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CLEVELAND — The emotion and energy in the building when LeBron James is in town is distinctly different. Every move that he makes elicits a reaction from the crowd. It did when he was 18. And it does when he’s 41.

This creates an interesting atmosphere to play a basketball game, like the Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers attempted to do on Wednesday.

James received the loudest ovation during the pregame intros, and then he teared up during the tribute video the Cavs ran for him during the first timeout. He’s always shown appreciation for the hometown crowd, but never to this level.

This led to a somewhat unfocused effort on the court for James. For one of the very few times in his career, he wasn’t able to reach back and throw his best fastball on a night he would’ve liked to.

The Cavs took advantage.

Cleveland opened the game on a 7-0 run to put the Lakers on their backfoot.

Los Angeles fought back and reasserted control of the game in the second quarter. Luka Dončić’s 13 points in that frame had a lot to do with that.

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The Cavaliers closed the second well, taking a two-point lead into the break before breaking it open in the third quarter.

Cleveland was the aggressor out of the gate and quickly opened a double-digit lead. Then, they expanded it to 17 with a 9-0 run, and kept their foot on the gas until they were up 22 heading into the fourth, putting it out of reach for any possible comeback.

The Cavs won the second half 72-44 en route to their 30-point victory.

The bench powered the shorthanded Cavs, who were playing without Darius Garland (toe) and Evan Mobley (calf).

Jaylon Tyson’s emergence as not just a rotation player, but someone who can be a meaningful foundational piece of the team’s future was on display. He was comfortable attacking off-the-dribble, playmaking for others, and was incredibly useful as a perimeter defender.

More than that, Tyson plays with an infectious energy that affects the whole team. It’s difficult to sit back and watch when he’s playing like this and telling ESPN that “he fears no man” when asked about facing his favorite player growing up.

Tyson ended the night with 20 points on 8-15 shooting to go along with six rebounds and six assists.

Nae’Qwan Tomlin followed Tyson’s lead. He played with the same reckless abandon that led to him having an emphatic fastbreak and rejection of a James layup on the other end.

De’Andre Hunter provided the reserve shotmaking that many within the organization were hoping he would when the Cavs traded for him a year ago. He poured in 19 points on 7-15 shooting in the win.

The Cavaliers also benefited from solid games from their two best remaining players. Donovan Mitchel led the team with 25 points, five rebounds, and four assists. Jarrett Allen controlled the paint, finishing with 17 points, nine rebounds, two assists, and a steal.

This was a win the Cavs needed. This team hasn’t always responded well to high-pressure games. They passed that test as they picked up a much-needed win before heading on a five-game Western Conference roadtrip.

Cleveland has now won five straight, eight of their last 10, and 12 of their last 16. This team is starting to come into form, even though we still haven’t been able to see what a fully healthy version of this group looks like.

Dončić led the Lakers with an empty calories 29 points on 12-20 shooting with six assists and five rebounds.

James was the story of the game, but not for anything he did on the court. It was an underwhelming performance that was somewhat reminiscent of his first home game in Cleveland back in 2014. He never established anything, was passive to a fault, and wasn’t able to turn it around when the game started slipping away.

James ended his homecoming with just 11 points on 3-10 shooting with five assists and three rebounds.

The other James, Bronny, performed well. He received one of the loudest cheers of the game when he was subbed in midway through the fourth quarter, when the game was already out of reach. James provided a breakaway dunk and three as he scored eight points on 3-3 shooting.

The Cavs will be back in action as they start their roadtrip against the Phoenix Suns on Friday. Gametime is 9 PM.

The Lakers suffered a brutal third-quarter meltdown, getting outscored 42–22 as the Cavaliers pulled away for a 129-99 win Wednesday night.

The game began with the Cavaliers quickly going up by five. LA missed their first two shot attempts, both by Luka Dončić. The deficit grew to seven after a dunk by Jarrett Allen. Deandre Ayton got the Lakers on the board with a layup. Los Angeles went on an 8-0 run to take over the lead. 

Luka, unfortunately, went to the locker room at the 7:46 mark with an apparent ankle injury. He bounced a few too many steps back, causing him to fall off the raised court. 

Cleveland responded with an 8-0 run themselves to retake the lead. A very welcome sight was Gabe Vincent draining two 3-pointers. He and Jake LaRavia were leading the Lakers with six points each. Luka returned to the game at the 1:32 mark. 

At the end of the first, the purple and gold were up by four.

The second period began with Jarred Vanderbilt dunking off an assist from LeBron. Luka finally converted on a shot, hitting a fadeaway jumper. LA was on another 8-0 run. Donovan Mitchell stopped some of Los Angeles’ momentum with a layup.

Vincent responded with his third triple of the half. 

LA had jumped ahead by 10, but the Cavaliers responded immediately, scoring six straight points to inch closer.

It was a one-point game after Cleveland’s run extended to 11-2. Both teams traded baskets, with the Cavaliers eventually taking the lead. LeBron picked up two quick fouls as the half was winding down. Mitchell ended the half with 11 points.

At halftime, the Lakers were down by two.

The second half started with Ayton tying the game at the charity stripe. Cleveland countered with a 7-0 scoring run. The triples were falling for the Cavs, who had already drained three in the quarter. Luka had 6 points early. 

Cleveland jumped ahead by their largest margin of the night, 11, as LA struggled to defend its sharpshooters. The Cavs were shooting 87% from the field in the quarter. 

After a quick four points from Jaylon Tyson, the lead exploded to 15 for Cleveland. Four of their starters were in double figures. Luka and Ayton were the only starters in double figures for LA.

Things went from bad to worse for the Lakers as they looked flat-out awful on all cylinders. The Cavs closed the quarter shooting 6-10 from behind the arc and extended their lead to 22.

Deandre Hunter converted on a jumper to start the final frame, further extending Cleveland’s big lead. Hunter was up to 17 points. At the 8:56 mark, it was a rough 27-point game. 

To make matters worse, LeBron also suffered a sprained ankle, but was able to stay in the game. The Lakers waved the white flag at the 8:23 mark. 

Bronny James scored eight points in this quarter, including a dunk that dazzled his hometown crowd.

Key Player Stats

LeBron finished with 11 points, three rebounds and five assists. Luka had 29 points with five rebounds and six assists. Vincent notched 11 points, going 3-4 from behind the field. LaRavia scored six points, two assists and two steals. 

Ayton pitched in with 10 points and four rebounds. Jaxson Hayes ended with seven points and five rebounds. Vanderbilt logged in four points, six rebounds and two assists. 

The Lakers’ next matchup will be against the Washington Wizards on Friday at 4:00 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Josh Hubbard scored 15 points, Quincy Ballard added 13 and Mississippi State dominated LSU from the start in an 80-66 victory on Wednesday night.

Mississippi State shot 60% and outrebounded LSU 17-5 in the first 10 minutes while building a 30-10 lead. Later in the half, a 13-3 run left the Bulldogs with a 44-17 lead. It was 44-21 at halftime.

LSU was within 58-42 seven minutes into the second half before Epps hit two 3-pointers in a 10-2 Mississippi State run and the Bulldogs led 68-44.

The biggest lead of the second half was 72-46 with about 10 minutes remaining. LSU kept the margin under 20 points for the final six minutes, which included the game's final five points. It was the closest the game had been since 12 1/2 minutes remained in the first half.

Max Mackinnon scored 15 points, Dedan Thomas Jr. and Rashad King had 14 each and Pablo Tamba added 10 for LSU (13-8, 1-7 SEC).

Ja’Borri McGhee added 11 points and Sergej Macura had 10 for Mississippi State (11-10, 3-5).

Mississippi State bounced back after losing by 32 to then-No. 15 Vanderbilt on Saturday.

Mississippi State is at Missouri on Saturday.

LSU visits South Carolina on Saturday.

___

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IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Bennett Stirtz scored 20 points, including two free throws with 4.6 seconds remaining, as Iowa survived USC's comeback bid to win 73-72 on Wednesday night.

The Hawkeyes (15-5, 5-4 Big Ten) led by as many as 17 points in the second half, but a rally by USC put the Trojans ahead by one point with eight seconds to go. Stirtz was fouled by USC's Jerry Easter II, and made both free throws to put Iowa back ahead.

Tavion Banks also had 20 points before fouling out with just over three minutes to go.

A 20-4 run early in the second half gave the Hawkeyes a double-digit lead, but Kam Woods single-handedly got the Trojans (15-6, 4-6) back into the game with a solo 12-0 run. Woods scored 19 straight points for USC before Jacob Cofie made the go-ahead layup. Woods finished with 33 points on 12-of-17 shooting after playing all 40 minutes. His previous season high was eight points.

USC led 28-27 at the half, led by Chad Baker-Mazara who scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half.

Alvaro Folgueiras added 14 points and five rebounds for Iowa, and Kael Combs dished a team-high four assists.

USC hosts Rutgers on Saturday.

Iowa visits Oregon on Sunday.

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Welcome to the Game Thread. Veterans of the Game Thread know how we do things around here, but for all you newbies we have a few rules. Our community guidelines apply and basically say be cool, no personal attacks, don’t troll and don’t swear too much.

The Spurs face the Rockets for the third time this season, a 121-110 Spurs victory on November 7 and a 111-106 loss where the Rockets shut down the Spurs in the fourth quarter, outscoring them 29-14 in the final frame. The Spurs’ offensive collapse in the fourth quarter of that second game has caused quite a bit of concern for fans of the Silver and Black, as it showed how the team can be disrupted by physical play, especially in the paint. The Spurs will have to come up with a response tonight, because if the fourth quarter is turned into a wrestling match between Alperen Sengun and Victor Wembanyama, it’s likely that Houston could come out on top again.

The Spurs will have to play more of a space and pace game to counter the grab and grind defense of the Space City gladiators tonight, and not leave Victor one on one against Sengun without help from his teammates. The Rockets are really clicking on offense, with both Alperen Sengun and Kevin Durant scoring 33 in their 108-99 victory over the Grizzlies on Monday night, so the Spurs defense will also be tested tonight. They can’t forget about Reed Sheppard, who burned the Spurs for 21 points in the previous contest coming off the bench.

The whole team looked a little off in the loss to the Pelicans a few days ago, where they forgot to play until late in the game and burned all their energy in catching up and had nothing left to finish. They can’t beat the Rockets by playing 1/3rd of a game, as they attempted to do to the Pelicans. Let’s see if the Spurs can get on a roll going into the All Star Break, just a little over two weeks and eight games away. After tonight, the Spurs have a few days of before they face the Hornets in Charlotte, who have been very dangerous lately. Let’s GO SPURS!!

Game Prediction:

Mitch Johnson is fired at halftime by a Pounding the Rock fan poll and is replaced in the second half with player-coach Jeremy Sochan. This is reversed at the end of the third quarter when it is determined that 75% of the votes were cast by 4 users using multiple aliases.

San Antonio Spurs at Houston Rockets
January 28, 2026 | 8:30 PM CT
Streaming: ESPN app
TV: ESPN
Reminder: It is against site policy to post links to illegal streams in the comments.

CINCINNATI (AP) — Baba Miller scored 18 points and grabbed 17 rebounds as Cincinnati took down Baylor 67-57 on Wednesday night.

Jizzle James added 17 points for the Bearcats (11-10, 3-5 Big 12 Conference) on 6-for-11 shooting. Miller recorded his ninth double-double this season, second most in the Big 12.

Cincinnati shot 39% (28% from deep) and Baylor 35% (23% from deep). Miller made all six of his attempts from the foul line, where the Bearcats were 11 for 14, while Baylor was 5 for 9.

Cincinnati never trailed, as Miller made a dunk on a fastbreak just four seconds into the first half. An 8-0 run extended the lead to double-dights less than eight minutes later, but Baylor answered with a 10-0 run. Cincinnati led 35-28 at the half.

Moustapha Thiam converted a three-point play with 16:14 remaining in the game that made it 45-35 and Cincinnati lead by double figures the rest of the sway.

Thiam finished with 14 points (6-of-12 shooting), and Jalen Celestine and Day Day Thomas had four assists each for the Bearcats.

Tounde Yessoufou scored 16 points and Obi Agbim added 14 for the Bears (11-9, 1-7), who lost their fourth straight game. Cameron Carr and Dan Skillings Jr. led with seven rebounds apiece.

Baylor: The Bears visit West Virginia on Saturday.

Cincinnati: The Bearcats visit No. 10 Houston on Saturday.

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The Jazz had their first nationally televised game, and it did not disappoint… for the first half. In the second half, they fell apart and struggled mightily without Keyonte George. They also faced some familiar faces in John Collins, and Kriss Dunn. Dunn had a fantastic night, notching 5 steals and 14 points. These were not the same Clippers that the Jazz faced at the beginning of the season. At the end of the day, though, the Jazz are one loss closer to a top 3 pick in this year’s NBA draft. 

With that out of the way, here are my player grades for tonight’s 115-103 loss to the Clippers. 

Lauri Markkanen – C- 

Lauri Markkanen looked fairly rusty this game, which is to be expected as it was his first game back since January 12th against the Cavaliers. He started the game shooting 1/6 and just not looking fully comfortable on the court. His night as a shooter did not improve as he would finish shooting 5/15 from the field. He did, however, have two blocks, including an impressive one on a James Harden shot attempt. 

Cody Williams- B 🙂

Williams did a little bit of everything tonight, he had 11 points, two boards, and two steals on the night. He continues to be more aggressive on offense, as showcased by his beautiful up-and-under dunk over John Collins. It wasn’t a perfect night for him, however, as he did lose his handle on the ball on what should have been an easy dunk in transition. He also had the ball snatched away immediately after he got a steal. Overall, however, he shot 4/7 from the field and made one of his two three-point attempts. 

Ace Bailey- B

If he were graded on his punctuality, Ace would get a big fat F for tonight, as he was late to his halftime interview because he headed to the locker room too early after drilling a three to end the 1st half. Thankfully, that’s not what he is being graded on, as he had a solid night, putting up 20 points while shooting 50% from the floor and making 4/9 threes. He also forced a jump ball on an impressive hustle play. 

Kevin Love – C-

Not a night to remember for Kevin Love as he only had 3 points in 24 minutes. He shot a putrid 1/5 tonight and had the worst +/- of any Jazzman at -20. His night wasn’t a total stinker, however, as he still managed to grab 11 rebounds. 

Isaiah Collier- B-

Collier had a solid night, dropping 12 points to go along with 9 assists, 4 rebounds, and only one turnover. He also had a pretty smooth fade-away jump shot over Harden. I am slightly discouraged to see him go 0/2 from three. His shot from deep just has very little arc and seems to always miss short. There is no question about his ability to pass the ball and drive to the rim, but the development of his three-point shot will determine whether his game can take the next step. 

Brice Sensabaugh- C+

I had the toughest time grading Sensabaugh tonight out of everyone. He had 13 points on decent shooting splits, and he also forced an offensive foul on John Collins. Some of those points did come in garbage time, though, which is why I settled on a grade of C+ for Brice. 

Taylor Hendricks – D

A night that Taylor Hendricks will need to put behind him as he continues to battle back after his horrific leg injury last season. In my notes for this game, I didn’t mention him once. I still believe in Hendricks 100%, but tonight was rough for him as he shot 0/4 to go along with 3 turnovers in just 12 minutes of gametime. He also posted a +/- of -15.

Kyle Filipowski- D+

On paper, Flip had a solid game. 8 points, 10 rebounds, and a +8 on the night. That, however, doesn’t tell the full story of his game. He got beat inside by the Clippers big men several times. The charge that was called on John Collins was a very generous call, because to me it just looked like Flip got bullied. His defense must improve if he wants consistent minutes heading into next season. 

Walter Clayton Jr.- C-

Clayton played only 19 minutes tonight, which I thought was a slightly odd decision considering that Keyonte George was out tonight. He did nail a three and get a nice lay-up that probably should have been an and-one. Looking at the stats, he also had a block, which I have no mention of in my notes, and have no memory of seeing him get one, but I’ll take their word for it.

Kyle Anderson- B

Kyle Anderson was Kyle Anderson, providing a steady vet presence out there in a game without Jusuf Nuric. He did have 12 points on good shooting and 5 assists. Side note, I don’t think I will ever get used to watching the way he plays basketball. Just completely at his own pace, and with his own unique shooting form. 

Giannis Antetokounmpo has told the Milwaukee Bucks he’s ready to be traded, and it puts speculation about his future into overdrive as the Feb. 5 trade deadline approaches. It appears the Bucks are resigned to their fate when it comes to trading their superstar forward, but it’s still possible they will wait until the summer for the best deal.

Rival teams are lining up to make Milwaukee their best offer, and right now there’s four teams considered “strong suitors” for Antetokounmpo. The New York Knicks, Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat, and Minnesota Timberwolves were named by Charania as the teams who currently have the inside track on landing the Greek Freak. Charania gave his report during the ESPN NBA tip-off show on Wednesday night.

Notice that this report does not include a few teams often mentioned as potential Giannis suitors: the San Antonio Spurs, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Los Angeles Lakers, and Houston Rockets. The Rockets, Spurs, and Thunder reportedly don’t have interest in trading for Antetokounmpo at this time, and it’s likely that the Lakers’ best offer couldn’t come until this summer when they gain control of more tradable draft picks.

What could each of these teams offer? Let’s get into it.

Golden State Warriors’ Giannis trade offer

It might be wise to fade the Warriors’ future with Stephen Curry approaching his 38th birthday. If Golden State really is willing to go all-in to give Curry another superstar teammate for one last potential run, this is one hell of an offer. Butler is out for the year with a torn ACL, and Kuminga and Podziemski are middling role players, but the draft compensation here is significant. Outside of getting their own picks back, which seems impossible, betting against the Warriors at the end of Curry’s career might be the best Milwaukee can do.

Knicks’ Giannis trade offer

Giannis has always wanted the Knicks, and the Knicks have always been a terrible trade partner for Milwaukee. This trade is legal on Feb. 1, and at least it doesn’t have the Bucks taking back Karl-Anthony Towns. The Knicks can add first-round swaps in 2026, 2030, and 2032. They do not have a tradable first-round pick. The Bucks could probably immediately flip Anunoby and Bridges for significant draft compensation. It feels like this only happens if Giannis really pushes for it.

Heat’s Giannis trade offer

The Heat can add swaps in 2028, 2030, and 2032. The trade would keep Giannis in the East, and put him in a market where he would likely re-sign. Milwaukee getting three unprotected first-round picks and three swaps might be enough to pull the trigger. Second-year center Kel’el Ware is the best long-term asset in this haul, while Tyler Herro could probably be flipped for more picks in the offseason. I like this one the more I think about it.

Timberwolves’ Giannis trade offer

Randle and McDaniels are both good players who could be flipped to other teams for future draft assets. Beringer was Minnesota’s first-round pick in 2025, and projects as a super bouncy young center who could fit well in a Milwaukee rebuild. It still feels like the Wolves just don’t have enough draft capital to get it done. The 2026 pick is currently slated to be No. 20 overall. Even if Milwaukee can find two first-round picks out there for McDaniels (no guarantee), it still feels underwhelming.

The Dallas Mavericks will rest rookie sensation Cooper Flagg for Wednesday night's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the team announced earlier Wednesday.

Officially, Flagg is being held out for "left ankle injury management."

He scored 16 points in 34 minutes in the Mavericks' last contest on Jan. 24 against the Los Angeles Lakers. Flagg, the top pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, has had a few injury scares this year but has only missed three other games this season. He last missed games on Jan. 15 and 17 but had played in the Mavericks' last three contests.

For the season he's averaging 18.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.1 assists.

The Mavericks will also be without Klay Thompson, Dereck Lively II, Kyrie Irving, Dante Exum, Anthony Davis and Moussa Cisse, per the team.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Is Cooper Flagg playing tonight? Timberwolves-Mavericks status

The Dallas Mavericks (19-27) host the Minnesota Timberwolves (28-19) on Wednesday evening. It’s the first game of a back-to-back for the Mavericks; they unexpectedly had three days off when their Sunday game was postponed due to weather. Dallas has won four out of their last five, with the lone loss coming last Saturday to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Timberwolves are on the other side; they lost five in a row before snapping out of it with a Monday win over the Golden State Warriors

Heres the main things you need to know before tipoff.

• WHO: Dallas Mavericks vs Minnesota Timberwolves
• WHAT: Trying to slow down Anthony Edwards
• WHERE: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
• WHEN: 7:30 pm CST
• HOW: KFAA Channel 29, MavsTV streaming, NBA League Pass

Dallas has an annoying injury report, but that’s been the entire stinking year. Cooper Flagg was ruled out due to an ankle injury or injury management, whatever you want to call it. I expect him to play tomorrow. Klay Thompson is out as well with knee soreness. Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, Dante Exum, and Dereck Lively are of course out. Anthony Edwards was the only Timberwolf on the injury report of note and he is playing.

This is going to be a close game somehow, I just have zero idea how that actually happens. Naji Marshall’s been given the green light and I expect more of that. PJ Washington needs to string together some decent games too. Dallas is going to have a hard time on the boards but if Ryan Nembhard can get the offense in a flow for the Mavericks, maybe they hang around and surprise the Wolves, who are talented but inconsistent as hell.

Consider joining Josh and me on Pod Maverick live after the game on YouTube, we should start LATE. Thanks so much for spending time with us here at Mavs Moneyball. Let’s go Mavs!

We don’t know how many more times LeBron James will play in the arena he called home for 11 years. As such, the Cleveland Cavaliers pulled out all the stops to make sure that the current Los Angeles Lakers star knew that what he’s done for the team and community is appreciated.

First, the crowd gave him the loudest ovation during pregame intros, which included a special welcome from the Cavs’ mascot, Moondog.

Then, the Cavs welcomed him back with a tribute video at the first timeout with highlights of his 25-straight point game against the Detroit Pistons in 2007. It was a fitting tribute, given that the current Cavs were sporting the same uniforms the team wore then.

Afterward, James seemed overwhelmed by emotions before heading back onto the court.

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James has the ability to keep playing the game at a high level, even if his athleticism has taken a notable decline in the last few seasons. Whether or not someone of his caliber wants to keep going if he isn’t able to play at the level he used to remains to be seen. James doesn’t have anything more to prove in this game.

That said, if James does keep playing, the Cavs and their fanbase have made it clear that he has a spot to end his career here if he so desires. ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that the team would be willing to welcome him back next season.

We’ll see what happens in the future. What we do know is that James is still admired in his home, and always will be.