Pullin, Chandler, Chance Claim NBA G League Awards
Free agent guard Zyon Pullin, who opened the 2025/26 season with the Iowa Wolves after being released by the Timberwolves in October, has been named the NBA G League’s Player of the Month for November, according to the NBA (Twitter link).
In seven Tip-Off Tournament games (34.0 minutes per contest) with Iowa this season, Pullin has averaged 27.7 points, 5.7 assists and 3.0 rebounds, with a scorching-hot shooting line of .667/.545/.903.
A 6’4″ guard out of Florida, Pullin played for UC Riverside from 2019-23 before transferring to the Gators for his super-senior year. He was an All-SEC honoree in 2023/24 after averaging 15.5 points, 4.9 assists, 3.9 rebounds, and 0.9 steals per contest in 33 games (27 starts), with a shooting line of .444/.449/.847.
Pullin quickly signed a two-way contract with the Heat after going undrafted in 2024, but was cut in July and opened last season in the G League prior to signing another two-way deal in January, this time with Memphis. He played three NBA games for the Grizzlies, having spent most of his rookie campaign in the NBAGL with the Sioux Falls Skyforce (Miami’s affiliate) and the Memphis Hustle.
The 24-year-old signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Grizzlies but didn’t play out the entire contract, having been cut in July. He caught on with Minnesota for training camp, inking a non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 deal.
The NBA also announced (Twitter links) the G League’s Player of the Week (for games played from Nov. 24-30), which went to Delaware Blue Coats point guard Kennedy Chandler, and the Coach of the Month, which was won by Jacob Chance of the Austin Spurs.
Chandler, the 38th pick in the 2022 draft, has been playing for the Sixers‘ affiliate this fall after signing an Exhibit 10 deal with Philadelphia for training camp. He averaged 25.0 points and 12.3 assists in three games last week — the Blue Coats went 2-1 in those contests.
In eight games this fall (36.0 MPG), the 23-year-old Chandler is averaging 21.8 PPG, 10.1 APG, 2.9 RPG and 1.8 SPG on .468/.265/.667 shooting.
As for Chance, he guided Austin to a 9-1 record in November the second-best mark in the NBAGL. Raptors 905 coach Drew Jones was also deserving of the coaching award, notes Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca (via Twitter) — Toronto’s affiliate is undefeated at 8-0 and has the best defensive and net ratings in the G League.
Daigneault, Bickerstaff Named Coaches Of The Month
Mark Daigneault of the Thunder and J.B. Bickerstaff of the Pistons have been named the NBA’s Coaches of the Month for games played in October and November, the league announced in a press release (Twitter links).
Daigneault won the award for the Western Conference, while Bickerstaff claimed the honor in the East.
After Oklahoma City held the best record in the NBA in 2024/25 at 68-14, Daigneault led the defending champions to a 20-1 record over the first month-plus of the season — unsurprisingly, that is once again the top record in the league.
Bickerstaff led the upstart Pistons to a 16-4 record during October and November, the top mark in the East and only trailing the Thunder for the best record in the NBA.
According to the league, David Adelman (Nuggets), Mitch Johnson (Spurs), Jordan Ott (Suns) and Ime Udoka (Rockets) were the other nominees in the West, while Kenny Atkinson (Cavaliers), Mike Brown (Knicks), Jamahl Mosley (Magic), Darko Rajakovic (Raptors), Quin Snyder (Hawks) and Erik Spoelstra (Heat) were nominated in the East.
Zion Williamson Out At Least Three Weeks With Adductor Strain
3:48 pm: The Pelicans put out a press release (via Twitter) confirming the news. According to the team, Williamson underwent imaging on Tuesday which revealed a Grade 2 right hip adductor strain. There’s no official timetable for his return.
3:12 pm: Pelicans forward Zion Williamson has been diagnosed with a right adductor injury and will miss at least three weeks, which is the next time he’ll be reexamined, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
A two-time All-Star, Williamson has been plagued by injuries throughout his time in the NBA after being selected No. 1 overall out of Duke in the 2019 draft. This season has been no exception, as Williamson missed eight games last month with a Grade 1 left hamstring strain prior to his latest ailment.
According to Charania (Twitter link), Williamson has a strained adductor, which a muscle in the hip, and will be out an extended period of time — far longer than the two-plus weeks he missed with the hamstring strain.
It’s unclear when Williamson’s adductor injury occurred, but he last suited up on Saturday, when New Orleans lost at Golden State. Through 10 games in 2025/26, the 25-year-old has averaged 22.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.6 steals in 30.9 minutes per contest.
Williamson has been limited to 30 games or fewer in four of his first full six years in the NBA, including missing the entire 2021/22 campaign. He has dealt with a variety of different injuries throughout his career.
The Pelicans have once again been hit hard by injuries this fall, with their five highest-paid players — and seven total — all sidelined on Sunday. That figure includes Williamson, who was held out of the second night of a back-to-back — he makes the most money on the team on his maximum-salary contract.
New Orleans should qualify for a hardship exception in the wake of the injuries, depending on how long other players will be out (Dejounte Murray presumably isn’t close to returning after rupturing his Achilles at the end of January). Still, that’s of little consolation to a club that does not control its 2026 first-round pick and currently holds the worst record in the NBA at 3-18.
Warriors Sign LJ Cryer, Waive Jackson Rowe
December 2, 12:24 pm: Cryer’s two-way contract with the Warriors is now official, according to the team (Twitter link).
December 1, 5:12 pm: Rowe has been released, the Warriors announced (Twitter link).
December 1, 4:42 pm: The Warriors plan to waive second-year forward Jackson Rowe, who is signed to a two-way contract, reports Marc Stein of The Stein Line (via Twitter).
According to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link), the Warriors will sign free agent guard LJ Cryer to fill Rowe’s two-way spot — the former Baylor and Houston standout spent training camp and the preseason with the Warriors prior to being released in October.
The 24-year-old also played with the Warriors’ Summer League club after going undrafted in June, averaging 9.2 points and 2.8 assists on .500/.421/.833 shooting in four appearances (18.1 minutes per game). He averaged 5.0 PPG in 9.6 MPG during the preseason.
Cryer, a 6’0″ point guard, had a decorated college career and has put up impressive statistics with Santa Cruz during the Tip-Off Tournament this fall, averaging 24.3 points, 6.1 assists, and 4.9 rebounds on .444/.414/.867 shooting in seven games (34.1 minutes per contest). He’s attempting 12.4 threes per game and making 5.1 of them — eye-popping numbers.
Rowe, 28, went undrafted in 2020 after four years at Cal State Fullerton. The Toronto native spent his first four post-college seasons playing in France, Sweden, Canada, Germany, and the NBA G League prior to signing an Exhibit 10 deal with Golden State in July 2024.
A 6’6″ forward, Rowe was initially waived by the Warriors before the 2024/25 season began, opening that campaign in the G League with their affiliate team in Santa Cruz. He signed a two-year two-way contract with Golden State in January, appearing in six NBA games last season while averaging 3.7 points and 1.8 rebounds in 8.7 minutes per night. He didn’t play in any NBA games this season for the Warriors.
Rowe has performed well for Santa Cruz the past few seasons, which is how he earned his promotion last season. In 36 games in ’24/25 (33.0 MPG), he averaged 16.3 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 2.8 APG and 1.3 SPG on .515/.391/.681 shooting. Through five games this fall, he’s averaging 13.4 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 2.0 APG and 1.4 SPG, though his three-point percentage dropped (23.8%) in a small sample size (5-for-21).
Northwest Notes: Markkanen, K. George, A. Mitchell, Wolves
Although the Jazz are incentivized to tank again in 2025/26 so they keep their top-eight protected first-round pick instead of sending it to Oklahoma City, rival teams have gotten the impression Utah would like to be competitive again in the relative short term, Marc Stein writes in his latest Substack story (subscriber link).
According to Stein, it’s difficult for some teams to gauge the true intentions of new head of basketball operations Austin Ainge, but most of the opposing front offices Stein has spoken to have become “increasingly convinced” the Jazz would rather make a trade to enhance their core around Lauri Markkanen rather than deal away the Finnish star, who is averaging a career-best 27.9 points per game this season.
There has been speculation that Utah could look to move Markkanen within the next year, and Ainge didn’t entirely shut down that possibility in October. The 28-year-old forward is signed to a lucrative long-term contract which runs through the 2028/29 season.
Here’s more from the Northwest:
- After struggling mightily in Sunday’s lopsided loss to Houston — he played through an illness and went scoreless on 0-of-6 shooting and committed eight turnovers in 19 minutes — Keyonte George bounced back in a major way in Monday’s victory over the Rockets, finishing with 28 points (on 8-of-14 shooting), eight assists and four rebounds in 37 minutes. The third-year guard is having a breakout season for the Jazz, averaging 22.5 points, 6.8 assists, and 3.9 rebounds on .440/.325/.898 shooting through 19 games (33.9 minutes per contest). George credits an open conversation with head coach Will Hardy at the conclusion of 2024/25 for changing his mentality and raising his expectations, he tells Marc J. Spears of Andscape. “Our relationship is on a whole other level now. My exit interview was brutal. Will shot it to me straight,” George said. “Will calls me late at night and tells me little things like, ‘Play defense,’ and then he hangs up. But also, we got to the realization where we have some great dialogue. He doesn’t like some stuff and I try to communicate what I was thinking and the group was thinking. That is important for me. With the position I’m playing, I’m a second him on the floor. He can’t play. So, I’m thinking for the group trying to execute what he wants every single possession. Our relationship from my first year to now it’s completely different.”
- Ajay Mitchell, a 2024 second-round pick, unexpectedly received immediate rotation minutes while on a two-way contract last season with the Thunder. A toe injury forced him to miss a significant portion of his rookie year, but the Belgian guard was still promoted to a standard contract in February and then signed a team-friendly multiyear deal as a restricted free agent over the summer. Mitchell tells Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman (subscription required) that his lengthy absence helped prepare him for year two, and the former UC Santa Barbara star has made tremendous strides in his second season, boosting his production across the board and improving on both sides of the ball. “He’s just a really good basketball player,” reigning MVP and Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. “His feel for the game is what jumps out right away. He just understands how to play. It’s almost like when you’re playing with him, it’s like a pickup game. He doesn’t need a play called for him. He doesn’t need too much structure. He just goes out there and figures out a way, makes the right basketball play, plays hard and wins. He makes it easy for me.”
- Down four points entering the fourth quarter on Sunday, Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch rolled out a lineup featuring Mike Conley, Donte DiVincenzo, Jaden McDaniels, Julius Randle and Naz Reid and swung the tide of momentum to a win, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. That five-man group had only played 15 minutes together this season entering Sunday, but blitzed San Antonio during its six minutes together last night. “We’re a hard team to beat when we’re all involved, and it shows,” said Reid, who scored eight of his 15 points in a fourth quarter in which the Wolves outscored the Spurs by 20 points with him on the floor. “If we could do that more consistently, we’re going to be a really, really hard team to beat. It’s fun, especially when you’re doing it at home, getting the crowd involved and all that good stuff. It’s fun basketball.”
Devin Booker, Jamal Murray Exit Monday’s Games With Injuries
A pair of star players were injured during separate games on Monday, with Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray exiting an eventual loss to Dallas with a right ankle sprain, while Suns shooting guard Devin Booker sustained a right groin injury in the road contest at the Lakers (Twitter links via the Nuggets and Dave McMenamin of ESPN).
Murray, who is a candidate to make his first All-Star appearance this season, was deemed questionable to return Monday but didn’t play at all in the fourth quarter. The Nuggets were up two points entering the final frame and wound up losing by 10 without their second-leading scorer.
It’s unclear if Murray will miss additional time with his ankle injury. Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. will likely receive more minutes if the Canadian guard is ruled out of future games.
Denver is fairly banged up right now, with starters Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun out multiple weeks due to their own injuries and third-year wing Julian Strawther continuing to miss time with a back issue.
As for Booker, he was ruled out at halftime of the game in Los Angeles. According to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link), all the Suns know so far is the four-time All-Star experienced soreness in his groin.
Phoenix’s all-time leading scorer has yet to miss a game in 2025/26 after making 75 appearances last season. Through 21 games, the 29-year-old is averaging team highs of 25.7 points and 6.9 assists while also contributing 4.4 rebounds and 1.0 steal per night.
Collin Gillespie, Jordan Goodwin, and Jamaree Bouyea are among the Suns who could take on additional play-making duties with Booker out at least the remainder of Monday’s game.
The Suns are also shorthanded, as Jalen Green continues to be sidelined with a hamstring strain he has aggravated multiple times. Second-year forward Ryan Dunn did return to action on Monday after missing the past five games with a sprained right wrist, though Grayson Allen was ruled out with an illness.
Lakers Notes: LeBron, Smart, Ayton, Kleber, Luka, Reaves, Borrego
As expected, LeBron James is not on the Lakers‘ injury report for Monday’s game vs. Phoenix, which indicates he’ll be available to play, as Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group tweets.
The superstar forward sat out Sunday’s game with what the team called left foot injury management. Head coach JJ Redick explained prior to the win over New Orleans that Los Angeles was “just being cautious” with James, who has been dealing with a foot issue, according to Dan Woike of The Athletic (Twitter links). Redick added that the team hopes to have James available for back-to-backs in the future.
The NBA’s oldest player extended his own league record last season by making his 21st consecutive All-NBA team — no other player has more than 15 total All-NBA appearances. James, who missed the first 14 games of the season due to sciatica on his right side, must play in 61 of the Lakers’ final 63 games in order to remain eligible to continue that streak, due to the 65-game rule.
Here’s more on the Lakers:
- While James will return tonight, veteran guard Marcus Smart will miss his third straight game — and his injury designation has changed from lower back spasms to lower back injury management, Price notes. Redick expressed confidence on Monday that the 31-year-old would be back sooner rather later, calling him day-to-day, per Jovan Buha (Twitter link). “We expect him to be back soon,” Redick said. “It’s not a long-term thing.”
- Starting center Deandre Ayton appeared to aggravate a right knee bruise in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game, an injury which cost him about a game-and-a-half last week, Woike tweets. However, the Lakers held a comfortable lead at the time and the former No. 1 overall pick isn’t on the team’s injury report ahead of Monday’s game.
- As Woike details in an entertaining story for The Athletic, during a poor stretch of play in the third quarter in which their lead was trimmed to 11 points, backup big man Maxi Kleber inexplicably air-balled an open layup on an and-one attempt (YouTube link), causing his teammates on the bench to start laughing. “We were just caught off guard. … We all thought he was going to dunk it. … Shot a fade-away layup. Crazy,” Gabe Vincent said Sunday. The Lakers immediately went on an 8-0 run after the moment of levity, which also served as a reminder of the good vibes around the team — the players often make fun of each other in a lighthearted way, Woike writes. “It’s very important,” Kleber said. “It’s a long season. Obviously, this was a funny play. But it could be serious, where we have a bad stretch, or a bad game, and it’s important that we stick together as a team. And that we can laugh about things and just work it out and not take it too hard. Because we know we’re good. And I think it helps to regain focus quickly.”
- It wasn’t the prettiest game, but the Lakers won their seventh straight contest on Sunday to improve to 15-4 on the season. Backcourt stars Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves combined for 67 points and 15 assists, notes Thuc Nhi Nguyen of The Los Angeles Times, becoming just the fourth pair of teammates in the past 50 years to each score at least 30 points in three consecutive games. “The gravity that he has on the court, it’s impossible to guard him any certain way because [of] his ability to pass the ball, his unselfishness and his shot-making ability,” Reaves said of Doncic. “Then, once you blitz him, then you have advantage basketball and we like our chances.”
- Prior to Sunday’s game, Pelicans interim head coach James Borrego reflected on being a finalist for the Lakers’ coaching vacancy during the 2024 offseason, which ultimately went to Redick (Twitter video link via Dave McMenamin of ESPN). “I grew up a Lakers fan, number one, so to come here and interview for the job was so surreal and like a dream,” Borrego said in part.
Pacers Re-Sign Garrison Mathews To Second 10-Day Deal
4:00 pm: Mathews’ new 10-day contract is official, the Pacers confirmed in a press release.
3:25 pm: The Pacers have been granted another hardship exception and will use it to re-sign sharpshooter Garrison Mathews to a second 10-day contract, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (via Twitter).
Hardship exceptions are granted when at least four players have missed three or more consecutive games and are projected to be out for at least two more weeks. Tyrese Haliburton (Achilles), Obi Toppin (foot), Aaron Nesmith (knee), and Kam Jones (back) all appear to fit that bill for Indiana.
Mathews, who is in his seventh NBA season, starred in college at Lipscomb prior to going undrafted in 2019. He has played for Washington, Houston, Atlanta and now Indiana during his time in the league.
The 29-year-old wing signed a non-guaranteed camp deal with the Knicks earlier this fall but was released before the season began, making him a free agent. In 319 career games (17.3 minutes per contest), Mathews has averaged 6.4 points and 1.7 rebounds while shooting 38.0% from long distance.
In five games with the Pacers so far in 2025/26, Mathews has played a modest role, averaging 9.2 MPG and converting 2-of-13 shots from three-point range. It’s worth noting that players cannot sign three 10-day contracts with the same team — Indiana would have to release someone if it wanted to retain Mathews beyond his second 10-day deal.
Mathews will earn $165,197 over the course of his 10 days with the Pacers, while the team takes on a cap hit of $131,970.
Knicks Notes: Home Record, Hart, Robinson, Brunson
The Knicks cruised to a 22-point victory over Toronto on Sunday and are now 10-1 at Madison Square Garden this season, 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 Most Valuable Player 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
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.
Lue has tried several different lineup combinations over the first 20 games, Carr writes, but none have been effective. With an injured and aging roster, both the present and future are looking pretty bleak, leading to fans on social media calling for major changes, 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, making them 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.”