NBA NEWS - PREVIEW for WEEK 15

LeBron James - NBA photo

Stephen Curry - NBA photo

Dwyane Wade needs 22 points to pass Larry Bird (21,791) - NBA phot

All-Star Game Captains LeBron James and Stephen Curry will select the rosters from the pool of players voted as starters (by fans, NBA players and media) and reserves (by NBA head coaches) - James needs seven points to become the seventh player in NBA history to reach 30,000 - Dwyane Wade needs 22 points to pass Larry Bird (21,791) for 32nd placeon the NBA’s all-time scoring list - THIS DAY IN THE NBA

NEW YORK, NY USA

Monday, January 22, 2018

THREE POINTS

1. Star Gazing: The 2018 NBA All-Star Game reserves will be revealed on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET on TNT, followed by the unveiling of the All-Star team rosters on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET on TNT. Captains LeBron James and Stephen Curry will select the rosters from the pool of players voted as starters (by fans, NBA players and media) and reserves (by NBA head coaches). The 67th All-Star Game, featuring Team LeBron vs. Team Stephen, will be played on Sunday, Feb. 18 at 8 p.m. ET on TNT.

2. Major Milestones: Cleveland’s LeBron James and Oklahoma City’s Carmelo Anthony – both 15-year veterans selected two picks apart in the 2003 NBA Draft – are on the verge of rare feats. James needs seven points to become the seventh player in NBA history to reach 30,000. He can join the club on Tuesday when the Cavaliers visit San Antonio at 8 p.m. ET on TNT. Anthony, meanwhile, is 40 points from becoming the 21st player with 25,000. The Thunder’s four-game week begins with home games against Brooklyn on Tuesday and Washington on Thursday (8 p.m. ET, TNT) -

3. Saturday Night Thrive: Conference leaders Golden State and Boston meet on Saturday at Oracle Arena in the Week 15 edition of NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC (8:30 p.m. ET). When the teams played in Boston on Nov. 16, the Celtics erased a 17-point deficit to edge the Warriors 92-88 and earn their 14th straight win (the streak would end at 16 games). Saturday’s matchup is the last of this week’s three nationally televised road games for Boston, which visits the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday (10:30 p.m. ET, TNT) and the LA Clippers on Wednesday (10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

NBA TV’S NEW FRANCHISE

NBA TV will launch a new franchise on Monday – Fast Break Mondays – in conjunction with its doubleheader featuring Houston visiting Miami (8 p.m. ET) and the LA Clippers hosting Minnesota (10:30 p.m. ET).

The night-long production will include expansive fan engagement and quick-time polling as well as continuous coverage through breaks.

Fast Break Mondays begins the same week that Players Only – a Tuesday franchise with former NBA stars serving in all broadcast roles – shifts from NBA TV to TNT.

MILESTONE WATCH

Dwyane Wade, Cavaliers: Like fellow 2003 NBA Draft top-five selections LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony, Wade is poised for a scoring milestone. Wade needs 22 points to pass Larry Bird (21,791) for 32nd placeon the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Gary Payton is next with 21,813 points.

Chris Paul, Rockets: Needs 30 assists to pass Andre Miller (8,524) for ninth place on the NBA’s all-time assists list.

Pau Gasol, Spurs: Needs seven points to pass Mitch Richmond (20,497) for 39th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.

Stephen Curry, Warriors: Needs 34 points to reach 14,000 for his career.

PELICAN POWER

New Orleans is set to have two starters in the All-StarGame for the first time after DeMarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis were both voted to the Western Conference starter pool.

Cousins and Davis are producing unprecedentednumbers together. The two big men are on track to become the first teammates in NBA history to each average at least 25 points and 10 rebounds in the same season (minimum50 games for the same team).

Behind their two All-Stars,the Pelicans (24-21) enterWeek 15 having wonfour of five to move aseason-high-tying three games above .500. Theirfour-game week includes ahome game against All-Star starter James Harden and Houston on Friday at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.

THIS DAY IN THE NBA

January 22, 2002 New Jersey’s Jason Kidd recorded his 5,000th career assist in his 531st game, thus becoming the sixth-fastest player in NBA history to reach that milestone, joining Oscar Robertson (467 games), Magic Johnson (472), John Stockton (483), Isiah Thomas (490) and Kevin Johnson (519). Kidd registered 15 assists in a 113-105 loss to Dallas.

January 22, 1968 The NBA Board of Governors granted franchises to the cities of Milwaukee and Phoenix.

January 22, 1992 Philadelphia’s Charles Barkley pulled down a game-high 14 rebounds to help lead the 76ers to a 119-109 win over New York at the Spectrum. Those 14 boards helped Barkley set a 76ers record for career rebounds, with 6,642, surpassing former leaders Billy Cunningham and Wilt Chamberlain.

January 22, 1998 The NBA has reached six-year agreements with ABC, ESPN and AOL Time Warner to have ABC, ESPN, TNT and a new AOL Time Warner/NBA jointly owned national cable sports network televise NBA games beginning with the 2002-03 season.