Kyrie Irving scored 40 points Monday to lead Brooklyn to a win over the New York Knicks. Frank Franklin II/Associated Press
NEW YORK — Kyrie Irving scored 40 points, Jeff Green made two free throws with 3.7 seconds left and the Brooklyn Nets overcome the early loss of James Harden to beat the New York Knicks 114-112 on Monday night.
Harden returned after missing two games with right hamstring tightness but lasted just four minutes before having to leave again with the same injury.
But the Nets still have Irving, who wore down the Knicks’ defense with his dazzling dribbling moves that freed up space for jumpers, including a 3-pointer with 59 seconds left after New York had closed within two.
The Knicks scored five straight to tie it at 112 on Alec Burks’ 3-pointer and forced the ball out of Irving’s hands on Brooklyn’s next trip. Joe Harris missed a jumper, but Green got the rebound and was fouled.
After his free throws, Julius Randle missed a jumper as time expired.
Green scored 23 points and Joe Harris added 16 for the Nets, who won their eighth straight at home.
Randle had 19 points, 15 rebounds and 12 assists in his fourth triple-double of the season. RJ Barrett scored 22 points and Reggie Bullock added 21.
The Nets were hoping to finally be whole again this week, but now with Harden hurt again it’s unclear if they’ll be able to put either of their other superstars out there with Irving. Kevin Durant shot around before the game and Coach Steve Nash said he was hopeful the All-Star forward would be ready to play for the first time since Feb. 13.
“But it’s definitely not set in stone,” Nash said.
The Nets’ Big Three has played just seven times since Harden was acquired nearly three months ago.
MAVERICKS 111, JAZZ 103: Luka Doncic scored 31 points and Dorian Finney-Smith added a season-high 23 as Dallas beat visiting Utah for its season-best fifth straight win, while the NBA-leading Jazz had their nine-game winning streak halted.
Jalen Brunson scored 20 points, Josh Richardson 17 and Tim Hardaway Jr. 16 as Dallas won for the first time in three games versus Utah this season. Kristaps Porzingis, Dallas’ No. 2 scorer and leading rebounder, sat out with a sprained right wrist.
Mike Conley scored 28 points to lead the Jazz, who trailed by as many as 18 points. Donovan Mitchell, Bojan Bogdanovic and Jordan Clarkson scored 16 each, and Rudy Gobert had 14 points and 15 rebounds.
RAPTORS 103, WIZARDS 101: Gary Trent Jr. beat the buzzer with a long 3-pointer and Toronto rallied from a 19-point second-half deficit to beat Washington in Tampa, Florida.
Pascal Siakam led Toronto with 22 points, and DeAndre Bembry and rookie Malachi Flynn led a fourth-quarter charge for the Raptors, who won consecutive games for the first time since Feb. 19-21.
Russell Westbrook had 23 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists for the Wizards, who have lost four straight. Washington played a fifth straight game without NBA scoring leader Bradley Beal.
The Wizards led 74-55 midway through the third quarter before they missed 13 straight 3-point attempts.
PISTONS 132, THUNDER 108: Jerami Grant scored 21 points against his former team, and visiting Detroit beat Oklahoma City.
Grant played three seasons for the Thunder, and then was traded after the 2018-19 season. He looked at home during his return, making 7 of 15 shots and adding five rebounds and five assists in just 23 minutes.
Frank Jackson and Sekou Doumbouya scored 14 points apiece for Detroit, which was coming off a 125-81 home loss to the New York Knicks on Saturday – the franchise’s worst defeat since a 44-point loss in 1994.
Aleksej Pokusevski scored 19 points for the Thunder, and Svi Mykhailiuk had 17. Mykhailiuk was acquired in a trade with Detroit last month.
TIMBERWOLVES 116, KINGS 106: D’Angelo Russell scored 25 points in his return from knee surgery and Karl-Anthony Towns had 23 points and 13 rebounds as Minnesota beat Sacramento in Minneapolis.
Anthony Edwards scored 19 points for Minnesota and started the Timberwolves’ push in the fourth after the teams went back and forth for three quarters. Russell continued Minnesota’s push ahead with a pair of 3-pointers in the fourth. He scored 13 of his points in the fourth.
Russell came off the bench in his first game since Feb. 8. He missed 26 games. Juancho Hernangomez added 17 points and nine rebounds for the Wolves off the bench as Minnesota’s reserves outscored Sacramento’s bench 60-16.
De’Aaron Fox had 31 points for the Kings, who lost their fourth in a row. Harrison Barnes added 21 points and 12 rebounds, and Buddy Hield scored 18.
CAVALIERS 125, SPURS 101: Darius Garland scored a career-high 37 points, and Cleveland won in San Antonio to snap a five-game skid.
Collin Sexton added 22 points for Cleveland. Isaiah Hartenstein scored a season-high 16, and Taurean Prince finished with 14.
NOTES
PAUL PIERCE: NBA analyst Paul Pierce has been fired by ESPN, people familiar with the situation confirmed Monday. The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to publicly comment on personnel matters.
Pierce, who played 19 seasons in the NBA, had worked for the network since 2017, including being a part of the “NBA Countdown” pregame show. He posted an Instagram video Friday night that showed him playing poker and smoking with scantily clad dancers performing in the background.
Pierce, the MVP of the 2008 NBA Finals with the Boston Celtics, addressed his future on Twitter, posting, “Big Things coming soon stay tuned make sure u smile #Truthshallsetufree.”
HAWKS: Atlanta forward De’Andre Hunter continues to struggle with an ailing right knee, undergoing a nonsurgical procedure Monday to address lingering soreness. The team said Hunter will return to activity later this week. It’s not known how much longer he’ll be out after missing 29 of Atlanta’s last 31 games.
Amid a breakout second season with the Hawks, Hunter underwent arthroscopic surgery on Feb. 8. He was sidelined for 23 games before returning to the court March 22 against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Hunter’s return was short-lived. He played only two games before the knee began acting up again, causing him to sit out Atlanta’s last six contests.
The fourth overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft from Virginia, Hunter was emerging as one of Atlanta’s top players at the time of his injury.
He ranks third on the team in scoring (16.0 points per game), providing another offensive weapon to go with Trae Young and John Collins.
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