HOOPS: Thunder throttle Warriors

In Oakland, Calif., Russell Westbrook had 34 points, nine rebounds and nine assists to get the better of old buddy and teammate Kevin Durant, Paul George scored 38 points, and the Thunder embarrassed the defending champion Warriors 125-105 on Tuesday night to snap a four-game losing streak. Durant scored 33 points but didn’t get as much help from the cold-shooting Splash Brothers of Stephen

Curry and Klay Thompson, who added 21 and 12 points, respectively. After team president Magic Johnson praised the Bucks’

Giannis Antetokounmpo in an interview with ESPN, the Lakers were fined $50,000 for another violation of the NBA’s anti-tampering rule.

This is the second time this season the Lakers have been fined for tampering. They paid the league in August $500,000 for contact with Paul George’s agent despite a warning about a possible infraction.

The Wizards are shopping center Marcin Gortat, according to ESPN, with Clippers center DeAndre Jordan said to be on the team’s radar. ... Mavericks guard Seth Curry is expected to have season-ending surgery on his left tibia to repair a fracture, according to ESPN. Curry is expected to be healthy by the start of free agency in July.

Jonathon Simmons scored 22 of his career-high 34 points in the third quarter and the Magic overcame a 21-point deficit to beat the reeling Cavaliers, 116-98 in Orlando, Fla. The Cavaliers scored 43 points in the first quarter, then went almost 6¹/2 minutes without scoring in the fourth and lost for the 14th time in 21 games. LeBron James had 25 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for the Cavaliers, but did not have a rebound or an assist in a foul-plagued second half.

The Liberty’s sale plans are on quasi hold. Though they are still for sale, sources indicated it’s looking like they will play this season at the Garden and will operate with the current management and coaching staff in placed. Last fall, the Liberty announced the Garden was selling the team. — Marc Berman