The shock: Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets topple the Philadelphia Sixers
Nets and Sixers have in common at the start of the season to have to compose without their titular point guard, and this probably for a long time: Kyrie Irving still refuses to be vaccinated and is therefore kept away from Brooklyn while Ben Simmons, sulky all summer and finally returned to training, feels psychologically fragile and could take time to find the floors. ” He’s still our brother “, Launched all the same the pivot Joel Embiid to the fans of the Sixers Friday night just to ease tensions.
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On the floor, the clash between two of the main favorites of the Eastern Conference ended up turning in favor of the visitors, who ended the game with a 16-1 (114-109). Untenable, aggressive towards the baskets, Kevin Durant finished the game with a big triple-double (29 points, 15 rebounds, 12 assists), supplemented by James Harden (20 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists) while LaMarcus Aldridge split 23 points off the bench.
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Opposite, Tobias Harris (23 points, 7 rebounds) and Seth Curry (23 points to 9 of 12) tried to compensate, while Embiid, painful, insisted on playing (19 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists). ” I probably shouldn’t have played but it feels good to be with the guys “, Justified the Cameroonian. Both franchises show the same record of a win for a loss. Brooklyn will host Charlotte on Sunday for the start of a six-game home run. At the same time, Philly returned to Oklahoma City.
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The undefeated: Chicago and Charlotte continue in the East
The 30 points of Miles Bridges, the vista of LaMelo Ball (17 points, 6 assists, 5 interceptions) and the 25 units off the bench from Kelly Oubre Jr. allowed the Charlotte Hornets to chain a second victory, in Cleveland ( 123-112). In the Cavs’ starting five, Ricky Rubio (15 points, 10 assists) was guilty of 6 stray balls, including 3 in the decisive fourth quarter (33-23 for the Hornets).
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Carried by a one-sided first half (65-47, 24th), the Chicago Bulls have confirmed against the New Orleans Pelicans (victory 128-112) that they have the potential to hurt the East very badly this season . Especially since the interior Nikola Vucevic (10 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists) was very little in sight. The opportunity for the three other members of the major quartet of the franchise to put themselves forward: 32 points (at 11/19), 6 rebounds and 5 assists for Zach LaVine, 26 points for DeMar DeRozan and especially a triple-double for the leader Lonzo Ball (17 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists), who will not lack solutions this season.
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Heartbreakers for Indiana: The Pacers lost their first two games of the regular season by a point. After their initial loss to Charlotte (122-123), Myles Turner (40 points, 10 rebounds) and his family gave in after extra time to Washington (134-135, ap).
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The declared: “It’s a kind of Larry Bird of 2.10 m”
Gregg Popovich appreciates the analogy so much that he allowed himself to repeat it Friday night: Nikola Jokic, the pivot of the Denver Nuggets, reminds him of the mythical No. 33 of the Boston Celtics Larry Bird. ” He’s a spectacular, interesting, different player, dropped the coach of the San Antonio Spurs, overwhelmed by the activity of the Serbian (32 points, 16 rebounds) who led his team to a second victory at home (102-96). It’s a kind of Larry Bird of 2.10m. He can pass the ball, the way he reads the game … He’s amazing. “Most appreciable: the success of the interior (14 of 19 shooting) and its 7 assists, just to forget 6 stray bullets.
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The underperformance: Boston sinks against Toronto
Probably still blunted by the efforts made Wednesday night in New York, the Boston Celtics collapsed at home against the Toronto Raptors (83-115), weighed down by a tasteless second half (36-64). Jaylen Brown, author of 46 points against the Knicks (his personal best), symbolized this rout by settling for 9 points to 3 of 13 shooting. At the very end of the match, the fans who remained did not spare their player by booing them. ” They know basketball. They were right “, Estimated the back Josh Richardson (12 points). The first victory of the season is expected Sunday in Houston.
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