Out of respect for Kobe Bryant’s family, the Los Angeles Lakers, and their fans – all going through this time with heavy hearts – and the loss that the L.A. and global community lost in Kobe Bryant and Gianna Bryant, the NBA has gracefully chosen to postpone tonight Los Angeles Clippers – Los Angeles Lakers basketball game to a later, undecided date.
R.I.P. Kobe and Gianna
We know you are watching over us all from on high – the best seats in the house.
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Cleveland Cavaliers 115
Detroit Pistons 100
Though Kevin Love opened up the game by scoring all of his points in the first half, the Cleveland Cavaliers needed a 36-27 third quarter to pass the Detroit Pistons and left them in the rearview in a 15 point win on the road last night. Collin Sexton led all scorers with 23 and Tristan Thompson added 17, Larry Nance Jr. finished with 16 in the Cavaliers’ 13th win of the season.
| CAVALIERS (13-34) 14th in the East | PISTONS (17-31) 10th in the East |
| Collin Sexton 23 points – three rebounds – five assists | Reggie Jackson 16 points – two rebounds – two assists – one steal |
| Kevin Love 20 points – seven rebounds – two assists | Andre Drummond 15 points – eight rebounds – four assists – three steals – two blocks |
| Tristan Thompson 17 points – 11 rebounds – one assist | Svi Mykhailiuk 13 points – two rebounds – one assist |
NEXT GAMES
Pelicans at Cavaliers – Tonight
Pistons at Nets – Wednesday
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Orlando Magic 92
Miami Heat 113
For a hot minute, the Toronto Raptors took the Miami Heat’s place at second on the Eastern Conference. All Miami did was have a night where they weren’t scheduled. When they were last night, they took it right back with a 21 point win against in-state rival Orlando. Miami overwhelmingly outscored the Magic in the first, third and fourth quarters to walk away with the win. Its 32nd of the season. These two teams tee it up in Orlando again on Saturday.
| MAGIC (21-27) 7th in the East | HEAT (32-14) 2nd in the East |
| Nikola Vucevic 13 points – 12 rebounds – four assists – one steal – one block | Duncan Robinson 21 points – five rebounds – one assist |
| Aaron Gordon 13 points – seven rebounds – one block | Bam Adebayo 20 points – 10 rebounds – 10 assists – one steal |
| Markelle Fultz 12 points – four rebounds – seven assists – two steals | Jimmy Butler 19 points – three rebounds – seven assists – one steal – one block |
NEXT GAMES
Celtics at Heat – Tonight
Heat at Magic – Saturday
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San Antonio Spurs 109
Chicago Bulls 110
After taking a 50-48 lead into the locker room at the half, the Chicago Bulls had to fight back from a 10 point deficit going into the fourth period as the San Antonio Spurs found life and executed a 37-25 run in the third. But the Bulls reversed their fortunes in the fourth quarter and ran off a 35-24 11 point run of their own to take their 19th win of the season. The run was fueled by Zach LaVine scoring 14 of his 23 points in the period. Seven Bulls contributed in double figures to the win.
| SPURS (20-26) 9th in West | BULLS (19-30) 9th in the East |
| DeMar DeRozan 36 points – 10 rebounds – three assists | Zach LaVine 23 points – six rebounds – two assists – one block |
| Patty Mills 25 points – one rebound – two assists – two steals | Denzel Valentine 16 points – four rebounds – three assists |
| Jakob Poeltl 16 points – 13 rebounds – one assist – three blocks | Thaddeus Young 13 points – nine rebounds – two assists |
NEXT GAMES
Jazz at Spurs – Wednesday
Bulls at Pacers – Wednesday
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Sacramento Kings 133
Minnesota Timberwolves 129 (OT)
You’d have never saw this game on the schedule and think it was going to be the most exciting game of the night. You’d have never thought you’d see the Minnesota Timberwolves open up a 68-50 first half advantage and lose a game. Or that the Sacramento Kings had a 69-51 run in them to knot things up at 119-119 and force an overtime which they took, 14-10. Buddy Hield scored a career high on a night when Karl-Anthony Towns was the Timberwolves’ third leading scorer. In the end, the game means nothing – but it was one of the most fun games of the night to watch. The Kings are now allowed to return home, where they haven’t been since January 15th.
| KINGS (17-29) 13th in the West | TIMBERWOLVES (15-32) 14th in the West |
| Buddy Hield 42 points – five rebounds – three assists | Andrew Wiggins 36 points – nine rebounds – eight assists – one block |
| De’Aaron Fox 22 points – seven rebounds – eight assists – one steal – two blocks | Robert Covington 24 points – seven assists (fouled out) |
| Nemanja Bjelica 20 points – nine rebounds – eight assists – two steals – three blocks | Karl-Anthony Towns 23 points – eight rebounds – three assists – one steal – one block |
NEXT GAMES
Thunder at Kings – Wednesday
Timberwolves at Clippers – Saturday
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Dallas Mavericks 107
Oklahoma City Thunder 97
The 10 point margin of victory was a theme for the Dallas Mavericks nearly all throughout the game in Oklahoma City last night. The Mavericks led the Oklahoma City Thunder by double digits nearly all evening, despite an 11-0 run by the Thunder in the second half. It was the first game in the Thunder’s last five when Luguentz Dort has started and the Thunder had lost. They had won their previous four when Dort started and was assigned to guard the opposing team’s best player. Luka Doncic shot 41.7 percent and scored a game high 29 to lead Dallas to the win. The Thunder, despite the loss, are within two games of the sixth seed, occupied by the Houston Rockets.
| MAVERICKS (29-17) 5th in the West | THUNDER (28-20) 7th in the West |
| Luka Doncic 29 points – 11 rebounds – five assists | Dennis Schroder 21 points – seven rebounds – six assists – one steal – one block |
| Tim Hardaway, Jr. 15 points – three rebounds | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 16 points – 11 rebounds – four assists – one block |
| Delon Wright 14 points – 12 rebounds – four assists – one steal | Danilo Gallinari 14 points – five rebounds – six assists – one steal |
NEXT GAMES
Suns at Mavericks – Tonight
Thunder at Kings – Wednesday
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Houston Rockets 126
Utah Jazz 117
Are the Utah Jazz uncomfortable in that second seed in the Western Conference? They’ve been there twice in the last 10 days, but fallen out just as fast. Or maybe the Houston Rockets don’t want the upstart Oklahoma City Thunder displacing them in the West. Thing was, James Harden (bruised left thigh), Russell Westbrook (load management), and Clint Capela (bruised heel) weren’t playing last night. If I’m the Jazz, I’m embarrassed getting beaten so badly by Eric Gordon, Austin Rivers, and Danuel House, Jr. If I’m the Houston Rockets, I’m looking for games like this from each of these guys going forward.
| ROCKETS (29-17) 6th in the West | JAZZ (32-14) 4th in the West |
| Eric Gordon 50 points – six rebounds – three assists – two steals – one block | Donovan Mitchell 36 points – three rebounds – four assists – three steals |
| Danuel House, Jr. 21 points – 11 rebounds – two assists – five steals | Bojan Bogdanovic 30 points – one rebound – two assists |
| Austin Rivers 21 points – four rebounds – one assist – one steal – two blocks | Rudy Gobert 12 points – 14 rebounds – one steal – two blocks |
NEXT GAMES
Rockets at Blazers – Wednesday
Jazz at Spurs – Wednesday
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TUESDAY’S LINEUP
(All Times Eastern)
| 7 p.m. New York Knicks Charlotte Hornets Fox Sports Southeast | 7 p.m. Golden State Warriors Philadelphia 76ers TNT | 7:30 p.m. New Orleans Pelicans Cleveland Cavaliers Fox Sports Ohio |
| 7:30 p.m. Atlanta Hawks Toronto Raptors Fox Sports Southeast | 8 p.m. Boston Celtics Miami Heat NBC Sports Boston | 8 p.m. Denver Nuggets Memphis Grizzlies Fox Sports Southeast |
| 8 p.m. Washington Wizards Milwaukee Bucks NBC Sports Washington | 8:30 p.m. Phoenix Suns Dallas Mavericks Fox Sports Arizona | 9:30 p.m. Los Angeles Clippers Los Angeles Lakers TNT – Postponed |
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Tracy Graven is a Senior NBA Analyst for BackSportsPage.com.
He has written the NBA, and done NBA radio, for the last two decades for HoopsWorld, Swish Magazine, and HoopsHype, the Coach Scott Fields Show and NBARadioShow.com, and is also tackling the NFL, NCAA, and will be pinch-hitting on some Major League Baseball coverage for BackSportsPage.
He’s spent 20 years in locker rooms in Orlando, Boise (G League), San Antonio, Phoenix, and Oklahoma City.
A corporate trainer by day, he currently resides in Tennessee.
Reach him on Twitter at @RealTMoneyMedia
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