31 points.

9 triples.

1 mean mug.

THE LINEUP 🏀

Dec. 5, 2024 | What’s inside today’s edition?

Momentum Meets: The Hawks halt the surging Bucks, while the Magic bounce back 

3s, Please: Tyler Herro, Cam Johnson and the C’s light it up from deep

Best Of The Best: The reigning Kia NBA MVP faces the league’s top team tonight in Cleveland

Battle In The Bay: The red-hot Rockets meet the Warriors in an NBA Cup Quarterfinals preview

LP Lineup: Dallas eyes its sixth straight dub, OKC looks to build its West lead and more

BUT FIRST … ⏰

Wednesday’s scores and Thursday’s slate…

Eight games tip off tonight, highlighted by a marquee doubleheader on NBA TV. First, the 19-3 Cavs aim for win No. 20 as they host Nikola Jokić and the Nuggets (7 ET). Then, the second-place Rockets face the Warriors in a West showdown (10 ET).

The Emirates NBA Cup champion will be crowned in Las Vegas, from Dec. 15-17. And you can be there there to see it live. Tap here to lock in your tickets.

1. HEAT CHECK: HAWKS STAY SOARING, MAGIC BOUNCE BACK

Two teams. Two win streaks. One statement dub.

Hawks 119, Bucks 104: Giannis Antetokounmpo (31 pts) and Damian Lillard (25 pts) combined for 56 points, but the Hawks erased a 10-point deficit in the 1st quarter to take control and never looked back for their fifth straight dub, snapping the Bucks’ seven-game win streak. | Recap 

• Triple-Threat: Jalen Johnson (23 pts, 13 reb) and De’Andre Hunter (20 pts) led Atlanta in scoring, while Trae Young added 17 points and seven assists
• Hawks Helpers: As a team, Atlanta dished out 29 dimes, extending its franchise-best streak of 25+ assists to 15 straight games
• Bringing Out The Best: Atlanta moves to 12-11 with the win and is 9-5 against teams over .500 this season
• Unselfish Hoops: “The ball doesn’t have to touch everybody’s hands,” said Hawks coach Quin Snyder. “But when it does, it’s a pretty good signal of a team making the right play.”

Magic 106, 76ers 102: Franz Wagner went off for 35 points, including 10 in the 4th quarter, to help stave off Jared McCain (24 pts) and the Sixers for a bounce-back win after falling to the Knicks on Tuesday. | Recap

• Wagner Doin’ Work: It’s Wagner’s seventh 30+ point game this season, matching his career-best, which he set last year
• Magical Run: Orlando (16-8) has now won 13 of its past 15 games — the most in the NBA in the span — and is one of four teams with 16+ wins, joining Cleveland, Boston and OKC

2. 3-POINT PARTY: HERRO, JOHNSON & CELTICS ERUPT, WOLVES ROLL

Heat 134, Lakers 93: Tyler Herro sank seven 3s in the 3rd quarter for 21 of his game-high 31 points, as Miami ballooned a 17-point halftime lead into a 41-point dub over LeBron James (29 pts, 8 ast) and the Lakers. | Recap 

• Herro’s Heater: Herro scored 15 straight points for Miami on five 3s in the span of 2:51 in the 3rd, and his seven triples in the frame matched the Heat franchise record for most 3s in a single quarter
• More Heat History: Led by Herro’s nine total treys, Miami tied its franchise record for 3s in a game (24) and set a new franchise record for assists in a game (42)
• LeBron Passes Korver: With one 3 on the night, James passed Kyle Korver for seventh on the all-time 3-point list with 2,451 triples

Nets 99, Pacers 90: Cam Johnson went off for 26 points on seven 3s and five free throws — the most points in a game by a Nets player without scoring a 2PT FG — to lift Brooklyn over Tyrese Haliburton (17 pts, 8 ast) and the Pacers, snapping its three-game skid. | Recap

Celtics 130, Pistons 120: Despite being without Jayson Tatum and Jrue Holiday, the Celtics picked up a wire-to-wire win over the Pistons behind 20-pieces from Jaylen Brown (28 pts, 9 ast), Kristaps Porziņģis (26 pts, 2 blk) and Sam Hauser (20 pts, 5 3s). | Recap 

• Too Much C’s: Cade Cunningham tallied 27 points and a career-high 14 dimes for Detroit, but it wasn’t enough as Boston had six scorers record 14+ points and splashed 21 triples
• Winning Formula: The Celtics have now hit 20+ 3s in a league-best nine games this season — four more than the next closest team. In those games, they are 9-0

Wolves 108, Clippers 80: Julius Randle dropped 16 of his 20 points in the 1st quarter to spark a 24-4 run as the Wolves jumped out to a double-digit lead that they never relinquished to beat the Clippers for the second time in six days, marking Minnesota’s third straight win. | Recap 

• Locking Down: Minnesota has held each of its last three opponents to 92 points or less, a feat it last accomplished in November 2012

3. MUST-SEE TV: NBA-BEST CAVS HOST JOKIĆ & THE NUGGETS

Nikola Jokić’s dominance reached rarefied air in 2023-24, when he joined Oscar Robertson as the only players in NBA history to notch at least 2,000 points, 900 rebounds and 700 assists in a season.

The historic campaign earned him his third Kia NBA MVP in four years, cementing his place as one of just nine players in league history to win the award three or more times.

Yet somehow, the three-time MVP and generational big man might be even better this season. 

• Career Year: Through 16 games this season, Jokić is averaging career highs in points (30.1), assists (10.4) and steals (1.7), along with 13.0 rebounds per game — 0.8 boards off from his career-best
• Unmatched: He ranks third in scoring, second in rebounding and second in assists league-wide, making him the only player in the NBA to rank in the top 10 in all three categories
• Unprecedented: Jokić is also on pace to become the first center in NBA history to average 10+ assists in a season and the second player to set career highs in points and assists per game after winning the MVP (min. 40 games)

• 60+ Years In The Making: With 482 points, 208 rebounds and 166 assists, Jokić is the first player since Robertson (1961-62) to total 480+ points, 200+ boards and 165+ assists in their first 16 games of the season
• “We’re all running out of words, adjectives, and ways to describe his greatness and his impact,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone on Jokić. “The simple way to say it: he’s the best player in the world.”

Seeking History: Currently atop the Kia MVP Ladder, Jokić is looking to join Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (6), Michael Jordan (5), Bill Russell (5), Wilt Chamberlain (4) and LeBron James (4) as the only players in NBA history to win 4+ MVPs.

Jokić could also become just the third player to win the award four times in five years, alongside James and Russell.

On Thursday, the Joker has a prime opportunity to bolster his MVP case when the Nuggets face Donovan Mitchell and the league-best Cavs, who are seeking their 20th victory (7 ET, NBA TV).

• At 19-3, Cleveland is off to its best start since 2008-09 and could become the first team to reach 20 wins in 24 games or less since the Warriors and Suns in 2021-22
• Historic Offense: The Cavs lead the NBA in points per game (121.8), field goal percentage (50.9%) and 3-point percentage (40.2%)
• How rare are those splits? No team in NBA history has ever shot over 50% from the field and 40% from 3 in a single season
• Spida In The Clutch: The Cavs are 8-2 in clutch games this season, led by Mitchell, who ranks second in the NBA in 4th quarter points (169), shooting a career-high 53.3% from the field and 46.2% from 3 in the final frame

4. RISING ROCKETS FACE WARRIORS IN MARQUEE WEST MATCHUP

In an Emirates NBA Cup Quarterfinals preview, the surging Rockets will travel to the Bay to take on the Warriors in the second leg of Thursday’s NBA TV doubleheader (10 ET).

Next Wednesday, the two sides will square off in Houston with a trip to the NBA Cup Semifinals on the line. What can we expect tonight in their first of two meetings in six days?

• Setting The Stage: Fueled by 10 wins in their last 13 games, Houston holds the No. 2 seed in the West with a 15-7 record
• Golden State, on the other hand, has fallen from atop the West standings to the No. 7 seed with five straight losses for a 12-8 record
• Elite Defense & Depth: The Rockets (105.3) and Warriors (108.0) hold the third and fourth-best defensive ratings in the NBA this season
• On the other end, Golden State leads the league in bench points (50.7), while Houston is the only team in the NBA with seven or more qualified players averaging 10+ points this season

Different Directions: In its 10-3 stretch, Houston is allowing just 105.6 points per game — the second-fewest in the NBA. Meanwhile, Golden State is allowing 113.8 ppg amid its five-game skid, which ranks 18th among all NBA teams in that span.

And while the Rockets are thriving in the clutch, the Warriors have struggled of late.

• Clutch Key: In its last five outings, Houston has played in four clutch games, going 3-1. In that same span, all five of Golden State’s games have come down to the clutch, and they’ve gone 0-5
• The Difference? Defense. In those clutch minutes, Houston posted a defensive rating of 91.7 compared to Golden State’s 150.0
• “We’re not closing, we’re not executing, we’re not making good decisions,” said Warriors coach Steve Kerr after their loss to Denver on Tuesday. “That’s got to improve.”

Tonight, Golden State will look to right the ship against a Houston squad it’s beaten 14 straight times, including an overtime victory earlier this season.

The 14-game win streak, dating back to 2020-21, is the NBA’s second-longest active win streak betweenluka  two teams. Will the Rockets end the drought, or will the Warriors pick up a timely win to keep it alive?

5. LEAGUE PASS PLOTLINES: REIGNING WEST CHAMPS FIND THEIR GROOVE

Six more games tip off on League Pass tonight, beginning with Luka Dončić and the Mavs aiming for their sixth straight win as they take on Jordan Poole and the Wizards (7 ET, LP).

• Mavs Moving Up: After a 5-7 start to the season, Dallas has won nine of their last 10 games — despite being without Luka Dončić for six of them — to climb from the No. 12 seed in the West to the No. 3 seed
• Offensive Eruption: In those 10 outings, the Mavs are averaging the second-most points per game (122.6) and have eclipsed 120 points seven times — tied with the Bulls for the most in the NBA in that span
• Balanced Buckets: In that same stretch, Dallas leads the league in net rating (+10.0) and has 10 players averaging 8+ points per game, led by Dončić (28.8) and Kyrie Irving (22.7)
• Wizards Struggling: On the other side, Washington begins a three-game homestead, looking for their first win at Capital One Arena since Oct. 30

Thursday’s League Pass slate continues with the West-leading Thunder taking on the Raptors, the Knicks looking for their fourth straight dub and three more matchups.

• Thunder at Raptors (7:30 ET)
• Hornets at Knicks (7:30 ET)
• Kings at Grizzlies (8 ET)
• Suns at Pelicans (8 ET)
• Bulls at Spurs (8 ET)