By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Against the new Paul George-Kawhi Leonard-Russell Westbrook trio, the Denver Nuggets didn’t look too scared and beat the Los Angeles Clippers 134-124 after OT.
Nikola Jokic led his team with an outstanding triple-double of 40 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 assists, shooting 14/21 from the field and 12/15 at the charity stripe.
Vlatko Cancar, who came off the bench, had 6 points in the win, while on the losing side, Nicolas Batum had 12 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists.
In Damian Lillard’s 71 points night, the Houston Rockets lost 131-114 against Portland, but its Europeans showed some good efforts. Alperen Sengun had a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds with 5 assists, while Boban Marjanovic had 10 points and 3 rebounds in 6 minutes on the court.
Domantas Sabonis went close to another triple-double in his best NBA season so far with Sacramento, recording 14 points, 15 rebounds, and 8 assists in the Kings’ 124-115 win against Oklahoma.
Coming off the bench for the Atlanta Hawks, Bogdan Bogdanovic had 22 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists with 5/8 from downtown in the 129-127 win against Brooklyn. Clint Capela added 6 points and 12 rebounds.
Without Kristaps Porzingis, the Wizards lost 102-92 to the Chicago Bulls thanks to Nikola Vucevic’s double-double of 16 points and 13 rebounds. Deni Avdija had 8 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists.
Even without Cedi Osman’s contribution, Cleveland beat Toronto 118-93. For the Raptors, O.G. Anunoby had 7 points, while Jakob Poeltl went close to a double-double with 13 points and 9 rebounds.
NBA Sundays action and European showings
Atlanta Hawks – Brooklyn Nets 129-127 (Bogdan Bogdanovic 22 p, 6 r, 3 a; Capela 6 p, 12 r)
Chicago Bulls – Washington Wizards 102-82 (Vucevic 16 p, 13 r; Avdija 8 p, 4 r, 4 a)
Cleveland Cavaliers – Toronto Raptors 93-118 (Poeltl 13 p, 9 r; Anunoby 7 p)
Oklahoma City Thunder – Sacramento Kings 115-124 (Sabonis 14 p, 15 r, 8 a)
Golden State Warriors – Minnesota Timberwolves 109-104
Portland Trail Blazers – Houston Rockets 131-114 (Alperen Sengun 17 p, 10 r, 5 a; Marjanovic 10 p, 3 r)
Denver Nuggets – Los Angeles Clippers 134-124 OT (Jokic 40 p, 17 r, 10 a; Cancar 6 p; Batum 12 p, 3 r)
2022-23 STANDINGS
EAST
| TEAM | W | L | LAST 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| BOSTON | 44 | 17 | |
| 43 | 17 | ||
| 39 | 20 | ||
| 39 | 25 | ||
| 34 | 26 | ||
| NEW YORK | 35 | 27 | |
| MIAMI | 32 | 29 | |
| ATLANTA | 31 | 30 | |
| 30 | 32 | ||
| 28 | 32 | ||
| 28 | 33 | ||
| 27 | 35 | ||
| ORLANDO | 25 | 36 | |
| CHARLOTTE | 19 | 43 | |
| DETROIT | 15 | 46 |
WEST
| TEAM | W | L | LAST 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| DENVER | 43 | 19 | |
| MEMPHIS | 36 | 23 | |
| 3 SACRAMENTO | 35 | 25 | |
| 33 | 29 | 6-4 | |
| 33 | 30 | ||
| 32 | 30 | ||
| 31 | 30 | ||
| 31 | 31 | 5-5 | |
| 9 | 31 | 32 | 4-6 |
| 30 | 31 | ||
| 29 | 31 | ||
| 29 | 32 | ||
| 28 | 32 | ||
| 14 | 47 | ||
| 13 | 47 |
-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