Kevin Durant and Luka Donic will be competing in one out of the 15 games scheduled for Monday night.
Every Monday we will tell you what you need to know heading into a new week of NBA action.
1. Manic Monday and Voting Tuesday
There is no need to check the schedule, your favorite NBA team is playing on Monday night as all 30 teams will be in action on a rare 15-game night around the league.
The decision to have every team play on Monday is a result of the NBA’s decision to hold no games on Tuesday, Nov. 8, which is Election Day in the United States. Rather than following the action on the court, NBA teams will share election information with fans and encourage them to participate in the election.
Not only will Monday be unique with all 30 teams in action, the schedule will roll out a bit differently as a new game will tip off every 15 minutes beginning at 7 p.m. ET with the Hornets hosting the Wizards and concluding with the Clippers hosting the Cavaliers (10:30 ET, NBA TV).
Games will begin every 15 minutes, which means they will likely conclude about 15 minutes apart. Therefore, from roughly 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. ET, you can enjoy continuous crunch time action on League Pass. If you prefer not to switch feeds on League Pass, you can opt for NBA CrunchTime on the NBA App. This provides an NFL RedZone-like experience with live look-ins on every game, focusing particularly on the closing minutes to ensure you don’t miss any key moments. NBA CrunchTime starts at 9 p.m. ET.
All teams. All games. Completely FREE.
Tonight, all 30 NBA teams will be playing with 15 games accessible at no cost on the new NBA App, and the games will start 15 minutes apart!
Download the NBA App to watch: https://t.co/OVezzsML8x… pic.twitter.com/saryDqRuou
— NBA (@NBA) November 7, 2022
To learn more about Monday’s slate of games, click here to check out a breakdown of all the top storylines.
2. Milestone Watch: Can LeBron ‘pass’ Magic?
In addition to his pursuit of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time scoring record (1,107 points to go), LeBron James is chasing another Lakers legend in assists. Entering Week 4, LeBron needs 33 assists to pass Magic Johnson (10,141) for sixth place on the all-time assists leaderboard.
Just last week, LeBron passed Karl Malone for the most games with 20 or more points in league history with No. 1,135 of his career. After the accomplishment, LeBron shared a leaderboard graphic with the caption “Not bad for a pass first guy!” This upcoming assist milestone is more fitting to his basketball instincts, but the truth is there’s never been a better combination of scorer and playmaker than James.
View this post on InstagramA post shared by (@kingjames)
To surpass Johnson this week, LeBron would need to average slightly over eight assists per game in the Lakers’ four matches this week. This would exceed his current season’s average of 7.1 per game, which ranks him 13th in the league.
Other milestones to watch for this week
- Kyle Lowry requires eight more 3-pointers to be the 12th player to achieve 2,000.
- Devin Booker is two 3-pointers away from achieving 1,000 in his career.
3. The Temp Check: Hottest & coldest teams entering the week
In the previous edition of The Five, we featured two outstanding players, Luka Doncic and Donovan Mitchell, and one unbeatable team, the undefeated Bucks, as they moved into the third week of the season. Surprisingly, as we move into Week 4, all three continue to be on fire. Doncic has maintained a scoring streak of no less than 30 points per game this season. Mitchell is proving to be an ideal fit in Cleveland, while the Bucks have yet to register a loss – a feat they achieved even with their star player, Giannis Antetokounmpo, observing their ninth consecutive victory from the sidelines, enjoying popcorn.
With a 9-0 record, the Bucks are still the only team in the league that hasn’t been defeated. Photo by Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports.
Heat Check: Cleveland, Milwaukee, Memphis and Dallas
This week, we’re evaluating teams that have both a heat and cold check. The Bucks still hold the heat check, but the Cavaliers are closely trailing behind them at the summit of the Eastern Conference rankings. As they venture into Week 4, Cleveland boasts an eight-game winning streak, their longest since their consecutive 13-game triumph from November 11 to December 6, 2017.
In the Western conference, both Memphis (7-3) and Dallas (5-3) are enjoying three-game winning streaks as they head into Week 4. The Grizzlies are only half a game away from taking the top spot from Utah and Phoenix, while Dallas, now two games above a .500 record, is also behind Utah and Phoenix by 1 1/2 games for the top spot.
Cold Check: Golden State
The Warriors, who were previous champions, have a record of 3-7 entering the fourth week and are on a five-game losing streak, ranking them 13th in the Western Conference. This situation might be causing some alarm in the Bay Area, but is it justifiable? While a five-game losing streak does trigger a level of panic, the Warriors’ history of winning championships should temper this response, particularly this early in the season.
4. League Pass games to watch: Monday’s free preview
If you’re not yet subscribed to League Pass, Monday night may be the best free trial you ever see as all 15 games on Election Day eve will be streamed for free on the new NBA App. Here’s the full list (all times Eastern):
- 7 p.m.: Wizards @ Hornets (League Pass)
- 7:15 p.m.: Rockets @ Magic (League Pass)
- 7:30 p.m.: Thunder @ Pistons (League Pass)
- 7:45 p.m.: Pelicans @ Pacers (League Pass)
- 8 p.m.: Suns @ 76ers (NBA TV)
- 8:15 p.m.: Bucks @ Hawks (League Pass)
- Trail Blazers vs. Heat at 8:30 p.m. on League Pass.
- 8:45 p.m.: Raptors @ Bulls (League Pass)
- 9 p.m.: Celtics @ Grizzlies (League Pass)
- 9:15 p.m.: Knicks @ Timberwolves (League Pass)
- 9:30 p.m.: Nuggets @ Spurs (League Pass)
- 9:45 p.m.: Nets @ Mavericks (League Pass)
- 10 p.m.: Kings @ Warriors (League Pass)
- 10:15 p.m.: Lakers @ Jazz (League Pass)
- 10:30 p.m.: Cavaliers @ Clippers (NBA TV)
The slate begins with No. 1 overall pick Paolo Banchero and the Magic taking on 2021 No. 2 overall pick Jabari Smith Jr. and the Rockets. The Suns bring the best record in the Western Conference to Philadelphia to take on last year’s scoring champ, Joel Embiid. The Sixers will be without James Harden and Embiid’s status for the game remains questionable as he recovers from illness.
Later on, how about Ja Morant and the Grizzlies putting their three-game win streak to the test at home vs. the defending Eastern Conference-champion Celtics? And, what about the top scorer in the league (Luka Doncic, 36.0 ppg) taking on the third-ranked scorer in the league (Kevin Durant, 31.5 ppg) as the Mavericks host the Nets?
Cap off this epic night with a heat check squad (the Cavs) and the improving LA Clippers squaring off at Staples Center as Cleveland seeks its ninth straight win.
5. National TV spotlight: Must-see matchups
On Wednesday night, LeBron James and the Lakers face the Clippers, concluding 2 crucial intra-city clashes.
Wednesday: Knicks vs. Nets (7:30 ET, ESPN) & Lakers vs. Clippers (10 ET, ESPN)
New York and Los Angeles, both cities with two NBA teams, will witness intra-city rivalry games on the same night. The Nets will host the Knicks at Barclays Center (7:30 ET) in New York, while the Clippers will host the Lakers at Crypto.com Arena (10 ET) in Los Angeles.
Both the Nets from New York City and the Clippers from Los Angeles, typically viewed as the “little brother” in their respective intra-city rivalries, are heading into Wednesday’s game with impressive winning streaks against their city rivals.
The Nets have triumphed over the Knicks in their last seven encounters, a winning streak that started on Jan. 13, 2021. From the start of the 2018-19 season, the Nets have maintained a 12-3 win record against the Knicks.
Concurrently, the Clippers head into Wednesday’s game on an eight-game winning spree against the Lakers, a streak that started on Dec. 22, 2020. Indeed, the Clippers have had the upper hand in this city rivalry over the past decade, boasting a record of 33-7 in their last 40 games against the Lakers, a trend that began with the 2012-13 season.
Friday: Denver at Boston, 7 ET (NBA TV)
The Celtics and Nuggets each enter Week 4 at 6-3, each having won their past two games to rank third and fifth in their respective conference. Denver is led by the reigning back-to-back Kia MVP in Nikola Jokic, who just passed Wilt Chamberlain for the most triple-doubles by a center (79) and is nearly averaging one through nine games (20.3 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 9.2 apg). Additionally, Denver’s Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. are continuing to round into form following extended absences due to injury. Boston has won five straight games against Denver and is one of only two teams (along with Brooklyn) to have two players — Jayson Tatum (30.3 ppg) and Jaylen Brown (25.3 ppg) — averaging at least 25 points per game so far this season.
The reigning Kia MVP, Nikola Jokic, has surpassed Wilt Chamberlain on the all-time triple-double leaderboard, placing him at 6th position.
Friday: Minnesota at Memphis, 9:30 ET (ESPN)
This matchup pits two of the NBA’s most exciting and explosive players against each other: Memphis’ Ja Morant and Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards. Much was made of Edwards’ lack of dunks through the first nine games of the season, but he stopped that streak on Saturday with a pair of throwdowns against the Rockets. Meanwhile, there’s been no shortage of highlight plays from Morant early in the season as he’s led the Grizzlies to a 7-3 start.
