Starting 5: Ant Clutches Up To Beat OKC, Maxey & VJ Cool Knicks, NBA TV Tripleheader Tonight

Back from a 3-game absence, Ant Edwards made 3 huge clutch plays in the final minute as the Wolves handed the Thunder only their 3rd loss of the season.

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀

Dec. 20, 2025

Ant’s Back: Edwards plays role of late hero as Minnesota tops West-leading OKC at home

East Beasts: Maxey, VJ spoil Knicks’ return, JB & White shoot into Celtics’ record books

Friday Roundup: Wemby’s double-double keeps Spurs rolling, Bulls run it back on Cavs

NBA TV Tripleheader: Lock in for eight straight hours of star-studded Saturday hoops

League Pass Preview: Battle of top-3 picks headlines today’s seven-game slate

BUT FIRST … ⏰

Friday’s scores and Saturday’s slate…

Saturday showcases 10 games, with an NBA TV tripleheader spanning from Houston and Denver’s rematch (5 ET), to the Hornets visiting the Pistons (7:30 ET) and the battle for L.A. (10:30 ET).

NBA 2K League’s $25k Tournament: NBA champions Payton Prichard and Matt Barnes join this weekend’s Fandemonium livestreams. Gamers, creators & fans compete in 2K for $25k…but there can only be one champion. Watch the finals live on Twitch at 4pm ET, today & tomorrow.

In the First Game of Christmas, the Cavs and Knicks give to us…

Top-10 scorers Jalen Brunson and Donovan Mitchell going head-to-head as the Knicks play their 50th Christmas game at MSG. Tap for what to know about this year’s slate.

• Cavaliers at Knicks (Noon ET)
• Spurs at Thunder (2:30 ET)
• Mavericks at Warriors (5 ET)
• Rockets at Lakers (8 ET)
• Wolves at Nuggets (10:30 ET)

Want to open one gift early? The Thunder and Spurs meet Dec. 23 on League Pass (8:30 ET).

1. EDWARDS RETURNS, COMES UP CLUTCH IN WIN OVER OKC

David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images

Timberwolves 112, Thunder 107: Returning from a three-game absence, Anthony Edwards put on a show, racking up 26 points, a season-high 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks in a game-high 40 minutes & 46 seconds in Friday’s win over West-leading OKC. | Recap

And those final 46 seconds were special.

The Shot: Down 2, Ant was isolated against Cason Wallace on the perimeter as the Target Center crowd rose to its feet.

Edwards danced with the ball before firing a contested stepback 3 that hit nothing but net with 37.7 seconds left to put the Wolves up by 1.

• “I’m going for the game, every time,” said Ant of his decision to shoot the 3 for the lead rather than try to tie the game with a 2

The Block: Now it was OKC’s star’s turn to respond. Isolated on Jaden McDaniels, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander broke free and drove into the paint looking for a go-ahead layup. But Edwards rotated over to block the attempt off the glass and preserve the lead.

The Steal: After Julius Randle’s free throws put Minnesota up 3, the ball was once again in the reigning MVP’s hands. Needing to create space for a potential game-tying 3, SGA couldn’t break free of Ant’s ball pressure before Edwards poked the ball away to seal the win.

In addition to Ant’s heroics, the Wolves got a combined 34 points and five 3s from Julius Randle (19 pts, 8 reb) and Donte DiVincenzo (15 pts, 1 4-point play) in their 8th win over the last 10 games.

• Beating The Best: Friday marked Minnesota’s third regular-season win over the Thunder since the start of the 2024-25 season, tied with Dallas for most in the league vs. OKC in that span
• Circle The Date: OKC took Round 1 on Nov. 26 by 8 points at home. Minnesota took Round 2 on Friday at home. The rubber match is Jan. 29 (9:30 ET, Prime) in Minneapolis

SGA had a stat-stuffing effort of his own for OKC – scoring a game-high 35 points to go with 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks – with 11 of his points coming in the final frame as he appeared in only his 13th 4th quarter this season for the now 25-3 Thunder.

• Streak Continues: SGA extended 20+ point streak to 99 games. He’ll go for 100 straight when OKC hosts Memphis on Monday (9:30 ET, Peacock) as he continues his pursuit of Wilt Chamberlain’s record of 126 games

2. EAST BEASTS: SIXERS SPOIL KNICKS’ HOMECOMING, CELTICS SET RECORDS

The Knicks returned home with the NBA Cup championship Friday night, celebrating the achievement with fans pregame.

Then, the Sixers crashed the party.

Sixers 116, Knicks 107: After missing two games with illness, Tyrese Maxey (game-high 30 pts) and VJ Edgecombe (23 pts) combined for 18 of Philly’s 28 4th-quarter points as the Sixers dealt the Knicks’ their first loss since Dec. 2. | Recap

• Rookie Closer: In his MSG debut and back in the state where he played high school ball, Edgecombe scored his seven 4th-quarter points in a 2-minute stretch late, adding the “defensive dagger”
• Kid Is Clutch: In his third straight 20+ point game, VJ went 2-2 in the clutch, including this rebound rim-rocker, and is now 13-20 in the clutch this season
• “That’s what 77 does,” Tyrese Maxey said of Edgecombe postgame. “He puts it all out there on the floor every single game.”
• Tall Triples: Andre Drummond (14 pts, 13 reb) dialed up a career-high three 3s to help Philly become just the second visitor to win at MSG this season

The Cup champs fall to 13-2 at home this season, seeing their six-game win streak (seven including the Cup Finals) snapped in a game full of strong performances.

• Power Pack: Four Knicks topped 20 points, led by Jalen Brunson (22 pts, 6 reb, 9 ast) and Karl-Anthony Towns (22 pts, 11 reb)
• Big Boosts: Mikal Bridges (7 reb, 5 ast) and Mitchell Robinson (16 reb, 2 blk) added 21 points each, as Robinson logged the Knicks’ first 20/15 game off the bench since 2018

Two 30-point streak milestones.

An unheard-of combo of threes and blocks.

Boston’s best 4th quarter from distance this century.

In this season’s first chapter of the Heat-Celtics rivalry, Boston rewrote the record books.

Celtics 129, Heat 116: Derrick White (33 pts, 6 ast, 9 3s, 4 blk) and Jaylen Brown (30 pts, 9 reb, 7 ast) combined to shoot 20-for-38 from the field, fueling Boston to a late runaway win that left Miami with its sixth loss in the last eight games. | Recap

• 3-And-D: Scoring 30+ in consecutive games for the first time, White became the first player in NBA history with 9+ 3-pointers and 4+ blocks in a game
• Boston Legends: Brown joined Jayson Tatum, Larry Bird, Paul Pierce and John Havlicek as the only Celtics to record six straight 30+ point games
• On Fire: Boston shot 48.8% from distance, piling up 10 of its 21 triples in the 4th quarter to balloon its lead from one to a game-high 19 points
• Heat Check: Kel’el Ware (24 pts, 14 reb) led Miami with a career-high six 3s, while 20th overall pick Kasparas Jakučionis set new personal bests with 17 points, six rebounds and four assists in his 3rd career game

3. ROUNDUP: WEMBY LEADS SPURS OVER HAWKS, BULLS SWEEP CAVS

In just his third year, Victor Wembanyama is already within (his very long) arm’s reach of two of the game’s giants.

Spurs 126, Hawks 98: In his first double-double since Nov. 14, Wemby (26 pts, 12 reb, 2 blk) reached 100 straight games with at least one block, as San Antonio won its fifth regular-season game in a row, and second since its Cup finale defeat. | Recap

• Rejection Royalty: Wemby now owns the third-longest blocks streak in NBA History, trailing defensive legends Dikembe Mutombo (116 games) and Patrick Ewing (145)
• Spurs’ Spread: Devin Vassell (18 pts, 7 reb, 4 3s) and Stephon Castle (17 pts, 7 ast) supported Wemby in a game where 13 Spurs scored
• Top Hawks: Jalen Johnson (17 pts, 11 reb, 6 ast) followed his career-high 43-point birthday outing with his 18th double-double of the season, while Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s 23 points led Atlanta

Bulls 136, Cavs 125: Nikola Vučević logged 11 of his shared team-high 24 points and six of his 15 boards in a 4th quarter where the Bulls used a 17-8 run to pull away, defeating Cleveland in consecutive games. | Recap

• Bulls’ Bunch: Matas Buzelis (5 reb, 2 stl, 2 blk) matched Vučević’s 24 points, leading Josh Giddey (17 pts, 6 reb, 7 ast) and four other double-digit Chicago scorers
• Leading Cleveland: With Donovan Mitchell out (illness), Darius Garland’s season-high 35 points (8 ast, 6 3s) led the Cavs, who got a big first start from Tyrese Proctor (16 pts, career-high 6 reb)

4. A STAR-STUDDED SATURDAY NBA TV TRIPLEHEADER

Justin Edmonds/NBAE via Getty Images

Rockets at Nuggets (5 ET): This West showdown tipping off Saturday’s 3-game slate on NBA TV goes heavy on the No. 3.

• 3rd Meeting: Denver aims for a 3-0 lead to clinch the season series after winning each of the first two games – including Monday’s OT thriller – by 3 points
• Top-3 Offenses: Denver (125.6) and Houston (121.1) rank 1st and 3rd, respectively, in offensive rating and points per game
• Top 3 From 3: Denver (40.1%) and Houston (39.6%) rank 2nd and 3rd, respectively, in 3-point percentage
• Avoiding The 3: While Denver enters tonight’s game seeking its sixth straight win, Houston is trying to prevent its first 3-game skid of the season

Both offenses are led by dynamic duos featuring a playmaking center (Nikola Jokić and Alperen Sengun) and a lethal perimeter scorer (Jamal Murray and Kevin Durant).

• Doing It All: Jokić is coming off his league-leading 13th triple-double this season and 177th of his career – five shy of passing Oscar Robertson for 2nd all-time
• 1st-Time All-Star? After averaging between 20 and 21.4 ppg the past four seasons, Murray ranks 15th at 25.2 ppg and already has seven 30+ point games
• Career Year: A first-time All-Star last year, Sengun is averaging a career-best 23.7 ppg, while also ranking top 12 in both rebounds (9.5) and assists (career-high 7.2)
• Mr. Reliable: Durant (25.1 ppg, 51.3% FG) is on pace to average 25+ ppg on 50%+ shooting for the 13th time, which would tie LeBron James for the most such seasons ever

Hornets at Pistons (7:30 ET): The return of LaMelo Ball helped Charlotte shoot the lights out on Thursday, splashing a season-high 24 triples (including 8 from Ball and 6 from Kon Knueppel) for their 2nd straight win.

• Tough Test: Charlotte looks to ride that momentum against the East-leading Pistons, who own the league’s 2nd-best defense, ranking 3rd in steals, 6th in deflections and 11th in 3P% allowed
• Bounce Back: Detroit looks to improve to 5-1 on the season when coming off a loss, after falling to Dallas in OT on Thursday

Lakers at Clippers (10:30 ET): The latest Battle of L.A. sees Luka, LeBron and the Lakers seeking their 3rd straight win overall and 5th straight over their cross-town rivals when they visit the Clippers, while the home team looks to snap a five-game skid.

• Sizzling Luka: How will Dončić follow up Thursday’s stat-stuffing masterpiece (45 pts, 11 reb, 14 ast, 5 stl, 4 3pm)? He owns a 32.8 ppg career average against the Clippers – his 3rd highest vs. any opponent
• Going For 20: The Lakers can earn their 20th win of the season, which would match their best start since beginning their title defense in the 2020-21 season

5. LEAGUE PASS: BATTLE OF TOP-3 PICKS HEADLINES SATURDAY’S 7-GAME SLATE

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From VJ Edgecombe’s day one splash to Cooper Flagg’s team-leading climb, it continues to be a strong year for June’s top picks.

Now, these two headlining rooks face off for the first time tonight.

Mavs at Sixers (7 ET): Coop and the Mavs come in winners of 3 of 4, having handed Detroit its sixth loss in a gritty OT thriller, while VJ and the Sixers just earned the second visitor win at MSG this season, downing the NBA Cup champ Knicks.

Taken just a pick apart, Coop and VJ’s journeys to the NBA were worlds apart: A consensus No. 1 pick and franchise foundation vs. humble beginnings and an arrival ahead of scope and schedule.

• Hello VJ: Philly felt an instant impact from Edgecombe, who debuted in a clutch one-point win over Boston with the most first-game points (34) since Wilt‘s 43 in 1959
• Better With Him: VJ owns Philly’s best Net Rating (5.4, minimum 12 games); The Sixers have a 115.3 Offensive Rating and a 110.0 Defensive Rating with Edgecombe on the floor
• Without Him? -5.4 Net Rating (110.2 OffRtg and 115.6 DefRtg)
• He’s willing to do whatever it takes to win, whether shots are falling or not,” Embiid said of Edgecombe. “He’s also adding in a lot of different ways.”

After learning the ropes in Dallas’ 5-15 start, Flagg’s productivity boost has helped the Mavs win six of their last eight matchups.

• Finding His Way: Flagg has averaged 25.4 points on 52.4% shooting in those eight Mavs games, a major step up from his 15.7 ppg on 45.1% prior to this stretch
• “In that winning situation, he has stepped up every time,” coach Jason Kidd said of Coop Thursday. “It’s good to see. We’re finally starting to win some close games here.”

Barry Gossage/Cameron Browne & Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images

Roundup: Six more League Pass fixtures feature a pair of rewinds as both the Suns and Warriors (8:30 ET) and Kings and Blazers (10 ET) run it back after tight Thursday tilts.

Plus, the surging Grizzlies seek their 8th win in 10 games, hosting the Wizards (8 ET).

• Celtics at Raptors (7 ET)
• Pacers at Pelicans (7 ET)
• Magic at Jazz (9:30 ET)