Kyrie Irving scored 36 points in a stellar return to Brooklyn and Luka Doncic fell just short of a triple-double in the Dallas Mavericks’ 119-107 win over the Nets on Tuesday.
Irving, acquired from the Nets exactly one year ago, shot 15 of 24 from the field, was 4 of 11 on 3-pointers and handed out five assists in his second game back after missing six with a sprained right thumb.
Doncic had 35 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists to come up short for his 10th triple-double of the season.
Mikal Bridges scored 28 points and Royce O’Neal added 18 for Brooklyn, which cut a 23-point deficit to 107-101 with roughly five minutes left before Irving hit two straight 3s for a 113-101 advantage.
Brunson hurts ankle in Knicks’ win
Jalen Brunson had 27 points and eight assists before leaving with an ankle injury and Donte DiVincenzo had 32 points as the New York Knicks held off the Memphis Grizzlies, 123-113.
Brunson appeared to injure his ankle when he was fouled by G.G. Jackson with 5:31 remaining. The Knicks did not have an update postgame.
Isaiah Hartenstein had 17 points and eight rebounds and Precious Achiuwa added 17 as the Knicks won for the 10th time in 11 games to move to 16-3 in their last 19.
Vince Williams Jr. led seven players in double figures with 19 points, but Memphis lost its sixth straight game to match a season high.
Suns’ star trio delivers in win
Devin Booker scored 32 points and Kevin Durant had 28 and 10 rebounds as the Phoenix Suns pushed past the short-handed Milwaukee Bucks, 114-106.
Bradley Beal added 25 points and 10 rebounds and Jusuf Nurkic had 10 points with 10 boards as the Suns won their third in four games despite missing 20 of 28 from 3-point range.
Giannis Antetokoumpo led Milwaukee with 34 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, but the Bucks dropped to 1-4 since hiring coach Doc Rivers.
Damian Lillard missed the game with a sprained ankle and starting center Brook Lopez was out for personal reasons. Forward Khris Middleton left in the first quarter with a sprained ankle.
Knicks star Brunson fractures hand in Game 7 loss to Pacers
Jalen Brunson's Game 7 ended with a fractured left hand.
Shortly later, the New York Knicks' season ended.
Brunson sustained a broken left hand and sat out the fourth quarter in the Knicks' 130-109 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.
With the win, the Pacers reached the Eastern Conference finals, where they'll face the top-seeded Boston Celtics.
Brunson, who had averaged 31.8 points and 5.7 assists in the first six games of the series against Indiana, had 17 points on 6-of-17 shooting and nine assists before exiting.
Instrumental to New York's success in 2023-24, Brunson finished fifth in NBA MVP voting during the regular season after averaging 28.7 points, 6.7 assists and 3.6 rebounds.
Doncic 'one of best in the world' - Kidd praises star man after Mavericks win
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd hails Luka Doncic as “one of the best players in the world” after the Dallas Mavericks made it to the Western Conference finals.
P.J. Washington Jr. sank two free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining to seal a 117-116 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday to send them to the finals with a 4-2 series win.
Doncic finished with 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his third-straight triple-double to help Dallas on their way, with Kyrie Irving and Derrick Jones Jr. each adding 22 points as they rallied from a 17-point deficit in the third quarter.
Kidd praised Doncic for another inspired performance after the game, saying: "He's one of the best players in the world, but sometimes we lose sight that it's not just built [around Doncic].
"One guy can't get you there. You need a team. Right now, he's got a team that he believes in."
Doncic is just the fifth player to have three straight playoff triple-doubles in history, and he wants to soak in what he describes as a tough win.
"We won the series. That's what matters in the end," Doncic said.
"We won 4-2, [even though] we didn't have home advantage. It's great that we won, but just struggles are going to come. You got to stay positive and keep hooping.
"Today is about today's game, and tomorrow we'll think about the conference finals.
"I think we should all enjoy this, because this, I would say, was a really hard series."
Kyrie Irving matches his scoring high for the series with his 22 points, but was quick to admire Washington’s late impact.
"I think he [Washington] was just waiting for his moment.
"He's played well the majority of the series, so we had some confidence in him that eventually he would make some big-time shots and grateful that he knocked them down. Man, that's just pure confidence and belief."
NBA: Washington's late free throws send Mavericks to Western Conference finals
P.J. Washington Jr. sank two free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining and the Dallas Mavericks rallied for a 117-116 victory over the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday to reach the Western Conference finals for the second time in three seasons.
With the Thunder ahead 116-115 after Chet Holmgren’s dunk, Washington pump-faked to get Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the air and the whistle blew as his shot fell short.
After the Thunder’s challenge was unsuccessful, Washington made the first two free throws before intentionally missing the third. Jalen Williams’ desperation heave at the buzzer wasn’t close.
Luka Dončić had 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his third straight triple-double and Kyrie Irving and Derrick Jones Jr. each added 22 points for Dallas, which rallied from a 17-point deficit in the third quarter.
The Mavericks will face the winner of the Minnesota-Denver series with that headed to Game 7 on Sunday.
Gilgeous-Alexander had 36 points and Williams finished with 22, nine rebounds and eight assists. The Thunder lost four of five games following a 5-0 start to the playoffs.
Holmgren’s dunk with 8:26 left in the third extended the Thunder’s lead to 77-60, but Doncic and Irving combined for the next 13 points to make it 77-73.
The final sequence capped a fourth quarter that had five lead changes and two ties in the final five minutes.
Irving improved to 14-0 in closeout games in his career and had a 3-pointer to get Dallas within two midway through the fourth, the closest it had been since the second quarter.
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