Preview Roundups
January 16, 2015
Detroit at Indiana 7:00 PM ET
Despite a hot stretch, Detroit Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy was not happy with the lack of energy his troops showed in a home loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday. After his scathing postgame comments, Van Gundy will look for a better effort by the Pistons when they visit the Indiana Pacers on Friday. The Pacers are also coming off a poor home performance against the hapless Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday that resulted in a chorus of boos from the crowd.
Memphis at Orlando 7:00 PM ET
The Orlando Magic answered six straight losses with wins over two of the top teams in the league and look to build on that when they host the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday. The Magic produced a season-high 121 points to beat Chicago on Monday, followed by a 120-113 triumph over Houston on Wednesday, and face a Memphis team that allows 97.9. The Grizzlies, who have beaten Orlando six straight times, won their last two contests overall and lead the wide-open Southwest Division.
New Orleans at Philadelphia 7:00 PM ET
The New Orleans Pelicans have some ground to make up in the Western Conference playoff race, so they need to take advantage of opportunities like Friday's trip to Philadelphia to face the struggling 76ers. The Pelicans snapped a five-game road losing streak with a 105-94 win at Detroit on Wednesday and are aiming for their first back-to-back wins since Dec. 16 and 18. The 76ers are coming off a 100-84 loss at Toronto and have dropped two straight and eight of their last 11.
Brooklyn at Washington 7:00 PM ET
The Washington Wizards are winners of five of their last six games and are knocking off some high-level competition of late. The Wizards will try to maintain that same type of intensity when they host the Brooklyn Nets in the opener of a home-and-home set on Friday. The Nets are losers of seven in a row and are averaging 89.3 points in that span as they tumble with Deron Williams (ribs) out of the lineup.
Chicago at Boston 7:30 PM ET
The good news for the Chicago Bulls is that Derrick Rose broke out of a slump Wednesday; the bad news is that it couldn't prevent the Bulls' fourth loss in five games and second to the Washington Wizards in a one-week stretch. Rose and the Bulls, who will probably be without Joakim Noah, hit the road Friday after a 1-2 homestand to play the dismantling Boston Celtics. The Celtics, whose roster seems to change daily, were beaten 105-91 by Atlanta on Wednesday for their 10th loss in 13 games.
Atlanta at Toronto 7:30 PM ET
Atlanta figures to have all hands on deck when it aims to tie the franchise's longest winning streak in 17 seasons at Toronto on Friday. The Hawks have continued to give key players nights off during their season-high 10-game run, which includes a 105-91 triumph in Boston on Wednesday, when starters Al Horford and Kyle Korver were given the night off. Jeff Teague, who scored 22 points against the Celtics, sat out the previous night at Philadelphia in the opener of a four-game road trip.
Golden State at Oklahoma City 8:00 PM ET
The Golden State Warriors aim for their ninth consecutive victory when they travel to Oklahoma City to face the Thunder on Friday. The Warriors, who have the best record in the NBA, continued their latest lengthy winning streak with a 104-89 victory over Miami on Wednesday. The Thunder are coming off a 112-101 loss at Houston on Thursday but have won four straight at home.
Denver at Dallas 8:30 PM ET
The Denver Nuggets look to extend their winning streak to a season-high six games when they go for the sweep of a home-and-home against the host Dallas Mavericks on Friday. The Nuggets topped the Mavericks 114-107 on Wednesday in Denver as Dallas rested Dirk Nowitzki, Rajon Rondo and Tyson Chandler – three of its top five scorers – for various reasons. The high-scoring Mavericks could get all three back as they try to turn things around after dropping three of their last four contests.
Portland at San Antonio 8:30 PM ET
The Portland Trail Blazers seek to defeat San Antonio for third straight time this season when they visit the Spurs on Friday. Portland was ousted in the second round of last season’s playoff by San Antonio but has posted two double-digit victories this season, including a 129-119 triple-overtime win on Dec. 19. The Trail Blazers have won 13 of their past 16 games while the Spurs have won five of their last seven.
Minnesota at Phoenix 9:00 PM ET
Mo Williams set the Minnesota Timberwolves’ franchise scoring record and increased his own trade value in the process on Tuesday. The veteran guard will try to maintain that pace when the Timberwolves visit the Phoenix Suns on Friday. Williams is one of the few veterans remaining on the rebuilding club and will soon have to battle Ricky Rubio for minutes in the backcourt when the Spaniard returns from an ankle injury.
L.A. Lakers at Utah 9:00 PM ET
After a vintage performance in a duel with fellow superstar LeBron James, Kobe Bryant will rest once again when the Los Angeles Lakers begin a four-game road trip at Utah on Friday. Bryant will sit out one game of back-to-back sets for the rest of the season and was active when the Lakers fell to James and Cleveland 109-102 on Thursday. It was hard to pin blame on Bryant after he produced a career-high 17 assists in 32 minutes as Los Angeles dropped its third straight and fifth in six games.
Miami at Sacramento 10:00 PM ET
The Sacramento Kings and Miami Heat could be without key players when they meet Friday in Sacramento. Rudy Gay, the second-leading scorer for the Kings at 20.4 points, suffered a left knee sprain in an overtime loss Tuesday against the Dallas Mavericks and is listed as day-to-day. Miami guard Dwyane Wade, the team’s leading scorer at 22.1, missed Wednesday’s loss at the Golden State Warriors with a strained hamstring, the type of injury that kept him out seven games in November.
Cleveland at L.A. Clippers 10:30 PM ET
LeBron James excelled in his second game back from injuries and now gets to see how his body reacts to a back-to-back as the Cleveland Cavaliers visit the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday. James missed eight games with back and knee injuries but dominated the Lakers with 36 points Thursday as Cleveland snapped a six-game losing streak. The Clippers recorded an impressive 100-94 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday behind 25 points from Jamal Crawford.