Top Stories

• Embiid drops a triple double in his first game in a month

• Rockets blow a 4 point lead with 8 seconds left

• KD closing in on 30K points

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Games of the day

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

Joel Embiid had 29 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in his first action in a month to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 118-116 victory over the Dallas Mavericks, who fell to 0-2 since trading Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. Embiid recorded his first triple-double of an injury-plagued season in which he's appeared in just 14 games. A left knee injury sidelined the seven-time All-Star for the previous 15 games, and he wore a large brace on the knee. But he looked like his usual self, especially down the stretch. Embiid’s layup with 22 seconds left put Philadelphia ahead by a point. He grabbed a rebound on the Mavericks’ next possession and then defended the final play of the game when Dallas turned it over. Tyrese Maxey had 33 points and 13 assists for the Sixers. Kyrie Irving scored 34 points for the Mavs and Naji Marshall added 19. Newly acquired Anthony Davis (abdominal injury) didn’t play but was courtside after Sunday’s trade that brought him to Dallas in exchange for Doncic. Max Christie, also part of the deal, scored 15 points. Paul George missed his fifth straight game with a finger injury.

Keon Johnson and D'Angelo Russell made 3-pointers in the final 10 seconds, and the Brooklyn Nets stunned the Houston Rockets 99-97 for their first home victory in two months. Brooklyn trailed 97-93 when the ball was inbounded to Johnson, who made a 3 from the wing with 8.1 seconds left. Houston's Amen Thompson then threw an inbounds pass that skipped past Dillon Brooks, and the ball was tipped to Russell, who buried a 3 to put the Nets ahead with 3.4 seconds remaining. Jalen Green missed a deep 3 at the buzzer for the Rockets as Brooklyn (17-33) ended its 11-game skid at Barclays Center. Johnson scored 22 points, and Nic Claxton scored 14. Russell had 10 points on 3-of-15 shooting. Alperen Sengun had 24 points and 20 rebounds while Reed Sheppard and Brooks each finished with 16 for the Rockets (32-18), who have lost four straight — two to Brooklyn — since a four-game winning streak that included two wins over Cleveland and one against Boston.

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League News

Around the League

• Kevin Durant enters Wednesday’s game with 29,974 career points, 26 shy of the 30,000-point mark. There aren’t many milestones rarer than what he can achieve when the Suns visit the Thunder. Once he crosses that 30,000-point mark, he’ll become the eighth member of this exclusive club, and he can do so in the city he called home for eight seasons of his 17-year career. In nearly eight decades the NBA, only seven players have hit 30,000 career points: LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki and Wilt Chamberlain. After he crosses the 30,000-point mark, Durant will aim to surpass the all-time scorers ahead of him, starting with Chamberlain (31,419) in seventh pace, followed by Nowitzki (31,560) in sixth place. While those will not happen this season, Durant has shown no signs of slowing down. His current scoring average of 26.9 ppg is just 0.3 ppg shy of his career average. At that rate, Durant would need 54 games to pass Chamberlain and 59 to pass Nowitzki, meaning both could happen in 2025-26.

• Injury Updates: 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. Isaiah Jackson (achilles) will be out for the season. Chet Holmgren (hip) suffered a fracture and will be out 5-6 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. Luka Doncic (calf) will be out at least 2 weeks. Larry Nance Jr (hand) will be out indefinitely after surgery. Jared McCain (torn meniscus) will be out for the season. Brandon Miller (wrist) will be out for the season. Donte DiVincenzo (toe) will be out indefinitely. Jalen Johnson (shoulder) will be out for the season. Dejounte Murray (achilles) will be out for the season. We wish all these guys speedy and successful recoveries.

• Trade Updates: The Miami Heat traded Thomas Bryant to Indiana for a 2nd round pick. The Brooklyn Nets traded Dennis Schroder for DeAnthony Melton. The Lakers traded D’Angelo Russell to the Nets for Dorian Finney Smith. Phoenix traded Josh Okogie for Nick Richards. Dallas traded Luka Doncic and Maxi Kleber for Anthony Davis and Max Christie. The Kings traded De’Aaron Fox to the Spurs and received Zach Lavine from Chicago in a 3 team trade. The Clippers traded PJ Tucker and Mo Bamba to Utah for Drew Eubanks.

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NBA MVP Ladder

1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

Last week’s ranking: No. 1
Season stats: 32.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 6 assists

His case: Gilgeous-Alexander is fresh off a pair of 50-point games and is the only player to post multiple 50-point games this season. For such a high-volume shooter, his efficiency is impressive (52.8%).

Remember: he’s among the steals leaders and helps inspire OKC’s opportunistic defense. Plus, he has worked much of the season without the aid of a talented big man Chet Holmgren.

2. Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets

Last week’s ranking: No. 2
Season stats: 29.7 points, 12.9 rebounds, 10.1 assists

His case: He’s averaging a triple-double and remains among the league leaders in those three statistical categories. As the season progresses, his staying power will prove a strong argument for him to rise to No. 1. It’s close between him and Gilgeous-Alexander.

Strange thing, though: Denver has lost three straight despite “The Joker’s” dominance. He’ll need his team to perform better to strengthen his case.

3. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Last week’s ranking: No. 3
Season stats: 31.7 points, 12.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists

His case: “The Greek Freak” and his high-level consistency rolls on. His three most recent games captured the essence of his season: 39 points and 12 rebounds against the Blazers, 35-18 against the Jazz and 36-13 against the Clippers.

The Bucks lost two of those games, although that certainly wasn’t Antetokounmpo’s fault. What Milwaukee does, or doesn’t do, at the trade deadline could determine its East seeding.

4. Karl-Anthony Towns, New York Knicks

Last week’s ranking: No. 5
Season stats: 24.6 points, 13.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists

His case: Towns has been steady all season and wears the unofficial title as Best Center In The East, partly because of his stellar play and, to be fair, partly because former Kia MVP Joel Embiid has struggled with injuries and absences.

Towns and the Knicks managed to handle Jokić and the Nuggets on Wednesday.

5. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics

Last week’s ranking: No. 4
Season stats: 26.7 points, 9 rebounds, 5.4 assists

His case: Tatum remains one of the premier players in the league, all while doing so for an elite team. That said, his play of late has also reflected that of the Celtics as both appear to have hit a wall.

Tatum is averaging 24 points, eight rebounds and 5.4 assists in January, a bit of a decline from previous months. He’ll need to elevate his play to remain in the top five.

The Next 5:

6. Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns
7. Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers
8. Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks
9. Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
10. Alperen Sengun, Houston Rockets

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Fantasy Leaders

LeBron and Kyrie both put on a show while they wait for their new teammates

Overtime Thoughts