On Monday night, Klay Thompson tied a Mavericks record for three-pointers made in a quarter, hitting seven triples in the first 12 minutes of the game against the Washington Wizards in a 130-108 victory. The only other Maverick to do so in history is the esteemed Luka Doncic, who achieved this in February of 2022.

It was 7:01 of basketball-shooting bliss. Klay Thompson being Klay Thompson. Swish after swish triggering increasingly loud roars in American Airlines Center. Granted it would have been nicer had this been April or May or better yet June,

Klay Thompson’s days making it to the All-Star team may be over, especially now that he’s been relegated to more of a supporting role on the Dallas Mavericks, but that doesn’t mean that he won’t be participating at all any longer during the weekend’s festivities.

The NBA announced the participants for their annual Rising Stars Challenge, which consists of young players making a mark across the NBA. All participants are either rookies, sophomores, or in the NBA G-League. And for the second year in a row, a Maverick is in the Challenge.

Lakers rookie Dalton Knecht will head to his first All-Star weekend after being selected for the Rising Stars game, which will be played on Feb. 14 in San Francisco.

Memphis Grizzlies rookies Zach Edey and Jaylen Wells will be at All-Star Weekend in San Francisco as part of the Rising Stars game.

Meanwhile, New Orleans continues to struggle on defense, which has been a problem for the team all season long. The Pelicans rank 28th in defensive rating (117.5) and are dead last in defensive rebounding percentage. New Orleans is allowing opponents to score 117.7 ppg on the year and has allowed 10 straight opponents to score 110+ points.

The New Orleans Pelicans (12-35) will try to end a three-game losing streak when they host the Dallas Mavericks (25-22) on Wednesday, January 29, 2025 at Smoothie King Center as just 2.5-point underdogs.