Doncic, Antetokounmpo Lead Early Fan Voting For All-Star Game
Lakers guard Luka Doncic and Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo lead the Western and Eastern Conferences, respectively, in the first returns of fan voting for the All-Star Game, according to the NBA (Twitter link).
Doncic leads all players with 1,249,518 votes. The top five vote-getters from the Western Conference also include Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, Warriors guard Stephen Curry, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama.
Joining Antetokounmpo among the top five in the Eastern Conference are Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, Pistons guard Cade Cunningham and Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell.
Fans voting represents 50% of the vote to determine the five players from each conference to be named as starters for the All-Star Game, with current NBA players and a media panel accounting for 25% each. This year, All-Stars are being selected without regard to position.
A newly-created, round-robin tournament featuring a USA vs. World format will be held Sunday, Feb. 15 at the Intuit Dome, the new home of the Clippers.
Pacific Notes: LeBron, Doncic, N. Smith, Leonard, M. Williams
LeBron James and Luka Doncic took over as the Lakers ended a three-game slide by routing Sacramento on Sunday night, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Coach JJ Redick blasted his players twice over the past week, questioning their defensive effort and professionalism. Neither of those was a concern on Sunday as L.A. turned in a dominant performance led by James, who made 11 of his 13 shots from the field and finished with 24 points.
“I don’t want to create the narrative of (just) me and Luka,” James said. “It’s five guys on the floor and seven guys that come off the bench. It needs to be all of us. (But) it’s important that we set the tone.”
Doncic expressed a similar sentiment, saying it’s up to the leaders to carry the team through hard times, especially with Austin Reaves expected to miss the next month with a calf strain. Doncic had a team-high 34 points, including 15 in the second quarter as the Lakers built a comfortable lead.
“I think it definitely starts with us,” Doncic said. “And when AR is back, it’s going to be all three of us. But now, it starts with us. We need to show what we can do and if we are going to do it, we both are going to do it. The group is going to follow.”
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- The Lakers also got a scoring boost from two-way guard Nick Smith Jr., who made his first seven shots from the field and finished with 21 points in 24 minutes, McMenamin adds. L.A. is carrying a roster opening, so it’s possible that Smith could be converted to a standard deal later in the season. “In this league, you got to have confidence. If you don’t, they’ll go out there and see it right away,” he said. “I feel like I can hoop with the best of them.”
- Kawhi Leonard scored a career-high 55 points as the Clippers topped Detroit for their fourth straight win. He wound up tied for the franchise record as he only played six minutes in the fourth quarter, notes Doug Padilla of The Associated Press. “Like I told (Lue), I would rather play another game than go out there and risk it,” Leonard said. “Hopefully we can get another win and be in the same situation. It is what it is.”
- Suns coach Jordan Ott said after Saturday’s game that a more physical atmosphere led to the fight that resulted in suspensions for Mark Williams and Jose Alvarado, per Dana Scott of The Arizona Republic (subscription required). Williams and Alvarado exchanged punches in the third quarter on Saturday as the Suns and Pelicans faced one another for the second time in two nights. “Last night (Dec. 26), there was a lot of free throws,” Ott said. “Tonight, there wasn’t as much. They let us play tonight, which is something that we enjoyed to do, and they got tangled up.”
Pacific Notes: Redick, Ellis, Westbrook, Lopez
The “uncomfortable” practice that Lakers coach JJ Redick promised after a Christmas Day loss to Houston wound up being a constructive exchange of ideas, Dan Arritt of The Orange County Register writes in a subscriber-only story. Instead of chastising his players for defensive mistakes during the current three-game losing streak, Redick cited the need for “recalibration” and “reconnection” as he met with reporters on Saturday.
“For myself, I’m always gonna look in the mirror first,” Redick said. “It’s easy as a player or coach to say, ‘Well, it’s this guy’s fault,’ or ‘We’re not doing this because of X, Y and Z.’ We had a great meeting as a staff this morning, came in super early and met with the players. It was very positive, and it was also listening. For our staff and myself to listen to the players and what they need.”
Defensive issues have stood out during the recent slide, but Redick said the offense has also been at fault by being disorganized and ending too many possessions with poor shot selection. Injuries have played a role in that, as LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves haven’t been available as often as Redick was expecting.
“We’re not pointing at each other,” Rui Hachimura said. “We talked about everybody, players, coaches. We’ve just got to tighten up. We had a good stretch at the beginning (of the season) and now we kind of, I don’t know, we relaxed and got tired of winning, but we stopped doing what we were supposed to do.”
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Kings guard Keon Ellis credited a strong defensive effort for Saturday’s victory over Dallas as he made his third start of the season, according to Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee (subscription required). Coach Doug Christie used a revamped starting lineup to help his team win for the second time in three games. “Just the effort on the defensive end, helping for one another,” Ellis said. “I always go back to that energy again because there’s been times when teams are going on runs, and we’ve let go of the rope a little bit, so tonight I think we did a good job of not doing that.”
- Russell Westbrook reached another milestone in the victory, passing Magic Johnson to move into seventh place on the career assists list. At age 37, the Kings guard gave no indication that he’s thinking about retirement, telling reporters, “I’ll keep going until I’ve had enough” (Twitter video link from James Ham of The Kings Beat).
- Brook Lopez, who stepped into the starting lineup after an injury to Ivica Zubac, drilled nine three-pointers on Friday to help the Clippers rally past Portland and extend their winning streak to three games, per Janis Carr of The Orange County Register (subscription required). Lopez made a limited impact during the first two months of the season, but showed against the Blazers why L.A. targeted him over the summer. “He can post smaller guys and when he’s on the perimeter, he can make shots,” coach Tyronn Lue said. “If we get the right matchups, we can take advantage of that.”
Fischer’s Latest: CP3, Harden, Gillespie, Cavs, Knicks
There had been some speculation that Chris Paul could be moved by the Clippers on December 15, the day he became trade-eligible, but that did not occur. While Paul is no longer around the team after Los Angeles announced that it was “parting ways” with the franchise icon, the Clippers are working with his representatives to find Paul a new club that he finds desirable, writes Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link).
Paul’s minimum-salary contract would theoretically be simple to trade from a mechanics standpoint, but a deal doesn’t appear imminent. Sources tell Fischer that it’s possible Paul might be included as part of a larger trade around the February 5 deadline. In that scenario, Paul could be waived by the team that acquires him, Fischer continues, which would allow the 40-year-old to pick a new destination as a free agent.
While the Lakers have been linked to Paul for years, Fischer has been “strongly advised” they aren’t expected to pursue the 11-time All-NBA point guard, who is in his 21st and final season. Houston could theoretically use backcourt depth, but Fischer hears the Rockets are content with their roster right now and likely won’t consider changes until late January due their proximity to the first apron, at which they’re hard-capped.
Here’s more from Fischer’s latest rumor round-up, which is centered on point guards:
- The Clippers continue to signal to rival teams that they aren’t willing to discuss trading James Harden, according to Fischer. As he points out, Harden has an implicit no-trade clause for 2025/26 and a $42.3MM player option for 2026/27 that’s partially guaranteed for $13.3MM. In order to approve a potential trade, Harden would likely want to know if the team interested in acquiring him planned to keep him past his July 11 salary guarantee date or if it would be open to re-signing him to a new deal, Fischer writes.
- Collin Gillespie, who is having a breakout season for the Suns, will be an unrestricted free agent in 2026. Rival teams are projecting the 26-year-old to receive a contract similar to the three-year, $27MM deal Ty Jerome signed with Memphis this past summer, per Fischer.
- While rival clubs are reportedly monitoring both players, the Cavaliers have shown no interest to this point in making an in-season deal involving Darius Garland or Jarrett Allen, Fischer confirms, echoing reporting from Brett Siegel.
- As Fischer writes, Tyler Kolek‘s impressive recent play with the Knicks has opposing teams wondering if New York will target frontcourt help ahead of the deadline instead of a veteran point guard. It’s unclear which position the Knicks will ultimately look to fortify.
Lakers’ Reaves Out At Least Four Weeks With Grade 2 Calf Strain
Lakers guard Austin Reaves has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 left gastrocnemius strain and will miss at least four weeks, which is the next time he’ll be reevaluated, the team announced on Friday (Twitter link via Dan Woike of The Athletic).
The gastrocnemius is the largest and most powerful muscle in the calf.
Reaves suffered a mild left calf strain on December 8 and returned to action on December 23. He experienced soreness in his calf in yesterday’s game against Houston, forcing him to leave the eventual loss at halftime. An MRI confirmed the strain.
While the Grade 2 gastrocnemius strain seems likely to be connected to the initial injury Reaves suffered earlier this month, it’s technically a different part of his calf, team and league sources tell Woike. The calf is comprised of the gastrocnemius, soleus and plantaris muscles, per the Cleveland Clinic.
Reaves told fellow guard Luka Doncic on Thursday that he wasn’t sure how severe the injury was, according to Woike.
“Just hoping. I just say, ‘If you need something to help with, I know how it is to go to a calf injury.’ It’s not fun at all,” said Doncic, who suffered a calf strain last Christmas in his final game with Dallas. “Just be there to support him. Take your time. Calves are dangerous.”
It’s a tough blow for Reaves, who is playing for his next contract. He’ll almost certainly turn down his $14.9MM player option for 2026/27 and sign a new deal as an unrestricted free agent next summer.
The 27-year-old was in the midst of a breakout fifth season for Los Angeles, averaging 26.6 points, 6.3 assists, 5.2 rebounds and 1.0 steal on .502/.365/.873 shooting in 23 games (35.3 minutes per contest). He was a strong candidate to make his first All-Star appearance this season and likely would have been in the Most Improved Player conversation as well, but his latest injury will make him ineligible for the award, as he has already missed six games and will be out at least 14 more.
It’s also rough timing for the Lakers, who started out 15-4 but have lost six of their past 10 games, including three straight. Head coach JJ Redick was highly critical of the team’s professionalism and commitment to winning following Thursday’s loss, as we relayed this morning.
JJ Redick: ‘I’m Not Doing Another 53 Games Like This’
Lakers coach JJ Redick questioned his team’s professionalism and commitment to winning after Thursday’s 23-point loss to Houston, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. The Rockets took control of the game early, building a 14-point lead in the first quarter and sustaining a double-digit advantage throughout the second half.
“We don’t care enough right now,” Redick said. “And that’s the part that bothers you a lot. We don’t care enough to do the things that are necessary. We don’t care enough to be a professional.”
Redick made similar comments after watching his team lose by 24 points to Phoenix on Tuesday. The Lakers have lost dropped three straight games and six of their last 10 and are now just three games away from falling into play-in tournament territory. Redick cited “effort and execution” as the difference on Thursday as Houston dominated the boards by a 48-25 margin and pulled down 17 offensive rebounds.
“Saturday’s practice — I told the guys — it’s going to be uncomfortable,” Redick said. “The meeting is going to be uncomfortable. I’m not doing another 53 games like this.”
Luka Doncic was able to return after leaving Saturday’s game with a lower left leg contusion, but he didn’t provide much of a spark. McMenamin notes that he turned the ball over three times in the first 2:11 and finished with six giveaways for the night. Rui Hachimura also returned after missing two games with a groin strain, but Austin Reaves experienced calf soreness and didn’t play after halftime. He’s set to undergo an MRI today.
“I don’t know what has to change, but definitely something needs to change,” Doncic said. “Think we (were) blown out the last three games. It definitely looks, like, terrible. We got to figure out, that’s the thing we have (to do). … We just got to talk about it. Everybody got to talk about it. I know JJ said it’s going to be uncomfortable (for everybody). As they should be. … Everybody has got to give better effort, starting with me.”
LeBron James also had a rough night as L.A. was outscored by 33 points in the 32:26 he was on the court. According to McMenamin, it was James’ worst plus-minus rating since joining the Lakers and the third-worst of his career.
Jarred Vanderbilt, who came off the bench to contribute 11 points and five rebounds, also recognizes that changes need to happen before Sunday’s game against Sacramento.
“Ultimately, certain stuff just needs to be said and certain stuff needs to be done and we got to be able to communicate with each other and be receptive of it, whether it’s criticism or, we got to have them hard conversations,” Vanderbilt said. “JJ [was] alluding to that, that you got to have these conversations. We don’t want this to keep lingering. And right now it’s three in a row, but we don’t want it to keep going the wrong direction.”
Austin Reaves Has Calf Soreness, Will Undergo MRI Friday
9:35 pm: Reaves will undergo an MRI on Friday, a source tells Woike (Twitter link).
8:51 pm: Austin Reaves has been ruled out for the second half of the Christmas Day matchup against Houston due to left calf soreness, according to the Lakers (Twitter link via Dan Woike of The Athletic).
The 27-year-old guard recorded 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting in just under 15 minutes prior to the announcement. Marcus Smart started the second half with Reaves out, tweets Jovan Buha.
It’s a worrisome development for the Lakers, as Reaves just returned to action on Tuesday after missing nearly two weeks with a left calf strain. The team referred to that initial strain as “mild.”
Reaves was off to a terrific start to his fifth season prior to sustaining the calf strain. In his first 21 games (all starts), he averaged 27.8 points, 6.7 assists, and 5.6 rebounds in 36.9 minutes per night, with a .503/.369/.875 shooting line.
Reaves came off the bench in Tuesday’s blowout loss in Phoenix, finishing with 17 points (on 6-of-11 shooting), two rebounds and two assists in 22 minutes. He also had three turnovers and the Lakers were outscored by 17 points when he was on the court (they lost by 24).
Los Angeles opened the season with an impressive 15-4 record but has looked shaky lately, especially defensively. The team will likely drop its third straight game on Thursday to fall to 19-10 — the Lakers currently trail the Rockets by 17 points with 8:16 left in the fourth quarter.
Lakers Notes: Doncic, Hayes, Reaves, Hachimura, Vincent, Defense
Good news for Lakers and NBA fans in general today: Luka Doncic is expected to play in the fourth of five games on the Christmas slate, the Lakers’ home game against the Rockets, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (video link).
Doncic suffered a lower left leg contusion in Saturday’s loss to the Clippers. He subsequently missed the team’s 24-point loss to the Suns. The Most Valuable Player candidate is averaging 34.1 points, 8.8 assists and 8.6 rebounds per game.
Doncic has officially been upgraded to probable, Dave McMenamin of ESPN tweets, while big man Jaxson Hayes has been ruled out due to an ankle ailment.
[Update: Both Doncic and Hachimura have been upgraded to available, tweets Marc Stein].
Here’s more on the Lakers:
- Head coach JJ Redick believes Austin Reaves will be an All-Star this season (Twitter video link via McMenamin). “I would imagine it would mean a lot to him—a whole lot. He and I have had discussions about how surreal it is for him to be playing at this level and in this position. I absolutely think he’ll be an All-Star this year,” Redick said. “You always have to be careful as an athlete to stop and smell the roses. With the nature of competition, particularly over 82 games, there’s really no time to take your foot off the gas. That’s the opposite of who he is. He’s the type of player who consistently wants to get better, wants more, is willing to put in the work, and is willing to go out on the court and play hard enough to go for more. He’s proven that over and over again.”
- Doncic and Reaves have developed a “bromance,” which McMenamin chronicles for ESPN.com. “We act like we’re probably 10-year old best friends,” Reaves said. “You have a deeper care for one another than just basketball. And then that bleeds into basketball, because you don’t want to let that person down. … You don’t want to not give it your all.” Doncic signed a contract extension with the Lakers over the summer, while Reaves figures to sign his next contract in July of 2026.
- Rui Hachimura (groin) could also return to action today, but guard Gabe Vincent, one of the team’s top perimeter defenders, will miss his fourth game with lower back soreness, according to the Los Angeles Times’ Thuc Nhi Nguyen. The Lakers are ranked 28th defensively over the last 14 games and Redick says his team can’t take possessions off, as we detailed on Wednesday.
JJ Redick Calls Out Lakers’ Defensive Effort
The Lakers still have a strong 19-9 record after Tuesday’s 132-108 loss in Phoenix, but their 117.6 defensive rating places them 24th in the NBA, and none of the six clubs below them in that category have more than 10 wins so far this season.
Recognizing that his team is trending in the wrong direction defensively, head coach JJ Redick highlighted the issue after Tuesday’s loss, admitting that the Lakers don’t have enough players who play maximum-effort, physical basketball on a consistent basis, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
“We practice this stuff enough,” Redick said of the club’s defensive principles. “We review this stuff enough. We show film on this stuff enough that to me, it like comes down to … just making the choice. It’s making the choice.
“There are shortcuts you can take or you can do the hard thing and you can make the second effort or you can sprint back or you can’t. It’s just a choice. And there’s a million choices in a game, and you’re very likely not going to make every choice correctly. But can you make the vast majority of them correctly? It gives you a chance to win.”
According to Dan Woike of The Athletic, the Lakers believe this year’s team has a higher ceiling than last season’s, with Luka Doncic more comfortable in Los Angeles and plenty of offensive talent surrounding him. However, as Woike points out, the roster is missing last season’s highest-energy players like Dorian Finney-Smith and Jordan Goodwin.
The Lakers added former Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart in free agency over the summer and he has lived up to expectations when he’s been healthy. In Smart’s 523 minutes on the court, L.A. has a defensive rating of 111.9, which would be tied for fifth in the league. That figure balloons to 119.1 with Smart on the bench.
Smart agreed with Redick that there’s plenty of work to do on that end of the floor.
“We doing s–t. We’re being real s—ty right now, and it’s showing,” Smart said, per McMenamin. “… Every team goes through it trying to figure it out. You just pray that it happens early and we can fix it before it’s too late.
“But yeah, there’s really no defense, no scheme we can do when we’re giving up offensive rebounds in crucial moments like we are, or guys are getting wherever they want on the court. And there’s no help, there’s no resistance, there’s no urgency. So, it’s tough. And JJ is right. There’s really nothing he can do. It’s on us.”
There’s some internal skepticism that the answer to the Lakers’ defensive woes is in-house, according to Woike, who points out that Finney-Smith and Goodwin were in-season additions in 2024/25. With the February 5 trade deadline just over six weeks away, the front office figures to be on the lookout for defensive-minded players who could meaningfully upgrade the current roster.
Trade Rumors: Sexton, Wolves, Pelicans, Hawks, Bagley
Although the Hornets are willing to discuss potential trades, they still hope they can contend for a play-in spot and aren’t looking to simply sell off veterans, writes Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link). According to Fischer, veteran guard Collin Sexton and his expiring $19MM contract looks like Charlotte’s most logical trade candidate.
Minnesota is one team that has done its homework on Sexton, Fischer says, explaining that the Timberwolves appear to be trying to get a sense of their range of options at the point guard spot as they seek an upgrade on their current options. While sources tell Fischer that the Wolves are adamant about not including budding star Jaden McDaniels in any deals, rival executives suspect the back-to-back conference finalists will be more aggressive on the trade market than most other Western contenders.
As Fischer explains, teams like the Thunder, Nuggets, Rockets, and Spurs aren’t considered likely to make in-season splashes, so the only other club currently in the top six of the West that figures to be actively seeking meaningful upgrades is the Lakers. And it remains to be seen whether they’ll be able to acquire the sort of three-and-D player they’d love to add.
Here are a few more NBA trade rumors:
- As coveted as Pelicans forward Herbert Jones and Trey Murphy III are, sources believe they’re unlikely to be moved at the trade deadline, writes Brett Siegel of Clutch Points. Rival scouts view Jose Alvarado, Saddiq Bey, Jordan Hawkins, and Jordan Poole as New Orleans’ more likely trade candidates, in that order, per Siegel.
- Although the Hawks have checked in on Mavericks big man Anthony Davis, there has been no momentum in those talks and there’s a sense that Atlanta is more likely to target a lower-salary replacement if the team builds a deal around Kristaps Porzingis‘ expiring contract ahead of the deadline, says Siegel. One hypothetical proposal put forth by league personnel would see the Hawks target a package like Nikola Vucevic and Coby White from the Bulls, though there’s no indication that the two teams have explored that sort of trade, Siegel clarifies, noting that it’s just an example of the type of move that would likely appeal more to Atlanta than going after someone like Davis.
- Siegel singles out Wizards big man Marvin Bagley III as a player to watch ahead of the deadline, writing that he has begun generating interest from teams looking to fortify their frontcourts.