Cam Thomas starred off the bench as the depleted Brooklyn Nets came from behind to defeat the Washington Wizards 125-123 on Saturday.

Already without Ben Simmons and talisman Kevin Durant, the Nets were dealt a further blow when Kyrie Irving was ruled out due to a calf problem.

Irving's injury came just a day after news broke of his wish to leave the Nets, with the point guard having handed in a trade request.

The former Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics star was not in attendance at the Barclays Center, though that decision was a joint one with the team's management.

A bleak end to the week looked set to be compounded as the Warriors held a healthy 23-point lead, yet the Nets fought back partly thanks to Thomas' efforts.

He scored a career-high, game-leading 44 points, while Edmond Sumner chipped in with 29 as the Wizards – who lost to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday – became the first team in the past 25 seasons to throw away 20+ point leads on consecutive days.

Kristaps Porzingis top scored for the Wizards with 38 points.

James gets closer but Pelicans end losing streak

LeBron James is now just 36 points away from breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's long-standing NBA record, yet his efforts were not enough for the Los Angeles Lakers against the New Orleans Pelicans.

James added 27 more points to his total on Saturday, though the Lakers lost 131-126 to a Pelicans team that had suffered 10 straight defeats.

While Anthony Davis was the Lakers' standout performer with a double-double of 34 points and 14 rebounds, Brandon Ingram's 35-point haul led the Pelicans, who moved onto .500 for the season.

Curry concern for Warriors

Stephen Curry scored 21 points, added six rebounds and provided seven assists but hobbled out of the Golden State Warriors' 119-113 win over the Dallas Mavericks with a knee injury in the third quarter.

Curry must now await results of an MRI scan, which is set to take place on Sunday, to determine the severity of the issue.

Reigning NBA champions Golden State nevertheless got the job done without him in the final quarter, getting over the line against a Dallas side missing their star man Luka Doncic.

Draymond Green's 17 points, nine rebounds and nine assists were crucial, with Spencer Dinwiddie's game-high 25 points not enough for the Mavs, who have lost seven in 11.

Nuggets tie with Celtics

The Boston Celtics lost for the fourth time in six games on Friday and the Denver Nuggets capitalised to tie level as joint-NBA leaders.

Denver beat the Atlanta Hawks 128-108, with Nikola Jokic (14 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists) claiming his 18th triple-double of the season while Jamal Murray turned on the style with his season-best tally of 41 points.

The Nuggets are now tied with the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics on 37-16 for the season and have won 19 of their last 20 home games.

The Dallas Mavericks will be without franchise centrepiece Luka Doncic for their five-game road trip due to a heel injury.

Doncic damaged his right heel when he fell during a 111-106 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday.

The four-time NBA All-Star was unable to return after leaving the court in the third quarter, and he did not make the journey west with his team-mates on Friday.

Doncic will miss an encounter with the Golden State Warriors on Saturday and will also be absent for a game against the Utah Jazz and a meeting with the Los Angeles Clippers next week.

He will also sit out back-to-back showdowns with the Sacramento Kings along with Davis Bertans (calf).

Dallas are 0-6 without Doncic this season, although he played only four minutes of a win over the Phoenix Suns due to a sprained left ankle on January 26.

Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said of Doncic's injury: "We'll see how that turns out, then we'll be able to give an update. No participation, nor will those two go on the trip.

"As we get the MRI [results], I think we'll be able to give an update on their status."

Dallas are seeded fourth in the Western Conference standings.

The Los Angeles Lakers trailed by 14 early in the fourth quarter before storming back to defeat the Indiana Pacers 112-111 on the road.

Los Angeles' defense let them down early on Thursday as they gave up 35 points in the first quarter and another 32 in the second, heading into the long break trailing 67-54.

The Lakers were finally able to hold the Pacers under 30 points in a 30-29 third frame, before their defense woke up in the final period and kept the home side to just 15.

The visiting team did not claim their first lead of the game until LeBron James drained a three-pointer to jump ahead 108-106 with 2:35 remaining, but a jump shot from rookie Andrew Nembhard put the Pacers up by one with under a minute to play.

With the game on the line, Anthony Davis drained a clutch post fadeaway over elite defensive center Myles Turner to retake the lead, and although the Lakers left the door open with a pair of missed free throws from Pat Beverley, Buddy Hield's potential game-winner was off the mark thanks to Beverley's smothering defense.

It was a gutsy comeback to give the Lakers their second win in a row, led by Davis' 31 points on 13-of-27 shooting with 14 rebounds and two blocks. 

Meanwhile, James was efficient with 26 points on 11-of-19 shooting, adding seven rebounds and seven assists. He is now 62 points away from tying Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's all-time scoring mark.

For the Pacers, Tyrese Haliburton enjoyed a strong return from injury after three weeks on the sideline, leading his team in points (26) and assists (12) after being named to his first All-Star team earlier in the day.

Jokic toys with the Warriors

Reigning back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic continued his march towards a three-peat as he dominated the Golden State Warriors in the Denver Nuggets' 134-117 triumph.

Jokic finished with 22 points on nine-of-13 shooting with 16 assists and 14 rebounds. Over his past 17 games, he has only finished with fewer than nine assists once, and no player is averaging more than his 11.9 assists over their past 15 games.

It was also another strong performance from Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, scoring 33 points on 12-of-23 shooting with eight assists and five rebounds. Over his past five outings, Murray is averaging 27.6 points and 7.2 assists.

The Nuggets sit four games clear atop the Western Conference at 36-16, while the 26-26 Warriors are ninth.

Mavericks hold on as Doncic leaves hurt

The Dallas Mavericks led the New Orleans Pelicans by 31 points during the second quarter, but ended up getting pushed all the way in a 111-106 victory.

Slovenian superstar Luka Doncic had 27 points in the first half, and made his way up to 31 early in the third period before he suffered a heel injury due to a hard fall, ending his night.

The Mavericks led by 28 when he exited the game, and from that point on the Pelicans closed the contest on a 50-27 run. They ultimately came up short after a controversial refereeing mistake in the final seconds robbed them of a chance to shoot for the tie.

It was the Pelicans' 10th loss in a row as they desperately await the return of Zion Williamson from his hamstring injury, while the Mavericks improved to fifth in the West at 28-25.

Luka Doncic produced yet another spectacular performance on Monday as he carried the Dallas Mavericks with 53 points in a 111-105 home win against the Detroit Pistons.

The 23-year-old Slovenian returned to the lineup after missing the Mavericks' loss against the Utah Jazz on Saturday, and he looked on track for a big one from the jump.

Doncic scored 24 of Dallas' 30 points in the first quarter, but the team found themselves trailing at half-time as the rest of the Mavericks struggled on the offensive end.

By the end of the third frame, Dallas trailed by one as Doncic had 45 points and none of his team-mates had more than eight, but the Mavericks were able to hold the Pistons to 21 points in the final period to pull out the narrow victory.

Doncic shot 17-of-24 from the field for his 53 points – the second-most he has ever scored in an NBA game – while adding eight rebounds, five assists and two steals. He had 41 points more than his closest team-mate, Spencer Dinwiddie with 12.

It was the fifth time in his career Doncic has reached 50 points, and the fourth since December 23, after posting games of 50, 51 and 60 points in the last nine days of 2022.

With the win, the Mavericks improved their record to 27-25, sitting sixth in the Western Conference, while the Pistons are dead last in the East at 13-39.

Curry brings the thunder to OKC

Stephen Curry was at his best in the Golden State Warriors' 128-120 road win against the Oklahoma City Thunder, leading both teams in points and assists.

The reigning NBA Finals MVP finished with 38 points on 12-of-20 shooting, while also dishing 12 assists and snatching eight rebounds in a masterful display.

He was supported well by 'Splash Brother' Klay Thompson, who chipped in 28 points on 10-of-21 shooting, as the duo combined to hit 14-of-28 from three-point range.

They locked horns with the Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who maintained the fifth-best scoring average in the league (30.9 per game) by scoring 31 on 10-of-24 shooting with seven assists and three blocks.

Banchero shines in Fultz's return to Philly

Orlando Magic guard Markelle Fultz posted his first double-double of the season as the former number one overall pick made a winning return to Philadelphia.

In his first road game against the Philadelphia 76ers since being traded from the franchise in 2019, Fultz finished with 12 points and 10 assists, helping to ignite a 77-47 second-half demolition on the way to a 119-109 upset win.

The star for the Magic was their other top overall pick, as rookie Paolo Banchero scored a team-high 29 points on 11-of-22 shooting while adding nine rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal.

Joel Embiid was terrific for the 76ers, dropping 30 points (11-of-20), 11 rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocks, but his scoring average for the season dropped to 33.6. He still leads the league, but Doncic (33.4) is hot on his tail.

Stephen Curry hopes the Golden State Warriors can now move well clear of .500 after improving to a winning record for the first time in three weeks.

The Warriors won five straight games over Christmas and New Year to seemingly get their title defence back on track, only for consecutive losses to return them to .500.

Curry returned from injury in their next game, another loss, but the Warriors had not been able to celebrate back-to-back victories since.

They finally did so this week as a win over the Memphis Grizzlies was followed by Friday's 129-117 victory against the Toronto Raptors, which lifted the Warriors to 25-24.

Now, the plan is to go on a run, Curry says.

"We just need wins in general, however we can get them," he said. "It's just the next one up and we've got to figure out the way to win.

"We've been teetering on either side of .500 for a very long time. I'm kind of sick of it at this point.

"We've got to figure out how to keep moving in the right direction and stack wins, no matter how we can get them."

Curry led the team with 35 points and 11 assists, and Steve Kerr saw evidence of his fit-again superstar returning to his best.

"It feels like we took better care of the ball," the coach said. "When Steph plays like that, the whole game opens up, the whole floor opens up."

But Curry, who scored 34 against the Grizzlies and 41 against the Washington Wizards early last week, felt he had already found his rhythm.

The point guard just hopes Kerr keeps leaving him out on the court, playing just shy of 39 minutes in this game – his third-most this season.

"I felt good, moving well, but I've felt like I've been doing that for a couple of games now," Curry said.

"It's just everything being in sync in terms of what I want to get to on the offensive end.

"Don't tell [Kerr], but I played a lot of minutes, and I felt really good for all 39, so I want to keep that up.

"I haven't got that question that much this season, which is nice. Just to say I felt great; keep it going."

The Splash Brothers found their range as Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined for 64 points including 10 three-pointers in the Golden State Warriors' 129-117 win over the Toronto Raptors on Friday.

Curry top scored with 35 points on 13-of-21 shooting from the field, making four-of-eight from beyond the arc, with seven rebounds, 11 assists and two steals at Chase Center.

Thompson finished with 29 points but nailed six-of-14 three-point attempts, along with eight rebounds.

Donte DiVincenzo made another strong impression off the bench, playing 33 minutes for 12 points with two-of-five three-pointers and 11 assists.

As a team, Golden State shot at 55.6 per cent from the field (50-of-90), while they had 40 assists compared to Toronto's 24.

The win improves the Warriors' home record to 19-6, while they nudge over .500 with a 25-24 overall record to move up seventh in the Western Conference.

Raptors guard Fred VanVleet scored a team-high 28 points on five-of-10 three-point shooting with 10 assists, while Scottie Barnes chipped in with 24 points.

Giannis dominates as Middleton comeback continues

Giannis Antetokounmpo held off another Indiana Pacers' late charge as the Milwaukee Bucks won 141-131 fuelled by the Greek's 41 points, 12 rebounds and six assists.

Antetokounmpo made five-of-eight free-throws in the final four minutes as the Bucks held on. Jrue Holiday contributed 20 points with nine rebounds and nine assists.

Khris Middleton continued his gradual return to full fitness, scoring 17 points in 15 minutes off the bench, while Myles Turner top scored for Indiana with 24 points.

SGA racks them up again for OKC

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander recorded his fourth straight 30-point game as the Oklahoma City Thunder down the Cleveland Cavaliers 112-100 after scores were locked at three-quarter time.

Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 35 points, with eight assists and five rebounds for OKC, who won for the sixth time in eight games to improve to 24-25.

The Cavs were without Donovan Mitchell due to a groin injury, with Darius Garland starring for them with 31 points and 13 assists.

Meanwhile, Ja Morant recorded his fourth triple-double of the season with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists in the Memphis Grizzlies' 111-100 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Stephen Curry and Joel Embiid have both been fined $25,000 in separate on-court incidents from Wednesday's game, the NBA announced on Friday.

Reigning NBA Finals MVP Curry was fined for "throwing his mouthpiece into the spectator stands" during Wednesday's 122-120 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.

Curry was ejected for the act, which came out of frustration after not receiving a pass from Golden State Warriors team-mate Jordan Poole, occurring with 1:14 remaining in the fourth quarter.

It was the third ejection of Curry's career, all involving his mouthpiece, having thrown it at a referee in 2017.

"He knows he can't make that mistake again," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said after the game.

Philadelphia 76ers center Embiid was fined for "making an obscene gesture on the playing court" during their 137-133 win over the Brooklyn Nets, where Ben Simmons returned to face his former side at a wound-up Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday.

The incident occurred when Embiid celebrated making a layup and earning a foul shot by emulating a gesture made by WWE wrestlers Shawn Michaels and Triple H.

Nets forward Kevin Durant, who was watching from afar due to an MCL sprain, described the act as a "trash celebration" on Twitter at the time.

Stephen Curry knows he cannot make the same mistake after his ejection in the Golden State Warriors' win over the Memphis Grizzlies, head coach Steve Kerr says.

Curry was ejected with 1:14 remaining in the fourth quarter for unsportsmanlike conduct, having thrown his mouthpiece in frustration after Jordan Poole opted not to pass to him before missing a three-point attempt.

The ejection did not hinder the Warriors, with Poole scoring a last-second layup to clinch a narrow 122-120 victory that moved the franchise up to ninth in the Western Conference with a 24-24 record.

While the loss of Curry was not detrimental to the result, Kerr knows the outcome could have been different and the NBA Finals MVP must avoid similar actions in the future.

"I didn't see what happened at the time, so when the ref called it I was confused," he said.

"Then the coach told me he threw the mouthpiece down out of anger. I think that's an automatic ejection. He knows he can't make that mistake again."

Poole was quizzed on the incident following the win, as well as his interaction with Curry in the tunnel after the game, but claimed he could not remember what occurred prior to his teammates' ejection.

"I don't even know what you're talking about, I have a short memory," he replied.

"We just kind of embraced a little bit [in the tunnel], he's our leader, we would have loved to have him in the game for the last three [minutes]

"But we just found a way to grind it out, get a big win against a really good team, and now we just want to keep that momentum going."

Kerr was similarly keen to avoid any unnecessary drama, highlighting that the victory was more important.

"Was Steph Curry open next to him? We won, let's focus on the positives," he added.

Stephen Curry was ejected for throwing his mouthpiece before Jordan Poole scored a last-second layup as the Golden State Warriors narrowly beat the Memphis Grizzlies 122-120 on Wednesday.

Curry was ejected with 1:14 remaining in the fourth quarter  with the Warriors up by two for unsportsmanlike conduct, having thrown his mouthpiece in frustration after Poole opted not to pass to him, before missing a three-point attempt.

But Golden State kept their composure without their NBA Finals MVP, with Klay Thompson draining a clutch three-pointer with 14.1 seconds left, before Ja Morant dished off for a Brandon Clarke dunk to square it up with 6.3 seconds remaining.

Poole got redemption for his role in Curry's ejection, when he got free to land a left-handed layup from Donte DiVincenzo's inbound to decide the game at Chase Center.

Curry finished with 34 points with four-of-eight three-point shooting, while Klay Thompson hit five-of-10 triples in his 24 points.

Draymond Green had 13 rebounds, seven assists and three blocks, while Poole added 21 points with seven assists.

Morant posted 29 points for the Grizzlies, making two-of-seven from beyond the arc with 12 assists and two steals. Desmond Bane managed 20 points but went four-of-six from the stripe.

The result lifts the Warriors up to ninth in the Western Conference with a 24-24 record, while the Grizzlies are 31-17 and second in the west.

Simmons booed as 76ers down Nets

Ben Simmons was booed throughout on his return to Wells Fargo Center as the Philadelphia 76ers edged the Brooklyn Nets 137-133 to clinch their sixth straight win.

James Harden starred against his former side with 23 points, three rebounds and seven assists, making two three-pointers and a driving layup in the final four minutes. Tyrese Maxey added 27 points off the bench and Joel Embiid had 26 points and 10 rebounds.

Seth Curry had a season-high 32 points including seven triples, Kyrie Irving added 30 points with 10 assists, while Ben Simmons was scoreless in the first half from only one shot but finished with 12 points, five rebounds and five assists.

Lillard shoots 60 in Blazers win

Damian Lillard scored 60 points, the second-most by a single player in a game this season, as the Portland Trail Blazers won 134-124 over the Utah Jazz.

Lillard shot nine-of-15 from three-point range including six of those in the first half, recording his fourth career 60-point game, matching Michael Jordan and James Harden for the third most overall.

The Blazers guard scored five triples in the second quarter, which he has done 16 times in any quarter in his career, which is the second most by any player in the last 25 seasons. Jazz power forward Lauri Markkanen scored 24 points with four rebounds.

Royce O'Neale says his Brooklyn Nets team-mates are all stepping up to the challenge after his late three-pointer proved decisive against the Golden State Warriors.

The Nets claimed a second straight win on Sunday, with O'Neale's three-pointer with less than 30 seconds left on the clock nosing them into a two-point lead.

Kyrie Irving, the team's talisman in the absence of the injured Kevin Durant, scored two free throws with 14 seconds remaining to seal a 120-116 comeback victory at the Chase Center.

Golden State had been leading 106-93 midway through the final quarter on Sunday, and O'Neale hailed the Nets' attitude and self-belief.

"There's a lot of confidence going around," O'Neale told reporters.

"Everybody's taking the challenge, stepping up, finding out ways to win games."

Irving was key, teeing up O'Neale's crucial three-pointer to cap a ninth assist of the game. He finished with 38 points and seven rebounds.

"Kyrie had been getting to the basket, hitting tough shots and at that moment, he drove, two people double-teamed and he found me open," O'Neale said.

"I just needed to have the confidence to knock it down."

Irving added: "They did a great job of staying on my body, keeping the game physical, making it tough.

"I felt like my team-mates had a lot of great looks, drawing the defense to lose their man.

"Royce being wide open, I felt like that was the best shot for our team, so I gave up the ball, trusted him to make it and luckily it went in."

The Nets are fourth in the Eastern Conference, while the Warriors – reigning NBA champions – are down in 10th in the West after suffering a sixth loss from their last nine games.

The Golden State Warriors blew a 12-point fourth-quarter lead at home as the Brooklyn Nets prevailed 120-116 after 38 points from Kyrie Irving on Sunday.

The Nets outscored the Warriors 22-6 after the reigning NBA champions had led by 12 with 5:42 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Irving scored a game-high 38 points, making five-of-seven three-point attempts, with seven rebounds and nine assists. Irving's performance was his third 30-point game in his past four.

Nic Claxton added a career-high 24 points with 15 rebounds and three blocks, while Ben Simmons contributed a game-high 11 assists. Royce O'Neale, who had 16 points, scored a go-ahead three-pointer with 27.1 seconds remaining.

Stephen Curry top scored for Golden State with 26 points, making four-of-eight from beyond the arc, along with six rebounds and seven assists.

Jonathan Kuminga added 20 points off the bench, while center Draymond Green had 11 rebounds and seven assists.

The Warriors' home loss means their record at the Chase Center falls to 17-6, having managed 3-2 on their recent road trip where they have struggled throughout this season.

Lakers complete stunning second-half turnaround

LeBron James scored 37 points with 11 rebounds while Thomas Bryant added 31 points as the Los Angeles Lakers stormed home for a 121-112 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.

The Lakers had trailed 71-46 at halftime after the Blazers put up 45 second-quarter points, but rallied in a remarkable second-half turnaround to improve to 22-25.

Bryant had 14 rebounds to go with his 31 points, while Dennis Schroder contributed 24 points. Anfernee Simons scored 31 points for Portland, with Damian Lillard adding 24.

OKC snap Nuggets' win streak

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hit an eight-footer with 9.2 seconds remaining to end the Denver Nuggets' nine-game win streak as the Oklahoma City Thunder won 101-99. 

The Nuggets were without back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic for the second straight game with tightness in his left hamstring, with Jamal Murray top scoring in his absence with 26 points and nine assists. Murray missed an attempt on the buzzer to force overtime.

Gilgeous-Alexander finished the game with 34 points on 13-of-21 shooting with five rebounds, five assists and two blocks, while Josh Giddey added 18 points and nine rebounds. The result also ended Denver's 17th game win streak at home.

Steve Kerr was effusive in his praise of Jordan Poole after the 23-year-old led the Golden State Warriors to victory at the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.

Poole scored 32 points as the Warriors won 120-114 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, with the defending NBA champions without star players Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins.

Coach Steve Kerr rested them and others after their agonising overtime defeat at the Boston Celtics on Thursday, and was pleased to see Poole step up in their absence.

"He's continuing to grow and he's continuing to get better," Kerr said post-game. "In the last two games, he was fantastic... To play that way tonight without Steph and Klay and Wiggs and Dray, to give us that scoring and that force, he made so many plays out there. He set the tone.

"He's getting better and better. There is still so far to go, which is exciting."

Golden State did not particularly miss Curry as they managed to hit 23 three-pointers, the most they have ever recorded in a game without the eight-time All Star.

Poole acknowledged he and his team-mates had to learn from their mistakes against Boston, where they threw away a lead in the fourth quarter.

The Cavaliers also began eating into a lead that had been as high as 20 points at one stage, but this time the Warriors were able to close it out.

"It was a learning experience yesterday," Poole said. "It was something that we were very aware of. It kind of was a very similar situation, being up with six minutes left and then it became a close game. We knew we needed to lock down, get some stops and make a good run. We needed to close it out and we did. Now we have to build on it.

"Everybody on our team is confident, and shout-out to Coach Kerr for allowing us to play with that confidence. We know what we are capable of. We were spacing the floor and getting good looks. We got laser-focused."

The Los Angeles Lakers produced a late comeback to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies 122-121, denying the visitors what would have been a franchise-record 12th consecutive victory.

Memphis looked well on their way to breaking their record, jumping out to a 13-point lead late in the third quarter, but a 41-point final period from the Lakers turned the game on its head.

Los Angeles trailed by five points with under a minute on the clock, and after Dennis Schroder cut the margin to one with 19 seconds left, he then stole the ball and laid it in – with a foul – to put the Lakers in front for good.

Brandon Clarke had a chance to tie the game with two free throws in the final seconds, but after hitting the first, he missed the second. He was arguably the Grizzlies' best player, shooting a perfect seven-of-seven from the field for 20 points and 10 rebounds in his 22 minutes.

Russell Westbrook led all scorers with 29 points on 10-of-18 shooting, adding six assists and five rebounds, while LeBron James had 23 points (eight-of-21), nine rebounds, six assists, two steals and two blocks.

The win improves the Lakers' record to 21-25, leaving them 13th in the Western Conference, but only two games behind the Los Angeles Clippers (24-24) in the race for the six seed.

Kawhi back to his best for the Clippers

Two-time NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard looked back to his All-NBA self as he scored a season-high 36 points in the Los Angeles Clippers' 131-126 road win against the San Antonio Spurs.

Leonard shot 13-of-18 from the field while adding seven assists and two steals, marking his sixth consecutive game with at least 24 points and a steal. 

During that stretch, his 30.0 points per game is the seventh-highest figure in the league, all while shooting 57.4 per cent from the field, 50 per cent from deep and 93.8 per cent from the free throw line.

He was supported well by fellow All-Star Paul George, who dished a season-high 12 assists to go with his 16 points.

Undermanned Warriors shoot the lights out

The Golden State Warriors came into their road fixture against the Cleveland Cavaliers without Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins – but still came away with a 120-114 victory.

In the absence of their top stars, the Warriors received a 32-point outburst from Jordan Poole on 10-of-23 shooting, while Ty Jerome posted season-highs in points (22) and assists (eight).

As a team, the Warriors shot 23-of-43 (53.5 per cent) from three-point range, opening a 20-point lead in the third quarter that was too much for the Cavaliers to overcome.

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr believes a 72-game regular season would mostly eliminate the need for rest games after choosing to sit his stars against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.

The Warriors were coming off an overtime loss against the Boston Celtics on Thursday where reigning NBA Finals MVP Stephen Curry played 43 minutes, while his future Hall of Fame team-mates Draymond Green and Klay Thompson both eclipsed 36 minutes.

Asking them to jump straight on a plane after the game and suit up again 24 hours later against the Cavaliers was too unrealistic, according to Kerr, who was apologetic about the fact that paying fans would not get the opportunity to see the headliners in action.

Speaking to the media before the game, Kerr made it clear these situations are avoidable if the league would be willing to shorten the 82-game regular season.

"I feel terrible for fans who buy tickets expecting to see someone play and they don't get to see that person play," he said. "It's a brutal part of the business. It's why I'm going to continue to advocate for 72-game seasons.

"You take 10 games off the schedule – it always feels like with 10 games left in the year everybody's sort of had it anyways. 

"That creates enough rest where we don't have to have some of these crazy situations. I think you'd see way fewer games missed from players."

He added: "We have so much more data, so much more awareness of players' vulnerability. It's proven that if guys are banged up, back-to-backs, players are much more likely to get injured and miss more games – and that's why you're seeing it league wide.

"Everybody is being cautious when a guy is banged up. You're just playing the long game."

Jaylen Brown likened the intensity in the Boston Celtics' workmanlike overtime 121-118 victory over the Golden State Warriors to a playoff game.

The Warriors had not returned to TD Garden since winning Game 6 of last season's NBA Finals to secure the championship.

Much like in that series, the Celtics were littered with turnovers (17 in total resulted in 24 points for the visitors) and struggled to fire on all cylinders offensively.

This time, though, Boston found a way to win. Trailing by 11 points in the second half, the Celtics fought back and Brown tied the game via a three-pointer with 18 seconds remaining and then, having gained an eight-point advantage, held on after a sloppy ending to overtime.

"That felt like a playoff game," Brown said.

"Their intensity, their force where they came, that's a game I'm sure they wanted to win. We were down, what, five to seven [points] in the fourth quarter, four, five minutes left. 

"To be able to have poise to battle back, that shows a lot of growth. We're taking steps in the right direction."

Jayson Tatum had a career-high 19 rebounds to go with 34 points and six assists but was also guilty of a couple of poor turnovers.

He too, though, felt the Celtics showed the sort of requisite desire to win when the team is not particularly playing their best basketball.

"You're going to need games like this," Tatum said. 

"There's going to be a handful of playoff games where you don't necessarily shoot the ball well, maybe even on the road – under 40 per cent, 73 per cent from the free-throw line, 17 turnovers – and still find a way to win.

"I think that just shows the depth of our team, that on a below-average night for us, we can still find a way to win. That's all that matters at the end of the night. Did you win or did you lose?"

Interim Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla felt the nature of the victory showed how the team have grown since losing the Finals.

"For us, we've talked about poise and physicality," he said. 

"Everybody asks, what did we learn [from losing in the Finals]? What have we learned? And I think what we've learned is it takes a mindset in order to be successful. And it takes a mindset to be a really, really good team in the NBA. And you can't be inconsistent with that.

"I think even though you play really, really well and we win, we're still going to have some of those moments. Yeah, we had some turnovers, we had some kind of plays where it's just kind of like, 'That shouldn't happen'. But that's going to happen.

"It's about just the habits that we're growing as far as our mindset, our poise, our physicality, our ability to execute, our ability to handle the chaos of an NBA game."

The Celtics sit top of the Eastern Conference with a league-best 34-12 record, while the Warriors are ninth and 22-23 in the West.

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