DeMarcus Cousins followed up his 40-point/20-rebound effort in Sacramento with a triple-double (29 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists), becoming the fourth player in NBA history to reach those benchmarks in back-to-back games. The others: Elgin Baylor (1962-63), Oscar Robertson (1964-65) and Wilt Chamberlain (1968-69).
Kyrie Irving took over down the stretch, scoring nine of his 24 points in the final 2:03 as Boston extended its win streak to four games. It was Irving’s eighth career game in Miami — and the first time he’s walked out of American Airlines Arena a winner.
Russell Westbrook added another triple-double feat to his resume. With 12 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists in just 28 minutes, Westbrook became the first player to record a triple-double against every NBA opponent in his career.
Memphis’ bench outscored its starters 67-37 as the Grizzlies improved to 5-1. Leading the charge was Chandler Parsons, who made 9 of 11 shots while scoring 24 points in 18 minutes just 10 days after getting booed in the season opener.
Ben Simmons stuffed the stat sheet once again with 23 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. The rookie joins Oscar Robertson as the only two players with at least 10 points, five rebounds and five assists in each of their first six games.
Rookie Donovan Mitchell, who shot 25.0 percent from the field in his first five games, went 9 of 16 from the field in leading Utah with 22 points. Mitchell’s breakout game also featured an early dunk of the year candidate.
Damian Lillard’s 3-pointer to open the second half gave him 9,000 career points. He did it in 402 games, making him the fast Blazer to reach the milestone.
Seeking their first 5-0 start since the 1985-86 season, the Clippers were outscored 38-17 over the game’s final 20 minutes. Those 1985-86 Clippers finished 32-50.
