Browsing: points

RALEIGH, N.C. — Macklin Celebrini set up San Jose’s first two goals to tie for the NHL assists lead and added an empty-netter, helping the Sharks beat Carolina 4-1 on Sunday night for their first road victory over the Hurricanes since 2018.

Celebrini tied Edmonton star Connor McDavid for the assists lead with 28, and moved a point ahead of McDavid for second in the scoring race with 43 — six behind Nathan MacKinnon of Colorado.

The Sharks had lost six in a row in Raleigh since a 3-1 victory Feb. 4, 2018 — when Celebrini was 11 years old.

Collin Graf, John Klingberg and Alexander Wennberg also scored, and Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 29 shots against his former team.

Jordan Staal scored for the Hurricanes, and Pyotr Kochetkov made 18 saves in his first loss in five starts this season. The Hurricanes dropped to 3-3-0 with a game left on their homestand.

Celebrini found Klingberg in the slot for a one-timer at 7:54 of the second period to give the Sharks a 2-1 lead. Wennberg scored off a rebound with 4:46 to go in the period.

Nedeljkovic was particularly sharp in the third period with 16 saves. Celebrini capped the scoring with the empty-netter with 1:20 left.

The Hurricanes kicked off a celebration of the 20th anniversary of their 2006 Stanley Cup champion team on Sunday. Most of the players, and former coach Peter Laviolette, were at the game and will be honoured on the ice Tuesday night before a home game with Columbus.

Sharks: At Philadelphia on Tuesday night.

Hurricanes: Host Columbus on Tuesday night.

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NEW YORK (AP) — Michael Porter Jr. tied his season high with 35 points, Nic Claxton had his second triple-double and the Brooklyn Nets beat the New Orleans Pelicans 119-101 on Saturday.

Porter matched his career best by reaching 30 for a third straight game, having also done it last Feb. 3-6 during his final season with Denver. He made five 3-pointers and had nine rebounds after sitting out Thursday to rest his back in the second night of a back-to-back.

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Claxton finished with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. Heâ€s the first Nets player with multiple triple-doubles in a season since James Harden (nine) and Kevin Durant (four) in 2021-22, and the second Nets center with multiple career triple-doubles. Shawn Bradley had five from 1995-97.

Dayâ€Ron Sharpe added 16 points on 7-for-8 shooting as Brooklyn won for the third time in four games to improve to 6-17.

Trey Murphy IIIscored 23 points for the Pelicans, who lost their sixth straight game and fell to 3-21. Saddiq Bey added 18 points and Bryce McGowens had 16.

The Nets shot 63.6 percent and had 13 assists on their 14 baskets in the first quarter, taking a 35-24 lead. Porter scored 13 points in the second quarter on 5-for-6 shooting as Brooklyn made it 62-44 at halftime.

The Nets led by 28 points in the second half.

Up next

Pelicans: Host San Antonio on Monday night.

Nets: At Dallas on Friday night.

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WWE is cooking up something new behind the scenes—and the latest clue just dropped in the form of a fresh trademark filing.

On December 5, 2025, WWE filed to trademark the name Fahd Tuwaiq, signaling plans to introduce the name into its on-air programming, likely through the NXT system or a main roster debut down the line.

The filing—submitted to the United States Patent & Trademark Office—includes the standard language WWE uses for talent-related trademarks:

“Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibitions and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer rendered live and through broadcast media including television and radio, and via the internet or commercial online service… providing online newsletters in the fields of sports entertainment; online journals, namely blogs, in the field of sports entertainment.â€

At the time of writing, WWE has not confirmed which wrestler will be using the name Fahd Tuwaiq. The name Fahd Tuwaiq appears to draw inspiration from Saudi cultural roots—“Tuwaiq†referencing a notable mountain range in the region. WWE has often used location-based inspiration when branding international talent.

What do you think of the name Fahd Tuwaiq? Does it sound like a future main event player—or something youâ€d expect for a gimmick role? Sound off in the comments and tell us what kind of character youâ€d book under that name.

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OKLAHOMA CITY — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 in three quarters, and the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Dallas Mavericks 132-111 on Friday night to claim their 14th straight win.

Gilgeous-Alexander made 10 of 12 field goals and 11 of 12 free throws to help the Thunder improve to 22-1 overall. He scored at least 20 points for the 95th straight game, the second-longest streak in league history behind Wilt Chamberlain’s 126 straight from 1961 to 1963.

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said Gilgeous-Alexander’s lethal efficiency on offense is a reflection of his steady improvement over eight seasons in the NBA.

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“He’s got a lot of experiences,” Daigneault said. “I think a 23-game playoff run [last season] was informative for everybody, including him. And he kind of channels all that into his work, which is ruthlessly consistent and very focused. So all he’s ever done is improve. You know, so at this point, as great of a player as he is, it’s not surprising when it gets even better.”

Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams each scored 15 points for the Thunder, who rolled without injured starters Lu Dort and Isaiah Hartenstein. Oklahoma City shot 56% from the field and made 26 of 28 free throws.

Dallas, though, also dealing with several injuries, had won three straight. Star rookie Cooper Flagg, who averaged 27 points during the winning streak, scored 16 on Friday.

Jaden Hardy led Dallas with 23 points. He made 8 of 13 field goals, including 5 of 9 3-pointers. Naji Marshall added 18 points for the Mavericks.

Dallas’ Anthony Davis, who averaged 20.6 points before Friday night, did not score in the first three quarters. He finally scored on a layup with just over eight minutes remaining. He finished with two points on 1-for-9 shooting, though he had eight rebounds and six assists.

Gilgeous-Alexander scored 17 points in the first half to help Oklahoma City take a 63-48 lead at the break. The Thunder took charge in the third, outscoring the Mavericks 41-26 to go up 104-74 heading into the fourth. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 16 points in the quarter, making 5 of 6 field goals and all four free throw attempts.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  Michael C. WrightDec 5, 2025, 08:38 PM ET

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  • Joined ESPN in 2010
  • Previously covered Bears for ESPN.com
  • Played college football at West Texas A&M

HOUSTON — Rockets star Kevin Durant drilled a 10-foot jumper with 6:15 remaining in the first quarter Friday against the Phoenix Suns to become the eighth player in NBA history to reach 31,000 career points.

Entering the matchup against his former team, Durant needed four points to hit the 31,000-point milestone. He got there with a pair of free throws and the mid-range jumper on his third attempt of the night.

Just two nights before, Durant lamented missing out on the opportunity join the company of 31,000-point scorers Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Dirk Nowitzki and LeBron during a 121-95 win over the Sacramento Kings. Needing 28 points in that contest to reach the milestone, Durant played 32 minutes but sat out the majority of the fourth quarter and finished with 8 assists, 3 rebounds and a block to go with his 24 points.

“Damn, I could have [done] that tonight,” Durant quipped after Wednesday’s win when informed of how close he was to reaching 31,000 career points. Durant then expressed appreciation for his latest accomplishment when asked whether career milestones still move him at this stage of what will be a Hall of Fame career.

“Yeah, they do. Hell yeah,” Durant said. “I mean, eight players in the history of the game, that’s insane.”

Durant remains at eighth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list behind James, Abdul-Jabbar, Malone, Bryant, Jordan, Nowitzki and Chamberlain. If the 15-time NBA All-Star remains healthy, it’s likely he’ll pass Chamberlain (31,419 points) and Nowitzki (31,560) this season on the all-time scoring list and perhaps even Jordan (32,292).

“I’m always grateful for all my coaches, teammates, guys that set screens for me, that give up their shots to look for me, that [have] encouraged me throughout my entire career,” Durant said. “I had a few teammates, playing with Russ [Westbrook], he meant a lot in my career when it comes to that. Steven [Adams] meant a lot in my career. Jeff Green. So, every time I hit these milestones I tend to think about my teammates and the journey I’ve been through. Even as a kid, so many people invested in my life, in my career and wanted to see me do well. So, I owe a lot to them. I always think about that when I hit milestones like this.”

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The Phoenix Suns hit the reset button this offseason and sent 15-time All-Star forward Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets in an NBA-record seven-team deal.

The Suns have turned the page from the Durant era and enjoyed surprising success over the first month and change of the 2025-26 campaign, but they ran into their old centerpiece again Friday night in Houston.

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And with a 10-foot jumper in the first quarter of a 117-98 win, the 37-year-old reached the latest milestone of his illustrious, 19-year career. Durant, a four-time NBA scoring champion, needed just four points to become the eighth player in league history to score 31,000 career points.

That’s rare air also inhabited by LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki and Wilt Chamberlain.

Granted that’s the same group Durant accompanied when he cleared the 30,000-point threshold in February last season, but that list of names remains incredibly impressive.

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It’s not out of the question Durant passes Jordan’s mark of 32,292 career points sometime this season. He’ll need to stay healthy, but if he accomplishes that feat, he’ll move up to fifth on the leaderboard, first jumping Chamberlain (31,419) and Nowitzki (31,560).

James, in his NBA-record 23rd season at 40 years old, leads the pack, and it’s not particularly close. He’s got 42,268 points to his name, 3,881 more than Abdul-Jabbar, who is second all-time.

Durant came into the Friday night matchup averaging 25 points per game in his first season with the Rockets while shooting 49.3% from the field, including 37% from beyond the arc.

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Through his first 17 games with the team, he had finished with 20 or more points 14 times, reaching or eclipsing the 30-point barrier on six occasions.

He’s thriving after signing a two-year extension with Houston reportedly worth $90 million this offseason. The Rockets could very well be the fifth and final franchise the two-time NBA champion and one-time league MVP suits up for in a prolific pro career that started in 2007.

Durant scored the bulk of his points with the Oklahoma City Thunder, who were the Seattle SuperSonics when he was drafted No. 2 overall out of Texas.

He won a pair of rings with the Golden State Warriors. Since, he’s starred for the Brooklyn Nets, Suns and now the Rockets.

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Although the success of Durant’s teams has ebbed and flowed, his scoring has been a constant in an ever-changing NBA landscape.

He reminded everyone of his age-defying consistency with 28 points on 11-of-17 shooting Friday against the Suns while adding another notch to a star-studded scoring belt.

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• Tim Bontemps

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  Tim Bontemps

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  Tim Bontemps is a senior NBA writer for ESPN.com who covers the league and what’s impacting it on and off the court, including trade deadline intel, expansion and his MVP Straw Polls. You can find Tim alongside Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon on The Hoop Collective podcast.

• Dave McMenamin

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  Dave McMenamin

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  • Lakers and NBA reporter for ESPN.
  • Covered the Lakers and NBA for ESPNLosAngeles.com from 2009-14, the Cavaliers from 2014-18 for ESPN.com and the NBA for NBA.com from 2005-09.

Dec 4, 2025, 10:05 PM ET

Editor’s note: This file was originally published on Jan. 25, 2023. On Dec. 4, 2025, in Toronto, James’ double-digit scoring streak ended after 1,297 games. The streak began more than 18 years ago.

LEBRON JAMES IS well-known for his uncanny ability to recall specific moments from any point throughout his pro basketball career, whether it occurred minutes or even years prior.

But when asked earlier this week about the milestone he reached Thursday — going 16 years and 1,125 regular-season games without scoring fewer than 10 points — James was stumped.

“Really?” he told ESPN. “I don’t remember it.”

It turns out James isn’t alone.

The game no one seems to recall? It was Jan. 5, 2007, a Cleveland Cavaliers’ 95-86 road victory over the Milwaukee Bucks during James’ fourth season in the NBA.

His line: nine assists, five rebounds, 3-for-13 shooting from the field in 43 minutes.

And eight points.

Cavaliers starting lineup: Jan. 5, 2007 (at Bucks)

PLAYERPOS.MINFG3PTFTREBASTSTLBLKTOFOULSPTSDrew GoodenPF3613-200-05-6162102431LeBron JamesSF433-130-42-25910218Zydrunas IlgauskasC335-150-01-182051511Eric SnowPG392-40-00-28610244Larry HughesSG367-174-64-745111022

“When I went to look at the box score I was like, ‘Well, maybe I had a good game,'” Donyell Marshall, now an assistant with the G League’s Greensboro Swarm and a forward on that 2006-07 Cavaliers team, told ESPN. “Then I looked at the box score and I was like, ‘Well, I didn’t do anything either.'”

“If you’d asked me, ‘Do you remember having 30-plus and LeBron being in single digits?’ I would have expected to have some kind of memory of it,” Drew Gooden, a former Cavaliers forward and now working as an analyst for Washington Wizards broadcasts, told ESPN with a laugh.

There was one person, however, who had a crystal clear memory of what happened that night: then-Bucks coach Terry Stotts.

“I’ll be honest, I remember that game distinctly — and not because LeBron didn’t score 10,” Stotts told ESPN.

The final play of that Cleveland victory — a dunk by Michael Redd with 14.8 seconds to go — would turn out to be the beginning of the end of Stotts’ tenure in Milwaukee.

“Michael had a dunk in the last seconds of the game,” Stotts said. “A meaningless dunk. We were down nine.

“[But] he goes up to dunk the ball, and he did something to his knee and missed the next 20 games. … We went 3-17.”

And, a little over two months later — after Milwaukee entered that Cavaliers game with a .500 record, and with wins in seven of their prior nine games — Stotts was fired. He would later go on to have a successful nine-year run as coach of the Portland Trail Blazers.

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But while the game turned out to have significant consequences for the Bucks, for Cleveland it was simply another night on the way to a wildly successful season that ended with an NBA Finals loss to the San Antonio Spurs.

So while James’ former teammates couldn’t remember much about a random January game 16 years ago, the memories of playing alongside him remain strong.

“I’m amazed by how much he keeps developing and growing and figuring things out, all with the weight of the world on his shoulders,” Gooden said.

“He’s a real life superhero, who is always available.”

FOR MARSHALL, WHO spent parts of three seasons playing alongside James as part of a career that saw him play for eight different teams, his enduring memory of James was of someone who was dedicated to both improving and knowing the history of the game from a very young age.

“I played with a lot of superstars, but never one who studied the game from the age he was at the time,” Marshall said. “As soon as the game was over, he wanted [to watch] film.

“To me, a lot of guys today aren’t necessarily students of the game. A lot of guys didn’t know the players that played before him, that paved the way for him. He’s a guy, though, that knows Oscar Robertson’s stats. He knows Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar’s] stats. He knows Wilt Chamberlain’s stats.”

Not only did LeBron James take the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals in 2007, he also began a record streak that’s still going strong. Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images

Gooden, meanwhile, said what stood out to him was the way James, at every point throughout his life under a basketball microscope going back to his high school days at St. Vincent-St. Mary in Akron, Ohio, has always met the moments placed before him.

“Just him always figuring it out,” Gooden said. “Just being able to produce under pressure. I’ve known him since he was 15, so it’s a different perspective from knowing him over 26 years. …

“He had this Nike campaign, about how we were witnesses to his greatness. Well, we have all been witnesses. It’s just that. It’s that, plus more.”

NBA Christmas Day on ESPN and ABC

Thursday, Dec. 25
Cavaliers at Knicks, 12 p.m.
Spurs at Thunder, 2:30 p.m.
Mavericks at Warriors, 5 p.m.
Rockets at Lakers, 8 p.m.
Timberwolves at Nuggets, 10:30 p.m.

All times Eastern

To put James’ streak in perspective: Marshall played in 957 games across 15 NBA seasons. Gooden, meanwhile, played 790 across 14 years in the league — both far more, and far longer, than the average NBA player’s career.

“It’s actually more surprising he ever scored under 10 points than to say he hasn’t done it in 16 years,” Marshall said. “Early in your career, your rookie year, you’re going to have some games where you might not score over 10. But the greatness that he has displayed and all that he’s done, I would say I’m more surprised he had a game under 10 points than I am surprised about the streak.”

Former Cavaliers guard Daniel Gibson, on the other hand, was a rookie that season. When asked about playing alongside James, Gibson immediately recalled his pre-draft workout ahead of the 2006 draft, when he was taken by Cleveland with the 42nd overall pick.

“I had a terrible workout in Houston, and then the Cavs were my second workout,” said Gibson, who is now an assistant coach with the G League’s Cleveland Charge, told ESPN. “And [LeBron] was there and I did amazing.

“After the workout, he came up to me and it just kind of gave me all of the confidence in the world. Being that he’s LeBron James, you’re [just] hoping for an opportunity on a roster — let alone him telling you he’d love that, if I was still available, to be on their roster.

“He instilled a lot of confidence in me and then that’s what I learned about him from the day I got to the Cavs, man. He was, to me, the best player in the world, and he was still the first person in the gym, last one to leave.”

“At first I was like, ‘That’s just another one of those records that’s kind of made up,’ but then I realized it’s not. It’s like a real record.”

LeBron James, on his streak of 1,125 regular-season games with at least 10 points

For his part, James said he doesn’t pay much attention to the regular-season game streak, saying it was only something he noted whenever it popped up on his social media timeline or was mentioned in the media.

And, he said, when he looks at box scores at halftime, his point total isn’t something he focuses on.

“I see it,” James said, “but the most things I look at are our team turnovers, the other team’s points off turnovers, fast-break points by our opponents, my personal turnovers.

“That’s pretty much it. I don’t look at the total points too much.”

THE CLOSEST JAMES came to breaking the streak was March 20, 2021, when he fell to the court in agony and frustration after spraining his ankle after landing on Atlanta Hawks forward Solomon Hill.

It briefly looked like he might not be able to keep playing. But he managed to stay in long enough to hit a 3-pointer to get to 10 points before calling a timeout and leaving the game.

It would turn out to be the last game James would play for more than a month, though James said he wasn’t aware at the time of the ramifications of his made 3-pointer.

“Not until after the game,” James said.

Another noteworthy moment during the streak came during the 2017-18 regular-season finale against the New York Knicks, where James, whose goal was to play in all 82 games, immediately left the contest after scoring exactly 10 points in 11 minutes.

LeBron secures NBA scoring record

LeBron James has passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s all-time leader in regular-season points this season.

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While James’ double-digit points streak has become a bigger deal over time — particularly after he passed Michael Jordan’s previous record of 866 consecutive regular season games on March 30, 2018, in a Cavaliers victory over the New Orleans Pelicans — it was never something he thought about trying to achieve.

“I was like, ‘Oh, that’s pretty cool,'” James said, referring to passing Jordan. “At first I was like, ‘That’s just another one of those records that’s kind of made up,’ but then I realized it’s not. It’s like a real record. But, I don’t know. I just go out and play.

“It’s the same with the all-time scoring record when I get it. I never even [aimed for it] … It’s pretty cool. I mean, I can’t sit here and be like, ‘Oh, well, it doesn’t mean anything.’ Because it does. But I didn’t set out to do it. I didn’t.”

Whether James aimed to achieve it or not, 16 years later he’s still doing it, inching closer to breaking Abdul-Jabbar’s once seemingly insurmountable mark as the league’s all-time leading scorer with 38,387 points.

For Gooden, though, it gives him an opportunity to prove to his 10-year-old son, Drew Gooden IV, that his dad actually does know a thing or two about playing with one of the greats.

“I will be showing my son this box score,” Gooden said with a laugh, adding that his son asks about James “all the time.”

“He’ll say to me, ‘Did you talk to LeBron? Do you know it’s his birthday?'” Gooden continued. “He’s a huge LeBron fan, and he’s getting to the age now where he knows it’s the truth, because there’s data to back it up.

“There’s some historic nights I’ve been part of with him. But never did I think there would be a historic night where he scored single digits and I had 31.”

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NEW YORK (AP) — Lauri Markkanen scored 30 points, Keyonte George had 29 and the Utah Jazz used a huge fourth quarter to beat the Brooklyn Nets123-110 on Thursday night.

The Jazz outscored the Nets 42-20 in the final quarter after trailing by 15 points in the first half. Markkanen and George nearly outscored the Nets by themselves, combining for 18 points.

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Kyle Filipowski had 15 points and Walter Clayton Jr.added 13 off the bench for Utah, which shot 14 for 22 (63.6%) in the fourth.

Noah Clowney scored 29 points and Ziaire Williams had 23 off the bench for Nets, who had their two-game winning streak snapped.

With the game tied at 98 with 6:29 remaining, George hit consecutive 3-pointers. Williams answered with a three that made it 104-101.

On the ensuing possession, Tyrese Martinturned the ball over after stepping out of bounds and Bryce Sensabaugh was fouled on a three-point attempt and made two free throws to extend the lead 106-101.

Filipowski then connected on another three-pointer and Markkanen followed with one of his own after Clowneyâ€s layup with 3:39 to play to make it 112-103.

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The Nets rested leading scorer Michael Porter Jr.for injury management in the second game of a back-to-back. Porter, who is averaging 25.3 points, scored 33 and had 10 rebounds in Wednesdayâ€s win at Chicago.

Up next

Jazz: Remain in New York to play the Knicks on Friday.

Nets: Host the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday.

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TORONTO — LeBron James’ record streak of 1,297 consecutive double-digit regular-season scoring efforts ended Thursday night, when the NBA’s career points leader was held to eight points in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 123-120 win over the Toronto Raptors.

James could have tried to win the game — and extend the streak — on the final possession, but he instead passed the ball to Rui Hachimura in the left corner.

Hachimura’s 3-pointer dropped as time expired, and James — who has said countless times over his 23-year career that he always tries to make the right and smartest play — threw his hands in the air in celebration.

“Bron told me right before this, ‘I got you. It’s going to come to you,'” Hachimura said in an on-court televised interview.

With that, the streak ended. The win was all that evidently mattered.

“LeBron is acutely aware of how many points he has at that point,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “He did it like he’s done so many times.”

James’ streak was easily the longest in NBA history, with the second-longest being held by Michael Jordan at 866 games. Among active players, it took the streaks of the 11 players behind him to surpass his total of 1,297 consecutive games. Kevin Durant is second on the active list at 267.

Before Thursday night, the last time James did not score at least 10 points in a regular-season game was Jan. 5, 2007, against the Milwaukee Bucks. He finished with eight points in that game.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Newcastle, though, will rue the manner of that second Tottenham equaliser.

On a night when Spurs had not exactly peppered the Newcastle goal, the hosts kindly gifted their visitors their second shot on target in the dying minutes.

Aaron Ramsdale, who is filling in for injured goalkeeper Nick Pope, elected to punch substitute Mathys Tel’s corner but it did not clear the box and the ball looped up invitingly inside the area.

What happened next felt like it was occurring in slow motion.

Romero, who had earlier sounded a warning in front of goal, was given the time and space to line up his overhead kick as no Newcastle player attacked the ball.

There was still an opportunity for someone to keep it out, but the ball bobbled past a sea of black and white shirts and crept past Ramsdale, who was slow to react.

St James’ was stunned.

It brought back memories of Rio Ngumoha’s 100th-minute winner for Liverpool back in August and Arsenal defender Gabriel’s 96th-minute knockout blow in September.

“You can look back to each moment and identify the mistake or a part of the team not doing its job,” Howe said. “The job for us is to coach the team to be better in those situations and that’s what we will endeavor to do.

“But sometimes it becomes psychological, sometimes it becomes a fear of conceding and you do concede. There’s so much that goes into it, but we have got to find ways when we are in front to be better and usually our best form of defence is to attack and I encourage us to do that all the time.

“Sometimes you have to accept that you’re not in that position in the game to do it, and you just have to see it out and defend better. Today was one of those moments where we didn’t do it.”

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