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Nightly Pulse: NBA News & Highlights from Nov. 23

Stay in the know on tonight's NBA action as we keep you updated with the latest news and happenings around the league.

NBA.com Staff

Saturday Basketball🏀🏀

Upset victories and booming performances headlined a wild slate of Saturday hoops:

⭐⭐TOP PERFORMERS⭐⭐

  1. LaMelo Ball: 50 points (17-38 FG), five rebounds, 10 assists, one steal
  2. Nikola Jokić: 34 points (12-20 FG), 13 rebounds, eight assists, two steals, one block
  3. Franz Wagner: 30 points (11-22 FG), nine rebounds, eight assists, two steals

Top Storylines👉📝

  1. The Nuggets beat the Lakers for the 13th time in their last 14 meetings, fueled by a 50-17 run spanning the final minutes of Q2 to the opening minutes of Q4. Coach Michael Malone passes Doug Moe (432) to become the Nuggets franchise leader in regular-season wins.
  2. LaMelo Ball becomes the 3rd-youngest player in NBA history to post 50+ points and 10+ assists in a game, behind only Kevin Porter Jr. and LeBron James. Ball is the first player in Hornets’ franchise history to accomplish this stat combination.
  3. Scotty Pippen Jr. (30 points, 81.3 FG%, 10 assists) is the first player since his father to record 25+ points on 80% shooting with 8+ assists at the United Center.
    Scottie Pippen Sr. on Nov 15, 1995: 27 pts, 88.9 FG%, eight assists.

LAMELO 50-PIECE🤯🤯

LaMelo Ball’s 50-point performance joins Kemba Walker as the only player in Hornets’ franchise history to hit that threshold. Ball had never logged a 40-point performance prior to Saturday.

Ball finishes with 50 points (17-38 FG, 6-17 3PM, 10-13 FT), five rebounds, 10 assists and one steal, joining De’Aaron Fox, Victor Wembanyama, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Paolo Banchero in the 50-point club this season.

Despite the huge workload, Ball’s offensive clinic oozed confidence, headlined by smooth crossovers, feathery floaters and deep bombing.

Denver Dub: Convincing 127-102 win over the Lakers✅✅

Nikola Jokić finished with 34 points and 13 rebounds to lead all players in both categories. The big man also tacked on eight assists as Denver outscored the Lakers by 31 points in the second half to earn a commanding victory.

Denver finished with a plus-24 advantage in points in the paint, limiting Anthony Davis to 14 points and 10 rebounds. LeBron James finished with 18 points, six rebounds and seven assists.

CLING KONG RODMAN: Portland upsets Houston

Donovan Clingan logs the 15th instance in NBA history of a player recording 19-plus rebounds and 0 points, seven of which belong to Dennis Rodman. Portland limited Houston to 35.6% shooting as a team in a 104-98 victory.

Anfernee Simons looked shifty while posting a game-high 25 points (10-20 FG). Shaedon Sharpe was right behind him with 24 points (7- 18 FG).

The Trail Blazers get revenge after Houston smoked them 116-88 just 24 hours prior.

Nuggets’ starters heating up♨️

Nikola Jokić has 26 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists, and an assortment of reinforcements have helped Denver push to a 94-78 lead over the Lakers entering Q4. Michael Porter Jr. has 22 points, Christian Braun has 14 points, and Jamal Murray has 13 points.

Austin Reaves has a team-high 19 points for Los Angeles, but the Lakers limped to a 15-point third quarter, marking their lowest-scoring frame of the season.

And this Nikola Jokić dime👀👀

Young Grizz victorious🐻🐻

Eight players reached double-digit scoring from Memphis as the Grizzlies poured in 45.2 percent of 42 3PA in an explosive 142-131 win over Chicago.

Scotty Pippen Jr. and Jaylen Wells each had career-best scoring nights, respectively finishing with 30 and 26 points. Pippen notched a double-double with 10 assists, while Wells drained a career-best six 3PA, continuing an impressive rookie ascension.

Zach LaVine continues delivering All-Star caliber production, finishing with 29 points (10-19 FG). His 57.0 eFG% on off-the-dribble jumpers ranks in the 87th percentile league-wide, trailing only Kyrie Irving among 25 players with at least 90 such shot attempts thus far.

Spurs’ trio leads upset over Golden State

San Antonio overcame a 17-point deficit, outscoring Golden State by 20 points in the fourth quarter to earn a 104-94 win.

  • Victor Wembanyama: 25 points (9-21 FG), seven rebounds, nine assists, one steal, three blocks
  • Harrison Barnes: 22 points (7-8 FG, 6-8 FT), eight rebounds, two assists, one steal, one block
  • Stephon Castle: 19 points (7-15 FG), three rebounds, three assists, one steal

No other Spurs reached double-digit scoring, but team-centric basketball — featuring 29 assists on 38 buckets and just eight turnovers as a team — prevailed for San Antonio. Andrew Wiggins posted a team-high 20 points for the Warriors.

Milwaukee survives barrage, beats Charlotte 125-119

Giannis Antetokounmpo provided 32 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, while Damian Lillard co-starred with 31 points, four rebounds and four assists.

Milwaukee’s top duo paled in comparison to LaMelo Ball (50 points) and Brandon Miller (32 points) combining for 82 points and accounting for all 34 of Charlotte’s points in the fourth quarter. Charlotte overcame a 20-point deficit to cut the lead to three prior to Milwaukee sealing the deal with free throws.

SCOTTY PIPPEN JR. EMERGENCE CONTINUES📈📈

Pippen is booming for 26 points (11-13 FG) and eight assists to lead all players in both categories as Memphis leads Chicago by 13 in the final minute of the third quarter. It’s divinely fitting for Pippen to boom in Chicago, where he father co-starred alongside Michael Jordan.

Pippen’s stock has been firmly on the rise since last season, initially earning a two-way contract with Memphis, posting multiple 20-point games down the stretch last year, booming for a triple-double at Summer League, then carrying his momentum into a four-year contract from the Grizzlies last month.

LaMelo Ball battling bucks star duo🔥🔥🔥🔥

Ball has a game-high 32 points to combat 25 points each from Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard as the Hornets trail 96-85 at the start of Q4.

Wagner Brothers fuel Orlando win

Franz (30 points, nine rebounds, eight assists) and Moritz Wagner (18 points, seven rebounds, five assists) led Orlando’s stat-stuffing, joined by 12 rebounds for Jonathan Isaac.

The Magic move to 8-0 at home this season, with Cleveland representing the only other team still undefeated at home.

Jaden Ivey finished with a team-high 19 points (6-16 FG) for the Pistons. Isaiah Stewart delivered a versatile performance of seven points (3-4 FG), five rebounds, four assists, one steal and five blocks. Marcus Sasser logged his second-most playing time of the year and flashed quality guard minutes in the absence of Cade Cunningham (hip).

Memphis sharing the rock, leading Chicago 64-60

The Grizzlies have racked up 18 first-half assists on 23 buckets en route to a four-point lead over the Bulls. Jaren Jackson leads Memphis with 14 points (3-7 FG, 6-8 FG), while Jaylen Wells (13 points) and Scotty Pippen Jr. (12 points) join him in double-digit scoring.

Nikola Vučević continues his outstanding start to the season with 19 points and six rebounds, leading all players in both categories. The big man is averaging 20.2 points and 9.8 rebounds on the season, raining in a career-high 46.1 percent of 4.5 3PA per game.

LaMelo Ball swishing and dishing👨‍🍳👨‍🍳

Ball gets Giannis Antetokounmpo with a twitchy crossover and finishes the floater. His pin-point passing was on display in a dynamite transition break with Brandon Miller as well.

Unstoppable force

Giannis Antetokounmpo beats the double team for a dunk and is getting busy early. The Greek Freak has now totaled 70 dunks through 16 appearances this season.

Franz Wagner staying hot♨️♨️♨️

Orlando clings to a 56-53 lead over Detroit at halftime, with Wagner posting a game-high 18 points (7-13 FG). His stretch of stellar play continues, as Wagner entered Saturday’s contest averaging 27.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.9 steals across his last 10 games, while failing to exceed 20 points just once over that span.

Moritz Wagner (11 points, three rebounds, four assists) hit his brother with two lovely dimes and represents the only other player for Orlando with double-digit scoring thus far. Jaden Ivey has a team-high 12 points for Detroit, leading the Pistons’ backcourt with Cade Cunningham (hip) missing his first game of the season.

Jazz catch fire from deep, defeat Knicks

Utah rained in a ridiculous 55.9% of 34 3PA, fueled by Lauri Markkanen’s 34 points (11-15 FG, 5-8 3PM), to earn a 121-106 victory over New York. John Collins finished with a 20-point, 13-rebound double-double.

Karl-Anthony towns finished with 16 points and 16 rebounds, representing his fifth game of the season with at least 15 boards. OG Anunoby posted a season-high 27 points, but he represented the only starter for New York to shoot at least 50% from the field.

Knicks coming to life vs. Jazz

After trailing by 15 points at halftime, New York posted a 27-21 advantage in the third frame to cut Utah’s lead to nine at 87-78. New York went on a 17-0 run in under 2.5 minutes midway through the quarter, but Utah never relinquished the lead and promptly countered with their own burst.

Lauri Markkanen leads all scorers with 25 points (8-11 FG), while OG Anunoby’s 24 points (9-16 FG) leads New York. Karl-Anthony towns has a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds, while Jalen Brunson has chipped in 16 points and eight assists.

Key Storylines for the Night 🍿🍿

  1. Nikola Jokić battles LeBron James and Anthony Davis as Denver looks to bounce-back from Friday’s tough loss to Dallas. Jokić averaged 28.2 points, 16.2 rebounds and 9.7 assists while shooting 59.1 percent from the field on 18.6 shots per game in a 4-1 series victory over the Lakers in the playoffs last year.
  2. Victor Wembanyama (knee) returns to action against Golden State after a three-game absence. San Antonio managed a 2-1 record without the Frenchman, including a victory over Oklahoma City.
  3. Utah upsets New York in a thoroughly controlled victory featuring Lauri Markkanen’s second 30-point game of the season.

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