Thursday was only a four-game night in the NBA but it was not short of great action with impressive performances from some of the league’s young talent.
Nuggets dim Suns
Nikola Jokic led the Denver Nuggets to their second consecutive victory with a 29-point, 14-rebound double-double. They beat the Phoenix Suns 127-120. Danilo Gallinari had 25 points and seven rebounds and Will Barton had 16 points and four assists.
Eric Bledsoe had 28 points, four rebounds and five assists for the Suns, Devin Booker had 24 points and six assists, while TJ Warren finished with 21 points and eight rebounds.
Pacers tame Wolves
The Indiana Pacers defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 109-103 on the back of Paul George’s 32 points, four rebounds and five assists. Myles Turner had 23 points and six rebounds, and Jeff Teague ended the game with a 20-point, 13-assist double-double.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the Timberwolves with a 33-point, 10-rebound double-double, Zach LaVine had 23 points and five assists, Andrew Wiggins had 21 points and five rebounds, while Senegalese center Gorgui Dieng had eight points and nine rebounds, and shot 50 percent from the field.
Russell Westbrook has plenty to celebrate after leading the Oklahoma City Thunder past the Dallas Mavericks 109-98, following his selection as reserve in this year’s All-Star Game. He had 45 points and eight rebounds, Nigerian-American Victor Oladipo had 17 points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals, while Steven Adams finished with 15 points and seven rebounds.
The Mavs were led by Harrison Barnes with 31 points, Justin Anderson had 17 points and five rebounds, Dorian Finney-Smith and Seth Curry combined for 22 with 11 points apiece and Tunisian center Salah Mejri ended the game with three points and six rebounds.
Jazz too smooth for Lakers
The Utah Jazz held home court and beat the Los Angeles Lakers 96-88. Gordon Hayward had 24 points, George Hill had 12 points and seven rebounds, Alec Burks scored 11 points, while Senegalese-French center Boris Diaw finished with six points.
Lou Williams led the Lakers with 20 points and five rebounds, Ivica Zubac had a 16-point point, 10-rebound double-double, Jordan Clackson had 16 points, five rebounds and four assists, Nick Young had 13 points and South Sudanese forward Luol Deng ended the night with six points and four rebounds.
By Kaunda Chama
