Eleven in a row for Atlanta – and everything is falling.
Ten straight for OKC – and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is thriving.
Seven straight for the Lakers – and LeBron James is still flying.
5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀
Sizzling Streaks: Hawks soar, Thunder rumble, Luka & LeBron lift Lakers late – again
Playoff Pushing: Jaylen & Jayson ignite the C’s, Raptors & Wolves erupt for big dubs
Roundup: Grizz top Nuggets, Pels rally past Clips, Blazers climb to 9th in West race
Tonight On NBA TV: Hornets & Magic meet in Charlotte on Dell Curry Night
League Pass Spotlight: Wemby still hungry as Spurs seek 20th win in 22 games, hosting Suns
BUT FIRST … ⏰
Eight games tip off tonight, starting with the Hornets hosting the Magic on NBA TV, with Dell Curry’s No. 30 jersey heading to the rafters (7 ET | Tap to Watch).
The WNBA & WNBPA have aligned on key elements of a new CBA, reaching an agreement in principle, the league announced Wednesday.
College Hoopers To Watch: The Men’s NCAA Tournament Round of 64 begins today. See some key NBA prospects to watch, according to The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie.
1. STREAKING: HAWKS & THUNDER ROLL, LUKA & LEBRON SHINE FOR LAKERS
How many W’s are in “Hawks” at this point?
The league’s longest-active win streak is up to 11.
Hawks 135, Mavericks 120: CJ McCollum (24 pts, 7 ast) and Nickeil Alexander‑Walker (22 pts) led seven Hawks in double figures as Atlanta never trailed, beating Daniel Gafford (24 pts, 9-10 FG) and the Mavs for its 11th straight win. | Recap
- Pass Is Cash: Jonathan Kuminga’s attempted full-court pass to Jock Landale somehow went in from 74.7 feet, becoming the 6th-longest make since play-by-play data was first tracked in 1997-98
- Hotlanta: ATL’s 11-game win streak is its longest since 2014-15, and just its third 10+ game win streak this century
- The climbing Hawks now have the same record as the 7th-place Heat (38-31), who lead their season series 2-1. The two sides’ final meeting is set for the last day of the regular season
The league-leading Thunder are up to 10 straight wins themselves.
Thunder 121, Nets 92: Jared McCain’s season-high 26 points and five 3s led OKC to a wire-to-wire win as the Thunder’s top-rated defense (106.3) held the Nets to 11 points in the 1st quarter and a league season-low 24 in the 1st half. | Recap
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander recorded 20 points and 6 assists without playing in the 4th, extending his record 20-point streak to 130 straight games
- Best Bench Performance: McCain is the first OKC player this season to tally 25+ points and 5+ 3s off the bench
- Ten, Ten Again: The Thunder are the only team this season with two separate 10-game win streaks, with a league-high four such streaks over the last two seasons
- Race To The Top: OKC is now 3.5 games up on the Spurs for 1st in the West
A perfect half from the King, more late magic from Luka Dončić and another Lakers dub.
Lakers 124, Rockets 116: LeBron James (30 pts, 13-14 FG, 5 reb) put on a show in the 1st half, throwing down a slew of vintage jams while going 8-of-8 from the floor for 18 points and a 67-55 Lakers lead.
But the Rockets responded, as Alperen Sengun (27 pts, 10 ast), Amen Thompson (26 pts, 11 reb) and Kevin Durant (18 pts, 6 reb) sparked a 37-22 3rd quarter to go up three entering the 4th.
Then, Luka.
With the game tied at 105, Dončić scored or assisted on the Lakers’ next 17 points, including back-to-back lobs to Rui Hachimura and James, before nailing a step-back dagger 3 with 58 ticks left – earning one “Bang!” from Mike Breen and seven straight wins for L.A. | Recap
- Pure Luka: Dončić finished with 40 points, 9 boards and 10 dimes, while splashing seven 3s, marking his seventh straight 30+ point game
- Pure Lakers: That included 10 points and 3 assists in the 4th, where Los Angeles outscored Houston 35-24, improving to an NBA-best 20-6 in clutch games
- “He’s been doing it all year for us,” said James of Luka in the clutch. “He closed them out with big shots, big-time step-back 3 on that left wing. Big time.”
- Big-Time Company: It’s Luka’s third game of 40+ pts, 10+ ast and 5+ 3s with the Lakers, passing Kobe Bryant (two) for the most in franchise history
- Unmatched Magic: Amid the win streak, Dončić is averaging 38.1 pts and 8 ast – numbers no Laker has ever matched in a seven-game span in a single season
- Lefficiency: James also made history, becoming the oldest player (41yr, 78d) to record 30+ pts on at least 90% shooting in a regular season game. And he’s still doing this
2. PLAYOFF PUSH: CELTICS & RAPTORS HEAT UP, WOLVES WIN AGAIN
The Jays are clicking, and the C’s are surging.
Celtics 120, Warriors 99: Jaylen Brown was in full control (32 pts, 6 reb, 5 ast), while Jayson Tatum notched his fifth straight 20-piece (24 pts, 10 reb, 5 3s), leading the Celtics past the Steph Curry-less Warriors for a third straight win. | Recap
- Full Strength, Full Stride: Boston is an East-best 26-11 since Jan. 1 and 5-1 with Tatum in the lineup
Raptors 139, Bulls 109: RJ Barrett scored a game-high 23 points, while Scottie Barnes, Brandon Ingram and Ja’Kobe Walter added 18 apiece, as Toronto took a 72-45 halftime lead and never looked back for a third straight dub. | Recap
Wolves 147, Jazz 111: Brice Sensabaugh went off for Utah (41 pts, 17-31 FG), but Minnesota was too strong top to bottom, with Ayo Dosunmu (23 pts, 9 reb, 6 ast, 3 stl) leading five Wolves with 17+ points for their second win in two nights, despite being without Anthony Edwards. | Recap
- Howling: Julius Randle (8 ast, 4 stl) and Rudy Gobert (12 reb, 2 blk) added 21 points apiece as 12 Wolves scored, finishing 2 points shy of their season-high (149)
3. ROUNDUP: GRIZZ STOP NUGGETS, PELS RALLY, BLAZERS MOVE TO 9TH
Grizzlies 125, Nuggets 118: Nikola Jokić stuffed the stat sheet (29 pts, 14 reb, 9 ast, 3 blk), but Memphis forced him into 10 turnovers while splashing 16 treys, using six double-digit scorers to stave off Denver. | Recap
- Skid Snapped: Ty Jerome led Memphis (21 pts, 9 reb, 9 ast) while its bench outscored Denver 43-18, halting an eight-game slide
Pelicans 124, Clippers 109: Down 18 in the 1st quarter, NOLA tied the game by half amid a 76-47 run through the 3rd to turn the tables, as Saddiq Bey (25 pts, 5 reb, 5 3s), Trey Murphy III (23 pts, 7 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl) and the Pels overpowered Kawhi Leonard (25 pts, 8 reb) and the Clips. | Recap
Blazers 127, Pacers 119: Deni Avdija was operating (32 pts, 11 reb, 5 ast), while Donovan Clingan owned the interior (28 pts, 13 reb, 2 blk) as Portland won, jumping Golden State for 9th in the West. | Recap
4. ON NBA TV: HORNETS HOST MAGIC ON DELL CURRY NIGHT
Break out your throwbacks.
Charlotte’s Spectrum Center will have some 90s energy tonight, with the Hornets and Magic dueling (7 ET, NBA TV) – in uniforms that honor classic NBA looks – and Dell Curry’s purple-and-teal striped No. 30 being raised to the rafters at halftime.
Ahead of Dell’s jersey retirement night, Nick Friedell covered The Athletic’s recent conversation with Steph and his dad, in which Steph was asked for his favorite moment from Dell’s career:
“Was it ‘93? When y’all played Boston in the first round and you threw the inbound pass to Alonzo [Mourning] for the buzzer beater,” Steph answered.
“I just remember being in the arena and the whole buzz around – pun intended – for the Hornets in Charlotte, and just what that team meant.” | Read More
That buzz is back today thanks to the team with the East’s best record (19-6) since Jan. 22.
- Kon, LaMelo, Miller: Charlotte’s trio of sharpshooting guards has lifted the Hornets’ attack to the top OffRtg (120) in 2026
- Splash Duo: Kon Knueppel leads the league in total 3s (238) and LaMelo Ball is 3rd (210) as they look to join Steph & Klay Thompson as the only pairs of teammates to finish top-2 in made 3s in a season
- Together, Ball (1st), Knueppel (3rd) and Brandon Miller (4th) rank in the top-4 in total 3s since Jan. 1
The Hornets have won three of four after dropping two straight following a 16-3 stretch.
Orlando is looking for a similar turnaround amid a two-game slide after seven straight wins.
- The Magic hold 6th place in the East by a half-game, strengthened by the league’s 6th-best DefRtg (109.4) since All-Star Weekend
- Key Matchup: Having missed this season’s previous three matchups with Charlotte (1-2), Jalen Suggs will look to slow Ball and Co.
- Key Stopper: Since the All-Star break, Suggs has held his opponents to 46.2% shooting
5. LEAGUE PASS SPOTLIGHT: WEMBY SEEKING MORE AS SPURS HOST SUNS
The Playoffs have yet to begin, but the Spurs have already taken a leap.
They’ve won 51 games, more than double their total from 2023-24. They sit 2nd in the West and are just 3.5 games back of OKC.
Victor Wembanyama still isn’t satisfied.
“It’s growth, but it’s still not enough,” said the two-time All-Star after his team’s 50th victory.
Tonight (8 ET, League Pass), the Spurs host the Suns, hoping to extend their run. A 20th win in San Antonio’s last 22 games is on the line.
- Riding High: San Antonio is 19-2 since Feb. 1, its best 21-game stretch since 2015-16. That season ended with a 67-15 record and a trip to the West Semifinals
- Road Ahead: With 13 games left in the regular season, the squad has an opportunity to reach 60 wins for the first time since 2016-17
Powered by Wemby’s league-high 3 blocks per game, the Spurs’ defense ranks 3rd with a 110.5 rating. It will be challenged by one of the toughest tasks in the league — stopping Devin Booker.
- Booker Cooking: The 11th-year guard has averaged 33.9 points over his last four games, including a pair of 40-pieces
- Burning Bright: Booker is on pace to average 25+ ppg for an 8th straight season. Only two players have longer such active streaks: Giannis Antetokounmpo (8) and Kevin Durant (16)
- Who Draws Book Tonight? It could be Stephon Castle. Having faced Booker twice in 2025-26, he’s limited the five-time All-Star to 2-of-9 shooting and forced two turnovers
- Production Holds: Booker’s still been sharp in Phoenix’s three games vs. San Antonio this year, posting 19 pts and 6.7 ast while shooting 40% from 3
- Done It Before: That’s led to a 2-1 record, making the Suns one of four teams to beat the Spurs multiple times this season
Also On League Pass: The streaking Lakers visiting the Heat (8 ET), while the East-best Pistons face the Wizards (7 ET) and more:
- Cavaliers at Bulls (8 ET)
- Clippers at Pelicans (8 ET)
- Bucks at Jazz (9 ET)
- 76ers at Kings (10 ET)
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