With the Rockets' surprising loss, the Lakers suffered a heavy defeat to the Spurs, and the Thunder narrowly edged out the Clippers; the NBA Western Conference standings have been updated.

On January 8th Beijing time, the NBA regular season carried on with multiple games ending yesterday: the Nuggets edged out the strong Eastern Celtics 114-110, the weak Pelicans were defeated 100-117 by the Hawks, the Clippers lost 111-123 to the Knicks, the Suns unleashed their offense to crush the Grizzlies 117-98, the Jazz fell in overtime 125-129 to the defending champion Thunder, the Lakers without LeBron James suffered a heavy 91-107 loss to the Spurs, the Bucks were beaten 113-120 by the Warriors, and the Rockets surprisingly lost 102-103 to the Trail Blazers. With these results, the latest Western Conference rankings are: Thunder first, Spurs second, Nuggets third, Lakers fourth, Rockets sixth, and Trail Blazers ninth!

Jazz vs. Thunder. The Thunder’s dominance has declined this season, having lost seven games already. Facing the not-so-strong Jazz this round, the game was unexpectedly tough; the score gap never widened, and Alexander drew many free throws—19 attempts, just two fewer than the entire Jazz team. The battle extended into overtime, where the Thunder’s superior skills and free throws sealed the win, narrowly avoiding an upset against the Jazz!

Lakers vs. Spurs. LeBron James missed this game, and both teams played back-to-back games, affecting their stamina. The result was a poor three-point shooting performance from both sides. Although Doncic was outstanding, scoring 38 points, his teammates did not provide enough support, and they still lost to the Spurs, who had five players scoring in double digits!

Bucks vs. Warriors. The first quarter was evenly matched, ending tied at 31. In the second and third quarters, the Warriors’ offense became highly efficient, combining inside and outside play to suppress the Bucks and quickly build a double-digit lead. Though the Bucks fought back in the final quarter, the Warriors maintained their composure and secured the victory!

Rockets vs. Trail Blazers. Without Sengun, the Rockets faced a Trail Blazers team that maintained a slight lead throughout the game. Avdija was unstoppable, scoring continuously and breaking through the Rockets’ defense. Yang Hansheng also received increased rotation minutes. In the final moments, Avdija’s strong layup extended the lead to three points, but the Trail Blazers’ unusual strategy allowed Durant two free throws, both made, cutting the gap to one. The Rockets still had two timeouts, but after an inbound pass was stolen by Eason, he completed a game-winning layup. Unfortunately, the buzzer had sounded before the shot, so the Trail Blazers escaped and narrowly claimed their fourth consecutive win!

Written by / Sports Fiction