Basketball

Boston Celtics (26-10, first in the Eastern Conference) vs. Denver Nuggets (23-12, second in the Western Conference) Denver; Sunday, 8 p.m.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Kevin Huerter hit a 3-pointer with 9.2 seconds left and the Sacramento Kings held off Utah 126-125 on Friday night when Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen missed a jumper in the final seconds.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Golden State Warriors have been working to find their defensive groove, and Draymond Green leads the charge. On Friday night, Green and his supporting cast got it done in crunch time.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — CJ McCollum scored 42 points, making a franchise-record and career-high 11 3-pointers, and Zion Williamson added 36 to power the New Orleans Pelicans to a 127-116 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night.

ATLANTA (AP) — LeBron James scored a season-high 47 points on his 38th birthday with many of the sellout crowd at State Farm Arena cheering his every move and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Atlanta Hawks 130-121 on Friday night.

DENVER (AP) — Jamal Murray struggled to find his range or rhythm for most of the game. Then, crunch time hit. Like that, he was locked in.

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo had 43 points and 20 rebounds and the Milwaukee Bucks snapped a four-game losing streak with a 123-114 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night.

TORONTO — Nick Nurse took a flyer with a 20-minute, rap-on-the-knuckles discourse before his Toronto Raptors confronted the Phoenix Suns on Friday. His gamble paid off. Led by Gary Trent Jr.

CHICAGO (AP) — Zach LaVine scored a season-high 43 points, and the Chicago Bulls pulled away in the closing minutes to beat the Detroit Pistons 132-118 on Friday night.

ATLANTA (AP) — LeBron James started this journey 20 years ago, and there are times when he still feels like a kid on the basketball court. Friday was one of those nights.