NBA Game Notes (Oct. 31, 2025)
Here are the NBA game notes for games that were played on Oct. 31, 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 ⭐️
Kawhi Leonard led all scorers with 34 points — including a game-winning 21-foot jumper at the buzzer — as the LA Clippers escaped with a 126-124 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. Leonard shot 11-16 from the field (5-8 on threes) and sank all seven of his free throw attempts. He added a game-high six steals, five rebounds, and five assists in 36 minutes of action.
Second ⭐️
Luka Doncic produced game highs of 44 points and 14 rebounds in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 117-112 comeback win over the Memphis Grizzlies. Doncic went 14-27 from the floor (6-15 on threes) and 10-13 from the charity stripe. He also dished out a team-high six assists in 39 minutes played.
Third ⭐️
Josh Giddey fell one assist shy of a triple-double, scoring a career-high 32 points to go with 10 rebounds and nine assists as the Chicago Bulls moved to 5-0 on the season with a 135-125 victory over the New York Knicks. Giddey shot 12-21 from the field, hitting four of his eight 3-point attempts. He also swiped one steal and did not commit a turnover in 38 minutes of court time.
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Milestones
Doncic reached 13,000 career points, becoming the sixth-fastest (453 games) and the seventh-youngest (26 years, 245 days) player in NBA history to attain that milestone.
Doncic is just the third player in NBA history to score at least 125 points through his first three games of a season, joining Wilt Chamberlain (three times) and Michael Jordan (1986-87).
Doncic produced his 49th career 40-point game, tying Shaquille O’Neal for 21st place on the NBA’s all-time list.
The Clippers’ James Harden (24 points, 14 assists) recorded his 258th career 20-point, 10-assist game, tying Russell Westbrook for the fourth-most such games in NBA history.
Streaking
Doncic became just the second player in NBA history to score at least 40 points in each of his first three games of a season, joining Wilt Chamberlain (twice). He’s the first Laker to record three consecutive 40-point double-doubles since Elgin Baylor from Feb. 13–19, 1963 (four in a row).
The Philadelphia 76ers’ Tyrese Maxey (26 points) recorded his fifth straight 25-point game in a 109-108 loss to the Boston Celtics. The only other player in franchise history to open a season with five such games in a row is Allen Iverson (twice).
Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (33 points) scored at least 30 points for the fourth straight game in a 118-96 loss to the Phoenix Suns. It’s the longest such streak of his career.
Dyson Daniels (three steals) extended his streak of games with at least one steal to 58 in the Atlanta Hawks’ 128-108 rout of the Indiana Pacers. It’s the fourth-longest such streak in the NBA this century.
Team(s) with a winning streak of five or more games (dating back to last season): Chicago Bulls (eight)
Team(s) with a losing streak of five or more games (dating back to last season): New Orleans Pelicans (12) and Indiana Pacers (five).
The Pacers have opened a season with five straight losses for just the second time in franchise history. The first such occurrence came in the 1988-89 campaign.
The Bulls have scored at least 110 points in each of their last 33 regular season games, breaking a tie with the Philadelphia Warriors (Dec. 18, 1960 to Feb. 12, 1961) for the fifth-longest such streak in NBA history.
The Cleveland Cavaliers (14-46 on threes) extended their streak of games with 10 or more 3-pointers made to 93 in a 112-101 loss to the Toronto Raptors. It’s the second-longest such streak in NBA history, trailing only a 97-game run by the Houston Rockets (Dec. 13, 2018 to Jan. 18, 2020).
The Cavaliers also extended their franchise-record streak of 100-point games to 50. They became the first team in NBA history to score at least 100 points with double-digit 3-pointers made in 50 consecutive games.
The Phoenix Suns (17-48 on threes) have made 15 or more 3-pointers in each of their last five games, the longest such streak in franchise history. They had recorded four such games in a row twice previously.
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Miscellany
Doncic was the night’s leading scorer, pouring in 44 points. He was followed by the Suns’ Devin Booker with 36; Leonard with 34; Markkanen with 33; the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown and Giddey with 32 apiece (a career high for Giddey); and the Pelicans’ Jordan Poole with 30.
The Portland Trail Blazers’ Donovan Clingan was the top board man, pulling down 15 rebounds last night. The Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic ranked second with 14 boards, while the Hawks’ Jalen Johnson and the Jazz’s Walker Kessler shared third place with 13 each.
Harden and Maxey were the premier playmakers last night, each handing out 14 assists (a career-high-tying total for Maxey). The Trail Blazers’ Jrue Holiday also delivered double-digit dimes with 13.