Giannis would not be denied from keeping the Bucks perfect all-time in Group Play (9-0).
The defending NBA Cup champs opened their title defense with a win over the now formerly East-leading Bulls.
Nov. 8, 2025
Five-Game Streaks: Spurs snap Rockets’ five-game run, while Pistons win 5th straight
Déjà Vu: Last year’s Cup finalists – Milwaukee & OKC – open Group Play with big wins
West Roundup: Joker’s Nuggets, Ja’s Grizzlies & Ant’s Wolves roll to double-digit wins
East Roundup: Magic, Cavs, Heat get first Cup wins, Raptors now 2-0 in Group Play
L.A. Saturday: Lakers visit Hawks seeking 6th straight win, Clips meet Suns (again)
Last night’s scores & today’s slate…
NBA Cup Essentials: Catch up quickly any time of day at the Emirates NBA Cup Hub, including FAQ, schedules, standings — led by the 2-0 Raptors — news and more.
An eight-game Saturday sees Luka Dončić and the Lakers go for a league-best sixth straight win when they visit Atlanta (8 ET, NBA TV, Tap To Watch), followed by the Clippers hosting the Suns in an early-season rubber match (10:30 ET, ESPN, Tap To Watch).
1. SPURS END ONE 5-GAME WIN STREAK, PISTONS BEGIN ANOTHER
The second of five straight Fridays with NBA Cup doubleheaders on Prime Video opened with a Texas-sized showdown between Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs facing Kevin Durant and the red-hot Rockets – who entered Group Play riding a five-game win streak.
Spurs 121, Rockets 110 (West C): Fueled by a combined 68 points from Harrison Barnes (24 pts, 6 3pm), Wembanyama and Julian Champagnie (22 pts each), the Spurs (1-0) seized control of the game in the 3rd quarter and held on to snap Houston’s (0-1) win streak. | Recap
- Game-Changing Runs: Over the course of 8:36 of game time spanning the 2nd and 3rd quarters, the Spurs turned a double-digit deficit into a double-digit lead
- 1st Half Closers: Trailing by 11 with 3:33 to play in the half, San Antonio closed the 2nd quarter on a 14-2 run – led by Devin Vassell and Stephon Castle’s five points apiece, with Castle closing the half with an and-1 to put the Spurs up
- 2nd Half Openers: Leading by one at the break, the Spurs opened the 3rd quarter with a 20-11 run to take a 71-61 lead with 6:57 left – led by Champagnie (8 pts, 2 3pm) and Wemby (6 pts)
- Wemby On Both Ends: Not only did Wembanyama extend his block streak to 93 games – one shy of tying Mark Eaton for the 3rd longest ever – he also scored 10 of his 22 points in the 4th as San Antonio held off Houston
- Dunk Off: The Durant vs. Wemby duel did not disappoint as the two stars traded monster slams early in the 3rd quarter
- First In A Decade? The Spurs host the Pelicans tonight (8 ET, League Pass) – with De’Aaron Fox set to make his season debut – looking to open a season 7-2 for the first time since 2015-16
While Houston’s win streak was snapped at five games, Detroit extended its winning ways to five in a row to take over first place in the Eastern Conference.
Pistons 125, Nets 107 (East B): Detroit got 30+ point games from Cade Cunningham (34 pts, 10 ast, 13-18 FG) and Jalen Duren (30 pts, 11 reb, 11-14 FG), as the duo combined for 64 points on 75% shooting to lead the Pistons to a 1-0 start in Group Play and five straight wins overall. | Recap
- 1-2 Punch: Cade (29.8 ppg, 11.2 apg, 53.8% FG) and Duren (24.0 ppg, 13.0 rpg, 67.7% FG) have powered the Pistons over their last five games – each punctuating the win streak with a slam – Cade with the windmill and Duren with the poster ⬆️
2. 2024 CUP FINALISTS OPEN 2025 GROUP PLAY WITH DECISIVE WINS
Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images
Giannis Antetokounmpo responded to Tuesday’s season-low 22 points with a statline (41 pts, 15 reb, 9 ast, 8 dunks) so historic, it linked him to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, twice.
Bucks 126, Bulls 110 (East C): Antetokounmpo’s monster night, along with some serious scoring support, made the defending Cup champs a perfect 9-0 in Group Play history. They handed Chicago just its second loss of the season (1-1 in Cup). | Recap
- Passing Kareem: Giannis’ second 40+ point game this season surpassed Kareem for most 40-point games in Bucks history (56)
- Joining Legends: Giannis’ 10th career game of 40+ points, 15+ rebounds, and 5+ assists placed him with Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, and Kareem as the only players to hit that statline 10+ times
- Best Bulls: Josh Giddey (16 pts, 7 reb, 14 ast) was three boards shy of his third straight triple-double. Matas Buzelis (20 pts) led all Bulls scorers
- Hot Shot: Myles Turner (23 pts, 8 reb, 4 stl) and Ryan Rollins (20 pts) combined to shoot 9-of-14 from deep on Turner’s highest-scoring night as a Buck
- Coming Up: The Bulls face another top-four East test tonight, visiting 6-3 Cleveland (8 ET, League Pass)
Thunder 132, Kings 101 (West A): While Shai Gigeous-Alexander continued his pursuit of history, Isaiah Hartenstein made some of his own, as the Thunder rolled to an OKC-era best 9-1 start. | Recap
- 20s & 30s: SGA’s 30 pts made for a 6th straight game at or above that mark. He’s only scored under 30 once this season, and hasn’t scored under 20 in 82 straight games; second only to Wilt Chamberlain
- I Hart History: Hartenstein’s career-high 33 points, 19 rebounds, three blocks, and 82.4% shooting (14-17) gave OKC its first 30+/15+ game since Russell Westbrook in Feb. 2019. It’s the first 30+/15+ game in OKC history with 3+ blk, or with 75+ FG%
- Rising Russ: Westbrook followed up his Thursday triple-double with a third straight 20-point game (Kings-high 24 pt, 9 ast, 6 reb) – his best streak since Jan. 2023
- OKC’s third-ranked offense (123.2 ppg) topped 130 points for the third time this season. Last year’s Cup runners-up start this edition 1-0, while Sacramento falls to 0-1
3. WEST ROUNDUP: NUGGETS, GRIZZLIES, WOLVES GET FIRST GROUP PLAY WINS
Nuggets 129, Warriors 104 (West C): Nikola Jokić (26 pts, 9 reb, 9 ast in 3 quarters) and Jamal Murray (23 pts & 8 ast for the game, 5 3pm in the 1st half) combined for 49 points to lead the Nuggets (1-1) to their first win of Group Play and their third straight win overall. | Recap
- Mic’d Up AG Dropping Knowledge: After discussing his appreciation to be part of the 17% of players to reach 10 years in the NBA with official James Capers, Aaron Gordon offered sage advice to young teammate Peyton Watson pregame
- Still Rocking Rims: Gordon may be a vet, but he can still print posters – like he did with this crossover-to-poster combo (plus an epic reaction) in the 3rd quarter
- Joker’s Got Jokes: The three-time MVP joined the NBA on Prime postgame show to discuss great Canadian PGs with Steve Nashand Finals memories with Udonis Haslem
- Warriors Fall In Cup Opener: Playing without Steph Curry, the Warriors were led by Draymond Green (17 pts, 6 reb) and Jimmy Butler III (16 pts) but dropped to 0-1 in Group Play and 5-5 overall
Grizzlies 118, Mavs 104 (West B): Ja Morant posted his first 20-10 game of the season (21 pts, 13 ast) to help Memphis snap a four-game losing streak and improve to 1-1 in Group Play, while handing the Mavs (0-1 in Cup) their fourth straight loss. | Recap
- Maestro: Morant orchestrated the Grizzlies offense, scoring 21 points on his own and creating another 34 with his assists – dishing dimes to seven different teammates, including three to Cedric Coward (21 pts) for each of his triples
Wolves 137, Jazz 97 (West A): Anthony Edwards scored 29 of his game-high 37 points in the 1st half as the Wolves sprinted past the Jazz from the opening tip to the final buzzer, registering the largest victory (+40) of the 2025-26 NBA season so far in their Group Play opener. | Recap
- Wolves Trio: Edwards hit a season-high seven 3s, while Jaden McDaniels added 22 points and Julius Randle (19 pts, 10 reb, 12 ast) posted his second triple-double as a Wolf and 16th of his career
4. EAST ROUNDUP: CAVS, MAGIC, HEAT GET 1ST CUP WINS, RAPTORS NOW 2-0
Cavs 148, Wizards 114 (East A): Donovan Mitchell followed up his 46-point performance with an all-around game (24 pts, 5 reb, 5 ast, 4 stl, 4 3pm) to lead Cleveland (1-1) past Washington (0-1) for its third straight win overall and first win of Group Play. | Recap
- Full Cav-alcade: Darius Garland posted 20 points and nine assists in his second game of the season, while Jarrett Allen (16 pts, 14 reb) and Evan Mobley (18 pts, 10 reb) each posted double-doubles as seven Cavs finished with 10+ points
- Scoring Frenzy: Cleveland’s 148 points marks the third-highest scoring game in franchise history. When added to Wednesday’s 132 points, the Cavs came up one point shy of the highest two-game point total in team history (281, last season)
- One More Time? When the Cavs host the Bulls tonight (8 ET, League Pass), they will need 128 points to break their record for most points in any three-game span (407, last season)
Raptors 109, Hawks 97 (East A): Trailing by eight with under 10 minutes to play, the Raptors outscored the Hawks 36-16 the rest of the way to win their fourth straight and take control of East Group A. At 2-0, Toronto is the only unbeaten team in the group, while Atlanta drops to 1-1. | Recap
- Balanced Attack: Brandon Ingram (20 pts, 6 reb, 4 ast), RJ Barrett (19 pts, 5 reb, 4 ast) and Immanuel Quickley (18 pts, 6 ast, 3 stl) combined for 57 points to lead seven Raptors in double figures
- Dyson Keeps Swiping: Make it 61 straight games with a steal for Dyson Daniels, tying Doc Rivers for the longest streak in Hawks history – and the eighth longest in NBA history. With a steal in four more consecutive games, Daniels can reach 4th place all-time
- Drive For Five: Toronto visits Philly tonight (7:30 ET, League Pass) seeking a season-best fifth straight win
Magic 123, Celtics 110 (East B): Franz Wagner (27 pts, 6 reb, 6 ast) led seven Magic players in double figures to overcome big nights from Jaylen Brown and Payton Pritchard, as Orlando won its 2025 Cup opener and sent Boston to 1-1. | Recap
- Long-Distance Duel: Orlando outshot a Boston group ranked third in triples made (17-13), dealing a Cup blow to the team that eliminated them in the 2024 Playoffs
- Scoring Celtics: Brown logged his third-straight game of 30+ points (32 pts, 9 reb) and Pritchard added a season-high 27
- Big Bane Game: Desmond Bane snapped out of a three-game single-digit scoring stretch in a big way (22 pts, 6 reb, 7 ast, 2 blk)
- Stealing Momentum: Anthony Black nabbed three of his four steals in the final six minutes, quieting a Celtics comeback and keying a 28-14 Magic closeout. He also hung on for a wild and-1 slam ⬆️
Heat 125, Hornets 108 (East C): Miami’s 53-point 1st quarter – the NBA’s second-highest scoring 1st quarter in the play-by-play era – knocked Kon Knueppel (career-high 30 pts) and the Hornets to 0-1 in Cup play. | Recap
Norman Powell’s 25 points paced Miami (1-0), who hosts Portland tonight (8 ET, League Pass).
5. L.A. SQUADS TAKE SATURDAY SPOTLIGHT ON NBA TV, ESPN
Stars have aligned in Hollywood.
The Lakers are on a triumphant five-game streak, and since Oct. 29, have averaged 120.8 ppg.
“It’s the guys on the team… they’re bought into being a together group,” said coach JJ Redick. “It’s fun to coach. It’s awesome.”
Tonight, the Lakers pay a visit to the Hawks (8 ET, NBA TV). State Farm Arena is the first of five stops on a busy eight-day road trip for the team.
- Elite Efficiency: In its last five contests, Los Angeles ranks 2nd in the league with a 51.9% field goal percentage and 3rd with a true shooting percentage of 62.6%
Luka Dončić (40.0 ppg, 11.0 rpg, 9.2 apg) has been a ferocious force while nearly averaging a triple-double. He’s scoring at a high volume, and doing so in more ways than one
- Too Easy: The five-time All-Star is responsible for 15.8 points per game off of pull-up attempts, ranking best in the Association
- Prolific In The Paint: Behind teammate Deandre Ayton (15.0), Dončić also qualifies as 3rd among all players for points in the paint with an average of 14.8 per contest
To protect home hardwood, Atlanta has multiple defenders it can deploy to try and limit Luka – including steals leader Dyson Daniels and a familiar foe.
- Defensive History: Over his career, Nickeil Alexander-Walker has been the primary defender on Dončić for 123 possessions, holding him to 42 total points on 41.7 FG% in 21 games (including Playoffs)
Tyler Ross/NBAE via Getty Images
Later on, the Suns and Clippers clash yet again (10:30 ET, ESPN) at Intuit Dome. It marks the third time they’ve gone head-to-head in their first 10 contests of 2025-26.
- In-N-Out: Kawhi Leonard (ankle) will miss his third game in a row, but James Harden returns to the lineup, poised to bring LA a boost
- Beard Is Back: The 17th-year guard is scoring 23.3 ppg, his highest scoring average since 2020-21, while shooting a career-high 41.7% from beyond the arc
- Green Machine: Last time out, Jalen Green made his Suns debut, racking up 29 points while shooting 6-for-13 from deep in a 13-point win Thursday over the Clippers
