NBA picks today: Best bets and predictions for every game | Saturday, 24 October 2026

Eight games are on the Saturday night NBA schedule on 24 October 2026, with back-to-back fatigue running through a majority of the competing rosters.

The marquee fixture sees the Houston Rockets visit the unbeaten Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena, while a LeBron James injury cloud hangs over Philadelphia’s home meeting with the Milwaukee Bucks.

Milwaukee Bucks vs Philadelphia 76ers

The Bucks arrive in Philadelphia with two defeats already against their name and zero days of rest, having lost to Chicago 125-132 on Friday night in a game where their defence gave up every advantage their offence created. Philadelphia, by contrast, have opened the season with two wins and sit in the top three of the Eastern Conference.

The central storyline surrounding this fixture is the fitness of LeBron James, the 41-year-old forward who joined the 76ers in the summer and is listed as questionable with a back complaint.

Even if James sits out, the combination of Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey gives Philadelphia more than enough to deal with a Milwaukee side running on fumes.

The Bucks have conceded 120.6 points per 100 possessions through their opening two games, a figure that Joel Embiid’s interior dominance will almost certainly exploit at home. Philadelphia carry a net rating of +6.1 through two games, giving them clear structural superiority on both ends of the floor.

Philadelphia -12.5 is a sizeable number early in the season, but a back-to-back Milwaukee side on a two-game slide, conceding at the rate they have, makes the margin defensible. Embiid at the Wells Fargo Center against this Milwaukee front-court depth is the central equation.

Brooklyn Nets vs Cleveland Cavaliers

Identical records mask a significant talent disparity in this Eastern Conference fixture. Cleveland start James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen in a rotation built to contend; Brooklyn are building around a younger blueprint with Ben Brown Jr. and Julius Randle at the core.

Cleveland’s rebounding advantage is telling, pulling down 46 boards per game against Brooklyn’s 38, and their defensive efficiency of 103.6 points allowed per 100 possessions outperforms the Nets’ 107.8. Tyler Bilodeau is ruled out with a shoulder injury. Cleveland -11.5.

For a complete look at player props and injury analysis, see our Full breakdown: Brooklyn Nets vs Cleveland Cavaliers.

San Antonio Spurs vs Dallas Mavericks

Dallas return home on the back of a 121-105 road win at Indiana on Friday, but they do so without Cooper Flagg and Dereck Lively II, both ruled out until at least Monday.

Those absences gut Dallas’s front-court depth and remove their most dynamic developmental weapon, and the market has responded by making San Antonio favourites despite their 0-2 start and back-to-back schedule.

The reason is Victor Wembanyama. With Lively sidelined, the Spurs’ centre faces a significantly reduced defensive challenge at the rim, and Wembanyama’s two-way impact can swing this fixture even on zero rest.

San Antonio’s 38.7% field-goal rate is poor, but Kyrie Irving without his starting big and without Flagg is a meaningfully weaker proposition than the Dallas side that beat Indiana. San Antonio to win.

Houston Rockets vs Atlanta Hawks

The game of the night brings together two unbeaten teams in tonight’s eight-game field, both playing on zero rest and both having won on the road on Friday. Atlanta demolished Charlotte 128-81 at the Spectrum Center to record consecutive away victories, while Houston edged San Antonio 114-110 in what was their third game in four nights.

That volume of fixtures is where the case for Atlanta to win is built. The Hawks concede 98.6 points per 100 possessions, the sharpest defensive rate of any team on tonight’s slate, against Houston’s 111.1. Playing at State Farm Arena, Atlanta have the better defensive structure and the superior schedule to exploit it.

The Rockets’ cumulative schedule is a legitimate concern. Houston are on their third game in four nights, while Atlanta have played two in the same window. Both sides arrive on zero rest, but that additional outing in San Antonio on Friday tilts the fatigue balance against the Rockets before tip-off.

Reed Sheppard was ruled out for Friday’s game in San Antonio with a knee complaint, and his availability for Saturday’s fixture remains uncertain.

New Orleans Pelicans vs Denver Nuggets

New Orleans travel to Ball Arena on the second night of a back-to-back, having lost a narrow 119-120 thriller in Utah on Friday. The Pelicans are fatigued and have already dropped two, but they carry a functional offence and a healthy Zion Williamson into a fixture where Denver’s own early form demands scrutiny.

The Nuggets opened their campaign with 84 points against Oklahoma City, a figure that sits well below what Nikola Jokic’s system normally generates. Denver’s offensive efficiency of 89.4 points per 100 possessions is the lowest of any team in tonight’s field, compared to New Orleans’ 114.3 at the same measure.

An 11.5-point spread is historically generous for a game in which the shorter-rested side has Williamson healthy and a legitimate offensive infrastructure

Yves Missi, the Pelicans’ starting center, left Friday’s game with a knee injury and is listed as day-to-day. His absence would reduce New Orleans’ front-court depth against Jokic, but even a shortened rotation does not close an 11.5-point gap against a Denver team yet to find its offensive footing. New Orleans +11.5 is the value play of the night.

Golden State Warriors vs Phoenix Suns

Phoenix welcome the Warriors to the Footprint Center with two clear days of rest following their opening-night loss in Portland. Golden State arrive on the second night of a back-to-back, having lost narrowly to Memphis 108-111 on Friday, and do so with a roster thinned by multiple long-term absentees.

Moses Moody, Jimmy Butler III and Charles Bassey are all unavailable, and Kristaps Porzingis faces an uncertain future managing an autoimmune condition. Curry leads regardless, but back-to-back road action against a rested Devin Booker at home tips the balance firmly. Phoenix -5.5.

Also on tonight’s slate

• Miami Heat vs Charlotte Hornets (11:00pm BST): Both sides are playing on the second night of a back-to-back, but Charlotte were battered 81-128 at home by Atlanta on Friday and have three rotation players listed as day-to-day with hamstring and calf complaints. Miami to win, with Giannis Antetokounmpo providing an edge neither roster’s fatigue can fully neutralise.
• Washington Wizards vs Chicago Bulls (1:00am BST): Both teams are on zero days’ rest, but Washington’s defensive efficiency of 108.6 points allowed per 100 possessions is significantly tighter than Chicago’s 121.4, and the Wizards carry a positive net rating through their first two games while the Bulls’ sits at minus-22.4. Washington to win.