Category: NBA

Winners in three consecutive games and eight of their last 11, the Denver Nuggets will try to continue their momentum when they visit the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night. The Nuggets will be playing the third contest of a six-game road trip that began with victories against the Detroit Pistons (110-105) and the short-handed Brooklyn Nets (124-118) on Wednesday night. "We haven't played maybe perfect basketball, but we're winning games," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said.

Andrew Lopez: Pels guard Jose Alvarado said Joel Embiid reached out and is going to cover his fine for the double tech they each picked up in Tuesday's game. Source: Twitter @_Andrew_Lopez What's the buzz on Twitter? Ky Carlin @ Ky_Carlin Joel ...

The Prop Queen, Ariel Epstein, gives her best plays for the NBA slate on Thursday, Jan. 27.

Draymond Green has signed a multi-year deal with Turner Sports to become a regular contributor for "Inside the NBA."

The last time the Indiana Pacers played on the road against the Oklahoma City Thunder, they made some history. Friday night, when the Pacers return to the site of their 152-95 victory on May 1 last season, they will do so trying to forget an eyebrow-raising score from just this week. Indiana is coming off a 158-126 home loss to the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday where the Pacers set franchise records for the most points allowed, most points allowed in a half (87) and tied for most 3-pointers allowed (24).

Lakers forward LeBron James has been downgraded to questionable Thursday against the Philadelphia 76res because of a sore left knee.

Two of the league's youngest teams meet for the third time this season when the Orlando Magic host the Detroit Pistons on Friday. The Pistons, one of three teams to enter the season with 11 players aged 23 and under, and Magic (nine) have 20 combined victories. The Pistons dropped both ends of a home-and-home with the Denver Nuggets, including a 110-105 decision on Tuesday as top overall pick Cade Cunningham posted a career-high 34 points and added eight rebounds and eight assists to become the youngest player in franchise history with a 30-5-5 game.

Joel Embiid paid the fine for the Pelicans' Jose Alvarado after the two were assessed technical fouls Tuesday night. By Noah Levick

The Los Angeles Clippers are the only NBA team in the past 25 years to win three games in one season after trailing in those contests by at least 24 points. In fact, the Clippers have done that three times in the past two weeks. On Friday night, the Clippers will take their "never quit" attitude to Miami to take on the Heat.

Memphis is one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now and Ja Morant is the engine powering the Grizzlies' success. Morant's MVP level play has helped Memphis win 14 of 17 games ahead of Friday's home matchup with the Utah Jazz. In his most recent game on Wednesday, Morant equaled his season high with 41 points and dished out eight assists to lead the Grizzlies to a 118-110 road victory over the San Antonio Spurs.

JJ Redick offered on a recent podcast that the Sixers could steal the East if they trade Ben Simmons before the February 10 trade deadline.

A silver lining to Damian Lillard's injury: Young Trail Blazers like Anfernee Simons and Nassir Little have seized their opportunity to step up.

The duo shifts focus beyond the deadline for Boston in a recent article.

The Atlanta Hawks go for their sixth straight victory on Friday when they host the Boston Celtics. Atlanta received an excellent performance from its second unit on Wednesday and defeated the Sacramento Kings 121-104. Boston beat up on the Kings on Tuesday night, rolling to a 128-75 win.

Renee Miller gets you ready for Thursday's two-game NBA DFS slate (Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports)