NBA Roundup: Lakers defeat Wizards while Anthony Davis is out injured

LeBron James had 33 points and nine assists, Lonnie Walker had 21 points and the Los Angeles Lakers overcame Anthony Davis’ absence to beat the Washington Wizards 119-117 on Sunday night.

Davis, the Lakers’ leader with 27.4 points and 12.1 rebounds, injured his right foot in a win over Denver on Friday night and is expected to be sidelined for several weeks.

Thomas Bryant added 16 points and 10 rebounds to help the Lakers win for the third time in their last four games and give Washington its 10th straight loss and 13th in 14 games.

James appeared to lose the ball near midfield but regained the ball and found Bryant underneath for a tie dunk with 7.1 seconds left. Former Laker Kyle Kuzma missed a 3-pointer for Washington by 2.1 seconds.

Even without Anthony Davis, LeBron James (6) and the Lakers were able to deal with the Wizards

Bradley Beal scored 29 points on his return to the Wizards. He missed the last six games with a hamstring injury, most recently on December 4 in a 130-119 home loss to the Lakers.

Kuzma scored 22 points and Kristaps Porzingis added 21 for Washington. The Wizards last won at home to Minnesota on November 28.

The Wizards led 102-98 with 6:43 left after an alley-oop dunk by Daniel Gafford. But an 8-0 run by the Lakers, capped by James’ three-point game, gave Los Angeles a 106-102 lead with 5-09 remaining. The Lakers were never behind again.

Austin Reaves hit a pair of floaters as the Lakers went 115-111 and remained 1:17. But the Wizards tied it to back-to-back baskets from Gafford and Beal.

James gave the Lakers a 117-115 lead when he put the ball on court and shared the lane for an undisputed dunk with 27.1 seconds left. Beal tied it again at 117 with two free throws by 23.1 seconds.

Bradley Beal (3) returned to the Wizards lineup from injury, down 29 points

Nikola Jokic set a career high with 27 rebounds – including a franchise-record 20 in the first half – along with 40 points and 10 assists for his fifth triple-double of the season, and the host Denver Nuggets beat the Charlotte Hornets by 119 – 115 on Sunday evening.

The 20 rebounds in a half is the second most in NBA history, dating back to 1996-97. Kevin Love holds the record with 22 in a half. The only other player in NBA history to have at least 37 points, 27 rebounds and 10 assists in a single game was Wilt Chamberlain.

Aaron Gordon finished the tournament with 19 points and 10 rebounds, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 20 points, Bruce Brown contributed 16 points and Jamal Murray added 11 assists for Denver. LaMelo Ball had 31 points, Gordon Hayward had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Kelly Oubre Jr. had 16 points for Charlotte, who has lost eight straight games.

PJ Washington missed a 3-pointer that would have leveled it with 2:42 points left and Gordon made a reverse layup and Jokic hookshot a pocket to make it 111-104 with 1:57 remaining. Charlotte came within 13.5 seconds to go two on Washington’s dunk, but Jokic sealed it with two free throws.

James had 33 points, seven rebounds and nine assists in the Lakers’ 13th win of the season

Nets 124, butts 121

Kevin Durant had 43 points, including 26 in the third quarter as the visit to Brooklyn extended his winning streak to six games by beating Detroit.

Kyrie Irving delivered 38 points for Brooklyn, who didn’t lead until the closing seconds of the third quarter. Bojan Bogdanovic led Detroit with 26 points. Jaden Ivey had 19 points while Marvin Bagley III and Alec Burks each added 12 points. The Nets ended the third quarter on a 21-7 run to take a 98-96 lead. It was almost all Durant as he scored all but three of those points during the climb.

A steal from Killian Hayes and a 3-pointer from Bogdanovic with 40 seconds left cut Brooklyn’s lead to one. Irving made two of three free throws with 29 seconds remaining, but Burks responded with a layup. Durant then hit two free throws and Bogdanovic missed a 3-pointer on Detroit’s last possession.

With those 43 points, Durant officially moves up to 16th in the NBA all-time scoring charts, overtaking Celtics legend Paul Pierce.

Nets star Kevin Durant (7) overtook Paul Pierce to move up to 16th on the NBA scorer list

Warriors 126, Raptors 110

Jordan Poole scored a career-best 43 points in 14-for-23 shooting and defeated Toronto while visiting Golden State.

Draymond Green added 17 points and nine rebounds for the Warriors, who ended a three-game slip with their third away win of the season versus 14 losses. Klay Thompson also had 17 points for the Warriors, who are 1-3 after four games of a six-game road trip. JaMychal Green contributed 15 points and Kevon Looney had 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Pascal Siakam scored 27 points for the Raptors, who have lost five straight, a streak that includes three straight home losses. Fred VanVleet added 22 points, Scottie Barnes had 17, Malachi Flynn had 16, and fellow reserves Chris Boucher had 11 points and 14 rebounds.

Jordan Poole set a career-high 43 points and hit 14 of 23 shots in the win over Toronto

Timberwolves 150, Bulls 126

Anthony Edwards scored 28 of his season-best 37 points in the second half as Minnesota dragged down the stretch and set a franchise record for points in a loss over collapsing Chicago in Minneapolis.

After starting 3 of 10, Edwards made 10 of 15 shots after halftime as Minnesota surpassed Chicago 79-61. He also added a career-high 11 assists along with seven rebounds. D’Angelo Russell returned after missing two games with a bruised left knee and finished with 28 points, including seven of the club’s 23 3-pointers. He also handed out eight assists.

DeMar DeRozan led six Bulls by double digits with 29 points, but the club fell apart again in the second half, absorbing their fourth straight loss and falling to 3-8 in their last 11 games. Nikola Vucevic added 23 and Zach LaVine finished with 22.

Anthony Edwards lost 37 points in Sunday’s win – 28 of them in the second half

Magic 95, Celtic’s 92

Paolo Banchero scored 31 points and hit a career-best six 3-pointers to lead Orlando to a win over hosts Boston.

Banchero added six rebounds, three assists and two steals. He was 7-of-12 from the field and 4-of-4 from downtown during a 22-point first half. Four other Orlando players finished the tournament with at least 11 points. Jaylen Brown had 24 points, 14 rebounds, three steals and two blocks for Boston, which has lost four of five. The Celtics played without star Jayson Tatum (due to personal reasons).

Malcolm Brogdon’s corner Trey by 56.2 seconds put the Celtics 93-92. After Marcus Smart caught a loose inbound pass, the Celtics turned the ball around and Moe Wagner hit two free throws to earn the win.

Rookie sensation Paolo Banchero hit six 3-pointers as part of a 31-point night against Boston

Knicks 109, pacemaker 106

Julius Randle hit a double-double and hit all six of his free throws in the last minute, including the one that gave New York the final lead in defeating Indiana in Indianapolis.

Randle finished with 25 points and 14 rebounds while Jalen Brunson had a game-high 30 points for the Knicks, who have won seven straight games, their longest winning streak in nine games from April 9-24, 2021. RJ Barrett had 24 points , while Mitchell Robinson (10 points, 13 rebounds) also had a double-double.

Buddy Hield and Aaron Nesmith had 23 points each, while Tyrese Haliburton and Bennedict Mathurin had 15 each for the Pacers, who lost eight of 11. Each of their last five losses has been by six points or fewer.

A double-double for Julius Randle helped the New York Knicks defeat the Pacers 109-106