Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 39 points on Monday in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s win over the Atlanta Hawks, the San Antonio Spurs suffered another defeat against the ClevelandCavaliers, and Nikola Jokic left the Miami Heat-Denver Nuggets game with a knee injury.
The Thunder (28-5) are determined to prove that their losses to the Spurs were just a Christmas blip. On Monday, they defeated the Hawks (15-19) 140-129, a team immersed in trade rumors involving Trae Young and Zaccharie Risacher.Gilgeous-Alexander shone in the Thunder’s triumph at the same time that his great rival for the MVP, Jokic, was injured in Miami. The Canadian scored 39 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals.Chet Holmgren contributed 24 points, Jalen Williams 20, Cason Wallace 17 and Alex Caruso 16.
Shai’s cousin, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, led the Hawks with 30 points, while Onyeka Okongwu had a double-double for Atlanta with 26 points and 14 rebounds. Czech Vit Krejci contributed another 18.
Young did not play due to a blow to his right thigh, while Risacher was a starter and contributed 12 points
Spurs, from heaven to earth
Victor Wembanyama and company have gone in four days from being the team of the moment in the NBA after beating the Thunder twice in 48 hours to two defeats that generate many doubts about their regularity.
The Spurs (23-9) fell 101-113 to the Cavaliers (18-16) after also losing at home to the Utah Jazz in two games in which they were very inaccurate in shooting.
Jarrett Allen had a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds and Darius Garland also finished with a double-double with 15 points and 11 assists. Donovan Mitchell, the Cavs’ star, had to settle for 10 points, with a 3 of 12 shooting from the field
For the Spurs, he finished with 26 points and 14 rebounds, Stephon Castle contributed 15 points and De’Aaron Fox 14.
Jokic’s knee injury keeps Denver on edge
The Nuggets lost 147-123 in Miami, but that was the least of the Denver franchise’s concerns at the end of the game: their star, three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, had to leave the court in a lot of pain with a knee injury.
The injury occurred seconds before the break, when, in a defensive action, his teammate Spencer Jones stepped on the Serbian’s left foot and caused his knee to bend. Jokic went to the ground immediately, to parade shortly after to the locker room on his own foot, although limping.
The Nuggets announced that Jokic would not return. He will be evaluated on Tuesday to determine the extent of the injury. Before leaving the court, he had 21 points, eight assists and five rebounds.
The Serbian is averaging 29.9 points, 12.4 rebounds and 11.1 assists per game this season, with 16 triple-doubles, and is so far the heavy favorite to be crowned ‘MVP’ for the fourth time.
In addition to the duels in Oklahoma City, San Antonio and Miami, on Monday the New York Knicks defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 125-130 and are just one win away from the Detroit Pistons, leaders of the Eastern Conference.
In Chicago, the Minnesota Timberwolves humiliated the Bulls 101-136, while the Milwaukee Bucks picked up their second consecutive victory after the return of Giannis Antetokounmpo to defeat the Charlotte Hornets 113-123.
The Phoenix Suns beat the Washington Wizards 101-115 and the Houston Rockets won 126-119 against the Indiana Pacers with 30 points from Kevin Durant
The Toronto Raptors defeated the Orlando Magic 107-106 despite a triple-double from Paolo Banchero (23 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists), and the Golden State Warriors defeated the Nets in Brooklyn 107-120.
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