Category: Basketball

WASHINGTON (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns had 19 points and 14 rebounds, and the New York Knicks rolled to their seventh straight victory, 132-101 over the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night.

Mikal Bridges scored 23 points and Jalen Brunson added 21 for New York, although the Knicks did lose Josh Hart to a sprained left ankle in the third quarter. Hart, who dealt with right ankle trouble earlier this season, walked gingerly to the tunnel immediately after leaving the game and did not play again.

Will Riley scored 17 points and Bub Carrington added 14 for the Wizards. Washington has won three of its last five, but the two defeats were by 31 to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday and by the same margin to the Knicks four days later.

New York has won 11 consecutive games against the Wizards.

The Knicks went 2-9 from Dec. 31 to Jan. 19, but they’ve rebounded impressively from that slump. During this seven-game run, they have wins by 54, 27, 30 and 31. They led by 41 on Tuesday.

New York was able to rest players ahead of Wednesday night’s showdown with Denver, which also played Tuesday at Detroit. Only Brunson reached the 30-minute mark in this game for either team.

The Knicks led by as many as 18 points in the first quarter and were up 72-45 at halftime.

JAZZ 131, PACERS 122

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Isaiah Collier had a career-high 22 assists — the most in the NBA this season and the most by a Utah player since John Stockton in 1992 — and the Jazz beat Indiana with just seven healthy players.

Lauri Markkanen scored 27 points for the Jazz, who were short-handed after trading Georges Niang, Kyle Anderson, Walter Clayton Jr. and Taylor Hendricks to Memphis earlier Tuesday for Jaren Jackson Jr., Jock Landale, John Konchar and Vince Williams Jr.

The last NBA player with 22 assists in a game was Denver’s Nikola Jokic last March 7. Collier, who played the entire game, also scored 17 points as all seven Utah players had 14 points or more. Brice Sensabaugh scored 20, Ace Bailey had 19 and Kyle Filipowski had 16 points and 16 rebounds.

Quenton Johnson scored 24 points on 9-of-10 shooting and Jarace Walker also had 24 for the Pacers, who held out four regular starters — All-Star Pascal Siakam, Bennedict Mathurin, Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell — for rest or because of minor injuries. All four played a night earlier, when Indiana lost 118-114 to visiting Houston.

Little-used Kam Jones, a healthy scratch on Monday, made his first career start for the Pacers and had 12 points.

LAKERS 125, NETS 109

NEW YORK (AP) — LeBron James scored 25 points, Luka Doncic had 24 and Los Angeles rolled to a victory over Brooklyn in Austin Reaves’ first game since Christmas.

Reaves had 15 points in 21 minutes after missing the last 19 games with a strained left calf. He entered late in the first quarter with the Lakers already well in control and helped them continue to pour it on during their 20-for-25 shooting start to the game.

Jake LaRavia scored 18 points for the Lakers, who finished 5-3 on their road trip and play next against Philadelphia at home Thursday night, a few hours after the NBA’s trade deadline has passed.

James had said it was difficult to evaluate the team’s potential without Reaves, who was averaging 26.6 points before he was hurt. They looked potent Tuesday, though it’s hard to judge much against the hapless Nets, who are only good at losing badly.

PISTONS 124, NUGGETS 121

DETROIT (AP) — All-Star Cade Cunningham had 29 points and 10 assists and Detroit beat Denver.

All-Star Jalen Duren added 19 points and 13 rebounds, and Duncan Robinson scored 20 for the Pistons, who have won five of six, including a 109-107 win in Denver on Jan. 27. They came into the game following a record-setting win on Sunday, beating the Brooklyn Nets 130-77 and setting a franchise mark with a 53-point margin of victory.

Jamal Murray led the Nuggets with 32 points and eight assists while Nikola Jokic had 24 points and 15 rebounds.

The Nuggets never led, but Jokic got them within two possessions, 112-107, with 2:33 to play. After a Detroit miss, Murray’s 3-pointer made it a two-point game.

Tobias Harris answered with a 3-pointer on Detroit’s next possession, and the teams traded baskets to make it 117-112 with 1:15 left.

Detroit finally got a stop with 33 seconds left and clinched the game from the free-throw line.

HAWKS 127, HEAT 115

MIAMI (AP) — All-Star Jalen Johnson had 29 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, CJ McCollum added 26 points off the bench and Atlanta beat Miami to snap a two-game slide.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 19 for the Hawks, who led most of the way and spoiled Miami’s celebration of the 20th anniversary of its 2006 NBA championship. Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal were sitting courtside, and most of the players from that first Heat title team were in attendance.

Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored 21 points for the Heat. Pelle Larsson and Simone Fontecchio each had 18, and Bam Adebayo finished with 16 points and 14 rebounds for Miami.

Atlanta took the lead for good with 4:31 left in the opening quarter and answered every Miami rally attempt with a run of its own.

The Hawks took a 21-point lead in the second quarter; Miami quickly got within 11, but Atlanta had the margin out to 17 points again by halftime.

It was largely the same plot in the third quarter; Miami shaved 12 points off the deficit to get within five after just 4:57 of the second half, but the Hawks pulled away again and McCollum’s 3-pointer to end the quarter gave Atlanta yet another 17-point lead going into the fourth.

BUCKS 131, BULLS 115

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Kyle Kuzma matched a season high with 31 points and Milwaukee snapped a five-game skid, beating Chicago in a meeting of short-handed teams.

Milwaukee was missing its top two scorers due to injury, while the Bulls traded away three players earlier in the day.

The Bulls sent Kevin Huerter and Dario Saric to Detroit as part of a three-team deal in which they acquired Mike Conley Jr. from Minnesota and Jaden Ivey from the Pistons. They also traded Nikola Vucevic and a second-round pick to Boston for Anfernee Simons and a second-round selection.

Chicago was missing leading scorer Josh Giddey due to a strained left hamstring.

Milwaukee was again without two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, who strained his right calf on Jan. 23. Antetokounmpo was on the court taking shots and working out before the game.

The Bucks improved to 4-15 without Antetokounmpo.

CELTICS 110, MAVERICKS 100

DALLAS (AP) — Jaylen Brown had 33 points and 11 rebounds, and Boston beat Dallas, overcoming another stellar showing from Cooper Flagg and handing the Mavericks their season-worst fifth consecutive loss.

Flagg scored 36 points in the rookie No. 1 pick’s first meeting with the team he grew up watching because Boston was the closest NBA city to his hometown, about 200 miles south of Newport, Maine.

It was Flagg’s third consecutive 30-point game, five nights after the 19-year-old set the NBA scoring record for a teenager with 49 against Charlotte. The former Duke standout had nine rebounds and six assists.

Payton Pritchard scored 26 points for the Celtics, who were playing without Anfernee Simons. Boston acquired Nikola Vucevic for Simons in a trade with Chicago earlier in the day, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press.

Luka Garza scored nine consecutive Boston points on 3-pointers during a 14-4 run that finished the third quarter and gave the Celtics an 86-67 lead. Garza made all four of his attempts from 3 and scored 16 points in 20 minutes.

THUNDER 128, MAGIC 92

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Isaiah Hartenstein had his first career-triple double, Isaiah Joe scored 22 points and Oklahoma City rolled past Orlando.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 20 points and nine assists, Lu Dort scored 18 points and first-time All-Star Chet Holmgren added 16 points and 10 rebounds for the defending champion Thunder (40-11), who became the first team this season to reach 40 wins.

Hartenstein finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in 23 minutes. The eighth-year center became the 10th Thunder player to record a triple-double.

Oklahoma City played without Jalen Williams, who missed his eighth straight game with a hamstring injury, and Ajay Mitchell, who sat out his sixth game in a row with an abdominal strain.

Jalen Suggs led Orlando with 20 points, and Paolo Banchero added 17 points on 6-of-17 shooting. Franz Wagner, the Magic’s leading scorer, missed his fifth straight game with a high left ankle sprain.

76ERS 113, WARRIORS 94

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Rookie VJ Edgecombe had 25 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, Andre Drummond added 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Philadelphia won its fifth straight game, beating Golden State, who were missing Stephen Curry because of a painful right knee.

Trendon Watford had 16 points and eight rebounds off the bench while Adem Bona made all five of his first-half field goals in nine minutes to help the Sixers to a 58-57 lead at the break. Bona finished with 11 points.

The Sixers grabbed 24 offensive rebounds for a 55-34 advantage on the boards and scored 15 points off the Warriors’ 20 turnovers.

Philadelphia’s second bus arrived only about 75 minutes before tipoff because of Bay Area traffic, but coach Nick Nurse was unconcerned about his team having a prolonged warmup since it was the second game of a back-to-back. The Sixers beat the Clippers 128-113 on Monday.

Curry exited early from Golden State’s 131-124 loss to Detroit on Friday because of the troublesome knee. Forward Jonathan Kuminga, whose future with the franchise remains uncertain, sat out his fifth straight game with a bone bruise in his left knee.

Gui Santos and Pat Spencer scored 13 points apiece and Moses Moody added 12 for the Warriors, who lost a third straight game at home.

SUNS 130, TRAIL BLAZERS 125

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Collin Gillespie scored a career-high 30 points, Mark Williams had 24 points and 12 rebounds, and Phoenix bounced back from a slow start for a win over reeling Portland.

Grayson Allen also scored 24 points on 11-of-14 shooting and Jordan Goodwin had 16 points and 10 rebounds on a night when the Suns played without leading scorer Devin Booker (25.4 points per game), who was out with a right ankle sprain. Jalen Green was also out of the Suns’ lineup.

Gillespie tied a career high with eight made 3-pointers and also had 10 assists.

Jerami Grant had 23 points to lead Portland, which lost its sixth straight game. Donovan Clingan had 14 points and 15 rebounds. Shaedon Sharpe added 19 points for Portland.

The Trail Blazers also played without their leading scorer and second-leading rebounder, Deni Avdija (25.5 points per game), who has a lower back strain and was just named to his first All-Star game.

Vit Krejci had five points in his Portland debut after being acquired in a trade with Atlanta.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Xavier Booker scored a career-high 24 points, Donovan Dent had a double-double, and UCLA routed Rutgers 98-66 on Tuesday night.

UCLA (16-7, 8-4 Big Ten) bounced back from a 98-97 double-overtime loss to Indiana that ended a three-game win streak.

Booker made 10 of 11 field goals and all four of his 3-point attempts. Dent finished with 13 points and 11 assists. Tyler Bilodeau hit three 3s and finished with 19 points for the Bruins. Eric Dailey Jr. scored 13 points and Trent Perry had 10.

UCLA shot 56% (35 of 63) from the floor and 57% (12 of 21) from long range. The Bruins also made 16 of 18 from the foul line.

Kaden Powers made three 3-pointers and scored all 18 of his points in the first half for Rutgers (9-14, 2-10), which has lost six straight games. Tariq Francis added 12 points and Lino Mark scored 10 for the Scarlet Knights.

UCLA took the lead for good, 21-19, on Booker's hook shot. The Bruins closed the first half on an 8-2 surge to stretch their lead to 52-40 at the break. Bilodeau scored 17 first-half points and Dailey added 10 for the Bruins.

Daily's dunk gave UCLA a 64-43 lead early in the second half. The Bruins later began a 15-0 run to stretch their lead to 91-58 with 4:31 remaining. Powers was 0 of 3 from the floor in the second half.

Up next

Rutgers: hosts No. 9 Nebraska on Saturday.

UCLA: at home against Washington on Saturday.

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DALLAS (AP) — Darrion Williams scored 25 points and Quadir Copeland posted a double-double and NC State stayed perfect on the road in ACC play by beating SMU 84-83 on Tuesday night.

Copeland distributed a career-high 16 assists without a turnover and grabbed 10 rebounds. Reserve Matt Able scored 13 points and Tre Holloman and Ven-Allen Lubin each scored 11.

NC State (17-6, 8-2) is 6-0 in the ACC away from home.

Jaron Pierre Jr. scored 23 points, Boopie Miller scored 14, and B.J. Edwards and Corey Washington each scored 11 for SMU (15-7, 4-5).

Up 84-83, Copeland missed two foul shots with 15 seconds left. Out of timeouts, Miller took the ball for a last shot. Holloman smothered him repeatedly, denying attempted drives to the basket before blocking Miller's up-and-under shot attempt to end it.

NC State used an 11-2 run to turn a 58-50 deficit into a 61-60 lead when Able sank a 3-pointer with 10:57 remaining. It was NC State's first lead since being up 12-11 with 13:29 before halftime.

NC State reached its first double-digit lead when Terrance Arceneaux converted a three-point play with 6:50 left for a 75-64 advantage.

NC State reduced its deficit to 32-29 on a layup by Holloman with 4:09 left before halftime. SMU responded with a 10-0 run with a 3-pointer by Edwards, Pierre's step-back jumper, Miller added a 3 and Pierre threw down a dunk to give the Mustangs their first double-digit lead at 42-29.

Up Next

NC State: Hosts Virginia Tech on Saturday.

SMU: Travels to face Pittsburgh on Saturday.

___

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Knicks guard Jalen Brunson is best known for his scoring and leadership, but for one night he was the team's best defender.

Yes, really.

Head coach Mike Brown announced after the Knicks' 132-101 rout of the Wizards on Tuesday night that Brunson was the team's Defensive Player of the Game, an honor Brown and his coaching staff introduced when he was hired before the season began. 

It's the first time this season Brunson has earned the honor, doing so after his two-steal performance. But it was Brunson's two drawn charges that clinched it for Brown.

"You talk about one of our standards is sacrificing," Brown said. "And you know, you got your MVP candidate, your All-Star, sacrificing his body to try to get charges and get the possession going the other way. So, a great overall team effort tonight, good win."

For the first time this season, Jalen Brunson is the defensive player of the game! 👷

(via @nyknicks) pic.twitter.com/PCmO0YfJZ0

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) February 4, 2026

When asked how the rest of the Knicks reacted to him being named defensive player of the game, the three-time All-Star guard played coy. 

"Very surprised, and so was I," Brunson said. When asked for specifics, Brunson repeated "no comment" a few times with a smirk.

"I'm not gonna repeat any of the jokes [from the team], but it's legitimate," Brown said. "He had two charges, second in NBA in charges taken, you know, only one away. So he might, he should be in first place now."

After Brunson's two drawn charges, he is now at the top of the NBA in that category, and Brunson knows how important those plays are to a game.

"Obviously, we get the turnover and we look at it as a momentum-changer and as a possibility to, kind of make the other team feel defeated in the moment," Brunson said. "We use it to our advantage and have the momentum swing and keep it going."

Brunson's increased defensive pressure has come at a great time. New York has now won seven in a row and the first-year coach said it has helped with the team's turnaround.

"I said it before, he’s more than a facilitator," Brown explained. "He's more than a scorer. He's more than team captain, great guy and all that other stuff. Whatever he puts his mind to, sky's the limit, you know. So, for him to go out there and not only talk about what we need to do defensively, but also leave it out there, too, is a lot of fun to see -- especially when you're talking about a guy that's stepping up and putting his body on the line to get ran over time after time after time." 

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Matias Maccelli scored twice and the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Edmonton Oilers 5-2 on Tuesday night.

Matthew Knies added a goal and an assist for Toronto (27-21-9). John Tavares scored his 20th of the season and Bobby McMann added an empty-netter.

Anthony Stolarz stopped 34 of the 36 shots he faced for the Maple Leafs, including a diving stop on Leon Draisaitl that prevent the Edmonton from getting back into the game in the final minutes of the third period.

Jake Walman and Kasperi Kapanen scored for the Oilers (28-20-9), who have lost two straight. Connor Ingram made 22 saves.

Toronto was coming off a 4-2 victory over the Flames in Calgary on Monday, and heads into the Olympic break with a three-game winning streak.

Kapanen tied the score at 2 early in the third period, but a pair of penalties proved to be Edmonton’s undoing. Rookie winger Matthew Savoie was sent off for interference, and Mattias Janmark joined him seconds later on a high-sticking infraction. Maccelli scored just under a minute into Toronto’s 5-on-3 advantage and Tavares swiped a shot in from the side of the net on the power play to give Toronto a 3-2 lead at the 7:42 mark of the third period.

Toronto went 2 for 2 on the power play, while Edmonton failed to score on its only man-advantage chance of the game.

Up next

Maple Leafs: Off for the Olympic break and at Tampa Bay on Feb. 25.

Oilers: At Calgary on Wednesday.

___

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

The Nets are an unserious basketball team and the Lakers took care of them quickly on Tuesday night. LA immediately got out in front and had twice as many points as Brooklyn had in the opening quarter.

By halftime, the Lakers had 69 points, and this contest was over.

So, let’s dive into the win. As always, grades are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance for that player.

LeBron James

30 minutes, 25 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 10-16 FG, 0-3 3PT, 5-7 FT, +24

If this was LeBron’s last dance in Brooklyn, it was a wonderful waltz. He had some monster jams and dominated, especially in the first half.

"HERE COMES LEBRON!"

LeBron James steal & slams never gets old 🍿

Tap to watch: https://t.co/8c44VxDzlEpic.twitter.com/oAvqbMSZP1

— NBA (@NBA) February 4, 2026

Thanks to James’ dominance, the crowd was cheering for the Lakers as if it were a home game.

Grade: A+

Luka Dončić

29 minutes, 24 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 5 turnovers, 1 foul, 8-18 FG, 4-11 3PT, 4-6FT, +19

Luka, who was named the Western Conference Player of the Month earlier on Tuesday, continues his elite 2026 with another solid performance on the road.

He came out aggressive with 14 points in the opening quarter and had some mesmerizing passes, including a no-look dime to Deandre Ayton.

Grade: A+

Deandre Ayton

28 minutes, 7 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 3-5 FG, 1-2 FT, +16

Ayton wasn’t as aggressive in this game, but it also wasn’t really needed. He took only a handful of shots and converted most of them.

Grade: B

Marcus Smart

18 minutes, 6 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 3-5 FG, 0-2 3PT, +30

Smart got a little trigger-happy in this game. With the result secured, the shot-chucking was less concerning than it typically can be.

Grade: C

Jake LaRavia

22 minutes, 18 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 7-9 FG, 1-2 3PT, 3-6 FT, +10

LaRavia started this game but was relegated to the bench to start the third quarter, with Austin Reaves back. Against the Nets, he was good, but a reserve role should be his position moving forward.

Grade: B+

Jaxson Hayes

15 minutes, 9 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 1 steal, 3-3 FG, 3-4 FT, +8

Hayes was a bulldozer during his early shifts, just stuffing the ball in the hoop repeatedly. These kinds of plays are why he will be a participant in the Dunk Contest.

Grade: A-

Austin Reaves

21 minutes, 15 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 2 turnovers, 3 fouls, 3-9 FG, 1-5 3PT, 8-10 FT, +10

Reaves was noticeably rusty in his return, but that is expected. He’s going to be just fine, and the fact that he is back is the most important aspect of this game.

Grade: B-

Rui Hachimura

26 minutes, 5 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 2-3 FG, 1-2 3PT, -1

Hachimura got virtually no looks in this game. In other matchups, he has to be more involved in the offense. This was an unserious game, so less of an immediate concern and more something the team has to get right moving forward.

Grade: C-

Jarred Vanderbilt

19 minutes, 6 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2-3 FG, 0-1 3PT, 2-4 FT, +4

Okay defense and shooting from Vando in this one. It’ll be interesting to see if Lakers head coach JJ Redick keeps him in the rotation once Reaves is fully back and not on a minutes restriction.

Grade: C-

Gabe Vincent

16 minutes, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 2 steals, 0-3 FG, 0-2 3PT, -9

When Vincent doesn’t score, it’s really hard to justify playing him. It might be time for him to take a seat.

Grade: F

Drew Timme, Dalton Knecht, Maxi Kleber, Bronny James

None of these players were in the game for 10-plus minutes, so they will not be getting a grade.

JJ Redick

Redick had the Lakers ready to dominate, and they took care of business early. It’s still annoying to see the Lakers have another third quarter where they got outscored, but you can kind of give them a pass in this instance.

Grade: B+

Tuesday’s inactives: Adou Thiero, Chris Mañon, Nick Smith Jr.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — Sam Lewis scored 15 points, Thijs De Ridder had 10 points and 12 rebounds and No. 18 Virginia beat Pittsburgh 67-47 on Tuesday night while scoring its fewest points this season.

De Ridder, the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week, had his third double-double of the season. Chance Mallory scored 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting for the Cavaliers (19-3, 8-2 ACC), and Malik Thomas had 10 points.

Virginia has won three straight and eight of nine, with its only loss in that stretch coming to now-No. 14 North Carolina.

The Cavaliers' previous scoring low was 70 points in a win over Stanford on Jan. 10. A low-scoring, defense-first squad under Tony Bennett, Virginia came in averaging 84 points per game this season under first-year coach Ryan Odom.

Cameron Corhen and Nojus Indrusaitis scored 11 points apiece for the Panthers (9-14, 2-8), who have lost eight of 10.

Pitt took an early 7-3 lead in the opening minutes before the Cavaliers went on a 12-0 run to take a lead they would not relinquish. Both teams struggled with turnovers, with the Panthers committing 17 to the Cavaliers’ 10. But Virginia capitalized with 23 points off turnovers to just nine by Pitt.

The Panthers' most recent victory over a ranked opponent came at Virginia, a 74-63 win on Feb. 13, 2024.

Up next

Pitt: Hosts SMU on Saturday.

Virginia: Hosts Syracuse on Saturday.

___

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The headline here speaks for itself. Heading into Thursday’s trade deadline, I simply implore the Philadelphia 76ers not to make ducking the luxury tax their priority. Now, you might say that this post is true Negadelphian: complaining about something that hasn’t even happened yet. But when something happens every year to the point where Joel Embiid feels compelled to issue a soft warning to ownership, you know there’s a decent possibility of recurrence. (Given how strongly Joel feels about the issue, I feel like there’s a non-zero chance he reads this — in which case, ‘Hi, Joel’.)

The Paul George suspension has certainly complicated the anti-ducking agenda. His 25-game suspension resulted in a luxury tax credit for the Sixers, and the team is now just currently $1.3 million above the tax line. That’s so close that Josh Harris can smell that revenue redistribution money like a cartoon character drifting towards a pie cooling on a windowsill. Those $28 million, 12-bedroom, 22-bathroom homes in Washington D.C. don’t pay for themselves after all. From his perspective, just trade Andre Drummond and some draft capital to a team with cap space and let’s go fuel up the helicopter. He has a new favorite child down I-95 in the Commanders anyway.

But enough is enough. The East is so wide open that the Cleveland Cavaliers think James Harden is the missing piece to get them over the top. The Celtics are improving their roster despite their best player rehabbing a torn Achilles. Philadelphia has a healthy-ish version of Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey playing All-NBA-level ball, and a solid supporting cast, and would potentially downgrade the roster in order to save money, because why, you’re worried about the Pistons? The Detroit “starting Tobias Harris” Pistons? Let’s just see what can happen in late April and May.

I’ll even throw management an olive branch here. Feel free to make ducking the tax a consideration. Daryl Morey is a smart guy. If he can do something like move Drummond to New Orleans with some reasonable draft capital for 21-year-old center Yves Missi, thereby getting a player that upgrades the team today, provides potential future upside, and gets the team under the luxury tax in the process, I’m on board. I understand there are team-building restrictions for being in the tax, yada yada yada, and if it can be avoided, all the better. Morey probably has thought through a dozen or two different scenarios like the common example I just threw out, so let’s see one of them. The Quentin Grimes-Caleb Martin trade last year came out of nowhere. I’m ready to be wowed, Daryl.

I also don’t expect anything major. The Sixers’ inability to work out a deal with Grimes over the summer has severely limited the team in the ‘tradeable contracts’ department. Kelly Oubre Jr. is the only guy in the range where his salary could be a good connecting piece, but he has played terrific this season. Anybody you bring in would have to either be a clear upgrade over Kelly or provide similar production on a longer-term deal where you saw value in that future roster stability/flexibility, and those sorts of players aren’t readily being given away.

But so help me. If Thursday’s deadline comes and goes and all we see is a player shipped out to duck the tax, and the team tries to spin it as needing a roster spot to sign Dominick Barlow to a standard deal, when Eric Gordon and Kyle Lowry are taking up roster emeritus positions, I’m ready to pass out pitchforks across the river in Camden. Hopefully, it doesn’t come to that. I honestly remain optimistic that it won’t. But this had to be said.

The Milwaukee Bucks started their three-game homestand with a blowout win over the Chicago Bulls. It stops the bleeding a little bit, after the Bucks had lost five in a row. Kyle Kuzma tied a season high with 31 points on 12/22 shooting, while Ryan Rollins finished with a 21-point, 10-assist double-double. Second-year forward Matas Buzelis led the Bulls offense with 22 points on 5/10 shooting from three-point range. 

NBA.com Box Score

Game Recap

With nine rotational players out tonight on both sides (for various reasons), they each needed someone to step up. After Kuzma got the Bucks started with the first four points, AJ Green found his rhythm from distance. Green’s back-to-back threes helped extend Milwaukee’s lead to nine points after Kuzma laid it in, forcing a timeout from Chicago. That didn’t slow down the Bucks, finishing the quarter on a 10-4 run. That gave the Bucks their largest advantage, 39-24, heading into the second quarter. 

Already up by double-digits, Milwaukee continued to pour it on a short-handed Chicago squad. They hit their first two shots from beyond the arc, making it eight consecutive makes from three-point range going back to Ryan Rollins’ three in the first. For once, the Bucks were the team ahead by 20+ points, after Myles Turner hit a couple of free throws. Turner and Rollins took turns scoring on the Bulls, with the pair going for 10 straight points. Green punctuated an explosive first half for Milwaukee’s offense, putting up 77 points while Chicago limped into the locker room with 52. 

The Bulls got out to a fast start in the second half, going on a 10-2 run. After a timeout from Doc Rivers, the Bucks settled in thanks to Kuzma, scoring two straight buckets for Milwaukee. Yet, the Bucks we’ve come to expect this season reared their ugly heads once again. Chicago went on a 15-4 run, cutting Milwaukee’s lead from 19 to just eight. The Bucks were able to close out the frame on a 9-3 run, thanks in part to the two-man game of Cole Anthony and Pete Nance. The run gave Milwaukee a 16-point lead going into the fourth, 105-89. 

The Bucks continued to cash in from three-point range. Three of their first four makes in the stanza were from beyond the arc, including two from Kuzma. The early barrage put them back up by 22, forcing Billy Donovan to call a timeout. From there, the Bucks were able to put the game into Kuz-control, as they ended their five-game losing streak. 

Stat That Stood Out

The Bucks’ three-point shooting was exceptional tonight. After a rough outing from distance against the Celtics on Sunday, they shot it efficiently against the Bulls. On the night, Milwaukee went 20/38 (60.5%), with Trent tying a season high in three-point makes with five.

The Celtics got their third straight win on Tuesday night, beating the Mavericks 110-100. Jaylen Brown’s 33 points led the way with Payton Pritchard’s 26 points and Luka Garza’s 16 points off of the bench.

The Celtics were without Jayson Tatum, Chris Boucher and (technically) Anfernee Simons — the trade with Chicago has yet to be finalized, so Simons is still on the roster. They started Derrick White, Baylor Scheierman, Sam Hauser, Jaylen Brown and Neemias Queta. Payton Pritchard came off of the bench for the first time this season as the Celtics are now down a guard due to the trade. Dallas started Max Christie, Cooper Flagg, Naji Marshall, Caleb Martin and Daniel Gafford. They had a lengthy injury report; Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, P.J. Washington, Dereck Lively II, D’Angelo Russell, Brandon Williams and Dante Exum all missed the game for Dallas.

The Celtics got off to a 7-2 start but Dallas quickly took it back with an 8-0 run of their own. It was a hot start for Jaylen Brown. He scored 12 of the first 15 Celtics points, going 5/8 from the field and 2/2 from three.

The Celtics led 32-29 after the first quarter, thanks to another Payton Pritchard buzzer beater.

No surprises here, another Payton Pritchard buzzer beater!

📺 NBC (ET/CT/Select MT) and Peacock pic.twitter.com/XwBaoNc19b

— NBA on NBC and Peacock (@NBAonNBC) February 4, 2026

Brown led the team with 15 points while Payton gave the team 8 points on 4/5 shooting off the bench.

The Celtics created a little separation in the 2nd quarter. A 18-5 start and an 11-0 put Boston up 16, 50-34. However, back-to-back Dallas baskets including a wide open layup had Joe Mazzulla calling a timeout.

Dallas closed the quarter with 10-2 run to cut Boston’s 16-point lead in half by halftime. The Celtics led 52-44, Brown had 17 points while Pritchard had 15 points off of the bench. For the Mavericks, Caleb Martin had 11 points in the first half (because of course he did).

This is Caleb Martin's fourth double-digit scoring performance in 43 games played this season.

— Jay King (@ByJayKing) February 4, 2026

We will never have peace from this man.

It was also a dominate 2nd quarter for the Celtics defense.

The Celtics held the Mavericks to 8/21 shooting with 15 points in the second quarter.

— Gio Rivera (@GioJRivera) February 4, 2026

The Mavericks kept pushing in the third quarter, but the Cs did a good job at keeping Dallas at an arm’s length with Luka Garza’s back-to-back threes. Then, the Celtics put together an 8-0 run to extend the lead to 19.

The Celtics led the Mavs 86-67 at the end of three quarters. Luka Garza was great; he had 16 points while going 4/4 from three, including 3 in the third quarter. JB led the team in scoring with 25 points.

Boston ballooned the lead to 23 points but Dallas fought back with a 15-5 run to cut the Celtics lead to 13. However, Sam Hauser hit a big three to settle everyone down and got the lead back to 16.

Dallas tried to make a real push to get back in the game, but 8 straight Jaylen Brown points kept them at a distance.

Great close by Jaylen. #1 stuff

— Dan Greenberg (@StoolGreenie) February 4, 2026

The Celtics won the game, advancing to 32-18 on the season. They shot 49% from the field and 33% from three while the Mavericks shot 42% from the field and 28% from three. The Celtics next game is tomorrow night at 8 EST in Houston.

A sellout crowd packed Barclays Center to watch what might have been LeBron James’ last game in New York.

They saw King James give the Nets a royal thrashing.

The Nets got beaten 125-109 by James and his Lakers before a crowd of 18,248 on Tuesday night. And it wasn’t as close as the score would indicate.

This was yet another desultory performance by a team getting all too comfortable with getting blown out and bullied around.

“Man, they just came out and punched us in the face, honestly speaking. Lobs, yeah, they just look like the Globetrotters out there,” Ziaire Williams said. “Honestly it was just pretty embarrassing.”

The Nets (13-36) had already suffered a 54-point loss to the Knicks on Jan. 21 and a 53-point rout at the Pistons on Feb. 1, only the fourth team in NBA history with multiple 50-point losses in the same season. They had a 37-point caning at the Clippers sandwiched in between, just for good measure.

Tuesday they trailed by 39 before at least trying to make it respectable, rallying rather than wilting. But it was too little and far, far too late.

“Yeah, more of the same. We got to figure something out,” Nic Claxton told The Post. “Like, this is not basketball. We’re supposed to be NBA basketball players. We shouldn’t be getting beat by this much. We shouldn’t get down by this much.”

Michael Porter Jr. led the Nets with 21 points and 10 rebounds.

Day’Ron Sharpe had season highs of 19 points, 14 boards and five assists off the bench, while Williams added 17 points on 7-for-11 shooting in his return from injury.

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But Porter, their deadeye shooter, was 0-for-9 from deep. Egor Dëmin, their point guard, had a game-high six turnovers. And Claxton was a staggering minus-30.

The Lakers pulled out a zone defense, and the Nets offense went into abysmal disarray.

“They played zone. It’s kind of been a kryptonite I would say for the past couple years for us,” Sharpe said. “We had 20 turnovers and whenever you turn the ball over like that it usually doesn’t work out for you.”

James — who has been in the league longer than most of Brooklyn’s starting lineup have been alive — was the one that looked young and spry. He had 25 points, seven assists, three steals and sailed in for several highlight dunks before checking out with 8:05 remaining to loud applause.

If it was the 41-year-old’s final competitive game in New York — and he hasn’t made any declarative statements about how long he’ll play — it was a solid one.

“It’s LeBron James obviously,” Sharpe said. “But he bleeds just like we bleed, so just trying to beat him, for real.”

The Nets were the only ones bleeding, after the Lakers punched them in the mouth.

They trailed by as much as 39, at 83-44 when Luka Doncic (24 points, six rebounds, five assists) hit from behind the arc with 8:08 left in the third.

It was 111-83 when James checked out with 8:05 to play.

The rest was garbage time, and a crowd filled with purple-and-gold-clad Lakers fans cheering for James’ son, Bronny, who scored a couple of late buckets that sent them into a frenzy.

Brooklyn kept pace with Washington, tied for fourth in the lottery odds. They’re a game behind the Indiana Pacers and two clear of the sixth-place Utah Jazz.

The shorthanded Dallas Mavericks (19-31) looked lost in Tuesday’s 110-100 loss to the Boston Celtics (32-18) at American Airlines Center, extending their losing streak to five games. The Mavericks were without P.J. Washington (head), Brandon Williams (leg) and D’Angelo Russell (illness) and lost big man Daniel Gafford to yet another ankle injury in their latest loss. The night is dark and full of terrors, y’all.

Jaylen Brown scorched Dallas for 15 points and five rebounds in the first quarter, a sure sign of trouble to come. But Dallas countered with the vaunted one-two punch of Cooper Flagg and Caleb Martin, who combined for 15 points of their own in the first to keep the Mavericks’ heads above water, trailing 32-29 after one. Martin found Flagg running along the baseline in transition for a man-sized alley-oop slam less than five minutes into the proceedings to give the Mavs an early 12-9 lead.

Klay Thompson came off a screen near the top of the key for a 3-pointer to tie the game, 32-32, on Dallas’ first make of the second quarter, but the Celtics responded with a little 9-2 run over the next two minutes to force Mavs’ head coach Jason Kidd into his first timeout of the game, trailing 41-34. The Celtics scored the game’s next eight points after the timeout to extend the run and put the Mavs behind the eight-ball midway through the second.

Finally, Flagg drove down the lane and converted a hard-earned leaner in the lane to stop the bleeding, with five minutes left before halftime, but the Mavs were already down 50-36 at that point. Dallas went nearly four minutes without scoring at one point in the second and shot just 7-of-22 from the field and just 1-of-9 from beyond the arc in the period. Boston led 52-44 at the break after letting the Mavs back in it with a 10-2 run late in the second.

Flagg nailed a contested jumper on the Mavs’ first possession of the third to continue that run, but Brown and the Celtics kept the Mavericks at arm’s length throughout most of the quarter. Flagg recorded a highlight chase-down block on a transition attempt from Baylor Scheierman two minutes later, and Max Christie hit his first 3-pointer of the game with 8:20 left in the third to bring Dallas to within 58-51. Luka Garza knocked down back-to-back 3-balls, though, with 3:30 left in the third to extend the Boston lead to 15, up 78-63.

Brown, who entered the fourth with 25 points and 10 rebounds already to his credit, rested to start the fourth quarter, but the Celtics didn’t miss him much. The lead floated near 20 points for much of the final frame. Flagg, however, continued to pour it in for Dallas. He nailed a 3-pointer with eight minutes remaining to give him 33 points and push his season scoring average to just over 20 points per game. He became the only teenager in NBA history to score 30 or more points in three straight games in the loss, and also the first rookie to score 34 or more in three straight since Trae Young did it in 2018. Flagg finished with 36 points, nine boards and six assists, another otherworldly performance in another hopeless Mavericks’ loss.

Brown came into the game with nine minutes remaining, as the Mavs threatened to get back in it, and scored on a forceful drive through the lane to give him a team-high 27 points on the night. He scored another tear-drop in transition over Flagg with five minutes to play to give Boston a 104-89 advantage. He finished with 33 points and 11 rebounds in the win.

Lack of assets

All you have to do is watch a few games to realize why, as ESPN’s Shams Charania reported earlier on Monday, Dallas’ phone lines remain “wide open” as the NBA Trade Deadline nears. Why would anyone want any of these guys? Flagg is the only winning player on the Mavericks’ roster at this point, and this team is truly hard to watch in long stretches.

Naji Marshall can’t save you, Mavs fans, even as nice as he’s looked this year. None of the guards are bringing any juice right now. Martin is a starter at this point. What are we even doing here?

The Celtics focused all of their energy on slowing Flagg down, forcing the rest of the Mavs to come to the table with literally anything at all. Most of the time, it just wasn’t there. This season is in the sewer. We are waist-deep in the muck.

Gafford goes down, gets back up

Late in the second quarter, Daniel Gafford, one of the most mediocre trade assets the Mavericks have dangled this winter, went down with an apparent ankle injury while moving into position for a rebound. If there was any hope of getting anything for Gafford before Tuesday’s game, the chances of doing so took a big hit as Gafford writhed in pain in the lane and was helped to the locker room with two minutes to go before the half.

Gafford’s right ankle has given him trouble for most of the season, since he sprained it in training camp and missed the first five games of the year. He hasn’t been right since, and his already modest production has been neutered as a result. He appeared to hurt the same ankle on Tuesday.

It was announced midway through the third quarter that Gafford would be available to return against the Celtics. He came back into the game with 5:18 left in the third quarter for some reason and immediately winced with apparent pain in his right shoulder after grabbing his first rebound of the second half.

Gafford skied for a putback dunk on Thompson’s missed jumper with 2:15 left in the third to get to eight points and eight rebounds in just 17 minutes to that point, perhaps giving potential trade suitors something to think about with his all-out effort in the face of what has been a tough season. He ran through Garza on his way to the bucket with 31 seconds left in the third for a basket that was wiped away on review as the Celtics took an 86-67 lead into the fourth quarter.

Thin bench

The Celtics got 26 points from Peyton Pritchard and 16 more from Garza off the bench while the Mavs searched for any production whatsoever from their beleaguered second unit. Boston’s bench outscored Dallas’ 44-22 and helped the Celtics coast to the win. After the Celtics’ 5-of-20 start from 3-point range, Boston made seven of their next 14 from distance to close out the win. Garza made all four of his 3-point attempts, tying a career-high mark in the win.

No Maverick reserve scored more than seven points in Tuesday’s loss.

Game 51.

Hopefully win 31.

In a matchup featuring the two fastest teams in the NBA, the Atlanta Hawks were in South Beach to take on the Miami Heat on Tuesday evening. After dropping two consecutive games against Houston and Indiana, the Hawks were looking to get back to winning ways — and keep the surging Charlotte Hornets* off their tails for the 10-seed in the Eastern Conference.

_{*winners of seven straight!}

The Hawks were without Kristaps Porzingis* (illness) and Onyeka Okongwu (dental fracture) for this one. Meanwhile, Miami were missing Andrew Wiggins (left hamstring tightness), Tyler Herro (ribs), and Norman Powell (personal) — who was named to his first career All-Star game on Sunday.

Atlanta reinserted Christian Koloko into the lineup tonight, as he joined Daniels, Alexander-Walker, Risacher and Jalen Johnson in the starting unit. Davion Mitchell, Pelle Larson, Myron Gardner, Simone Fontecchio and Bam Adebayo started the game for Miami.

Miami’s pace was on display early on, as they raced out to a 9-3 lead with multiple buckets in transition before back-to-back triples from Risacher and Alexander-Walker got Atlanta settled into the contest.

Though Norman Powell was sidelined for this one, Jalen Johnson reminded the Miami crowd that there was still an All-Star competing in tonight’s game — slicing through the lane for this emphatic jam on Jaime Jaquez Jr. mid-way through the quarter to put the Hawks up 17-13.

All-Star Air 🛩️ pic.twitter.com/8lEif58iyy

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

Miami knotted things at 19, before a 14-4 Hawks run over the last four-and-a-half minutes of the period put the good guys up by 10 heading into the second quarter. Though Risacher gets the highlight for this deft finish in transition — CJ McCollum was instrumental for Atlanta during this run, pouring in 8 points on 3-of-4 shooting off the bench in the opening frame.

NAW COOKIES AND LOB TO ZACCH 🍪 pic.twitter.com/ZDgKG1dzOJ

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

Atlanta kept their foot on the gas to open the second quarter. Asa Newell and Jalen Johnson made their presence felt on the interior with back-to-back jams, before a three from Luke Kennard extended the lead to 48-30 at the 7:51 mark of the second.

Asa & JJ Jams!! pic.twitter.com/R8MZp4gZTF

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

Luke letting 'em fly 🎯🎯 pic.twitter.com/ytZkt0hgaA

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

A mini-run from the Heat brought them as close as 11 points, but the Hawks quickly extinguished any talk of a first-half comeback, closing the quarter on a Jalen Johnson-led 11-5 run to take a 67-50 lead into the locker room.

Big first half! pic.twitter.com/I8n1uOM9YH

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

The biggest difference between the two sides in the first half was the three-point shooting. Atlanta shot 11-for-28 (39.3%) from distance while Miami went just 5-for-19 (26.3%). Jalen Johnson led all scorers at the half with 15 points. Simone Fontecchio was the high man for Miami with 11 points.

Miami looked the better team to start the second half, opening the quarter on a 19-7 run to cut the lead to five at the 7:03 mark of the period. With the Heat gaining momentum, an and-one bucket from Kispert at the 5:37 mark kept Miami at arms length.

Corey sticks with it for the strong and-1 💪 pic.twitter.com/C7pcq3HTTe

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

CJ McCollum continued his stellar play from the first half with a couple of buckets from the mid-range to get the lead back up to 10.

CJ checks back in and provides a couple much-needed buckets 🪣🪣 pic.twitter.com/MbxgNkwzPD

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

Atlanta closed the third quarter on a 19-8 run to take a commanding 98-81 advantage into the fourth quarter.

To the 4th! pic.twitter.com/CHHmnNFnca

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

True to their nature however, Miami would not concede so easily — cutting the lead to 11 at the 8:52 mark of the fourth, resulting in an early timeout for Quin Snyder. Out of the timeout, a refocused Hawks side put things right, going on an 8-0 run (punctuated by the Mo Gueye triple below) to get the lead back up to 19 with 7:01 remaining.

Mo Gueyeeee, Mo Gueye Mo Gueye, Mo Gueeeeeeeye pic.twitter.com/eGMoJsjBOa

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

From there, it was quite comfortable for Atlanta. Both sides cleared their benches with a little over a minute left to play, and the Hawks took home a comfortable 127-115 win.

HAWKS WIN! pic.twitter.com/BxWOXw8kvF

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2026

Jalen Johnson finished with 29 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists — his 9th triple-double of the season. CJ McCollum poured in 26 points (6-for-9 from three-point range) — setting a new Hawks-high for the veteran guard. Nickeil Alexander-Walker chipped in with 19 points.

Atlanta is back in action on Thursday night, taking on the Utah Jazz on their home floor. They’ll be looking to to continue to build momentum as the All Star break approaches.