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Mavs hang on after Doncic hurt, hand Pels 10th straight loss

DALLAS (AP) — The Dallas Mavericks barely held on after leading by 27 points when Luka Doncic exited the game with a right heel injury on a hard fall.

The New Orleans Pelicans thought their one chance to finish the rally and end a long losing streak was taken away by the officials, who acknowledged two incorrect calls in the final seconds.

Doncic scored 31 points before leaving midway through the third quarter, and the Mavericks survived a 16-point fourth quarter without him in a 111-106 victory Thursday night, handing the travel-weary Pelicans their . . .

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Murray, Jokic lead charge as Nuggets beat Warriors 134-117

DENVER (AP) — Jamal Murray just nodded when asked if this might be the most confident he’s ever been. Nothing else really needed to be said.

Murray had 33 points and Nikola Jokic recorded his 17th triple-double of the season, leading the Denver Nuggets to a 134-117 win over the short-handed Golden State Warriors on Thursday night.

“Jamal, his greatness is on full display,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone, who campaigned for Murray to be added to the . . .

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James pulls within 63 of breaking Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA record

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — LeBron James had 26 points, seven rebounds and seven assists and pulled within 63 points of becoming the NBA’s career scoring leader as the Los Angeles Lakers rallied to beat the Indiana Pacers 112-111 on Thursday night.

James has 38,325 points, with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holding the record at 38,387.

James gave Los Angeles its first lead on a 3-pointer with 2:35 left, and Anthony Davis’ 11-footer with 35.1 seconds left was the decisive basket. Davis had 31 points and 14 rebounds.

Aaron Nesmith scored a career-high 24 points for Indiana, with Buddy Hield’s 17-foot jumper clanking off the rim in the . . .

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Antetokounmpo scores 54 points, Bucks beat Clippers 106-105

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo celebrated his most famous 50-point performance by ordering 50 chicken nuggets at a Chick-fil-A drive-through the next day.

He already has an idea how to commemorate reaching that plateau for the third time in the last month.

Antetokounmpo scored 20 of his 54 points in the fourth quarter and the Milwaukee Bucks overcame a 21-point deficit to beat the . . .

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LeBron’s off-court legacy complements his basketball success

Mya Smiley is a student at the University of Akron thanks to an assist from LeBron James, and she is determined upon graduation to become a social worker that helps foster kids.

Her education and career path would not have been possible, the sophomore says, were it not for a scholarship and counseling that she received from the LeBron James Family Foundation. “He’s life-changing,” Smiley said.

For all his accomplishments on the basketball court — four championships, 19 All-Star Game nominations and an imminent coronation as . . .

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Memorable LeBron James moments as he closes in on NBA record

As LeBron James closes in on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and is about to become the NBA’s career scoring leader the journey has included several memorable moments.

And there have been many. Many.

Through 20 seasons and four NBA championships, the list of James’ unforgettable nights is immeasurably long. But here are five that stand out.

THE MASK

The highest-scoring game of his career came on March 3, 2014, when James — playing with a mask to protect a facial fracture — toyed with the Charlotte Bobcats, scoring . . .

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