Jayson Tatum, with 51 points, and LeBron James, with 48, reigned this Monday in the special day of the NBA for Martin Luther King Day in which the Memphis Grizzlies extended their impressive streak by adding their tenth consecutive victory.
Celtics 130, Hornets 118
With 51 points (including 7 triples) and 9 rebounds, Tatum destroyed the Charlotte Hornets as the East-leading Boston Celtics chained their seventh win in a row.
Dominican Al Horford had 8 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists for Boston.
Jalen McDaniels, with 26 points, was the top scorer for some Hornets who have five straight losses and who are bottom of the East.
Lakers 140, Rockets 132
LeBron sealed his best score of the season and, with 48 points, 8 rebounds and 9 assists, led the Los Angeles Lakers to a very tight victory against the Houston Rockets.
With eleven straight losses and as last in the West, the Rockets had a spectacular Alperen Sengun (33 points, with a huge 14 of 17 shooting, 15 rebounds and 6 assists) as a reference.
The Spanish Usman Garuba had 4 points, 2 rebounds and an assist in Houston and the Mexican Juan Toscano-Anderson had 7 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists in the Lakers.
Grizzlies 136, Suns 106
Ten wins in a row bring these unstoppable Memphis Grizzlies, who destroyed a depressed Phoenix Suns with a fantastic duo: Ja Morant (29 points and 7 assists in 27 minutes) and Desmond Bane (28 points and 6 assists in 27 minutes with an incredible 10 of 12 in shots).
Without the injured Chris Paul and Devin Booker, the Suns have lost 12 of their last 14 games and this Monday their best man was Mikal Bridges with 21 points and 7 assists.
The Spanish Santi Aldama contributed 6 points, 5 rebounds and an assist in Memphis.
Cavaliers 113, Pelicans 103
With 30 points, 6 rebounds and 11 assists from Darius Garland, the Cleveland Cavaliers rallied against the Jonas Valanciunas-led New Orleans Pelicans with 22 points and 13 rebounds.
The Spanish Ricky Rubio returned to play in front of his fans after his very serious knee injury and got 2 points and an assist for Cleveland.
His compatriot Willy Hernangómez was once again without playing in the Pelicans while the Puerto Rican José Alvarado amassed 10 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals.
Warriors 127, Wizards 118
Stephen Curry shined with 41 points and 7 rebounds and Jordan Poole accompanied him with 32 points and 7 rebounds as the Golden State Warriors took the victory for Washington.
Kristaps Porzingis led the Wizards with 32 points.
Raptors 123, Knicks 121
Fred VanVleet, with 33 points and 8 assists, led the victory in overtime for the Toronto Raptors against the New York Knicks who forced overtime with a dunk on RJ Barrett’s buzzer (32 points and 7 rebounds).
Spaniard Juancho Hernangómez got a rebound for the Canadians and missed both shots he attempted.
Bucks 132, Pacers 119
Still without the injured Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Milwaukee Bucks exploded in the fourth quarter (39-21) to knock down the Indiana Pacers.
Jrue Holiday (35 points and 11 assists) and Myles Turner (30 points and 8 rebounds) led the Bucks and Pacers, respectively.
Dominican Chris Duarte had 6 points and 2 assists for Indiana.
Hawks 121, Heat 113
The Atlanta Hawks got rid of the Miami Heat thanks to the good performance of their two figures: Trae Young (24 points and 8 assists) and Dejounte Murray (28 points and 7 assists).
Jimmy Butler was the best for Miami with 34 points.
Jazz 126, Timberwolves 125
Jaden McDaniels missed a solo three-pointer, from the corner and at the buzzer that would have given the Minnesota Timberwolves victory in a very even match against the Utah Jazz.
Walker Kessler, with 20 points and 21 rebounds, stood out in Utah and Anthony Edwards, with 29 points, did the same for the Wolves.
RANKINGS
Eastern Conference:
.one. Boston Celtics 33-12
.2. Brooklyn Nets 27-15
.3. Milwaukee Bucks 28-16
.4. Philadelphia 76ers 27-16
.5. Cleveland Cavaliers 28-17
.6. New York Knicks 25-20
.7. Miami Heat 24-21
.8. Indiana Pacers 23-22
.9. Atlanta Hawks 22-22
10. Chicago Bulls 20-24
11. Toronto Raptors 20-24
12.Washington Wizards 18-26
13. Orlando Magic 16-28
14. Detroit Pistons 12-35
15. Charlotte Hornets 11-34
Western Conference:
.one. Denver Nuggets 30-13
.2. Memphis Grizzlies 30-13
.3. New Orleans Pelicans 26-18
.4. Sacramento Kings 24-18
.5. Dallas Mavericks 24-21
.6. Los Angeles Clippers 23-22
.7. Golden State Warriors 22-22
.8. Utah Jazz 23-24
.9. Minnesota Timberwolves 22-23
10. Portland Trail Blazers 21-22
11. Oklahoma City Thunder 21-23
12. Phoenix Suns 21-24
13. Los Angeles Lakers 20-24
14. San Antonio Spurs 13-31
15. Houston Rockets 10-34
Tuesday matches
Milwaukee Bucks – Toronto Raptors
San Antonio Spurs – Brooklyn Nets
Denver Nuggets – Portland Trail Blazers
Los Angeles Clippers – Philadelphia 76ers