Category: Basketball

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nate Ament had 22 points, Jaylen Carey came off the bench to score 13 and Tennessee beat Auburn 77-69 on Saturday night.

Ament made only 4 of 16 shots with two 3-pointers for the Volunteers (15-6, 5-3 Southeastern Conference), but he went 12 for 15 at the free-throw line, adding eight rebounds. Carey hit 5 of 9 shots and 3 of 4 free throws and also grabbed eight rebounds.

Ja'Kobi Gillespie added 11 points and five assists for Tennessee, while DeWayne Brown II totaled 10 points and seven rebounds.

Keyshawn Hall had 21 points to pace the Tigers (14-8, 5-4), who saw a four-game winning streak end. Tahaad Pettiford had 11 points and seven assists.

Ament and Carey both had 11 points as Tennessee jumped in front 13-4 on its way to a 41-31 advantage at halftime.

Sebastian Williams-Adams and Kevin Overton both had three-point plays in the first 1:46 as Auburn quickly cut it to 43-37 to begin the second half.

Hall hit a 3-pointer and Elyjjah Freeman followed with a dunk to cut it to 53-49 with 11:19 remaining. Evans made two free throws and J.P. Estrella and Bishop Boswell had back-to-back baskets as the Volunteers pushed the lead to 59-49 with nine minutes left.

Freshman Filip Jovic turned an offensive rebound into a three-point play and Auburn trailed 59-56 with seven minutes to go. Gillespie scored the final four points as Tennessee answered with a 6-0 run and maintained a two-possession lead to the finish.

Up next

Tennessee: Hosts Mississippi on Tuesday.

Auburn: Hosts No. 23 Alabama on Saturday.

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Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketba spurtll: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Quinn Hughes had a goal and an assist to set a franchise record for defensemen by extending his point streak to eight games in the Minnesota Wild's 7-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night.

Joel Eriksson Ek, Mats Zuccarello and Brock Faber also had a goal and an assist apiece for Minnesota, which won its third straight game and now has points in five straight games. Kirill Kaprizov, Vladimir Tarasenko and Tyler Pitlick rounded out the scoring for the Wild, while Jesper Wallstedt stopped 39 shots.

Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jack Roslovic scored for the Oilers, who had their three-game win streak halted.

Edmonton's Tristan Jarry gave up five goals on 20 shots before getting the hook midway through the second period. He was replaced by Connor Ingram, who made seven saves in relief.

Penalty killing has been a problem for Edmonton recently and the Oilers gave up two power-play goals to Minnesota and have surrendered six goals on 14 penalties over the last four games.

The game was tied at 2-2 after one period but the Wild took control in the second period with three straight goals.

The Wild took the lead 35 seconds into the second period and never looked back. Ryan Hartman won a faceoff, sliced a pass to Zuccarello and the winger sent a shot soaring over Jarry’s glove to put Minnesota up 3-2.

Draisaitl left the bench for several minutes early in the second, but returned and finished the game. Evan Bouchard extended his point streak to four games with four goals, eight assists across the stretch.

Minnesota swept the three-game season series against the Oilers.

Up next

Wild: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night.

Oilers: Host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Kaapo Kakko scored the go-ahead goal 3:18 into the third period and the Seattle Kraken held on for their fourth straight victory, 3-2 over the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday night.

Eeli Tolvanen and Jared McCann scored in the first period for the Kraken and Joey Daccord made 27 saves. Chandler Stephenson had two assists.

Ivan Barbashev and Mitch Marner tied it at 2 with goals in the second period for the Golden Knights, who have lost four in a row and six of seven. Jack Eichel had two assists and Akira Schmid stopped 20 shots.

With the game tied at 2, Kakko backhanded the rebound of Adam Larsson’s shot past Schmid to put Seattle back on top. The Kraken have won five of their last six.

Tolvanen scored at 6:50 of the first period to give Seattle a 1-0 lead. McCann made it 2-0 at 13:04 on the power play when he took a pass from Vince Dunn and put it over Schmid for his 200th career goal.

Barbashev cut it to 2-1 at 8:52 of the second period. Marner tied it with 12 seconds left in the period on the power play with a wrist shot past Daccord.

Up next

Kraken: Play at Anaheim on Tuesday night.

Golden Knights: At Anaheim on Sunday night.

—

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been reshaping the middle and backend of their roster over the past week. They recently traded De’Andre Hunter for Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis, waived Chris Livingston, and signed Tristan Enaruna to a two-way spot.

That trend continued as ESPN’s Olgun Uluc reported late Saturday evening that the team is also waiving former second-round pick Luke Travers.

As part of this three-team trade, the Cleveland Cavaliers are waiving Australian forward Luke Travers, sources told ESPN. He had been on a two-way deal with the Cavs. https://t.co/fBvabEeD11

— Olgun Uluc (@OlgunUluc) February 1, 2026

The Cavs selected Travers with the 56th pick in the 2022 draft. He spent the next two seasons playing in Australia’s NBL before signing a two-way deal with Cleveland in August 2024.

Travers spent the majority of the last two seasons playing with the Cleveland Charge, the Cavs’ G League affiliate. This season, Travers averaged 18.1 points, nine rebounds, and 5.1 assists on .430/.284/.636 shooting splits with the Charge in 14 games.

Travers has struggled to make the transition to the NBA game. He’s a good team defender and rebounder, but hasn’t found his role on the offensive side. Travers doesn’t have the handle or athleticism to continually get to the basket, so he needed to develop as an outside shooter. So far, that hasn’t happened. Travers shot just 28.4% from three this season with the Charge and shot 26.2% the year before.

The offensive limitations kept him from getting meaningful minutes with the Cavs. He played just 24 games and 191 minutes in two seasons combined with the Cavaliers. Most of which were in garbage time.

With the move, the Cavaliers currently have one open two-way spot with Enaruna and Nae’Qwan Tomlin currently occupying the other two. Tomlin will likely not be in that role for long. He’s eligible for just six more games with the Cavaliers under his current contract, which will presumably be converted to a standard deal after the All-Star break.

The Cavaliers acquired some depth ahead of what they envision being another chance at a postseason run.

They traded De’Andre Hunter to the Kings — the last-place team in the Western Conference — on Saturday in exchange for guards Dennis Schröder and Keon Ellis, with the Bulls also joining the deal as a third team who ended up with a pair of second-round picks and forward Dario Saric, according to ESPN.

The move also reportedly freed up around $50 million in salary and luxury tax space, while also allowing them to get under the second apron next season, the outlet added.

Ellis, a 26-year-old, has averaged 5.6 points per game this season while also carving out a key role defensively for the Kings. 

Schröder, a former Net for 52 games who will play for his 11th different team when he officially suits up for the Cavaliers, has contributed 12.8 points and 5.3 assists per game in Sacramento this season.

He also has logged 74 postseason appearances throughout his career — including last year, when he and a pesky Pistons team took the Knicks to six games.

During that first-round showdown, Schröder averaged 12.5 points while playing over 27 minutes per game.

Those additions cost the Cavaliers the presence of Hunter, who started 23 of the 43 games he logged for them while averaging 14.0 points per game — down from the 17.0 he averaged with the Hawks and Cleveland last year en route to finishing fourth in voting for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award.

Though this deal didn’t serve as a blockbuster by any means, it still served as a domino to fall ahead of the NBA’s trade deadline Feb. 5.

The Cavaliers sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference and are tied with the fourth-place Raptors in winning percentage, with the path to the NBA Finals still wide open in a year that hasn’t featured the Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton and the Celtics’ Jayson Tatum as they recover from torn Achilles.

Another major domino that could fall before the deadline features Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, who reportedly indicated that he’s ready for a trade from the only team he has ever played for.

The Knicks are expected to make a bid for Antetokounmpo and serve as one of his preferred destinations, according to The Post’s Stefan Bondy — but it’s unclear if they possess enough to out-bid other teams and win the sweepstakes.

For now, though, the smaller deals will continue to happen.

SYDNEY (AP) — In a masterful performance, as he’s done so many other times, Alexander Volkanovski successfully defended his featherweight title with a unanimous decision over Diego Lopes at UFC 325 on Sunday afternoon.

New South Wales native Volkanovski (29-4-0) won on all three judges’ scorecards 49-46, 49-46 and 50-45, much to the delight of the crowd inside Sydney Olympic Park.

With precision punches and stellar footwork, Volkanovski looked even more dominating than he did during his unanimous decision victory over Lopes (27-8-0) at UFC 314 on April 12 in Miami.

“We were ready for him to make the right adjustments; his team did a good job,” Volkanovski said. “Last (fight), we moved to the right, he did a great job of cutting that off. But that just means I’m going to use all my other tools.”

Which he did, dominating nearly all 25 minutes of the fight, something the 37-year-old admitted he would have rather not needed against his younger foe.

“I wanted to grab a hold of him and put him down, but he was strong; I didn’t want to stand for 25 minutes, I’ll be honest,” Volkanovski said. “But we got the job done.”

After an uneventful first round that was littered mostly with layered feints from both fighters, the action picked up in the second round.

Volkanovski even attempted a jumped guillotine that Lopes slipped out of before attempting a rear-naked choke at the end of the round.

Both fighters landed massive right hands in the third round, the champion with a double-right that staggered Lopes and the challenger with a quick strike that briefly dropped Volkanovski to his knees.

Volkanovski, who tied Jose Aldo for the most title fight wins in UFC featherweight history with eight, was methodical over the final two rounds to seize the win in front of his hometown fans.

“I almost had my moment in Perth,” Volkanovski said, referring to his lightweight championship loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 284 on Feb. 12, 2023. “But I got my moment here in Sydney.”

In the co-main event, No. 8 lightweight Benoit Saint Denis (17-3-0) got his fourth-straight victory when he scored a technical knockout of No. 6 Dan Hooker (24-14-0) at the 4:45 mark of the second round.

Saint Denis, who hasn’t seen a third round since his UFC debut in 2021, began a ground and pound with several brutal elbows before finishing with a bevy of punches.

In a lightweight bout, No. 14 Mauricio Ruffy (13-2-0) used a flurry of punches that began with a thunderous right hand to score a technical knockout of No. 9 Rafael Fiziev (13-5-0) at the 4:30 mark of the second round.

In what culminated with a bloodied slugfest in the third and final round of their heavyweight battle, No. 15 Tallison Teixeira (9-1-0) earned a unanimous decision over No. 12 Tai Tuivasa (15-9-0).

Quillan Salkilld (11-1-0) opened the main card by making quick work of Jamie Mullarkey (18-9-0) with a rear-naked chokehold in the first round. It was Salkilld’s fourth-straight win.

___

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

After a few days of speculation, the Cleveland Cavaliers have traded away De’Andre Hunter to the Sacremento Kings in a three-team deal. They’ll be receiving Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis from the Kings. Dario Saric, a 2029 second-round pick from the Kings, and the Denver Nuggets’ 2027 second-round pick — which the Cavs previously owned — are being sent to the Chicago Bulls.

BREAKING: The Cleveland Cavaliers are trading De'Andre Hunter to the Sacramento Kings for Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis, sources tell ESPN. The three-team deal includes the Chicago Bulls acquiring Kings forward Dario Saric and two future second-round picks. pic.twitter.com/Hoc6bP0hhj

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 1, 2026

The Cavs acquired Hunter at the deadline last season, but it simply didn’t work out long-term. Hunter was good for the remainder of last regular season. That didn’t carry over to the second round series against the Indiana Pacers. He missed Game 2 with a thumb injury and wasn’t himself when he returned to the lineup. Hunter averaged just 9 points and 4.5 rebounds on 36.7% shooting from the floor that series.

That carried over to this season. Hunter was given a chance to prove that he could fit with the starting lineup, but struggled to find his role. As a starter, Hunter averaged 15.4 points on .429/.303/.843 shooting splits. The inefficient shooting and lack of effort on defense resulted in him being moved back to the bench.

Switching to a reserve role didn’t do much to help him regain his shot. Overall, Hunter averaged 14 points and 4.2 rebounds on .423/.308/.869 shooting splits in 43 games with the Cavs.

Perimeter defense has been an issue for Cleveland after trading away Isaac Okoro this summer. Ellis should help. He’s known as one of the better defenders for his position, and should help an area of need.

Ellis is only 6’4”, which puts his natural position at shooting guard. That’s a spot on the depth chart that is already clogged with that being Donovan Mitchell, Sam Merrill, and Max Strus’s best position.

On the season, Ellis is averaging 5.6 points and 1.3 rebounds on .397/.368/.625 shooting splits.

Schroder should help shore up the backup point guard position with Lonzo Ball seemingly on his way out. The journeman guard is averaging 12.8 points and 5.3 assists per game on .408/.343/.820 shooting splits.

The move will also save Cleveland $50 million in luxury tax payments this season. How much it helps them financially in the longrun remains to be seen. Schroder is owed $14.8 million next season and $15.5 million (with just $4.3 million guaranteed) in 2026-27. Ellis will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason if his contract isn’t extended with the Cavs.

The Cavaliers are still over the second apron by $13.9 million after the completion of the deal. We’ll see if additional moves are made before the trade deadline on Feb. 5.

This one wasn’t pretty, but it was effective in the end.

Tonight none of the big names for the Rockets had a good offensive night. Sengun just looks broken right now, but of course he’s playing because Adams is out for the season, and no one has seen fit to reward Capela’s generally very good play of late with more minutes for him. The Rockets did enough late in the game, and held on to a lead that persistently narrowed as they once again had great difficulty with late game offense.

The Rockets finally got to play the Mavericks in Houston, and the game was close. Some people might wonder how Dallas, without Day-To-Davis, and Kyrie Irving can be competitive. One is they drafted what looks to be a truly amazing player in Cooper Flagg, who is doing what he’s doing at 19, and two, their roster is actually set up to work around such a player. It was built for Luka Doncic (and Irving was the second PG, and mostly an off ball scorer) but it largely works for Flagg as they are, without much fanfare now, using Flagg almost exactly as they did Doncic. That team reached the Finals, so being competitive, minus Irving, isn’t actually a miracle.

The Rockets lead at the half 59-51, and it might be hoped that they’d continue to build on their lead and have an easy time of it. But if you’ve watched the Rockets much this season, “Win, Over Easy” is rarely on the menu these days.

Cooper Flagg, coming off a 49 point outburst (in a loss) to Charlotte, scored scored 34 tonight, and seemingly all of Dallas’ points from midway through the 4th quarter that weren’t free throws, sort of lucky, or Klay Thompson annoyingly realizing he was in Houston, and making a few shots late, too. It wasn’t quite enough.

Durant, Thompson and Sengun all scored late, but the Rockets made it harder than it needed to be on themselves. They are persistently bad at trying to pass, and overpassing, on what should be easy looks, or an opportunity to go strong at the basket and get free throws. One example late was Tari Eason, on a fast break, deciding to pass to Jabari Smith at his feet. Jabari probably needed to slow down, and be a trailer rather that running beside or ahead of Eason, but these are offensive fundamentals, and best ignored in favor of More Defense. The point being, they do this sort of thing a lot. Some of it is being young, but for a bunch of young athletes to clank as many fast breaks as they do is distressing.

The shooting for the likely scorers was just bad, to make things more interesting. The two usual top scorers went Durant – 6-17, Sengun – 6-20. They did have 8 and 7 assists respectively, so they contributed to the team that way. Fortunately Jabari was 7-13 and 3-5 from three. Tari Eason was 7-15, also 3-5 from three. Amen Thompson was, you guessed it 7-15 as well, and took zero threes (yay). Sheppard was only 3-8, mainly due to going 0-4 from three. He looks to be rushing his shot, and there’s rarely a reason for him to do so. Josh Okogie, though, continues to be a nice surprise, 5-11, but recorded that great number again, 3-5 from three. If the Rockets are shooting it well from three, their lives could be made a lot easier by simple Shooting More Threes. They did take more than Dallas tonight, 26-23.

Many of the non three point misses for Eason, Jabari and Okogie came from unforced errors, and bad decision making on some shots. Okogie overall has been a great surprise, and very valuable to the Rockets. This is fortunate, as Dorian Finney-Smith has effectively contributed nothing to the team so far. His ten minutes tonight were slightly disastrous. This is worrisome, as the Rockets need him to play better, so hopefully the second half sees him being the player we’ve hoped to see since the signing last summer.

Tonight we also saw the offense only be initiated by Thompson, Sengun, and to a limited extent Sheppard. We saw Durant positioned far better to score and pass, as well. What we didn’t see, thankfully, was the Rockets spamming the same Durant high dribble hand off, ISO, play, very much at all. It appears to have registered that defenses key on that. This had positive effects. The Rockets turned the ball over only 5 times. Durant turned it over once, to his 8 dimes, Sengun 2 to his 7. Thompson? Say Amen, somebody, 9 assists and no turnovers.

Just eliminating so many live ball turnovers, ones that are very difficult to defend in transition because they occur above the top of the three point arc, may have been the difference in this game.

Sengun really, really, seems to need a rest and to heal up. He’s moving poorly, and has trouble getting to where he needs to be on both offense and defense. It’s affecting his shooting as well. You could take the past few weeks as evidence Sengun is now a bad player, or go with the overwhelming weight of his previous seasons and consider what might be wrong with him.

Why Capela can’t take another 8-10 minutes per game, to let Alpie rest a bit, is beyond me. His offensive chemistry with Reed is very good, as well. Capela does the traditional center PNR, with strong, real, pick setting. He rolls to the rim pretty well even now. Alpie almost doesn’t do it at all. This is a shame, because Sengun rolling and diving to the basket to score, dime a say, cutting Amen, Tari, Jabari or Durant on the baseline, or pass to a shooter in the opposite corner strikes me as something that would be incredibly difficult to stop.

In the end, the team got it done, and I’m sorry for a shorter recap, but I’m pinch hitting tonight. More wordy recaps will surely follow, but not tonight. Tonight we can be grateful the Rockets got a win, after things got dicey late.

The Old TC continues to be a fortress for the Rockets, their record there is 17-4.

2025-26 Sixers Bell Ringer standings:
Tyrese Maxey – 19
VJ Edgecombe – 6
Joel Embiid – 6
Paul George – 6
Andre Drummond – 2
Jared McCain – 2
Dominick Barlow – 1
Adem Bona – 1
Justin Edwards – 1
Quentin Grimes – 1
Kelly Oubre Jr. – 1
Trendon Watford – 1
15th roster spot – 1

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The Sixers celebrated the 25th anniversary of the 2001 Finals team with a 124- 114 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans.

It was their first matchup without Paul George, who was suspended earlier on Saturday for 25 games due to violations of the league’s anti-drug policy.

Despite having a large lead for the majority of the game, the Sixers defense left a lot to be desired, and opened the door for the Pelicans to make it close in the second half.

Fortunately, the Sixers were able to pull things together in the fourth quarter.

There were strong performances all over the floor for the Sixers, but none better than our leading Bell Ringer nominee.

Joel Embiid: 40 points 13-of-27 FG, 3-of-5 3PT, 11-of-14 FT, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, 1 steal, 5 turnovers

Embiid is making a strong case for an All-Star selection, earning his first 40-point game of the season. He got started early and did not let up on Pelicans rookie Derik Queen, hitting a flurry of pull-up shots over him. He had his shooting stroke early and carried that into a more aggressive second quarter, where he would earn nine free throw attempts to help bring his first half total to 23.

The and-one and the celly pic.twitter.com/OC7cInUJqP

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 1, 2026

The third quarter saw only one shot attempt for Embiid at the beginning of the frame, and he was quiet until the fourth quarter.

As the Pelicans closed the gap, Embiid hit a three, baby jumper and layup to maintain the lead until an 8-0 New Orleans run sprung them out in front 107- 104 with exactly six minutes remaining. He hit another big three to end the run and tie the game. A few trips later, he hits a beautiful turnaround fade over Yves Missi.

As the Sixers began to pull away, Embiid hit another big three to help seal the deal, pumping the lead to seven with just under a minute left in regulation. A free throw late brought him to 40 points for the first time this season and first time since he scored 50 against the Knicks in Gam 3 of the 2024 first round.

He got to share the moment with his son postgame:

Awesome moment with Joel Embiid and his son Arthur postgame.

"How many points did you get?" 🥹 pic.twitter.com/Nv0QN95cDf

— Drew Peltzman (@dapeltz13) February 1, 2026

Kelly Oubre Jr.: 19 points, 7-of-13 FG, 3-of-7 3PT, 10 rebounds, 4 assists

In the first game following George’s suspension, Oubre found himself involved often and was a vital part in keeping the Sixers afloat in non-Embiid minutes. It was the perfect example of how to stay involved offensively without being a primary ball handler.

In the first half, he was consistently getting in the paint in transition, where VJ Edgecombe assisted him with savvy passes deep in the defense, and helping out on the defensive boards.

He was responsible for some of the only offense in the third quarter, hitting two threes before the team as a whole went dormant. In the fourth, he had some sneaky good passes, including a skip pass to Edgecombe for the dagger three.

VJ Edgecombe: 15 points, 6-of-10 FG, 2-of-5 3PT, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 turnover

Edgecombe earns a nomination tonight because of four plays.

The first, this beautiful alley-oop finish from a Tyrese Maxey delivery.

Max ➡️ VJ pic.twitter.com/3Td6GrKWoT

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 1, 2026

Second, a slick behind-the-back dime to Oubre.

VJ Edgecombe goes behind-the-back to Kelly Oubre Jr. 😱

Oubre has 17 PTS on 6-10 FGM for Philly! pic.twitter.com/EZdtWEnhD2

— NBA (@NBA) February 1, 2026

Next, this sneaky steal and transition slam.

Great read by Edgecombe for the steal and breakaway dunkpic.twitter.com/fmsitfpVOS

— PHLY Sixers (@PHLY_Sixers) February 1, 2026

Lastly, his dagger three to send the Sixers on their five-game road trip winners of three in a row.

pic.twitter.com/kUkLG7OaUx

— Drew Peltzman (@dapeltz13) February 1, 2026

There are just a few certainties in this world. Death, taxes and no one understanding what the Kings are doing.

On Saturday night, the Kings, Cavs and Bulls completed a three-team trade that involved two Lakers trade targets. Cleveland sent De’Andre Hunter to Sacramento, who will send Dennis Schröder and Keon Ellis to Cleveland. Chicago will receive Dario Saric and a pair of second round picks.

BREAKING: The Cleveland Cavaliers are trading De'Andre Hunter to the Sacramento Kings for Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis, sources tell ESPN. The three-team deal includes the Chicago Bulls acquiring Kings forward Dario Saric and two future second-round picks. pic.twitter.com/Hoc6bP0hhj

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 1, 2026

Kings sent one (kind of a complicated least-favorable in 2029) and Cavs sent one (from DEN in 2027), is the reporting so far. https://t.co/xFqUj7YRNY

— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) February 1, 2026

Every so often, the Kings pop up with a move that reminds everyone they are still the Kings.

In Keon Ellis, they had a very highly coveted player who they could get at least a good draft pick for. As a team without much to look forward to in the future, getting a pick and a chance at a young prospect should be appealing.

Instead, they attached him to Schröder, a player they signed to a three-year deal this summer despite having Malik Monk, Zach LaVine and Russell Westbrook (eventually) on the roster. They could have simply not signed Dennis, had more playing time available and, if they were set on trading Ellis, gotten a pick and value back.

Or, they could just attach him to Dennis to salary dump him for Hunter, a player who is having a career-worst year, is older than Ellis and is under contract next season, too.

What are they doing?????

Alas, this takes two of the few names connected to the Lakers off the market. Ellis was an intriguing young option while Hunter was a much riskier option. After rumors heated up over the last week, they were tempered down on Saturday ahead of the trade itself.

Realistically, the Lakers weren’t going to be able to match a package including Ellis to acquire Hunter, nor should they have attempted to. The Lakers will now have to move on to other options ahead of the deadline.

And what the hell are the Kings doing?

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

By late January, the NBA begins to stop lying to you. The schedule has done its damage, the injuries have told their stories, and the standings have enough scar tissue to matter. You can’t hide anymore, you can only adapt, scramble, or fold. This is the point in the season where illusions die quietly. No more small-sample optimism, no more “once we’re healthy” excuses. Just records, tendencies, and teams revealing exactly who they are.

Sometimes comparison really is the thief of joy. But when you’re deep in the trenches of an NBA season, it helps to look around and see where everyone else stands. The Pacific Division as of January 31st tells five very different stories with four teams fighting for playoff positioning, and one franchise that’s basically waving the white flag before February even starts.

The Lakers (29-18) and Suns (30-19) are locked in a proper division race, basically tied at the top. Both teams are rolling: the Lakers just demolished Washington 142-111 behind Luka Doncic’s casual 37-point triple-double, while the Suns are riding a three-game win streak despite Devin Booker nursing a sprained ankle. Dillon Brooks has been Phoenix’s unlikely savior, dropping 40 against Detroit and 27 against Cleveland while Booker recovers.

LeBron has played 60,008 total minutes, equating to 6 WEEKS 🤯 pic.twitter.com/VysUzNaPOY

— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) January 31, 2026

What’s wild is how different their paths look. The Lakers are 20-12 at home but a dismal 9-13 on the road, which could haunt them come playoff time. Phoenix doesn’t have that same home/road split issue—they’re just winning games regardless of venue, though their 2-3 division record suggests they struggle when facing their neighbors.

Golden State (27-23) sits 3.5 games back in third place, definitely in the playoff conversation still trailing the top two. The injuries to Jimmy Butler’s ACL (out for season) and Stephen Curry knee (left the loss vs Pistons early) have only created a fever pitch for a trade before the deadline. The Warriors are what they are at this point: a solid team that can beat anyone on a good night but lacks the consistency to truly compete with the division’s elite. Their 17-8 road record is their saving grace, because that ghastly 10-15 record on the road is killing their season. But the team that they are now and who they will be at the trade deadline could be two different things hmmmm.

Meanwhile the Clippers (22-25) occupy that dangerous fourth-place spot where they are close enough to smell the playoffs, far enough to worry about the play-in tournament. They just saw their impressive 16-3 stretch over 19 games get snapped by Denver, and now they head to Phoenix for a measuring-stick game Sunday. Kawhi Leonard (27.7 PPG) and James Harden (25.4 PPG, 8.1 APG) are doing their part, but Bradley Beal’s season-ending hip surgery stripped away crucial depth.

Even still, this team was thought to be dead in the water until they apparently jettisoned Chris Paul and locked in.

"We're seeing togetherness in this group. And this togetherness has transformed since they released a certain individual in CP3. Now I'm not pointing a finger, I'm just stating the obvious." ✍️@KendrickPerkins on the Clippers being 15-3 in their last 18 games 🏀 pic.twitter.com/Qdwm7uZwAt

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) January 26, 2026

Chris Paul replied to this guy’s comment on Instagram under his post who said:

“16-3 since you left man, idk. We gonna have to trust Ty Lue’s plan now. Although I wanted your last year in a Clippers jersey”.

CP3:

“😂🫡”

FRIED HIMM GOAT. Screw Ty Lue & the Clippers. pic.twitter.com/b7FtN4a6e4

— CP3REGION (@CP3REGION) January 30, 2026

Then there’s Sacramento (12-38), currently perfecting the art of losing basketball games. The Kings are on an eight-game skid, 0-5 on their current road trip, and sporting a putrid 3-22 road record overall. They’ve dealt with injuries to key pieces like Domantas Sabonis, Keegan Murray, and Russell Westbrook. They’re 17 games back of the Lakers and functionally eliminated from playoff contention before Valentine’s Day.

That’s your Pacific Division, two teams battling for top 4 seeding, your Dubs trying to figure out what they have, the Clippers crawling back in to the edges of the conversation on sheer grit and swag, and the rolling dumpster fire that is Sacramento.

Teams With The Best Odds To Win The Pacific Division, Per @KalshiSports

Phoenix Suns — 42.0%
Los Angeles Lakers — 34.0%
Golden State Warriors — 27.0%
Sacramento Kings — 4.0%
Los Angeles Clippers — 2.0% pic.twitter.com/21JVnlaVnb

— Stat Defender (@statdefender) January 21, 2026

NBA trade deadline week is here, and the deals got started on late Saturday night when the Cleveland Cavaliers, Sacramento Kings, and Chicago Bulls agreed to a three-team swap. Here’s the details, via ESPN insider Shams Charania:

Cavs get: Dennis Schröder, Keon Ellis

Kings get: De’Andre Hunter

Bulls get: Dario Saric, two second-round picks

The deal saves Cleveland $50 million in payroll, according to Charania. Hunter makes $23.9 million this season and $24.9 million next season as he arrives in Sacramento. Meanwhile, Schröder makes $14 million this season, $14.8 million next season, and then has a partially guaranteed third season as he heads to Cleveland. Ellis is slated to be a free agent this summer.

This deal bolsters the Cavs’ rotation heading into the playoffs, while the Kings ditch Schröder and get to try out another wing in Hunter. The Bulls swoop in and land two second-round picks just for eating some salary. Let’s grade this move for every side.

Cavs trade grade Dennis Schröder, Keon Ellis acquisitions

I like this for Cleveland. The Cavs haven’t been the same this year coming off a 64-win season in part because of injuries, in part because they’re just not as deep as they were last season. This trade at least helps fix the second part of the problem. Cleveland needed another ball handler with Darius Garland’s lingering big toe injury, and they also have missed Ty Jerome, who departed over the summer in free agency to the Memphis Grizzlies. Schröder gives them some insurance on Garland as the playoffs approach, and he can also easily slide into a bench role where he can lead second units as a shot-creator.

I’ve always liked Ellis as a tough defender with low-volume three-point shooting ability, so that’s a nice addition for Cleveland’s stretch run, too. I have no idea why a hopeless Kings team wouldn’t play him much this season, but it was clear they weren’t going to resign him, so now the Cavs get an extended look at him before he hits free agency. Cleveland won’t miss Hunter: the Cavs have a -0.5 net-rating with Hunter on the floor this season, and a +9.5 net-rating with him off. He just couldn’t hit a shot this season, and his defense has never been that impactful. I like every bit of this deal for Cleveland.

Cavs grade: A

Kings trade grade for De’Andre Hunter deal

Hunter has a reputation as a 3-and-D wing, but he hasn’t been good in either area this year. He’s only making 30.8 percent of his threes this season on 5.5 attempts per game, and his 55.3 percent true shooting so far is below league-average. Defensively, the Cavs posted a 117.2 defensive rating with Hunter on the floor this year, and a 110.6 defensive rating with him off the floor.

Hunter was shooting 40.5 percent from three for the Atlanta Hawks when they traded him to the Cavs at last year’s deadline, so maybe he can get his shooting stroke back. The Kings needed another wing to fill out lineups, and Hunter can at least do that. Sacramento takes on Hunter’s inflated salary next year so they don’t have to deal with Schröder’s partial guarantee in 2027-28.

Kings grade: C

Bulls trade grade for Dario Saric, second-round pick

This is a nice margin move for the Bulls. Saric has barely played the last two years, and has been terrible when he has been on the court, but whatever. This is about adding two second round picks just for the cost of eating his money.

Kings only 2nd in 2029 is the worse of DET, MIL, NYK

Cavs only 2nd in 2027 is via DENhttps://t.co/YGGD4syIbnhttps://t.co/9RhOPbQk3p

— Will Gottlieb (@Will_Gottlieb) February 1, 2026

These aren’t great second-round picks, but it’s still nice to get them for just a little bit of money. The Bulls reportedly waived Jevon Carter in a corresponding move.

Bulls grade: A

The Cleveland Cavaliers have acquired guards Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroder in a deal that sends De'Andre Hunter to the Sacramento Kings and also involves the Chicago Bulls, according to a report from ESPN's Shams Charania.

The Kings received Hunter, a small forward, and are also sending Dario Saric and two future second-round picks to the Bulls.

Ellis and Schroder join a Cleveland roster that already includes Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, adding more depth to the Cavs' backcourt as they look to make a deep playoff push. Ellis and Schroder can help stretch the floor and also hurt defenses with penetration. Both players are active defenders that give ballhandlers headaches.

The Cavaliers currently sit fifth in the Eastern Conference standings at 29-21.

Keon Ellis 2025-26 regular-season stats

Here are Ellis' average statistics so far though the 2025-26 regular season:

• Games played: 43
• Minutes: 17.6
• Points: 5.6
• Rebounds: 1.3
• Assists: 0.6
• Steals: 1.1
• Blocks: 0.5
• Field goal: 39.7%
• 3-point field goal: 36.8%
• Free throw: 62.5%

Keon Ellis career stats

Here are Ellis' average statistics so far though his four-year NBA career:

• Games played: 196
• Minutes: 19.2
• Points: 6.3
• Rebounds: 2.0
• Assists: 1.2
• Steals: 1.1
• Blocks: 0.6
• Field goal: 46%
• 3-point field goal: 41.6%
• Free throw: 76.9%

Dennis Schroder 2025-26 regular-season stats

Here are Schroder's average statistics so far though the 2025-26 regular-season.

• Games played: 40
• Minutes: 19.2
• Points: 12.8
• Rebounds: 3.1
• Assists: 5.3
• Steals: 0.8
• Blocks: 0.2
• Field goal: 40.8%
• 3-point field goal: 34.3%
• Free throw: 82%

Dennis Schroder career stats

Here are Schroder's career average statistics so far though his 12-year NBA career:

• Games played: 882
• Minutes: 27.3
• Points: 13.9
• Rebounds: 2.9
• Assists: 4.9
• Steals: 0.8
• Blocks: 0.1
• Field goal: 43.1%
• 3-point field goal: 34.2%
• Free throw: 83.5%

De'Andre Hunter 2025-26 regular-season stats

Here are Hunter's average statistics so far though the 2025-26 regular-season.

• Games played: 43
• Minutes: 26.2
• Points: 14.0
• Rebounds: 4.2
• Assists: 2.1
• Steals: 0.7
• Blocks: 0.1
• Field goal: 42.3%
• 3-point field goal: 30.8%
• Free throw: 86.9%

De'Andre Hunter career stats

Here are Hunter's career average statistics so far though his seven-year NBA tenure.

• Games played: 370
• Minutes: 29.6
• Points: 14.7
• Rebounds: 4.1
• Assists: 1.6
• Steals: 0.7
• Blocks: 0.3
• Field goal: 44.8%
• 3-point field goal: 36.5%
• Free throw: 82.5%

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cavaliers-Kings trade details, what we know about De'Andre Hunter deal

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Brandon Miller scored 26 points, Collin Sexton made all five 3-point attempts off the bench and finished with 21 points and the Charlotte Hornets held on to beat the San Antonio Spurs 111-106 on Saturday to extend their winning streak to six games.

LaMelo Ball 16 points, eight rebounds and eight assists to help give the Hornets their longest win streak in nearly a decade. Charlotte won seven straight games in March 2016.

Dylan Harper scored 20 points to lead the Spurs. Victor Wembanyama was held in check for most of the game, finishing with 16 points on 6-of-15 shooting and eight rebounds.

Charlotte’s 17-point lead in the third quarter disintegrated after Harrison Barnes hit back-to-back 3s and the Spurs turned a Sexton turnover into a De’Aaron Fox layup to cut the lead to two with less than five minutes to play.

But the Spurs could never regain the lead.

With 36 seconds left and Charlotte leading by three, officials initially whistled Fox for a foul on a Miller 3-point attempt. But after reviewing the call, it was overturned and resulted in a jump ball, which the 7-foot-4 Wembanyama easily won.

Wembanyama launched a hurried a 3-point shot moments later and the Hornets snagged the rebound. Down 3, the Spurs inexplicably allowed 15 seconds to elapse before fouling Miller, who made both free throws with 10.6 seconds left to seal the game.

PACERS 129, HAWKS 124

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Andrew Nembhard scored 26 points, Pascal Siakam added 25 and Indiana held off Atlanta.

Indiana nursed a single-digit lead for much of the third quarter and led 103-100 entering the fourth. It was tight the rest of the way before Siakam hit a crucial 12-foot jumper with 18.6 seconds remaining to push the Pacers ahead 127-123.

Aaron Nesmith added 23 points, Nembhard had 10 assists and Siakam shot 11 of 15 from the field. The Pacers won despite 23 turnovers.

Atlanta dropped its second straight game despite Jalen Johnson’s eighth triple-double of the season. The forward finished with 33 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. Nickeil Alexander-Walker added 21 points.

The Pacers have won seven of their past 12 games, enjoying a solid stretch of basketball after starting the season with a 6-31 record. Indiana has played all year without star guard Tyrese Haliburton, who tore his right Achilles tendon in Game 7 of the NBA Finals last season.

Indiana jumped to an 80-73 lead by halftime, spurred by a 45-point second quarter. Johnson led the Hawks with 21 points before the break while Nembhard also had 21 for the Pacers.

76ERS 124, PELICANS 114

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid had 40 points and 11 rebounds to help Philadelphia win hours after Paul George was suspended 25 games for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy, beating New Orleans.

The NBA did not disclose the nature of the violation or the substance that was involved, and George released a statement to ESPN saying he took something that was “improper.”

Without George, the 76ers couldn’t shake the 13-win Pelicans until the final minutes.

Tyrese Maxey scored 18 points and hit one of his four 3-pointers that gave the Sixers a 117-111 lead and Embiid and VJ Edgecombe followed with consecutive 3s for the 123-113 lead.

Embiid heard “M-V-P! M-V-P!” chants as he stepped to the free-throw line with 11.3 seconds left. He sank his first one to hit the 40-point mark.

Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 19 points and the 76ers hit 17 3-pointers to end the night on a high note after they learned they would have to make a playoff push largely without George.

Saddiq Bey led the Pelicans with 34 points and Zion Williamson had 11.

TIMBERWOLVES 131, GRIZZLIES 114

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Anthony Edwards scored 33 points, Julius Randle added 27 points and seven assists, and Minnesota won its fourth straight, beating Memphis.

Minnesota’s winning streak was punctuated by a wire-to-wire victory over the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night. All four wins have been by double-digits.

Naz Reid and Jaden McDaniels had 20 points apiece for the Timberwolves, Reid adding nine rebounds. Rudy Gobert grabbed 16 boards and added a pair of blocks.

Ty Jerome, playing in his first game of the season after recovering from a right calf strain, led Memphis with 20 points and six assists but could not prevent the Grizzlies from losing their sixth straight.

GG Jackson added 19 points and Jaylen Wells had 15.

BULLS 125, HEAT 118

MIAMI (AP) — Ayo Dosunmu scored a season-high 29 points and short-handed Chicago topped Miami.

Dosunmu added nine assists and eight rebounds. Matas Buzelis scored 21 points and Isaac Okoro added 20 for the Bulls, who hit 20 3-pointers.

Pelle Larsson scored 22 and Bam Adebayo had 15 of his 21 in the fourth quarter for Miami, which tied the game four times in the final 3:37 but didn’t reclaim the lead in any of those instances. Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored 20 for Miami.

The teams play again in Miami on Sunday. It’ll be the first time since Baltimore and Houston in 1972 that two NBA teams play three consecutive games in the same regular season against one another; the Heat won at Chicago in a rescheduled game on Thursday night.

ROCKETS 111, MAVERICKS 107

HOUSTON (AP) — Amen Thompson had 21 points, nine assists and eight rebounds to lead Houston to a victory over Dallas.

An alley-oop dunk by Thompson put Houston up four with under two minutes left before the Mavericks scored the next four points, with baskets from rookie Cooper Flagg and Naji Marshall, to tie it about a minute later.

Alperen Sengun’s layup put Houston on top with 28.6 seconds left before Flagg missed a shot in the lane on the other end. The Rockets grabbed the rebound and a dunk by Tari Eason made it 111-107 with 14.4 seconds remaining.

A 3-point attempt by Flagg bounced off the rim after that to end it.

Flagg led the Mavericks with 34 points and 12 rebounds a game after the 19-year-old set the NBA record for points by a teenager with 49 in a loss to Charlotte on Thursday night. Saturday was the fifth game this season with at least 30 points for the No. 1 pick in last year’s draft.

Jabari Smith Jr. added 19 points for the Rockets and Sengun had 14 points and 14 rebounds.

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