NBA Game Notes (Nov. 4, 2024)
Here are the NBA game notes for games that were played on Nov. 4, 2024.
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 ⭐️
Darius Garland produced game highs of 39 points and eight assists as the Cleveland Cavaliers edged the Milwaukee Bucks 116-114 to improve to 8-0 on the season, matching the best start in franchise history. Garland shot 15-22 from the floor, making seven of his 11 attempts from 3-point range. He committed just two turnovers and one personal foul in a team-high 35 minutes of action.
Second ⭐️
Kevin Durant scored a game-high 35 points as the Phoenix Suns rallied to defeat the Philadelphia 76ers 118-116 for their fifth consecutive win. Durant sank 14 of his 20 shots from the field and hit all five of his free throws. He also distributed a team-high six assists (tied with Devin Booker) in 39 minutes played.
Third ⭐️
Keyonte George scored a career-high-tying 33 points to lead the Utah Jazz to a 135-126 victory over the Chicago Bulls, giving Utah its first win of the season. George shot 8-18 from the floor — including 6-12 from 3-point range — and 11-13 from the free throw line. He also dished out a game-high nine assists in 39 minutes of playing time.
Milestones
The Sacramento Kings’ DeMar DeRozan scored 26 points on 10-18 shooting from the field in a 111-110 victory over the Miami Heat. DeRozan increased his career total to 23,760 points, passing Hall of Famer Charles Barkley (23,757) to take over 29th place on the NBA’s all-time list.
Russell Westbrook had 21 points, six rebounds, and six assists as the Denver Nuggets escaped with a 121-119 win over the Toronto Raptors. Westbrook now has 25,281 career points, enough to move past Hall of Famer Reggie Miller (25,279) and into 23rd place on the NBA’s career leaderboard.
Westbrook also recorded one steal to bring his career total to 1,862, breaking a tie with Isiah Thomas for 17th place on the NBA’s all-time list (steals have been tracked since 1973-74).
Kings center Domantas Sabonis scored 16 points to go with game highs of 16 rebounds and seven assists. He reached 6,000 career rebounds with an offensive board in the fourth quarter.
The Portland Trail Blazers’ Deandre Ayton recorded his 200th career double-double, tallying 19 points and a game-high 13 rebounds in a 118-100 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. Ayton has reached double figures in both points and rebounds in seven of his eight games this season.
Streaking
Victor Wembanyama compiled 24 points, 13 rebounds, nine blocks, and three steals in the San Antonio Spurs’ 113-104 loss to the LA Clippers, the 46th consecutive game in which he’s blocked at least one shot. Since the NBA began tracking blocks in 1973-74, no other player age 20 years old or younger has recorded such a streak longer than 33 games (Mitchell Robinson).
The Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic scored a game-high 34 points with four 3-pointers made in a 134-127 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Doncic has scored at least 15 points with one 3-pointer made in each of his last 77 games, the longest such streak in NBA history by 14 games.
Team(s) with a winning streak of five or more games (dating back to last season): Oklahoma City Thunder (12), Cleveland Cavaliers (eight), and Phoenix Suns (five).
Teams(s) with a losing streak of five or more games: Milwaukee Bucks (six).
Miscellany
Garland led all scorers last night with 39 points. Seven more players scored at least 30 points: the Los Angeles Lakers’ Anthony Davis (37), the Bucks’ Damian Lillard (36), Durant (35), Doncic (34), George (career-high-tying 33), the Sixers’ Tyrese Maxey (32), and the Pacers’ Myles Turner (30).
The New York Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns was the night’s top board man, hauling in 19 rebounds. The Bucks’ Bobby Portis (18), Sabonis (16), the Jazz’s Walker Kessler (16), the Cavaliers’ Jarrett Allen (15), and the Suns’ Jusf Nurkic (15) also had 15-rebound efforts.
Doncic was the leading playmaker last night, handing out 15 assists. Also delivering double-digit dimes were the Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic (13), the Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton (12), the Detroit Pistons’ Cade Cunningham (11), the Lakers’ LeBron James (11), the Raptors’ RJ Barrett (10), and the Spurs’ Chris Paul (10).
Jokic produced game highs of 28 points, 14 rebounds, and 13 assists for his 133rd career triple-double. He’s just five triple-doubles shy of tying Magic Johnson for third place on the NBA’s all-time list.
Jokic has been his team’s leader (either outright or tied) in points, rebounds, and assists in 175 games, the second-highest total in NBA history. LeBron James is the all-time leader with 233 such games.
Cunningham had 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists in the Pistons’ 115-103 win over the Lakers, his third career triple-double and first since his rookie campaign.
The LA Clippers trailed the Spurs 40-14 at the end of the first quarter before storming back to win. It’s the second-largest opening period deficit overcome to win a game in NBA history, trailing only the 27-point hole the New York Knicks climbed out of to beat the Los Angeles Lakers on Jan. 8, 1967.
The Oklahoma City Thunder improved to 7-0 this season with an easy 102-86 win over the Orlando Magic. The Thunder have outscored their opponents by 122 points, the fifth-highest point differential through the first seven games of a season in NBA history.
The Golden State Warriors handled the Washington Wizards 125-112 to raise their record to 6-1. The Warriors’ point differential is plus-121 points, tied for the sixth-highest such figure in NBA history through the first seven games of a season.