FEATURES OF THE DAY

The Skinny on NBA Technical Fouls – for One Thing, They Are Way Down
Bob Bellotti

Can the Hawks Resist Temptation After Trading Trae Young?
Michael Pina, The Ringer

Andrew Nembhard still needs an Andrew Nembhard
Caitlin Cooper, Basketball She Wrote

Thunder trouble? Don’t read too much into it
David Thorpe, True Hoop

Should the Magic Trade Banchero?
Royce Webb/Jeremias Engelmann, 5×5

LEAGUEWIDE

The Skinny on NBA Technical Fouls – for One Thing, They Are Way Down
Bob Bellotti

Inside the Spurs, the Lakers and the ‘Art’ of Injury Management
Matt Guzman, Sports Illustrated

Recapping Thursday’s Four-Game Slate
Dustin Brewer, Hoops

Trae Young’s new connection, Heat’s big man tandem and more NBA trends
Fred Katz, The Athletic

No one is catching the Thunder for the best defense in the league this season. But the battle for No. 2 is hot
Bradley Rowland, Fansided

Contender or pretender: Are the Lakers, Celtics and Timberwolves for real?
Bradley Rowland, Fansided

the all-star the league refused to buy
bang!

max contracts met the second apron

What will the World team look like at 2026 NBA All-Star Game?
John Gonzalez, CBS Sports

James Nnaji Is Not What You Think He Is
Michael Hendricks, All Fields

TEAM-SPECIFIC

ATL: Can the Hawks Resist Temptation After Trading Trae Young?
Michael Pina, The Ringer

ATL: Why did the Hawks trade Trae Young? Here are the basketball reasons
Esfandiar Baraheni, The Athletic

BKN: Nets waste Egor Demin’s late heroics in heartbreaking OT loss
Brian Lewis, NY Post

BKN: Michael Porter Jr. shines, Egor Dëmin delivers, but Paolo Banchero has final say in Nets’ OT loss to Magic
CJ Holmes, Daily News

BOS: For one night, the Celtics reverted to early-season sloppiness, and it cost them
John Karalis, Boston Sports Journal

BOS: Celtics fall to shorthanded Nuggets: 6 takeaways
Tom Westerholm, Boston.com

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THE ATL-WAS TRADE

The trade is latest example of an NBA archetype going extinct
Brad Botkin, CBS Sports

Trade grades: Trae Young dealt from Hawks to Wizards
Kevin Pelton, ESPN

Why the Trae Young trade return was so underwhelming, and what’s next for Hawks
John Hollinger, The Athletic

Trade grades: Hawks get ‘B+’for sending Trae away
Sam Quinn, CBS Sports

While Atlanta will likely make more moves, Washington gets a real star in the short term but must balance relevance with protecting its rebuild
Chris Mannix, Sports Illustrated

Trade grades: Wizards pay Hawks next-to-nothing for four-time All-Star
Cody Williams, Fansided

Once traded for Luka, now a cellar-dwelling Wizard
Henry Abbott, True Hoop

Grading The Blockbuster Trade
Dan Favale, Bleacher Report

Wizards are betting Trae Young can raise their floor — and, on occasion, the roof
David Aldridge, The Athletic

Who won the swap?
Mike Shearer, Basketball Poetry

Winners and losers of the trade
Sam Quinn, CBS Sports

How Trae Young Should Approach The Rest of His NBA Career
Andy Bailey, Bleacher Report

LEAGUEWIDE

Who are this season’s most improved shooters?
John Schuhmann, NBA.com

10 questions that will shape NBA trade deadline
James Herbert, CBS Sports

What Every NBA Team Would Do If the Trade Deadline Was Today
Grant Hughes, Bleacher Report

NBA rookie rankings: Cooper Flagg takes over the No. 1 spot, with new names entering the top 10
Steve Jones, Yahoo Sports

NBA Power Rankings and New Year’s Resolutions for All 30 Teams
Andy Bailey, Bleacher Report

TEAM-SPECIFIC

ATL: Q & A: Giannis Antetokounmpo
Sam Amick, The Athletic

ATL: Trading for AD could be a disaster for the Hawks
Rucker Haringey, Fansided

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TEAM-SPECIFIC

BOS: Anfernee Simons and Celtics found each other at the perfect time
Trevor Hass, Celtics Blog

CHI: Buzelis is moving in the right direction
Joe Cowley, SunTimes

DAL: Mavericks Overcome Slow Start To Hand Kings Their Sixth Straight Loss
Gautam Varier, Fadeaway World

GSW: The Warriors’ Fading Dynasty Is Running Out of Time
Chris Mannix, Sports Illustrated

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LEAGUEWIDE

The Spurs are loaded, but these other NBA contenders could also threaten a Thunder dynasty
Bradley Rowland, Fansided

NBA News Roundup
Jacob Sutton, JSutt Hoops

NBA trade deadline: Breaking down the teams and players that could be involved in tax-ducking moves
Sam Quinn, CBS Sports

G League Star Kobe Bufkin Continues to Put NBA Teams on Alert
Matt Evans, heavy

NBA Power Rankings
Brad Botkin, CBS Sports

Power Rankings, Week 12
John Schuhmann, NBA.com

THE DRAFT

2026 NBA Draft BIG Board V.3
No Ceilings

2026 NBA Draft Top 100 prospects
Sam Vecenie, The Athletic

Stefan Vaaks Scouting Report
Ersin Demir, NBA Draft Newsletter

Scouting Report: UConn Forward Alex Karaban
Derek Parker, Sports Illustrated

TEAM-SPECIFIC

ATL: Dominique Wilkins dreamed of having a son. That Jake Wilkins dunks like him is a bonus
Mirin Fader, The Athletic

ATL: The good, bad and ugly: Lapses again failed Hawks in their loss to Raptors
Lauren Williams, AJC

BOS: The Celtics toughed out a win against the Bulls
Adam Taylor, Celtics Chronicle

CLE: Craig Porter Jr. joins elite Cavs company with multifaceted impact
Chris Fedor, cleveland.com

CLE: Game Night Observations: Another 4th Quarter Comeback, Garland’s Big Night, and a Max Strus Update. Plus CPJ’s Big Night!
Danny Cunningham, The Inside Shot

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LEAGUEWIDE

Will unintended consequences ruin this year’s MVP vote, All-NBA teams?
John Hollinger, The Athletic

Film Roundup: Ja Morant’s driving, Cedric Coward’s flashy skill, Cameron Boozer’s defensive outlook
Parker Fleming, Subtsakalidis

NBA Power Rankings: Celtics, Rockets are contenders; New Year’s resolutions for all
Law Murray, The Athletic

THE DRAFT

Cameron Boozer, AJ Dybantsa, and Darryn Peterson Are An Historic Prospect Trio
Nathan Grubel, No Ceilings

Draft Big Board 2.0: Part 2, Lottery
Parker Fleming, Subtsakalidis

Darius Acuff Jr. flashes immense scoring potential, defensive concerns
Sam Vecenie, Game Theory

TEAM-SPECIFIC

ATL: Where the Hawks and Trae Young Go From Here
Yossi Gozlan, Third Apron

ATL: What happened to Trae Young? Why the Hawks are so intent on trading their fading star
Chris Landers, Fansided

ATL: Scottie Barnes and Jalen Johnson: two sides of the same multi-skilled coin
Eric Koreen, The Athletic

BOS: Anfernee Simons is doing exactly what he said he would
Noa Dalzell, Celtics Blog

BOS: The Celtics are 10 games over .500. It’s time to change the expectations for this team
Gary Washburn, Boston Globe

BOS: Weary Celtics take Bulls by horns nonetheless in return to TD Garden for fourth straight win
Adam Himmelsbach, Boston Globe

BOS: Payton Pritchard not impressed by Celtics’ rise to 2nd in East, but others are
Jay King, The Athletic

CHA: Kon Knueppel is one of the NBA’s top rookies, but he’s far from satisfied
Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer

CLE: ‘Our best stay-ready guy’: Why Thomas Bryant might be the Cavs’ smartest pickup of the offseason
Ethan Sands, cleveland.com

DEN: Nikola Jokić-less Nuggets beat Joel Embiid-led 76ers in surprising overtime victory
Tony Jones, The Athletic

DEN: Nuggets in ‘survival mode’ as they adjust to life without star Nikola Jokić
Tony Jones, The Athletic

DET: Mike Brown used to babysit J.B. Bickerstaff. Now the coaches are atop the East
James Edwards III, The Athletic

DET: Pistons send message to Knicks and the NBA: They’re the team to beat in the East
Hunter Patterson, The Athletic

LAC: Clippers escape with gritty win as Sanders authors career-best night
Justin Russo

LAL: A Long Overdue Cooper Flagg Deep Dive
Iztok Franko, digginbasketball

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Ray and Nick discuss the state of the Sacramento Kings with less than a month to go before the NBA trade deadline. They discuss the state of the NBA in terms of buyers and sellers and how that might impact the Kings and their ability to move certain players in a deal. Then, they discuss the successes from the players brought in by the front office in the 2025 NBA Draft, and how their successes there could be related to future plans. Finally, they preview the schedule for the Kings for the week ahead, including a rematch against the Dallas Mavericks.

AROUND THE LEAGUE

A Quick Check-In
Dustin Brewer, Hoops Daily

The Evolution of Unethical Hoops
Austin Cornilles, Butterflies

Three Things I Noticed on League Pass: Old Dogs, Old Tricks
Jared Dubin, Last Night, In Basketball

Giannis For Jaylen. Who Says No? – Tom’s Title Tiers #12
Tom Haberstroh, The Finder with Tom Haberstroh

NBA awards 2025-26: Predictions for All-NBA teams, MVP winner
Kevin Pelton, ESPN

Knicks-Pistons an ECF preview? Big questions facing each contender
Tim Bontemps/Vincent Goodwill., ESPN

15 Bold NBA Predictions for 2026…
WindyCitySmackdown

TEAM NEWS

ATL: Krejci Is Hawks’ Best Shooter Right Now
Garrett Brown, LWOS

BOS: Parquet Plays: How less playing time fueled Jordan Walsh
Nik Land, Celtics Blog

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TEAM-SPECIFIC

ATL: Hawks run out of gas, fall to Raptors on second night of back-to-back games
Lauren Williams, AJC

ATL: Nickeil Alexander-Walker finds an expanded role after leaving Timberwolves for Hawks
Chris Hine, Star Tribune

ATL: Hawks bring out the best in Alexander-Walker
John Chidley-Hill, Canadian Press

BOS: Derrick White is leading the Celtics defense like few players can
Jack Simone, Hardwood Houdini

BOS: Jaylen Brown’s game and words speak volumes about his authenticity
Sherrod Blakely, Full Court Press

BOS: Brown delivers historic performance
Sherrod Blakely, Full Court Press

BOS: Jaylen Brown serves notice: ‘I believe I’m the best two-way player in the world’
Jay King, The Athletic

BOS: Flowers For Joe: Overdue praise for the Celtics coach
Paul Flannery, Hoopology

CHA: Hornets Harness Defense For 15-PT Comeback Road Victory In Chicago
Sam Perley, Hornets.com

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TEAM NEWS

ATL: Hawks continue momentum with road win over Knicks
Lauren Williams, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

BOS: Don’t confuse Luka Garza’s game as just hustle
Bill Sy, Celtics Blog

BKN: Nets fans should be grateful for these 5 things
C.J. Holmes, The Guam Daily Post

It’s clear that Brooklyn didn’t just draft a bunch of randoms in June. They drafted a direction. Egor Demin, Nolan Traore, Drake Powell, Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf have each had their own moments already, some in spurts with the big club and others in extended G League runs. You can see their confidence growing. You can see the outlines of what they might become. And that’s not even getting into Noah Clowney’s third-year leap.

For a franchise that’s spent years chasing stars, there’s something refreshing about watching a young core learn, fail, respond and slowly figure out what they can be. Yes, they’re raw. Yes, they’re inconsistent. But they’re also the clearest sign of long-term hope the Nets have had in quite some time.

CHA: GAMENOTES: Regular Season Game #34 Charlotte Hornets (11-22) at Milwaukee Bucks (14-20) – January 2nd, 2026
Doug Branson, Every Hornets Boxscore

CHI: Undermanned Bulls slam their way to second straight win, beating Magic
Joe Cowley, Chicago Sun-Times

CLE: Game Night Observations: Growth, Offensive Stagnation and a Return to Action
Danny Cunningham, The Inside Shot

CLE: The Cavs know they’ve found a hidden gem, and this is only the start for Jaylon Tyson
Tony Pesta, Fear the Sword

CLE: Why one game won’t — and shouldn’t — change Cavs’ rotation plans
Wine and Gold Talk Podcast, Cleveland.com

CLE: Cavaliers’ only offseason win was an addition almost no one paid attention to
Caleb Crowley, King James Gospel

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LEAGUEWIDE

Zone Defense in the NBA, 2025-26 edition
Mike Shearer, Basketball Poetry

The best plays and actions from NBA Christmas
Gibson Pyper, Half Court Hoops

The biggest 2025 draft steals this season
Greg Swartz, Bleacher Report

Raynaud, Richard, Kalkbrenner, Coward, Queen each were selected outside of the top 10 and have considerably outplayed their draft position to this point.

Brook Lopez’s spacing, Anthony Black’s ascension and more NBA trends
Fred Katz, The Athletic

Doc Rivers, Rick Carlisle reflect on their careers
Steve Aschburner, NBA.com

New Year’s resolutions for each NBA team
Zach Harper, The Athletic

TEAM-SPECIFIC

ATL: Asa Newell, Draft Steal
Antwane Willis, Soaring Down South

BKN: Revisiting the Michael Porter Jr. Trade
Yossi Gozlan, Third Apron

BOS: Celtics forced into a fight, but Jaylen Brown, Derrick White deliver in fourth to hold off Kings
Gary Washburn, Boston Globe

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