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Enjoyers, we hope your lives have been a little less tumultuous than the All-Star Game format over the past five years.

Today’s Lineup

🎉 Happy birthday to Brandon Miller, Taylor Hendricks, and Enjoyers Jude, Julian, Austin, and James! 🎉

Game Recaps

Hornets cancel Pistons’ 4Q run out in 123-121 overtime win

Hornets fans knew Charlotte was gonna win this game when they went up by 20 in the third quarter. But they didn’t know how—and it definitely surprised some.

After a decent first half, Brandon Miller (38 PTS, 7 REB) and LaMelo Ball (35 PTS, 9 AST) took this game over for Charlotte in the third quarter. The Hornets used a 30-point period to open up a HUGE lead over Detroit going into the fourth quarter… before Cade Cunningham (27 PTS, 10 AST) and the Pistons turned around and went on a run of their own to force OT.

And even though it looked like the Hornets had everything under control in overtime, this one was still tight in the end: ⬇️

Giannis drops 25 in the third, Bucks handle Bulls 122-106

It’s not that this game was ever really in question, because after the Bucks took the lead with a couple minutes left in the first, the closest the Bulls came to regaining it was cutting it to three in the middle of the second half. It’s just that what Giannis (41 PTS, 9 REB, 8 AST) did in the third quarter was that impressive.

After coming into the second half with the Bucks up 12, the Greek Freak continued his hot streak by scoring 25 PTS in the third period—AJ Green (3 3Q PTS) and Delon Wright (1 3Q PT) were the only other Bucks to score in the third. Props to Zach LaVine (27 PTS, 6 AST) and the Bulls, but this kind of dominance is especially difficult to counter.

Elsewhere around the NBA…

• A game-winner and absolutely HUGE fourth quarter from Franz Wagner (37 PTS, 11 AST) snuck the Magic by Anthony Davis (39 PTS, 9 REB) and the Lakers 119-118.

• RJ Barrett (31 PTS, 7 REB) and Chris Boucher (22 PTS) formed a true Canadian connection to lead the Raptors over Minnesota 110-105 last night.

• 34 PTS and 10 REB for KAT. 36 PTS, 10 AST for Jalen Brunson. If the Knicks had lost this one, we’re sure there would’ve been riots at MSG. Instead, New York took down the Suns 138-122.

• Shout out to Antonio Reeves! The 2024 47th overall pick dropped 34 points for New Orleans… despite a 128-100 Pels L to Cleveland.

• Joel Embiid (35 PTS, 11 REB) ended with a great line, but the Grizzlies spoiled his night by winning 117-111 behind 25 from Jaren Jackson Jr. and a well-rounded performance from Desmond Bane (21 PTS, 10 REB, 6 AST).

• The Thunder got back on track after two straight losses with a 109-98 home win over Portland—SGA (28 PTS, 5 REB, 4 AST) and J-Dub (30 PTS, 8 AST, 7 REB) led the way and Isaiah Hartenstein (13 PTS, 14 REB) showed out in his OKC debut!

NBA All-Star Format Change

It’s official! ESPN reported yesterday that the 2025 All-Star Game will be switching to a four-team format, with NBA All-Stars comprising three of the teams and the fourth team being the winning squad from the Rising Stars Game.

Film Friday: Jared McCain

About a month into the NBA season, Sixers guard Jared McCain has established himself as one of the best rookies in this year’s class and a potential ROTY favorite come spring. We took a look at the tape and found out why:

1. McCain might already be the best passer on the team

The former Duke Blue Devil is showing off court vision and playmaking instincts that would usually come from years of experience on an NBA court. His assists per game mark (2.7) looks less than impressive, but if you disregard the early-season games where he only logged a couple minutes per night, you start to understand who this guy really is. Before his current three-game streak of 4+ assist games, he had a 10-assist night against Cleveland… oh, and he also dropped 34. ⬇️

2. The McCain-Embiid connection already looks elite

The Rook and The Process are already gelling, and all you need to do to understand that is tune into a Philly game. We know they’re 2-12. We promise. You’ll Enjoy it. Embiid’s big body and McCain’s shifty movement with the ball in his hands allow the rookie to consistently get open looks…

…you know what? Let’s just let him describe it:

3. Three words: usage, usage, usage

Being able to play well matters a little less if the ball doesn’t find your hands, but McCain hasn’t had any issue with that. His 26.7% usage rate (higher than All-Star level guys like Kyrie Irving and Zach LaVine) ranks fourth on the Sixers and has allowed him to come out of the gate HOT on the offensive end—his 15.6 PPG are the most among this year’s rookie class.

Three in the Key

Signing Off

Happy Friday, Enjoyers. If you were in one of those magical places that saw its first snow of the year this week, bundle up! Winter might be coming, but all that means is more time on the couch watching ball. Take care.

Austin Zeglis