By Johnny Askounis/ [email protected]
Victor Wembanyama collected 26 points at 8/17 from the field, including two three-pointers, pushing the San Antonio Spurs to a 126-113 victory against the Warriors of the Golden State at the Chase Center. The 22-year-old French center added nine rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a steal in 33:29 in a sixth straight victory for the Mitch Johnson-coached team in the 2025-26 NBA regular season, just before the All-Star break and shortly after the official break. departure of Polish Jeremy Sochan. For the hosts, Quinten Post scored 12 points, but fellow Dutchman Malevy Leons was inactive, and Latvian Kristaps Porzingis (left Achilles injury management) stayed out.
Punishing his former team, Montenegrin Nikola Vucevic achieved a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds while the Boston Celtics overcome the Chicago Bulls124-105, at TD Garden. Portuguese starter Neemias Queta was initially released with a sprained right ankle, but then injured his left ankle and returned to finish with eight points. On the bench, the Spaniard Hugo Gonzalez and the Bosnian Luka Garza were not admitted to the board, while the Ukrainian Max Shulga was with the affiliate, Maine. Celtics. Leaving for the Bullsthe Lithuanian Matas Buzelis and the Frenchman Guerschon Yabusele finished with 15 and 13 points respectively, while the Frenchwoman Noa Essengue (left shoulder sprain) was eliminated.
Frenchman Ousmane Dieng scored 17 points for the Milwaukee Bucks in a 116-108 victory over the Magic of Orlando at the Kia Center. Greek superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo (right calf strain) remained sidelined, while his brothers’ roles ranged from Thanasis remaining on the bench to Alex at the G League’s Wisconsin Herd. For the hosts, German imports ranged from Moritz Wagner’s 12 points to Franz Wagner and Tristan da Silva finishing with five points each, but Frenchman Noah Penda failed to score and Georgian Goga Bitadze did not play.
While Julius Randle reached 41 points, Frenchman Rudy Gobert added 17 more for the Minnesota Timberwolves in a 133-109 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers at the target center. His fellow starter, Italian Donte DiVincenzo, was limited to three points, and Frenchman Joan Beringer added two. Leaving for the JacketsIsraeli Deni Avdija was limited to 11 points and Belgian Toumani Camara collected nine. Czech reserve Vit Krejci scored 17 and Frenchman Rayan Rupert added two, but Frenchman Sidy Cissoko was inactive.
A fadeaway jumper from Kawhi Leonard sent the Los Angeles Clippers to a 105-102 victory against the Houston Rockets at the Toyota Center. Despite bruising his left leg, Turk Alperen Sengun had 16 points, nine rebounds, six assists and three blocks for the hosts. With Serbian Bogdan Bogdanovic out of the rotation and Frenchman Nicolas Batum (remains) out, Switzerland’s Yanic Konan Niederhauser did not score for the match. Clipperseven though his compatriot Clint Capela scored three points for the Rockets.
Finland’s Lauri Markkanen scored 19 points and fellow starter Jusuf Nurkic of Bosnia had eight for the match. Utah Jazz in a 121-93 victory over the Kings of Sacramento at the Delta Center. However, Ukraine’s Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk was left out of the rotation on Wednesday. On the opposite side, the Kings sidelined Lithuanian Domantas Sabonis (managing a left knee injury) for a fourth consecutive game, which kept Frenchman Maxime Raynaud in the starting lineup, and the rookie center settled for seven points.
For his first appearance since the beginning of December, the Austrian Jakob Poeltl (lower back sprain) lasted 20 minutes and scored nine points, but his Toronto Raptors fell into the hands of Detroit Pistons113-95, at Scotiabank Arena. Georgian reserve Sandro Mamukelashvili injured his chest after scoring seven points for the team coached by Serbian Darko Rajakovic. For the visitors, Swede Bobi Klintman clocked 3:51 and recorded a steal.
Despite the absence of Frenchman Moussa Diabaté (suspension from the championship), the Charlotte Frelons anticipated the Atlanta Falcons110-107, at the Spectrum Center. Fellow Frenchman Tidjane Salaun scored three points, while Briton Tosan Evbuomwan was assigned to the Greensboro Swarm. Playing with a bruised left quad, French starter Zaccharie Risacher was limited to five points for the game. Falconsand Serbian Nikola Djurisic was left out of the lineup.
With Swede Pelle Larsson (right forearm strain) among the unavailable players, the Miami Heat beat the New Orleans Pelicans123-111, at the Smoothie King Center. In a starting role, Italian Simone Fontecchio reached 15 points, Lithuanian Kasparas Jakucionis scored 11 and Serbian Nikola Jovic added eight, but Russian Vladislav Goldin did not play. For the Pels, Croatian Karlo Matkovic scored three points.
British OG Anunoby (right toenail avulsion) missed a fourth straight game, but the New York Knicks delivered the Philadelphia 76ers138-89, at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Frenchman Mohamed Diawara scored 14 points, while German Ariel Hukporti reached two, but Frenchman Pacome Dadiet remained with Westchester. Knicks. Entry into the starting lineup for the SixersTurk Adem Bona recorded six points.
German Dennis Schroder contributed seven points and Dutchman Tristan Enaruna added two for the score. Cleveland Cavaliers in a 138-113 victory over the Wizards of Washington at the Rocket Arena. Frenchman Alex Sarr (right hamstring strain) and Serbian Tristan Vukcevic (illness) sat out for the visitors, but Frenchman Bilal Coulibaly overcame a sore right heel to score 13 points as a starter.
Coming back from an 18-point deficit, the Indiana Pacers beat the Brooklyn fillets115-110, at the Barclays Center, despite the absence of Croatian Ivica Zubac (sprained left ankle). Among the European starters for Spanish playmaker Jordi Fernandez were Frenchman Nolan Traoré’s 20 points and Russian Egor Demin’s 13. Israeli reserves Danny Wolf and Ben Saraf added 14 and 12 points, respectively.
Belgian Ajay Mitchell (abdominal sprain) remained among several players absent, but the Oklahoma City Thunder dominated the Phoenix Suns136-109, at Mortgage Matchup Center. German starter Isaiah Hartenstein had eight points, with Serbian Nikola Topic remaining on assignment with the Oklahoma City Blue.
Wednesday results
Charlotte Frelons -The Atlanta Falcons 110-107
Cleveland Cavaliers – Wizards of Washington 138-113
Magic of Orlando – Milwaukee Bucks 108-116
Boston Celtics – Chicago Bulls 124-105
Brooklyn fillets – Indiana Pacers 110-115
Philadelphia 76ers – New York Knicks 89-138
Toronto Raptors – Detroit Pistons 95-113
Houston Rockets – Los Angeles Clippers 102-105
Minnesota Timberwolves –Portland Trail Blazers 133-109
New Orleans Pelicans – Miami Heat 111-123
Utah Jazz – Kings of Sacramento 121-93
Phoenix Suns – Oklahoma City Thunder 109-136
Denver Nuggets – Memphis Grizzlies 122-116
Warriors of the Golden State – San Antonio Spurs 113-126
Ranking
Eastern Conference
1. Detroit Pistons 40-13
2. Boston Celtics 35-19
3. New York Knicks 35-20
4. Cleveland Cavaliers 34-21
5. Toronto Raptors 32-23
6. Philadelphia 76ers 30-24
7. Magic of Orlando 28-25
8. Miami Heat 29-27
9. Charlotte Hornets 26-29
10. Atlanta Falcons 26-30
11. Chicago Bulls 24-31
12. Milwaukee Bucks 22-30
13. Brooklyn Tenderloins 15-38
14. Indiana Pacers 15-40
15. Wizards of Washington 14-39
Western Conference
1. Oklahoma City Thunder 42-13
2. San Antonio Spurs 38-16
3. Denver Nuggets 35-20
4. Houston Rockets 33-20
5. Minnesota Wolves 34-22
6. Los Angeles Lakers 32-21
7. Phoenix Suns 32-23
8. Golden State Warriors 29-26
9. Los Angeles Clippers 26-28
10. Portland Trail Blazers 26-29
11. Memphis Grizzlies 20-33
12. Dallas Mavericks 19-34
13. Utah Jazz 18-37
14. New Orleans Pelicans 15-41
15. Sacramento Kings 12-44
-The top 6 teams in each conference advance directly to the Playoffs
-Teams seventh through tenth in each conference advance to the Play-Ins
