Record: 26-6

OffRtg: 120.8 (2) DefRtg: 110.4 (3) NetRtg: +10.4 (1) Pace: 98.6 (24)

The Celtics had a couple of serious scares against bad teams last week, but they remain perfect (16-0) at home, and they’ve won 11 of their last 12 games overall.

Three takeaways

• Games against the Pistons and Raptors weren’t supposed to be the toughest home games the Celtics have had, but they trailed Detroit by 21 and then blew a 20-point lead to Toronto. Both games went down to the wire and the Celtics scored 44 points on just 28 clutch possessions, with Derrick White and Kristaps Porzingis (who missed the Toronto game) combining to shoot 10-for-13 from the field and 8-for-8 from the line in the clutch. After going 30-58 in games that were within five points in the last five minutes over the previous two regular seasons, the Celtics are 35-18 over the last two (2022-23 and ’23-24).

• The Celtics have had their full starting lineup for just one of their last seven games, with Jrue Holiday missing their win in San Antonio on Sunday with a right elbow sprain. They are 15-1 when all five starters have been available, with the one loss coming by three points in Philadelphia in Week 3.

• In the 27 previous seasons for which we have play-by-play data, only five teams (including the 2007-08 Celtics) have outscored their opponents by at least 10 points per 100 possessions. Four of the five reached the Finals and three of them won the championship. The Celtics and Sixers are both in that territory now, with Boston having taken back the league’s best point differential last week.

The Celtics have the league’s third toughest January schedule regarding cumulative opponent winning percentage, with 13 of their 16 games against teams that currently have winning records. The toughest game of the month is the first one, Tuesday in Oklahoma City, where the Celtics lost by 33 almost exactly one year ago. No rotation players are on the injury report for either team.

Jan. 2-7: @ OKC, vs. UTA, @ IND

Record: 22-9

OffRtg: 118.9 (6) DefRtg: 110.3 (2) NetRtg: +8.7 (3) Pace: 101.5 (7)

The Thunder have won seven of their last eight games, a stretch that now includes two wins in Denver (the rest of the league has just one of those) and the Wolves’ worst loss of the season (23 points).

Three takeaways

• The Thunder haven’t trailed after the first 17 minutes of any of their last four games. They’ve outscored their opponents by 23.5 points per 100 possessions over the four second halves. Jalen Williams scored 17 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter against the Knicks on Wednesday, and they held the Nuggets and Nets to just 43 total points on 54 third-quarter possessions over the weekend.

• They’ve shot 44.6% from 3-point range over the four games, with their starting frontline — Williams, Lu Dort and Chet Holmgren going 33-for-56 (59%). It’s the first time this season that the Thunder have gone four straight games without getting outscored from beyond the arc.

• They’ve gone 19 straight games without being outscored from 2-point range, and only once this season have they been outscored by more than two points inside the arc. While (as noted last week) they’ll give up some threes, the Thunder rank fourth in opponent field goal percentage in the paint (54.6%) and third in the (lowest) percentage of their opponents’ shots that have come in the paint (46.3%). The first number is lower (53.4%), while the second number is a tick higher (46.5%) with Holmgren on the floor.

Having beat the first place team in the West and the defending champs last week, the Thunder will now host the best team in the league. Then they’ll play 11 of their next 14 games on the road.

Jan. 2-7: vs. BOS, @ ATL, @ BKN

Record: 24-8

OffRtg: 113.6 (19) DefRtg: 108.2 (1) NetRtg: +5.3 (5) Pace: 99.1 (19)

The Wolves are still at the top of the Western Conference, but they’re now just a game in the loss column ahead of the Thunder, who beat them handily in Oklahoma City last Tuesday.

Three takeaways

• With their wins over the Mavs and Lakers last week, the Wolves were 11-1 (with 11 straight wins) in games that were within five points in the last five minutes, ranking fourth in both clutch offense and clutch defense as December came to a close. There was some great execution (from a team that ranked 25th in clutch offense last season) as Mike Conley and Anthony Edwards made back-to-back corner 3s down the stretch against L.A., with that game also improving the Wolves to 8-7 in games they trailed by double-digits.

• They cut a 22-point deficit down to four in New York on Monday afternoon, earning more clutch time with some good fourth-quarter defense. But that clutch time was short-lived and they never had a chance to tie or take the lead.

• The last five games have been the Wolves’ worst five-game stretch of offense (111.2 points scored per 100 possessions) since mid-November (Games 6-10), and turnovers have been an issue. They committed 22 more than their opponents (65-43) over the three games before the loss in New York.

The Wolves remain the only team that hasn’t lost two straight games, but the loss on Monday began a stretch of six straight against teams that currently have winning records, with five of those six games on the road (where seven of their eight losses have come). They’re at home on Wednesday, but the opponent is a team (the Pelicans) that beat them by 14 in their last meeting.

Jan. 2-7: vs. NOP, @ HOU, @ DAL

Record: 24-11

OffRtg: 117.8 (7) DefRtg: 112.1 (7) NetRtg: +5.7 (4) Pace: 97.9 (29)

This is the team for which the regular season means the least, but the Nuggets surely would like to have played better in their showdown with the Thunder on Friday. It was their worst loss of the season (26 points) and their first double-digit defeat in five weeks.

Three takeaways

• The Nuggets were previously 3-1 in rest-disadvantage games and Peyton Watson was their only starter that played in the fourth quarter of their win over the Grizzlies the night before. But they scored less than a point per possession for just the third time this season, with Jamal Murray shooting 4-for-15 and Nikola Jokic committing seven turnovers. The difference between their wins and losses this season has been more about their offense than their defense, and they have the league’s third biggest differential between their record when they’ve shot the league average or better from 3-point range (19-4) and when they haven’t (5-7).

• They began 2024 by taking care of business against the shorthanded Hornets on Monday. Things were a little too close for comfort at halftime, so they just put together a 25-2 run early in the third quarter and were able to rest most of their starters again in the fourth. The champs are now 16-0 against the 13 teams that currently have losing records.

• The win over Charlotte was the fourth time they held their opponent under a point per possession, matching their total from last season. The Nuggets, who’ve ranked in the top 10 defensively just once in the last 14 seasons, are the league’s seventh most-improved defensive team, having allowed 1.4 fewer points per 100 possessions than they did last season.

The Nuggets have three more games against teams currently under .500 in the next nine days, but they’ll be at another rest disadvantage when they host the Magic on Friday, having lost in Orlando (without Murray) just before Thanksgiving.

Jan. 2-7: @ GSW, vs. ORL, vs. DET

Record: 20-12

OffRtg: 117.6 (8) DefRtg: 113.0 (9) NetRtg: +4.7 (7) Pace: 98.8 (21)

After losses to the top two teams in these here rankings, the Clippers have won three straight. More important is that Kawhi Leonard is back in uniform, returning from a four-game absence to fill the boxscore against the Heat on Monday.

Three takeaways

• After allowing the Thunder and Celtics to score more than 140 points per 100 possessions, the Clippers have climbed into the top 10 on defense by holding these last three opponents (none of them great offensive teams) to just 105.7 per 100. They’re now one of five teams that rank in the top 10 on both ends of the floor.

• Their starting lineup has outscored opponents by 17.0 points per 100 possessions in its 245 minutes, with that being just 19 minutes short of the most any Clippers lineup has played in the five seasons that Leonard and Paul George have been on the roster.

• The Clippers rank fifth in 3-point percentage (in the top six for the sixth straight season) even though they’re 28th in the percentage of their 3-point attempts that have been wide open (45%) and dead last in the percentage of their attempts that have been off the catch (63%). James Harden’s 50-for-113 (44.2%) on pull-up 3s is the best mark among 28 players with at least 75 pull-up attempts.

It’s a great time for a showdown between the Clippers and Suns, who will meet in Phoenix on Wednesday. The tests don’t stop there for the Clippers, who are 6-6 against the other nine Western Conference teams that are currently at or above .500.

Jan. 2-7: @ PHX, @ NOP, @ LAL

Record: 22-10

OffRtg: 120.8 (3) DefRtg: 110.5 (4) NetRtg: +10.3 (2) Pace: 99.9 (15)

The Sixers are just 2-5 without Joel Embiid, who’s missed the last four games with an ankle sprain. But those two wins came on the road last week against teams – the Magic and Rockets – who are otherwise 25-7 at home.

Three takeaways

• Tyrese Maxey has an effective field goal percentage of just 44.2% over these four games without Embiid, and the Sixers have scored less than a point per possession with him off the floor. But he had a big game in Houston on Friday, scoring 42 points against the league’s sixth-ranked defense, making up for Embiid’s absence by going 14-for-15 (career highs for makes and attempts) at the line and pushing the Sixers to a win in what was, statistically, their worst defensive game of the season.

• The following night in Chicago, the Sixers had their worst offensive game of the season, scoring just 92 points on 92 possessions, despite turning the ball over just eight times. They remain one of three teams – the Hawks and Warriors are the others – that have scored at least a point per possession in every game.

• The Sixers have held their opponent under a point per possession six times, including four times in December. The latest instance was Wednesday in Orlando, when they created a little cushion between them and the fourth-place Magic with a comfortable win.

The Sixers are still 20-5 with Embiid in uniform, with all five of those losses having been within five points in the last five minutes. So they haven’t been beaten comfortably with the MVP, who could make his return as they begin a three-game homestand on Tuesday. They’re now 0-2 (0-1 with Embiid) against the Bulls, and this will be the final meeting of the season.

Jan. 2-7: vs. CHI, vs. NYK, vs. UTA

Record: 24-9

OffRtg: 120.7 (4) DefRtg: 115.4 (20) NetRtg: +5.3 (6) Pace: 102.6 (4)

It remains fair to keep questioning the Bucks, who still have the league’s third-best record and a ridiculously good offense, because the issues on the other end of the floor remain.

Three takeaways

• Their last two opponents have had two of the six worst 3-point shooting performances of the season; Cleveland shot 6-for-43 (14%) from beyond the arc on Friday and Indiana was 5-for-35 (14%) on Monday. But the Bucks only beat the Cavs by eight and they lost to the Pacers. Their own offense wasn’t great, but they also allowed both teams to score 64 points (on 68% combined shooting) in the paint. They were up by 15 late in the third quarter on Monday, but then allowed Indy to score 55 points on its final 38 possessions, with 34 of those 55 coming in the restricted area (11-for-13 shooting) or at the free throw line.

• The Bucks were basically playing the Long Island Nets after the first quarter on Wednesday, and they still gave up 70 points in the paint (Brooklyn’s second-highest total of the season) and 25 second-chance points.

• A lot of the issues over these last two games have come with reserves on the floor. The Bucks’ starting lineup allowed the Cavs and Pacers to score just 92 points on 92 defensive possessions, but the two teams combined for 141 on 114 (124 per 100) with at least one Milwaukee reserve on the floor.

The Bucks are the only team that is unbeaten (4-0) against the opposite conference, though those four interconference games are the fewest that any team has played. Two of those four wins came against the Spurs and Rockets, who they’ll visit after finishing their five-game season series with the Pacers on Wednesday.

Jan. 2-7: @ IND, @ SAS, @ HOU

Record: 19-12

OffRtg: 116.3 (12) DefRtg: 115.4 (21) NetRtg: +0.9 (15) Pace: 100.5 (10)

The Kings suffered their first loss to a bad team last Tuesday, getting clobbered in Portland despite 77 combined points from De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis. Other starters paid the price later in the week, but the Kings recovered to win the last two games on their three-game trip.

Three takeaways

• After that loss in Portland, the Kings were down 31-8 in Atlanta on Friday. Coach Mike Brown was not happy with starters Kevin Huerter and Harrison Barnes, who both played only the first five-ish minutes of each half. But the bench was good and they came back to beat the Hawks, becoming the second team (joining the Raptors) with multiple wins in games they trailed by at least 20 points this season.

• They closed the Atlanta game with Malik Monk and Chris Duarte instead of Huerter and Barnes, but another key was the rim protection of Alex Len, who’d played just two total minutes over the previous 21 games. The Hawks shot just 20-for-48 (42%) in the paint, including 4-for-12 (33%) when Len was on the floor.

• Duarte was in the starting lineup (instead of Huerter) in Memphis two nights later, when the Kings held their opponent under a point per possession for just the second time this season. After allowing 34 offensive rebounds and 41 second-chance points over the first two games of the trip, they allowed the Grizzlies to grab just one offensive board and register just two second-chance points on Sunday. Despite those first two games, the Kings still lead the league in defensive rebounding percentage at 73.6%.

The Kings have a relatively easy January schedule, and they’re one of two teams – the Celtics are the other — with five rest-advantage games this month. They’re 4-1 in rest-advantage games thus far, and the first of those five is Tuesday against the Hornets, the start of a four-game homestand.

Jan. 2-7: vs. CHA, vs. ORL, vs. TOR, vs. NOP

Record: 19-14

OffRtg: 115.4 (15) DefRtg: 112.1 (8) NetRtg: +3.3 (8) Pace: 100.3 (11)

The Pelicans haven’t lost by more than two points since they got clobbered by the Lakers in the In-Season Tournament semifinals, and they exacted some revenge on Sunday, beating the Lakers by 20.

Three takeaways

• The Pelicans have had some clutch problems. With their overtime loss to the Grizzlies on Tuesday, they had lost six of their last seven games that were within five points in the last five minutes, with issues on both ends of the floor. The late-game offense against Memphis was pretty ugly, with the Pelicans just hoping Brandon Ingram could bail them out of some possessions where there was little ball or player movement. They also allowed 80 points on 62 clutch defensive possessions (1.29 per) over that 1-6 stretch.

• They’ve led 27 of their 33 games by double-digits, with that 27 being tied (with the Celtics) for the league lead. But with their second-half and clutch issues, they’ve lost eight of those 27. They lost an 11-point lead to the Jazz on Thursday, but then scored 13 points on six clutch possessions, with Ingram and Trey Murphy III hitting big 3s down the stretch. (Both saved more ugly possessions.)

• Ingram seems to have realized that he can use his length on defense, blocking twice as many shots in his last four games (10) as he had in his previous 26 (5). It may not be a coincidence that it’s been the Pels’ best four-game stretch of defense (107.4 points allowed per 100 possessions) since Thanksgiving.

The Pelicans have the league’s toughest January schedule regarding cumulative opponent winning percentage, and they’re also the only team without a rest-advantage game this month. They’ll be at a disadvantage in Minnesota on Wednesday, having lost two of their first three games against the Wolves.

Jan. 2-7: vs. BKN, @ MIN, vs. LAC, @ SAC

Record: 19-14

OffRtg: 115.2 (16) DefRtg: 113.9 (13) NetRtg: +1.3 (14) Pace: 98.2 (26)

Jimmy Butler’s return from a four-game absence was brief, as he suffered a foot injury (not deemed to be serious) in the third quarter in Utah on Saturday. The Heat couldn’t beat the Jazz without him, and they dropped to 1-2 on their five-game trip with a loss in L.A. two nights later.

Three takeaways

• The Heat still have the league’s second-ranked road defense, having allowed just 110.8 points per 100 possessions away from Biscayne Bay. But, despite a ton of trips to the free throw line, they scored less than 110 per 100 in each of their two losses over the holiday weekend. They’ve shot just 31% from 3-point range over the three games overall, with their UCLA duo (Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Kevin Love) going 1-for-8 in their return to L.A. on Monday.

• The Heat’s best lineup would seemingly be Kyle Lowry, Tyler Herro, Butler, Jaquez and Bam Adebayo. And with their season 40% complete, that group has played just 15 minutes together. Caleb Martin has also missed the last three games after spraining his ankle on Christmas.

• So underestimate the potential of this group, which has still managed to remain in the top five in the East, at your own peril. But it should be noted that they’ve played a relatively easy schedule. Only the Suns (4-7) have played fewer games than the Heat (4-9) against the 17 teams that currently have winning records.

The Heat are staying in L.A. to play the 17-17 Lakers on Wednesday. Then they’ll have four straight games against the currently over .500 group.

Jan. 2-7: @ LAL, @ PHX

Record: 18-14

OffRtg: 122.2 (1) DefRtg: 120.2 (28) NetRtg: +2.0 (11) Pace: 103.5 (2)

The Pacers have seemingly recovered from their In-Season Tournament hangover, winning four straight games to climb from eighth to sixth place in the Eastern Conference.

Three takeaways

• Over the first three games of the streak, the Pacers shot 61-for-128 (47.7%) from 3-point range, with Tyrese Haliburton making 15 and assisting on 28 of those 61 3s. His 5.1 assists per game on 3-pointers would be a record, topping the 4.7 that LeBron James averaged in 2016-17 by a healthy margin.

• Over those three games, they outscored their opponents by 96 total points from beyond the arc, and they continue to lead the league in 3-point differential (plus 12.2 points per game). But they were minus-15 from deep in Milwaukee on Monday, with their 5-for-35 (14%) being the worst 3-point shooting performance for a winning team this season. As the Pacers outscored the Bucks by 24 points over the final 16 1/2 minutes (turning a 15-point deficit into a nine-point win), 52 of their 55 points came inside the arc (20-for-25) or at the free throw line (12-for-15).

• The winning streak began with a change to the starting lineup: Buddy Hield and Obi Toppin out, Aaron Nesmith and Jalen Smith in. But the new group has averaged less than nine minutes per game and has been outscored by four points over its 35 total minutes. The Pacers’ four most-used lineups for the season all include Bruce Brown, who’s missed the last five games.

The Pacers have the Eastern Conference’s toughest January schedule regarding cumulative opponent winning percentage, but the month began with their third win over the Bucks. The fifth and final meeting is Wednesday in Indiana and the start of a five-game homestand that also includes two games against the Celtics.

Jan. 2-7: vs. MIL, vs. ATL, vs. BOS

Record: 18-15

OffRtg: 116.2 (13) DefRtg: 114.5 (14) NetRtg: +1.7 (13) Pace: 98.2 (27)

A week ago, the Suns were in 11th place, having lost nine of their last 12 games. Now, they’re just a game behind the sixth-place Pelicans, having won four straight.

Three takeaways

• Bradley Beal scored just six points on 3-for-8 shooting in his return from a five-game absence on Friday, while Kevin Durant took just 11 shots in his 39 minutes. The Suns still scored 133 points on just 93 possessions against the Hornets, registering the second-highest effective field goal percentage (74.3%) for any team this season.

• The Suns were the only team with a Dec. 31-Jan. 1 back-to-back and Durant sat out the second game, so their three stars had just two games together last week and have still played only 65 total minutes together for the season. But the Suns have scored 176 points on 136 offensive possessions (129.4 per 100) in those 65 minutes. Watch them play and you realize that they’re not only ridiculously talented but also really smart offensive players who know how to take advantage of opposing defenses.

• In those two games over the weekend, Beal and Durant were the two stars who played the most minutes together, while Devin Booker was the one who played the most minutes without the other two. It was small sample sizes for both, but the Booker-only minutes were better, especially defensively.

The winning streak includes good wins in Houston and against the Magic, but the best test will come Wednesday when the Suns host the Clippers, who’ve won their last 10 games with Kawhi Leonard. It’s the first of four meetings, with the second one coming five days later in L.A.

Jan. 2-7: vs. LAC, vs. MIA, vs. MEM

Record: 19-13

OffRtg: 112.9 (21) DefRtg: 110.6 (5) NetRtg: +2.3 (10) Pace: 100.0 (14)

The Magic continue to have a hard time against the best teams in the league, but they got a big win over the Knicks on Friday, despite continued poor shooting from the outside.

Three takeaways

• The Magic have slipped into the bottom 10 in offensive efficiency for what would be the 12th straight season, an amazing streak of anemia on that end of the floor. They’ve scored less efficiently than the league average (114.9 points per 100 possessions) in 11 of their last 13 games.

• Those struggles are, not surprisingly, mostly about perimeter shooting, as they’ve also made no more than a third of their shots from outside the paint in 11 of their last 13 games. The Magic have the league’s biggest differential between their field goal percentage in the paint (58.5%, 11th) and their effective field goal percentage on shots from outside the paint (46.6%, 30th by a wide margin). They’re the only team without a player who’s shot the league average (36.5%) or better on at least 75 3-point attempts.

• But they’ve won games inside. They were a plus-22 (70-48) in the paint in Washington last Tuesday, and attempted 11 more free throws than the Knicks three nights later. The Magic continue to lead the league in point differential in the restricted area (plus-9.6) by a wide margin.

With their loss in Phoenix on Sunday, the Magic are 5-4 against the Western Conference and 8-9 against the other 16 teams that currently have winning records. Their January schedule is both difficult (11 of 16 against that over-.500 group) and West heavy (nine games against the opposite conference), with their four-game trip continuing this week.

Jan. 2-7: @ GSW, @ SAC, @ DEN, vs. ATL

Record: 18-15

OffRtg: 117.2 (9) DefRtg: 115.4 (19) NetRtg: +1.9 (12) Pace: 98.4 (25)

Last February, the Knicks traded for Josh Hart, a player who was seemingly meant to play for Tom Thibodeau. OG Anunoby (acquired on Saturday) is another one of those guys and then some, and his physicality was apparent as he took on the Anthony Edwards assignment (and fouled out) in his Knicks debut on Monday.

Three takeaways

• Three seasons ago, the Knicks ranked fourth defensively. Then they dropped to 11th in 2021-22 and 19th last season, and they ranked 20th on that end of the floor through Sunday. Anunoby was a big part of three top-five defenses in Toronto and he’s allowed just 0.79 points per possession on isolations over the last five seasons, according to Synergy tracking.

• He’s is also a pretty good fit on offense, where Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle will continue to dominate the ball. The Knicks rank third in the percentage of their 3-point attempts (28%) that have come from the corners and Anunoby now ranks third in total corner 3s (34), having gone 3-for-4 from the corners on Monday.

• The loss of Immanuel Quickley will hurt the Knicks’ bench, which ranked seventh in the league through Sunday. The new starting lineup was a plus-19 in less than 19 minutes against the Wolves, but the Knicks were outscored by 13 with at least one reserve on the floor and they saw their 22-point lead cut down to four. They still survived with a big stretch run from Julius Randle, got one of their best wins of the season, and remained the only team that hasn’t lost a game it led after the third quarter, now 14-0 when taking a lead into the final period.

The win over the Wolves was one of only six January games (they have 16 total) against teams that entered the month with winning records. The next is Friday in Philadelphia, the Knicks’ first meeting with the third-place Sixers.

Jan. 2-7: vs. CHI, @ PHI, @ WAS

Record: 19-15

OffRtg: 117.0 (10) DefRtg: 116.9 (23) NetRtg: +0.2 (17) Pace: 101.0 (8)

Having lost six of their last nine games, the Mavs have slipped out of the top six in the Western Conference. It’s been a relatively tough stretch of schedule, but two of their last three losses have come to the Cavs (who were without three starters) and Jazz.

Three takeaways

• The Mavs got Kyrie Irving back from a 12-game absence (over which they were 6-6) on Monday, but their offense did not get a boost. They registered their worst offensive performance of the season, scoring just 90 points on 103 possessions (including 15 on their final 35) in Utah. The Mavs ranked third offensively (119.3 points scored per 100) through Dec. 12 (two games into Irving’s absence), but have had the league’s sixth-worst offense (112.2 per 100) since then.

• Ten different Mavs have started at least one game over the last two weeks, though there are five — Irving (one), Luka Doncic (six), Dante Exum (seven), Derrick Jones Jr. (eight) and Dereck Lively II (five) — who’ve started every game for which they’ve been available over that stretch. That was the starting five on Monday, but Exum was lost to a heel contusion in the first quarter and Jaden Hardy (the only Mav who shot well) started the third. Nine Mavs have played at least 200 minutes alongside Doncic, and the best on-court numbers belong to the Doncic-Exum and Doncic-Lively combos.

• Tim Hardaway Jr. is tied (with a former teammate) for the league lead with 19 charges drawn and he’s mostly come off the bench, so he’s mostly defended against other reserves. But the Mavs have been at their worst defensively (allowing 119.1 points per 100 possessions) with him on the floor. The Mavs blew a 20-point lead against the Cavs on Wednesday and a couple of critical Cleveland layups came with what looked like mistakes on Hardaway’s part, one failure to rotate and another failure to switch (or at least hedge) a back-screen.

The Mavs’ loss in Minnesota on Thursday was the end of their only stretch of five games in seven days, while their loss in Utah on Monday was the end of a stretch where they played seven of 10 on the road. They now begin their longest homestand of the season (seven games over 13 days) and while they still have a better record on the road (11-8) than they do at home (8-7), they’ve been much more efficient offensively at American Airlines Center.

Jan. 2-7: vs. POR, vs. POR, vs. MIN

Record: 18-15

OffRtg: 113.2 (20) DefRtg: 113.2 (11) NetRtg: +0.0 (18) Pace: 98.6 (23)

The Cavs are 6-3 without Donovan Mitchell, having come back from 20 points down to win without him in Dallas on Wednesday. But they’ve dropped to 12-12 with their star, having lost their first two games upon his return.

Three takeaways

• These last two losses were both within five points in the last five minutes, but the Cavs scored just seven points on 14 clutch possessions over the two games, with Mitchell shooting 0-for-3 and committing two turnovers. They have the league’s third-biggest differential between their record in non-clutch games (11-4) and their record in those that were within five in the last five (7-11).

• The Cavs have been involved in three of the seven worst 3-point shooting games of the season, twice as the opponent and then shooting 6-for-43 (14%) in a loss to the Bucks on Friday. The 37 3-point misses were four more than they’ve had in any other game in franchise history. And that came in a game in which they shot 32-for-43 (74%) in the paint and 11-for-17 (65%) from mid-range. (They attempted just one mid-range shot two nights earlier in Dallas.) They didn’t shoot as badly (12-for-36) in Toronto on Monday, but Isaac Okoro missed a wide-open look from the right corner that would have given them the lead with less than 50 seconds left.

• You can make up for bad shooting by getting to the line, but the Cavs have the league’s fourth-worst free throw differential (minus-3.5 points per game) and have been outscored at the free throw line in nine of their last 10 games. They’re one of two teams (the Pacers are the other) that rank in the bottom six in both free throw rate and opponent free throw rate.

The loss in Toronto was only the Cavs’ second (they’re 11-2) against the 12 teams that currently have losing records, and it began a stretch of six straight games against that group. This week brings their first meetings with both the Wizards and the Spurs.

Jan. 2-7: vs. WAS, vs. WAS, vs. SAS

Record: 17-17

OffRtg: 112.4 (23) DefRtg: 113.2 (10) NetRtg: -0.8 (21) Pace: 100.9 (9)

The Lakers’ defense hasn’t been good enough to make up for their lack of shooting, and they’re 3-8 since the In-Season Tournament final, falling to .500 for the first time since they were 6-6.

Three takeaways

• The Lakers got a big win in Oklahoma City 10 days ago, but they’ve lost seven of their last nine games on the road and have the league’s second biggest home-road differential regarding winning percentage (11-4 vs. 6-13), with that home record including their Vegas win over the Pelicans. They also have its second biggest home-road differential regarding point differential per 100 possessions (plus-8.1 vs. minus-7.8).

• The much bigger difference has been on defense. With their loss in New Orleans on Sunday, they’ve allowed more than 115 points per 100 possessions 14 times this season, with 13 of those 14 games having come on the road. (The only exception is their Christmas loss to the Celtics.) Their opponents have shot much better, both in and outside the paint, in their road games.

• Offense was the bigger problem in Minnesota on Saturday when the Wolves consistently had two feet in the paint helping off Jarred Vanderbilt (now 1-for-14 from 3-point range) on the perimeter. With D’Angelo Russell, Cam Reddish and Rui Hachimura all now dealing with injuries, the Lakers don’t have a lot of perimeter options.

Good news: The Lakers will play 11 of their next 12 games in L.A., a stretch that includes their second and third meetings with the Clippers. They ended their 11-game losing streak against the Clippers with an overtime win in Week 2.

Jan. 2-7: vs. MIA, vs. MEM, vs. LAC

Record: 16-15

OffRtg: 114.2 (18) DefRtg: 111.3 (6) NetRtg: +2.9 (9) Pace: 98.2 (28)

The Rockets, who had won 11 straight games at the Toyota Center, are just 1-3 on the seven-game homestand that concludes this week, with the one win having come against the Pistons on Monday.

Three takeaways

• The Rockets had allowed just 99.2 points per 100 possessions over those 11 straight home wins, and they held the Mavs (without Luka Doncic) to just 96 on 109 in their last home game before Christmas. But in the first three games of this homestand, they allowed the Pacers, Suns and Sixers to score 127.7 per 100, with strong shooting both in and outside the paint, as well as a lot of free throws. Those are three great offenses, but the Sixers were without Joel Embiid.

• The games against Indiana and Philly were close, but the Rockets dropped to just 6-11 (only four teams have been worse) in clutch games with the two losses. They were down three in the closing seconds on Friday and Jock Landale (with Alperen Sengun having fouled out) attempted a contested layup instead of kicking the ball out to one of three open shooters.

• That play was seemingly designed for Jalen Green, who’s finally starting to make some shots. He’s 16-for-30 (53%) from 3-point range over his last three games after going 16-for-63 (25%) over his previous 12. The last two games (130 points scored per 100 possessions total) have been the Rockets’ third and fourth-most-efficient offensive performances of the season.

The homestand will conclude on Saturday with another visit from a top-five offense, that of the Bucks, who scored 128 points on just 99 possessions when the two teams met in Milwaukee 16 days ago. It will be the second game of about as tough a home back-to-back as you’re going to get, with the Wolves in town the night before.

Jan. 2-7: vs. BKN, vs. MIN, vs. MIL

Record: 15-19

OffRtg: 112.3 (24) DefRtg: 114.7 (15) NetRtg: -2.5 (23) Pace: 96.6 (30)

The Bulls are now without three of their four highest-paid players (you’re forgiven if you forgot about Lonzo Ball), but they keep winning games. They went 4-2 on their six-game homestand and are now 10-5 (with the league’s seventh-ranked defense) without Zach LaVine.

Three takeaways

• With Nikola Vucevic missing his first three games of the season, Andre Drummond was in the starting lineup and totaled 39 points (on 17-for-21 shooting) and 48 rebounds in the Bulls’ two wins last week. Drummond has ranked in the top three in rebounding percentage in each of the last 11 seasons, and this would be the eighth time that he’s led the league. His 26% is a career-high mark and there’s a huge gap between that and every other player who’s averaged at least 10 minutes.

• The Bulls have also been at their best, both over these last three games and for the season as a whole, with Drummond on the floor, with the bigger difference (in both cases) coming on defense.

• Their victory over the Hawks on Tuesday (sealed by three big buckets from DeMar DeRozan) gave them seven wins (tied for second most in the league) in games they trailed by double-digits. They erased a 25-point deficit and had a fourth-quarter lead against Indiana two nights later, but couldn’t stop the league’s No. 1 offense down the stretch.

The Bulls have the league’s easiest January schedule when it comes to cumulative opponent winning percentage (.402 as of Dec. 31), though it’s also the league’s most road-heavy January schedule, with 10 of their 15 games on the road. They’ll look to complete a three-game season sweep when they visit Philly on Tuesday, having held the Sixers to just 104.3 points per 100 possessions over the first two meetings (one with Joel Embiid, one without him).

Jan. 2-7: @ PHI, @ NYK, vs. CHA

Record: 15-17

OffRtg: 115.6 (14) DefRtg: 115.2 (16) NetRtg: +0.4 (16) Pace: 100.0 (13)

The Warriors had won eight straight games at the Chase Center … until they began their seven-game homestand with losses to the Heat (missing Jimmy Butler) and Mavs. They’ve lost three straight overall, their worst three-game stretch of defense this season.

Three takeaways

• The Warriors now have a losing record both with Draymond Green (7-8) and without him (8-9). The defense has been worse (117.3 points allowed per 100 possessions) in the games he’s missed, though it’s still been better in his total minutes off the floor (113.6 allowed per 100) than it’s been in his minutes on the floor (118.0).

• Over the three-game losing streak, Stephen Curry has an effective field goal percentage of just 40.2%. That’s his worst three-game stretch of shooting since January of 2022.

• Steve Kerr made another lineup change on Saturday, replacing Brandin Podziemski and Kevon Looney with Chris Paul and Trayce Jackson-Davis. They’ve outscored their opponents by 7.2 points per 100 possessions in 256 total minutes with Paul, Curry and Klay Thompson on the floor together, but the new group was a minus-5 at the start of the first quarter and a minus-1 at the start of the third against Dallas, allowing 28 points on just 20 defensive possessions, even though the Mavs shot just 2-for-7 from 3-point range.

Games 3 and 4 of the homestand should be just as tough as the first two, and the Warriors have lost five straight games to the Nuggets, who will be in town on Thursday. But the first two games this season (both in Denver and both without Green) were decided by a total of just nine points.

Jan. 2-7: vs. ORL, vs. DEN, vs. DET, vs. TOR

Record: 15-19

OffRtg: 112.5 (22) DefRtg: 116.8 (22) NetRtg: -4.3 (24) Pace: 100.2 (12)

The league’s biggest surprise team usually isn’t the same team two seasons in a row, but the Jazz have won eight of their last 11 games and could soon be knocking on the door of the Play-In Club.

Three takeaways

• They rank eighth defensively over this 8-3 stretch, which started when the Jazz started playing a lot of zone, including a good amount of box-and-one. For the season, they’ve allowed 0.95 points per zone possession, a mark which ranks third among 12 teams that have played at least 75 total possessions of zone, according to Synergy tracking.

• They haven’t played a lot of very good offenses over this stretch, but the Mavs came into their game on Monday ranking seventh offensively, and they were getting Kyrie Irving back from a 12-game absence. Then, they scored just 90 points on 103 possessions (87.4 per 100), one of the least efficient performances for any team this season. “We just couldn’t get in a rhythm with that zone,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said afterward.

• The Jazz have switched up their starting lineup quite a bit recently, but since Jordan Clarkson returned to his reserve role five games ago, their bench minutes have been most critical. Keyonte George and Kelly Olynyk had big games (with the rookie hitting three huge 3s) against the Heat on Saturday, Clarkson recorded the franchise’s first triple-double in almost 16 years two nights later, and the Jazz have outscored their opponents by 21.8 points per 100 possessions in his 134 minutes off the bench over this five-game stretch.

We’ll see if the Jazz can keep this going through the next 10 days. After they host the Pistons on Wednesday, they’ll play four games against four of the top six teams in the league, with all four — Boston, Philadelphia, Milwaukee and Denver — having offenses that rank in the top seven.

sneaky last-minute candidate for favorite block of 2023 👀#TakeNote | @youngoch pic.twitter.com/M0YTiIlpPP

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) December 30, 2023

Jan. 2-7: vs. DET, @ BOS, @ PHI

Record: 15-18

OffRtg: 116.4 (11) DefRtg: 117.1 (24) NetRtg: -0.7 (20) Pace: 99.0 (20)

The Nets have lost their last eight games that weren’t against the Pistons, a stretch that includes three losses to other teams — the Warriors, Jazz and Wizards — that have losing records.

Three takeaways

• They still rank 11th offensively overall, but the Nets have scored just 113.4 points per 100 possessions (23rd) over this 2-8 stretch. And they’ve played more games in that stretch against teams that currently rank in the bottom 10 defensively (4) than they’ve played against teams in the top 10 (3). One of their most efficient games of that stretch came against the Bucks on Wednesday when they played their G League team after the first quarter.

• Among 153 players with at least 100 field goal attempts in December, Spencer Dinwiddie had the fifth worst effective field goal percentage (45%), while Cam Thomas (48.3%) and Mikal Bridges (50%) weren’t much better. The starting lineup that included all three had scored an anemic 102.6 points per 100 possessions in 140 total minutes through Wednesday. So Dorian Finney-Smith replaced Thomas in the lineup over the weekend.

• The new lineup outscored the Wizards and Thunder by 22 points (allowing 58 points on 69 defensive possessions) in its 34 total minutes, but bench minutes (the Nets’ strength for most of the season) were bad. They’ve now been 13.7 points per 100 possessions better with Thomas off the floor (plus-5.5) than they’ve been with him on the floor (minus-8.2).

Their loss in Oklahoma City on Sunday began a stretch where the Nets are playing 12 of 15 games against the Western Conference. They’re currently 2-7 against the West and their struggling offense has three more games against teams that rank in the top 10 defensively this week.

Jan. 2-7: @ NOP, @ HOU, vs. OKC, vs. POR

Record: 10-22

OffRtg: 106.6 (30) DefRtg: 113.6 (12) NetRtg: -7.0 (26) Pace: 99.5 (16)

The Grizzlies won their first four games with Ja Morant, but they’ve since lost three straight (including one without him) and offense remains a struggle.

Three takeaways

• After scoring 120.7 points per 100 possessions (their best stretch of offense this season) in their first three games with Morant, the Grizzlies scored an anemic 100.7 per 100 in their four games last week. That included a loss in Denver without their star, but they also scored just a point per possession in Morant’s 108 minutes on the floor last week.

• They came back from a 14-point, fourth-quarter deficit to get their second win in New Orleans on Tuesday, but for most of that game, it was clear that the Grizzlies just don’t have enough guys to make defenses really pay for walling up and preventing Morant from getting to the basket. They’re one of two teams with fewer than two players (Desmond Bane is their only one) who’ve shot the league average (36.5%) or better on at least 75 3-point attempts.

• Luke Kennard has shot 22-for-54 (40.7%) from beyond the arc and returned from a 20-game absence on Sunday, going 5-for-8 from deep in the Grizzlies’ loss to the Kings. It will be interesting to see how much they’re willing to sacrifice defense for offense by maximizing the shooting around Morant, who must shoot better than 18% from outside the paint (2-for-11 from mid-range, 5-for-29 from 3-point range) himself.

Six of the Grizzlies’ seven games since Morant’s return were against teams that are currently at least four games over .500. If Memphis is going to eventually climb into the Play-In race in the West, it needs to take advantage of every little dip in their strength of schedule. Their next three games are against teams no better than the 17-17 Lakers, though their Tuesday-Wednesday back-to-back is the end of their only stretch of five games in seven days.

Jan. 2-7: vs. SAS, vs. TOR, @ LAL, @ PHX

Record: 13-19

OffRtg: 119.1 (5) DefRtg: 119.7 (27) NetRtg: -0.6 (19) Pace: 102.3 (5)

The Hawks got Jalen Johnson back last week and beat the Wizards on Sunday, but they’re still six games under .500 and in the bottom five in the Eastern Conference.

Three takeaways

• The Hawks have led each of their last seven games by double-digits, but before the win in Washington, they had lost four straight, allowing an incredible 132.8 points per 100 possessions in the second halves of the four games. After holding on to beat the Wizards, they’re 12-9 in games they led by at least 10 points with the nine losses being the second most in the league (only the Spurs have more). They were tied for third with 15 losses (they were 37-15) in games they led by double-digits last season.

• Each of those last seven games has also been within five points in the last five minutes, giving the Hawks 21 total clutch games (second most) for the season. After blowing a 12-point lead in Chicago on Tuesday, they were tied with four minutes left but scored just five points (and committed three turnovers) over their next eight possessions. Three nights later against the Kings, they had a two-point lead with less than five minutes left, but then went scoreless over their final eight trips down the floor. They still rank lower in clutch defense (127 points allowed per 100 possessions, 28th) than they do in clutch offense (104.7, 21st).

• Trae Young and Dejounte Murray combined for 72 points in Washington on Sunday, their second-highest total in Murray’s two seasons with the Hawks (103 total games together). Atlanta’s starting lineup (with Johnson and Saddiq Bey at forward) was still outscored by 20 points in its 20.7 minutes. They made their big runs with reserves on the floor even though Bogdan Bogdanovic shot 5-for-19 and Onyeka Okongwu wasn’t available.

The Hawks are just 5-14 against the 17 teams that currently have winning records, and their first five games of 2024 are against that group. That includes two games against the Pacers, with the first meeting (a 157-152 win for Indiana) having been the wildest game of the season to date.

Jan. 2-7: vs. OKC, @ IND, @ ORL

Record: 13-20

OffRtg: 114.3 (17) DefRtg: 115.3 (17) NetRtg: -1.0 (22) Pace: 99.2 (18)

It was an eventful Saturday for the Raptors, who became the team that helped the Pistons end their 28-game losing streak just hours after making a franchise-altering trade. RJ Barrett has come home, and he’s brought Immanuel Quickley with him.

Three takeaways

• In swapping OG Anunoby for Barrett, there’s still a good deal of skill-set overlap with Scottie Barnes and Pascal Siakam. Barrett is a downgrade defensively and he (36.3%) hasn’t shot nearly as well as Anunoby (40.5%) on catch-and-shoot 3s over the last three-plus seasons. But he drives more than twice as much (per 36 minutes), which can help generate more ball movement (this team already ranks second in passes per 24 minutes of possession) and better shots.

• The addition of Quickley is where the Raptors should benefit from the trade. He’s solid on both ends of the floor, has shot nearly as well off the catch as Anunoby and also gives them more juice off the dribble. The Knicks were better with Quickley on the floor than they were with him off it in each of the last four seasons and he should complement Scottie Barnes pretty well.

• It bears repeating how uncomfortable Barnes was from beyond the arc at the end of last season. Now, we’ve reached the point where he’s taking 15 3-pointers in a game, with his seven makes in Boston on Friday being two more than he’d ever made previously. With Barnes going 17-for-41 (41%) from beyond the arc, the Raptors have scored 122.8 points per 100 possessions over their last five games, their best stretch of offense this season.

That stretch includes losses to the Jazz and Pistons, but the Raptors did beat the Cavs in the new guys’ debut on Sunday. As we continue to wonder about the future of Siakam, we at least have something new to watch and evaluate north of the border.

The Raptors will be south of the border for the next 10 days, with one of their two six-game road trips beginning Wednesday in Memphis.

Jan. 2-7: @ MEM, @ SAC, @ GSW

Record: 9-23

OffRtg: 109.0 (27) DefRtg: 115.3 (18) NetRtg: -6.4 (25) Pace: 98.8 (22)

Sometimes, the Blazers are pretty competitive. Sometimes, they’re not. Two nights after they beat the Kings, they suffered a wire-to-wire loss to the Spurs.

Three takeaways

• The star of the win over Sacramento (the Blazers’ most efficient offensive game of the season) was Duop Reath, a 27-year-old rookie big on a two-way contract. Reath scored a career-high 25 points (on 9-for-15 shooting) against the Kings and the Blazers (who are 9-23) have outscored their opponents by 13.1 points per 100 possessions in his 305 total minutes this season. Unfortunately, he’s missed the last three games with back soreness, possibly from carrying the team.

• The Blazers seemingly have four guards — Malcolm Brogdon, Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simons — who should start for the sake of either competitiveness or development. But all four have been available in only six of their 32 games. Sharpe returned from a five-game absence (and came off the bench for the first time since opening night) on Sunday, but Simons has missed the last three games with an illness. The only combinations of the four for which the Blazers haven’t been outscored by more than 10 points per 100 possessions are Brogdon-Henderson (minus-3.7) and Brogdon-Sharpe (minus-3.6).

• The Brogdon-Henderson combo was the starting backcourt for the first three times last week, with both guys averaging at least 21 points and six assists over the three games. Henderson had 22 and 11 as the Spurs won their second of two games against the Spurs, draining 3s when San Antonio went under screens and making a couple of deft passes.

After getting clobbered in Phoenix, the Blazers are 4-12 on the road, 0-10 against the West and 4-2 in Eastern Conference arenas. The seven-game trip that began on Monday is West-heavy but will take them through Brooklyn (on Sunday) and New York.

Jan. 2-7: @ DAL, @ DAL, @ BKN

Record: 7-24

OffRtg: 110.4 (26) DefRtg: 121.7 (30) NetRtg: -11.3 (29) Pace: 99.3 (17)

If you miss the Pistons’ losing streak, the Hornets have got you covered. They’ve lost 11 straight games, in part because they’ve been without some of their best players. LaMelo Ball has missed the last 16 games, while Mark Williams has been out for the last 11 and Gordon Hayward has missed three straight.

Three takeaways

• Terry Rozier broke out of a shooting slump with a big game in Phoenix, shooting 8-for-12 from 3-point range as he scored a season-high 42 points, while also dishing out eight assists without a turnover. It was the Hornets’ third most efficient offensive game (119 points on just 95 possessions) of the season, and it came with some good ball movement.

• Alas, the Suns were much more efficient on the other end of the floor, going 18-for-30 from 3-point range and registering the second-highest effective field goal percentage for any team this season (74.3%). The Hornets had some good rotations out of double-teams, but their weak-side defenders were often deep in the paint, even if the guys they were guarding were Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant. The Hornets’ opponent 3-point percentage for the season (39.7%) would be the third highest in the 45 years of the 3-point line.

• Playing without Rozier (illness), the Hornets were down by just a single point one minute into the second half in Denver on Monday. And then the Nuggets went on an amazing 25-2 run, scoring those 25 points in less than five minutes and on a span of just 11 possessions, with only one empty trip. For the season, the Hornets have been outscored by 21.7 points per 100 possessions in the third quarter, the second-worst mark for any team in any quarter and topped only by the Spurs’ minus-27.1 in the third.

The Hornets have two games left on their six-game road trip, though their next four games are against the Kings and Bulls. They’ll be at a rest disadvantage in Sacramento on Tuesday, currently one of four winless teams (they’re 0-4) in the second game of back-to-backs.

Jan. 2-7: @ SAC, @ CHI

Record: 6-26

OffRtg: 112.2 (25) DefRtg: 121.2 (29) NetRtg: -9.0 (27) Pace: 104.1 (1)

The Wizards were going for their first winning streak of the season on Sunday, and they led the Hawks by 13 points after five minutes. But the lead quickly disappeared and they remain the only team that hasn’t won two straight games this season.

Three takeaways

• With that loss, the Wizards are 5-8 in games they led by double-digits. There hasn’t been a team with a losing record in games they led by double-digits in any of the last four seasons, but there are currently four — the Hornets, Pistons, Spurs and Wizards — this season.

• Delon Wright returned from a 20-game absence, played in three of the Wizards’ four games last week (sitting out the second game of their back-to-back), and seemed to spark a couple of good games from the bench. They beat Brooklyn on Friday even though their starting lineup (which hasn’t been that bad overall) was outscored by 12 points in less than 11 total minutes. But it was the opposite story two nights later, with the starters getting off to a great start and the Wizards being outscored by 22 points in less than 31 minutes with at least one reserve on the floor.

• They’ve still outscored their opponents by 3.4 points per 100 possessions in Wright’s 189 total minutes. His 6.1 deflections per 36 rank third among players who’ve played at least 150 minutes total.

The Wizards have the league’s third easiest January schedule regarding cumulative opponent winning percentage, mostly because they have two games each against the Pistons and Spurs. They have more games against teams that entered the month with winning records (nine) than they do against teams with losing records (six), and they’ll begin 2024 with five straight against the former group.

Jan. 2-7: @ CLE, @ CLE, vs. NYK

Record: 5-27

OffRtg: 107.3 (29) DefRtg: 119.0 (25) NetRtg: -11.7 (30) Pace: 103.0 (3)

The Spurs got their first win against one of the other teams in the league’s bottom 10 team, splitting a back-to-back in Portland last week. They’ve still won just two of their last 27 games.

Three takeaways

• Victor Wembanyama had one of his best games of the season in the win over the Blazers, scoring 30 points (on 9-for-14 from the field and 10-for-10 from the line), dishing out six assists (with just one turnover) and blocking seven shots. Over his first two games last week, the Jazz and Blazers were 7-for-29 (24%) on shots he defended. Portland’s 19-for-54 (35%) shooting in the paint on Thursday was the third-worst shooting game in the paint for any team this season.

• Those two games came after a four-day break, with the rookie having missed the Spurs’ last game before Christmas. After playing in their first 18 games, Wembanyama has missed four of the last 14, including the second game of each of their last two back-to-backs. (They’ll have three back-to-backs in January.)

• In those same two games, the Spurs had 69 assists on 85 field goals. For the season, they’ve recorded assists on 70.1% of their buckets, which would be the highest rate for any team in the last seven seasons.

The Spurs have one of the league’s easiest January schedules regarding cumulative opponent winning percentage, though their first opponent is now much better than its record would indicate, and the Spurs already lost to the Grizzlies in what was Memphis’ best offensive game of the season without Ja Morant.

SHEEESH 😤 pic.twitter.com/MnQf3FR8vO

— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) January 1, 2024

Jan. 2-7: @ MEM, vs. MIL, @ CLE

Record: 3-30

OffRtg: 108.5 (28) DefRtg: 119.5 (26) NetRtg: -11.0 (28) Pace: 101.5 (6)

The streak is over. After 28 straight losses — tied for the longest losing streak (single or multi-season) in NBA history — the Pistons were able to win a basketball game, out-gunning Toronto on Saturday in what was their most efficient offensive performance (129 points on 104 possessions) since their last win, which had come exactly nine weeks earlier.

Three takeaways

• Before they finally broke through, the Pistons had two near-misses, going down to the wire (after leading by double-digits) in losses to the Nets and Celtics, almost becoming the first opponent to win in Boston. The desperation showed on the offensive glass, with their offensive rebounding percentage on Thursday (42.9%) being the highest for a Boston opponent this season. But they allowed their opponents to score 42 points on just 27 clutch possessions over the two soul-crushing defeats.

• The Raptors shot 50% from 3-point range on Saturday, but that was on only 24 attempts. The Pistons have the league’s second-lowest opponent 3-point rate, with only 34.2% of their opponents’ shots having come from beyond the arc. That’s down from 37.8% (15th lowest) last season. Nine of the 11 teams that have allowed fewer than 12.5 made 3s per game have winning records, while the Blazers (10.8) and Pistons (11.6) are a combined 12-53.

• It seemed that Cade Cunningham was doing just about everything he could to stop the streak, averaging 34 points (on an effective field goal percentage of 64%) and 8.7 assists over the Pistons’ last three games of 2023. And it’s very possible that the tank was empty as they began 2023, as he shot 3-for-16 in Houston on Monday.

A new streak has begun and the Pistons’ 23-point loss in Houston was the start of a four-game trip. But stop No. 2 is Utah and the Pistons were tied with the Jazz in the fourth quarter just 12 days ago.

Jan. 2-7: @ UTA, @ GSW, @ DEN