Basketball Tips

Toronto have lost three of their last four, and their 117-138 loss to Washington on Saturday came as perhaps their most disappointing loss of the season. It was a disaster of a fourth quarter for the visitors, with Washington leading by just two points heading into the final period, but a 6-22 run meant that they streaked away with the win by a comfortable margin. Brandon Ingram had 29 points, six rebounds and two blocks in another solid display, while Sandro Mamukelashvili had another strong outing with 13 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and one block. Immanuel Quickley also had…

Sacramento got back to losing ways on Christmas Eve with a 127-136 defeat to Detroit. After a riveting overtime win over Houston in their previous outing, it was a disappointing return to losing form for Sacramento, as they quickly fell behind by 13 points in the first quarter and that blew out to a 24-point margin in the second quarter. DeMar DeRozan had another classic scoring night, with 37 points on 12/18 shooting as well as eight assists. Russell Westbrook added 27 points, six rebounds and four assists and Precious Achiuwa chipped in with 15 points, 12 rebounds, two steals…

Atlanta have lost four on the trot, which has been capped off by back-to-back home defeats against Chicago. Their 123-126 defeat on Wednesday was a heartbreaker, as they led 119-116 with less than two minutes on the clock, but they went ice cold on both ends to end the game. Atlanta led for almost the entirety of the game and had a 15-point lead late in the third, but an 18-34 fourth quarter cost them the game. Trae Young had a decent night out with 22 points and 15 assists, while Jalen Johnson finished one rebound shy of another triple-double…

Golden State have won two on the trot after a 120-97 beatdown of Orlando on Tuesday. The win was somewhat overshadowed by Draymond Green marching off the floor after an exchange with Steve Kerr, but the result was the more important thing for GS, who flexed their two-way muscle as Moses Moody, Jimmy Butler and Steph Curry each put up 20+ points. Moody was excellent on both ends, with 20 points, three assists and two blocks, while Butler had a very efficient 21 points, four assists and one block. Curry didn’t have his best shooting night, with 26 points on…

Dallas finished their brief two-game road trip with a 0-2 record after falling to New Orleans 113-119 on Tuesday. The visitors certainly had their chances in this one, leading by 11 points with just over 10 minutes to play, but an 8-25 run from New Orleans saw the game get away from Dallas, losing the game in disappointing fashion. Anthony Davis impressed with 35 points, 17 rebounds and one block, again proving that he is a force when he is healthy and Cooper Flagg was solid with 16 points, six rebounds and six assists. Klay Thompson was a little wobbly…

Cleveland have lost their last three games to be just one win above .500, with their 125-136 defeat against Chicago on Saturday dropping them to 15-14. It was their second consecutive defeat to Chicago, after losing by 16 points two days prior, and the second time around their injury report was even longer, with Donovan Mitchell joining Evan Mobley on the sidelines. Darius Garland did his best to carry his team to victory, dropping 35 points and eight assists to be the only starter with a positive plus-minus, however, the team’s defence simply couldn’t stop the visitors. After trailing by…

Brooklyn came tumbling back down after the highs of their 45-point win over Milwaukee, losing 95-106 to Miami on Friday. There were a couple of encouraging runs from Brooklyn in this clash that made it look like this game was going to go down to the wire, but they weren’t able to mount a run in the fourth to get back in front, as the visitors held on for the win. Nic Claxton was Brooklyn’s best in this one, posting 16 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists and three blocks, while Michael Porter Jr and Egor Demin were the only Brooklyn…

Denver have won six straight games after a 126-115 victory over Orlando on Friday. It was an elongated 48-13 run that saw Denver turn a 14-point deficit into a 21-point lead, in what was a dominant stretch across the second and third quarters to get the hosts the win. Jamal Murray was immense with 32 points on 7/12 from deep and Nikola Jokić was equally as impressive with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists. Cameron Johnson provided lights-out shooting, going 6/9 for 19 points and 11 boards and Jalen Pickett’s nine points and seven assists off the bench were…

New York celebrated their in-season tournament victory with a 114-113 thriller over Indiana on Friday. Jalen Brunson was the hero, drilling the game-winning step-back three with five seconds on the clock, before OG Anunoby stole the ball in the final possession of the game to ice it. It was a rather shaky showing from NY, who simply could not get into the game, but also never let the game get away from them, leaving Brunson to produce another big moment. The guard finished with 25 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals and was ably helped by backup guard…