by The Atlanta Hawks’ 117-101 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday had plenty of collateral damage in the NBA Cup game.
The Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets, Miami Heat, Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and last season’s tournament runners-up, the Indiana Pacers, were all eliminated from group play after the Hawks improved to 3 -1 and won first place in the tournament. East Group C.
Charlotte, Brooklyn and Indiana were still eliminated with losses on Friday, while Miami’s win didn’t matter with the Hawks and Detroit Pistons winning. The Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks, both 3-0, will decide East Group B in their Tuesday matchup.
De’Andre Hunter led the Hawks with 23 points coming off the bench, followed by Trae Young with 20 points and 11 assists. Jalen Johnson had 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Clint Capela added 13 rebounds, while Dyson Daniels had three steals.
Cleveland got 29 points from Darius Garland (who shot 5 of 8 in 3s) with Evan Mobley adding 24 points and 13 rebounds. Donovan Mitchell scored 11, shooting 5 of 23, with 11 rebounds and six assists.
The Lakers, defending champions, on the verge of elimination
The season-opening tournament was a bright spot in a difficult 2023-24 season for the Los Angeles Lakers. They don’t have such an easy time in the second.
The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Lakers 101-93 on Saturday, pushing the defending IST champions to the brink of elimination in Group B. It was a brilliant night from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with 36 points, while that Isaiah Hartenstein had a season record. 17 rebounds.
This victory leaves the Thunder in a good position at 2-1 and the Lakers in a bad position at 2-2. The Phoenix Suns and San Antonio Spurs are both 1-1, but with positive point differentials. The Lakers, meanwhile, are minus-24, which isn’t good when point differential is the second tiebreaker after head-to-head record.
With no more games to play, the Lakers will need help to move forward.
Celtics improve to 3-1 in Eastern Group C
The Boston Celtics stayed alive as a group with their 138-129 victory over the Chicago Bulls. The Celtics could have been eliminated in a loss, as could Detroit, Atlanta, the New York Knicks and Orlando Magic.
Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 35 points (shooting 4 of 8 from 3) and 14 rebounds, while Peyton Pritchard added 29 points and seven rebounds coming off the bench. Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis each scored 21.
The Bulls were paced by Nikola Vučević, who scored 32 points (on 6 of 9 shooting in 3 seconds) with 11 rebounds. Zach LaVine added 29 and Josh Giddey dished out nine assists.
Boston could have won Group C of the East with its victory and a defeat for the Hawks. Chicago could have also won East Group C by beating the Celtics combined with the Cavs losing. But neither scenario happened.
Knicks 3-0 in group
The Hornets were eliminated from group play for the NBA Cup season tournament with a 99-98 loss to the New York Knicks on Friday.
Charlotte was led by Brandon Miller’s 20 points and Josh Green added 15. Tidjane Salaün contributed 14 points with eight rebounds, while Moussa Diabaté grabbed 11 rebounds.
The Hornets were without LaMelo Ball, who missed the game due to illness. Ball had averaged 40 points over his last four games, including a 50-point effort last Saturday against the Bucks. For the season, he’s averaging 31.1 points, which probably would have made a difference in a one-point game.
Jalen Brunson scored 31 points (going 4 of 6 in 3s), six rebounds and six assists to lead New York. Karl-Anthony Towns followed with 19 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, while Josh Hart added 13 points, 12 rebounds and five assists. Miles McBride had 14 points coming off the bench.
