BASKETBALL NBA ARTICLES

The Golden State Warriors boast the best record in the NBA for the second straight season, but have been far from unbeatable they appeared to be for much of last season despite a better roster—at least on paper. Still, they’re in position to capture their second win against the Detroit Pistons in the last few weeks on Thursday night as they host them in what amounts to a rematch of sorts in Oakland.... 

A couple teams that the names on the roster indicate should be better than their current records will matchup on Thursday night when the New York Knicks will welcome the Chicago Bulls to the Big Apple. Derrick Rose got revenge against his former team when these two met back in November, but it’s Chicago that’s playing better basketball at the moment as they look for revenge.... 

As long as they’re not playing the Bulls, the Cleveland Cavaliers are the best team in the NBA—or at least in the Eastern Conference. They’ll matchup against an underperforming Portland Trail Blazers team that despite a loaded backcourt have not been able to find their groove, particularly on defense. Cleveland beat the Blazers and the spread in their last meeting and will look to do so again despite this game being played out on the West Coast.... 

Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder will get a chance for revenge against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night after falling to them in spectacular fashion back in December. Based on records, these two teams are very evenly matched with Westbrook leading a strong, fast-paced Thunder offense against Marc Gasol and the No. 3 ranked Memphis defense. Of course, the offense isn’t completely inept in Memphis either as the team showed the last time they faced the Thunder.... 

The Golden State Warriors will get a chance for revenge against a Memphis Grizzlies team that shocked them in a head-to-head matchup in early December with a 21-point victory. Since that loss, the Warriors have won 10 of 11 games, with the only exception being a one-point loss to Cleveland. Meanwhile, the Grizzlies have been incredibly inconsistent since beating Golden State, going 5-6 with some big wins over Oklahoma City and Houston as well as disruptive losses to Sacramento and Orlando.... 

With just two wins in their last 10 games, the New York Knicks’ early season surge is now a thing of the past as they get set to try and get back on track in a pair of games against the Milwaukee Bucks, the later of the two taking place in Milwaukee on Friday night. The Bucks are playing pretty good basketball right now with three wins over the Bulls in the last ten games along with a victory against Oklahoma City and a game where the pushed the Cavaliers into overtime.... 

The Tim Duncan era is over in San Antonio, yet the Spurs are still dominating the opposition under head coach Gregg Popovich. The San Antonio Spurs will journey to Colorado to take on the Denver Nuggets on Thursday in their first road game since calling to Atlanta on New Year’s Day. Despite the loss to the Hawks, the Spurs have proven to be a strong road team so far this season while the Nuggets are under-.500 at home.... 

The Chicago Bulls got the better of the Cleveland Cavaliers when these two last squared off back in the middle of December. Cleveland will get a chance for revenge when they host the Bulls on Wednesday night. To do so, however, they’ll need to do a better job at containing Chicago’s starting five while getting a bit more inside from Kevin Love who shot just 5-for-14 from the floor in Chicago last month.... 

In their last 10 games, the Golden State Warriors have only fallen to one team: the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers. The Portland Trail Blazers, on the other hand, have struggled through the first part of the season and come into play on Wednesday having won just two of their last nine. The question isn’t who will win so much as by how much will the Warriors win as the spread figures to be rather large given Golden State will be hosting Portland.... 

The NBA’s top two assists leaders will meet on the court on Thursday when Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder head to Texas to take on James Harden and the Houston Rockets. The two dynamic guards are also amongst the top four in scoring as each lead their respective teams to very strong records. Westbrook was the one with the triple-double the last time these teams met, but it was Houston that won the game.... 

It’s been an interesting week for the Cleveland Cavaliers already. They knocked off the Golden State Warriors by a point on Christmas Day, but then lost to the Detroit Pistons the next day as LeBron James rested.... 

The Los Angeles Lakers have fallen on some hard times of late, but aren’t yet out of the playoff race in a Western Conference that doesn’t have a clear eighth-best team. Los Angeles needs to play much better going forward, and that includes a home victory over the struggling Dallas Mavericks.... 

The Los Angeles Lakers have long dominated the Southern California NBA scene, but they will be the underdog against city brethren the Los Angeles Clippers on Christmas. The Lakers have been on a rebuild for the past couple of years and while they are the de facto home team in this matchup there isn’t much of an advantage since the Clippers players get to sleep in their own beds.The Clippers are among the best teams in the Western Conference and should be able to take care of business in this one, even after losing leading scorer Blake Griffin for several weeks to a knee injury. Chris Paul is still around to lead the way for a Clippers team which will be the favorite in this showdown.... 

It’s a muddled chase for the third seed in the Eastern Conference this season, with many teams capable of capturing it. The Boston Celtics are currently in the catbird seat for it and will aim to hold off the New York Knicks. A road win would be a big step for Boston when the teams face off on Christmas Day.The Cavaliers are likely to grab the top seed in the conference so avoiding them until the conference finals is everyone’s goal. Even though they are the road team, the Celtics may be slight favorites in this matchup.... 

The San Antonio Spurs have only lost five times this season, but one of them came at the hands of the Chicago Bulls. They will aim to pull even in the season series when the Spurs host Chicago on Christmas Day.Despite the previous result, San Antonio is the clearly superior team. The home court advantage is another key piece as the Spurs will certainly be the favorite in this one. The Bulls feel like they match up well and would love to be competitive in this matchup,... 

The Oklahoma CIty Thunder are battling for one of the final spots in the Western Conference and must keep accumulating victories against inferior competition. One such of those games comes on Christmas when they host the Minnesota Timberwolves.... 

The Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors will meet for the first time since last year’s NBA Finals series and for the first time since Golden State added Kevin Durant to the lineup. This is a matchup basketball fans have been anxiously awaiting all season and it will be interesting to see which one emerges victorious.... 

Two perennially strong franchises have fallen on hard times. The Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat are used to challenging for NBA titles, but this year they will be hard-pressed to even make the playoffs.... 

The Los Angeles Clippers had the best start in the NBA, but has come back down to earth of late. They have dropped to the second tier in the Western Conference, a place where they were pegged to begin the season. The Clippers would love to close the gap on the San Antonio Spurs and have a golden opportunity at home.... 

The Dallas Mavericks have been perennial playoff participants and sometimes NBA title contenders over the past decade-plus, but have fallen on hard times this season. The team will aim to turn it around but will be the underdogs when they face off against the Utah Jazz on the road in a regular season affair.Dallas is tied for the worst record in the NBA, as they are the lowest-scoring team in the NBA by a wide margin. The Mavericks must find some offense in order to have a chance at pulling this upset.... 

The Los Angeles Lakers got off to a surprisingly fast start but have fallen on tough times of late. They will aim to end a long skid on the road against the Philadelphia 76ers.Both of these teams are rebuilding, but the Lakers have done better in the earlygoing. Philadelphia has been marginally better at home than on the road this season but is still one of the worst teams in the NBA.... 

The Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks are both in the thick of the playoff hunt in the Eastern Conference, and facing off against each other could have big ramifications down the road.... 

The Golden State Warriors had grand expectations before the season started, and sometimes it’s hard to live up to such lofty heights. This team has done it and more, as it has the best record in the NBA and is scoring points at an obscene rate. The Warriors will aim to keep it rolling when they host the New York Knicks in a regular season matchup.... 

The San Antonio Spurs have not been a dominant home team this season after rolling past teams a year ago, but it’s still at a big advantage when they play in front of the favorable crowd. The Spurs will be expected to win when they host the Boston Celtics in a regular season affair.... 

The Miami Heat watched its two superstars leave over the past two years, and unsurprisingly, so have a lot of wins. WIthout LeBron James and Dwyane Wade leading the way, the Heat is one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference....