NBA Season 2025-26

[Who]

Shai last night had 31pts in 30min in a 32pt blowout win over Utah. That is nice.

[Phantom255x]

Raptors are the 2 seed in the East just like we all expected!

[SparzWizard]

Russell Westbrook 21/11/6 against his former team, but in Mile High. 

Looks like he had the last laugh with his Kings winning it

[Birdman]

Raptors are the 2 seed in the East just like we all expected!

I predicted Toronto be the sleeper team before season started

[Who]

NBA History
@NBAHistory

With his 25th career 50-point game today, James Harden has tied Kobe Bryant for the third-most 50-point games in NBA history:

Wilt Chamberlain: 118
Michael Jordan: 31
Kobe Bryant: 25
James Harden: 25
Elgin Baylor: 17

[Who]

Derik Queen had his 3rd big game in a row

* 30pts 9reb 4ast 2stl 2blk vs DEN
* 20pts 7reb 11ast vs DAL
* 20pts 9reb 3ast 2stl 1blk vs ATL

He has started 5 games in a row. First two games were quieter. He scored 9pts in each of them. He had 7-8rebs and 2blks in those games. In one of the 2 games, he had 6 assists.

If we exclude his first game of the month of November because he only played 6min + let's exclude his 3 huge games, his numbers for the month look like this:

8 games. 26.5mpg. 12.6ppg 7.3rpg 4.5apg 1.4spg 0.9bpg. His turnovers are high at 3.3 turnovers per game. He is shooting 48% FG on 10 FGAs per game. He is getting 3.6 FTAs per game and shooting 76%. A 54% TS. So a below average TS%.

[slightly biased bias fan]

Man I know it would never happen, but I would love the Celtics to trade for Donovan Clingan.

The guy keeps improving and has already added a three point shot to his repertoire. Clingan has a 7-7 wingspan and the potential to be an elite shot blocker.

[keevsnick]

Derik Queen had his 3rd big game in a row

* 30pts 9reb 4ast 2stl 2blk vs DEN
* 20pts 7reb 11ast vs DAL
* 20pts 9reb 3ast 2stl 1blk vs ATL

He has started 5 games in a row. First two games were quieter. He scored 9pts in each of them. He had 7-8rebs and 2blks in those games. In one of the 2 games, he had 6 assists.

If we exclude his first game of the month of November because he only played 6min + let's exclude his 3 huge games, his numbers for the month look like this:

8 games. 26.5mpg. 12.6ppg 7.3rpg 4.5apg 1.4spg 0.9bpg. His turnovers are high at 3.3 turnovers per game. He is shooting 48% FG on 10 FGAs per game. He is getting 3.6 FTAs per game and shooting 76%. A 54% TS. So a below average TS%.

Queen has shown some stuff, so has Jeremiah Fears. It stinks that they don't have their pick this year, but at least they have all their picks moving forward. They could quickly pivot to a full rebuild if they wanted to move Jones/Murphy/Zion

[Who]

Andre Drummond just had 24 rebounds. Wow.

8.2ppg and 9.6rpg in just 24mpg this season for Philly. Apparently he is shooting 3s now as well. I remember seeing him take them against Boston. I thought he just got trigger happy but he is taking 1+ threes a game and making 39% of them so far. 

[Who]

Wow, that is a demolition. OKC beat POR 122-95 last night. That is a huge margin. POR are a good team albeit short-handed at the moment. You don't expect to see them get wiped out like that. Avdija was held to 4-16 FGA. Only 11pts and 1ast on a season where he is averaging 25.1ppg and 5.4apg.

OKC are on a roll with 17 wins and 1 loss. I was wondering what their point differential is now because I have been seeing them get a bunch of blowouts. They are outscoring teams by +16.9 points per game. That is insane.

1 OKC - 16.9ppg
2 HOU - 10.4ppg
3 DEN - 10.0ppg

4 DET - 7.1ppg
5 TOR - 6.7ppg
6 San Antonio - 6.1ppg
7 MIA - 6.0ppg
8 MIN - 6.0ppg

9 PHX - 5.2ppg
10 CLE - 4.8ppg
11 NYK - 4.7ppg
12 BOS - 4.6ppg

OKC, HOU, DEN are destroying teams. Looking like one of them will win the title this year. So much more dominant than everyone else.

Phoenix have been a surprised package. As well as Toronto and Miami. I think Cleveland will start climbing now that Darius Garland has returned.

Boston at the back of that 3rd tier. Overachieving.

[Redz]

Andre Drummond just had 24 rebounds. Wow.

8.2ppg and 9.6rpg in just 24mpg this season for Philly. Apparently he is shooting 3s now as well. I remember seeing him take them against Boston. I thought he just got trigger happy but he is taking 1+ threes a game and making 39% of them so far.

I find guys careers like his fascinating.  They find a way to extend their career with lesser roles and occasionally evolve into a whole new role in the right environment. 

[Who]

Spurs were +7 in 28min with Kornet in the game. They lost the game by 9 to Phoenix so they were a -16 when Kornet was on the bench.

That is not a surprise. San Antonio's defense has collapsed whenever Wemby or Kornet are not on the court. Their defense revolves around the rim protection of those guys. Olynyk can't do that. Sochan can't do that. They have to defend tighter on the perimeter when Wemby and Kornet are not on the floor. The other players need to take more responsibility. They have strong defenders 1-4. They should not fall apart like this without Wemby / Kornet. They have to do better.

[Birdman]

Andre Drummond just had 24 rebounds. Wow.

8.2ppg and 9.6rpg in just 24mpg this season for Philly. Apparently he is shooting 3s now as well. I remember seeing him take them against Boston. I thought he just got trigger happy but he is taking 1+ threes a game and making 39% of them so far.

I alway wanted Celtics to sign Drummond last 5 years

[Who]

The Sacramento Kings have signaled to the rest of the NBA that they are open to trading their veteran players ahead of the trade deadline. Kings GM Scott Perry reportedly has realized that Sacramento must undertake a multi-year rebuild vs chasing a playoff spot with his current group.

Young building blocks Keegan Murray and Nique Clifford are both said to be off limits in trade talks. Veterans like Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Domantas Sabonis are expected to be available via trade.

The challenge for Sacramento is that each of those veterans may not lead to a big return in a trade. LaVine would have more value if teams knew he was likely to opt out of his $48.9 million player option for next season. Sabonis is owed $94 million for the next two seasons after this one. DeRozan has one year left on his deal, and it's partially guaranteed at $10 million.

- RealGM via Marc Stein

The player that Sacramento has received the most calls about is wing Keon Ellis. More than half of the NBA has reportedly expressed interest in trading for Ellis.

The 6-foot-4 wing is in the final season of his contract at $2.3 million. That small salary makes Ellis easily acquirable for the rest of the NBA. Ellis is eligible for a contract extension on February 9. If remains with Sacramento, Ellis is eligible to sign a four-year extension for up to $87 million.

The Kings believe the 25-year-old guard/forward is young enough to fit if they pivot towards a rebuild. But Sacramento could get offers of a first-round pick for Ellis. He is currently believed to have the most trade value of any player on the Kings roster.

[SparzWizard]

Get on the phone, Brad. Fire sale in Sacramento. Esp Sabonis