Anthony Davis led the way as defending NBA champions the Los Angeles Lakers continued their fine form with a 120-102 win over James Harden's Houston Rockets.
Davis, who sat out on Friday due to a groin strain, returned to score 27 points in Sunday's victory against the Rockets in Houston.
LeBron James posted 18 points, seven assists and seven rebounds as the Lakers won for the sixth time in seven games.
"[Tonight] was just A.D. being A.D. and just having him back in the line-up gives us a whole other dynamic both offensively and defensively," James said after the Lakers led by as many as 27 points.
Former MVP Harden finished with 20 points, while Rockets team-mate Christian Wood had 23 of his own.
It was a feisty game in Houston, where the Lakers' Markieff Morris and Rockets big man DeMarcus Cousins were both ejected in the opening half, while there were also five technical fouls and two flagrant fouls.
Kawhi Leonard reached a milestone after the Los Angeles Clippers held on to beat the Chicago Bulls 130-127.
Clippers star Leonard put up a season-high 35 points, including seven three-pointers, four assists and three steals to reach 10,000 career points.
Paul George contributed 28 points, seven rebounds and nine assists for the Clippers, who snapped a run of back-to-back losses.
The Bulls were led by Zach LaVine's season-high 45 points away to the Clippers in Los Angeles.
Durant stars on return
Back on the court following a three-game absence, Kevin Durant scored 36 points and collected 11 rebounds, but the slumping Brooklyn Nets still lost 129-116 at home to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander inspired the Thunder with 31 points.
Julius Randle's double-double of 29 points and 10 rebounds was not enough to lift the New York Knicks, who went down 114-89 to the Denver Nuggets. Nikola Jokic (22 points and 10 rebounds) propelled the Nuggets with a double-double of his own.
Curry struggles
While the Golden State Warriors trumped the struggling Toronto Raptors 106-105, Stephen Curry was uncharacteristically poor. Curry was just two-of-16 from the field, while he made only one of his 10 three-point attempts for 11 points in 38 minutes.
LeBron, the sniper!
James produced a moment of magic to unleash Kentavious Caldwell-Pope with a stunning left-handed pass from deep.
Sunday's results
Utah Jazz 96-86 Detroit Pistons
Los Angeles Clippers 130-127 Chicago Bulls
Oklahoma City Thunder 129-116 Brooklyn Nets
Denver Nuggets 114-89 New York Knicks
Los Angeles Lakers 120-102 Houston Rockets
Minnesota Timberwolves 96-88 San Antonio Spurs
Golden State Warriors 106-105 Toronto Raptors
Miami Heat-Boston Celtics (postponed)
76ers at Hawks
The high-flying Philadelphia 76ers (7-3) visit the Atlanta Hawks (4-5) on Monday. Doc Rivers and the 76ers are set to welcome back All-Star Joel Embiid, but Ben Simmons is expected to miss out after a depleted Philadelphia side – ravaged by coronavirus and injuries – lost to the Nuggets.
Giannis and Holiday out for Milwaukee against the Pistons, Dragic to return
The Milwaukee Bucks will face the Detroit Pistons on Monday without two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and fellow All-Star Jrue Holiday.
Sitting only 1.5 games clear of the Boston Celtics (52-23) in the race for the top seed in the East, and the best record in the league, the Bucks (53-21) will also welcome back veteran point guard Goran Dragic on a minutes restriction after six weeks on the sidelines because of a left-knee problem.
As well as the top seed, Milwaukee also have a chance to match or beat their best record in the Antetokounmpo era, but they will need to go undefeated in their last eight games to eclipse the 60-22 mark from the 2018-19 campaign. They can tie it by going 7-1.
Antetokounmpo is viewed as an outside chance to swoop in and claim the MVP award ahead of reigning back-to-back winner Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets and Philadelphia 76ers superstar Joel Embiid, and he is not the only Bucks player trending towards some silverware.
Holiday will almost assuredly be selected to his fifth NBA All-Defensive team, where he will be joined by team-mate and Defensive Player of the Year favourite Brook Lopez, who is averaging a career-high 2.5 blocks per game in his 15th season.
Doncic cleared to face Pacers after NBA rescind Hornets tech
Luka Doncic has been cleared to face the Indiana Pacers after the Dallas Mavericks star's suspension was overturned by the NBA.
Doncic received his 16th technical foul of the season during the Mavericks' 110-104 defeat against the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday, after directing a profanity at an official following a correct no-call.
Dallas' fourth successive loss left them 11th in the Western Conference at 36-39, but their hopes of ending that streak against Indiana have been boosted after the NBA confirmed they had rescinded the point guard's infringement.
Doncic has been at the centre of controversy recently.
The Slovakia international revealed his frustrations at the Mavericks' poor form, while he was fined $35,000 after making "an inappropriate and unprofessional gesture" towards an official during their defeat to the Golden State Warriors.
Embiid out for Sixers against Nuggets
Joel Embiid will not be playing for the Philadelphia 76ers against the Denver Nuggets, according to reports.
Monday's game had been billed as a showdown between two of the leading candidates in the NBA's MVP race.
However, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Sixers are ruling out Embiid due to a calf issue.
According to Wojnarowski, Embiid attempted to train on Monday but the Sixers, who are already guaranteed a playoff berth, felt it was best to leave him out as a precaution.
The Sixers will hope James Harden manages to overcome an Achilles tendon problem. The 33-year-old has missed the last three games but participated in a shoot-around earlier on Monday.
Philadelphia sit third in the Eastern Conference with a 49-25 record, while the Nuggets top the West with 50 wins.
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