Image Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

NBA Daily Recap, February 20 – LeBron James show, Orlando comeback, Knicks’ win in OT and more

Let's take a look at what happened on Thursday in the NBA.

Image Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

Here’s the NBA Daily Recap for Feb. 20, 2025, where we witnessed only nine matchups. It was the first busiest day in the NBA following the All-Star break. The Lakers played on consecutive days and the same applies to Hornets.

From LeBron James’ record-breaking night for the Lakers to Orlando Magic’s comeback win from a 19-point deficit, let’s go through the key highlights from the NBA action on Thursday.

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Pacers 127-113 Grizzlies

Indiana Pacers squeezed past the Memphis Grizzlies to win second straight game. Tyrese Haliburton highlighted a 22-point performance, including nine assists. Myles Turner added 17 points, 10 rebounds and a season-high seven blocks in the win. A 23-4 run in 2nd quarter helped the Pacers to a 78-50 lead at halftime and they didn’t lose the momentum.

back-to-back threes by Tyrese Haliburton forces the timeout 😈 pic.twitter.com/0KAEf1UINO
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) February 21, 2025

Desmond Bane paced the Grizzlies with 23 points and seven assists. Jaren Jackson Jr. added 18 points and seven rebounds. Ja Morant, who is in headlines for trade speculations, had 12 points. Zach Edey scored five points and 11 rebounds in his first NBA game in Indiana.

76ers 104-124 Celtics

Payton Pritchard scored 28 points, including eight 3-pointers and the Boston Celtics beat the Philadelphia 76ers 124-104. Jayson Tatum dropped his fourth career triple-double while Jaylen Brown added 20 points.

Kristaps Porzingis chipped in with 17 points and Derrick White dropped 16, including 10 rebounds. Boston are 8-2 in their last ten games. Paul George led the 76ers with 17 points. Tyrese Maxey and Kelly Oubre Jr. each contributed 16 points. Philadelphia have lost six straight games and they fell below .500.

Knicks 113-111 Bulls (OT)

Karl-Anthony Towns dropped 32 points and 18 rebounds as the short-handed New York Kicks overcame the Chicago Bulls in overtime. Jalen Brunson added 22 points and 12 assists while Mikal Bridges had 13 points and 10 rebounds. Miles McBride dropped 22 points and the Knicks won third straight game. New York played without Josh Hart and OG Anunoby.

Josh Giddey highlighted 27 points and 16 rebounds for the Bulls, who had a chance with 2 seconds left in the fourth quarter but Nikola Vucevic’s shot blocked by Bridges. Vucevic had 21 points and Chicago have lost five straight games. The Knicks had a 9-0 run in overtime to assure the win.

Hawks 108-114 Magic

Orlando Magic pulled off another solid comeback from an early 19-point deficit to beat the Atlanta Hawks. Paolo Banchero scored 36 points, 10 rebounds and five assists while Franz Wagner added 25 points. Cole Anthony contributed 17 for the Magic.

Paolo Banchero was a FORCE on the scoreboard for the Magic in their win in Atlanta!

💪 36 PTS
💪 10 PTS
💪 5 AST pic.twitter.com/IOgeP7haaG
— NBA (@NBA) February 21, 2025

Trae Young led the Hawks with 38 points and rookie Zaccharie Risacher dropped 11 points and 12 rebounds for his first double-double. Orlando broke the deficit before the halftime and extended it to nine points in the third. The Hawks outscored the Magic in the fourth quarter but they couldn’t turn the game.

Nets 97-110 Cavaliers

Donovan Mitchell scored 26 points as the East leaders, Cleveland Cavaliers edged out the Brooklyn Nets. Darius Garland dropped 18 points, while Evan Mobley chipped in with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Jarrett Allen added 16 points and 20 rebounds for the Cavs, who improved to 45-10.

Cam Johnson was top performer for the Nets with 18 points. Keon Johnson added 16 points, while Trendon Watford had 13 points off the bench. Ziaire Williams and Jalen Wilson each scored 10. The Cavaliers won five straight games and the Nets ended their three-game winning streak.

Bucks 116-110 Clippers

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 23 points in his comeback game and the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Los Angeles Clippers. The Greek Freak was on minutes restrictions and played for 24 minutes. The Bucks overcame the 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter. Brook Lopez scored 22 points in the win.

Congrats to @JHarden13 of the @LAClippers for becoming the 13th player in NBA history to surpass 27,000 career points! pic.twitter.com/rFKfEcyH0h
— NBA (@NBA) February 21, 2025

Kawhi Leonard led the Clippers with 25 points. James Harden added 24 and Ivica Zubac had 20 points and 15 rebounds. Norman Powell missed this game due to knee soreness. The Clippers outscored the Bucks 39-23 in the third quarter but lost the momentum in the final period.

Nuggets 129-115 Hornets

Denver Nuggets extended their winning streak to nine games by overcoming Charlotte Hornets 129-115. Jamal Murray scored 34 points, and Nikola Jokic finished an assist shy of another triple-double of the season. The Serbian star also attempted a career-high 14 3-pointers and made six.

Miles Bridges paced the Hornets with a season-high 36 points and 13 rebounds. Last win’s key players, LaMelo Ball and Mark Williams missed out the game. Denver held a four-point lead after three quarter and outscored Charlotte 30-19 in the final quarter.

Jamal and the Joker did their usual 1-2 punch things in the Nuggets NINTH straight win!!

Jamal: 34 PTS | 4 AST | 2 BLK | 7 3PM
Joker: 29 PTS | 17 REB | 9 AST | 6 3PM

Nuggets move to 2nd in the West with the W 🗻 pic.twitter.com/oCYM11cOLB
— NBA (@NBA) February 21, 2025

Spurs 120-109 Suns

De’Aaron Fox’s 11 straight points in the final phase of the game helped the San Antonio Spurs to beat the Phoenix Suns in a two-game set in Austin. De’Aaron Fox finished with 26 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists. Spurs played without Victor Wembanyama due to a season-ending injury.

The 2,685th steal of Chris Paul's brilliant career…

Moving him into SECOND all-time in steals! 👏 pic.twitter.com/1DLEFOTGdf
— NBA (@NBA) February 21, 2025

Keldon Johnson and Julian Champagnie scored 15 apiece. Chris Paul added 10 assists and surpassed Jason Kidd for the second most all-time in steals. Royce O’Neale added 27 points for the Suns, who lost fourth straight game. Kevin Durant added 22 points on his return to the University of Texas campus.

Trail Blazers 102-110 Lakers

Los Angeles Lakers edged out the Portland Trail Blazers on a record-breaking night of LeBron James. The veteran guard scored 40 points and became the first player in the NBA history to record multiple 40-point performance. LeBron also surpassed Vince Carter for third all-time in regular season games played.

Austin Reaves added 32 points for the Lakers, who played without guard Luka Doncic due to a strained calf. Deni Avdija paced Portland with 28 points but couldn’t help after the Lakers’ 32-25 fourth-quarter surge, fueled by LeBron James.

Image Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

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A native of Jaipur, Rajasthan, journalist, and a complete soccer and basketball fan, he found the huge interest with basketball by watching videos of Allen Iverson and Tony Parker, but fell head over heels in love with the sport during the Warriors’ championship era (2015-2018). A sports game addict since his late PS1, he’s also passionate about the Eagles, Inter Miami and the Fever. He’s fortunate to have seen all his favorite teams win championships. He also has a special love for cricket and football (soccer), where he is a fan of Royal Challengers Bangalore and Barcelona.