The Los Angeles Lakers couldn’t stop their losing streak against Denver on Sunday. This makes it more and more likely that the team around top star LeBron James will even miss the play-in tournament.
The Lakers suffered their sixth loss in a row and are still in great danger of having an early summer break. In the 118-129 loss to Denver, the defence in particular was not up to scratch. In the absence of the injured LeBron James, Anthony Davis was convincing with 28 points in his second game back from injury. Russell Westbrook also had a strong game with 27 points.
However, the Lakers couldn’t stop the Nuggets’ offence around the reigning MVP and new MVP candidate Nikola Jokic. The Serb had 38 points in the boxscore and was the best scorer of the game. In the last quarter, the Nuggets kept the upper hand with 34:24 and secured the away victory. Four games before the end of the season, the air is getting thinner and thinner for L.A., who are currently in tenth place. As the Spurs won 113:92 against Portland in the night, James & Co. are already two wins behind ninth place – and in addition, the direct comparison with San Antonio was lost.
Celtics take second place
The Boston Celtics around national player Daniel Theis have climbed to second place in the Eastern Conference shortly before the end of the main round. The clear 144-102 win over the Washington Wizards was the 13th victory from the past 16 games for the NBA record champions, who have three games left until the play-offs.
Theis contributed six points as the starting player, while his teammate Jaylen Brown was the best scorer with 32 points. The Celtics also benefited on Sunday from the defeat of defending champion Milwaukee Bucks against the Dallas Mavericks. Luka Doncic scored 32 points for the Mavericks in a 118-112 win. Maxi Kleber did not play due to an injury.
Clippers secure eighth place – Moritz Wagner scores heavily
With a strong Isaiah Hartenstein, the Los Angeles Clippers secured a good starting position for the play-in tournament. The Clippers won 119-100 against the New Orleans Pelicans and will thus finish the regular season in eighth place in the Western Conference. This means that one win is enough for the Clippers in the mini-tournament (12 to 14 April) to enter the play-offs. Hartenstein recorded twelve points and nine rebounds in his 64th appearance of the season.
In the absence of his injured brother Franz, Moritz Wagner impressed as his team’s top scorer with 18 points and nine rebounds in the Orlando Magic’s 88-118 loss to the New York Knicks. The injured Dennis Schröder did not play in the Houston Rockets’ 132-139 loss to Minnesota
