The Los Angeles Lakers slumped to their fourth straight double-digit defeat as LeBron James had a late injury scare in a 114-101 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday.

James, who played 32 minutes for 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists, was benched late with "left leg soreness" and did not return after wincing upon drawing a foul.

The Lakers loss was their fifth straight defeat when James has scored 30 points, while it was their ninth consecutive defeat to the Clippers, dating back to 2020. That streak is the second longest in series history.

Paul George fired for the Clippers, with 29 points on 10-of-17 shooting along with six rebounds and two blocks, bringing up his sixth straight 25-point game which is the longest run in his time with the franchise. Norman Powell contributed 18 points off the bench.

Anthony Davis scored 21 points with nine rebounds but was shy on offense, while Russell Westbrook managed 14 points with nine assists in 30 minutes off the bench.

The Clippers, who are still without two-time NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard, have won five of their past six games and improved to 7-5, while the Lakers are 2-9.

Short-handed Bucks triumph in 2OT

The Milwaukee Bucks overcame the Oklahoma City Thunder in double overtime 136-132 without Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday to improve their record to 10-1 and bounce back after their first loss of the season.

Antetokounmpo and Holiday sat out with a sore left knee and sprained right ankle respectively, but Jevon Carter stepped up with a career-high 36 points and 12 assists.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 39 points, drained a triple to give OKC a one-point lead with 0.6 seconds remaining in the first overtime.

Bucks center Brook Lopez, who contributed 24 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks, was fouled by Lu Dort on the inbound pass, but missed one of his two free-throws, sending the game to second overtime, where Milwaukee finished the job.

Jazz's surprise start, Doncic's run halted, KD shines

The Utah Jazz continued their surprise start to the season with a 125-119 win over the Atlanta Hawks, moving them to a Western Conference-leading 10-3 record.

The Jazz rallied after blowing a 12-point lead, piling on 40 fourth-quarter points with Lauri Markkanen scoring a season-high 32 points. Malik Beasley scored six three-pointers, including four in the fourth period, for 18 points for the game.

Luka Doncic was held to less than 30 points for the first time this season, scoring 24 points on nine-of-29 field shooting, as the Dallas Mavericks lost 94-87 to the Orlando Magic.

Kevin Durant had a triple-double with 29 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists as the Brooklyn Nets blew out the New York Knicks 112-85 without the suspended Kyrie Irving.

Reigning NBA Finals MVP Stephen Curry enjoyed his best game of the new season as he put up 47 points in the Golden State Warriors' 116-113 home win against the Sacramento Kings on Monday.

After posting a season-high 39 points his last time out in a loss to the Orlando Magic, Curry went even bigger, hitting 17-of-24 from the field, seven-of-12 from deep and six of his seven free throws.

The former unanimous league MVP also added eight rebounds and eight assists, boasting a plus/minus of plus 20 in his 38 minutes. That means in the 10 minutes he was on the bench, the Warriors were outscored by 17.

With Klay Thompson having an off-shooting night (six-of-18 for 16 points), Andrew Wiggins stepped up as Curry's sidekick, chipping in 25 points (10-of-17 shooting) with 10 rebounds, two steals and a block.

With his seven three-pointers, Curry is now averaging a league-leading 5.1 made threes per game, is fifth in the league in scoring (31.0 points per game) and 15th in assists (6.8 per game).

For the Kings, point guard De'Aaron Fox continued his strong start to the campaign, scoring a team-high 28 points on eight-of-17 shooting to raise his season average to 26.3 (12th in the league).

Doncic extends 30-point streak in Mavs win

Luka Doncic has now scored at least 30 points in each of the Dallas Mavericks' first nine games after putting up 36 in his side's 96-94 win over the Brooklyn Nets.

Doncic was incredibly efficient, particularly from long range, hitting 11-of-22 from the field and five-of-nine from long range. For the season, he is shooting a career-high 52.7 per cent from the field, and that is despite a career-worst three-point percentage of 26.2.

He now owns the second-longest streak in NBA history for consecutive 30-point games to start a season, trailing only Wilt Chamberlain's streak of 23 games to start the 1962-63 campaign.

Returning from a four-game absence due to swelling in his knee, Ben Simmons came off the bench for the first time in his 282-game career, scoring two points in 16 minutes.

A.J. Griffin highlights impressive rookie performances as he hands the Bucks their first loss

The Milwaukee Bucks suffered their first loss of the season as Atlanta Hawks rookie A.J. Griffin starred off the bench.

Griffin, the 16th overall pick in this year's NBA Draft, finished with a career-high 24 points on 10-of-15 shooting, while snatching three steals in a strong 31-minute performance.

Meanwhile, Paolo Banchero's ridiculous start to his career continued as he had his second straight 30-point game in the Orlando Magic's 134-127 loss to the Houston Rockets.

Banchero continues to justify his selection as the top pick in the draft, hitting eight-of-16 from the field and 12-of-14 from the free throw line. He is averaging 22.9 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists in the first 10 games of his career.

Last year's second overall draft pick, Jalen Green, was terrific for the Rockets, scoring a game-high 34 points (12-of-18 from the field, five-of-11 from long range).

Kevin Durant is interested in becoming part of the Washington Commanders' new ownership group after Dan and Tanya Snyder announced they were considering a sale of the franchise.

On Wednesday, the Commanders released a statement confirming the owners had hired BofA Securities to explore a potential sale.

The decision comes amid an NFL investigation into an allegation of sexual misconduct from Dan Snyder, who is also being probed by attorney generals in Washington, D.C. and Virginia over alleged financial improprieties.

Reports have credited Amazon chief executive Jeff Bezos, as well as musician and producer Jay-Z, with an interest in making a joint bid for the team, and Durant wants to be involved.

Two-time NBA champion Durant, who grew up in the D.C. area, told ESPN: "In a perfect world, I would be a part of it.

"I would love to do it. I would love to give a little bit of my money to be a part of the Commanders, but we'll see. Hopefully it's somebody nice. I heard Bezos and Jay-Z, but you never know.

"I don't have a lot of money, though. I don't have that much money to say, 'Look, man, let me get a piece of the team.'

"I'm sure it would have to work out some way, somehow. I would love to, obviously, but to be honest, I doubt that it'll happen. It's a five or six-billion-dollar team."

Dan Snyder brought the Washington franchise in 1999, and while Durant is surprised to see him exploring an exit, the Brooklyn Nets star is excited about the team's future. 

"How long has he had it now, 20-something years? He's probably the only owner I've known, since I've been alive, for the Redskins or Commanders," Durant added. 

"It's definitely shocking to see him put them up because it's his baby. NFL teams are precious, they're important.

"That's going to be a team that everybody [wants]. Everybody wants to be a part of the league. It's one of the most lucrative teams in sports, so I'm sure there's going to be a lot of bidders.

"Our market is incredible. There's a lot of support in D.C., a lot of money in D.C. to be made. I feel like we drafted well the last couple of years, we got some foundation pieces that can help you win football games moving forward. 

"I know we've had some losing seasons, but it's starting to come around for us. I'm excited as a fan. 

"I'm excited about the sale. I'm excited to see who they bring in and who they sell the team to, and to see how we move forward with it." 

Kevin Durant says it has been "camaraderie" within the Brooklyn Nets that helped put a difficult week behind them with a 98-94 comeback win over the Charlotte Hornets.

The small forward posted 27 points and helped his side erase a double-digit gap to earn back-to-back triumphs after victory over the Washington Wizards on Friday.

Amid a seven-day stretch that saw Kyrie Irving suspended after initially refusing to apologise for promoting a movie and book with anti-Semitic overtones, and with head coach Steve Nash also dismissed, the going has been tough for the Nets.

Speaking after his side moved their record to 4-6 for the season, Durant reflected on what has been a strange period, but credited the team's resolve to keep the focus on their game as key to their revival.

"It was a unique experience for sure," he stated. "But a lot of guys been through different things in this league before, and a lot of guys have been through some adversity in this league off the court

"Having to lock back in and focus solely on the game, I think that we all get a little bit of solace in doing that.

"[It's] just playing the game of basketball, getting that camaraderie, that fellowship with your teammates, I think that was able to get us through.

"I just think we rallied around each other. It was a tough week for us. And it's always good to just get back to the game. Once the ball is tipped, [it all] goes out the window.

"I think everybody was just waiting to get back to playing. It's good for our character, it's good for the energy of the team and to fight through adversity."

The Milwaukee Bucks overcame the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo to reach a franchise-record ninth straight win to open the season with a 108-94 triumph over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday.

Antetokounmpo was absent due to left knee soreness, but Brook Lopez delivered with 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting including four three-pointers for the Bucks who are 9-0.

Jrue Holiday provided 13 assists with 10 points, while forward Bobby Portis pulled down 21 rebounds with 12 points.

Guards Jevon Carter and Grayson Allen scored five three-pointers each, contributing 18 and 19 points respectively for Milwaukee.

The Bucks shot 17-of-47 (36.2 per cent) from three-point range, while Portis' dominance in the paint helped them to 55-38 rebounds. Four of Portis' 21 rebounds were offensive.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander top scored for OKC with 18 points, while second-year guard Josh Giddey had 15 points with six rebounds.

Nets rally for back-to-back wins

Amid their off-court tumult, Kevin Durant led the Brooklyn Nets to back-to-back wins with a 98-94 victory over the Charlotte Hornets rallying back after trailing by 11 points in the fourth quarter.

Durant scored a game-high 27 points, including a clutch jump shot to open up a four-point lead with 32 seconds remaining, along with seven rebounds. The win improved the Nets to 3-6.

Cam Thomas stepped up off the bench with 21 points for the Nets who were without Kyrie Irving (suspension) and Ben Simmons (knee soreness).

Celtics hit franchise-record, Suns move to 7-2

The Boston Celtics scored a franchise-record 27 three-pointers with six each from Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown as they got past the New York Knicks 133-118.

Tatum scored 26 points while Brown had a game-high 30 points, while Sam Hauser came off the bench to add five triples in his 17-point haul, with all nine of the Celtics used making a three-pointer.

Meanwhile, the Phoenix Suns improved to 7-2 with a comfortable 102-82 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, with Devin Booker scoring 24 points.

Kevin Durant was excited by the style of basketball on display from his Brooklyn Nets in their 128-86 thumping of the Washington Wizards on Friday.

Durant, in the first game since Kyrie Irving's suspension, was at the center of everything the Nets were doing, finishing with team-highs in points (28), assists (11) and rebounds (nine).

As a team, the Nets dished out a season-high 32 assists, making it the first time they have eclipsed 29 in a game this season.

That unselfishness was at the forefront of Durant's mind when discussing the game during his on-court interview, saying his team felt confident in their game-plan and excelled in their execution of it.

"In shootaround we had some good sets that we drew up, and we knew some of that stuff would work against this team," he said. 

"We just stayed in it and moved the basketball all night – everybody touched it, everybody got into the paint – we were able to generate some good offense, and that's how we want to play moving forward.

"That's the name of the game, playing off each other and being able to compliment one another."

His starring performance was highlighted with an emphatic ankle-breaker as he crossed over Washington's Daniel Gafford, nearly making his defender do the splits.

"I really thought he slipped on some sweat there, so I can't take full credit for it," he said. "But I was glad it was able to get us some momentum and give me some space to do my thing. I'm glad I finished the shot too."

Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn also pointed to his side's team-first playing style when asked in his post-game interview what the key was to the blowout win.

"Offensively, the 32 assists really stand out," he said. "Guys were really moving the basketball.

"Kevin [Durant] was a hub for us tonight. He really put them in a tough bind of double-teaming him, then he was a willing passer, and he capitalised whenever he had the opportunities to."

On Durant's nasty crossover, Vaughn said his inner-fan may have come out in his reaction.

"I hope the camera wasn't on me, to be honest with you," he said. "I enjoy the game of basketball, and [Durant] is a special human being, a special player in this league. He enjoys the game of basketball, and he's fun to watch." 

The win leaves the Nets with a 3-6 record through nine games, although they have now won two of their past three.

Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant said the Kyrie Irving situation "sucks all around for everybody", but is hoping all involved can soon move on.

Irving was suspended for a minimum of five games by the Nets on Thursday, in light of his unapologetic response to the widespread backlash for allegedly endorsing a film that Nets owner Joe Tsai said was "full of anti-Semitic disinformation".

On Wednesday, the Nets and Irving each donated $500,000 towards causes and organisations that work to eradicate hate and intolerance in our communities, but after the 30-year-old stopped short of apologising during a media session on Thursday, Brooklyn suspended the former Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers guard.

For his part, Durant suggested he did not feel the situation had been handled well, labelling it "unnecessary".

"I ain't hear to judge nobody or talk down on nobody for how they feel, their views or anything, I just didn’t like anything that went on," said Durant.

"I feel like it was all unnecessary. I felt like we could have just kept playing basketball and kept quiet as an organisation. I just don't like none of it.

"It's an unfortunate situation for people that are impacted by this situation. It just sucks all around for everybody. Hopefully we can move past it.

"That's just the way of the NBA now. Media, so many outlets now and their stories hit pretty fast now. That's where all the chaos is coming from, from everybody's opinions. Everybody has an opinion on this situation and we're hearing it nonstop.

"But once the balls start bouncing and we get into practice none of that stuff seeps into the gym. So that's the cool part about being in the league.

"But once you step off the court, everyone got the microphones out and the microscopes looking at you asking you what you feel about it. That's been difficult. But the game is the constant for us."

Durant subsequently tweeted to clarify that his comments in Thursday's media gathering were in no way an endorsement of Irving's actions.

"Just wanna clarify the statements I made at shootaround, I see some people are confused," Durant tweeted.

"I don't condone hate speech or anti-semetism [sic], I'm about spreading love always. Our game unites people and I wanna make sure that's at the forefront."

Kevin Durant reportedly pushed for Steve Nash's removal as Brooklyn Nets head coach in the off-season but says he was "shocked" when he found out about his firing on Tuesday.

The Nets confirmed on Tuesday they had mutually agreed to part ways after a 2-5 start to the season, made worse by the 108-99 loss to the Chicago Bulls later that day.

It was widely reported Durant had issued Nets owner Joe Tsai with an ultimatum in an unsettled off-season at the Barclays Center, either trade him or fire Nash and general manager Sean Marks.

Yet Durant, who said he learned the news of Nash's firing on ESPN after waking up from a nap on Tuesday, insisted he was taken aback when he found out and shrugged off questions about whether he was consulted.

"You're always shocked when a move like this happens, but it's normal in the NBA," Durant told reporters after Tuesday's loss.

"You've got practice, games coming up, so you can't think too much about it. It was on my mind for a little bit today."

Nash had taken over at the Nets in September 2020, taking the side to the Conference Semifinals in 2020-21 with their 'big three' of Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden.

But the Nets struggled in 2021-22 and swept out of the playoffs in the first round by the Boston Celtics, amid a difficult season that saw Irving largely ineligible due to his vaccination status and Harden traded.

"Let's be real, we're pros, we're veterans," Durant added. "We had a tough start. It was a rocky year last year, rocky summer. We knew that everybody was being evaluated.

"That's just how it is in the league. So I liked working with Steve. I like working with the coaching staff. It was a roller coaster the last few years, but the core of it - basketball - is something we all love to do. Regardless of who the coach [is], regardless of the circumstances, you still got to come to work. I enjoyed coming to work with Steve."

Nash's firing comes in the midst of the franchise's latest off-court issue surrounding Irving facing widespread backlash for sharing a film on social media with alleged anti-Semitic connotations.

Durant insisted that there was not too much volatility around the Nets.

"That's the NBA," Durant said. "Everybody's got volatility if you want to look at it.

"It's just a matter of - outside people might look at what we do as bigger than what it is, but we come to work every single day.

"Guys have asked for trades before, coaches get fired, we have disagreements in our locker room, it happens in the NBA. But at the end of the day we all came to work. It just didn't work out on the floor."

The Brooklyn Nets started life after Steve Nash with a 108-99 defeat to the Miami Heat as under-fire Kyrie Irving struggled with four points on two-of-12 shooting on Tuesday.

The Nets announced earlier on Tuesday that Nash had been fired following their 2-5 start to the season, with assistant coach Jacque Vaughn taking charge in his absence.

Kevin Durant scored 32 points with nine rebounds for the Nets who led 58-52 at half-time before the Bulls charged home in the fourth quarter, led by Zach LaVine who had 20 of his 29 points in the final period.

LaVine top scored for the Bulls, including five-of-11 three-point shooting with four rebounds and five assists, while DeMar DeRozan added 20 points and center Nikola Vucevic hauled down 15 rebounds.

Irving, who has faced widespread backlash for sharing a film on social media with alleged anti-Semitic connotations, battled throughout with three turnovers while making none of his six three-point attempts.

The win improved the Bulls to 4-4, while the Nets fall to 2-6, with a 2-4 record at Barclays Center this season.

Golden State's road struggles continue

Reigning champions, the Golden State Warriors, slumped to their third straight defeat as Jimmy Butler fired late to lift the Miami Heat to a 116-109 win.

Butler, who finished with 23 points with six rebounds and eight assists, scored five straight points down the stretch to give the Heat the lead which they never surrendered.

Kyle Lowry moved past Jason Kidd into 12th on the all-time NBA three-pointers made list, scoring three triples in his 13 points.

Stephen Curry recorded his 10th regular-season triple-double with 23 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists, but he could not prevent the Warriors' road woes (0-4) continuing, dropped to 3-5 overall.

Johnson shines as Suns burn

Cam Johnson drained seven three-pointers as the Phoenix Suns maintained their perfect home record this season and moved to 6-1 overall with a 116-107 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Johnson finished with 29 points, 21 coming from beyond the arc on seven-of-11 three-point shooting, while Devin Booker took a back seat with 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

Chris Paul had 14 points, 12 assists and a team-high eight rebounds for the Suns who clinched their fifth straight win. Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards both had 24 points for the Timberwolves.

Steve Nash said the Brooklyn Nets should look to "grow through this together" after a number of fans wore 'Fight Antisemitism' T-shirts in protest against Kyrie Irving's recent highlighting of a controversial film.

The 30-year-old Irving tweeted a link to 'Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America' last Thursday, with Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai condemning Irving for promoting the documentary film. Tsai alleged the film was "full of anti-Semitic disinformation".

The Nets and NBA released strong statements refusing to tolerate "hate speech", while coach Nash said the star guard had been spoken to prior to Saturday's 125-116 loss to the Indiana Pacers.

Irving said at the weekend he would not "stand down" and pointed to the "historical complexities" of African heritage in America, but he subsequently deleted the social media post that sparked the uproar.

Nash spoke again on the matter after Monday's 116-109 win against the Pacers, which saw a group of seven Nets fans conspicuous at courtside in the protest T-shirts.

They were Orthodox Jews, the New York Post reported, quoting one of the fans, Aaron Jungreis, as saying the Nets "should not keep a guy like that around", with regard to Irving. The fan also told the newspaper the Nets should "have to discipline him in some way".

Looking at how Irving has handled the episode, Nash said: "That's an ongoing conversation. I haven't been a part of those internal talks, to be honest. I've been coaching, preparing the team. But I know they're looking at that constantly."

Erasing the controversial social media content appears to have been taken as a positive step, with Nash saying that "certainly helps".

The Nets coach added: "I just hope that we all grow through this together. There's always an opportunity for us to grow and understand new perspectives.

"I think the organisation is trying to take that stance that we communicate through this and all come out in a better position with more understanding and wanting to have empathy for every side of this debate and situation."

Irving last week wrote on Twitter: "I am an OMNIST and I meant no disrespect to anyone's religious beliefs. The 'Anti-Semitic' label that is being pushed on me is not justified and does not reflect the reality or truth I live in everyday. I embrace and want to learn from all walks of life and religions."

Big performances from Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday and Brook Lopez carried the Milwaukee Bucks to a 110-108 victory against the Detroit Pistons on Monday.

With their win, the Bucks are now 6-0, and the NBA's last remaining unbeaten team.

Two-time MVP Antetokounmpo led the way with a game-high 31 points on 12-of-23 shooting, and he delivered in an important stretch of the game.

After the Bucks came out of halftime with a 60-52 lead, the Pistons got on a quick run, cutting the margin to one at 62-61, before Antetokounmpo scored his team's first 10 points of the third quarter to steady the ship.

He was supported well by Holiday, who scored 25 points with an efficient long-range shooting performance, finishing seven-of-15 from the field while hitting five of his 11 three-point attempts. He also added 10 assists and seven rebounds

Meanwhile, Lopez was a force in the middle of the paint, scoring 26 points (10-of-16) with nine rebounds and two blocks.

For the Pistons, Cade Cunningham was excellent with 27 points (11-of-23), seven assists and six rebounds, while the fifth overall pick from this year's NBA Draft, Jaden Ivey, had seven of his 19 points in the fourth quarter to make it a game down the stretch.

Harden narrowly misses career-high 

James Harden was one assist shy of his career-high as he dished out 17 in the Philadelphia 76ers' 118-111 win over the Washington Wizards.

His 17 assists matched his regular-season high, becoming the 10th time he has reached that figure, while he had 18 assists in a playoff game for the Brooklyn Nets against the Boston Celtics in the first round of 2021.

Against the Wizards, Harden also added 23 points (eight-of-17 shooting) and seven rebounds, with Tyrese Maxey finishing as their top-scorer with 28 on 12-of-22 shooting.

Washington's Kristaps Porzingis was the game's highest scorer with 32 points (10-of-17), nine rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Durant and the Nets get back in the win column

The Brooklyn Nets snapped a four-game losing streak when they defeated the Indiana Pacers 116-109.

Superstar duo Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving led the way as Ben Simmons missed the game with swelling in his knee.

Durant finished with a game-high 36 points on 13-of-22 shooting, while adding nine rebounds and seven assists. Irving was not far behind, posting 28 points (nine-of-19) with six rebounds, six assists and four steals.

Second-year wing Chris Duarte was impressive for the Pacers, scoring 30 points on 10-of-15 shooting, hitting five-of-10 from long range.

Kyrie Irving says he will not "stand down" for what he believes in after facing widespread backlash for sharing a film on social media with alleged anti-Semitic connotations.

The 30-year-old tweeted a link to 'Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America' on Thursday, with Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai condemning Irving for promoting a film "full of anti-Semitic disinformation".

The Nets and NBA both released strong statements refusing to tolerate "hate speech", while coach Steve Nash said the star guard had been spoken to prior to Saturday's 125-116 loss to the Indiana Pacers.

However, speaking after the game against the Pacers at Barclays Center, Irving suggested he had not done anything wrong and would continue to speak with freedom.

"I'm not here to argue over a person or a culture or a religion and what they believe," Irving said. "Nah, this is what's here. It's on a public platform.

"Did I do anything illegal? Did I hurt anybody? Did I harm anybody? Am I going out and saying that I hate one specific group of people?

"So out of all the judgement that people got for me posting, without talking to me, and then I respect what Joe [Tsai] said, but there has a lot to do with not ego or pride of how proud I am to be [of] African heritage, but also to be living as a free black man here in America, knowing the historical complexities for me to get here.

"So I'm not going to stand down on anything that I believe in. I'm only going to get stronger because I'm not alone. I have a whole army around me."

Irving had earlier defended his actions on Twitter, where his shared post still remains, stating the "anti-Semitic label" on him was "not justified", nor did he intend to disrespect "anyone's beliefs".

The Nets fell to a fourth straight loss of the season against the Pacers, though Nash does not believe the Irving situation influenced Brooklyn's performance.

"I don't think our group is overly affected by the situation," Nash said. "We've had so many situations over the last one or two years that I think we've kind of built an immunity to some of it.

"I also think our guys aren't that familiar with the material."

Star Nets forward Kevin Durant echoed Nash's comments, suggesting Brooklyn would pay no attention to those outside of the locker room.

"Absolutely not," Durant responded when asked if the furore had impacted his side. "The only impact is you guys and everybody outside the locker room."

Steve Nash implored the Brooklyn Nets to "care more" after falling to their fourth straight loss, with Ben Simmons revealing the side met for a players-only meeting to discuss problems.

Indiana Pacers recorded a 125-116 victory on Saturday, the fourth time in six games the Nets have conceded 125 points or more, as Nash's side dropped to 1-5 this season.

Brooklyn host the Pacers again on Monday and Nash outlined his frustrations with the Nets as he urged his team to show more commitment.

"It was a disaster," coach Nash said. "How else do you say it? I didn't see the will, didn't see the desire, or the connectivity necessary to get stops and get rebounds.

"We just got to make a bigger commitment and it's got to mean more and we got to care more.

"We have to look deep inside ourselves and what we want to do. What do we want to accomplish? Do we want to give up on this because it's been difficult early or do we want to stay the course and start to build something?

"We've had a lot of really good days here early in the season and we've lost a couple of games; it shakes our mentality, it has shaken our mentality hard.

"And we're not seeing the same competitive spirit, same purpose, and if we don't clean that up it's not going to get better. It's the only way to get out of difficult positions is to have character and competitive spirit."

The Nets have been largely reliant on Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving thus far, the pair scoring 61 points at Barclays Center, and the former acknowledged Brooklyn must improve soon.

"It was a s***ty night," Durant said. "Excuse my language, it was a bad night. We're p***ed. We enjoy basketball.

"We like to win, though, so of course when we lose the games it's going to be a sombre mood in the locker room. But it will change once we start playing some good basketball.

"We got a lot of basketball to be played ahead of us."

While Nash urged his team to up their effort levels, Simmons suggested the Nets are confronting their problems after a meeting between the players following the defeat.

"It was honest," Simmons said of the meeting. "We had a conversation. Obviously, I'm not going to talk about it, but it was honest.

"That's what winning teams do. Hold each other accountable, be able to be open and talk to your team-mates, and respect that and be men."

Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving left his side's 129-125 overtime loss against the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday with an appreciation for his opposition and MVP favourite Luka Doncic.

Doncic became only the 10th player in the history of the NBA to record his third career 40-point triple-double, finishing with 41 points (14-of-28 shooting) in his 41 minutes while adding 14 assists and 11 rebounds.

The Nets were able to force overtime after Kevin Durant tied the game at 112-112 when he dunked with less than 10 seconds remaining in regulation, and instead of allowing Doncic to attempt the game-winner, they forced it out of his hands resulting in a missed Reggie Bullock three-pointer.

In the overtime period, Doncic was not fazed by the Nets' desperation to restrict his shot attempts, scoring two field goals and providing the assists for all four of the other Mavericks baskets in the extra session.

All of the stars shone brightly in the contest, as Durant had 37 points on 12-of-21 shooting, while Irving finished with 39 points on 14-of-31 shooting, and in his post-game press conference Irving compared the experience to that of a pick-up game at the park.

"It's like being at the park playing five-on-five," he said. "Luka brings his guys, me and [Durant] bring our guys, and you know where most of the offense is going through.

"On the defensive end you just want to take the challenge – a few times I got switched onto Luka and I felt I did a good job… there's only so much you can do, but you just try to make it tough.

"It feels good when you can go back-and-forth, but obviously we just want to come out with the win.

"He's a great player, it's a pleasure always to go against him."

Irving was not finished there, diving into what makes Doncic and the Mavericks such a unique puzzle to solve, saying they have "traits of a great team".

"The first thing we need to discuss is how long he's been playing professional basketball," he said. "I think it's been since he was 14 or 15 years old.

"He's used to seeing so many defenses, so many different roles he has played, and now that he's in the NBA you just see how he plays at an incredible pace.

"He makes great decisions, most of the offense goes through him, he takes his time a lot, and gets to the free throw line. He maximises all of the rules of the game of basketball, and uses them to his advantage.

"All of the rest of the guys around him play their roles really well – they're a good team, they're only getting better, and I'm glad we got to see a team like this.

"Down the line, the continuity they have and the trust, because they've been through certain battles – you can see it. They don't panic. That's just good to see, traits of a great team." 

Nets coach Steve Nash added to the chorus of praise for the 23-year-old Slovenian, saying it does not matter how predictable the Mavericks' offense is going to be if it is Doncic running it.

"He makes others better," he said. "He makes his teammates better, he makes plays for others.

"14 assists, not to mention all the other times he probably gets the 'hockey assist'. He puts an incredible amount of pressure on.

"All they do is [give it to] him over-and-over again in pick-and-roll, get a matchup and make a play. That's a lot of responsibility for him, and he handles it almost every night."

With his on-court interview immediately after the win, Doncic called it "almost impossible" to slow down Irving and Durant, and when asked how he feels about his gaudy stat-line, he said "as long as we win, I'm good".

The result sees the Nets fall to 1-4, while the Mavericks are now 2-2.

Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash claimed Giannis Antetokounmpo's forearm struck Patty Mills' throat leading to his furious reaction and first-ever ejection from Wednesday's 110-89 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.

Nash was thrown out of the game with 4:24 remaining in the third quarter with the Nets up 70-66 after a non-call from the officials when Antetokounmpo drove forward on Mills who was floored.

The Nets coach was incensed by the non-call and yelled at the officials leading to a technical foul from Josh Tiven. That only further irritated Nash who had to be restrained by assistant coaches and players as he argued with the officials, leading to his ejection.

"I was just standing up for our guys," Nash told reporters. "I thought Patty took a forearm in the throat from Giannis right in front of the ref.

"I didn’t think that was fair. I don’t think I was overly demonstrative. I was upset that I got a technical."

When asked why Nash got given the technical, he added: "There wasn’t an explanation, it's a lot going on out there. What happened", happened. I said my piece on the court. That's really all there is."

Kevin Durant, who scored 33 points with six rebounds and two blocks, offered his support to Nash.

"You've got to handle yourself differently as a coach but sometimes you just want to go out there and fight for your guys and that’s what I thought he did tonight," Durant told reporters.

Meanwhile, Ben Simmons struggled again with four points on two-of-seven field shooting with none-of-two from the free-throw line, along with four personal fouls. Simmons has nine field goals and 18 personal fouls in four games this season.

Nets teammate Kyrie Irving was overheard at one point in the game demanding Simmons take a shot. Irving would not be drawn into discussing his under-fire teammate's form.

"If we're going to come in and be honest as a team, I'm not going to come in and be critical of what Ben's done right or done wrong every single night," Irving said. "He's a basketball player, he's a professional, he has the skills to be a great professional, he's done it in the past and he hasn't played in two years.

"You guys keep coming here and asking me like 'what about Ben, what about Ben?' he hasn’t played in two years, give him a f***** chance, stay on him. We're here just to give him positive affirmation while he's out there."

The result moved the Nets to 1-3, while the Bucks are 3-0, with Antetokounmpo in dominant form with 43 points, backing up 44 against the Houston Rockets on Saturday for the most productive two-game span in his 10-year NBA career. The Greek forward scored 34 of his 43 points in the second half.

Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer said: "That's vintage Giannis. That's probably about the best. He's had a lot of great performances. That second half he did everything, he was phenomenal… It's hard to put the right words on how good he was in the second half."