On Monday, the Warriors’ trio of Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry will play together for the first time since the 2019 NBA Finals.
Monday, March 14, 2022
LA Clippers at Cleveland, 7:00 p.m. ET
Toronto at Los Angeles Lakers, 10:30 p.m. ET
With less than a month remaining in the regular season, each remaining game takes on added importance as teams look to lock up their position in the playoff or Play-In race. On Monday, we focus on the 6/7 race in the Eastern Conference as the Cavs try to maintain their one-game lead on the Raptors for the No. 6 spot (and guaranteed playoff berth), while the Raptors look to climb out of the Play-In Tournament (Nos. 7-10).
Both the Cavs and Raptors open Week 22 facing a team from Los Angeles as the Cavs host the Clippers and the Raptors visit the Lakers. Cleveland enters the week having lost seven of their last 10 games, while the Raptors are riding a three-game win streak.
Washington at Golden State, 10:00 p.m. ET
Draymond Green is set to play for the first time in over two months as he returns from a back injury that has forced him to miss the last 32 games. While Draymond did suit up on Jan. 9 for Klay Thompson’s return game, he immediately exited after tip-off. This will be the first time that Green, Thompson and Stephen Curry share the court since Klay’s injury in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals.
Tuesday, March 15, 2022
Brooklyn at Orlando, 7:00 p.m. ET
Kevin Durant is coming off a 53-point performance against the Knicks on Sunday; what will he have in store for the Magic when the Nets visit Orlando to open Week 22. Kyrie Irving will be available for the Nets, who also posted a 50-point game last week against Charlotte. The Magic are coming off an overtime loss to Philadelphia on Sunday after knocking off both Minnesota and New Orleans last week.
Wednesday, March 16, 2022
Atlanta at Charlotte, 7:00 p.m. ET
If the Play-In Tournament started today, this would be the Nine-Ten game in the Eastern Conference – a single-elimination game where the loser’s season is over and the winner moves on to face the loser of the Seven-Eight game with the winner of that game earning the No. 8 seed in the playoffs. The Hawks lead the season series 2-1 and a win tonight would lock up the head-to-head tiebreaker with the Hornets should it be necessary at season’s end to determine seeding and potential home-court advantage in the Play-In.
Chicago at Utah, 9:00 p.m. ET
This is a matchup of the No. 4 seed in the East (Chicago) and the No. 4 seed in the West (Utah). The Bulls enter Week 22 having won two straight and just got Alex Caruso back as they look to get healthy and ready for a playoff run. The Jazz enter the week coming off a win in Sacramento that saw Jordan Clarkson score a career-best 45 points. The competition gets tougher for the Jazz this week, as they open with Milwaukee before hosting Chicago.
Friday, March 18, 2022
Dallas at Philadelphia, 7:00 p.m. ET
The Mavs (7-2) and Sixers (6-2) have been two of the top teams in the league since the All-Star break. Dallas won the first meeting of the season with the Sixers back on Feb. 4 behind a 33-point triple-double from Luka Doncic.
New Orleans at San Antonio, 8:30 p.m. ET
This is the first of two meetings between the Pelicans and Spurs in an eight-day span that could have major Play-In Tournament implications. New Orleans enters Week 22 with a one-game lead on the Blazers and a two-game lead on the Spurs for the final spot in the Play-In. However, the Spurs are up 2-0 in the season series with the Pelicans and can clinch the season series with a win on Friday. These head-to-head meetings between teams vying for position will be crucial over the final four weeks of the season.
Saturday, March 19, 2022
Los Angeles at Washington, 8:00 p.m. ET
LeBron James enters Week 22 needing 105 points to pass Karl Malone for second place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Based on his current scoring average of 29.7 ppg – a mark that got a nice boost after his 50-point game against Washington last Friday – LeBron needs four games to pass the Mailman. This matchup with the Wizards is the Lakers’ fourth game of the week, so another major milestone for LeBron may be on the line when this game tips off.
Sunday, March 20, 2022
Memphis at Houston, 3:30 p.m. ET
San Antonio at Golden State, 8:30 p.m. ET
The basketball gods require me to have at least one Grizzlies game on the weekly watch list and I will comply by featuring this matchup with the Houston Rockets. Not only do we get to see Ja Morant vs. Jalen Green – two of the top highlight dunkers in the game today – we get to spotlight another playoff race as the Grizzlies and Warriors battle it out for the No. 2 seed in the West behind Phoenix.
The Grizzlies enter the week with a half-game lead on the Warriors and currently hold the tiebreaker as they lead the season series 2-1 with one more meeting coming up at the end of the month (March 28 in Memphis on NBA TV).
