THE GOLDEN STATE Warriors extended their winning streak as the return of LeBron James inspired reigning NBA champions the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson and Steph Curry helped the Warriors past the Boston Celtics 104-88 on Friday for their sixth successive win.
The Cavs accounted for the Detroit Pistons 104-81 with James back in the team after a one-game absence.
Russell Westbrook starred as the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Brooklyn Nets 124-105.
The Los Angeles Clippers overcame the Sacramento Kings 121-115, while the San Antonio Spurs downed the Los Angeles Lakers 116-107.
Thompson turns it on
Two-time All-Star Thompson has often looked out of place and off-rhythm at times as the team integrated Durant to its already-potent offense.
Thompson and the Warriors showed just how dangerous they can be when Thompson’s at his best, as he scored a team-high 28 points.
The Warriors were especially dominant in the third quarter, outscoring the Celtics 31-9 to effectively put the game out of reach. Durant finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, showing both he and Thompson can have good scoring nights at the same time.
LeBron returns as Cavs win
After sitting out Wednesday’s loss in Indiana, James was back in the line-up against the Pistons.
And there was only ever going to be one result as the Cavs downed the Pistons in Cleveland.
In 28 minutes of action, James made nine-of-14 shots from the field for 21 points.
Kyrie Irving led the way with 25 points.
Westbrook at it again
Another night, another triple-double for Westbrook.
The All-Star Thunder guard – who was recently inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame – put up 30 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds as his team came away with an easy win over the Nets.
Alley-Oop!
Atlanta’s streak ends
The Hawks and their six-game winning streak was snapped by the Charlotte Hornets, who triumphed 100-96.
Elsewhere, the New Orleans Pelicans upstaged the Portland Trail Blazers 113-101, the Toronto Raptors outlasted the Denver Nuggets 113-111 in overtime, the Memphis Grizzlies crushed the Dallas Mavericks 80-64 and the Phoenix Suns beat the Indiana Pacers 116-96.
Warriors back in action
After seeing off the Celtics, the Warriors take on the Milwaukee Bucks in one of nine games on Saturday.
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