NBA SUMMARY | The Celtics continue in free fall and Denver consolidate their leadership in the West

Fourth loss in five games for Boston

Grant Williams staggeringly missed two free throws in the last second of the fourth quarter and the Celtics went into overtime against the Cavaliers, who capped their comeback thanks to Donovan Mitchell (40 points and 11 rebounds). Jaylen Brown (32 points, 13 rebounds and 9 assists) was the best of the Celtics who had lost on Sunday against the New York Knicks in two overtimes and who on Monday played without Jayson Tatum and the Dominican Al Horford.

Denver remains intractable in the West

With four straight victories and eight in their last nine games, the Nuggets consolidate their leadership in the West day by day and this Monday their victim was the Raptors who made things very difficult for them but who gave up in the outcome (35-25 in the last room). Nikola Jokic touched a new triple-double for Denver (17 points, 13 rebounds and 8 assists) and Fred VanVleet (21 points and 14 assists) was the top scorer for the Canadians.

Embiid-Harden couple scoring festival

With an extraordinary duo formed by Joel Embiid (42 points) and James Harden (14 points, 9 rebounds and 20 assists), the Sixers scored their seventh win in the last ten games by defeating the Pacers in a game of voracious attacks and invisible defenses. Tyrese Haliburton (40 points and 16 assists) gave the reply in Indiana and the Dominican Chris Duarte had 4 points, a rebound and 3 assists.

Rest of the day

Domantas Sabonis, with a triple-double (19 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists), led these imposing Kings in the West -and who are already putting pressure on the Grizzlies for second place in the conference- in the victory against the Pelicans for whom the season is getting very long and also the absence due to injury of Zion Williamson. Brandon Ingram (24 points and 7 assists) was the best of some Pelicans who have only won one game in their last seven games and in which the Spanish Willy Hernangómez had no place against Sacramento.

The Heat played with fire but in the end they didn’t get burned and took the game ahead against the Hawks thanks to Jimmy Butler two spans from the triple-double (26 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists). Trae Young’s Hawks (25 points and 7 assists) were left without a prize despite the remarkable collective effort in Miami (seven of his nine players exceeded 10 points).

Hand in hand with a triple-double by Damian Lillard (31 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists), the Blazers signed the eighth consecutive defeat of some Pistons who remain bottom in the East and who reached the dubious honor of being the first team in the East. year to reach 50 games lost. Isaiah Livers (17 points) was Detroit’s most productive.