BBNBA: Lakers top Nuggets despite latest injury to Anthony Davis
Anthony Davis scored 10 first-quarter points for the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night. However, an awkward landing near the end of that opening period ultimately ended his time on the floor against the Denver Nuggets
Davis had clearly injured his right foot, although he still managed to play eight second-quarter minutes. He did not return with the rest of his team out of the locker room, though. According to ESPN, Davis is likely to undergo an MRI, but the belief is that the injury is not severe. An update is expected sometime on Saturday.
Even without Davis in the second half, the Lakers came away with a 126-108 win over Jamal Murray and the Nuggets, ending Denver’s three-game win streak. LeBron James dropped 30 while Russell Westbrook recorded a triple-double as LA improved its record to 12-16. Fellow Laker and former Kentucky Wildcat, Wenyen Gabriel, sat out his sixth straight game with a left shoulder sprain.
Murray added 23 points, five rebounds, and six assists for the Nuggets in the loss. He shot 8-16 from the field, including 2-6 from beyond the arc, and also turned the ball over five times. Denver was outscored by 13 in the fourth period.
Kings beat Pistons in battle of former ‘Cats
Well, this game could have been a battle of former ‘Cats. Three total Kentucky players saw the floor when the Sacramento Kings beat the Pistons in Detroit, 122-113. Which is still a lot of former ‘Cats, but it could have been six.
Unfortunately, Nerlens Noel and Hamidou Diallo both received DNP-Coaches Decisions for the Pistons. This wasn’t anything new to Noel, who has only played six games this season as an end-of-bench big man. But Diallo hasn’t gotten off the pine in four straight games, or in six of the Pistons’ last eight outings. Detroit is in full-on tank mode with Cade Cunningham shut down for the season due to injury, but Diallo doesn’t appear to be someone the staff is willing to let run loose. He’s averaging just 15.2 minutes per game this season at 24 years old.
Meanwhile, Trey Lyles was also hit with a DNP-CD for the Kings for just the fourth time this season. The eight-year veteran has been a valuable bench piece for Sacramento this season, even though he only plays about 13 minutes per game when he does find his way in.
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But as I mentioned at the beginning, there were still three Kentucky players who did make their way onto the court. De’Aaron Fox led the way for the Kings with 24 points, five rebounds, and nine assists on 9-19 shooting. He missed all five of his looks from deep and turned the ball over three times, but his Sacramento teammates made life easier for him. All five starters scored at least 13 points while Malik Monk added 11 points and six assists off the bench.
For the Pistons, it was Kevin Knox who earned playing time, finishing with seven points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals on 3-5 shooting in 16 minutes. Knox has played 16 consecutive games for Detroit, averaging 7.9 points and 3.9 rebounds in 17.0 minutes per game while shooting 54.3 percent from the field over that stretch.
Randle posts double-double in Knicks 6th straight win
Don’t look now, but the New York Knicks are streaking.
The Knicks picked up its sixth straight win after taking down the Chicago Bulls with ease on the road, 114-91. New York shot 17-44 from beyond the arc as Julius Randle recorded his 12th double-double of the season with 19 points and 12 rebounds. He also added four assists and three steals to his stat line.
Meanwhile, Immanuel Quickley did not have a good performance despite his team earning the victory. IQ went just 1-12 from the floor, missing all seven of his attempts from distance. He finished with just three points, one rebound, and two assists in 26 minutes.
New York has held opponents to under 100 points five times during the current win streak.
Other BBNBA notes
- PJ Washington was not with the Charlotte Hornets in his team’s 125-106 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. He was ruled out due to “personal reasons”. His teammate, Nick Richards, posted 13 points and 11 rebounds on 5-9 shooting in 22 minutes.
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dropped another 30-burger (his 19th of the season) for the Oklahoma City Thunder, finishing with 35 points, seven rebounds, and five assists in a 112-110 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Minny was down three starters, including Karl-Anthony Towns, who has been out since late November with a right calf strain.
- Shaedon Sharpe contributed 10 points on 4-12 shooting in the Portland Trail Blazers’ 130-110 loss to the Dallas Mavericks. He played 29 minutes, the second-most of his rookie season.
- Isaiah Jackson stuffed the stat sheet in the Indiana Pacers’ 118-112 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The second-year forward posted 10 points (5-8 FG), six rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks in just 18 minutes of action.
12/16/22 statistics
| Player | Score | PTS | FG (3PT) | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | +/- | MIN |
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC) | 110-112 L vs. MIN | 35 | 11-23 (3-5) | 7 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 37 |
| De’Aaron Fox (SAC) | 122-113 W @ DET | 24 | 9-19 (0-5) | 5 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 19 | 39 |
| Jamal Murray (DEN) | 108-126 L @ LAL | 23 | 8-16 (2-6) | 5 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | -18 | 35 |
| Julius Randle (NYK) | 114-91 W @ CHI | 19 | 6-16 (2-8) | 12 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 21 | 36 |
| Nick Richards (CHA) | 106-125 L vs. ATL | 13 | 5-9 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | -8 | 22 |
| Malik Monk (SAC) | 122-113 W @ DET | 11 | 3-9 (0-2) | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -9 | 25 |
| Isaiah Jackson (IND) | 112-118 L @ CLE | 10 | 5-8 (0-1) | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | -7 | 18 |
| Shaedon Sharpe (POR) | 110-130 L @ DAL | 10 | 4-12 (2-5) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -10 | 29 |
| Anthony Davis (LAL) | 126-108 W vs. DEN | 10 | 4-7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -4 | 17 |
| Kevin Knox (DET) | 113-122 L vs. SAC | 7 | 3-5 (1-1) | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 16 |
| Immanuel Quickley (NYK) | 114-91 W @ CHI | 3 | 1-12 (0-7) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 26 |
| Wenyen Gabriel (LAL) | 126-108 W vs. DEN | DNP-Shoulder | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| PJ Washington (CHA) | 106-125 L vs. ATL | DNP-Personal | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Tyrese Maxey (PHI) | 118-106 W vs. GSW | DNP-Foot | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Trey Lyles (SAC) | 122-113 W @ DET | DNP-CD | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hamidou Diallo (DET) | 113-122 L vs. SAC | DNP-CD | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nerlens Noel (DET) | 113-122 L vs. SAC | DNP-CD | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Karl-Anthony Towns (MIN) | 112-110 W @ OKC | DNP-Calf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Today in the NBA
4:00: Wizards @ Clippers (Boston Jr., Wall)
5:00 (NBA TV): Heat (Adebayo: available, Herro: available) @ Spurs (Johnson)
8:00: Mavericks @ Cavaliers
8:00: Trail Blazers (Sharpe) @ Rockets
8:00: Jazz (Vanderbilt) @ Bucks
8:00: Grizzlies @ Thunder (Gilgeous-Alexander)
9:00 (NBA TV): Pelicans @ Suns (Booker)
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