NBA results and standings: Knicks hope, Rajakovic wins, Embiid out indefinitely

By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net

The New York Knicks kept their hopes for second place in the Eastern Conference alive by defeating the Boston Celtics 112-106 at Madison Square Garden, where British starter OG Anunoby recorded 13 points while fellow European teammates Poland’s Jeremy Sochan, Germany’s Ariel Hukporti, France’s Pacome Dadiet, and Mohamed Diawara remained on the bench. For the visitors, Portuguese starter Neemias Queta battled through a right toe sprain to post a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double, and Montenegrin reserve Nikola Vucevic added ten points. However, the rotation excluded British Amari Williams, Bosnian Luka Garza, Ukrainian Max Shulga, and Spanish Hugo Gonzalez.

Elsewhere in the 2025-26 NBA Regular Season on Thursday, Serbian head coach Darko Rajakovic guided the Toronto Raptors toward securing a berth in the Playoffs, presented by Google, with a 128-114 win over the Miami Heat at Scotiabank Arena, featuring six points from Austrian starter Jakob Poeltl and five from Georgian reserve Sandro Mamukelashvili. Sweden’s Pelle Larsson started for Erik Spoelstra’s side and got ten points, but Lithuania’s Kasparas Jakucionis and Russia’s Vladislav Goldin went scoreless, while Italy’s Simone Fontecchio and injured Serbian Nikola Jovic did not play.

With Joel Embiid having an appendectomy and being ruled out indefinitely shortly before tipoff, Turkiye’s Adem Bona started for the Philadelphia 76ers but was held to two points in Toyota Center with his side falling 113-102 against the Houston Rockets. The Turkish starter of the hosts, Alperen Sengun, grabbed 12 points to counter an eight-point showing and 4/14 field goals, while Swiss backup Clint Capela was limited to one point.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers overcame the latest absence of Slovenian superstar Luka Doncic to defeat the Golden State Warriors 119-103 at Chase Center, with German reserve Maxi Kleber contributing a rebound. For the hosts, Dutch reserve Malevy Leons produced 12 points while Dutch import Quinten Post and Latvian Kristaps Porzingis remained sidelined due to their respective injuries and illness management.

French starter Guerschon Yabusele exited early with a shoulder injury after registering five points in the Chicago Bulls‘ 119-108 victory against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena. The game saw several Europeans sidelined, including Lithuania’s Matas Buzelis, Serbia’s Tristan Vukcevic, and the French trio Noa Essengue, Bilal Coulibaly, and Alex Sarr.

Finally, Israel’s Ben Saraf tallied 19 points at Barclays Center during the Brooklyn Nets‘ 123-94 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Spanish coach Jordi Fernandez played without Russia’s Egor Demin, France’s Nolan Traore, and Israel’s Danny Wolf, while Croatian Ivica Zubac remained out for the visitors.

Thursday results

Toronto Raptors – Miami Heat 128-114
Washington Wizards – Chicago Bulls 108-119
Brooklyn Nets – Indiana Pacers 94-123
New York Knicks – Boston Celtics 112-106
Houston Rockets – Philadelphia 76ers 113-102
Golden State Warriors – Los Angeles Lakers 103-119

Standings

Eastern Conference

1. x-Detroit Pistons 58-22
2. x-Boston Celtics 54-26
3. x-New York Knicks 52-28
4. x-Cleveland Cavaliers 51-29
5. Toronto Raptors 45-35
6. Atlanta Hawks 45-35
7. Orlando Magic 44-36
8. Philadelphia 76ers 43-37
9. Charlotte Hornets 43-37
10. y-Miami Heat 41-39
11. o-Milwaukee Bucks 31-49
12. o-Chicago Bulls 31-49
13. o-Brooklyn Nets 20-60
14. o-Indiana Pacers 19-61
15. o-Washington Wizards 17-63

Western Conference

1. x-Oklahoma City Thunder 64-16
2. x-San Antonio Spurs 61-19
3. x-Denver Nuggets 52-28
4. x-Los Angeles Lakers 51-29
5. x-Houston Rockets 51-29
6. x-Minnesota Timberwolves 47-33
7. y-Phoenix Suns 44-36
8. y-Los Angeles Clippers 41-39
9. y-Portland Trail Blazers 40-40
10. y-Golden State Warriors 37-43
11. o-New Orleans Pelicans 26-54
12. o-Memphis Grizzlies 25-55
13. o-Dallas Mavericks 25-55
14. o-Sacramento Kings 21-59
15. o-Utah Jazz 21-59

-Top six teams from each conference advance directly to the Playoffs
-Teams seventh through tenth from each conference enter the Play-Ins

x-clinched playoff berth
y-clinched play-in berth
o-eliminated

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