Joel Embiid had 42 points as he inspired the Philadelphia 76ers to a 123-120 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
With James Harden having arrived to bolster the 76ers' championship bid, but still missing due to a hamstring injury, Embiid served up a reminder of just how crucial he is with another supreme display on Thursday.
This time, it was reigning NBA champions the Bucks who were on the receiving end of a masterful showing from the 27-year-old, who also tallied up 14 rebounds and five assists.
The Bucks came close, though, and had their own MVP to thank for that – Giannis Antetokounmpo helping himself to a double-double of 32 points and 11 rebounds, while also contributing nine assists.
Embiid, fittingly, put Philadelphia ahead for good with a 10-foot shot in the final quarter.
It marked a valuable return to form for the 76ers, who can enter the All-Star break on a high despite Tuesday's dismal 135-87 defeat to the Boston Celtics. They are third in the Eastern Conference with a 35-23 record, while the Bucks sit fifth (36-24).
Doncic downs Pelicans
Anything Embiid or Antetokounmpo can do, Luka Doncic is out to do it better.
The Dallas Mavericks star had 49 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists in a 125-118 defeat of the New Orleans Pelicans.
Doncic has now had 45 points or more in three of his last four games for Dallas, who enter the break in fifth place in the West.
Nets back to losing ways
After snapping an 11-game losing streak with victories over the Sacramento Kings and New York Knicks, the Brooklyn Nets fell to a 117-103 reverse in Washington.
Rui Hachimura led the way for the Wizards with 20 points, as they moved to 2-2 for their series against the Nets this season.
The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Houston Rockets to win for a third time in their last four games, while the Miami Heat were overtime winners over the Charlotte Hornets.
Celtics star Tatum aims for NBA Finals redemption
Jayson Tatum views the upcoming NBA Finals as a chance at redemption for the Boston Celtics after falling short two years ago.
The Celtics swept the Indiana Pacers to reach the showpiece seven-game series, where they face the Dallas Mavericks.
With Game 1 of the much-anticipated series coming on Friday, Tatum looked back at the 2022 Finals defeat to the Golden State Warriors, using the disappointment as motivation this time around.
"It's a lot that myself, and we, can learn from that experience being in the Finals, and this time, this go-around is a lot different," Tatum said after Saturday's practice.
"Obviously, we've been there before, we came up short. And a great opportunity to make it to the Finals again.
"You don't always get a second chance, so really just looking at it as a second chance and trying to simplify things as much as we can."
The Celtics were eliminated in the Eastern Conference finals against the Miami Heat last year, losing in seven games.
That has prevented Boston from avenging their finals defeat to Golden State the year before, though Tatum is keen to make up for lost time.
He will have to do so against former team-mate Kyrie Irving, however.
"Obviously there were some ups and downs, but I think, for me, being a first-, second-year player, being around a superstar, essentially, every day and seeing how to navigate that space," Tatum said.
"And then obviously on the court, he's one of the most talented guys I've ever seen.
"So it seems like a very long time ago, but I've got a lot of great memories from having [Irving] as a team-mate."
Kings extend head coach Brown through 2026-27
The Sacramento Kings and head coach Mike Brown have agreed to a contract extension through 2026-27.
According to multiple reports, the deal is worth $30 million with Brown’s base salary to be $8.5 million annually. He will have the opportunity to earn $10 million per year with bonuses.
In his first year with the Kings a season ago, Brown led the team to a 48-34 record and its first playoff appearance in 16 years. He was named 2022-23 NBA Coach of the Year.
Sacramento went 46-36 this past season and beat Golden State in its first game before losing a play-in game for the eighth seed to New Orleans.
Brown and Rick Adelman are the only Kings coaches to lead the team to a winning record in any season since the franchise moved to Sacramento in 1985.
Brown has a 441-226 record as head coach with Cleveland, the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento.
'It was Luka magic mode', Kidd revels as Doncic-inspired Mavs reach NBA Finals
Luka Doncic was in "magic mode" after his starring role helped the Dallas Mavericks to their first NBA Finals since 2011, coach Jason Kidd said.
The Mavs and the Boston Celtics will battle it out for this season's NBA championship after Dallas wrapped up a 4-1 Western Conference finals series victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
A 124-103 win did the trick at Target Center on Thursday, with Doncic and Kyrie Irving leading the way for the Mavs with 36 points apiece.
Doncic was quick out of the blocks, scoring 20 of his points during the first half on the way to notching up his highest-scoring contributions of the postseason, with his performances earning the Western Conference finals MVP award.
"It was Luka magic mode," Kidd said. "He set the tone, and then he made it easier for everyone else. Everybody else stepped up."
"You're just watching a special performance take place," Irving added. "When Luka starts off a game like that, we're a tough team to beat."
Indeed, they are. The Mavs are 7-2 on the road during the playoffs - winning the last five - matching the franchise record for such victories during a single postseason, set in their title-winning campaign of 2010-11.
A EuroBasket champion with Slovenia and EuroLeague winner during his final season with Real Madrid, Doncic is now gearing up for his first crack at an NBA title, with the Finals series commencing on June 6.
And he insists his team-mates cannot afford to rest on their laurels.
"It was a very hard road, very hard," Doncic said. "But we're not done. We have four more [victories to achieve]."
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