Dončič took care of the first triple double with 60 points, 20 rebounds and 10 assists in league history and the second triple double with 60 points. In addition, 60 points surpassed the club record, which was previously held by Dirk Nowitzki with 53 points, as well as the home hall of the American Airlines Center. “I’m incredibly tired. I need a beer for better regeneration,” laughed the twenty-three-year-old Slovenian.
In a hard-to-believe ending, first Christian Wood made it 106-112 26 seconds before the end of the fourth quarter, after the Knicks lost, Dončič hit a basket with a foul and a subsequent free throw. The Knicks then converted two free throws seven seconds into the buzzer.
At 112:115, Dončič was fouled four seconds before the end, hitting the first free throw and only throwing the second. He was able to jump himself and equalized with a neck-breaking shot a second before the end. Immanuel Quickley’s far-reaching attempt had no chance of success in a roaring hall with 20,377 spectators.
Dončič celebrated massively, which made the audience even more excited. “I thought we had won. That’s why I started celebrating, but then I looked at the scoreboard. Oops, I thought,” said Dončič. “We played well. We just couldn’t close the game in the last 30 seconds,” Knicks coach Tim Thibodeau said.
The Dallas players already took care of overtime, although they hit only one attempt from the field and got the rest of the points from free throws. Dinwiddie contributed 25 points, Wood added 19. For the Knicks, Quentin Grimes had 33 points, including seven three-pointers, and Julius Randle had 29 points and 18 rebounds.
Another great individual performance was seen by the fans in Washington, where even Joel Embiid’s 48 points and 10 rebounds did not prevent the defeat of Philadelphia 111:116. The Cameroonian pivot was seconded by James Harden with 26 points and 13 assists. However, the Sixers became fatal three-pointers, converting only six of 31.
The Wizards survived Embiid’s offensive rampage thanks to Kristaps Porzingis’ 24 points and 10 rebounds or Bradley Beal’s 19 points. “They’re a better team than their record. But that’s no excuse for us, we just weren’t up to it today,” Embiid said.
Atlanta trailed Indiana by as many as 22 points. With the score tied at the end, Krejčí also took a look at the pitch for the last four and a quarter minutes, hitting one of the two shots.
The best scorer of the game was the home team’s Buddy Hield, who made six three-pointers out of seven and scored 28 points. Tyrese Haliburton added 23 points. John Collins’ 26 points and 10 rebounds or Trae Young’s 22 points and 10 assists were not enough for the guests. Atlanta is 17-17.
The leader of the competition Boston defeated Houston 126:102 at home. Jaylen Brown, who scored 39 points, and Jayson Tatum, who scored 38 points, shone mainly. Both converted six three-pointers. The Rockets, the third-worst team in the league, didn’t even have 28 points from youngster Jalen Green.
The Los Angeles Lakers, after a series of four defeats, won in Orlando 129:110. LeBron James helped the win with 28 points. Russell Westbrook recorded a triple double with 15 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists.
Defending champion Golden State defeated Charlotte 110:105 and with fourteen wins out of 16 home games confirmed the best balance in the league on its own scoreboard. The Warriors, who are still missing injured star Stephen Curry, were led by Klay Thompson with 29 points, including five 3-pointers.
| NBA results: |
|---|
| Indiana – Atlanta 129:114 (for guests Krejčí 2 points, 1 rebound) |
| Boston – Houston 126:102 |
| Dallas – New York 126:121 po prodl. |
| Golden State – Charlotte 110:105 |
| Memphis – Phoenix 108:125 |
| Oklahoma City – San Antonio 130:114 |
| Orlando – LA Lakers 110:129 |
| Sacramento – Denver 106:113 |
| Toronto – LA Clippers 113:124 |
| Washington – Philadelphia 116:111. |
