By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
A 50-point effort by Giannis Antetokounmpo was the masterpiece in the latest edition of NBA Sundays. The Freak shot 20/26 from the field, including 3/4 threes, pushing the Milwaukee Bucks to the win, 135-110, versus the New Orleans Pelicans in Fiserv Forum. Pulling down 13 rebounds shaped his 28th double-double in the 2022-23 NBA Regular Season. He also posted four assists requiring merely 30 minutes for all of the above.
“They might say, ‘Daddy, you’re boring. You’re lame. We don’t want to see your highlights. We’ve heard so much about you. We want to watch Scooby-Doo’ or whatever the case might be,” said Antetokounmpo somehow apologetically after the game, “I’m just going to keep creating the way people in the past created, the way I can go back and watch Magic Johnson highlights, Kevin Garnett highlights, Kobe Bryant highlights, Allen Iverson highlights, KD’s, LeBron’s. They’ve created so much art throughout the years, and we can go back and see it and admire what they did. Tim Duncan.”
His brother Thanasis Antetokounmpo registered one rebound in one minute, while Georgian Sandro Mamukelashvili sneaked in two points in three minutes. For the Pelicans, Lithuanian Jonas Valanciunas had 16 points, three rebounds, one assists, one steal, and one block with Spanish Willy Hernangomez staying on the bench. The visitors missed Zion Williamson (right hamstring strain), Brandon Ingram (left foot toe), and CJ McCollum (right thump strain), settling for an eighth loss in a row.
Turkish Cedi Osman tucking in all of his seven three-point attempts tied his NBA-high 29 points and powered the Cleveland Cavaliers past the Los Angeles Clippers, 122-99. Besides 11/13 field goals, he added two steals, two assists, two rebounds, and one block in 22 minutes. Spanish teammate Ricky Rubio also came off the bench chipping in three points, three assists, and one rebound in 19 minutes.
Coming in with a five-game winning streak stretching to defeating the Atlanta Hawks on NBA Saturdays, the Clippers ruled out Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and Reggie Jackson for the contest at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Making the most of the opportunity, French Moussa Diabate packing 13 points, five rebounds, one steal, and one assist over 30 minutes logged his best NBA performance since being selected 43rd overall in last summer’s draft. Croatian Ivica Zubac paired two points with seven rebounds and French Nicolas Batum grabbed three rebounds.
At FedExForum, the Memphis Grizzlies took down the Indiana Pacers, 112-100, behind Ja Morant’s triple-double showing. Spanish Santi Aldama chipped in two points, three rebounds, two assists, and one steal in 15 minutes. For the Pacers, Georgian Goga Bitadze did not play and German Daniel Theis (right knee) stayed on the injury list.
Opening the NBA Sundays schedule, the Charlotte Hornets beat the Miami Heat, 122-117, in Spectrum Center.
2022-23 STANDINGS
EAST
1. Boston Celtics 36-15
2. Philadelphia 76ers 32-16
3. Milwaukee Bucks 33-17
4. Brooklyn Nets 30-19
5. Cleveland Cavaliers 31-21
6. Miami Heat 28-23
7. New York Knicks 27-24
8. Atlanta Hawks 25-25
9. Washington Wizards 23-26
10. Chicago Bulls 23-26
11. Indiana Pacers 24-28
12. Toronto Raptors 23-28
13. Orlando Magic 19-31
14. Charlotte Hornets 15-36
15. Detroit Pistons 13-38
WEST
1. Denver Nuggets 34-16
2. Memphis Grizzlies 32-18
3. Sacramento Kings 27-21
4. Los Angeles Clippers 28-25
5. Minnesota Timberwolves 27-25
6. Golden State Warriors 25-24
7. Dallas Mavericks 26-25
8. New Orleans Pelicans 26-25
9. Phoenix Suns 26-25
10. Utah Jazz 26-26
11. Oklahoma City Thunder 24-25
12. Portland Trail Blazers 23-26
13. Los Angeles Lakers 23-27
14. San Antonio Spurs 14-36
15. Houston Rockets 12-38
-Top six teams of each conference advance directly to the Playoffs
-Teams seeded 7th to 10th will compete in Play-In tournament
Photo Credit: Getty Images