Eastern Conference basketball rivals Washington Wizards and New York Knicks will both be looking to kickstart their season before they come to The O2, North Greenwich for the annual NBA London Game on January 17, writes Ziad Chaudry.

Both teams so far have similar records with 10th placed Wizards having the better with nine victories and fourteen losses.

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The Wizards’ roster currently features All-Star guards Bradley Beal and John Wall, who last season led the Wizards in points and assists, respectively, as well as Polish center Marcin Gortat.

And Wall, 28, who smashed in 30 points during their 102-88 victory over fellow strugglers Brooklyn Nets last Sunday, says he will be privileged to represent the Wizards come game time in North Greenwich: "It will be an honor to represent the Washington Wizards organization as we play our first game in the UK," he said. "I look forward to connecting with our fans in London and using the experience to further bond as a team.”

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Meanwhile 12th placed Knicks, who claimed a much needed 136-134 overtime victory over Milwaukee Bucks last Sunday, features Latvian forward Kristaps Porzingis, French point guard Frank Ntilikina and guard Tim Hardaway Jr.

The Knicks incidentally lost to Bucks 95-79 two years ago at The O2 however Hardaway Jr who played in that game is looking forward to coming back to North Greenwich.

“I am excited to return to London," said the 26-year-old Californian. "We had a great experience during our last visit in 2015 playing in front of passionate fans and are looking forward to another trip overseas.”

Tickets for NBA London Game 2019 are available by logging onto either www.NBA.com/London or www.axs.com/nbalondon. Otherwise you can watch it exclusively live on Sky Sports.