When a two-time Slam Dunk champ has an open path to the rim.

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀
Jan. 21, 2025

MLK Day Comebacks: The Pelicans, Grizzlies and Hornets rally for wins

East Powers Roll: The Cavs and Celtics made statements with big holiday dubs

Monday Roundup: Brunson, Cunningham and LaVine shine on MLK Day

On The Ground In Paris: Wemby, Spurs and Pacers arrive and practice in Paris

Rivals Week Tips Off: Knicks-Nets and Sixers-Nuggets open the action on TNT

BUT FIRST … ⏰
NBA Rivals Week is here…

The third annual NBA Rivals Week tips off tonight on TNT with the Battle of the Boroughs between the Knicks and Nets in Brooklyn (7:30 ET), followed by a star-stacked clash between the Sixers and Nuggets (10 ET).

• Up Next: An ESPN doubleheader Wednesday between the Wolves & Mavs (7:30 ET), then Warriors & Kings (10 ET), followed by a pair on TNT Thursday: Heat-Bucks at 7:30 ET, Celtics-Lakers at 10 ET
• Paris Games: Wemby & the Spurs take on Tyrese Haliburton & the Pacers on Thursday (2 ET, NBA TV) and Saturday (12 ET, ESPN)
• Big Saturday: That second Paris Game tips off a huge Saturday, with 3 ABC games: Nuggets-Wolves (3 ET), Celtics-Mavs (5:30 ET) and Lakers-Warriors (8:30 ET)

1. PELICANS, GRIZZLIES & HORNETS RALLY FOR MLK DAY WINS

Pelicans 123, Jazz 119 (OT): The Pelicans celebrated MLK Day by pulling off the largest comeback win in franchise history, overcoming a 25-point deficit to defeat the Jazz in overtime.

CJ McCollum erupted for 45 points with five 3s, while Dejounte Murray fell one board shy of a triple-double (26 pts, 9 reb, 11 ast) to lead NOLA to its fourth straight win. | Recap

• The Run: Down 21 midway through the 3rd quarter, the Pelicans outscored the Jazz 25-3 over the next seven minutes – holding the Jazz to 1-of-11 shooting while blocking three shots and forcing three turnovers – to take the lead early in the 4th
• 3-Point Party: In addition to CJ’s five 3s, Trey Murphy (4-of-10) and Jordan Hawkins (3-of-3) combined to splash seven triples as NOLA outscored Utah 45-33 from beyond the arc
• Party Of 4: McCollum joined Nikola Jokić (3), De’Aaron Fox (2) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) as the only players with multiple 45+ point games this season. Both of CJ’s have come in the last 18 days

Grizzlies 108, Timberwolves 106: Despite a game-high 32 points from Anthony Edwards and a season-high 29 off the bench from Naz Reid, the Wolves were unable to hold off the Grizzlies, who rallied from 16 points down to earn their third straight win. | Recap

• Game Of Runs: After Memphis led by 11 midway through the 1st quarter, the Wolves used a 23-5 run over the last 6:48 of the period to take a lead they would hold until the 4th
• JJJ Takes Over: Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 15 of his team-high 24 points in the 4th as Memphis closed the game on a 22-11 run. Watch the final 6:15
• Grizz Guards: Desmond Bane and Ja Morant combined to add 41 points for Memphis, including a pair of tough buckets down the stretch from Ja and the go-ahead floater from Bane

Hornets 110, Mavs 105: In a game that saw 19 lead changes and five ties, it was LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges and the Hornets that made the final push, closing the game on a 16-5 run to win their third straight. | Recap

• Two For 23: Ball (9 ast, 5 3pm) and Bridges (5 reb, 4 3pm) scored 23 points apiece to lead the Hornets, who had six players finish in double figures
• Dallas Duo: Kyrie Irving scored a game-high 33 points while Daniel Gafford (career-high 31 pts, season-highs 15 reb & 7 blk) became the first Mav to ever record 30+ pts, 15+ reb and 5+ blk in a game
• LaMelo 🤝 Kemba: Ball tied Walker for the second most games with at least five 3s in Hornets history (49) and trails only Terry Rozier (59) for the most ever
• Mavs Struggle From 3: Kyrie needed only five seconds to hit Dallas’ first triple of the game, but the Mavs were held to a season-low six 3s in the loss, while the Hornets knocked down 17 to win the 3-point line by 33 points

2. EAST POWERS ROLL ON MLK DAY

Cavaliers 118, Suns 92: Tied after the opening quarter, the Cavs outscored the Suns 32-19 in the 2nd quarter to take control and cruised to their league-leading 36th win of the season behind Donovan Mitchell’s 33 points. | Recap

• Tied For 8th Best Start Ever: The Cavs joined the 2019-20 Bucks, 2016-17 Warriors*, 2015-16 Spurs, 2014-15 Warriors*, 2010-11 Spurs and 1982-83 Sixers* with 36 wins in their first 42 games of a season. Half of those teams (*) won the title that same season
• Garland Passes Price: Darius Garland (16 pts, 3 3pm) passed Mark Price (802) for third on the Cavs’ all-time 3-pointers made list. He now trails only Kevin Love (1,096) and LeBron James (1,251)
• Booker’s Streak Snapped: Devin Booker saw his run of five straight 30+ point games end as he finished with 15 in the loss, while Kevin Durant led the Suns with 23

Celtics 125, Warriors 85: Trailing 17-15 with 4:51 remaining in the 1st quarter, the Celtics closed the period on a 14-1 run and never looked back, cruising to a 40-point road win in a 2022 Finals rematch. | Recap

• “It’s an honor and a privilege” – Jayson Tatum on playing on MLK Day after leading Boston with 22 points, nine boards and seven assists
• 3rd To 30: Boston improved to 30-13, joining Cleveland (36-6) and OKC (35-7) as the first teams to reach 30+ wins this season
• Big Wins: Monday marked Boston’s fifth win by 30 points or more this season – the most such victories in the NBA

3. ROUNDUP: BRUNSON, CUNNINGHAM, LAVINE SHINE ON MLK DAY

Knicks 119, Hawks 110: Jalen Brunson continued his recent hot streak, dropping a game-high 34 points with six assists to lead the Knicks past Trae Young (27 pts, 6 ast) and the Hawks at MSG. | Recap

• Nobody Better: Over the past five games for all teams, Brunson leads the NBA with 34.6 ppg while shooting 55.8% overall and 42.9% from 3
• Double Dozen: Brunson wasn’t the only Knick getting buckets as JB (12-of-18) and Mikal Bridges (12-of-17, 26 pts) knocked down a dozen shots apiece in the win
• Climbing The Ranks: Brunson posted his 68th 30+ point game as a Knick (in only 188 games), passing Willis Reed for sixth most in franchise history
• Dime Streak: Young recorded his 200th straight game with 5+ assists, trailing only John Stockton (336) and Isiah Thomas (209) for longest streaks in NBA history

Pistons 107, Rockets 96: In a matchup of the top two picks in 2021 NBA Draft, it was No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham (32 pts, 9 reb, 7 ast) and the Pistons that prevailed over No. 2 pick Jalen Green (19 pts, 4 reb, 4 ast) and the Rockets. | Recap

• Decisive 3rd Quarter: Cunningham scored 19 points – with three 3s and only one missed shot in eight attempts – as the Pistons broke open a tie game at the half with a 33-23 3rd quarter to take control. They never trailed again
• Flawless Victory: Jalen Duren (16 pts, 14 reb, 4 stl) shot 8-of-8 from the field for his league-leading fifth perfect double-double of the season. No other player has more than two such games
• Twin Day: Detroit’s Ausar Thompson (11 pts, 9 reb) got his first win over his twin brother, Houston’s Amen Thompson (17 pts, 6 reb), in their third head-to-head matchup

Bulls 112, Clippers 99: Zach LaVine scored 26 of his game-high 35 points in the 2nd half as the Bulls outscored the Clippers 64-49 in the final 24 minutes to snap their own five-game losing streak and end the Clippers’ four-game winning streak. | Recap

• Pair Of 18s: Josh Giddey (18 pts, 10 reb, 9 ast) fell one assist shy of a triple-double, while Talen Horton-Tucker scored 18 points in 23 minutes off the Bulls’ bench

4. ON THE GROUND IN PARIS WITH WEMBY, SPURS & PACERS

Victor Wembanyama is set to play his first NBA games in his home country when the Spurs and Pacers meet for the NBA Paris Games 2025 on Thursday and Saturday at the Accor Arena in the French capital.

“Bonjour:” Both the Spurs and Pacers arrived in Paris on Monday to begin a week filled with practices, appearances, sightseeing, the two games, and – as Indy’s Bennedict Mathurin put it – “eating a lot of croissants.”

• Indy At Eiffel: Hours before today’s edition, the Pacers shot their team photo at the Eiffel Tower … which their star point guard owns a piece of
• Haliburton: “We’re going to do a few more touristy things. Last time I was here, we were busy. Obviously we have two games, but hopefully we’ll be able to see more of the city.”
• USA vs. France: Haliburton’s last trip to Paris was in the gold medal game of the 2024 Olympics as Team USA defeated Wemby and Team France in a thriller. Both games between the Spurs and Pacers will be played in the same arena as the Olympic finale

Where It All Started: Wemby received a warm welcome when he and the Spurs arrived at his old gym in Nanterre, practicing on the same court he called home when he began his pro career in France as a 15-year-old.

• Selfies & Half-Court Shots: Wemby signed autographs and took selfies with the kids watching practice before ending the session with a Wemby vs. Mamu half-court shot challenge with Sandro Mamukelashvili

5. RIVALS WEEK TIPS OFF WITH TNT DOUBLEHEADER

The third-annual NBA Rivals Week – with 10 nationally televised games over five days highlighting traditional and emerging rivalries between teams and players – begins tonight in New York City.

Battle of the Boroughs (7:30 ET, TNT): After playing in Brooklyn the past two seasons, Mikal Bridges made the move across the bridge to join the Knicks last summer. Tonight, he returns to the Barclays Center for the first time in Knicks orange and blue.

• Eight Straight: The Knicks have won the last eight head-to-head matchups between the NYC squads, a run that dates back to Feb. 13, 2023
• Getting Back On Track: The Knicks are coming off an MLK Day win over Atlanta – making them 4-6 in their last 10 games – and will look to win back-to-back games for the first time in 2025. The Nets are looking to end a three-game skid
• Home Cookin’: This game begins a four-game homestand for Brooklyn and the only second road game for the Knicks in a four-week span (Jan. 6-Feb. 3) with 12 games at MSG and 13 in NYC

Mile High Clash of All-Stars (10 ET, TNT): Seven players with a combined 34 All-Star selections will meet in Denver tonight when the Nuggets host the Sixers.

• 16-Piece Nuggets: The trio of Russell Westbrook (9), Nikola Jokić (6) and DeAndre Jordan (1) have a combined 16 All-Star appearances for Denver
  18 Without Embiid: Even without seven-time All-Star Joel Embiid (foot), the Sixers feature four All-Stars with a combined 18 selections: Paul George (9), Kyle Lowry (6), Andre Drummond (2) and Tyrese Maxey (1)
• Close Games: The Sixers and Nuggets have traded wins over their past seven games dating back to March 30, 2021, with all seven games decided by seven points or less

In addition to the TNT doubleheader, three more games tip off on League Pass to round out the five-game slate: Magic at Raptors (7:30 ET), Blazers at Heat (7:30 ET), Wizards at Lakers (10:30 ET).