Los Angeles: LeBron James produced his ninth triple-double of the season Sunday and the Los Angeles Lakers blocked 20 shots on the way to a fifth straight NBA victory, 106-99 over the Detroit Pistons.
Anthony Davis had eight of the Lakers’ 20 blocks - which were one shy of the club record set in 1982. JaVale McGee had six and Dwight Howard had five with Avery Bradley adding one.
“I think it’s a remarkable feat,” James said of the blocks. “Dwight, JaVale and AD they make it easy on us and we try to contain a lot of these small quick guards and these rim attackers.”
The Minnesota Timberwolves, bolstered by the return from the sick list of Andrew Wiggins, squandered a 25-point second-half lead before coming up with a 118-103 victory over the Cavaliers in Cleveland.
The Miami Heat took their league-best home record to 17-1 with a 122-111 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
At 26-10 overall, the Heat are third in the Eastern Conference led by the Milwaukee Bucks. Goran Dragic came off the bench to lead the Heat with 29 points and 13 assists. Bam Adebayo added 20 points and the Heat never trailed despite the absence of Jimmy Butler with a sore back.
The NBA day that ended with the Lakers win at Staples Center opened with the Los Angeles Clippers’ 135-132 victory over the New York Knicks on the same court.
