Starting 5: SGA’s Thunder. Wemby’s Spurs. Giddey’s Bulls. 16 Combined Games. 0 Losses.

Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren came to Mexico City with four alley-oop connections so far this season.

They left with three more and a win over the Mavericks.

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀

Nov. 2, 2025

Revved Up In Mexico: Career games from Duren, Cade power Pistons past Mavs

First Wins: Indy gets 1st win of the season, Sac gets 1st win in Milwaukee in a decade

Roundup: Rockets win 3rd straight after 0-2 start, Wolves & Magic roll

Luka’s Wilt-esque Start: Dončić looks to keep his historic scoring run going vs. Heat

Playing With Perfection: Thunder (6-0), Bulls (5-0) & Spurs (5-0) put streaks on the line

BUT FIRST … ⏰

Fire up NBA League Pass…

For only the sixth time in NBA history, and the first time since 2014-15, three teams have started at least 5-0 – the Thunder (6-0), Bulls (5-0) and Spurs (5-0).

All three put their perfect records on the line today on NBA League Pass. It begins with OKC hosting New Orleans (3:30 ET, Tap To Watch), followed by Chicago visiting New York (7 ET, Tap To Watch) and San Antonio visiting Phoenix (8 ET, Tap To Watch).

1. CUNNINGHAM-DUREN CONNECTION GOES GLOBAL WITH MEXICO CITY WIN

Chris Schwegler/NBAE via Getty Images

Since the NBA first brought regular-season games to Mexico City in 1997, the fans have been treated to a show no matter which teams took the court – with six of the first 14 games decided by five points or less.

So, it was fitting that Saturday’s game between the Pistons and Mavs came down to the wire.

With 4:51 to play, D’Angelo Russell (31 pts) splashed his seventh 3 of the game to give the Mavs a 106-105 lead. From that point on, the Pistons closed the game on a 17-4 run to win the 2025 NBA Mexico City Game.

Pistons 122, Mavericks 110: Jalen Duren scored a career-best 33 pointson 13-of-16 shooting and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Cade Cunningham matched his career-high with 18 assists along with 21 points to lead the Pistons to their fourth win in five games. | Recap

• Cade On Duren (recipient of seven Cade dimes): “He’s such a beast. He makes me look good. He makes my job easy. I always say running the break with JD and Ausar Thompson is the easiest job in the world.”
• Cade On Playing In Mexico: It’s been the coolest basketball experience I’ve ever had, being able to travel here. I probably never would have come here if it wasn’t for basketball, so I’m thankful.”
• Detroit Dime Droppers: Cunningham joined Isiah Thomas as the only Pistons with multiple 18+ assist games before turning 25

In a game that featured 16 lead changes and 11 ties, the Pistons used three distinct runs to capture the momentum.

• Fast Start: Detroit opened the game on a 7-0 run, highlighted by a defense-to-offense sequence for Duren – starting with a swat and ending with an alley-oop slam
• Turning Tides: Trailing by nine midway through the 2nd quarter, the Pistons used a 21-2 run to take a double-digit lead
• The Closer: After Russell’s final 3 gave the Mavs their final lead, the Pistons closed the door with a 17-4 finish with Cunningham and Duren accounting for 13 of Detroit’s 17 points

When the Pistons and Mavs last met in Mexico City in 2019, Dallas’ Luka Dončić addressed the crowd in perfect Spanish before handing the microphone to Detroit’s Blake Griffin, who followed with a simple “Hola México” and a smile.

On Saturday night, it was Cunningham with the mic in his hand, beginning with the familiar “Hola México” before finishing his welcome in Spanish to the delight of the 20,000+ plus inside CDMX Arena.

On The Ground: From player arrivals to pregame warmups and celebrity sightings, the cameras were rolling to capture every moment of the 15th regular-season game in Mexico City.

• Shooting Lessons While Shooting: Klay Thompson, who’s made the fifth most 3s in NBA history, offers young hoopers some tipswhile getting his own shots up
• Have Ball, Will Travel: Duren proves that basketball can take you anywhere in the world and you can take Tobias Harris’ basketball anywhere with you

2. INDY GETS FIRST WIN OF SEASON, SAC GET FIRST WIN IN MILWAUKEE SINCE 2015

Seeking their first win since their magical run to the 2025 NBA Finals, the Pacers followed a familiar formula in earning their first victory of the 2025-26 season – mounting a furious 4th-quarter comeback.

Pacers 114, Warriors 109: Powered by career-best games from Aaron Nesmith (31 pts, 5 3pm) and Quenton Jackson (25 pts, 10 ast), Indiana closed the game on a 21-5 run over the final 5:46 to beat Golden State for the sixth time in their last seven matchups. | Recap

• Start To Finish: Pascal Siakam got hot early, sinking his first five buckets and finishing with 27 points. Jackson scored 10 points on a perfect 4-of-4 shooting during Indy’s game-ending run, capping off his first career double-double
• Out Of Range: Despite a combined 44 points from Steph Curry (24 pts, 4 3pm) and Jimmy Butler III (20 pts, 6 reb, 7 ast, 3 stl, 2 blk, 1 buzzer-beater), the Warriors posted season lows in 3-pointers made (12) and 3-point percentage (27.3%)

Kings 135, Bucks 133: Zach LaVine netted his league-best-tying fifth 30+ point game of the season and tied up Giannis Antetokounmpo’s game-tying attempt at the buzzer to snap Sacramento’s three-game skid and earn the Kings’ first win in Milwaukee after nine straight losses. | Recap

• Royal Court: Four Kings starters accounted for 108 of the team’s 135 points – LaVine (31) and DeMar DeRozan (29) combined for 60, while Domantas Sabonis and Dennis Schröder each added 24
• Milwaukee Run: Kyle Kuzma scored 16 4th-quarter points before Giannis (26 pts, 11 reb, 8 ast) added 11 straight, as the duo nearly caught the Kings with 27 of Milwaukee’s 31 points in the period
• Freakish Start: Giannis is the first player to ever top 170 points, 60 rebounds, and 30 assists through the first five games of a season (171 pts, 67 reb, 36 ast)

3. ROUNDUP: ROCKETS WIN 3RD STRAIGHT, WOLVES & MAGIC ROLL

Rockets 128, Celtics 101: Kevin Durant scored 20 of his game-high 26 points in the 1st half as the Rockets built a 20-point lead and never looked back in a wire-to-wire win over Boston for their third straight dub. | Recap

• Magnificent Seven: Durant led seven Rockets in double figures, including near triple-doubles from Amen Thompson (17 pts, 9 reb, 8 ast) and Alperen Sengun (16 pts, 10 reb, 9 ast)
• KD On The Rockets: “When we’re clicking on all cylinders like that, we’re tough to stop.”
• Streak Ends: Coming off Friday’s tight win over Philly, Boston had its three-game win streak snapped. Baylor Scheierman (17 pts, 4 3pm), Payton Pritchard (14 pts, 4 ast) and Jaylen Brown (12 pts, 5 ast) combined for 43 in the loss

Timberwolves 122, Hornets 105: For the second-straight game, Julius Randle tallied a team-high 30 points as Minnesota got its first win of the season without All-Star Anthony Edwards (hamstring). Charlotte was held to a season-low 105 points in a third-straight loss. | Recap

• Great Range: Hot shooting from distance (5-9 3FG) helped the Wolves run away in a 36-18 3rd quarter and never look back
• LaMelo Leads: Ball (18 pts, 7 reb, 8 ast) finished one assist shy of 60 through six games, tied with Cunningham for the NBA lead (59)
• Tale of the Paint: Rudy Gobert (14 pts, 15 reb, 2 blk) and Minnesota dominated the battle inside by 20 points, limiting Charlotte to 36 points in the paint

Magic 125, Wizards 94: Paolo Banchero (28 pts, 11 reb) and Franz Wagner (25 pts, 6 ast) each scored 20+ points for a league-best fifth time this season to secure Orlando’s first consecutive wins of the year. Kyshawn George (17 pts) led Washington in a fourth-straight loss. | Recap

• D Loading: In their back-to-back wins, Orlando held opponents to season lows in scoring, as their Defensive Rating returned to the top 10 (T-10th, 112.7)

4. LUKA LOOKS TO EXTEND RED-HOT START WHEN LAKERS HOST HEAT

Wilt. Michael. Luka.

That is the list of players that have scored at least 125 points through their first three games to begin an NBA season.

It’s a first-name-basis level that Luka’s playing at right now.

Tonight (9:30 ET, League Pass), Dončić and the Lakers host the Heat with the team seeking a third straight win and Luka going for a fourth straight 40-ball.

We’ve seen hot streaks from Dončić before…

• He’s put up back-to-back 40+ point games three times in the regular season (2021, 2022, 2024) and once in the Playoffs (2022). But this is his first time hitting 40+ for three straight games
• He’s one of only 10 players to post a 70+ point game – with his 73-point game the most among active players, topping Donovan Mitchell (71), Damian Lillard (71), Devin Booker (70) and Joel Embiid (70)
• He’s one of only three players with five All-NBA First Team selections by age 25, joining Tim Duncan and Kevin Durant

…But this start is something that we have not seen from Dončić over his previous six NBA seasons.

Entering the 2025-26 season, October saw Luka post his lowest scoring (27.0) and assist (6.8) averages of any calendar month in his career.

His October splits this season: 45.3 points, 11.7 rebounds, 7.7 assists in 38.3 minutes – the points, rebounds and minutes would top any monthly average in his career.

A key to Luka’s early success this season? A rigorous offseason workout regimen that brought him into Lakers’ training camp in the best shape he’s been in to open a season in years.

• Lakers Coach JJ Redick: “This is his life now. This is his routine. This is just a daily commitment to the new standard that he’s set for himself.”

Now that the calendar has flipped to November, can Luka maintain this blistering pace? Teammate Austin Reaves claims averaging 40 ppg – and joining Wilt as the only other player to do so – is on the table for Luka.

• “That’s going to be tough,” Dončić said. “Sometimes they’re going to double me more. Sometimes I won’t be able to score that much.”
• So far, he’s been able to score that much every time he touches the floor. Will that continue tonight against Miami?

5. PERFECT STARTS ON THE LINE FOR THUNDER, BULLS, SPURS TODAY ON LP

Two weeks into the season. Three scintillating starts.

The Bulls, Spurs and Thunder are a combined 16-0.

In a jam-packed eight-game League Pass slate, with 16 different teams in action, those three will each battle to keep their perfect resumes intact.

The Thunder tip things off at 3:30 ET when they host the Pelicans. The defending champions are the only six-win team in the Association, playing at a level reminiscent of the 7-0 start that paved the way for confetti to eventually rain down from their rafters.

• Shai Sizzles: Averaging 34.2 points through six games, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has outdone his MVP-winning 32.7 ppg
• Six Decades Ago: The superstar guard is one shy of tying Oscar Robertson – 79 in 1963-64 – for the third-most consecutive games with 20+ points in NBA history
• Next Man Up: Jalen Williams (wrist) has yet to play and Chet Holmgren (back) is out again tonight, but OKC and its No. 1 DefRtg have quieted opponents anyways

Chicago has found success on both sides of the ball en route to the league’s No. 5 OffRtg and No. 6 DefRtg. A perfect start will go on the line when the Bulls visit the reigning East finalist Knicks at 7 ET.

• By Committee: Six different Bulls boast double-figure scoring averages, as Josh Giddey (22.0), Nikola Vučević (19.8) and Ayo Dosunmu (16.2) dictate a balanced attack
• Glory Days: The team hasn’t started a season 5-0 since 1996-97. That group won the franchise’s fifth championship in Michael Jordan’s penultimate season in Chicago

Ronald Cortes/NBAE via Getty Images

Victor Wembanyama has submitted his own early-season candidacy for MVP. At just 21 years old, he’s doing things he’s never done before, and San Antonio has rallied around him. The Spurs visit the Suns tonight at 8 ET looking to extend the best start in team history.

• Heaps Of Highs: The Alien’s 30.2 ppg, 14.6 rpg, 4.8 bpg and 56.2 FG% all rank better than his previous two seasons, and his rebounding and blocking averages top the league
• Among Greats: Thursday’s effort – 27 points, 18 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 blocks – was his 3rd with 25/15/5/5, trailing only David Robinson (8) and Tim Duncan (6) in Spurs history
• Young Scorers: Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell and Dylan Harper, with an average age of 21.6 years old, round out the scoring with a combined 50 ppg