The race for first place: OKC is not giving up, neither are Denver and Minnesota
Five days before the end of the regular season, we still do not know who from Minnesota, Denver or OKC will finish first in the West. Only one victory separates the Thunder (3rd), who defeated Sacramento (112-105), the Nuggets (2nd) and the Timberwolves (1st), who also did the job on Tuesday.
Trailing by 21 points in Washington, Minnesota scared itself but ended up taking the upper hand (130-121), boosted by a record Anthony Edwards (51 points, including 30 after returning from the locker room). The Wolves, who should soon find their Dominican pivot Karl-Anthony Towns, were also able to count on a dominant Rudy Gobert in the paint (19 points, 16 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 blocks).
As for them, the Nuggets confirmed their current good form (4 wins in 5 matches) in Utah (111-95), where Jamal Murray (28 points, like Nikola Jokic) took charge in the last quarter time.
The race for the play-offs: Dallas and the Clippers qualified, New Orleans steals 6th place from Phoenix
With 15 victories in 17 matches, Dallas finished strong, and the Mavericks saw their efforts rewarded with a ticket to the play-offs on Tuesday, in Charlotte (130-104). As often, Luka Doncic was brilliant (39 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists), particularly in a one-sided first quarter (21 points, 36-14). He also became the leading scorer in Mavericks history in a season (2,341 points), surpassing Mark Aguirre’s 2,330 points in 1983-1984.
Guaranteed to finish in the top 6, Doncic and his teammates will be able to breathe a little before the serious things begin in around ten days. They have three matches remaining, including two trips to Miami and Oklahoma. “We need to rest, that’s for sure,” reacted the Slovenian. We’re playing maybe our best basketball of the season on defense right now. This is the key for us. »
In the fight to avoid this famous play-in, it was New Orleans which made the good deal of the evening on Tuesday. After offering themselves New York and Memphis, the Pelicans of Trey Murphy III (31 points), CJ McCollum (29) and Zion Williamson (22) went to win in Portland (110-100). And take advantage of Phoenix’s defeat against the Clippers (92-105) to take sixth place, the last directly qualifying for the play-offs.
Under the whistles of their audience at the Footprint Center, the Suns completely missed their start to the match, which was also their last of the regular season at home. After less than 10 minutes of play, they were down 35 to… 4, and were never able to catch up against the Clippers who were deprived of James Harden and Kawhi Leonard.
Once is not customary, it was Russell Westbrook who stood out, author of his first triple-double of the season (16 points, 15 rebounds, 15 assists), the 199th of his career, for his return to the major five. Paul George added 23 points and Ivica Zubac 17 for LA, now assured like Dallas of competing in the play-offs. Tyronn Lue’s men now only need one victory to lock their place in the top 4.
Less than a week from the end of the regular season, Phoenix (7th) no longer has its destiny in hand, and the home stretch promises to be all the more perilous as it will see the Suns face a direct competitor in the race for the top 6, Sacramento. Eighth, the Kings wasted a 20-point lead against the Thunder (105-112), who found their Canadian leader Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (40 points) on Tuesday, and the reception of the Pelicans on Thursday will also be worth a lot.
The Los Angeles Lakers (9th) and the Golden State Warriors (10th) will probably have to go through the play-in, but the latter maintained the slim hope of avoiding it by winning on the floor of the former (134- 120) Tuesday. They also made sure to benefit from home advantage if the two teams were to meet in the play-off next week (which would be the case if the positions remained fixed).
Without the boss of their defense Anthony Davis, hit in the head against Minnesota on Sunday, the Lakers relied in particular on LeBron James (33 points, 11 assists, 7 rebounds), well supported by Austin Reaves (22 points) and Rui Hachimura (20). But they failed to contain the Warriors, insolent in skill behind the three-point line (26/41, or 63.4%). Stephen Curry (23 points at 6/6 from a distance), Klay Thompson (27 points at 5/10) and, more surprisingly, Draymond Green (15 points at 5/7) shone in the exercise, leaving their coach stunned. “I don’t think we played that well, but we made a million three-pointers,” Steve Kerr said. […] 63%, that’s crazy. »
