NBA Friday Night Slate: Notable Rookie Matchups
The 2023 draft class has shown up this season.
Victor Wembanyama, Brandon Miller, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and many more, the productivity from these rookies to immediately provide an impact has been huge for their respective teams – contending or not.
On Friday night around the NBA, 10 games are to played, with a number of those matchups including prime head-to-head meetings for a few of these talented freshmen.
Let's give a look at some of these rookie bouts:
Rockets vs. Pistons
As the Houston Rockets head into Detroit, Amen and Ausar Thompson will compete against each other for the second time this season – a matchup which saw Houston take a 23-point win, with both Thompson twins registering 24-plus minutes.
For Ausar and the Pistons, it's been a defeating season. Tying the longest losing streak at 26 games and then losing six straight heading into Friday night's matchup, it's a tough position to be in with a 3-35 record on the season.
As for Amen and the Rockets, they sit at No. 9 in the West holding a .500 record at 18-18, entering off two consecutive losses.
Magic vs. Heat
The next scheduled matchup will be the Orlando Magic's Anthony Black and the Miami Heat's Jaquez Jr., who see each other a total of four times this season.
Friday night will mark the second meeting of their four-game series, with the Heat edging out the Magic as both rookies found their way into the starting lineup.
Orlando and Miami currently share the same record at 21-16, vying to move their way up in the East, with the standings being very tight-knit from the four-through-eight seeds.
Black and Jaquez Jr. are two of some of the most exciting rookies in the Eastern conference, and should be getting accustomed with one another as divisional foes.
Hornets vs. Spurs
Lastly is the outing between Brandon Miller and Victor Wembanyama – the first meeting of the two on the season.
The top two picks in the 2023 draft, this one should be the most anticipated matchup on Friday night.
Each team is in a similar situation in terms of standings so far this year, as both sit near the bottom end of their conferences.
Regardless, the level of talent between Miller and Wembanyama will be something to watch, and it's only something given two times this season.
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