By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
A 16-point, 16-rebound double-double by Victor Wembanyama fell into a loss, 104-95, for the San Antonio Spurs against the New Orleans Pelicans in Frost Bank Center on Sunday. Lasting 31:21, the 22-year-old French center also recorded four blocks. His side rallied from a 20-point deficit, but could not hold on and was forced to 31-15 in the 2025-26 NBA Regular Season. Polish Jeremy Sochan stayed on the bench for the team coached by Mitch Johnson, while Croatian Karlo Matkovic logged 11:33 on the winning side, contributing two points and one rebound.
Serbian Nikola Jovic chipped in 12 points, six rebounds, and one assist, and Swedish starter Pelle Larsson added ten points, seven rebounds, and two assists for the Miami Heat in a win, 111-102, over the Phoenix Suns in Mortgage Matchup Center. Overcoming a facial contusion from the top of a back-to-back, Lithuanian Kasparas Jakucionis reached seven points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals, and one block. Also, Italian Simone Fontecchio combined one point with five rebounds and three assists. However, Russian Vladislav Goldin stayed with the G League’s Sioux Falls Skyforce.
In Intuit Dome, the Los Angeles Clippers routed the Brooklyn Nets, 126-89. Croatian starter Ivica Zubac posted an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double plus one steal and one assist. Off the bench, Swiss Yanic Konan Niederhauser and French Nicolas Batum tallied four and three points, respectively. In contrast, Serbian Bogdan Bogdanovic (left hamstring injury management) remained on the inactive list. For the team coached by Spanish Jordi Fernandez, Israeli Danny Wolf had 14 points, Russian starter Egor Demin settled at 12, Israeli Ben Saraf scored six, and French Nolan Traore (illness) was out.
Starting for Serbian tactician Darko Rajakovic, Georgian Sandro Mamukelashvili registered ten points, five rebounds, three assists, one block, and one steal, helping the Toronto Raptors edge out the Oklahoma City Thunder, 103-101, in Paycom Center. Austrian teammate Jakob Poeltl (lower back strain) remained sidelined, similar to German Isaiah Hartenstein (right soleus strain), Serbian Nikola Topic (testicular surgery recovery), and Belgian Ajay Mitchell (abdominal strain) of the defending champions. Logging 20 minutes, French Ousmane Dieng had three points, four assists, and two rebounds for the Thunder.
Returning to Doug Christie’s starting lineup, Lithuanian Domantas Sabonis got 12 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, and two steals for the Sacramento Kings in a loss, 139-116, to the Detroit Pistons in Little Caesars Arena. German Dennis Schroder scored 15 points to go with seven assists, one steal, and one rebound, and French Maxime Raynaud had two points plus four rebounds and one block, but Croatian Dario Saric did not play. On the winning end, Swedish Bobi Klintman logged three fruitless minutes.
Meanwhile, the game between the Denver Nuggets and Memphis Grizzlies was postponed due to inclement weather in the Memphis area. Serbian Nikola Jokic (left knee bone bruise) of the visitors and Spanish Santi Aldama (right knee injury management) of the team coached by Finnish Tuomas Iisalo were ruled out for the initial tipoff in FedExForum, with the status of Lithuanian Jonas Valanciunas (right calf strain) being uncertain. A new date and updates for injured players will be announced at a later time.
Inclement weather in the area also led to rescheduling the game between the Milwaukee Bucks and Dallas Mavericks in Fiserv Forum to a later date, which is to be determined. Greek Giannis Antetokounmpo (right calf strain) was listed as out by the hosts, with Alex Antetokounmpo on assignment with the affiliate, Wisconsin Herd, and Thanasis Antetokounmpo available.
Sunday results
Detroit Pistons – Sacramento Kings 139-116
Memphis Grizzlies – Denver Nuggets PPD
Minnesota Timberwolves – Golden State Warriors 85-111
Milwaukee Bucks – Dallas Mavericks PPD
Oklahoma City Thunder – Toronto Raptors 101-103
San Antonio Spurs – New Orleans Pelicans 95-104
Phoenix Suns – Miami Heat 102-111
Los Angeles Clippers – Brooklyn Nets 126-89
Standings
Eastern Conference
1. Detroit Pistons 33-11
2. Boston Celtics 28-17
3. Toronto Raptors 29-19
4. New York Knicks 27-18
5. Cleveland Cavaliers 27-20
6. Philadelphia 76ers 24-20
7. Miami Heat 25-22
8. Orlando Magic 23-21
9. Chicago Bulls 23-22
10. Atlanta Hawks 22-25
11. Milwaukee Bucks 18-26
12. Charlotte Hornets 18-28
13. Brooklyn Nets 12-32
14. Indiana Pacers 11-35
15. Washington Wizards 10-34
Western Conference
1. Oklahoma City Thunder 37-10
2. San Antonio Spurs 31-15
3. Denver Nuggets 31-15
4. Houston Rockets 27-16
5. Los Angeles Lakers 27-17
6. Minnesota Timberwolves 27-19
7. Phoenix Suns 27-19
8. Golden State Warriors 26-21
9. Portland Trail Blazers 23-23
10. Los Angeles Clippers 21-24
11. Memphis Grizzlies 18-25
12. Dallas Mavericks 19-27
13. Utah Jazz 15-31
14. Sacramento Kings 12-35
15. New Orleans Pelicans 12-36
-Top 6 teams from each conference advance directly to the Playoffs
-Teams seventh through tenth from each conference advance to the Play-Ins