The San Antonio Spurs and Denver Nuggets are both said to be interested in acquiring Toronto Raptors forward Chris Boucher ahead of the trade deadline

And on this roadtrip, where the Jazz will face the Pelicans once more on Monday night, it was really, really important for the Jazz decision makers to find a way to finagle a loss against the Pelicans.

The battle of the second and third-ranked teams in the Western Conference features some of the league's up-and-coming franchises. The third-seeded Memphis Grizz

The Utah Jazz have hit the cellar of the Western Conference. Zion Williamson highlighted a 24-point, 14-rebound performance with an array of thunderous dunks during a dominant fourth-quarter stint, and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Utah Jazz 136-123 on Friday night to open a two-game set.

Players have reported to camp this week, as preseason has officially begun across MLS. You can jump on the social media platform of your choice and see clips of your dudes jogging, joking and hopefully not sporting too many extra pounds from the holidays.

Early returns: Utah made a high-risk trade for Sergachev — in terms of acquisition cost and with the seven seasons left on his contract at an $8.5 million cap hit, especially coming off an injury-plagued year. It’s too early to make a long-term read on the trade, but the early dividends have been promising.

The Thunder has a 99.8% chance of being the No. 1 seed in the West, according to basketball-reference.com. Seems low.

BOTTOM LINE: Detroit takes on Houston for a non-conference matchup. The Rockets are 14-6 on their home court. Houston is the Western Conference leader with 14.6 offensive rebounds per game led by Alperen Sengun averaging 3.4.

The St. Louis Blues will host the Calgary Flames again on Thursday to complete an unusual two-game series featuring a postseason vibe.

The Cavaliers are 20-2 on their home court. Cleveland ranks third in the Eastern Conference with 29.1 assists per game led by Darius Garland averaging 6.8. The Suns are 8-12 on the road. Phoenix allows 114.3 points to opponents and has been outscored by 1.1 points per game.

But Sunday, Jan. 12 NHL action has two of the Western Conference leaders looking to skate, shoot and score in their push to the top of the conference. The Vegas Golden Knights (28 wins ...

The Houston Rockets are closing in on the 30-win mark despite still being in the middle of January. Last season, the Rockets didn't win their 30th game until Mar. 12, which is a sign of the team's growth so far this year.