Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks put pressure on the leader of the East, Chicago Bulls, on a day in which the Los Angeles Lakers beat the New York Knicks in overtime in a great game that ended with a local comeback.
LAKERS 122 – KNICKS 115
3:54
The Los Angeles team turned it around and won 122-115 in overtime. LeBron shone with 29 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds, while Davis added 28 points plus 17 recoveries. Barrett scored 36 for New York.
With LeBron James back after five games injured, the Los Angeles Lakers came back in overtime against the New York Knicks and beat them 122-115 after a miserable first half in which they lost by 21 points.
LeBron James (29 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists), Anthony Davis (28 points and 17 rebounds, 7 of them on offense) and Malik Monk (29 points with 4 triples) stood out for the Angelenos, while RJ Barrett (36 points and 8 rebounds) and Julius Randle (32 points, 16 rebounds and 7 assists) were the best for the Knicks.
Russell Westbrook, much discussed throughout the season, had a poor performance (5 points on 1-for-10 shooting) and was booed by Lakers fans at various points in the game.
1:28
Jimmy Butler was the great figure in the 104-86 victory with 27 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists, while Bam Adebayo added 20 points and 12 rebounds. In Charlotte, Bridges finished the game with 15 points, 5 assists and 5 recoveries.
An incontestable 34-8 run in the third quarter was enough for the Miami Heat to beat the Charlotte Hornets 104-86 on the road.
Jimmy Butler (27 points) was the Heat’s most accurate player, while for the Hornets, who accumulated 19 turnovers, the main reference was Terry Rozier (16 points and 6 rebounds).
Bobby Portis was the unexpected star with 30 points in the Milwaukee Bucks’ lopsided 137-108 victory on the court of a poor Portland Trail Blazers who lost their last five games.
Giannis Antetokounmpo was decisive (29 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists), while Anfernee Simons (19 points) led the Blazers.
1:51
Dominant from the start, Phoenix beat Washington 95-80 on the road. Ayton was decisive with 20 points and 16 rebounds, while Chris Paul contributed 14 points and 9 assists.
After breaking their streak of eleven straight wins by losing to the Atlanta Hawks, the Phoenix Suns, leader of the West and the team with the best record in the league, returned to winning ways by beating the Washington Wizards 95-80.
The Suns had a 36-point lead late in the third quarter and had Deandre Ayton as their leading scorer (20 points and 16 rebounds).
In a weak Wizards (5 of 24 in triples, 42 rebounds against 64 of the Suns), Montrezl Harrell was the most outstanding (15 points and 7 rebounds), while the Brazilian Raul Neto played 22 minutes in which he scored 9 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals.
1:58
The NBA star point guard finished with 33 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds, while Jackson Jr had 21 points. In the Magic, Cole Anthony stood out with 22 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists in the 135-115 loss.
The Memphis Grizzlies ran past the Orlando Magic, last in the East, and outscored them 135-115. in a game that came to dominate by 31 points in the third quarter.
Ja Morant (33 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists) was once again the beacon for the Grizzlies while Cole Anthony (22 points and 6 rebounds) pulled the Magic’s bandwagon.
2:37
The Kings defeated the Thunder at home by 113-103. Three stood out in the winner: Barnes with 24 points, Harkless with 18 plus 11 rebounds and Mitchell with 17. Giddey, the best of the visit with 24 points.
Harrison Barnes (24 points and 9 rebounds) was one of five players above 10 points that allowed the Sacramento Kings to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 113-103.
Rookie Josh Giddey had 24 points and 8 assists for the Thunder.