Jalen Brunson helps New York Knicks rally for a 114-113 victory over the Indiana Pacers
Nikola Jokic tallies 23 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds for Denver Nuggets against Orlando Magic to become the career assists leader among centres
LeBron James bags 28 points and 10 assists for Los Angeles Lakers, who outscore the Utah Jazz 41-29 in the fourth quarter
Jalen Brunson made a go-ahead 3-pointer with 4.4 seconds left and scored 25 points, OG Anunoby stole the ensuing inbounds pass and the streaking New York Knicks rallied for a 114-113 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night.
Brunson also had seven rebounds and seven assists as the Knicks extended their winning streak to seven games. Mikal Bridges added 22 points and eight rebounds and Tyler Kolek set career highs with 16 points and 11 assists on a night the NBA Cup champions were short-handed and fell into an early 16-point hole.
Andrew Nembhard finished with 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting. He was also 4 of 5 on 3-pointers. Pascal Siakam had 26 points, six rebounds and five assists, and Bennedict Mathurin finished with 16 points and eight rebounds.
The defending Eastern Conference champions lost their third straight since coach Rick Carlisle won his 999th game. He needs one more to become the 11th member of the exclusive 1,000-win club and the first since then-Philadelphia coach Doc Rivers in November 2021.
In this season's first matchup between last season's two Eastern Conference finalists, both teams were missing multiple key players.
The Knicks played without centres Karl-Anthony Towns and Mitchell Robinson, along with guards Josh Hart, Deuce McBride and Landry Shamet. Indiana still has four injured players out: guards Tyrese Haliburton and Ben Sheppard, and forwards Aaron Nesmith and Obi Toppin.
Jokic sets assists record in win
Nikola Jokic had 23 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds to become the career assists leader among centres, and the surging Denver Nuggets beat the Orlando Magic 126-115.
Jokic, who has 13 triple-doubles this season, entered Thursday six assists behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who had 5,660. Jokic passed him with 6:26 left in the first half when he fed Jalen Pickett for a 3-pointer.
Jamal Murray scored 20 of his 32 points in a game-turning second quarter for Denver, which won its sixth straight.
Paolo Banchero had 26 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists for his third career triple-double and first since March 20, 2024.
The Magic, already missing leading scorer Franz Wagner due to a sprained left ankle, played without Jalen Suggs, who sustained a left hip contusion in the NBA Cup semifinal loss to New York on Saturday night.
Doncic’s triple-double powers Lakers
Luka Doncic had 45 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds in his fifth triple-double of the season, and the Los Angeles Lakers used a big fourth quarter to top the Utah Jazz 143-135.
LeBron James had 28 points and 10 assists for the Lakers, who outscored the Jazz 41-29 in the fourth quarter.
The Lakers led by 12 in the period, but the Jazz cut it to 134-130 before Doncic found Jaxson Hayes for his final assist and the cushion the Lakers needed to clinch the win.
Hayes was 7 of 7 for 16 points and is a perfect 26 of 26 in six games against Utah as a Laker.
Utah played without leading scorer Lauri Markkanen (groin), while the Lakers were missing regular starters Deandre Ayton (elbow) and Austin Reaves (calf).
Keyonte George scored 33 points, his third straight game with more than 30. Rookie Ace Bailey added 19 points for Utah, which hasn't won three consecutive games all season.
