NBA Game Notes (Dec. 15, 2025)
Here are the NBA game notes for games that were played on Dec. 15, 2025.
Three Stars
Here are my “three stars” from yesterday’s NBA games, with the “first star” considered the top performer.
First ⭐️
Nikola Jokic recorded his 12th triple-double of the season, compiling game highs of 39 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists (tied with Alperen Sengun) in the Denver Nuggets’ 128-125 overtime win over the Houston Rockets. Jokic went 13-27 from the field (5-9 on threes) and 8-11 from the free throw line. He also swiped two steals and blocked one shot in 42 minutes played.
Second ⭐️
Lauri Markkanen scored 33 points and grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds as the Utah Jazz outlasted the Dallas Mavericks 140-133 in overtime. Markkanen shot 11-23 from the floor and 10-12 from the charity stripe. He added five assists, a game-high four steals, and one block, committing just one turnover in 40 minutes of action.
Third ⭐️
Cooper Flagg became the first 18-year-old in NBA history to record a 40-point game, but his 42 points weren’t enough in the Mavericks’ overtime loss to the Jazz. Flagg went 13-27 from the field and 15-20 from the free throw line. He also contributed seven rebounds, six assists, a game-high two blocks, and one steal in 42 minutes played.
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Milestones
As noted above, Flagg became the first 18-year-old in NBA history to record a 40-point game. The previous high for an 18-year-old was 37 points by LeBron James on Dec. 13, 2003.
Flagg tied Mark Aguirre’s Mavericks record for most points scored in a game by a rookie. Aguirre dropped 42 points versus the Golden State Warriors on Nov. 14, 1981.
Flagg is just the fourth teenager in NBA history to record at least 40 points, five rebounds, and five assists in a game, joining LeBron James (three times), Kevin Durant, and Anthony Edwards. Flagg is, of course, the youngest player to achieve the feat.
Jokic and the Rockets’ Alperen Sengun (33 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists) became the first pair of opposing centers in NBA history to each record a 30-point triple-double.
Streaking
Jaylen Brown (34 points) recorded his fifth straight 30-point game in the Boston Celtics’ 112-105 loss to the Detroit Pistons, the longest such streak of his career. He’s produced eight 30-point games in his last nine contests, averaging 32.7 PPG, 7.0 RPG, and 6.4 APG over that span.
Team(s) with a winning streak of five or more games: Denver Nuggets (five).
Team(s) with a losing streak of five or more games: Miami Heat (five).
The Nuggets (128 points) have scored at least 110 points in each of their last 20 games, the franchise’s longest such streak since a 24-game run that spanned the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons.
Miscellany
Flagg was the night’s leading scorer, bagging a career-high 42 points. He was followed by Jokic (39 points), the Jazz’s Keyonte George (37), the Nuggets’ Jamal Murray (35), and Brown (34).
Markkanen was the top board man last night, pulling down 16 rebounds. Jokic was runner-up with 15 rebounds, while the Heat’s Kel’el Ware, the Mavericks’ P.J. Washington, and the LA Clippers’ Ivica Zubac shared third place with 13 apiece.
The Mavericks’ Ryan Nembhard was the night’s premier playmaker, handing out 11 assists. Also delivering double-digit dimes were the Pistons’ Cade Cunningham, Jokic, Sengun, and the Toronto Raptors’ Jamal Shead, each with 10 assists.