With a brief pause in the Madness (don’t worry, your bracket can't get worse during this break), it's time to lock back in on the NBA. From Jimmy Butler’s Miami reunion to some tough injury news, we have a lot to cover today…

Today’s Lineup

🎉 Happy birthday to Justise Winslow, March Madness legend Ryan Arcidiacono, and Enjoyers Benjamin, Jaiden, Landon, Liam, Rayyan, Jesse, and Yahya! 🎉

Game Recaps

Heat handle Warriors 112-86, spoil Butler’s night

It's been a challenging few weeks for Miami since the trade deadline shuffle, but last night, the Heat reminded everyone exactly what they're made of—and did so with an extra dash of drama against former fan-favorite Jimmy Butler.

Sure, Butler (11 PTS) will forever hold legendary status in South Beach thanks to those unforgettable Finals runs, but this matchup clearly had the Heat itching to make a statement. And boy, did they ever.

From the opening minutes, Bam Adebayo (27 PTS) made it clear there'd be no warm welcome home, greeting Butler with a thunderous dunk that set the tone for Miami's wire-to-wire dominance. All five Heat starters hit double-digit scoring, spreading the floor beautifully and applying relentless defensive pressure that kept the Warriors off-balance all night.

And as a nice added bonus, how about a little magic trick from Kel'el Ware? Showing that the Heat’s future is still bright. ☀️

Booker comes up clutch; Suns beat Bucks 108-106 for 4th straight W

Not too long ago, talk of the Suns giving up on the season (and maybe even the Kevin Durant era) was starting to feel real. Now, riding a four-game win streak, the Suns have found their footing and brought a little hope back to the Valley—at least for the time being.

Despite missing Damian Lillard, the Bucks gave Phoenix everything they could handle in this one. Led by the strong one-two interior punch of Giannis Antetokounmpo (31 PTS) and Brook Lopez (23 PTS), Milwaukee was in it right down to the closing seconds.

For the Suns, KD (38 PTS) continued what has been a monster stretch for him, going white-hot from three and carrying Phoenix’s offense for long stretches. And shout-out to rookie Ryan Dunn (12 PTS), who not only made some huge defensive plays but also ended lives with a dunk-of-the-year candidate right on top of Giannis. 😳

At the end of the day, it was none other than Devin Booker (19 PTS, 12 AST) who secured the dub, coolly stepping around Lopez and burying a smooth midrange dagger with just under two seconds to go.

Elsewhere around the NBA…

• ​The Magic's offense is back in action! Franz Wagner (32 PTS, 8 AST) and Paolo Banchero (30 PTS, 7 REB) lit up the scoreboard on Monday, leading Orlando to a 118-106 victory over the Lakers.

• It’s time to have a conversation: have the Bulls become a legitimately good team? 8-2 over their last 10, Chicago has been led by their backcourt duo of Coby White (37 PTS) and Josh Giddey (26 PTS, 9 AST), who were both at the very tops of their games in a 129-119 win over the Nuggets.

• Okay, maybe Obi Toppin (6 3PM) has a personal vendetta against the Timberwolves. For his second straight game against Minnesota, he practically couldn’t miss and led the Pacers to an impressive 119-103 W.

• Ask Anthony Davis (12 PTS)—it’s not too late for the Mavericks to make a little noise. AD looked solid in his return from injury as Dallas cruised to a 120-101 win over the Nets.

• A career night from Keegan Murray (9 3PM) wasn’t enough for the Kings to keep up with the Thunder, who still managed to hold Sacramento under 40% from the field in their 121-105 win.

• With the Cavs and Blazers locked in a heated battle, Darius Garland (27 PTS) turned on the burners late, scoring in bunches down the stretch to help Cleveland pull away 122-111.

• You know what’s better than one triple-double? Two! Josh Hart (16 PTS, 12 REB, 11 AST) and Karl-Anthony Towns (26 PTS, 12 REB, 11 AST) both stuffed the stat sheet as the Knicks took care of business against the Mavericks 128-113.

March Madness Check-In

• Unfortunately, we have to start with some devastating news: USC superstar JuJu Watkins went down with a torn ACL in the Trojans’ 96-59 win over Mississippi State on Monday. Prayers up for her as she starts her recovery—we hope to see her back dominating as soon as possible! 🙏

• The Sweet 16 is about to get a whole lot more dramatic after Duke and North Carolina both won their second-round games, setting the iconic rivals up for what should be an epic clash later this week. The two split the season series, so it really is anyone’s game. 👀

• What a couple of days it’s been for Maryland basketball! After Derik Queen’s buzzer-beater on Sunday, the women’s Terrapins responded by winning a 111-108 double-OT thriller over Alabama. Sarah Te-Biasu (26 PTS) hit a huge three to send it to OT and then got the clutch steal to seal it in the final moments.

NBA News Roundup

Damian Lillard out indefinitely with blood clot

It’s been a brutal couple of days for injuries, and that all unfortunately just got worse. The Bucks announced yesterday that Damian Lillard is out indefinitely with a blood clot in his right calf—an issue that could keep him sidelined for the rest of the season.

It’s heartbreaking news for a Milwaukee team that had finally been gelling, and for fans everywhere who were excited to see Dame and Giannis go to work in the playoffs for the first time. Now, for the second straight year, we might not get to see one of the league’s most electric duos on the big stage.

Sending our best to Dame—here’s hoping for a full and speedy recovery! 🙏

Hoops History Spotlight

On This Day in 1949: A record-setting night for all the wrong reasons at MSG

People love clowning on the early days of the NBA with “plumbers and garbagemen” jokes galore, but there’s still plenty of weird and wonderful history to dig into from the league’s baby years.

One of our favorite nuggets? It happened exactly 76 years ago today, when the Baltimore Bullets and New York Knicks squared off in an overtime playoff battle that produced one of the NBA’s most hilariously unbreakable records.

In this era, teams prioritized quantity over quality when it came to shotmaking, and the result was a whole lot of misses leading to a whole lot of fouls. And in this must-win Game 3 with a trip to the conference finals on the line, things got especially wild. The two squads combined for 115 free throw attempts (yes, you read that right) in an absolute foul-fest.

Eventually, the Bullets ran out of subs. Literally. With five players left standing by the end of regulation, and due to a strange (but still active!) rule, players couldn’t foul out if there was no one left to sub in.

Enter our guy: Jack Toomay. The man not only picked up his sixth foul and stayed in the game—he racked up a seventh and then an eighth, setting a record that has never been touched since.

All that, and the Bullets still lost in OT. Tough.

If you want a taste of this chaotic era, we highly recommend checking out some 1950s game footage (like this Knicks vs. Pistons game from 1950). Just be warned—the whiplash from a slick backdoor cut to a two-foot set shot or a flying one-legged free throw is very real. 😂

Three in the Key

Signing Off

Another day of hoops in the books—just a reminder to check in with yourself and be thankful for your health. It’s the real MVP. 🙏

Talk soon,

-Spencer Poole