Nikola Jokić shines in Los Angeles, Wemby comes back strong, and Bucks secure 4th consecutive victory: Starting 5 recap, Nov. 24

Double the defense? Triple the trouble when you’re facing 15.

THE LINEUP

Nov. 24, 2024 | What’s inside today’s edition?

Do-It-All Joker: Jokić puts on a show in L.A. to continue his historic start

Stars Shine: Giannis & Dame overcome 50 from LaMelo, Wemby & Steph duel late

Saturday Roundup: A magical run in Orlando, a storybook moment in Chicago and more

Can’t-Miss McCain: How Steph Curry has helped inspire the Sixers’ scorching-hot rook

Cavs Chase History: Can the 16-1 Cavs stay perfect at home to join more elite company?

BUT FIRST … ⏰

A stacked Sunday slate…

Six games get underway Sunday on NBA League Pass, beginning with a matchup between Anthony Edwards and the Wolves against the defending champs, as the C’s seek their fifth straight win (3:30 ET).

Plus, the 16-1 Cavs will look to improve upon their historic start while remaining unbeaten at home as they host the Raptors (7:30 ET).

1. JOKIĆ PAINTS ANOTHER MASTERPIECE TO OUTPACE THE LAKERS

Nikola Jokić — three-time Kia MVP, four-time All-NBA First Team selection, six-time NBA All-Star, 2023 Finals MVP and 2023 NBA champion.

Despite all the accolades, the reigning Kia MVP — who is one of just nine players in NBA history to win the award 3+ times — may be playing the best ball of his career right now.

With 34 points, 13 boards and eight dimes, Jokić fell just two assists shy of extending his triple-double streak to six straight games, but made up for it in the scorers’ column with his fourth consecutive 30+ point game, while most importantly, leading the Nuggets to a 127-102 win over the Lakers. | Recap

Denver’s Dominant 3rd: After entering the half down six, Denver outscored Los Angeles 37-15 in the 3rd quarter to take a 16-point lead that it never relinquished30-Piece, Please: In the win, Jokić became the fourth player in NBA history to notch 60 career games with 30+ points, 10+ rebounds and 5+ assists on over 60% shooting, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (78), Giannis Antetokounmpo (70) and Wilt Chamberlain (62)Malone Makes History: The win also marked Nuggets head coach Michael Malone’s 433rd career victory, surpassing Doug Moe for the most in franchise history“Life’s about moments, as my father would always talk about,” said Malone on the win. “And that was a great moment to celebrate with my guys, with our team.”The King & Kareem: LeBron James led the Lakers with 18 points and seven assists to join Abdul-Jabbar as the only two players in NBA history with 1,500 10-point games

So just how good has Jokić been this season? Well, for starters, the three-time MVP is currently averaging a career-high in points (30.3), rebounds (13.9) and assists (11.3).

And it doesn’t stop there.

Joker & The Big O: Jokić is the first player in over 50 years to average a 30+ point triple-double in their first 12 games of a season and the second in NBA history, joining Oscar Robertson (1961-62)Elite Orchestrator: In those 12 games, he’s scored or assisted on 723 of the Nuggets’ 1,456 total points (49.7%)Unprecedented Territory:

No player has ever led the NBA in points, rebounds and assists in a single season. Through one month of 2024-25, Jokić leads the league in rebounds and assists and is second in points

2. STARS SHINE: A 50-BALL, BUCKS HISTORY & WEMBY’S RETURN

Bucks 125, Hornets 119: LaMelo Ball dropped 40 — yes, FORTY — points in the 2nd half on his way to a career-high 50 along with 10 dimes, while Brandon Miller added 32 points for Charlotte.

But the Bucks were simply too much and never trailed in the final two quarters thanks to Giannis Antetokounmpo (32 pts, 11 reb, 6 ast) and Damian Lillard (31 pts), who combined for 63 points to stave off the Hornets for Milwaukee’s fourth straight win. | Recap

Deer They Come: After a 2-8 start, Milwaukee has won six of its last seven games to improve to 8-9 on the season for the fifth seed in the EastAll-Time Deer Duo: It’s Giannis and Dame’s 12th game with 30+ points each as Bucks teammates, surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bob Dandridge for the most in franchise historyLaMelo Ballin’: Ball joins Kemba Walker (2x) as the only Hornets to record 50+ points in a game and he’s the first player in franchise history to tally 50+ points and 10+ assists in a gameHe’s also the third-youngest player

to tally 50+ points and 10+ dimes in a game at 23 years and 93 days old, trailing only LeBron James (23y, 66d) and Kevin Porter Jr. (20y, 360d)

Spurs 104, Warriors 94: After missing the past three games, Victor Wembanyama returned and stuffed the stat sheet with 25 points, seven boards, nine dimes and three blocks to rally the Spurs from 17 points down and stun the West-leading Warriors, marking San Antonio’s third win in a row. | Recap

4th-Quarter Surge: San Antonio outscored Golden State 33-13 in the 4th, led by Wemby’s 12 points and five assistsWemby & Steph Down The Stretch:

Wemby also knocked down two triples in the final frame while going

back and forth with Steph Curry

, who finished with 14 points and five helpers

3. ROUNDUP: FRANZ FIRE, SCOTTY’S STORYBOOK NIGHT & MORE

Magic 111, Pistons 100: One game after dropping 37 points to beat the Lakers, Franz Wagner went for 30 along with nine boards and eight helpers to lead Orlando to its eighth win in nine games while improving its home record to 8-0. Detroit was without Cade Cunningham (hip) in the loss. | Recap

Magic Touch: In Orlando’s last nine games — which have all come without Paolo Banchero — Wagner (28.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 7.0 apg) has totaled 255 points, 57 rebounds and 63 assistsFranz TMac: The only player in Magic history to top those numbers in a nine-game span is Tracy McGrady (2002-03)Wagner On His Hot Streak:

“It obviously feels great — it wouldn’t mean anything though if we weren’t winning these games. It’s not just me, everybody’s been stepping up.”

Jazz 121, Knicks 106: Lauri Markkanen sank five triples on his way to a game-high 34 points, while Collin Sexton posted season-highs in both points (25) and 3s (6) to help Utah pull away from OG Anunoby (27 pts, 7 3s) and the Knicks, snapping New York’s four-game win streak. | Recap

Grizzlies 142, Bulls 131: In the same arena where his father helped lead the Bulls to six NBA titles, Scotty Pippen Jr. dropped a career-high 30 points and 10 assists for Memphis, which had eight players score in double figures on its way to a wire-to-wire win over Zach LaVine (29 pts) and Chicago. | Recap

Like Father, Like Son: Pippen Jr. (13-16 FG) is the first player to record 25+ points and 8+ assists while shooting over 80% from the field at the United Center since his father did so in November 1995“Definitely a special place to play,” said Pippen Jr. after the win. “Seeing my dad’s name up here … it’s a dream come true.”A Career Day:

Jaylen Wells also posted a career-high in points (26) and 3s (6) for Memphis

Blazers 104, Rockets 98: With the score tied at 96 and 45 seconds left, Deni Avdija came up with a huge block before finding Anfernee Simons (25 pts) on the other end for a go-ahead triple with 28.7 seconds to play, boosting the Blazers to a clutch road dub over Alperen Sengun (22 pts) and the Rockets. | Recap

4. ROOKIE ON A MISSION: INSIDE McCAIN’S SCORCHING START

Weeks before his first NBA game, 76ers rookie Jared McCain could only imagine the magnitude of the moment.

“The little things for me is what’s gonna get me, just driving up to go in the players’ entrance, putting on my jersey, looking around and seeing all these players that I’ve watched, walking out and doing the warmup…“When the ball gets tipped,

it’s just going to be so surreal for me.”

One month into the season, McCain’s proven he’s more than ready for the bright lights.

Philadelphia’s No. 16 overall pick has scored 20+ points in seven straight games — the fifth-longest streak by a rookie in 76ers history — highlighted by his 30 points and six 3s on Friday to lead Philly to a win over Brooklyn in the Emirates NBA Cup.

Rookie Record-Breaker: Friday was McCain’s eighth straight game with at least three made 3s, marking the longest streak by a rookie in NBA history and the longest streak by any player in Sixers historyLegendary Company: Through 15 games, McCain has scored a team-best 248 points and has drained 38 triples, passing Allen Iverson for the most 3s by a Sixers rookie in their first 15 outingsHistoric Hot Hand: In his last five games, McCain has 133 points while shooting 51.1% from the field, 48.0% from 3 and 93.8% from the lineThe only other players

to score more points over a five-game span on at least 50/45/90 shooting splits as a rookie? Larry Bird, Steph Curry and Coby White

As a smaller guard, McCain says he looks up to Curry and studies his game to find new ways to score, both on and off the ball.

“[Improving] playing on the ball is going to help. But Steph is elite at playing off the ball as well. Just having the stamina to run around screens and things like that … Being able to be effective on both as Steph is.”

McCain’s shown doses of Curry’s creativity throughout the season, including on this near mirror-image of a drive, dish and pop sequence leading to an open 3.

And once the catch-and-shoot 3s start to fall, the pump fake opens up driving lanes…

Both for the NBA’s all-time 3-point leader and the new kid on the block.

After burying his sixth triple of the game against Brooklyn on Friday, McCain let out a celebratory statement, yelling, “I’m the rookie of the year.”

“I’m in the flow state, so I don’t know what came to my mind at that moment,” recalled McCain with a smile. “It’s one of my goals for the season, obviously, but it’s just that competitiveness coming out of me…“I respect every rookie in this league.

But obviously, I believe in myself.”

On Sunday, McCain — who’s currently No. 1 on the Kia Rookie Ladder — will look to bolster his ROY campaign when the Sixers host James Harden and the Clippers on League Pass (6 ET).

5. 16-1 CAVS SEEK MORE HISTORY TONIGHT ON LEAGUE PASS

Five more games tip off Sunday on League Pass, including a matchup between the Raptors and Cavs as Cleveland looks to improve to an NBA-best 17-1 while remaining perfect at home this season.

Raptors at Cavaliers (7:30 ET): Cleveland and Toronto first met this year in their season-openers, which saw the Cavs’ offense explode for a 136-106 win, offering an early glimpse of their dominant form.

Scoring Spectacular: Cleveland leads the NBA this season in points (123.5 ppg), field goal percentage (52.2%) and 3-point percentage (41.6%) and has scored 110+ points in 16 of their 17 gamesDepth Perception: Donovan Mitchell (24.3) and Darius Garland (20.6) lead the way with a combined 44.9 ppg, but they aren’t the only ones fueling Cleveland’s top offenseAllen’s Impact: Jarrett Allen is tied for the third-most double-doubles this season, with 12 — including five straight — and his 68.5% field goal percentage is second in the NBA among players who average 6+ shots per gameMobley Eating: Evan Mobley is averaging a career-high 17.8 ppg and his 12.3 points in the paint per game ranks 11th in the NBA (min. 10 games played)Ty Time: Also averaging a career-high 11.8 ppg, Ty Jerome has notched three 20+ point games this year, tying his most in a single season

A Cavs victory on Sunday would make them just the sixth NBA team in the last 50 years to open a season with 17 wins in their first 18 games. Of those previous five teams, three made the Finals and two won it all.

2015-16 Warriors: 18-0 start, lost Finals2002-03 Mavericks: 17-1 start, lost in West Finals1996-97 Bulls: 17-1 start, won Finals1993-94 Rockets: 17-1 start, won Finals1990-91 Trail Blazers:

17-1 start, lost in West Finals