Two of the marquee franchises in the NBA meet again as the New York Knicks visit the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Knicks have hit a three-game losing skid amid the absence of star point guard Jalen Brunson. And they might once again be without Brunson against the Lakers, who are riding a three-game win streak despite missing superstar LeBron James.
Elsewhere, the West-leading Denver Nuggets will look to end their rare losing skid at home against the Brooklyn Nets, while Joel Embiid will be keen to strengthen his MVP credentials against the Washington Wizards.
Read on below as SBOTOP previews all six games on the upcoming NBA schedule.
Brooklyn Nets @ Denver Nuggets
Denver’s big lead in the West is shrinking after back-to-back defeats. The Nuggets went down 128-120 to second-to-last-place Spurs last time out, ending their 29-game win streak when Nikola Jokic records a triple-double.
Jokic and co will look to bounce back when they host the Brooklyn Nets, who won their fourth game in five as they edged out the Minnesota Timberwolves 124-123 in overtime. Mikal Bridges led the team with 34 points and is averaging 29 points during this recent 4-1 stretch.
However, the NBA 2023 betting odds will heavily favour the Nuggets, who have the best home record in the NBA at 30-5.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Charlotte Hornets
The Cavs saw their three-game win streak snapped as they fell 119-115 to the Miami Heat. Donovan Mitchell scored 42 points in a losing effort for the Cavs, the third time in five games in March that Mitchell has dropped 40 or more points.
Mitchell will have to carry more of the offensive load for the Cavs as centre Jarrett Allen (right eye contusion) is doubtful, while point guard Darius Garland (quad) is questionable to play against the Charlotte Hornets.
The Hornets also had their two-game win streak snapped last time out by the Jazz. Kelly Oubre Jr led the team with 24 points as his strong March continues. Oubre is averaging 25.2 points and 7 rebounds through the first six games of the month.
Washington Wizards @ Philadelphia 76ers
The Wizards have fallen out of the play-in picture in the East after back-to-back defeats to the Atlanta Hawks. They have now lost four of their last five games and have been overtaken by the Chicago Bulls for 10th in the East standings.
The Wizards will now have their work cut out for them as they take on the Sixers, who are suddenly the hottest team in the NBA with four straight wins. The Sixers squeaked out a 120-119 win over the Blazers last time out thanks to a clutch Joel Embiid jumper.
Embiid had 39 points overall as he continues to make a strong case for MVP. The superstar centre is averaging 37 points on 60 per cent shooting over his last five games and leads the league in scoring at 33.4 points. He also dropped 48 points in his first game against the Wizards this season.
Portland Trail Blazers @ New Orleans Pelicans
The seemingly-improving Blazers have taken another step back after back-to-back defeats to the Celtics and Sixers. Despite the heroics of Damian Lillard, who is third in the NBA at 32.1 points per game, the Blazers are still 1.5 games back of the final play-in spot.
And they face stiff competition from the New Orleans Pelicans, who are a half-game back of the final play-in place. The Pelicans are still struggling as they lost to the Thunder, their seventh defeat in their last nine games.
Already without superstar and leading scorer Zion Williamson, the Pels will also be missing second-leading scorer Brandon Ingram against the Blazers due to an ankle injury.
Oklahoma City Thunder @ San Antonio Spurs
The Thunder are hot on the Pelicans heels as they’ve won four of their last five games. All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander returned from a one-game absence to drop 35 points in the win over the Pelicans. SGA has been sizzling since the All-Star break, averaging 36.3 points in his last four games.
SGA and the Thunder will like their chances of creating more NBA 2023 highlights against the struggling Spurs.
Although, San Antonio did shock the league by beating the West-leading Nuggets last time out. It was the Spurs’ third win in their last five games after disastrous 16-game losing skid.
New York Knicks @ Los Angeles Lakers
After going on an impressive nine-game win streak, including one a win against the then-East-leading Celtics, the Knicks are now on a three-game skid. They suffered a shock loss to the lowly Hornets and have also lost the first two games of their four-game West coast road trip to the Kings and Clippers.
It should be noted that star point guard Jalen Brunson has been missing in 3.5 of the last four games due to a foot injury, which he re-aggravated in the loss to the Kings. Brunson, who is second on the team at 23.8 points per game, remains listed as day-to-day.
The Knicks will need Brunson back as they take on the resurgent Lakers, who have won three games in a row and four of their last six games without the injured LeBron James.
Anthony Davis had been carrying the load for the Lakers in LeBron’s absence as he averaged 33 points over a five-game stretch. But with AD struggling against the Raptors, D’Angelo Russell stepped up with 28 points and 9 rebounds to lead LA to victory.
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