By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
In a solid showing at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, the Portland Trail Blazers never trailed as they secured a 127-119 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday. Israel’s Deni Avdija led the charge with a game-high 32 points, 11 rebounds, and five assists, supported by 17 points from Belgian starter Toumani Camara. While French Sidy Cissoko added two points off the bench, Czech Vit Krejci (left calf contusion) remained unavailable. The Pacers were led by Ivica Zubac (Croatia), who scored 18 points before exiting early with a head contusion. “I just got popped in the head, and it swelled up, but no headaches or anything. I feel good,” said the 28-year-old center in a postgame media session.
The Oklahoma City Thunder extended their winning streak in the 2025-26 NBA Regular Season to ten games with a 121-92 rout of the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center. Belgian starter Ajay Mitchell contributed ten points, while German Isaiah Hartenstein (left soleus injury management) sat out, and Serbian Nikola Topic was on a G League assignment. Starting for the team coached by Spanish Jordi Fernandez, French Nolan Traore scored 13 points and Israeli Danny Wolf added six, though the Nets missed Israeli Ben Saraf (left foot soreness) and Russian Egor Demin (left plantar fascia injury management).
On a demanding stretch with Anthony Edwards set to miss at least one to two weeks with right knee inflammation, the Minnesota Timberwolves cruised to a 147-111 win over the Utah Jazz at Target Center. French starter Rudy Gobert dominated with 21 points and 12 rebounds, while Italian starter Donte DiVincenzo tallied seven points and French reserve Joan Beringer added two. The visitors were shorthanded without Finnish Lauri Markkanen (right hip impingement) and Bosnian Jusuf Nurkic (nose injury recovery), while Ukrainian Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk did not see floor time.
At TD Garden, the Boston Celtics defeated the Golden State Warriors 120-99. Kristaps Porzingis (Latvia) posted 11 points in his return to Boston, while teammates, Dutch Quinten Post and Turkish Omer Yurtseven, had six and four points, respectively, but Dutch Malevy Leons did not score. For the winning side, Bosnian Luka Garza scored 15 points and Portuguese starter Neemias Queta added eight. However, Spain’s Hugo Gonzalez and Ukraine’s Max Shulga went scoreless, British Amari Williams did not play, and Montenegrin Nikola Vucevic (right ring finger fracture) remained sidelined.
The New Orleans Pelicans overcame an 18-point deficit to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 124-109 at the Smoothie King Center, with Croatian Karlo Matkovic providing nine points. Serbia’s Bogdan Bogdanovic went scoreless in limited minutes for the Clippers, with French Nicolas Batum (rest) joining Swiss Yanic Konan Niederhauser (right Lisfranc ligament tear) on the list of unavailable players.
Finally, at American Airlines Center, the Atlanta Hawks secured their 11th straight win by defeating the Dallas Mavericks 135-120, with France’s Zaccharie Risacher contributing five points. The Mavs had assigned Greek John Poulakidas to their G League affiliate, the Texas Legends.
Wednesday results
Boston Celtics – Golden State Warriors 120-99
Brooklyn Nets – Oklahoma City Thunder 92-121
Indiana Pacers – Portland Trail Blazers 119-127
Chicago Bulls – Toronto Raptors 109-139
Minnesota Timberwolves – Utah Jazz 147-111
New Orleans Pelicans – Los Angeles Clippers 124-109
Memphis Grizzlies – Denver Nuggets 125-118
Dallas Mavericks – Atlanta Hawks 120-135
Houston Rockets – Los Angeles Lakers 116-124
Standings
Eastern Conference
1. Detroit Pistons 49-19
2. Boston Celtics 46-23
3. New York Knicks 45-25
4. Cleveland Cavaliers 42-27
5. Toronto Raptors 39-29
6. Orlando Magic 38-30
7. Miami Heat 38-31
8. Atlanta Hawks 38-31
9. Philadelphia 76ers 37-32
10. Charlotte Hornets 35-34
11. Milwaukee Bucks 28-40
12. Chicago Bulls 28-41
13. o-Brooklyn Nets 17-52
14. o-Washington Wizards 16-52
15. o-Indiana Pacers 15-55
Western Conference
1. x-Oklahoma City Thunder 55-15
2. San Antonio Spurs 51-18
3. Los Angeles Lakers 44-25
4. Minnesota Timberwolves 43-27
5. Houston Rockets 41-27
6. Denver Nuggets 42-28
7. Phoenix Suns 39-30
8. Los Angeles Clippers 34-35
9. Portland Trail Blazers 34-36
10. Golden State Warriors 33-36
11. Memphis Grizzlies 24-44
12. New Orleans Pelicans 24-46
13. Dallas Mavericks 23-47
14. o-Utah Jazz 20-49
15. o-Sacramento Kings 18-52
-Top 6 teams from each conference advance directly to the Playoffs
-Teams seventh through tenth from each conference advance to the Play-Ins
x-clinched playoff berth
o-eliminated