday night despite getting 48 points and 17 rebounds from Giannis Antetokounmpo. And they’ll