Matchups

The Toronto Raptors still have their sights set on the No. 1 spot in the Eastern Conference and started out their road trip in impressive fashion on Tuesday. The Raptors will try to move up at the expense of another team fighting for postseason position when they visit the Indiana Pacers in the finale of the two-game trip on Thursday.

The Philadelphia 76ers have given up 256 points in the last two games as they strive to reach double-digit victories. The 76ers try to get a few more stops on the defensive end against a team that can put up some points when they host the Washington Wizards on Thursday.

The jumbled Eastern Conference playoff race takes front and center Thursday when the Charlotte Hornets visit the Miami Heat in a matchup of teams that have been climbing the ladder of late. The Heat gained sole possession of third place in the East by virtue of Boston's loss Wednesday and have won four in a row at home.

The Atlanta Hawks are streaking and look to post their seventh victory in eight games when they host the Denver Nuggets on Thursday. The Hawks stand a season-high 10 games above .500 and the hot stretch has allowed them to move within a half-game of the third-place Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

All-Star center Pau Gasol is ailing and will miss his third straight contest when the slumping Chicago Bulls host the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday. Gasol is hindered with soreness in his right knee and hasn't yet made enough progress to return to action.

Injuries are decimating the Memphis Grizzlies and the team will try to fight out of a slump when they visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday. Memphis suffered a 114-108 home loss to the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday for its third consecutive defeat and fifth in seven games.

The Portland Trail Blazers have slowed considerably since a hot stretch bridging the All-Star break vaulted them into sixth place in the Western Conference. The Trail Blazers will try to avoid another set of back-to-back losses on Thursday by doing something that no team has managed in the NBA this season – win at the San Antonio Spurs.

The Utah Jazz are trying to keep sight of the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks fighting over the final three spots in the Western Conference playoff bracket and are inching closer with three straight wins. The Jazz will try to make it four in a row when they host the Phoenix Suns on Thursday.