ATLANTA -- Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker injured his right ankle Friday night against Atlanta and limped off the court. Booker, a four-time All-Star, went down with 5 seconds remaining in the third quarter after rolling his ankle on the foot of the Hawks' Onyeka Okongwu. He was on the floor for several minutes before walking to the training room under his own power -- albeit limping and appearing to be in significant pain.
Keaton Wagler scored a career-high 46 points, making nine 3-pointers, as No. 11 Illinois defeated No. 4 Purdue 88-82 on Saturday. Wagler, a freshman guard, shot 13 for 17 overall, 9 of 11 from 3-point range and 11 of 13 on free throws. David Mirkovic added 12 points and eight rebounds for the Illini (17-3, 8-1 Big Ten). Braden Smith led the Boilermakers (17-3, 7-2) with 27 points and 12 assists.
With at least 41 games in the books for every NBA team, let's take stock of what we've learned from the first half of a 2025-26 campaign already full of surprise contenders, historic performances and plenty of twists and turns. ( And one trade!) A pair of young teams -- the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder and the resurgent Detroit Pistons -- raced out to massive leads in both conferences.
Wagler has been an irreplaceable player on a quality Illinois team, having a winning impact with limited high-level experience and putting himself on the map as a prospect. While still developing as an on-ball playmaker, his connective play and perimeter shotmaking (41.2% from 3), coupled with plus positional size, have put him in the first-round conversation. As a late-blooming prospect with obvious NBA appeal, the question revolves more around whether he is better off turning pro this year or returning to school and polishing his skills as a ball handler.
Virginia Tech had built a 31-24 halftime lead at home against Stanford two weeks ago when coach Mike Young offered a reminder to his players about Cardinal freshman Ebuka Okorie. "Don't underestimate this kid," he said. "He's that good." Actually, Okorie has been better than almost anyone envisioned. Okorie had just five first-half points at Virginia Tech, but over the final 20 minutes, the 6-foot-2 guard scored 26 more on 9-for-12 shooting.
PHILADELPHIA -- Not only did the 76ers find their way to a dramatic 128-122 victory over the Houston Rockets here at Xfinity Mobile Arena Thursday night, but on the two-year anniversary of Joel Embiid scoring 70 points here against the San Antonio Spurs, the superstar center put up a 32-point triple-double.
Carter made the team relevant, guided them to the second round of the playoffs, but was ultimately traded to the New Jersey Nets for nothing. Vansanity (as he was nicknamed) was one not only the most popular player on the Raptors but was one of the most popular players in the NBA. He was the best dunker in the league, as highlighted by the famous 2000 NBA Dunk Contest and he made everyone in Toronto proud that he was ours.
Joe Sterling, one of the best three-point shooters in the country, tried to put up a three-point attempt from long range at the outset of the third quarter on Wednesday night at Sierra Canyon. He must have forgotten who was guarding him, because Brandon McCoy came flying like Superman to block the shot, then took the deflected ball, dribbled and delivered an uncontested dunk.
Before this season tipped off, it would have seemed equally unlikely that this late-January edition of Power Rankings would feature Nebraska in the top five or Miami (Ohio) at all. And yet, that's where things stand after two of the three remaining unbeatens survived another week without a loss. Looking purely at efficiency-based metrics, which tend to be more predictive than résumé-based metrics, neither team fits the bill on paper.
Kyshawn George has become one of the great draft picks for the Washington Wizards over the course of the team's rebuild, Landing in Washington No. 24 overall in the 2024 NBA Draft, the Miami product has developed into one of the most versatile prospects on the team up to this point of the season. From a rookie season filled with flashes to a major leap throughout his sophomore campaign,
"I was definitely hyped," Allen told ESPN. "I had Paul Pierce in my ear telling me, 'Get ready! You stick me every day [in practice]. You should be ready. Let's go! That's Kobe Bryant!'" The No. 25 pick in the 2004 draft was trying to soak everything in and get himself in the right frame of mind for the 54th game of his young NBA career.
"We're not playing hard," Antetokounmpo said. "We aren't doing the right thing. We're not playing to win. We're not playing together. Our chemistry's not there. Guys are being selfish, trying to look for their own shots instead of looking for the right shot for the team. Guys trying to do it on their own. "At times, I feel like when we're down 10, down 15, down 20, we try to make it up in one play, and it's not going to work."
