Starting 5, Jan. 24: Clippers, Knicks get first two wins of Rivals Week

Day 1 of Rivals Week featured NYC and LA, with the Knicks and Clippers earning city bragging rights.

Day 2 heads to Texas, starting in Dallas with the Mavs hosting a streaking Suns team looking for their seventh straight win. Then it’s off to San Antonio for a clash of this year’s top rookies.

THE LINEUP

1. Must-see from Tuesday
2. Knicks, Clippers win city battles
3. ☀️ Surging Suns visit Mavs
4. Top rookies clash in San Antonio
5. Rivals Week lookahead

⭐ In Dallas: Seven-game series leave lasting impressions on a rivalry, including the 2022 West Semifinals series between the Mavs and Suns, who meet tonight for the first time since Christmas (8:30 ET, ABC).

In San Antonio: The two top players on NBA.com’s Kia Rookie Ladder – OKC’s Chet Holmgren and San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama – meet for the second time this season (9:30 ESPN).

Headlines: Tuesday saw the Bucks make a coaching change, the Heat acquire Terry Rozier in a trade with Charlotte for Kyle Lowry, a star-studded 41-player USA Basketball national team pool, and Cleveland’s Tristan Thompson suspended 25 games.

1. WEDNESDAY MORNING MUST-SEE

Getting Buckets

• Zion Takes FLIGHT: Watch Zion sky for the one-handed lefty catch and throwdown off the lob from Dyson Daniels (stick around for Zion’s reaction)
• JDub Calls Game: With the game tied, OKC put the ball in Jalen Williams’ hands for the final possession. He delivered with a pure 18-foot pull-up jumper with two seconds left
• Defense ➡️ Offense: Herb Jones with back-to-back steals leading to back-to-back buckets for New Orleans

Dropping Dimes

• From Halfcourt: With the first quarter winding down, Jamal Murray secured the steal in the backcourt, looked up and found a streaking Peyton Watson for the long-range alley-oop connection
• The Vision: TJ McConnell did his best Hali impression for the no-look kick out to Nesmith for 3

Fun Moments

• The Sequel: Last month, Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards and Troy Brown Jr. played Rock, Paper, Scissors to determine which player would sub out. On Tuesday, Denver’s Murray and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope used it to see which player would take a technical free throw. See who won to take the shot
• Money, it’s gotta be the SHOE: Russell Westbrook lost a shoe mid-possession, passed the ball, got it back rocking one shoe, and drained the 3-pointer
• Celeb Row: Stars from the worlds of fashion, the NFL, the WWE, the WNBA, music, film and TikTok were out in Brooklyn and Los Angeles for the start of NBA Rivals Week
• New Meme Alert: James Harden already owns the greatest NBA eye roll meme on the internet. On Tuesday, he gave us the side-eye remix

2. KNICKS, CLIPPERS WIN INTRA-CITY BATTLES TO OPEN RIVALS WEEK

Knicks 108, Nets 103: The Knicks closed the game on a 20-8 run over the final seven minutes, capped by a Josh Hart dagger layup with 25 seconds left. Jalen Brunson (30 pts) and Julius Randle (30 pts, 9 reb, 7 ast, 2 clutch buckets) combined for 60 for New York, while Mikal Bridges posted game-highs of 36 points and seven 3s for Brooklyn. | Recap

• Rivals Week: Not only did the Knicks win their fourth straight overall, they won their fourth straight Borough Battle with Brooklyn

⛵ Clippers 127, Lakers 116: Kawhi Leonard (25 pts, 11 reb, 10 ast) recorded his second career triple-double to win the Battle of L.A. D’Angelo Russell (27 pts, 10 ast, 1 massive block) and Anthony Davis (26 pts, 12 reb) had double-doubles with LeBron James sidelined (ankle). | Recap

• Rivals Week: The Clippers won their fourth in a row overall while snapping a three-game slide to the Lakers in the Battle of LA

⚜️ Pelicans 153, Jazz 124: CJ McCollum (33 pts, 9 3s) led seven Pelicans with 12+ points as New Orleans put up a franchise-record 153 points in a 29-point win over Utah. Zion had 17 points and a career-high 11 assists, while Brandon Ingram added 18 points. | Recap

• 150 Club: The Pelicans posted the 8th 150+ point game in the NBA this season, to pull within two of last season’s total (10)

⛈️ Thunder 111, Blazers 109: Game tied with 16 seconds left. OKC came out of a timeout and gave the ball to Jalen Williams for their final possession. He dribbled left, got a switch, then pulled up from 18 feet and sank the game-winning jumper with two seconds left. Williams finished with 19, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (33 pts, 6 reb, 10 ast, 5 stl) stuffed the stat sheet. | Recap

• ️ “Shooters shoot”: Jalen Williams discussed his mindset with the game in his hands

⚒️ Nuggets 114, Pacers 109: Nikola Jokic and Murray scored 31 apiece to help the Nuggets spoil Pascal Siakam’s Pacers home debut (16 pts, 10 reb). Jokic (31 pts, 13 reb, 10 ast) posted his league-leading 13th triple-double and sealed the win with a pull-up 3 to put the Nuggets up five with under five seconds left. | Recap | Watch the final 5:05

3. RIVALS WEEK: SUNS VS. MAVS

When the Suns and Mavs meet on Wednesday, five players with a combined 31 All-Star selections will share the court – Kevin Durant (13), Devin Booker (3) and Bradley Beal (3) for Phoenix; Kyrie Irving (8) and Luka Doncic (4) for Dallas.

More could be coming Thursday when the 2024 starters are announced on TNT.

This matchup features two of the top four scoring duos in the NBA so far this season, with both players averaging 25+ points.

• Tyrese Maxey/Joel Embiid (PHI): 61.9 ppg, 54.5% effective FG%
• Irving/Doncic (DAL): 58.8 ppg, 55.7% eFG
• Damian Lillard/Giannis Antetokounmpo (MIL): 56.5 ppg, 56.7% eFG
• Booker/Durant (PHX): 56.3 ppg, 56.7% eFG

While most contenders are currently built around a star duo, the Suns made the move in the offseason to add Beal to the Booker/Durant mix to form a Big 3. Injuries prevented the trio from playing together early – appearing in just four of Phoenix’s first 35 games of the season.

However, since Jan. 7, the Big 3 has played eight straight games together and brings a six-game win streak into tonight’s matchup. Dallas, on the other hand, has gone 2-4 in its last six games.

A key to the Suns’ recent success has been balance. During this eight-game run with the Big 3, four different players have led the team in scoring – KD and Booker three times each, Beal and Grayson Allen one each.

Durant led the team the past two games, posting his first consecutive 40+ point games in nearly three years (Apr. 29 – May 2, 2021 with Brooklyn).

Another key has been a massive improvement in fourth quarters. Phoenix’s six-game win streak is highlighted by two 20+ point comebacks against the Kings (Jan. 16, down 22) and Bulls (Jan. 22, down 23).

As the chart above illustrates, the Suns ranked 30th for most of the season, but with more time together, the Big 3 is finding its rhythm for the full 48 minutes.

4. WEMBY VS. CHET & YOUNGEST WEST LEADERS EVER

There’s a new leader in the West.

With a 2-1 season series lead, the Thunder (30-13) now hold an edge over the Timberwolves (30-13), who’ve led the conference most of the year.

• It is the first time OKC has led the West in nearly a decade (March 7, 2014 at 46-16)
• Youngest Conference Leaders: With an average age of 23.53 years old (based on minutes played), the Thunder are the youngest team ever to lead a conference at least 43 games into a season
• Four of OKC’s top six players in minutes – Williams, Holmgren, Josh Giddey and Cason Wallace – are 22 or younger. Shai is considered a “vet” at age 25 and is a top-three MVP candidate
• This season’s second-youngest weighted roster belongs to the Spurs (23.57)

This Rivals Week matchup showcases a rivalry that could define the next decade – a clash of two players that epitomize a new generation of big men in the NBA: San Antonio’s Wembanyama and OKC’s Holmgren.

The combination of size (Wemby at 7-3, Chet at 7-1), skillset and fluidity to their game sets them apart from previous generations of 7-footers.

The numbers back it up.

• First To Do It: Chet and Wemby are the first rookies in NBA history to total 100+ blocks and 50+ 3-pointers made in their first 40 games

Some legendary comparisons:

• Wemby x Shaq: Wembanyama is on pace to be the first player to average 20+ pts, 10+ reb and 3+ blk in a season since Shaq in 1999-00
• Chet x Duncan: Duncan (19.4 pts, 11 reb, 2.5 ast, 2.3 blk per 36 minutes) helped the Spurs win 56 games as a rookie. Chet (20.4 pts, 8.6 reb, 3.4 ast, 3.1 blk per 36 minutes) and OKC are currently on pace for 57

5. RIVALS WEEK: LOOKAHEAD

NBA Rivals Week continues through Saturday and each day the Starting 5 will dive into each matchup. Here’s a sneak peek.

Thursday: Playoff rematches

• Celtics at Heat (7:30 ET, TNT)
• Kings at Warriors (10 ET, TNT)

Only three series from the 2023 Playoffs went the full seven games and two of them are featured Thursday. The Celtics and Heat have met in three of the last four East Finals. The Kings and Warriors have met in the playoffs just once, but delivered a memorable series.

Friday: Draft connections

• Mavericks at Hawks (7 ET, NBA TV)
• Blazers at Spurs (9:30 ET, NBA TV)

Luka Doncic and Trae Young (currently in concussion protocol) will forever be connected since being traded for one another on draft night in 2018. The Blazers-Spurs matchup features two of the top three picks in the 2023 Draft with No. 1 Wemby and the Spurs hosting No. 3 Scoot Henderson and the Blazers.

Saturday: MVPs meet + playoff rematches

• Heat at Knicks (3 ET, ABC)
• 76ers at Nuggets (5:30 ET, ABC)
• Lakers at Warriors (8:30 ET, ABC)

MVPs Meet: This rivalry is about Embiid and Jokic, the two players who have won the last three MVPs.

However, Heat-Knicks is a traditional rivalry with plenty of high-stakes meetings in their history, the latest being Miami’s six-game win over New York in the 2023 East Semifinals.

Another six-game series from last year’s playoffs saw LeBron and the Lakers eliminate Steph Curry and the Warriors in the West Semifinals – their first playoff matchup since four straight Finals from 2015-2018.