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Nightly Pulse: NBA News & Highlights from Dec. 30

Stay in the know on tonight's NBA action with the latest news, scores and highlights from around the league.

NBA.com Staff

๐Ÿ€ Monday’s NBA Matchups ๐Ÿ€

Bulls 115, Hornets 108

Knicks 126, Wizards 106

Clippers 116, Pelicans 113

Nuggets 132, Jazz 121

Cleveland Cavaliers 113, Warriors 95

76ers 125, Trail Blazers 103ย 

Kings 110, Mavericks 100

โฌ‡๏ธ Top Stories of the Nightย  โฌ‡๏ธ

  1. The Joker deals Utah more than it can handle. Nikola Jokiฤ‡ finished with a monstrous triple-double tonight. It was his fourth career game with 35+ points, 20+ rebounds and 10+ assists. His 31 points per game this season is the highest mark of his career. Passing was contagious tonight as Russell Westbrook and Jamal Murray had 10 helpers each as well, making it just the sixth time in history that three players each finished with 10 assists.
  2. Cleveland extends winning streak to seven games.ย With a 113-95 victory, the Cavaliers improved their record to 28-4 on the season, best in the association. It was all about the backcourt as Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell led all scorers with 25 and 23 respectively. The win gives Cleveland a sweep in their season series with Golden State. The Warriors’ slide continues as they fall to 16-16.
  3. The Clippers’ big three combine for 82 in win.ย The New Orleans Pelicans were valiant in defeat, but the Clippers held on for the 116-113 victory. Norman Powell delivered a game-high 35 points, James Harden scored 27, and Ivica Zubac added 20 points and 16 rebounds. The trio are playing well enough that the Clippers are 19-13, fifth in the western conference, and have yet to infuse Kawhi Leonard into their lineup.

๐ŸŒŸ Monday’s Top Performers ๐ŸŒŸ

  • Nikola Jokiฤ‡: 36 points (14-33 FG, 3-9 3PM), 22 rebounds, 11 assists, four steals
  • Joel Embiid: 37 points (12-21 FG, 1-1 3PM), nine rebounds, three assists
  • De’Aaron Fox: 33 points (13-23 FG, 3-7 3PM), six rebounds, six assists, one steal
  • Josh Hart: 23 points (7-15 FG, 4-8 3PM), 15 rebounds, 10 assists, two steals

๐Ÿ—‘๏ธ Embiid Sets New Season Highย  ๐Ÿ—‘๏ธ

Joel Embiid had his best scoring night of the season with 37 points to go with nine rebound, leading Philadelphia to the win. That’s a welcome sight for 76ers fan who saw the team struggle without Embiid in the lineup to start the season. They now improve to 13-17 on the season.

Kings Climb Back in Front ๐Ÿง—โ€โ™‚๏ธ

Sacramento trailed from the onset due to some hot shooting from Dallas, but they’ve played great in the second and third quarters, and take the lead into the fourth. De’Aaron Fox has 23 points while Domantas Sabonis has 16 points and 15 rebounds. Only Spencer Dinwiddie and PJ Washington are in double figures for Dallas, playing without Luka and Kyrie.

Cavs Start 2nd Half Strongย ๐Ÿ’ช

Points were hard to come by in the first half, but Cleveland has shaken off the shooting slump and opened a comfortable lead in Golden State. They lead the Warriors by 20+ midway through the third quarter.

๐Ÿ‡ซ๐Ÿ‡ท Yabusele Poster ๐Ÿซจ 76ers up at Half

The Frenchman took off in transition and flushed one over Deni Avdija in the 2nd quarter. Philadelphia leads by 10 at the half, led by Joel Embiid whose working on a double-double.

Unreal Jokiฤ‡ Statline ๐Ÿ˜ณ

The Joker has 33 points, 17 rebounds and 8 assists and we’ve got a fourth quarter to finish still. He also passed a major milestone, surpassing 15,000 career points. He’s averaging a career high in points per game this season.

Clippers Sneak Past New Orleans ๐Ÿšจ

The Clippers earn their third straight victory with a 116-113 win over the Pelicans. Their defense stepped up in crunch time, holding New Orleans to just five points over the last 5:39 of the game. Norman Powell turned in 35 points. Powell, James Harden and Ivica Zubac combined for 82 points in the win.

PJ Cookin’ Early ๐Ÿ‘จโ€๐Ÿณ๐Ÿฅ˜

With no Luka Donฤ‡iฤ‡ or Kyrie Irving, PJ Washington is taking and making shots early on. He’s got 17 1st quarter points with four threes. Spencer Dinwiddie is also rolling with 11 as the Mavericks have a double-digit lead over the Kings in the first quarter.

Stat Sheet Stuffers ๐Ÿ“

The Knicks used a strong second half to close out the Washington Wizards for the second consecutive night, except there was no need for overtime tonight. Karl-Anthony Towns led the way with a 32-point 13-rebound double double. Josh Hart also messed around and got a triple double. See the highlights below.

โœˆ๏ธย  DJJ Takes Flight ๐Ÿ’ฅ

Derrick Jones Jr. is all over the rim in the third quarter. Some nice ball movement ends with one of the nastiest jams of the season. Several plays later, he cuts to the basket for another flush. Jones made a name for himself with high-flying highlights like these. We’re setting up for a fantastic fourth quarter as New Orleans leads by three.

๐Ÿ Off to the Races in Utah ๐Ÿ

Denver and Utah are scoring in flurries in this one. The Jazz lead 37-36 at the end of the first quarter. Nikola Jokiฤ‡’s superb vision is on display, while Jordan Clarkson has 13 first quarter points in just five minutes for Utah.

๐Ÿšจ๐Ÿ˜ฑ DOUBLE-CLUTCH 3 FOR OT ๐Ÿ˜ฑ๐Ÿšจ

We’ve got more basketball to play in Charlotte after Miles Bridges sank an acrobatic three pointer to tie things up in the final seconds. The shot came after the Bulls missed a pair of free throws on the other end. Bridges has 26 points on the night.

Crunch Time in Charlotte โฐ

The Bulls and Hornets are locked into a close one in the final minutes.

KAT with Authorityย  ๐Ÿ”จ๐Ÿ”จ

Karl-Anthony Towns helps slam the door shut on Washington’s comeback hopes with this emphatic alley-oop.

Russ in the Starting Lineup ๐Ÿ˜ค

The Denver Nuggets are rolling Russell Westbrook with the starters tonight. Over his last seven games, he’s averaging 15 points, six rebounds and six assists. The Nuggets acquired Westbrook in the offseason and he has provided a boost as of late.

Clips-Pels Circus Shots ๐ŸŽช

A four-point play is tough to one-up, even tougher is a buzzer-beating three over two defenders. We saw both in the first quarter of a fun Clippers-Pelicans contest. These two are going back and forth early, all tied at 41 in the second quarter.

๐Ÿ”ฅ Josh Hart Heat Check ๐Ÿ”ฅ

The Knicks got a big time boost from Josh Hart’s monster second quarter. He scored 17 points in the period and leads all scorers at halftime. Jonas Valanฤiลซnas is pacing Washington in points and rebounds with 16 and 5. New York up by two, 59-57.

Seth Goin’ to Work Early ๐Ÿ’ผ๐Ÿข

Seth Curry is leading all scorers with 17 points thus far, keeping the Hornets afloat against the Bulls. He’s stepping up in the absence of LaMelo Ball who is missing his second straight game.

Turning Defense to offense โ›น๏ธโ€โ™‚๏ธ

Washington is off to the races with the Knicks, thanks to some big time defensive plays. They’re playing passing lanes and defending the rim to create scoring chances in transition. We’re all tied at 40 with 8 minutes left in the second quarter.

New York’s Sarting 5๏ธโƒฃ๐Ÿ—ฝ

Jalen Brunson is in the starting lineup after being listed as questionable due to calf tightness. He’s coming off a 55-point showing in overtime last night in the same arena. The Knicks are third in the east at 22-10, just a game behind the Celtics for second.

๐Ÿ”‘๐Ÿ”‘ Cavs Keys to the Game ๐Ÿ”‘๐Ÿ”‘

Cleveland shares their gameplan as they look to extend their winning streak to seven games. The league’s top team took down Golden State once already this season, a 136-117 win in Cleveland on November 8th.

๐ŸŽŠ King James Turns 40 ๐Ÿ‘‘๐ŸŽˆ

While LeBron James has the night off, get lost in 40 of the best plays from his two-decade career. The Lakers are back in action tomorrow hosting the team James began his career with, the Cleveland Cavaliers.

๐Ÿ””ย Top Storylines Tonight ๐Ÿ—“๏ธ

  1. Philadelphia’s ascent back up the eastern conference continues tonight in Portland. With a win, the 76ers tie the Pistons for 10th in the east. The team has won five of their las seven as their stars return to full strength.
  2. After an overtime slugfest on Sunday, the Knicks and Wizards are back in action tonight, again in Washington. Jalen Brunson stole the show last night, dropping a season-high 55 points, but he enters tonight listed as questionable due to calf tightness. For the Wizards, they’ll be without Jordan Poole for the 2nd straight game, but Kyle Kuzma is set to return from a 13-game absence.
  3. Sacramento is looking for their first win under interim head coach Doug Christie, and they’ll have a chance to do so against the Mavericks without Luka or Kyrie. The team made the coaching change in hopes of turning around their season. They currently sit at 13-19, 12th in the western conference.

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