What to Watch, You NBA Sicko: Oct. 27 - Nov. 2
The best viewing experiences the NBA has to offer
Now that the NBA season has started, the basketball sickos of the world are left with the nightly dilemma of what to watch. If you’re a national television truther, this might not be for you. However, if you're a League Pass fiend who enjoys random in-stadium content just as much as dunks, then you’re in the right place. Each night, I have selected two games from the NBA’s two viewing windows, 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM and 9:00 PM and later, that I believe are either the most fun or interesting games. I tried to spread the love around, and out of 28 possible team slots, I managed to fit in 25. The idea is, if you watch all of these games, you’ll get the most bang for your buck while catching the entire league.
Monday - October 27
Early Slot: Orlando Magic v Philadelphia 76ers (7:00 PM)
The Magic are still trying to find their offensive footing. The Sixers have an exciting hyper-athletic backcourt, and Joel Embiid is showing signs of life. If you told me these teams met in the first round of the playoffs, I’d say, “On NBATV.” However, this should be a fun game with a nice mix of veterans and rising stars.
Late Slot: Minnesota Timberwolves v Denver Nuggets (9:30 PM) Peacock
The Nuggets and Timberwolves are always a lock to watch. First, Nikola Jokic and Anthony Edwards are appointment viewing. Edwards left the Wolves’ last game with a knock, but he has shown a superhuman ability to recover from injury. Second, the Nuggets and Wolves have recent history and are perfectly designed to engage in a slugfest.
Tuesday - October 28
Early Slot: Charlotte Hornets v Miami Heat (7:30 PM)
This is the season the Southeast division goes from a punchline to a puncher. The Hornets have the second-best offensive rating in the league, the Heat are in tenth, and they’re both top ten in pace. Sounds like a fast, fun affair.
Late Slot: Los Angeles Clippers v Golden State Warriors (11:00 PM) NBC & Peacock
They’re calling this the Battle of the Golden Years. Even though the Clippers are the oldest team in the league, and the Warriors rank third, these should be two of the better teams in the Western Conference, and they have enough star power to form a solar system. Steph, CP3, Kawhi, Jimmy, Draymond, Harden, Zubac?, Kuminga?, Beal? Okay, so maybe not that much star power, but still, these are all players we know and, crucially, can still bring it.
Wednesday - October 29
Early Slot: Houston Rockets v Toronto Raptors (6:30 PM)
Thus far, the Raptors have been the fastest team in the league, and the Rockets have been the slowest. I’m interested to see what happens when an unstoppable force collides with an immovable object. Plus, both teams have real ambitions and have gotten off to slow starts. It’s not a must-win, but they’ll probably treat it that way.
Late Slot: Memphis Grizzlies v Phoenix Suns (10:00 PM)
Hey, Ja Morant is fun. So is Devin Booker. Look, I wanted to get as many teams in here as possible. I have no idea if the Grizzlies are any good, nor do I think the Suns are quite this bad. At any rate, the Suns’ defense has been atrocious, so they may end up being a good hang just because you’ll see a ton of points.
Thursday - October 30
Early Slot: Golden State Warriors v Milwaukee Bucks (8:00 PM) NBATV
The Bucks have looked solid, and Giannis is always worth the price of admission. The Warriors have looked great, but then got whacked by Portland. These might be two pretty evenly matched teams. As an added bonus, Warriors fans will pretend Giannis is auditioning for them. Bless their terminally online and farcically annoying hearts.
Late Slot: Miami Heat v San Antonio Spurs (8:30 PM)
I’m all in on the Heat this year. They’re playing fast, modern offense, Norman Powell is storming the beaches, and they haven’t even gotten Tyler Herro-ball yet. Then there is Wembanyama, the most viewable player in the league. He’ll make you laugh, gasp, and cry all on the same play. If you’re ever on the edge, Wembanyama is the tiebreaker.
Friday - October 31
Early Slot: Atlanta Hawks v Indiana Pacers (7:00 PM)
The Hawks have been disappointing, and the Pacers are gutted. One team is underachieving, the other is digging deep just to maintain respectability. Both teams will bring it, and that always leads to fun basketball.
Late Slot: Denver Nuggets v Portland Trail Blazers (10:00 PM)
After Wembanyama, Jokic is next in the “that just made me laugh” power rankings. I’ll watch him over just about anything. The Trail Blazers are in the news for non-basketball-related reasons, but they’ve got a hellacious defense that should be fun to watch.
Saturday - November 1
Early Slot: Houston Rockets v Boston Celtics (8:00 PM)
The Rockets lead the league in offensive rebounding rate at 35.5%. The Celtics are last in defensive rebounding rate at 63.5%. I am morbidly fascinated to see what will happen when they play.
Late Slot: Dallas Mavericks v Detroit Pistons (10:00) Peacock
The Mavericks have the second-worst offense in the NBA. Their strategy of being gigantic, with no spacing, and a rookie power forward running point is working just as well as you’d expect. The Pistons are 2-1 but haven’t looked particularly good. This won’t be a good game, but it has massive trainwreck potential.
Sunday - November 2
Early Slot: Atlanta Hawks v Cleveland Cavaliers (6:00 PM)
The Cavaliers are still my pick to win the East, but they’re going to need to actually start playing well for that to hold. Similarly, I think the Hawks will be very good, but they’ve been putrid to start the season. If they can get right over the next week, this has the potential to be an awesome game.
Late Slot: Miami Heat v Los Angeles Lakers (9:30 PM)
Luka is out for around a week. Hopefully, he’ll be back, and this will 100% be appointment viewing. Even if he isn’t, have I mentioned how much fun the Heat are now? And who doesn’t want to watch Austin Reaves try to drop 50? Anytime there’s a chance both teams get into the 130s, you’ve got to tune in.
For any inquiries about work, discussion, and the like, you can email me at nevin.l.brown@gmail.com.