With Steph Curry out with an ankle injury, it's going to be fun to see what kind of numbers Kevin Durant puts up. In New Orleans, DeMarcus Cousins is running the show with total success, while all LeBron James does is win.

Cavaliers (18-7) defeat Kings (7-17) 101-95

Cleveland put their 12-game winning streak on-the-line against the Kings, but got off to a sluggish start. Sacramento held a three-point lead after one and pushed that number to 11 by halftime. Zach Randolph dominated the paint for the Kings in the first half, scoring 13 points and grabbing eight rebounds.

The Cavs were incredibly poor defensively, but LeBron James kept them in the game with 12 points, seven rebounds, and six assists.

Cleveland cut the lead to seven by the end of the third quarter and finally stopped messing around in the fourth. The Cavs took the lead to start the quarter, but the two teams traded baskets until two minutes left in the game. With 1:36 remaining, James scored five straight to give Cleveland its 13th straight win, including a game-clinching shot from deep.

James finished with 32 rebounds, 11 rebounds, and nine assists.

Pelicans (13-12) defeat Nuggets (13-11) 123-114

Both of these teams are experiencing a wrath of injuries. Anthony Davis is out for New Orleans, while Paul Milsap and Nikola Jokic are both injured for Denver.

Defense was optional to start the game as each team dropped 33 points in the first quarter. The Pelicans had a slight edge at halftime, but DeMarcus Cousins and Jrue Holiday combined for 19 points in the third quarter to help propel New Orleans ahead by six. Cousins continued to dominate as the Pelicans started the fourth on a 17-3 run to cruise to an easy victory.

The Nuggets had zero answers for Cousins who was an unstoppable force to the tune of 40 points and 22 rebounds.

Warriors (20-6) defeat Hornets (9-14) 101-87

The Warriors played without Steph Curry and Draymond Green but had little trouble versus the Hornets. Kevin Durant picked up scoring slack with Curry out, pouring in 16 points in the first to lead Golden State to a 26-18 lead.

The Warriors ripped off a 22-4 run to start the second quarter, but the Hornets fought back somewhat, reducing the deficit to 15 by halftime.

Charlotte trimmed that number to 11 after the third quarter and got it down to seven twice in the fourth, but would never get any closer than that. Durant's triple-double consisted of 35 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists.

Celtics (22-4) defeat Mavericks (7-18) 97-90

The Mavericks have been on a high recently winning their last two games. Boston remains atop the Eastern Conference standings but found themselves down two after one. Dallas continued with their high level of play in the first half, pushing their lead to 10 by halftime. Dennis Smith Jr. led the Mavericks with 12 points and got into it with Kyrie Irving, earning them both technical fouls.

The Celtics began to right the ship in the third, going on a 17-6 run coming out of intermission. But it wasn't until the start of the fourth that Boston went ahead. The two teams exchanged leads until Irving scored five straight to put some distance between his team and the Mavericks. Irving had a game-high 23 points, while Smith Jr. went scoreless in the second half.

Bucks (13-10) defeat Pistons (14-10) 104-100

The Pistons stepped onto the court having lost three games in a row. During that time they've gone from second to fourth in the Eastern Conference standings. Giannis Antetokounmpo came into the game averaging about 30 points per game and scored 13 as the Bucks led by three after one.

Milwaukee extended that number to nine by halftime with plays like this from Antetokounmpo.

Detroit came back in the third to tie the score; however, the Bucks outscored the Pistons 14-1 to start the fourth. That 13-point lead was slashed to two twice in the final 21 seconds, but Milwaukee answered with clutch free throws to seal the win. Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 25 points and nine rebounds. Andre Drummond had 27 points and 20 rebounds for the Pistons.

Knicks (12-12) defeat Grizzlies (8-16) 99-88

Knicks' star Kristaps Porzingis returned to the lineup after missing the previous two games with a sprained ankle. The Grizzlies ended their 11-game losing streak against the Timberwolves on Monday (Dec. 4) and were looking to continue their winning ways in New York.

Behind 10 points from Chandler Parsons, Memphis raced out to a 32-23 first quarter lead. But the Knicks battled back in the second to tie the score at halftime. Courtney Lee paced New York in the first half with 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting.

A 14-2 run to start the third quickly put the Knicks up double-digits. From that point on, New York remained in control to secure the 11-point win. Lee led the Knicks with 24 points.

Magic (11-15) defeat Hawks (5-19) 110-106 OT

Magic forward Aaron Gordon came out strong against Atlanta, scoring 10 points and hauling down six rebounds in the first quarter. Orlando built an early eight-point lead, but the Hawks completely turned-the-tables on them. Atlanta outscored the Magic 29-13 in the second quarter to claim an eight-point lead of their own.

Dennis Schroder had 10 points and five assists in the first half.

But methodically, Orlando chipped away at the lead in the second half. Atlanta held a five-point edge heading into the fourth, but Magic guard Evan Fournier tied the game 86-86 at the 6:57 mark. The two teams traded buckets until four Atlanta free throws put the Hawks up three with 14 seconds left. D.J. Augustin subbed in for Elfrid Payton and knocked down the game-tying three-pointer to send the game into overtime. The Magic outscored the Hawks 10-5 in the final 1:36 of overtime to claim the win. Gordon had 24 points and 15 boards for Orlando.

Pacers (14-11) defeat Bulls (3-20) 98-96

The Bulls have been struggling all season but jumped out to an early 30-20 lead over the Pacers.

Chicago's lead swelled to 16 by halftime, and while the Bulls were able to hold off an Indiana comeback in the third quarter, the wheels fell off in the final period. The Bulls were up 15 with 8:59 left, but the Pacers reeled off 24 points compared to Chicago's seven to finish the game. Victor Oladipo had a game-high 27 points and hit the go-ahead three-point shot with 31 seconds in the game.

Spurs (17-8) defeat Heat (11-13) 117-105

The Spurs rarely beat themselves and didn't against Miami. While they were down eight after the first quarter, it was only a one-point game at halftime. A LaMarcus Aldridge bucket tied the score early in the third quarter and Rudy Gay put San Antonio ahead one possession later.

The two teams briefly traded leads, but the Spurs were up four heading into the fourth. With 8:38 remaining, San Antonio was already up by 10 and on their way to a 12-point victory. Eight players had at least 10 points for the Spurs.

Timberwolves (15-11) defeat Clippers (8-15) 113-107

After playing recent games without four starters from their opening night lineup, the Clippers got Danilo Gallinari back from his injury. But it didn't matter to start as Minnesota took command of the game early. Taj Gibson had 14 points and 10 rebounds as the Timberwolves went up 62-49 at halftime.

Austin Rivers and Lou Williams each scored eight points in the third quarter to help reduce the Clippers' deficit to eight.

Williams continued to knock down shots and DeAndre Jordan played big down low, cutting the lead to three with 4:25 left. But Minnesota scored eight straight to go back up by 11 with just over two minutes remaining. Karl Anthony-Towns led the Timberwolves with 21 points and 12 rebounds
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