Kate Hudson in ‘Running Point,’ ‘Ghosts’ and the Hamilton Backstory, ‘Reacher’ Flashback, Turmoil in ‘The Pitt’

The terrific Kate Hudson stars in a savvy and slick sports comedy from exec producers including Mindy Kaling and Ike Barinholtz—and L.A. Lakers president Jeanie Buss, no small coincidence. Hudson shines as Isla Gordon, who suddenly ascends to the presidency of her family-owned L.A. basketball team the Waves. A lifelong hoops fan who was never taken seriously by her late father or her motley trio of brothers, Isla rises to the occasion, defying skeptics in the media and facing down sexism on and off the court and boardroom. Co-stars include Justin Theroux as the disgraced bro whose addictions led the underperforming team to this transition, Drew Tarver (The Other Two) as her money-minded half-brother and the very funny Scott MacArthur as the doofus general-manager bro who leads with his heart. A twist at the end of the first episode sends the wealthy Gordons into yet another tailspin that has nothing to do with the game.

“Did you just gasp at your own reveal?” Pete (Richie Moriarty) asks Isaac (Brandon Scott Jones) — as if that was anything new. The Revolutionary War spirit revels in revealing just what caused his undying enmity for Founding Father Alexander Hamilton (The Conners‘ Nat Faxon) in a colorful flashback that could be described as “the great ruffle kerfuffle.” Turns out Isaac really was in the room where it happened, but his obsession with Hamilton’s disdain rendered him less than a footnote in history. Elsewhere, Hetty’s (Rebecca Wisocky) despised husband, Elias (Veep‘s Matt Walsh), returns from Hell with a tempting offer for the Woodstone ghosts, but only the desperate would sell their soul to this fiend.

DEA agent Susan Duffy (Sonya Cassidy) needs to know — and so do we — just exactly what Reacher’s (Alan Ritchson) beef is with this season’s arch-villain Francis Xavier Quinn (Brian Tee), who now goes by “Julius McCabe.” In a lengthy flashback to his days in the Army’s Military Police unit, Reacher recalls his working relationship with the promising young Dominique Kohl (Mariah Robinson). “She was going to be great,” he laments as he relives Kohl’s fateful encounter with the “malignant narcissist” and corrupt lieutenant colonel Quinn, otherwise known as “the guy I thought I killed.”

Everyone’s getting antsy as the ninth hour of a punishingly long shift gets underway at Pittsburgh’s most overwhelmed hospital ER, with a riot breaking out among the impatient patients in the waiting area and the conflict between senior resident Langdon (Patrick Ball) and new intern Santos (Isa Briones) reaching a breaking point. In an emotional subplot, a distraught Dr. McKay (the superb Fiona Dourif) tries to help a patient she believes is being trafficked but who refuses to admit it.

Regrets? She has a few. And Matty’s (Kathy Bates) lingering guilt over her daughter’s opioid death rises to the surface again when the firm’s class-action case overlaps with a wrongful-death prosecution involving a sorority house. Despite some trepidation that “It’s a lot for a kid,” Matty decides to bring her eager grandson Alfie (Aaron Harris) to the office on Family Day, though as always with a secret agenda.

INSIDE THURSDAY TV:

• Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage (8/7c, CBS): Lance Barber, who played the late George Sr. in Young Sheldon, returns in a dream sequence when Georgie (Montana Jordan) frets about missing work after he’s laid low by a cold.
• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (9/8c, NBC): In a classic ripped-from-the-headlines scenario, a tourist from the Midwest is attacked in Times Square, then decides to seek justice on her own.
• Eyes on the Prize III: We Who Believe in Freedom Cannot Rest 1977-2015 (9/8c, HBO): The docuseries’ final two chapters focus on issues including affirmative action policies, school desegregation and the rise of the #BlackLivesMatter movement during the years of the historic Obama administration.
• Elsbeth (10/9c, CBS): The death of a real-estate developer puts a ritzy lifestyle consultant (Jordana Brewster) on Elsbeth’s (Carrie Preston) suspicious radar.
• Found (10/9c, NBC): Sir (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) is desperate to get Gabi’s (Shanola Hampton) attention while she works with Margaret (Kelli Williams) to locate suspects in Jamie’s abduction.

ON THE STREAM: