Four games took place last night in the NBA, but the most interesting was the one between the New Orleans Pelicans and the Portland Trail Blazers. Carmelo Anthony was back on the court after more than a year.
Blazers Lose, Carmelo’s Slow Start
The 10-time All-Star scored 10 points, shooting 4 for 14 from the field, adding 4 boards, but also producing 5 turnovers. His first two shots didn’t go in, but he third was a downtown hit. Anthony was slow and rusty, but at some moments did remind of a guy who terrorized rivals’ defenses.
His Blazers were up one point at the halftime, but couldn’t respond to Pelicans’ furious third period, which eventually determined the match. The hosts outscored Portland 35-25 in those 12 minutes. What was an additional problem for Terry Stotts’ crew was Damian Lillard’s issue with back spasms.
CJ McCollum had a team-high for the guests, 22 points, Hassan Whiteside added a double-double with 14 points and rebounds each. Nassir Little scored 12 buckets and grabbed 12 boards.
On the other side, Brandon Ingram and Jrue Holiday led the way. The young forward had 21 points with 7 rebounds, while Holiday added 22 with 10 assists. JJ Redick scored 18.
Lakers Tough Win Over the Thunder
The guests from Oklahoma City were extremely decisive in their intention to get at least one win in Staples. After losing to Clippers on Monday, they didn’t want to back down against the Lakers, who couldn’t get away from Billi Donovan’s team. But eventually, they prevailed and won, 112-107.
We saw several runs of the hosts, but each time OKC came back at the hosts. Eventually, they had a chance to turn this contest, but Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s three a little bit under a minute to go prevented that from happening.
LeBron James posted another triple-double, and now has a TD against every one of the 30 franchises in the league. He ended the night with 25 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. Anthony Davis had 34 points. For the Thunder, Dennis Schroeder added 31, while Danilo Gallinari scored 25.
The Golden State Warriors reached their third win of the campaign in Memphis, against the Grizzlies, 114-95. The decisive part of the game was the second quarter, which the Warriors won 33-16. After that, they just sealed the win with a strong performance in the final sequence. Alec Burks had 29 points, with 8 boards, while Glen Robinson II added 20. Eric Paschall and Marquese Chris posted 17 each. Draymond Green was near a triple-double with 8 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds.
Bogdanovic Slices the Suns
And finally, the Sacramento Kings defeated the Phoenix Suns with 120-116, allowing the visitors to come back from a 26-point deficit. The Suns cut the deficit to 116-113, but Yogi Ferrell and Richaun Holmes sunk two free throws each to put an and to this event.
It would be much different if it weren’t for Bogand Bogdanovic’s injury in the fourth. The Serbian guard had 31 points in 36 minutes, shooting threes 7 of 9. He also had 7 assists and 4 boards and was apparently missed over the final few minutes. Holmes had 20 points and 15 boards, Nemanja Bjelica had 17 and 8.
Devin Booker poured 30 on the other end; Kelly Oubre Jr. and Mikal Bridges had 20 apiece.
