NBA Games on TV Today - Saturday, January 18, 2025
Sports Games on TV Today, Tonight - Saturday, January 18, 2025
Whether you're tuning in via traditional TV or streaming your favorite basketball teams online, NBAonTV keeps you informed with the latest broadcast details, making it the ultimate destination for sports enthusiasts.
| NBA REGULAR SEASON | Time ET | TV |
| Phoenix Suns vs Detroit Pistons | 5:00pm | FanDuel Sports DET AFSN |
| Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics | 7:00pm | FanDuel Sports SE NBCS-BOS |
| Philadelphia 76ers vs Indiana Pacers | 7:00pm | NBCS-PHI FanDuel Sports IND |
| Washington Wizards vs Golden State Warriors | 8:30pm | MNMT2 NBCS-BAY |
| Cleveland Cavaliers vs Minnesota Timberwolves | 9:00pm | FanDuel Sports OH FanDuel Sports North |
| Houston Rockets vs Portland Trail Blazers | 10:00pm | Rip City SCHN |
Phoenix Suns vs Detroit Pistons Preview, What to Watch
The newest member of the Phoenix Suns may make his team debut on the road on Saturday afternoon against the Detroit Pistons.
As the Suns resume their five-game road trip, center Nick Richards, who was acquired in a trade with the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday, is anticipated to play. In addition to winning 130-123 at Washington on Thursday to square their record at 20-20, they have won four of their previous five games.
Richards and a second-round pick were traded to Phoenix in exchange for guard-forward Josh Okogie and three second-round picks. The Suns are considering Richards as a starter after Jusuf Nurkic, who has been battling an illness, was recently benched.
Richards is averaging 8.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in 21 games, nine of which he has started. Richards played in 67 games last season, averaging 9.7 points and 8.0 rebounds. comprising 51 starts.
Kevin Durant, the standout forward for the Suns, is certain that Richards will be a formidable opponent.
In the victory over the struggling Wizards, Phoenix did concede 40 points in the fourth quarter, demonstrating the need for defensive improvement.
After losing to the Indiana Pacers 111-100 at home, the Pistons are hoping to recover. Ten of their last twelve games had been victories.
Center Jalen Duren disagreed with Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff's accusation that he was to fault for the defeat.
Despite shooting only 7-for-21 from the field and committing seven turnovers, Pistons standout guard Cade Cunningham finished with 20 points and nine assists. Cunningham continues to be hailed by Bickerstaff as deserving of an All-Star selection, having scored at least 32 points in four of the previous six games.
Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics Preview, What to Watch
When the Atlanta Hawks go to play the Boston Celtics on Saturday night, they aim to be closer to being fully healthy.
On Wednesday in Chicago, the Hawks defeated the Bulls 110-94 despite missing five regulars. Jalen Johnson missed his fifth consecutive game because of soreness in his right shoulder, while Trae Young missed that game because he had a damaged right rib.
Young, a three-time All-Star, leads the league in assists with 11.9 a game and averages 23.1 points. When he scored a season-high 43 points in Atlanta's 122-117 victory over Phoenix on Tuesday, he was injured. Young is expected to play on Saturday.
In 32 games this season, Johnson is averaging 19.8 points and a team-high 10.1 rebounds. He has a dubious rating.
Larry Nance Jr. (right hand surgery) and youngster Zaccharie Risacher (left adductor irritation) will not play, while De'Andre Hunter (left foot pain) is likely to return after missing two games.
Despite scoring a career-high 27 points in the win, Keaton Wallace was sent back to the College Park Skyhawks of the G League on Thursday. In 38 minutes, he also had four steals, six assists, and six rebounds. In his debut NBA season, it was his second start and 17th appearance.
Daeqwon Plowden, who was called up from the G League, also put up a solid showing for the Hawks, scoring 19 points, including five 3-pointers, in his NBA Pro debut.
The Celtics defeated the undermanned Orlando Magic 121-94 on Friday, seemingly regaining their composure after suffering three straight double-digit losses in a five-game run. After shooting 28.9 percent from 3-point range in the previous five games, Boston made 17 of its 37 3-point tries (45.9 percent) in the win.
The numerous efforts of Jaylen Brown, who finished with 20 points, six rebounds, six assists, and three steals, delighted Boston coach Joe Mazzulla.
This Saturday's game will mark the Celtics and Hawks' third meeting of the season. On November 4, Boston won 123-93 in Atlanta, and on November 12, the Hawks won 117-116 in Boston. Young's right tendinitis prevented him from playing in Atlanta's one-point triumph.
Philadelphia 76ers vs Indiana Pacers Preview, What to Watch
By the middle of the season, it's obvious that the Philadelphia 76ers and Indiana Pacers are headed in different ways.
The struggling Sixers, who will continue to play without their best player, will be the Pacers' opponent on Saturday in Indianapolis as they look to win their eighth straight game.
Joel Embiid, who has missed the last six games due to a foot sprain, is now enduring ongoing pain in his left knee, Philadelphia said on Friday.
The franchise said the former NBA MVP will be re-evaluated in seven to ten days and will miss Saturday's game as well as the Sixers' entire three-game road trip.
The Sixers are obviously left without a dynamic presence on both sides of the court as a result. The club has lost each of its last four games, and Tyrese Maxey will continue to bear the majority of the offensive load, as he has in his last five games (30.4 points per game), despite his erratic shooting during that time.
While young players like Justin Edwards and Jeff Dowtin Jr. have recently contributed valuable minutes to the Sixers, veterans like Paul George and Kelly Oubre Jr. have occasionally had impressive runs without Embiid.
The Pacers have also been playing well lately; they just defeated the Detroit Pistons 111-100, with Myles Turner matching his career high of eight 3-pointers.
Aaron Nesmith scored nine points in nine minutes after missing more than two months due to a damaged ankle.
Nesmith will continue to support Pacers players Pascal Siakam (26 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, and four steals), Turner (28 points), and Tyrese Haliburton (17 points, eight assists versus Detroit).
The Pacers and Sixers will encounter four times this season, including this one. On October 27, Philadelphia defeated Indiana 118-114 in overtime, and on December 13, the Pacers defeated Philadelphia 121-107.
Washington Wizards vs Golden State Warriors Preview, What to Watch
Jordan Poole gets ready to play against his old team as the Washington Wizards visit the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night in San Francisco. Poole is trying to make his first All-Star team.
Poole, who was selected in the first round of the 2019 NBA Draft by the team, spent his first four seasons with Golden State. In 2022–2023 he finished his final season with the Warriors, averaging a career-high 20.4 points.
He contributed 19 double-figure scoring performances and two 30-point performances during Golden State's march to the 2022 title.
The following October, however, Poole lost favor in San Francisco following a widely reported altercation with teammate Draymond Green during training camp. In July 2023, he was traded to the Wizards as part of a deal for Chris Paul.
Since then, Poole has faced the Warriors three times. In December 2023, he scored 25 points on 7-for-21 shooting in a 129-118 loss in San Francisco.
In all three of his Warriors games, he has faced off against Stephen Curry, his old backcourt teammate. Golden State has won all three games, and Curry has outscored the opposition by an average of 24.0 points to 20.3 points.
Both the Wizards and Poole, who is averaging a career-high 21.4 points per game, came into town this time in a bit of a slump. Poole was only averaging 17.0 points, shooting just 17-for-47 overall (36.2 percent), and going 7-for-27 on 3-pointers (25.9 percent) during the last three of Washington's eight consecutive losses.
Warriors fans will have their first chance to observe Wizards youngster Alex Sarr, the No. 2 overall pick in last year's draft, as they get ready to welcome Poole—not necessarily in a courteous manner—for the second time since his trade.
Although opponents have tried to pull him out to the perimeter, the 19-year-old has been most happy of his play at the other end of the court, where he has had two blocks in each of Washington's previous three games. He has scored in double figures in 16 of his last 17 games.
With Green, who has been making more than twice as many 3-pointers this season (3.8 per game) as he did when Poole was his teammate two years ago (1.8), the Warriors may try a similar strategy.
On a Warriors trip that concluded Wednesday with a victory over Minnesota, Green missed the final three games. He is anticipated to return from an illness to play the Wizards, against whom he had one of his finest games of the season in November, after taking two days off at home to rest.
Green helped the team defeat Washington 125–112 with 18 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists. In addition to Sarr's 10-point, 11-rebound double-double that included three blocks, Curry and Poole each finished the game with 24 points.
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Minnesota Timberwolves Preview, What to Watch
The Cleveland Cavaliers are now in what is considered to be their second-worst stretch of the season going into Saturday's three-game road trip finale against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Minneapolis.
With 34 victories in its first 40 games, Cleveland is off to a fantastic start. However, throughout the past week, the club has experienced a rare amount of turbulence. Including Thursday's 134-114 loss to the host Oklahoma City Thunder, the Cavaliers have dropped two of their last three games.
This season, the Cavaliers have only lost two straight games, both of which were at Atlanta in late November. They have never lost two of three at any stage throughout this campaign, save from that.
After the Cavaliers' blowout loss against the Thunder, coach Kenny Atkinson made the decision to not reprimand his team too harshly. Rather, he will see the Saturday matchup with the Timberwolves as a chance to make progress.
The Timberwolves, who are playing on short rest but have been playing better lately, will be the opponent of the Cavaliers. After defeating the New York Knicks 116-99 on the road on Friday, Minnesota took a plane home to prepare for Cleveland.
After scoring 36 points on 12-for-21 shooting against New York, Anthony Edwards will look to maintain his hot play. He made 8 out of 13 3-point attempts.
Due to guard Donte DiVincenzo's left big toe injury, Edwards and the Timberwolves will probably need to find a way to win without him. DiVincenzo is averaging 11.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.6 assists. On Friday, he missed his first game of the season.
Coach Chris Finch of the Timberwolves was unsure of DiVincenzo's comeback schedule at this moment. To replace the injured guard, Finch put Mike Conley back into the starting lineup. In 25 minutes, Conley scored 13 points and gave out two assists.
The Cavaliers' top two scorers are part of their excellent backcourt, which Conley and Edwards will face.
Darius Garland is in second place with 21.0 points and a team-high 6.8 assists per game, while Donovan Mitchell tops Cleveland with 22.7 points per game.
The Timberwolves' Rudy Gobert and Julius Randle will face Cavaliers big men Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. Allen averages 14.1 points and 10.1 rebounds per game, while Mobley averages 18.6 points and 8.8 rebounds.
In addition, Naz Reid can play center or power forward and contribute to the Timberwolves' scoring off the bench. After finishing with 23 points in 25 minutes against the Knicks, he made all six of his 3-point tries and will want to continue his impressive shooting.
Houston Rockets vs Portland Trail Blazers Preview, What to Watch
On Saturday night, the Houston Rockets will go to Portland to try to begin a fresh winning run on the road.
Houston defeated the Sacramento Kings 132-127 on Thursday after winning seven straight away from home.
The Rockets' five-game winning streak came to an end as well.
According to coach Ime Udoka, Houston did not do enough to maintain either streak.
Jalen Green, the standout of the Rockets, scored 28 points and nailed four 3-pointers to continue his excellent month. In January, Green averages 30.3 points and 4.5 3-pointers, for a total of 36 points.
Houston received double-doubles from Amen Thompson (20 points, 10 rebounds) and Alperen Sengun (21 points, 10 rebounds).
Tari Eason, a reserve who had missed the previous 13 games because of a leg ailment, also contributed 16 points to the Rockets. 24 minutes were played by Eason.
Fred VanVleet will return to action against Portland after missing the Sacramento game due to personal circumstances.
Earlier in the season, the clubs split a back-to-back in Houston. On November 22, the Rockets defeated Portland 116-88 thanks to a season-high 28 points from Dillon Brooks and 22 from Eason. Anfernee Simons scored 25 points to help the Trail Blazers win 104-98 the following evening.
After going scoreless for 30 minutes in Thursday's 118-89 home loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, Simons will be hoping to recover on Saturday.
Simons missed five 3-pointers and went 0-for-9 from the field.
Portland has dropped four straight games, the past three of which have been at home, and has had many difficult nights this season.
The Trail Blazers lost to the Miami Heat 119-98 last Saturday and the Brooklyn Nets 132-114 on Tuesday before losing to the Clippers by a margin of 29 points.
Portland fell behind Los Angeles by as much as 34 points and never took the lead.
With 23 points off the bench, Dalano Banton led the Trail Blazers. His season high was tied by the output.
