Postponed games are rescheduled
The NBA has rescheduled all 11 games that were postponed in December for virus-related reasons and either shifted the times or dates of 10 other games to help accommodate those changes.
Toronto had six games affected, Chicago had five and Brooklyn had four. In all, 18 of the league’s 30 teams had at least one game date changed by the postponements or future adjustments, all of which were revealed Monday.
There are now seven teams that have at least one stint of playing four games in five nights: Chicago, Toronto, Brooklyn, Cleveland, Miami, New Orleans and Denver. The original NBA schedule didn’t call for any such stretches, though it was unavoidable with the changes.
Among the other changes: the anticipated return of former Raptors guard Kyle Lowry to Toronto. It was scheduled for Feb. 3 and now will happen on Feb. 1, when Miami is now slated to make its first appearance there this season. It’s still unclear if fans will be at that game; officials in Ontario have limited attendance to 1,000 in the Raptors’ home arena.
And the All-Star break for Brooklyn and Washington got one day shorter, with the league rescheduling a postponed Wizardsat-Nets game to Feb. 17. Both teams were originally slated to play their pre-AllStar finales a day earlier.
The NBA was down to 80 players known to be in the health and safety protocols related to the coronavirus Monday night, a significant drop from the middle of last week when the list peaked around 125 players. Many teams also have staff in the protocols, including some coaches.
GRIZZLIES 118, NETS 104
Ja Morant scored 36 points and five Grizzlies scored in double figures as Memphis extended its winning streak to five games.
Kevin Durant led the Nets with 26 points on 8-for-24 shooting from the field, including 2 for 8 from 3-point range. James Harden added 19 points in 5-for-14 shooting.
PISTONS 115, BUCKS 106
Saddiq Bey scored a career-high 34 points, and visiting Detroit ended Milwaukee’s six-game winning streak.
Detroit owns the NBA’s worst record (7-28) but beat the reigning NBA champions and ended its recent futility in the series.
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 31 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.
WIZARDS 124, HORNETS 121
Kyle Kuzma had a season-high 36 points and 14 rebounds and Bradley Beal scored 35 points in host Washington’s win over Charlotte.
Charlotte (19-19), which lost to Phoenix by a season-high 34 points on Sunday, was led by Gordon Hayward’s 27 points.
BULLS 102, MAGIC 98
DeMar DeRozan scored 29 points, Zach LaVine added 27 and host Chicago won its eighth straight.
Franz Wagner led Orlando with 22 points.
MAVERICKS 103 NUGGETS 89
Luka Doncic had 21 points and matched a season high with 15 assists for host Denver.
Nikola Jokic had 27 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Nuggets, who had a three-game winning streak snapped.
JAZZ 115, PELICANS 104
Donovan Mitchell scored 29 points, Bojan Bogdanovic added 21, and visiting Utah extended its road winning streak to nine games.
Rudy Gobert had 10 points and 18 rebounds for the Jazz, who led by as many as 15 points in the fourth quarter.
WARRIORS 115, HEAT 108
Jordan Poole scored a game-high 32 points off the bench for host Golden State. Kyle Lowry had 16 points and 11 assists for Miami.
TRAIL BLAZERS 136 HAWKS 131
Trae Young’s 56 points and 14 assists weren’t enough to lift visiting Atlanta. Anfernee Simons’ 43 points led five Portland players who scored in double figures.
TIMBERWOLVES 122 CLIPPERS 104
Anthony Edwards’ game-high 28 points led visiting Minnesota, which led 64-46 at halftime. Serge Ibaka led Los Angeles with 17 points.