Philadelphia opened Christmas Day with a victory over New York, while Dallas prevailed with authority against the Lakers. Boston crushed Milwaukee as well as Golden State crushed Memphis and Denver closed the date with a heartbreaking win over Phoenix in overtime.
Philadelphia 76ers 119 – New York Knicks 112
Philadelphia opened Christmas Day with a 119-112 win over New York. Both Joel Embiid (35 points) and James Harden (double-double of 29 points and 13 asts) were figures at Madison Square Garden adding more than half the points (64) and giving the 76ers their eighth straight victory.
In a game where neither team comfortably dominated in the standings, it wasn’t until the final quarter that the Sixers had a 14-point difference that allowed them to give their fans the best Christmas present. While on the pitch, the one dressing up as Santa Claus was Georges Niang coming off the dugout. The forward honed his long shots after missing five and chained four straight 3-pointers to seal the game after the Knicks dominated into the finals thanks to Julius Randle and his 35 points.
There were as many as three double-double players in the New York franchise, but it wasn’t enough to avoid the team’s third straight loss. Jalen Brunson had 23 points and 11 assists, RJ Barrett had 17 points and 10 rebounds and Mitchell Robinson had 10 points and 16 rebounds.
Los Angeles Lakers 115 – Dallas Mavericks 124
Luka Doncic and Christian Wood both came close to triple-doubles in a 124-115 win over the Lakers in which the Mavericks scored an unprecedented 51 points in their third-quarter comeback, the most in one period in a Christmas game. . The Slovenian guard had 32 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists, while his teammate had 30 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists.
The performance of both was essential so that LeBron James, who scored 38 points, did not celebrate his 17th game with a victory on Christmas dates, with which he surpassed the record held by Kobe Bryant. The kingwho turns 38 on Friday, chained his seventh straight game above 30 points, a streak that hasn’t helped the Los Angeles franchise get back on track.
In Dallas, Tim Hardy Jr. wasn’t far behind either, contributing six 3-pointers and a total of 26 points that helped the Mavs to their third straight win. Far from having a rotational offense, the Lakers have focused all their attention on LeBron in the absence of Anthony Davis, who is out indefinitely with a right foot injury.
Milwaukee Bucks 118 – Boston Celtics 139
After reeling off a three-game losing streak with a big win against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday, Boston ended Sunday with a 139-118 rout of Milwaukee that was enough to recapture the lead in the East with a 24-10 record. Those responsible for the Celtics’ good holidays were Jayson Tatum (41 points) and Jaylen Brown (29 points), who together added 70 points, a figure that, if reached, leaves the team undefeated every time it plays.
Tatum also gave the fans a brutal dunk on Giannis Antetokounmpo, who had to settle for 27 points and the help of Jrue Holiday with 23. With tonight’s one, the Bucks have already chained three losses in a row, their losing streak longest since the beginning of the season .
As if that weren’t enough, the Greek lost his temper in the final quarter and had a cross with Brown, for which he received a technical foul that sent him to the bench, thus leaving his team vulnerable for the final minutes. Milwaukee trailed by as many as 22 points, while Boston finished the game with most of its substitutes on the field.
Memphis Grizzlies 109 – Golden State Warriors 123
Golden State rallied from a two-game losing streak and was able to mend it with an off-balance 123-109 win over Memphis. Without Stephen Curry, Jordan Poole was in charge of leading the Warriors’ offense with 32 points, while Klay Thompson contributed 24 points and Draymond Green posted an unusual double-double of 13 rebounds and 13 assists.
Ja Morant rallied from 12 rundowns against the Phoenix Suns and nailed 36 for the San Francisco franchise. But, being only up front, he has failed to steer his team in the right direction and they have already lost three times in their last 4 games. The point guard barely had a measly 13 drives off Dillon Brooks and Tyus Jones.
Desmond Bane, who is adding minutes again after being out more than two weeks with a big toe in his right foot, has missed the seven triples he has thrown and barely recorded 15% shooting from the field (2/13). An ineffectiveness that the Grizzlies cannot afford if they want to remain in the highest positions in the West, second today with a 20-12 record.
Phoenix Suns 125 vs Denver Nuggets 128
What better way to close out Christmas than with a supplement. When it looked like Phoenix was winning the game, Denver hit the gas with Jamal Murray and managed to tie the score at 113. The point guard was also encouraged to go for the win with a buzzer triple, but Mikal Bridges blocked for send the match to extra time.
Already in overtime, Nikola Jokic polished his triple double of 41 points, 15 rebounds and 15 assists, while Aaron Gordon (double double of 28 pts and 13 rebounds) left a historic dunk on Landry Shamet which gave him the lead final to the Nuggets to defeat the Suns 128-125 to pick up their seventh win in their last eight games.
Jamal Murray went from minus to plus, recording 14 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter, including four consecutive 3-pointers, when Denver needed him most. While Phoenix also had variations on offense: of Shamet’s 31 points, 21 came from long range, Deandre Ayton signed a double-double of 22 points and 16 rebounds and the same did Chris Paul with 17 points and 16 assist
However, the Arizona franchise not only failed to avoid a third straight loss, but also suffered the loss of Devin Booker. The escort was on the pitch for just four minutes and was forced to go to the dressing room due to a relapse of his pubic injury. He had two points thus far, with 1/2 in field goals.
Last week, Booker had the third-best performance of his career, scoring 58 points in the Suns’ win against the New Orleans Pelicans.
