With the Los Angeles Lakers without LeBron James, Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors took full advantage, kicking off the final stretch of the NBA season with a win. Darvin Ham confirmed after the game that he is expecting to have James back for their next game, the second part of the back-to-back at home against the San Antonio Spurs on Friday evening.
A 32-point night from Steph Curry gave the Golden State Warriors a 128-110 win in the NBA over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Curry, 35, went 50% (12-24) from the field including 6-13 from three-point range with eight assists and was ably supported by Andre Wiggins, who notched 20.
The headline news ahead of the game was that Lakers’ star LeBron James would sit out the game to rest a troublesome ankle.
The Lakers had insisted that it wasn’t a serious issue and speaking afterwards, coach Darvin Ham said he expects his star back for Friday’s clash with the San Antonio Spurs.
“We’ll get an official word [Friday] morning and see, but in all likelihood, he should be out there tomorrow,” Ham told reporters.
One of the other curious incidents in the game was the Lakers’ other star, Anthony Davis, losing his voice before the game.
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Davis was able to play – and he top scored for the Lakers with 27 points along with 15 rebounds – but could hardly communicate with his team-mates on the court.
Ham admitted that it wasn’t ideal but praised Davis for still coming out to play and putting in a strong performance.
“You’re not going to get through a game like this with that type of firepower with that type of head of the snake, in terms of Steph [Curry], without everyone talking and being alert and ready and doing our work early and being in position early,
“It’s times when you have to give multiple efforts and you have to yell and communicate with your team-mates.
“[Davis] having a little trouble with his voice tonight definitely impacted the game. My hat’s off to him. He still came out and did the best job he could under the circumstances. … It’s not just him. Everyone has to talk and cover for their teammates.”
Elsewhere, the Dallas Mavericks kept on rolling with their seventh win in succession, this time a 123-113 win over the Phoenix Suns.
Once again, Luka Doncic played the starring role, notching his 10th 40-point game of the season, scoring 41 to go along with nine rebounds and 11 assists.
He was supported ably by Kyrie Irving with 29 points as the Mavs clinched the regular season tie-breaker over the Suns and moved into sixth in the West, ahead of their opponents.
“Feels good,” Irving said after the game. “Just want to keep it up.
“We just started locking into the game plan [against the Suns], and we stopped giving up a lot of easy baskets and started bringing over the help side a little bit more.”
The Boston Celtics also continued their own seven-game winning streak as they beat the Chicago Bulls 129-112.
Jayson Tatum (25), Derrick White (28) and Jaylen Brown (21) all went above 20 points as the Celtics controlled proceedings.
The Celtics’ lead at the top of the Eastern Conference is now seven games over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Cavs lost down in Florida against the Orlando Magic 116-109.