Thirteen games tipped off league-wide in the NBA on Saturday night, with no games on tap for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day scheduled to be a festival of champions, December 23 is usually a frenzy of action.

Jalen Brunson was once again the scoring leader for the New York Knicks but it was in a losing effort as Giannis Antetokounmpo had 28 points, seven assists and seven rebounds, Bobby Portis added 23 points and 11 boards on their way to a blowout of the Knicks in Madison Square Garden. The Milwaukee Bucks have now won their 7th straight game for the longest active winning streak in the league.

After losing their nine-game win streak, the Los Angeles Clippers have now lost two on the trot. Jayson Tatum scored 30 points, Jaylen Brown added 24 and the Boston Celtics routed the Clips 145-108. Additionally, Jrue Holiday had 20 points and seven assists as the Celtics shot 25 of 53 from three-point range (47.2 per cent) to win for the seventh time in eight games and for the 10th time in 12 games.

Houston center Alperen Sengun had another stunning game as the Rockets overcame the New Orleans Pelicans. Sengun had a double-double, contributing 37 points and 11 rebounds as the Rockets win their second game in a row.

Tyrese Haliburton had 29 points and 14 assists for the Indiana Pacers while Myles Turner scored 24 and Buddy Hield 20. However, their good efforts were in a losing effort as the Orlando Magic stopped a four game skid with a seven-point victory.

Defending champions Denver Nuggets won their fourth game in a row with a victory over the Charlotte Hornets. Nikola Jokic had yet another double-double and was only one assist away from a triple double. The Finals MVP had 18 points and 10 rebounds while Jamal Murray also had a double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds for Denver’s win.

Lauri Markkanen and Scottie Barnes both had 30-point nights for their respective teams as the Utah Jazz took on the Toronto Raptors. Unfortunately, the latter’s 32 points and 14 rebounds would not help his team secure a win as the Jazz beat the Raptors by seven points and won their third game in a row.

The Brooklyn Nets became another team to add to the historically bad season being had by the Detroit Pistons. The Nets are now just one game below .500 at 14-15 and the Pistons have now lost a staggering 26 in a row, matching the league record for the longest losing streak in a single season. Mikal Bridges led all scorers for the Nets with 29 points and the Nets now sit at 9th place in the Eastern Conference.

Trae Young had yet another stellar individual performance that did not help his Atlanta Hawks ultimately win a game. Young scored 30 points and had13 assists but could get past the surging Memphis Grizzlies who have been invigorated by the return of Ja Morant. Desmond Bane top-scored for the Grizzlies with 37 points while Morant had 30 points and 11 assists to lead the Grizzlies, who are now 3-0 since his return.

Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder served up incredible match ups with legend LeBron James putting up 40 points while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored an impressive 34 points. James’ contribution went towards a win for his Lakers, who now improve to 16-14 on the season.

Max Strus had 26 points and seven assists to help the injury-depleted Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Chicago Bulls 109-95. Jarrett Allen had 19 points, 17 rebounds and Craig Porter Jr. added 19, eight assists and seven rebounds for the Cavaliers, who played without their top four scorers – Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and Caris LeVert. The Cavs are now seventh in the Eastern Conference with a record of 17-13.

The Golden State Warriors now have the second-longest winning streak in the league with five in a row after a 20-point blowout of the Portland Trailblazers.

Reminiscent of their glory days, Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry led the Warriors to victory with Thompson scoring 28 points while Curry had 27. Thompson, who has scored at least 20 points in his last five games after a sluggish start, had 11 straight points in the quarter – hitting back-to-back 3s. The Warriors are now in the middle of their best stretch of play as they carry this momentum into their Christmas day primetime match up.

It was another stat-breaking night for Luka Doncic, who scored 39 points in a triple-double and the Dallas Mavericks routed the San Antonio Spurs 144-119. Doncic also had 12 rebounds and 10 assists for his 36th 30-point triple-double, one shy of LeBron James for third on the career list.

Domantas Sabonis of the Sacramento Kings had 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists but his triple-double was insufficient against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Anthony Edwards had 34 points and 10 assists, Rudy Gobert added 21 points and 17 rebounds and the Wolves were able to overcome the absence of their star center Karl-Anthony Towns, who was out with knee soreness. The Timberwolves remain atop the Western Conference and now sit at 22-6, and tied with the Boston Celtics for the best record in the league.