Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – Luka Doncic returned with a triple-double and LeBron James came up big in the clutch to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 112-108 NBA victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday. Doncic, who missed two games as he traveled to Slovenia to welcome the birth of his second daughter, scored 31 points with 15 rebounds and 11 assists, throwing in two blocked shots for good measure.
James, who will turn 41 later this month, scored 12 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter, drilling a three-pointer and a jump shot to put Los Angeles up by five with 27.4 seconds remaining after the 76ers had knotted it at 105-105. Doncic added a pair of free throws, and James came up with a steal with three seconds left to seal the win. James, who missed the first 14 games of his unprecedented 23rd season with sciatica, said he felt fresh on a night when he knew Doncic was likely feeling the effects of travel and teammate Austin Reaves was weary after carrying the offensive load in Doncic’s absence.
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“The end of a road trip, there can be a lot of tired legs,” James said. “I felt great…I had the opportunity with some pretty good legs to try to assert myself a little offensively.” Tyrese Maxey led the 76ers with 28 points as Joel Embiid, James’s teammate on the United States Olympic gold medal-winning team in Paris, connected on just four of 21 shots on the way to 16 points.
There was no late drama at Utah, where the NBA Champion Oklahoma City Thunder cruised to their 15th straight victory, 131-101 over the Jazz despite the absence of Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with elbow bursitis. Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren scored 25 points apiece and the Thunder led by as many as 42 on the way to equalling the longest winning streak in franchise history.
Denver’s Jamal Murray scored 23 of his 34 points in the first quarter and the Nuggets held on to beat the Hornets 115-106 in Charlotte. Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic came up just shy of a triple-double with 28 points, nine rebounds, and 11 assists to help the Nuggets post a third straight win. Despite the red-hot start from Murray, who had poured in 52 points in a win over Indiana on Wednesday, the Nuggets trailed 58-57 at halftime. But Jokic asserted himself after the break, scoring 18 points in the second half as Denver pulled away.
Boston’s Jaylen Brown scored 30 points and Derrick White added 27 as the Celtics held on for a nervy 121-113 win over the Raptors in Toronto. The Celtics led by 23 early in the third quarter, but the Raptors roared back to take their first lead of the game early in the fourth. Toronto were up by three when White and Payton Pritchard made back-to-back three-pointers to put Boston up for good.
In New York, Jalen Brunson scored 30 points and handed out nine assists to lead the Knicks to a 106-100 victory over the Orlando Magic. OG Anunoby added 21 points and Josh Hart had 17 points and 12 rebounds as the Knicks overcame the absence of Karl-Anthony Towns with a sore calf. The defeat was made worse for Orlando by the first-quarter exit of team top scorer Franz Wagner with a lower leg injury. Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said Wagner would be evaluated further when the team returned to Florida.
Jimmy Butler returned from injury to score 19 points with eight rebounds and six assists in the Golden State Warriors’ 123-91 rout of the Bulls in Chicago. The Warriors were still without injured stars Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. But Brandin Podziemski scored 21 points off the bench, and Quentin Post matched Butler’s 19 points in a wire-to-wire win over the similarly short-handed Bulls.
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