The Dallas Mavericks were delighted with the return of Kyrie Irving and a win in Philadelphia. For the coach of the Toronto Raptors, his team’s performance was “unacceptable”. The NBA on Tuesday
After a six-game absence due to a thumb injury, Kyrie Irving is back on the NBA floor. The Dallas Mavericks’ star guard made his presence felt again in the Texans’ 118:102 win over the Philadelphia 76ers: 23 points and eight assists, together with 19 points from Luka Doncic and a strong 14 from Maxi Kleber (four rebounds, five assists, one block) in the starting five, led to their 27th win of the season in their 50th game. Important for the Mavs in the battle for a playoff spot
The Sixers (30-19), who had to play without their top man Joel Embiid (meniscus), kept the game open until the final quarter, when Dallas pulled away with 41 points. The Mavs now travel on to Brooklyn, Irving’s old stomping ground.
“Nobody asks you what you did yesterday “
World champion Dennis Schröder suffered his next defeat with the Toronto Raptors (17-33) – a hefty one at 100:138. One day after the bitter overtime defeat against OKC, the Canadians had no chance and Schröder himself failed to score with five assists in just 18 minutes of action. Brandon Ingram (41 points, nine assists, no turnovers) from the Pels (29-21) had an easy game for the most part. “Fatigue is part of this league and there are no excuses in it,” said Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic afterwards. “Nobody asks you what you did yesterday, you have to do a job – and our performance today was unacceptable,” the coach scolded his team, which had not been competitive in any zone.
Things are going much better for Daniel Theis and the Los Angeles Clippers (34-15), who also got the better of the Atlanta Hawks (22-28). Kawhi Leonard (36) and James Harden (30) led the way in the 149-144 shootout, with Theis narrowly missing out on a double-double with nine points and eight rebounds. The Clippers are third in the tight Western Conference
Lakers and Cavs in good shape
City rival Lakers lived up to their role as favourites in their 124:118 win at the Charlotte Hornets (10-39, Miles Bridges with 41 points) and improved to 27-25. Anthony Davis contributed the third triple-double of his career with 26 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists to the third win in a row. D’Angelo Russell (28) and LeBron James (26) also played a big part in the success.
The Cleveland Cavaliers (32-16) recorded their 14th win in the last 15 games with a 136-110 victory over the Sacramento Kings (29-20) and remain at the top of the East. Donovan Mitchell (29 points) underlined his good form once again.