NBA highlights on Feb. 23: Lakers edge the Celtics at home

LeBron James (R) of the los Angeles Lakers shoots the ball in front of the defense of Jaylen Brown (L) of the Boston Celtics in the game at the Staples Center in Los Angeles , California, February 23, 2020. /VCG

Boston Celtics 112-114 Los Angeles Lakers

The purple and gold managed to take vengeance in the second round of the Celtics-Lakers rivalry this season thanks to a key jumper buried by LeBron James at the Staples Center on Sunday.

The Lakers trailed 110-109 when there were 36 seconds left. James received the ball on the right wing, posting up against Jaylen Brown. James tried to force his way towards the rim before he pretended to do a baseline spin. Brown hesitated for less than a second at the fake and that was already enough for James to make the turnaround fadeaway shot to help the Lakers lead.

LeBeon James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers posts up in front of the defense of Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics at the Staples Center, February 23, 2020. /VCG

"I had been setting him up all night with the back-down to the drop step to the baseline. I figured he would sit on it, thinking I would try it again, so I just went to my back-down, gave a little Dream Shake to the baseline and was able to open up the middle and get my fade away," said James after the game.

James dropped 29 points, eight rebounds and nine assists in the game, which are all signature complete stats of his. Anthony Davis put down 35 points and 13 rebounds. Not only did he drain three triples, he also threw the Boston's paint into turmoil by getting six offensive rebounds and 14 points under the rim.

Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics dunks over Danny Green #14 of the Los Angeles Lakers in the game at the Staples Center, February 23, 2020. /VCG

However, James and Davis were not the only shining stars on Sunday night. 21-year-old Jayson Tatum again put up super-star performance for the Celtics. Having gone 12-20 in field goals, Tatum claimed game-high 41 points, including 18 in the third quarter. In order to deal with Tatum's isolation, Lakers coach Frank Vogel had his players double team the 21-year-old in the fourth quarter.

By the way, the last Celtic who scored 40+points in the Celtics-Lakers rivalry was Paul Pierce in March 2001. After that game, Shaquille O'Neal started calling Pierce "The Truth." The Last player who dropped 40+ points in this rivalry was Kobe Bryant in January 2011. Many saw Tatum as one of the disciples of the Black Mamba.

LeBron James (L) of the Los Angeles Lakers communicate with Jayson Tatum (R) of the Boston Celtics after the game at the Staples Center, February 23, 2020. /VCG

"The kid is special. Obviously that's a reason he's a first-time All-Star, and he's been special all year," said James of Tatum and he also called the young man "an absolute problem" on Twitter.

Washington Wizards 117-126 Chicago Bulls

Zach Lavine of the Chicago Bulls dunks in the game against the Washington Wizards at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, February 23, 2020. /VCG

Chicago put an end to their eight-straight losing streak with this win on Sunday. Zach Lavine put down 32 points while first-year guard Coby White shot down 33 points to help their team win. 20-year-old White also became the first in NBA history to drop 30+points off the bench in two consecutive games.

On Washington's side, though Bradley Beal had a career-high of 53 points, he could not bring victory to his team. Having lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Bulls respectively in their two games after the All-Star Weekend, Washington saw their chances of making the playoffs continue to fade away. Currently, they are 9th in the Eastern Conference with a 20-35 record, 3.5 games away from eighth Orlando Magic (24-32). With some 27 games to go, it has become even more difficult for Washington to catch up.

Bradley Beal of the Washiongton Wizards drives towards the rim in the game against the Chicago Bulls at the United Center, February 23, 2020. /VCG

The irony for the Washington is that, their loss did the Milwaukee Bucks which lead the whole league a favor. With their 48-8 record, Milwaukee already secured a playoff spot and they are the first team to do so this season.

San Antonio Spurs 103-131 Oklahoma City Thunder

Chirs Paul #3 of the Oklahoma City Thunder comes around screen set by his teammate Steven Adams #12 in the game against the San Antonio Spurs at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, February 23, 2020. /VCG

The Spurs became the other team that saw their playoff hope grow bleaker after a painful loss to OKC at the Chesapeake Energy Arena. The whole team struggled in offense and their highest score of 14 points, came from Rudy Gay. No wonder the team watched the opponents launch a 16-0 run in the second quarter and suffered a 18-37 in Q3.

Currently the Spurs rank 11th in the Western Conference with a 24-32 record, trailing eighth Memphis Grizzlies by four games. The team are now a mess both offensively and defensively. It's hard to imagine that they can create miracle in the rest 26 games to extend their record of making the playoffs for 23 years in a row.

Chris Paul of the Oklahoma City Thunder handles the ball in the game against the San Antonio Spurs at the Chesapeake Energy Arena, February 23, 2020. /VCG

By contrast, the Thunder and their franchise veteran Chris Paul are in their palmy days. Paul dropped 12 points, nine rebounds, 10 assists and one steal in Sunday's game, surpassing Clyde Drexler (2,207) in career steals and rising to No. 7 on the list.

As for the team, the Thunder though remain sixth (35-22) in the West, and they are only 1.5 games away from No. 4 Houston Rockets and No. 5 Utah Jazz. So don't be surprised if the Thunder, which were determined to rebuild their franchise at the beginning of this season, made the playoffs as top 4 of the West.

Other results on Sunday (home teams in bold):

Indiana Pacers 81-127 Toronto Raptors

Minnesota Timberwolves 116-128 Denver Nuggets

New Orleans Pelicans 115-101 Golden State Warriors

Detroit Pistons 104-107 Portland Trail Blazers