Philadelphia: Dallas was at risk of becoming the first team to lose to Philadelphia since March before Dirk Nowitzki took over late in the last quarter and led the Mavericks to a 92-86 win on Monday.
Philadelphia, which has lost all 11 games this season and 21 in a row dating back to last season, took the lead with 4:23 remaining before Nowitzki scored seven late points to rally the Mavericks.
Another player to star in the fourth quarter elsewhere was new Memphis signing Mario Chalmers, who led the Grizzlies over Oklahoma City, while San Antonio shook off a listless start to defeat Portland.
Dallas’ Nowitzki scored 21 points and Chandler Parsons had 20 for the Mavericks.
Jahlil Okafor had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the 76ers, who are within five defeats of matching the franchise’s all-time record for consecutive losses.
Memphis’ Chandler score 16 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter to steer the Grizzlies to a 122-114 win against Oklahoma City.
Chalmers, picked up in a trade with the Miami Heat last week, converted 6 of 13 shots, including 4 of 7 from outside the arc, as five Grizzlies reached double figures. Mike Conley had 22 to be best of the rest.
Russell Westbrook led the Thunder with 40 points, 12 in the fourth quarter trying to bring Oklahoma City back from an 11-point deficit.
Oklahoma City shot 51 per cent, including 10 of 24 from outside the arc. But Memphis converted 12 of 17 3-pointers.
San Antonio stretched their winning sequence to five games by beating Portland 93-80.
Kawhi Leonard had 19 points and Manu Ginobili added 17 points for the Spurs. Both missed the previous game with minor ailments.
Both teams set season lows for points in the first half with the Blazers’ 28 points only four points higher than the franchise record low.
Damian Lillard scored 27 points for Portland.
Chicago held on for a 96-95 win against Indiana, with some tight defence on Paul George contributing to his missed shot on the buzzer.
Boston scored 32 points in the third quarter to pull away and win 111-95 at slumping Houston, with Isaiah Thomas scoring 23 points for the Celtics.
Phoenix’s Brandon Knight had 30 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds for his first career triple-double as the Suns ran past the Los Angeles Lakers 120-101.
