Oklahoma City Thunder

Thunder executive vice president and general manager Sam Presti announced the team signed Daigneault to a multiyear extension on Wednesday.

Terms of the deal were not released.

The Thunder weren't expected to be particularly good in 2022-23 after finishing with the NBA's fourth-worst record in 2021-22, coupled with a foot injury suffered by No. 2 overall pick Chet Holmgren last summer forcing him to miss the entire season.

Daigneault, however, nearly directed Oklahoma City to a playoff berth, and he finished second in NBA Coach of the Year voting.

The Thunder went 40-42 in the regular season before beating the New Orleans Pelicans in a Play-In game. Oklahoma City's season ended with a loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a second Play-In game.

Their 16-win improvement from the 2021-22 season was the second-biggest jump in the NBA behind the Sacramento Kings' 18-win increase.

Daigneault is entering his fourth season at the helm at Oklahoma City after serving as a Thunder assistant in 2019-20 - the last season the team made the playoffs. Prior to working on the Thunder bench, he spent five seasons as head coach of the Oklahoma City Blue, the team's G League affiliate.

Next order of business for Daigneault is a playoff berth and series win - something the Thunder haven't achieved since 2015-16, when they lost to the Golden State Warriors in seven games in the Western Conference finals.

NBA teams share that sentiment.

The NBA has approved its return-to-play plan, which will send 22 teams to the Walt Disney Resort near Orlando. All the games and practices will take place at the Disney complex after the NBA's Board of Governors approved proposals for a restart from the coronavirus-enforced break.

The teams invited to Florida are the 16 that held playoff spots when the season was halted on March 11, plus the six teams within six games of eighth place in both the Eastern and Western Conferences.

While having all the games at one location terminates travel and should cut down on some fatigue, it will provide a new challenge – likely playing games in empty gyms without the noise of the crowd.

A lack of crowd noise may be the biggest obstacle for the players, challenging their mettle. They will have to take part in crucial games and within these games, face critical possessions without getting any adrenaline rush from either the roar of the fans they would experience at their home arena or the chorus of boos from a hostile crowd when they are on the road.

For the teams, they are now pretty much all on equal footing. Those that had been dominating for the right to earn home-court advantage for the playoffs no longer have such an advantage.

When the season went on pause nearly three months ago, the Milwaukee Bucks owned the NBA's best record at 53-12. The Bucks are obviously an excellent team, boasting the league's highest-scoring offense behind reigning league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, but some of their success stems from their ability to easily dispatch of foes when they visited Milwaukee.

The Bucks have only lost two of their 30 games at Fiserv Forum since the calendar flipped to November. And both of those defeats came at the hands of West clubs – the Dallas Mavericks on December 16 and Denver Nuggets on January 31. They have gone 18-1 in Milwaukee against the East this season with the lone blemish coming in overtime to the Miami Heat in their home opener on October 26.

By continuing to defend home court against East teams, the Bucks appeared to have a relatively clear path to reach the NBA Finals, but now their opponents will no longer be making that dreaded trip to Milwaukee. 

Miami, meanwhile, is a hotter destination than Milwaukee – both literally and figuratively – and the Heat climbed to the top of the Southeast Division behind the strength of a 27-5 record in Miami – the third-best home record in the NBA.

The Heat, however, no longer will have the luxury of welcoming visitors to South Beach and its nightlife, instead playing the rest of their games in the more family-friendly environment provided by Mickey Mouse.

Only one team has compiled a better home record than the Bucks and Heat this season, and that has been perhaps one of the most perplexing teams of all time.

The Philadelphia 76ers have gone 29-2 at home, but if the playoffs started today they would not be hosting a first-round series. Thanks to an inability to win on the road where they have gone 10-24, the Sixers are in sixth place in the East. 

Philly has a .935 winning percentage at home and a .294 winning percentage on the road. That decrease of .641 in winning percentage from home to road is the largest difference since the NBA expanded to 14 teams in 1968-69. 

Seeing as there has been no rational explanation as to how a team can play so well at home and so poorly on the road, it is anyone's guess how the Sixers will fare in Orlando.

While teams will be missing out on having games at their own arenas and players will no longer have the creature comforts that come with home games, a handful of teams that are heading to Orlando had slightly better records on the road than at home before the season paused.

Playing these games on neutral courts, likely without fans, in Orlando does not exactly correlate to playing road games in intense visiting arenas in front of raucous playoff crowds, but the Dallas Mavericks (plus-.077 winning percentage from road to home games), Los Angeles Lakers (plus-.071), New Orleans Pelicans (plus-.063), Phoenix Suns (plus-.062) and Oklahoma City Thunder (plus-.039) all have higher winning percentages on the road than at home.

Of those five teams, only the Mavericks, Lakers and Thunder posted winning records both on the road and at home. 

When the season went on pause, the only teams with road winning percentages over .700 were perhaps the three favourites to win the title – the Lakers (.813 road winning percentage), the Bucks (.735) and defending champions the Toronto Raptors (.719). 

No big surprise, but the ability to win on the road and perform under pressure in adverse conditions bodes well for a team's championship aspirations. 

While these will not be road games, they will certainly be adverse conditions. Likely the most obscure these players have ever experienced.

The Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets and Sacramento Kings will pick second, third and fourth respectively, with the Detroit Pistons rounding out the top five.

The Pistons dropped below the top four despite 52.1 per cent odds of landing in one of the top four spots and having a 14 per cent chance at the top pick, with the Kings moving up into fourth.

The Magic, who also had a 14 per cent chance at the top pick, have not had the first selection since the 2004 draft, where they selected Dwight Howard.

The other two times were in 1992, selecting Shaquille O'Neal, and 1993, where the Magic traded Chris Webber for Anfernee Hardaway. O'Neal and Howard both made NBA Finals appearances with the Magic before leaving for the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Thunder's last selection at number two, meanwhile, was Kevin Durant in 2007.

The biggest losers from the lottery were the Portland Trail Blazers, who claimed the seventh pick despite a 2-21 finish to end the season after trading away CJ McCollum and Larry Nance Jr.

Domantas Sabonis posted a first-half triple-double as the Pacers recorded the largest regular-season road win in league history, according to Stats Perform.

Sabonis finished with 26 points, 19 rebounds and 14 assists for the Pacers, who scored their most points in a game since joining the NBA in 1976.

The Pacers led by 67 points inside the final five minutes, flirting with the record for the largest victory margin (68 points set by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1991).

Doug McDermott added a game-high 31 points, while Oshae Brissett (16 points and 13 rebounds) and Caris Levert (25 points) made solid contributions on the road against the Thunder.

Kawhi Leonard returned from a five-game absence but the Los Angeles Clippers went down 110-104 to the visiting Denver Nuggets.

Back on the court following a foot problem, two-time champion Leonard put up 16 points, six assists and five rebounds as the Clippers were upstaged by Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets.

MVP frontrunner and Nuggets star Jokic scored 30 points and collected 14 rebounds to go with seven assists.

LaMelo Ball also made a return after a 21-game injury lay-off, resuming his Rookie of the Year push with 11 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, two blocks and a steal in the Charlotte Hornets' 107-94 win against the Detroit Pistons.

Williamson and Ball star as Pelicans soar, Jazz prevail

Zion Williamson had 37 points on 14-for-17 shooting while tallying nine rebounds and eight assists in the New Orleans Pelicans' 140-136 overtime success against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Lonzo Ball chipped in with a career-high 33 points as the Pelicans overcame a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter. Karl-Anthony Towns' double-double of 28 points and 14 rebounds was not enough for the Pelicans.

The Utah Jazz reclaimed top spot in the Western Conference and the best record in the NBA thanks to a 106-102 win against the Toronto Raptors. Bojan Bogdanovic's 34 points fuelled the Jazz, who moved half a game clear of the Phoenix Suns atop the west. Fred VanVleet's 30 points were not enough for the visiting Raptors.

Trae Young registered 33 points and Clint Capela (20 points and 11 rebounds) and John Collins (13 points and 10 rebounds) had double-doubles for the Atlanta Hawks, who defeated the Chicago Bulls 108-97.

The Golden State Warriors topped the Houston Rockets 113-87 behind Stephen Curry's 30 points. Curry had his 32nd career 20-point quarter (sixth this season, the 18th time he has scored at least 20 points in the third quarter. The two-time MVP has 32 30-point games this season – 15 in his last 17 appearances.

Roby and Maledon headline Thunder woes

On a humiliating day for the Thunder, Isaiah Roby and Theo Maledon were particularly disappointing. Roby was one-for-eight shooting, missing all three of his attempts from beyond the arc for two points. Thunder team-mate Maledon made two of 14 shots from the field, including one of his eight three-points efforts as he finished with eight points.

Mavs call game

Trailing 124-122, Luka Doncic provided the assist for Dorian Finney-Smith, who nailed the game-winning three-pointer with 9.2 seconds remaining. The Dallas Mavericks beat the Washington Wizards 125-124. Doncic posted 31 points, a career-high 20 assists and 12 rebounds for his fourth game in NBA history with 30-plus points, 10-plus rebounds and 20-plus assists to join Magic Johnson, Russell Westbrook and Oscar Robertson as the only players to do so. Westbrook (42 points and 10 rebounds) and Bradley Beal (29 points) were not enough to lift the Wizards.

Saturday's results

Charlotte Hornets 107-94 Detroit Pistons
Golden State Warriors 113-87 Houston Rockets
Atlanta Hawks 108-97 Chicago Bulls
Miami Heat 124-107 Cleveland Cavaliers
Orlando Magic 112-111 Memphis Grizzlies
New Orleans Pelicans 140-136 Minnesota Timberwolves (OT)
Indiana Pacers 152-95 Oklahoma City Thunder
Denver Nuggets 110-104 Los Angeles Clippers
Utah Jazz 106-102 Toronto Raptors
Dallas Mavericks 125-124 Washington Wizards

Nets at Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks (39-24) could welcome back two-time reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo (ankle) for Sunday's visit of Eastern Conference leaders the Brooklyn Nets (43-21).

Embiid spent over two months on the sidelines after suffering a knee injury during a game against the Golden State Warriors at the end of January, undergoing surgery to repair the lateral meniscus in his left knee.

The reigning NBA MVP, who was in outstanding form before sustaining the injury, sat out 29 straight games before returning to help the Sixers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 109-105 on Tuesday.

Embiid had 24 points in his first game back then added 29 on his latest outing on Thursday as the Sixers beat the Miami Heat by the same scoreline.

However, Philadelphia have fallen foul of the NBA's injury reporting rules after initially saying Embiid would not face the Thunder.

Embiid was listed as being out of that game for 24 hours before he was suddenly upgraded to questionable just one hour and 15 minutes before he was named in the Sixers' starting lineup.

In a statement issued on Friday, the league said: "The 76ers failed to accurately disclose the game availability status of Joel Embiid prior to their game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 2.  

"Embiid was listed as 'out' in Philadelphia's initial injury report and subsequently played in the game. The fine takes into account the 76ers' prior history of fines for violating injury reporting rules."

Embiid is expected to be rested for one of the Sixers' two road games this weekend, as they face the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday and the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday.

Having won three straight games, the Sixers now sit just one game behind the sixth-placed Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference standings and have a chance of avoiding the Play-In Tournament. 

Devin Booker returned from a four-game absence to put up 23 points, nine assists and eight rebounds as the leaders of the West toppled the top side in the East.

The Suns, who are 53-13 for the season, have now beaten all other 29 teams in the same season for the first time since 2006-07.

"I told the guys it was one of the best defensive performances I've ever seen," said Suns coach Monty Williams after watching his team concede just 35 points in the second half. "I've been around for a little bit."

Duncan Robinson was top scorer for Miami with 22, who led by 11 in the early stages before falling to just their third defeat in 15 games.

"They were first to the ball a lot," said Robinson. "They were the aggressor. Unacceptable."

The Milwaukee Bucks are now two games behind the Heat at the top of the Eastern Conference after beating the Atlanta Hawks 124-115, with Giannis Antetokounmpo's double-double of 43 points and 12 rebounds firing them to a sixth-straight win.

Antetokounmpo finished 15-of-22 from the field to take his tally to 82 points in the space of 24 hours after his 39 in Tuesday's victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.

"The things he does are not normal," said team-mate Bobby Portis. "It's fun to be his team-mate and fun to play alongside him."

Rockets stun Lakers in overtime

The Los Angeles Lakers lost for the ninth time in a row on the road, going down 139-130 in overtime against the Houston Rockets.

A triple-double from LeBron James and 30 points from Russell Westbrook were not enough as rookie Jalen Green hit a career-high 32 points for the Rockets.

"We have a really small margin of error this season and teams are making us pay," said James, whose run of consecutive 25-point games ended at 23. "I missed a lot of shots that I know I'm capable of making, have made throughout the course of the season and my career."

The Los Angeles Clippers snapped their two-game losing streak, beating the Washington Wizards 115-109, while the Utah Jazz improved to 41-24 with a comfortable 123-85 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.

Bulls back on track, Beasley sets record

The Chicago Bulls ended a run of five consecutive losses, DeMar DeRozan scoring 36 points, including 16 in the fourth quarter, in a 114-108 win over the Detroit Pistons.

It was a day to remember for Malik Beasley, who set a franchise record for three-pointers in the Minnesota Timberwolves' win at home over the Thunder.

Beasley landed 11 of his 17 attempts from beyond the arc as Minnesota, seventh in the West, made it six wins in a row.

The Boston Celtics continued their recent good form with a 115-101 win at the Charlotte Hornets, while the New York Knicks pulled off a fifth-straight road win over the Dallas Mavericks, Julius Randle scoring 26 points in a 107-77 blowout.

Gregg Popovich will have to wait for his NBA record 1,336th regular-season win as coach, the San Antonio Spurs falling 119-104 at home to the Toronto Raptors.

There were also wins for the Orlando Magic, who topped the New Orleans Pelicans 108-102, and the Denver Nuggets, who beat the Sacramento Kings 106-100 thanks to a 38-point double-double from Nikola Jokic.

Weaver, 52, comes to Detroit after spending the past three-plus years as Oklahoma City's vice president of basketball operations and the previous eight seasons as vice president/assistant general manager of the Thunder. 

Senior advisor Ed Stefanski has been running the front office since the Pistons parted ways with general manager Jeff Bower following the 2017-18 season. 

"It's an honour for me to join a franchise with the history and tradition of the Detroit Pistons," Weaver said. "I'm excited for the challenge of building this team into a consistent winner and assembling the pieces to compete at a very high level. 

"We'll get to work right away, evaluating opportunities and installing systems that will make us all successful."

Detroit was 20-46 this season before the NBA was shut down in March due to the coronavirus pandemic and will not be one of the 22 teams that will take the court in Florida if the league is able to resume play. 

The Pistons' last playoff win came in 2007-08, when they lost to the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals. 

Detroit has since reached the playoffs just three times and been swept in all three series. 

"Troy’s basketball knowledge and experience will help this organization in all facets of strategic planning and roster development this coming season and beyond," Stefanski said. 

"He has a good eye for talent, is a great communicator and is team oriented. I look forward to working with him as we focus on achieving our collective goals."

Detroit won the NBA Draft lottery Tuesday after finishing with the second-worst record in the league (20-52) this season. 

The Houston Rockets (17-55) will pick second overall, followed by the Cleveland Cavaliers, Toronto Raptors, Orlando Magic and Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Pistons, Rockets and Magic each had 14 per cent odds to earn the top pick, while the Thunder and Cavaliers had the next-best chance at 11.5 per cent. 

The Pistons last had the first overall pick in 1970, when they selected Hall of Famer Bob Lanier. 

It will be Detroit's highest selection since the Pistons infamously took Darko Milicic second overall in 2003 -- behind only LeBron James but ahead of future Hall of Famers Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. 

Heading into the July 29 draft, most analysts have tipped Cade Cunningham of Oklahoma State as the likely top pick. 

Jordan Poole was clutch with 33 points off the bench including six three-pointers, while Stephen Curry added 29 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the field with eight rebounds at the Chase Center.

Poole made a pivotal three-pointer for a 115-110 lead with 1:18 remaining in the last as the Warriors improved to 39-36 to sit sixth in the Western Conference.

The 76ers had led by 11 points with 11:32 remaining in the fourth quarter after Shake Milton laid off for Paul Reed's alley oop layup, but the Warriors launched their comeback with Poole and Curry at the heart of it.

Poole scored 19 of his 33 points in the fourth period, while Curry stepped up with eight points in the final four minutes.

Klay Thompson added six triples in his 21 points, while Draymond Green had 10 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists in a busy display.

MVP candidate Embiid was huge with 46 points on 13-of-23 shooting from the field with nine rebounds and eight assists.

Tobias Harris added 23 points for the 76ers, with Tyrese Maxey contributing 21. James Harden was absent with Achilles soreness.

Embiid scored 13 straight points for the 76ers in the fourth quarter after checking back in with 8:26 left.

Mavericks slip out of play-in spots

The Dallas Mavericks suffered their third straight loss as their playoff hopes took another hit with a disappointing 117-109 loss to the short-handed Charlotte Hornets.

Luka Doncic scored a game-high 34 points with 10 rebounds and eight assists, while Kyrie Irving added 18 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, but the Mavs were undone after a slow first half, with Hornets forward P.J. Washington managing a team-high 28 points.

The loss leaves the Mavs outside the play-in tournament spots in 11th in the Western Conference with a 36-38 record.

Lakers up to .500 for first time this season

The Los Angeles Lakers squared their ledger at .500 and moved up to eighth in the West with a 116-111 triumph over the Oklahoma City Thunder securing three consecutive wins.

Anthony Davis had 37 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers, while Lonnie Walker impressed in his return with 20 points and Denis Schroder added 13 of his 21 points in the second half.

The Lakers improved to 37-37 with the win, getting to .500 for the first time this season, with LeBron James' return form injury reportedly not far away. LA are 8-5 during James' latest absence.

Milwaukee's Greek star left the game after just 46 seconds with a sprained right ankle suffered when he stepped on Kelly Olynyk's foot on a drive to the basket. 

Though Khris Middleton scored 33, Bryn Forbes a career-high 30 off the bench, and Jrue Holiday 29 for Milwaukee, it was not enough to overcome the loss of Antetokounmpo amid an unexpected scoring onslaught from the Rockets (16-47), who rallied after trailing by 17 in the first half.

The 20-year-old Porter poured in a career-high 50 and added 11 assists, becoming the fourth-youngest player in NBA history to score 50 in a game. Brandon Jennings, Devin Booker and LeBron James (twice) are the only younger players to do it. 

Porter's previous career high was 30 points, set last year as a rookie. 

Porter was not alone in his heroics, either, as Christian Wood added 31 points and Olynyk contributed 24 along with 13 rebounds. 

Despite the loss, the Bucks remain comfortably in the third slot in the Eastern Conference at 38-24 with 10 games to play.

Warriors fall to streaking Timberwolves

The Golden State Warriors watched their hopes of avoiding the play-in tournament continue to fade with a 126-114 loss at the suddenly hot Minnesota Timberwolves.

Ricky Rubio (26 points), Anthony Edwards (25) and Karl-Anthony Towns (22) combined to help Minnesota with their fourth successive game despite 37 points from Stephen Curry, who made only 11 of 27 from the field (six of 17 three-pointers). 

Golden State (31-32) are three games up on the New Orleans Pelicans for the 10th and final play-in spot but have little chance of finishing in the top six in the west. 

Kevin Durant scored 30 of his 42 points in the second half and added 10 assists as the Brooklyn Nets won their fourth game in a row, 130-113 over the Indiana Pacers. 

The Denver Nuggets also won their fourth in succession, beating the Toronto Raptors 121-111 behind 23 points from Michael Porter Jr. 

Tim Hardaway Jr. had a career-best 42 points in the Dallas Mavericks' 115-105 win over the Detroit Pistons.

Love struggles

The Oklahoma City Thunder went right back to their losing ways after snapping a 14-game skid on Tuesday, falling 109-95 to the New Orleans Pelicans while shooting just 38.2 per cent from the field as a team. Luguentz Dort was OKC's top scorer with 17 points. 

KAT to the hole

Karl-Anthony Towns brushed aside the Warriors defense to drive the lane for a jam in Minnesota's big win.

Thursday's results

Dallas Mavericks 115-105 Detroit Pistons
Brooklyn Nets 130-113 Indiana Pacers
Houston Rockets 143-136 Milwaukee Bucks
Minnesota Timberwolves 126-114 Golden State Warriors
New Orleans Pelicans 109-95 Oklahoma City Thunder
Denver Nuggets 121-111 Toronto Raptors

Jazz at Suns

With playoff berths already clinched, the top two teams in the Western Conference will jockey for the top seed as the Utah Jazz (45-17) visit the Phoenix Suns (44-18).

Kyle Lowry posted 33 points and 14 rebounds and team-mate OG Anunoby scored 23 points as the Raptors claimed their 11th consecutive victory over the Lakers.

The Raptors – second in the Eastern Conference behind the Milwaukee Bucks – have not lost to the Lakers since 2014-15.

LeBron James' double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds was not enough for Western Conference leaders the Lakers, who are 1-1 since the restart at Walt Disney World Resort.

After scoring 34 points in the Lakers' return, Anthony Davis managed just 14 against the Raptors as the Los Angeles franchise remain one win away from clinching the top seed in the west.

TJ Warren, meanwhile, had a career-high 53 points as the Indiana Pacers resumed their season with a 127-121 win against Eastern Conference rivals the Philadelphia 76ers.

Warren was 20 of 29 from the field and nine of 12 from three-point range in his first game with at least 50 points.

The Pacers (40-26) and 76ers (39-27) had shared identical records prior to Saturday's encounter, but Indiana broke a tie to take control of the Eastern Conference's fifth seed.

George stars from beyond the arc

Paul George led the way as the Los Angeles Clippers outclassed the New Orleans Pelicans 126-103. George made eight of 11 three-pointers in a 28-point performance. The All-Star shot three straight from beyond the arc in the opening minutes to set the tone. The Clippers broke the franchise record by making 25 of 47 threes. Clippers head coach Doc Rivers also moved 11th on the NBA's career list for wins after celebrating his 939th victory.

Joel Embiid became the first 76ers player with multiple 40-plus point, 20-plus rebound-games since Charles Barkley. The All-Star finished with 41 points and 21 rebounds against the Pacers.

Mitchell struggles as Jazz lose

Donovan Mitchell (13 points) was just five for 15 in the Utah Jazz's 110-94 defeat at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder. The two teams were meant to meet on March 11 before Rudy Gobert tested positive for coronavirus prior to tip-off. The Jazz shot just 39 per cent from the field.

LeBron with the layup

While the Lakers lost, James still provided a number of highlights, including this run to the rim.

Saturday's results

Miami Heat 125-105 Denver Nuggets
Oklahoma City Thunder 110-94 Utah Jazz
Los Angeles Clippers 126-103 New Orleans Pelicans
Indiana Pacers 127-121 Philadelphia 76ers
Toronto Raptors 107-92 Los Angeles Lakers

Bucks at Rockets

Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Eastern Conference-leading Bucks (54-12) face the Houston Rockets (41-24) on Sunday. Both teams are coming off wins after the restart.

The Raptors (38-14) stayed hot with a 115-106 win away to the Indiana Pacers on Saturday – a franchise record 10th straight road victory.

Serge Ibaka fuelled the Raptors with 22 points and 10 rebounds, while Fred VanVleet (20 points) and Kyle Lowry (16 points, 11 assists) made solid contributions.

Lowry moved third on Toronto's all-time list for scoring, surpassing Vince Carter, before leaving the game with whiplash.

Eastern Conference rivals the 76ers snapped a four-game losing streak by beating the Grizzlies 119-107 in Philadelphia.

Struggling on the road, the 76ers impressed again at Wells Fargo Center thanks to 22 points and 10 assists from Ben Simmons.

A stiff neck limited Joel Embiid to 10 points and 10 rebounds in 16 minutes.

What the Furk?

Forget about Simmons, Embiid and Tobias Harris, it was the Furkan Korkmaz show in Philadelphia. Korkmaz had a career-high 34 points. The Turkish import made 13 of 17 shots, including seven of nine three-pointers.

All-Star Jayson Tatum posted 32 points to lead the Boston Celtics past the Atlanta Hawks 112-107. John Collins had 30 points for the visiting Hawks.

Kelly Oubre Jr. (39) and Devin Booker (33) combined for 72 points as the Phoenix Suns crushed the Houston Rockets 127-91.

Brown headlines Pistons' struggles

The post-Andre Drummond error started with a loss for the Detroit Pistons and starter Bruce Brown was among those to struggle in the 108-101 loss at the Oklahoma City Thunder. Brown was one of nine from the field for just four points in 33 minutes.

Only two Grizzlies starters reached double-digit points – Ja Morant (15) and Jonas Valanciunas (14, 10 rebounds). Jaren Jackson Jr. (six points), Dillon Brooks (nine points) and Kyle Anderson (six) struggled.

Russell Westbrook sat out and the Houston had a night to forget. While James Harden recorded 32 points, his Rockets team-mates struggled. Houston only made 29 of 85 shots at 34.1 per cent.

Beal with the game-winner!

Bradley Beal was the hero for the Washington Wizards, who stunned the Dallas Mavericks 119-118 at the buzzer.

Friday's results

Philadelphia 76ers 119-107 Memphis Grizzlies
Boston Celtics 112-107 Atlanta Hawks
Oklahoma City Thunder 108-101 Detroit Pistons
Toronto Raptors 115-106 Indiana Pacers
Washington Wizards 119-118 Dallas Mavericks
Phoenix Suns 127-91 Houston Rockets
Sacramento Kings 105-97 Miami Heat
Utah Jazz 117-114 Portland Trail Blazers

Lakers at Warriors

The NBA-leading Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers and in-form Raptors are in action on Saturday, however, all eyes will be on the Los Angeles Lakers. After being upstaged by the Rockets at Staples Center, LeBron James and the Lakers (38-12) travel to the lowly Golden State Warriors (12-40).

The Raptors continued their winning streak with a thrilling 119-118 victory over the Indiana Pacers.

Serge Ibaka proved to be the hero with a go-ahead three-pointer with 30 seconds remaining.

Ibaka finished with 30 points, while Kyle Lowry had a double-double of 32 points and 10 assists and Pascal Siakam poured in 25.

The Clippers also set a franchise record during their 128-111 win over Miami.

They hit 24 three-pointers, with Landry Shamet (six) and Paul George (five) leading the way.

George finished with 23 points and 10 assists, while Kawhi Leonard went five-of-13 from the field for his 14 points, to go with nine assists and seven rebounds.

Jokic stars as Young lifts Hawks

Nikola Jokic had a triple-double of 30 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists in the Denver Nuggets' 98-95 win against the Utah Jazz.

Trae Young starred for the Atlanta Hawks as his 38 points and 11 assists helped them past the Minnesota Timberwolves 127-120.

Andre Drummond had 31 points and 19 rebounds in the Detroit Pistons' 116-108 win over the Phoenix Suns.

Terrible Timberwolves

The Timberwolves are seriously struggling. Their loss to the Hawks was their 13th straight as they fell to 15-35.

Ibaka delivers

Ibaka stepped up when the Raptors needed him, hitting just his second three – from seven attempts – late against the Pacers.

Wednesday's results

Detroit Pistons 116-108 Phoenix Suns
Boston Celtics 116-100 Orlando Magic
Brooklyn Nets 129-88 Golden State Warriors
Toronto Raptors 119-118 Indiana Pacers
Atlanta Hawks 127-120 Minnesota Timberwolves
Oklahoma City Thunder 109-103 Cleveland Cavaliers
Memphis Grizzlies 121-107 Dallas Mavericks
Denver Nuggets 98-95 Utah Jazz
Los Angeles Clippers 128-111 Miami Heat

Rockets at Lakers

Two of the Western Conference's best teams go head-to-head at the Staples Center on Thursday as the Houston Rockets (32-18) visit the Los Angeles Lakers (38-11).

James was the game's top scorer with 19 points while six Jazz players hit double-figures, with Rudy Gobert and Jordan Clarkson dropping 18, and the NBA leaders raced away with this contest between two championship contenders.

Utah stormed to a 16-point half-time lead before restricting the Lakers to a season-low 17-point third quarter, and the hosts once again set the bar high from downtown, shooting 22 threes, including a franchise-high 14 in the first half.

The lifeless Lakers offered little resistance while slipping to their biggest loss of the season as the Western Conference leaders cruised to a 22nd win in 24 games.

The Jazz's league-leading 15-2 home record improves them to 26-6 overall.

With Anthony Davis joined by Dennis Schroder on the sidelines, Montrezl Harrell (16 points) and Markieff Morris (12 points) were the only other Lakers players to hit double-figures as their record fell to 22-11.

Gallinari writes Hawks and NBA history

Danilo Gallinari set an Atlanta Hawks franchise record of 10 three-pointers in the 127-112 win against the Boston Celtics.

The Italian veteran had the best shooting day of his career, burying 13 of his 16 attempts from the field, while putting up a personal-best 38 points. 

Siakam ineffective for Raps

Pascal Siakam was only able to put up five points from his 24 minutes on court in the Toronto Raptors' 116-108 defeat by the Miami Heat.

The Raps center landed one of six field-goal attempts, sinking one of his three from distance and adding a pair of free throws, before being benched in the fourth quarter.

Dort beats the clock and comes up clutch 

Luguentz Dort's three-point buzzer-beater earned the Oklahoma City Thunder a dramatic 102-99 win over the San Antonio Spurs, after a career-high 42 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

The Canadian becomes only the third player in franchise history to sink a game-winning three since the move to Oklahoma, joining Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

Wednesday's results

Atlanta Hawks 127-112 Boston Celtics
Golden State Warriors 111-107 Indiana Pacers
Cleveland Cavaliers 112-96 Houston Rockets
New Orleans Pelicans 128-118 Detroit Pistons
Oklahoma City Thunder 102-99 San Antonio Spurs
Miami Heat 116-108 Toronto Raptors
Chicago Bulls 133-126 Minnesota Timberwolves
Charlotte Hornets 124-121 Phoenix Suns
Utah Jazz 114-89 Los Angeles Lakers

Pelicans at Bucks

Giannis Antetokounmpo has led the Milwaukee Bucks (19-13) to third in the east and they host the Zion Williamson-inspired New Orleans Pelicans (14-17) on Thursday.

Knicks All-Star Randle posted 33 points and 10 assists to lead the New York franchise to their sixth successive NBA win on Sunday.

Randle recorded his fourth consecutive game with at least 30 points, becoming the first Knicks player since Carmelo Anthony in 2014 to accomplish the feat.

Reggie Bullock nailed a three-pointer for the Knicks with 2.3 seconds remaining in regulation before the home team outscored Zion Williamson's Pelicans 19-9 in OT at Madison Square Garden.

Derrick Rose scored a season-high 23 points for the Knicks, who are in the midst of their longest winning streak since 2013-14 as they eye their first playoff appearance since 2013.

Williamson's 34 points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals were not enough for the visiting Pelicans.

Meanwhile, Kevin Durant suffered a left thigh contusion in the Brooklyn Nets' 109-107 loss away to the Miami Heat.

Durant – who only returned from a 23-game injury absence this month – left the game in the opening quarter, having gone three-for-three shooting to finish with eight points in four minutes.

Bam Adebayo (21 points and 15 rebounds) lifted the Heat with his buzzer-beating jump shot.

Hawks soar past Pacers

Clint Capela (25 points and 24 rebounds) and Trae Young (34 points and 11 assists) helped the Atlanta Hawks power to a 129-117 victory against the Indiana Pacers. Bogdan Bogdanovic and Kevin Huerter contributed 23 points each for the Hawks, who have won eight of 10 games and are 17-6 under interim head coach Nate McMillan.

Kawhi Leonard returned from a four-game absence, tallying 15 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in the Los Angeles Clippers' 124-105 success at home to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Chris Boucher put up 31 points and 11 rebounds for the Toronto Raptors, who downed the lowly Oklahoma City Thunder 112-106 for a third consecutive win. Oklahoma City's Aleksej Pokusevski (six) became the first Thunder rookie with five-plus blocks in a game since Serge Ibaka in 2010.

The Charlotte Hornets snapped a four-game skid behind Terry Rozier as his 34 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds saw off the Portland Trail Blazers 109-101.

De'Aaron Fox's 30 points and 12 assists guided the Sacramento Kings to a 121-107 win over the Dallas Mavericks. Dallas All-Star Luka Doncic finished with a game-high 37 points.

Thunder continue to be silenced

The Thunder are now in the midst of a season-worst losing streak of 10 games after losing to the Raptors.

Josh Richardson struggled again for the Mavericks. He was just three-for-nine shooting, while making only one of his five three-point attempts for seven pints. Mavericks team-mate Tim Hardaway Jr. (eight points) finishing two-for-10 shooting.

Bridges goes bang!

Miles Bridges is becoming known for his slam dunks. The Hornets star produced another memorable dunk in the second quarter.

Sunday's results

Atlanta Hawks 129-117 Indiana Pacers
New York Knicks 122-112 New Orleans Pelicans (OT)
Miami Heat 109-107 Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Hornets 109-101 Portland Trail Blazers
Houston Rockets 114-110 Orlando Magic
Toronto Raptors 112-106 Oklahoma City Thunder
Los Angeles Clippers 124-105 Minnesota Timberwolves
Sacramento Kings 121-107 Dallas Mavericks

Warriors at 76ers

Red-hot Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors (28-29) visit the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers (39-17) on Monday. The 76ers have won four straight games.

Embiid missed over two months of action after suffering a knee injury during a game against the Golden State Warriors at the end of January.

Having undergone surgery to repair the lateral meniscus in his left knee, Embiid sat out 29 straight games with the Sixers slumping from 29-17 to 40-35 in that time.

The Sixers have gone 14-27 without the reigning NBA MVP overall this campaign, and they were buoyed by his return on Tuesday as he finished their 109-105 win with 24 points, seven assists and six rebounds.

Opening up on the toll his injury took, Embiid said: "Usually I just tell myself, 'move on to the next one', get better, and then fix it, but this one took a toll mentally, being depressed, it was not good.

"So, I'm still not where I'm supposed to be, especially mentally, but I just love to play and love basketball and I want to play. Any chance that I have to be out there, I'm going to take it.

"For some reason this injury was just disappointing. It was depressing. It took me a while to get over it, and I still haven't gotten over it. So I've just got to take it day by day, look at the positives.

"I'm back. So, hopefully every single day, I'll try to get better and get back to myself."

Embiid was limited to just 29 minutes on the court, but only Kelly Oubre Jr., with 25 points, bettered his return as Philadelphia boosted their playoff hopes by making it back-to-back wins. 

"Minutes-wise, that was probably where I thought we would end up," head coach Nick Nurse said. "I thought we had a good start and it mapped out something like that, minutes-wise.

"He scored some, I thought he passed the ball really well, but when we start amping up our defense in the last six minutes he was down there again.

"Some of those drives didn't look as productive, so that to me is where I really thought he impacted the game. He looked pretty good for not playing for a couple of months, that's for sure."

After losing four in a row, Philadelphia were more like their old selves in a 121-90 drubbing of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday.

Simmons missed the string of losses due to what he described as "a viral thing", but he returned with six-of-eight shooting, four assists, three rebounds, three steals and two blocks.

Rivers is convinced Simmons and Thybulle have a big role to play in paving the way for success this season.

"I don't think I've ever had that," Rivers said of the wing defence strength.

"I've had an incredibly great defensive team... but not at those positions. It's pretty awesome to watch. Those two guys, their closing ability on shots is excellent, absolutely remarkable to watch."

Simmons looked as good as new, according to Rivers.

"He had great energy, great pace. It was Ben being Ben," said the coach. "We lose a lot of pace when he's not on the floor, that's for sure."

As for Simmons, the 24-year-old All-Star welcomed his coach's words, saying: "That means a lot. [Thybulle] has got a high IQ on the floor and it's tough for teams to score when there's two guys like that on the floor."

Simmons added: "I'm just glad to be back. I missed being with the fellas. The energy was great tonight."

The Sixers sit second in the Eastern Conference, one game behind the Brooklyn Nets.

"It's going to be on us to take care of business down the stretch," Simmons said. "We've got a lot of games that are going to be all-important at this stage.

"We're looking forward to the challenge and obviously we need to get in the playoffs. I'm glad I'm back now and we have a few games left to really get that first seeding and I think we can do it.

"If everyone's healthy and able to play, I think we're able to get that. Looking forward, we've got to take control and get that first seeding."

The Sixers coach saw his team beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 100-87 on Friday night to improve to 33-22 for the season, and they sit fifth in the Eastern Conference.

A stiff test comes on Saturday as they tackle the Cleveland Cavaliers, who sit three places above Philadelphia after winning two more games, and from next week Harden comes into contention once he touches down after departing the Brooklyn Nets.

The Sixers signed up Harden and Paul Millsap this week from the Nets, sending Seth Curry, reserve center Andre Drummond, Ben Simmons and two first-round picks the other way.

Asked whether the trade means his team might now be equipped to mount a serious title challenge, Rivers said: "Yeah, I think so. I mean, I don't know. That's something we will find out. We did it with the belief we do, obviously."

Rivers is looking forward to coaching Harden, the 2018 MVP, despite the 32-year-old only scoring at 22.5 points per game this season, his worst record since posting an average of 16.8 with Oklahoma in the 2011-12 season.

"Obviously, we don’t have him yet, so we have to wait and see. But he's a guy that creates his own shot, creates shots for others," Rivers said. "He's another guy on your team that gets double-teamed, which is really valuable. When you have all that, you like it a lot."

Rivers, now 60, has previously won an NBA title, landing glory with the Boston Celtics 14 years ago.

His hunger for more success on that scale remains unstated, and he said: "Let me repeat this one more time - you and no one else can put no more pressure on myself than I do. It will never happen. I'm in this to win. I've always been in this to win.

"I think the reason we did this deal was so we could step into the fray."

Rivers acknowledged Drummond's part in the multi-player deal came as a surprise to the player.

"Drummond - he never thought he was leaving, but Ben and Seth had a pretty good inkling this could happen," Rivers said.

Joel Embiid had 25 points and 19 rebounds in the Sixers' Friday night win, and he will relish teaming up with Harden.

Simmons had not played for Philadelphia since their playoffs exit at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks last season, and he has finally got his wish to move on.

Embiid took aim at his former teammate as he said: "I honestly don't care. It's unfortunate how everything happened, because you look at the history and we didn't get it done as far as winning in the playoffs, but you look at the history being on the court, what we did in the regular season, we were dominant.

"So it's unfortunate that winning was not the biggest factor.

"It's unfortunate that for him, having his own team and being the star was more of his priorities. But I always thought that everything was great, the fit was great. But unfortunately Ben thought that it wasn't. But we all move on."

The Thunder triumphed 104-100 on Monday to force a decisive Game 7 in the Western Conference first-round playoff series, with the Rockets paying the price for committing 22 turnovers.

With the scores locked at 98-98 heading into the final two minutes, Russell Westbrook twice gave possession away, airballed a jump shot and sent Danilo Gallinari to the line for the final points of the game.

Westbrook missed the start of the series with a thigh injury and he confirmed he will remain on a minutes restriction in Game 7.

D'Antoni said: "It's tough to come back right in the middle of a series when you've been out for three weeks, and also the whole lay off. He's fine, we'll be fine.

"We played about as bad as we could play. We will have to do a better job the day after tomorrow.

"We are going to respond. We'll clean up some things. We can't play much worse, so we'll play better.

"We just weren't sharp, got a bit careless a few times and we paid for it.

"We had 22 turnovers. You can't have 22. You try to get less than 10 and 22 just sealed our fate.

"Then we had some fouls that weren't disciplined. We had reach-in fouls that put them to the line and let them score, so things we can correct and will."

Asked why turnovers became an issue for the Rockets when it had not been earlier in the series, Westbrook said: "That's just my fault, honestly. That's easy. Last game I had zero, tonight I had seven. As simple as that.

"We've gotta take care of it, starting with myself. Just trying to figure out rhythm and timing, but we'll figure it out next game."

James Harden accounted for five of Houston's turnovers, which he felt undid the strong defensive performance they put in.

"A lot of careless turnovers. Including myself. Just too many turnovers, especially in a playoff game – a closeout game – just gave them too many opportunities," said Harden.

"I think defensively we did a pretty good job with them only scoring 104 points. We just shot ourselves in the foot by turning the ball over and giving us less opportunities to score."

The deal will see center Derrick Favors head to the Rockets, along with Ty Jerome, Theo Maledon, Moe Harkless and a 2025 second-round draft pick.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Thunder will in turn receive David Nwaba, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke and Marquese Chriss from Houston.

It would mean the Thunder will have dropped roughly $10million below the luxury tax threshold, and both teams will have 18 guaranteed contracts on their rosters, which need to be reduced to 15 by October 17.

OKC only acquired Harkless and the 2025 draft pick in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks for Vit Krejci earlier this week, presumably with this deal in mind.

Of the players traded, only Maledon and Nwaba are under contract for the 2023-24 season, both with team options.

The Rockets get their pre-season under way on Sunday with a game against the San Antonio Spurs, while the Thunder face the Denver Nuggets on Monday.