DeMar DeRozan logged a season-best performance to inspire the Chicago Bulls to victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, Kristaps Porzingis produced a double-double in a win for the Dallas Mavericks and the Phoenix Suns made it nine straight wins as the NBA continued on Monday night.

Chicago Bulls 121-103 Los Angeles Lakers

DeRozan scored a season-best 38 points on 15-of-23 shooting and Lonzo Ball also established a season high with 27 points as the visiting Bulls halted an eight-game losing streak against the Lakers with an easy 121-103 triumph on Monday night.

It was the second huge outing in two nights for DeRozan, who poured in 35 points on 12-of-16 shooting in Sunday’s 100-90 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.

Ball matched his season high of seven 3-pointers and was 10 of 13 from the field while also contributing eight assists and seven rebounds for the Bulls.

Zach LaVine knocked down six 3-pointers while scoring 26 points and Derrick Jones Jr. scored 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting for Chicago, who beat the Lakers for the first time since registering a 118-110 road win on Nov. 20, 2016.

Talen Horton-Tucker scored a career-high 28 points and Russell Westbrook recorded 25 points, eight assists and six rebounds for the Lakers, who are just 8-7 despite opening the season with 12 of 15 at home. LeBron James (abdominal strain) sat out for the seventh consecutive game.

Boston Celtics 98-92 Cleveland Cavaliers

Jayson Tatum scored 23 points to fuel Boston to a 98-92 victory over Cleveland.

Al Horford collected 17 points and nine rebounds for the Celtics, who bounced back after squandering a 19-point lead in a 91-89 setback to Cleveland on Saturday. Marcus Smart and Dennis Schroder each scored 14 points and Grant Williams added 11 off the bench to send Boston to its fifth win in seven outings.

Ricky Rubio scored 26 of his 28 points in the second half for the Cavaliers. Rubio was inserted into the starting lineup and rookie Evan Mobley shifted to center in place of Jarrett Allen, who sat out due to a non-COVID illness.

Sacramento Kings 129-107 Detroit Pistons

Buddy Hield had 22 points off the bench as Sacramento snapped a four-game losing streak with an emphatic win over Detroit.

De’Aaron Fox contributed 19 points, nine assists, six rebounds and three steals for the Kings, while Richaun Holmes also scored 19 points while grabbing nine rebounds. Tyrese Haliburton supplied a double-double with 17 points and 10 assists, as did Chimezie Metu with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Saddiq Bey’s 28 points led Detroit in the opener of a five-game homestand. Cade Cunningham, the top pick in the draft, had a career-high 25 points along with eight rebounds and eight assists.

Houston Rockets 102-136 Memphis Grizzlies

Ja Morant scored 22 points while Jaren Jackson Jr. and Dillon Brooks combined for 34 as Memphis snapped a three-game skid while handing visiting Houston its 12th consecutive defeat.

Morant added six rebounds and six assists to his ledger while making four of six 3-point attempts to pace an unselfish offensive attack. Six Grizzlies scored in double figures.

Jalen Green led the Rockets with 15 points while Jae’Sean Tate added 14 points and nine boards.

New Orleans Pelicans 100-105 Washington Wizards

Spencer Dinwiddie scored 27 points and host Washington won its fifth game in a row by dominating the fourth quarter against New Orleans.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 18 points, Montrezl Harrell scored 15, Aaron Holiday had 12 and Deni Avdija added 11 points and 10 rebounds as the Wizards overcame the absence of Bradley Beal (personal reasons) by outscoring New Orleans 32-20 in the fourth quarter.

Brandon Ingram scored 31, Jonas Valanciunas added 16, Devonte’ Graham had 14 and Josh Hart had 13 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Pelicans, who lost for the 10th time in their last 11 games.

Indiana Pacers 84-92 New York Knicks

Immanuel Quickley scored 16 points off the bench and hit all four of his 3-point attempts – including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 5:03 left – for host New York, who struggled again in the third quarter before overcoming a 12-point deficit to beat Indiana.

Julius Randle (11 points, 11 rebounds) had a double-double for the Knicks while Kemba Walker had 16 points. Derrick Rose scored 14 points and RJ Barrett added 12 points.

Malcolm Brogdon scored 22 points and Domantas Sabonis had 21 points for the Pacers, who went ice cold in the fourth quarter as their two-game winning streak was snapped.

Toronto Raptors 113-118 Portland Trail Blazers

CJ McCollum scored 10 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter as Portland held on to defeat Toronto.

Damian Lillard added 24 points – 16 in the first half – for the Trail Blazers, who have won four straight over the Raptors dating to January 2020.

Larry Nance Jr. added 15 points for Portland, Norman Powell had 12 points, Robert Covington had 11 and Jusuf Nurkic contributed five points and 14 rebounds.

OG Anunoby had 23 of his 29 points in the first half for the Raptors, making six 3-pointers to match his career best. Pascal Siakam added 20 points, Gary Trent Jr. and Scottie Barnes had 18 apiece and Fred VanVleet registered 11 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter.

Miami Heat 103-90 Oklahoma City Thunder

Tyler Herro scored 26 points to lead Miami to a 103-90 win at Oklahoma City.

Herro and Duncan Robinson, who scored 21, each hit five 3-pointers as the Heat won for the second consecutive game to salvage a 2-3 road trip. Kyle Lowry added 11 points and 11 assists for Miami.

The Thunder, who got 20 points from Luguentz Dort, lost for the second consecutive night after winning four in a row.

Phoenix Suns 99-96 Minnesota Timberwolves

Devin Booker scored 29 points, Deandre Ayton tallied 22 points and 12 rebounds and Phoenix rallied past Minnesota 99-96 in Minneapolis.

Chris Paul added 21 points and eight assists for Phoenix, who won their ninth game in a row. The Suns earned their second victory in as many nights.

Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns led all players with 35 points and 13 rebounds. D’Angelo Russell had 22 points but missed a 3-point attempt off the back rim that would have given the Timberwolves a lead in the final seconds.

Denver Nuggets 101-111 Dallas Mavericks

Kristaps Porzingis had 29 points and 11 rebounds as Dallas beat visiting Denver, snapping the Nuggets’ five-game winning streak. The Mavericks won for the fifth time in six games.

Porzingis made five 3-pointers and Luka Doncic added 23 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists before heading to the locker room in the final minute with a left ankle injury.

Nikola Jokic had 35 points, 16 rebounds and six assists for Denver. Monte Morris had 17 points, and Aaron Gordon recorded 14 points and seven rebounds.

Orlando Magic 111-129 Atlanta Hawks

Trae Young and John Collins both scored 23 points to lead a quartet of Atlanta players with 20-plus points and help the Hawks beat Orlando.

Bogdan Bogdanovic had 20 points, sinking four 3-pointers for Atlanta, while Clint Capela added 20 points on 8-of-9 shooting and added a game-high 16 rebounds.

Cole Anthony led the Magic with 29 points, hitting four 3-pointers, and had 11 assists. Franz Wagner and Terrence Ross scored 19 apiece.

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