Los Angeles Lakers 91-108 Philadelphia 76ers
LeBron James, #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers, and Ben Simmons, #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers, in the game at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 25, 2020. /VCG Photo
First, congratulations are in store for LeBron James. The 35-year-old super star scored 29 points, seven rebounds and eight assists in Sunday's game against the 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center. This gives him 33,655 points during his career, surpassing Lakers legend Kobe Bryant (33,643 points) to rise to the third spot on the career scoring leaders table.
"It's just too much. It's too much. The story is too much. It doesn't make sense. Just to make a long story short, now I'm here in a Lakers uniform, in Philadelphia, where he's from. The first time I ever met him, gave me his shoes on All-Star Weekend. It's surreal. It doesn't make no sense, but the universe just puts things in your life. And I guess when you live in the right way, when you just give it everything to whatever you're doing, things happen organically," said James of his first meeting in person with Bryant.
"Continuing to move the game forward @KingJames. Much respect my brother ?? #33644," tweeted Bryant.
Ben Simmons, #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers, dunks in the game against the Los Angeles Lakers, January 25, 2020. /VCG Photo
However, the happiness might have to end her because the purple and gold suffered a 17-point loss to Philadelphia.
As Joel Embiid continued to sit Sunday's game, Philadelphia again built their offense around Ben Simmons who could enjoy better spacing on the court. The rest of the team buried a total of 13 triples, which was not fantastic, but good enough to help Simmons feel comfortable assaulting the rim.
Ben Simmons, #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers, handles the ball in the game against the Los Angeles Lakers, January 25, 2020. /VCG Photo
As a result, the 2.08-meter-tall orchestrator was 12-15 in field goals to put down 28 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and four steals. The Lakers could not stop him from having his own way in the paint at all. Furthermore, Simmons' great court vision and smart passing also helped Tobias Harris and Al Horford deliver high-efficient game. The two together drained five 3-pointers and scored 45 points.
By contrast, the Lakers' offense fell apart in front of the opponents' defense that's characterized with both speed and size. James and Anthony Davis had 29 and 31 points respectively, but nine of the rest of the team was able to get more than seven points. The whole team's 3-point rate was as low as 19.35 percent and they only made six.
Dallas Mavericks 107-112 Utah Jazz
Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz dunks in the game against the Dallas Mavericks at the Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah, January 25, 2020. /VCG Photo
The Jazz achieved a valuable win in overtime at the Vivint Smart Home Arena on Sunday. Three from the team's starting-lineup dropped 20+points – Donovan Mitchell (25 points, eight rebounds and five assists), Bojan Bogdanovc (23 points), Rudy Gobert (22 points, 17 rebounds and five blocks).
Gobert was the biggest hero for Utah's win. At 1:02 of the OT, he first made a put-back basket to help Utah lead 106-104. Then the French giant carried his 2.16-meter-tall-body, caught up with Tim Hardaway Jr. and denied his fast break layup which could have tied the game 109-109.
Donovan Mitchell, #45, and Rudy Gobert, #27, of the Utah Jazz hug each other after the game against the Dallas Mavericks, January 25, 2020. /VCG Photo
Gobert missed the All-Star Game last year and he shed tears when asked about it. His teammate Mitchell was convinced that the French center deserved a spot in the All-Star Weekend this time. "He brought it all. He cleans up a lot of our mistakes. ... At the end of the game, Rudy can play 1 through 5. I'm convinced he let guys lay it up at the beginning of the game so he could block it late. He's an All-Star," said Utah's franchise player.
"To be honest, to me, it's one of those things that's just self-evident. It's [about] the things that he does to help his team win," said Quinn Snyder, head coach of the Jazz.
Brooklyn Nets 121-111 Detroit Pistons
Derrick Rose, #25 of the Detroit Pistons, tries to break through the defense of Kyrie Irving of the Brooklyn Nets in the game at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan, January 25, 2020. /VCG Photo
When the Pistons signed Derrick Rose with a two-year, 15-million-U.S.-dollar contract last summer, the team would have never thought that the former 31-year-old youngest NBA MVP in history would be the one carrying the Pistons on his shoulder.
Having put down 27 points and six assists, Rose extended his straight 20+point games to 12. The number does not tell you his contributions in the game. In the last minute of the first court, Rose buried a 3-pointer to get his 13th point and helped the Pistons expand their lead to 11 points. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, he made a and-one play by finishing an outstanding double pump against defense by two. His efforts led the Pistons to launch a 8-0 run, regaining the lead. In the last 1.9 seconds, Rose made a layup to tie the score 106-106, dragging the game in to the OT.
Derrick Rose, #25 of the Detroit Pistons, and Kyrie Irving, #11 of the Brooklyn Nets, shoot the ball in the game, January 25, 2020. /VCG Photo
Rose's performance should have led to victory for Detroit if it weren't for Kyrie Irving. The 27-year-old six-time All-Star guard has been under fire recently for his failure to lead the Nets and improper remarks.
Sunday's game gave Irving his salvation. As Brooklyn trailed by double digits in the second half, Irving scored a total of 17 points, including 12 in the first three minutes to help the Nets take the lead 80-77. Then in the fourth quarter, Irving again exploded immediately to get 12 points. Though his scoring performance did not continue in the OT, Irving kept assisting his teammates to score before the Nets seal their win.
Other games on Sunday (home teams in bold):
Chicago Bulls 118-106 Cleveland Cavaliers
Oklahoma City Thunder 113-104 Minnesota Timberwolves