The NBA bubble in Disneyland has worked out so far. And last night, we’ve been treated to a six-game slate to where some of the matches went down the wire.
Denver and OKC needed extra time to settle their score while the Sixers and Spurs got into a high-scoring showdown late.
Elsewhere, Ja Morant and Zion Williamson had another rookie-to-rookie showdown while the Raptors and Lakers continue to assert their place in the league.
Without further ado, here is today’s set of NBA 2020 highlights in Day 4 of the restart courtesy of SBOBET.
Toronto Raptors 107-103 Miami Heat
When the Raptors lost Kawhi Leonard to free agency last summer, a lot of people doubted their NBA 2020 odds for a repeat.
But fast forward to today, it looks like that they might win it all again especially with the way they’ve been playing.
Fred VanVleet had a career-night for Toronto, scoring 36 points and made seven threes en route to beating Miami. He was supported by Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry who notched 22 and 14 points each.
Toronto had a 17-point edge in the third period but Miami retook the lead via a Goran Dragic three-pointer in the final period.
This was a game that the Heat were left rueing their missed chances especially after Jae Crowder canned a clutch three to cut the deficit.
Jimmy Butler turned the ball over two times and that sealed the deal for the defending champions.
Denver Nuggets 121-113 Oklahoma City Thunder (OT)
After suffering a hiccup against the Heat, the Nuggets went back to winning ways against the Thunder.
They were led by Michael Porter Jr. who scored a career-best of 37 points while Nikola Jokic had a triple-double in a super-efficient outing.
The victory was big for the Nuggets who were missing the likes of Jamal Murray, Will Barton, and Gary Harris.
After a back-and-forth tiff in the final period, Chris Paul had the chance to give OKC the lead late. However, he missed his first out of two free throws and the game went to overtime.
The Nuggets turned to their defence as they held the Thunder to only one field goal, and they outscored them 12-4 to take home the W.
Indiana Pacers 111-100 Washington Wizards
TJ Warren continues to wax hot for the Pacers. Days after he scored 53 points, this time, the six-year forward had 34 to lead his team past the Wizards.
16 of those points came in the third quarter as he sparked a 22-2 run after the Wizards clawed their way back into the match.
He also added 11 rebounds for good measure and Indiana are now 2-0 since the restart, despite not having their star in Victor Oladipo.
Thomas Bryant recorded 20 points and 11 rebounds in the losing effort for the Wizards, who suffered their third straight loss. They have dropped to 7 1/2 games behind the Nets for the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference.
New Orleans Pelicans 109-99 Memphis Grizzlies
The Pelicans bounced back after losing against the Jazz and the Clippers, as they got a much-needed win against the Grizzlies.
After playing for only 29 minutes combined in his first two restart games, Zion Williamson was finally given a longer leash by the team medical staff and he rewarded them big time by notching 23 points and five assists in 25 minutes.
He was helped by his All-Star teammate in Brandon Ingram who scored 24 points – including a pair of crucial jump shots late to fend off Memphis.
The two of them helped the Pelicans mount a late run when the Grizzlies were inching closer. New Orleans showed poise on both ends late to eke out a victory.
Jaren Jackson Jr. and Ja Morant tallied 22 and 11 points apiece. However, both of them struggled shooting from the field.
Memphis are now 0-3 since the restart.
Philadelphia Sixers 132-130 San Antonio Spurs
Shake Milton bounced back in a major way from a horrid outing against Indiana by lifting the Sixers past the Spurs.
The combo guard finished with 16 points and he knocked down the game-winning triple with 7.2 seconds remaining.
Joel Embiid was the top scorer for Philly as he pumped in 27 points, nine rebounds, and five assists – and his gravity on offence led to Shake Milton’s late go-ahead basket.
Philadelphia opened a 14-point advantage heading into the fourth quarter, but San Antonio stormed back to retake the lead.
The Sixers were trailing by two with 10 seconds left. After inbounding the ball to Al Horford, Dejounte Murray left Shake Milton wide open to prevent a pass to Joel Embiid down low and the latter calmly knocked down the three-point shot.
The Spurs missed their chance to gain ground for the eighth spot as they fell to 2-1. San Antonio remained 1 1/2 games behind Memphis.
Los Angeles Lakers 116-108 Utah Jazz
Anthony Davis continues to take on the challenge and he had one more explosive night as he led the Lakers past the Jazz.
The Brow notched 42 points and 12 rebounds, while his co-star in LeBron James added 22.
Los Angeles held a slim lead during halftime before the game got out of hand in their favour.
The Jazz were careless in taking care of the basketball, which led to the Lakers zooming to a 19-2 run late in the third period and never looked back.
With the win, the Lakers have clinched the top seed in the Western Conference – which marks their first time to do so since their last championship run in the 2010 season.
●●●
CHECK OUT OUR BLOG FOR MORE BASKETBALL STORIES & ODDS
Stay updated with everything sports and betting.
Follow us on social Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
