Author: NBA Basketball News, Scores, Standings, Rumors, Fantasy Games

After a short string of games at full health, the Lakers walked out of Thursday’s game in Denver with 40% of their starting lineup unable to finish the game.

Deandre Ayton played only briefly on in the first quarter before exiting after just 4:30 with left knee soreness. LeBron James, meanwhile, played much more of the contest before suffering his own injury that forced him out of the game.

With four minutes to go in the fourth quarter, LeBron drove to the rim and finished through contact from Nikola Jokić. That contact, however, knocked LeBron to the ground and into a cameraman, where he hit his elbow.

Immediately, LeBron clutched his arm in clear pain. Eventually, he walked off the court while still flexing his arm, trying to get feeling back into it.

After a short stint on the bench, LeBron returned to the game, but never took a shot during his time on the floor. While he attempted to tough it out, though, he could not finish the game, opting out of attempting to in-bound the ball with the Lakers down five and 20 seconds left.

“It’s pretty sore right now,” LeBron said. “What was I feeling? Feeling like one of them funny bone situations but super more intense.”

Honestly, that’s a very funny description that everyone also immediately understands the pain he was feeling. Take a hit to the funny bone and you need 10 minutes for it to stop tingling. Take a “super more intense” hit to the funny bone and not be LeBron James and you might need 2-3 business days to recover.

LeBron was icing his elbow after the game, but didn’t have much more in the way of clarity of how severe his injury was.

“We’ll see what happens over the next couple days,” LeBron said. “Hopefully I wake up tomorrow and it doesn’t feel too much worse than it is now or if it feels better, that’d be great.”

The Lakers immediately return to the court on Friday against the Pacers, so we’ll learn pretty quickly the severity of his injury. In theory, a game against one of the worst teams in the league is a good one to miss if injured.

Following that game, though, the Lakers play New York and Minnesota at home, two games that will be far tougher challenges.

Hopefully, LeBron’s “super more intense” funny bone situation is a short term injury and not another thing that lingers this season.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

DENVER — Lakers star Luka Dončić was confused as to why he was assessed a technical foul during the second quarter of Thursday’s 120-113 road loss to the Nuggets at Ball Arena on Thursday night, which was his 15th technical of the season.

If Dončić is assessed one more technical foul over the Lakers’ final 20 games of the regular season, he will have to serve a one-game suspension.

“Just because I yelled at him I guess,” Dončić said, referring to the explanation he was given from referee Dedric Taylor, who gave the Lakers star the tech. “That’s what he said. But I heard three other players say the exact same sentence and didn’t get a tech. And that’s my problem; I was trying not to talk at all. [That was] the first thing I said, no warning or nothing. But I heard three other players say the exact same thing and nothing. So it’s just … I don’t know what to say.”

Luka Doncic on why he was assessed the technical foul, which is Luka's 15th of the season:

"Just because I yelled at him I guess. That's what he said. But I heard three other players say the exact same sentence and didn't get a tech. And that's my problem. I was trying not to… pic.twitter.com/WSgNrzx9Tk

— Khobi Price (@khobi_price) March 6, 2026

Dončić appeared to be unhappy after not receiving a shooting foul when Nuggets guard Bruce Brown made contact with him when he missed a pull-up midrange shot at the 5:52 mark of the second quarter.

After grabbing the defensive rebound, Christian Braun raced out in transition and assisted Jamal Murray on a corner 3-pointer to put the Nuggets up 49-39.

Shortly after the made 3, Doncic was assessed the technical foul, with Murray making the free throw to put the Nuggets up by 11.

“Dončić was issued a technical foul for using profanity directed towards a referee,” Crew Chief Ed Malloy said in the postgame pool report. “We are trained not to stop an offensive transition when calling a technical foul on the defense.”

Players who receive 16 technical fouls in a regular season receive an automatic one-game suspension and a fine. 

There has been three times in his NBA career (2020-23) that Dončić has finished a season with 15 technical fouls. 

He finished with 13 techs in 50 games last season with the Mavericks and Lakers after having 13 in 2023-24 with the Mavericks.

While playing for the Mavericks, Dončić narrowly avoided a one-game suspension in the season finale of the 2021-22 season after the NBA office rescinded his 16th technical foul.

pic.twitter.com/PepcnOSNZE

— Khobi Price (@khobi_price) March 6, 2026

Dončić also picked up a 16th technical foul late in the 2022-23 season, which was also rescinded, resulting in him not having to serve a one-game suspension then either. 

“Don’t get another tech,” Doncic responded when asked how he can avoid the suspension. 

When asked whether he was committing to not picking up another technical foul, Doncic responded: “We’ll see. Can’t predict the future.”

Dončić didn’t say whether he thought there was a chance his technical from Thursday’s game would be rescinded.

“I mean if three other people say it and I’m the only one that [gets] a tech, what’s the point of that?,” Dončić said. “I really wasn’t trying to talk at all and that was the first thing I said and immediately.”

Entering this season with the oldest roster in the NBA, the Los Angeles Clippers had an absolutely brutal start to the year, a 2-13 November being the biggest indicator that it would be a challenging season. Summer acquisition Bradley Beal fractured his hip just 6 games into the season and was lost for the year, while the team moved off James Harden before the trade deadline following the latest financial dispute between the Beard and an NBA front office.

The seemingly forever-injured Kawhi Leonard missed time early on and was on a minutes restriction upon his eventual debut, but he’s actually had one of the strongest seasons of his career and has the Clippers firmly in the play-in picture after a dreadful 6-21 start for LA’s other team. They catch the Spurs on a SEGABABA, following an epic clash with the East-leading Detroit Pistons nonetheless, but San Antonio has to at least be happy that they’re home for this one.

San Antonio Spurs (45-17) vs Los Angeles Clippers (30-31)

March 6, 2026 | 8:30 PM CT

Watch: ESPN, FanDuel | Listen: WOAI (1200 AM)

Spurs Injuries: Harrison Barnes, ankle (OUT), Mason Plumblee, reconditioning (OUT), David Jones-Garcia, OUT

Clippers Injuries: Darius Garland, toe (OUT), Bradley Beal, hip (OUT), John Collins, neck (OUT), Yanic Konan Niederhauser, foot (OUT)

What to watch for

• Contrasting offensive styles will be on display tonight. Largely due in part to fielding the oldest roster in the NBA this season with an average age of around 33 years old, the Clippers are near the bottom of the league in terms of pace. Their opportunities in transition are few and far between, forcing them to rely on what has actually been a very good half court offense this season thanks to Leonard and the recently departed Harden. San Antonio on the other hand is in the upper half of the league when it comes to pace, fueled by a tough-nosed, young defense that’s among the most disruptive in the Association.
• Following the trade of longtime center Ivica Zubac to the Indiana Pacers, veteran big man Brook Lopez will be Victor Wembanyama’s main match-up. Lopez has always been great at using his massive wingspan to make up for comparatively limited athleticism, helping to anchor more than a few really good Milwaukee Bucks’ defenses in his run there. Lopez, in his 17th season, will be 38 years old in a little less than a month.
• In his 14th season, Kawhi Leonard is averaging the most points per game of his career. He’s shooting 50/38/90 from the field on his way to that 27.9 PPG average, all while still being a more than capable defender even at age 34 and with numerous lower body injuries over the years. As has always been the case with him, the biggest knock on Leonard is his availability, but he’s played in 47 of the Clippers’ 61 games this season. Leonard has only played more than 55 games for the Clippers twice in 7 seasons with the club. Here’s to hoping the next great San Antonio perimeter defender Stephon Castle draws the main assignment on the former Spur.
• With the offensive breakout of all the young talent on this team, Devin Vassell has scored for at least 20 points just 9 times this season, but 3 of those performances have come since the All Star break.
• Carter Bryant is becoming a player that fans just have to watch when they tune into a game. Bryant has made a substantial leap throughout the course of the season, especially on the defensive end where he can use his frame to really disrupt all sorts of players. He scored just 2 points in last night’s win over the Detroit Pistons, but he was everywhere defensively in his 19 minutes of action.

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LeBron James surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most field goals scored in NBA history as the Los Angeles Lakers lost at the Denver Nuggets on Thursday.

James scored 16 points for the Lakers in the 120-113 defeat and passed Abdul-Jabbar's tally of 15,837 during the first quarter.

The 41-year-old, who is playing in an unprecedented 23rd NBA season, passed Abdul-Jabbar to become the top scorer in NBA history in February 2023.

Last year he became the first player to reach 50,000 points combined in the regular season and post-season, and currently has 43,127 in the regular season alone.

"Being mentioned with some of the greatest to ever play this game has always been humbling," said James, the league's four-time Most Valuable Player.

"I grew up watching, reading [about], idolising a lot of the greats, and if I was able to be part of the NBA, I wanted to put myself in position that I can be named with some of the greats by doing something right.

"It's a pretty cool feat, but it's hard for me to kind of wrap my head around it or what it looks like."

Lakers coach JJ Redick likened the evolution of James' career to that of Bruce Springsteen, saying: "You get to the end and you're like, 'this guy's greatest hits are like insane'.

"And LeBron's greatest hits, he just keeps adding to them. He just plays and plays and plays and the greatest hits, he's got a hell of a catalogue."

James passed Abdul-Jabbar's points record before field goals as three-point shots were introduced midway through the NBA legend's career.

The six-time champion spent most of his 20-year career with the Lakers and retired in 1989 having scored 55.9% of his 28,307 shots. James has a 51.6% scoring rate.

The four-time champion is set to claim another record as Thursday's game was his 1,606th in the regular season, putting him five behind Robert Parish.

James earned his 22nd All-Star selection this year and says he has not decided whether he will continue playing next season.

Fellow All Stars Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray each scored 28 points for Denver, who stayed fifth in the Western Conference standings, one spot above the Lakers.

Second-placed San Antonio claimed their 13th victory from 14 games, with Victor Wembanyama returning to top form with 38 points and 16 rebounds as the Spurs won 121-106 at home against the Detroit Pistons, who lead the Eastern Conference.

• Heated Doncic interaction 'very normal' - Redick

DENVER — LeBron James said after the Lakers’ 120-113 road loss to the Nuggets on Thursday night that his left elbow was “pretty sore” after his fall late in the game at Ball Arena, with the Lakers star adding that the injury is day-to-day.

The Lakers star, who was icing the elbow during his postgame media availability inside the visitor’s locker room, fell onto the court after Nuggets star Nikola Jokic made contact with him in the air while James made a layup to cut the Lakers’ deficit to 110-106 with just over four minutes left.

No foul was called, with James immediately grabbing at his left elbow and staying down on the court during the Nuggets’ ensuing possession.

LeBron James was holding his left elbow area after his fall. He's on the bench being tended to by his longtime trainer right now. pic.twitter.com/Oy676TN19U

— Khobi Price (@khobi_price) March 6, 2026

“It’s the same s—, James said. “‘Marginal.’ It’s the same s—. It’s, it’s, it’s … whatever. That’s all they keep saying is, ‘marginal.’ I’m so f—— tired of that word.”

Reserve big man Jaxson Hayes subbed in for James once James got up and the Lakers called timeout with 3:58 left. 

“It felt like one of those funny bone situations,” James said. “But like, super more intense.”

Mike Mancias, James’ longtime trainer and the Lakers’ athletic performance liaison, tended to James’ elbow while he was on the team’s bench after the timeout. 

James subbed back in for Rui Hachimura with 2:05 remaining but wasn’t on the court for after-timeout play when Luka Dončić missed a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer with 20 seconds left, with the Nuggets maintaining a 116-111 lead.

“It was bothering [him] enough that he didn’t feel comfortable doing the inbound pass when we called timeout down five,” Redick said. “So we put Luke [Kennard] in for him. He’s got ice on it. Get it looked at.”

The Lakers next will host the Pacers on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena, with James’ status up in the air. 

“We’ll see what happens over the next couple days,” James said. “Hopefully I’ll wake up [on Friday] and it doesn’t feel too much worse than it is now. Or, if it feels better, that would be great. So, it’s day-to-day, we’ll see what happens.”

Lakers star Luka Doncic is one technical away from receiving an automatic one-game suspension after he picked up his 15th technical of the season in a 120-113 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Thursday night.

Doncic, who had 27 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, was charged with a technical with 5:43 left in the second quarter.

“Just because I yelled at him, I guess. That's what he said,” said Doncic about his interaction with referee Ed Malloy. “But I heard three other players say the exact same sentence and didn't get a tech. And that's my problem, you know, I was trying not to talk at all. This is the first thing I said — no warning or nothing."

Read more:LeBron James breaks another Kareem Abdul-Jabbar record, but hurts his elbow in loss

Malloy said after the game that Doncic was issued a technical for "using profanity directed towards a referee."

The NBA automatically suspends any player who receives 16 technical fouls during a season. Doncic has reached the threshold twice in his career, but the NBA rescinded the 16th technical each time, allowing him to avoid suspension.

Doncic wasn't making any guarantees about whether he'll be able to avoid another technical.

“We'll see,” he said. “Can't predict the future.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

After dropping Thursday’s game to the Denver Nuggets, the Lakers will immediately return to Los Angeles where they will begin a five-game home stand, starting with the Pacers on Friday.

This is the first meeting between the two teams this season.

Start time and TV schedule

Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Indiana Pacers

When: 7 p.m. PT, Mar 6

Where: Crypto.com Arena

Watch: Spectrum Sportsnet

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The Lakers will be greeted back at Crypto.com Arena by a Pacers team that’s currently struggling. The Pacers are lottery-bound and there’s really no reason for them to aim for anything but a top pick at this point of the season. It’s understood league-wide that this season was a gap year for them after Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles in the Finals.

That said, the Lakers will still have to earn this one. In fairness to them, they’ve been performing well on the second night of back-to-backs as of late, winning three of their last four. They should win this one simply because they’re the better team. It’s also the perfect opportunity to quickly bounce back after losing a close game in Denver.

Without Haliburton, Indiana ranks dead last in the league in offense. They average just 111.4 points per game and don’t rebound the ball very well. Outside of Pascal Siakam, they don’t have much of a consistent threat on offense. Their defense doesn’t make up for their offense either because they don’t have the pieces to protect the rim, especially with Ivica Zubac out. More notably, Indiana doesn’t have an answer for Los Angeles’ main guys.

That’s why it would be nice to see the Lakers put together a nice bounceback game, one that will begin this crucial five-game home stand on a strong note. Hopefully, they shoot better than they did on Thursday night, especially if this one goes down to the wire.

The Lakers should be able to feast in the paint even more and defend without fouling so much. It’s the defense’s responsibility to make sure that Siakam, Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard don’t play extraordinary well.

One of the perks of the NBA regular season is that there’s always an opportunity to bounce back, especially after losing such a winnable game. Let’s see if the purple and gold can do just on Friday against the Pacers.

Notes and Updates

• This is the Lakers’ 11th back-to-back this season. After this one, they will play three more.
• Since the Lakers played on Thursday, there’s no injury report yet.
• As for the Pacers, Tyrese Halliburton (Achilles injury), Johnny Furphy (right ACL tear), Ivica Zubac (left ankle sprain) are all out.
• Pascal Siakam (left wrist sprain), Aaron Nesmith (right ankle and lower back sprain) and Andrew Nembhard (lower back and neck soreness) are probable.
• Luka Dončić was called for his 15th technical foul of the season on Thursday against the Nuggets. If he gets called for one more, he will be automatically suspended for one game.

You can follow Nicole on Twitter at @nicoleganglani.

The Lakers might just be cursed to always have an injury.

After a short string of games where they had a clean injury report, they came away from Thursday’s game against the Nuggets with plenty of bumps and bruises to go along with their loss. Two starters did not finish the game, one being LeBron, who suffered an elbow injury late in the contest.

The other, perhaps more serious injury was Deandre Ayton, who only played the opening 4:30 of the game before leaving with a knee injury. Ayton was eventually ruled out at halftime.

From the Lakers —
Deandre Ayton (knee) will not return to tonight’s game at Denver.

— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) March 6, 2026

After the game, head coach JJ Redick said Ayton was dealing with left knee soreness, leading to his early exit.

JJ Redick says he thinks Deandre Ayton is dealing with left knee soreness.

— Khobi Price (@khobi_price) March 6, 2026

After being asked to clarify, Redick reiterated that it was left knee soreness. That’s relevant because in early February, Ayton dealt with right knee soreness that limited him to one appearance in the team’s four games prior to the All-Star break.

It’s possible this is the same injury resurfacing, but either way, it’s concerning. As much as Ayton has struggled in recent weeks, when he was at his best early in the season, the team was at its best.

That being said, in his absence, Jaxson Hayes looked fantastic against the Nuggets. Maxi Kleber has also had some solid showings in recent games, though he’s been dealing with a back injury. The Lakers found success in Denver with a small ball lineup as well.

While the Lakers do clearly have options they can turn to, any hit to the team’s depth is a blow, especially as they look to make their playoff push.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

Don’t let the score fool you. The Lakers never had a shot in this one.

The Nuggets started the game on an 11-0 and never trailed. Anytime LA made a push, Denver responded and closed the door.

When Deandre Ayton played, he was bad, and when Lakers head coach JJ Redick went to players he hadn’t used in a while like Jarred Vanderbilt, it didn’t work.

Besides LeBron James, few Lakers can hold their heads high when looking back at how they played in this game.

So, let’s dive into the loss. As always, grades are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance for that player.

LeBron James

34 minutes, 16 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 7-11 FG, 0-2 3PT, 2-2 FT, -10

From the beginning, LeBron was excellent in this game. He was pushing into the paint, attacking the basket, and was an active defensive participant.

His elbow injury in the fourth interrupted his play, but he gave the Lakers everything he had.

Grade: A

Luka Dončić

40 minutes, 27 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals, 3 turnovers, 3 fouls, 11-24 FG, 3-10 3PT, 2-4 FT, 0

Luka was offensively aggressive in this game and played at his typical level. It was good to see him taking some shots late, though Marcus Smart took a few that would’ve been nice to see Luka or LeBron attempt. Beyond that, though, he was adequate.

Grade: B

Marcus Smart

32 minutes, 9 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers, 4 fouls, 3-9 FG, 3-6 3PT, +3

On the one hand, Smart played hard and was one of the Lakers who showed up the entire game. On the other hand, the flopping was a bit much and the threes he missed in the final quarter sealed LA’s fate.

Still, other players underperformed and Smart was the only starter who was a positive in the plus-minus.

Grade: B-

Austin Reaves

38 minutes, 16 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, 3 turnovers, 2 fouls, 6-11 FG, 1-2 3PT, 3-4 FT, -4

It was another slow start for Reaves. He had just four points at the half. Reaves improved in the third and fourth quarters, but this was still another game where he had underperformed. This has been a trend over the past seven games, and an end does not seem in sight.

Perhaps since LA plays Indiana next, he’ll look good in a low-stakes contest.

Grade: C

Rui Hachimura

29 minutes, 16 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 6-9 FG, 4-5 3PT, +10

Hachimura played well. He had some key threes that helped tilt things in LA’s favor, so it’s hard to be frustrated with what he provided.

Grade: B

Jaxson Hayes

27 minutes, 19 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 foul, 8-10 FG, 3-5 FT, +7

Hayes was fantastic in this game. He was a great screener, was flushing the ball down the hoop with ease and had his best performance of the season.

Grade: A+

Luke Kennard

20 minutes, 8 points, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 3-6 FG, 2-3 3PT, -7

Kennard did what he was supposed to in this game, and that’s knocking down threes, moving the ball and setting screens.

There’s not much more that can or should be asked of him.

Grade: B+

Jake LaRavia

10 minutes, 2 points, 1 assist, 2 fouls, 1-6 FG, 0-3 3PT, -16

If LaRavia isn’t going to knock down his shots, continue to be passive when he’s open and get burnt on defense, then he can take a seat.

Grade: F

Deandre Ayton, Jarred Vanderbilt,

This pair didn’t play long enough to earn a grade, and if they did, it wouldn’t be positive.

JJ Redick

If the Lakers weren’t ready to start this game, that’s going to fall on the coach. Ayton has been making a case to get benched and he hasn’t been. Before he exited the game with a knee injury, he was terrible. These games are tests for the Lakers and they failed.

Grade: D

Thursday’s DNPs: Dalton Knecht, Adou Thiero, Kobe Bufkin, Bronny James

Thursday’s inactives: Maxi Kleber, Chris Mañon, Nick Smith Jr, Drew Timme,

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.

DENVER — Even with both teams eventually down multiple key players, Thursday night at Ball Arena was the Lakers’ biggest test against a potential Western Conference playoff team in nearly a month.

And they learned more about what it’ll take to compete with the other top teams in the West, falling to the Nuggets 120-113 to kick off a stretch in which the quality of competition to picking up.

The Lakers never led on Thursday, with the Nuggets pulling off the wire-to-wire win in a game they led by 15 points.

Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 27 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and four steals, making multiple shots to keep his team in the game. 

But the Lakers were outscored 8-2 in the final two minutes to leave Denver with the loss. 

Austin Reaves finished with 16 points, seven assists and five rebounds.

LeBron James had 16 points, eight assists and five rebounds, including moving ahead of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most made field goals in NBA history, but was dealing with a left elbow injury late in the game after taking a fall on a layup attempt in the fourth. 

Jaxson Hayes stepped up after starting center Deandre Ayton left the game with left knee soreness, with Hayes finishing with 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting and five rebounds in 28 minutes.

The Nuggets jumped out to a 15-2 lead with the Lakers lacking energy early.

They outscored the Nuggets 110-106 over the final 43 ½ minutes after Ayton subbed out with the knee injury.

“We talked about the sense of urgency, the importance of this game pregame, we talked about our physicality, took us a little bit of time to do that,” coach JJ Redick said. “It’s difficult against good teams to spot them…13 points. Our group showed a lot of resiliency, did some really good things.”

Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 28 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds. Jamal Murray added 28 points and seven assists.

What it means

The Lakers will stay at the No. 6 spot in the West, moving further behind the No. 5 Nuggets (39-24).

They dropped to 37-25 on the season.

Turning point

When Reaves split a pair of free throws with 2:05 remaining.

The Lakers would’ve tied the game at 112 apiece if Reaves made both, but they trailed 112-111 after he missed the second attempt, with Jokic making a driving hook shot on the Nuggets’ ensuing possession to start a 6-0 run. 

MVP: Nikola Jokic

Even on a night he didn’t play the best, Jokic still had a triple-double and shot 10 of 15 from the field. 

Stat of the game: 15

That’s how many technical fouls Doncic has been assessed this season after picking up another technical in the second quarter on Thursday.

After going almost 1 ½ months across 14 games without a technical foul, Doncic picked up his 14th during Tuesday’s home win over the Pelicans.

“He’s aware that he’s close,” coach JJ Redick said ahead of Thursday’s game. “And I think he’s… He’s trying.”

If Doncic is assessed another technical for his 16th of the season, he’ll have to serve a one-game suspension by league rule. 

Up next

The Lakers will close out the back-to-back set when they return to Southern California on Friday.

They’ll host the Pacers at Crypto.com Arena to kick off a five-game homestand.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Zion Williamson had 23 points on 10-for-14 shooting, Trey Murphy III added 21 points and the New Orelans Pelicans beat the NBA-worst Sacramento Kings 133-123 on Thursday night.

Saddiq Bey shot 6 for 11 (3 for 5 from 3-point range) and 5 of 6 from the free-throw line for 20 points for the Pelicans, who had lost two in a row after a four-game win streak.

Williamson added nine rebounds and five assists.

Precious Achiuwa had 29 points and 12 rebounds and Russell Westbrook had 19 points and 10 assists for the Kings, who fell to 14-50 overall and lost their ninth in a row at home. They have lost three in a row and are 2-4 following a franchise-worst 16-game losing streak.

The Pelicans entered halftime up 67-61. The Pelicans took a 14-point lead in the third quarter thanks to a 15-0 scoring run.

The Pelicans made 12 3-pointers compared to the Kings eight.

All-Star point guard Dejounte Murray (return to competition reconditioning) did not play for the first game of a back-to-back (New Orleans plays at Phoenix on Friday).

Kings forward Keegan Murray missed his fourth straight game because of ankle injury.

DeMar DeRozan kad 15 points to move into 19th place on the NBA’s career scoring leaders list.

Up next

Pelicans: Visit the Phoenix Suns on Friday night.

Kings: Host the Chicago Bulls on Sunday night.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

The San Antonio Spurs returned home and set the tone early, never letting it slip away. From the opening minutes Thursday night, San Antonio played like a team determined to stay one step ahead of the Detroit Pistons and that’s exactly where the Spurs remained for all 48 minutes in a confident 121-106 victory.

The game never had the feel of a dramatic comeback or a frantic finish. Instead, it was a steady, methodical performance from a Spurs team that controlled the rhythm from the start and leaned on its brightest star when it mattered most. That star, of course, was Victor Wembanyama.

The 7-foot-4 phenom turned in another dominant night, piling up 38 points, 16 rebounds, and five blocks while anchoring San Antonio on both ends of the floor. Whether it was altering shots in the paint, grabbing rebounds over multiple defenders, or finishing highlight plays in transition, Wembanyama once again looked like the most impactful player on the court. And the rest of the team followed his lead.

“Very pleased with the level of contact we played with,” Spurs Head Coach Mitch Johnson said. “To be able to match Detroit’s physically while trying to impose your will and playing your brand of basketball, I thought we did that.”

San Antonio came out firing in the first quarter, quickly establishing the pace of the game. Crisp ball movement and aggressive defense helped them build an early cushion, forcing Detroit to spend the rest of the night chasing the scoreboard. While Wembanyama was the centerpiece, the Spurs’ supporting cast ensured the offense never stalled. De’Aaron Fox sliced through the Pistons’ defense repeatedly, finishing with 29 points (scoring 22 in the first half) and bringing a constant burst of speed to the backcourt. Stephon Castle quietly orchestrated the offense with 11 points and 12 assists, consistently finding teammates in scoring positions.

“We have a team full of guys that create their own shot,” Fox said. “I just see how the game goes, and tonight I came out aggressive. Vic was great for us. Dev didn’t shoot the ball a lot, Steph didn’t shoot the ball a lot. That’s a quality team win for us from start to finish.”

Detroit had moments when it looked ready to make things interesting.

Behind the playmaking of Cade Cunningham, the Pistons briefly trimmed what had been a 20-plus point deficit late in the third quarter. With Wembanyama resting, Detroit managed to push the margin into single digits, giving the game its only hint of suspense. But the Spurs never lost their composure.

“They [Detroit] get a lot of credit for that [3rd quarter]. I thought we missed some shots… The NBA game is a long game. But I’m very happy with everyone who played a part tonight. I thought we did a really good job of staying with it and getting to our spots.”

When Wembanyama returned, San Antonio immediately regained their footing and took full control. One sequence in the fourth quarter summed up the night: Wembanyama rejected a Pistons shot at the rim, sprinted the floor, and finished an alley-oop moments later to ignite the crowd and push the lead comfortably back into double digits.

From there, the Spurs simply closed the door.

Detroit continued to fight, but San Antonio’s balanced scoring and interior defense kept the Pistons from mounting any real comeback. By the final buzzer, the Spurs had secured another convincing win, one that reflected a team growing more into a dangerous contender as the season moves forward.

For San Antonio, the formula looked familiar: control the pace, move the ball, defend the paint, and let Wembanyama take over when needed.

“Any game between top seeds should be impressive,” Wembanayama said. “For us it was super fun and it wouldn’t have been fun if we didn’t set the tone for the game. I think we led for 48 [minutes]. I don’t know if it was impressive, but it was fun.”

Thursday night, that combination proved more than enough.

Game Notes

• San Antonio scored 19 bench points but on this night, the second unit didn’t need to carry the scoring load. It is nice to have such a deep bench that can turn it on at any moment.
• If this is the version of De’Aaron Fox the Spurs will get in the playoffs, they will be the favorites to reach the Western Conference Finals or even the NBA Finals.

A game of runs came down to the final minute between the Lakers and Nuggets with Denver edging out a 120-113win.

Trailing by three in the final 90 seconds of the game, Marcus Smart missed a pair of open threes. Nikola Jokić scored at the rim with 22 seconds left to make it a five-point game and effectively seal the win.

The Lakers got 45 points off the bench and turned 18 Denver turnovers into 26 points. An improved defensive effort in the second half allowed them to make multiple runs, but they could never take the lead.

The game began with Jamal Murray being fouled from behind the arc and converting on all three free throws. He then proceeded to drain two more 3-pointers while the Lakers struggled to generate any offense, allowing Denver’s lead to explode to 11 and forcing LA to call a timeout.

Out of the break, Luka Dončić was fouled and made only one free throw. LeBron James converted on an extremely much-needed layup for LA’s first field goal nearly four minutes into the game.

Other than that, the Lakers continued struggling offensively. LeBron was the highest scorer for LA with four points, followed by Luka with three. 

At the 4:57 mark, Los Angeles was down by nine. 

Denver was shooting 66% from behind the arc, a massive reason why they were red hot. Tim Hardaway Jr.scored seven points off the bench for Denver.

Late in the period, LeBron made history by passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most field goals made in NBA history.

King. The most field goals made in NBA regular season HISTORY 👑 pic.twitter.com/KmyOW9msll

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) March 6, 2026

At the end of the first, the purple and gold were down 10. 

The Nuggets dogwalked the Lakers to start this game, going on an 11-0 run. LA trails 32-22 after one quarter of play.

— Edwin Garcia (@ECreates88) March 6, 2026

Luke Kennard drained a triple to start the second period for the Lakers. The Nuggets then scored five in a row. LA was now down by 15 and still looked as if they didn’t know they were playing a game. 

Murray added five more points to his stellar first-half play for a total of 14. 

A nice 6-0 scoring surge from Los Angeles, thanks to LeBron, helped cut the deficit to single digits. He was the first Laker in double figures with 10 points.

The scoring run extended to 12-0 to get the visitors all the way back into the game.

Much needed LeBron James takeover. Sensed it was getting away.

— Raj C. (@RajChipalu) March 6, 2026

Bruce Brown drained a triple to stop the run. The rest of the half was a game of runs back and forth.

LA cut the deficit to three, but the Nuggets responded with a 12-2 run, going back up by double figures. Los Angeles then scored eight straight, but the Nuggets responded and made it a 10-point lead into halftime. 

The Lakers trail 64-54 at the half. Luka 15 pts on 6-for-12 shooting; LeBron 12 pts on 5-for-6. DEN: Murray 20 pts 5 ast; Jokic 10 pts 6 reb 6 ast.

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) March 6, 2026

The third period started with Jaxson Hayes, starting in place of Ayton who left the game with a knee injury and did not return, dunking off an assist from Luka. Murray then responded with a triple on the other end.

Austin Reaves began to heat up for LA, scoring five in the quarter. 

Nikola Jokić was on triple-double watch with 16 points, eight rebounds, and nine assists. Jokić also picked up his fourth foul.

Marcus Smart knocked down his first 3-pointer of the game, which Los Angeles desperately needed. After falling behind by as much as 15 again, LA picked up its offense once more, with Rui Hachimura and Smart draining triples and Reaves adding to his now 13 points.

The deficit was now four with 4:06 left in the quarter.

The Lakers fell behind by 15 early in the 3rd Q, but have rallied back into the ballgame once again, cutting the margin to 4 at 82-78 as Reaves blew past Jokic for a layup to cap a run that forced Denver's TO.

— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) March 6, 2026

Unfortunately, the game of runs continued as Denver scored seven straight to push it back to a double-digit lead. Luka surged towards the end of the quarter, scoring on two triples that made it a seven-point game. 

The final frame began with Hardaway Jr. draining a 3-pointer for the Nuggets. He was also fouled from behind the arc and converted on two of the three free throws. Jaxson Hayes was now at 15 points, after what felt like his 83rd dunk of the night. 

LA found themselves on a 9-0 run, making it a five-point game with 7:30 left. 

After the run extended to 11 straight points for Los Angeles, Jokić converted on a layup. That stopped a three-minute scoring drought for Denver. Now at the 5:06 mark, the Nuggets were up by seven after a free throw from Christian Braun. 

Strawther added to his nice night with four more points. LA started to surge again, scoring nine points.

The Lakers made it a one-point game with a free throw from Austin at the 2:05 mark. The combination of Hachimura, LeBron and Hayes helped jumpstart this surge. LA had two opportunities to tie it, but Smart missed both threes. 

With 28 seconds left, it was still a three-point game, and Jokić converted on a layup that made it a five-point game, sealing the win. 

Key Player Stats

Luka finished with 27 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. LeBron ended with 16 points, five rebounds and eight assists. Reaves had 16 points with seven assists and five steals. 

Kennard pitched in with eight points off the bench. Jaxson Hayes scored 19 points and five rebounds. Hachimura notched 16 points. Smart ended with nine points. 

The Lakers’ next matchup will be against the Indiana Pacers on Friday at 7:30 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.

Another record-setting night for LeBron James ended painfully, as he hurt his elbow in a hard fall during the fourth quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers' game against the Denver Nuggets.

James drove and hit a layup with just over 4 minutes to go, but he came down hard and immediately grasped at his elbow. The Amazon Prime cameras captured James saying "elbow" and using some NSFW language as he was checked on.

Jaxson Hayes subbed in for James after the ensuing timeout and James received treatment from trainers while sitting on the bench, working his elbow area.

James' basket had cut the Lakers' deficit to 110-106 late. He returned to the court about two minutes later, with 2:05 on the clock and the Lakers trailing 112-111. James was removed for good with 22.3 seconds left

The Nuggets held on to win, 120-113.

ESPN's Dave McMenamin, relaying what Lakers coach JJ Redick said after the contest, reported that James was "icing his left elbow after the game and that he was experiencing enough discomfort that it caused him to be unable to finish the game."

Earlier in the contest, James broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's NBA record for most made field goals.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: LeBron James injury update, why he left Lakers-Nuggets game in 4th