Joel Embiid almost pulled off a miracle on the buzzer as the Philadelphia 76ers went down 116-113 to the Phoenix Suns in the NBA on Wednesday night.
The 76ers, top of the East, hosted the Suns, second in the West, and Phoenix appeared home when up by six points with 13 seconds to play.
But Philadelphia stayed alive after Furkan Korkmaz's three-pointer, before Chris Paul missed a free-throw, with Embiid grabbing rebound and firing off a long-range shot immediately which came remarkably close only to rim out.
Earlier, Embiid had scored 38 points and collected 17 rebounds for the 76ers, while Suns guard Paul had 28 points and eight assists.
The Suns improve to 41-16 while the 76ers are 39-18 but remain top in the Eastern Conference after the Brooklyn Nets lost 114-103 to the Toronto Raptors.
Still missing their star pair Kevin Durant and James Harden, the Nets relied on Kyrie Irving with 28 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists.
However, the Raptors all contributed led by Pascal Siakam with 27 points, nine rebounds and six assists, as they reeled in a 36-23 quarter-time deficit to win by 11.
Curry streak ends, Knicks streak extends
Stephen Curry's 11-game streak of 30-plus points came to an end at the hands of the Washington Wizards who won over the Golden State Warriors 118-114.
Russell Westbrook produced another triple-double with 14 points, 10 assists and an outstanding 20 rebounds, while Bradley Beal had 29 points. Curry could only manage 18 points for GSW.
On the topic of streaks, the New York Knicks extended their winning run to seven games with a 137-127 triumph over the Atlanta Hawks after Bogdan Bogdanovic forced over-time with a clutch three.
Julius Randle was exceptional with 40 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, including six three-pointers, while the Hawks lost Trae Young to a sprained left ankle.
The Utah Jazz reinforced top spot in the Western Conference with a comfortable 112-89 win over the Houston Rockets with Rudy Gobert having 19 points and 18 rebounds.
The Los Angeles Clippers kept up the pressure with a 117-105 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies, with shooting guard Luke Kennard adding 28 points and seven rebounds.
Curry covered at every turn
Curry was not afforded any time or space against the Washington Wizards and subsequently shot two-from-14 beyond the arc.
OMG from OG
Up by two in the third, OG Anunoby made a big statement for the Toronto Raptors with a block down one end and then a monster right-hand dunk over Joe Harris after Fred VanVleet's assist down the other in the same play.
Wednesday's results:
Toronto Raptors 114-103 Brooklyn Nets
Indiana Pacers 122-116 Oklahoma City Thunder
Washington Wizards 118-114 Golden State Warriors
Phoenix Suns 116-113 Philadelphia 76ers
Cleveland Cavaliers 121-105 Chicago Bulls
Utah Jazz 112-89 Houston Rockets
New York Knicks 137-127 Atlanta Hawks
Miami Heat 107-87 San Antonio Spurs
Dallas Mavericks 127-107 Detroit Pistons
Denver Nuggets 106-105 Portland Trail Blazers
Sacramento Kings 128-125 Minnesota Timberwolves
Los Angeles Clippers 117-105 Memphis Grizzlies
76ers at Bucks
Joel Embiid's Philadelphia 76ers (39-18) will look to bounce back from Wednesday's loss to the Phoenix Suns when they travel to Giannis Antetokounmpo's Milwaukee Bucks (35-22) in a bumper East clash.
Ty Lue lauded a "complete game" from Paul George after the seven-time NBA All-Star inspired the Los Angeles Clippers to a 113-112 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
George scored a game-high 33 points, claimed 11 rebounds and provided three assists in the Clippers' win at Moda Center on Tuesday.
Clippers coach Lue was full of praise for shooting guard George, who sparkled in the absence of the injured Kawhi Leonard.
"He's been carrying us," Lue said. "He's really stepped up by making his team-mates better but also scoring the basketball.
"He's just doing everything. It was a complete game tonight and we needed every bit of it."
George was on target with two free throws with 4.8 seconds to play, moving the third-placed Clippers to 41-19 in the Western Conference.
Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts took the positives out of a narrow defeat.
"I liked the way we played tonight," Stotts said. "I liked the way we played in some of these other games.
"We came up short, but I thought tonight we competed really well against a really good team. We had some opportunities in the last minute that we weren't able to capitalise on."
Leonard will be out until next week due to a foot injury.
Lue said of the two-time NBA champion: "He wants to get out there. But right now, it's not the smartest thing to do with him feeling it and trying to manage it for the most part for a while now.
"We just got to be smart about it. Sometimes you got to protect the player from themselves, and right now that is what we are doing."
With each team down a superstar, Paul George lifted the Los Angeles Clippers to a 113-112 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday after a last-minute rally.
The Clippers trailed by five entering the final minute of the game, but George hit two field goals and followed with two free throws to give the visiting side the lead with 4.8 seconds left.
George finished with 33 points and 11 rebounds as Kawhi Leonard missed the game after returning from a sore foot two days earlier.
The Blazers played without Damian Lillard, who missed his third consecutive game with a hamstring problem.
His absence left CJ McCollum to carry the load with 28 points, but he made only 11 of 26 shots from the floor and missed what would have been the game-winning shot at the buzzer.
Irving lifts Nets past Pelicans
The Nets also continue to miss key players, but they too have enough stars on hand to get by. Tuesday it was Kyrie Irving stepping up for injury-wracked Brooklyn in a 134-129 win over the Pelicans in New Orleans.
Irving scored 32 points and had eight assists and Joe Harris contributed 24 points as seven Brooklyn players scored in double figures.
The Nets needed plenty of scoring to overcome a big night by Zion Williamson, who made 14 of 19 from the field to finish with 33 points and added seven rebounds.
Fox's shooting touch disappears
After averaging 30.5 points in Sacramento's previous eight games, De'Aaron Fox managed only 14 in 28 minutes in the Kings' 134-120 home loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The point guard made just five of 17 shots from the field, a 29.4 per cent shooting effort. It was his worst offensive showing since he scored 12 points on five of 20 shooting in a loss to the Lakers on April 2.
The Ant Man soars
Fans of the Timberwolves (16-43) haven't had much to cheer about this season, but at least top draft pick and Rookie of the Year contender Anthony Edwards can fill up a highlight reel on his own. The 19-year-old had a game-high 28 points in the rare Minnesota win.
Tuesday's results
New York Knicks 109-97 Charlotte Hornets
Atlanta Hawks 112-96 Orlando Magic
Brooklyn Nets 134-129 New Orleans Pelicans
Los Angeles Clippers 113-112 Portland Trail Blazers
Minnesota Timberwolves 134-120 Sacramento Kings
Suns at 76ers
The Phoenx Suns (41-16), second in the Western Conference, travel to face the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers (39-18) in a meeting of top NBA title contenders Wednesday.
Brooklyn Nets coach Steve Nash has praised Kyrie Irving and his side's team effort after their win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday as doubts grow around James Harden's return.
The Nets edged past the Pelicans 134-129 on Tuesday without key pair Kevin Durant and Harden, with the latter now unlikely to return prior to the play-offs with a hamstring setback.
Brooklyn have only managed to field the 'big three' - Durant, Harden and Kyrie Irving – at the same on only seven occasions due to injuries.
But the Nets improved to 39-19, keeping the pressure on the Philadelphia 76ers at the top in the Eastern Conference.
Irving scored 32 points and had eight assists, while forward Joe Harris hit 24 points with Jeff Green contributing 15 along with nine rebounds and six assists.
Guard Landry Shamet was one of three players to have six or more assists, with eight along with 18 points.
Blake Griffin added 16 points and eight rebounds off the bench, along with Bruce Brown Jr with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
"When Ky was out of the game I thought we played very well," Nash said.
"When we're going into a game with nine men, you're a couple superstars down, you've got guys playing with more responsibility and minutes and if they don’t play well, you can find yourself in a big hole.
"They played really well. Really proud of the way the guys played. I think we started slow because it was nice, new line-up, new combination."
Nash did reserve special praise for Irving who was clutch down the final stretch with some key buckets along with a late steal off Zion Williamson in a tight game.
"He made some really difficult shots," Nash said. "There wasn’t a ton of movement on the last three possessions.
"Tip your hat to your star player who makes the shots but our guys were terrific all night."
James Harden might not return to the court before the NBA playoffs after suffering a setback in his return from a hamstring injury.
The Brooklyn Nets said the former MVP will remain sidelined indefinitely following an undisclosed issue during an on-court rehab session on Monday.
Harden has played only four minutes since leaving a March 31 game against his former team, the Houston Rockets, with the initial injury.
He sat out the Nets' next two games, then returned for a brief appearance on April 5 against the New York Knicks before missing the last six games.
"We're back to square one... he will be back when he's back," Nets head coach Steve Nash told reporters. "It might be the playoffs. It might be sooner."
The NBA playoffs begin May 22. Brooklyn (38-19) were second in the Eastern Conference entering Tuesday's game against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Harden is averaging 25.2 points, 10.9 assists and 8.0 rebounds in 42 games between Houston and Brooklyn this season.
Nikola Jokic joked he is glad the "world doesn't put the bigs aside" after another stellar showing enhanced the Denver Nuggets star's MVP chances.
The giant centre drained 47 points in a 139-137 double-overtime thriller against the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday, including a go-ahead three in the second additional period.
Jokic added 15 rebounds and eight assists in steering the Nuggets to a third straight win in the absence of Jamal Murray, who tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.
It was Jokic's 51st double-double of an impressive campaign and only narrowly short of a 16th triple-double.
Such impressive form has Jokic well and truly in the MVP conversation and he would be the first center to win the prize since Shaquille O'Neal did so in 1999-2000.
"It's really good for big men. I'm just glad the world doesn't put the bigs aside. We're still popular," Jokic said.
"I had a really good night. I scored a lot and I had a couple of stupid turnovers I can easily fix. It was good night for me and the team."
Head coach Michael Malone feels Jokic has shown on plenty of occasions this season that he deserves individual recognition.
"Life is about a bunch of little moments and I think Nikola's got around 56 little moments this year where he's shown he's the MVP.
"Tonight was a character win."
The Nuggets are 37-20 for the season after their win and sit fourth in the Western Conference.
Stephen Curry is going "above and beyond" even his own "mind-boggling" standards after another record-breaking outing for the Golden State Warriors, says head coach Steve Kerr.
Superstar Curry drained 49 points, including 20 in the last quarter, as the Warriors defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 197-96 on Monday.
He hit 10 three-pointers and is now the first player to make 70-plus threes in a 10-game span, while he has more games with 40-plus points and 10-plus threes over the last eight days (four) than any other NBA player has had over their entire career.
On top of that, Curry is the first player in the league's history aged 33 or older to have 11 consecutive 30-plus point games, surpassing the legendary Kobe Bryant (10 straight in 2012), while his 47 and 49 points in the past two outings means he is the first player aged 33 or over with back-to-back 45-plus games since Hall of Famer Michael Jordan scored 51 and 45 in 2001.
Kerr was almost at a loss to explain Curry's exploits.
"I've seen Kobe Bryant early in his career, had a stretch where he went nuts," Kerr said.
"Obviously, Michael Jordan had some stretches where he just scored like crazy, but obviously nobody's ever shot the ball like this in the history of the game. Even by Steph's own lofty standards, this is above and beyond.
"Twenty-one career games with 10 or more. And Klay [Thompson] is second with five. And Steph's had four in the last five [games]. Mind-boggling. Mind-boggling stuff.
"I don't know what else to say. You guys ask me after every game what I think of Steph and his performance, whatever I said last game, just use that tonight.
"Because it's the same thing after every game, it's just utter amazement at this guy's skill level, heart, mind, focus, it's just amazing to watch."
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