Nikola Jokic double-double helps Denver Nuggets edge Los Angeles Clippers, Zach LaVine stars on return for Chicago Bulls
Desmond Bane shines to help Grizzlies get back to winning ways; the Spurs hammer the Pistons behind Keldon Johnson; Jimmy Butler leads Heat to victory over Magic after eight-game absence – the live NBA action continues with 76ers @ Nets, live on Sky Sports Mix from midnight Thursday
Monday 27 December 2021 08:08, UK
Nikola Jokic's double-double lifted the Denver Nuggets to victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan combined for 56 points in a third straight win for the Chicago Bulls and Joel Embiid led the Philadelphia 76ers past the Washington Wizards.
Your round-up of Boxing Day's NBA action...
Denver Nuggets 103-100 Los Angeles Clippers
Jokic had 26 points, matched his career best of 22 rebounds and also contributed eight assists as the visiting Denver Nuggets rallied to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 103-100 on Sunday night.
Will Barton scored 17, Davon Reed added 15 points and Austin Rivers and Monte Morris had 12 apiece for Denver.
Eric Bledsoe had 18 points and a season-high 10 assists, Brandon Boston Jr. also scored 18 points and Ivica Zubac recorded 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Clippers. Terance Mann had 11 points and eight assists while Serge Ibaka scored 10.
Toronto Raptors 99-144 Cleveland Cavaliers
Kevin Love scored 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds in his first start of the season as host Cleveland defeated depleted Toronto.
Darius Garland also scored 22 points and added eight assists for the Cavaliers, who were undermanned because of COVID-19 protocols. Lauri Markkanen, meanwhile, contributed 20 points in Cleveland's seventh win in their past eight games following Wednesday's loss to the Boston Celtics.
Yuta Watanabe had 26 points and 13 rebounds for Toronto. Chris Boucher had 21 points, D.J. Wilson scored 15 points and Svi Mykhailiuk had 10.
Memphis Grizzlies 127-102 Sacramento Kings
Desmond Bane hit two of his four 3-pointers in a third-quarter explosion that allowed visiting Memphis to snap a three-game losing streak with a shellacking of Sacramento.
Bane paced five starters in double figures with a game-high 28 points as Memphis spoiled the return of Sacramento's De'Aaron Fox, Marvin Bagley III and Terence Davis from health and safety protocols.
Davis had 15 points in 16 minutes, Fox 12 in 30 and Bagley three in 10 for the Kings, whose 25-point margin of defeat equalled their largest at home this season.
Indiana Pacers 105-113 Chicago Bulls
Zach LaVine scored 32 points in his return from a two-game absence and DeMar DeRozan added 24 as Chicago beat Indiana at home.
Nikola Vucevic had 16 points and 15 rebounds for Chicago, who won their third straight and avenged a 32-point loss to the Pacers on November 22.
The Bulls led by as many as 18 in the first half. LaVine returned from the league's health and safety protocols and was 12-of-18 shooting from the field, including five-of-nine from 3-point range.
Caris LeVert had 27 points and nine assists to lead Indiana, Myles Turner added 19 points while Chris Duarte scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half.
Domantas Sabonis returned after missing one game due to a right-calf injury and finished with 14 points and 16 rebounds. Justin Holiday added 10 points for the Pacers.
Detroit Pistons 109-144 San Antonio Spurs
Keldon Johnson scored 27 points on 10-of-12 shooting from the floor as San Antonio walloped depleted Detroit.
The Spurs ran away from Detroit in the first half and cruised to their third straight win. San Antonio produced a near-perfect half despite playing without Dejounte Murray, who missed the game because of health and safety protocols.
The Pistons were missing coach Dwane Casey and 11 of their regular roster players because of either injury or health and safety protocols and had only nine players in uniform. Detroit was without 67 percent of its total scoring for the season.
Philadelphia 76ers 117-96 Washington Wizards
Joel Embiid had 36 points and 13 rebounds to lift Philadelphia past Washington on the road.
Tobias Harris scored 23 points and Furkan Korkmaz contributed 14 for the Sixers, while Tyrese Maxey scored 13 and Seth Curry had 11. The visitors were without Andre Drummond, Danny Green and Shake Milton in health and safety protocols.
Washington was missing Bradley Beal, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Raul Neto in health and safety protocols.
Spencer Dinwiddie led the Wizards with 17 points and Montrezl Harrell scored 15 before being ejected. Davis Bertans had 14 and Kyle Kuzma chipped in with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
New Orleans Pelicans 112-117 Oklahoma City Thunder
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points to lead Oklahoma City over visiting New Orleans.
Rookie Aaron Wiggins had 24 points on eight-of-10 shooting for the Thunder, who have now won four of five. The loss, meanwhile, snapped the Pelicans' four-game winning streak.
New Orleans' Brandon Ingram left the game late in the first quarter with left Achilles soreness and did not return. Josh Hart scored a season-best 29 points to lead the Pelicans while Garrett Temple had a season-high 22 off the bench.
Orlando Magic 83-93 Miami Heat
Jimmy Butler posted 17 points and 11 rebounds in his return from an eight-game absence to lift host Miami past Orlando.
Third-string center Omer Yurtseven collected 16 points and a game-high 15 rebounds while making his first career start due to injuries to Bam Adebayo and Dewayne Dedmon.
Miami's Kyle Lowry, who entered the game ranking fifth in the NBA in assists average (8.2), was placed on the COVID-protocol list just prior to the game.
Orlando was led by Gary Harris (game-high 20 points), R.J. Hampton (14 points) and Wendell Carter Jr. (eight points, 14 rebounds).
