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Cameron Johnson and Harrison Barnes each scored 20 points, and Cole Anthony hit 16 as all three earned victories Friday night after Reggie Bullock scored 15 in a Thursday win. Johnson scored 17 points in the second half as Brooklyn rallied from a 28-point deficit for a surprising 115–105 road win over Boston on his 27th birthday.
Cameron Johnson and Cole Anthony had their best scoring games of the season on a night that they were one of the few bright spots in their teams’ blowout road losses. Both had season-highs for points and field goals and their second-best game scores, along with frustration over the results of their games.
Without Sacramento’s leading scorer De’Aaron Fox, Kings coach Mike Brown made Harrison Barnes the focal point of their offense on Tuesday night, and the 11-year veteran took advantage of the opportunity. Barnes came through with 29 points, four 3-pointers, nine rebounds, three assists and a 24.2 game score as Sacramento won at Oklahoma City 123–117 for the Kings’ fourth consecutive victory coming out of the All-Star break.
Cameron Johnson had his best game as a Brooklyn Net and hit a huge late 3-pointer, but it wasn’t enough to get a win at Atlanta. Johnson scored 27 points and tied the game on a 3-pointer with 7.8 seconds left, but Trae Young hit a buzzer-beating jumper to lift the Hawks to a 129–127 victory Sunday.
Neither Harrison Barnes nor Coby White had their best games on Friday night, but both were on the right side as their teams made NBA history. Barnes scored 11 points on a tough shooting night, but his Sacramento Kings outlasted the host Los Angeles Clippers 176–175 in double overtime. It was the second game in league history with both teams scoring at least 170 points.
Nassir Little’s best game of the season wasn’t enough for his short-handed Portland team, as Harrison Barnes’ Sacramento Kings rolled to a 133–116 home victory on Thursday as the NBA returned from the All-Star break. Little started for the second time this season, scoring 26 points and five 3-pointers with four steals and a block.
With a lot of help from a teammate who was traded along with him from Phoenix, Cam Johnson finally got a victory for Brooklyn in his third game since joining the Nets. Meanwhile, Coby White scored a season-high 25 points in his best game of the season one day before his birthday. Johnson scored 18 points and three 3-pointers while dishing out three assists as Brooklyn headed into the NBA All-Star break with a 116–110 home victory over the Miami Heat.
Cameron Johnson joined the new-look Brooklyn Nets, and was one of four newcomers who started in Saturday night’s home game against Philadelphia. Johnson and Mikal Bridges, nicknamed “The Twins” by former Suns teammate Deandre Ayton because they spent so much time together, each started in the Nets’ 101–98 loss to the Sixers. Joining them in the lineup were Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney, who Brooklyn got in the Kyrie Irving deal with the Dallas Mavericks.
Danny Green is with Houston after the Rockets acquired him in a trade-deadline deal with Memphis on Thursday, but it appears unlikely that he’ll be there long. Justin Jackson’s stay with Oklahoma City Thunder lasted less than 24 hours as the Thunder waived him Friday. In Friday games, Reggie Bullock scored 13 points and his 800th career 3-pointer as Dallas beat Sacramento 122–114, and rookie Walker Kessler netted a season-high 23 points in Utah’s 122–116 win at Toronto.
When the trade deadline dust settled, three UNC alums changed teams. But Cole Anthony isn’t going anywhere and he showed why with his play in Orlando’s big home victory. Anthony collected 17 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and three blocks as the Magic knocked off Western Conference-leading Denver for a 115–104 home victory Thursday night.
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