Durant shines as Warriors down Thunder
There were five exciting games in the NBA last night and undoubtedly the most anticipated was Kevin Durant’s first game against his former teammates OKC which ended 122-96 in favour of the Warriors.
Durant put up 39 points while the Splash Brothers combined for 39 (Stephen Curry 21 and Klay Thompson 18). Russell Westbrook’s double-double with 20 points and 10 assists was not enough to beat Golden State. Victor Oladipo had 21 points and Domantas Sabonis ended the night with 13 points.
Nuggets edge Timberwolves
The Denver Nuggets got the better of the Minnesota Timberwolves on their home court in a 102-99 win. Congolese guard Emmanuel Mudiay came four rebounds short of a double-double with 12 points and six rebounds.
The Nuggets were led by Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler, who both ended the game with 19 points. Karl-Anthony Towns lead the Timberwolves with his double-double of 32 points and 14 rebounds. Andrew Wiggins also had a great night with 25 points.
Giannis leads Bucks to victory
Greek-Nigerian Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker combined for 54 points with 27 apiece in the Milwaukee Bucks’ 125-107 win over the Indiana Pacers. Greg Monroe ended the night with a double-double with 16 points and 16 rebounds, and even dished out six assists.
Paul George led the Pacers with 23 points, while CJ Miles had 19. Jeff Teague and Myles Turner combined for 31 (16 and 15 points respectively).
African Towers of Power dethrone Kings
In Orlando, Congolese forward Serge Ibaka’s 17 points and three rebounds helped the Magic hand the visiting Sacramento Kings a 102-94 beating. DRC centre Bismack Biyombo had four points and grabbed nine boards. Orlando were led by Evan Fournier with 29 points while dunking machine Aaron Gordon finished with a double-double, 13 points and 10 rebounds.
DeMarcus Cousins lead the Sacramento Kings with 33 points and seven rebounds. Rudy Gay and Omri Casspi combined for 28 (16 and 12 points respectively).
King James shoots down Celtics
In Ohio, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers gave the Boston Celtics a six-point game, beating them 128-122. James ended the night with a 30-point 12-assist double-double, while Tristan Thompson also had a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving combined for 49 (26 and 23 points respectively).
The Celtics were lead by guard Isaiah Thomas with 30 points and also had two double-doubles to add to their tally courtesy of Tyler Zeller (11 points and 10 rebounds) and Avery Bradley (26 points and 10 rebounds).
By Kaunda Chama
@therealkaunda on Twitter
