How to get an NBA statue, according to Shaquille O’Neal:

☑️ “You need to win.”

☑️ “You need to change the game.”

☑️ “You need to be monumental.”

“Kobe Bryant checks every box.”

Today, Kobe’s Laker legacy will be immortalized in LA with a statue unveiling at 6:30 ET. Commemorate Mamba in the NBA App all day, and see more in Sec. 3.

THE LINEUP 🏀

1. 7️⃣ Straight wins for Cleveland
2. 🌪️ Roundup: Pelicans cool Clippers
3. 🐍 Kobe statue unveiling tonight
4. ⏰ Trade deadline today at 3 ET
5. 📸 Dunk Contest photo rewind

Stars will be in Indy: On Thursday, the NBA announced the rosters and coaches for the Ruffles Celebrity Game as well as the All-Star performers, headlined by Jennifer Hudson and Babyface.

TNT Doubleheader: Two days after combining for 71 points in a win over the Nets in Brooklyn, what will Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving have in store when they face the Knicks at MSG (7:30 ET)?

Following the Kobe statue unveiling, the Lakers will don their Black Mamba uniforms when they host the Nuggets (10 ET).

1. CAVS WIN 7TH STRAIGHT + MUST-SEE PLAYS FROM WEDNESDAY

Mitchell, Cavs continue to sizzle: Donovan Mitchell (40 pts, 8 reb, 5 ast) and the Cavs defeated the Wizards, 114-106, for their seventh straight win and 15th in their last 16 games.

• The Numbers: During this 16-game run, the Cavs have the NBA’s top defense (104.7 pts allowed per 100 poss) and sixth-best offense (120.6). Mitchell has averaged 29.4 ppg with three 40+ point games

At The Buzzer

• Cavs rolling: Watch Mitchell fly up the court and toss up a running floater that got the friendly bounce to beat the third-quarter buzzer
• Hayes at the half: Killian Hayes hit the high-arcing three to beat the halftime buzzer during Detroit’s win in Sactown

Lob Night

• With authority: Russell Westbrook got up for an emphatic finish off the lob from Amir Coffey. Check out the slow-mo replay
• Back and forth: First, Derrick White lobbed it to Kristaps Porzingis for a one-handed finish. The Hawks responded with Trae Young finding Jalen Johnson for a one-handed jam of his own
• Two reactions: Malik Monk with a huge slam off the Davion Mitchell lob. Check out the reaction from this fan and from Monk himself

Guard-like skills

• One-man break: The Boston bench couldn’t get enough of seeing Al Horford grab the loose ball and take it coast-to-coast for the dunk
• Wemby getting fancy: Victor hit the Heat with a behind-the-back dribble into a crossover to draw a foul from Kevin Love

2. ROUNDUP: PELICANS COOL OFF CLIPS

NOLA wins 4th straight, drops LA to 4th: The Clippers’ stay at the top of the West lasted less than 24 hours as the Pelicans topped the Clippers 117-106 for their fourth-straight win, dropping LA to fourth in the crowded top tier of the conference. CJ McCollum scored a game-high 25 while Zion Williamson added 21 and 10 dimes.

Warriors cruise past 76ers: After trailing by 10 early, the Warriors took control in the second (+10) and third (+20) quarters as they cruised to a 127-104 win over the Sixers. Andrew Wiggins scored a game-high 21 points as all 13 Warriors that played scored in the game.

Porzingis powers Celtics: Kristaps Porzingis (31 pts, 2 blk) posted his fifth 30+ point game of the season to lead Boston to a 125-117 win over Atlanta. Derrick White (21) and Jayson Tatum (20) combined for 41 points, while Jaylen Brown had the move of the night for two of his 15.

Butler triple-double leads Heat: Jimmy Butler (17 pts, 11 reb, 11 ast) posted his first triple-double in two years to lead Miami to a 116-104 win over San Antonio. Tyler Herro (24) and Bam Adebayo (20) combined for 44 while Wemby (18 pts, 13 reb) posted his 25th double-double.

Raptors rally past Hornets: After trailing by as many as 15 points, the Raptors won the fourth quarter 32-20 to earn a 123-117 win over Charlotte. RJ Barrett (23) led seven Raptors with 12+ points as Toronto’s balanced attack overcame a career-high 45 points from Miles Bridges.

Pistons close strong in Sacramento: The Kings used a 24-8 run to take a two-point lead into the fourth, but Jaden Ivey responded with 19 of his career-high 37 points in the final 12 minutes as Detroit won the fourth 36-21 and the game 133-120.

3. KOBE STATUE UNVEILED IN LA TONIGHT

Magic Johnson. Chick Hearn. Jerry West. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Shaquille O’Neal. Elgin Baylor.

The list of former Lakers with statues outside of Crypto.com Arena will grow by one today as the Lakers unveil a bronze statue of Kobe Bryant.

The Hall of Famer and 18-time All-Star played his entire 20-year career with the Lakers, becoming the storied franchise’s all-time leading scorer and five-time NBA champion during his historic run in purple and gold.

Shaq on Kobe: “The face of the Lakers for two decades, he was the most competitive player I’ve ever seen and the best teammate I ever had.

“Now he joins basketball royalty with an official shrine in LA. Let this statue make one thing clear: Kobe Bryant is forever.”

The ceremony begins at 6:30 ET and can be seen live on NBA TV and streamed live on the NBA App.

It’s part of a full day of classic Kobe games available for free worldwide on the NBA App to celebrate the global icon.

• 1:45 ET: Kobe’s 81-point game (2006)
• 3:25 ET: Kobe’s last NBA Finals win (2010 Finals, Game 7)
• 4:55 ET: Kobe’s farewell game (2016)
• 6:30 ET: Kobe Statue unveiling ceremony, live in NBA App

On a day dedicated to honoring Kobe, the Lakers will don a uniform created to celebrate his legacy as they go for their fourth straight win.

Following the ceremony, the Lakers will host the defending champion Nuggets (10 ET, TNT) and will take the court in their Black Mamba uniforms, which were co-designed by Bryant, and debuted as the team’s first City Edition uniform on Jan. 26, 2018. They were last worn during the Lakers’ 2020 playoff run to their 17th title.

The uniforms feature a snakeskin-like black print and drop shadows on the jersey numbers, a nod to a detail from the Lakers uniforms from Bryant’s rookie season in 1996-97. The uniforms also include an “LA 24” on the belt and the Nos. 8 and 24 under the flap of each leg of the shorts.

• Kobe By The Numbers: Lakers records he still holds
• GameTime: Remembering Kobe’s legacy on eve of statue unveiling
• Artists from around the world commemorate Kobe with street murals

4. TRADE DEADLINE TODAY AT 3 P.M. ET

Phones are ringing. Texts are flying back and forth. Rumors are swirling. App notifications are chiming. Fans are feverishly refreshing their timeline for the latest info on moves their team will make before the buzzer sounds at 3 ET.

Welcome to Trade Deadline day.

• Everything to know about NBA trade deadline
• Trade Tracker: Every official trade
• 6 recent trades that helped fuel championships

As the Trade Tracker shows, some teams aren’t waiting until deadline day to make their moves.

• Some early fireworks included: James Harden to LA, OG Anunoby to NY, Pascal Siakam to Indy and Terry Rozier to Miami
• Official and reported moves on Trade Deadline eve: Boston traded for Memphis’ Xavier Tillman (official), Jazz traded Simone Fontecchio to the Pistons (report), Pistons traded Monte Morris to Timberwolves (report)

Trade deadline deals have been tracked dating back to 1987. Here’s what history says we should expect today:

• There have been 10+ trades at each of the past six trade deadlines
• Last season saw 17 trades made before the deadline, including 12 on deadline day
• The average trade deadline sees 10 teams involved in six trades involving 18 players

The Human Impact: In a special Trade Deadline edition of NBA Mailbag, 20-year veteran Jamal Crawford discussed the real-life impact that being traded can have:

• Crawford: “The emotional part of having to leave your current team. You feel like you’re building a family on and off the court. You know the families of other players and you see the same faces every day. So to emotionally detach from that and say, ‘OK, I’m going to another situation’ … to me that’s the hardest part.”

Crawford, who was traded five times in his career, detailed which move was the most shocking that he had to deal with. He also put his analyst hat on and discussed potential deals for today.

Read the full NBA Mailbag here.

5. A FEW FAVORITE 📸 FROM NBA ALL-STAR DUNK CONTESTS

In honor of the new LED courts at Lucas Oil Stadium at All-Star 2024, our photos series continues today with a few favorites from AT&T Slam Dunk, which debuted at All-Star 1984 in Denver.