Long leader of the Western Conference, Utah must give way to Phoenix, after the Suns’ 121-100 victory over the Jazz. The NBA night was also marked by Jayson Tatum’s 60 points against San Antonio, and by the big comeback of LeBron James, who however did not allow the Lakers to beat Sacramento.
Game of the Night: Phoenix – Utah
Change of leader in the Western Conference! First for many weeks, Utah sees Phoenix pass him, after the Suns’ 121-100 win over the Jazz on Friday in the shock of the night. Deprived of Donovan Mitchell and Mike Conley, the Salt Lake City franchise could not do anything against the Suns who led from the second to the last minute. Phoenix, who got off to a great start to the match and was already leading 39-23 at the end of the first quarter, had a lead of up to 26 points at the end of the third quarter, and never wavered in this part (68-52, mt). Devin Booker, author of 31 points in 29 minutes, did not have to force his talent, and was well helped by the 18 points from Mikal Bridges. On the Jazz side, Bojan Bogdanovic finished with 22 points, but this match is to be forgotten for Utah, which has rather an interest in seeing Mitchell come back quickly… The two teams are now tied, with the best record in the League (45v-18d), but Phoenix, winner of his three direct confrontations, will stay ahead if the two franchises are still tied at the end of the regular season. Of their last nine games, Utah will play six at home, and Phoenix (who played in front of 6,000 spectators on Friday) two.
MVP of the night: Jayson Tatum
Twenty-one days after breaking his career record scoring 53 points against Minnesota, Jayson Tatum did even better on Friday in Boston’s 143-140 win over San Antonio after overtime. The 23-year-old scored 60 points in 45 minutes, 20 of 37 on shots (5/7 at 3pts) and 15 of 17 on free throws)! Tatum was extraordinary and got his team back on track, after being trailed by 32 points at the end of the second quarter! The score was 69-37 for Spurs with three minutes left, and Tatum had already scored 22 points by then. But the Celtics are capable of the worst as well as the best this season, and they were carried by their star in the second half, with 28 points to his counter in the last two quarters (128-128), and another 10 in overtime. , including the last four of his team, in free throws. This second victory in a row is good for the Celtics, tied for sixth in the East with Atlanta. San Antonio is ninth in the West.
The flop of the night: The Lakers
Absent for twenty games due to an ankle injury, LeBron James made his comeback last night, during the game between the Lakers and Sacramento. But that did not prevent the reigning champions from losing 106-110 at Staples Center to Kings almost eliminated from the play-in race and who remained on a 105-154 loss against Utah! “King James” played 32 minutes and scored 16 points (6 of 12 on shots including 1/5 on 3pts), took 8 rebounds and delivered 7 assists. Anthony Davis was also present (22pts, 11rbds), as was Andre Drummond (17pts, 7rbds) but, despite everything, the Lakers conceded their 27th loss of the season. However, they led by eleven points at the start of the last quarter (94-83), but conceded a 10-0 and the Kings went definitively in front at 3’52 from the buzzer (99-97), the Lakers then no longer managing to come back to less than two points. There are therefore nine games left for the defending champions to get the machine going with their two stars before the play-offs. To date, they only have one victory ahead of the play-in and have every interest in quickly securing their place in the play-offs… where they could well face Denver or the Clippers in the first round!
Frenchman of the Night: Rudy Gobert
The night was far from extraordinary for the French, with three out of five players playing three minutes or less. We will still remember the 8 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks of Rudy Gobert during the loss of Utah to Phoenix. The Pivot did what he could, but in the absence of Mitchell and Conley, it’s more complicated for him too.
NBA / REGULAR SEASON
Friday April 30, 2021
Boston Celtics – San Antonio Spurs : 143-140 ap
>>> Stats of Evan Fournier (BOS): 21 minutes of play, 8 points (3 of 6 on shots including 2/4 at 3pts), 2 rebounds, 1 steals, 2 lost balls, 3 fouls
Brooklyn Nets – Portland Trail Blazers : 109-128
>>> Stats by Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot (BRO): 3 minutes of play, 6 points (1 of 3 on shots including 1/3 at 3pts), 2 rebounds, 1 steals, 2 lost balls, 3 fouls
Memphis Grizzlies – Orlando Magic : 92-75
>>> Killian Tillie’s Stats (MEM): 2 minutes played, 0 points (0 shots)
Chicago Bulls – Milwaukee Bucks : 98-108
>>> Stats of Adam Mokoka (CHI): 1 minute of play, 0 point (0 shot), 1 lost ball
>>> Axel Toupane (MIL), absent from the group, did not play
Phoenix Suns – Utah Jazz : 121-100
>>> Stats by Rudy Gobert (UTA): 24 minutes of play, 8 points (3 of 4 on shots including 0 on 3pts), 10 rebounds, 1 pass, 3 blocks, 1 lost ball, 1 foul
Los Angeles Lakers – Sacramento Kings : 106-110
Philadelphia 76ers – Atlanta Hawks : 126-104
Cleveland Cavaliers – Washington Wizards : 93-122
Qualified for the play-offs: Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Utah, Phoenix
–
