By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Nikola Jokic went for 22 points, ten rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one block starring for the Denver Nuggets in blowing out the New York Knicks, 114-89, Sunday evening. German Isaiah Hartenstein had eight points and Slovenian Vlatko Cancar one rebound coming off the bench. French Frank Ntilikina missed the 2020-21 NBA Regular Season contest due to a sprained right knee estimated to hold him out for at least one more week.
Serge Ibaka got ten points and Nicolas Batum eight complementing Kawhi Leonard’s 35 points in the Los Angeles Clippers win, 130-127, over the Chicago Bulls. Reserve Croatian Ivica Zubac added five points and seven rebounds. For the visiting team. French Adam Mokoka did not produce a stat in limited action with Lauri Markkanen and Tomas Satoransky remaining out.
The Los Angeles Lakers, leading the pack in the overall standings, overcame the early ejection of Markieff Morris in a testy affair taking down the Houston Rockets, 120-102. German Dennis Schroder helped out with eight points and Spanish Marc Gasol with six, both starting. Anthony Davis and LeBron James led the way with 27 and 18 points, respectively.
Ricky Rubio registered eight points, six assists, three steals, and two rebounds for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the win, 96-88, against the San Antonio Spurs. His Spanish compatriot and starter Juancho Hernangomez finished with seven points and eight rebounds. For the losing team, Austrian Jakob Poeltl got two points and Luka Samanic stayed on the bench.
The Utah Jazz held on to beat the Detroit Pistons, 96-86. Croatian Bojan Bogdanovic registered seven points and French Rudy Gobert combined his four with 19 rebounds and four blocks. Both Euros were part of the starting unit. On the other end, Ukrainian Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk had three points and French Sekou Doumbouya two off the bench.
French Theo Maledon and Serbian Aleksej Pokusevski put up three points each as the Oklahoma City Thunder grabbed the victory, 129-116, versus the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center. Two more European reserves on the opposing side with French Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot sizing himself up to 12 points and Latvian Rodions Kurucs grabbing two rebounds.
Also, two free throws by Damion Lee with 3.3 seconds left lifted the Golden State Warriors to the win, 106-105, versus the Toronto Raptors. Lone European action here produced by British OG Anunoby with ten points in a losing effort.
The game between the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat was postponed.
Sunday results:
Detroit Pistons – Utah Jazz 86-96
Los Angeles Clippers – Chicago Bulls 130-127
Brooklyn Nets – Oklahoma City Thunder 116-129
New York Knicks – Denver Nuggets 89-114
Houston Rockets – Los Angeles Lakers 102-120
Minnesota Timberwolves – San Antonio Spurs 96-88
Golden State Warriors – Toronto Raptors 106-105
Standings:
Eastern Conference
1. Philadelphia 76ers 7-3
2. Boston Celtics 7-3
3. Indiana Pacers 6-3
4. Milwaukee Bucks 6-4
5. Orlando Magic 6-4
6. Charlotte Hornets 5-5
7. Cleveland Cavaliers 5-5
8. New York Knicks 5-5
9. Miami Heat 4-4
10. Brooklyn Nets 5-6
11. Atlanta Hawks 4-5
12. Chicago Bulls 4-7
13. Toronto Raptors 2-7
14. Washington Wizards 2-8
15. Detroit Pistons 2-8
Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers 8-3
2. Phoenix Suns 7-3
3. Los Angeles Clippers 7-4
4. Utah Jazz 6-4
5. Golden State Warriors 6-4
6. Dallas Mavericks 5-4
7. Portland Trail Blazers 5-4
8. Oklahoma City Thunder 5-4
9. Denver Nuggets 5-5
10. San Antonio Spurs 5-5
11. New Orleans Pelicans 4-5
12. Sacramento Kings 4-6
13. Houston Rockets 3-5
14. Memphis Grizzlies 3-6
15. Minnesota Timberwolves 3-7
Photo Credit: Getty Images