Basketball Tips

Cleveland had a home-and-home against Oklahoma City to start the week and they came up winless in both clashes, losing 112-117 at home before falling 116-124 in OKC. Both results were on the back of sub-par defensive showings from Kenny Atkinson’s side, with 120 defensive ratings in both games. On Thursday, it came as the hosts regularly got to the free throw line with 35 FTAs, as they again struggled to handle the penetration of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Aussie guard Tyrese Proctor got the start in this contest with Jaylon Tyson (ankle) and Peyton Watson (hamstring) on the sidelines and he…

Phoenix made it four losses on the bounce on Thursday and are now 1-5 on the season after a 119-132 loss to Portland. It was another putrid defensive display from Jordan Ott’s troops, who have the worst defence in the league and they don’t look any closer to turning that around after this performance, with a 129.4 defensive rating. Phoenix gave the visitors almost anything they wanted at the rim, where Portland went 23/34 and drew eight fouls to really dominate down low. Phoenix weren’t able to respond in kind, with a poor interior performance on the offensive end as…

Detroit have continued their great form to start the season, now with a 6-1 record after beating Charlotte 124-91 on Tuesday. It was a 16-4 run in the second quarter that got Detroit some breathing room in North Carolina, before a prolonged 39-10 run that stretched across the third and fourth quarters made it a blowout. It was a Cade Cunningham masterclass in this game, with the start guard recording 33 points, five rebounds, seven assists and five steals to dominate his time on the floor. Duncan Robinson went 6/9 from three to drop 24 points and Ausar Thompson had…

Cleveland got back to winning ways with a comfortable 136-111 victory over Milwaukee on Sunday. It was smooth sailing for all of Cleveland’s stars, with a huge 48-point second quarter opening up a 72-46 halftime lead and there was no turning back from there. It was the bigs in particular who feasted, as Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen combined to go 23/32 from the field and score 52 points in a dominant showing. Allen added 11 rebounds and four assists to make it a memorable night for Cleveland’s frontcourt, while Donovan Mitchell and James Harden were also solid in their…

Orlando exacted revenge on Toronto on Saturday, picking up an important victory in their in-season tournament opener after a thumping by the Canadians just two days prior. Thursday saw a 99-129 Orlando defeat in Ontario, as their offence really struggled without Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs, but the visitors were able to turn the tables in Saturday’s rematch, picking up a 121-114 victory. It was a significantly better offensive performance from Sean Sweeney’s side, as they tidied up their turnover woes from the first match and, more importantly, went from a terrible shooting performance to shooting the lights out on…

Portland suffered their first taste of defeat on Friday, losing to Memphis 103-124. The game got away from the hosts late in the third quarter, as Memphis got out to a double-digit lead, and things only got worse in the fourth, as Portland's offence dried right up. With just 20 points in the fourth and 45 in the second half, it was an underwhelming offensive showing at home, with their trusty transition offence not being as potent as it has been this season and their 12/49 shooting from deep, including 5/23 in the second half, making their offence stagnant. Ja…

Atlanta were well beaten by Miami on Thursday, losing 117-129 to make it three losses on the trot. After a pair of road wins to start the season, it's been a tough run for Quin Snyder's side, with a couple of defeats to Houston before Thursday's home loss to the previously winless Miami. The visitors led for almost the entire duration of the game, as Atlanta's defence kept giving up good looks from deep and at the rim, allowing Miami an easy avenue on offence. For the hosts, Nickeil Alexander-Walker got himself into some form with 23 points and Jalen…

Atlanta's 2-0 start to the season was quickly brought back to a 2-2 record after losing both games of a home-and-home against Houston. The first matchup saw a 114-121 loss in Atlanta, before the teams headed to Texas and it was a similar result there, with Houston prevailing 110-120. It was another tight battle but Atlanta again struggle to find the answers in the fourth, with a dry spell turning the game from a 93-95 score into a 95-117 ball game and there was no way back into the fight from there. It was the team's worst offensive performance of…

New York's title defence has gotten off to an awful start, with a 0-3 record a week into the season. It hasn't been the easiest of schedules, with home games against Philadelphia and Orlando, and a road game against Boston, but being favourites in both of their home games, they would have been expecting at least one win from them. Instead, Mike Brown's team is yet to taste victory and Jalen Brunson's iffy shot-making has been a reason for that, with the finals MVP taking a while to find his form. He was still among New York's best on Monday…