NBA Game Notes (Jan. 8, 2025)
Here are the NBA game notes for games that were played on Jan. 8, 2025.
Three Stars
The three stars in ice hockey are the three best players in a game, with the “first star” considered the best of the three players, similar to the player of the match in other sports. Here are my “three stars” from yesterday’s NBA games.
First ⭐️
Jarrett Allen scored a team-high 25 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers extended their winning streak to 11 games with a 129-122 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Allen made nine of his 11 field goal attempts and went 7-10 from the free throw line. He added a game-high 11 rebounds (tied with Isaiah Hartenstein), a season-high-tying six assists, and a game-high three steals (tied with two others) in 32 turnover-free minutes.
Second ⭐️
Karl-Anthony Towns produced game highs of 27 points (tied with OG Anunoby) and 13 rebounds in the New York Knicks’ 112-98 win over the Toronto Raptors. Towns shot 9-14 from the floor (3-3 on 3-pointers) and hit all six of his free throw attempts. He also swiped a game-high three steals and blocked a team-high two shots in 34 minutes played.
Third ⭐️
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 25 points to go with game highs of 16 rebounds and eight assists (tied with Damian Lillard) to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 121-105 victory over the San Antonio Spurs. Antetokounmpo went 11-21 from the field, but made just three of his seven free throw attempts. He committed only one personal foul in 36 minutes of action, helping to hold Victor Wembanyama to 10 points, his second-lowest total of the season.
Find out why Atlanta Hawks play-by-play man Bob Rathbun says Statitudes is “a valuable part of my daily research and it is FUN!” Sign up using the special link below and get 25% off your first 12 months.
Milestones
The matchup between the Oklahoma City Thunder (franchise-record 15 straight wins) and the Cleveland Cavaliers (10 straight wins) was just the third in NBA history to feature two teams riding double-digit winning streaks. The other two games occurred on Jan. 26, 1995 when the Utah Jazz faced the Seattle SuperSonics (both on 10-game winning streaks) and Feb. 29, 2000 when the Los Angeles Lakers played the Portland Trail Blazers (both on 11-game winning streaks). Those games were won by the Jazz and the Lakers, respectively.
Antetokounmpo recorded his 432nd career double-double, snapping a tie with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most such games in Bucks history. He ranks first among active players with 305 career 25-point, 10-rebound games.
Towns surpassed 14,000 career points (14,007, to be exact), becoming the second player from the 2015 NBA Draft class to reach that mark. He joins Devin Booker, who has 15,266 career points.
The San Antonio Spurs launched 52 threes (making 18 of them), tying the franchise record for most 3-pointers attempted in a game. The mark was first established on March 17, 2023.
Streaking
Antetokounmpo has scored in double figures with 50% shooting from the field in each of his last 31 regular season games, tying Dwight Howard for the second-longest such streak in NBA history. The record of 44 such games in a row is held by Nikola Jokic.
The Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a game-high 31 points, his 32nd consecutive 20-point game. He’s averaging 31.9 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 6.1 APG, and 2.0 SPG with 53.5/37.0/88.9 shooting splits over that span.
Spurs center Victor Wembanyama made two 3-pointers and blocked three shots, the 28th consecutive game in which he’s recorded at least one of each. It’s the longest such streak in NBA history by seven games.
Wembanyama has blocked at least one shot in 71 straight games, the longest such streak in Spurs history (by 10 games) and the second-longest such streak in the NBA this century (Josh Smith, 76).
The Chicago Bulls’ Zach LaVine recorded his fourth consecutive 30-point game, scoring a game-high 31 points on 12-20 shooting from the floor in a 129-113 loss to the Indiana Pacers. That matches the longest such streak of his career.
Teams with a winning streak of five or more games: Cleveland Cavaliers (11) and Detroit Pistons (five).
The Pistons beat the Brooklyn Nets 113-98 to extend their winning streak to five games. It’s the first time Detroit has won five consecutive games since March 2-10, 2019.
The Cavaliers went 15-36 from long range, the 11th straight game in which they’ve made 15 or more 3-pointers. That ties the 2020-21 Utah Jazz and the 2022-23 Golden State Warriors for the longest such streak in NBA history.
The Cavaliers have scored at least 100 points with 10 threes made in each of their last 40 games, tying the 2022-23 Golden State Warriors for the second-longest such streak in NBA history. The record of 49 such games in a row is held by the 2020-21 Utah Jazz.
Do you have family and friends who love the NBA as much as you do? Please consider sharing this publication with them. Your support is greatly appreciated.
Miscellany
Gilgeous-Alexander and LaVine were the night’s leading scorers, netting 31 points apiece. The only other player to produce a 30-point effort was the LA Clippers’ Norman Powell with 30.
Antetokounmpo was the top board man, hauling in a season-high-tying 16 rebounds last night. Next up was the Washington Wizards’ Jonas Valanciunas with 14 boards, followed by the Portland Trail Blazers’ Deandre Ayton and Towns with 13 each.
The Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton was the only player to deliver double-digit dimes last night, handing out 13 assists.
The Wizards’ Jared Butler produced 26 points and seven assists in just 20 minutes played in a 109-103 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. He’s just the fifth player since the ABA-NBA merger to record a 25-point, 5-assist game while playing 20 or fewer minutes, joining Rick Barry, John Paxson, Buddy Hield, and Marcus Smart.
The Cavaliers raised their record to a league-best 32-4. Only four teams in NBA history have won more games through their first 36 games of a season: the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors with 34 and the 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers, the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers, and the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls with 33 apiece.