By John Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Danilo Gallinari powered the Oklahoma City Thunder to the 123-118 win over the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center. The Italian forward made 12/18 field goals for a game-high 29 points, also tallied two rebounds, a couple of steals and one dime. Teammate Dennis Schroder followed with 22 points to go along with his three assists, three boards and one interception of the bench. Nicolo Melli finished with six points, three rebounds and three rejections for the hosts.
The other Thursday game to wrap up the pre-All Star Game portion of the 2019-20 NBA Regular Season featured a double-overtime victory for the Boston Celtics, 141-133, over the Los Angeles Clippers at the TD Garden. Early in the contest, during the first timeout, the hosts announced that they will retire the No.5 jersey in honor of Kevin Garnett in the 2020-21 season.
Starter Daniel Theis put up 12 points, five rebounds, a couple of blocks and one interception. Reserve Enes Kanter added eight points, eight boards, a couple of dimes and one rejection. Vincent Poirier and Javonte Green did not get on the court. On his part, Ivica Zubac notched seven points, four rebounds, one assist and one block in losing effort.
Standings:
Eastern Conference
1. Milwaukee Bucks 46-8
2. Toronto Raptors 40-15
3. Boston Celtics 38-18
4. Miami Heat 35-19
5. Philadelphia 76ers 34-21
6. Indiana Pacers 32-21
7. Brooklyn Nets 25-28
8. Orlando Magic 24-31
9. Washington Wizards 20-33
10. Chicago Bulls 19-36
11. Charlotte Hornets 18-36
12. Detroit Pistons 19-38
13. New York Knicks 17-38
14. Atlanta Hawks 15-41
15. Cleveland Cavaliers 14-40
Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers 41-12
2. Denver Nuggets 38-17
3. Los Angeles Clippers 37-18
4. Utah Jazz 36-18
5. Houston Rockets 34-20
6. Oklahoma City Thunder 33-22
7. Dallas Mavericks 33-22
8. Memphis Grizzlies 28-26
9. Portland Trail Blazers 25-31
10. San Antonio Spurs 23-31
11. New Orleans Pelicans 23-32
12. Phoenix Suns 22-33
13. Sacramento Kings 21-33
14. Minnesota Timberwolves 16-37
15. Golden State Warriors 12-43
Photo Credit: Getty Images