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Knicks Notes: Home Record, Hart, Robinson, Brunson

November 30th, 2025 at 11:25pm CST by Rory Maher

The Knicks cruised to a 22-point victory over Toronto on Sunday and are now 10-1 at Madison Square Garden, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. Big man Karl-Anthony Towns, who led a balanced offensive attack with a team-high 22 points, was quick to credit the home fans for the team’s success.

“Our fans make playing at home so fun, and the support they give us and energy they give us is priceless, so 10-1 — of course we want to give the fans the best product, the best version of ourselves every single night,” Towns said. “But it’s really the fans that bring out the best in us and shout-outs to them. They’ve carried us to the finish line many more than just home games.”

Here’s more from New York:

Veteran wing Josh Hart has been playing his best basketball of the season since OG Anunoby went down with a hamstring strain. In the seven games leading up to Sunday, Hart averaged 14.6 points, 9.4 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 1.7 steals in 34.1 minutes per night, with a shooting slash line of .521/.385/.783. He had an excellent all-around outing Sunday, finishing with 20 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists and three steals two days after recording 19 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists and three steals in the win over Milwaukee. “Josh, he’s a baller,” head coach Mike Brown said after Friday’s game, per Jared Schwartz of The New York Post. “It doesn’t matter what you throw in front of him, he just goes and balls out. That’s what you love about him. He just gets it done in any role that you give him. He’s shown he can help you coming off the bench, he’s definitely shown he can help you as a starter. He’s playing high-level basketball.”
Hart has made a strong case to stay in the starting lineup when Anunoby eventually returns, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv. Brown said he’s been pleased with Mitchell Robinson‘s performance as a member of the second unit. “I’ve liked what I’ve seen so far,” Brown said after Robinson’s six points, seven rebounds and two steals off the bench Friday. “Mitch has given us a great punch off the bench. His ability to offensive rebound against starters and backups has been huge for us. So he has to keep bringing that to the table. So he gives us a different look in the starting lineup and then gives us a different look when he comes off the bench.”
Brown thinks star point guard Jalen Brunson belongs in the MVP conversation, Begley adds. “He should be talked about right now — it’s early — but as a potential MVP,” Brown said Friday. “There’s not enough chatter — which, it’s early, so I’m not throwing a fit — but the guy had 37 tonight on 12-of-21. And he gets blitzed often and he makes the right basketball play. He basically did what he was supposed to do and that’s why I don’t talk about it a lot because that’s what he’s capable of doing and that’s what he’s supposed to do, being of that stature.”

Western Notes: Clippers, Suns, Rockets, Wembanyama, Spurs

November 30th, 2025 at 10:43pm CST by Rory Maher

Head coach Tyronn Lue thought having Kawhi Leonard back in the fold would help turn around the Clippers‘ disappointing season, but that hasn’t happened over the past four games, observes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. Los Angeles has dropped all four contests since Leonard returned and is now 5-15 after losing at home to a struggling Dallas team on Saturday.

“I know we’ve had some tough circumstances in the last five years, which is six years, but I have been able to figure it out. But this year, it’s been tough,” Lue said.

According to Carr, Lue has tried several different lineup combinations over the first 20 games, but none have been effective. With an injured and aging roster, both the present and future are looking pretty bleak, leading to fans calling for major changes on social media, including the ouster of Lue. Fans aren’t the only ones who are frustrated.

“The situation here is difficult,” James Harden said. “We’re not making shots offensively. Defensively, we just allow game-plan mistakes, we allow that to happen too many times, so that’s one of the reasons why we lose games.”

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

On the other end of the spectrum, the Suns have been one of the most surprising teams in a positive way through the first quarter of the season. As Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic writes, Phoenix was widely projected to miss the playoffs in 2025/26, and those predictions looked accurate after the team started out 1-4. However, the Suns have gone 11-5 since and are currently 12-9, the No. 7 seed in the West. Whether the team’s success is sustainable remains to be seen, but Phoenix has dealt with its share of injuries as well and continues to find ways to remain competitive with players out.
The 13-4 Rockets have the NBA’s second-best offense despite attempting the fewest three-pointers in the league and not shooting well on their two-point tries, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic. Houston’s unusual offensive strategy is reliant on dominating the boards, which leads to extra shot attempts — the Rockets are outrebounding their opponents by more than 10 per game, with most of that work coming on the offensive glass.
Injured star Victor Wembanyama has been cheering on the Spurs as he continues to recover from a calf strain, per Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. The French big man has been leading the team’s supporter section — nicknamed “The Jackals” — during recent home games. In fact, Wembanyama came up with the idea of the section and hand-picked the captains over the summer, McDonald writes. “The saying goes, when people show you who they are, believe them,” head coach Mitch Johnson said. “He’s been committed and invested. He’s trusted. He’s worked. He’s had his actions back up his words. It’s awesome.”

Pelicans Notes: Injuries, Peavy, McGowens, Borrego

November 30th, 2025 at 9:09pm CST by Rory Maher

Seven Pelicans — including their five highest-paid players — are out for Sunday’s game at the Lakers, per Will Guillory of The Athletic (Twitter links).

In addition to Dejounte Murray (right Achilles rupture), Jordan Poole (left quad strain), Karlo Matkovic (right calf strain) and Herbert Jones, who have all missed multiple games with their respective injuries, Jordan Hawkins will miss his second straight contest due to an illness, as will Trey Murphy III, who is battling right elbow soreness.

The seventh Pelican out tonight is star forward Zion Williamson, who is missing the second game of a back-to-back — the Pelicans lost at Golden State on Saturday. Williamson’s designation is left hamstring injury management — he missed eight games earlier this month with a Grade 1 left hamstring strain.

Here’s more on the Pelicans:

Second-round pick Micah Peavy and fourth-year wing Bryce McGowens have been taking on challenging defensive assignments recently with Jones sidelined, writes Rod Walker of NOLA.com. “That’s what I want to do,” said Peavy, who finished Monday’s game with 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and four steals in 20 minutes. “Herb is a great defender. And I want to be known as a great defender in this league. I take on that challenge of guarding the best player, especially when Herb’s out. I think I’m doing a pretty good job.” McGowens is on a two-way contract with New Orleans, while Peavy signed a multiyear standard deal after being selected No. 40 overall in June’s draft.
The Pelicans are just 1-7 since James Borrego took over as interim head coach following the dismissal of Willie Green, who was fired after a 2-10 start. However, the team has shown signs of progress, namely being more competitive in its losses, according to Walker. “As a competitor, I want us to win and I want us to make every shot,” Borrego said. “The results can overwhelm you at times. The best organizations I’ve been a part of are process-driven. They have an identity and they know what they believe in. They know what shots they are trying to create, whether they go in or not. Trust that this is where we need to go and the results will take care of themselves. We are getting closer to that. We are not near where we need to be, but we are getting close.”
Players have been pleased with Borrego’s performance thus far, Walker adds in the same story. “I know he’s in a tough spot with everything that went on,” Williamson said. “He’s been doing a great job finding our identity for the team. The guys are behind him. The staff is behind him. We’re with him.”

OG Anunoby Making Progress In Hamstring Recovery

November 30th, 2025 at 7:23pm CST by Rory Maher

Knicks forward OG Anunoby has been cleared for controlled contact work and 3-on-3 scrimmaging as he continues to make progress from a left hamstring strain, Kristian Winfield of The New York Daily News writes.

“He’s doing some on-court work and [we’re] continuing to monitor him. We’re not gonna rush him,” head coach Mike Brown said ahead of Sunday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors.

Anunoby is not yet taking full contact and there’s still no official timetable for his return, but Brown referred to the on-court work as “a good step for him in the process.”

The 28-year-old defensive stalwart injured his hamstring in the first quarter of a November 14 game against Miami. A couple days later, it was reported that Anunoby would be reevaluated in two weeks — this is the first update on his status since.

Anunoby was off to an impressive start to the 2025/26 season before the hamstring strain, averaging 17.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.1 steals through 11 games (33.5 minutes per contest). His shooting line over that span was .483/.397/.760.

Josh Hart has been the primary recipient of more usage and playing time with Anunoby out.

Nuggets Notes: Jokic, LeBron, Brown, Murray, Defense

November 30th, 2025 at 5:58pm CST by Rory Maher

On the Mind the Game podcast (YouTube link), co-host Steve Nash brought up Nikola Jokic‘s superlative start to the season and then asked LeBron James, “Is he the best offensive player you’ve ever played against?”

“Wow, that’s a tough question right there, Steve,” James replied.

“When you think about the totality of what he does,” Nash said. “The pressure he puts on the defense, the assists, the play-making, the initiating the offense, the threes, the mid-range, putting the people in the basket. Like, it’s a lot of stuff.”

“Yeah, it’s a lot,” James agreed. “I will say this: There has not been a more dominant, complete player that I’ve played against in the sense of all the attributes that you just mentioned. From the passing, to the shooting, to the rebounding, to the attention. I mean, there’s nothing that he cannot do on the offensive end. Nothing at all. Nothing.

“(If) you try to double him he gonna make you pay,” James continued. “(If) you try to play him single coverage he’s gonna make you pay. He even brings the ball up the floor, they outlet the ball to him. … And he’s so damn good that people barely talk about it. It’s like ‘oh well, it’s just normal.’ This s— is not normal. It’s not normal.”

The Nuggets superstar is dealing with a left wrist sprain and was considered questionable for Saturday’s game in Phoenix before being upgraded to available. Jokic finished the victory with 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, going 7-of-7 from the field, 2-for-2 from three-point range, and 9-of-10 from the free throw line.

We have more on the Nuggets:

Jokic wasn’t the only Nugget to play through an injury on Saturday. Veteran guard Bruce Brown told Bennett Durando of The Denver Post he hyperextended his right knee in Friday’s loss to San Antonio (the team officially called it a sprain) but the 29-year-old managed to play 27 minutes last night, dishing out a season-high 10 assists in the process. The Nuggets are already shorthanded, Durando notes, with starters Christian Braun (right ankle sprain) and Aaron Gordon (right hamstring strain) out multiple weeks.
Typically a slow starter, Jamal Murray has continued to put up big numbers this fall and looks deserving of his first All-Star appearance, contends Sean Keeler of The Denver Post. Murray is averaging career highs in points (24.0), assists (6.6) and rebounds (4.5) per game while scoring more efficiently than ever before — his shooting line is .486/.409/.892 and his .611 True Shooting percentage is a career-best mark. As Keeler observes, the Canadian guard’s All-Star case could be further bolstered by the new format, which will feature one team of eight international players and two squads of eight Americans apiece.
Denver was eliminated from NBA Cup competition on Friday after blowing an 18-point lead in the second half, Durando writes for The Denver Post. A win would over the Spurs would have secured the Nuggets their first appearance in the quarterfinals of the in-season tournament. The defense was the primary reason for the defeat — Denver scored a season-high 136 points but gave 139 to drop its third straight home game. “This is honestly good for us,” said Peyton Watson. “We need this experience. We need to know the things we aren’t good at to work on and continue to sharpen. … We also had a completely different team the first two, three games of the season. We had everybody (healthy). We’re spread out a little bit thinner now.” The Nuggets allowed 112 points in the 18-point win at Phoenix.

Injury Notes: Sasser, LeBron, Smart, M. Williams, Dunn, Butler

November 30th, 2025 at 5:03pm CST by Rory Maher

Third-year guard Marcus Sasser, who has yet to play in 2025/26 after sustaining a right hip impingement during the preseason, has been assigned to the G League to practice with the Motor City Cruise, the Pistons announced today (Twitter link via Hunter Patterson of The Athletic).

Just over three weeks ago, Detroit said Sasser would be reevaluated in about four weeks, so that exam should come in the near future. Given that he’s getting some practice reps in with the Cruise, Sasser’s season debut may not be far off either.

After a strong rookie year, the 25-year-old point guard was in and out of the rotation out last season. He wound up appearing in 57 games and averaging 6.6 points, 1.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 14.2 minutes per night, with a shooting line of .463/.382/.843.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

After initially being listed as questionable, Lakers star LeBron James was subsequently ruled out of Sunday’s matchup vs. New Orleans because of left foot injury management, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN. As McMenamin notes, Sunday is the front end of a back-to-back — Los Angeles faces Phoenix on Monday. Marcus Smart will miss his second straight game Sunday due to back spasms, per the NBA’s official injury report. The veteran guard was initially deemed doubtful.
Suns center Mark Williams (right calf soreness) and forward Ryan Dunn were questionable for Saturday’s loss to Denver before being downgraded to out. Head coach Jordan Ott discussed the status of both players prior to the game, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (Twitter video link). “The (right) knee was doing well,” Ott said of Williams. “Something independently just popped up (during Friday’s loss at OKC) with the calf. Don’t think it’s too serious. We want to play the long game with him. He’s done a great job of building back up and being available for us.” Dunn, meanwhile, has missed the past five games with a right wrist sprain. “He’s in a good place. He’s only been out six or seven days, however it’s been,” Ott said of the 2024 first-round pick. “It’s just a pain tolerance, flexibility. Of course it’s the shooting wrist. Things are in a good place. We’ll continue to assess, but I would imagine it’s relatively soon (when he returns).”
Warriors forward Jimmy Butler took a hard fall during Saturday’s win over New Orleans but is optimistic he’ll be ready to go on Tuesday against Oklahoma City, as Anthony Slater of ESPN relays (Twitter video link). Through 19 games (31.7 MPG) this season, the six-time All-Star is averaging 20.2 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 5.2 APG and 1.6 SPG on .527/.436/.856 shooting.

Sixers’ Joel Embiid, VJ Edgecombe To Return Sunday

November 30th, 2025 at 4:38pm CST by Eli Cohen

4:38 pm: Embiid and Edgecombe will both start on Sunday vs. Atlanta, the team announced (Twitter link via Neubeck). Nurse said earlier today that both players would be on a minutes restriction, as Tim Bontemps of ESPN relays (via Twitter).

Drummond will be active as well, according to Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link).

1:05 pm: After previously being listed as out, Embiid has been upgraded to questionable for Sunday’s contest, per Neubeck (Twitter link).

10:00 am: Joel Embiid has been ruled out for the Sixers‘ game against the Hawks on Sunday, tweets Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports.

There had previously been minor optimism among the coaching staff that Embiid would be able to suit up. Asked on Saturday about the big man’s odds of playing today, head coach Nick Nurse responded, “I think there’s a chance, but I don’t know if I would put it as good, bad, or medium” (Twitter link via Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports).

When asked by Neubeck whether there were specific tests or benchmarks that Embiid needed to exceed before being cleared to return to play, Nurse didn’t provide specifics.

“I think it’s just getting through some pain and then also some on-court activity,” the Sixers’ coach said. “Kind of a combination of those things.”

Embiid has appeared in six games for Philadelphia this season and is averaging career lows in points (19.7) and rebounds (5.5) per game. He has missed the past nine games and will remain out for at least one more.

Bodner notes that while Kelly Oubre Jr. and Trendon Watford remain out with a left knee sprain and left adductor sprain, respectively, VJ Edgecombe has been upgraded to questionable as he looks to return from the calf tightness that has caused him to miss the last three games. Andre Drummond is also listed as questionable with a right knee contusion.

Cavaliers Announce Injury Updates On Nance, Allen, Merrill

November 30th, 2025 at 3:09pm CST by Rory Maher

Cavaliers big man Larry Nance Jr. has been diagnosed with a Grade 1 right soleus (calf) strain and will miss about three-to-four weeks, the team announced on Sunday (via Twitter).

Nance injured his right calf in Friday’s loss at Atlanta and underwent an MRI on Saturday, which revealed the soleus strain, according to the Cavaliers.

An 11-year veteran who is in his second stint with the Cavs, the Akron native has unfortunately been plagued by injuries throughout his time in the NBA, having played between 24 and 67 games each season. Nance has made 16 appearances for Cleveland this fall, averaging 3.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 15.0 minutes per contest.

Cleveland also provided injury updates on starting center Jarrett Allen, who will miss at least a week with a right finger strain, and sharpshooter Sam Merrill who has missed the past five games with a right hand sprain. Merrill remains out and is considered day-to-day, per the team.

Allen, who is earning $20MM this season before his three-year, $90MM extension begins in 2026/27, has been playing through a non-displaced fracture in his left ring finger. He had been sidelined for the three games leading up to Friday with the right finger sprain before playing 28 minutes against Atlanta. He will now miss at least five more games, with Dec. 12 at Washington likely being his earliest possible return date.

Merrill had gotten off to a strong start to the season after re-signing with the Cavs on a four-year, $38MM contract in the offseason. He was posting career-best numbers in virtually every major statistic through 12 games (25.9 MPG), averaging 13.9 PPG, 2.3 APG, 2.1 RPG on .466/.444/.938 shooting (85% of his field goal attempts come from behind the arc).

Dean Wade, Nae’Qwan Tomlin, Jaylon Tyson and Lonzo Ball are among the reserves for Cleveland who could receive more playing time with Nance, Allen and Merrill injured. Key rotation wing Max Strus remains sidelined as well after undergoing offseason foot surgery — he has yet to make his season debut.

Southwest Notes: Flagg, Washington, Morant, Vassell

November 30th, 2025 at 2:00pm CST by Eli Cohen

Cooper Flagg made history for the Mavericks on back-to-back nights, writes Tim MacMahon for ESPN.

One day after becoming the youngest player to record 10 or more assists in a game, Flagg became the youngest player to score 35 points in a game, sneaking the record in five days earlier than LeBron James accomplished the same feat in 2003. Most importantly, Flagg’s 35 points came in a win, which have been few and far between for a struggling Mavericks team this fall.

“He’s only 18 years old, but he seems like he’s been in this league before,” coach Jason Kidd said. “You can call it point guard or whatever, but he ran the offense for us. He drove the ball. The ball touched the paint. He got to the rim, got to the free throw line, stepped up and made free throws for us late.”

Veteran sharpshooter Klay Thompson, who had one of his best games of the season in the win, spoke highly of Flagg following Saturday’s game.

“Cooper’s upside is limitless,” Thompson said. “He has every tool to be great. Sometimes I can’t believe he should be a freshman in college.”

Thompson also threw out a lofty comparison to his situation in relation to Flagg, according to The Athletic’s Christian Clark, making reference to the Lakers in the first year of Kobe Bryant’s career.

“I feel like [Byron Scott] sometimes,” Thompson said. “The old, wise veteran. The future of the franchise to my side. It’s pretty cool to be a part of it. To be witnesses to what he’s going to do for a long time.”

We have more from around the Southwest Division:

Mavericks forward P.J. Washington was a late scratch on Saturday due to a right ankle sprain suffered when he slipped on a ball during warmups, Mike Curtis writes for the Dallas Morning News. Washington, who was still active for the game, was initially listed as questionable to return, but was ruled out around the end of the first quarter. His status for Dallas’ upcoming three-game road trip is unclear.
Ja Morant will be reevaluated next week once the Grizzlies return to Memphis on Tuesday following their four-game road trip, tweets Michael Wallace of Grind City Media. This update is in line with the timeline announced for Morant when he initially was diagnosed with the calf strain. Wallace notes that the point guard is currently engaged in light on-court warmup work.
Devin Vassell has been on a tear of late, scoring more points in the Spurs‘ past two games than in any other two-game stretch of his career, writes Jeff McDonald for the San Antonio Express-News. That run included a 35-point explosion in a win against the Nuggets on Friday night, in which his teammates were well aware of the zone he was in. “[Keldon Johnson] told me in the last two minutes if the ball comes to me, don’t think,” Vassell said. “Just be aggressive and shoot.” As impressive as Vassell’s scoring was, head coach Mitch Johnson was happy to see the intensity the 25-year-old brought on the defensive end of the court. “He’s becoming a winning player,” Johnson said. “We’ve got our arm around him and our foot up his backside to continue to do it. He’s a difference maker when he does that.”

Pacers Sign Ethan Thompson, Waive RayJ Dennis

November 30th, 2025 at 1:12pm CST by Eli Cohen

1:12 pm: The signing of Thompson and release of Dennis are now official, the Pacers confirmed in a press release.

11:25 am: The Pacers are signing free agent swingman Ethan Thompson to a two-way contract and will waive point guard RayJ Dennis to make room on their roster, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Thompson, 26, was previously signed to an Exhibit 10 deal by the Heat, but was waived heading into the season. The 6’4″ wing has played eight games for Miami’s G League affiliate this fall, averaging 26.9 points, 6.5 assists, and 5.8 rebounds while shooting 36.8% on 8.5 three-point attempts per game.

Dennis appeared in 13 games for Indiana this season as the team dealt with backcourt injuries, averaging 4.9 points in 12.9 minutes per game. He also played twice for the Noblesville Boom in the G League, averaging 20.5 PPG and 8.5 APG. Dennis has struggled with his three-point shot this fall, making just 25.0% of his outside shots for the Boom and 31.6% for the Pacers.

As our tracker shows, Thompson will be eligible to be active for up to 39 NBA games with Indiana. He’ll join Taelon Peter and Quenton Jackson as the club’s two-way players.