Starting 5, Nov. 8: Bucks snap slide, Wolves rally behind Anthony ...

In a flash, Ant and the Wolves turned a halftime deficit into the highest-scoring half of the season.

THE LINEUP ????

Nov. 8, 2024 | What’s inside today’s edition?

Bucks Bounce Back: Giannis & Dame’s milestone night puts Milwaukee back on track

Statement Ws: A balanced Spurs’ attack & a Minnesota tidal wave stamped two dubs

Big-Stage Battles: Durant, Luka, LeBron & PG take center stage tonight on ESPN

Friday Fire: A Cavs-Dubs Finals rematch highlights an 11-game slate on League Pass

Cup Countdown: A preview of East Group B, including two of last year’s semifinalists

BUT FIRST … ⏰

A Friday full of hoops…

Friday delivers a packed slate with 13 games, featuring an ESPN doubleheader and 11 matchups on League Pass.

On ESPN, Kevin Durant and the Suns visit Luka Dončić and the Mavs (7:30 ET), followed by LeBron James and the Lakers hosting Paul George and the Sixers (10 ET).

On League Pass, fans can catch a handful of marquee matchups highlighted by two Finals rematches, with the Cavs hosting the Warriors (7:30 ET), and the Heat facing the Nuggets (9 ET).

1. DEER DUO GOES OFF, BUCKS BOUNCE BACK

The Bucks entered Thursday on a six-game skid. But their last two losses came against the unbeaten Cavaliers by a total of three points, and head coach Doc Rivers said his team was close to turning a corner.

“We believe we’re a really good basketball team that has played poorly at times. The last two games you could say we played well and lost the games … “The worry is outside the building, I guarantee you that. There’s none inside the building.”

One game later, Milwaukee — led by its superstar duo — put it all together for their first win since Oct. 23.

Bucks 123, Jazz 100: Damian Lillard (34 pts, 7 ast, 4 stl, 4 3s) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (31 pts, 16 reb) combined for 65 points and fueled a 31-16 Bucks’ 3rd-quarter as the Deer pulled away in the 2nd half for their second win of the season. | Recap

All-Time Deer Duos: It’s Giannis and Dame’s 11th game with 30+ points each as Bucks teammates, tying Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bob Dandridge for the most in franchise history Takeover Time: Antetokounmpo (11 pts, 4-8 FG) and Lillard (11 pts, 5-8 FG) combined for 22 of Milwaukee’s 31 3rd-quarter points, as the Bucks took an 88-77 lead before shutting the door in the 4th Star Power: In total, Giannis and Dame were responsible for 88 of the Bucks’ 123 points, while Bobby Portis (19 pts, 3 3s) and AJ Green (12 pts, 4 3s) each scored in double figures Dame On Ending The Skid: “Getting off to a rough start, it’s easy to get down on yourself … tonight we just came out with the right mentality.” Jazz Leaders: Jordan Clarkson (18 pts, 4 3s) led five Utah players in double figures, but the Jazz were outscored 66-39 in the 2nd half to drop to 1-7

2. WOLVES’ 2ND-HALF STORM + SPURS’ BALANCE LEAD TO DUBS

Timberwolves 135, Bulls 119: After entering the break trailing 65-56, Anthony Edwards (33 pts, 8 reb, 6 ast, 5 3s) and the Wolves erupted for a season-high 79 points in the 2nd half, and outscored Chicago 45-24 in the 4th quarter to improve to 5-3. | Recap 

Not So Minny Finish: The Wolves’ 45 4th-quarter points are the most by any team in a single quarter this season and their 79 points in the 2nd half are the most by any team in any half this season Ant Leads The Way: Edwards dropped 20 points in the 2nd half, including 13 in the 4th quarter, while sinking four 3s Randle & Rudy: Julius Randle (22 pts, 10 reb) and Rudy Gobert (season-high 21 pts, 9 reb) combined for 43 points for Minnesota, while Jaden McDaniels added 19 points and three 3s Bulls’ Buckets: Nikola Vučević (25 pts, 5 reb, 3 3s) and Coby White (24 pts, 8 ast, 4 3s) led the way for Chicago, which fell to 3-6 with the loss

Spurs 118, Blazers 105: Eight Spurs scored in double figures – led by 17 points apiece from Keldon Johnson and Malaki Branham – as San Antonio posted season-highs of 35 assists and 44 made baskets to overcome 21-point nights from Portland’s Jerami Grant and Deandre Ayton. | Recap

Wemby ???? Dream: Victor Wembanyama (12 pts, 8 reb, 2 ast, 4 stl, 3 blk) tied Hakeem Olajuwon for the longest streak with at least one assist and one block at 47 games Doing Wemby Things: Victor comes out of nowhere to protect the rim … A 7-foot-3 center hitting a pull-up 3 off the screen Welcome Back: Shaedon Sharpe had 13 points in 20 minutes off the Blazers’ bench in his first game since Jan. 11 due to abdominal and shoulder injuries

3. ESPN DOUBLEHEADER: STARS TAKE CENTER STAGE

13 games get underway Friday, highlighted by a star-studded doubleheader on ESPN featuring four 2024 Playoff teams. 

Suns at Mavericks (7:30 ET): Riding a six-game win streak, will Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and the Suns stay hot when they visit Luka Dončić and the 5-3 Mavs?

Here Come The Suns: The Suns’ 7-1 record is their best start since 2009-10 and their win streak began with a 114-102 win over Dallas on Oct. 26, led by Durant’s 31 points Stars & Stops: In their past six games, Durant (27.8) and Booker (26.2) are combining for 54.0 ppg, and Phoenix is holding its opponents to 41.8% from the field, tied for the lowest average in the league in that span Luka Heating Up? In Dallas’ loss to Phoenix in October, Dončić scored a season-high 40 points. Through three games in November, he’s averaging 31.0 points, 7.7 boards and 11.7 assists

76ers at Lakers (10 ET): After a 3-0 start, LeBron James and the Lakers (4-4) have dropped four of their last five games. Will they get back on track against Paul George and the 76ers?

PG’s Back: In his second game with Philly on Wednesday, George scored a team-high 18 points along with seven boards and three steals in a loss to the Clippers Home-Court Advantage: The Lakers are 3-0 this season at Crypto.com Arena, averaging 121.3 ppg — the second-highest home mark in the NBA Leading Scorers’ Status: While Anthony Davis — who leads the NBA with 32.6 ppg — is probable for the Lakers (plantar fasciitis in left foot), Tyrese Maxey (76ers-best 27.6 ppg) is out with a right hamstring injury

4. UNBEATEN CAVS, ROAD WARRIORS CLASH ON LEAGUE PASS

Meeting in four straight NBA Finals (2015-2018) will forever link the Warriors and Cavaliers in basketball history. Although the rosters from their title bouts have changed, they each stand as one of the league’s top teams nearly three weeks into the 2024-25 regular season.

The Cavaliers are 9-0 — their best start in franchise history — and the only remaining unbeaten team in the NBA The Warriors are 7-1, with five straight wins and a perfect road record

On Friday, the two sides will face off on League Pass (7:30 ET) in a battle of strength versus strength as the Cavs’ No. 1 offense (123.2 ppg) takes on Golden State’s No. 2 defense (105.3 oppg) in Cleveland.

Statistical Heavyweights: The Warriors and Cavs are No. 1 and No. 2 in PIE (Player Impact Estimate), respectively, and rank at the top in a slew of categories on both sides of the ball

Potent Cavs: In nine games, Cleveland has scored 130+ points four times, matching their total from all of last season and one shy of the single-season franchise record of five Cleveland Can’t Miss: The Cavs are the only team in the NBA this season with their top six leading scorers all shooting above 48.0% from the field, and as a team, they’re shooting 52.6% How rare are their shooting numbers? In the shot-clock era (since 1954-55), only six teams have shot over 52% from the field in a season But the Warriors have allowed just one opponent to shoot over 50% in a game this year X-Factors From Deep: Steph Curry (21.2 ppg) and Donovan Mitchell (23.8) lead their teams in scoring, while both Golden State and Cleveland’s second-leading scorers, Buddy Hield (21.1 ppg, 50.7 3P%) and Darius Garland (19.8 ppg, 46.9 3P%), are shooting a career-high from 3

10 more games tip off on League Pass throughout the night, highlighted by another Finals rematch between the Nuggets and Heat (9 ET) after OKC looks to bounce back from its first loss of the season against the Rockets (8 ET).

Pacers at Hornets (7 ET) Hawks at Pistons (7 ET) Pelicans at Magic (7 ET) Nets at Celtics (7:30 ET) Bucks at Knicks (7:30 ET) Wizards at Grizzlies (8 ET) Blazers at Wolves (9 ET) Clippers at Kings (10 ET)

5. EMIRATES NBA CUP COUNTDOWN: EAST GROUP B PREVIEW

The Emirates NBA Cup 2024 tips off in just four days, with Group Play opening on Tuesday, Nov. 12.

Our countdown previewing every group in the competition began with Group A in the East and West and continues today with East Group B, which includes two teams that advanced to the semifinals of the inaugural in-season competition last season.

Here are the five teams in the group, ranked in order of win percentage in head-to-head matchups from last season against the other teams within the group.

Indiana Pacers: 12-4 (.750) Miami Heat: 9-5 (.643) Milwaukee Bucks: 8-7 (.533) Toronto Raptors: 6-8 (.429) Detroit Pistons: 2-13 (.133)

The full 10-game Group Play schedule is above. Here are three matchups to circle: 

Heat at Pacers (Nov. 15, 7 ET, League Pass): Indy and Miami were part of a three-team battle for the final guaranteed Playoff spot in the East last spring, with a two-point Pacers win over the Heat on April 7 helping Indy secure that No. 6 seed. This is the first of a two-game set over three days between these teams in Indiana, but the only one that counts toward the Cup Pacers at Bucks (Nov. 22, 7:30 ET, ESPN): The Pacers ended the Bucks’ hopes to play for the inaugural NBA Cup, then ended their 2023-24 season in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. Over 11 head-to-head games in 2023-24, Indy won eight compared to Milwaukee’s three. To say the Bucks will be motivated for their first chance to face the Pacers this season is an understatement Bucks at Heat (Nov 26, 7:30 ET, TNT): From 2020-23, either the Heat (’20, ’23) or Bucks (’21) reached the Finals three times in four years. Each of those Finals trips included beating the other team along the way – either in the East Semis (’20) or the first round (’21, ’23). These teams already have so much playoff history and now we get to add NBA Cup competition into the mix