The 2014-15 NBA regular season continued on Friday, December 19 with a number of intriguing battles. There were overtime affairs, career-best performances and the continued ascent of the all-time scoring list by an active great.
Here’s how it all transpired.
1. LeBron James finished with 22 points and nine assists as the Cleveland Cavaliers escaped a scare against the Brooklyn Nets 95-91. Joe Johnson scored a game-high 26 points for the Nets, while Mike Miller had 21 points and a season-high seven 3-point field goals for the Cavaliers.
With his scoring outburst, James passed Charles Barkley for No. 23 on the all-time scoring list.
2. Damian Lillard scored a career-high 43 points and LaMarcus Aldridge posted 32 points, 16 rebounds, five steals and two blocks to help the Portland Trail Blazers get past the San Antonio Spurs 129-119 in triple-overtime. Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 32 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, four blocks and two steals—at 38 years old.
San Antonio is the first team to go to triple-overtime in consecutive games since the Baltimore Bullets in 1951.
3. Jimmy Butler picked up 31 points, 10 rebounds and two steals to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 103-97 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. Nikola Mirotic complemented Butler’s efforts with 27 points, eight rebounds and a block on 7-of-10 shooting from the field, 6-of-6 from beyond the arc and 7-of-8 from the free throw line.
This was Memphis’ first loss to an Eastern Conference team since November 19—exactly one month apart.
4. Nate Robinson scored 20 points in just 16 minutes to help the Denver Nuggets pull out a 109-106 upset of the Los Angeles Clippers. Ty Lawson had 10 points and 14 assists for Denver, while Blake Griffin put up 32 points and 12 rebounds, and Chris Paul had 17 points, 15 assists, five rebounds and three steals for Los Angeles.
Both Lawson and Paul have 14 double-doubles. Amongst point guards, only John Wall has more.
5. Despite having no scorer at or above 20 points, the Toronto Raptors picked up a 110-100 road victory over the Detroit Pistons. Jonas Valanciunas had a team-high 17 points and Kyle Lowry put up 15 points and seven dimes in 25 minutes for the red-hot Raptors.
Toronto has won five in a row and is presently atop the Eastern Conference standings.
6. Dwyane Wade and John Wall dueled as the Washington Wizards outlasted the Miami Heat 105-103. Wade scored 28 points and dished out eight assists for the Heat, while Wall put up 20 points and 10 dimes for the victorious Wizards.
Washington has won six consecutive games.
7. Russell Westbrook put up 31 points and 10 assists on 9-of-22 shooting and Reggie Jackson had 25 points on a mark of 9-of-15 from the field as the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 104-103. Ed Davis led the Lakers with 18 points, nine rebounds and two blocks, while Kobe Bryant had nine points, eight rebounds and eight assists on 3-of-15 shooting.
Westbrook has 11 games with at least 30 points and 10 assists over the past six seasons. Only LeBron James and Stephen Curry have more.
8. Shabazz Muhammad scored 26 points on 11-of-15 shooting, but the Minnesota Timberwolves fell 114-98 to the Boston Celtics. Kelly Olynyk led Boston with 21 points and Jeff Green added 18, while Chase Budinger had a season-high 19 for Minnesota.
Boston is officially 1-0 in the post-Rajon Rondo era.
9. Derrick Favors put up 23 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks as the Utah Jazz continued a quality road trip with a 101-94 victory over the Orlando Magic. Tobias Harris scored 24 points and Evan Fournier had 21 for the Magic, while Gordon Hayward tallied 20 points for the Jazz.
Utah has won consecutive games for the first time this season.
10. Kemba Walker scored a season-high 30 points as the Charlotte Hornets picked up a rare road victory against the Philadelphia 76ers, 109-91. Robert Covington and Tony Wroten both scored 19 points and Michael Carter-Williams dished out 10 assists, but the Sixers’ dreadful season continued.
Philadelphia is 0-14 at home. That’s the second-worst start in NBA history behind the 0-19 Dallas Mavericks of 1993-94.
Bonus Fact: In 2013-14, the Miami Heat were 32-9 at home. In 2014-15, Miami is 4-9 at home.