It's the first Friday of NBA basketball and fans should be excited, as there are some great matchups scheduled for tonight. With 11 games tonight, there should be no shortage of highlights to get your weekend started. Here's the full schedule, along with some players to watch.
NBA Schedule for tonight: October 27
Friday's two national games feature familiar opponents from last year's playoffs. At center stage is the Celtics - Heat matchup, a replay of last year's Eastern Conference Finals. Then, the Kings will host Golden State and seek revenge for last year's first-round loss.
NBA Players to watch on Friday Night:
Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat
Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat barely held off the Detroit Pistons, winning 103-102 at home in their season debut. Next, Miami will travel up the eastern coast to face a very different Boston Celtics squad. In his first game, Butler struggled to shoot the ball effectively. Although he contributed 19 points, he finished the game 6-of-18, shooting 33 percent from the field. Butler also did not attempt a single three-pointer during his debut.
That being said, Butler will look for his shot early against Boston. During last year's conference finals, Butler averaged just under 25 points, six assists, and seven rebounds while shooting 42 percent from the field. Despite a lackluster first-game performance, Jimmy Butler looks to silence his doubters Friday night in Boston.
Zach Collins, San Antonio Spurs
(Look - I'm as surprised to be writing Zach Collins name as you are to be reading it. The thing is, I really liked what i saw from Collins in the Spurs home opener against the Mavericks.) Although the Spurs lost to the Mavericks 119-126, Collins proved he's a force to be reckoned with down low.
He finished the game with 14 points, five rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and a steal. Collins played 32 minutes, trailing only Devin Vassell, who played 35. He shot 0-of-4 from deep but didn't force anything. The Rockets struggled to rebound against the Magic in their season debut, giving up 17 offensive boards. On that note, Collins should have a field day in the paint against Houston.
Kyrie Irving, Dallas Mavericks
Even though Kyrie Irving scored 22 points in Dallas' win over the Spurs, he struggled to find his rhythm from deep. Irving shot 10-24 from the field, but only 1-8 from beyond the arc. One can only expect Kyrie to bounce back and shoot better in the next game, especially when you factor in who it's against. This is a revenge game for Kyrie Irving, as he prepares to face his old Brooklyn Nets squad. In fact, Friday will be the first time the Nets face off against their ex-teammate. Therefore, there should be plenty of motivation for Irving to shoot better, and it's safe to assume that he'll give it his all.