LEBRON AT CENTER OF WIN
LeBron James scored 29 points and played exclusively at center in the second half as the Los Angeles Lakers rallied from an eight-point halftime deficit and beat the host Orlando Magic 116-105 on Friday night.
Los Angeles coach Frank Vogel replaced starting center Dwight Howard with James to start the second half, and the Lakers opened the third quarter on a 20-2 run. They outscored Orlando 31-16 in the third, making 13 of 23 shots and 5 of 8 3-pointers in the frame.
“He’s the most unique player in the history of the game,” Vogel said of James. “We won a championship with him playing point guard two years ago, he’s been a ballhandling wing throughout his career and he’s been playing center for us. It’s pretty remarkable, and for him to be doing it at this stage of his career, it’s even more remarkable.”
Carmelo Anthony scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half and hit four 3-pointers. Stanley Johnson added 11 points off the bench.
Clippers 102, 76ers 101: Reggie Jackson scored 19 points, including two free throws with 18.2 seconds remaining, and visiting Los Angeles rallied from a 24-point second-half deficit to beat Philadelphia. Joel Embiid had 40 points, 13 rebounds and six assists.
Bucks 94, Bulls 90: Giannis Antetokounmpo had 30 points and 12 rebounds to help host Milwaukee overcome Grayson Allen’s ejection and beat Chicago. Chicago’s DeMar DeRozan scored 35 points.
Hornets 121, Thunder 98: Terry Rozier scored 24 points, Miles Bridges added 22 points and 14 rebounds, and Charlotte defeated visiting Oklahoma City. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 29 points.
Hawks 110, Heat 108: Trae Young scored 28 points, Kevin Huerter added 21 and host Atlanta won its third straight after nearly blowing an 18point lead. Bam Adebayo finished with 21 points for Miami.
Trail Blazers 109, Celtics 105: Jusuf Nurkic grabbed an offensive rebound and hit a shot from the lane with 14 seconds left and visiting Portland rallied past Boston. Nurkic had 29 points and 17 rebounds.
Raptors 109, Wizards 105: Fred VanVleet hit a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 59 seconds to play, and Toronto won after blowing an 18-point fourthquarter lead to beat host Washington.
Nets 117, Spurs 104: James Harden had 37 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, spoiling Dejounte Murray’s ninth triple-double of the season as visiting Brooklyn beat San Antonio. Murray had 25 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists for his second straight triple-double and 13th of his career, one shy of David Robinson’s franchise record.
Jazz 111, Pistons 101: Rudy Gobert scored 24 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and blocked four shots to lead host Utah to victory over Detroit. Cade Cunningham scored 25 points to lead Detroit, which lost for the third time in four games.
Grizzlies 122, Nuggets 118: Ja Morant scored 38 points and visiting Memphis overcame Nikola Jokic’s fourth straight triple-double to beat Denver. Morant set a careerhigh with 23 points in the first half and finished 15 of 26 from the field. Jokic had 26 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists.
Warriors 105, Rockets 103: Stephen Curry hit a stepback jumper from the top of the key at the buzzer as host Golden State held off a plucky, young Houston team. Curry finished with 22 points on 6 of 21 shooting. Christian Wood scored 19 to lead Houston, which had an 11-point halftime lead.