Miami (AFP) – Eastern Conference leaders the Cleveland Cavaliers suffered their first home loss of the season with a surprise 135-124 defeat to the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday. Cleveland’s second loss of the season came after a strong second-half display from Atlanta, with De’Andre Hunter scoring 26 points off the bench, Jalen Johnson adding 22 points, and Trae Young contributing 20 points with a career-high 22 assists. Young put the game beyond the Cavs with a 39-foot three-pointer to make it 129-122 with 1:43 remaining, just moments after he had turned the ball over.
Johnson said Young’s assists had been crucial to the victory and that he deserved more credit for his role on the team. “He was really getting off the ball and finding everyone… a lot of people don’t necessarily talk about him even though he’s leading the league in assists, but they don’t talk about him as the playmaker,” Johnson said. The win moves the Hawks to 8-11 on the season, and Young said the team had shown what they were capable of. “They are a really good team who have been playing well all year, and I feel we have been a little inconsistent, but the times that we have played well, we’ve played really well,” he said.
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Donovan Mitchell scored 30 for Cleveland, and Evan Mobley put up 22 points and 12 rebounds, but the Cavs missed out on a chance to become the first team to start with an 18-1 record. Serbian Nikola Jokic led the Denver Nuggets to a convincing 122-103 win at the Utah Jazz, scoring 30 points, grabbing 10 rebounds, and dishing out seven assists. Denver had come back from an early 12-point deficit with a 21-4 run midway through the game, turning the contest in their direction.
The Houston Rockets needed overtime to beat the 3-14 Philadelphia 76ers, with Alperen Sengun scoring 22 points and claiming 14 rebounds and seven assists. Half of Turkish center Sengun’s points came in overtime, where the Rockets ensured a 14-6 record. “My teammates trusted me in overtime, and I didn’t want to fail them,” Sengun said. “It was ugly, but a win is a win in the NBA.”
James Harden scored 43 points for the Los Angeles Clippers as they beat the struggling Washington Wizards 121-96. Harden scored 23 of his points in the first quarter and left the game late in the third quarter with the Wizards already condemned to their 13th straight defeat. “We have to continue to find ways to win,” said Harden of the 12-8 Clippers. “Defensively we need to do a lot better; sometimes we get a little too comfortable… we just need to continue to get better as a unit.”
The Miami Heat defeated the Charlotte Hornets 98-94, with Tyler Herro scoring 27 points and Duncan Robinson draining six three-pointers in the win. “He’s a shot-maker, he’s not afraid of the moment,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of Herro. Bam Adebayo claimed 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the Heat, while LaMelo Ball had 32 points and 10 rebounds for Charlotte. Miami’s star Jimmy Butler left the game in the third quarter with a tight back and did not return. The Hornets were closing in on the lead, but Herro made a 29-foot three-pointer and then grabbed Ball’s attempted pass to Brandon Miller for the crucial turnover.
Led by Anthony Davis with 19 points and 14 rebounds, the Los Angeles Lakers ended the San Antonio Spurs’ four-game winning streak with a 119-101 victory. LeBron James helped with 16 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds, while France’s Victor Wembanyama top-scored for the Spurs with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Despite being without injured Slovenian star Luka Doncic, the Dallas Mavericks had a comfortable 129-114 win over the New York Knicks, with Kyrie Irving scoring 23 points.
Dennis Schroder top-scored with 29 points as the Brooklyn Nets defeated the Phoenix Suns 127-117. Kevin Durant contributed 30 points and 8 rebounds for the Arizona team. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points and had 9 rebounds and 5 assists for the Oklahoma City Thunder in an impressive 105-101 win at the Golden State Warriors. The Thunder lost forward Jalen Williams to an eye injury in the second quarter of the game, while Stephen Curry was missing for the Warriors due to a knee injury.
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