When you make it to Friday…

And you got a big night of hoops on the horizon.

THE LINEUP 🏀

Dec. 6, 2024 | What’s inside today’s edition?

1 vs. 1: NBA-leading Cavs shoot lights-out for 20th W, besting Kia MVP Ladder-leading Jokić on historic night

Wild West: A three-way tie for 2nd in the West, after wins from Dallas, Memphis and Golden State

Roundup: OG electrifies MSG, Jones’ block saves it for NOLA & Vooch drops most pts in nearly 2 years

East Powers Collide: Two of the hottest teams in basketball clash tonight in Boston

Defensive Stand: After a wake-up call from Ant, the Wolves have locked down defensively

BUT FIRST … ⏰

Thursday’s scores and Friday’s action…

Just Announced: The Brooklyn Nets & Phoenix Suns will play two preseason games in Macao, on Oct. 10 and 12 at the Venetian Arena. Tap here for more.

Friday delivers seven matchups, including a can’t-miss doubleheader on ESPN. To tip things off, the defending champion Celtics will face Giannis Antetokounmpo and the surging Bucks (7:30 ET).

Then, Anthony Edwards and the Wolves will aim for their fourth straight dub as they take on the Warriors in the Bay (10 ET).

The Emirates NBA Cup champion will be crowned in Las Vegas, following Semifinals and Championship games on Dec. 15 and 17, respectively. And you can be there there to see it live. Tap here to lock in your tickets.

What Else? The WNBA Expansion Draft for the Golden State Valkyries starts at 6:30 ET on ESPN … and The Main Event tips off today, with four games streaming live on the NBA App and complete coverage at Future Starts Now. 

1. CAVS FIRST TO 20 & JOKER MOVES PAST MAGIC

The NBA’s top team against the Kia MVP Ladder leader delivered.

Cavaliers 126, Nuggets 114: Nikola Jokić passed Magic Johnson into 3rd place on the all-time triple-doubles list, but Donovan Mitchell (28 pts) and Darius Garland (24) led a blistering Cavs attack that made Cleveland the first team to reach 20 wins this year. | Recap 

• First Time Since ‘08-09: The only other time the Cavs have started 20-3? The 2008-09 season, on the way to the most wins (66) in franchise history
• Three Point Barrage: The NBA’s leaders in 3PT% hit a season-high 22 treys at a 45.8% clip – including 9 in the first quarter alone, to go up 37-27 early
• 3rd Quarter Light Show: The Nuggets rallied back, but a 36-25 Cavs 3Q – led by 14 from Garland – broke the game open
• Hot Hand’s Contagious: The deepest 3 of the night? From a Cavs fan, who hit from halfcourt to earn $10k … and a cameo on the top of today’s edition

For Denver, Jokić (27 pts, 20 reb, 11 ast) added yet another masterpiece to a string of them in the 2024-25 season.

• Climbing The Mountain: Jokić’s 139th career triple-double surpassed Magic Johnson, putting him behind just Oscar Robertson (181) and teammate Russell Westbrook (200)
• More History, Again: Jokić recorded his 8th career 20+ pt, 20+ reb, 10+ ast game, tying Robertson (8) for 3rd most all time
• In Awe: “You see it with his work ethic,” said Denver’s Jamal Murray, who had 19 points. “His touches continue to amaze me. He does everything on the court with a great attitude and has a will to win. What else?”
• Level Up: Joker’s the only player in the NBA in the Top 10 averages per game in pts, reb & ast. And he’s top 3 in all of them, at 29.9 pts (3rd), 13.4 reb (1st) & 10.4 ast (2nd)

2. TIGHT AT THE TOP

The West just got wilder.

OKC leads the pack heading into Friday, but second place is feeling a little more crowded, with the Rockets, Mavs and Grizz now all tied at 15-8 – just 2+ weeks since Memphis and Dallas found themselves in 10th & 12th place.

Mavericks 137, Wizards 101: Luka Dončić’s first triple-double of the season (21 pts, 10 reb, 10 ast) helped the Mavs to their sixth straight win and 10th of 11 in a win over Marvin Bagley III (16 pts) and the Wizards. | Recap 

• Stampede: After starting 5-7 and falling to 12th as of Nov. 15, the Mavericks now find themselves higher up than they’ve been since October
• Every Which Way: Over their last 11, the Mavs rank top four in category after category including a 12.2 net rating (1st), 120.1 OffRtg (3rd), 123.9 ppg (2nd), 49.7 FG% (3rd), 41.2 3pt% (3rd) and 44.1 opponent FG% (4th)
• Balanced Basketball: During this stretch, the Mavericks have 7 different players averaging 10+ points and 10 players averaging 8+ points

Grizzlies 115, Kings 110: Behind Desmond Bane and Marcus Smart’s 18 points each, the Grizzlies held off DeMar DeRozan (26 pts) and Sacramento in a frantic 4th Q to continue their climb. | Recap | The Fantastic Final 4:56

• Roller Coaster 4th: Neither team led by more than five the entire quarter, before Marcus Smart’s 2 late FTs sealed it
• And All Night, Really: The game featured 20 (!!) lead changes and 11 ties
• All Bunched Up: Since starting 8-7 and finding themselves in 10th place on Nov. 19, the Grizz (15-8) have won 7 of 8
• Total Team Effort: The NBA’s league leader in apg over their last 10 (31.4) leaned on their depth, with seven players scoring in double-figures and 60 pts off the bench
• Home Court Advantage: That’s 7 in a row for the Grizz in Memphis

Thunder 129, Raptors 92: For the 10th time this season, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander delivered a 30-point performance (30 pts, 5 ast, 2 stl), as Oklahoma City stormed past RJ Barrett (17 pts, 11 reb) and Toronto. | Recap 

• Still No. 1: After taking over first in the West a week ago, the Thunder have created space, pulling out to a 2.5 game lead
• Lockdown City: Oklahoma City held Toronto to just 35.2% from the field – the league-leading eighth time they’ve held an opponent below 40%
• You Gotta See: These JDub handles 

Warriors 99, Rockets 93: Playing without Steph Curry and Draymond Green, Jonathan Kuminga went for a career-high 33 as the Warriors snapped their five-game losing streak with the Dubs’ 15th straight win over Houston.

Alperen Sengun went for 16 pts, 8 reb, 5 and the Rockets pulled close late, but Golden State added another W to the NBA’s second-longest win streak over another team. | Recap | Kuminga’s Career-High 

• Two Seeds Tie Up: The Rockets’ loss set up the 3-way tie for second, though Houston does hold the tiebreaker
• Suffocating Defense: In a battle of top five defenses, Golden State held Houston to 37.6% from the field
• Bench Hype Up: All energy from Green on this charge taken by Brandin Podziemski

3. ROUNDUP: KNICKS CLICK

Knicks 125, Hornets 101: The Knicks got a third-quarter scoring burst from OG Anunoby – drawing ‘OG, OG’ chants from the Garden – and 27 pts & 16 reb from Karl-Anthony Towns (inc. this poster) to pull away from Charlotte in the 2nd half. | Recap 

• OG In MSG: Anunoby sparked a 38-16 Knicks 3Q with 15 of his 25 points and a pair of blocked 3-pointers on consecutive possessions … on opposite sides of the court
• An Area Of Improvement: OG might have been great in regulation. But if you ask KAT, he’s gotta stop grabbing the microphone postgame 🤣
• Five Thrive: Between Towns, Anunoby, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges, the NBA’s top-scoring starting five put up 113 of the Knicks’ 125

Pelicans 126, Suns 124: In both of their returns to the lineup, Brandon Ingram’s 29 pts & Herb Jones’ game-sealing block helped New Orleans end a 9-game losing streak. | Recap 

• The Final Possession: Watch Jones, a reigning All-Defensive First Teamer who had missed 18 games, keep Devin Booker (28 pts) in front, then rise up for the swat
• Just Before That: See how the Pelicans took a late lead, with buckets from CJ McCollum (25 pts) & Trey Murphy III (19)

Bulls 139, Spurs 124: Nikola Vučević put up the most points (39) he’s scored since January of 2023 and Ayo Dosunmu added his first career triple-double to send the Bulls past the Wemby-less Spurs. | Recap 

• Bulls rook Matas Buzelis threw down this big slam en route to 11 pts, after scoring a career-high 20 last time out

4. SURGING EAST POWERS COLLIDE TONIGHT ON ESPN

No NBA team has won more games since the start of the 2019-20 season than the Celtics (274) and Bucks (271).

In that span, both teams have hoisted the Larry O’Brien Trophy, and at least one has reached the Eastern Conference Finals in each of the six seasons.

Tonight, the perennial powers face off for the third time this year, with the red-hot Bucks looking to avenge their two previous losses (7:30 ET, ESPN).

• Hitting Their Stride: After a 2-8 start, the Bucks have won nine of their last 11 games to climb from the 12th seed in the East to the fifth seed
• What’s Sparked The Surge? The 3-ball. Through their first 10 games, Milwaukee shot 35.6% from deep, making 12.6 3s per game
• Since then, they’re shooting a league-best 41.9% from 3 and making 16.5 triples per game — nearly a 12-point jump
• Team Defense: On the other end, Milwaukee has held its opponents under 50% shooting in 14 straight games, marking the longest streak in the NBA this season
• Deer Duo: To tie it all together, Giannis Antetokounmpo (32.6) and Damian Lillard (25.9) are thriving offensively, combining for 58.5 ppg — the most of any tandem in the NBA

The next highest-scoring duo in the league? Jayson Tatum (28.4) and Jaylen Brown (25.2), who have combined for 53.6 ppg and guided the Celtics to an 18-4 record, including nine wins in their past 10 games.

• Boston’s 1-2 Punch: Tatum (+10.2) and Brown (+10.1) rank second and third in the NBA in plus-minus, and are two of seven Celtics averaging 2+ 3s a game — the most of any team
• 3-Point Party: The C’s lead the league in 3s per game (19.1) and have hit 20+ triples in nine games this season — four more than any other NBA team
• The Results? Boston is a perfect 9-0 in those games and owns the best winning percentage in NBA history when they make 20+ 3s (min. 20 games), boasting a 54-5 all-time record (91.5%)

Tonight, Boston and Milwaukee will look to stay hot both from beyond the arc and in the win column.

To add to the occasion, Giannis turns 30 today. Will he celebrate his birthday with a statement win, or will the C’s spoil the party?

5. WOLVES REDISCOVER DEFENSIVE BITE, FACE DUBS TONIGHT

On Nov. 27, after the Wolves took their fourth straight loss — getting out-rebounded, nearly doubled-up in points in the paint and beaten 17-2 in the final five minutes by the Kings — Anthony Edwards called on his team to step up.

• “We thought defense was our identity, but it’s not looking like it at all,” Edwards told reporters postgame. “We got to figure it out because we can’t go down this road.”

Since then, the Wolves have responded with three straight wins while holding their opponents to an average of 84.0 points per game — the fewest in the NBA by over 12+ points.

• Locking Down: Stamped by a 108-80 win over the Clippers on Wednesday, Minnesota has held each of its last three opponents to 92 points or less, a feat it last accomplished in November 2012
• Historic Defensive Stand: Their opponents’ 84.0 points per game is also the franchise’s best defensive average over a three-game win streak since 2005
• And It’s No Accident: In that stretch, Minnesota is forcing its opponents into a league-low 39.4 FG%, while recording the third-most deflections (23.0)
• The Results? A league-high 19.7 caused turnovers per game and the best defensive rating in the NBA (86.6) during this stretch

Why Does It Matter? Last season, the Wolves reached their first West Finals in 20 years behind a defense that ranked first in points allowed (106.5), opponents’ field goal percentage (45.0%) and defensive rating (108.4).

Tonight, that defense will be tested on the road against the Warriors, who just returned to winning ways last night. (10 ET, ESPN)

Six more games are available on League Pass tonight, beginning with Franz Wagner and the Magic seek their 14th win in 16 games, while Trae Young and the Hawks will look to earn their sixth straight win against LeBron James and the Lakers.

• Magic at 76ers (7 ET)
• Lakers at Hawks (7:30 ET)
• Pacers at Bulls (8 ET)
• Kings at Spurs (8 ET)
• Jazz at Blazers (10 ET)