The Dallas Mavericks' playoff hopes suffered another setback after James Harden inspired the Philadelphia 76ers' fourth-quarter charge on Wednesday.
The Mavs, who had lost seven of their previous 10 games coming into the contest, led 91-89 at three-quarter time at Wells Fargo Center before the home side rallied to triumph 116-108, clinching their 50th win of the season.
Harden provided the assists for all of Philadelphia's points during a 10-0 run that flipped the contest, condemning the Mavs to a 37-40 record and leaving them in danger of missing the playoffs and play-in tournament in the Western Conference. Dallas failed to score in the final 3:18 of the game.
Joel Embiid returned from a one-game, calf-injury-enforced absence to boost his MVP aspirations with 25 points and nine rebounds, while Harden had 15 points and 12 assists.
Harden's partnership with Embiid was on full show, with the pair holding the NBA's best single-season record over the past 25 years for assists by one player to another, averaging 4.8 per game, ahead of Sacramento Kings duo Rajon Rondo and DeMarcus Cousins (4.0 in the 2015-16 season).
For the Mavs, Luka Doncic had 24 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, while Kyrie Irving added 23 points.
Philadelphia's 50th win from their 76th game of the campaign marks the fewest amount of games required to reach that mark in franchise history since 2001.
The 50-26 76ers are third in the East, behind the Milwaukee Bucks (55-21) and the Boston Celtics (52-24).
The Bucks routed the Indiana Pacers 149-136 led by Jrue Holiday's career-high 51 points and a Giannis Antetokounmpo triple-double.
Kings end NBA's longest playoff drought
Sacramento ended their 17-year playoffs wait, the longest drought in NBA history, thanks to a 120-80 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
The Kings pulled away with a lopsided 70-34 second half, led by Domantas Sabonis (15 points and 12 rebounds) and De'Aaron Fox (18 points and six assists), while Keegan Murray passed Donovan Mitchell for the most threes made by a rookie (188) in his 13 points.
Sacramento clinching their playoff spot came amid a chaotic night in the West, with Jalen Williams' buzzer-beating tip-in earning the 10th-placed Oklahoma City Thunder a 107-106 win over the Detroit Pistons. OKC occupy the final play-in spot.
Russell Westbrook scored 36 points as the fifth-placed Los Angeles Clippers ended the second-placed Memphis Grizzlies' seven-game winning streak with a 141-132 victory, while the taunts continued as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Chicago Bulls 121-110.
Durant returns as Suns firm up fourth seed
Kevin Durant made his long-awaited home debut as he returned from a 10-game absence due to a sprained ankle, but he was rusty as the Phoenix Suns overcame the Minnesota Timberwolves 107-100.
Durant shot five-of-18 from the field for 16 points with eight rebounds and four assists. Devin Booker top-scored for the Suns with 29 points on eight-of-18 shooting from the field.
The 2014 MVP Durant shot two-of-four from three-point range, both in the fourth quarter, holding off the Timberwolves who drew level in the final period, with the win helping the Suns improve to 41-35 to sit fourth in the West.
Kerr demands improvements from Team USA as Olympic opener looms
United States coach Steve Kerr wants to see higher levels of intensity from his team as their Olympics campaign approaches.
Kerr was unhappy with the lacklustre displays from his side in their warm-ups against Germany and South Sudan.
Germany led 71-68 at the end of the third quarter before LeBron James conjured up 11 points in the final four minutes to give the USA a 92-88 win, while South Sudan were 20 seconds away from pulling off one of the biggest shocks in basketball history, before eventually falling to a 101-100 loss.
The USA face a dangerous Serbia side featuring reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic on Sunday, and Kerr is adamant that improvements are required if they are to win a fifth consecutive Olympic gold medal.
He said: "It's got to be 40 minutes of force and attention and focus, and we can't let teams outplay us effort and energy-wise like we did the other night against Germany, like we did against South Sudan.
“We have another level. I think we have another two levels that we can get to, but it's a collaboration, always.
"We can show them, 'Let's do this, let's do that. Let's learn personnel.'
"We got to know the shooters, know the non-shooters, all that stuff. So that's where we can help them. Where they can help themselves is just effort and energy play after play, after play. This is different."
Kerr is a four-time NBA champion as a coach, and was part of the triumphant Olympics team in Tokyo in 2021, but the Golden State Warriors boss knows the experience of the Games will only be enhanced if the USA were to come out on top again.
"This should be one of the great experiences of our lives. But the best way to make it an incredible experience is to win a gold medal," he said.
After facing Serbia, the USA will once again go up against South Sudan, this time in a competitive format, before ending the group stage with a match against Puerto Rico.
Sesko opts for Leipzig stay over Arsenal, Man Utd move due to progress opportunities
Benjamin Sesko remains certain that staying at RB Leipzig is the "right decision" to develop his career after turning down reported Premier League interest.
Slovenia international Sesko joined Leipzig from RB Salzburg in 2023, scoring 14 league goals last campaign, a tally bettered by only seven players in the German top flight.
That form was said to have attracted Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea to the 21-year-old, who instead signed a new five-year contract with the Bundesliga club last month.
Having committed his future to life at the Red Bull Arena, the striker believes Leipzig will provide a platform for his progression.
"I thought it through very well," Sesko said to Nogomania, a Slovenian media outlet. "I believe I made the right decision. I wanted to gain more experience, learn more, and not rush things.
"Leipzig are an excellent club that can provide what I need for the next step. Leipzig's vision is clear; everything is geared towards growth, progress, and high goals. I felt it was right to decide this way."
Sesko's new deal could see him stay with Leipzig until 2029, with Marco Rose boasting one of the world's most exciting prospects up top.
The Leipzig attacker scored from 14 of his 47 shots last season in the league, a conversion rate of 29.8% – the third-best ratio in the 2023-24 Bundesliga among players to have managed at least five goals.
That deadly finishing in front of goal will have Rose excited once more, and Sesko says his boss was key to the decision to stay.
"We talked," Sesko explained. "He told me he wanted me to stay but also said I should decide based on my feelings.
"He said if I felt I needed to move on, I should go, but if not, I should stay. He's an excellent coach who has led many great players.
"I'm glad I decided this way. I did it before the Euro to keep a clear head and focus entirely on the championship."
Durant warns Team USA 'everybody is a contender' in Olympic basketball tournament
Kevin Durant has warned Team USA they will not have an easy ride through the basketball tournament at the Paris Olympic Games, declaring: "Everybody is a contender".
The United States will go in search of a fifth straight men's basketball gold in the French capital, where they open their Group C campaign against Serbia on Sunday.
After that meeting with Nikola Jokic and company, the star-studded USA team featuring Durant, LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Joel Embiid and a host of other NBA stars take on South Sudan and Puerto Rico.
With Steve Kerr having so much talent at his disposal, the roster has been compared to that of the 1992 'Dream Team', who took gold in Barcelona behind the efforts of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen and other great names.
However, at a press conference ahead of Team USA's 2024 opener, Curry reminded reporters that the class of 1992 only faced nine other active NBA players.
Durant is expecting a much tougher assignment this year, responding to Curry by saying: "Everybody is a contender. Everyone is here for a reason.
"We're playing against 65 or 64 NBA players in Paris. So you know they're the best in the world."
Asked to identify the main players to watch from other nations, the Phoenix Suns forward said: "Giannis [Antetokounmpo] or Jokic."
While Durant adopted a cautious tone, Golden State Warriors star Curry was more bullish regarding the USA's gold medal hopes.
Quizzed on who he was most excited about facing, Curry simply said: "Whoever's in the gold medal game."
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