The Knicks defeated the Brooklyn Nets 120-66 on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.
Here are some takeaways...
- Sure, playing the Nets helps, but the Knicks finally looked like the Knicks again tonight. New York came out much more energized following their players-only meeting and were able to cruise their way to their 13th-consecutive victory over their rebuilding crosstown rivals.
- New York got off to a very efficient start, knocking down six of their first nine shots, and they used a pair of runs (14-0, 14-3) to open a double-digit advantage, which they never looked back from. Jalen Brunson led the way with 11 first-quarter points, but most encouraging, the Knicks held the Nets to just 20 points over the first 12 minutes.
- The strong play continued into the second quarter, as New York's suffocating defense and hot shooting helped them stretch the lead out past 20 points just a few minutes in. OG Anunoby had a fastbreak slam after Brooklyn's fifth turnover of the game and Karl-Anthony Towns continued his strong start, stretching his total to 10 points.
Both Towns and Mitchell Robinson did, however, put themselves in early foul trouble after picking up three apiece.
- The Knicks carried a 22-point advantage into the break, and they held the Nets to just 38 points, marking their best defensive half of the season. Brooklyn knocked down just five of their 20 three-point attempts through two quarters, and they didn't have a single player in double figures.
New York outrebounded the Nets 28-16 and had 14 fastbreak points off of seven turnovers.
- The Knicks remained in control coming out of the break, as all five of their starters found the bottom of the bucket, and they knocked down six of their first seven shots from the field to begin the half. Mikal Bridges pushed his way into double figures minutes into the third quarter after scoring just 10 points in total the last time out against Phoenix.
- Landry Shamet continued his hot shooting since returning from his shoulder injury. The veteran sharpshooter knocked down all six of the three-pointers he attempted on the night, leaving him just two points shy of Brunson's game-high (20). The lead was pushed up to as much as 32 at the end of three.
Both teams emptied their benches early in the fourth quarter and the rout stretched out to 54 points, the largest margin of victory in franchise history.
- Brunson led all scorers with 20 points despite making just one of eight threes. Towns had 14 points and eight boards, Bridges had 11 points against his former team, and McBride chipped in 14 points off the bench. Tyler Kolek (6 points), Mohamed Diawara (5 points), and Ariel Hukporti (four boards) took advantage of their garbage time minutes.
- Michael Porter Jr. and Ziare Williams were the only two to crack double digits for Brooklyn.
Game MVP: Landry Shamet
Shamet continues to dominate from downtown since returning from injury.
The Cleveland Cavaliers made this one more stressful than it should have been. They led the Charlotte Hornets 56-32 at halftime, before Charlotte cut the lead to 4 points in the fourth quarter.
Cleveland eventually closed the door and secured their 25th win of the season. But, as I said, it felt less satisfying than you’d have liked.
The Hornets have been better than their record recently. They entered the night with the league’s second-best offense over the last two weeks, while Cleveland had the 24th-best defense during this same stretch. That felt like a combination that could have burned the Cavs tonight. But they began the game with the appropriate energy on defense, holding the Hornets to just 12 points in the second quarter.
That focus wouldnt’ last all 48 minutes. The Cavs slipped in the second half and allowed the Hornets to go on a big run. But they found their footing and got enough stops in the end to stave off a disastrous collapse.
Evan Mobley started the game hot. He had 13 points and 11 rebounds at halftime after a handful of jaw-dropping dunks. As is the theme, this aggression didn’t carry over to the final two quarters. Mobley finished with just 14 points in an otherwise solid performance.
Charlotte was led by Brandon Miller with 24 points. Lamelo Ball had a rough night, shooting 0-10 from deep and 1-15 from the floor overall.
Donovan Mitchell had 24 points on 8-20 shooting. It wasn’t a great night for Mitchell, as his 8 turnovers added fuel to Charlotte’s fire. It’s clear the Cavs are still missing Darius Garland’s efficient command of the offense.
The Cavs are back at home this weekend with a game versus the Sacramento Kings before going on the road for a matchup against the Orlando Magic.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Denzel Aberdeen scored 19 points, Collin Chandler and Otega Oweh each had 18 points, and Kentucky took down Texas 85-80 on Wednesday night.
Oweh reached double-figures for the 22nd straight game, a streak dating to last season, and Chandler reached a career-high, surpassing his 15 scored in November's season-opener against Nicholls.
The Wildcats (13-6, 4-2 Southeastern Conference) battled back-and-forth with Texas, as the game featured 11 lead changes. After heading to the locker rooms tied at 40, Kentucky took the lead for good midway through the second half during a 6-0 run and closed on a 7-2 run to secure the victory.
Andrija Jelavic and Chandler each hauled in a team-high seven rebounds, and Kentucky narrowly won the glass battle 36-34. Malachi Moreno led with six assists.
Dailyn Swain scored 29 points on 10-for-16 shooting for the Longhorns (11-8, 2-4), his third game with 20 or more points this season. Matas Vokietaitis had a 15-point, 11-rebound double-double.
Free throws made the difference for the Wildcats, converting on 30 of their 35 attempts. Texas made 18 of 20.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Kierra Wheeler scored 16 points and No. 22 West Virginia rallied in the fourth quarter to defeat Arizona State 53-43 on Wednesday night.
Arizona State led 37-34 through three quarters and the score was tied at 41 with 4 minutes left in the fourth quarter. A 3-pointer by Sydney Shaw gave the Mountaineers a 44-41 lead with 2:45 remaining. Jordan Harrison added a free throw and Wheeler scored in the paint for a 47-41 lead.
McKinna Brackens hit a jumper for the Sun Devils but it was their only made basket in nine attempts in the final 4 minutes. West Virginia closed it out at the line, making 7 of 9 free throws in the last minute.
Shaw scored 11 points and Gia Cooke had 10 for West Virginia (16-4, 6-2 Big 12).
Brackens and Gabby Elliott led Arizona State (17-3, 4-3) with 15 points each.
Arizona State battled back from a six-point first-quarter deficit to trail 13-12 after one. West Virginia hit three 3-pointers early in the second quarter and a layup by Sydney Woodley gave the Mountaineers a 25-15 lead with 3 1/2 minutes left in the quarter. Arizona State did not allow a point for the remainder of the half and trailed only 25-24 at halftime.
Arizona State extended the run to 13 points for a 28-25 lead a couple of minutes into the third. The Sun Devils' lead was 37-29 with about a minute remaining in the third, then West Virginia closed to within three points at the end of the quarter.
There are just 15 days until the NBA trade deadline and while this is often when talks heat up, this year is seeing some cooling as well. Here is the latest from around the league.
Jonathan Kuminga
Jimmy Butler III’s devastating ACL injury meant Jonathan Kuminga was back on the court for the Warriors on Tuesday, his first appearance in 16 games and he impressed, scoring 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting.
That, however, was not the only thing that might have changed — with the Warriors' hopes of a deep playoff run this season crushed, there is buzz that Golden State could hold on to Kuminga and package him this summer as part of a bigger trade (yes, the Warriors are watching the Giannis Antetokounmpo situation, but there are other options, too). Then there was this comment from Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy, which didn't exactly have us thinking trade.
Mike Dunleavy on the Jonathan Kuminga trade demand: “I’m aware of that. In terms of demands, when you make a demand there needs to be demand.” pic.twitter.com/XOGXj3HFrs
While there is still a good chance Kuminga gets traded before the deadline, it is no lock. Not anymore.
It's also worth noting that Dunleavy said, "I don't envision" including the injured Butler in any blockbuster trades at the deadline.
Anthony Davis
Speaking of the Warriors, don't look for them to chase Anthony Davis in a trade, something that multiple people have now reported. There is just no interest from Golden State's side, in part because taking on AD's massive salary would mean sending out Draymond Green, and in part because of the combination of that Davis contract and his injury history.
Ja Morant
Two factors may combine to keep Ja Morant in Memphis past the trade deadline.
One is that there is not much of a market for the 26-year-old two-time All-Star, something league sources confirmed to NBC Sports (and a point we have reported here before). To be clear, some teams would take a flyer on Morant if they could get him at a steal of a price, but Memphis is reportedly asking for a young player and a first-round pick as part of any deal, and that level of offer does not appear to be out there.
The second factor is that Morant is very popular in Memphis — and that matters in a small market. As Marc Stein said at The Stein Line, it would be very difficult for the Grizzlies to sell their fans the package that Atlanta got for Trae Young (the expiring contract of CJ McCollum plus rotation wing Corey Kispert). One of the lessons front offices took from the Luka Doncic trade a season ago was not to anger the core fan base, as it can cost a GM his job.
Minnesota seeking point guard
Minnesota has set out the twin goals for the trade deadline: finding a point guard and lowering its payroll tax, as reported by Brian Windhorst and Tim Bontemps at ESPN. The Timberwolves are looking at a $24 million tax bill this season.
In terms of a point guard, the Timberwolves are talking with the Bulls about a trade for one of Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu, and Tre Jones, reports Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
"Another trade partner for the Bulls to keep an eye on is the Timberwolves. They have star guard Anthony Edwards and his supporting cast of center Rudy Gobert and forwards Julius Randle, Jaden McDaniels and Naz Reid locked up for at least the next three seasons, but they have been shopping for a combo guard to play off Edwards, especially in the fourth quarter of games. The Sun-Times reported last month that the teams talked about a deal for White, but the Timberwolves also have inquired about Ayo Dosunmu and Tre Jones, too."
Toronto thinking long-term
The conventional wisdom has been that Toronto is poised to make a bold move at the trade deadline. In part, that is due to the Raptors sitting fourth in the East and wanting to be a bigger threat to the Pistons, Celtics and Knicks. The other is that GM Brian Webber is in the final year of his contract and with that needs to do something bold to keep his job. That's not what's happening on the ground, reports Michael Grange at SportsNet.
Webster is not making short-term decisions based on his contract status.
Quite the opposite. According to multiple sources, Webster and the Raptors have had exploratory discussions on a multi-year extension to his current deal with talks expected to pick up after the trade deadline.
Grange also spoke with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment president Keith Pelley (MLSE owns the Raptors).
"There is no pressure regarding the trade deadline or his contract," said Pelley. "And he is 100 per cent aware of that. The team is moving in the right direction and I'm convinced that Bobby will make the right moves, at the right time, to make us better. This team under Bobby's direction, will contend for championships."
Other trade notes:
• Maybe the team's recent slump will force them to consider a bigger move, but the buzz around the league has been that the Knicks were looking to do something smaller, shopping Guerschon Yabusele and his $5.5 million salary, as well as wing Pacome Dadiet, looking to get back some depth for their rotation. That combination of players isn't going to net the Knicks much of anything unless they sweeten the deal with a pick.
• Phoenix finally got its chemistry right this season, it's got a team that is playing hard every night and is balanced, and the front office doesn't want to mess with that. Which means the Suns will be hesitant to make a trade, reports Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic.
Phoenix is 10 games above .500 (27-27) and sits as the No. 6 seed in the West, avoiding the play-in.
• Sacramento is open to trading any of its stars — Zach LaVine, Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan — something that is not a secret but has been echoed again in recent reports, such as ESPN’s Anthony Slater calling Sabonis a "name to watch."
Before their recent winning streak put things on hold, the Clippers and Kings discussed a DeRozan and Keon Ellis for John Collins based deal, reports Michael Scotto at Hoopshype. That deal now appears dead in the water.
• Washington is looking for a possible trade partner for Kris Middleton, but with him making $33.3 million there is not much of a market and the sides could be headed for a buyout, reports Josh Robbins at The Athletic.
• Don't be surprised if Philadelphia and Dallas make some salary dump trades at the back end of their rosters before the deadline. As noted by Marc Stein, Philly wants to convert the two-way contracts of Dominick Barlow and Jabari Walker to regular contracts, but the 76ers already have 14 roster spots filled and would need to open one up to create the room. Dallas is in a similar situation with two-way guys Ryan Nembhard and Moussa Cisse, but the Mavericks don't have an open roster spot and are looking to lower their tax bill in the midst of a disappointing season.
GREAT ABACO, Bahamas (AP) — Ian Holt steadied himself at just the right time Wednesday and had a two-putt birdie on the par-5 18th hole for a 1-under 71 for a one-shot victory in the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic.
Holt, who played his college golf at Kent State, won for the first time on the Korn Ferry Tour. Just two years ago he was having to go through Monday qualifying for the PGA Tour Americas circuit.
In gusts approaching 30 mph at The Abaco Club on Winding Bay, Holt had consecutive bogeys on the back nine and was tied for the lead when he holed a nervy par putt on the 17th. He closed by reaching the 575-yard 18th in two shots to set up his two-putt birdie.
Justin Hastings of the Cayman Islands, who won the Latin America Amateur Championship a year ago to get into three majors, had a 69 and tied for second with Alistair Docherty (66).
After two weeks in the Bahamas, the Korn Ferry Tour heads to Panama and gets back on a Thursday-to-Sunday schedule.
Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Chicago Bulls Date: January 22nd, 2026 Time: 7:00 PM CST Location: Target Center Television Coverage: FanDuel Sports Network – North Radio Coverage: Wolves App, iHeart Radio
The calendar has flipped into late January, the “new year, new me” energy is gone, the gym membership card is somewhere in the couch cushions, and the Minnesota Timberwolves have somehow wandered back into the exact same neighborhood they swore they were moving out of on January 1.
For a minute there, Minnesota looked like it had actually found something. After getting embarrassed by the Nets and Hawks, the Wolves came out of the gates in 2026 like a team that finally understood the NBA doesn’t give out “we meant well” banners. They were defending, flying around, stacking wins, playing like the kind of group that could stare down anybody in the West and not blink. And then Tuesday night in Salt Lake City happened, and the whole thing collapsed in real time like a cheap folding chair.
There are no excuses to be found here. Utah was on the second night of a back-to-back. Minnesota had two days of rest. Minnesota had a double-digit lead. And the Wolves still managed to get outscored by 17 in the fourth quarter. That fourth quarter wasn’t just bad basketball. It was disinterested basketball. The kind that makes fans start doing the math on how much time they’ve donated emotionally to this franchise and whether it’s all been a tax write-off.
And the part that makes it sting is the context. The Texas losses? You can at least explain those. Houston was without Anthony Edwards, and Minnesota still had a chance to win before the free-throw line turned into a slapstick comedy routine. San Antonio came without Rudy Gobert and somehow featured a 48-point second quarter, and even then, the Wolves still crawled back and made it a game. Those were painful. But they were at least defensible on the injury report.
Utah isn’t defensible. Utah is a team lined up for the sixth pick in the draft. Utah is the team you beat by 40 when you’re serious. And yet Minnesota let a second 40-piece quarter get dropped on them in two games, melted down late, and walked to the locker room in search of some Benadryl for their defense allergy.
Now the standings do the thing they always do: they strip the narrative down to the numbers and laugh at your feelings. The Wolves are sitting in the seventh seed. All that early-January glow? The “we’re back” headlines? The OKC win? The Spurs comeback? Great memories. Would make a hell of a montage. But if the season ended today, you’re in the play-in. And the cruelest part is the West is still so tight that you’re also only three games behind the Spurs and the two seed. So yes, there’s still hope. But you know what else there is? A really clear paper trail of games the Wolves didn’t take seriously enough, and those games always come back to haunt you in April.
This is how it happens. Not in one dramatic collapse, but in a bunch of smaller ones you try to rationalize at the time. It’s the late-December no-show against Brooklyn at Target Center when you could’ve sent the fans home for the holidays happy and just… didn’t. It’s the Atlanta dud to close out 2025. It’s the Phoenix and Sacramento meltdowns that turn wins into stomach punches. And then it’s a Tuesday night in Utah where you have rest, you have a lead, and you decide that defense is optional. Those are the nights that don’t feel catastrophic in the moment… until you’re in the 4/5 bracket staring at OKC in the second round, or you’re a half-game short of home court, or — worst-case — you’re sweating a play-in game because you couldn’t be bothered to lock in against the Jazz.
So now it’s reset time. Mirror time. “What kind of team are we?” time. Because you don’t get to talk about title aspirations if you can’t handle the boring stuff. If you can’t handle January grind games. If you can’t handle the teams you’re supposed to beat.
Which brings us to Thursday night: Chicago at Target Center, where the Wolves are still undefeated at home in 2026. Maybe that means something. Maybe it’s just a fun stat that we’ll cling to like a life raft. But either way, Minnesota can’t lose a fourth straight game. Not with the standings this tight. Not with the season teetering between “two seed chase” and “play-in anxiety spiral.”
And it’s not like Chicago is showing up as a ceremonial sacrifice. The last time these teams played, the Bulls had a lead before Kobe White and Josh Giddey went down with injuries and the whole thing flipped. If Minnesota thinks it can sleepwalk through this one and get a home win by default, they’re about to learn that the NBA doesn’t do defaults. You either play like you care, or you get punched.
Keys to the Game
1. Play defense like adults. This one is not complicated. The Wolves have put together stretches recently where the defense has been downright gross. The Utah fourth quarter was the kind of defensive effort that gets you sent to the bench in middle school, except these guys are professionals playing in front of paying customers. It has to start on the perimeter. No more matador possessions where a guard gets turned around and Rudy has to clean up three mistakes at once. No more jogging through rotations. No more “we’ll flip the switch later” nonsense. You want to win? You defend the ball. You stay connected. You close out like it matters. If they can’t do that, honestly, don’t even bother with the offensive plan, because you’re not outscoring your way out of low-effort defense in the modern NBA.
2. Run an offense that actually resembles an offense. You could feel the Utah collapse coming because the offense started telegraphing it. The ball stuck. The pace died. It turned into lazy, grimy isolation possessions where everyone stands around and watches someone try to manufacture something out of nothing. That’s how you blow leads. That’s how you let teams hang around. That’s how you start missing jumpers and then stop defending because you’re mad you missed jumpers. The Wolves have too much talent for that. Move the ball. Cut. Drive with purpose. Kick out. Make the defense rotate. Make Chicago guard multiple actions instead of one guy trying to freestyle in traffic. The Wolves are at their best when the ball has energy. When it zips. When the defense is the one scrambling, not them.
3. Win the glass and control the pace. Chicago wants to run. They want to turn the game into a series of quick decisions and quick shots, and if you’re sloppy, if you don’t rebound, if you don’t get back, then suddenly you’re in a track meet you didn’t sign up for. This is where Gobert, Randle, and Reid have to impose their size. Defensive rebounds end possessions and offensive boards kill transition. If Minnesota does rebound, they can pick their moments to run their way — not chaotic, not reckless, but opportunistic. Easy baskets are the antidote to everything that went wrong in Utah. You want to avoid another late-game nightmare? Don’t spend the night giving the Bulls extra possessions and transition chances.
4. Ant and Julius have to play the right kind of “star basketball.” This is the key that connects everything. In Houston, Julius became a black hole by dribbling, pounding, forcing, and trying to win the game on brute strength while the rest of the offense suffocated around him. That can’t happen. He’s at his best when he’s a bully and a facilitator, when his gravity creates shots for others, not just bruises for himself. And with Ant, yes, you ride the heater when it’s there. His San Antonio masterpiece happened largely within the flow, and when a guy is in that zone you don’t overthink it. But the default can’t be “my turn, your turn” isolation basketball while everyone else watches. Ant has to set the tone the right way: pressure at the rim, decisive reads, and making sure the other guys feel involved enough to defend like their life depends on it.
The Finish
Look, there isn’t a ton of poetry left here. Minnesota is better than Chicago. They’re at home. They’re on a three-game skid that’s already starting to smell like one of those season-tilting slides you can never quite undo. They can’t afford to mess around.
This is the exact type of game that determines whether you’re chasing the two seed or sweating the play-in. Not because Chicago is some giant measuring stick, but because games like this are where “serious teams” separate themselves from “talented teams who like to dabble in chaos.” The Wolves have already spent enough time this season dabbling.
So Thursday has to be a line in the sand. Defend your home floor. Keep the undefeated home streak alive. Play like a team that actually wants the top half of the bracket instead of flirting with the bottom. Because if they don’t… if they come out flat again, if they sleepwalk again, if they let another winnable night leak away… then we can stop talking about the two seed and start talking about the play-in with a straight face.
The Washington Wizards will try to snap a lengthy losing skid Thursday against the Denver Nuggets at Capital One Arena.
Game info
When: Thursday, Jan, 22 at 7:00 p.m. ET
Where: Capital One Arena, Washington, D.C.
How to watch: Monumental Sports Network, League Pass
Injuries: For the Wizards, Bilal Coulibaly (back) and Tristan Vukcevic (rest) are questionable, while Trae Young (knee, quad) and Cam Whitmore (shoulder) are out.
For the Nuggets, Nikola Jokic (knee), Christian Braun (ankle), Cam Johnson (knee), and Jonas Valanciunas (calf) are out.
What to watch for
The Wizards look to end their woes against the West with a quick rematch against the Nuggets. Washington has gone 0-6 in its ongoing stretch of games against foes from the opposing conference. The matchup against Denver at home is the team’s last shot to salvage a win before finally facing an East rival again.
Kyshawn George went off against the Nuggets, when they faced off last Saturday. He tallied 29 points on 10-of-20 shooting in the contest, including 14 points in the final period to make things interesting down the stretch, but it wasn’t enough as the Wiz lost 121-115.
It’ll be interesting to see how the Nuggets adjust defensively against George, and how the second-year swingman responds.
The Knicks (25*–18) return to MSG, desperate to snap a four-game losing streak against a Nets team that has dropped seven of its last eight. New York’s recent skid has highlighted turnovers and defensive lapses, but the talent and full rotation remain intact. The Nets present an ideal opponent to turn things in a positive direction. The Knicks have dominated the rivalry, winning 12 straight against Brooklyn, including two lopsided victories earlier this season.
Tip-off is 7:30 pm EST on MSG. This is your game thread. This is Nets Daily. Please don’t post large photos, GIFs, or links to illegal streams in the thread. Be good humans. And go Knicks!
* Should be one more, but the Cup final doesn’t count.
The story had details into the sale of the team that made her look like a cutthroat businessperson who got rid of her family, and also gave her inner circle huge bonuses once the deal was finalized.
It also stated that her relationship with the franchise’s biggest star, while she’s been in charge, LeBron James, isn’t a good one.
Jeanie didn’t delay responding to this article, telling “The Athletic” that she didn’t like LeBron’s involvement in her family drama and that she appreciates the star.
Lakers governor Jeanie Buss issued this statement to @TheAthletic in response to today’s ESPN story, which includes reporting about her relationship with LeBron James.
“It’s really not right, given all the great things LeBron has done for the Lakers, that he has to be pulled…
For starters, it’s good that Jeanie said something. She could’ve just let this hang and put LeBron in the awkward position of having to speak on it, which would’ve been unfair since it was really a story about Jeanie and the Buss family.
However, how much Lakers fans agree with her words compared to the reporting will be up to public opinion.
She doesn’t have to answer for everything stated in the story, but the idea that the Lakers considered parting with LeBron isn’t too far-fetched.
In 2022, the year in which Holmes’ article indicates the Lakers considered dealing LeBron, there were reports that Phil Jackson might’ve been brought back to the Lakers and that he would want to trade James.
Now, ultimately, that didn’t happen, but there was smoke to this story before, and while LeBron was never dealt, it seems likely that the idea was at least considered.
In the NBA, countless trade conversations amount to nothing. If there was a thought from Jeanie to trade LeBron, she clearly never went through with it.
Still, that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been jealousy or envy from the Lakers about how much credit LeBron gets for the 2020 title, or how much blame he does or doesn’t get for a lack of one since.
Jeanie is working on her PR spin on this story, and her on-the-record statement is that she appreciates LeBron.
Her future actions will likely also support her claim. My guess is that Lakers fans can expect a jersey retirement for LeBron and a statue outside of Crypto.com Arena once his playing days are over.
And, even if every word in Holmes’ story is accurate, it’s not necessarily a bad thing for the Jeanie-LeBron dynamic. The Lakers’ Governor wouldn’t be the first boss, nor the last, to not appreciate what her best worker does for her organization.
The difference is that this is the Lakers, and every ounce of drama gets massive attention, making it very messy.
While Jeanie has denounced this reporting, don’t expect this story to go away anytime soon.
The Knicks are sliding and they need a win in the worst way. Enter: the Brooklyn Nets.
Brooklyn can stay the course with the tank and help both sides get what they want. A win-win. Or they can kick the enemy while they’re down; maybe remind them with every kick that the Nets control their first-round picks in 2027, 2029, and 2031, plus a 2028 first-round pick swap.
For now, we stay humble. Knicks have won nine straight against the Nets entering Wednesday.
🏀 KEY INFO
Brooklyn Nets (11–27) at New York Knicks (23–17)
When: 7:30 PM ET Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY TV: YES Network / MSG Radio: WFAN Sports
⚠️ INJURY REPORT
Highsmith: OUT – Right Knee Surgery, Injury Recovery Etienne: OUT – G League Two Way Johnson: OUT – G League Two Way Liddell: OUT – G League Two Way Saraf: OUT – G League Assignment
💬 Discussion
Share thoughts and react, but please be respectful. NetsDaily prides itself on being a safe space for Nets and basketball fans alike to have healthy conversation. Reach out to Anthony Puccio or Net Income with any issues.
Last season, the Phoenix Suns managed to turn disappointment into an art form. The most expensive roster the league has ever seen could not even sniff the Play In, let alone the postseason. A masterclass in how fast things can go sideways. Most of us have tried to memory hole that year and move on, but every so often, a new detail leaks out. Another breadcrumb. Another explanation. Another quiet “why”.
This time, it came from Brent Barry. He popped up on an episode of the No Dunks Podcast and peeled back the curtain a bit on how that team actually functioned behind the scenes. And the picture he painted helps explain how something with that much talent unraveled the way it did.
“The situation there overall, I would tell you guys, being on the inside, was it was a team that just didn’t know how to get along,” Barry stated. “They were all cordial towards one another. They all came to practice and were friendly, but it was one of those situations where you’re just not invested.”
“I thought it was going to be a slingback from what happened with Frank Vogel and the disappointment from the year before that there would be some piss and vinegar in the team and that these guys would want to show like, hey, we’ve got the highest salary in the league,” he continued. “We’ve got to figure this thing out together. Let’s use our superpowers to do that. Let’s use our superpowers for good. Unfortunately, they used them the other way and found ways to dismantle that roster. And sadly, they just didn’t commit to one another.”
“If clearly those guys don’t have a hierarchy and you’re not, as a member of the team, as a player, you’re not aware of which of the guys were leaning on the most, it confuses the rest of the team. And I think we had a lot of guys who didn’t exactly know what the expectations were. And again, this comes back to really good coaching and leadership. You have to define those for a team. And at no point did we do that for the Phoenix Suns last year.”
This was incredibly revealing. It highlights the contrast between last season and this one in bold print.
Starting with Bradley Beal, it became clear that he never fully bought into operating within a true team structure. He had been the alpha in Washington for so long that the adjustment never really took. When reports surfaced that he took offense to his head coach asking him to play more like Jrue Holiday, that told you everything you needed to know. That was a crack in the armor.
I have said it plenty of times. I liked the player. I did not like the contract or the situation. But once that detail came out, it reframed things. This was not only about fit on the court. It was about mindset. When a player resists being part of something collective, when the instinct is “me” over “we”, the whole thing starts to wobble. That mentality bleeds. And last year, it bled everywhere.
And if you take Barry’s comments one step further, they also shine a light on the challenge Kevin Durant brought with him.
You can talk all day about his greatness on the court, and none of that is up for debate. But the laissez-faire approach, the mentality of wanting to hoop and nothing else, showed up in exactly what Barry was describing. That disengagement, that singular focus, warped the hierarchy of the team and bled into the locker room. That’s the lack of investment.
With great power comes great responsibility, or at least it is supposed to. That has never really been Durant’s lane. He wants the praise. He wants the contract. He wants the freedom. He does not want the accountability that comes with steering a group. Last season made that painfully clear. When the players carrying the largest financial weight do not define or embrace their role, everyone else drifts. Structure erodes. Accountability disappears.
What you end up with is a roster full of mercenaries. Guys playing for themselves, not for each other. The coaching staff never had a chance to pull it back together because the egos were too big and the buy-in was never there. That was last year’s Suns in a nutshell.
Devin Booker was obviously part of that group too, and he even said early this season that last year was the toughest stretch of basketball he has ever lived through.
"Definitely the toughest two years of my career."
Phoenix Suns' Devin Booker discusses why the last couple of seasons were more difficult to navigate than even the lean years when winning didn't come easy.@BurnsAndGambopic.twitter.com/AgcUrJubYK
We do not know how much responsibility to pin on him for what did or did not happen, but one thing is clear. His voice was muted. Just ask Coach Bud, who, when the team was struggling, reportedly told Booker to “tone it down”. He’s not free of sin, but he’s the only one who appeared to try to vocalize the issue and was muted. When you stack that many stars together and no one clearly owns the room, even the franchise guy can get drowned out.
That is the clearest contrast to this season. This team works because everyone knows where they stand. There is a hierarchy. There is clarity.
You can hear it when guys like Jordan Goodwin, Collin Gillespie, Mark Williams, and Ryan Dunn talk on The Old Man and the Three Podcast. The reverence they have for Devin Booker. The respect they show for what Dillon Brooks brings. That stuff matters. It sets the tone. And it is a big reason why this version of the Suns feels connected in a way last year never did.
"There was a lot of noise outside last year." — Collin Gillespie + Ryan Dunn talk about the Suns this year vs. last year pic.twitter.com/OwIL7MORRH
The difference is obvious, and you see it every night on the floor. When there is a clear hierarchy behind the scenes, it shows up in how the team plays. Roles are defined. Effort lines up. Execution follows.
This team has already won 27 games. Last season, it took until February 22 to get there. 59 games. This group did it in 44. That is not coincidence. That is structure. That is buy-in. And it traces back directly to the issues Barry pointed out. When everyone knows who they are and how they fit, winning stops feeling accidental and starts feeling repeatable.
With the Houston Rockets coming to town Thursday the Sixers released their injury report and it’s filled with the usual suspects. After playing in the front end of their back-to-back earlier in the week, Joel Embiid is listed as probable. Instead of left knee injury management though the reason given in right ankle injury management, the same reason he missed that second game against the Phoenix Suns. That ankle issue has popped up on the report here and there for the past month or so, but hasn’t caused him to miss significant time.
What was surprising was Paul George missing both legs of that back-to-back, he was listed with the usual left knee injury management. The first game against the Pacers, George was ruled out right before pre-game press availability. The second against Phoenix he did make an attempt to warm-up, but was obviously ruled out for that one as well. Before the Suns game, Nick Nurse didn’t give any indication there was an attempt to stagger those two over the back-to-back.
George last appeared on Jan. 16, playing 30 minutes in a loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. He might have just needed a couple extra days off, but any further missed time should be cause for concern.
The rest of the report is rounded out by MarJon Beauchamp and Johni Broome, both doubtful on a G-League assignment. The only thing noteworthy there is that it does not include Jared McCain. He didn’t play in either of the games for the Sixers since being recalled from his second G-League assignment, though the Blue Coats don’t have another game until Jan. 24.
Houston’s injury report is fairly light as well, outside of obviously missing Fred VanVleet who tore his ACL before the season started. They’ll also be without Steven Adams who suffered an ankle injury two games back.
The freshman class during the 2025-26 men’s college basketball season has been one of the best in years, headlined by projected NBA lottery picks who are making enormous impacts for NCAA Tournament-bound teams.
BYU’s AJ Dybantsa and Duke’s Cameron Boozer are two of the top five leading scorers in the sport this season, and are among the small handful of favorites for various national player of the year awards while leading top-15 teams. Caleb Wilson has been a revelation for North Carolina, a rangy 6-foot-10 forward who’s averaging nearly 20 points and 10 rebounds per game.
Despite missing nearly half the season thus far with a nagging injury, Darryn Peterson, the No. 1 player in the class, has been as good as advertised for Kansas, averaging 21.6 points per game. Even players nowhere near the top of the recruiting rankings have thrived, such as Stanford’s Ebuka Okorie, who is ninth among all Division I players in scoring despite being the No. 119 prospect in 247Sports’ rankings coming out of high school.
This week, one of the top recruits from that class is set to make his long-awaited college debut.
Alijah Arenas, a 6-foot-6 guard who was the No. 10 player in 247’s rankings of the 2025 recruiting class, is set to make his college debut on Wednesday, Jan. 21 when his USC team hosts Northwestern.
Arenas had been sidelined since July, when he suffered a torn meniscus during a summer practice that ultimately kept him out six months. The injury came three months after Arenas was in an April car wreck that put him in a coma.
He’ll return to a USC team that’s 14-4 in its second season under coach Eric Musselman, but could use the contributions of his talent and versatility. After a 12-1 start to the season, the Trojans have dropped three of their past five games, though each loss came against teams ranked in the top 10 of the latest USA TODAY Sports Caches Poll.
As he prepares for his first college game, here’s a closer look at Arenas:
Are Alijah Arenas, Gilbert Arenas related?
If Arenas’ last name seems familiar, especially for a standout basketball player, there’s a good reason for it.
Arenas is the son of three-time NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas. His father’s not the only athlete in the family, either: Alijah Arenas' mother, Laura Govan, played basketball at New Mexico State from 1999-2001 and his older sister, Izela, is a former top-100 recruit who is a sophomore guard at Kansas State.
Arenas is one of several freshmen in college basketball this season who are the sons of former NBA stars. Duke’s Cameron and Cayden Boozer are the sons of two-time NBA All-Star and Olympic gold medalist Carlos Boozer, who also played for the Blue Devils.
Kiyan Anthony, the No. 32 recruit in the 2025 class, is a freshman guard at Syracuse, where his father, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony, won a national championship as a freshman in 2003. Georgia’s Jake Wilkins is also following in the footsteps of his father, playing for the same Bulldogs program that Dominique Wilkins suited up for before being enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Alijah Arenas high school
Arenas attended Chatsworth High School in California, where he scored 3,002 points in just three seasons to become the No. 14 career scorer in California boys’ high school basketball history.
His high school production helped him get selected for the 2025 McDonald’s All-American Game.
Last July, USC announced that Arenas had suffered a knee injury during a practice that required surgery and was projected to sideline him for six to eight months.
"Alijah is a tremendous worker, teammate, competitor, and person," Musselman said at the time. "He is understandably disappointed that he will not be able to take the court to start the season, but his health is our No. 1 priority. We have no doubt that he will come back even stronger. We look forward to supporting him during this process."
Arenas recovered quickly, as his return to game action will come fewer than six full months since the injury occurred.
It wasn’t the only setback Arenas endured last year. Last April in Reseda, California, Arenas lost control of his Tesla Cybertruck and crashed into a fire hydrant and tree. The car caught on fire, but Arenas was able to get out through the driver’s side window with the help of two onlookers. He was transported to a local hospital and placed in a coma. When he came out of the coma one day later, he was unable to speak.
By June, he was able to rejoin the team for practice.
"Seeing my teammates has really motivated me a lot to push forward and keep up with the team," Arenas said in June. "When I got out of the hospital, I was already thinking about the team...My work ethic hasn't changed. I still workout every morning."
Arenas is 18 years old and will turn 19 on March 16. He was originally set to be in the 2026 recruiting class before reclassifying to the 2025 class in December 2024.
