NBA Night Recap: Historic Celtics Loss, Jokic Dominates, Suns & Knicks Secure Wins

The Minnesota Timberwolves delivered a shock in the TD Garden against the Boston Celtics, even without the injured Anthony Edwards. Nikola Jokic once again achieved an incredible triple-double.

Devin Booker ended the Suns' losing streak, placing Phoenix in a strong position for the Play-In Tournament. Meanwhile, the disappointing Toronto Raptors face the risk of losing their postseason spot in the final stretch.

Additionally, a substitute player generated a curious statistic in the New York Knicks vs. Washington Wizards game. The Sacramento Kings secured a win in the bottom-of-the-table clash against the Brooklyn Nets.

Here's a recap of the NBA night.

NBA: Night's Results Overview

Home	Away	Result
Denver Nuggets	Portland Trail Blazers	128:112
Sacramento Kings	Brooklyn Nets	126:122
New York Knicks	Washington Wizards	145:113
Boston Celtics	Minnesota Timberwolves	92:102
Phoenix Suns	Toronto Raptors	120:98

Boston Celtics (47-24) - Minnesota Timberwolves (44-28) 92:102

Box Score

The Minnesota Timberwolves ended a nearly 21-year drought at the TD Garden, securing their first victory there since March 6, 2005. Bones Hyland expressed his astonishment at his team's "eternal" losing streak, remarking, "I was five years old then. That's crazy!"

Bones Hyland played a significant role in this "historic" victory in Boston, contributing 23 points (8/14 FG, 3/7 3FG) off the bench, along with 3 rebounds and 3 assists. Naz Reid (12 PTS, 7 REB) also made a crucial impact upon his return after missing two games, especially with superstar Anthony Edwards absent. The Wolves, trailing 78:81 early in the fourth quarter, decisively turned the game around with a 16-0 run, during which Reid scored eight consecutive points.

In a game marked by poor shooting percentages from both sides (Boston: 35.8% FG, Minnesota: 42.9% FG), Chris Finch's team managed to compensate for an underwhelming performance from Julius Randle. Edwards' co-star narrowly missed a double-double with 9 points and 9 rebounds but struggled significantly with his shot (3/14 FG, 1/4 3FG). In contrast, Ayo Dosunmu (17 PTS, 8 REB, 6 AST) and Rudy Gobert (9 PTS, 14 REB, 4 BLK) diligently filled the box score.

The Celtics were led by Jaylen Brown, who, despite scoring 29 points (9/26 FG), was inefficient. Jayson Tatum achieved his fourth double-double in his eighth game since returning, with 16 points and 11 rebounds. However, the forward failed to make a single shot in the first half, leading to the Celtics squandering a 15-point lead. He re-emerged with 13 points in the third quarter.

Following the game, Tatum expressed his frustration, commenting, "I'm not Superman, so this will all take time. I think I'll be a bit more forgiving of myself tomorrow, but right now, everything is frustrating." This loss, their first after four consecutive wins, allowed the Knicks to close the gap on the Celtics, now sitting just half a game behind second place.

New York Knicks (47-25) - Washington Wizards (16-55) 145:113

Box Score

New York celebrated its sixth consecutive win, and the Madison Square Garden particularly cheered for Tyler Kolek. The substitute player accumulated a total of 53 points on Sunday, combining his performances from the NBA and G-League.

Kolek first impressed with 42 points and 11 assists for the Westchester Knicks before being called up later that day for the final five and a half minutes of the blowout win against the Wizards. He maintained his hot hand, sinking all four of his shots in the closing stages, including three from downtown, cheered on by enthusiastic Knicks fans, adding another 11 NBA points to his daily tally.

Kolek was one of seven players in Mike Brown's team to score in double digits. Karl-Anthony Towns led the scoring with 26 points (9/13 FG) and also grabbed 16 rebounds. This marked the big man's 50th double-double of the season, making him the first Knickerbocker since David Lee (2008/2009 and 2009/2010) to achieve at least 50 double-doubles in consecutive seasons.

Co-star Jalen Brunson contributed 23 points, and Mitchell Robinson also secured a double-double off the bench (10 PTS, 10 REB). The Knicks displayed impressive shooting, hitting 58.5% from the field, converting over half their three-point attempts (17/32 3FG), and were near-perfect from the free-throw line (18/19 FT). Ariel Hukporti grabbed an offensive rebound in his three and a half minutes of playing time.

The Wizards suffered their twelfth consecutive loss against the Knicks and their sixteenth defeat in a row overall. Jaden Hardy, coming off the bench, impressed with seven made three-pointers and a total of 25 points. Anthony Gill contributed 18 points.

Denver Nuggets (44-28) - Portland Trail Blazers (35-37) 128:112

Box Score

Nikola Jokic impressed with 22 points, 13 rebounds, and 13 assists – and that was already after three quarters! The "Joker" thus secured his 192nd career triple-double. It was also the 85th time he had achieved this feat before the fourth quarter.

In the clear victory against the Blazers, the Nuggets' center played an additional five minutes in the final quarter without significantly boosting his stats. He finished with 22 points (10/18 FG), 14 rebounds, and 14 assists. However, Jokic struggled from beyond the arc (2/8 3FG) and committed several turnovers (5 TO).

Co-star Jamal Murray was also in top form against Portland, scoring 22 points. Cam Johnson provided efficient support with 19 points (7/10 FG, 5/7 3FG). Head Coach David Adelman was also pleased with the comeback of Peyton Watson. The guard, who is experiencing his breakout year this season (14.9 PPG), returned to the court for the first time since early February and contributed 14 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists in just under 20 minutes.

This loss keeps the Blazers in ninth place in the Play-In race, behind the Los Angeles Clippers (35-36), meaning they would currently need to win two tournament games to reach the postseason. Early in the game, the Blazers matched both teams' impressive shooting, hitting seven of their first ten three-pointers. However, they cooled down significantly in the middle of the third quarter, conceding a decisive 0:11 run. Deni Avdija was the top scorer with 23 points, while Donovan Clingan once again notched a double-double (18 PTS, 13 REB).

Sacramento Kings (19-53) - Brooklyn Nets (17-54) 126:122

Box Score

It was hardly a top-tier match-up when the 15th-placed team in the Western Conference faced the 13th-placed team in the Eastern Conference in Sacramento. Nevertheless, the Kings had shown increased motivation in recent weeks, winning four of their last five games before their two most recent losses.

The Kings returned to their winning ways against the Nets, handing Brooklyn its seventh consecutive loss. Malik Monk was the decisive player; not only did he score 32 points off the bench (8/17 FG, 7/13 3FG, 9/9 FT), but he also delivered in crucial moments. In the final twelve minutes, he scored 12 points, showed strong nerves at the free-throw line (7/7 FT), and leveraged the Nets' increased defensive attention in the fourth quarter for 5 of his 6 assists.

Despite everything, the Kings had to sweat a bit for their first home win against the Nets since 2023. With the score at 125:122, Brooklyn had chances to equalize, but Nolan Traore stepped out of bounds with six seconds remaining.

Devin Carter also delivered a strong performance off the Kings' bench with 16 points. Maxime Raynaud (22 PTS, 10 REB) and Precious Achiuwa (14 PTS, 15 REB) each recorded double-doubles. Brooklyn was led by Ben Saraf (20 PTS), with Malachi Smith and Ziaire Williams both contributing 18 points.

Phoenix Suns (40-32) - Toronto Raptors (39-31) 120:98

Box Score

A comfortable wire-to-wire victory for the Suns, who led by 14 points after the first quarter, were up by +18 at halftime, and extended their lead to +31 at one point. Devin Booker was the top performer on the court with 25 points (9/15 FG, 3/6 3FG) and 6 assists. He received offensive support from Jalen Green (20 PTS, 7 AST) and Collin Gillespie (16 PTS, 3 AST), who collectively secured the first win after five consecutive losses.

The 40th win of the season ensures the Suns maintain the best starting position in the Western Conference Play-In Tournament. Furthermore, Head Coach Jordan Ott's squad has already accumulated four more victories than last year, with ten games still remaining.

While the Suns are likely to finish the regular season as the seventh seed in their conference, the Toronto Raptors in the East risk squandering their previously strong starting position. After their second consecutive loss, the Raptors remain in fifth place but have the same number of wins as the trailing Atlanta Hawks and Philadelphia 76ers. The Orlando Magic in eighth place and the Miami Heat in ninth also have only one less victory.

Scottie Barnes most clearly demonstrated his desire to avoid slipping into the Play-In. The forward recorded an efficient 17 points (8/9 FG) and also collected 5 rebounds and 6 assists. RJ Barrett and Ja'Kobe Walter each contributed 13 points.