By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
The struggles of the Atlanta Hawks extended to Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse and a loss, 137-115, to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday.
French Zaccharie Risacher was a bright spot for the team coached by Quin Snyder with a game-high 30 points behind 11/14 from the field, including five three-pointers. Over 25 minutes, the top pick of the 2025 NBA draft added two steals, one rebound, and one assist.
Held to a bench role, Vit Krejci logged 20 minutes and combined six points with one rebound. Serbian Bogdan Bogdanovic and Swiss Clint Capela remained out due to personal reasons and back spasms.
With the Los Angeles Lakers in a safe distance, Bronny James played the entire fourth quarter and scored five points en route to a 134-96 victory versus the Washington Wizards in Capital One Arena. On the wrong end of one-way traffic, Serbian Tristan Vukcevic had nine points, three rebounds, and one assist, French Bilal Coulibaly finished with six points and three rebounds, and Lithuanian Jonas Valanciunas settled at five points, three rebounds, and three assists. French Alex Sarr remained sidelined with a left ankle sprain.
In Delta Center, the Minnesota Timberwolves cruised past the Utah Jazz, 138-113, sidestepping an early exit for Julius Randle due to right groin soreness. Stepping up, Bosnian Luka Garza put in 16 points, four assists, four rebounds, and one steal in just under 14 minutes. French Rudy Gobert registered 16 points, nine rebounds, five assists, and four rebounds. For the hosts, Finnish Lauri Markkanen piled up 15 points, two rebounds, and one block, but Ukrainian Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk stayed on the bench.
With Turkish Alperen Sengun dealing with a left calf contusion and sitting out shortly following an All-Star Game nod, the Houston Rockets fell to a narrow loss with the Memphis Grizzlies prevailing, 120-119, in FedExForum. Lasting 26 minutes off the bench for the hosts, Spanish Santi Aldama ended up with 15 points, including five in the fourth quarter, five rebounds, two blocks, and one assist.
Securing their sixth win in the last seven games in the 2024-25 Regular Season, the Portland Trail Blazers routed the Orlando Magic, 119-90, in Moda Center. Israeli Deni Avdija chipped in 11 points, five assists, five rebounds, and two blocks, Belgian Toumani Camara packed seven points, five rebounds, two blocks, and two assists, and French Rayan Rupert paired three points with one rebound.
German Franz Wagner logged a game-high 24 points alongside three assists and three rebounds, but he was not enough for the Magic. Georgian Goga Bitadze was limited to two points, three rebounds, two assists, one block, and one steal, and German Tristan da Silva had one rebound, one assist, one block, and one steal.
Thursday results
Washington Wizards – Los Angeles Lakers 96-134
Cleveland Cavaliers – Atlanta Hawks 137-115
Utah Jazz – Minnesota Timberwolves 113-138
Memphis Grizzlies – Houston Rockets 120-119
Portland Trail Blazers – Orlando Magic 119-90
Standings
Eastern Conference
1. Cleveland Cavaliers 39-9
2. Boston Celtics 33-15
3. New York Knicks 32-16
4. Milwaukee Bucks 26-19
5. Indiana Pacers 26-20
6. Miami Heat 23-23
7. Orlando Magic 24-25
8. Detroit Pistons 23-24
9. Atlanta Hawks 22-26
10. Chicago Bulls 20-28
11. Philadelphia 76ers 19-27
12. Toronto Raptors 15-32
13. Brooklyn Nets 15-33
14. Charlotte Hornets 12-32
15. Washington Wizards 6-41
Western Conference
1. Oklahoma City Thunder 37-9
2. Houston Rockets 32-15
3. Memphis Grizzlies 32-16
4. Denver Nuggets 28-19
5. Los Angeles Lakers 27-19
6. Los Angeles Clippers 27-20
7. Minnesota Timberwolves 27-21
8. Dallas Mavericks 26-22
9. Phoenix Suns 24-22
10. Sacramento Kings 24-23
11. Golden State Warriors 24-23
12. San Antonio Spurs 20-24
13. Portland Trail Blazers 19-29
14. New Orleans Pelicans 12-36
15. Utah Jazz 10-36
-The top six teams from each conference clinch a berth in the Playoffs
-Teams ranking seventh to tenth advance to the Play-Ins