NBA
The Toronto Raptors celebrated another important win in the race for a spot in the National Basketball Association (NBA) play-in on Sunday with a 114-104 win over the Washington Wizards. Jakob Pöltl fixed his 70th double-double in the regular season with twelve points and rebounds. In 26:08 minutes, the Viennese also had an assist and a steal.
With seven games left in the NBA regular season, the Canadians are now four wins ahead of the Indiana Pacers and the Wizards. Still ranked ninth in the Eastern Conference, they are level (37-38 each) with the Atlanta Hawks, who lost 119-123 to the Memphis Grizzlies. The Chicago Bulls are tied at 36-38 and would be the Raptors’ current opponent in the first round of play-ins. In the play-in, eight teams play for four play-off tickets.
Pöltl and Co. were never behind against Washington and just before the break they got the highest lead of the game with 61:40. Nevertheless, they only secured victory with a 27:20 in the final quarter. “We couldn’t keep our concentration high for the full 48 minutes, but we did our job,” said Pöltl. OG Anunoby with 29 and Fred VanVleet with 28 points were the top scorers for the Raptors facing the Miami Heat on Tuesday.
Lakers lose on James comeback
For the Los Angeles Lakers it was LeBron James’ comeback after a 13-game break due to a foot injury and it was 108-118 against Chicago. The 38-year-old superstar recorded 19 points as a substitute, making him the top scorer for the record champions, who were ninth in the Western Conference. Zach LaVine scored 32 points for the Toronto chasers in the NBA East.
Defending champions Golden State Warriors lost 96-99 to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Stephen Curry had to settle for 20 points. He only used eight of his 23 throws from the game. Jordan Poole had 27 points for the Californians while Naz Reid had 23 for the Timberwolves. Despite 40 points from Luka Doncic, the Dallas Mavericks lost 104:110 to the Charlotte Hornets for the second time in a row and suffered their fourth bankruptcy in a row. For the Texans, who are currently eleventh in the NBA West, the season would be over after the basic season.