Top Stories

• Hawks hand Cavs 2nd loss of the year

• Harden drops 30+ in the first half alone

• Dejounte Murray returns for Pelicans

• No games today

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Games of the day

Last Night’s Top Games! (link to the box scores of every game from yesterday)

Trae Young had a career-high 22 assists — the most in the NBA this season — and scored 20 points as the Atlanta Hawks handed Cleveland just its second loss this season, beating the Cavaliers 135-124. The Cavs fell to 17-2 and lost for the first time in 11 home games. De'Andre Hunter added 26 points and Jalen Johnson 22 for the Hawks, who made all the big plays down the stretch to stun the Cavs. Rookie Zaccharie Risacher, the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft, scored 13 of his 17 points in the first three minutes of the second half for Atlanta. Donovan Mitchell scored 30 and Evan Mobley added 22 points and 13 rebounds for Cleveland, which was trying to become the first team to start 18-1 or better. Dyson Daniels came in leading the NBA in steals at 3.13 per game. No player has averaged over three steals for a season since Milwaukee's Alvin Robertson (3.04) in 1990-91.

James Harden scored a season-high 43 points in 32 minutes to help the Los Angeles Clippers stomp to a 121-96 victory over Washington, handing the struggling Wizards their 13th consecutive defeat. Harden hit seven 3-pointers, had 23 points in the first quarter and passed his previous season high of 29 by halftime. The 10-time All-Star posted his highest point total since scoring 44 at Detroit on March 26, 2021, despite exiting the game at the end of the third. Ivica Zubac added 18 points and 16 rebounds for the Clippers, who have won six of seven. It was Los Angeles' second-largest margin of victory this season, after opening a four-game trip with a 26-point win at Philadelphia two games ago. Malcolm Brogdon and Jonas Valanciunas each scored 17 points for Washington, which lost leading scorer Kyle Kuzma to a left rib injury after he played just eight minutes.

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League News

Around the League

• Dejounte Murray returned to action in the New Orleans Pelicans’ 119-93 loss to Toronto. His 25 minutes were his first since fracturing his left hand in a season-opening victory over Chicago on Oct. 23. The former All-Star guard resumed his spot in the starting lineup for New Orleans, finishing with 14 points, but could not prevent the Pelicans from suffering their sixth consecutive loss. Injuries have ravaged the roster. At times, all five starters have been out. Star power forward Zion Williamson has missed 12 games this season — one with an illness and 11 with a hamstring injury. Herb Jones has been sidelined by a shoulder strain and Brandon Ingram missed another game with calf soreness that also sidelined him during a loss on Monday night at Indiana. The former All-Star was acquired by New Orleans in an offseason trade with the Atlanta Hawks. Over eight NBA seasons, Murray is averaging 15.4 points, 5.3 assists and 5.8 rebounds.

• Injury Updates: Kawhi Leonard (knee) is out indefinitely, and his recovery might “take longer than expected” according to the team. Khris Middleton (ankle) will miss longer than expected. James Wiseman tore his achilles and will be out indefinitely. Taylor Hendricks (leg and ankle) suffered a fractured fibia and dislocated ankle and will be out for the season. Paolo Banchero (oblique) has a tear and will be out indefinitely, and re-evaluated in 3-4 weeks. Herb Jones (shoulder) will be out for a minimum of 2-3 weeks. Isaiah Jackson (achilles) will be out for the season. Jeremy Sochan (thumb) underwent surgery to repair a fracture and will be out indefinitely. Aaron Gordon (hamstring) will miss multiple weeks. Zion Williamson (hamstring) will be out multiple weeks. Chet Holmgren (hip) suffered a fracture and will be out 8-10 weeks. DeAnthony Melton (ACL) underwent surgery and will be out for the season. Grant Williams (ACL) suffered a tear and will be out for the season. We wish all these guys speedy and successful recoveries.

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NBA MVP Ladder

1. Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets

Last Ladder: No. 1
Season stats: 29.7 ppg, 13.7 rpg, 11.7 apg

His case: Not only has “The Joker” been a steady source of elite-level production for the Nuggets over the last half-dozen years, but durability is also his trademark — he has missed more than 10 games only once in his nine-season career.

We bring this up because he missed last week’s games for personal reasons. That’s not a reason to disqualify him from the top spot yet — it’s too premature to make that an issue with such a strong contender. Besides, even with that, if the ballots were cast right now, the betting money is he’d win the popular vote anyway.

2. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics

Last Ladder: No. 2
Season stats: 29.9 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 5.9 apg

His case: Over the last week, he came a rebound shy of a triple-double, won another game on a buzzer-beater (he took an extra step) then chopped down the previously unbeaten Cavaliers. It’s hard to top that stretch, which is why Tatum is pushing hard to be the MVP front-runner.

Tatum is posting averages this season that are superior to his career averages, in points, rebounds, assists, steals and 3-pointers made. About that last stat: Tatum is not only a volume-deep shooter, but he’s making over four per game now, roughly the same as Stephen Curry. He’s a hard check everywhere on the floor.

3. Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers

Last Ladder: No. 5
Season stats: 31.3 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 1.9 bpg

His case: He dropped 40 on the Spurs and Victor Wembanyama, then followed up the next night with 31 and 14 against his tortured former team, the Pelicans. What’s commendable is how Davis is playing hurt, dealing with plantar fasciitis and a sore eye.

While we can admit the Lakers are still making a commotion about LeBron James defying age once again and rookie Dalton Knecht — and rightly so. Their early-season surge is mainly due to Davis’ forceful and MVP-worthy start.

4. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Last Ladder: No. 7
Season stats: 32.1 ppg, 12.1 rpg, 6.1 apg

His case: Nobody with a straight face can accuse Antetokounmpo of being a stat-compiler. Yes, he’s on a disappointing team — so far. But that’s not because of him. He’s averaging over 30 points on 60% shooting — nobody besides him has ever done that for a full season in NBA history. He leads the league in 40-point games and has the highest-scoring quarter. And he’s No. 5 in rebounds per game in the league.

As for defense — did you see his block in the final seconds that led to Damian Lillard’s game-winner vs. the Rockets? Do you think there are four players in the NBA right now having better seasons, especially at both ends?

5. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

Last Ladder: No. 4
Season stats: 28.7 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 6.3 apg

His case: Sure and steady, Gilgeous-Alexander has played well over the last week despite losses to the Spurs and Mavericks. He had a combined 68 points and 15 assists in those games.

Even with those stumbles, OKC remains near the top of the Western Conference. This week features road games in Sacramento (and De’Aaron Fox) and Golden State (against Curry). There are few (if any) point guards playing better than those three right now, and it’s no surprise they’re top 10 in this Ladder.

The Next Five:

6. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
7. Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns
8. LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
9. Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers
10. De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento Kings

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Fantasy Leaders

Harden went back into MVP form

Overtime Thoughts