Trailblazers

With the 2025 NBA Finals shifting back to Oklahoma City for a pivotal Game 5, the Thunder delivered their most complete performance of the series &ndash; blowing past the Indiana Pacers to take a 3-2 series lead. In a game full of defensive highlights, coaching decisions, and unexpected stars, it was Jalen Williams who stole the show and ignited Paycom Center with a breakout performance.
Here are four major takeaways from a statement win by OKC:
OKC&rsquo;s defense smothers Indiana&rsquo;s rhythm
The Thunder&rsquo;s defensive identity was the foundation of their Game 5 victory. They swarmed the ball, clogged passing lanes, and applied relentless pressure on Indiana&rsquo;s guards. OKC forced 17 turnovers, including 10 steals and 6 blocks, dictating the pace from the opening tip and never letting the Pacers find any offensive flow.
Cason Wallace, Lu Dort, and Alex Caruso led the perimeter charge, while Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren walled off the paint. The Thunder&rsquo;s switch-heavy, help-first scheme disrupted Indiana&rsquo;s ball movement and turned defensive stops into transition opportunities.
This wasn&rsquo;t just solid defense &ndash; it was a masterclass in suffocating execution that led to the victory.
The Jalen Williams takeover game
With the Pacers loading up on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander all night, Jalen Williams seized his moment &ndash; and then some.
The third-year forward exploded for 40 points on just 24 shots, carving up Indiana&rsquo;s defense with drives, midrange jumpers, and timely three-pointers. Williams didn&rsquo;t just score &ndash; he controlled the game. His poise, pace, and precision punished every defensive coverage the Pacers threw at him.
This was no fluke performance. Williams had been growing into his role all postseason, but this was the official coming-out party &ndash; proof that the Thunder have a legitimate second star capable of taking over an NBA Finals game.
Indiana&rsquo;s puzzling decision to sit TJ McConnell
When the Pacers needed a spark, T.J. McConnell delivered &ndash; at least for a while.
With Tyrese Haliburton clearly hampered by a strained right calf, McConnell took over in the third quarter. He scored 18 points, pushed the pace, and helped trim a 20+ point deficit down to single digits. But in a head-scratching move, head coach Rick Carlisle opted to sit McConnell for the entire fourth quarter in favor of a struggling Haliburton.
Haliburton finished 0-for-4 from the field in 34 minutes and didn&rsquo;t look like himself at any point. Meanwhile, McConnell &ndash; one of the few Pacers with any rhythm &ndash; only saw the floor again near the end of the game. It was a questionable coaching decision that halted Indiana&rsquo;s momentum and left fans wondering what could&rsquo;ve been.
Haliburton&rsquo;s status looms large for Game 6
Indiana&rsquo;s hopes of extending the series hinge on the health of their All-Star guard. Haliburton was clearly limited in Game 5 due to the calf strain. While he tried to gut it out, his effectiveness was minimal, and his mobility looked compromised.
The Pacers will now face an elimination game at home, and Haliburton&rsquo;s availability &ndash; and effectiveness &ndash; could define the outcome. If he&rsquo;s unable to go or continues to play through pain, Carlisle may have to consider leaning more on McConnell or even Andrew Nembhard to stabilize the offense.
OKC, meanwhile, is one win away from capturing the franchise&rsquo;s first NBA championship since moving to Oklahoma. And with Jalen Williams joining Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as a legitimate Finals force, the Thunder look like a team peaking at the perfect time.

We break down OKC’s elite defense and Jalen Williams dropping 40 points on Game 5 takeaways.

Thunder-Pacers Game 5 Takeaways: Jalen Williams rises, OKC clamps down Indiana

Paying customers and plenty of media members have loudly expressed their frustrations with how the New Orleans Pelicans have handled the injuries and updates regarding Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, to the point of calling the organization outright liars.
Sure, there were frustrations with injuries derailing the season, but the messaging did not come from a place of dishonesty. It came from the type of misunderstandings and miscommunications that can ravage any type of relationship.
The obvious friction within the team the last few seasons were publicly expressed through curt answers and solemn body language on gamedays. Executive vice president David Griffin even admitted last July that the Pelicans &ldquo;did a really bad job organizationally" in handling some situations, especially after Williamson&rsquo;s viral pregame dunk and vague comments to the media. It took a summer of reconciliation, but the most pressing relationship issues have been resolved. Everyone understands how to speak each other&rsquo;s basketball love language and approach expectations for the coming season.
It all started with listening sessions this summer, which were a reason Williamson stuck around town for the offseason. But go back and listen to how Williamson and Ingram talk about basketball in press conferences over the years. Examining how they speak about the game explains a lot in how they&rsquo;ve approached their careers thus far.
Ingram has been using the term "professional" and "basketball" while talking like a hardwood scientist since his rookie season. It would not be surprising for B.I. to break down film at 4 a.m., making calls to wake sleepy-eyed teammates. Specifically, Devonte&rsquo; Graham and Josh Hart have shared on record how Ingram&rsquo;s film studies helped their game. Even when Ingram was out with an injury, the deep film sessions to help his teammates improve remained part of his routine. His methodical game reflects his intense devotion to his craft, though Ingram&rsquo;s personality comes off as a bit more laid back.
Williamson &ldquo;just loves hooping&rdquo; by his admission this Monday and in past interviews. Both are highly talented and naturally gifted and, as one source put it, &ldquo;They both love the game, but show it in different ways. The game has loved them back in different ways.&rdquo; Organizationally, there have been some growing pains as perhaps some things got taken for granted along the way for a franchise shaping a new identity.
That&rsquo;s starting to change and it is a two-way street. This team knows it was in first place last December and Williamson&rsquo;s renewed commitment has been the theme of the offseason with those I&rsquo;ve spoken with.
"This was the first summer where we&rsquo;ve seen Zion take his profession seriously like that and invest in it off the court on his own in a way that, I think, is meaningful," Griffin revealed during media day.
This is a reassuring development considering the past four years. Now, Zion still loves to hoop. There is no doubt. No one shows up on an outdoor court in New Orleans to work up a mid-summer sweat with some high-school kids without loving to hoop. Roll a ball out on a court and a smiling Williamson is like an overeager puppy. At least Alvin Gentry got that right in Zion&rsquo;s rookie season.
However, Williamson has not had a healthy relationship with NBA basketball the last few years. The NBA Draft is a crap shoot and New Orleans was not exactly a prime location. The new front office had a few growing pains earlier than expect as a result. NBA HQ added some bumps and bruises to the process as well. The national-TV-heavy schedule as a rookie and through the COVID bubble was unwarranted, unnecessary attention; it was just premature pressure on someone who couldn't legally buy a drink.
Attention before production paired with injury setbacks put pressure on every strained relationship, which partly factored into the Pelicans parting ways with coaches Gentry and Stan Van Gundy after just a year each with Williamson on the roster. Zion even went to rehab in Oregon away from the team, returning to the bench just weeks before the team&rsquo;s playoff run.
Publicly and privately, it&rsquo;s &ldquo;all water under the bridge&rdquo; between the locker room and front office. Aaron Nelson is still with the team, but in an advisory role that&rsquo;s far more hands-off on the day-to-day. Newly-hired Amy Atmore, the team's physical/performance therapist and director of rehabilitation, has already made the players comfortable with the revamped staff and new "ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" process. There are a few more full-time staffers to welcome into the group but by all accounts, head coach Willie Green has righted the ship culturally in the locker room. The leadership hierarchies and trust circle bonds are very strong and have been unanimously agreed upon.
In contrast to Williamson&rsquo;s on-court hooper mentality paired with a dozen endorsement deals, Ingram loves professional basketball and has been able to operate as an under-the-radar, one-time All-Star. This approach leads to multi-generational wealth that secures family futures. Ingram did not sign a contract extension this summer because "they handing a lot of people big money, [and] I&rsquo;m trying to get some big money&rdquo; next summer.
Ingram smiled while delivering that media-day-gold statement, but Zion was refusing to flash a grin for anyone to start training camp. This isn&rsquo;t just hooping anymore. This is serious, professional basketball and it would be a disservice to his talents and teammates to not approach this season as the opportunity of a lifetime. It&rsquo;s also a chance to win back all the fans and provide a return on the team&rsquo;s investment. Williamson loves to be loved. Ingram, especially after the FIBA experience, is after All-NBA respect before negotiating a contract extension.
The revamped player performance and medical staff changes were a direct result of the front office listening to player feedback. Williamson, who just signed a max-level extension, can see that.
"The Pelicans have put in a lot of things this offseason&hellip;" Williamson said. "I think what the Pelicans have done is add good structure and we'll see as the season goes&hellip; being on the same page with the personal trainers, really locking into every aspect of my body.''
Williamson also listened to feedback from the front office and the team&rsquo;s veterans. He got the message from CJ McCollum and Larry Nance Jr., who played through injuries last season, to set an example.
"I think [the changes] should help us," McCollum said. &ldquo;A lot of it is on us and how we prepare. Your staff can only do so much."
Off the court, Williamson&rsquo;s larger-than-life, crowd-pleasing ways mesh well with Ingram&rsquo;s reserved, low-key-funny, musically-inclined chill. Now, the Pelicans need them to make it work on the court when the stakes are highest. Like any relationship seemingly stuck running in place, huge consequences are resting on the next decision.
&ldquo;If this team can&rsquo;t take that next step, we need to know that as quickly as possible,&rdquo; Griffin stated straightforwardly at media day.
It&rsquo;s tough to hear for a young team, but at least the tough love is understood as coming from a place of caring about what&rsquo;s best for everyone.
Former NBA vet and Pelicans general manager Trajan Langdon said he felt players have returned with a bitter taste in their mouths after the way last season ended and expects them to come into camp highly motivated to show their true potential. Griffin, who is passing off some of the medical-team-oversight responsibilities to Langdon, feels this group is &ldquo;really optimistic."
"We have pieces that can be really dynamic and win together," Griffin said. "They haven&rsquo;t done a lot of it and they know they have something to prove."
Williamson definitely has something to prove and has new motivations in life to live up to his potential. The expecting father with no more viable professional excuses or blame to be placed on youth ''wanted change."
"If I want change, I have to do something different so I sat down with the Pelicans and came up with a great plan," Zion said.
All public signs from the front office, All-Stars and those speaking behind the scenes point to a mended, healthy relationship between all parties as reason for future optimism. Reports of mutiny or group dissension are downright wrong according to what I&rsquo;ve been hearing. Hot takes to insinuate the franchise operates from behind a smoke screen miss the mark at best and at times show the worst of biases from people who wouldn&rsquo;t know which coach or player had a family sitting next to them in the arena.
There were no ultimatums. It was a remodel, not a revolt. The front office took feedback from their players and ran with it. That&rsquo;s a positive relationship. It&rsquo;s boring for offseason news but has long-term benefits for the team and it&rsquo;s fans.
"If we would have controlled the narrative, it would have made (the media&rsquo;s) jobs a lot more boring, but it would have put [Williamson[ in a better position to succeed," Griffin said last summer. "I feel like to a huge degree, I failed him in that sense."
The Pelicans and Williamson are now in a position to succeed with a clear narrative: Win and show the world their true capabilities. Williamson, who trained to be &ldquo;un-guardable&rdquo; this offseason, switched vocabulary halfway through the press conference with an admission that he is &ldquo;a basketball player."
"I simply want to win and impact the game. I train to impact the game from all areas&hellip; Griff, Trajan and Swin [Cash], those three have been really helpful," Williamson added. "They've supported me, they've had my back and we all got the same goal in mind, which I think is what family is about &ndash; people having your back no matter what and wanting the best for each other.&rdquo;
Williamson went further, going out of the way to declare his loyalty to New Orleans.
&ldquo;This is home for me. This is where I want to be&hellip;" he said. "If something were to happen to me where basketball wasn&rsquo;t there or my life is changed, who would be there for me? Realistically, who would be there for me? I had to come to that realization that when it comes to them, the family, and the city, it&rsquo;s always good so I focus on that.&rdquo;
Frankly, if that doesn&rsquo;t hit you right in the feels as a fan of the Pelicans, it might be time to re-examine your engagement with basketball and this team. Either way the franchise is moving forward with stronger relationships just as their championship window is truly opening. A great start to the season might even feel like a second honeymoon for fans with an open mind and little bit of hope for the future.
Other news from around the web: <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/dress-to-impress-why-barbie-and-ken-are-the-hottest-couples-costume-this-halloween/ar-AA1iaTEh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Barbie and Ken are the hottest couples costume this Halloween</a>

The New Orleans Pelicans are all on the same page and could be poised for a big season, writes Christopher Dodson.

Pelicans better understand love languages of All-Star relationships

PHOENIX (AP) &mdash; Frank Vogel led the Lakers to an NBA title in his first season in Los Angeles by finding a way to mesh the skills of stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
The veteran coach is now in a similar situation in the desert, where he takes over a Phoenix Suns team led by stars Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.
The blueprint is there. Vogel just needs to make the pieces fit.
&ldquo;The first thing I can apply is direct belief,&rdquo; Vogel said Tuesday during his introductory news conference. &ldquo;Now because I&rsquo;ve done it, I&rsquo;ve been a part of it. If the talent is in place, that you can galvanize a group and take the league by storm.&rdquo;
Vogel did just that with James and Davis, leading a team that went 37-45 the year before to the franchise&rsquo;s 17th NBA title in the Florida pandemic bubble.
Vogel&rsquo;s new team is already on the rise.
Monty Williams took over a team that won 19 games in 2018-19 and guided it to the NBA Finals within two years.
When two embarrassing playoff exits followed &mdash; Phoenix trailed by 30 at halftime in both home losses &mdash; new Suns owner Mat Ishbia and general manager James Jones decided a change was needed. The Suns fired Williams on May 13 after four successful seasons, hoping a change in message could get the franchise back near the pinnacle.
&ldquo;I just felt we needed an injection of a different voice, a different energy. It&rsquo;s really that simple,&rdquo; Jones said. &ldquo;And as we evaluated where we were and where we wanted to go, we just saw a gap and we needed to fill it.&rdquo;
Vogel takes over a roster in flux.
Booker, one of the league&rsquo;s best scorers, will be back. So will Durant, a 13-time All-Star.
Point guard Chris Paul was the cog the Suns appeared to missing when he joined the franchise in 2020, leading Phoenix to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1993 in his first season.
The 38-year-old continued to be an effective floor leader in his 17th season, finishing fourth in the NBA in assists at 8.9 per game this season. Once the playoffs rolled around, Paul&rsquo;s body gave out for a second straight year, a strained groin knocking him out of the Suns&rsquo; final four games.
The Suns also have to decide whether to stick with center Deandre Ayton or trade him.
The 24-year-old has dominated at times, disappeared others. Ayton faded in the playoffs this year for a second straight season, his averages dipping even before he suffered a rib contusion in Game 5 against Denver.
&ldquo;He can be a big deterrent (defensively) and there&rsquo;s still areas that he can grow offensively,&rdquo; Vogel said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m intent on really connecting with him and restoring him to an All-Star level player.&rdquo;
Vogel has surrounded himself with proven assistants.
David Fizdale was an assistant under Vogel with the Lakers after serving as the head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies and New York Knicks. He will be joined by Kevin Young, one of the NBA&rsquo;s top assistants who was a finalist for the job Vogel eventually got.
Their biggest task will be to add a bit of grit to the glamour of Phoenix&rsquo;s two high-scoring star players.
Vogel is a defensive-minded coach with a successful track record that includes an NBA title and two trips to the Eastern Conference Finals as the Indiana Pacers&rsquo; coach.
A dose of D could be just what the Suns need.
&ldquo;The No. 1 habit that we develop all year is that we have to play harder and tougher and with more hustle than our opponents every night,&rdquo; Vogel said. &ldquo;Because if you develop that habit over 82 games, boy when you get to come playoff time, you know when every team&rsquo;s trying to ratchet it up it&rsquo;s already going to be there for us.&rdquo;
Like in LA, Vogel is not facing an overhaul.
Booker and Durant are still two of the leagues best scorers and the franchise is two years removed from a trip to the NBA Finals. Add the right complementary players and the Suns could remain one of the Western Conference&rsquo;s best teams.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re very close,&rdquo; Vogel said. &ldquo;A lot of things have to go our way. You need a lot of luck and you need some breaks along the way, but I feel like the foundation is in place. We&rsquo;ve got to just make some moves around the edges.&rdquo;

In his opening press conference, new Phoenix Suns head coach Frank Vogel discussed his vision for the team.

New Suns coach Frank Vogel has blueprint in place for early success

PHOENIX (AP) &mdash; The Phoenix Suns hired former NBA champion coach Frank Vogel on Friday to replace Monty Williams, a person with knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the team had not announced the move.
The 49-year-old Vogel has been the coach of the Indiana Pacers, Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers during his career and now moves to the Suns, where he&rsquo;ll try to help the franchise win its first title in its 55-year history with a roster that includes stars Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Chris Paul.
Vogel led the Lakers to an NBA title in 2020 when the league finished its season in the Florida bubble. He has a 431-389 career record over 11 seasons and a 49-39 mark in the playoffs.
Phoenix fired Williams on May 13 despite four successful seasons, including an NBA Finals appearance in 2021 and a coach of the year award in 2022. But the Suns also experienced two straight embarrassing playoff exits &mdash; trailing by 30 points at halftime of elimination games at home.
The Suns were tied to several candidates during their nearly three-week search, including assistant Kevin Young and bigger names like Nick Nurse and Doc Rivers. On Friday, they settled on Vogel, who is known for his defensive acumen.
He&rsquo;s also well-versed in coaching superstar players, helping LeBron James to his most recent title.
New Suns owner Mat Ishbia hasn&rsquo;t been shy about shaking up the franchise since he took over in February, adding the 13-time All-Star Durant in a blockbuster trade deadline deal. Despite the bold move, the Suns lost in the second round of the playoffs to the Denver Nuggets.
Now Ishbia has overseen a coaching change and it remains to be seen how aggressive the front office will be in reshaping the roster. The assumption is that Booker &mdash; a three-time All-Star who averaged nearly 36 points per game in a brilliant postseason performance &mdash; and Durant will be back.
The rest of the roster is in flux.
The biggest questions surround Paul and former No. 1 draft pick Deandre Ayton, who were both out with injuries by the end of the playoffs.
The 38-year-old Paul was solid when he was on the court for the Suns this season, but his body gave out again in the playoffs and he missed the final four games with a strained left groin. He&rsquo;s under contract for next season with a partially guaranteed deal.
The 24-year-old Ayton was ineffective in the team&rsquo;s second-round series against the Nuggets, averaging 10.8 points and 8.2 rebounds, which were both well below his season and career averages. He suffered a rib contusion in Game 5 and watched the final game of the season from the bench.

The Phoenix Suns hired former NBA champion coach Frank Vogel on Friday to replace Monty Williams.

Suns hire veteran coach Frank Vogel to lead franchise

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Andrew Wiggins took an extended leave of absence from the Warriors when his family needed him, and now the Golden State forward feels like he can get back to playing basketball for the defending NBA champions.
Wiggins has rejoined the team and is working his way back to being able to play again. That won&rsquo;t be in the next few days, coach Steve Kerr said Tuesday.
Wiggins showed his signature smile with a shorter hair cut he said needed cleaning up a bit.
&ldquo;When you&rsquo;re in a certain situation and your family needs you, it requires your attention and your love, that&rsquo;s my first priority,&rdquo; Wiggins said. &ldquo;My career, everything, family&rsquo;s always first for me. It will always be that way. I felt like I was in a safe space to come back. We&rsquo;ve got everything settled, not fully settled, but in a safe place where I can come back.&rdquo;
Wiggins said he appreciated the Warriors&rsquo; support in allowing him to be there for his family during a crucial time. Wiggins expressed gratitude to everyone that respected his privacy and said he is comfortable resuming basketball.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;d rather keep that private,&rdquo; Wiggins said when it comes to specifics surrounding his family&rsquo;s ordeal.
He was able to get regular workouts done, shooting and lifting weights but said he will need to regain some conditioning. The medical staff will be involved in deciding when Wiggins has built up the stamina and endurance to get back into game action.
Wiggins was set to miss his 23rd straight game Tuesday night against Oklahoma City and hasn&rsquo;t played since Feb. 13 versus Washington, but said he expects to play again soon. There have been no details provided on what Wiggins was dealing with, nor had there been a timetable for his return other than Kerr saying last week he remained hopeful of Wiggins being back before the end of the season.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s good to see my bro!&rdquo; Klay Thompson said.
Offered Gary Payton II: &ldquo;Big Wiggs is back, yeah!&rdquo;
Warriors general manager Bob Myers and Kerr &mdash; and Wiggins offered his thanks, too &mdash; credited everyone involved who allowed Wiggins to handle his business without being bothered or feeling pressured about the basketball part. Wiggins watched games whenever he could.
&ldquo;What sometimes gets lost in professional sports, they&rsquo;re people, they have lives and family, and I know that sounds obvious but it sometimes gets lost,&rdquo; Myers said. &ldquo;But when you work here, at least how we do it, you get to know Andrew as a person, not just as a 20-point scorer, so when someone that you know or work with goes through something your first thought is: &lsquo;How can I help? Are you OK? Is there anything you need?&rsquo; In this case, Andrew needed to be away. Whatever he needed we wanted to support.&rdquo;
The Warriors will be thrilled to have him as they fight for their playoff positioning in the Western Conference and hope to avoid the play-in round.
&ldquo;It was great to see Andrew today. We missed him the last couple months,&rdquo; Kerr said. &rdquo;... Everyone loves Andrew, just having him back is fantastic.&rdquo;
Kerr said he expects to have a better idea in the next couple of days when Wiggins might be able to play and if so how many minutes that could be.
&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no way he&rsquo;s playing in the next few days I can tell you that,&rdquo; Kerr said, unsure what Wiggins&rsquo; role would be yet.
Wiggins has missed 43 games in all &mdash; three more with left foot soreness, 10 because of a strained adductor in his right thigh, and seven games with a non-COVID illness.
The 28-year-old Wiggins, a first-time All-Star last season who signed a four-year contract extension in October, is averaging 17.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 37 games this season.
The Warriors never questioned giving Wiggins the time away he needed.
&ldquo;This was a really easy one, honestly,&rdquo; Kerr said, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s just being human.&rdquo;

Wiggins took an extended leave of absence when his family needed him, and now he feels like he can get back to playing basketball.

Andrew Wiggins rejoins Warriors, getting back into condition

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Stephen Curry scored 34 points, Jordan Poole dazzled down the stretch to score 30 and the Golden State Warriors beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 136-125 on Tuesday night in their final regular-season home game to move into fifth place in the Western Conference standings.
For a day, that is. The winner of the Clippers-Lakers game Wednesday jumps to fifth and will drop Golden State to sixth.
On a night Klay Thompson was a late scratch with low back tightness, Poole and his backcourt mates came through. Poole raised his hands to make a 3 sign while celebrating his big make from deep with 3:17 to play that put the Warriors up 131-120. He added a 360-degree layup the next time down off Draymond Green&rsquo;s steal.
Green contributed 17 points, 10 rebounds and five assists with a pair of blocked shots and steals.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points, 21 in the first half, for the Thunder. Jalen Williams added 19 points but the Thunder lost their third in a row and fourth of five.
Moses Moody&rsquo;s dunk with 4:57 left in the third pulled the Warriors within 92-91 after they trailed by 10 at halftime. He finished with 13 points and five rebounds in his first game scoring in double figures since Jan. 13.
Donte DiVincenzo added 16 points and Kevon Looney grabbed 11 rebounds as the Warriors held a 54-38 advantage on the boards.
The defending champions got a nice lift before the game seeing Andrew Wiggins back with the team after he had been away since mid-February dealing with a family matter, though he won&rsquo;t be ready to play immediately as he works to get his conditioning back. Wiggins received a warm ovation when announced during the first quarter and he grinned ear to ear.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Warriors won their final three at home and finished the regular season 33-8 at Chase Center and with their 471st consecutive sellout.
WIGGINS RETURNS
Wiggins has rejoined the team after being away for six weeks dealing with a family matter and is working his way back to being able to play again. That won&rsquo;t be in the next few days, coach Steve Kerr said.
&ldquo;When you&rsquo;re in a certain situation and your family needs you, it requires your attention and your love, that&rsquo;s my first priority,&rdquo; Wiggins said. &ldquo;My career, everything, family&rsquo;s always first for me. It will always be that way. I felt like I was in a safe space to come back. We&rsquo;ve got everything settled, not fully settled, but in a safe place where I can come back.&rdquo;
Wiggins missed his 23rd straight game and hasn&rsquo;t played since Feb. 13 versus Washington. He has missed 43 games in all &mdash; three more with left foot soreness, 10 because of a strained adductor in his right thigh, and seven games with a non-COVID illness.
TIP-INS
Thunder: Oklahoma City shot 15 for 26 in the opening quarter and 59.6% in the first half. ... The Thunder lost the season series 3-0 last year and 3-1 this season.
Warriors: Golden State has won five straight against the Thunder at home and hasn&rsquo;t lost on its home floor in the series since a 100-97 defeat on Nov. 25, 2019, in Chase Center&rsquo;s initial season.
UP NEXT
Thunder: At Utah on Thursday night looking to snap a four-game skid on the Jazz&rsquo;s home floor and win the season series.
Warriors: At Sacramento on Friday night looking to win the season series against the playoff-bound Kings and former top assistant Mike Brown.

Golden State moved into fifth place in the Western Conference standings with the victory.

Curry, Poole combine for 64 as Warriors beat Thunder 136-125

NEW YORK (AP) &mdash; Mikal Bridges remembers when he couldn&rsquo;t even score 30 points in a game.
These days he surpasses 40, giving the Nets the scoring that seemed lost when they traded Kevin Durant in the deal that brought Bridges to Brooklyn.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s just, I&rsquo;m really trying to win,&rdquo; Bridges said, &ldquo;so every shot I take I&rsquo;m being aggressive and trying to make every shot I shoot.&rdquo;
Bridges scored 42 points and the Nets increased their lead for the final guaranteed playoff spot in the Eastern Conference by beating the Atlanta Hawks 124-107 on Friday night.
Dorrian Finney-Smith added 19 points in his best game with the Nets, who led by only four at halftime before outscoring the Hawks 42-24 in the third quarter to open a 101-79 lead. Brooklyn moved two games ahead of idle Miami for the No. 6 spot with five games to play.
Bridges surpassed 40 points for the second time in three games and the third time since coming to the Nets in February. He finished March with 461 points, the second-highest total by a Nets player in their NBA franchise history in a month behind the 471 scored by Durant last November.
Cam Johnson, also part of the Durant trade, had 16 points. The Nets won for the third time in four games following a five-game skid that had dropped them behind the Heat into seventh place. The teams who finish between 7-10 have to go through the play-in tournament to reach the postseason.
&ldquo;Even though we were losing, we felt like we were coming together as a team,&rdquo; Finney-Smith said. &ldquo;We haven&rsquo;t been in that many battles together, but we&rsquo;re still learning each and other and we&rsquo;re figuring it out.&rdquo;
The Hawks remained tied for the No. 8 spot with Toronto. Atlanta could have pulled within a game of Miami.
But the Hawks never gave themselves a chance after going just 8 for 37 from 3-point range and getting outscored 76-46 in the middle two quarters after leading by eight after one.
Dejounte Murray scored 21 points for the Hawks, who had a tough time with New York traffic and perhaps left their legs on the bus. Trae Young had 10 points and six assists, going 3 for 12 and missing all five 3-pointers.
Bridges&rsquo; three-point play with 8:45 left in the third quarter gave Brooklyn a 69-58 lead, the first double-digit advantage by either team. The Nets had doubled that lead about 4 1/2 minutes later when another basket by Bridges made it 91-71.
Bridges finished off the quarter by scoring the final seven points as the lead ballooned by 22. He finished 16 for 24 from the field, 5 for 8 on 3-pointers.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s been efficient forever. He&rsquo;s made those 3s, he&rsquo;s just more aggressive right now because he has to be and it&rsquo;s a credit to him,&rdquo; said Hawks coach Quin Snyder, who went against Bridges often when he coached Utah.
The Hawks led 33-25 after one, then missed all nine 3-point attempts and shot 29% overall in the second quarter. The Nets outscored them 34-22 to take a 59-55 edge to the break.
TIP-INS
Hawks: De&rsquo;Andre Hunter missed the game with soreness in his left knee. ... Jalen Johnson had six points after missing the previous five games with a strained left hamstring.
Nets: Brooklyn improved to 11-2 on Fridays, the NBA&rsquo;s best record this season on that day. ... Nic Claxton had 14 points, 12 rebounds and five assists.
BIG DAY FOR THE MINOR LEAGUERS
Shortly after Ronnie Burrell was announced as the NBA G League Coach of the Year early Friday, his Long Island Nets beat the Cleveland Charge 111-107 to reach the Eastern Conference finals. Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said he called Burrell, who was on the Brooklyn staff in 2018-19, after the game to congratulate him.
&ldquo;I was here when Ronnie was with us previously and to see his growth, him lead that team, to see how well our guys are playing and how they&rsquo;ve developed, you give him a lot of credit for that,&rdquo; Vaughn said. &ldquo;And good thing they won today, too.&rdquo;
UP NEXT
Hawks: Host Dallas on Sunday night.
Nets: Host Utah on Sunday.

Mikal Bridges scored 42 points and the Brooklyn Nets defeated the Atlanta Hawks 124-107 on Friday night.

Mikal Bridges has 42, Nets rout Hawks to boost lead for No. 6 seed

ATLANTA (AP) &mdash; Dejounte Murray sank three free throws with 2:14 remaining to give Atlanta the lead and added a fall-away jumper with less than a minute left to lead the Hawks to a 120-118 win over the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night.
Murray led Atlanta with 29 points and Onyeka Okongwu added a season-high 21. The Hawks remained tied with Toronto, which beat Miami 106-92 on Tuesday night, for the eighth-best record in the Eastern Conference.
The Cavaliers held out starting forward Isaac Okoro (left knee soreness) and center Jarrett Allen (strained right groin) and were led by Donovan Mitchell&rsquo;s 44 points. Mitchell, who surpassed 10,000 career points, tied LeBron James&rsquo; Cavaliers record of10 games of 40-or-more points in a season.
With Atlanta&rsquo;s win, NBA- and Eastern Conference-leading Milwaukee clinched the Central Division title.
WARRIORS 120, PELICANS 109
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Stephen Curry had 39 points with eight 3-pointers, eight rebounds and eight assists, Jordan Poole added 21 points and Golden State rallied past New Orleans.
Klay Thompson scored 17 and hit five 3s to set a single-season career high of 278, which leads the NBA. Draymond Green was whistled for a double technical for tussling with Brandon Ingram late in the second quarter &mdash; and Green&rsquo;s foul was upgraded to a Flagrant 1. He already served a one-game suspension March 17 at Atlanta for his 16th technical.
The Warriors moved up a spot into sixth place in the crowded Western Conference standings, a half-game up on Minnesota and 1 1/2 games ahead of New Orleans. The top six teams are guaranteed playoff berths.
Ingram had 26 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, Trey Murphy III scored 21 points and CJ McCollum added 15 for the Pelicans, who came in riding a five-game winning streak.
GRIZZLIES 113, MAGIC 108
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Desmond Bane scored 31 points and made 8 of 10 free throws down the stretch, leading Memphis past Orlando.
Bane&rsquo;s free throws thwarted a last-minute rush by the Magic, led by Franz Wagner, who ended up with 25 points, including nine in the final 1:10.
Xavier Tillman had 20 points for Memphis, while Luke Kennard and Jaren Jackson Jr. finished with 16 points apiece. Jackson added 10 rebounds and three blocks.
Ja Morant, the Grizzlies&rsquo; leading scorer, sat out the first night of a back-to-back with right thigh soreness.
Paolo Banchero finished with 24 points and Wendell Carter Jr. added 14 for the Magic.
HORNETS 137, THUNDER 134
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) &mdash; P.J. Washington scored 22 of his career-high 43 points in the fourth quarter, and Charlotte rallied to beat Oklahoma City for its third straight win.
Three Thunder players scored career highs &mdash; Isaiah Joe with 33 points and Josh Giddey and Jalen Williams with 31 each. But Williams and Giddey each missed one of two free throws in the final 16 seconds, and Williams missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer that would have forced overtime.
It was a potentially costly loss for Oklahoma City. The Thunder were looking to strengthen their position in the Western Conference play-in race despite being short-handed. Oklahoma City guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who entered the day fourth in the league averaging 31.3 points per game, sat out with a sprained left ankle.
Charlotte was short-handed, too. Terry Rozier (right foot discomfort) and Kelly Oubre (strained right shoulder) sat out for the third straight game and Dennis Smith (sprained right toe) also did not play.
RAPTORS 106, HEAT 92
TORONTO (AP) &mdash; Pascal Siakam scored 26 points, Scottie Barnes had 22 points and a career-high 12 assists and Toronto beat Miami.
O.G. Anunoby scored 22 points, and Precious Achiuwa and Fred VanVleet each had 12 as Toronto won for the 10th time in 11 home games.
Tyler Herro scored 33 points and Bam Adebayo had 21 points and 12 rebounds as Miami lost its second straight. The Heat are 15-22 on the road.
Miami played without leading scorer Jimmy Butler, who sat because of a sore neck.
WIZARDS 130, CELTICS 111
WASHINGTON (AP) &mdash; Kristaps Porzingis had 32 points and 13 rebounds, and Washington boosted its flickering postseason hopes with a victory over Boston.
The Wizards, playing without Bradley Beal (left knee soreness) and Kyle Kuzma (right ankle sprain), pulled within 2 1/2 games of Chicago for the final play-in spot in the Eastern Conference. Washington has six games remaining in the regular season.
The Celtics had their three-game winning streak snapped. Jayson Tatum led Boston with 28 points, and Jaylen Brown contributed 18 points.
Deni Avdija matched a career high with 25 points and added 10 rebounds for Washington. Monte Morris scored 19 points.

A recap of Monday's slate of NBA games includes a down-to-the-wire battle in Atlanta.

Hawks beat Cavaliers 120-118, help Bucks clinch Central Division

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Warriors coach Steve Kerr remains hopeful that Andrew Wiggins will return this season after the veteran forward missed his 20th straight game because of a family matter.
Wiggins has been working out on his own every day but when and if he returns to the defending NBA champions, the training and medical staffs would need to evaluate his fitness and how much he might be able to contribute and how soon.
&ldquo;Beyond that, once he&rsquo;s back our training staff will be able to get with him and see where he is,&rdquo; Kerr said Tuesday.
There have been no details on what Wiggins is dealing with because it is private. He hasn&rsquo;t played since Feb. 13 against the Wizards.
He missed his 40th game overall Tuesday against New Orleans, having been sidelined for three with left foot soreness, 10 because of a strained adductor in his right thigh, and seven games with a non-COVID illness.
The 28-year-old Wiggins signed a four-year contract extension last October. He is averaging 17.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 37 games this season.
A first-time All-Star last season, Wiggins reached the playoffs for just the second time in his eight-year career and often took on a tough defensive assignment in helping the Warriors capture their fourth championship in eight seasons.
Still, the timeline for when Wiggins might play is still unclear.
&ldquo;There&rsquo;s hope but it&rsquo;s I guess indefinite, it&rsquo;s also appropriate because we don&rsquo;t know,&rdquo; Kerr said.

There have been no details on what Wiggins is dealing with because it is private. He hasn’t played since Feb. 13 against the Wizards.

Warriors are hopeful of Andrew Wiggins returning this season

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Karl-Anthony Towns hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 11 seconds to play after Kyle Anderson stole a pass by Draymond Green, and Minnesota held off Golden State.
Jordan Poole gave Golden State the lead on a 3 with 1:28 left, moments after Towns had connected from deep. Poole had a game-high 27 points.
The Warriors had a chance with 9.9 seconds left but Stephen Curry couldn&rsquo;t corral Poole&rsquo;s errant pass, then Curry missed a contested 3 from the baseline just before the final buzzer.
Towns had 14 points and five rebounds in his second outing following a 52-game absence with a strained right calf.
The Warriors had their nine-game home winning streak snapped and missed a chance to boost their playoff positioning. A victory also would have clinched Sacramento&rsquo;s first postseason berth since 2006. The Kings will try to end the longest playoff drought in NBA history Monday night at home against Minnesota.
BULLS 118, LAKERS 108
LOS ANGELES (AP) &mdash; LeBron James scored 19 points off the bench in his return from a monthlong injury absence, but Zach LaVine had 32 to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 118-108 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.
DeMar DeRozan added 17 points for the Bulls, who easily overcame James&rsquo; return with an impressive performance in their seventh win in nine games. LaVine hit 11 of his first 14 shots to lead an offensive effort that snapped the Lakers&rsquo; three-game winning streak despite the return of the NBA&rsquo;s career scoring leader.
James sat out 13 games with right foot soreness, missing four weeks during the Lakers&rsquo; run at a playoff berth.
For only the second time in his 20-year, 1,958-game NBA career, James wasn&rsquo;t a starter. He came in midway through the first quarter.
The Lakers still were without D&rsquo;Angelo Russell, who missed his second straight game with a right hip injury. Los Angeles went 8-5 in James&rsquo; absence.
CAVALIERS 108, ROCKETS 91
CLEVELAND (AP) &mdash; Jarrett Allen had 24 points and 14 rebounds, Donovan Mitchell scored 22 and Cleveland beat Houston to clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2018.
It&rsquo;s also the first time Cleveland has made the playoffs without LeBron James on the roster since 1998.
The Cavaliers are closing in on locking up the No. 4 spot in the Eastern Conference &mdash; and home-court advantage in the first round. They&rsquo;ve won 9 of 11.
Evan Mobley added 19 points and Darius Garland had 17 for Cleveland.
Jalen Green scored 30 to pace the Rockets, who have lost five straight.
GRIZZLIES 123, HAWKS 119
ATLANTA (AP) &mdash; Ja Morant scored 27 points in his return to the Memphis starting lineup and the Grizzlies held off Atlanta for their sixth consecutive win.
Desmond Bane added 25 points for Memphis, twice delivering fourth-quarter baskets after the Hawks pulled within one.
Memphis is second in the Western Conference despite a 15-22 road record. But the six-game winning streak, the NBA&rsquo;s longest active streak, includes two victories away from home.
Morant received a big cheer from the Atlanta sellout crowd during pregame introductions. He came off the bench in his first two games after serving an eight-game NBA suspension for posting a video in which he was shown waving a gun at a Denver-area strip club.
Trae Young led the Hawks with 28 points and 10 assists, one day after he was ejected for throwing the ball at an official during a 143-130 win over Indiana.
CELTICS 137, SPURS 93
BOSTON (AP) &mdash; Jaylen Brown scored 41 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead Boston over San Antonio.
The Celtics were without star forward and leading scorer Jayson Tatum, who was sidelined with a bruised left hip. But they still moved within 1&frac12; games of Milwaukee for the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s best record with their seventh victory in nine games.
Malcolm Brogdon added 20 points and nine assists for Boston, and Derrick White had 19 points with eight rebounds.
Zach Collins had 21 points with seven rebounds for the Spurs, who finished an 0-4 road trip.
CAVALIERS 108, ROCKETS 91
CLEVELAND (AP) &mdash; Jarrett Allen had 24 points and 14 rebounds, Donovan Mitchell scored 22 and Cleveland beat Houston to clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2018.
It&rsquo;s also the first time Cleveland has made the playoffs without LeBron James on the roster since 1998.
The Cavaliers are closing in on locking up the No. 4 spot in the Eastern Conference &mdash; and home-court advantage in the first round. They&rsquo;ve won 9 of 11.
Evan Mobley added 19 points and Darius Garland had 17 for Cleveland.
Jalen Green scored 30 to pace the Rockets, who have lost five straight.
RAPTORS 114, WIZARDS 104
TORONTO (AP) &mdash; O.G. Anunoby scored 29 points, Fred VanVleet had 28 and Toronto never trailed in a win over Washington.
Pascal Siakam had 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Jakob Poeltl added 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Ninth-place Toronto clinched the three-game season series with the Wizards and maintained a three-game lead over 11th-place Washington in the Eastern Conference standings. Both teams have seven games remaining.
Scottie Barnes scored 13 points in his return to the starting lineup after missing two games because of a sore left wrist as Toronto won for the ninth time in 10 home games.
Kristaps Porzingis scored 26 points for the short-handed Wizards, who have lost four straight road games. Washington played without guard Bradley Beal (left knee) for the third straight game, while forward Kyle Kuzma (right ankle) sat out for the fourth consecutive game. Washington was also without guard Monte Morris (left groin).
HORNETS 110, MAVERICKS 104
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) &mdash; The Charlotte Hornets overcame a 40-point outing from Luka Doncic for their second win over Dallas in three days, another costly blow to the Mavericks&rsquo; playoff hopes.
Gordon Hayward scored 22 points and P.J. Washington added 21 points and 12 rebounds for the Hornets, who have been eliminated from playoff contention.
Doncic picked up his 16th technical foul of the season in the third quarter, meaning he will face a one-game suspension Monday night unless the technical is rescinded by the league office.
Kyrie Irving had 18 points for Dallas.
MAGIC 119, NETS 106
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) &mdash; Cole Anthony had 21 points to lead eight Orlando scorers in double figures, and the Magic overcame Mikal Bridges&rsquo; 44 points in a victory over Brooklyn.
Franz Wagner added 19 points and 10 rebounds for Orlando. Wendell Carter had 18 points and six rebounds, and Jalen Suggs returned from an injury with 16 points to help the Magic win their third straight. Paolo Banchero finished with 11 points and nine rebounds.
Bridges came up one point short of his career high. Cam Thomas added 18 points for the Nets, who lost for the sixth time in seven games.
THUNDER 118, TRAIL BLAZERS 112
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points and Oklahoma City beat depleted Portland.
Jalen Williams had 23 points and Isaiah Joe added 20 off the bench for the Thunder (37-38), who moved into a tie for ninth place in the Western Conference with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Shaedon Sharpe led the Trail Blazers with a career-high 29 points, and Nassir Little scored a season-best 28 off the bench. The loss was Portland&rsquo;s eighth in 10 games. The Blazers (32-42) are four games back of 10th place in the West and the final spot in the play-in tournament.
Portland was playing without four of its five regular starters as guards Damian Lillard (right calf) and Anfernee Simons (right foot), forward Jerami Grant (left calf) and center Jusuf Nurkic (right knee) all sat out.

A recap of Sunday's action in the NBA includes Karl-Anthony Towns burying a clutch triple to snap Golden State's home winning streak.

Towns makes two late three-pointers, lifts Timberwolves over Warriors

BOSTON (AP) &mdash; Jayson Tatum scored 30 points and made six 3-pointers, and the Boston Celtics beat the Portland Trail Blazers 115-93 to snap a three-game losing streak Wednesday night.
Tatum&rsquo;s 36th game this season with 30 or more points helped the Celtics avoid their first four-game losing streak. Derrick White added 21 points and five assists. Al Horford finished with 17 points, six rebounds and assists.
The Celtics played without big man Robert Williams for the third straight game as he recovers from a strained left hamstring. But they got back Tatum and Horford, who sat out Monday&rsquo;s overtime loss at Cleveland nursing a sore knee and back, respectively.
Both were active during an 18-7 second quarter run that gave Boston a 53-35 cushion. The lead grew to 23 points (94-72) at the end of the third and as high as 27 the fourth.
Damian Lillard scored 27 points and had eight assists to lead the Blazers, who dropped to 14-20 on the road. Jerami Grant added 13 points.
Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic returned after a 14-game absence with a left calf strain. He&rsquo;d been sidelined since Feb. 1. He started and had five points and six rebounds in 17 minutes.
Portland is 2-2 during its current six-game road trip.
The Blazers began the night 12th in the Western Conference standings, but very much in contention to make the play-in tournament. They had the same record as the Thunder (11th) and Pelicans (10th), and were just one game behind the ninth-place Lakers.
WILLIAMS MAKING TRIP
Williams will travel with Boston to begin its six-game road trip Saturday at Atlanta. Coach Joe Mazzulla said the hope is Williams will be able to return in the original 7 to 10 days that was projected after he was injured during the Celtics&rsquo; win over Brooklyn on March 3.
MOVING ON
Celtics forward Grant Williams said before the game he isn&rsquo;t worried about any lingering effects after he missed a pair of potential go-ahead free throws in Boston&rsquo;s overtime loss at Cleveland on Monday.
Before the shots, Williams was captured on camera jawing with Cavs All-Star Donovan Mitchell, telling him, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m going to make both of them.&rdquo;
&ldquo;I felt like I was super locked in and focused, even the confidence of saying you&rsquo;ll make them both,&rdquo; Williams told reporters. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s funny because when you say that and miss both, it&rsquo;s even funnier.&rdquo;
Williams had eight points, but missed his lone free-throw attempt.
TIP-INS
Trail Blazers: Were outscored 25-17 in the second quarter, shooting 4 of 17 from the field (24%). ... Lillard started the game hitting a pair of 3-pointers. He finished the first period by missing four of his final six shots.
Celtics: Payton Pritchard sat with left heel pain. ... Horford knocked down two 3s in the first quarter to move past Isaiah Thomas (460) for ninth place on the franchise&rsquo;s all-time list. With a layup in the first quarter, Marcus Smart became the 25th player in team history to score 6,000 points. ... Started the game 9 of 15 from 3 before missing 12 straight to end the first half. &hellip; Celtics led 35-28 at the end of the first, shooting 58% (11 of 19).
UP NEXT
Trail Blazers: At 76ers on Friday.
Celtics: At Atlanta on Saturday.

Jayson Tatum scored 30 points and made six 3s, and the Celtics beat the Blazers 115-93 to snap a 3-game losing streak Wednesday.

Jayson Tatum scores 30 to help Celtics power past Blazers 115-93

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) &mdash; Damian Lillard scored eight of his 41 points from the foul line in the final three minutes Sunday night to the lead the Portland Trail Blazers to a 122-119 win over the Orlando Magic.
Jerami Grant added 20 points, six rebounds and seven assists for the Blazers, and broke a tie with a 3-pointer for the game&rsquo;s final field goal with 35 seconds left.
&ldquo;We had to have this one,&rdquo; said Lillard, who also had a game-leading nine rebounds to help the Blazers break a three-game losing streak. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got 19 games left now. Everybody else is playing with a sense of urgency because they know the race is tight. Lose one and you can drop three spots. Win a couple and you can really make up some ground.&rdquo;
The Blazers are one game behind Utah and New Orleans for a spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament.
Paolo Banchero led Orlando with 26 points. Franz Wagner added 24, and Markelle Fultz finished with 15 points, eight assists and four steals.
Two 3-pointers by Lillard and one by Shaedon Sharpe filled a run late in the third quarter that broke an 83-all tie and left Portland with a nine-point lead, the largest of the game.
The Magic did not catch up until Fultz drove for a layup to tie it at 113 with 58 seconds left.
Nassir Little answered with a 3-pointer, and the rest of the game was all free throws.
&ldquo;The ball was swung to (Little) and he hit the biggest shot of the game,&rdquo; Lillard said. &ldquo;It showed a lot of growth on his part.&rdquo;
&ldquo;We know everybody&rsquo;s going to do the best they can to take Dame away, and everybody else has to be aggressive,&rdquo; said Portland coach Chauncey Billups. &ldquo;That was a big-time shot.&rdquo;
Portland led 58-56 after a first half in which Banchero made all seven of his shots and scored 16 points.
Lillard scored 14 points in the first half and missed all six of his 3-point attempts. The second half was a different ball game, especially for Lillard.
&ldquo;He shot 20 free throws tonight. It just kind of makes it hard to guard him. You just want to put your hands behind your back,&rdquo; said Magic guard Jalen Suggs, who had 15 points and three steals. &ldquo;When he shoots 20 free throws by himself, it&rsquo;s kind of hard to stop him from having a huge night.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Blazers: Lillard (17 for 20) missed more than one free throw for the first time since Jan. 25. In the 16-game interim he shot 168 for 176 (95.5%). ... G Anfernee Simons missed a second game with a sprained right ankle. ... C Jusuf Nurkic missed a 13th game with a strained left calf. . . . Grant and Lillard had 4-point plays.
Magic: C Wendell Carter Jr. (left hip pain) and G Gary Harris (hip) did not play. ... The Magic played for the first time at home since losing F Jonathan Isaac to season-ending surgery on a torn adductor muscle. Isaac played 124 minutes in 11 games after missing 2 1/2 seasons due to knee injuries.
BIG REVERSAL FOR BLAZERS
The game hinged on a replay reversal.
With 2:07 remaining and the Blazers up by one, Lillard tried to slide through two Magic defenders and was called for a charge. But Billups challenged the call, and a review determined that Suggs had not &ldquo;established position&rdquo; outside the arc before the contact. Lillard then made two free throws.
&ldquo;It was a big moment in the game,&rdquo; Billups said. &ldquo;A big play.&rdquo;
UP NEXT
Blazers: Play at Detroit on Monday night.
Magic: Play at home against Milwaukee on Tuesday night.

Damian Lillard scored 41 points on Sunday night to the lead the Portland Trail Blazers to a 122-119 win over the Orlando Magic.

Damian Lillard scores 41, Blazers hold off Magic 122-119

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Damian Lillard set franchise- and career-highs with 71 points &mdash; tied for the most in the NBA this season &mdash; and 13 three-pointers and the Portland Trail Blazers snapped a two-game skid with a 131-114 victory over the Houston Rockets on Sunday night.
Lillard tied Cleveland&rsquo;s Donovan Mitchell for the most points in a game this season after Mitchell also scored 71 in a win over Chicago on Jan. 2. Lillard broke his own franchise mark of 61 points, which he&rsquo;d done twice, on a three-pointer with 4:42 left that also topped his career record for threes in a game with 11.
Lillard&rsquo;s 13 three-pointers were one shy of the NBA record set by Golden State&rsquo;s Klay Thompson in 2018. Thompson&rsquo;s Warriors teammate Stephen Curry (2016) and Chicago&rsquo;s Zach LaVine (2019) also made 13 threes.
In the final minutes, the crowd at the Moda Center was on its feet, phones recording the moment, while chanting &ldquo;MVP! MVP!&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
71 points 13 threes 6 assists 6 boards 2 TOs 39 minutes 57.9 FG% 59 3PT% 100 FT% <a href="https://twitter.com/Dame_Lillard?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Dame_Lillard</a> is the first player in NBA history with 70+ points, 10+ threes, 5+ assists, 5+ rebounds in a game. He was one 3 shy of tying the record for most 3s in a game. <a href="https://t.co/49UPnvpit8">pic.twitter.com/49UPnvpit8</a>
&mdash; Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/AlexKennedyNBA/status/1630072531016089601?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2023</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Lillard left the game with 44 seconds left, tied with Mitchell, Elgin Baylor (1960) and David Robinson (1994) for the eighth-most points scored in a game in NBA history. Wilt Chamberlain owns the league record with 100 for Philadelphia against New York on March 2, 1962, at Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Lillard had 41 points and eight three-pointers by halftime. It was a career-high in a half for Lillard and the most points in a half for any player in the league this season. He had 50 by the start of the fourth quarter.
Jerami Grant added 13 points for the Blazers, who led by as many as 23. Portland is part of a cluster of eight Western Conference just four wins apart that are vying for playoff spots.
Alperen Sengun had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets, sitting in last place in the Western Conference with just 13 overall wins and nine-straight losses.
Houston trailed 102-88 heading into the final quarter, but scored the first six points of the period to close the gap to 102-94. Grant&rsquo;s three-pointer for Portland extended the margin to 108-98.
Lillard&rsquo;s three, his 11th of the night to tie his career high, made it 113-103 with 6:43 left. He added a driving layup and a free throw. Houston could not catch up.
Lillard started after resting for Thursday night&rsquo;s 133-116 loss to Sacramento. He participated in the NBA All-Star Game and won the three-point contest the previous weekend.
But Portland remained without center Jusuf Nurkic (left calf) and guard Anfernee Simons (right ankle).
The Blazers had a 31-30 lead after one quarter, led by Lillard&rsquo;s 16. Portland extended the lead to 50-39 after Lillard went on a personal 9-2 run against the Rockets, capped by a three-pointer from 35 feet out.
The Blazers led 73-58 at the break with Lillard the 10th player since the 1996-97 season with 40-plus points in a half.
Lillard has 15 games with 50 or more points, sixth-most in NBA history.
SIDELINED
Guards Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. did not play, although Rockets coach Stephen Silas said both should be available for the team&rsquo;s short upcoming homestand. Green missed his second game with a strained left groin. Porter has been out 19 games because of a left foot contusion.
TIP-INS
Rockets: It was the third and final meeting between the teams this season. The Blazers won the previous two. Last season, the series ended 2-2. ... Jae&rsquo;Sean Tate had four fouls in the first half, but finished with 17 points.
Trail Blazers: Following reports that Lillard was rallying his teammates for the final 23 games of the season, Blazers coach Chauncey Billups was asked how he&rsquo;s motivating his team for the stretch run. &ldquo;What I&rsquo;m mostly always talking about is `Here&rsquo;s where we are. Here&rsquo;s how we got there. This is how we&rsquo;ve got to climb out of it,&rsquo;&rdquo; Billups said.
UP NEXT
Rockets: Return home to face the Denver Nugget on Tuesday.
Trail Blazers: Visit the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday.

Damian Lillard had a franchise-high and career-high 71 points and 13 threes as the Blazers beat the Rockets 131-114 on Sunday night.

Damian Lillard has 71 points and 13 threes; Blazers beat Rockets

CHICAGO (AP) &mdash; Giannis Antetokounmpo stayed on the ground, grimacing in pain before heading to the locker room. A sprained wrist in the early going ended his night.
Not before he set yet another franchise record.
<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/Bucks/status/1626391531526520835" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Antetokounmpo became Milwaukee&rsquo;s career assists leader</a>&nbsp;before getting injured, and the Bucks won their 12th straight, beating the Chicago Bulls 112-100 on Thursday night.
Brook Lopez scored a season-high 33 points. Jevon Carter had 22 against his hometown team, and Jrue Holiday added 15 points and nine assists.
The Bucks were never seriously threatened. But Antetokounmpo&rsquo;s injury early in the second quarter cast a bit of a cloud over a team that otherwise has so much going for it heading into the All-Star break.
Coach Mike Budenholzer said initial reports were &ldquo;hopeful&rdquo; and the X-ray was &ldquo;clean.&rdquo;
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll just see how he feels tomorrow, see how he feels the next few days and continue to evaluate it,&rdquo; Budenholzer said.
He had &ldquo;no idea&rdquo; if Antetokounmpo would travel to Salt Lake City for the All-Star Game.
The two-time MVP was hurt trying to block a finger roll attempt by Chicago&rsquo;s Coby White after the guard drove past him. He jammed his wrist when he reached out &mdash; perhaps to soften the blow &mdash; as he crashed into the padded stanchion. He continued to flex his hand and got subbed out a few seconds later before heading to the locker room.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a guy that&rsquo;s attacking the basket all the time,&rdquo; Budenholzer said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s fearless. He takes a lot of falls so you kind of learn to just expect him to always just bounce back up, and that&rsquo;s what we&rsquo;re hoping for from this one.&rdquo;
Antetokounmpo finished with a season-low two points and three assists, giving him 3,274 over 10 seasons to break Paul Pressey&rsquo;s record of 3,272 from 1982 to 1990. He also had seven rebounds.
SETTING THE RECORD
Antetokounmpo matched the assists mark when he fed Lopez for a 3-pointer two minutes into the game and broke it when he passed to Carter for another 3 that bumped Milwaukee&rsquo;s lead to 19-10 in the first quarter. He also is the Bucks&rsquo; career leader in blocks, triple-doubles, free throws made, free throws attempted and minutes.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s greatness, right?&rdquo; Holiday said. &ldquo;Especially to do it with one franchise, to be here through the ups and the downs, to see where he started and where he is now. I&rsquo;m so happy for him.&rdquo;
Lopez made three 3-pointers. Carter hit four from beyond the arc, and the Bucks beat Chicago for the first time in three games this season.
SLIDE CONTINUES
The Bulls lost their sixth in a row, their worst skid since dropping six straight in the 2020-21 season. They also fell seven games under .500 at 26-33, not what they envisioned after making the playoffs a year ago.
Nikola Vucevic had 22 points and 16 rebounds. Zach LaVine scored 18, and Patrick Williams had 16 points.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not just throwing in the towel,&rdquo; LaVine said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think we have the type of team or personnel to do that. Losing hurts.&rdquo;
SIDELINED STARS
Both teams were missing stars, with Milwaukee&rsquo;s Khris Middleton managing a sore right knee that has kept him out for a big portion of the season and Chicago&rsquo;s DeMar DeRozan sidelined for the second time in as many nights because of a strained right quadriceps.
TIP-INS
Bucks: Though Middleton&rsquo;s absence was not expected, coach Mike Budenholzer said the three-time All-Star did not experience a setback against Boston on Tuesday. Middleton had 16 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes against the Celtics. &ldquo;I think we&rsquo;re overall not concerned, but we&rsquo;ll see how he does over the break and just continue to work with him and make sure he&rsquo;s in a good place when he plays,&rdquo; Budenholzer said.
Bulls: The Bulls said DeRozan is expected to play in the All-Star Game on Sunday. ... G Ayo Dosunmu was selected to replace injured Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green on fellow former Illinois star Deron Williams&rsquo; team in Friday&rsquo;s Rising Stars game. The Chicago product played in the game as a rookie last year and was averaging 9.6 points and 2.9 assists in his second season after being drafted in the second round. Dosunmu called it a &ldquo;blessing&rdquo; to be selected again and said Williams was &ldquo;a big mentor&rdquo; for him in the draft process.

Giannis Antetokounmpo suffered a sprained wrist as the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Chicago Bulls 112-100 for their 12th straight win.

Giannis sets assists mark, hurts wrist; Bucks beat Bulls

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; A scan done on LeBron James&rsquo; troublesome left ankle and foot showed no serious issue, but the newly crowned NBA career scoring leader sat out a second straight game Saturday night since breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar&rsquo;s mark earlier in the week.
Still, coach Darvin Ham expects to see James back on the floor before the All-Star break. When asked whether James might need to be sidelined through the break, Ham offered, &ldquo;No, I don&rsquo;t think he&rsquo;ll allow us to do that.&rdquo;
General manager Rob Pelinka said earlier Saturday that nothing was seriously wrong for James, who topped former Lakers star Abdul-Jabbar during Tuesday&rsquo;s 133-130 home loss to Oklahoma City.
&ldquo;LeBron did have some imaging on his foot injury, and we&rsquo;re grateful that things came back clean and good.&rdquo; Pelinka said.
The game with Golden State &mdash; missing reigning NBA Finals MVP Stephen Curry because of a left leg injury &mdash; marked James&rsquo; seventh sidelined by soreness in the left ankle. He also missed one game with left foot soreness and another because of a non-COVID illness. He also sat out five games with a strained left inner thigh muscle.
&ldquo;Just for him to continue to get treatment, stay off of it,&rdquo; Ham said of the plan. &ldquo;Obviously we made moves and one of the biggest moves is making sure we&rsquo;re not putting him in a position where we&rsquo;re putting him at risk of a bigger issue.&rdquo;
James has what Ham called &ldquo;normal wear and tear, little irritated in one area.&rdquo;
The 38-year-old James has made his 19th straight All-Star team and has 38,390 career points.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re just taking this time that we have to get him treated and hopefully get him back so we can make a good run and he can be in the midst of it down the stretch,&rdquo; Ham said.

A scan done on LeBron James’ troublesome left ankle and foot showed no serious issue.

Scan on LeBron James’ sore left foot shows no serious damage

DENVER (AP) &mdash; Nikola Jokic posted his 19th triple-double of the season by halftime and the Denver Nuggets rode a 49-point first quarter to a 146-112 rout of the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night.
Jokic finished with 20 points, 16 assists and 12 rebounds. It was the second time in his career the big man has notched a triple-double by halftime. Jokic took a seat late in the third quarter with the Western Conference leaders ahead by a large margin.
Denver led 49-19 after the first quarter &mdash; including a 32-2 run &mdash; as the Nuggets shot 79.2% from the floor. The 49 points tied for the second-most in a quarter in the franchise&rsquo;s NBA history. Michael Porter Jr. led the way by scoring 19 of his 30 points in the opening period.
Aaron Gordon added 24 for the Nuggets, who set season highs in points and assists (44).
Anthony Edwards and Luka Garza both had 19 points for Minnesota. The frustration for the Timberwolves flashed with D&rsquo;Angelo Russell getting ejected after picking up two technical fouls in third quarter. He had 10 points.
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-525 apnews_article_midarticle_1" data-card-id="sovrn-article-midarticle">On Sunday in Minnesota, the Timberwolves cruised past Denver 128-98, but the Nuggets were without four starters in Jokic, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Jamal Murray and Gordon.</div>
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-525 apnews_article_midarticle_1" data-card-id="sovrn-article-midarticle"> Murray missed the game Tuesday due to inflammation in his right knee. He was sidelined all last season as he recovered from a torn ACL in his left knee.</div>
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-525 apnews_article_midarticle_1" data-card-id="sovrn-article-midarticle">
TIP-INS
Timberwolves: F Kyle Anderson was sidelined with back spasms. ... G Austin Rivers served the second of his three-game suspension for his part in last Friday&rsquo;s fight between Minnesota and the Orlando Magic.
Nuggets: F Zeke Nnaji was out with a sprained right shoulder. ... G Bruce Brown appeared to turn his ankle early in the game, but returned and finished with nine points. ... It was Jokic&rsquo;s 95th career triple-double.
TRADE TALK
Nuggets guard Bones Hyland didn&rsquo;t play as his name surfaces in trade speculation. The trade deadline is Thursday.
&ldquo;Bones is one of my favorite players,&rdquo;&nbsp;Porter told the media&nbsp;contingent during the morning shootaround. &ldquo;I wish he would stay here. I wish it could be figured out.&rdquo;
KAT APPEARANCE
Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns joined the team on the trip, but there&rsquo;s no timetable for his return from a strained right calf.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s good for him to get back in the mindset of being around the team, start to fall into the rhythm of what that is,&rdquo; Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. &ldquo;Just having him around has been great.&rdquo;
</div>

Nikola Jokic posted his 19th triple-double of the season and the Denver Nuggets routed the Minnesota Timberwolves 146-112.

Jokic posts triple-double by halftime, Nuggets rout Wolves

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; With star teammate Stephen Curry sidelined, Klay Thompson kept shooting and took care of the offensive load the Golden State Warriors were missing without their reigning NBA Finals MVP.
Thompson scored 42 points with a season-high 12 3-pointers, Jordan Poole added 21 points and career-best 12 assists starting in Curry&rsquo;s place, and the Warriors beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 141-114 on Monday night.
&ldquo;It was a beautiful game to watch him play,&rdquo; Draymond Green said of Thompson.
&ldquo;... We needed it. It&rsquo;s been a while since we had a blowout win. It&rsquo;s good to get this one, especially first game with Steph out. It was good to start off on this foot and try to create some momentum.&rdquo;
Thompson sat down for the night to a roaring ovation with 4:41 left to finish 15 for 22 from the floor and 12 of 16 on 3s. Thompson now has eight games with 10 or more 3-pointers, second in NBA history behind Splash Brother Curry&rsquo;s 22.
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-62 apnews_article_midarticle_1" data-card-id="sovrn-article-midarticle">
&ldquo;This is a confidence booster for sure to play without him, but to see the performance of the team, amazing individual performances we got,&rdquo; coach Steve Kerr said. &ldquo;It was a feel-good game for a lot of people and that just really fuels everybody. Hopefully we can keep that going.&rdquo;
<div class="Component-hubPeekEmbed-0-2-66 HubPeek noBorderBottom-0-2-75 compressedEmbed-0-2-76 hubPeekMain" data-card-id="afs:Card:522820401280">
<div class="hubPeekContainerWide-0-2-78" data-key="feed-card-hub-peak">
<div class="title-0-2-79">
Andrew Wiggins scored 18 points in Golden State&rsquo;s first game since losing Curry to a left leg injury late in the third quarter of Saturday&rsquo;s win against Dallas &mdash; and the Warriors went 26 of 50 from deep without the league&rsquo;s career 3-point leader.
They also didn&rsquo;t let down late as has been a concern and frustration recently for Kerr.
&ldquo;That was fun, that was probably the most fun I&rsquo;ve had watching our team all year,&rdquo; Kerr said.
Thompson had 27 points at halftime, going 10 of 14 from the floor and 7 for 9 on 3-pointers as the Warriors led 60-53. Poole dished out five assists in the opening quarter, then helped Golden State start the third on a 19-7 burst to pull away for their eighth straight win in the series.
&ldquo;I thought Jordan was magnificent, one of the best games I&rsquo;ve ever seen him play. He just was so under control,&rdquo; Kerr said.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 points, Aaron Wiggins added 19 and Tre Mann had 18 off the bench for the Thunder. Josh Giddey contributed 15 points, eight assists and seven rebounds as Oklahoma City struggled in the opener of a road back-to-back coming off a franchise-record 153 points in Saturday&rsquo;s home win over Houston.
TIP-INS
Thunder: G Lu Dort sat out again after he missed Saturday&rsquo;s game with a strained right hamstring. ... The Thunder were outrebounded 45-36. ... Oklahoma City dropped to 9-17 on the road, 3-10 vs. the West. The Thunder have lost four in a row on the Warriors&rsquo; home floor.
Warriors: Poole had his first double-double of the season and third of his career. ... Golden State is 7-5 without Curry, who was previously sidelined Dec. 16-Jan. 7 with a shoulder injury. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve already been through a stretch without Steph and handled it pretty well, so we&rsquo;re confident we can do that again,&rdquo; Kerr said.
ROLLINS SURGERY
Warriors rookie guard Ryan Rollins is set to have surgery Wednesday for a broken pinkie toe in his right foot and he will likely miss the rest of the season.
Golden State acquired the draft rights to Rollins from the Hawks, who selected him 44th overall in the second round.
He played in 12 games for the Warriors and 19 for the G League Santa Cruz team, where he averaged 19.5 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 25.6 minutes.
SENSORY ROOM
The Warriors and&nbsp;Marvel actor Simu Liu unveiled the &ldquo;Simu Liu Sensory Room&rdquo;&nbsp;for guests who might need a quiet space when&nbsp;feeling overwhelmed or overstimulated.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s incredible,&rdquo; Liu said. &ldquo;Pretty neat. It&rsquo;s simple. It&rsquo;s perfect.&rdquo;
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>

Klay Thompson scored 42 points with a season-high 12 3-pointers,  and the Warriors beat the Thunder 141-114.

Thompson scores 42 points with 12 3s, Warriors beat Thunder

HOUSTON (AP) &mdash; Eric Gordon had a season-high 25 points and rookie Tari Eason added career-high 20 to lead the Houston Rockets to a 112-106 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night.
The Rockets (13-38), who have the worst record in the Western Conference, have won three of their last five games after dropping 18 of the previous 19.
Eason, the 17th overall pick in the 2022 draft, also had 13 rebounds off the bench, matching a career best on a night Jalen Green sat out with an injury.
Coach Stephen Silas credited Gordon for keeping this young team focused when the game was close down the stretch.
&ldquo;Eric tonight was so steady and when we went down five or six he was the one settling the guys down, and that&rsquo;s important,&rdquo; Silas said. &ldquo;That veteran presence &hellip; was huge tonight.&rdquo;
Gordon, who is in his 15th NBA season, takes pride in helping his inexperienced teammates.
&ldquo;My mentality is all about winning,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;And for me it&rsquo;s all about just giving these young guys confidence.&rdquo;
Houston was up by five after consecutive baskets by Josh Christopher before the Thunder got a free throw from Darius Bazley and a jump shot from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to get within 100-98 with about four minutes left.
But the Rockets scored the next five points, with a 3 from Kenyon Martin Jr., to push the lead to seven about a minute later. Gordon missed two free throws after that, and Gilgeous-Alexander made two for Oklahoma City, cutting the lead to 105-100.
But Daishen Nix made a layup before Martin had a two-handed dunk seconds later to extend Houston&rsquo;s lead to 109-100 with less than a minute to go.
Gilgeous-Alexander had 24 points to lead the Thunder and Josh Giddey scored 20 with eight rebounds and eight assists.
&ldquo;The best thing Houston did tonight was the way they were ready to play from the jump.&rdquo; Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.
Silas was impressed with his team&rsquo;s defense on Gilgeous-Alexander, who entered the game ranked fifth in the NBA by averaging 30.9 points.
&ldquo;It was a team effort,&rdquo; Silas said.
Tre Mann opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer to extend Oklahoma City&rsquo;s lead to five points. But Houston got consecutive 3s from Garrison Mathews and Eason after that to go on top 90-89.
Eason got a steal a couple of minutes later and drove in for a layup, but missed. It was the first of four straight misses &mdash; and four rebounds &mdash; by Eason on that possession as he kept grabbing rebounds and missing shots at the rim until finally making a fifth shot that he was fouled on. He made the free throw to put Houston up 93-89.
&ldquo;That just shows the fight that we had at that moment of the game,&rdquo; Silas said.
Eason said the moment was both fun and exhausting.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a little bit of both,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Any time I step on the court, I want to bring a lot of energy, a lot of hustle and that&rsquo;s just what I do.&rdquo;
Houston was up by eight after baskets by Gordon and Martin early in the third quarter before the Thunder used a 9-0 run, with seven points from Jaylin Williams, to take a 72-71 lead.
Their lead was short-lived as the Rockets made the next four points to go back on top 75-72 midway through the quarter.
Oklahoma City used a 7-0 run after that, with a 3 from Isaiah Joe, to take a 79-75 lead with about four minutes left in the third.
The game was tied later in the third before Gilgeous-Alexander made all the Thunder&rsquo;s points in a 7-1 spurt, capped by a three-point play, to put them up 86-80.
The Rockets scored the last four points of the quarter to cut the lead to two entering the fourth.
TIP-INS
Thunder: Luguentz Dort sat out for a third straight game with a strained right hamstring. &hellip; Mann had 18 points off the bench. &hellip; Oklahoma City made 12 of 43 3-pointers.
Rockets: Green missed a second straight game with a bruised right calf. Coach Stephen Silas said he&rsquo;s getting better and should return this weekend. &hellip; Kevin Porter Jr. was out for a 10th consecutive game with a bruised left foot. &hellip; Martin had 18 points and seven rebounds. &hellip; Sengun had 10 points and 12 rebounds.
BOARDS
The Rockets outrebounded Oklahoma City 65-52 Wednesday. They&rsquo;ve won the rebounding battle in each of their three recent wins, with Sengun and Eason leading the way.
&ldquo;With those guys rebounding the way they are, they&rsquo;re always going to give us a chance,&rdquo; Gordon said.
UP NEXT
Thunder: Face the Rockets again on Saturday night.
Rockets: Host Toronto on Friday night.

Eric Gordon had a season-high 25 points and Tari Eason added a career-high 20 to lead the Rockets to a 112-106 win over OKC.

Eric Gordon, Tari Eason help Rockets defeat Thunder 112-106

DENVER (AP) &mdash; Jamal Murray is locked in right now &mdash; with his shot, with his swagger and especially with his confidence in his team.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s fun to play basketball,&rdquo; the Denver point guard said. &ldquo;But we still have room to improve. We&rsquo;re not satisfied with where we&rsquo;re at.&rdquo;
Murray scored 32 points, Nikola Jokic got his 16th triple-double of the season and the Western Conference-leading Nuggets held off the reeling New Orleans Pelicans 122-113 on Tuesday night.
Murray made a season-high seven 3-pointers to give him 771 for his career and move him past J.R. Smith for second place on the franchise list. He&rsquo;s just 33 away from matching Will Barton for the top spot.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll get that in three games,&rdquo; cracked Murray.
See, swagger.
His smooth jumper was so in rhythm early in the game Tuesday that Nuggets coach Michael Malone didn&rsquo;t want to take him out. Malone didn&rsquo;t, either, until later than usual.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to be the guy that puts the fire out,&rdquo; said Malone, whose team trailed by 12 in the second quarter before closing the gap to 60-57 at halftime and taking control in the third. &ldquo;Jamal was really, really good in all areas of the game tonight.&rdquo;
Ditto for Jokic, who finished with 26 points, 18 rebounds and 15 assists as the Nuggets improved to 16-0 when he has a triple-double.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m happy as long as we are winning games and the players are happy around me,&rdquo; Jokic said.
CJ McCollum and Herbert Jones both scored 21 points for the Pelicans, who have dropped nine straight games. They finished 3-13 in January.
Part of the reason for the slide has been the absence of standout Zion Williamson, who has missed 15 games in a row with a hamstring injury.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got to keep our heads down and keep working,&rdquo; coach Willie Green said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s hard to win in the NBA. We&rsquo;re seeing that. There was some beauty in what I saw tonight. ... We&rsquo;re right there, but we have to sustain it for 48 minutes.&rdquo;
The Nuggets led by 13 early in the fourth quarter only to see the Pelicans cut it to five on several occasions, including a layup by Jones with less than a minute remaining. Murray and Jokic each converted a pair of free throws down the stretch to help Denver fend off New Orleans and move to 23-4 at home.
Jokic, who&rsquo;s been dealing with tightness in his left hamstring, had another efficient shooting performance in going 10 of 14 from the floor. It was the 92nd triple-double of his career.
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-521 apnews_article_midarticle_2" data-card-id="sovrn-article-midarticle">
&ldquo;He was pretty dominant across the board,&rdquo; Green said.
TIP-INS
Pelicans: Williamson is steadily progressing from a strained hamstring, according to Green. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s something we don&rsquo;t want to rush, but we&rsquo;re definitely excited to see him on the floor,&rdquo; he said. ... Brandon Ingram finished with 16 points and nine assists. ... Larry Nance Jr. scored 11 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter.
Nuggets: Rookie guard Collin Gillespie (broken right leg) has been cleared for shooting and light running. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re not putting any pressure or a rush on him,&rdquo; Malone said. ... Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Aaron Gordon each had 15 points.
TRADE TALK
Nuggets guard Bones Hyland was limited to 4:43 and scored two points. His name has been mentioned in trade speculation.
Asked where he stands with Hyland, Malone responded: &ldquo;I stand with Bones. Bones is on our team.&rdquo;
RISING STARS
Hyland was selected to the NBA&rsquo;s Jordan Rising Stars Challenge. So were Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado and forward Trey Murphy III. The mini-tournament will take place on Feb. 17 in Salt Lake City as part of All-Star weekend.
</div>

Jamal Murray scored 32 points, Nikola Jokic got his 16th triple-double of the season and the Nuggets held off the Pelicans 122-113.

Murray, Jokic help Nuggets hold off Pelicans 122-113

CLEVELAND (AP) &mdash; Cedi Osman tied his career high with 29 points and matched the franchise record by making all seven of his 3-pointers as the Cleveland Cavaliers built a 40-point lead on their way to a 122-99 rout of the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday night.
All-Star starter Donovan Mitchell had 11 points in his return for Cleveland after missing three games with a strained groin. The Cavaliers never trailed and took their largest lead of the season at 82-42 on Jarrett Allen&rsquo;s first 3-pointer since Nov. 5, 2021.
&ldquo;It was a great feeling, everybody was sharing the moment with me,&rdquo; Osman said. &ldquo;We played great offensively, and it was a great game for everybody. We&rsquo;ve got such a good group of guys who support each other at all times.&rdquo;
The Clippers, who had won five in a row, opted not to dress Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Reggie Jackson, all of whom played Saturday in Atlanta. Officially, George and Leonard did not play because of right knee trouble and Jackson has a sore right Achilles.
Turkey national team member Osman made 11 of 13 shots on Turkish Heritage Night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. He joined Kyrie Irving and Mo Williams as the only Cavaliers to go 7 of 7 beyond the arc in a game.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s what Turkish Heritage Night will do for you,&rdquo; Allen said, laughing. &ldquo;Every single thing, except for his layups, went in. He did everything he was supposed to all night.&rdquo;
Darius Garland collected 16 points and 10 assists, and Allen had 15 points and eight rebounds for Cleveland, which has the best home record in the East at 21-5.
The performance was in stark contrast to the Cavaliers&rsquo; 120-114 home loss to Golden State nine days earlier, when the Warriors sat Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins.
&ldquo;Tonight was a similar situation, but we took it serious,&rdquo; Osman said. &ldquo;We knew Golden State was missing a lot of pieces and learned a tough lesson from it.&rdquo;
Brandon Boston Jr. scored 24 points and Moses Brown had 13 points and 16 rebounds for Los Angeles. Rookie Jason Preston from Ohio University had season highs of 12 points and eight assists.
The Clippers are 1-1 on a six-game road trip that ends Feb. 6 in Brooklyn. They missed 16 of their first 17 3-pointers and finished 2 of 19.
&ldquo;I had a couple of friends and family here, so it was a good night, for sure,&rdquo; Preston said. &ldquo;The more I was out there, I kept getting a little more confident.&rdquo;
WELCOME BACK
Clippers coach Tyronn Lue took the Cavaliers to three straight NBA Finals appearances, winning their lone championship in 2016. F Kevin Love and Osman are the only remaining players who played for Lue.
&ldquo;When you lose LeBron (James) and Kyrie (Irving), usually it&rsquo;s going to take a long time to get back,&rdquo; said Lue, who went 128-83 in four seasons with the Cavaliers. &ldquo;To be where they are now, they&rsquo;ve done a great job putting together this team.
&ldquo;It started with the trade for Jarrett Allen, which was out of this world, and getting Donovan Mitchell this year took them to the next level.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Clippers: G Terance Mann had the sole assist by a Los Angeles starter in the first half. &hellip; F Marcus Morris (bruised rib) missed his third consecutive game and F Robert Covington (personal reasons) sat out his second. G John Wall (abdominal soreness) last played on Jan. 13 against Denver. &hellip; Two-way C Brown was recalled from Ontario in the G League.
Cavaliers: Love (low back spasms) was inactive for the third straight game. The 34-year-old has missed six contests with the injury since the start of December. &hellip; Cleveland must win its next game to finish a winning record for the fourth consecutive month. It hasn&rsquo;t started a season with four straight winning months since its 2015-2016 title campaign.
UP NEXT
Clippers: Visit Chicago on Tuesday night.
Cavaliers: Host Miami on Tuesday night.
&nbsp;

Osman tied his career high with 29 points as the Cavs built a 40-point lead on their way to a 122-99 rout of the Clippers on Sunday.