Kevin Durant and Luka Donic will compete in one out of the fifteen games happening on 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).
Given that games start every 15 minutes, it’s likely they’ll also conclude approximately 15 minutes apart. Therefore, from around 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. ET, viewers can anticipate steady high-pressure action on League Pass. For those who prefer not to switch feeds on League Pass, NBA CrunchTime on the NBA App offers a similar experience to NFL RedZone, with live look-ins on all games, especially during the crucial final moments so you don’t miss any highlights. This feature starts at 9 p.m. ET.
All teams. All games. Completely FREE.
TONIGHT, all 30 NBA teams will hit the court with 15 games accessible at no cost on the new NBA App. The matchups 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)
This week, the Lakers are scheduled to play four games. In order for LeBron to surpass Johnson this week, he would need to average slightly over eight assists per game. This would exceed his current season average of 7.1 assists per game, which ranks 13th in the league.
Other milestones to watch for this week
- Kyle Lowry is just eight 3-pointers away from becoming the 12th player to reach 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 week’s issue of The Five, we spotlighted two standout players, Luka Doncic and Donovan Mitchell, and one standout team, the undefeated Bucks, as they embarked on the third week of the season. Now, as they step into the fourth week, all three remain red-hot: Luka hasn’t scored under 30 points in any game this season, Mitchell keeps proving to be an excellent match for Cleveland, and the Bucks are yet to taste defeat – even as Giannis Antetokounmpo spectated their ninth consecutive victory to start the season, casually eating popcorn from the bench.
Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports reports that the Bucks, with a 9-0 record, are the only team in the league that remains undefeated.
Heat Check: Cleveland, Milwaukee, Memphis and Dallas
This week, we’re examining teams that have both a heat and cold check. The Bucks continue to hold the heat check, with the Cavaliers closely trailing them at the pinnacle of the Eastern Conference standings. As we enter the fourth week, Cleveland is on an eight-game winning streak, their longest since they won 13 consecutive games from November 11 to December 6, 2017.
As we head into Week 4, two teams from the West, Memphis (7-3) and Dallas (5-3), are each on a three-game winning streak. The Grizzlies are just a half game away from overtaking Utah and Phoenix for the top spot in the West. Meanwhile, Dallas, now two games above .500, is only 1.5 games short of the Jazz and Suns for the No. 1 position.
Cold Check: Golden State
The Warriors, the defending champions, (3-7) head into Week 4 on the back of a five-game losing streak, sitting at 13th in the Western Conference. Is it time for panic or patience amongst their Bay Area fans? The normal reaction to a five-game losing streak would be panic. However, given the Warriors’ championship history, there should be some restraint, 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 PM 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
LeBron James and the Lakers face off against the Clippers on Wednesday night, concluding two significant intra-city clashes.
Wednesday: Knicks vs. Nets (7:30 ET, ESPN) & Lakers vs. Clippers (10 ET, ESPN)
New York and Los Angeles, the two NBA cities with two teams each, will see intra-city rivalries play out on the same night. The Nets will host the Knicks at Barclays Center at 7:30 ET, while the Clippers will host the Lakers at Crypto.com Arena at 10 ET.
The two teams frequently regarded as the “little brother” in these intra-city rivalries – the New York City Nets and the Los Angeles Clippers – both come into Wednesday’s game on a notable winning streak against their respective city rivals.
The Nets have emerged victorious in their last seven encounters with the Knicks, a winning streak that started on January 13, 2021. From the onset of the 2018-19 season, the Nets have a record of 12 wins and 3 losses against the Knicks.
The Clippers come into Wednesday’s game with an eight-game winning streak against the Lakers, a streak that started on December 22, 2020. Over the last ten years, the Clippers have heavily dominated this city rivalry, with a record of 33-7 against the Lakers in their last 40 games, a streak that began in 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 triple-double leaderboard, positioning him 6th of all time.
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.
