Nicked Up Nuggets and Harden Heating Up - NBA Western Conference Brain Food: November 18th

Tim Warner. Getty Images.

Here is what's happening from the 15 Western Conference NBA teams written by the super fans that are closest to each team. This is NBA Brain Food - Western Conference Edition for Tuesday, November 18, 2025

Dallas Mavericks (4-11, 13th in the West) via J.D.

• The Mavs are 4-11 with the #29 Offensive Rating (104.7) and #4 in Defensive Rating (110.8)
• Anthony Davis is still out. He will be re-evaluated in 7-10 days for another update on when he may return from injury. 
• Coach Jason Kidd addressed injury issues in last night's press conference "Our health is a big problem. We have guys out for one game and then they're in and on minutes restrictions. There's no continuity. There won't be any continuity. We're trying to piece this thing together."
• The Mavs offense continues to be their downfall. They are 29th in 3-point % (31.1%), 27th in TOV/game (16.9), 30th in Ast/To Ratio (1.46) and 28th in PPG (110.3).
• The lone bright spot this season has been rookie Cooper Flagg who has scored in double figures in 11 straight and 14 of 15 games this season. Flagg is averaging 15.5 ppg and shooting 64% on 2 point field goals while leading the Mavs in minutes per game (33.7).
• The Mavs have a 3 game homestand this week against the Knicks (Wednesday), Pelicans (Friday), and Grizzlies (Saturday). 

Denver Nuggets (10-3, 2nd in the West) via Grant M

• Nikola Jokic was named Western Conference Player of the Week for the second straight week, averaging 39ppg, 13rpg, and 8apg. He added another triple-double Monday night with 36/18/13. He leads the league with 8 TDs this season.
• Aaron Gordon is having a great start to the year averaging 20ppg on 54/48/89 shooting splits. He's also had double digit rebounds each of the last two games.
• Tim Hardaway Jr and Peyton Watson started for Christian Braun and Cam Johnson on Saturday.  Hardaway filled it up with 23pts (5/6 from three). While Braun is out for at least six weeks with an ankle sprain, expect Watson to start, with a lot of Bruce Brown minutes in that time.
• Bit of a down game for the reserves after a strong start to the season, with only 9 bench points in Monday night's loss. However, Cam Johnson finally found his shot, going 5/7 from three in his return to the lineup.
• The Nuggets close loss to the Bulls snapped a 7-game winning streak. They play three more road games this week with a big game on Friday night in Houston, a matchup of the #2 and #3 teams in the West.
• Nikola Jokic is really really really good.

Golden State Warriors (9-6, 7th in the West) via T.J.

• After a bad loss in OKC last week, the Warriors held team meetings and came out of it with a new starting lineup, inserting Will Richard & Moses Moody. They have helped lead the Dubs to a 3-0 record over the last week, with back-to-back wins over the Spurs and a win over the Pelicans. They are 9th in Net Rating during this stretch at 8.2 overall—still a long way from OKC's league-leading 20.1 Net. 
• "Is it the shoes?" After splitting from Under Armour this last week, Steph Curry is a shoe FA and has been wearing Kobe's.
• He haunted Wembenyama and the country of France with his vintage performances in back-to-back games in San Antonio. Scoring 46 & 49 respectively, on 57% FG. The greatness is still there, but age robs you of consistency. 
• Moses Moody is determined to take advantage of his new role - averaging 18.3 PPG on 49% FG & 50% from 3 since being inserted into the starting lineup, including a new career high - 32 pts vs. the Pelicans while shooting 8/12 from 3. He has now hit three or more 3's in 7 of 13 games this year, and also has 5 games with 5 or more 3's. Ride his hot shooting.
• Al Horford has continued his hot shooting of late - hitting 9 of his last 19 threes. He won't play back-to-backs, and Kerr likes to save him for the better center matchup. I would guess he sits vs. the Magic and plays Wednesday vs. the Heat.
• Jimmy Butler remains the steady rock of this team - averaging 22.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 6.2 apg over the last week. He has made six or more FTs in 10 of 14 games this season. 
• The schedule remains brutal. Steve Kerr (5 Championships as a player, 4 as a coach) was quoted saying, "The Miami game will be our 17th game in 29 days in 13 different cities. It's been the toughest early schedule I've ever been a part of in my entire NBA life." The vets are playing hard, but look for role players like Moody, Will Richard, and Podziemski to step up their scoring during this tough stretch. 

Houston Rockets (9-3, 3rd in the West) via Freddy V

• The Rockets have won 4 in a row and 9 of their last 10. 
• The offense seems to be really clicking since the acquisition of Kevin Durant as they are averaging 124.8 PPG as opposed to 114.3 the year before. 
• The Rockets have a league leading 125.3 offensive rating and this is because they are red hot from beyond the three point line.
• They are shooting a league leading 42.6% from three this season compared to 35.5 % last year. 
• Kevin Durant has four 30+ point games this season and has led the Rockets in scoring six games this season. He also became the fastest player in Rockets history to reach 300 points. 
• A underrated part of the Rockets success this season is their rebounding, they rank #1 rebounds per game and offensive rebounds. The Rockets are rebounding nearly 42% of their misses when Adams and Sengun share the floor this season.
• Alperen Şengün is playing absurd to start this this season averaging 23.0 PTS, 10.3 REB, 7.4 AST, 1.3 STL, 1.0 BLK, 44.7 3P%, and 73.9 FT% all career highs. 
• On some injury news Tari Eason left the game in the 2Q of Fridays game vs the Trail Blazers and it was later revealed he has a strained oblique and will be out 4-6 weeks

Los Angeles Clippers (4-10, 12th in the West) via Jeremiah D

• The Clippers are now 4–10, ranking 21st in Offensive Rating (113.9) and 25th in Defensive Rating (118.5).
• James Harden has been putting up MVP-level numbers over his last five games, averaging 32.8 PPG, 9 RPG, and 8 APG. He’s largely kept this Clippers team afloat through an early-season stretch filled with injuries.
• Harden is now the Clippers’ all-time leader in triple-doubles (8), passing Blake Griffin and Lamar Odom.
• He also surpassed 28,000 career points, moving to 11th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.
• Injuries continue to pile up: Kawhi Leonard (ankle/foot) and Bradley Beal (hip, out for the season), along with Derrick Jones Jr. (knee) and Jordan Miller (hamstring).
• Kobe Sanders earned his first career start against the Sixers on 11/17, becoming the first Clippers rookie to start since Terance Mann in 2019.
• With the injuries, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Kobe Sanders, and Cam Christie are all expected to see increased minutes.
• Sanders has been a bright spot, posting 11 points, 6 rebounds (4 offensive), and 2 assists vs. Boston in 23 minutes, followed by 17 points in 30 minutes against Philadelphia.
• Brook Lopez has struggled mightily, looking noticeably slow defensively. The Clippers have another 7-footer on the bench, Yanic “Konan” Niederhauser, the No. 30 pick in the 2025 draft, who impressed in preseason. There’s hope he can play his way into the rotation at some point this season.
• The Clippers are 1–2 to start their seven-game road trip. Upcoming games: at Orlando (Thursday), at Charlotte (Saturday), at Cleveland (Sunday), then back in L.A. to face the Lakers on Tuesday.

Los Angeles Lakers (10-4, 4th in the West) via Andrew K

• The Lakers capped off their road trip with emphatic wins over the Pelicans and the Bucks.
• Also, as of today, 11/17/2025, this is the first time the Lakers have had their whole 14 man roster fully healthy and practicing together.
• Through 14 games, the Lakers are 3-2 at home and 7-2 on the road while having played the 5th toughest schedule in the league. The Lakers are attempting the least amount of shots a game (82.1) while maintaining a shooting percentage above 50% a game. 
  • The shot diet on attempts is steady with 39% of the shots within 10 feet of the rim, 33% on pullups and 27% on catch and shoot shots.
• Opposing fan bases were and still are very critical of De’Andre Ayton, however the Lakers players and Coach JJ Redick have been extremely accepting of DominAyton. In his pre-game interview before the Bucks game, Coach Redick wore a shirt that had the image of half Ayton’s face and half of a lions face, joking that he randomly found the shirt in his luggage.
• With LeBron’s return looming this week, I expect lots of changes to the rotation. Marcus Smart is likely headed to the bench; don't rule out Austin Reaves being a 6th man as staggering his minutes with Luka/LeBron could prove wise.

Memphis Grizzlies (4-10, 11th in the West) via Alex B

• Shams announced on Monday morning that Ja Morant will be reevaluated in two weeks with a Grade 1 right calf strain that he suffered in the first quarter of Saturday's loss at Cleveland. With the injury, expect a lot more playing time for Vince Williams Jr. and rookie Jahmai Mashack (a 2nd round pick from Tennessee) who stood out during Summer League for Memphis.
• You can obviously expect Jaren Jackson Jr. to have an increased role with Morant out. He played a season high in minutes on Saturday in Cleveland. He should get more shot attempts and become more aggressive on the offensive end. The former DPOY is averaging 1.4 blocks per game in 2025, but still has had trouble cutting down on fouls with 4.3 fouls per game. 
• Zach Edey gave the Grizzlies some help in the frontcourt, returning from an ankle injury suffered during the summer and putting up 13 points and 7 rebounds in just 25 minutes in Cleveland on Saturday, helping out a Grizzlies team that ranks 26th in offensive rating and 21st in defensive rating.
• The Grizzlies will play six of their next eight games on the road where they have won just once out of six games this year.

Minnesota Timberwolves (9-5, 6th in the West) via Spencer C

• The Timberwolves keep taking care of business against below-.500 teams, moving to 9-0 on the year. We are still 0-5 against teams above .500, and that has to change fast especially with a huge road game against the Thunder coming up in eight days which we will win. 
• Naz Reid is finally flourishing, putting together back-to-back strong performances with 22 and 19 off the bench. It’s a huge relief after how lost he looked in the first 12 games, and it’s taking pressure off Edwards and Julius to carry the scoring load every night.
• Donte DiVincenzo is starting to look more consistent and is clearly our best point guard right now. Even though he still launches a couple of terrible threes every game, he’s actually making enough of them this year, something we didn’t see last season.
• Anthony Edwards is learning how to draw fouls like prime 2019 Harden. He said he’s been studying that tape, and it shows. He’s getting calls he’s never gotten at any point in his career. We want Ant to have at least 8 FGA each game. 

New Orleans Pelicans (2-12, 15th in the West) via Colby J

• Pelicans HC Willie Green was fired on Saturday morning following yet another troubling and injury-plagued beginning to a season. Green led the Pelicans to playoff appearances in two of his first three seasons, with the only standout moment being taking the top-seeded Phoenix Suns to six games in the first round of the '22 Playoffs.
• Over the past two seasons Green had a 23-71 record, which ranked 3rd worst in the NBA, as the Pelicans were also among the bottom five in both Offensive and Defensive Rating during that period.
• Lead Assistant and former Charlotte Hornets HC James Borrego has taken over as the Interim HC after both the New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets sought to hire him for their lead assistant position last offseason.
• Borrego has inserted Derik Queen into the starting lineup in his first two games as HC, and Queen has averaged 25.8 Pts+Reb+Ast in his last four games. 
• Jeremiah Fears, who is the 3rd youngest player in the NBA, is averaging 18 PPG over his last six games and ranks 3rd amongst all rookies in points. Fears and Queen are currently tied at +5000 in ROTY odds. #DKPartner
• Zion Williamson is set to return this week and it will be interesting to watch how his playing style meshes with rookies Fears and Queen, until he inevitably gets hurt again. 
• New Orleans plays 4 of their next 5 games at home, and play their next game Wednesday night against the best player in the world Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets.

Oklahoma City Thunder (14-1, 1st in the West) via Nick C

• Over the past week, OKC has notched a 21.3 Net Rating and an average margin of victory of 20.8 points (4-0 record)
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hasn’t played in the fourth quarter in 8 of the Thunder’s last 10 games
• There appears to be a chance that Jalen Williams makes his season debut for the already dominant 14-1 Thunder in the next week and change.
• OKC has found a groove in the third quarter of late — posting a 49.9 (absolutely absurd) Net Rating in the team’s last 5 third quarters 
• SGA is having a sneaky good 3-point shooting season, knocking down nearly 42% of his triples over the last 14 games

Phoenix Suns (8-6, 8th in the West) via Connor F

• Grayson Allen is dealing with an injured quad and has missed the last two games. Jalen Green remains OUT with a hamstring injury.
• Suns are coming off a pretty rough blown lead against the Hawks, conceding a 22-point lead with less than 10 minutes left in the game.
• The upcoming stretch for the Suns will be against some stronger Western Conference opponents, giving them a real test to match up with their surprising run of wins.
• Suns are still amongst the top 10 teams in the NBA in Steals (10.0) and 3FG% (38.2%) marking their identity with aggression on both sides of the court.

Portland Trail Blazers (6-7, 9th in the West) via Casey G

• Tough week for the blazers, as they went 1-2 with a noncompetitive NBA cup game against the Rockets, and a backbreaking loss to a bad Mavs team.  
• The Blazers are extremely thin at the PG  position. They came into the year missing dame for most likely the season, and Scoot Henderson for the first two months. Since then, Blake Weasley got sidelined and Jrue Holiday has missed a handful as well. Undrafted rookie Caleb Love will have to play a pivotal role to keep this team afloat
• The Blazers are still getting comfortable with Tiago Splitter as their head coach after losing Chauncey a game into the season. Tiago was the second choice after lead assistant Nate Bjorken turned it down due yo his close relationship with Billups. 

Sacramento Kings (3-11, 14th in the West) via Ben M

• Russell Westbrook is back in the starting line up at 37 years old running point guard and averaging 14 pts a game and shooting 37% from 3 

• Denis Schroder put up 22 pts on his 1st game off the bench 

• Domantas Sabonis is still the soul of this team averaging 17 pts and 14 rebounds a game this season 

• The bench is outscoring the starters in the 2nd half last 10 games 

• They're struggling and roster is old and gassed

San Antonio Spurs (9-4, 5th in the West) via Robby G

• Major news on Monday, it was announced the Alien himself would be out multiple weeks with a sprained calf. With Wemby being out, look for Luke Kornet to start in his place. He's not quite the defensive monster but he is sneaky good. Putting up 13 pts 11 rebounds and 3 blocks while shooting a perfect 5/5 from the field in his first start of the season against the Kings.  Look for the Spurs to run a lot more PnR with Castle and Luke.
• With that being said, Castle suffered a mysterious hip injury that no one could point out where it occurred. If he is able to play, he should put up monster numbers. The Spurs will not risk playing him if there's any chance the injury is serious.
• Look for the Big Body Keldon Johnson to step up and bring the energy off the bench. He's averaging 8.2 rebounds over the last 5 games in just 21 min a game.

Utah Jazz (5-8, 10th in the West) via Collin T

• Lauri Markkanen Carrying the Load

  • In the double-overtime win vs. Chicago, Markkanen exploded for 47 points, showing he’s still the Jazz’s primary scoring engine.

  • Even in the loss to Atlanta, he had 40 points, which highlights his consistency.

• Keyonte George Stepping Up

  • George hit the game-winning 3 with 0.8 seconds remaining in the 2nd OT vs. the Bulls. 

  • He dropped 33 points in that game, showing his ability to be a two-way playmaker in tight moments, 30 of those points coming in the second half. 

• Bench Contributions Paying Off

  • Isaiah Collier and Brice Sensabaugh each scored 16 points in the win vs. Chicago.

  • When Collier is on the court it is go go go! they are the fastest offense when Collier as at the point

• Coaching Trusts Young Players in High-Leverage Moments

  • In a chaotic, high-scoring game (150–147), head coach Will Hardy leaned on his young core (George, Collier, Sensabaugh) — and it paid off.

  • Hardy’s resilience was on display: the Jazz weathered multiple momentum swings and executed late in OT.

• Defensive Issues, But Some Adjustments

  • In the loss to Atlanta, the Jazz allowed 24 made 3-pointers, pointing to poor closeouts and perimeter defense.

  • But against Chicago, despite the back-and-forth scoring, Utah managed to hang on — suggesting they made some in-game tweaks or tightened rotations when it mattered most.

• Bottom line: The Jazz are clearly leaning on Markkanen and George to do heavy lifting, and the younger guys (Collier, Ace, Sensabaugh, Filipowski) are beginning to show up in big moments. Coaching is trusting that group more, which is helping in clutch situations, but defensive consistency remains a concern.