Category: Basketball

Celtics Mailbag: Legit contenders? Areas to improve, and more originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

It’s been a frenetic and emotional — at least after all the hype in the build-up to Tuesday’s visit to see old friend Jaylen Brown and the Philadelphia 76ers  — start to the 2026-27 season for the Boston Celtics. 

Still, Boston arrived at its first extended break of the new campaign with an Eastern Conference-best 10-2 record. So how should we feel about that?

That was the biggest question when we asked a bunch of our Celtics group chats to send over their biggest queries through the first 12 games of the season. 

So let’s rip open the Celtics Mailbag for the first time this season. We’ll get into what the two losses exposed, what Brad Stevens might actually need to shop for, and what the headband colors are telling us.

But we start with the question that gets a little harder to brush off with every win: 

Have the Celtics established themselves as legitimate contenders through 12 games?

Look, it’s probably too early to make wholesale declarations about what this team is capable of when the postseason arrives. Even after dealing away Brown, many pundits suspected the Celtics would be a very good regular-season team. But it’s hard to argue with the early season numbers, including …

• Boston is 10-2 overall, best record in the East
• Ranks second in net rating (+13.4)
• Ranks top 10 in defensive (second, 105.6) and offensive (sixth, 117.4) rating
• A +12.2 point differential suggests a team on a 67-win pace
• 5-0 at home
• 10-1 against the conference
• 8-0 against teams under .500

The not-so-glossy numbers: 

• Celtics are 2-2 against teams over .500
• Boston ranks 26th in strength of schedule

The best teams each season tend to take care of business at home and feast on inferior competition. You can only play the schedule as it’s drawn up. We’d feel better if Boston hadn’t fumbled away a 22-point lead in Detroit on opening night, or shown a little bit better in Houston despite playing on the second night of a back-to-back. 

Basically, we’d sum it up like this: If you said the Celtics were going to be 10-2 after 12 games to start the season, particularly with three sets of back-to-backs and some crazy early season travel, we’d probably have taken it. Boston has only scratched the surface of its full potential, but there’s some very encouraging early trends, including Jayson Tatum’s play, Paul George’s availability, and positive contributions throughout the supporting cast.

Can we revisit the contender/pretender talk around Christmas?

What should be on Brad Stevens’ early-season shopping list?

We’ve seen a lot of way-too-early chatter about Boston’s trade needs, probably from people who put their Christmas tree up on November 1. We’re not judging you, but we’re kinda judging you.

One thing we do think is really important to keep in mind when we get closer to December 15 and the unofficial start of NBA trade season: The Celtics have heavy motivation to remain under the luxury tax for a second straight season, which would reset pesky repeater penalties and give Stevens an opportunity to potentially splurge a bit next summer.

The Celtics currently sit less than $2 million below the tax line, meaning something as simple as filling the vacant 15th roster spot would stress their budget. There’s still pathways to bigger tinkering, but it would likely require sending out some of Boston’s non-minimum salaries to add an impact player.

We do think that, given the glut of wing talent and only so many minutes to go around, even in instances where the Celtics prioritize rest for veteran players, there should be consideration of consolidating if a particular need exists elsewhere on the roster closer to February. 

The roster, otherwise, is about as balanced as the Celtics have been in recent seasons. We wouldn’t suggest there’s an obvious need through 12 games. Some will lust for players that either 1) Put pressure on the rim or 2) Can simply take stress off the Tatum/George combo. Alas, those players routinely command salaries that Boston would struggle to absorb, even if willing to move on from core talent.

The bigger priority right now should be getting Mitchell Robinson comfy here, and figuring out the youngest players the team should lean into.

Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Did Detroit and Houston expose anything that Boston needs to get better at?

Good teams narrow your margin for error. So the Celtics might be able to survive their miscues and steal an overtime win against the Nets, but lose your way for six minutes against Detroit, then you’ve fumbled away a 22-point lead and the game.

We could playfully distill it down to Boston thriving whenever there’s not a Thompson twin on the other side of the court. But what that probably suggests is that, when there are defenders that can challenge Tatum, it certainly puts a greater stress on the supporting cast to shoulder the scoring load.

In those instances, the Celtics need Payton Pritchard and Derrick White to be great, even against teams that might have the size and physicality to make both guards uncomfortable.

That said, Boston acquitted itself well in wins over New York and Philly, two teams with incredibly skilled starting fives. The schedule gets a bit more challenging through the end of November, though Boston might benefit from the fact that opponents will be dealing with some schedule difficulty or managing injuries.

A little end-of-the-month NBA Cup showdown with Atlanta should be fun, and there’s a visit to Wemby and the Spurs right after. If the Celtics qualify for Cup quarterfinals (or beyond), we’ll learn a bit more about how this team fares against top-level competition.

Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

If a playoff series started tomorrow, which young wing would you trust most?

The answer here is Baylor Scheierman. One of the stories we have in draft mode is basically how even with all these crazy analytics we pour over every day, we still can’t properly quantify Scheierman’s impact. If you could lead the league in “being in the right spot on both ends of the floor,” we think he’d be among the league leaders. If you could quantify a higher-level hustle play — breaking up an alley-oop attempt with a deflection out of bounds, or starting a fast break by passing from the floor after recovering a loose ball — then Scheierman’s stat line would pop a bit more. His basketball IQ is simply off the charts, and it makes him super impactful even when he’s not shooting (though his 3-point percentage might beg that he hoist even a few more).

Hugo Gonzalez has had his moments. He was insanely active in that Philadelphia game. He’s defending 22 shots per 100 possessions when he’s on the court, which ranks in the 99th percentile for his position. Opponents are shooting 7.1 percent below expected on the shots he does defend, one of the best marks among all Boston players. You can make a strong case that Boston should continue to accelerate Gonzalez’s development by carving out even more minutes for him.

Jordan Walsh has benefited from his starting minutes, and the confidence is growing on the offensive end. The Celtics have a real luxury with their wing depth but, when the games really matter in the postseason, we’d probably yearn to see Scheierman and Gonzalez dominating those minutes.

Who’s getting to the rim when Jayson Tatum sits?

The Celtics rank dead last in the NBA with only 51.1 drives and 25 drive points generated per game. This is not wholly unexpected. You trade away Jaylen Brown, and you’ve got Tatum still learning to trust his body to attack the basket, and that number was always going to project low with a roster built heavy on 3-point shooting.

What it does demand is that, regardless of opponent, the Celtics need Payton Pritchard in attack mode. He’s second on the team with 11.8 drives per game (Tatum is at 14.5). The encouraging number: Pritchard is shooting 46.7 percent on 3.8 field goal attempts off drives per game, and generating 1.2 assists off drives per game. The Celtics simply need him and Derrick White (8.8 drives per game) to put pressure on the rim regardless of Tatum’s on-court status. White seems to have found his floater, which is a very encouraging sign. 

The Celtics don’t need to drive just to drive. But we know how important paint touches can be to creating opportunities for shooters. It’s something to monitor, especially if the team downshifts and settles for perimeter looks when the offense sputters. That’s when they need to embrace attack mode a bit more.

Can Paul George be the No. 2 on a contending team at age 36?

George is putting together an All-Defense-caliber season as one of the league leaders in deflections and steals. He’s 11th in the East in scoring at 22 points per game. Would it be wild to suggest he’s an early All-Star candidate based on Boston’s hot start and the way his two-way impact has helped fuel it?

We’ll see how his body holds up over 82 games. George surely was one of the best players on the floor when Philly rallied out of a 3-1 series hole against Boston last season, though the late-game suspension likely aided his body in being ready for that grind. It’s slightly ambitious to ask him to do that over multiple rounds.

The positive outlook would be that the Celtics know full well how to bring their veterans along. Even if he’s not on the full Al Horford plan in terms of rest, the Celtics will give George every opportunity to keep the body fresh over the regular-season grind.

Slice up the hierarchy however you like, but it’s clear that everyone behind Tatum needs to be locked in and consistent for this team to thrive against high-level competition.

Boston Celtics

Biggest concern(s) through the early portion of the Celtics schedule?

We’re admittedly nitpicking here given the strong start, but it’s pretty undeniable that the Celtics have to figure out how to get the best version of Mitchell Robinson on the floor.

Whether Robinson is simply ramping himself up after New York’s long championship season, or if it’s simply navigating some bumps in the acclimation process, Robinson just hasn’t been as impactful as even in smaller bursts through camp and preseason.

The fact that Neemias Queta and Luka Garza have both put up some of the best on-court numbers for the team so far this season has given the team some ability to figure things out with Robinson. Teammates gotta get better at lobs — though they’ve looked good when they work. We’d like to see Robinson crank up the motor and create post-up opportunities in transition like we’ve seen in small glimpses. We have to think he won’t smoke as many close-range putbacks as he has through the early portion of the schedule.

It goes back to the overarching conversation here: The Celtics are built to be regular-season monsters. The question is, how do they transition that success and thrive in the postseason?

Some of that might simply be Tatum being great on the big stage. Some of it is making sure that players in the top six of the rotation — from Robinson to White to Pritchard — are playing their best basketball on that stage, too. There’s a lot of time to work it all out. 

Nerdiest stat in your spreadsheet to start the season?

The Celtics have worn white headbands in 10 of their 12 games. The green and black headbands are undefeated (1-0 apiece), but the white headband has brought out the best individual numbers from players like Scheierman. The NBA now mandates that players all wear the same color headband, so we suspect the colorful ones might be a bit rarer for players this season.

‘Hard to win': Simons, Walker carry Portland lessons into Sixers roles originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Anfernee Simons and Jabari Walker shared the floor for 128 games in Portland. The Trail Blazers won 43 of them.

They sat beside one another in the Sixers’ interview room Thursday night after a victory and discussed what the other 85 taught them.

“Whether you’ve got a big role or a small role, it’s hard to win in the NBA,” Simons said. “We’ve seen it firsthand.”

Their roles were considerably different then.

Simons was an established starter entrusted with creating and scoring. Walker, a 2022 second-round pick, was trying to establish himself in a rotation. During their three overlapping seasons, Portland went 33-49, 21-61 and 36-46. The Blazers missed the playoffs each year.

Both are now reserves on a Sixers team constructed to contend. In nine games they’ve both appeared in this season, Philadelphia is 7-2.

They provided 26 points, 11 rebounds and six three-pointers in the Sixers’ 123-112 win over the Raptors at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Simons scored 17 points and shot 5 for 6 from three-point range. Walker recorded nine points and eight rebounds, including four on the offensive glass.

The Sixers outscored Toronto by 24 points during Simons’ 23 minutes. Neither former Blazer committed a turnover.

Their production helped Philadelphia overcome a 17-point first-quarter deficit and improve to 10-3 without LeBron James.

“You learn once you come off the bench to kind of read the game before you get in there,” Simons said. “Obviously, we started off kind of slow. You just want to go in, bring some energy, get some stops, get out and run. I think everybody who got off the bench brought energy.”

Simons supplied an immediate lift with a deep three-pointer at the first-quarter buzzer. His shot ended an 8-0 Sixers run and trimmed Toronto’s lead to nine.

He remained involved during an 11-0 burst late in the third quarter, knocking down a three and setting up Walker for a basket. Walker then made a three early in the fourth before Simons scored on the Sixers’ next possession.

When Toronto pulled within six with less than five minutes remaining, Simons answered with his fifth three-pointer.

Making those shots is the most obvious way Simons can help a roster already featuring James, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Jaylen Brown. He said the Sixers have not made him feel as though every opportunity must go in.

“They encourage us to keep shooting the ball,” Simons said. “Knowing that a team has that much confidence in us to keep shooting makes the game that much easier. Whether you miss or make, as long as we get the right shots in the right moments, I think everybody can live with the misses and makes.”

Simons spent seven seasons in Portland before playing last year with Boston and Chicago. His move to Philadelphia reunited him with Walker and Rayan Rupert, another former Blazer who joined the Sixers on a two-way contract during the offseason.

Knowing familiar faces awaited him helped Simons enter another new locker room.

“It made the transition seamless,” he said. “Just being able to have some comfortability with guys that I played with for multiple years. It’s been fun, kind of feeling like a little bit of old times. Me, Bari and Rups have been through a lot.”

Walker’s path to Philadelphia began a year earlier and required an additional step.

After playing 188 games over three seasons with Portland, Walker signed a two-way contract with the Sixers in July 2025. He earned a standard contract in February and has since pushed his way into the backup-center conversation despite standing 6-foot-7.

Walker believes some of the work he did on losing teams was easily missed.

“When I first got to the league, I was part of a rebuilding process,” he said. “I just felt like some of the little things I did didn’t always get noticed when you’re losing. I told myself, if I ever got to be part of a winning organization, then I’d go out and expand my abilities.”

Rebounding has made Walker difficult for Nick Nurse to overlook.

Walker credited his timing and strong hands to lessons passed down by his father, former NBA center Samaki Walker. Those instincts have become especially useful while the Sixers piece together their frontcourt behind Embiid.

“Rebounding is a skill I kind of honed in on,” Walker said. “My dad was a good rebounder. He was known for his rebounding and his timing. I think it’s just a gift that he transferred to me.”

Walker has made it clear that he expected to earn a role this season.

“I don’t know if I was delusional, but I always felt like I was going to play and I was going to be a part,” he said. “I read something where they said it’s a surprise, but if you were around me this summer, it wouldn’t be a surprise. This is expected, and I just want to continue to get better.”

The freedom Simons once had in Portland is no longer necessary. Walker does not need a high volume of touches, either. Both understand that playing beside the Sixers’ stars requires shooting when open, moving the ball and handling the less glamorous work.

“You’ve got to find ways to impact the game multiple ways, even if you’re not scoring,” Simons said. “Whether it’s cutting, making the right read and pass to Joel, being the right swing pass to VJ, boxing out on defense or just being in the right position.”

Their opportunities will fluctuate. Simons may take nine shots one night and only a few the next. Walker’s minutes will depend on matchups and the health of Philadelphia’s frontcourt.

Winning has changed what they are being asked to do. Their three years together in Portland taught them why the adjustment is worthwhile.

“You feel appreciative of the times where you go into a situation where your role might be a little bit less, but you’re winning,” Simons said. “That’s something you can’t take for granted.”

While the Los Angeles Clippers seem to be seeing strides made by some of their other injured players, Bradley Beal doesn’t appear to be on the same trajectory.

Beal is exactly one year removed from having undergone season-ending surgery to repair his fractured hip. The three-time All-Star’s hip has been cleared, but Beal remains on the injury report with right knee inflammation.

Beal has continued to serve as “a veteran leader” who spends time talking with the young guys, but when he will be able to get back on the court remains undecided.

“Every time we get him on the court to do something three days in a row, then it's like, it's not good results,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue told reporters on Nov. 12.

Beal averaged just 8.2 points, 1.7 assists, and 0.8 rebounds in his six games played last season before his injury.

For his career, Beal has averaged 21.4 points, 4.3 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game through 14 seasons.

Beal re-signed with the Clippers as a free agent in August to a two-year deal worth $13.2 million. The deal has a player option for the second year.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Clippers' Bradley Beal still sidelined, getting 'not good results' in ramp-up

Do you remember the last time the Minnesota Timberwolves played basketball?

Since the Wolves last played, the Minnesota football team got flat-out embarrassed on national television, then went through all five stages of grief before building a time machine that sent them back to the days of Kirk Cousins, and now, in one fell swoop, has gone from pumpkins to the NFL’s new belle of the ball.

And somewhere in the midst of all of this, Joan Beringer is officially no longer a teenager and is starting to go gray.

I’m not saying having no Wolves games is responsible for any of this, or that if we had played sooner, maybe Beringer wouldn’t have had to have a birthday (is that how that works?). I’m not saying that! But man, does it feel good to finally have this team back on the court and on our screens again. 

In their first game back in eons, the Wolves laced up and faced off against a team in the Dallas Mavericks that seems to be fast-tracking a soft rebuild. On paper, both teams are pretty evenly matched in several categories, namely FG% (DAL #4, MIN #5), turnovers (DAL #10, MIN #11), and steals (DAL #14, MIN #15), so the Wolves needed to win the possession battle.

Certainly, the Mavericks would be up for the challenge, so it would stand to reason that this would be a challenging game for the Wolves. Right?

Right?

Wrong

To start the game, Jonathan Kuminga was on a torrid pace, muscling to the basket for a lay-up and cutting to the rim for a dunk off a beautiful find by LaMelo Ball, who proceeded to find Jaden McDaniels on a similar play a few possessions later.

The Mavericks settled in and muddied the game as the quarter went on. At the 5:16 mark, TJ Shannon subbed in, and PJ Washington proceeded to bully him to the rim for an and-one. This was a great quarter for Washington, as he finished with 10 points in the quarter.

Perhaps an accurate distillation of the rest of the game, though, is that those 10 points would be it for Washington, and the Mavs 24-19 lead would soon be relinquished and gone for good.

Ayo Dosunmu and the bench mob of Bones Hyland, Jaylen Clark, Trey Lyles, and Joan Beringer burst the Wolves out of the mud like the Snoats brothers in “Raising Arizona”, spurring an 11-0 run that got the crowd dancing on their feet. After a couple of free throws by Naji Marshall to stop the run, a Gobert offensive rebound off a missed Dosunmu corner three allowed the Wolves to close out the quarter with this Clark nuke.

The second quarter saw more of the same for the Wolves. After a sloppy turnover by Dosunmu led to a corner three by Zaccharie Risacher, the Wolves had given up 15 points off of six turnovers. Those numbers would balloon to 25 and 11 by the end of the first half, and it wouldn’t matter.

Because everything else was aces.

Dosunmu continues to truck along as Mr. Consistency, a perfect cog in the absence of Anthony Edwards. He finished the half with 12 points by doing what he does best: being an absolute bully out on the break.

As for Ball, he was unconscious from deep, and finding cutters left and right. Much has been said about his fit with Gobert, and there were still a couple of miscues on the Ball-Gobert feed tonight. Near the end of the half, though, Ball slipped into the paint as the ball guided him around. He faked once, and then floated the ball up for a Gobert slam.

It was a thing of beauty, and exactly why sticking to the process matters.

Going into this game, Ball’s assist-to-turnover ratio (1.62) wasn’t pretty to look at, but for the most part, I don’t mind it. 

The way I see it is that they are mostly a statistical fallout of process-driven stuff that should temper with time. Some of the results might be an eyesore for box score perusers, but I love the process. I love that Ball is not afraid to continue to funnel the ball into Rudy, even if his individual numbers risk taking a hit. The box score won’t tell the whole story. It seldom does. But Ball’s commitment to the process should pay dividends as the season bears itself out.

Minnesota scored 33 points in the second quarter. LaMelo Ball created 18 of those points (10 with his scoring and 8 with his assists).

He was — once again — in total command. Has been the case consistently over the last four.

— Charlie Walton (@CharlieWaltonMN) November 13, 2026

The Wolves would go into halftime leading 67-52. And then…

It got fun. Real fun.

Ball continued his unconscious streak from long-range, followed by a Dosunmu transition trey. Dusty May would call a timeout not even two minutes into the second half to try to stop the bleeding. That worked just as well as trying to stop a Beringer nosebleed.

The Wolves were playing loose and fast. McDaniels was gliding down the court for barely contested lay-ins. Kuminga was hitting threes, and the lead would soar to 32 points midway through the third after McDaniels was blocked, got the ball back, and then threw down a vicious slam.

Right before the McDaniels sequence, Beringer re-entered the game with a clear mask (!). Before the mask change, Beringer had zero points and zero blocks. After the mask change: 13 points and three blocks. Need I say more? That new mask is magic.

Although there were times through the third where it looked more like a horse race at Canterbury, with players running around with their manes on fire, any and all sloppy play was a moot point, and the Mavericks would end up waving the white flag before the third quarter had even concluded.

The fourth quarter was mostly a non-event because of the score (Wolves 103 – Mavericks 69 at the end of the third), outside of a Gobert and-one off a Kuminga miss (where he converted on the free throw!) and a smooth jump hook by the magic-masked-man Beringer, but I wanted to shout out Isaiah Evans on his first official points in the NBA.

I know it was on a goal-tend, but still, a milestone is a milestone.

And a shout-out to Jon “Boog” Sciambi on the call tonight, his first Wolves game of the season. I know he is beloved in Wrigleyville as the play-by-play announcer for the Chicago Cubs. As a Twins fan, I hold no ill will towards the Cubs. It’s that other team on the South Side that I have problems with.

In the end, the Wolves were able to completely stifle Cooper Flagg for 12 points on just 5-12 shooting. Seeing the Wolves, he was probably having nightmares about his last game against them, when he went 5-19 for 12 points. I guess this game was an improvement? Baby steps, teenager. Baby steps.

The Wolves were also able to silence Kyrie Irving, who up until now had looked rejuvenated and was outperforming his career shooting splits across the board.

Caleb Martin just about doubled his scoring average (seven points tonight). He should be proud of that.

But this was perhaps the Wolves’ best all-around effort in this season’s infancy. Off a long break against a good team, Target Center was rocking, and from start to finish, it was just a rollicking good time.

79-3.

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Quick! Say something nice about the Mavericks!

Right now, the Mavericks have 13 guys logging double-digit minutes. It’s clear that Dusty May and his coaching staff have spent the early part of this season seeing what works and what doesn’t. I’d expect the rotations to get tighter as the season wears on, as players fill out their roles and the overall numbers flesh out into something a bit more comprehensive. So far, though, May has struck a good balance of thinking big picture while still keeping his team competitive on a nightly basis. 

In a fairly perforated coaching pipeline, May’s seamless transition from college to the NBA has been nothing short of impressive. I was late to the magic of May, only first hearing about him last year as the coach of the eventual national champion Michigan Wolverines. Chalk it up to object permanence on my part, but I know who he is now, and it’s almost as if he was built in a lab to know ball and coach ball. 

Yesterday also marked the one-year anniversary of the Mavericks dumping disgraced GM and possible secret Los Angeles Lakers operative Nico Harrison. Going from Harrison to Masai Ujiri seems to have stabilized this organization. Finally, adults have returned to the table.

Enmities from the 2024 WCF aside, I’m happy for Mavericks fans. 

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Game Highlights

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Up Next

The Timberwolves continue their eight-game homestand on Saturday, as Chicago O’Hare International Airport’s Bulls fly into Target Center. O’Hare ranks first as the busiest airfield in the world. Meanwhile, their team ranks first in a bunch of categories you’d rather not rank first in. Liftoff is at 7:00 PM CT on DAZN-MN and NBA League Pass.

Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Dončić had an injury scare against the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday, Nov. 11.

Dončić suffered a right ankle injury with 4:25 left in the game after landing on Kyle Kuzma while attempting a shot. The point guard was awarded a foul and attempted his free throws before leaving for the locker room.

Coach JJ Redick stated after the game that Dončić had an ankle "tweak."

"I'm good," said Dončić, who finished with 32 points. "Obviously painful a little bit, but I'll be fine."

ESPN's Shams Charania reported Thursday that Dončić "actually woke up with no pain.

"He's feeling good. He will go through his normal treatment process," Charania said.

Dončić is expected to play against the Phoenix Suns in the Lakers' next game on Nov. 15.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lakers' Luka Dončić 'feeling good' after injury scare, per report

The Phoenix Suns led 48-31 halfway through the second quarter, and it looked like they were on their way to another stress-free win against a depleted Charlotte Hornets team. Without the franchise cornerstone players Kon Knueppel and Brandon Miller, and with a superb stretch from the Suns bench, the Hornets looked dead in the water, but ultimately fought back and made this game a slog for the final two and a half quarters for the Suns, who won 101-96.

Two things were apparent in this game: the Phoenix Suns could not rebound, and the Charlotte Hornets could not stop turning the basketball over. The Hornets outrebounded the Suns 64-to-43 and outscored the Suns 16-7 in second-chance points. The Suns forced 27 Hornets turnovers (each Hornets starter had at least four turnovers) while the Suns committed eight turnovers. So the rebounding numbers are skewed in favor of the Hornets because they had 13 fewer shots on goal than the Suns did. However, 22 Suns defensive rebounds compared to 15 Hornets offensive rebounds is not getting the job done at all for a Suns team that can be much better than they have been this season at rebounding.

Because the Suns could not rebound the ball and play as fast as they needed to get the offense going, the game became a half-court slog in the second half. The Suns shot 13-for-42 from the 3-point line, and a lot of the looks that went in on Tuesday did not fall for the Suns against the Hornets. Overall, the Suns were 41% from the field, and only one player had a field goal percentage higher than 50%. Devin Armani Booker scored 30 points on 12-of-20 shooting, 4-for-8 from the 3-point line, and had seven assists with just two turnovers. He made every big shot for Phoenix in clutch time, including a deep dagger 3 with 23 seconds left to give the Suns a decisive six-point lead.

All eyes were on Miles Bridges, Grayson Allen, and Royce O’Neale in this game because of the Bridges trade that happened this offseason. Bridges scored 11 points, grabbed six rebounds, and had three assists, and was effective playing with the bench units, but continued to struggle to make an impact with the starting group. Allen scored 14 points, while O’Neale scored 7 points, all coming in the fourth quarter. The Hornets were led by Coby White, who scored 21 points but did not play in the fourth quarter due to what appeared to be a minutes restriction. That certainly helped the Suns win this game, because White was getting wherever he wanted against the Suns’ defense.

A win is a win, but the Suns’ starting unit continued to not find any type of consistency in this game. The best stretches of basketball continue to come from this team at the beginning of the second and fourth quarters when there are at least four bench players in. The Suns closed the game with a Booker-Luke Kennard-Jordan Goodwin-Dillon Brooks-Oso Ighodaro lineup, while Jalen Green played just 21 minutes and none in the final quarter.

Green’s continuing to show growth in the areas the Suns need him to grow in, but the fit with everyone else on the roster continues to be a problem, and the trust in him is obviously dwindling as he continues to not see minutes in fourth quarters. The Suns’ record is now 5-6, and sometime in the near future they are going to have to change the starting lineup if it continues to look this disconnected.

Game Flow

First Half 

All eyes were on Miles Bridges, Grayson Allen, and Royce O’Neale to start this game, and it was Grayson Allen who got things going for the Hornets early, connecting on a pair of triples. The Suns’ defense lacked focus and gave up multiple wide-open layups and threes early, with Coby White hitting a wide-open 3 in semi-transition to go up 15-10. Jordan Ott called a timeout and subbed out Bridges for Ryan Dunn. The Suns’ energy immediately changed on that end of the floor, as they quickly jumped on the Hornets defensively, leading to a 7-0 run engineered by Jalen Green knocking down two free throws and a corner 3 off of Suns stops. 

There were two big takeaways from the Suns’ first quarter: defense forced 10 turnovers and Devin Booker’s pull-up 3-point shooting. Booker was dialed in, scoring 13 points on 3-of-4 shooting from 3. His comfort level shooting from long range continues to grow, and it is opening up everything for the rest of his game. The Suns led by six to end the first quarter because the Hornets did just enough on the offensive glass to stay in it, down 28-22 after one.

The Suns bench took over in the second quarter because of their hustle and tenacity on both ends of the floor. Jordan Goodwin forced multiple turnovers, leading to a wide-open dunk for Bridges and free throws off of an excellent out-of-bounds play. Collin Gillespie got free for multiple long-range bombs that went in as the Suns pushed their six-point lead out to 15 four minutes into the second quarter, 46-31.

The Suns led by as much as 17 before putting the starters back in, but there was some slippage. The Hornets went on a 14-2 run to cut the Suns’ lead to 50-43. A couple of defensive breakdowns and Bridges fouling Grant Williams on a 3-point shot, leading to a 4-point play, were the catalysts for the Hornets getting back into the game. Williams scored 9 points in the second period, and another Allen 3 got the Hornets’ deficit down to five at halftime, 55-50.

Even though the Suns were out-rebounded 28-to-15, the Suns still won the possession battle because the Hornets had 15 turnovers compared to the Suns’ three total turnovers in the first half. The two worst stretches of the game came when the majority of the Suns’ starters were on the floor, as they continued to get in their own way of being a good team. 

Second Half

The Suns’ sloppiness from the starters continued to start the second half. As the Hornets jumped out to a 12-to-4 run to start the third quarter, the Suns’ poor offensive flow led to easy shots and even more offensive rebounds for the Hornets, who led 62-59 with 8:22 left to play in the third. Since the Suns’ 17-point second-quarter lead, the Suns were outscored 31-to-11 across both halves, and Coby Whites 19 points up to that point were a big reason why. 

For the rest of the quarter, the Suns started to play better once Dunn, Gillespie and Maluach checked in for Ighodaro, Bridges and Green. But the Hornets responded immediately after two tough Booker midrange buckets. Both teams finished the quarter cold from the field, but Christian Anderson’s solid play off the bench for the Hornets put the Hornets up 76-72 after three quarters. The Suns continued to look allergic to rebounding and playing consistent, mistake-free defense, and now a game that was once in cruise control completely slipped away from them. At no point should Jalen Green ever lead the Suns in rebounding with four total rebounds after three quarters. 

It wasn’t the prettiest 11-3 run ever to start the fourth quarter, but the Suns bench just never relents on their pressure. It started with the Suns grabbing a defensive rebound and a Bridges dunk in transition. The Suns attacked the rim and glass early in the quarter, capped off by a Gillespie midrange pull-up after a travel from Reid. Next play, the Suns force a turnover, Gillespie misses another midrange shot, but Goodwin chases down the rebound and lobs it up to Ighodaro to give the Suns an 83-79 lead. 

The Suns continued to string together good possessions for the most part but could not create much separation. Luke Kennard scored multiple midrange shots, and a Gillespie drive-and-dump off to Maluach should have ended in a dunk, but he mishandled it, and O’Neale sprayed in a triple on the other end. 

Booker, Brooks, and Ighodaro checked and left Goodwin and Kennard in. After Williams got open for a layup, Booker found Goodwin for an open 3 that just rimmed out. Booker connected on a midrange jump shot to give the Suns a three-point lead. The Suns continued to get multiple stops, and finally a Brooks 3-point shot gave the Suns a 92-86 lead. 

The Suns and Hornets traded multiple empty possessions until Reid broke the seal with a 3 of his own, but Booker responded with a tough floater in the lane to get the Suns back up five with one minute to play. A cutting Diabate layup on the other end got it right back to a one-possession game with the Suns up 94-91. Then it was Devin Booker time as he hit a deep, deep 3-point pull with 23 seconds left to give Phoenix a decisive six-point lead. That is, until Brooks fouled O’Neale on a 3-point shot, which, of course, went in for the four-point play. 

The Suns inbounded the basketball to Booker. He quickly passed it back to Bridges, who was fouled by Allen, and he made both free throws. Then Booker poetically stole an Allen pass for the Hornets’ 27th turnover of the night, and sank both free throws as the Suns went on to win 101-96.

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Up Next

The Phoenix Suns finish up their homestand with the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday afternoon. 

There are sports movies, there are even some good sports movies. And then there is Hoosiers.

As a basketball romantic you are definitely not flipping the channel when old ball coach Norman Dale a.k.a. Gene Hackman drives his 1951 Chevy Styleline Deluxe through the backwoods of Indiana all the way to the little town of Hickory, where he hopes to find a new life, new love and redemption. You let yourself be mesmerized by Angelo Pizzo’s and David Anspaugh’s timeless fairytale, by the very essence of “Hoosier Hysteria,” the beautiful yet tragic tribulations of high school sports, the rough, simple charm of small town America. And you enjoy every second of it, despite a rather predictable underdog story unfolding in front of your eyes that Hollywood has repeated many times over.

The current Indiana Pacers would kill for some of that predictability, the kind they expected going into this season. After a surprising Finals berth in 2025, their following year was doomed by Tyrese Haliburton’s ruptured Achilles. They punted on the next campaign and thought, with their point guard’s return, everything would return normal; that the half-court offense would run smooth as a “picket fence;” and that the jumpers would automatically fall like the ones by Jimmy Chitwood. But Haliburton (unfortunately) isn’t as quiet nor as down to earth as Mr. Chitwood, nor is an NBA season comparable to a Hollywood movie. It’s a lot more complicated than that.

The Pacers are finding that out the hard way. It only took testy Tyrese a handful of games until he got injured again (it’s a hamstring now) and his team sorely misses the All Star as their 4-8 record puts them in the lower region of the Eastern Conference. On Friday against the New York Knicks, Haliburton will also be reduced to trolling from the sidelines, and he won’t be able to right the wrongs that have plagued his squad so far this season. It’s a huge advantage for Mike Brown’s men as Haliburton is the straw that stirs the Apple Cider for Indiana. Most of their strategy revolves around his talent, his scoring and his distribution.

But it’s not like the Pacers are just struggling out of the gate because Hali has only played four games. Even with him they lost to Milwaukee, barely got by New Orleans and were annihilated by Dallas. Indiana can’t shoot threes (just over 33 percent), despite a traditionally fast pace their offense isn’t even close to functioning well (20th in offensive rating), and their D is nothing to write home about either (15th in the league). The Pacers are an atrocious rebounding team (29th in rebounding percentage) and they struggle mightily to hit their free throws.

Do they do anything well? They do, in fact, take good care of the ball and have a one of the best assist-to-turnover-ratios in the entire Association. Individually Pascal Siakam is enjoying a strong start to the season (22.7 points) and Andrew Nembhard has come firing out of the gates as well (17.1 points, 42.9 percent from downtown). A lot of guys are still left from that Finals team two years ago, so in theory they should know what it takes. And Rick Carlisle is still a tremendously respected coach, at least when he isn’t whining like a five year old who didn’t get his wish at Toys-R-Us.

The skipper really has his work cut out for him early in the year. New center Ivica Zubac, a classic, plodding back-to-basket big man with considerable post skills, hasn’t really found his place in an adjusted Pacers system that once was predicated on playing five-out at all costs. Continuity has also been a big issue as Carlisle has already started 11 different players, at times making it seem like the Pacers are still on their tanking ways from last year. They obviously aren’t and it should be noted that slow starts are nothing new for Indiana under Carlisle. Consider yourself warned.

With Friday’s game being another Cup contest you can bet that the Pacers will be highly motivated and our beloved Knicks better be ready for a hostile environment. Keep calm if Haliburton tries some stupid sideline voodoo as he certainly will when he senses a camera being on him. Feed Karl-Anthony Towns in a favorable matchup for him, let Brunson do his thing against Indiana’s supposed Brunson stoppers who always seem to just limit him to 35. Make use of your more talented depth, outshoot the struggling shooting team and control the tempo. Just show that you are the better team – which the Knicks, even with their current ups and downs, are at this point in the season.

And please leave the Indiana underdog stories where they belong and where they are actually fun. Leave them to Hoosiers.

Game Details

Who: New York Knicks (6-5) at Indiana Pacers (4-8)
Date: Friday, November 13, 2026
Time: 7:00 PM ET
Place: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
TV: Prime Video
Follow: @ptknicksblog and bsky

The Dallas Mavericks (7-5) had no stomach for the fight on Thursday, dropping an embarrassing 133-94 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves (9-3) at Target Center. Bones Hyland led all scorers with 24 points off the Minnesota bench, while LaMelo Ball dropped 22 for the Wolves in just 25 minutes in the win.

Zaccharie Risacher led the Mavericks with 22 points off the bench in the loss.

Let’s not belabor the point. This was a straightforward ass-whipping. Here are some stats from the Mavericks’ no good, very bad day at the office.

15-2: Lightning-quick Timberwolves run to end first quarter

If you blinked late in the first quarter, you may have missed the moment the Mavericks went from firmly in control to flailing. PJ Washington drove for a contested layup, and Naji Marshall followed that, the next time down, with a pair of free throws to extend the Mavs’ early lead to 24-19 as Flagg took his normal rest stretch on the bench.

From there, Bones Hyland and Ayo Dosunmu keyed a 15-2 run over the last 2:48 of the first. Dosunmu hit his first bucket of the game, a 3-pointer from the right wing with 1:38 left in the opening frame, to swing the Wolves back in front, 26-24. Then, after Marshall stopped the bleeding with another 2-for-2 trip to the line, Jaylen Clark banged in a last-second 3-ball of his own to extend Minnesota’s lead to 34-26.

The Mavs did not connect on a field goal in the final 3:34 of the quarter after Flagg went to the bench a minute before that. Dallas finished the first 9-0f-25 (36%) from the floor, while the Timberwolves shot a much healthier 12-of-22 (54.5%) to open the game.

22: Early Mavericks points off turnovers

The Mavericks scored 22 of their first 42 points off Minnesota turnovers on Thursday. That’s a full 52.8% of the points the Mavs scored over the first 19 minutes of the game that came off the Timberwolves’ nine turnovers.

Dallas got out and ran early in the second to battle back from what eventually bloomed into a 10-point hole. Flagg got into a passing lane for his first steal of the contest with seven minutes left in the half, which led to a ferocious dunk from Zaccharie Risacher that cut the Timberwolves’ lead to 43-42.

But Minnesota embarked on another 12-3 run from that point, and guess what they didn’t do during that run? If you guessed “turn the ball over,” you would be correct. The Mavs weren’t able to manufacture a whole lot of offense in the halfcourt throughout the first half. Dallas’ defense was the only thing fueling the team’s offense. Meanwhile, on the other end, The Wolves were pouring it on.

Minny shot 27-of-44 (61.4%) from the field in the first half, while the Mavs shot just 20-of-48 (41.7%). That disparity led to the Timberwolves’ swolen 67-52 lead at the break.

36-17: Third-quarter beatdown

A vibrant, colorful and above all, ridiculous rapid-fire discussion erupted in the MavsMoneyball Slack channel in the third quarter on Thursday, partially debating whether it was the Mavericks’ offense that failed the defense or the defense that called it a night early and left the offense on an island. Whichever way you lean, neither of these things can happen when you’re facing a bona fide early-season juggernaut like the Anthony Edwards-less Timberwolves. The Wolves came into the game with the NBA’s best defensive rating (105.1).

Flagg did nothing on the defensive end. Marshall one-upped him by beating his head against a wall on both ends of the floor. Someone tried to make the argument that Martin was the best player on the floor for Dallas for long stretches of the first half. Risacher’s stat line ended up looking good in the loss, but that was influenced loudly by the fact that garbage time against the Wolves stretched into most of the second half. For the record, Risacher led the Mavs with 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting (4-of-8 from 3-point range), to go along with six rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot in the loss.

After coming into the second half leading by 15, the Timberwolves outscored the Mavs 36-17 in the third to put Dallas to bed early. Just a piss poor effort on all fronts against a foe that will embarrass you if effort and execution elude you for 48 minutes. Which it did. So they did.

Cade Cunningham scored a career-high 52 points, and the Detroit Pistons needed every single one of them in a 144-140 victory in double overtime against the Washington Wizards. It was not just a career-best night for Cunningham, not just one of the top-5 scoring performances in Pistons history, it was the first game in NBA history that saw a player score 50 points, dish 11 assists, and commit zero turnovers.

Cunningham simply did it all. He scored 30 points in the fourth quarter and overtime. That includes a critical 3-pointer after the Wizards had crawled their way back into the lead in the first overtime on an Anthony Davis alley-oop dunk.

The Pistons trailed 130-127 and each team had traded misses. Cunningham calmly took the ball up the left side of the floor, took a pass from Ausar Thompson, and walked into a movement 3-pointer that hit nothing but net to tie the game. On the next possession, Cade swung the ball to Duncan Robinson for what felt like a game-sealing 3 with 9 seconds left, but a video review determined Duncan had approximately 1 milimeter of his foot on the line and changed it to a two.

The scoring barrage also included critical stretch in the fourth quarter where he scored eight points and assisted another to account for 11 of Detroit’s final 12 points of the fourth quarter. Cunningham also locked up Trae Young on defense with Detroit up 119-118 in the final 30 seconds of the fourth. He forced Young into the sideline, cut off any passing lane, deflected the ball, and forced shot clock violation.

Sadly, after Cade hit two free throws to make it a 3-point game, Young redeemed himself by hitting an off-balance three from 29 feet away to give us our two overtimes of fun.

Cunningham’s performance slightly overshadowed another notable feat — Ausar Thompson tallied his first career triple-double. He was aggressive on offense driving to the rim, and delivered crisp passes in narrow lanes to keep Detroit’s offense moving.

On a night where Cade scores 52 and Ausar gets a triple-double, how the heck was it so close to begin with? How does a game like that feature 20 lead changes and 13 ties? It was a weird game.

Alex Sarr was 12-of-14 from the floor and hit his first four threes of the night. He scored 30 points and was one of three Wizards to hit the 30-point threshold. Young scored a team-high 37 points, including a perfect 17-of-17 from the line. Anthony Davis scored 30 points and added 15 rebounds.

Honestly, Detroit’s biggest issue was the same issue they’ve had all season. Their bigs were dominated and DEtroit really misses Jalen Duren. Washington outscored Detroit in the paint and were outrebounded. The biggest issue was John Collins yet again. He was a minus-18 on the night and it felt like it was even worse.

Collins started the overtime period at center in place of Paul Reed, who was a plus-25, and promptly was the primary factor in Detroit giving up a 7-0 run to the Wizards right out of the gate. It was ugly. Come back soon, Jalen Duren.

Yeah, the Pistons might be missing Duren something fierce, but they have Cade Cunningham. And that’s enough.

Bell Ringer Standings:
Tyrese Maxey – 3.5
Jaylen Brown – 2.5
VJ Edgecombe – 2
Joel Embiid – 1
LeBron James – 1
Anfernee Simons – 1
Dean Wade – 1

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The Philadelphia 76ers started slow but roared back for a 123-112 win over the Toronto Raptors on Thursday night.

LeBron James sat this one out for the Sixers for sciatica management, joining Adem Bona (cervical spine sprain) and Dominick Barlow (back) on the injury report. Joel Embiid was able to play after spending the day questionable for plantar fasciitis management. The Raptors had some notable injuries of their own with Kawhi Leonard and Scotti Barnes both sidelined, as well as Trayce Jackson-Davis and Nate Bittle.

It was a brutally rough start for the Sixers, with Philadelphia letting Toronto — on the second leg of a back-to-back — build a 16-point lead at one point in the first frame. Thankfully, someone finally told them the game had started and they came out of the gate much tighter in the second, quickly battling back to tie things up and entering the halftime break knotted at 60 a piece. The Sixers finally took control of the game in the third, with the Raptors trailing right around the double-digit mark into the final frame.

The Raptors continued to battle just within striking distance of the Sixers, but Philadelphia was able to hold on to take the double-digit victory at home thanks to six Sixers scoring in double-digits Thursday night.

The Sixers get back in the win column and are now 10-3 to start the season. They will now get a few days off before a Sunday afternoon matinee hosting the Indiana Pacers.

Until then, let’s get to the Bell Ringer. We have quite a few candidates tonight…

VJ Edgecombe: 15 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 0 turnovers

With LeBron James out, VJ Edgecombe was tasked with commanding the Sixers’ offense — and the sophomore was up for the challenge. This was another great example of Edgecombe doing what he can do well and not worrying about forcing things that aren’t working. Edgecombe was careful and protective with the ball but didn’t hesitate to whip quick passes in and out of the paint for assists, while utilizing his own lightning-fast speed and athleticism to get out ahead for easy buckets for himself when the chances arose. He was aggressive grabbing the boards and wasn’t afraid to get involved on defense, even if it meant picking up a few more fouls then he probably wants to on a normal basis.

We mentioned the increased responsibility for VJ with LeBron out, and, frankly, this was a great example of Edgecome doing a LeBron impression: doing all the little things (and some of the big things) right on both ends of the floor, making an impact absolutely everywhere. It all resulted in another all-around great performance from the young guard.

Edgecombe finished with 15 points on 7-for-12 field goal shooting with eight rebounds, eight assists, three steals and a block. Yep, that close to a triple-double. All with zero turnovers. Like I said, not a bad LeBron impersonation.

VJ Edgecombe had some increased responsibility tonight with LeBron out and he delivered excellently on both ends of the floor. A great all-around game from the sophomore guard.

15 PTS (7-12 FG), 8 REB, 8 AST, 3 STL, 1 BLK
Damn close to a triple-double. Highlights here 👇 pic.twitter.com/eBr566nLhk

— Erin Grugan (@eringrugan) November 13, 2026

Joel Embiid: 20 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks

From spending all day as questionable to play, to finally being ruled available, to knocking knees in the first period and looking like his night was done… to multiple dunks and a solid overall performance. The Joel Embiid experience!

Seriously, I thought Embiid’s night was likely over after the amount of pain he seemed to be in after knocking knees setting a screen. After a quick trip to the locker room, however, the big fella returned to the game and somehow looked better than he did before the knee knock. He didn’t miss an opportunity to get up for a block or a dunk, kept setting screens for his teammates and simply got a lot more aggressive and efficient offensively — whether that meant knocking down a bucket, earning a trip to the free throw line, or both. There were moments where, as has been the case many times before, it didn’t seem to matter what the opposing defense tried to do with Embiid. He was simply too big, too strong, or too smart. Guess the knee was OK.

The only downside to his performance was that the jumper wasn’t falling tonight, as evidenced by his 7-for-17 field goal shooting, but even those were just rimming out. That’s the sort of thing you just hope is early-season rust and will only get a little better — or even a little luckier — with time.

Embiid finished with 20 points, four rebounds, three assists, a steal and two blocks.

https://t.co/XvDsWg70xUpic.twitter.com/CpWofANa31

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 13, 2026

Tyrese Maxey: 27 points (8-for-13 FG), 2 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals, 1 block

It’s pretty impressive that this sort of performance is considered just a usual night at the office for Tyrese Maxey at this point, but that’s how it feels. It’s the same way that sometimes Jaylen Brown can put up an excellent, consistent performance throughout an entire game but almost without anyone noticing. A bucket here, a steal there, an assist when the opportunity presents… Maxey is just ol’ reliable at times for the Sixers. Tonight, it didn’t come in the form of a complete Maxey takeover we see sometimes, but the guard just kept chipping in on both ends of the floor throughout this one with impressive efficiency.

Maxey finished this one with 27 points on 8-for-13 field goal shooting. He also had two rebounds, eight assists (including a LeBron-esque cross-court lob to Jaylen Brown), two steals and a block.

https://t.co/zpX6BKupsNpic.twitter.com/ML3dKrR5pL

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 13, 2026

Jaylen Brown: 18 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 block

The start of this one was not good for Jaylen Brown. It wasn’t great for a number of Sixers early, but it really wasn’t good for Brown. He couldn’t seem to score and struggled with sloppy turnovers in the first. It was looking like it might be another rough night for JB, who had a rough outing last game against his former team.

But, like the Sixers did overall, Brown turned it around. He kept rebounding. He kept up his solid defense. And, as more offensive opportunities presented themselves, Brown started knocking down shots and, other than having a few lay-ups blocked later on, put together a decent overall performance.

A rough start after a tough overall game the other night could have been enough to mess with the mental of any player, but Brown didn’t seem to let it stymie him. He turned a bad opening into an excellent 18-point performance on 8-for-15 field goal shooting, filling the stat sheet also with six rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block.

Anfernee Simons: 17 points (6-for-9 FG, 5-for-6 3PT), 3 rebounds, 2 assists

When Anfernee Simons is on, boy is he on. An incredible scorer off the bench, this was one of those nights that any shot coming off of Simons’ hand you knew had a good chance of going in. Simons chipped in 17 points off the bench on 6-for-9 field goal shooting and sinking 5-of-6 from long range. For a team that can go completely stagnant at times when the subs come in, having someone like Simons ready and willing to knock down the big buckets is huge for keeping momentum on the Sixers’ side in games like tonight.

(Frankly, with how badly this team shoots from beyond the arc at times, shooting this well from three-point range in it of itself will always earn a Bell Ringer nomination from me at least…)

Simons hits a much needed three to beat the buzzer and hopefully gather some momentum pic.twitter.com/AQuWy9zFQI

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 13, 2026

The Dallas Mavericks (7-5) embarked on a three-game road trip with the first stop in Minnesota to take on the Wolves Thursday night. Entering on a three-game winning streak, the Mavericks couldn’t get to four-straight as they lost 133-94.

The game got off to a shaky start, with Daniel Gafford committing a foul seven seconds in and Cooper Flagg tweaking his ankle less than 30 seconds later when he came down on Rudy Gobert’s foot after attempting a shot. The Mavs settled in behind Caleb Martin getting some early reps at point guard and doing a fine job keeping the offense flowing. Gafford’s second foul resulted in Morez Johnson, Jr. checking in, looking no worse for wear after missing a game due to injury. It was a tight game throughout, but with two minutes remaining in the frame, Minnesota peeled off a 12-0 scoring run, good for an eight-point lead (34-26).

The Mavs locked in to begin the second quarter and had a 7-0 run to draw closer. Naji Marshall, Zaccharie Risacher and Santi Aldama were a big part of Dallas pulling to within a point, but the Wolves responded quickly and got out to their largest lead of the game (14) with just over two minutes remaining in the half. Kyrie Irving nailed a cold-blooded three that made you think a run was coming, but the Wolves had other ideas. Dallas was down 67-52 at halftime.

Dallas has been good at making halftime adjustments this season. They clearly had a plan to attack the rim, with Flagg getting to the line on the first possession. Free throws were a welcome sight after neither team attempted even a single one in the second quarter. The plan was foiled almost instantly, however, with the Wolves jumping the lead to 24 points within the first three minutes of the quarter, at one point having connected on 22 of their prior 30 shots. Another blink of the eyes and this one was all but over. The Wolves looked significantly fresher than the Mavs, with everything looking very easy for the former and very difficult for the latter. The Mavs spent much of the remainder of the third quarter down by 30 or more points before limping into the fourth quarter down 103-69.

The fourth quarter afforded the starters some rest and gave some of the players who see limited time a chance to showcase themselves. Unfortunately Max Chrisite couldn’t capitalize on a chance to log some minutes. He tweaked his ankle, negating even the potential silver lining of him finding a shooting rhythm.

The iron unkind

It was a tale of two rims on a number of occasions. Dallas had a few shots go in and out, while Minnesota had the opposite luck. In the first quarter alone, the Wolves had two three-pointers nearly spin out, only to drop through the net. The Wolves had hot shooting even without the favorable rolls, connecting on 61.4% in the first half – nearly 20 percentage points higher than the Mavs across the first 24-minutes. When all was said and done, the Wolves shot 57.8% and the Mavs shot 37.2% overall.

Making the most of turnovers

The one part of the game Dallas had a meaningful edge on was points off turnovers. Their advantage waned a bit as the game devolved into garbage time, but for much of the game they were plus-10 or better in this category. The Mavs did show effort in this sloppy outing, not hanging their heads or giving up regardless of the story told by the scoreboard. Even with the blowout and garbage time, Dallas managed to outscore Minnesota in this particular category 29-25.

The battle from beyond the arc

The Mavericks hung in the three-point battle relatively well in the first half, despite LaMelo Ball nailing all manner of shot from the next town over as he is wont to do. Unfortunately, the Mavs shot worse from deep as the game wore on, making the battle of the long ball very one-sided. The longball opened up the entire offense for the Wolves while the Dallas misses allowed a good rebounding opponent to get out and run.

The Wolves were rested and made the most of their reserved energy. Throughout the night they were totally in a groove getting whatever they wanted and looking like a fully cohesive unit. Meanwhile, Dallas struggled to find the right lineup and fell behind big. The game lasted 48 minutes, but it was over long before then. With two more games on the road trip, the starters at least got some rest before the next one Saturday night in Cleveland.

I invite you to follow me @_80MPH on X, and check back often at Mavs Moneyball for all the latest on the Dallas Mavericks.

The Bulls’ disaster season just got much, much worse. 

Caleb Wilson, perhaps the 1-9 team’s only bright spot through the first three weeks of the season, underwent surgery for a fracture in his right hand and is expected to miss four to six weeks. 

He injured his hand during the third quarter of Wednesday’s loss to the Spurs as he tried to knock the ball out of Victor Wembanyama’s hands.

Wilson, the No. 4 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, had kicked off his professional career about as well as Chicago could have hoped.

Through 10 games, Wilson is averaging 18.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.8 steals in 30.8 minutes per contest, putting himself squarely in the early NBA Rookie of the Year conversation.

He was on his way to another big night Wednesday, scoring 15 points in 15 minutes before suffering the injury.

Before the season, Wilson had major expectations for his first year in the league. 

“I expect to have Rookie of the Year, honestly,” Wilson said in June. “I’m going to work hard. I’m going to do what it takes. I feel like this team is really good for me and how I envision to play.

It’s not the first time Wilson has dealt with hand injuries in recent years. 

His freshman year at North Carolina was cut short after he broke his right thumb while attempting a dunk in practice in March, just as he was nearing a return from a fractured left hand that had sidelined him for six games. 

Wilson underwent season-ending surgery on his thumb, forcing him to miss the NCAA Tournament.

The Bulls will now spend the next month or two without their star rookie after a start that equals their worst in franchise history.

The Washington Wizards’ struggles continued Thursday night, as they fell to the Detroit Pistons 144-140 in double overtime (8-3) at Capital One Arena to extend their losing streak to six games. 

Playing the second night of a back-to-back after a 114-101 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday, Washington (4-9) once again could not close out a close game in the fourth quarter, first or second overtime periods, which led to its second loss to the Pistons in the past four days after Monday night’s 122-111 loss in Detroit. 

Washington got out to an early 17-10 lead thanks to triples from Alex Sarr, Kyshawn George and Trae Young – which looked to be a positive sign from a team that entered the contest shooting 29.8% from distance. 

Sarr started the game a perfect 4-for-4 from the field, quickly notching 10 points in the first quarter. His counterpart in the front court, Anthony Davis recorded 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting in first-quarter, to join Sarr in double-figure scoring. 

However, in a lineup starring Trae Young, Tre Johnson, Bub Carrington, Bilal Coulibaly and Deandre Ayton, Washington’s 10-point lead dissipated as the Pistons completed a 11-point swing to take a 33-32 lead over the Wizards to end the first quarter. After protecting the ball for the first nine minutes of the game, Washington coughed up four turnovers in the final 3:15 of the quarter to contribute to the Pistons run. 

Washington steadied the ship before halftime with the help of Young, who scored eight second quarter points to help the Wizards stay within three and trail 64-61 entering the half. Davis paced Washington with 16 points and eight rebounds, while Sarr tacked on 14 points and Young scored 12. The trio combined for 69% of the Wizards first half points, and Sarr shot a perfect 6-for-6 from the field.

Rookie AJ Dybantsa appeared to truly struggle for the first time this season when matched up with Ausar Thompson. Dybantsa shot 0-of-2 from the field and looked uncomfortable with the ball in his hands when guarded by Thompson. Yet, the BYU product managed to record two assists and not turn the ball over in the first half, to finish with a team-high +11 when he was on the court. 

After keeping the game close in the second quarter, Detroit erupted for an 11-point lead of its own with the help of Duncan Robinson who shot a perfect 3-for-3 from three point range during the run. Cade Cunningham also tacked on seven third quarter points to keep Washington at an arms length throughout the period. 

The Wizards cut the lead back to four thanks to Alex Sarr, who remained perfect from the field, tacking on seven third quarter points to enter the fourth with 21 points and four rebounds. Tre Johnson was also in rhythm in the third, scoring six of his 13 points at the time while shooting 3-of-4 from the field.

Washington entered the fourth quarter trailing 94-90, with a chance to snap their five game skid in front of an energetic home crowd in D.C. — and Young matched the energy in Capital One Arena. He scored a quick nine points in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter to give Washington a 103-102, and found Coulibaly streaking down the court for an assist on a fast break.

But head coach Brian Keefe subbed Young out for a two-minute rest, and Detroit capitalized immediately with a 6-0 run to take a 108-103 lead. Washington kept it close, including taking a 118-117 lead with 31.5 seconds remaining thanks to a three from George. But Cunningham drew a foul from Dybantsa on the following possession, and knocked down two free throws to essentially seal the game. But 1.8 seconds remaining, Young buried a three at the buzzer to send the game to overtime, knotted at 121.

Redemption. Trae Young ties the game at 121 at the buzzer to send it to OT. https://t.co/mtfidIZFUS

— Miles Jordan (@Miles_Jordan_) November 13, 2026

George knocked down a triple to give Washington a 124-121 lead in OT before picking up his sixth foul and being forced to sit the rest of the game. But in his absence, Young found Davis in the paint for a floater, and then drew a charge on the ensuing possession, which lead to Davis finding Sarr for the alley-oop to start overtime on a 7-0 run.

Detroit responded with a 6-0 run of its own led by Cunningham — who finished with a game-high 52 points and a team-high 11 assists. He sealed the game on back to back possessions, both in transition. First he nailed a triple to tie the game at 130, and then assisted Robinson on the break for a jumper to take a 132-130 lead with nine seconds remaining in the extra period.

Dybantsa, the rookie, took matters into his own hands and drove to the paint and pulled up for a jumper that tied the game at 132 at the buzzer to send the game to double-overtime.

AJ Dybantsa sends it to 2OT. This game is ridiculous. pic.twitter.com/HnMvYKKRLE

— Miles Jordan (@Miles_Jordan_) November 13, 2026

Davis fouled out early in the second overtime, which led to Detroit taking a 137-132 lead without Washington’s primary big — one they would hold for the remaining of the game.

Young and Davis both finished in double-double territory, but it was not enough to halt Washington’s losing streak. Young scored 37 and dished out 14 assists — both season-highs — while Davis scored 30 points and grabbed 14 rebounds. Sarr also tacked on 30 points and seven rebounds, while George scored 14 points and Johnson finished with 13.

Washington is off until Sunday, Nov 15 when it hosts the Houston Rockets at Capital One Arena at 7 p.m. ET on MNMT.

Talk about blood, sweat and tears.

AJ Dybantsa collided with Cade Cunningham during the Washington Wizards' game against the Detroit Pistons on Thursday, Nov. 12 and was bloodied on the play.

With 26 seconds left in regulation and the Wizards up 118-117, Cunningham was dribbling the ball and attempted to twirl and switch directions. The Wizards rookie and 2026 No. 1 overall pick was guarding him and, when Cunningham spun back around, his jaw smacked into the side of Dybantsa's face.

AJ Dybantsa was left bleeding after colliding with Cade Cunningham 😳

Dybantsa would stay in the game. pic.twitter.com/Jr4YMSqFQp

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) November 13, 2026

Dybantsa fell backwards onto the court and grabbed his mouth as he laid on his back. Blood started dripping from his mouth. A trainer tended to him as he continued lying on the hardwood.

He then got up and returned to action.

The game went into overtime with the score tied at 121 at the end of the fourth quarter. Dybantsa even sent the game to a second overtime, seemingly no worse for wear.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: AJ Dybantsa bloodied after collision during Wizards-Pistons game