ATLANTA (AP) — Tim Hardaway Jr. knows the New York Knicks are depending on him to take charge when necessary.
Sometimes that’s easier said than done.
“I can just remember from the Indiana game [last week] how many opportunities I had to take over and put my name on the game, and I didn’t take advantage of that,” he said. “I just wanted to make sure that we did a good job of executing down the stretch and try to put the game in my hands and on my shoulders.”
Hardaway scored 27 of his 34 points in the second half, reserve Enes Kanter added 17 points and 11 rebounds, and the Knicks beat the Atlanta Hawks 112-107 on Wednesday night.
In a matchup of rebuilding clubs, Allonzo Trier finished with 16 points and Noah Vonleh had 11 points and 13 rebounds to help New York snap a two-game skid.
Omari Spellman scored 18 points for the Hawks, who have lost two straight and six of seven. Alex Poythress’ basket cut the lead to four with 22.8 seconds remaining, but the Hawks blew their next two possessions when Poythress dropped an inbound pass and Taurean Prince missed two free throws.
Trae Young finished with 15 points and eight assists for Atlanta, but the NBA’s fifth-overall draft pick missed 13 of 19 shots and went just 1 for 7 on 3-point attempts.
“We get down double digits in that third quarter, really from an inability to score,” Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce said. “There are a lot of reasons. Out of sync. Trying to find the rhythm of the group. Someone to kind of give us life.”
Hardaway, who had career highs of 16 free throws made and 20 attempted, forced his will in the third as one of the few veteran players on the floor. He was 5 for 8 from the field and had 15 points, two steals and one blocked shot.
“I was trying to get my rhythm back in the first half,” he said. “Then in the second half we started getting defensive stops, steals, blocks, getting back on defense. That kind of propelled me on the offensive end and kept me going.”
The Knicks never trailed after Emmanuel Mudiay’s 3 made it 65-63 midway through the third. They took their biggest lead at 16 on Kanter’s two free throws in the final minute of the period.
Kanter got tangled up with Hawks reserve center Miles Plumlee on a rebound attempt early in the fourth. He flipped over and landed on his head after both players fell to the floor. Kanter stayed in the game and shook off any bad vibes.
“We are having fun, especially all of the young guys,” Kanter said. “The chemistry is getting there, so we are just going to go there, smile, have fun and try to get a win.”
Pelicans 107, Bulls 98
NEW ORLEANS — Anthony Davis had 32 points, 15 rebounds and four blocks in his best game since spraining his right elbow nearly two weeks ago, and the New Orleans Pelicans ended a six-game skid with a victory over the Chicago Bulls.
After missing four of his first five shots, Davis hit his next eight, including two 3s and a two-handed reverse alley-oop jam, while on his way to his first 30-plus point game since New Orleans beat the Los Angeles Clippers on Oct. 23.
Jrue Holiday had 17 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists while being guarded primarily by brother Justin. Julius Randle and Wesley Johnson each scored 12 points for New Orleans.
Zach LaVine scored 22 and Jabari Parker had 20 points and 13 rebounds for Chicago, which has dropped five of six games. Justin Holiday and Wendell Carter Jr. each had 17 points, and Carter had 11 rebounds.
Lakers 114, Timberwolves 110
LOS ANGELES — LeBron James had 24 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, and Kyle Kuzma scored six of his 21 points in the final minutes of Los Angeles’ victory over Minnesota.
Josh Hart scored 21 points and Brandon Ingram added 20 for the Lakers, who avenged a loss at Minnesota nine days earlier with a tenacious finish at Staples Center.
Kuzma’s fourth 3-pointer put the Lakers up 111-104 with 1:51 to play for their biggest lead of the night. Derrick Rose promptly hit back-to-back 3-pointers for the Wolves, trimming the lead to one with 1:06 left.
Kuzma hit one of two free throws with 9.5 seconds left after two huge offensive rebounds by Tyson Chandler, who had nine boards in an auspicious Lakers debut. Rose missed a 3 under heavy defensive pressure from Chandler, and Hart hit two free throws to seal it.
Rose scored 31 points and Jimmy Butler added 24 for the Timberwolves, who dropped to 0-7 on the road this season with their fourth consecutive loss overall. Minnesota had won five straight over the Lakers.
James fell just shy of his 75th triple-double, but scored nine points in the fourth quarter.
Raptors 114, Kings 105
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Kawhi Leonard had 25 points and 11 rebounds in his return from an ankle injury, and Toronto beat Sacramento to improve the NBA’s best record to 11-1.
Pascal Siakam scored 21 points, Serge Ibaka had 14 points and 14 rebounds, and Kyle Lowry added 16 points and eight assists for the Raptors.
Toronto has won five straight since its lone loss this season at Milwaukee on Oct. 29.
Leonard sat out the previous two games and got off to a sluggish start early against the Kings before helping Toronto pull away.
The two-time All-Star scored 10 points in the second quarter and 10 in the third, including a soaring, one-handed dunk through traffic. Toronto has won three straight against the Kings.
Willie Cauley-Stein and Buddy Hield scored 24 points apiece for Sacramento.
Thunder 95, Cavaliers 86
CLEVELAND — Dennis Schroder scored a season-high 28 points in replacing injured star Russell Westbrook and Oklahoma City beat Cleveland.
Westbrook sprained his left ankle Monday, but the Thunder withstood Cleveland’s fourth-quarter run without the two-time MVP to win its sixth straight game after starting the season 0-4.
Cleveland (1-10) rallied from an 11-point deficit early in the fourth quarter to go ahead. Oklahoma City led 78-67 before the Cavaliers went on a 13-0 run. J.R. Smith and Kyle Korver each hit two 3-pointers and the Cavaliers led 80-78 with 7:02 remaining. Alex Abrines’ 3-pointer from the corner gave the Thunder the lead for good with 4:31 to play.
Paul George added 18 points for Oklahoma City. Cleveland rookie point guard Collin Sexton made his first career start, with George Hill out with a sore right shoulder. Sexton had 15 points in a career-high 42 minutes.
Heat 95, Spurs 88
MIAMI — Hassan Whiteside had 29 points, 20 rebounds and an NBA season-high nine blocked shots, and Miami snapped a four-year drought against San Antonio.
Wayne Ellington scored 20 points, and Justise Winslow added 16. Miami was down to an eight-man rotation for the second half because of injuries and Dwyane Wade missing the game for personal reasons.
The Heat had dropped their last nine regular-season games to the Spurs — and 11 consecutive games overall in the series, when factoring in the 2014 NBA Finals. Patty Mills had 20 points for San Antonio.
Pistons 103, Magic 96
ORLANDO, Fla. — Andre Drummond had 23 points and 19 rebounds and Detroit beat Orlando to snap a five-game losing streak.
Blake Griffin added 20 points, Reggie Jackson had 15, and Stanley Johnson 13. Evan Fournier led Orlando with 27 points, and D.J. Augustin had 16.
Fournier hit three straight shots and Aaron Gordon added a dunk to pull Orlando to 94-93 with 2:58 left. Griffin made two free throws to start a 9-0 run that Jackson finished with a 3-pointer and a layup.
76ers 100, Pacers 94
INDIANAPOLIS — Joel Embiid scored 20 points and Ben Simmons nearly had a triple double to lead Philadelphia past Indiana for its first road victory of the season.
Simmons had 16 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists to help Philadelphia end a five-game losing streak on the road. Indiana’s Victor Oladipo scored a season-high 36 points, and Domantas Sabonis had 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Jazz 117, Mavericks 102
SALT LAKE CITY — Donovan Mitchell scored 23 points in his return from an ankle injury and Utah beat Dallas to end a four-game skid.
Mitchell also had seven assists and five rebounds, and Rudy Gobert had 17 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots.
Alec Burks added 18 points off the bench. Utah earned its first home win of the season after opening with four straight home losses for the first time since 1974-75.
Luka Doncic led the Mavericks with 24 points.
Grizzlies 89, Nuggets 87
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Marc Gasol scored 20 points, including the go-ahead free throws with 4.6 seconds remaining, to lead Memphis past Denver.
The Nuggets had a chance after Gasol’s foul shots, but Nikola Jokic’s 3-point attempt bounced off the rim and Denver’s rebound tip also was off the mark. Denver had won five straight.
Jaren Jackson Jr. also had 20 points for Memphis. Gary Harris led the Nuggets with 20.
