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Nuggets Notes: Watson, Holmes, Hardaway Jr., Grade

November 25th, 2025 at 10:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Peyton Watson will be a restricted free agent after the season. The Nuggets wing’s best path to a large contract next offseason could be as a 3-and-D player, Bennett Durando of the Denver Post writes.

Watson has been starting with Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun sidelined. His two highest-scoring games of his career have occurred in the past week — 32 points against New Orleans and 27 against Memphis — while making a handful of 3s in each of those contests. He’s been particularly adept at hitting corner 3s.

Here’s more on the Nuggets:

DaRon Holmes, a 2024 first-round pick, has only appeared in two games but he was recently recalled by the NBA club. Coach David Adelman said it’s important to have roster players around their NBA teammates at times, even when they’re getting extended playing time in the G League, Durando tweets. “The guys that are down there, we have to get them back with us and then send them back,” he said. “They need to get back with the guys, keep a relationship with the coaching staff. If you leave guys down there too long, I think it’s unfair to them as a professional player. So we’ll do the best we can to rotate them through.”
Durando interviewed Tim Hardaway Jr.‘s college and high school coaches, weaving them into the narrative that Hardaway makes for an ideal role player. Hardaway is averaging 11.1 points off the bench after signing a one-year contract as a free agent.
In his latest mailbag, Durando ranks the top five passes by Nikola Jokic that he’s seen. He also grades them at the quarter mark of the season, giving them an A-. The only reason he didn’t give them a A is that they lost two home games to inferior opponents.

Warriors Notes: Kuminga, Green, Butler

November 25th, 2025 at 8:40pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga will miss his seventh consecutive game on Wednesday against the Rockets due to knee tendinitis. He told ESPN’s Anthony Slater he’ll be back in action “soon.” (Twitter link). Kuminga participated in some 3-on-3 scrimmages during Tuesday’s practice and will scrimmage on Wednesday as well. Warriors beat writer Monte Poole tweets.

Kuminga had played well prior to the injury, averaging 13.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists. Al Horford also won’t play on Wednesday due to a nerve issue.

We have more on the Warriors:

Draymond Green has been upgraded to probable for Wednesday’s game, Slater tweets. Green sat out Monday’s 17-point win over the Jazz due to a foot injury. Green holds a $27,678,571 player option next offseason on the final year of his contract.
Jimmy Butler had a highly efficient outing against Utah. He was a plus-19 in 28 minutes, scoring 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting with six rebounds and seven assists, Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area notes. Meanwhile, Lauri Markkanen — the player the Warriors coveted prior to last season before trading for Butler last winter — scored just 17 points on 31.6-percent shooting with smaller players guarding him.
ICYMI, they now have enough room below their hard cap to sign a 15th man. However, every day they put off doing so creates a little more flexibility below that threshold.

Atlantic Notes: Queta, Ingram, George, Sixers Injuries

November 25th, 2025 at 7:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Celtics starting center Neemias Queta will sit out for the first time this season on Wednesday when they face the Eastern Conference-leading Pistons, Brian Robb of Masslive.com reports. He suffered a sprained left ankle in Sunday’s win over the Magic.

Queta did not practice on Tuesday. He is averaging a career-high 9.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game. The Celtics are a far superior defensive team with Queta on the floor this year, Robb notes, allowing 25.7 points per 100 possessions fewer in his 402 minutes on the court.

Boston will have to rely on Xavier Tillman, Chris Boucher and Luka Garza at the center spot in his absence. Queta’s three-year, $7.2MM contract is only partially guaranteed for next season.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Brandon Ingram kept shooting and the Raptors kept on winning. Ingram took 30 field goal attempts while scoring 37 points in an 11-point win over Cleveland on Monday. Toronto stretched its winning streak to eight games. “He’s a player, especially when he gets going, we as a team recognize that. We need that,” coach Darko Rajaković said, per Eric Koreen of The Athletic. “It’s good for us. At the same time, we’ve got to stay inside our principles and make good decisions, play with ball movement, finding him through that style of play as well.”
Paul George sat out Tuesday’s game against the Magic after he experienced ankle soreness, coach Nick Nurse told the media, per The Athletic’s Tony Jones (Twitter link). He had been listed as probable. Nurse isn’t sure if George will miss more than one game. George has played three games this month.
On a related topic, Jones examines whether the Sixers have enough depth to overcome injuries. He concludes they don’t have enough quality bodies to compete, compared to the East’s top teams this season, who have dealt with their own injury issues. “Yeah, we have to do the best that we can,” Nurse said. “We have to plug in who we can plug in, and we have to do what we need to do. We have to start who’s next in line and figure out the matchups. We have to make decisions. Some of them work and some don’t. The ones that don’t work, we have to change them. We have our discussions, and we have to try and do what’s best for the group.”

Northwest Notes: Kessler, Lillard, Thunder Collapses, Thunder Defense

November 25th, 2025 at 5:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Jazz lost Walker Kessler to a season-ending shoulder injury at the end of last month. It has greatly affected their defense, as Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune details. Jusuf Nurkic has been thrust into the starting center role and while he’s a prolific rebounder, he’s a subpar defender. Kevin Love, 37, has been thrust into the role of primary backup and the only other option is to move true power forwards into that spot.

Utah has allowed 130 or more points in six of its last nine games.

We have more from the Northwest Division:

The Trail Blazers defeated Milwaukee on Monday after losing seven of their previous nine games. Damian Lillard, rehabbing this season from his Achilles injury he suffered during last season’s playoffs, has been dispensing advice to his younger teammates during the rough patch, Jason Quick of The Athletic writes. “I told these dudes: this is the time when you find your true identity,” Lillard said. “It’s not when you win a couple games and everything feels good. It’s in the moments when it would be easy to walk away — like now, we have some injuries, a rough patch, a tough schedule — but this is the time when you make a decision to march forward and up.”
The Timberwolves have put together back-to-back, late-game collapses. After surrendering a nine-point lead with 50 seconds to play in Phoenix on Saturday, they gave away a 10-point lead in the final three minutes of regulation during a 117-112 overtime loss to the Kings on Monday. This has set off alarm bells amongst the team and its fans and The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski examines some possible causes to their crunch time woes. “Hopefully we learn,” center Rudy Gobert said. “We still have an amazing opportunity ahead of us, but we have to decide who we want to be.”
How good has the Thunder’s defense been this season? The Athletic’s Fred Katz (Twitter link) notes that they are allowing 7.5 fewer points per 100 possessions than the second-ranked Mavericks are. That’s the same difference as the gap between Dallas and the No. 22 ranked Bulls in that category.

Heat Notes: Herro, Offense, Powell, Ware

November 25th, 2025 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Heat didn’t miss a beat with 2025 All-Star guard Tyler Herro back in their lineup for the first time this season on Monday, registering their fifth consecutive victory and their eighth win in the past 10 games to improve to 12-6 on the year. Herro, who was making his season debut following ankle surgery, scored a team-high 24 points and made a key basket to help clinch the win over Dallas in the game’s final minute.

“It’s amazing that he can come back and have that kind of rhythm, and that’s only going to get better,” Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters, including ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, in his post-game media session. “When you face better defenses, you can see why we need that skill. You need as much skill and firepower as possible in this league. And it was just exciting to have him back.”

Playing in the Heat’s new uptempo offense for the first time, Herro needed a quarter to knock off some rust, but it didn’t take long for him to get comfortable. As MacMahon notes, after missing his first four attempts from the floor, Herro knocked down 12 of his last 14 shots.

“You see it out there, man,” Heat star Bam Adebayo said when asked about Herro’s fit in the new system. “We got a lot of guys that’s hard to guard off the catch. As you see, it’s a fun offense to be part of. It’s not a lot of pick-and-rolls, but it’s sharing the game. … Everyone feels involved, everyone gets a chance to be aggressive, and we’re being successful off of it.”

“It’s not an adjustment for him in terms of how we play,” Spoelstra added. “He’s going to fit right in. He’s going to amplify everything we’re doing.

Miami currently leads the NBA in both pace (106.14 possessions per 48 minutes) and points per game (123.9).

Here’s more on the Heat:

Herro admitted after Monday’s win that he’s “still got a long way to go” before he feels like he’s back to 100%, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “I still got to rehab, recover,” Herro said. “I easily could have probably waited another two weeks to come back, but I’m healthy enough to be out there, and I want to be out there. So that was most important to me. I kind of circled this date probably three or four weeks ago. And then I was like, ‘I’m ready. Forget it, I’m ready.’ I took the last couple days when the team was on the road just to prepare my body for tonight, and it was a lot of fun to go out there and compete and ultimately win.”
Norman Powell, the Heat’s leading scorer so far this season, was held out of Monday’s game and underwent an MRI on his left groin injury. However, that MRI showed only a “mild” strain and Spoelstra said the team’s level of concern “is not super high,” according to Chiang (Twitter links). Initially considered day-to-day, Powell is expected to return to action for Miami on Wednesday vs. Milwaukee, tweets Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
Kel’el Ware, who has averaged 15.9 points and 15.1 rebounds per game in his past eight outings, is earning praise from teammates and coaches alike for his recent play, according to Chiang. Before Ware could respond to a reporter’s question on Sunday about whether he’s playing the best basketball of his career, Powell interrupted to answer for him: “No. More to come. A lot more potential, man. Stock rising.”
Spoelstra, who challenged Ware in both the Summer League and preseason to do more to consistently impact winning, praised the second-year big man for being “much more intentional” and “stacking up good day after good day,” as Chiang relays. “He’s playing meaningful minutes,” Spoelstra said. “He understands the responsibility to play well. And he’s recognizing if it doesn’t go well, what he needs to correct. That’s a big-time improvement from last year, where he wasn’t really recognizing what was happening.”

Community Shootaround: Early Check-In On MVP Race

November 25th, 2025 at 2:56pm CST by Luke Adams

It’s still way too early in the 2025/26 season to draw any conclusions about how the NBA’s Most Valuable Player race will play out, but through five weeks, several former MVPs are on pace to have the most productive season of their respective careers, writes Zach Kram of ESPN.

As Kram outlines, if the season ended today, the record for player efficiency rating (PER) in a single season held by Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (32.9) would be topped by three players: Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (33.5), Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34.6), and Jokic himself (37.0!).

Along similar lines, Jokic (72.8% true shooting), Gilgeous-Alexander (67.1%), and Antetokounmpo (66.2%) are on pace to have three of the four most efficient seasons ever for a player averaging at least 30 points per game, Kram writes.

Besides matching his career high with 29.6 points per game, Jokic is also averaging 12.8 rebounds and 11.1 assists per night, with an astonishing .626/.434/.853 shooting line. According to Kram, no player in NBA history has ever led the league in assists per game in one season and rebounds per game in another — Jokic has a legitimate chance to be the league leader in both categories this season.

Gilgeous-Alexander has been just as good, if not better, than he was in his NBA season a year ago, with averages of 32.2 PPG and 6.6 APG on .543/.412/.898 shooting. His Thunder have the best record in the NBA (17-1) and have been so dominant that their star point guard has frequently been able to call it a night early. Gilgeous-Alexander has logged just 52 fourth-quarter minutes so far this season, making his per-game statistical averages all the more impressive.

Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, is a two-time MVP, but he has never scored more points per game (31.2), handed out more assists per game (6.8), or shot a higher field goal percentage (62.9%) than he has so far this season. The Bucks have been 18.8 points per 100 possessions better when Giannis is on the court compared to when he’s not, which is even better than the Nuggets’ differential with and without Jokic (+18.3) or the Thunder’s differential with and without SGA (+13.2).

As great as those guys have been, this isn’t just a three-man race. Star guard Luka Doncic is currently the NBA’s scoring leader at 34.5 points per game, and he’s also contributing 8.9 assists, 8.8 rebounds, and 2.0 steals per contest for a 12-4 Lakers team that ranks third in the West.

Beyond Doncic, it’s probably a step down to the next tier of early MVP candidates, Kram acknowledges. But Pistons guard Cade Cunningham is averaging career highs in points (27.1) and assists (9.6) per game while leading the surprising Pistons to an East-best 15-2 record.

Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey is carrying Philadelphia on his back, scoring 33.0 points in 40.4 minutes per game on remarkable efficiency (.471/.415/.880).

Perennial All-Stars like Donovan Mitchell, Stephen Curry, Jalen Brunson, and Anthony Edwards are also putting up massive numbers for winning teams.

And Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama (26.2 PPG, 12.9 RPG, 3.6 BPG) looked ready to join the MVP conversation before being sidelined by a calf strain.

We want to know what you think. Which early-season performance has impressed you the most? Do you view it as a three- or four-player race for this season’s MVP award, or will any of those players outside the Jokic/SGA/Giannis/Doncic quartet end up getting first-place votes?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

Southwest Notes: Sheppard, Edey, Coward, Pelicans

November 25th, 2025 at 1:37pm CST by Luke Adams

Rockets guard Reed Sheppard made just 2-of-9 shots from the floor in his first start of the season on Monday in Phoenix, but he contributed five assists and three steals in his 27 minutes, and Houston was a +6 when he was on the court. It marked the eighth consecutive game in which the Rockets outscored their opponent during Sheppard’s minutes.

While the 21-year-old still has plenty of room to grow, Sheppard has taken a significant step forward so far this season, with his averages – 13.1 PPG and 3.2 APG on .490/.471/.706 shooting – up across the board. As William Guillory of The Athletic writes, Houston’s odds of competing for a title are only increasing as a result of the second-year guard’s improvement.

“The real thing is the opportunity he’s getting, and he’s taking advantage of it,” head coach Ime Udoka said of Sheppard last week. “You’re going to get more of a rhythm with the more minutes and opportunities you get. We needed him to take that step this year, regardless of Fred (VanVleet) being out. He’s really been great. We want him to continue to be confident.”

Sheppard, who started in place of Kevin Durant on Monday, could have another opportunity to be part of the starting five on Wednesday in Golden State, with Durant out for a second straight game for personal reasons.

Here’s more from out of the Southwest:

After missing the first 13 games of the Grizzlies‘ season as he recovered from offseason ankle surgery, center Zach Edey exited his fifth game back early on Monday due to a head injury. If Edey is forced to miss time, it would be a major blow to Memphis, says Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal, given that the club has a +16.5 net rating in Edey’s minutes and a -8.0 mark when he doesn’t play. “Zach is a huge part of what we do, both offensively and defensively,” teammate Cedric Coward said after Monday’s loss to Denver. “Just his presence alone is so meaningful to the team. You guys understand, when he came back, how much better our team got defensively, on the rebounding end, even the offensive end. His roles are gravitating guys inside, so we’re getting easier shots on the outside. It was a huge loss.”
Coward has been one of the NBA’s most productive rookies this fall and is making the Grizzlies look good for trading up to No. 11 in June to draft him, as a Western Conference scout tells Grant Afseth of RG.org. “He only played six Division I games after the partially torn rotator cuff, and that made him one of the biggest unknowns in the draft,” the scout said of Coward. “A lot of scouts weren’t sure how his game would translate against top talent because he’d spent most of his college career at Willamette and Eastern Washington. But Memphis clearly saw something real. … And now he’s outperforming even the optimistic projections. He looks completely comfortable at this level.”
The Pelicans‘ past two games provided a reminder of Zion Williamson‘s impact. After scoring just 98 points on Saturday as Williamson sat out the second game of a back-to-back, New Orleans poured in 143 points on Monday vs. Chicago with Williamson back on the court. While the star forward led the way with 29 points, Monday’s performance was a team effort, with eight players scoring in double figures, writes Les East of NOLA.com. “You couldn’t ask for a better team win when you look at the stat sheet,” said interim head coach James Borrego, who registered his first win since taking over for Willie Green.
Outside of the Hornets, who drafted four players in the top 34 in June, no team has gotten more minutes from its rookies so far this season than the Pelicans, according to Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com. That trend figures to continue going forward, Eichenhofer posits, since Jeremiah Fears, Derik Queen, and Micah Peavy are all part of the rotation now and should see regular playing time with several New Orleans veterans sidelined due to injuries.

Mavs Fear Extended Absence For Dereck Lively

November 25th, 2025 at 12:33pm CST by Luke Adams

12:33 pm: Lively is being evaluated after experiencing swelling and discomfort in his right foot, according to the Mavericks (Twitter link). The team states that he’ll miss the upcoming three-game road trip, with an update on his timeline provided in about seven-to-10 days.

12:14 pm: There’s concern in Dallas that the Mavericks may be without big man Dereck Lively II for an extended period, reports Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Twitter link).

Lively, who underwent surgery on his right foot in July, appeared in the first three games of the season before missing the next nine due to a right knee sprain. The third-year center suited up for four of Dallas’ next six contests, sitting twice during back-to-back sets due to what the team called “right knee injury management.”

However, Lively missed a second consecutive game on Monday in Miami, with his injury designation changing to “right foot injury management.”

Stein doesn’t specify exactly which ailment is of greatest concern for the Mavericks, but whether it’s the foot or the knee, Lively’s right leg doesn’t appear to be back to 100%.

Even when Lively has been available this season, he has been on a minutes limit. In seven outings (four starts), the 21-year-old has averaged 4.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.6 blocks in 16.4 minutes per night.

Injuries have been a recurring problem for Lively, who has made 98 total regular season appearances since joining the Mavs as the 12th overall pick in the 2023 draft. He has been an effective role player when healthy, having played a regular rotation role as a rookie for the Dallas team that made the NBA Finals in 2024.

An extended absence for Lively would be the latest blow to a Mavericks team that has dealt with injuries to several of its most important players this season. On a positive note, big man Anthony Davis, who has missed 14 consecutive games due to a calf strain, appears to be trending toward a return, with the club hoping he can practice on Wednesday.

Lakers Sign Drew Timme, Waive Christian Koloko

November 25th, 2025 at 12:04pm CST by Rory Maher

November 25: The Lakers have officially signed Timme to a two-way contract and waived Koloko, the team announced today in a press release.

As our tracker shows, Timme will be eligible to appear in up to 40 regular season games for Los Angeles.

November 24: Confirming the Lakers’ plan to sign Timme to a two-way contract, Shams Charania of ESPN reports (via Twitter) that the team is waiving Koloko to create an opening for the newcomer.

November 21: The Lakers plan to sign free agent big man Drew Timme to a two-way contract, according to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints (Twitter link).

Los Angeles’ three two-way spots are currently occupied by Nick Smith Jr., Christian Koloko and Chris Manon. Siegel hears Smith won’t be the odd man out, so either Koloko or Manon will be released to make roster space for Timme.

Timme, who had a decorated college career at Gonzaga, went undrafted in 2023 and spent most of his first two post-college seasons in the G League. The Nets signed him to a two-year standard contract in late March after a strong 2024/25 regular season with Brooklyn’s affiliate team in Long Island.

The Nets picked up their $1,955,377 option on Timme in late June, but his salary was fully non-guaranteed, and they wound up waiving him during the preseason. The 25-year-old forward/center averaged 12.1 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists in nine appearances (28.2 minutes per game) with Brooklyn down the stretch last season. His shooting line was .441/.257/.625.

Timme, who put up big numbers for the Nets in Summer League (25.3 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 2.7 APG and 1.0 SPG in three games), has been playing for the NBAGL’s South Bay Lakers to open 2025/26. In four Tip-Off Tournament games (34.1 MPG) this fall, he has averaged 28.3 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 4.5 APG and 1.5 SPG on .481/.240/.762 shooting.

Manon, an undrafted rookie out of Vanderbilt, has made two garbage-time appearances with the Lakers this fall. The 23-year-old wing has been highly productive in four games (33.4 MPG) with South Bay, averaging 18.8 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 2.5 APG on .458/.500/.789 shooting. He currently leads the G League in steals per game (3.5) and is tied for fourth in blocks per game (2.8).

Koloko, a third-year center, has also made a pair of garbage-time appearances with L.A. this season after getting into 37 games in 2024/25. He averaged 2.4 PPG and 2.5 RPG in 9.2 MPG last season for Los Angeles.

LeBron James Remains Undecided On Playing Beyond This Season

November 25th, 2025 at 11:56am CST by Luke Adams

Chris Paul confirmed over the weekend that the 2025/26 season will be his final year in the NBA, but his longtime friend LeBron James hasn’t made that same determination. Sources close to the Lakers star insist to Dave McMenamin of ESPN that James remains undecided on whether or not he’ll continue his career beyond this season.

McMenamin’s report comes within a larger story about James’ incredible streak of 21 consecutive All-NBA nods. If LeBron hopes to extend that record-setting streak to 22 seasons, he would have to appear in 63 of the Lakers’ remaining 66 games.

As McMenamin points out, if James knew this were his final season, he may feel obligated not to take any games off – especially on the road – as long as he’s healthy. But if he thinks he’ll be back in 2026/27, a “farewell tour” wouldn’t be a consideration.

The Lakers have 11 back-to-backs between now and the end of the season, McMenamin notes, and while James has made a strong effort in recent years to suit up for both ends of those back-to-back sets, head coach J.J. Redick and the Lakers may take a more cautious approach this season, given that LeBron will turn 41 in December and has missed time with sciatica this fall.

“I don’t think an All-NBA appearance this year is going to make or break his résumé,” Redick said, adding that he hasn’t spoken to James about trying to extend that All-NBA streak.

Like Redick, agent Rich Paul said he hasn’t talked to his longtime client about the streak, but he doesn’t necessarily view an All-NBA spot in 2026 as a top priority either.

“Look, at 41 years of age, I hope he is not playing back-to-backs,” Paul told McMenamin.

As McMenamin writes, the most important thing that James could do this season for his legacy would be to win a fifth championship, and the Lakers may decide that managing his playing time over the course of the season gives them the best chance to have him healthy and at his best during the postseason.

Of course, besides reaching the 65-game mark, James would also have to continue playing at an All-NBA level in order to earn serious consideration for a 22nd berth. If he is playing at that level, regardless of whether or not he appears in 65 games, it would likely make him more inclined to put off retirement for another year.

James will earn about $52.6MM this season in the final year of his contract with the Lakers and isn’t eligible to sign a contract extension before next July. That means if he does decide he wants to continue playing in 2026/27, he’ll have to wait until he becomes an unrestricted free agent to sign his next deal, either with Los Angeles or another team.

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