The Brooklyn Nets, who were arguably the most dysfunctional team in the NBA to start the season, are suddenly surging. After the firing of head coach Steve Nash and the suspension of Kyrie Irving, the Nets have quickly gone back to winning ways.
Kevin Durant and co. will be looking to return to .500 when they face LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, who are going in the opposite direction as they’ve lost five games in a row.
Elsewhere, the Cleveland Cavaliers meet the Minnesota Timberwolves, with both teams looking to end their respective three-game losing skids.
Meanwhile, Stephen Curry and the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors will be keen to extend their winning streak to three games as they face the Sacramento Kings.
Read on below as SBOTOP breaks down the three most interesting matchups in the upcoming round of NBA games.
Minnesota Timberwolves @ Cleveland Cavaliers
The Minnesota Timberwolves are in trouble. After swinging a blockbuster trade for Rudy Gobert in the offseason, they have come out of the gates looking like a complete mess as they’ve started out 5-8. They lost 114-103 to the Grizzlies last time out, their sixth defeat in their last seven games.
Anthony Edwards snapped out of his recent slump with 28 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. But D’Angelo Russell continues to struggle mightily, while All-Star big man Karl-Anthony Towns had another disappointing game and fouled out.
The Timberwolves will try to get back on track when they face the Cavaliers, who have suddenly lost three in a row after a hot start to the season. They lost the last three games of their five-game road trip to the Clippers, Kings, and Warriors.
Donovan Mitchell continued his tremendous start to the season with 29 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists. The 26-year-old is now averaging 31.6 points per game, which is fourth in the NBA. But he is questionable to face the Timberwolves due to an ankle injury.
If Mitchell does miss out, Darius Garland will need to take charge. However, the All-Star point guard has been inconsistent since returning from an eye injury which saw him miss time early in the season. He has scored just 21 points on 6-of-28 shooting over his last two games.
Golden State Warriors @ Sacramento Kings
The Warriors finally picked up their first winning streak of the season, and they have Stephen Curry to thank. The 34-year-old has essentially carried the defending champions to those wins with back-to-back monster 40-point explosions. Curry is producing plenty of NBA 2022 highlights, averaging 33.3 points per game, which is second in the league.
Curry’s Splash Brother Klay Thompson is still struggling mightily as is down to 14.5 points per game on 35 per cent shooting. Meanwhile, the bench has been a massive disappointment thus far, with the youngsters unable to take a step forward and Jordan Poole failing to live up to his big extension.
The Warriors will look to make it three wins in a row as they face the Kings once again. Golden State just narrowly defeated Sacramento 116-113 despite 47 big points from Curry.
As for the Kings, they bounced back from that loss to the Warriors with back-to-back wins over the Cavs and Lakers.
The duo of Domantas Sabonis and De’Aaron Fox has been in great form this November. Sabonis is averaging 21.6 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 6.4 assists in five games this month, while Fox is putting up 28 points on 55 per cent shooting with 7.3 assists. Fox and Sabonis combined for 47 points and 12 assists in the loss to the Warriors.
Brooklyn Nets @ Los Angeles Lakers
The Brooklyn Nets are back on track. Since Jacque Vaughn took over as head coach from Steve Nash, the Nets have reeled off four wins in their last six games, including back-to-back blowout victories over the Knicks and Clippers.
Kevin Durant has been instrumental in getting the Nets back to winning ways. The 34-year-old is averaging 28.4 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 7.0 assists in six games this month. Seth Curry has also returned and provided a spark with back-to-back 20-point games.
The Nets have been without Kyrie Irving after being suspended by the team, and the All-Star point guard is still not set to rejoin the team against the Lakers despite sitting out the last five games.
There has recently been renewed speculation of a potential Irving trade to the Lakers, who desperately need reinforcements amid a five-game losing skid.
LeBron James has missed two of those five games due to injury, and he is doubtful to face Durant and the Nets due to a groin injury. His absence will undoubtedly affect the Lakers’ NBA 2022 betting odds of snapping their skid. Anthony Davis is also dealing with a back issue, although he is listed as probable to play.
Russell Westbrook, who has continued in his role as a sixth man despite James’ absence, is averaging 19.2 points and 8.3 assists in six games this month.
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