Top 5 Highlights: Luka's OT Winner, Reaves' Jaw-Dropping Miss, Wemby Wows, SGA vs. Ant Showdown

Basketball News 16-Mar-2026
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Starting 5 Daily Newsletter

Starting 5: Luka’s OT winner, Reaves”must-see miss, Wemby wows, SGA vs. Ant today

Ant & Shai start Sunday, Reaves forces OT where Dončić downs Denver, Hawks soar to 9th straight W, Warriors-Knicks on SNB.
NBA.com Staff | March 15, 2026 | 2:09 PM

Last second of OT. Double-team. Left-hand take”Luka Magic. Keep reading for the can’t-miss way the Lakers got to this play, and everything you need for a seven-game Sunday ”starting with Ant vs. Shai.

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀

March 15, 2026

BUT FIRST ”⏰/p>

Seven more games come your way Sunday”The Wolves and Thunder start your day of hoops on ABC (1 ET | Tap To Watch), plus, Sunday Night Basketball features the Warriors visiting the Knicks at MSG (8 ET, NBC/Peacock | Tap To Watch).

Last Chance: Unlock more games with NBA ID Member Days. Any NBA ID member can watch up to 15 games this weekend for free on League Pass, on us ”along with other member-only perks. Not an NBA ID member yet? Join today.

1. LUKA MAGIC: DONČIĆ HITS WINNER AFTER REAVES FORCES OT

An OT game-winner. A Playoff atmosphere. Dueling triple-doubles. An A+ intentional miss. Speaking to the ball—and a 41-year-old’s full-extension dive. Nuggets-Lakers had it all last night, with L.A. getting the W —and basketball fans everywhere getting a show.

Lakers 127, Nuggets 125 (OT): Austin Reaves (32 pts, 7 reb, 6 ast) forced overtime after rebounding his own intentionally missed free throw and Luka Dončić (30 pts, 11 reb, 13 ast) won it with 0.5 remaining on a fadeaway baseline jumper to send LA to 3rd place in the West. Nikola Jokić (24 pts, 16 reb, 14 ast) logged his 27th triple-double and added five steals, and Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 27 points and five 3s as Denver erased a 17-point gap for a 4th-quarter lead but finished the night back in 6th place. | Recap

Coming out of a timeout with 15 seconds left in OT, tied at 125-all, LA held for the final shot. Denver’s double-team chased Dončić down the left side, where he found magic.

“I work on this, so I trust my shot,”Luka said of his game-winning left-side step-back.

A Win & A Tie: The 30+ point triple-double was Dončić’s 55th of his career, tying Jokić for second-most all‑time.

“It’s very big”We gotta approach every game the same way,”Dončić said. “We’re fighting with Denver in the [standings]”That was a very big win for us.”br>“That’s the best I’ve seen the crowd since I’ve been with the Lakers,”Luka said of the overtime environment.

Nick Tomoyasu/NBAE via Getty Images

Reaves”savvy execution with 5 seconds left was to thank for that extra period, as he turned a trip to the line for two free throws into a 3-point possession. After sinking the first to pull within two, Reaves clanged the second foul shot off the left side of the rim, back to himself, for an open floater to tie the game.

“They had one guy on that side, so [I] try to miss that side and try to go make a play,”Reaves explained.

Something You Practice? “I’ve done it before, yeah,”Reaves said. “A long time ago in AAU, I tried it, and it worked. I hit a corner 3, but not to this magnitude.”br>“I love you.”Austin then shared his appreciation with the well-bouncing basketball.

“So many guys made winning plays,”Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “We went into this game saying we’re gonna treat this like a Playoff game”a chance to get the tie-breaker over Denver.”/p>

Sean M. Haffey/NBAE via Getty Images

One of those winning plays was LeBron James (17 pts, 6 reb, 5 ast) diving to secure a loose rebound in a one-point game with under a minute left in regulation.

“I told him after the game: In 23 years of watching you play in the NBA, and the three years I watched you play in high school, I never saw you make a full-out extension dive like that,”Redick said of LeBron.

L.A. is now a half-game up on Houston, while Denver is just 1.5 games ahead of Phoenix for the final Playoff spot. Seeds 3-6 in the West (L.A., Houston, Minnesota, Denver) are separated by just a game and a half.

2. STATEMENT W’S: SPURS STOP HORNETS, MAGIC SWEEP, 9 STRAIGHT FOR ATL

Back from a one-game absence (ankle), Victor Wembanyama left his mark all over a matchup of two streaking teams.

Spurs 115, Hornets 102: Wemby (32 pts, 12 reb, 4 blk, 5 3s) was everywhere, even lobbing out eight assists as the Spurs never trailed after the 1st quarter to thwart Miles Bridges (22 pts), Kon Knueppel (20 pts) and Charlotte, earning their 17th win in the last 19 games. | Recap

“We want to win everything,”Wemby told the NBA Nightcap crew on Prime after the game. “”I also want to win MVP and the Defensive Player of the Year, so I’m trying to press the gas now.”/p>

Eyeing 50: The 2nd-place Spurs, three games back of OKC, are now one win away from their first 50-win season since 2016-17.
In his last five games, Wemby has logged 165 points, 57 rebounds and 18 blocks, becoming the first player to reach those numbers in any five-game run since Yao Ming in December 2006.

Only one team’s win streak would survive this series finale in South Beach with 5th place in the East on the line.

Magic 121, Heat 117: Paolo Banchero (27 pts, 8 reb, 7 ast) led the way and Desmond Bane added 21 points as Orlando led for 47 minutes and survived a late charge from Jaime Jaquez (22 pts, 7 ast) and Miami to end the Heat’s 7-game win streak and sweep the season series 5-0. | Recap

Magic Legends: Banchero passed Penny Hardaway for the second-most 20+/5+/5+ games (76) in Magic history, and now trails only Tracy McGrady (117).
Five W’s: Orlando became just the second team since 1995-96 to defeat the same opponent five times in one season, joining the 2023-24 Pelicans.

Orlando now has a 7-game win streak of its own, sending the Heat back to 7th with the Raptors in between. The Magic are now 10 games over .500 for the first time since 2024.

Megan Briggs + Todd Kirkland/NBAE via Getty Images

Speaking of streaks, the Hawks extended the league’s longest active stretch of wins Saturday.

Hawks 122, Bucks 99: Jalen Johnson (23 pts, 10 reb, 12 ast) grabbed his 12th triple-double of the season and CJ McCollum netted 30 points and seven 3s in a 9th straight W, toppling Ryan Rollins (22 pts, 8 ast) and the Bucks without Giannis (calf). | Recap

HaWWWWWWWWWks: 8th-place Atlanta’s nine-game win streak is the franchise’s longest since claiming 19 straight in 2014-15.
Doubling Trip-Dubs: JJ’s triple-double was the 14th of his career, twice as many as next closest player in Hawks history, Mookie Blaylock (7).
3J: McCollum’s seven triples shot him past Paul Pierce (2,143) for 16th place on the NBA’s all-time made 3-pointers list.

3. ROUNDUP: TATUM STARS FOR C’S, SIXERS CLEAR NETS, KINGS STOP CLIPS

Celtics 111, Wizards 100: In a season-high 34 minutes of play, Jayson Tatum (20 pts, 14 reb, 7 ast, 2 stl) did a bit of everything and Neemias Queta (24 pts, 10 reb) had 22 points in the 1st half as the 2-seed C’s rolled past Tristan Vukcevic (22 pts, 6 3s) and the Wiz. | Recap

Sixers 104, Nets 97: Philly held Brooklyn to 31 1st-half points and responded when the Nets”completed a 28-point comeback to take their first lead in the 4th quarter. Quentin Grimes scored 15 of his season-high 28 points in the 4th, fueling an 18-10 Sixers closeout. | Recap
9th-place Philly keeps pace with red-hot Atlanta in 8th, and gains a game on Charlotte for a 2.5-game cushion ahead of the final Play-In position.

Juan Ocampo/NBAE via Getty Images

Kings 118, Clippers 109: DeMar DeRozan (27 pts, 7 ast), Precious Achiuwa (25 pts, 13 reb, 4 blk) and Maxime Raynaud (23 pts, 5 reb) overpowered Kawhi Leonard (31 pts, 6 reb), Darius Garland (25 pts, 7 ast) and Bennedict Mathurin (24 pts, 6 reb) to snap 8-seed LA’s four-game win streak. | Recap
Russell Westbrook (12 pts, 12 reb, 10 ast, 4 stl) tallied his 209th career triple-double, and is now three assists away from passing Steve Nash for 5th-most all-time.

4. ON ABC: HIGH-SCORING ANT HUNTS THIRD WIN OVER SGA, THUNDER

William Purnell/NBAE via Getty Images

Historic scorer, prolific defense. Fresh off a record-setting offensive achievement, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and OKC will dial up the defense for today’s opponent. Awaiting them? The season’s most successful scorer against OKC.

Wolves at Thunder (1 ET, ABC): In a Western Conference Finals rematch, top-3 scorers collide as Anthony Edwards (29.7 ppg, 3rd) aims for a third win over SGA (31.8 ppg, 2nd) and the defending champs.

Beyond Wilt’s Record: Shai suits up looking to continue his new all-time 20+ point scoring streak, as long as it’s in service of wins:
“All the records and the accomplishments are great, but they don’t matter if you don’t win. And that’s all that was on my mind,”SGA said of his record-breaking game.

And Win, They Have: Undefeated in March, OKC has won seven straight games since Shai’s return from injury Feb. 27.

David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images

Opposing SGA, Ant enters on the strength of his own scoring showcase, a 42-point outburst in a win at Golden State Friday. Edwards

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