Paul helps Thunder upset Lakers; 76ers’ Simmons injured
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA. >> Chris Paul had 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 105-86 victory over the poor-shooting Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night.
Danilo Gallinari scored 19 points and Steven Adams had 18 for the Thunder (42-25), who never trailed in their first win over the Lakers in four meetings this season. Oklahoma City pulled even with Houston for the fifth seed in the Western Conference playoff picture with five games left.
LeBron James had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Lakers while dropping to 2-2 in the bubble. Los Angeles, which has already clinched the top seed in the West and the Pacific Division title, never held a lead for the first time all season.
76ERS 107, WIZARDS 98 >>Joel Embiid had 30 points and 11 rebounds, and the Philadelphia 76ers held on to beat the Washington Wizards 107-98 on Wednesday despite losing two-time All-Star Ben Simmons to a knee injury in the third quarter.
There was no immediate word from the 76ers on the extent of Simmons’ injury, which occurred as he landed awkwardly after grabbing an offensive rebound. Tobias Harris added 17 points for the 76ers.
JAZZ 124, GRIZZLIES 115 >> Joe Ingles scored 12 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, and Utah kept Memphis winless in the NBA bubble. Mike Conley had 23 points and seven assists against his former team for the Jazz, which improved to 2-2 in the seeding round.
Dillon Brooks scored 23 points as the Grizzlies dropped to 0-4 in the seeding round.
RAPTORS 109, MAGIC 99 >> Fred VanVleet had 21 points and 10 assists, and Toronto held on to beat Orlando.
Pascal Siakam added 15 points and Kyle Lowry finished with eight points, nine rebounds and 10 assists.
The Magic may be without forward Aaron Gordon after he left the game in the third quarter with a left hamstring injury after taking a hard foul from Lowry.
NUGGETS 132, SPURS 126 >> Michael Porter Jr. had 30 points and 15 rebounds, and the Denver Nuggets rallied in the fourth quar- ter to beat the San Antonio Spurs.
Nikola Jokic added 25 points and 11 assists. Jerami Grant finished with 22 points.
Porter stayed hot, scoring 10 of the Nuggets’ first 16 points against San Antonio.
TRAIL BLAZERS 110, ROCKETS 102 >> Damian Lillard scored 21 points and Carmelo Anthony hit a big 3-pointer late to help Portland beat Houston late Tuesday night.
The Blazers led by one before Lillard made one of two free throws. Anthony’s 3 then extended the lead to 107-102 when less than a minute to go.
Lillard added two free throws and Anthony, who had 15 points and 11 rebounds, made one in the final minute to secure the victory for Portland.
James Harden led Houston with 23 points and nine assists. Jeff Green added a season-high 22 points as the Rockets lost for the first time in the bubble.
NO PLAYERS CONFIRMED POSITIVE >> The NBA’s bubble is still working.
The league released its latest results for coronavirus tests performed on players participating in the restarted season at Walt Disney World, and the numbers are still perfect. Of the 343 players tested since results were last announced July 29, none has been confirmed positive.