De’Andre Hunter, are you kidding?!
A crossover-of-the-year candidate came with a free poster – and another Cavs win.
5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀
Nov. 9, 2025
Saturday Sizzle: Spida takes over in the clutch, Jokić & Wemby stay winning (and wowing)
East Heat: More Maxey buckets, Hawks step up, Heat erupt
West Dubs: Booker & Suns shine, Marshall & Flagg fuel Dallas
Giannis Channels Kareem: Historically hot Greek Freak welcomes Durant’s Rockets
Rising Duos: How two young tandems are driving two of the East’s hottest teams
BUT FIRST … ⏰
Eight-plus hours of hoops…
Sunday delivers a 7-game slate of non-stop hoops, starting at 3:30 ET as KD and the Rockets visit Giannis’ Bucks (League Pass | Tap to Watch).
1. 7TH-WIN SATURDAY: CAVS STATEMENT, NUGGETS & SPURS STAY HOT
David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images
They won an East-best 64 games last season, led the conference for 165 straight days and scored the eighth-most points in NBA history.
Now, the Cavs are catching fire again.
Cavaliers 128, Bulls 122: Donovan Mitchell walked into the locker room at halftime with 3 points and his team down 16. He finished the night with 29, capped by a go-ahead and-1 with 33 ticks left to stun Chicago and secure Cleveland’s fourth straight win. | Recap
- Cavs Catalyst: After trailing by as many as 19, Mitchell (6 reb, 6 ast, 5 3s) sparked a 40-26 3rd-quarter to flip the game
- Then, The Close: Cleveland held Chicago without a field goal for the final 3:30, finishing on a 12-0 run with 8 points from Mitchell, including the game-deciding bucket
- Spida Sense: With Darius Garland sidelined, Mitchell splashed five 3s in the 2nd half, while combining for 25 points with Jaylon Tyson (13) in the 4th, lifting Cleveland to 7-3
- See It Again: De’Andre Hunter matched Mitchell with 29 points, including this epic shake-and-slam combo that brought the house down
Nikola Jokić and Denver? Well, they’ve been cooking all season.
Nuggets 117, Pacers 100: Three days after posting the 12th 30/15/15 game since 1990, the Joker nearly did it again, dropping 32 points on 10-of-14 shooting along with 14 boards and 14 dimes to power Denver to its fourth straight dub, improving to 7-2. | Recap
- Class Of His Own: With Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon sidelined, Jokić had a near triple-double at halftime (16 pts, 10 reb, 7 ast) and now has six on the season. Nobody else has more than two
- Another Zone: Saturday was Jokić’s third 30+ point game in his last four outings, all on over 60% shooting
- “He’s the most efficient basketball player I’ve ever seen,” said Nuggets coach David Adelman postgame. “It’s a joy to watch.”
Also 7-2? Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.
Spurs 126, Pelicans 119: Double-trouble turned triple as Wemby (18 pts, 18 reb) and Stephon Castle (14 pts, 14 ast) posted symmetrical double-doubles, while De’Aaron Fox scored 24 in his season debut to lead the Spurs past the Pels despite Trey Murphy III’s 41-point outburst. | Recap
- All-Time Block Party: Wemby added 3 swats, marking his 94th straight game with at least one block – tying Mark Eaton for the third-longest streak in NBA history
- Alien Hours: That included one block while barely leaving the ground, before taking off for this emphatic tomahawk
- Hello, Goodbye: To seal the win, Fox – the 2022-23 Kia Clutch POY – did it again, sinking a crafty step-through floater with 29 ticks left to push the lead to 5
2. EAST HEAT: PHILLY REBOUNDS, ATLANTA SOARS, MIAMI ERUPTS
Throwback threads, same ol’ Maxey.
And a full Philly effort.
76ers 130, Raptors 120: Tyrese Maxey (31 pts, 7 ast) and Joel Embiid (29 pts, 6 reb) combined for 60 points, while Trendon Watford tallied his first career triple-double (20 pts, 17 reb, 10 ast) in his first start for Philly, snapping Toronto’s four-game win streak. | Recap
- Running Hot: Maxey now has nine straight 25+ point games to open the season, the longest such streak since Kevin Durant in 2022-23
- All Hands: Watford’s 17 boards and 10 dimes were a career-high, while VJ Edgecombe made his presence felt on both ends (11 pts, 7 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl), helping Philly move to 6-3
- One Key? The early-2000s throwbacks. “Man, it’s cool,” said Watford. “I just remember watching Like Mike growing up and seeing this jersey in the movie.”
Adam Hagy + Jared Lennon/NBAE via Getty Images
Hawks 122, Lakers 102: With Kristaps Porziņģis (illness) joining Trae Young on the inactive list, a shorthanded Hawks team set four career-highs to snap Los Angeles’ five-game win streak. Leading by 9, a 22-4 3rd-quarter run sealed the victory for Atlanta. | Recap
- Dyson Swipes Doc: Daniels’ 3rd quarter steal feeding Zaccharie Risacher’s windmill dunk marked 62 straight games with a steal, passing Doc Rivers for the longest streak in Hawks history and 8th-longest in NBA history
- Lakers Lore: Luka Dončić’s 22 pts (all in the 1st half) gave him 1,000 pts in just 34 games with Los Angeles, reaching the mark faster than any other Laker
- Hawks’ New Career Highs: Mouhamed Gueye (21 pts, 7 ast); Asa Newell (17 pts); Daniels (13 ast)
Heat 136, Blazers 131: The league’s top two teams in pace traded blows late, with 10 of 17 lead changes coming in the 4th. Tied with 2:05 left, clutch free throws and an Andrew Wiggins (15 pts) triple put Miami ahead for good. | Recap
- Points Pile: Nikola Jović (career-high 29 pts, 9 reb, 7 ast) led seven Miami players in double figures, while Deni Avdija (33 pts, 11 reb, 8 ast) paced Portland’s six
- Historically Hot: The Heat’s 1,241 points through 10 games mark their most ever. They’re the fifth team since 2000 to hit such a total
3. WEST WINS: BOOK BOOSTS SUNS, MARSHALL & FLAGG GUIDE MAVS
Suns 114, Clippers 103: Phoenix bested LA for the second time in three days, by nearly identical scores, in a game that became a 3-point shootout with 10 of 26 triples exchanged in the 4th quarter. | Recap
- The Whole Book: Devin Booker was an assist shy of his first regular-season triple-double (21 pts, 10 reb, 9 ast), including a clutch and-1 with 2:59 left to help seal the win
- Clips Shine: Ivica Zubac (21 pts, 15 reb) led LA with James Harden and Kawhi Leonard out
Mavericks 111, Wizards 105: Naji Marshall went off for a season-high 30 points on 9-of-14 shooting, sparking a 29-19 4th quarter for Dallas, which pulled past CJ McCollum (25 pts) and Washington to snap a 4-game skid. | Recap
- Flying Flagg: Cooper Flagg added 12 pts, 6 reb and 6 ast, including a one-handed hammer to cap a 19-0 run in the 1st quarter
4. RECORD-BREAKING BUCK, KD’S ROCKETS START 7-GAME SUNDAY
Patrick McDermott/NBAE via Getty Images
Giannis Antetokounmpo’s start to the season was without comparison.
No one had ever amassed 100+ pts, 40+ reb and 15+ ast through a season’s first three games.
But it’s his play of late that’s placed him with one of the game’s — and his team’s — all time greats.
Rockets at Bucks (3:30 ET): As Milwaukee meets Houston, another contender led by a former MVP (in Kevin Durant), the Greek Freak is elevating his team by channeling Bucks and basketball royalty in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
- Franchise’s Finest: Giannis has surpassed Kareem in numerous Bucks records in his 12+ seasons: Most 40+ pt games, most 45+ pt games, most double-doubles, most 30/10/5 games, most points and most rebounds
- Together Again: Friday night, Giannis joined Kareem as one of four players in NBA history with ten or more 40/15/5 games
- The pair are also the only Bucks to record a 40+ pt triple-double and to have multiple 30/20 games
And while all this dominance may have been foreseen for Kareem, one of the sport’s most hyped prospects and decorated NCAA athletes, Giannis stormed the record books from relative obscurity and continues to crash through his ceiling.
- “Giannis has blown through all that and opened the game up,” Abdul-Jabbar said of the Greek Freak’s non-traditional versatility in 2023
Zach Beeker/NBAE via Getty Images
Representing this lineage of legendary Bucks bigs, Antetokounmpo now faces another tall task – literally – in Houston.
- Sky High: The Rockets have regularly featured four 6’11” players (KD, Alperen Sengun, Jabari Smith Jr and Steven Adams) alongside 6’7” Amen Thompson
- Aliens & Freaks: Houston goes from attempting to contain Victor Wembanyama to now Giannis; the only two players with 40-pt, 15-reb games this season
- Streak Relaunch? Houston built a 5-game win streak after its previous loss, and this top-5 offense (122.9 ppg) will look to avenge Friday’s loss to San Antonio
5. TONIGHT: STAR DUOS DUEL AS SURGING PISTONS FACE SIXERS
The last time the Pistons opened 8-2 or better was in 2005-06, coming fresh off back-to-back Finals runs.
Two decades later, Detroit’s back atop the East, chasing its sixth straight win with one of the league’s most dangerous young duos leading the charge: Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren.
Tonight (7:30 ET), they’ll face another blossoming 1-2 punch in Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, fueling Philly, just one game back.
Four rising stars, all 25 or younger, driving two of the East’s hottest teams – with their own brand of chemistry. Before they go toe-to-toe, let’s break down what makes them go.
Youth In Motion: Few backcourts move like Maxey and Edgecombe. They rank 1st and 3rd in miles covered per game (both 2.70+), and it shows – turning speed into separation and burst into easy buckets.
Maxey (33.2) and Edgecombe (16.9) are combining for 50.1 ppg. Entering Saturday, 12.9 of those points have come in transition (25.7%).
And it’s not just their athleticism – it’s how they feed off each other.
Maxey and Edgecombe are the only duo in the NBA averaging a combined 50+ pts, 10+ reb and 10+ ast. That versatility ignites Philly on both ends, coupling stops into scores in seconds.
Edgecombe’s hustle wipes away a transition bucket. Two dribbles later, it’s 2 points for Maxey. Complementary basketball – and elite body control – from both.
Pick & Roll Problems: Cunningham and Duren carve defenses using playmaking and power. That starts with the pick-and-roll, where they rank top-five in points as the “handler” (11.2 ppg) and “roll man” (4.7), respectively.
Pick Your Piston: Averaging 25.6 ppg himself, Cade’s scoring ability demands defensive help. The result? Open lanes for Duren, who, entering Saturday, ranked T-7th in the NBA in total points off cuts (35) and 2nd in dunks (32).
As defenses blitz Cunningham to force him off his spots on the perimeter, the interior opens for Duren – driving Detroit’s NBA-best 60.7 ppg in the paint.
Two duos, one fueled by burst, the other by balance. Which pair will shine brightest tonight?
Five more matchups tip off on League Pass tonight, including OKC chasing its league-best 10th win against Memphis and the Knicks seeking a 6-0 start at MSG as they host the Battle of the Boroughs (both 6 ET).
- Celtics at Magic (6 ET)
- Pacers at Warriors (8:30 ET)
- Wolves at Kings (9 ET)
