Starting 5, Nov. 27: Rockets advance to Knockout Rounds & pre-Thanksgiving basketball action

Red-hot to start the season, Jalen Green and the Rockets are

soaring into the next round of the Emirates NBA Cup.

THE LINEUP

Nov. 27, 2024 | What’s inside today’s edition?

Rockets Clinch: Houston wins West Group A to advance to the 

Knockout Rounds

Streaks: Suns end 5-game slide, snap L.A.’s 9-game Cup run; 

Spurs win 4th straight

Taking The Lead: Bucks (3-0) lead East B, Bulls (2-1) lead 

East C by tiebreaker

West Showdown: The West’s top two teams – the Thunder & 

Warriors – meet in the Bay

We Meet Again: Jalen Brunson returns to Dallas to face his 

former team

BUT FIRST … ⏰

A pre-Thanksgiving feast of hoops…

Tomorrow, it’s all about Thanksgiving. 

Tonight, it’s all about hoops – with 14 games to fill your plate, 

including a dozen on League Pass.

An ESPN doubleheader tips off in Dallas (7:30 ET

) as Jalen Brunson faces the Mavs for the third time since his 

2022 departure – still seeking his first win over his former 

squad.

In the nightcap, Steph Curry and the Warriors look to reclaim 

the top spot in the West from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the 

Thunder when the two squads square off in San Francisco (10 ET

).

1. ROCKETS PUNCH TICKET TO THE QUARTERFINALS

Rockets 117, Timberwolves 111 

/ OT (West Group A): Houston built an 18-point lead with 3:57 

left in the 3rd quarter, but Minnesota would not go away quietly 

– outscoring the Rockets 38-15 to take a five-point lead with two 

minutes left in the regulation.

But Houston had an answer, closing the 4th on a 5-0 run to 

force overtime, then opening the extra frame with an 11-0 burst 

to take control

, 

secure the win and clinch West Group A. | Recap 

The Rockets improved to 3-0 in Group Play and won for the 

eighth time in their last 10 games to maintain their hold on 

third place in the West.

The Houston trio of Fred VanVleet (27 pts, 11 ast, 6 3s), 

Alperen Sengun (22 pts, 10 reb, 11 ast – his third triple-double 

of the season

) 

and Dillon Brooks (22 pts, 4 3s) combined for 71 points in the 

win.

Houston’s defense held the 

Wolves to nine 3s on 23.7% shooting – Minnesota’s second-lowest 

marks this season – while Sengun and Amen Thompson became the 

first Houston teammates with at least 3 steals and 3 blocks in a 

game since Robert Horry and Hakeem Olajuwon in 1992.

The Wolves dropped their third straight game despite Anthony 

Edwards’ 29 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks and 21 points 

from Julius Randle.

What It Means For Houston: Last spring, the Rockets went on

an 11-game win streak as they chased the Warriors for the final spot in the SoFi Play-In Tournament.

On Tuesday, the Rockets joined the Warriors as the first two

teams to clinch their spots in the Emirates NBA Cup quarterfinalsWhat It Means For Minnesota: The Wolves drop to 1-2 with their final Group Play game coming Friday against the Clippers in a must-win to keep their slim hopes of a Wild Card berth intact

2. SUNS HAND LAKERS FIRST CUP LOSS; WEMBY SHINES IN SPURS WIN

Suns 127, Lakers 100 (West Group B): For the 

first time since the season opener, Phoenix’s star trio of Devin 

Booker (26), Kevin Durant (23) and Bradley Beal (23) all scored 

20+ points

 

in the same game as the Suns snapped their five-game losing 

streak and dealt the Lakers their first loss in NBA Cup 

competition after nine straight wins. | Recap 

A two-point game at the half, the Suns broke things open by 

doubling up the Lakers in the 3rd quarter, 36-18, to take a 

20-point lead into the 4th. Phoenix finished the game with a 17-8 

advantage in 3s, outscoring L.A. 51-24 from beyond the arc.

Durant (out since Nov. 8) and Beal (since Nov. 12) returned for 

the Suns after missing two-plus weeks with calf strains. Both 

looked sharp, with Durant exchanging 3s with LeBron James early 

and Beal getting a chasedown block on LeBron midway through the 

4th.

Anthony Davis (25 pts, 15 reb, 4 blk) and James (18 pts, 8 reb, 

10 ast) both posted double-doubles for the Lakers in the loss.

What It Means For The Suns: The Suns (2-1, plus-19 point

differential) rise to the top of West Group A thanks to having the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Lakers and point-differential edge over the Spurs (plus-14)

What It Means For The Lakers: The Lakers (2-1, minus-16

differential) drop to second in the group behind the Suns but ahead of the Spurs, who they beat in their Group Play opener

Spurs 128, Jazz 115 (West Group B): Victor Wembanyama 

showcased his inside-outside game 

– with six buckets in the paint and six 3s – as he amassed 34 

points, seven rebounds and three blocks to lead the Spurs past 

the Jazz for their first four-game win streak since 2022. | Recap

With his fourth game with at least six 3s made, Wemby tied 

Jayson Tatum for the second-most such games in the NBA this 

season, trailing only Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball with five 

apiece.

Spurs rookie Stephon Castle matched his career-high with 23 

points while dishing out five assists – three of which went to 

Wemby, a connection Spurs fans should get used to seeing. 

The Utah trio of Keyonte George (26 pts, 6 3s), John Collins (20 

pts, 13 reb) and Collin Sexton (20 pts, 4 ast) combined to score 

66 for the Jazz.

What It Means For San Antonio: With a win and Lakers loss,

both teams are tied with group leader Phoenix at 2-1, but the Spurs sit third in the group due to tiebreakers

What It Means For Utah: The Jazz (0-3) were officially

eliminated from the Knockout Rounds with the loss NBA Cup standings

3. BUCKS STAY PERFECT IN EAST B; BULLS CLIMB TO 1ST IN EAST C

Bucks 106, Heat 103 (East Group B): With Giannis Antetokounmpo 

(knee) ruled out shortly before tip-off, the Bucks rode the hot 

hand of Damian Lillard to build a 22-point lead early in the 3rd 

quarter when Dame splashed his eighth 3 of the game.

But Miami had a response, outscoring Milwaukee 26-9 the rest of 

the quarter to make it a five-point game entering the 4th. The 

Heat used a 14-5 run to tie the game with 4:02 to play and got 

within one point three times, but the Bucks never surrendered the 

lead. | Recap 

| Watch The Final 5:07 

Lillard finished with 37 points and 12 assists 

as Milwaukee won its fifth straight game to improve to 9-9 on 

the season after a 2-8 start.

Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro combined for 41 points and 10 

assists, while Terry Rozier scored 13 of his 17 in the 4th to 

lead Miami’s late push.

What It Means For Milwaukee: The Bucks remain unbeaten in

Group Play, rising to 3-0 and setting up a potential Dec. 3 showdown with Detroit (2-0) to decide the winner of East Group BWhat It Means For Miami: The Heat fall to 1-2 and remain alive in the Wild Card chase in the East, but will be unable to win the group

What It Means For Toronto: The Raptors (0-2) are officially

eliminated with Milwaukee’s win

Bulls 127, Wizards 108 (East Group C): Trailing 29-21 after 

the 1st quarter, the Bulls opened the 2nd with a 19-10 run to 

take a 40-39 lead and never trailed again as they improved to 2-1 

in Group Play. | Recap

Coby White (21 pts, 5 3s) and Nikola Vučević (19 pts, 12 reb) 

combined for 40 points as the Bulls finished with seven players 

in double figures.

Washington rookie Alex Sarr had the best game of his career – 

dropping 20 points, seven boards and four 3s – but the Wizards 

fell to 0-3 in Group Play.

What It Means For Chicago: With the 19-point win, the Bulls

increased their point differential to plus-15, moving them to the top of East Group C over fellow 2-1 teams Atlanta (-1) and Boston (+14)

What It Means For Washington: The Wizards are officially

eliminated from the Knockout Rounds with the loss

4. WESTERN CONFERENCE SHOWDOWN ON ESPN WEDNESDAY

On Monday, the Oklahoma City Thunder leapfrogged the Golden 

State Warriors to claim the top spot in the Western Conference.

Forty-eight hours later, the Warriors have a chance to take it 

back as the two West powerhouses meet for the second of three 

regular-season games this season (10 ET, ESPN).

A Warriors win would clinch the season series (and potential

tiebreaker) for Golden State

A Thunder win would set up a rubber match on Jan. 29 in the Bay

Strength vs. Strength: OKC’s top-ranked defense (103.2 DefRtg) 

will be tested by the sixth-highest scoring offense in the NBA 

(117.7 ppg).

Starters vs. Bench: OKC will have to contend with Golden 

State’s depth, as the Warriors lead the NBA in bench scoring 

(52.7 ppg), which accounts for 44.8% of their offense. Meanwhile, 

OKC ranks sixth in percentage of points scored by its starters 

(72.1%). 

Clash of All-NBA Guards: Steph Curry is 10-time All-NBA 

selection with four First Team honors — with his last First Team 

nod coming in 2021. He’ll meet Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who’s 

claimed a First Team spot in each of the past two seasons.

Tonight’s 14-game slate also features some of the West’s teams 

in Playoff position – the (3) Rockets, (4) Grizzlies and (6) 

Lakers – on League Pass.

Rockets at Sixers (7 ET): Coming off their win to clinch a berth in the NBA Cup Knockouts, the Rockets visit the Sixers looking to maintain their hot streak (8-2 in last 10 games)

Grizzlies vs. Pistons (8 ET

): With Ja Morant back in the lineup (22 pts, 11 ast in his first game back on Monday), Memphis goes for four straight wins. Meanwhile, Detroit looks to follow a thrilling win on Jaden

Ivey’s buzzer-beater with their ninth win of the year

Lakers at Spurs (8:30 ET):

The Lakers look to snap a three-game slide, while the Spurs go for their first five-game win streak in five years when they won nine straight in 2019

Keep an eye on the rest of the West squads in action before a 

Thanksgiving Day break.

Clippers at Wizards (7 ET)

Kings at Timberwolves (8 ET

)

Nuggets at Jazz (9 ET

)

Suns vs. Nets (9 ET

)

5. KNICKS VISIT DALLAS; CAVS & MAGIC LOOK TO STAY HOT

On July 12 2022, Jalen Brunson signed a free agent contract 

with the Knicks after spending the first four years of his NBA 

career in Dallas.

New York has not beaten Dallas since, with the Mavericks 

bringing a four-game win streak over the Knicks into this matchup 

(7:30 ET, ESPN).

Both teams enter tonight’s game having won five of their last 

six games. On Monday, Kyrie Irving scored 16 points in the 4th 

quarter to rally Dallas past Atlanta, while OG Anunoby dropped a 

career-high 40 points as New York raced past Denver.

For the Mavericks, Luka Doncic (wrist) remains sidelined with 

Klay Thompson and Dereck Lively II both listed as questionable – 

leaving Irving to carry more of the offense.

Through 17 games, Kyrie is averaging 24.6 points while

shooting a career-best 47.7% from 3, which ranks seventh in the league

For the Knicks, offense has been their calling card this 

season. They are coming off a season-high 145 points and their 

119.1 ppg ranks fourth in the NBA.

Karl-Anthony Towns (team-high 26.3 ppg, 47.1% 3P ranks 11th in

NBA) has taken some of the offensive load off Brunson, whose usage rate down is 2.4% this season

Only two teams in the NBA are 9-1 in their last 10 games – the 

Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic – and both look to continue 

their hot streaks tonight on League Pass.

Cavs vs. Hawks (7 ET

): Cleveland looks to become only the fifth team in NBA history

to begin a season at least 18-1. The first four teams that 

accomplished the feat all reached the NBA Finals that season, 

with two winning it all.

2015-16 Warriors: Lost In Finals

1994-94 Rockets: Won Title

1990-91 Blazers: Lost In Finals

1969-70 Knicks: Won Title

Magic vs. Bulls (7 ET

): During this 10-game stretch – all coming without All-Star 

forward Paolo Banchero – the Wagner brothers have led the offense 

with a combined 42.3 ppg from Franz (27.6) and Moritz (14.7) 

while the defense has locked down the competition.

Orlando’s defense has held opponents to league-low 95.2 ppg

during this 9-1 run. They’ve done it by limiting 3s – allowing the fewest makes (10.9) and attempts (32.2) – and also locking down the paint with opponents scoring a league-low 40 ppg

Rounding out the East squads in action on League Pass tonight:

Heat at Hornets (7 ET

)

Pacers vs. Blazers (7 ET

)

Raptors at Pelicans (8 ET

)