Boston stars Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum shone in Phoenix in the clash between the leaders of the Western and Eastern Conferences of the NBA, won by the Celtics on Wednesday, while Ja Morant, author of a triple double, allowed Memphis to beat Oklahoma City.
Tatum and Brown each scored 25 points and the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics improved on the NBA's current best record to 21 wins-five losses by easily dominating Western Conference-leading Phoenix (125-98).
In the East, Boston now has three more wins than Milwaukee, which has however played two games less.
In the West, Phoenix went to 16 wins for nine losses and ceded first place to New Orleans (16-8).
The Suns trailed 69-42 at halftime, the biggest point deficit they have suffered to this point in the game this season, and were up to 45 points behind in the third quarter.
“
We were really connected
,” Tatum said.
“
We were just making the right choices.
We made a lot of shots tonight
."
The Celtics, who lost to Golden State in the NBA Finals last season, improved their record to 10-3 on the road.
"
But we are far from satisfied
," Tatum said.
"
It doesn't mean anything if we don't get back to where we want to go (the NBA Finals) and get over that bump.
It's a long process but we are in the right direction
,” assured the 24-year-old winger.
Utah surpasses Golden State
Morant, meanwhile, had a triple-double with 26 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists to lead Memphis to victory at home against the Thunder (123-102).
It's the sixth triple-double of the 23-year-old point guard's career, a record for his franchise.
"
It means a lot
," Morant said.
"
A lot of the credit goes to my teammates and my coaches who put me in a position to excel at a high level
."
“
We knew the rebounds would be important.
I got down to it from the start, and I caught seven very early on.
All other stats are due to my teammates.
The fact that they had shots also gave me shooting opportunities
, ”he said.
Memphis conceded just 15 points in the fourth quarter.
"
It was mostly about closing the game, getting blocks and rebounds
," Morant said.
“
We have to keep fighting and playing hard
,” warned the Grizzlies star, firmly clinging to 3rd place in the West.
The Greek Giannis Antetokounmpo, double MVP, scored 35 points, added six rebounds and seven assists, and his teammate Jrue Holiday with 31 points, largely contributed to the victory (126-113) of Milwaukee over Sacramento.
The Bucks have the second-best record in the NBA with 18 wins and 6 losses.
Kyrie Irving scored 33 points, nine assists, five rebounds and four blocks, plus Kevin Durant's 29 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, in Brooklyn's home win over Charlotte (122-116) .
Simone Fontecchio scored the game-winning basket with 1.4 seconds remaining to give Utah a 124-123 home win over the Golden State Warriors.
Williamson carries the Pelicans
Jordan Poole scored 36 points for the Warriors, but it was his missed pass that allowed the Italian winger to make a decisive inside shot.
Jordan Clarkson led the Jazz with 22 points and Fontecchio added 18.
Zion Williamson scored 29 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to help New Orleans beat Detroit (104-98) at home, a fifth straight win that secures the Pelicans first place in the Western Conference.
D'Angelo Russell scored 28 points, his best total this season, and Frenchman Rudy Gobert added 16 points and 21 rebounds as Minnesota won 121-115 against Indiana.
Cameroonian Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet each brought 25 points in the success of the Toronto Raptors over the Los Angeles Lakers (126-113).
The Lakers, deprived of Anthony Davis due to illness and LeBron James who suffers from an ankle, were able to count on German back Dennis Schroder who scored 18 points, still insufficient to snatch victory in Toronto.
Paolo Banchero made six free throws in the final seven seconds of overtime to give the Orlando Magic a 116-111 home win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Italian-American scored 23 points, including 13 of 14 free throws.
Finally, Chicago beat Washington (115-111) thanks to 27 points from DeMar DeRozan, while Julius Randle scored 34 points and took 17 rebounds to ensure New York's wide success in front of Atlanta (113-89).
The results of the night:
Phoenix-
Boston
98-125
Brooklyn
- Charlotte 122-116
New York
- Atlanta 113-89
Toronto
- LA Lakers 126-113
Utah
- Golden State 124-123
Chicago
- Washington 115-111
Memphis
- Oklahoma City 123 -102
Milwaukee
-Sacramento 126-113
Minnesota
-Indiana 121-115
New Orleans
-Detroit 104-98
Orlando
-LA Clippers 116-111 (ap)