LeBron James believes the media are putting "too much emphasis" on the Los Angeles Lakers' recent history with the Denver Nuggets.

The Lakers, after their win over the New Orleans Pelicans, will take on the Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs.

Los Angeles lost to Denver in the 2023 Western Conference Finals, as the Nuggets went on to win the NBA championship.

The Lakers, meanwhile, defeated the Nuggets en route to winning the championship in 2020.

James, though, is not looking back at past results as an indicator of how this series might play out.

"I think you're putting a little bit too much emphasis on it," James said. 

"This is our first-round matchup. I mean, we're looking forward to the postseason. But I haven't been, like, looking forward to the rematch.

"The game is played how it's being played, and this is the matchup. So we're looking forward to that challenge.

"It shouldn't be personal at all. I think you allow yourself to get away from the game plan when you make it too personal.

"We have a game plan. You go out there and execute it and you live with the results. I'm kind of the last person you should [ask that], I just stay even-keeled.

"I've been in the postseason way too long in my career to know that you don't get too high off of Game 1 or get too high over whoever the matchup is. You got to just stay even-keeled."

Lakers coach Darvin Ham did say his team can take lessons from last year's defeat, in particular when focusing on cutting out small errors.

And James echoed the sentiment.

"We just got to be better all around," he said. "Obviously, it's a great team that we're playing against. A team that won the championship, so they've been in a lot of big games and know what they want to get to late in games.

"So we just have to be very disciplined and have our mind into throughout the course of 48 minutes or however long it takes.

"It's going to be challenging but that's what the postseason is all about. It should be."

LeBron James has warned the Los Angeles Lakers must play "mistake-free basketball" if they are to overcome the Denver Nuggets.

The Lakers defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 110-106 on Tuesday, meaning they progress to the first round of the playoffs.

A series against the reigning NBA champions awaits, starting on Saturday.

And James, who finished with 23 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, knows the Lakers will have to deliver a near-perfect performance.

"It's the defending champion," James said.

"They know what it takes. They know how to win. They've been extremely dominant on their home floor over the last few years.

"They've got an MVP on their team. They've got a closer on their team. They've got high-level players, high-IQ players, and they've got a hell of a coach.

"So, we have to play mistake-free basketball. Make it tough on them. They're going to try to make it tough on us, obviously.

"But if we can play as great of a game as we can play, and they're going to play as great of a game as they play, it's going come down to one or two possessions. We'll see who executes then."

It was put to Lakers coach Darvin Ham that there had been reports the Lakers might throw their game against the Pelicans in order to go up against either the Sacramento Kings or the Golden State Warriors in the other play-in game.

The Kings ultimately won, and will now face the Pelicans, with the prize a matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Western Conference's No.1 seed.

"There was a report of what?" an incredulous Ham said. "Insane asylum sources say?"

The Lakers reached the Conference Finals last year, and Anthony Davis is confident Los Angeles are coming into their best form at the opportune moment.

"I think we're clicking at the right time," Davis said.

"Guys are playing well. Guys are very confident. Guys are feeling good. And we're going to need it, especially against Denver."

The Los Angeles Lakers will have Anthony Davis to call on when they face the New Orleans Pelicans in their upcoming play-in game.

After finishing eighth in the Western Conference, the Lakers will go up against the No.7 seed Pelicans on Tuesday.

While the loser will drop into a game against either the Sacramento Kings or the Golden State Warriors, the winner will go up against the Denver Nuggets in the first round.

The Lakers defeated the Pelicans 124-108 in their final regular-season game on Sunday, with an instant rematch now on the cards.

And Davis, who had to be treated for back spasms after the game, insisted he will be fit to feature.

"No doubt that I'm going to play," said Davis, who finished with 30 points and 11 rebounds.

LeBron James is heading into the playoffs in fine form.

He registered his fifth triple-double of the season, finishing with 28 points, a season-high 17 assists and 11 rebounds.

"I just read the game and I was just finding my teammates and I just tried to put the ball on time and on target for either jump shots or guys at the rim," James said.

"I just tried to be very efficient with my play."

James marked Zion Williamson on Sunday, with the 23-year-old limited to 12 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.

However, James was full of praise for his opponent, adding: "He's a beast.

"I mean, it's almost impossible to stop him so I just tried to keep a body on him and just tried to keep it tough on him. He's a great player, man."

Looking towards Tuesday's matchup, James said: "Tuesday's game is going to be extremely hard, extremely difficult, extremely physical.

"I've always known that, when you play a playoff series, and I look at this like a two-game playoff series, if you win that first game, a team has multiple days to kind of sit on that feeling, or sit with that taste in their mouth of defeat.

"So they're going to be extremely ready for us and we have to come in with the same sense of urgency that we had the previous game."

LeBron James said "every seed matters" for the Los Angeles Lakers after he combined with Anthony Davis to power them past the Memphis Grizzlies and go eighth in the Western Conference.

The Lakers entered Friday's game – their penultimate outing of the regular season – on a two-game losing streak and jockeying for position with the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors. 

However, James put up 37 points, nine rebounds and five assists, while Davis added 35 points as the injury-hit Grizzlies failed to hold on after going 118-117 up with one minute and six seconds left.

James sank six points in the final minute to lift Los Angeles one game clear of Sacramento and Golden State, both of whom suffered defeats later on Friday.

"Every game matters. Every seed matters. Wherever you fall, you can't play in the past," James said.

"I can't say I would much rather be where we are today than be the number one seed. That would be a lie. Seeds matter, and wherever you fall, you take that challenge."

The Lakers emerged from the Play-In Tournament to reach the Western Conference Finals last year before being dispatched by the eventual NBA champions, the Denver Nuggets.

With coach Darvin Ham plotting a route through the postseason, he left James out on the court for 41 minutes on Friday, while Davis played 43 minutes on his return from a left eye injury which kept him out of Tuesday's loss to the Warriors. 

Asked about the risks of keeping the duo out there, Ham said: "In the moment, you're not worried about that. You're worried about securing the victory you came to get. 

"Everyone knows what time it is. It's that time of the year. Everyone knows what's at stake. 

"Whatever we need, and however long we need to push guys, we've got to have it, and they understand that."

Memphis are guaranteed to end a frustrating campaign 13th in the West, and Scotty Pippen Jr. said they were simply playing for future opportunities after scoring a career-high 28 points.

"The emphasis going into the game was to play hard," Pippen said. "We knew they were playing for something, and they probably thought we were playing for nothing. 

"But a lot of guys here are playing for opportunities. That's our motivation."

The Los Angeles Lakers are full of confidence as they aim to hit peak form heading into the playoffs, so says Anthony Davis.

Darvin Ham's team have nine wins from their last 10 games, and with a playoff berth clinched, they are now looking to push on into the top six seeds in the Western Conference.

The Lakers beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 116-97 on Saturday, with D'Angelo Russell finishing on 28 points, LeBron James - whose son Bronny has declared for the NBA Draft - on 24 and Davis on 22.

With just two games separating the No.6 seed from the No.9 seed in the West, Davis says the Lakers are full of verve.

"We're very confident in our ballclub," he said.

"We laugh about, like, 'Oh, winning nine out of 10,' and we haven't gone anywhere [in the standings].

"So, it's how good the West is. But we're confident, very confident in our ballclub and any time we step on the floor.

"I think the biggest difference is just that we're just having fun.

"We're holding each other accountable. If somebody messes up we're yelling, screaming at him. But nobody is taking it personal.

"Because we all know what we're here for, to try to win. So we're having fun, we're having a great time out there playing basketball, and we're staying together."

With four games of the regular season remaining, coach Ham warned it is now just about focusing on a smooth transition into the playoffs.

"Just take care of us, that's the biggest thing," Ham said.

"Everything else will take care of itself. We'll fall exactly in the spot we're supposed to fall. But the key is for us to be playing at a high level on both sides of the ball. We saw that on the defensive end tonight."

D’Angelo Russell scored 28 points and Anthony Davis had 22 points and 13 rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers won their fourth straight, 116-97 over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday.

LeBron James added 24 points and 12 assists for the Lakers, who have won nine of 10 to move into eighth place in the Western Conference for the first time since Dec. 29.

Los Angeles is still in position for a play-in tournament spot, but finishing seventh or eighth means it would only need to win one game to earn a playoff spot.

Darius Garland scored 26 points and Caris LeVert added 21 off the bench as Cleveland dropped its third in four games but remained in third place in the East.

The Cavs held a 73-69 lead in the third quarter, but Davis scored nine points during a 19-0 run to give the Lakers an 88-73 advantage. They led by at least 10 the rest of the way.

Nuggets rout Hawks to move atop West

Nikola Jokić notched another triple-double and Jamal Murray scored 16 points in his return as the Denver Nuggets routed the Atlanta Hawks, 142-110 to move atop the Western Conference.

Jokic had 19 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists for his 25th triple-double of the season even though he sat out the fourth quarter. 

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added a season-high 24 points, Michael Porter Jr. had 20 points and Murray handed out six assists in his first appearance since he was hurt March 21 against the Knicks. Denver moved a half-game ahead of idle Minnesota for the West lead.

Embiid powers 76ers to 4th straight win

Joel Embiid tallied 30 points and 12 rebounds in only 23 minutes and the Philadelphia 76ers rolled to a 116-96 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

Embiid was 9 of 13 from the field and hit both of his 3-point attempts before exiting with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter. Philadelphia was never seriously threatened after that, so coach Nick Nurse left his star center on the bench.

Kelly Oubre Jr. added 17 points as the 76ers pulled within a half-game of seventh place in the Eastern Conference and within one game of Indiana for sixth and a guaranteed playoff spot.

LeBron James suggested he is still not respected by some opponents after matching a Michael Jordan achievement with a 40-point showing for the Los Angeles Lakers.

The 20-time NBA All-Star registered a career-high nine 3-pointers in the Lakers' 116-104 win over the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Sunday.

That helped James to equal Jordan in becoming the only two NBA players ever to record multiple games of 40-or-more points after turning 39.

James, who went 13-for-17 from the floor and 9-for-10 from deep, felt he proved a point with his performance against the Nets.

"I don't ever have to lean on [3-pointers] because I can do so much," said James, whose 3-point percentage of 41.6 per cent for the season is the best of his career.

"I can score on any level on the floor basically once I cross half court. But being able to have a growth mindset and be able to work on things that the league is changing to, the league is a heavy 3-point shooting league.

"I'm not one of those guys that wants to go out there and shoot 12, 14 or 15 3s per game. But I want to be respected, and teams have to play me from the outside. 

"That's still kind of one thing teams think. 'If we have to give up something, we'd much rather him shoot the ball from the outside'."

James has been nursing an ankle issue for much of this season, but he showed no signs of being below full fitness against the Nets.

"My foot has felt a lot better," James said. "I didn't have much time to really rep a lot last year because I had to make sure I could be on the floor running around or [not] putting much pounding of my foot on the floor. 

"I've had a lot of opportunity to get on the floor. You probably see me before every game out on the floor, working on my game, working on my craft. That's helped out a lot, too. 

"And just trying to stay consistent with my shot, do the same shot every time. And just work. Just work, work, work, work."

James scored 17 of his points in the fourth quarter as he helped the Lakers get over the line after their lead was reduced from 26 points to just eight at one point.

"It's incredible," coach Darvin Ham said. "I told him in the huddle before his last little stretch and we ultimately subbed him out that I was just extremely thankful that he packed the cape on the road trip. We needed all nine of those 3s."

Los Angeles have now won six of their last seven and are 42-33 for the season, placing them ninth in the Western Conference with seven regular-season games to go.

LeBron James knows he is no good to the Los Angeles Lakers if he is not healthy, as the 39-year-old said he will prioritise his well-being over a playoff push.

The 39-year-old has been nursing an ankle issue for much of this season, though he returned from a one-game absence in emphatic fashion on Wednesday.

James finished with 23 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists – his fourth triple-double of the season – to help the Lakers to a 136-124 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

"I got to be smart with it," said James, who has missed 10 games this season. 

"If I'm not healthy, or [anywhere] close to being healthy, then it's not good for our ballclub anyway. It's not good for me."

James said he would have played in the Lakers' win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday, had he been willing to take any risks.

"I mean, I would've probably tried to play yesterday [in Milwaukee] if that was the case," he added.

Explaining his thought process behind his load management for the rest of the season, James said: "Just be very strategic.

"Obviously, understanding and seeing how my ankle and my foot are feeling. But just being very smart about it, obviously.

"We are where we are, but our health has always been the most important for our ballclub. Not just one individual.

"But for me looking out for myself when it comes to injury and knowing my foot and knowing my ankle and how it reacts, and how it's been over the last couple of years, it's just always keeping a hefty eye on it."

The Lakers are on a five-game winning streak and occupy ninth in the Western Conference with nine regular-season games remaining.

Anthony Davis sat out of Wednesday's win with a knee issue, with coach Darvin Ham saying the Lakers would assess the situation further on Thursday.

Jalen Green scored 37 points and Dillon Brooks hit a pair of 3-pointers in overtime to lift the Houston Rockets to their 10th consecutive victory, 132-126 over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday.

Amen Thompson had 25 points and 15 rebounds and Brooks finished with 20 points for the Rockets, who remained one game behind Golden State in the race for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference.

Houston’s winning streak is its longest since an 11-game run late in the 2017-18 season.

Josh Giddey tied a career high with 31 points and Jalen Williams added 23 and 10 assists for the Thunder, who remained tied with Minnesota and one-half game behind Northwest Division-leading Denver.

Oklahoma City played without All-Star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who sat out with a bruised right thigh.

Brooks got Houston going in overtime with consecutive 3-pointers and Green’s 3 with 64 seconds left extended the Rockets’ lead to 126-120. Isaiah Joe nailed a 3 for the Thunder five seconds later, but Green made a layup and Thompson dunked with 26 seconds to go.

Streaking Lakers ride LeBron’s triple-double

LeBron James had 23 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists and Rui Hachimura scored 32 points to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to their fifth straight win, 136-124 over the Memphis Grizzlies.

D’Angelo Russell had 23 points and Taurean Prince added 15 for the Lakers, who stayed hot without Anthony Davis (knee) and pulled within 2 ½ games of idle Dallas for sixth in the Western Conference.

James returned after sitting out Tuesday’s double-overtime win over Milwaukee with a troublesome ankle and notched his fourth triple-double this season and 111th of his career.

Clippers get disputed win over 76ers

Kawhi Leonard completed two 3-point plays late in the fourth quarter and made a block at the rim on the final possession to give the Los Angeles Clippers a controversial 108-107 win over the Philadelphia 76ers.

Leonard stuffed Kelly Oubre at the rim with five seconds left and the Clippers holding a one-point lead.

The officiating crew after the game said a foul should have been called on the play that would have sent Oubre to the line with a chance for the winning points.

Leonard bounced back from a 1-for-8 shooting first half to finish with 17 points and 10 rebounds and Paul George scored 22 points. James Harden had 16 points and 14 assists in his return to Philadelphia.

Tyrese Maxey scored 26 points for the 76ers, who dropped their fourth in five games.

Austin Reaves notched a triple-double and drilled a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 37.8 seconds left in the second overtime as the Los Angeles Lakers rallied to beat the Milwaukee Bucks, 128-124, on Tuesday despite the absence of LeBron James.

Reaves had 29 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists in 47 minutes, Anthony Davis tallied 34 points and 23 rebounds in 52 minutes and D’Angelo Russell had 29 points, 12 assists and seven rebounds.

The Lakers, who never led in regulation, overcame a 17-point deficit in the fourth quarter and won their season-best fourth straight game with James sidelined with an ankle issue.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 29 points, a season-high 21 boards and 11 assists and Damian Lillard added 21 points for the Bucks, who had won six straight at home.

Reaves’ 3-pointer with 38 seconds left in the second OT snapped a tie and Lillard missed a 3 before Antetokounmpo missed two free throws. Russell then sank a pair from the line and Davis sealed the win with two free throws with two seconds left after Malik Beasley’s 3 drew Milwaukee within two.

Doncic keeps Mavericks rolling

Luka Dončić scored 26 of his 28 points in the first half and the Dallas Mavericks cruised to their fifth straight victory, 132-96 over the Sacramento Kings.

Doncic added 11 rebounds, six assists and three steals and Kyrie Irving had 24 points and eight assists for Dallas, which has won nine of 10 to move into sixth in the Western Conference.

De’Aaron Fox scored 18 points on 6-of-18 shooting and Domantas Sabonis had 12 points, 11 boards and nine assists for his 55th consecutive double-double, tying Jerry Lucas for the longest streak in franchise history.

Thunder ride late run past Pelicans

Jalen Williams scored 26 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder used a game-ending 12-0 run to rally for a 119-112 win over the New Orleans Pelicans after blowing a 20-point lead in the third quarter.

Josh Giddey added 25 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 24, including a tying 3-pointer with 89 seconds left.

Zion Williamson had 29 points and 10 assists for the Pelicans, who led 112-107 with 3:11 to play before missing their final five shots.

The Thunder won for the fifth time in six games to pull within a half game of idle Denver for the top spot in the Western Conference.

D'Angelo Russell set a new Los Angeles Lakers record for the most 3-pointers in a single season as his team snapped a seven-game losing streak against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Los Angeles won 101-94 on Friday, earning their first victory over Philadelphia since March 2020.

The Lakers improved to 38-32, now the same record as the Sixers, with the fourth quarter proving key as they edged a close, low-scoring game.

It was the Lakers' lowest points tally in a game since January 3 and LeBron, who had 11 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter, as well as eight rebounds and six assists, accepted it had not been a vintage performance.

"It was ugly, but we got the job done," he said, per ESPN. "We defended well in the second half. They only had 18 points in the fourth. That's big-time when the offense was struggling like it was.

"We turned the ball over way too much and gave up too many easy baskets, but when we got in the half-court, we buckled down and made them take tough shots."

Davis had 23 points and 19 rebounds for Los Angeles, while Russell finished with 14 points and four 3-pointers.

Nick Van Exel had 183 successful 3s for the Lakers during the 1994-95 season, but Russell hit his 184th of this season in the first quarter, having sunk six from deep in the win against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.

Russell said: "It just feels good to be part of one of these type of deals. 

"This franchise is one of the most prestigious, so to have my name be a part of it, more than grateful.

"Just continue to shatter it, if I can. Make it really hard for the next person!"

Tyrese Maxey scored 27 points for the Sixers, who have lost seven of 10 without MVP Joel Embiid and are 0-2 on their four-game West Coast road trip which continues against the Los Angeles Clippers next.

"We played unbelievably hard and executed the game plan," Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse said. "I just thought we could not get enough offense to hang in there.

"As long as we play our guts out, I can live with it. I’m having a hard time living with it right now because I thought we played so hard and executed so well."

The Lakers, meanwhile, have won seven of their last 11 and host the Indiana Pacers (40-31) on Sunday. They are ninth in the Western Conference standings.

D'Angelo Russell earned the plaudits of coach Darvin Ham after he tied Nick Van Exel's franchise record for 3s in a single season for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Russell went 6-for-10 from the 3-point line in a 136-105 demolition job of the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.

The 28-year-old finish with 27 points and 10 assists as the Lakers bounced back from successive defeats.

Russell has now shot 183 3-pointers this season, tying Van Exel's all-time single-season Lakers record, which was set in 1994-95. To get there, Russell had to surpass the late Kobe Bryant, who sunk 180 3s in the 2005-06 campaign.

It left Ham to laud the star guard, with the Lakers coach saying: "He has a green room. Not a green light [to shoot]. A green room.

"His prowess from the 3-point line, you know, it's really, really elite. And we need every bit of it."

Russell added: "It's really cool, honestly, just to know that, to get credit for it.

"It's just really cool. I said I don't want to underdo it, understate it, overdo it. I just feel like it's really cool to just be a part of something like that.

"I think I did something like that in Brooklyn, as well. Just to get credit for your game and what you work through and showcase it every night."

Indeed, Russell set the Nets' record for 3s in a season, with 234 in the 2018-19 campaign.

Russell's teammate Anthony Davis looks forward to a new franchise record being set when the Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday.

"He's able to get going and fill up the stat sheet with his scoring, and it's a big thing for him, big thing for us as a team," Davis said Russell.

"Obviously, there's been a lot going on around D-Lo, and just to be able to do that and us embrace him and he sees that, feels the love, that's good for him."

LeBron James bemoaned the Los Angeles Lakers suffering from a "weird" NBA review call as the Golden State Warriors triumphed on Saturday.

The Lakers trailed 124-120 with 1:50 remaining of the fourth quarter when a delay started after Los Angeles coach Darvin Ham challenged an out-of-bounds call that granted the Warriors possession.

Ham's questioning was proved correct as the Lakers were granted the ball but, in the process, the Lakers were punished for points after the officials reviewed LeBron's earlier three-pointer.

LeBron was deemed to have been in contact with the paint when shooting from the corner, with his three-point conversion reduced to two by the officials.

"I've never seen that be called before like that, in that particular time," said James, who finished with 40 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds.

"That was kind of weird. It took some momentum away from us. I didn't believe I stepped on the line.

"I knew how much space I had over there. And when I shoot, I shoot on my tippy toes, so it's kind of hard for me to have a heel down."

NBA official David Guthrie explained the call after the game, though that did not quell the frustrations from either side.

"James' left foot is out of bounds as he begins to shoot," Guthrie said. "Yes, it is reviewable at that time.

"The rule is Rule 13, Section II(f)(3): Whether the shooter committed a boundary line violation, the replay center official will only look at the position of the player's feet at the moment they touch the floor immediately prior to the release of the shot. This can be applied during other replay triggers as well."

Despite profiting from the review, even Golden State coach Steve Kerr was unsure of the ruling.

"I also don't like the rule that you can go back and look at an out of bounds, or LeBron's 3," Kerr said. "That seems to happen once or twice a year. I'd love to see that rule go away.

"I think we're trying so hard to get everything just right, at the expense of the flow. Who cares if a guy's foot is half an inch on the line?

"Is that worth going back 45 seconds and changing everything, with the unintended consequences? It's not my favourite rule, for sure."

Although Kerr surprisingly took the side of the opposition, LeBron was content to prioritise fairness rather than lament the method of replay reviews.

"At the end of the day, you want to get it right," LeBron said. "So, it's unfortunate what happened. But you want to try to get it right, obviously.

"And our crew has a job to do, which is the referees, they have a job to do, and they have to do it at the best they can. So, all good."

If the review decision was not bemusing enough, the last two minutes of the game took more than 20 minutes due to additional shot-clock malfunctions.

The Lakers twice tried to restart play but the shot clock was not in cohesion, leaving the stadium announcer to count the time down due to the technology issue.

"It was bizarre," Kerr added. "It seems like a few times a year you get clock issues. That's about as extreme as I've been a part of where the backup unit doesn't work either.

"It's unfortunate. I felt bad for the fans. That was a great game, and then the last two minutes everyone is just kind of looking at each other wondering what to do."

Stephen Curry scored 31 points in his return and the Golden State Warriors overcame LeBron James’ 40 points and 13 rebounds in a 128-121 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday.

Curry was 12 of 24 from the field and had six rebounds and five assists in 31 minutes after missing three games due to a sprained right ankle.

Klay Thompson scored 26 points, Jonathan Kuminga had 23 and Draymond Green added six points, 12 rebounds and 13 assists after he missed the last game due to back soreness.

D’Angelo Russell tallied 23 points and 13 assists for the Lakers, who played the final three quarters without Anthony Davis, who suffered an eye injury.

Golden State inched ahead of Los Angeles by a percentage point into ninth place in the West after winning a game that dragged to the finish because of a pair of replay reviews and a malfunctioning clock.

Brunson’s big game lifts Knicks

Jalen Brunson scored 42 points for his second straight 40-plus effort and the New York Knicks pulled out a 98-91 win over the Sacramento Kings.

Brunson, who had 45 points in Thursday’s win at Portland, registered his seventh 40-point game of the season. He’s the first Knicks player to reach that total in consecutive games since Carmelo Anthony on Feb. 19 and 21, 2014.

Brunson joins Hall of Famers Bernard King and Patrick Ewing as the only other Knicks to score 40 in back-to-back games.

Domantas Sabonis had 21 points and 14 rebounds for his 49th straight double-double but Sacramento lost for the second time in six games.

Streaking Rockets down Cavaliers

Jalen Green had 26 points and 11 rebounds and Jabari Smith Jr. added 20 points to lead the Houston Rockets to their fifth straight win, 117-103 over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Amen Thompson scored 18 points and Fred VanVleet contributed 13 points and 16 assists for the Rockets, who have won seven of eight to stay in contention for a play-in spot in the Western Conference.

Caris LeVert scored 21 points and Donovan Mitchell added 13 in his second game back from a seven-game absence. Mitchell appeared to sustain a bloody nose in the second half and sat for much of the fourth quarter.

The Cavs dropped their third in four games and fell one game behind Milwaukee for second place in the Eastern Conference.  

LeBron James believes the Los Angeles Lakers are still playing "good ball", despite a 120-107 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday.

The defeat leaves the Lakers at 36-31, ninth in the Western Conference and three games back of the Kings, who currently occupy the sixth seed and would avoid the play-in tournament were the season to finish now.

The Kings' win on Wednesday means they have swept the Lakers 4-0 this season. Domantas Sabonis starred for Sacramento with 17 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists, while Harrison Barnes also hit seven 3-pointers as James finished with just 18 points.

The Lakers need an upturn in form if they are to avoid the play-in tournament, but despite suffering a defeat to a playoff rival in Sacramento, James still feels his team played well in some spots.

"We already knew we were in the gauntlet of our schedule," James told reporters.

"We already knew we had all the teams that were coming in, everybody positioning and jockeying, some of the best teams in the league. We knew it was a tough stretch for our ball club.

"But even with the loss to Denver, even with the loss to Sacramento both times, we've still been playing some good ball."

The win for Sacramento means Sabonis has now played against fellow center Anthony Davis 10 times during his career, winning all 10 of those clashes.

However, Sabonis hopes the growing talk of his impressive record against nine-time All-Star Davis quietens down, joking: "I don't pay attention to that.

"The more you guys bring attention to that, it makes my life harder. If anything, it will light a fire under him, so stop mentioning anything, please!"