NBA: Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks continue winning runs
- Published
Luka Doncic & Kyrie Irving star as Dallas Mavericks beat the Phoenix Suns 123-113
The Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks picked up from where they left off as the NBA resumed following the All-Star break on Thursday.
Both claimed their seventh straight win, with Luka Doncic scoring 41 points and Kyrie Irving 29 as the Mavericks beat the Phoenix Suns 123-113 at home.
Derrick White scored 28 points and Jayson Tatum 25 as the Celtics won 129-112 at the Chicago Bulls.
Meanwhile, the Golden State Warriors beat the Los Angeles Lakers 128-110.
League-leading Boston trailed by three points at half-time before taking control in the third quarter to improve to a 44-12 record.
The Mavericks also trailed by three at half-time but opened the third quarter on a 16-0 run and did not trail again.
Dallas now have a 33-23 record, level with Phoenix, for whom Devin Booker scored 35 points and Kevin Durant 23.
"It's always tough to come back from All-Star, the first game's always tough," Doncic told broadcaster TNT.
"It was a very big game. We played against an amazing team, but we showed out. We've got to get ready for the next game and just keep going like that."
In Denver, Nuggets star Nikola Jokic became just the third player to record at least one triple-double against every team he has faced in the league.
Jokic joined LeBron James and Russell Westbrook as reigning champions Denver, who went into the All-Star break on a three-game losing streak, won 130-110 at home to the Washington Wizards.
The NBA's two-time Most Valuable Player was a perfect 10-for-10 from the floor as he amassed 21 points, 19 rebounds and 15 assists.
"When I finish my career it's going to be like a legacy," said Jokic after his 16th triple-double of the season - putting him second on this season's list behind Sacramento's Domantas Sabonis.
He is on 19 after claiming 22 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in a 127-122 win at home to the San Antonio Spurs.
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Curry reaches another milestone
Stephen Curry scored six three-pointers on the way to 32 points as the Warriors beat a Lakers team missing LeBron James through an ankle injury.
Curry, also a two-time MVP, added eight assists to become the first Golden State player to reach a career total of 6,000 assists in the regular season.
Anthony Davis had 27 points as the Lakers' three-game winning streak ended.
In Oklahoma City, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points as the Thunder beat the Los Angeles Clippers 129-107 to move within one win of the Minnesota Timberwolves, who lead the Western Conference (39-16).
Brooklyn's coaching change brought no immediate change of fortune as the Nets fell 121-93 to the Raptors in Toronto in their first game since Kevin Ollie took over as interim coach after Jacque Vaughn was fired.
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