Expert NBA GAME Previews

The Orlando Magic visit the Detroit Pistons for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, at Little Caesars Arena. Tipoff is set for 7:00 PM ET on Amaz, with Orlando leading the series 3-1 and holding its first chance to close out the matchup. The Magic won Game 4 by a 94-88 score, and

The Toronto Raptors and Cleveland Cavaliers meet Wednesday night at Rocket Arena for Game 5 of their Eastern Conference First Round series. Tipoff is set for 7:30 PM ET on ESPN, and the series is tied 2-2 after Toronto won Game 4 by a 93-89 score. This is the swing game. Toronto has taken the last two after falling behind

The Houston Rockets visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, for Game 5 of their Western Conference First Round series at Crypto.com Arena. Tipoff is set for 10:00 PM ET on ESPN, with Los Angeles holding a 3-1 series lead and one more home win away from advancing. Houston stayed alive with a 115-96 win in Game

The Atlanta Hawks and New York Knicks meet in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden. Tipoff is set for 8:00 PM ET on NBC, and the series is tied 2-2 after New York answered with a 114-98 win in Game 4. This is the swing game. Atlanta already stole one at

The Portland Trail Blazers visit the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, for Game 5 of the Western Conference First Round at Frost Bank Center. Tipoff is set for 9:30 PM ET on ESPN, with San Antonio leading the series 3-1 and sitting one win away from advancing. Portland is in full survival mode after dropping Game 4,

The Philadelphia 76ers visit the Boston Celtics for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, at TD Garden. Tipoff is set for 7:00 PM ET on ESPN, and Boston has a chance to close the series after taking a 3-1 lead. The Celtics are coming off a 128-96 win in Game 4, their second

The Detroit Pistons and Orlando Magic meet Monday night at Kia Center for Game 4 of their Eastern Conference First Round series. Tipoff is set for 8:00 PM ET on NBC, and Orlando enters with a 2-1 series lead after taking Game 3 by a 113-105 score. Detroit is the No. 1 seed in the East at 60-22, but the

The Oklahoma City Thunder visit the Phoenix Suns on Monday night with a 3-0 lead in their Western Conference First Round series and a chance to finish the sweep. Game 4 is set for 9:30 PM ET at Mortgage Matchup Center, with the broadcast on NBC. Oklahoma City has looked like the deeper, cleaner, more connected team through three games.

The Minnesota Timberwolves head to Ball Arena on Monday night with a 3-1 lead over the Denver Nuggets and a chance to close out their Western Conference First Round series. Tipoff is set for 10:30 PM ET on NBC, and the betting market has made the situation pretty clear: Denver is still respected at home, but Minnesota has the series