NBA summary of the 10 games on February 19, 2026.
Charlotte Hornets 101-105 Houston Rockets
We open with an interesting duel. Although at the beginning of the season it could be said that the Hornets and Rockets were almost opposite each other, the reality is that at this point in the season they are both good teams and as such they will duel in North Carolina.
It was a clash with alternatives, one in which there were opportunities to win for both and that ended up being decided by a partial 0-11 in favor of the Texas team in the last quarter.
Along the way, 35 points from an excellent Kevin Durant and a festival of errors in the triple by Charlotte, more specifically with Brando Milles and LaMelo Ball as protagonists, as they combined for a painful 2 of 18.
Cleveland Cavaliers 112-84 Brooklyn Nets
The Cavaliers got serious a long time ago – including a move to get James Harden – although it’s not like they needed it too much against the Brooklyn Nets who at this point in the season are already ‘with their tanks on the street’.
Thus, the match between the two had no history whatsoever. Cleveland was up 18 points at the end of the first quarter and its stars barely spent any time on the court; Of course, La Barba had time to score 16 points, 9 assists, 5 rebounds and 3 steals in 28 minutes. He looks really good.
Philadelphia 76ers 107-117 Atlanta Hawks
If there is a team that is going on its own, it is the Atlanta Hawks. There are days when it seems like they have given up on basketball and others when they suddenly win where you didn’t quite expect it. Well, that’s exactly what happened last night when they won on the Sixers’ court.
It is true that Joel Embiid was not there and that Jalen Johnson had a great 32-point game, but the question is why Georgia’s team lurches so much. In Pennsylvania they seemed like a team with order and things were clear; with Dyson Daniels at the helm and CJ McCollum as sixth man (23 points). In short, a game that does more to them and less to Nick Nurse’s team.
Washington Wizards 112-105 Indiana Pacers
Duel on the ground floor of the NBA. With both of them thinking fully about the upcoming campaign, it was the Wizards who were a little better to at least bring joy to their parish. It is obvious that they are thinking about what to set up with the signings of Trae Young and Anthony Davis, while Indiana lives a similar movie waiting for the recovery of Tyrese Haliburton.
With such a scenario, what was seen was seen, young people enjoying many minutes, some baskets and a game that was completely inconsequential for the development of the course, beyond assuming that the capitalians pass the Pacers in the classification.
New York Knicks 111-126 Detroit Pistons
One of the most anticipated games of the night ended with the confirmation – if it was needed – that these Detroit Pistons are the great dominators of the Eastern Conference. Against the Knicks with all their stars on the hardwood, and playing at Madison Square Garden, the Michigan team dominated from start to finish to seal an excellent victory.
They were better, yes, but they also had the best players on the court, Cade Cunningham with 42 points, 13 assists and 8 rebounds, which increasingly represents a stronger candidacy for the MVP of the season. On the New York side, the best was Jalen Brunson with 33 points.
Chicago Bulls 101-110 Toronto Raptors
Toronto wants to be alternative. In Canada they know that they are starting from the shadows, but this could have been an advantage in the regular season – they are fifth in the East with 33-23 – and it can help them later on to give more than a scare to teams that consider themselves superior.
Last night, visiting the Bulls, they won comfortably at the pace of a Brandon Ingram who is getting better and better and who went up to 31 points. In Illinois, the best was Anfernee Simons with 20 points. And yes, Chicago remains in no man’s land for another year.
San Antonio Spurs 121-94 Phoenix Suns
One of the beatings of the night. We knew that San Antonio was superior, but Devin Booker was also able to be on the court for only nine minutes due to what the Suns have defined as hip pain.
Faced with such a scenario, the Spurs had a feast, one that is measured by a final difference of 27 points – it reached 32 –. All this while Victor Wembanyama walked the court with 17 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 blocks in 25 minutes. By the way, Jalen Green was pretty good to score up to 26 points for Arizona.
Be careful with this: the victory puts Mitch Johnson’s team with a balance of 39-16 that leaves them only 2.5 games behind the Thunder. There may still be a fight for the first place in the West.
Golden State Warriors 110-121 Boston Celtics
Kristaps Porzingis debuted, but it wasn’t enough. The Warriors are on pins and needles and if Stephen Curry is missing the situation becomes dramatic under any circumstances. They competed more or less, but the Celtics are several steps above and they showed it; so much so that they left the match resolved with a partial score of 19-38 in the second quarter. Game over.
Returning to Porzingis, he made his debut coming off the bench to score 12 points in 17 minutes. It was not a bad letter of introduction, but it remains to be seen whether it can have a real impact, especially given his repeated health problems.
As for the greens, enormous work by Payton Pritchard with 26 points from the bench, while Jaylen Brown contributed another 23. They are beginning to stand out as second in the Eastern Conference.
Sacramento Kings 94-131 Orlando Magic
It is not that Sacramento has raised the white flag, it is that it has practically been erased since the summer with an ineffectiveness in the market that in any case is also a consequence of the absurd movements made previously. It’s not about putting them on the spot, but rather understanding that seeing them receive beatings must be almost their daily life from now on to 82 games.
As usual, Orlando did not waste the favorable outlook and surpassed the Californians with 30 points from Paolo Banchero and 20 from Anthony Black. The bad news for the Magic is that this does not hide the fact that given Franz Wagner’s physical situation they seem doomed to another year of irrelevance.
Los Angeles Clippers 115-114 Denver Nuggets
We close with the great game experienced in Los Angeles. These Clippers not only have not given up after the transfers at the close of the market, but they seem ready to redouble their efforts and continue fighting; so much so that they have beaten a ring candidate like the Nuggets.
With an increasingly recognizable style of play and Bennedict Mathurin making his home debut as a hero (38 points), Tyronn Lue’s team can look to the present and future with optimism, since they still have to add Darius Garland to the cause.
On Denver, Nikola Jokic was the best with 22 points, 17 rebounds and 6 assists, while Jamal Murray missed the free throw that would have almost certainly taken the game to overtime. Be careful that Houston has moved them to fourth place in the West.
(Photograph by Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images)
