Starting 5, March 18: Kyrie Irving, Bam Adebayo send shockwaves

What happened on Sunday has only happened 15 times over the past 27 seasons.

And that’s just from two of yesterday’s games.

TODAY’S LINEUP

1️⃣ Coming up clutch: Kyrie Irving and Bam Adebayo both electrified the league with Tissot Buzzer Beaters less than an hour apart

2️⃣ Sounding off on Kyrie: The sports world went into a frenzy, from social media to American Airlines Center parking lot – where Kai ran into Pat Mahomes

3️⃣ Rare air: Just how rare is it for two players to have buzzer-beating game-winners on the same day?

4️⃣ Sunday roundup: Lillard and the Bucks had themselves a day, while Wemby, Paolo Banchero and Sam Hauser did, too. Stat leaders

5️⃣ Monday planner: What you need to know from the weekend, plus a few key games to circle this week – with some tough runs ahead for Orlando and Philly, and a packed Sunday

SCORES & WHAT TO WATCH

Cleveland vs. Indiana (7 ET, NBA App) brings together two teams looking to close the gap, as the league’s best offense (Indy) faces a team that has led the league in % of baskets assisted since 2024 opened

Philly and Miami meet at 7:30 ET (ESPN), opening a stretch for Philly that sees seven straight matchups against teams with winning records

Golden State hosts New York at 10 ET (ESPN) with the Knicks two games out of 3rd place and Golden State – three games out of the No. 6 seed – looking to go on a run

1. BAM & KYRIE’S ST. PATRICK’S DAY STUNNERS

Adebayo & Irving come up clutch: Just after 5:15 ET on Sunday, one of the year’s biggest breakouts hit a Tissot Buzzer Beater to send his team to 7th in the standings.

Forty-five minutes later, one of the most creative scorers in NBA history did the same, adding a new masterpiece to his collection and electrifying the hoops world.

• Tell me what I need to know: The 12th trey of Adebayo’s career sent the Heat over the Pistons, 104-101, while Irving’s lefty floater from 21 feet out gave the Mavs their fifth W in six games, 107-105 over the Nuggets
• 16th time in 27 years: Since the play-by-play stats era began in 1997-98, two players have hit buzzer-beating game-winners on the same day just 15 times before. (0.0 left on the clock)

First, Bam: Adebayo got a pass from Terry Rozier 31 feet from the hoop after a Cade Cunningham miss, fired, splashed and got mobbed by his teammates at center court.

• Angles on angles: Start with every angle … and this bonus from the far baseline
• When you’re hot, you’re hot: A week ago, Adebayo shot under 12% from 3 for his career. Since then, he’s had three straight games with a triple
• Heat coach Erik Spoelstra: “Sometimes there’s karma in this game. Bam was just outstanding for us, especially defensively, with all the things he was doing and everything he got on the glass. Sometimes the ball just happens to find that guy.”
• Playoff Race (MIA ↔️): Two straight wins over the Pistons after four straight losses have the Heat back to 7th
• Pistons celebrate ‘04: Detroit’s 2004 championship team was in the house to commemorate the 20th anniversary of an all-time team

Then, Kyrie: Tied 105-105 in front of a national TV audience on ABC, Kyrie took the inbounds near the right corner, curled toward the top of the key, then pulled up with a (mind-boggling) lefty runner to win it with his off-hand.

• All the angles: View the classic winner from every angle … especially this one … plus this one from Mavs social … and this slo-mo to show how close Jokic was to blocking it
• Inside the celebration: Go on-court to see Kyrie celebrating with Luka & the Mavs
• The final stretch: Including Jamal Murray’s go-ahead 3 with :26 left, then Luka’s answer to tie it, watch the last five minutes of a wild finish here
• Playoff Race (DAL ⬆️, DEN ⬇️): At 39-29, Dallas jumped into seventh in the West, between Sacramento in 6th and the Suns in 8th (via tiebreaker). Denver fell a half-game behind OKC atop the conference

2. GROUP CHAT: SOUNDING OFF ON KYRIE

“Irving for the win … Oh my, oh my! The southpaw finish from Kyrie Irving! Just absurd! … Unforgettable ingenuity from Kyrie Irving. A left-handed floater for the win.” – Ryan Ruocco on ABC

Kyrie’s winner sent shockwaves around the sports world, instantly going viral – with fans around the world (and NBA players) weighing in.

• Jalen Brunson: Kyrie that is sooooooo tough
• Trae Young: Kai with the Left! Crazzy finish!!
• Mo Bamba: A left hand running hook ?  Cmon son
• Nic Batum: Just saw Kyrie floater at the buzzer…
• Kevin Garnett: .@KyrieIrving 

Inside the arena…

• Jason Kidd: “Kai’s one of the best finishers in the league. He’s probably going to go down as one of the best finishers ever.”
• Dereck Lively II: “In Kyrie we trust. Whenever we see him get the ball, sit back and watch it happen.”
• Patrick Mahomes: The two-time reigning Super Bowl champ put it simply: “Greatness, dawg.”

Kyrie, for his part, didn’t seem too shocked. He’s been working on this for years, he said.

• Kyrie: “Sometimes I spend an hour straight working on straight left-handed stuff. Being a small guard for a large position of my life … you gotta have a multitude of finishes. That’s something I’ve been working on since I was a kid.
• “We play in the most athletic league in the world …  and those guys make up ground pretty quick. I try to work on things that the defense isn’t expecting.”

3. RARE AIR

Where would Sunday rank among some of the rarest things to happen over the past 27 years?

• 12 Times: Days where 2+ players scored 50+
• 16 Times: Dueling 20-point triple-doubles in a game
• 17 Times: 28+ rebound games & 21+ pt, 20+ ast games
• 18 Times: 45+ pt triple-doubles
• 19 Times: 40+ pt, 15+ ast games
• 21 Times: Days with multiple 30+ pt triple-doubles

4. ROUNDUP: LILLARD LEADS BUCKS BARRAGE

Dame, Milwaukee make history: Damian Lillard (31 pts, 16 ast) tied a career-high in assists, becoming the first Buck in history with a 30pt-15ast game, as Milwaukee knocked down a season-high 24 treys (inc. this Dame logo 3) to beat Phoenix, 140-129. | Recap

• Team game: Playing without Giannis, the Bucks also got 31 points from Bobby Portis, along with 22 from Khris Middleton — coming off a 16-game absence with a sprained ankle.
• Starting hot: Milwaukee’s 18 first-half threes tied an NBA record for a half
• Lillard on Middleton: “I thought it was huge, especially with Giannis being out. Any time you’re down your best player and then you add another weapon to a team that’s already down, it’s a pick-me-up just because we’re excited to have him back.”
• Playoff Race (MIL ↔️, PHX ⬇️): Milwaukee stayed put as the No. 2 seed in the East, while Phoenix fell out of guaranteed territory at No. 6 and into the eighth seed in the West, below the Mavs and Kings

Boston rides Hauser’s career night: Sam Hauser’s career-high 30 points and 10 3-pointers included seven treys in the first half, and Jayson Tatum added 30 of his own, as the Celtics beat the Wizards, 130-104. | Recap

• Tell me some cool stats: Hauser became the first NBA player to hit 10 treys in fewer than 23 minutes. Meanwhile, the Celtics’ fourth 80-point half of the season gave them double the total from any other team in the league
• Playoff Race (BOS ↔️): The Celtics stayed on top in the East, 9.5 up on the Bucks in 2nd

Magic climbing: Orlando improved to 8-2 over its last 10, and now stands just a half-game behind the Knicks after a 111-96 win over the Raptors, powered by Paolo Banchero’s 29. | Recap

• Elite in Orlando: Banchero’s 40th career 25+ point game joins Shaquille O’Neal (70) and Tracy McGrady (49) as the only Magic players to reach that mark before turning 22 years old
• Steal sans shoe: Cole Anthony lost his shoe, but took the ball.
• Playoff Race (ORL ↔️): The Magic stayed fifth in the East, but have a tough stretch ahead of them. More in Section 4

Wemby’s big game beats Nets in OT: Victor Wembanyama’s 33-point, 15-rebound, 7-block, 7-assist night – his 36th double-double in 60 games – led the Spurs to a 122-115 win over the Brooklyn Nets, holding off 31 points from Cam Thomas. | Recap

• Schroder sends it to OT: Brooklyn’s Dennis Schroder (19 pts) hit a three with 16 seconds left in regulation to tie it at 110, but had a go-ahead shot blocked by Wemby in the closing minute of OT as the Spurs held on
• Too smooth, Wemby: The 7-foot-4 No. 1 overall pick went guard mode with the double-cross into the reverse

Hawks break slump vs. Clippers: Double-doubles from Dejounte Murray, Clint Capela and Jalen Johnson and a defensive effort that held LA under 38% shooting sent Atlanta to the 110-93 win over the Clippers. | Recap

• James Harden passed Vince Carter for 20th on the NBA all-time scoring list
• Playoff Race (ATL ↔️, LAC ↔️): Atlanta stayed in 10th and the Clippers, who’ve now lost four of five, stayed at 4th

5. YOUR MONDAY PLANNER

The regular season ends in 27 days. Here’s what you gotta know about the next seven.

(And just in case you missed ‘em, the last three.)

Weekend Rewind: The West’s No. 1 spot flipped between OKC and Denver five days in a row, before the Thunder took it going into Sunday, then got breathing room (a half a game) from Denver’s loss.

• OKC Grabs 1st, Again: SGA, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams all put up 20+ for the 10th time this year, beating the Grizzlies Saturday to move OKC to a West-best 47-20
• Dubs Win Potential Play-In Preview: Steph Curry’s 31 (after a 3-game absence) and Klay Thompson’s 26 overcame a 40-point game from LeBron, as the Warriors beat the Lakers, 128-121, to leap L.A. into ninth
• Pelicans Soaring: No. 5 seed New Orleans logged a statement win over the Clippers Friday, then came back and beat Portland on Saturday for their seventh W in nine games
• Brunson’s Back-To-Back 40: The Knicks’ All-Star point guard poured in 42 points against the Kings Saturday, making him the first NYK player since Melo in 2014 to have consecutive 40-spots … meanwhile, the Knicks haven’t allowed 100+ in five straight games 

Gimme a few more games to circle this week:

• Tuesday: A Top of the West showdown between Denver and Minnesota (9 ET, NBA TV), in the first of three matchups between the teams between now and April 10
• Wednesday: Celtics-Bucks on ESPN (7:30 ET) pits the East’s top team vs. one of its top challengers – and biggest rivals. Also … 2 East elites meet in Heat-Cavs at 7 ET (NBA App), and the Suns host the Sixers (10 ET, NBA App)
• Thursday: Two breakout teams (and No. 5 seeds) meet in Orlando, when the Pelicans come to town (7 ET, NBA TV). Also … the Rockets look to keep rising vs. the Bulls (8 ET, NBA App) and the Knicks face a test in Denver (9 ET, NBA App) 

Things only heat up from Friday through Sunday:

• Friday: Big games everywhere. Cavs-Wolves at 8 (NBA TV), then Pelicans-Heat tipping at the same time (NBA App), with all four teams jockeying for position. 76ers-Lakers closes the night (10:30 ET, NBA TV)
• Saturday: The Magic play their 2nd game of 4 straight against West teams in the Play-In or above, taking on the Kings at 7 ET (NBA App).
• Also … Celtics-Bulls (8 ET, NBA TV) matches up two longtime rivals, Suns-Spurs (8 ET, NBA App) sees KD & Wemby go at it and Knicks-Nets tips the day off at 1 ET (NBA App)
• Sunday: Six games. Five between teams in Play-In or Playoff position. The Sixers’ West Coast swing finishes vs. the Clippers (3:30 ET, NBA App).
• The Cavs & Heat meet (6 ET, NBA App), followed by Warriors-Wolves (7 ET, NBA App), Thunder-Bucks (7 ET, NBA TV) and Pacers-Lakers (10 ET, NBA TV)