By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Beating the Charlotte Hornets 105-91 on the road, Kevin Durant debuted with the Phoenix Suns. The former Brooklyn Nets superstar had 23 points and 6 rebounds.
“I feel like I fit in pretty well. Everybody out there was trying to make me as comfortable as possible. I just have to keep riding it, man”, he said after the win.
He also delivered 2 assists and 2 blocks while shooting 10/15 from the field in 27 minutes spent on the court for the first time as a Phoenix Suns player.
Elsewhere in the league, Giannis Antetokounmpo pushed the Milwaukee Bucks to a 139-117 imposing win against the Orlando Magic. The Greek Freak had 31 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, shooting 10/14 from the field, 3/4 from three, and 8/10 at the line.
On Orlando’s side, Franz Wagner had a losing effort of 18 points, while Paolo Banchero had 9 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Goga Bitadze and Moritz Wagner, coming off the bench, had 3 points each.
Delivering 26 points and 6 assists in 37 minutes on the court, Dennis Schroder took the Los Angeles Lakers on his shoulders for the 123-117 on-the-road win against Oklahoma. For the Thunder, Dario Saric had 13 points off the bench.
Nikola Vucevic went close to a double-double with 12 points and 9 rebounds in Chicago’s 117-115 win against Detroit, but Bojan Bogdanovic produced a losing effort of 34 points. Killian Hayes added 11 points and 7 assists.
While his brother Juancho has been cut by the Toronto Raptors, Willy Hernangomez had 7 points and 7 rebounds replacing Jonas Valanciunas in New Orleans’ away 121-110 win against Portland.
More action and European showings
Boston Celtics – Cleveland Cavaliers 117-113 (Rubio 4 p)
Miami Heat – Philadelphia 76ers 96-119
New York Knicks – Brooklyn Nets 142-118 (Hartenstein 8 p)
Houston Rockets – Memphis Grizzlies 99-113 (Aldama 9 p, 5 r; Sengun 11 p, 8 r, 5 a; Garuba 8 p, 4 r)
2022-23 STANDINGS
EAST
| TEAM | W | L | LAST 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| MILWAUKEE | 45 | 17 | |
| 45 | 18 | ||
| 40 | 21 | ||
| 39 | 26 | ||
| 37 | 27 | ||
| BROOKLYN | 34 | 28 | |
| MIAMI | 33 | 30 | |
| ATLANTA | 31 | 31 | |
| 31 | 32 | ||
| 29 | 32 | ||
| 29 | 34 | ||
| 28 | 35 | ||
| ORLANDO | 26 | 37 | |
| CHARLOTTE | 20 | 44 | |
| DETROIT | 15 | 48 |
WEST
| TEAM | W | L | LAST 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| DENVER | 44 | 19 | |
| MEMPHIS | 38 | 23 | |
| 3 SACRAMENTO | 36 | 25 | |
| 34 | 29 | 7-3 | |
| 32 | 30 | ||
| 33 | 31 | ||
| 32 | 31 | ||
| 32 | 32 | 4-6 | |
| 9 UTAH | 31 | 32 | 4-6 |
| 31 | 32 | ||
| 30 | 33 | ||
| 29 | 33 | ||
| 28 | 34 | ||
| 15 | 47 | ||
| 13 | 49 |
-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