By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Seventh win in a row the Boston Celtics, they overcame Nikola Jokic and beat the Denver Nuggets, 108-102, Friday evening. The reigning NBA MVP packing 23 points, 16 rebounds, and 11 assists for his league-leading 15th triple-double of the 2021-22 Regular Season did not lead the visitors to the win. He committed nine of the 21 team turnovers at TD Garden. Slovenian teammate Vlatko Cancar (right foot surgery) stayed on the injury list. German Daniel Theis returned to the Celtics via a deal completed on Thursday’s Trade Deadline but was unavailable.
Another Serbian standout, Bogdan Bogdanovic went for 23 points, five rebounds, four assists, and two steals, as the Atlanta Hawks fell to the San Antonio Spurs, 136-121. Italian Danilo Gallinari paired 16 points with nine rebounds, Swiss Clint Capela posted a 13-point, 11-rebound double-double, and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot had five points in the losing effort. Austrian Jakob Poeltl tallied 12 points, five rebounds, three assists, and three blocks for the Spurs but newcomers Czech Tomas Satoransky has yet to join the team and Slovenian Goran Dragic is expected to be released.
Nikola Vucevic dropped 26 points ranking second among scorers behind DeMar DeRozan’s 35 points in the home win, 134-122, versus the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Montenegrin center added eight rebounds and seven assists in 35 minutes. He made 11/14 from the field, including 2/4 from beyond the arc in the second win in a row. Fellow Montenegrin Marko Simonovic was held to G League action with the Windy City Bulls. Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 31 points, and Karl-Anthony Towns ended up with 27 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists.
French Rudy Gobert (left calf strain) was not cleared to return to action but the Utah Jazz clinched the home win, 114-99, versus the Orlando Magic. Croatian Bojan Bogdanovic was held to seven points and 2/12 field goals and Spanish Juancho Hernangomez did not get on the board in his Jazz debut. On the opposite end, German Franz Wagner registered nine points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals, and one block, while Lithuanian Ignas Brazdeikis did not generate stats in three minutes and Franz’s brother Moritz (rib) was sidelined.
Turkish Cedi Osman scored 14 points in 20 minutes coming off the bench for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the win, 120-113, at the Indiana Pacers. Finnish Lauri Markkanen (right ankle sprain) missed his ninth straight game. For the Pacers, Georgian Goga Bitadze was limited to one rebound, one assist, one steal, and one block in ten minutes as a starter. Recently-added Spanish Ricky Rubio (left knee) has been ruled out for the remainder of the season before being traded to Indiana.
French Killian Hayes posted an 11-point, 12-assist double-double to go along with three rebounds and one steal in 28 minutes but the bottom-placed Detroit Pistons lost to the Charlotte Hornets, 141-119. For the Hornets, Lithuanian two-way player Arnoldas Kulboka was inactive.
Turkish Furkan Korkmaz had five points helping the Philadelphia 76ers defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder, 100-87. Serbian Aleksej Pokusevski produced 15 points for the visitors, while Czech Vit Krejci put up four points and French Theo Maledon had three points.
Friday results:
Detroit Pistons – Charlotte Hornets 119-141
Indiana Pacers – Cleveland Cavaliers 113-120
Philadelphia 76ers – Oklahoma City Thunder 100-87
Atlanta Hawks – San Antonio Spurs 121-136
Boston Celtics – Denver Nuggets 108-102
Chicago Bulls – Minnesota Timberwolves 134-122
Utah Jazz – Orlando Magic 114-99
Standings:
Eastern Conference
1. Miami Heat 36-20
2. Cleveland Cavaliers 35-21
3. Chicago Bulls 35-21
4. Milwaukee Bucks 35-22
5. Philadelphia 76ers 33-22
6. Toronto Raptors 31-23
7. Boston Celtics 32-25
8. Brooklyn Nets 29-26
9. Charlotte Hornets 29-28
10. Atlanta Hawks 26-29
11. Washington Wizards 25-29
12. New York Knicks 25-31
13. Indiana Pacers 19-38
14. Orlando Magic 13-44
15. Detroit Pistons 12-44
Western Conference
1. Phoenix Suns 45-10
2. Golden State Warriors 41-15
3. Memphis Grizzlies 39-18
4. Utah Jazz 35-21
5. Dallas Mavericks 33-23
6. Denver Nuggets 30-25
7. Minnesota Timberwolves 29-27
8. Los Angeles Clippers 27-30
9. Los Angeles Lakers 26-30
10. New Orleans Pelicans 22-33
11. Portland Trail Blazers 22-34
12. San Antonio Spurs 21-35
13. Sacramento Kings 21-36
14. Oklahoma City Thunder 17-38
15. Houston Rockets 15-40
Photo Credit: Getty Images