Dante Exum impressed again and the undermanned Dallas Mavericks earned their third straight victory in a 130-113 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
Exum had 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, four rebounds, six assists, two steals and a block in a season-high 35 minutes in a starting role to back up his impressive 23 points against Portland this weekend .
The Australian notably scored 11 points with two rebounds and three assists in the first half alone to take full advantage of his opportunity with the likes of Kyrie Irving, Tim Hardaway Jr., Grant Williams and Josh Green sidelined. gap.
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Elsewhere for the Mavs, Luka Doncic scored 35 points with five triples, eight rebounds, six assists, two steals and two blocks, while Derek Lively added 16 points and 16 rebounds.
With that, Jason Kidd’s team improved to 14-8 overall.
Kidd praised Doncic’s leadership in galvanizing an undermanned Dallas roster
“I think you’ve seen enough of him that he thinks every time he takes the stand, he has a chance to win,” Kidd said.
“His leadership of always bringing this group together, to make sure everyone was on the same page, he did that all year long for us.
“It just shows his leadership, his maturity. He grows up. On the road, against a talented team, we found a way to win, but it starts with Luka and he set the tone.
-It was another in a stretch of MVP-caliber performances from Doncic, who has now scored 30 or more points in his last seven games.
“I think leadership is important,” Doncic said. “I think this year has been a lot better for me. Obviously we had five guys eliminated, so it’s a pretty incredible win.
Jaren Jackson Jr. scored for Memphis with 41 points including six triples, two steals and two blocks and Desmond Bane had 28 points and eight assists.
It’s a second straight loss for the 6-16 Grizzlies, who will host Ja Morant after a 25-game suspension next week.
GIDDEY ALMOST A TRIPLE-DOUBLE
Josh Giddey had his best game in a while.
The Australian guard had a near triple-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, a steal and a block in just 24 minutes and the OKC Thunder crushed the Utah Jazz 134-120.
It happened in a one-sided match where the final scores ultimately flattered the Jazz. The Thunder led by 36 at one point in the third term amid a 54-23 run, as both coaches emptied their benches for the final term.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way for the Thunder with 30 points on 12-of-17 shooting and seven assists.
It was OKC’s fourth win in its last five games to remain second in the West at 15-7.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said over the weekend that the league had taken a back seat to Giddey’s accusations as a criminal investigation unfolded, with the 21-year-old accused of having a relationship inappropriate with an underage girl.
Utah rookie Keyonte George enjoyed his best fame yet, recording 30 points on 10-of-17 shooting with five triples and seven assists as the Jazz lost their fifth game in their last six to fall sit 7-16.
SION RESPONDS TO CRITICISM
Zion Williamson gave the “you know what” to his detractors.
After the Pelicans were shut out of the season tournament last week in a 44-point loss to the Lakers – a game where Williamson scored just 13 points – Williamson responded with a game-high 36 points to lead the New Orléans beyond number 1 in the West. 1 seed Minnesota 121-107.
Williamson shot 13 of 17 from the field and 10 of 12 from the line in a dominant performance, while also following criticism of the former Pick 1 appearing to be in less than optimal physical condition.
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CJ McCollum (23 points) and Brandon Ingram (20 points) also played well for the Pelicans, who surged in this one with a 31-21 final quarter, and Dyson Daniels added six points, two assists and two interceptions in 28 minutes. The bench.
“We trusted each other and we executed,” Williamson said. “We’ve been through some tough times, but we’re resilient. I think that showed tonight, I’m happy to get the win.
New Orleans improved to 13-11 and is ninth in the Western standings.
Karl Anthony-Towns, Mike Conley and Naz Reid each scored an even total of 17 points for the Anthony Edwards-less Timberwolves as their six-game winning streak was snapped to fall to 17-5.
SOMEWHERE ELSE …
Detroit’s hellish season continued, suffering a 20th straight loss at the hands of the Indiana Pacers 131-123.
It is the ninth-worst losing streak in NBA history, with the Pistons last winning in their third game of the season in October.
Bennedict Mathurin led Indiana with a game-high 30 points on 10-of-17 shooting with three triples, seven rebounds, eight assists and two steals and Tyrese Haliburton had 14 points and 16 assists.
Cade Cunningham had 23 points with six rebounds and seven assists and Ausar Thompson had 20 points, six rebounds, a steal and a block in a return to the starting lineup.
The Pistons are now 2-21 this season
The San Antonio Spurs’ woes also continued, losing a franchise-record 17th straight game in a 93-82 loss to the Houston Rockets.
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This happened despite Victor Wembanyama dropping 15 points, 18 rebounds and five blocks, but the Spurs fell to 3-19 overall.
“They played hard. They played a great game,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “But you have to get your shot in the NBA — you can’t shoot five for 41 from three… that makes it very, very difficult .”
In other games, the Bucks outlasted the Chicago Bulls in overtime 133-129 in Milwaukee thanks to 32 points, 12 rebounds and six assists from Giannis Antetokounmpo.
DeMar DeRozan, who finished with 41 points and 11 assists, made the game-tying shot to send the game into overtime, but Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard guided the Bucks home in critical moments.
That ended a four-game losing streak for the Bulls 9-15 in a resurgence of their season since Zach LaVine was injured, while the Bucks improved to 16-7 to move closer to the second seed in Eastern series.
In Philadelphia, Joel Embiid exploded with 34 points on 14-of-20 shooting, 11 rebounds and six assists, Tyrese Maxey scored 24 and the 76ers crushed the Washington Wizards 146-101 to climb to 15-7.
Kyle Kuzma had 21 points and nine rebounds for Washington, which lost its fifth straight game to fall 3-19 overall.
In Atlanta, a 29-point performance from Jamal Murray and 25 points from Nikola Jokic helped the NBA champion Denver Nuggets win 129-122 against the Hawks.
Bogdan Bogdanovic made 40 off the bench – including a remarkable 10 of 17 from three-point range – but it wasn’t enough to get Atlanta across the finish line.
ALL RESULTS
HEAT 116 HORNETS 114
PACERS 131 PISTONS 123
HORSEMEN 94 MAGIC 104
MAGICIANS 101 76ERS 146
NUGGETS 129 FALCONS 122
RARAPERS 130 KNICKS 136
SPURS 82 ROCKETS 93
THE MAVERICKS 120 GRIZZLY 113
BULLS 129 DOLLARS 133 (OT)
Timber wolves 107 PELICANS 131
JAZZ120 THUNDER 134
NETS 118 KINGS 131
TRAIL BLAZER 127 MOWERS 132
