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.”
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.”
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.
Injury Notes: Lakers, Knicks, Daniels, Watson, McConnell
Lakers head coach JJ Redick provided encouraging updates on injured guards Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves on Monday, tweets Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group.
Doncic, who didn’t play in the second half of Saturday’s loss to the Clippers, has a lower left leg contusion and is considered day-to-day. The 26-year-old had the bruised area taped during the portion of Monday’s practice that was open to the media, Price notes.
Reaves was able to go through portions of Monday’s practice and is also considered day-to-day, Redick said. The fifth-year guard has missed the past three games with a left calf strain the team described as mild.
[UPDATE: Doncic is out Tuesday at Phoenix, but Reaves has been upgraded to questionable, the Lakers announced (Twitter link via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin).]
Starting center Deandre Ayton should return to action on Tuesday, according to Price. Ayton won’t be listed on the team’s injury report after sitting out the past two contests due to a sore left elbow.
Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:
- The Knicks will be shorthanded on Tuesday, as Eastern Conference Player of the Week Jalen Brunson (right ankle injury management), defensive ace OG Anunoby (left ankle soreness) and backup big man Guerschon Yabusele (illness) have all been ruled out ahead of the contest at Minnesota, per Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link). Brunson missed a couple of games in mid-November due to a right ankle sprain.
- Reigning Most Improved Player Dyson Daniels has been ruled out of the Hawks‘ rematch with Chicago on Tuesday due to right hip inflammation, according to Brad Rowland of Locked on Hawks (Twitter link). It will be Daniels’ first absence of the 2025/26 campaign. Reserve forward/center Mouhamed Gueye is also on the injury report, having been listed as questionable with a right shoulder sprain.
- Nuggets forward Peyton Watson, who was kneed in between the hip and rib areas last Monday, had a minor setback in terms of the pain he’s experiencing from the injury, head coach David Adelman said ahead of Saturday’s loss to Houston (Twitter link via Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette). While Watson has been out most of the past three games with the right trunk contusion, it doesn’t sound like a long-term issue — Adelman said the former first-round pick had a 50% chance to play Saturday before he was ruled out.
- Veteran Pacers guard T.J. McConnell will be sidelined for Monday’s game vs. Boston due to left knee soreness, as Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files relays (via Twitter). McConnell missed the first 10 games of the season with a strained hamstring, but had been active for the past 18 contests heading into Monday.
Luka Doncic Leaves Game With Left Leg Contusion
The short-handed Lakers suffered another significant loss Saturday night when Luka Doncic didn’t return to the game after halftime due to a contusion on his left leg, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
Doncic entered the contest as the NBA’s leading scorer at 35.2 points per game, but he was noticeably off during the first half. He shot just 4-of-13 from the field and 1-of-6 from beyond the arc, finishing with 12 points, five rebounds, two assists and four turnovers in 19:34.
“I saw him hobbling towards the end of the first half. He came to me at halftime and said he couldn’t go,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “… I don’t have any other information.”
Doncic left the arena without talking to reporters, and Redick declined to speculate how much time he might miss. A source familiar with the injury told McMenamin it occurred in a collision with Clippers guard Bogdan Bogdanovic.
Durability concerns were among the reasons Dallas decided to trade Doncic last February, but he has been mostly healthy in his first full season with the Lakers, appearing in 21 of the team’s first 27 games. McMenamin notes that he missed three games in late October with a lower left leg contusion, but there doesn’t appear to be any connection between that injury and the latest one.
The Lakers were already missing three starters coming into the game, with Austin Reaves out due to a left calf strain, Deandre Ayton dealing with left elbow pain and Rui Hachimura suffering soreness in his groin. All the injuries appear to be short-term, as Redick indicated that Reaves and Ayton could be available for Tuesday’s game at Phoenix, while Hachimura might be sidelined for three-to-five days.
Second-year forward Dalton Knecht started the second half in place of Doncic and finished with two points and four rebounds in 13:29 as the Lakers dropped a 15-point decision to their crosstown rivals. LeBron James scored a season-high 36 points to keep the game competitive, but the rest of the team shot 19-of-60 (31.7%) from the field and 3-of-31 (9.7%) from three-point range.
“No matter what the circumstances are, it’s still next man up,” James said of the injuries. “We’re all professionals. We all got to stay ready. So, obviously it’s very challenging circumstances for our ball club tonight, but I think we played extremely hard, we followed our keys. We just came up short.”
And-Ones: MVP Race, Expansion, NBA Cup, All-Star Voting
If the results of the first Most Valuable Player straw poll conducted this season by ESPN’s Tim Bontemps are any indication, a pair of Northwest Division stars could be on their way to one of the tightest MVP races in recent NBA history.
Of the 100 media members polled by Bontemps, 57 chose Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as their early MVP of 2025/26, while 42 selected Nuggets center Nikola Jokic. Gilgeous-Alexander earned 865 total points, narrowly edging out Jokic (822). Both players were well clear of third-place finisher Luka Doncic of the Lakers, who had 432 points and earned the only other first-place vote.
The Thunder’s 25-2 start to the season has helped give Gilgeous-Alexander the early edge, but he has also been even better than he was when he won his first MVP award in 2024/25, with career-best shooting percentages of 55.9% from the floor and 43.2% on three-pointers. He’s averaging 32.4 points per game despite playing just 33.0 minutes per night, his lowest mark since he was a rookie in ’18/19.
Although Jokic’s scoring average lags behind SGA’s, his 29.6 points per game would be a career high, and he’s leading the NBA in rebounds (12.3) and assists (10.9) per game while shooting a remarkable 61.2% from the floor and 42.6% from beyond the arc. His Nuggets have the second-best record in the West (20-6).
Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic identifies four factors that may determine whether or not the NBA announces plans for expansion at some point in 2026, while John Hollinger of The Athletic considers what exactly it would look like if the league established new franchises in Seattle and Las Vegas. As Hollinger points out, a 32-team league seems likely to result in a move to four-team divisions, which would make sense for numerous reasons. For one, each division could be a group for NBA Cup purposes, with the division winners advancing to the knockout round. Plus, if each team played its division rivals four times apiece, other clubs in its conference three times, and clubs from the opposing twice, it would work out to an 80-game schedule (the remaining two games would be added based on the NBA Cup results).
- Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium is being considered as a possible home for the NBA Cup’s championship game in 2026, ESPN’s Shams Charania said during an appearance on NBA Today (Twitter video link). Reporting earlier this week indicated that the league is strongly weighing the idea of moving the Cup final to a new neutral site after Las Vegas hosted it in each of the past three Decembers.
- The NBA’s All-Star voting, which began on Wednesday, will run through January 14, the league announced this week (Twitter link). Fan votes make up 50% of the total vote for All-Star starters, with players (25%) and media members (25%) also weighing in.
NBA Announces All-Tournament Team For 2025 Cup
Knicks guard and NBA Cup Most Valuable Player Jalen Brunson is among the five standout players named to the All-Tournament team for the 2025 Cup, according to an announcement from the league (Twitter link).
The All-Tournament team, which was voted on by 20 media members and is based on players’ performance in both group play and the knockout round, is as follows:
Jalen Brunson, Knicks (20 total votes)- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder (18)
- Karl-Anthony Towns, Knicks (12)
- Luka Doncic, Lakers (11)
- De’Aaron Fox, Spurs (11)
Brunson led the Knicks to this year’s NBA Cup title by averaging 33.2 points and 5.8 assists per game with a .531/.462/.658 shooting line in six games, including Tuesday’s final. Towns complemented him by putting up 21.1 points and 10.9 rebounds per night in his seven Cup outings, shooting 48.4% from the floor and 37.1% on three-pointers.
Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 32.6 points, 6.3 assists, and 3.0 rebounds in six Cup games before his Thunder were sent home in Saturday’s semifinal. He also had a scorching hot shooting line of .595/.481/.877 in those games.
Doncic’s Lakers were eliminated in the quarterfinals, but he put up monster numbers in his five Cup contests, including 36.2 PPG, 10.0 APG, and 7.6 RPG per game, plus a 44.2% three-point mark.
Fox helped guide the Spurs to the Cup final by averaging 22.3 PPG and 7.7 APG while converting 39.5% of his three-pointers.
Magic wing Desmond Bane, Knicks forward OG Anunoby, and Spurs teammates Stephon Castle and Victor Wembanyama were among the players who just missed the cut for the team. The full voting results can be found right here.
Pacific Notes: Brooks, LeBron, Maluach, Harden
The Suns were a +12 when Dillon Brooks was on the floor in Sunday’s game vs. the Lakers, but were without him in the decisive final seconds of the fourth quarter after he received his second technical foul and was ejected from the game. It was his first ejection since joining the Suns and was a reminder of an important lesson, writes Doug Haller of The Athletic.
“How to stay in the game and be able to affect the game when I’m in the game,” Brooks said of that lesson. “That’s my problem through my whole career, is I let those things happen and then I’m off the floor. Then at the end of the day, how much people hate on me and say I’m not a good player and all that, but when I’m on the floor it changes the whole game.”
Brooks went back and forth with LeBron James during Sunday’s game. The Lakers star received a technical foul in the third quarter for aggressively trying to confront the Suns forward after he felt Brooks intentionally batted the ball at him, then Brooks was hit with his second technical foul with 12 seconds left in the fourth quarter after chest-bumping James.
Speaking on Wednesday, Brooks said that James received “a lot of special treatment” and added that he wasn’t sure what LeBron was upset about during that third quarter incident.
“I guess he’s a social-media junkie,” Brooks said. “He be all over the socials, so he be seeing I guess what I’m saying. … Like I’ve (said) he thinks that people should think a way about him or not say nothing about him or play a certain way, and I’m not going to play that way. He gets in his moods or in his modes or whatever it is. I’m all for that.”
Here’s more from around the Pacific:
- With James’ statistics down across the board through his first nine games this season, Zach Kram of ESPN considers whether Father Time has caught up with the 40-year-old, evaluates whether the Lakers forward has permanently adjusted his playing style, and explores the lineups the team is using with its big three of James, Luka Doncic, and Austin Reaves. The Lakers have a -5.1 net rating in 132 minutes with that trio on the floor together, despite the fact that Doncic and Reaves have a +8.6 mark in their 442 minutes sharing the court.
- Suns lottery pick Khaman Maluach has barely played at the NBA level so far this season, logging just 59 total minutes in 12 appearances off the bench. However, the rookie big man is making an impact in the G League, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Maluach has four straight double-doubles for the Valley Suns and is averaging 19.8 points and 15.3 rebounds per game during that stretch. “It’s been great,” Maluach said of his G League experience. “It’s been going good for me, especially at this stage of my development. I need that. I need the reps, the G League reps. It’s great to go down there and just be able to get on the floor, run, get up and down, and get better now. I get to get film and watch film and watch what to work on because sometimes, some stuff doesn’t really show in practice. It can only show during the games.”
- Clippers guard James Harden has been ruled out for the team’s matchup with Oklahoma City on Thursday due to a left calf contusion, tweets Joey Linn of SI. Harden appeared to be affected by the calf issue in Monday’s loss to Memphis, as he scored just 13 points on 4-of-10 shooting. His status for Saturday’s game against the Lakers is up in the air, Linn adds.
Lakers Notes: Doncic, Ayton, Knecht, Vanderbilt
The Lakers are tied for the fourth-best record in the league, but head coach JJ Redick isn’t satisfied, demanding that the team lock in more on defense, writes Dave McMenamin for ESPN. Luka Doncic took those words to heart and says he’s committed to leading the way.
“We talked about a lot, not just that, but [Redick] was right,” Doncic said. “You got to get a little bit more, especially from the star players. So that’s on us. That’s on me. And we just got to give more, especially at the start the game. We got to start the game better.”
The Lakers have the NBA’s 20th-best defense entering Wednesday’s game while ranking 23rd in opponent fast-break points and 28th in opponent three-point percentage. According to McMenamin, with the time off afforded to the Lakers as a result of the NBA Cup schedule, the coaching staff walked the team through specific examples of where it’s lacking and what it needs to do better.
McMenamin adds that Sunday’s win against the Suns was the Lakers’ first contest following the edict issued by the coaches, and the results were on display during an eight-minute stretch of the third quarter in which Phoenix was held scoreless.
“We should be like that,” Doncic said. “Like JJ said, ‘We told on ourselves’ and we should look at that clip. Phoenix is one of the most physical teams in the NBA, so we did a pretty good job there.”
We have more from the Lakers:
- Deandre Ayton has been ruled out for Thursday’s game against the Jazz with left elbow soreness, per Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link). Ayton played a key role in Sunday’s win against the Suns, scoring 20 points on 11 shots and adding 13 rebounds and two steals. Austin Reaves remains out with the left calf strain that sidelined him on Sunday, while Gabe Vincent is questionable due to back soreness.
- Dalton Knecht was assigned to the South Bay Lakers G League team on Monday to get some playing time while the team was on its short break. It was his first time being sent to the G League, according to Khobi Price of the Orange County Register, who notes that Knecht has only played 56 minutes over the last month. “He’s gonna get opportunities on this team,” Redick said. “He’s already had some opportunities. He’s played well in some. He’s gonna help us at some point. But right now, he needs to play, and he needs to have fun playing.” Knecht responded by posting 30 points with six made three-pointers in his South Bay debut (Twitter video link).
- Jarred Vanderbilt rejoined the Lakers’ rotation for the first time in more than a month on Sunday and quickly made himself a critical part of the win, writes Dan Woike for The Athletic. The 6’8″ forward had six offensive rebounds in 15 minutes and added a three-pointer, a block, and two steals. It was only Vanderbilt’s second game since mid-November, but he took the demotion in stride. “It’s a long season. It’s still early, so I know whether guys getting injured or something like that, the opportunity (was) gonna come back around,” Vanderbilt said. “And the biggest thing is being ready for it mentally. And obviously doing your part on the court and, showing up to practice and being a good teammate and stuff like that, but yeah, my main thing was just staying ready. ‘Cause I knew eventually, at some point, opportunity was gonna come and I wanted to be ready for it.“
Thunder, Spurs Advance In NBA Cup: League Announces Schedule Changes
The Thunder and Spurs will meet in the NBA Cup semifinals in Las Vegas on Saturday after winning their respective quarterfinal matchups on Wednesday.
The Thunder improved to 24-1 on the season with a blowout home victory over the Suns. The game was never close, as Oklahoma City won each quarter by double-digits and defeated Phoenix by 49 points, making it the most lopsided loss in Suns history.
Oklahoma City made 55% of its three-pointers, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (28 points) and Chet Holmgren (24 points) leading the way and no Thunder player logging more than 27 minutes.
In the late game, the Spurs overcame 35 points from Lakers star Luka Doncic and 26 from Marcus Smart in his return from a back injury to pull off a 132-119 win on the road. Stephon Castle had 30 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists in his second game back from a hip injury, while six other Spurs scored in double digits.
The Thunder and Spurs will face one another on Saturday at 8:00 pm Central time for the right to advance to the NBA Cup final on Tuesday. Players on the losing team in that game will receive bonuses of roughly $106K apiece, while the winning team will face either the Magic or Knicks in the championship game a shot at the top prize ($531K per player).
Notably, Spurs star Victor Wembanyama has a shot to return from his calf strain for that game vs. the Thunder, per head coach Mitch Johnson.
“Very much so,” Johnson said after Wednesday’s win when asked if a Saturday return is in play for Wembanyama (Twitter link via Mark Medina). “He had a very good day today. He had a very intense day this morning. We’ll have to see how he responds and reacts tomorrow.”
The Thunder and Spurs will now play each other five times this season, including three times in December. The two clubs are scheduled to square off on December 23 in San Antonio and on Christmas Day in OKC.
The NBA also announced a handful of scheduling updates on Wednesday night, per Medina (Twitter link). The Suns and Lakers, who only had 81 games apiece on their respective regular season schedules, will face one another on Sunday in Phoenix at 7:00 pm CT.
The Thunder and Spurs had both been scheduled to play games on December 17, but those contests have been pushed back one day to Dec. 18 in order to give them an extra day of rest following the NBA Cup. OKC will now host the Clippers next Thursday, while San Antonio hosts the Wizards that night.