The early slate of games featured Kyrie Irving taking down the 76ers (without Joel Embiid) and LeBron leading the Cavs to their 10th straight win. The Bulls and Nuggets played a fantastic game that included two lead changes in the final 10 seconds, while the Bucks and Jazz both earned double-digit victories.
Nuggets (12-9) defeat Bulls (3-17) - 111-110
The Bulls came into the matchup having lost six straight games, but jumped out to a strong start against the Nuggets.
Justin Holiday dropped 11 points to lead Chicago to a 39-30 lead after the first quarter. But Denver crept back in the second, cutting the deficit to six. Will Barton poured in 22 points off-the-bench for the Nuggets in the first-half. However, the biggest concern for Denver was that young superstar Nikola Jokic left the game with a turned ankle just prior to halftime.
The Nuggets tied the game at 74 in the third quarter, and the score remained tight as the two teams traded leads until late in the final period. The Bulls were up three with just under a minute left when Barton got fouled on a shot from deep.
After calmly knocking down all three free throws to tie the score, the Bulls fouled Barton again; this time he hit just one of two. Chicago grabbed the lead with eight seconds left, but Barton answered the call for a third time, hitting the game-winner. Barton finished with 37 points on 13-19 shooting.
Bucks (11-9) defeat Trail Blazers (13-9) - 103-91
The Bucks are playing the fourth game of their West coast road trip and showed no signs of fatigue against the Trail Blazers. A 12-point Milwaukee lead after the first quarter was pushed to fifteen by halftime. Just before the break, a chase down block by Giannis Antetokounmpo perfectly encompassed this game.
Portland just didn't have it Thursday (Nov.
30) night. Methodically, the Bucks continued to extend their lead in the third quarter, going up by 21 points and ultimately cruising to victory. Khris Middleton had a game-high 26 points for Milwaukee, while Eric Bledsoe added 25 points. Antetokounmpo had 20 points, nine rebounds, and five assists.
Jazz (11-11) defeat Clippers (8-12) - 126-107
The Clippers played their first game since Blake Griffin injured his knee on Monday (Nov. 27). Los Angeles is also playing without Danilo Gallinari, Patrick Beverley, and Milos Teodosic, which means DeAndre Jordan is the only healthy starter remaining from opening night. Somebody had to step up and score for the Clippers and that player was Austin Rivers.
Rivers dropped 18 first-half points to help Los Angeles keep the score tied at halftime. Rookie Donovan Mitchell had 15 for Utah.
The Clippers grabbed an early third quarter lead, but an 11-0 Jazz run put Utah ahead by seven. Los Angeles would slash that number to one in the fourth, but never reclaim the lead. Alec Burks had 28 points and seven rebounds off-the-bench for the Jazz, while Mitchell finished with 24 points. Rivers had a team-high 25 points for the Clippers.