NBA roundup: Nets win showdown with Suns
Kyrie Irving had 34 points with 12 assists and Kevin Durant scored 33 points after a brief time away as the Brooklyn Nets earned a 128-119 victory over the visiting Phoenix Suns on Sunday in a showdown between two of the top teams in the NBA.
Blake Griffin scored 16 points, as the Nets backed up their standing as the top team in the Eastern Conference.
Devin Booker scored 36 for Phoenix while Deandre Ayton scored 20 with 13 rebounds as the Suns dropped consecutive games for the first time since January. Phoenix, which entered as the No. 2 team in the Western Conference, is 2-2 on a five-game East Coast trip with a final game at the New York Knicks Monday.
Durant, who entered as a substitute with eight minutes remaining in the first half, showed little rust after missing the last three games with a thigh contusion. He was 12 of 21 from the field in 28 minutes of action.
Draymond Green assisted on a go-ahead hoop by Kelly Oubre Jr. with 1:42 to play and then followed in a Stephen Curry miss 34 seconds later, helping Golden State outfinish visiting Sacramento.
A second straight win pushed Golden State over .500 in its pursuit of a playoff spot in the Western Conference and gave the Warriors a 2-1 season-series victory over their Northern California rival.
Oubre chipped in with 19 points and Andrew Wiggins 13 for the Warriors. Buddy Hield had a team-high 25 points, and Tyrese Haliburton had 24 to go with a teamhigh eight assists for the Kings, who lost for the 11th time in their last 13 games.