Starting 5: A historic night time & wanting again on an iconic shot

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5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀

Thursday’s Best: Spurs win eleventh straight, Kon erupts for 3-point document, O’Neale calls sport in Phoenix

Star Takeovers: KD & Maxey be a part of uncommon firm, Ant ranges up late once more

Roundup: Pels & Hawks win third straight, Blazers survive late, Kings beat Mavs

ESPN Doubleheader: Shai returns as Thunder host Nuggets, Pistons finish gauntlet week with red-hot Cavs

Steph’s Iconic Shot: Shaun Powell revisits Curry’s all-time night time, stamped by Mike Breen’s ‘double bang’ name

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BUT FIRST … ⏰

Friday delivers 5 video games, headlined by two large matchups on ESPN because the Cavs go to the Pistons (7 ET | Tap to Watch), earlier than the Thunder host the Nuggets (9:30 ET | Tap to Watch).

Relive The Curry Flurry: Today marks the 10-year anniversary of Steph Curry’s 12-triple night time in OKC, capped by his legendary OT-winner. Rewatch the moment basic anytime today on the NBA App.

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1. THURSDAY’S BEST: SPURS’ STREAK HITS 11, KON SETS ROOKIE RECORD, SUNS WIN THRILLER

Make it 11 in a row – and 11-0 in February.

Spurs 126, Nets 110: Julian Champagnie splashed six 3s en path to 26 factors, Victor Wembanyama made his presence felt on each ends (12 pts, 8 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl, 2 blk) and the Spurs led wire-to-wire for his or her eleventh straight dub. | Recap

• Perfect February: It’s San Antonio’s longest win streak since 2015-16 and simply its third time ending a month with an ideal document (min. 10 GP)
• Pure Dominance: In February, the Spurs rank 1st in scoring (124.8 ppg) and Third in DefRtg (106.2), leading to a league-best +14.5 level differential
• Familiar Approach: Anchoring each ends? Wemby, who’s the primary participant since Tim Duncan (2002) to tally 1,000+ pts, 500+ reb and 125+ blk by way of the primary 45 video games of a season
• Chasing The Champs: The win strikes San Antonio to 43-16, simply 1.5 video games again of OKC for 1st out West

Nine straight highway wins. Seventy-two 3s in three video games. One rookie rewriting the document books.

Hornets 133, Pacers 109: After changing into the primary workforce to hit 25+ 3s in consecutive video games, the Hornets buried 22 final night time, tying the NBA document for many triples over three video games (72).

And whereas Charlotte matched one league mark, Kon Knueppel smashed one other, nailing eight 3s to interrupt Keegan Murray’s single-season rookie document (206) because the Hornets’ franchise-best highway win streak reached 9. | Recap

• Another Level: Knueppel completed with 28 factors, whereas taking pictures 8-of-12 from deep, closing the night time with 209 3s on the season with 22 video games left
• Another Record: He is the primary rookie with a number of video games of 8+ 3s and now owns the rookie document for many video games of 25+ factors and 5+ triples (10)
• Another Bang: The earlier document holder? Steph Curry
• All-Around Buzz: Brandon Miller (33 pts, 6 3s, 7 reb), LaMelo Ball (20 pts, 8 ast) and Knueppel mixed for 81 factors as Charlotte improved to 13-3 since Jan. 22 – tied with San Antonio for essentially the most wins in that span
• “I love the connectivity that those guys have,” mentioned Hornets coach Charles Lee postgame. “The great thing about this team is I think we’re really good – but we’re still an unfinished product.”

Suns 113, Lakers 110: Royce O’Neale (13 pts, 6 reb) drilled the game-winning triple with 0.9 remaining and the Suns survived Austin Reaves’ (14 pts) tried reply on the buzzer and Luka’s large night time (41 pts, 8 reb, 8 ast) to tug inside 1 sport of L.A. for Sixth within the West. | Recap

• Run & Response: Phoenix pulled away from a tie sport with an 18-6 run within the first half of the 4th quarter, solely to be caught at 108-all after a 17-7 Lakers comeback
• Royce Rolls: O’Neal scored the ultimate 7 factors for the Suns, snatching an enormous offensive rebound for the tiebreaking putback earlier than hitting the winner
• Phoenix sank 22 3s, with six apiece from Grayson Allen (28 pts) and Collin Gillespie (21 pts), who additionally mixed on the profitable swing-pass help

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2. STAR TAKEOVERS: KD & MAXEY POP OFF, ANT ELEVATES IN CRUNCH TIME

Rockets 113, Magic 108: Kevin Durant’s first 40-point game for Houston and a 19-point comeback in a 70-point 2nd half propelled the Rockets previous Desmond Bane (30 pts, 6 3s) for a 3rd win over Orlando this season. | Recap

• Late Power: Houston closed the Third quarter on a 24-4 run to erase the 19-point deficit and take a 1-point lead into the 4th, the place it ended the sport with a 21-11 closeout
• The Finisher: KD had 11 of the ultimate 21 Houston factors and 14 total within the 4th. He tied Kobe Bryant for the Fifth-most 30+ level video games in NBA historical past (431)
• Durant additionally reached 32,000 profession factors within the 4th, changing into just the 6th player to get there
• Reed Sheppard (20 pts, 5 3s) backed KD up with three triples in beneath 2 minutes in the course of the comeback run, and two more as daggers within the remaining 2 minutes
• Holding Third: Houston maintains Third place within the West, transferring forward of Denver by a half-game

Sixers 124, Heat 117: Tyrese Maxey (28 pts, 11 ast, 5 stl, 5 3s) obtained off to a sizzling begin and Joel Embiid (26 pts, 11 reb) and Kelly Oubre Jr. (21 pts) helped maintain off Bam Adebayo (29 pts, 14 reb), Tyler Herro (25 pts, 7 ast) and the Heat late in a 3rd straight win for Philly. | Recap

• Hot & Historic: Maxey poured in 20 factors within the 1st quarter with 4 3s, passing Allen Iverson alongside the best way for many made 3s in 76ers franchise historical past
• “AI is someone we all looked up to,” Maxey mentioned. “To be able to pass him in anything in basketball, that’s cool. And then to wear these [throwback] jerseys, that’s fun.”
• Rare Lines: He’s now simply the Third participant in NBA historical past with a number of video games of 30+ pts, 10+ ast, 5+ stl and 5+ 3s, becoming a member of Gilbert Arenas and Latrell Sprewell
• Philly maintains the East’s Sixth and remaining assured Playoff spot, 1 sport behind Toronto in Fifth, whereas Miami is 1 sport behind 7-seed Orlando

Wolves 94, Clippers 88: Anthony Edwards closed with 11 of his 31 points within the 4th quarter, serving to Minnesota bounce again from LA’s 30-19 go-ahead Third to maneuver to 2 video games up on the Sixth-place Lakers and achieve a half-game on the idle 4-seed Nuggets. | Recap

• Ant’s Takeover: Edwards scored the ultimate 9 factors for Minnesota, in a mixture of free throws, a midrange and the dagger triple with 42.9 remaining
• “I feel like any shot that I take is a good shot,” Ant mentioned of his work.
• Post-Break Boost: It was Edwards’ third 30+ level sport in his final 4 video games, as he’s averaging 33.3 ppg since claiming All-Star Game MVP honors
• Ant continues to put on his orange wristband for young fan Luca, who celebrated now being cancer-free previous to the sport

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3. ROUNDUP: PELS & HAWKS WIN 3RD STRAIGHT, BLAZERS & KINGS DUB

Pelicans 129, Jazz 118: With the Pels searching for a 3rd straight win, Saddiq Bey put on a show, dropping 42 factors and seven dimes, together with a 23-point 2nd half, to push New Orleans previous Ace Bailey (23 pts) and Utah. | Recap

• Star Boost: Zion Williamson added 20 factors and 4 steals, whereas Dejounte Murray obtained busy (17 pts, 9 ast, 4 stl) in his second sport again from an Achilles damage

Hawks 126, Wizards 96: Corey Kispert was feeling it from deep (33 pts, 6 3s), whereas CJ McCollum added 25 factors because the Hawks by no means trailed, beating the Wiz for his or her third win in a row. | Recap

Blazers 121, Bulls 112: After seeing Portland’s 15-point 4th-quarter cushion deflate to three, Jerami Grant (27 pts) responded with a clutch triple to push the lead again to 6 with 1:57 left, because the Blazers held off Matas Buzelis (20 pts, 7 reb) and the Bulls. | Recap

Kings 130, Mavericks 121: Precious Achiuwa’s career-high 29 factors (12 reb, 3 stl) and 22 extra from Maxime Raynaud helped maintain the Kings forward of Naji Marshall (season-high 36 pts, 10 reb, 6 ast) and the Mavs for the ultimate 45 minutes. | Recap

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4. ESPN FRIDAY: PISTONS END WEEK WITH HOT CAVS, SGA RETURNS VS. JOKER, NUGGETS

A gauntlet of a homestand in Detroit attracts to an in depth tonight.

After splitting video games in opposition to the West’s prime two groups, the Pistons host their very own convention’s hottest squad, trying to make it a profitable week.

Cavaliers at Pistons (7 ET): Winners of 13 of its final 16, Cleveland will likely be with out Donovan Mitchell (groin), the league-leader in 2nd-half and 4th-quarter factors, and doubtlessly James Harden (hand, questionable), who’s helped remodel the Cavs’ offense since arriving on the commerce deadline.

That provides a possible late-game benefit to the Pistons, coming off their league-leading twenty fourth clutch win Wednesday in opposition to OKC.

• Clutch Cade: Rising into the top-3 on this week’s Kia MVP Ladder, Cade Cunningham has totaled the 4th-most clutch factors within the league this season (119) on 50% taking pictures
• “There’s an unwavering belief that ‘we can,’” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff mentioned of his workforce’s clutch play (100 Clutch DefRtg, Third-best). “They cherish the moment to do something big when it matters most.”
• February Fire: Jarrett Allen has dominated in February, with boosts in scoring (+8.7 ppg, +13.3 FG%), factors within the paint (+6.9 ppg), and rebounds (+3.0)
• “Just facilitating, doing everything to the best of my ability,” Allen mentioned of his play this month. “I feel like I was striving to play well even before [Harden] came, and then he came and just elevated my game.”

Nuggets at Thunder (9:30 ET): Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (stomach) is predicted to return simply in time for a marquee matchup with Nikola Jokić, who sits simply behind him on the Kia MVP Ladder. With 22 video games left within the common season, OKC hosts Denver in a pivotal showdown.

• Answering the Call: OKC went 5-4 with out Shai throughout his restoration because the streaking Spurs (1.5 GB) gained floor
• Jokić Cooking: In that very same stretch, Denver (7.5 GB) went 4-4, with Joker logging triple-doubles in 5 of these eight video games
• Cason Wallace shined for OKC in SGA’s 9-game absence (13.8 ppg, 5.4 ast, 2.2 stl), and was key (27 pts, 2 stl) when the Thunder topped the Nuggets of their lone assembly to this point this season (Feb. 1)
• Defenses Up: After holding Boston’s 2nd-ranked offense to a season-low 84 factors Wednesday, Denver’s D meets OKC’s top-ranked stoppers (106.4 DefRtg)

In an MVP race this tight, and with three OKC – Denver showdowns on the best way within the dwelling stretch, it could take a head-to-head impression to assist decide a favourite, writes Shaun Powell:

“If the competition between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokić remains tight — and they’re Nos. 1 and 2 in the Kia Race to the MVP Ladder this week and have been for much of the year — then maybe a measure of weight will be applied to what they do against each other, head to head.” | Read More

Roundup: The 2nd and Third seeds out East are additionally in motion, because the Celtics host the Nets (7:30 ET) and the Knicks go to the Bucks (8 ET).

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5. STEPH’S DOUBLE BANGER: RELIVING AN ICONIC SHOT, 10 YEARS LATER

Ten years in the past immediately, Steph Curry capped a legendary night time with a legendary triple — one which gave the hoops world an all-time second and an iconic name..

The sport itself has since change into a required rewatch, an instantaneous basic outlined by an all-time Curry flurry – and it’s streaming all day on the NBA App.

A decade later, Shaun Powell revisits Steph’s iconic “Double Banger” and why it nonetheless echoes immediately:

“’Bang! Bang!’

Such was the breathless gasp from Mike Breen, the play-by-play voice of ABC’s protection of the NBA, whereas calling the Golden State Warriors vs. Oklahoma City Thunder sport 10 years in the past immediately. 

It was not simply any sport, and Breen wasn’t describing the actions of simply any participant.

This was a signature second by Stephen Curry.” | Read More

Relive Steph’s epic eruption here, then dive deeper into the night time he made legendary:

• How He Got There: Inside Curry’s 46-point, 12-triple masterpiece, and the way he made the inconceivable really feel inevitable
• The Game: Settle in and rewatch the moment basic in full – from the back-and-forth swings, to the OT-winner
• Shot Ready: In an unique NBA function, Curry displays on the celebrations, recollections and moments that outline his unbelievable profession

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