The Memphis Grizzlies scored the final seven points of the game for a stunning 119-118 road defeat of the Utah Jazz on Monday.

After Bojan Bogdanovic made a pair of three-pointers to give Utah a 108-112 lead with 1:28 to play, Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. combined to make four free throws and Jackson hit the go-ahead three-pointer with 5.7 seconds to play as Memphis (9-8) pulled out the win.

Utah (11-6) missed their final four shots of the game and also turned the ball over twice in the final 20 seconds. 

Morant had 32 points to lead all scorers and added seven assists, while Desmond Bane scored 28 and Jackson finished with 26. 

Bogdanovic led the Jazz with 24 points and Rudy Gobert contributed 23 on nine-of-10 shooting while grabbing a game-high 13 rebounds and blocking five shots. 

Durant, Nets hold off Cavaliers

Kevin Durant had 27 points and nine rebounds while James Harden chipped in 14 points and 14 assists for the Brooklyn Nets in a 117-112 road victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. LaMarcus Aldridge added 21 points on 10-of-14 shooting off the bench for Brooklyn (13-5) as Darius Garland led Cleveland (9-9) with 24 points and 11 assists as he made only nine of 27 shots from the field. 

Tyrese Maxey scored 24 and Andre Drummond collected 23 rebounds as the Philadelphia 76ers (10-8) pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 102-94 defeat of the Sacramento Kings (6-12) despite playing without Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris and Seth Curry. De'Aaron Fox led the Kings with 23 in Alvin Gentry's first game as interim head coach. 

Jaylen Brown scored 19 points in 23 minutes as he returned to the Boston Celtics lineup after missing the previous eight games with a right hamstring strain. Jayson Tatum led all scorers with 30 as the Celtics (10-8) defeated Houston 108-90, sending the Rockets (1-16) to their 15th consecutive loss as they fell to 0-11 on the road. 

The Phoenix Suns held off a late charge by the San Antonio Spurs to prevail 115-111 for their 13th consecutive win. Devin Booker had 23 points to lead the Suns (14-3) while Deandre Ayton added 21 points and 14 rebounds. 

Bulls draw blanks from field

The Chicago Bulls entered Monday level with the Nets for the best record in the Eastern Conference but could not find their shooting touch in an ugly 109-77 home defeat against the Indiana Pacers. The Bulls (12-6) made 31 of 85 shots from the field (36.5 per cent), including just six of 28 (21.4 per cent) from three-point range. They scored 30 points in the second quarter but just 47 in the other three combined as Indiana (8-11) built an earl lead, then ran away with it in the second half. 

Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash believes the referees are to learn how to officiate the NBA's new rules on taking fouls after James Harden had 20 free-throws in Friday's 115-113 win over the Orlando Magic.

Harden starred in the absence of Kevin Durant for the Nets with 36 points including 19 from the line.

The 2018 NBA MVP's form has been down to start the season, with his inability to draw fouls under the new rules seen as partly responsible.

Harden only had 15 free-throws in his first five games this season, but has drawn 43 in the Nets' past three games.

Nash said the uplift in the numbers was a combination of Harden being more aggressive and the referees officiating differently.

"I think both. I think the referees are starting to figure out what's still a foul and what's not a basketball play," Nash said at the post-game news conference.

"I think early it was difficult for them to know what the line was. He's such a difficult guy to over with his size, quickness and ability to shoot over anyone from three.

"Guys have to get too close to him, he's so strong once he gets a slight angle on you or step on you, it's almost impossible not to foul him.

"That's what makes him brilliant, his ability to penetrate and take contact."

Nash was full of praise for Harden, who has scored 35 or more points in two of the Nets' past five games as begins to re-discover his top form.

Harden is averaging 20.3 points, 7.6 rebounds and 8.8 assists per game this season, but he is also averaging 28.4 points from his past five games.

"Great competitiveness, playing for the team, spirit was great," Nash said. "Obviously he can do some playmaking out there. He can attack the basket with his quickness and size.

"He rebounded the ball for us. Huge effort for him everyone pitched in. It was not an easy game for us. we had to find a way to make it happen."

Durant missed the game with a shoulder sprain but Nash said it was not a major concern.

"We don't feel concerned that it'll linger or that he'd miss the next game," he said pre-game.

Kevin Durant will be absent for the first time this season when the Brooklyn Nets welcome the Orlando Magic on Friday.

The superstar forward leads the NBA with 457 points this year, albeit now just behind Stephen Curry (29.5 points per game) in the early stages of the race for the scoring title (28.6 points per game).

Durant's MVP-calibre form has helped the Nets make an 11-5 start. Only in 2020-21 has the two-time champion previously scored more points through his first 16 games of a season (495).

But Durant will be out of the lineup for Brooklyn's next game after appearing on Friday's injury report due to a shoulder sprain.

The Magic game will bring to an end a run of 36 consecutive starts for Durant across the regular season and playoffs, having put behind him the Achilles injury he had upon arriving as a free agent in 2019.

Since his signing, the Nets are 41-22 with Durant playing some part and 60-53 when he is absent.

Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo erupted for a season-high 47 points as the NBA champions took down the Los Angeles Lakers 109-102.

Antetokounmpo dominated the Lakers, making 18 of his 23 field goals, while collecting nine rebounds and three assists for the Bucks (7-8) on Wednesday.

The reigning NBA Finals MVP became the fifth player in the last 20 seasons to score 45-plus points on 75 per cent shooting from the field and 75 per cent shooting from three-point range.

Antetokounmpo is the first player to post at least 45 points on 75-plus per cent field-goal percentage against the Lakers since Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal in 1995.

All-Star Bucks team-mate Khris Middleton made his return after eight games out due to COVID-19 and tied Milwaukee's franchise record for career three-pointers.

Middleton – who finished with 16 points, six assists and five rebounds – matched Ray Allen for first place with his 1,051st career three.

The Lakers (8-8), again without superstar LeBron James, were led by double-doubles from Talen Horton-Tucker (25 points and 12 rebounds) and Russell Westbrook (19 points and 15 assists).

Suns stay hot

The Phoenix Suns celebrated their 10th straight victory after outlasting the Dallas Mavericks 105-98. Devin Booker (24 points) and Deandre Ayton (19 points and 13 rebounds) fuelled the Suns, who are in the midst of their longest winning streak since 2010. Chris Paul had 14 assists without a turnover – his 46th career game with 10-plus assists and 0 turnovers, tying Muggsy Bogues for most by any player since 1985.

Damian Lillard's 22 points and 10 assists helped the Portland Trail Blazers upstage the Chicago Bulls 112-107. Zach LaVine (30 points), DeMar DeRozan (22 points) and Alex Caruso (12 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists) starred but the Bulls still lost on the road.

The Miami Heat defeated the New Orleans Pelicans behind Jimmy Butler's triple-double of 31 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds.

Kevin Durant nailed two three-pointers to move 26th on the all-time NBA list for threes made with 1,687, breaking a tie with Hall of Famer and Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash. The Nets beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-99.

Knicks continue to struggle for form

After returning to the playoffs last season, the New York Knicks have made a rocky start to the 2021-22 campaign amid plenty of hype. They were sensationally upstaged by the lowly Orlando Magic 104-98 – their fourth defeat in six games.

Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash labelled Kevin Durant as "one of the best who has ever played the game" after the superstar's latest achievement.

Durant posted 23 points in the NBA championship-chasing Nets' 109-99 win at home to Eastern Conference rivals the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday.

Two-time champion Durant nailed two three-pointers to move 26th on the all-time NBA list with 1,687 threes, breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Nash.

"He's one of the best who has ever played the game so it's no surprise. It was coming I'm sure," Nash said after the Nets bounced back from Tuesday's blow-out loss to the league-leading Golden State Warriors.

James Harden fuelled the Nets with 27 points, while Patty Mills added 21 points to give Brooklyn four 20-point scorers for the first time this season.

The Nets have won eight of their past 10 games to be 11-5 to open the 2021-22 campaign.

"A lot of ups and downs. In the second half, we just had a meltdown and they capitalised. They made shots," Harden said post-game.

"We are fortunate they missed a lot of open shots. In the second half, they made a lot of them, so the good thing is we came away with the win and we just got to keep improving. No excuses.

"It wasn't a good showing for four quarters, but we came away with the win and we just got to keep pushing forward."

Mills added: "Nothing's gonna be handed to us on a silver platter. It's a grind, it's a marathon.

"And nights like tonight, you just got to dig deep and find a way to be infectious in a good way and be able to spread those good vibes on the court, on the bench, no matter what it is."

Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash says his side are not in the category of this season's NBA elite after a blowout 117-99 loss to the 12-2 Golden State Warriors on Tuesday.

The star-studded Nets, who were billed as title favourites this season, were humbled on their home court, with their record moving to 10-5.

The Nets added James Harden in January alongside Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant last season, but crashed out in the conference semi-finals to eventual champions the Milwaukee Bucks.

Brooklyn are 0-4 against this season's early contenders, the Warriors, Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls and Bucks.

"Well, I just don't think we're in that [elite] category yet," Nash said at the post-game news conference. "We've got a lot of work to do.

"We're trying to improve as a group, get better and hopefully we can find a way to overcome some of our deficiencies by the end of the year.

"The guys have been great buying into the things we want to do defensively. I think offensively we have all these different line-ups, different backgrounds, styles of play, 10 new players in our team, it takes time.

"We started the year with a continuity plan from last year that got thrown out when Ky [Kyrie Irving] didn't come back. Tonight was a great lesson for us that we've got to double down on some of our principles when the going gets tough."

Durant had his lowest points return for the season with 19, as the Warriors piled on a 35-18 third quarter, before benching star guard Stephen Curry, who was in foul trouble, for the majority of the final period.

Harden has had a slow start to the season by his standards after rehabbing a hamstring injury over the offseason, averaging 19.8 points per game.

The 32-year-old scored 24 points in Tuesday's defeat but remained bullish about the Nets, reiterating it is still early in the season.

"The goal is to be the best team at the end of the season, in the postseason," Harden said at the post-game news conference.

"That's the goal. But probably not [there yet]. We're probably nowhere near. But it's a long season for us to get better, and we will continue to get better."

Kevin Durant and the Warriors have already renewed acquaintances since his trophy-laden spell with the team concluded, but Tuesday sees Golden State meet his Brooklyn Nets with both harbouring realistic championship ambitions.

Durant's departure, coupled with injuries to other stars, most significantly Klay Thompson – who has missed the last two seasons – have seen the Warriors fall short of the playoffs in successive campaigns.

However, the team that reached five successive NBA Finals from 2015 to 2019, winning three titles, are seemingly back among the NBA's elite having made an 11-2 start to the campaign.

With Steph Curry once again at his brilliant best after an MVP calibre campaign in 2020-21 and squad depth substantially improved from recent years, the Warriors, who hope to welcome Thompson back to the team for the second half of the season, look to have a roster capable of returning to the Finals.

Their championship mettle figures to be sternly tested by the Nets, who have won eight of their last nine to move to 10-4, a half-game back on the Eastern Conference-leading Washington Wizards.

Unsurprisingly it is Durant, the MVP of both his victorious Finals series with the Warriors, who is leading the Nets' charge.

He is first in the NBA in points per game with 29.6, just ahead of Curry (28.1), shooting 58.6 per cent from the field and 42.4 per cent from three-point range.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr believes this is a matchup of the two MVP frontrunners in Curry and Durant.

"Yeah, no doubt, to me they've been the two best players in the league so far," Kerr told reporters on Monday.

But Durant sought to downplay the significance of the high-profile clash.

"It's just another game," Durant said. "It's 15 games into the season and obviously they're the best team in the league and they're playing at an elite level, but it's a regular-season game.

"We obviously want to go out there and win in front of our home crowd, but we don't want to put too much pressure on ourselves and call this a Finals [preview]. We just want to build on who we are, figure out what we want to do out there and keep pushing."

PIVOTAL PERFORMERS

Golden State Warriors - Andrew Wiggins

It's easy to look to Curry here. After all, he is fifth in the NBA with 41 points/assists/rebounds per game.

But similarly crucial to Golden State's early-season surge has been former first overall pick Wiggins.

He is shooting a career-high 47.8 per cent from the field, while his recent aggressiveness in getting to the basket has been rewarded with a 35-point performance against the Minnesota Timberwolves and a 28-point effort in the loss to the Charlotte Hornets last time out.

Going against Durant and Co, the Warriors will need him to maintain that aggression.

Brooklyn Nets - Patty Mills

Mills exploded for 29 points in the Nets' win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday, going nine of 12 from three-point range.

For the season, Mills is shooting 48.1 per cent from beyond the arc, putting him tied second in the league behind only Jonas Valanciunas (59.3).

In a meeting with the greatest shooter of all time in Curry, a continuation of that form from Mills would be extremely welcome for Brooklyn.

KEY BATTLE – KD to go at Green again

Durant and Draymond Green look to be friends again. A feud between the pair during the 2018-19 season appeared to contribute to Durant's departure at the end of that year, although the Nets superstar has since suggested – in an interview with Green – that the Warriors were to blame for mishandling the incident.

Green agreed; as he put it: "They f***** it up."

Still, all eyes will be on the duo every time they meet on the floor and with good reason. Green is among the best defenders of his generation; Durant is one of the very best scorers.

"Nobody is impossible to guard, but he is as close to impossible as it gets," Green said of Durant this year. Of course, it is not a matchup the forward will enjoy, but as Golden State's premier performer on that side of the ball – his defensive rating below 100 (97.8) for the first time since his Defensive Player of the Year campaign in 2016-17 – Green will have to play his part.

HEAD TO HEAD

The Nets won both meetings at a canter last season, even with Durant contributing – by his standards – a modest 42 points combined.

Unsurprisingly, the Warriors have the edge in the all-time series, up 54-39 – boosted by six wins in six in Durant's three seasons with Golden State.

Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant continues to shine in the NBA, but he is playing through a "little tweak" to his shoulder.

Durant maintained his MVP-calibre start to the season in Sunday's 120-96 rout of former team the Oklahoma City Thunder, scoring 33 points.

Despite the issue, two-time NBA champion Durant has scored at least 20 points in all 14 of his games in 2021-22 – one short of Karl Malone's record (15) set in 1997-98.

After making nine of his 17 shots from the field while collecting eight rebounds and dishing out four assists, Durant said of his shoulder: "It's solid.

"A little sore here and there, but I played, didn't get in the way too much. Keep getting treatment and take it a day at a time."

Nets head coach Steve Nash allayed concerns of Durant's shoulder post-game in Oklahoma.

"He's got a little tweak. But the ball still goes in the hole so I think he's hanging in there," Nash said.

"I don't think it's the type of thing that we expect to get worse so he's kind of playing through it, so it's not terrible."

It was a reunion for Durant, who spent eight seasons in Oklahoma City and was crowned NBA MVP before joining the Warriors in 2016.

Durant – who is 9-4 in games against his former teams – was booed by the crowd throughout the contest.

"You think about the foundation and how you built yourself up as a pro, and this is definitely the spot for me," he said. "It taught me all about what it means to be a pro.

"The people here and the organisation really guided me as a young player. That set the foundation for where I am today. There are a lot of great memories coming back, seeing a lot of people. It's good to see folks here and play in front of the crowd … I had a good time."

It was also a reunion for Nets team-mate James Harden, who started his career with the Thunder prior to moving to the Houston Rockets.

Harden – who finished with 16 points and 13 assists – and Durant were part of the Thunder team that progressed to the 2012 NBA Finals.

"It's crazy how stuff happens," Durant said. "You never thought when James got traded — I didn't know what the future would hold.

"For us to come back around on the same team as we got older is pretty sweet. ... We helped build this thing. It's good to come in here and see what it is today."

Brooklyn Nets superstars Kevin Durant and James Harden expressed their pleasure with the team's response after bouncing back to crush the Orlando Magic in the NBA on Wednesday.

After falling to the Chicago Bulls on Monday, the championship-chasing Nets routed the lowly Magic 123-90 on the road in Orlando midweek.

Durant posted 30 points on 11-of-12 shooting, while Harden had a triple-double of 17 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists to lead the Nets to their sixth win in seven games.

"That's really what you want to do — finish quarters, finish halves off the right way," said Durant, who had his sixth 30-plus game of the season. "We got to lead and we got some momentum, we got to take advantage. I think we did that."

In his 12 games this season, Durant has been averaging 29.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game, while shooting 58.5 per cent from the field and 82.9 per cent from the free-throw line. According to Stats Perform, the last player to reach all those numbers over any 12-game span was Bulls great and Hall of Famer Michael Jordan in 1988.

Harden added: "It's a long season. The quicker we can bounce back and get rid of it, the better our team will be, individually and as a collective unit. In Chicago, that quarter [the fourth quarter] was just one of those quarters.

"First three quarters we played pretty solid. We just wanted to come back, get that bad taste out of our mouth and perform tonight and we did an unbelievable job of that. Get some rest and we got two more games on this six-game road trip."

The Nets improved to 8-4 for the season as head coach Steve Nash said: "It was a solid bounce-back game from Chicago. I thought we got a little sloppy at the end of the half where we might have found some separation there.

"They responded in the third and a lot of good things. I thought we had moments on both ends of the floor where we were really good and really diligent with our game plans. I was happy with it and the guys did very well."

The Los Angeles Lakers survived to outlast the high-flying Miami Heat 120-117 in overtime as Russell Westbrook led the way in the NBA.

Westbrook posted a triple-double of 25 points, 12 rebounds and 14 assists, while team-mate Anthony Davis scored 24 points and collected 13 rebounds to fuel the Lakers (7-5) in the continued absence of LeBron James on Wednesday.

The Lakers had trailed 102-93 with less than seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter before rallying to force OT.

Malik Monk, who had a team-high 27 points, scored five of the Lakers' eight points in overtime to secure victory at Staples Center.

Double-doubles from Bam Adebayo (28 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and four assists) and Kyle Lowry (18 points and 11 assists) were not enough for the Heat (7-4), who lost Jimmy Butler to injury.

Durant reaches MJ levels, Wiggins' Warriors win 10th game

The Brooklyn Nets (8-4) crushed the Orlando Magic (3-9) 123-90 behind Kevin Durant's 30 points on 11-of-12 shooting. In his 12 games this season, Durant has been averaging 29.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game, while shooting 58.5 per cent from the field and 82.9 per cent from the free-throw line. According to Stats Perform, the last player to reach all those numbers over any 12-game span was Hall of Famer Michael Jordan in 1988. James Harden had his 59th career triple-double of 17 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.

Andrew Wiggins flexed his muscles against former team the Minnesota Timberwolves, putting up 35 points to inspire the NBA-leading Golden State Warriors (10-1) to a 123-110 victory. Anthony Edwards' career-high 48 points were not enough for the Timberwolves (3-7).

Defending champions the Milwaukee Bucks (6-6) blew a 24-point lead before overcoming the New York Knicks (7-5) 112-100. Giannis Antetokounmpo (15 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists) fell short of a triple-double.

Reeling Pelicans lose eighth straight

The New Orleans Pelicans' season went from bad to worse on Wednesday following a 108-100 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder (4-6). New Orleans – without star pair Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram – have lost eight games in a row to be a league-worst 1-11.

Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant hailed James Harden after his "special" performance in the 116-103 win over the Toronto Raptors.

Harden flirted with a triple-double, posting 28 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists as the Nets celebrated their fifth consecutive victory on Sunday.

Former NBA MVP Harden scored 16 of his points in the fourth quarter to lead the championship-chasing Nets (7-3) past the Raptors (6-5) in Toronto.

"James was special there in the fourth," Durant said post-game.

Brooklyn's Blake Griffin – who put up 14 points and 11 rebounds – added: "When he's at that level, he makes us go. We, as a team, can go to a different level."

"I thought in the first half, he didn't give himself enough credit. I thought he had opportunities to attack more. I tried to implore him to go and to be aggressive. In the second half, he was excellent," said Nets head coach Steve Nash.

"This game, the Atlanta game and games he gets to the paint, he can really cause a lot of problems for the defence."

Durant had 20 points for the 10th successive game, extending his career-best streak to begin a season and Brooklyn's record for 20-point games at the start of a campaign.

He finished with 31 points on 11-of-18 shooting from the field, making three of his six three-pointers.

"Like we said since day one, he's been unbelievable this season at both ends of the floor, rebounding, scoring, facilitating" Nash said.

Undeterred by a dreadful first quarter, the New York Knicks stormed back for a 113-98 road win against the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday. 

Trailing the defending NBA champions 38-19 after the opening period, the Knicks found their rhythm behind Julius Randle's game-high 32 points. 

Derrick Rose came off the bench to score 23 and RJ Barrett added 22 for the Knicks as they improved to 6-3 overall and 4-1 on the road.

"Obviously, you don't want to get down like we did, but we did," Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters. "It's a long game. You've got to keep fighting and get it to a manageable number. Once we got going a little bit and we made a couple hustle plays, it galvanized us and gave us energy."

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 25 points and Grayson Allen 22 for the Bucks, but Milwaukee's other three starters combined for just 15 points as the champs shot 40.2 per cent from the field and were out-rebounded 59-37. 

The Bucks (4-5) have lost four of their last five games and are 1-4 at home. 

Clippers fight back to down Timberwolves

The Los Angeles Clippers mounted an impressive comeback of their own, trailing the Minnesota Timberwolves by 21 at one point before rallying for a 104-84 victory. Paul George had 21 points, 11 rebounds and four assists to lead the Clippers (4-4), while Karl-Anthony Towns had 20 points and eight rebounds for Minnesota (3-5).

Kevin Durant's 29 points and 10 rebounds lifted the Brooklyn Nets (6-3) to a 96-90 road win against the Detroit Pistons (1-8). First overall draft pick Cade Cunningham's shooting woes continued as he went six-for-17 from the field but the rookie led the Pistons with 17. 

Stephen Curry made just five of 15 shots from the field, all but two of those attempts coming from three-point range, but the Golden State Warriors (7-1) still rolled to a 126-85 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans (1-9) thanks to 26 points from Jordan Poole. 

Morant misfires in loss to Wizards

Ja Morant has been one of the NBA's most effective scorers so far this season but the Washington Wizards (6-3) shut down the Memphis star in a 115-87 rout of the Grizzlies (5-4). Morant entered the game averaging 27.0 points and shooting 52.2 per cent from the field but made just four of 17 shots Friday on the way to an 11-point night. 

Seth Curry and Joel Embiid led the way as the shorthanded Philadelphia 76ers beat the high-flying Chicago Bulls 103-98 in a battle of the Eastern Conference contenders.

The 76ers (6-2) were without starters Tobias Harris and Danny Green, in addition to disgruntled Ben Simmons' ongoing absence, but still outlasted the Bulls in Philadelphia for their fourth successive win on Wednesday.

Curry posted 22 points, including a crucial late jumper with 10.7 seconds remaining, while the returning Embiid put up 18 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and a big block during the closing stages to deny DeMar DeRozan (joint season-high 37 points).

The 76ers – boasting an eight-game winning streak over the Bulls, their best run against the Chicago franchise since March 1984 – shot 42.9 per cent from three-point range as they swept their four-game homestand for the first time since February last year.

Chicago (6-2), who have emerged as a contender in the east after landing DeRozan, Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso in the offseason to go with Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic, overturned a double-digit deficit to level the game in the fourth period but could not complete the job.

Durant fuels streaking Nets

The Brooklyn Nets made it three wins in a row thanks to a 117-108 victory against the Atlanta Hawks and Kevin Durant's 32 points. Durant is averaging 28.3 points, a career-high 8.6 rebounds and 5.3 assists while boasting a career-best 59.2 per cent field-goal percentage.

Reigning MVP Nikola Jokic had 34 points and 11 rebounds, but missed a shot on the buzzer to send the game to overtime as the Denver Nuggets went down 108-106 at the Memphis Grizzlies.

Paul George leads the league in scoring and the Los Angeles Clippers star was behind the team's 126-115 victory against the Minnesota Timberwolves with 32 points.

Jordan Poole's second career 30-point game (31 points) led the Golden State Warriors to their sixth win in seven games, a 114-92 success against the Charlotte Hornets.

Walker's woes

There is plenty of hype around the New York Knicks, especially after bringing Kemba Walker to Madison Square Garden. However, the four-time All-Star had a game to forget in the 111-98 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Walker made just two of his 11 shots, while missing all five of his three-pointers for four points.

Kevin Durant believes star Brooklyn Nets team-mate James Harden is in good shape and his slow start to the season is due to establishing some continuity.

Harden contributed 16 points, 11 assists and four rebounds in the Nets' 117-108 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday, as he continues to build towards his best former after rehabbing a hamstring injury during the offseason.

The former NBA MVP is down on his usual scoring output – averaging 18.3 points this season, his lowest since ending his third year in the league averaging 16.8 in 2011-12 – prior to the midweek clash – compared to his career average of 25.1 points per game.

Harden got to the line once against the Hawks, while 11 of his 14 shots from the field were from three-point range.

Durant pointed to the fact Harden only joined the Nets from the Houston Rockets in January before battling injuries, playing together only 11 times last season, meaning they are still establishing continuity and cohesion.

"I think he's in good shape. I think he's playing well," Durant told ESPN after the championship-chasing Nets' third straight win. "It's a matter of us getting used to each other, figuring out line-ups and that stuff takes time.

"Continuity, we don't have a lot from last year. We're trying to build on that.

"Controlled the game from the point guard position, made shots when we needed to, it's a good win."

In contrast to Harden's form, Durant dominated with 32 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

Another former MVP, Durant has scored 20-or-more points in each of his last 21 games for the Nets and has been a key reason the Nets have started 5-3 with Kyrie Irving absent and Harden regaining form.

Durant is averaging 28.3 points (most since his final season with the Oklahoma City thunder in 2015-16), a career-high 8.6 rebounds and 5.3 assists while boasting a career-best 59.2 per cent field-goal percentage. If he maintains this level, the Nets superstar would join LeBron James as the only non-bigs to average 25 points per game on 55 per cent shooting in the last 35 seasons.

"I know we're all trying to get better as the season goes on," Durant said. "I'm not looking at the rest of the team like they've got to catch up.

"It feels like we're all growing and learning and figuring each other out every single day. It's good to see that development in real time. We'll keep grinding, that's all I've been saying."

Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash laughed off any concerns about Kevin Durant after being ejected in the side's 117-91 win over the Detroit Pistons only days after another undisciplined act.

Durant was ejected in the third quarter for an elbow to Kelly Olynyk, coming after he was fined $25,000 for throwing the ball into the stands during Friday's win over the Indiana Pacers.

The 33-year-old forward was fortunate to avoid being ejected for the offence against the Pacers.

"I would say they are just two random events," Nash told reporters when asked about Durant's mindset. "I wouldn't read too much into it. He's had a laugh about both of them and held his hand up."

On the incident, Durant admitted he was at fault for the elbow on Olynyk but defended the intent.

"I tried to run through the screen," Durant told reporters. "That was just the result of me trying to blow the screen up. If we're looking at the tape, it looks like I extended [raised his elbow] a little bit. I was just trying to blow the screen up, get over it, fight through, it is what it is."

The Nets went on an 11-0 run after Durant's ejection led by James Harden with five assists during the stretch.

Harden, who has started the season slow as he recovers after rehabbing his hamstring during the off-season, posted a triple-double with 18 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists, earning praise from Nash and Durant.

"He's improving in all areas," Nash said. "His conditioning, his explosiveness, his confidence, his feel, his rhythm, everything is moving forward in the right direction.

"You have a nice lead but momentum can swing fast. When we lost Kevin, it was important we continued to show impetus. I thought James was great. He led us in that stretch, being aggressive, making the right decisions."

Durant, who joked that his ejection ignited the team and crowd, added: "He understands the game and how to put people in good positions. It's not a surprise that he can take us on a run so fast."

Harden's triple-double comes after scoring a season-high 29 points against the Pacers, in a sign he is getting back to his best.

"I’m just playing. The confidence and just my rhythm and all that is coming back simultaneously together. It just feels much, much better," Harden said.

"I knew I was going to have a slow start because I wasn’t playing a lot. But I knew the work was going to catch up and ultimately I was going to get back to where I need to be. Game by game, I’m just feeling better. More confident, extra pep in my step. Just overall much better."