Starting 5: Pistons win key showdown; Looking ahead to Thursday's slate

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀

One vs. One: Detroit’s All-Star duo delivers as East-best Pistons stave off West-leading Thunder

Big West Wins: Spurs storm back to extend streak, Jokić sparks 2nd-half blitz to beat Celtics

Roundup: Bucks edge Cavs in photo finish, Sheppard erupts for Rockets, Warriors roll

Tonight On Prime: Eyeing key wins, two surging squads collide with two West powers

League Pass Spotlight: Inside Charlotte’s rise, from its record rookie to its road win streak

BUT FIRST … ⏰

Ten games tip off tonight, headlined by a Prime doubleheader as Kevin Durant and the Rockets visit Paolo Banchero and the Magic (7:30 ET | Tap to Watch), before Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers host Anthony Edwards & the Wolves (10 ET | Tap to Watch).

1. WON VS. ONE: CADE & DUREN LIFT PISTONS PAST THUNDER

In a showdown between the East and West’s No. 1 seeds, Motor City flexed its muscle.

Pistons 124, Thunder 116: Cade Cunningham put on a two-way clinic (29 pts, 13 ast, 3 stl, 3 blk), while Jalen Duren dominated inside (29 pts, 15 reb) as Detroit staved off a late push from Jaylin Williams (30 pts, 11 reb) and OKC to beat the shorthanded Thunder. | Recap

Iron Meets Iron: Wednesday’s duel was the first time in six years that two teams with winning percentages of .750 or better met this late in the season.

And while OKC was without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, both squads showed why they sit atop their respective conferences.

• Resilient Thunder: After being outscored 72-46 across the 2nd and 3rd quarters, OKC used a 25-14 run to cut a 14-point deficit to three with 5:06 left
• The Spark? Jaylin Williams, who scored 14 points in the 4th to finish with a career high, while Cason Wallace (23), Aaron Wiggins (20) and Jared McCain (20) combined for 63

Mettle Meets Mettle: A complete team effort from OKC demanded a complete response from Detroit.

The Pistons delivered, closing on a 16-11 run as Cunningham and Duren answered again and again to keep the defending champs at bay.

• Clutch Cade: Cunningham posted 13 points and 2 assists in the 4th, including a key floater in the final minute to push the lead to six
• Duren Dagger: When OKC cut it back to four, Cade found Duren for the game-sealing hammer – one final answer to a best-on-best test
• The Final Results: Detroit (43-14) improves to a league-leading 19-7 against teams above .500 and leapfrogs OKC (45-15) for the best record in the NBA

2. BIG WEST WINS: SPURS’ STREAK HITS 10, NUGGETS SLOW CELTICS

With the Thunder falling in Detroit, the Spurs – seeking their longest win streak since 2015-16 – saw a chance to pull closer to the top.

They had some work to do late in Toronto first.

Spurs 110, Raptors 107: Devin Vassell (21 pts, 5 reb, 5 3s) and De’Aaron Fox (20 pts) led the way as San Antonio erased a 15-point deficit in the final 13 minutes, overcoming 20 points apiece from Brandon Ingram and Immanuel Quickley for a 10th straight victory. | Recap

• Turning Points: Down a game-high 15 points, San Antonio’s Stephon Castle ended the 3rd quarter with a triple that ignited a 17-2 Spurs run to reclaim the lead 4:34 into the 4th
• “That group that started the 4th… set the tone,” Fox said, who scored 8 of his 20 points in the frame. “Everyone else didn’t have a choice but to follow along.”

Despite not hitting his first field goal until the 3rd quarter, Victor Wembanyama (12 pts, 3-12 FG) came alive in the 4th with 6 of his 12 points, 5 of 8 rebounds and 3 of 5 blocks.

• Blocks In Bunches: Wemby recorded his 11th game this season of 5+ blocks. No other player has more than five such games
• With its longest win streak in 10 seasons, San Antonio joins both top seeds, the Thunder (16) and Pistons (13), as the only teams with double-digit win streaks this season

“Obviously, I think we’re ahead of schedule – that’s what everybody else thinks,” Fox said postgame.

“But with the talent that we have in this locker room … we’re looking at it as we’re right where we need to be.”

The Spurs picked up a game on the Thunder in the standings, now trailing the defending champs by just 2 games.

In the nightcap on ESPN, 4th-place Denver aimed to keep pace in the top half of the West, hosting the East’s 2nd seed.

Nuggets 103, Celtics 84: With Jamal Murray (illness) playing under 8 minutes, Nikola Jokić (12 reb, 6 ast) led Denver’s offense with 17 of his 30 points in the 2nd half, as the Nuggets held Boston to 36 points on 28.2% shooting after halftime to pull away late. | Recap

• The Getaway: Tim Hardaway Jr. (14 pts) gave Denver a 68-67 lead with under 2 minutes left in the 3rd, setting off an 11-0 close to the quarter and a 19-3 game-deciding run into the 4th
• Bright Spots: Jaylen Brown (23 pts, 11 reb, 3 blk) and Derrick White (20 pts, 6 reb, 3 blk) led the C’s in their lowest-scoring outing of the season

3. ROUNDUP: BUCKS WIN THRILLER, ROCKETS & WARRIORS ROLL

Bucks 118, Cavaliers 116: With James Harden (hand) and Donovan Mitchell (groin) out, Jarrett Allen (27 pts, 11 reb) nearly led Cleveland to victory, but his game-tying shot did not beat the buzzer, making Kevin Porter Jr. (20 pts, 8 reb, 5 ast) and Milwaukee winners of five of their last six. | Recap

• Go-Ahead Bucket: Knotted up at 116, Porter Jr. snaked into the lane and drained a tiebreaking fadeaway with 20 seconds left ⬆️
• Photo Finish: Allen responded with a potential tying putback at the buzzer, but the shot was waved off as the ball was still in his hand when time expired
• Neck-And-Neck: After Tuesday’s win over New York to pull even for the East’s 3rd seed, the shorthanded Cavs drop a half-game back into 4th

Rockets 128, Kings 97: Reed Sheppard buried a career-high seven 3s en route to a game-high 28 points, while Alperen Sengun (26 pts, 13 reb, 11 ast) posted his 11th career triple-double, powering Houston past Sacramento for its largest win of the season. | Recap

• DeMar Passes Truth: DeMar DeRozan posted 15 points and 7 assists for Sacramento, passing Paul Pierce (26,397) for 20th on the all-time scoring list

Warriors 133, Grizzlies 112: With Steph Curry, Draymond Green and others out, rookie Will Richards (21 pts, 6 ast) and Brandin Podziemski (19 pts, 8 reb, 6 ast) led eight Warriors in double figures, as the shorthanded Dubs shot past GG Jackson (24 pts, 8 reb) and the Grizz. | Recap

4. TONIGHT ON PRIME: SURGING SQUADS MEET WEST HEAVYWEIGHTS

With less than 7 weeks til the start of the SoFi Play-In Tournament, the Magic and Clippers find themselves in Play-In position.

One, Orlando, is a game behind 6th-place Philly for a spot in the Playoff picture.

The other, LA, sits in 10th place out West, looking to continue a climb from 14th place two months ago.

Tonight on Prime, both face top-five West opponents, starting with Orlando hosting Houston (7:30 ET). The Magic are just a half-game back of 6th-place Philly.

• Abracadabra: Paolo Banchero, Desmond Bane and Orlando have won six of their last eight games, most recently via Wendell Carter Jr.’s game-winning layup to beat the Lakers on Tuesday
• Bank On Him: Banchero was crucial in fending off Los Angeles, posting 36 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists to push the Magic one step closer to the Playoff picture
• On The Attack: Banchero’s drives have jumped from 12.6 to 16.3 per game since the All-Star break, resulting in 27 ppg over his last four outings

Houston will present a tough test. Entering tonight, it sits 3rd out West and boasts the 4th-best defense in the league.

• Titular Trio: Kevin Durant (25.8), Alperen Sengun (20.5) and Amen Thompson (17.4) have been the fuel, combining for 63.7 ppg this season

After a slow start, the Clippers have worked their way into postseason contention. They were 6-21 on Dec. 18, but after a resurgent stretch, now own 10th place – the final SoFi Play-In spot.

To close out Prime’s doubleheader (10 ET), they’ll look to keep climbing, but a tough test stands in their way in Anthony Edwards and the 5th-place Wolves.

• Battle Of Buckets: Kawhi Leonard has averaged 29.3 ppg this month. Opposite him will be Edwards, who boasts a league-high 34 ppg since the All-Star break
• Next Level: Edwards already has 27 performances with 30+ points this season – surpassing his total from 2024-25 – with 23 games left
• No Quit: LA is 27-30 and, should it finish over .500, it will be the first team in NBA history to do so following a 6-21 start
• Benn Boost: Newly-acquired Bennedict Mathurin has only helped in that regard. He’s found his stride in his last five outings with 22 points and 6.2 rebounds per game

5. LEAGUE PASS SPOTLIGHT: INSIDE THE HORNETS’ RAPID RISE

Charlotte isn’t just winning – it’s rewriting records.

Back-to-back games of 25 made 3s, something no team had ever done before, will do that. So will a rookie who just reached 200 career triples faster than anyone.

With the Hornets humming on both ends and riding a franchise-record eight-game road win streak, the last two months have felt less like a surge and more like a shift.

At the epicenter is Kia Rookie Ladder leader Kon Knueppel, whose historic shooting binge has powered Charlotte’s turnaround. Now just 4.5 games back of 6th-place Philly, Knueppel and the young Hornets have turned an early-season stumble into a Playoff sprint.

That turnaround is built on more than just shot-making, with five key factors driving Charlotte’s rise, writes Austin Remo of RotoWire: (1) a high-flying offense, (2) road success, (3) boards, (4) a young core and (5) a historic rookie. | Read More

Tonight (7 ET), Charlotte helps tip off an 8-game slate on League Pass as it visits the Pacers, looking to extend its franchise-record road winning streak to nine.

More On League Pass: The Spurs aim for their 11th straight win when they visit the Nets (7:30 ET), while Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid look to stay hot as the Sixers host the Heat (7 ET).

• Wizards at Hawks (7:30 ET)
• Blazers at Bulls (8 ET)
• Kings at Mavericks (8:30 ET)
• Pelicans at Jazz (9 ET)
• Lakers at Suns (9 ET)

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