A LITTLE ENGLISH ON THE BASKETBALL?
The Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers play today in London. It’s a chance to market the upcoming AllStar Game and the league’s future.
LONDON — When the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers play today in London, they’ll both be looking to leave a mark on the league’s global stage.
For the teams, that’s the obvious payoff.
It’ll also provide a reminder of the league’s future.
A number of the players — including Kyrie Irving and Joel Embiid — set to take the court at the O2 Arena are also likely to appear in February’s All-Star Game, some surely going to be bolstered by votes they get from those fans in London and watching worldwide. And the amount of young talent that will be on display makes this the most hotly anticipated matchup of the eight regular-season games that have taken place in England.
“I’m appreciative of all fan votes. I’m just a fan of basketball, a fan of sport and now I get to mark off my bucket of playing at the O2 Arena,” said Irving, who is averaging 24.1 points per game to lead the Celtics to a 33-10 start and the top spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
“I can’t wait for that experience and to have the opportunity to come here to Europe and especially London and to grow the game of basketball for the NBA.”
Wednesday games
CLIPPERS 125, WARRIORS 106: In Oakland, Calif., the Clippers’ Lou Williams scored 50 points as Los Angeles beat Golden State after overcoming a nine-point deficit.
Early in the game, the Warriors’ Kevin Durant, 29, became the second youngest player in NBA history to reach 20,000 career points, behind only LeBron James. MAVERICKS 115, HORNETS 111: In Charlotte, N.C., Harrison Barnes had 25 points and 11
rebounds, Yogi Ferrell made seven 3-pointers and scored 22 points and Dallas fended off fatigue to beat Charlotte.
Dirk Nowitzki added 19 points for the Mavericks, and Dennis Smith Jr. had 15.
The Mavericks were playing their third game in four days, while the Hornets were coming off a four-day layoff.
HEAT 114, PACERS 106: In Indianapolis, Goran Dragic scored 20 points and Wayne Ellington made the decisive 3-pointer with 23.2 seconds left, helping Miami fend off Indiana’s late push for a victory.
It’s the sixth straight win for the Heat.
JAZZ 107, WIZARDS 104: In Washington, Ricky Rubio scored 21 points and Donovan Mitchell had 16 as Utah completed a season sweep over Washington with a win.
Ekpe Udoh scored 16 points and Joe Johnson had 16 off the bench for the Jazz, who had lost 13 of 16 in between meetings with Washington. The Wizards were embarrassed 116-69 in Utah on Dec. 4. BULLS 122, KNICKS 119 (2OT): In New York, Rookie Lauri Markkanen scored a season-high 33 points, Kris Dunn shook off a nightmarish shooting night to make the tie-breaking basket in the second overtime, and Chicago beat New York.
Dunn had missed 14 of his first 17 shots before banking in a runner with just under a minute left in the second extra period, and Markkanen finished it off by making two free throws with 6.8 seconds remaining.
PISTONS 114, NETS 80: In New York, Andre Drummond and Tobias Harris carried Detroit to an easy road win in Brooklyn.
Drummond scored 22 points and grabbed 20 rebounds and Harris had 22 points. GRIZZLIES 105, PELICANS 102: In Memphis, Tenn., Tyreke Evans scored 28 points, including a pair of free throws with 5.9 seconds left, that helped Memphis beat the New Orleans.
Marc Gasol finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds for Memphis. JaMychal Green contributed 20 points and 14 rebounds. TIMBERWOLVES 104, THUNDER 88: In Minneapolis, the Timberwolves beat the Thunder for the third time in four games this season. BUCKS 110, MAGIC 103: In Milwaukee, Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 26 points, Khris Middleton added 22 and Milwaukee turned up their defensive intensity after a porous first quarter to beat the Orlando. ROCKETS 121, TRAIL BLAZERS 112: In Houston, Chris Paul scored a season-high 37 points and Eric Gordon added 30 as Houston withstood a late run to get a win over Portland. HAWKS 110, NUGGETS 97: In Denver, Dennis Schroder had 19 points and 10 assists, Taurean Prince scored 16 and Atlanta beat Denver, ending a 10-game road losing streak.