BASKETBALL NBA ARTICLES

The first home game following a lengthy road trip is always the most difficult. At least that’s what they say. The Los Angeles Lakers will test that theory on Thursday when they host the Denver Nuggets in a rematch of last season’s Western Conference Final. The Lakers are coming off a seven-game road trip that saw them suffer consecutive defeats for the first time this season. The setbacks also dropped them from their perch at the top of the Western Conference standings.... 

One of the greatest rivalries in the NBA is renewed in prime time when the Los Angeles Lakers visit the Boston Celtics on Saturday. By winning the title last season the Lakers matched the Celtics for the most championships in league history with 17. The clubs have nearly as many titles between them as the rest of the league. The teams have paired off in the NBA Finals a record 12 times with the last coming in 2010, and there’s a chance this season we get the Finals matchup we came close to seein... 

Losers of three straight both SU and ATS and unable to take to the hardwood because of COVID-19 protocols earlier in the week, the New Orleans Pelicans will attempt to get the train back on the tracks when they play in front of the hometown cardboard cutouts for the second of their extended five-game homestand. But after squaring off against another train wreck in the Washington Wizards last time out, things will get much tougher on Friday night when Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks... 

The Los Angeles Clippers have a lot of work to do to make up for last season’s playoff failure. They’ve done a nice job so far sweeping a recent homestand to extend their winning streak to seven in a row matching the Lakers for the best record in the NBA. The Clips look to continue their winning ways on the road when they take on the Miami Heat Thursday night in the second game of a six-game road swing.... 

The NBA best Los Angeles Lakers put their perfect 7-0 road record on the line when they visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night to open a seven-game road trip in what could be a preview of the NBA Finals. The Bucks overcame a slow start to the season to regain a familiar spot atop the Eastern Conference standings. Reigning two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and former MVP LeBron James go head to head for the only time in the first half of the season schedule looking to settle their differenc... 

COVID has done a number on the NBA schedule with the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers among the teams hindered most by the virus and the NBA’s safety protocols. The teams are scheduled to meet on Wednesday as long as things work out in a positive way. Philly’s game with OKC on Sunday was postponed after the Sixers came up short of having the required minimum number of players available. The Celtics were wishing that was the case for them after they got whacked by Knicks. We hope to see all ... 

Can the Golden State Warriors return to their championship form from just a few years ago? Probably not, but they are much better this season than they were during last season’s debacle. The return of Steph Curry has a lot to do with that, and he’ll attempt to get the Dubs a win over the new bully in the West when the Warriors take on LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night in the second game of a TNT doubleheader.... 

The Brooklyn Nets don’t often get in the cross hairs of the NBA’s media partners. That changed when the club went all in mortgaging the future for a run at immediate gratification. Swinging a deal for disgruntled James Harden gives the Nets a Big Three along with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. But can those players thrive with only one basketball? The Nets will show off their new look against one of the top teams in the league when they host the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday.... 

The New Orleans Pelicans haven’t been on the road that much in the early part of the season. They’ll more than make up for it over the next few weeks. The Pels were to open a seven-game road trip in Dallas on Monday, but that game was postponed due to COVID concerns. So, they headed to SoCal to take on the two Western Conference favorites. They finish off their stay in LA with a matchup against the West leading Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night in the second of what is now a six-game roadie.... 

Not only will teams have to get by an opponent every night, they must also deal with the inevitable COVID protocols that have already dominated the NBA headlines. The Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers will test their own depth when they get together on Thursday night. The Sixers won seven of their first eight games before COVID and injuries showed up, reducing the roster to seven healthy players. The results weren’t good with consecutive losses to Brooklyn and Denver. Still, the Sixers entered t... 

We knew at some point COVID would catch up to a player, either through a positive test or contact tracing. It couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Brooklyn Nets, who must take on the Philadelphia 76ers Thursday without Kevin Durant. Facing quarantine because of exposure to a COVID-positive individual, Durant is expected to miss at least four games. The Nets had a hard time winning with KD in the lineup losing two straight and four of five before the hammer fell, and the prospects of winnin... 

An early season Western Conference showdown has the Los Angeles Clippers taking on the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday. Following their win over Phoenix the Clips forged a three-way tie atop the conference standings while the Dubs used an explosive night from Steph Curry to reach .500. All five teams in the Pacific Division enter the week at .500 or better and all are in the top eight of the conference standings. It’s way too early, but it looks like this may be the best division in the NBA m... 

Before the arrival of Lob City, the Los Angeles Clippers had a dark past. There were a lot of losses involved and some not so pretty. But the franchise reached a new low over the weekend losing its first game of the season in record style. The Clips trailed by 50 points ... at halftime and ended up losing 124-73 to Dallas, the worst setback in team history. We expected to see some unusual things at the start of the season given the circumstances, but that had to be the most unexpected occurrence... 

Posting the best record in the NBA the last two seasons has meant little to the Milwaukee Bucks, who lost in the Eastern Conference Finals two years ago and were bounced in the second round by the Miami Heat just a few months back. The teams meet in South Florida on Wednesday in the second of a back-to-back. COVID changed everything last season with teams playing in a bubble setting in Florida, and the Heat thrived. The virus threat forced schedule adjustments this season with the unusual scenar... 

The Los Angeles Lakers are favored to repeat as NBA champions this season. The Lakers tied Boston as the most successful franchise in league history with their 17th title last year, and they have a good chance of breaking the tie in 2020-21. They lost their season opener against the Clippers though, so the Lakers are out to avoid an 0-2 start when the Dallas Mavericks come to town on Christmas Day.... 

It was a rough debut for the Golden State Warriors. One of the worst teams in the NBA last year looked more than a little rusty against former teammate Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets, losing 125-99 in the season opener on Tuesday. Things won’t get any easier on Christmas as Golden State heads to Milwaukee to take on the Bucks. Milwaukee has yet to play this season, but the Bucks will play their first game against the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night. ... 

The Los Angeles Lakers will receive their rings and hang another banner in the Staples Center on Tuesday night when they host the Los Angeles Clippers. That will certainly feel like rubbing salt in the wound for the Clippers, as they have never won an NBA title and fell short as the favorite to win it all last year. These are the two Western Conference favorites again in 2020-21, so the road to th... 

After the most tumultuous NBA season in recent history, the league is hoping to get back to some degree of normalcy in the 2020-21 campaign. The NBA was forced to shift its entire calendar as a result of COVID, but it might work out for the best as basketball will be out football’s shadow for a longer period of time. This season will kick off with the Brooklyn Nets hosting the Golden State Warrior... 

Get ready to bet the NBA Draft at BookMaker. Props are on the board right now for Wednesday’s draft with odds available on which player will be drafted first, specific draft positions and more. LaMelo Ball is expected to be the first pick in the NBA Draft, but surprises are always possible. There are also some interesting props on some of the other players and their positions, plus there are p... 

There are still plenty of unknowns as the NBA attempts to get another season started. One thing that has been settled is the 2020 NBA Draft, though it will be different in a number of ways. The delayed finish to the recent season pushed the date way back and the festivities will be held virtually. And unlike last year when Zion Williamson was a massive favorite to be taken first overall, which he was by the way, there is no clear-cut favorite at the top of the draft board.... 

We didn’t get the all LA clash in the Western Conference finals and we were denied another Lakers-Celtics showdown in the Finals, but I don’t think there’s any question that the two best teams will be fighting it out for the Larry O’Brien Trophy. The Miami Heat continued their unlikely playoff voyage and will take on the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals starting Wednesday. Both teams lost just three games during the first three rounds with Miami posting impressive series wins over No. 1 Milw... 

The Denver Nuggets weren’t about to lay down the red carpet for LeBron James to take another trip to the NBA Finals. Since no team in NBA history has rallied after being down 3-0, Game 3 amounted to a must-win for the Nuggets. And that’s what they did, 114-106, to make this a series. Of course it’s always a series when Denver is involved since the Nuggets have already comeback from 3-1 deficits against Utah and the Clippers. To do that again they’d have to lose on Thursday, which is something I’... 

Desperation is motivation, and the Boston Celtics were a desperate group for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals with the Miami Heat. After two stunning losses, the Celtics had a late night meeting of the minds over pizza and soda to try and crack the Heat’s code. They did and the series got much more entertaining. Boston handed the Heat just their second loss and scored the most points in a regulation game against them in these playoffs, 117-106. Now Boston can square the series with a win ... 

The Denver Nuggets are a team of destiny. At least it looks that way after they completed their second straight comeback from a 3-1 series deficit to knock off the favored Clippers. Instead of the all LA Western Conference final series, the Nuggets can make it an all LA sweep if they can get past the Los Angeles Lakers. It probably wouldn’t be a good idea to fall behind to LeBron James and Co., but the Nuggets are playing with an edge that’s seen them do something no other team in the history of... 

There will be a new NBA champion after the Boston Celtics knocked off Toronto in an exciting seven-game series, advancing to the Eastern Conference Final for the third time in four seasons. Led by a diverse scoring unit that includes superstar Jayson Tatum, the Celtics are a favorite to return the NBA Finals for the first time in a decade and the 22nd time overall. They will have to get by a scrappy Miami Heat club that knocked off No. 1 seed Milwaukee in the conference semifinals in the most im...