BASKETBALL NBA ARTICLES

The offseason trade for Kawhi Leonard has worked out nicely for the Toronto Raptors, who currently sport the best record in the NBA. They will face a big test this week when they host the defending champion Golden State Warriors. Golden State has been struggling lately without the services of star point guard Stephen Curry and do-everything forward Draymond Green.... 

The Washington Wizards are falling apart. The team has been a perennial playoff contender in the past several years but has started slowly and now there are reports of dissension in the ranks. The Wizards are reportedly willing to trade the star backcourt tandem of Bradley Beal and John Wall, so they are seemingly throwing in the towel on this group of players.... 

The Milwaukee Bucks have been one of the biggest surprises thus far of the NBA season, as they are making it clear they have what it takes to be an Eastern Conference contender. The Bucks have gotten off to a hot start and will look to keep it going at home in a matchup against the San Antonio Spurs.... 

LeBron James might be emotionally spent after a two-game road trip against his former teams. James looked great against the Heat and Cavaliers to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a pair of wins, but any sign of an off game could have the team in dire straits next time out. The Utah Jazz would love to be the benefactor of a letdown as they will travel to Los Angeles for this Western Conference matchup.... 

LeBron James has the ability to change the fortunes of a franchise by himself, and no one knows that better than the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs won a title with James but he has left the organization twice in free agency. The most recent switch was this offseason when James joined the Los Angeles Lakers, and he will head back to Cleveland this week for a game against his former team.... 

There is trouble in paradise. The Golden State Warriors have lost three straight games amid some high-profile tension between stars Kevin Durant and Draymond Green. The Warriors are no longer atop the Western Conference and will try to put the argument and the losing behind them this week in a matchup against the Oklahoma CIty Thunder.... 

The Golden State Warriors are looking more vulnerable than they have appeared in some time. Golden State has lost three of its last five games, and the rumor mill is buzzing that there is dissention within the ranks as the Draymond Green-Kevin Durant beef has continued to stir. The Warriors had their worst outing of the season on the road against Houston on Thursday night, finishing with just 86 points against a below average Rockets defense in a 21-point loss. The San Antonio Spurs are looking ... 

Atlantic Division rivals will square off on Friday night when the Toronto Raptors travel east to take on the Boston Celtics. Toronto currently holds a 3.5-game lead on preseason favorite Boston in the division, and the Raptors would love to extend their lead by picking up a win on the road against arguably their biggest rival in the East. Meanwhile, Boston is looking to cut into the lead after a disappointing first month of the regular season.... 

The overwhelming favorites in the Western Conference at the start of the season were the Golden State Warriors and the Houston Rockets. Golden State has won three of the last four titles and they have been a juggernaut in the Western Conference. They were odds-on favorites per the NBA betting odds to win both the Western Conference and the NBA Championship at the start of the year and remain that way.... 

The Milwaukee Bucks are out to make it out of the first round of the playoffs for the first time since the 2000-01 season. Milwaukee has largely been a middle-of-the-pack team since that time, making the playoffs eight times, but the Bucks never won more than 46 games in a season during that stretch and were always one and done in the playoffs. They look ready to make the leap this year though, and they are currently leading the Central Division by two games. In the second part of an NBA Friday ... 

Doc Rivers and Gregg Popovich are two of the sharpest minds in the NBA. Rivers and Pop have both been at it for a long time and both coaches are great at maximizing what they can get out of their players. They have each been fantastic at finding ways to win without superstars, and each coach has their team right in the thick of things in the loaded Western Conference. That’s about where the similarities end when the Los Angeles Clippers host the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday night though.... 

LeBron James knew there would be growing pains. The Los Angeles Lakers were a team full of young, but talented, players before he arrived and his role was to be a mentor as much as anything else. However, James has expressed frustration at times, and in an interview on Monday he told reporters that he nearly lost his cool earlier in the year. James is the greatest basketball player since Michael Jordan, and possibly of all-time, and after winning the Eastern Conference for eight consecutive seasons, it’s frustrated him to be second fiddle. His Lakers are just 7-6, and a loss to the surging Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night would bring them back to .500. ... 

The Jimmy Butler circus is over. Butler’s antics over the past month finally became too much for the team and owner Glen Taylor, and Tom Thibodeau reluctantly traded him away. He was moved to Philadelphia for Dario Saric, Robert Covington, Jerryd Bayless, and a 2022 second-round pick, which was considered a relatively good haul given how toxic the relationship had become. Now, it’s up to Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins to move on and gel with the new pieces to turn the Minnesota Timberwolves into a winner. They will start to see how it all comes together at home against the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday. ... 

The San Antonio Spurs lost their star, Kawhi Leonard, this offseason, and he has done well with the Raptors. But true to form, as the players change, San Antonio just continues to win. The Spurs are 6-4 in the earlygoing and will aim to add another win this week against Western Conference foe the Houston Rockets.... 

Nobody has ever questioned the talent of the Golden State Warriors, but with the regular season such a formality, there were some wondering if they would be locked in from the get-go in 2018-19. The Warriors have not let up early on as they have the NBA’s best record at 10-1. They will aim to keep it rolling in a matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers this week.... 

The Utah Jazz began the season on fire, including road wins over the Rockets, Pelicans and Mavericks and a close loss to the Warriors. However, they have struggled lately and fallen to below .500 on the season. Utah will aim to get back on track with a tough matchup against the Boston Celtics.... 

The Milwaukee Bucks have been the biggest surprise in the NBA to begin the year, but they get a severe test next time out. If Milwaukee manages to hang with the Golden State Warriors this week it would be really big.... 

The Houston Rockets have shaken off a slow start to finally get rolling. They are still under .500 on the season but have won three straight. Houston will look to keep it going in a matchup this week against the Oklahoma City Thunder.... 

The honeymoon period is over in Los Angeles. There are reports that Lakers coach Luke Walton is already on the hot seat as the team has struggled out of the gate in 2018-19 despite the offseason addition of LeBron James. The season is young but the pressure is on as Los Angeles hosts the Minnesota Timberwolves this week.... 

The Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers are both confident they can compete near the top of the Eastern Conference. While the Celtics are the favorites, it is pretty open now that LeBron James is in the West. The Pacers and 76ers figure to be jockeying for position throughout the season and an early head-to-head matchup this week could be integral down the line.... 

The beat goes on for the Golden State Warriors, who have come out this season looking just as sharp as in years past, solidifying themselves as the team to beat in the race for the NBA title. Golden State has been perfect at home early on and will be huge favorites to keep that streak intact when they host the Memphis Grizzlies next time out.... 

The Boston Celtics were happy to integrate Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward back into the lineup after last year’s injuries, but it took a little time early on to work out the kinks. The Celtics are playing well now as they take a four-game winning streak into a matchup against the Indiana Pacers.... 

The Oklahoma CIty Thunder and Washington Wizards have been perennial playoff participants the past few seasons and have designs of making postseason runs once again in 2018-19. If that is going to happen, each team needs to pick up its play. The Thunder and Wizards are off to slow starts as they prepare to face off against each other this week.... 

There have been some surprises early in the NBA regular season, as the Milwaukee Bucks are the last unbeaten team and the Houston Rockets are really struggling. There is one thing that has lived up to expectations, and that has been more dominance from the Golden State Warriors. The Dubs are raining down 3s from everywhere and over-running their competition as they prime for yet another NBA championship push. Golden State will be expected to keep it rolling this week when it hosts the Minnesota ... 

No team in the NBA may rely on one player more than the New Orleans Pelicans lean on Anthony Davis. So when the team’s superstar big man has an injury, that’s not a good thing. Davis is dealing with an elbow injury that has kept him sidelined the past two games. The Pelicans hope to have him available when they face off against the Portland Trail Blazers this week....