With the league about a third of the way through the regular season, teams are battling for position across both the West and Eastern Conferences.
In the East, the fourth-place Brooklyn Nets are separated from the 12th-place Washington Wizards, by four and a half games.
In the West, it’s even tighter. Between the “Beam Dream Team” Sacramento Kings, currently in fifth, and the Oklahoma City Thunder, now in 14th, spans a gap of just three and a half games.
It’s early yet. But with playoff positioning still murky, and the potential rewards of the long season starting to come into view, the clock is ticking, drawing us closer to CrunchTime.
Starting at 8:30 p.m. ET on the NBA App, Jared Greenberg and 2016 NBA Champion Channing Frye will take you around the league, giving you a front-row seat for the eye-popping plays, mind-melting jams and heart-pounding moments from tonight’s games.
The crew will also offer some betting and fantasy basketball advice for those looking to dunk on the competition.
Here are some of the top matchups and storylines from Monday night’s seven-game slate.
Will the Butler do it again for Miami?
Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat head to Indiana to play the Pacers Monday.
The Miami Heat must feel like they’re coming off a roller coaster. In their last five games, they’ve beaten the league-leading Celtics and the title-focused Clippers. They’ve also lost to the Grizzlies, Pistons and, on Saturday night, the Spurs.
Jimmy Butler (21.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, 6.0 assists per game) has been in the middle of the action in the clutch, coolly grinding out buckets in the crucial moments.
He took the Heat home against the Celtics, nearly finishing off the game before Jaylen Brown’s miraculous game-tying three, then icing it in overtime with a turnaround that left Mike Gorman and Brian Scalabrine marveling.
Against the Clippers, Jimmy’s clutch performance deserved Full Focus, as he scored the last eight points for the Heat to put the game away.
But Butler couldn’t quite complete the mission against the Spurs, as the team fell short despite his 30 points, eight of which came in the fourth quarter.
On Monday, Butler and the Heat square off with the upstart Indiana Pacers at 7 p.m. ET.
The Pacers have defied expectations with a youthful core and explosive offense, including Rookie of the Year candidate Bennedict Mathurin (17.9 ppg, 4.1 rpg) and current NBA assist leader Tyrese Haliburton (20.2 ppg, 11.0 apg, 4.3 rpg).
The Pacers put up 133 points against the Nets Friday night, including 35 from Haliburton, but couldn’t quite hold on, as Brooklyn came away with a 136-133 win. They get another shot at victory Monday.
It’s youth versus experience, exuberance versus savvy, tonight in CrunchTime.
Hawks take on red-hot Grizzlies
Two of the league younger and talented teams will take the stage at 8 p.m. ET on NBA TV, as the Hawks, fresh off AJ Griffin’s buzzer-beating bucket against the Bulls Sunday night, head to Memphis to challenge the Grizzlies.
Griffin could have even more of a chance to shine with Trae Young out due to lower back tightness, as well as several other Hawks regulars. The first-round rookie is averaging 10 points in 20 minutes per game, but his point production leaps to 18 when he eclipses the 30-minute mark.
The Grizzlies are looking for their sixth-straight win. The Hawks are looking to maintain the momentum from their thrilling victory last night. Who will keep it rolling on CrunchTime?
A four-piece wing special in LA
The Celtics and the Clippers renew acquaintances Monday night.
Jayson Tatum (30 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 4.0 apg) and Jaylen Brown (26.8 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 3.6 apg); Kawhi Leonard (11.6 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 3.5 apg) and Paul George (23.7 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 4.7 apg). Playoff-tested. All-NBA candidates.
Two teams with championship dreams and a pair of superstar wings will seek to take another step forward in the second game of tonight’s NBA TV doubleheader at 10:30 p.m. ET.
The Celtics had been rolling ahead like a freight train before running into a familiar roadblock in San Francisco, as the Warriors reminded them, and the rest of the world, who exactly won the 2022 NBA Championship.
The Clippers dispatched the Wizards Saturday, paced by George’s 36 points and Kawhi’s 13 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
Four of the game’s best, buoyed by strong supporting casts, with visions of an NBA title dancing in their heads. Two talented teams looking to pick up steam as they move into the next stage of the season.
Oh, and Blake Griffin, Clipper legend, paying a visit to the old stomping grounds in Los Angeles.
Catch that, and all the rest of the night’s action, on “CrunchTime,” streaming on the NBA App. Here’s the entirety of Monday night’s slate.
7 p.m. ET: Heat @ Pacers
7 p.m. ET: Nets @ Wizards
8 p.m. ET: Hawks @ Grizzlies
8:30 p.m. ET: Thunder @ Mavericks
8:30 p.m. ET: Cavaliers @ Spurs
10 p.m. ET: Timberwolves @ Trail Blazers
10:30 p.m. ET: Celtics @ Clippers
