The real two-seed battle to the Simmons-Harris Bowl: Five must-watch non-76er games this week

Check up on the rest of the conference to get that Detroit loss out of your mouth… or partake in schadenfreude.

Ugh, Tobias Harris and the Detroit Pistons gave the Sixers their third loss of the season. Not to fret though, there’s the whole season left and other teams are struggling. Because you still love basketball, you’ll watch more games and enjoy the success or failure of other franchises. There’s plenty of opportunity to see that this week, so I’ve highlighted five games that should be required viewing for a real grasp on the state of the Eastern Conference. I’ve made it easy with one game a night so book in your couch time, get your snack of choice ready, and lock in.

Oct. 31: Orlando Magic @ Cleveland Cavaliers
Early season hot-takes had either Orlando or Cleveland as the second seed by game 82 and it’s looking like a likely battle. Cleveland is undefeated, looking rejuvenated and surprisingly cohesive under new coach Kenny Atkinson. Donovan Mitchell can shift games to his liking and the twin towers of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen should prove a testing matchup for Orlando’s star Paolo Banchero.

But he’s looking combatworthy early in his third professional season. He notched the association’s first 50-point game of the year and is surrounded by feisty defenders who will surely seek revenge for their playoff series loss to Cleveland.

Nov. 1: Boston Celtics @ Charlotte Hornets
This will be the second half of a mid-season back-to-back series against Charlotte and Boston, so take your pick over what game to watch. LaMelo Ball has been playing rudely effective basketball and famously cooked Boston early last season. His 36-point overtime win over the now-defending champions that year was probably the highlight of the Hornets’ season.

And Boston just lost their first game of the new campaign. Joe ‘The Psycho’ Mazzulla seems to get off on adversity like a basketball version of David Goggins. He’ll have his squad hungry and ferocious as they look to become a historic regular-season team. To do that, you can’t lose two games in a week, and you must dominate teams you should, especially if they have a Gen-Z icon point guard dancing on your All-Defensive guards.

Nov. 2: Detroit Pistons @ Brooklyn Nets
The Ben Simmons vs Tobias Harris bowl! Both teams should be in the lottery come the time, but this is part of the season where they try. The Sixers just gave Detroit their first win of the season. How will the Pistons build on that momentum? If the Nets win, the Sixers’ loss looks a lot worse. So… go Tobias Harris?

Nov. 3: Milwaukee Bucks @ Cleveland Cavaliers
The Bucks have not looked good. They’ve lost to the Nets and the Bulls and Giannis is already questioning Doc’s leadership. But Rivers foresees a leap for his squad. Let’s see how that works out.

And the Cavs are taking the Bucks’ spot as a top-three Eastern team. Their twin towers will be tested against the floor-spacing Brook Lopez and the floor-collapsing Giannis Antetokounmpo. Mitchell should wreck the Bucks’ perimeter defense, but Gary Trent Jr. may have just enough to slow him down.

Nov. 4: New York Knicks @ Atlanta Hawks
Trae Young hates the Knicks and the Knicks need to set themselves apart from the play-in hopefuls. These are the games they need to take hold of. Their bench relies on Miles McBride a bit too much but Atlanta’s second unit isn’t great either. It should be a good chance for semi-rotation Knicks like Ariel Hukporti to prove more minutes to Tom Thibodeau.

Atlanta has had some rough losses despite Trae Young’s big performances. He should have another against a so-far bad defensive Knicks team. His backcourt mate Dyson Daniels — if healthy and playing — is a phenomenal defender and his matchup against Jalen Brunson will be a battle between shiftiness and stoutness. Will Atlanta’s young lengthy wing duo Jalen Johnson and Zaccharie Risacher do anything against OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges?