Kevin Durant and Luka Donic are set to face off in one 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 be starting every 15 minutes, which means they should also conclude roughly 15 minutes apart. So, from roughly 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. ET, there will be continuous exciting moments to watch on League Pass. If you don’t want the hassle of switching feeds on League Pass, try NBA CrunchTime on the NBA App. It offers a live viewing experience similar to NFL RedZone, with real-time peeks into every game, especially during the final minutes. This ensures you don’t miss any key moments, starting from 9 p.m. ET.
Every team. Every game. Absolutely FREE.
Tonight, all 30 NBA teams will be playing, 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 have four games. To surpass Johnson, LeBron would need to average slightly over eight assists per game, exceeding his current season average of 7.1 per game (ranked 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 achieve 2,000.
- Devin Booker is just 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 spotlighted two standout players, Luka Doncic and Donovan Mitchell, along with the unbeaten team, the Bucks, as they ventured into the third week of the season. Moving into Week 4, all three continue to dominate: Doncic hasn’t scored less than 30 points in a game this season, Mitchell remains a key asset for Cleveland, and the Bucks are still undefeated — even with Giannis Antetokounmpo spectating their ninth consecutive victory of the season from the bench, popcorn in hand.
With a 9-0 record, the Bucks continue to be the league’s only undefeated team. Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports.
Heat Check: Cleveland, Milwaukee, Memphis and Dallas
This week, we’re examining teams that have both a heat and cold check. The Bucks still possess the heat check, but the Cavaliers are 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 in the West, Memphis (7-3) and Dallas (5-3), are on a three-game winning streak. Currently, the Grizzlies are only half a game behind Utah and Phoenix in the race for the top spot in the West. Meanwhile, Dallas has managed to get two games above .500 and is trailing the Jazz and Suns by 1 1/2 games for the number one position.
Cold Check: Golden State
The Warriors, who are the reigning champions with a 3-7 record, are going into the 4th week of the season on the back of a five-game losing streak and currently rank 13th in the Western Conference. Should Bay Area fans be worried or remain patient? It’s natural for some apprehension to creep in when a team suffers five consecutive losses. However, given the Warriors’ history of championship success, this should dampen much of that concern… particularly since it’s still 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 will face off against the Clippers, concluding two crucial intra-city clashes.
Wednesday: Knicks vs. Nets (7:30 ET, ESPN) & Lakers vs. Clippers (10 ET, ESPN)
New York and Los Angeles, the only two NBA cities with two teams each, will have their intra-city rivals face off on the same night. The Nets will host the Knicks at 7:30 ET at the Barclays Center in New York, while the Clippers will host the Lakers at 10 ET at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
The teams often viewed as the “little brother” in their respective intra-city rivalries – the Nets in New York City and the Clippers in Los Angeles – go into Wednesday’s game boasting significant victory streaks against their city rivals.
The Nets have emerged victorious in their last seven encounters with the Knicks, a winning streak that started on Jan. 13, 2021. Their dominance over the Knicks has been evident since the 2018-19 season, with the Nets boasting a 12-3 record against them.
The Clippers head into Wednesday’s game with an eight-game victory streak against the Lakers, a streak that began on Dec. 22, 2020. Indeed, the Clippers have predominantly led this city rivalry in the last decade, boasting a 33-7 record in their most recent 40 encounters with the Lakers, a dominance that started from 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, surpassed Wilt Chamberlain on the triple-double leaderboard, moving him up to 6th place 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.
