Luka Magic. LeBron Buckets. And a Lakers ticket to the Knockout Round of the 2025 Emirates NBA Cup.
5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀
Showtime: Luka, LeBron & Lakers advance, Anthony Black & CJ McCollum erupt
Cup Catch-Up: 25 teams alive, 20 Group Play games remaining, 6 Knockout Round spots left
Chasing History: Detroit looks to extend win streak to record 14 games against Boston
Familiar Foes: Two Playoff rematches out West cap tonight’s ESPN tripleheader
LP Spotlight: Raptors and Heat aim to stay rolling, Blazers look to clinch Group
BUT FIRST … ⏰
Tomorrow, it’s all about Thanksgiving. Tonight, it’s all about the Cup – with nine Group Play matchups to fill your plate, including an ESPN tripleheader.
- Pistons at Celtics (5 ET)
- Wolves at Thunder (7:30 ET)
- Rockets at Warriors (10 ET)
NBA Cup Group Play closes on Friday with a loaded 11-game slate, highlighted by a Prime doubleheader (Bucks-Knicks, Mavs-Lakers). | More At The NBA Cup Hub
1. TUESDAY CUP NIGHT: LAKERS CLINCH, BLACK & McCOLLUM COOK
Ninety-nine points.
The Lakers’ star trio of Luka Dončić (43 pts, 9 reb, 13 ast, 7 3s), Austin Reaves (31 pts, 9 reb) and LeBron James (25 pts, 6 reb, 6 ast) had its highest-scoring night since James’ return to clinch Group B.
Lakers 135, Clippers 118 (West B): Dončić erupted early, going 5-of-5 from deep for 24 points in the 1st quarter. Reaves closed with 18 in the 4th and LeBron steadied throughout to lead the Lakers to their fifth straight win, improving to 3-0 in Cup Play to advance. | Recap
- Swish & Dish: Luka netted his league-leading 5th 40-piece this season, and joins Nate Archibald for the 3rd-most 40+ point, 10+ assist games all-time
- Bron’s Boost: In three games since James returned, Los Angeles has tallied its two highest-scoring outings of the season (140 & 135)
- “Very dangerous,” Luka said of the Lakers’ offense when he, LeBron and Reaves get rolling. “But we gotta go game by game.”
- What It Means: With the group clinched, James Harden (29 pts, 9 ast), Kawhi Leonard (19 pts) and the Clippers will look to claim the West Wild Card. Dallas is eliminated with the Lakers’ win
To keep pace with the NBA’s hottest team atop its group, the Magic unleashed a franchise-best 86-point 1st half en route to a record win.
Magic 144, 76ers 103 (East B): Anthony Black’s career night (31 pts, 4 3s) and the most points by any bench this season (82) pushed Orlando (3-0) to its fifth-highest scoring game ever, eliminating Tyrese Maxey (20 pts) and the Sixers (0-3) from Knockout Round contention. | Recap
- Black Attack: Black erupted for 27 points in the 1st half, including 20 in the 2nd quarter on 8-of-9 shooting
- Points Party: Franz Wagner added 21 points as nine Magic players scored in double figures for their 8th win in the last 11 games
- What It Means: The win sets up a Friday clash to clinch East B with the red-hot Pistons, as Orlando tops Toronto with the East’s best points differential (+61)
Wizards 132, Hawks 113 (East A): Hitting their first 8 threes in a 45-point 1st quarter, the Wizards got season highs from CJ McCollum (46 pts, 10 3s) as well as 27 points and 11 rebounds from Alex Sarr to keep their Knockout Round hopes alive and snap a 14-game skid. | Recap
- CJ’s Company: McCollum is just the sixth player in NBA history with multiple 45+ point, 10+ 3s games, joining Steph, Dame, Harden, Klay and Zach LaVine
- What It Means: Despite big nights from Kristaps Porziņģis (22 pts, 8 reb) and Onyeka Okongwu (20 pts, 3 3s), Atlanta (1-2) joins Washington on the bubble. Both are eliminated tonight if Detroit (or New York and Miami) wins
2. NBA CUP CATCH-UP: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
Only two nights of NBA Cup Group Play remain – tonight and Friday – with six of the eight Knockout Round spots still up for grabs and 25 teams fighting for position.
- Quick Refresher: There are three groups of five teams in each conference. In Group Play, each team plays the other four teams in its group once
- The six group winners – plus the top second-place team in each conference (the Wild Card) – advance to the eight-team, single-elimination Knockout Round
- The Knockout Round starts on Dec. 9, with the winners headed to Vegas for the Semifinals and Championship, where the NBA Cup champion will be crowned
Where We Stand: The Raptors have clinched East A and the Lakers have won West B, leaving two groups in each conference unclaimed, plus the East and West Wild Cards.
Long story short, the race is nowhere near settled.
Before we check tonight’s potential clinching scenarios, let’s refresh on the Group Play tiebreakers – where every bucket counts.
- 1. Head-to-head record in Group Play
- 2. Point differential in Group Play
- 3. Total points scored in Group Play
- 4. Regular-season record from 2024-25
Tonight’s Stakes: With just 20 Group Play games left, 16 of the 25 teams alive have just one loss or fewer, making Wednesday the biggest swing night yet.
- East C Chaos: All five teams remain alive in East C, and two can potentially clinch tonight. If New York loses to Charlotte (7 ET, LP), the winner of Miami & Milwaukee will decide the group (7:30 ET, LP)
- Portland Chance? For the Blazers, tonight’s stakes are simple – win and you’re in. But De’Aaron Fox and the Spurs stand in their way (10 ET, LP)
- Wild West A: OKC (2-0) and Minnesota (2-1) clash in a pivotal West A duel (7:30 ET, ESPN), both seeking a third win and head-to-head leverage. Sandwiched in between is 2-0 Phoenix, which visits Sacramento (10 ET, LP)
- Perfect Pistons: Also 2-0 are the streaking Pistons – winners of 13 straight – looking to match 3-0 Orlando in East B, as they face the Celtics (5 ET, ESPN)
All The Outcomes: Check out every possible Wednesday scenario for clinching, seeding and elimination here.
3. PISTONS SEEK HISTORY TO OPEN ESPN TRIPLEHEADER
Wednesday’s ESPN tripleheader begins with a historic opportunity for the 1st-place Pistons.
Detroit rolls into TD Garden winners of 13 straight, matching the longest win streak in franchise history – a mark set by its 1989-90 and 2003-04 title squads.
With a victory tonight (5 ET, ESPN), this year’s team will stand alone.
- Cup Run: Detroit has taken both of its NBA Cup games amid the streak by a combined +27-point margin
- Round 2: The Pistons and C’s last met on Oct. 26, when Detroit held firm for a 119-113 win, despite Jaylen Brown’s 41 points
- Clamping Down: Three days later, its streak began, in which only one player has scored 35+ against the Pistons (CJ McCollum’s 42 in OT) as Detroit has jumped to 3rd in DefRtg
Call it a familiar formula. In addition to their 13-game heaters, the ‘89-90 and ‘03-04 squads both led the league in fewest points allowed, and this year’s team is tapping into that same defense-first style.
- Ball Magnets: Entering Tuesday, the Pistons are the only team in the NBA ranked in the top-7 in both rebounds (45.9) and deflections per game (20.5)
- Chaos Creators: They also rank 3rd in loose balls recovered, while forcing the 2nd-most turnovers in the league – trailing only OKC
T-4th in deflections, Ausar Thompson is a menace for ball-handlers, athletically and relentlessly. Watch him fight through multiple screens, poke the ball free, then dive on the floor for the steal.
Big Hustle: Similar to the Ben Wallace or Bill Laimbeer-anchored squads, Detroit gets a ton of toughness from a gritty big – Jalen Duren, who ranks 5th in the NBA in rebounding and 9th in loose balls recovered.
Duren blitzes the ball-handler, then immediately pursues the pass, which is jumped by Daniss Jenkins. A split-second later, Duren hits the deck to win an extra possession.
Nothing Easy: The Pistons also finish through the shot, starting with Duren (146) and Isaiah Stewart (141) – the only frontcourt tandem both ranked in the top-10 in shot contests.
- Big Impact: Detroit is holding opponents to just 44.5% from the field – the 4th-best mark in the NBA – and ranks 3rd in blocks
Stewart blends lateral quickness and brute strength to protect the rim from all types of challengers, holding opponents to just 51.5% inside 5 feet – the 3rd-best mark of any defender (min. 100 FGA).
“We go as our defense goes,” said Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff last week on his squad. “They relish in the ability to dig down deep and go places other people just don’t want to go…
“I think that’s why we’ve had the run that we’ve had.”
4. MORE ON ESPN: TWO PLAYOFF REMATCHES OUT WEST
A jam-packed arena. Non-stop crowd noise. Suspense behind every shot.
Those were the characteristics of the atmosphere when the Thunder and Timberwolves last shared a court in May.
Now, they step into a similar environment in the hunt for a different trophy.
The Thunder host the Wolves tonight (7:30 ET, ESPN) in West Group A, in a rematch of the 2025 West Finals. It’s the first time they’ve met since then, when OKC ousted Minnesota in five games en route to an NBA title.
- Up For Grabs: At 2-1 with a +53 differential in Group Play, though, a Timberwolves victory could push them ahead of the Thunder (2-0, +63)
- Historically Hot: Not that wins have been easy to earn — OKC is on the brink of an 18-1 start, becoming the 5th team in NBA history with at least such a start
- Double-Digit Demons: That would also secure the Thunder’s 3rd winning streak of 10+ games since 2024-25 as they continue to exceed even their own lofty standards
Stars rise up for occasions like this. Chet Holmgren and Anthony Edwards are both postseason veterans.
- Step Right Up: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is questionable, but Chet Holmgren could pick up the slack offensively, having averaged a career-best 18.3 ppg thus far
- Ant’s Hot Hand: Edwards (27.8 ppg), meanwhile, is fresh off a season-high 43 points Monday and has shot 5-for-11 from beyond the arc in consecutive outings
The Warriors and Rockets aren’t strangers to this setting, either. The two squads clashed in last season’s NBA Cup quarterfinals, with Houston taking a 91-90 thriller.
They meet once more at Chase Center tonight (10 ET, ESPN), each standing at 1-2 in West Group C and needing a win to avoid elimination.
- Act Two: That previous matchup was merely a precursor — Houston and Golden State went the distance in 2025’s First Round, with the latter knocking off the then-No. 2 seed
- We Have Liftoff: Also in 2024-25, the Rockets snapped a 15-game regular-season losing streak to the Warriors, powered by their core of Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson
- One-Two Punch: The shared offensive rating of 121.7 between Sengun (22.4 ppg) and Thompson (17.9 ppg) ranks 3rd-highest among duos with 400+ minutes played together
- Chef Cooking: The 11-time All-Star has dropped 30 or more points in five of his last six games, and in the most recent two, shot 26-for-47 combined with 15 made 3s
5. MORE STREAKING SQUADS & CLINCHING SCENARIOS ON LEAGUE PASS
The varying landscape of Group Play scenarios can become much clearer after six more games tip on League Pass tonight.
Pacers at Raptors (7:30 ET | East A): Having already clinched, the Raptors aim to finish Group Play 4-0 against the eliminated Pacers. A win would boost Toronto’s Quarterfinal homecourt odds and extend its win streak to nine.
- Ingram Ignites: Raptors’ leading scorer Brandon Ingram (21.6 ppg) follows up his best game of the season, when he dropped 37 points to beat the Cavs Monday
- Well-Rounded Raps: Balance and ball movement fuel Toronto’s run, during which it ranks 3rd in both OffRtg (121.3) and DefRtg (108.6), while dishing the 2nd-most assists
- Core Strength: Ingram, Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley each average 15+ points to lead six double-digit Raptors scorers in the NBA’s 6th-highest scoring offense (120.4)
Bucks at Heat (7:30 ET | East C): Red-hot Miami (2-1) hosts Milwaukee, having won five in a row behind the league’s top scoring offense (123.9 ppg). Both teams can clinch the group with a win and a Knicks loss tonight.
- High Temps: The Heat’s attack brings a barrage of points at the league’s top pace (106.14), running out to the 2nd-most transition points (20.9 ppg) with the 3rd-most assists (30.2)
- Returning Herro: Tyler Herro shined in his season debut on Monday versus Dallas, dropping 24 points and hitting the game-winner, to improve Miami to 6-2 in clutch games
- Defending Champs: Despite losing their last six, the Bucks lean on their 10-0 all-time Group Play record, looking to advance to the Knockout Round for the third straight year
Spurs at Blazers (10 ET | West C): Another talented young core with marquee wins in Portland is poised to make a Cup splash and experience higher-stakes basketball with a Group-clinching win.
- Deni’s Arrival: Avdija leads Portland in scoring, both in Cup play (23.7 pts, 6.7 reb, 7.0 ast) and overall (24.9 pts, 6.4 reb, 5.4 ast)
- Without Wemby: San Antonio (1-1, +10) has remained top-5 in the West behind the strong return of De’Aaron Fox (23.5 pts, 6.1 ast, 51.1 FG%), but needs help to stay alive tonight in Cup
In Phoenix, the Suns (2-0, +23) look to keep pace with OKC in West A and rebound from Monday’s loss amidst an 8-2 stretch. They host the win-or-out Kings at 10 ET.
Two 1-1 hopefuls hit the road in need of wins: New York visits Charlotte in East C (7 ET), and Memphis visits New Orleans (eliminated) in West B (8 ET).
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