LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers drives with the ball in the game against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, January 30, 2021. /CFP
The Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics put up the latest episode of the greatest rivalry in the NBA at TD Garden. The Celtics came so close achieving a comeback win if they had not missed the two opportunities they had in the last few seconds of the game.
The purple and gold were on the last stop of a seven-game road trip where they had already lost the previous two games to the Philadelphia 76ers and the Detroit Pistons. In order not to make it a three-straight-loss-streak, the Lakers obviously grew more focused on the floor and launched their offense around their biggest advantage, Anthony Davis.
Jayson Tatum (L) of the Boston Celtics shoots the ball in the game against the Lakers af TD Garden, January 30, 2021. /CFP
The Celtics had no one to match Davis defensively because of the combination of his size, quickness and skills. As a result, the seven-time All-Star big man scored 25 points and 12 rebounds in the first three quarters. By contrast, LeBron James was pulling his punches during the same time to get some rest on the floor. He got 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists before the last quarter.
However, the Celtics were not any easy opponent that the Lakers could walk over without shedding blood. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum together dropped 58 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. Brown's charging of the rim plus Tatum's clutch point scoring ability became a great headache for the Lakers' defense.
Jaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics drives with the ball in the game against the Los Angeles Lakers at TD Garden, January 30, 2021. /CFP
Fortunately for the purple and gold, James stood out in the fourth quarter. When Davis was struggling to break the Celtics' zone defense, James buried two straight triples to put his team in a safe six-point lead, which meant a lot since they only won by one point in the end.
Luck seemed to be on the Lakers' side as well. First Marcus Smart, who holds a very important role in the Celtics' rotation, was out after hurting his left leg in the last quarter. Then in the last possession, Kemba Walker stole Davis' ball, but later both him and Daniel Theis missed the game-winning shot. Walker went 1-12 in field goals in this game. If he had shot even a little bit better, it could have ended totally different for the Celtics.
Other games on Saturday (away teams first):
Damian Lillard (R) of the Portland Trail Blazers beats the buzzer in the game against the Chicago Bulls at United Center in Chicago, Illinois, January 30, 2021. /CFP
Portland Trail Blazers 123-122 Chicago Bulls
The Bulls came so close pocketing a home at United Center. Coby White made both free throws, extending the Bulls lead to five points (122-117) when there were only 11 seconds left. But that's still not safe enough when you are playing against Damian Lillard.
Only three seconds after the Trail Blazers' timeout, Lillard buried a 30-foot 3-pointer in front of White. Then Rodney Hood and Gary Trent Jr. trapped Zach Lavine next to the Bulls' baseline, making it a jump ball. Somehow, two-time NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion Lavine lost the jump ball to Trent Jr. When Robert Covington plucked the ball to Lillard, there were only 3.5 seconds left and 1.88-meter-tall Lillard was facing a 2.13-meter Lauri Markkanen, neither stopped Lillard from doing his job.
Lillard took a big step back to the right, shot the ball and "splash" – he beat the buzzer to help the Trail Blazers win.
LaMelo Ball #2 of the Charlotte Hornets drives toward the rim in the game against the Milwaukee Bucks at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, January 30, 2021. /CFP
Milwaukee Bucks 114-126 Charlotte Hornets
LaMelo Ball continued to impress the Hornets and of course the rest of the league. In Saturday's game at Spectrum Center, he scored a career-high 27 points and delivered nine assists. He and Devonte' Graham together put down 17 points in the last quarter to dominate the game and help the Hornets claim the second win in a row.
By contrast, Giannis Antetokounmpo even though he had a brilliant 34 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists, he did not keep the Bucks from suffering a third loss in the past five games. As the team's best player, going 1-3 in Q4 is unacceptable too.
Christian Wood #35 of the Houston Rockets makes a layup in the game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Centerin New Orleans, Louisiana, January 30, 2021. /CFP
Houston Rockets 126-112 New Orleans Pelicans
The Rockets achieved a comeback win at Smoothie King Center on Saturday, extending their winning-streak to five. John Wall, Victor Oladipo and Christian Wood, all of whom joined the team this season, dropped 62 points, 17 rebounds and 16 assists together. In the second quarter, the Rockets launched 48-22 run, destroying the Pelicans.
During the half time break, when asked why they played so well in Q2, Wall said: "Playing with guys that wanna be here."
Jimmy Butler (C) of the Miami Heat shoots the ball in the game against the Sacramento Kings at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida, January 30, 2021. /CFP
Sacramento Kings 104-105 Miami Heat
Jimmy Butler came back for the Heat after missing 10 games. His gift for the team was 30 points, seven rebounds and eight assists as well as an end to the Heat's five-straight-loss streak.
In the second quarter, Butler made a floater to reach 10,000 of his career points. When Buddy Hield drained a triple to put the Kings back to lead 104-103 in the last minute, Butler made the game-winning shot with a fadeaway after dodging the defense of Harrison Barnes.
Ja Morant #12 of the Memphis Grizzlies passes the ball in the game against the San Antonio Spurs at AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas, January 30, 2021. /CFP
Memphis Grizzlies 129-112 San Antonio Spurs
Having started the season with a disappointing 2-6 record, the Grizzlies on Saturday extended their winning-streak to six and rose to fifth in the Western Conference. Ja Morant got 19 points and 11 assists for the team against the Spurs at AT&T Center. Since returning from injury on January 16, Morant has averaged 17.7 points and nine assists per game.
Chris Paul #3 of the Phoenix Suns drives toward the rim in the game against the Dallas Mavericks at American Airline Center in Dallas, Texas, January 30, 2021. /CFP
Phoenix Suns 111-105 Dallas Mavericks
When Luka Doncic put down 18 points in the third quarter alone for the Mavericks, his team seemed only steps away from ending their fourth consecutive loss with a 15-point lead.
Unfortunately, 36-year-old Chris Paul, who only had 13 points and seven assists in the first three quarters, decided to make some noise. By claiming 16 points and five assists in Q4, Paul led two scoring runs of 15-2 and 13-2 and added the second win in a row to the Suns' record.
Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors narrates the game against the Detroit Pistons at Chase Center in San Francisco, California, January 30, 2021. /CFP
Detroit Pistons 91-118 Golden State Warriors
Though Klay Thompson cannot play yet, he can work as commentator at Chase Center for the Warriors. The team did not let him down. Having led since the first minute and in every quarter of the game, the Warriors had an easy win over the Pistons at home. Stephen Curry was 6-8 from downtown to get 28 points in 29 minutes.
The Pistons barely put up any resistance in Saturday's game, which led to one question: How did they beat the Lakers and the 76ers previously?