Los Angeles (AFP)
It was not good to be deprived of its stars Tuesday on the floors of the NBA.
Without LeBron James, the Lakers were beaten, as was Golden State, deprived of Stephen Curry.
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Lakers, the LeBron void
Ominous.
Since LeBron James' right ankle injury, the Lakers haven't won anymore.
The Los Angeles franchise fell to New Orleans (128-111), its third straight loss after Phoenix and Atlanta.
A logical setback in view of the match, which drops the Lakers to fourth place in the Western Conference (28 wins - 16 losses).
And does not bode well, while the absence of LeBron James, for an indefinite period, is added to those of Anthony Davis and Marc Gasol.
Even more infuriating, the leader of the basketball demonstration inflicted by the Pelicans, author of 36 points, was Brandon Ingram, a former Lakers who drafted him in 2016 and gave in in 2019.
The Pelicans, who remain within reach of qualifying for the play-offs (11th in the West, 19-24), were superior in attack, with contributions from Zion Williamson (27 pts), Kira Lewis Jr. ( 16), Jaxson Hayes (15) and Steven Adams (12).
As for the defending champions, Montrezl Harrell was the top scorer, with ... just 18 points.
"My number one priority is to organize ourselves in attack," admitted Lakers coach Frank Vogel.
"We remain positive. The group is convinced that even without LeBron and AD, we can win in this period and that there will be a reward at the end," he added.
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Golden State, life without Curry
No better for Golden State, deprived of its three-point shooting specialist Stephen Curry, injured in the coccyx for another week at least.
The Warriors let their home game slip away against Philadelphia, winner 108-98.
The franchise of San Francisco was able to turn the tide, and led by 24 points, it came back to being 6 points ahead in the last quarter ... and collapsing at the end.
Tobias Harris scored 25 points for the Eastern Conference leader (31-13), and Ben Simmons 22.
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Denver, a tribute to Boulder
The victorious Orlando Nuggets (110-99) paid a poignant tribute to the victims of the massacre in Boulder, neighboring Denver, where a gunman killed 10 people in a supermarket on Monday.
"We feel like we have been through this before. Yesterday was another tragedy. I hope we can find a way to prevent it from happening again," said, on the verge of tears, the coach of Denver, Michael Malone.
In the game, the Nuggets were intractable, with a triple-double from Nikola Jokic (28 pts, 15 rebounds, 10 assists) which allowed them to consolidate their 5th place in the West and to get closer to the Lakers.
The good performance of Evan Fournier, who with 31 points passes the 30 mark for the second time this season, was not enough for the Magic, who remains dropped, penultimate in the East.
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Brooklyn, Harden is here
It was right.
Without Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, Brooklyn won by a hair in Portland (116-112) thanks to James Harden.
The leader of the Nets registered 25 points and delivered 17 assists, and Brooklyn remains on the heels of the leader Philadelphia.
In the West, Phoenix confirms its good form with a third consecutive victory, in Miami (110-100), thanks to 23 points from Devin Booker and a double-double from Deandre Ayton.
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