LeBron James hit another NBA milestone Friday (Saturday AEDT) as he and Anthony Davis fuelled the Los Angeles Lakers’ hard-fought 133-129 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
James scored 28 points and handed out 11 assists — passing former Lakers great Magic Johnson for sixth on the NBA’s all-time assists list — as Los Angeles weathered a late Bucks surge to emerge with the victory in coach Darvin Ham’s return to the city where he won a title in 2021 as an assistant to coach Mike Budenholzer.
It was also close in Boston, where Miami star Jimmy Butler returned from a seven-game injury absence and helped the Heat grab a 120-116 overtime victory that snapped the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics’ 10-game home winning streak.
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He also shook off an injury scare, grabbing his left ankle in pain after tangling with Middleton and limping to the bench but soon returning to the game.
There was drama in Boston, where Celtics star Jalen Brown scored 37 points and banked in a stunning three-pointer to force overtime against Miami.
Two days after dropping a 134-121 decision to the Celtics, the Heat rallied from 13-point third-quarter deficit, mounting a 26-8 scoring run that put them up by five with 7:16 to play.
Butler’s jump shot put Miami up 108-105 in the final minute of regulation. Jayson Tatum then answered with a dunk before Butler struck again — only for Brown to put the Celtics level at the buzzer.
It was tied with 1:02 left in overtime, but Bam Adebayo made two free throws for Miami and, after Tatum missed a three-point attempt, Butler drained a step-back jump shot that proved the game-winner.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said before the game that with Butler’s return from a sore knee “it feels like we’re whole.” Butler certainly didn’t miss a beat, scoring 25 points with 15 rebounds. Tyler Herro scored 26 and Kyle Lowry added 20, and the Heat held Tatum — who scored 49 points on Wednesday — to just 14 on five-of-18 shooting.
In San Antonio, Aussie rookie Dyson Daniels earned his first career start with Brandon Ingram (toe) and Herb Jones (ankle) sidelined.
He finished with four points, five rebounds and three assists in 32 minutes as the Pelicans rolled past the Spurs 117-99.
Dyson’s ALMOST triple-double! Pels win! | 01:00
The Brooklyn Nets notched a fourth straight victory in dominant style, leading by as many as 36 points on the way to a 114-105 wire-to-wire home win over the Toronto Raptors.
Kyrie Irving scored 27 points and Kevin Durant and Joe Harris chipped in 17 apiece for Brooklyn.
In Atlanta, Dejounte Murray scored 34 points and rookie A.J. Griffin — playing in place of late injury scratch Trae Young — tied his career high with 24 as the depleted Hawks beat the Denver Nuggets 117-109.
Denver’s two-time defending Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic struggled to get going, scoring just four points in the first half before finishing with 24 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.
NBA SCORES AND RESULTS
Wizards 116, Hornets 117
Nuggets 109, Hawks 117
Heat 120, Celtics 116 (OT)
Raptors 105, Nets 114
Magic 96, Cavaliers 107
Lakers 133, Bucks 129
Sixers 109, Grizzlies 117
Pelicans 117, Spurs 99
Rockets 122, Suns 121
Pacers 119, Jazz 139
Bulls-Warriors in progress
