We’re serving up a pair of No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchups today like Devin Booker did with this dime to Oso Ighodaro.

THE LINEUP 🏀

Dec. 1, 2024 | What’s inside today’s edition?

Six Straight: Giannis and Dame combine for 67 points to keep the Bucks rolling

Roundup: Hawks & Mavs stay hot, Suns cool Warriors, Sixers get fourth win

Cavs-Celtics: The top two teams in the East clash for the second time in 12 days

Thunder-Rockets: The top two teams in the West bring the defense to their matchup

High Fives: Diving into the five-game win streaks by the Magic and Grizzlies

BUT FIRST … ⏰

A day we haven’t seen in a dozen years…

It was exactly 12 years ago (Dec. 1, 2012) that we last saw a day this deep into the season with No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchups in both conferences.

In 2012, it was No. 1 Brooklyn vs. No. 2 Miami in the East and No. 1 Memphis vs. No. 2 San Antonio in the West.

In 2024, it will be No. 1 Cleveland at No. 2 Boston (6 ET, NBA TV) in a rematch from their clash 12 days ago when the Celtics ended the Cavs’ unbeaten start (15-0) to the season.

In the West, top ranked Oklahoma City visits No. 2 Houston (7 ET, League Pass) in a battle between the NBA’s top two defenses.

1. BUCKS BACK OVER .500 WITH 6TH STRAIGHT WIN

Bucks 124, Wizards 114: A lot can change in the span of three weeks. On Nov. 10, the Bucks lost to the Celtics 113-107 to drop to 2-8 on the season and 14th in the East.

They have gone 8-1 since – climbing to sixth in the East at 10-9 – with their sixth straight win coming on Saturday against Washington behind Giannis Antetokounmpo’s first 40-point triple-double (42 pts, 12 reb, 11 ast). | Recap

• Bucks Royalty: Giannis joins Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (twice) as the only players in Bucks history with a 40+ point triple-double – with two of the points coming on the hook shot above

Damian Lillard also stuffed the stat sheet (25 pts, 10 ast, 5 reb, 5 3s, 3 stl), posting his fifth points-assists double-double in his last six games.

• Historic Duo: Giannis and Dame both recorded 25+ points and 10+ assists in the same game for the third time (in just 79 games on court together) – the most by any duo in NBA history
• Must-See Moment: The duo runs the break to perfection with Giannis to Dame to Giannis for the explosive fast break slam

The Next Test: The Bucks are off until Tuesday when they visit Detroit in a winner-takes-the-group showdown with the Pistons as Milwaukee looks to go a perfect 4-0 in Group Play in the Emirates NBA Cup for the second straight season.

Jordan Poole and Malcolm Brogdon combined for 60 points for Washington, which dropped its 14th straight game to fall to 2-16 after opening the season 2-2. The Wizards will look to snap the streak Tuesday against Cleveland in their Group Play finale.

2. HAWKS & MAVS STAY HOT, SUNS COOL WARRIORS, SIXERS WIN

Hawks 107, Hornets 104: After back-to-back wins over the East-leading Cavs, the Hawks pushed their win streak to three straight as they held off Brandon Miller (game-high 32 pts, 7 3s) and the Hornets on Saturday in Charlotte. | Recap | Watch The Wild Final 4:01

• Flying Solo: Jalen Johnson (20 pts, 9 ast, 4 3s, 3 blk) posted his fifth straight 20+ point game and became the first player in Hawks history to total 400+ points, 180+ rebounds and 100+ assists in the first 20 games of a season
• Sophomore Buzz: Miller posted his seventh straight 20+ point game – the longest run of his career – becoming the second youngest Hornet with such a streak, behind teammate LaMelo Ball

Mavericks 106, Jazz 94: The Mavs never trailed as they won their third straight game – and improved to 4-1 since Luka Dončić has been sidelined – as Kyrie Irving (30 pts, 9 ast, 6 3s, 4 stl) and Quentin Grimes (24 pts, 5 3s) combined for 54 points and 11 3s in Utah. | Recap

• Must-See Sequence: In the span of a single shot clock, Kyrie drilled his sixth 3 of the game, came up with his fourth steal of the game, pushed the pace in transition, fell to the court and still dished his eighth dime of the game

Suns 113, Warriors 105: Devin Booker (27 pts, 9 ast) and Kevin Durant (21 pts, 10 reb, 3 blk) combined for 48 points as the Suns handed Steph Curry and the Warriors their fourth straight loss. | Recap

• 24K Club: Curry’s 23 points helped him become the 29th player in NBA history to surpass 24,000 career points – a list that includes only four other active players: LeBron James, Durant, James Harden and Russell Westbrook
• Moving Up: Buddy Hield hit a pair of 3s to pass Jason Kidd (1,988) for 17th on the all-time 3-pointers made list

76ers 111, Pistons 96: The Sixers used a 17-2 run early in the 1st quarter to build a lead they never relinquished in a wire-to-wire win over the Pistons for their fourth victory of the season. | Recap

• To The Max: Tyrese Maxey led the Sixers with 28 points, six assists and five 3s, while KJ Martin (19 pts) and Ricky Council IV (17 pts) combined to add 36 for Philly
• PG Returns: After missing the past three games with a bone bruise in his left knee, Paul George had 11 points, eight boards and five assists in 26 minutes

3. TONIGHT ON NBA TV: CAVS-CELTICS, CHAPTER 2

Twelve days ago, the Cavaliers brought the second-longest win streak to open a season into Boston to take on the defending champion Celtics.

They walked out of TD Garden with their first loss of the season, as Boston built up a 21-point lead and then held off a late charge from Cleveland to earn a 120-117 win.

• All-Star Duel: Donovan Mitchell (35 pts, 8 reb, 3 ast) may have won the scoring battle with Jayson Tatum (33 pts, 12 reb, 7 ast), but JT and the C’s got the dub

So what’s happened since that showdown in Beantown?

• Boston hasn’t stopped winning. The second-place Celtics’ win over the Cavs was the third of a seven-game win streak that Boston brings into tonight’s rematch in Cleveland (6 ET, NBA TV)
• Cleveland’s gone 2-2. The East-leading Cavs bounced back from the loss to Boston with wins over New Orleans and Toronto before dropping back-to-back games against Atlanta to fall to 17-3

Tonight, it’s the Celtics that will look to keep the longest active win streak in the NBA going — and grab 1st place in the East — while the Cavs look to avoid their first three-game losing streak since May.

• That losing streak came at the hands of the Celtics as Boston won the final three games of the 2024 East Semis to close out the Cavs in five games
• Donovan Mitchell on responding to back-to-back losses: “Just continue to be who you are, continue to take the shots. That’s the biggest thing, continue to take the shots, continue to play with effort. And that’s the biggest thing because it’ll all come back as long as you continue to go about it the right way.”

For Boston to keep its overall win streak (seven games) and streak over the Cavs (four games) going, the Celtics will need to win in Cleveland, where the Cavs are 10-1 so far this season.

• Boston’s last regular-season win in Cleveland came on Nov. 15, 2021. The Cavs have won the last three matchups with the Celtics on their home floor and will look to make it four straight tonight
• Both teams enter tonight’s game tied for the fewest losses in the league (three) with the Cavs having a slight edge in win percentage (.850) in this clash of No. 1 vs. No. 2 in the East

4. SHOWDOWN IN H-TOWN: TOP TWO IN THE WEST CLASH ON LEAGUE PASS

What’s better than one No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup on a Sunday?

A pair of top-two battles, as the West-leading Thunder visit a Rockets team off to its best start through 20 games since 2017-18 (7 ET, LP).

• Houston’s rise began late last season as the Rockets made a push for the SoFi Play-In Tournament. Since March 1, Houston (30-13) has the third-best record in the NBA behind only Boston (34-9) and their opponent tonight – OKC (31-11)

The Thunder and Rockets not only sit No. 1 and No. 2 in the Western Conference standings, they also rank 1 and 2 in defensive rating in the entire NBA – OKC at 102.8 points allowed per 100 possessions and Houston right behind them at 103.7.

This matchup features seven of the top 10 defensive players in the NBA (per DefRtg, minimum 30 minutes per game).

• 1. OKC’s Isaiah Hartenstein (93.3)
• 2. Houston’s Dillon Brooks (99.4)
• 3. Houston’s Alperen Sengun (101.6)
• 4. OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (103.3)
• 6. Houston’s Fred VanVleet (103.4)
• 7. OKC’s Jalen Williams (104.6)
• 10. Houston’s Jalen Green (105.7)

Full Court Defense: Both teams excel at taking away the game’s most efficient scoring zones – shots at the rim and shots beyond the arc.

• Inside: The Thunder (54.4%) and Rockets (55.9%) rank first and second, respectively, in lowest field goal percentage allowed within six feet of the hoop
• How good is that? They hold their opponents 7.3 and 6.7 percent lower than their usual percentages around the basket
• Outside: The Thunder (33.7%) and Rockets (33.8%) rank third and fourth, respectively, in lowest 3-point percentage allowed

Game Inside The Game: With two teams so evenly matched, finding areas to take advantage will be critical to finding success.

• Fast Break: The Rockets constantly seek transition scoring opportunities and rank second in the NBA with 18.7 fast break ppg. Can OKC keep the Rockets from getting easy buckets?
• Turnovers: The Thunder thrive on their opponents’ mistakes – leading the league in points off turnovers (21.3). Can Houston limit its turnovers against a Thunder squad that leads the league in steals (11.9) by two steals per game?

5. HIGH FIVES: MAGIC, GRIZZLIES LOOK TO STAY SIZZLING

In addition to a pair of No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchups on Sunday, the teams sitting in third place in their respective conferences – Orlando in the East and Memphis in the West – are both on fire and look to remain ablaze.

Magic at Nets | 3:30 ET, League Pass

Apparently no one told the Orlando Magic that losing an All-Star that leads your team in points (29.0) and rebounds (8.8) can slow a team down.

• After losing Paolo Banchero (oblique) at the end of October, the Magic had a slight stumble (dropping four straight) before turning things around by winning 11 of their last 12 games and enter Sunday’s matchup on a five-game win streak
• Everyone has to step up in order to make up for the loss of a player of Banchero’s caliber, but Franz Wagner has seen the biggest leap – from scoring (+7.6 ppg) to usage rate (+5.9%) and playmaking (+3.1 apg)

• Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on Franz: “He’s our go-to guy. He gets us going on the offensive end. We’re playing through him. He’s stepped up and it’s showing.”
• Team Defense: The concept of everyone doing more has resonated with the Magic’s defense, which has held teams to a league-low 97.6 ppg over the last 12 games

Pacers at Grizzlies | 3:30 ET, League Pass

Similar to Orlando, Memphis enters Sunday looking to extend a five-game win streak. However, the Grizzlies are letting their offense fuel their hot streak.

Memphis is averaging 126.6 points over the past five games. So far this season, they have surpassed 125 points six times – they had just one game over 125 points a season ago.

• Ball Movement: Memphis leads the NBA with 30.4 assists per game this season. But the Grizzlies have taken it to another level during this win streak, averaging 33.8 dimes
• Passing Is Contagious: Ja Morant leads Memphis in assists with a career-high 9.1 apg, but is one of seven Grizzlies averaging over three dimes per game while appearing in at least 10 games
• Scotty Pippen Jr: “When the ball’s moving, it’s about getting everyone involved. It makes it a lot of fun to play with everyone. So, I feel like that’s (when we are) the most dangerous, when everyone’s touching the ball and everyone feels aggressive.”

A season ago, it was Indiana that led the NBA in both points (123.3) and assists (30.8). A quarter through this season, the Pacers rank tied for 11th in scoring (114.4) and 10th in assists (27.6). Winners of 3 of their last 4, can they find their groove?

Six more League Pass games round out a 10-game Sunday: Pelicans at Knicks (6 ET), Heat at Raptors (6 ET), Lakers at Jazz (8 ET), Mavs at Blazers (9 ET), Spurs at Kings (9 ET), Nuggets at Clippers (10 ET)