NBA wRap: LeBron fumbles as Spurs beat Cavs

MANILA, Philippines – LeBron James might now have a new and improved team, but the San Antonio Spurs continue to win against him. In Brooklyn, a triple overtime duel took place while many other games around the NBA went down the wire, making for an exciting day of basketball action. All that and more in Thursday’s, November 20, NBA wRap:

San Antonio Spurs (7-4) 92 – 90 Cleveland Cavaliers (5-5)
SAS: Boris Diaw: 19 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals
CLE: Anderson Varejao: 23 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks

No Tiago Splitter? No Patty Mills? No Marco Belinelli? A delayed flight? On the road? No problem as the Spurs won despite the absence of their rotation players and playing the new-look Cavs at the Quicken Loans Arena.

Besides Diaw, Tim Duncan also filled the stat sheet with 19 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. Kawhi Leonard finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals, and played fantastic defense on LeBron James who struggled with 15 points on 6-of-17 shooting.

James also had the most critical turnover (he finished with 5) of the game when the ball was stolen from him with a few seconds left in the fourth quarter:

Kyrie Irving finished with 20 points, while Kevin Love scored 10. Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili combined for 15 points.

I know we keep showing highlights like this, but they’re still pretty cool:

Indiana Pacers (5-7) 88 – 86 Charlotte Hornets (4-8)
IND: Roy Hibbert: 18 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists
CHA: Al Jefferson: 28 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists

Lance Stephenson made his return to Indiana on Thursday and registered 10 points (4-of-12 shooting), 8 rebounds, and 7 assists. However, the Hornets still lost thanks to this game-winning putback from Indiana’s second year guard Solomon Hill:

Tweet of the Day:

The @Pacers mob Solomon Hill after his game-winning lay-up at the buzzer that beat @Hornets 88-86. See @indystar pic.twitter.com/o5vqSLqns8

— Charlie Nye (@CharlieNyePhoto) November 20, 2014

On the flip side, that improved Indy’s record to 5-7 this season. On the down side? The more wins they get, the farther they are from acquiring a top pick in next year’s draft, where Jahil Okafor, a top NBA prospect, is going to be available.

Here’s other good news for the Pacers: it looks like Paul George is back and actively working with the franchise. Just two things: one, he still isn’t playing; two, he might have changed his name:

Paul George found a way to stay involved with the Pacers while he’s injured. (via @PacersDMB) http://t.co/8QplfoI9J1 pic.twitter.com/cyjVyfMYoX

— SB Nation NBA (@SBNationNBA) November 19, 2014

Los Angeles Clippers (6-4) 114 – 90 Orlando Magic (5-8)
LAC: Jamal Crawford: 22 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists
ORL: Nikola Vucevic: 19 points, 14 rebounds, 2 assists

Boston Celtics (4-6) 101 – 90 Philadelphia 76ers (0-11)
BOS: Jared Sullinger: 22 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists
PHI: Tony Wroten: 21 points, 7 assists, 3 rebounds

Dallas Mavericks (9-3) 105 – 102 Washington Wizards (7-3)
DAL: Monta Ellis: 34 points, 4 assists, 1 rebound
WAS: Bradley Beal: 21 points, 3 assists, 3 rebounds

Bradley Beal made his season debut with 21 points, but the Wizards were unable to pull out the win thanks to the hot-shooting night of Ellis and the impressive fourth quarter from JJ Barea, who finished the game with 14 points and 6 assists.

Dallas big man Brandan Wright, who had 14 points and 6 rebounds, also completed this emphatic dunk on the break:

For your defensive highlight of the day, watch John Wall sky and send Chandler Parson’s shot attempt out of bounds:

Phoenix Suns (7-5) 88 – 86 Detroit Pistons (3-9)
PHX: Eric Bledsoe: 18 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists
DET: Greg Monroe: 18 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists

The game was ultimately decided when Pistons guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope missed a potential game-winning three-ball with a few seconds remaining on the game clock. KCP was open, which isn’t the type of defense Phoenix would want to play considering they were up by only two. However, Suns forward Markieff Morris said they didn’t mind KCP taking the shot, and a lot more: 

Markieff Morris: "KCP got it and you know he doesn’t have any heart so we knew he was going to miss it."

— Vincent Goodwill (@vgoodwill) November 20, 2014

Toronto Raptors (9-2) 96 – 92 Memphis Grizzlies (10-2)
TOR: Kyle Lowry: 18 points, 7 assists, 3 rebounds
MEM: Marc Gasol: 22 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists

The game went down the wire and was eventually decided by a Lowry step-back jumper with four seconds left. But the real highlight of the game took place before the first quarter tipped-off, when the Raptors showed a tribute video for their former superstar Vince Carter:

Carter was obviously moved by the highlight and teared up. It was definitely a fantastic moment for him, and other nostalgic fans.

Minnesota Timberwolves (3-7) 115 – 99 New York Knicks (3-10)
MIN: Kevin Martin: 37 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists
NYK: Carmelo Anthony: 20 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist

The T-Wolves won the game despite the absence of Thad Young, Ricky Rubio, and Nikola Pekovic. The Knicks have now lost 9 of their last 10 games, falling to seven games below .500.

Highlight of the Day:

Milwaukee Bucks (7-5) 122 – 118 Brooklyn Nets (4-7)
MIL: Giannis Antetokounmpo: 18 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals
BKN: Brook Lopez: 26 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks

This game went to triple overtime, so many players filled the stat sheets.

For Brooklyn, Joe Johnson had 18 points, 8 assists, and 5 rebounds. Deron Williams finished with 18, 7, and 5. Bojan Bogdanovic put up 19 points and 7 boards.

From Milwaukee’s side, rookie Jabari Parker gave Bucks fans another reason to be excited with his 23-point, 7-rebound performance. Brandon Knight had 18 points and 8 assists, but he has to feel lucky Milwaukee won after he blew a WIDE-OPEN game-winning layup:

What was even funnier than the miss was the initial reaction of Milwaukee’s bench when they first thought they were about to win, followed by their disappointment when Knight missed the shot:

Nonetheless, the Bucks still won, and the Greek Freak was one happy camper after the game:

Denver Nuggets (4-7) 107 – 100 Oklahoma City Thunder (3-10)
DEN: Ty Lawson: 15 points, 15 assists, 1 rebound
OKC: Reggie Jackson: 16 points, 9 assists, 7 rebounds

Los Angeles Lakers (3-9) 98 – 92 Houston Rockets (9-3)
LAL: Kobe Bryant: 29 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds
HOU: James Harden: 24 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds

Los Angeles improved to 3-9 by using a late run in the fourth quarter to take down the Dwight Howard-less Rockets (missed the game due to a strained knee). LA will aim to increase their winning streak to three games when they take on the surging Dallas Mavericks on Sunday, November 23.

Mark Cuban recently said he hopes the Lakers “suck forever.” This was the same guy who suggested LAL should amnesty Kobe Bryant a few seasons back. Clearly, Dallas vs. Los Angeles on Sunday will be a matchup to watch out for.

The Lakers are undefeated with Nick Young in their lineup after two games. According to him, their wins are a result of his “swag” rubbing off on the team. While that may not exactly be the case, he did have this entertaining reverse layup:

His defense, however, could use some work:

Fantasy Line of the Day: The Greek Freak was all over the place on Thursday. He had 18 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals. He turned the ball over twice in 48 minutes, was 7-of-11 from the field, and went 4-of-8 from the FT line.

– Rappler.com