LUKA Doncic scored 31 of his 45 points in the first half of his highly anticipated Dallas homecoming as the visiting Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Mavericks 112-97 on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila).
LeBron James posted 27 points and seven boards, and RuiHachimura added 15 points as the Lakers bolstered their grip on the third spot in the Western Conference.
Naji Marshall contributed 23 points and eight assists for the Mavericks. Anthony Davis—in his first game for Dallas against his old side—finished with 13 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. The Mavericks secured a Western Conference play-in spot later when the Phoenix Suns lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Doncic, traded from Dallas to Los Angeles for Davis as part of a blockbuster deal on Feb. 2, became emotional during a pregame video tribute. He then received deafening applause when his name was called during the starting lineup announcements.
In other games, it was the Nuggets 124, Kings 116; Thunder 125, Suns 112; Clippers 134, Rockets 117; Raptors 126, Hornets 96; Magic 96, Celtics 76; Sixers 122, Wizards 103; Bulls 119, Heat 111; Jazz 133, Blazers 126 (OT); and Spurs 114, Warriors 111.
Nuggets 124, Kings 116
A day removed from the surprise firing of coach Michael Malone, Denver pulled out of a four-game losing streak with a road win over Sacramento.
Denver, playing its first game under interim coach David Adelman, led almost the entire way in a game crucial for the Nuggets’ postseason positioning. The Nuggets have the same record as the Clippers but Denver is fourth and Los Angeles is fifth due to a tiebreaker.
Nikola Jokic furthered his pursuit of becoming just the third player ever to average a triple-double for a season, posting 20 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists vs. the Kings. Zach LaVine scored a game-high 27 points for Sacramento.
Thunder 125, Suns 112
Jalen Williams scored 33 points to lead Oklahoma City to a road win over Phoenix.
With their spot as the top seed in the Western Conference long secured, and playing the second night of a back-to-back, the Thunder gave a night off to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Isaiah Hartenstein, Luguentz Dort and Cason Wallace.
The Suns took their eighth consecutive loss and were eliminated from contention for the Western Conference play-in tournament. Bradley Beal led Phoenix with 25 points while Devin Booker added 20 points and 14 assists.
