Scoreboard
Knicks 117, Pistons 104
Clippers 121, Rockets 100
Bulls 132, Warriors 118
Thunder 112, Nets 102
Kings 132, Spurs 119
Nuggets 119, Magic 116
Trail Blazers 140, Mavericks 123
76ers 112, Lakers 113
What went down
A day after he drilled a fadeaway jumper to down the Utah Jazz, Joel Embiid came up big once again in the clutch to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a second straight win, this time against the LA Lakers.
It was a tight battle between both teams all throughout the game, as neither one could pull away from the other. The biggest lead of the game was just seven points, one that the Sixers held onto for less than three minutes before the Lakers went up by one heading into the halftime break. After that, both teams traded blows and leads all the way to the final moments of the game.
LA took a one-point lead with less than two minutes left in the game off a Dennis Schroder floater. The Sixers quickly reclaimed the lead after Georges Niang buried a triple (assisted by Embiid) in the next possession. Philadelphia was able to get the stop on the other end leading to a dagger jumper by Embiid to put his team up by four with 45 seconds left on the clock.
The Lakers threatened one last time, cutting the deficit down to just one, but Niang and Embiid were able to team up to prevent Russell Westbrook from scoring to hold on to the win.
CHAOTIC ENDING IN LA 😳
— NBA (@NBA) January 16, 2023
SIXERS WIN pic.twitter.com/BPjYzFLyOm
Embiid led the Sixers with 35 points and 11 rebounds. Harden managed the team with 13 assists to go along with his 27 points. Tyrese Maxey came off the bench to contribute 16 points.
Big-time baller
LeBron James led the Lakers with 35 points, eight rebounds, and 10 assists against the Sixers.
LeBron reached career 38,024 points in the game. Only two players in league history have scored 38K – James, and the man he’s chasing, Kareem-Abdul Jabbar. He breached the 38K mark with a mid range jumper from the top of the key in the first period.
HISTORY MADE 👑
— NBA (@NBA) January 16, 2023
LeBron James becomes only the second player in NBA history to score 38,000 career points. pic.twitter.com/uqLckZ9LY0
Nikola Vucevic (43 points), Nikola Jokic (more on him later), Damian Lillard (40 points), and Julius Randle (42 points) all deserve to be recognized for their great games today. But there’s only one player that hit the 38,000-point mark, and that’s the King.
He deserves to be celebrated as today’s Big-time Baller.
What he said
"I was on the edge of my seat the whole night. That's a good movie."
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) January 16, 2023
Coach on tonight's game 🎙 pic.twitter.com/J98c4DHQfU
Coach Mike Malone can always be counted for a good quote. After a game like today between the Denver Nuggets and the Orlando Magic, he summed up how everyone who was watching the game felt.
The West-leading Nuggets let their guard down against the nothing-to-lose Magic and they almost paid for it. Thankfully, Denver had the reigning MVP on their team. Needing a big bucket to pull out the win, Jokic delivered a beauty of a game-winner to end the “ugly” game as described by Malone.
Joker when he hits a game-winning step back three 😐 pic.twitter.com/0xLp36xeIv
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) January 16, 2023
This game between the Nuggets and Magic was a lot of things: ugly, sloppy, and surprising. But it was also crazy entertaining.
Did you see that?
It’s always fun when team mascots join in on the gamesmanship between both teams. Benny the Bull is one that’s notorious for his colorful personality.
During today’s game introductions, he pulled up a lawn chair near the Golden State Warriors and decided to catch-up on his reading.
Benny the Bull was not impressed by the Warriors intros 🤣 pic.twitter.com/wQkVQZJAYS
— NBA (@NBA) January 15, 2023
He probably knew what Vucevic would do to the Warriors in today’s game and wanted to do something a little bit more interesting.
