There’s a massive heavyweight battle in store in the NBA as the top team in the East, the Milwaukee Bucks, pay a visit to the New Orleans Pelicans, who have slid from first in the West after a three-game losing skid.
Meanwhile, there are two interesting division matchups as the streaking Orlando Magic face the Atlanta Hawks in a Southeast Division showdown, and the San Antonio Spurs take on fierce Texas rivals, the Houston Rockets.
Read on below as SBOTOP previews the three most intriguing matchups in the latest round of NBA games.
Orlando Magic @ Atlanta Hawks
The Orlando Magic are suddenly one of the hottest teams in the entire NBA. The Magic have won six games in a row, including back-to-back wins over the Celtics in Boston.
Rookie Paolo Banchero scored 31 points, including a career-high six 3-pointers, in the second game as he continues to score with consistency. After starting his NBA career with six straight 20-point games, his current run is now at seven straight 20-point performances.
Second-year forward Franz Wagner has also been in fine form during the win streak. He scored a team-high 24 points in the Magic’s 135-124 win over the Hawks, where they scored a franchise-record 50 points in the first quarter.
Atlanta, who have been struggling in recent weeks, will be eager to avenge that defeat to the Magic as they meet once again, this time on their home floor.
The Hawks snapped their two-game losing skid by blowing out the league-worst Hornets 125-106. All-Star point guard Trae Young had 31 points, while Bogdan Bogdanovic continued his hot shooting with 28 points. The Serbian shooting guard is averaging 26 points and has hit a total of 23 3-pointers in his last four games.
Milwaukee Bucks @ New Orleans Pelicans
With Boston’s recent slide, the Bucks are back at the top of the East – and the league – with a 21-8 record. After a humiliating 41-point defeat against the streaking Memphis Grizzlies, the Bucks bounced back to blow out the Utah Jazz by 26 points despite both Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton sitting out.
Giannis and Middleton are both expected to return for their massive matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans, though, which will be a huge boost to the Bucks.
As for the Pelicans, their recent NBA 2022 results have taken a nosedive. After going on an impressive win streak, they have now lost their last three – two to the Jazz and one to the Phoenix Suns, with Devin Booker exploding for 58 points.
Zion Williamson has been on an absolute tear, averaging 30 points on 66 per cent shooting with 8.4 rebounds and 5.7 assists in his last nine games.
But the Pelicans’ frontcourt is banged up, with Brandon Ingram still out and Larry Nance Jr listed as doubtful to play due to a sore Achilles.
San Antonio Spurs @ Houston Rockets
Neither the Spurs nor the Rockets are any good this season – after all, they are the bottom two in the West with identical 9-20 records. But this Texas rivalry remains as fierce as any in the league, and both teams will be keen to come out on top in this very winnable game.
The Spurs got the upper hand over the Rockets in their first meeting of the season earlier this month. Keldon Johnson had 32 points to lead San Antonio to a 118-109 victory.
However, Johnson is listed as questionable to play against Houston due to a back contusion. Johnson’s absence would be a huge blow to the Spurs, who are sorely lacking in scoring as it is.
The Rockets will look to capitalise on Johnson’s potential absence as their seven-game home stand reaches Game No 5. After defying the NBA 2022 odds with back-to-back wins over the Bucks and Suns, Houston have dropped two straight to the Heat and Blazers.
Leading scorer Jalen Green had just 15 points as his shooting slump continues. The second-year guard is shooting a mere 38 per cent from the field and a miserable 18 per cent on 3-pointers (on six attempts per game) over his last 10 games.
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