NBA Fast Break Classic | Run 5 | Day 6
Knicks Survive, Dallas Rising, Three Go to OT
NBA Recap: December 18, 2025
Charlotte opened the night by outrunning Atlanta 133–126, turning the second quarter into a trampoline session the Hawks never solved. The Knicks followed with a razor‑thin 114–113 escape in Indiana, a one‑point grinder that looked like they were still in celebration mode from their NBA Cup win and almost lost to the 6-21 Pacers. Miami handled Brooklyn 106–95 with veteran calm, while Oklahoma City detonated for 39 in the third to bury the Clippers 122–101, a reminder that they are tough to beat at home.
From there, the slate got even louder. San Antonio rebounded from their Cup heartbreak by smashing Washington 119–94, riding Dylan Harper’s season‑high 24 and a defense that looked like it had something to prove. Toronto edged Milwaukee 111–105, a balanced, grown‑up win that felt like a team circling its identity. New Orleans outlasted Houston 133–128 in overtime in a track meet disguised as basketball, while Dallas held off Detroit 116–114 in overtime — the kind of OT that feels less like a period and more like a stress test.
The nightcap delivered pure West‑Coast weirdness. Phoenix clipped Golden State 99–98 in a game where both teams forgot how to score for long stretches. Denver handled Orlando 126–115, because Nikola Jokić refuses to let December feel like anything other than April. The Lakers outgunned Utah 143–135 in a defense‑optional shootout. And Portland closed the night with a 134–133 thriller over Sacramento — a one‑point win in overtime.
Fast Break Recap: Day 5
Classic & Historic maintain their positive trend, but it was lower than the previous day as 65% in Classic and 71% in Historic earned a win. On the other hand, Pro had another sub-50% day as 49% earned a win.
Of the top five most utilized players, Jamal Murray had the best night as he made 7 three pointers out of 12 attempts. With his performance, he earned the Fast Break Stud of the Day award. On the other hand, Steph Curry did not have a repeat performance from his previous game and only made 2 of 9 from outside. His less than stellar performance for a high volume of Fast Breakers who had him as their captain earned him the Fast Break Dud of the Day. A higher than expected occurrence on three point days.
Today’s Fast Break Objective(s): Day 6 of 13
Objective(s): 40 Points in the Paint & 10 Offensive Rebounds (8.0 PITP & 2.0 OREB)
You’ll need five (5) players who will score 40 or more points and accumulate 10 or more rebounds, which means each player will need to average 8.0 PITP & 2.0 OREB. Both of these objectives occur on the offensive end of the court, but it is not the easiest to accumulate in the same possession (as it requires a miss and a score). There are some players who have the capability of delivering in both categories and there are others who excel in one category or the other. The right balance will lead you to a win.
Top Player Options:
Little of Both: Karl-Anthony Towns, Victor Wembanyama, Neemias Queta, Isaiah Hartenstein, Nikola Vucevic
Inside Scorers: Jaylen Brown, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyama, Jalen Johnson, Donovan Mitchell, Joel Embiid, Jalen Brunson, Bam Adebayo, Karl-Anthony Towns, Julius Randle
(Offensive) Glass Crashers: Neemias Queta, Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert, Isaiah Hartenstein, Mitchell Robinson, Andre Drummond, Luke Kornet
Top Five (5) Players in Classic Lineups: J. Johnson (49%) | K. Towns (43%) | V. Wembanyama (41%) | S. Gilgeous-Alexander (39%) | I. Hartenstein (38%)
Upcoming Fast Break Objectives:
Tomorrow’s Objective(s): 140 Points Scored (28.0 PTS)
Objectives Remaining (after today):
2x: PTS
1x: STL, BLK, AST-TO, FGM, FGA, AST, REB, 3PM, 3PA
Considerations:
Brooklyn, Golden State, LA Clippers, & LA Lakers have the least games remaining (3)
Fifteen (15) teams have have the most games remaining (5)
Day 7 (tomorrow), & 9 have 20 or more teams in action
Day 11 has the always interesting AST-TO objective
There are no games scheduled on December 24th
Statistical Approach:
Top players in points in the paint & offensive rebounds according to Rotowire & NBA.com, which is available in the table(s) below. Overall rank is based on daily projections, last 10 average, and season averages, which is stack ranked amongst peers for each objective. When there is a single objective, the three data points are still used to stack rank the players vs. ranking solely on projections. For tome+ members, all active player stats are available in the provided data file. Omission of certain players would be based on injuries at the time of data pull.
NBA Fast Break Classic Rewards:
Daily: Top 100 | Milestone: 4, 7, & 11 Wins | Run: Top 250
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Top Player Options for Fast Break:
The top players for today’s Fast Break objective(s). Source: nbatopshot.com, nba.com, & tomecollective.com, 2025.
Projected Points in the Paint
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Projected Offensive Rebounds
Projected PITP & OREB
NBA Fast Break Grid
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