The 2013-14 NBA regular season continued on Saturday, November 30. 14 teams were in action, a superstar turned back the hands of time, and struggling squads rebounded with road victories.
Here’s everything you need to know about last night’s games.
1. Andrew Bynum had his first monster performance of the year, putting up 20 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and five blocks in 30 minutes. It was Bynum’s first game with at least 25 minutes of action, and it offered a reminder of what he used to be as an NBA superstar.
Bynum is the first Cleveland Cavaliers player to put up at least 20 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks in a game since Shawn Kemp in 2000. It was Bynum’s first regular season double-double since April 15, 2012.
2. In the losing effort, Luol Deng finished with 27 points and 11 assists in 39 minutes. It was Deng’s second consecutive game with 27 points and the first time he’s topped 10 assists since February 16, 2012.
3. The Utah Jazz earned their first road victory of the season with a 112-104 victory over the Phoenix Suns. All five players were in double-figures and seven separate players scored at least 13 points for Utah, including rookie Trey Burke, who finished with a career-high 20.
Utah is now 3-15.
4. Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves posted his league-best 17th double-double of the season with 21 points and 11 rebounds in a 112-106 win over the Dallas Mavericks. He now has three more double-doubles through 18 games in 2013-14 than he did in 2012-13.
5. If we’re talking about the Most Outstanding Player award, Love certainly has a case for it. If we’re talking about the Most Valuable Player, however, the most compelling candidate from the Midwest is a different Kevin from Minnesota. Kevin Martin.
Martin has completely transformed the Timberwolves’ offense, and scored a game-high 27 points in the win over Dallas. Martin now has 12 games with at least 20 points after tallying 10 in 2012-13.
6. Dirk Nowitzki was 10-of-13 from the field for 23 points, and Monta Ellis put up 26 on 9-of-15 shooting for the Mavericks. It was the sixth time this season that both scored at least 20 in the same game.
Dallas is 3-3 in those games.
7. Terrence Jones grabbed a career-high 16 rebounds and James Harden scored 31 points to lead the Houston Rockets to a 112-106 win over the San Antonio Spurs.
8. Brandon Knight flirted with a triple-double with 20 points, nine rebounds and eight assists to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 92-85 win over the Boston Celtics. It was Knight’s first 20-point outing of the year and his highest assist total since Feb. 1, 2013.
9. Jared Sullinger posted his second career game with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds. He finished with 21 and 14 against the Bucks.
10. Despite playing without Paul Pierce, Deron Williams and Reggie Evans, the Brooklyn Nets earned a 97-88 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. Brooklyn is now 5-12, which still has it a long way from the postseason picture.
Bonus Fact: John Wall filled up the stat sheet with 26 points, 12 assists, six rebounds and five steals to lead the Washington Wizards to a 108-101 win over the Atlanta Hawks. Trevor Ariza added 24 points, while Nene Hilario posted 13 points and 12 rebounds for the Wizards.