Nuggets 133, Raptors 118

A lackluster effort in Los Angeles prompted Will Barton to challenge his Denver teammates after their worst loss of the season.

The veteran's words hit home and the Nuggets responded with one of their best outings.

Nikola Jokic had 23 points, 18 rebounds and 11 assists for his 12th triple-double of the season to lead Denver over short-handed Toronto on Sunday night.

The Nuggets tied a season high with 38 assists, doubling their total from their 29-point loss to the Clippers on Friday night. Coach Michael Malone said after that game that his team played soft, and Barton echoed that sentiment in the postgame locker room.

"We sometimes we can do a lot of assuming, being around each other so much. You can get complacent," Monte Morris said. "For Will to stand up like that and let everyone know, down the line, play your role to a T, for him to stand up and do that made us come together even more."

Denver played with more intensity Sunday, led by its All-Star center. Jokic has 40 triple-doubles in his short career, completing his latest by feeding Jerami Grant on a dunk that helped the Nuggets pull away from the Raptors, who lost their third straight.

Grant finished with 16 points for Denver, which had eight players score in double figures.

"Even though Nikola had a triple-double and other guys played well, I thought Jerami Grant's performance was the most impactful," Malone said.

Toronto played without Serge Ibaka and Fred VanVleet for a second straight game but got a career night from OG Anunoby, who finished with 32 points on 12-of-16 shooting.

"It's not tough," Kyle Lowry, who finished with 17 points, said of playing short-handed. "Honestly, you've just got to play harder, and we've got to play a lot harder."

Denver hit its first nine 3-point attempts — five by Jamal Murray, who had 17 of his 22 points in the first 12 minutes — before Morris missed with 1:06 left in the first quarter. The Nuggets shot 63.6% in the first quarter and 60% in the first half.

Denver hit 50 percent from long range and finished the game 56.6% from the field.

"We didn't do a good job of guarding them and putting some pressure on them," Pascal Siakam said. "They had a lot of back-cuts, easy layups. Not a lot of protection under the rim."

Jokic had 10 points and 10 rebounds at halftime and was already three assists shy of a triple-double.

The Raptors withstood the hot shooting to tie it at 60 in the second quarter and trailed just 73-69 at intermission. It was a two-point Denver lead late in the third quarter, but the Nuggets opened up a 112-101 lead with 8:10 left in the fourth.

Toronto twice cut the deficit to five points, but Denver closed it out for the win. Jokic got his ninth assist on a court-length pass to Gary Harris for a layup midway through the fourth.

Raptors center Marc Gasol (left hamstring tightness) missed his 13th straight game but was doing some work on the court before the game. "All of them are getting some work in, they're just not ready for game activity," coach Nick Nurse said of Gasol, Ibaka and VanVleet.

Raptors rookie Terence Davis II played one summer league game with Denver before Toronto signed him. Malone is happy for Davis, who is the only player on the Raptors to play in all 60 games.

"Our guys liked him a lot after the draft when he went undrafted, so a lot of teams missed on Terence Davis," he said. "He's another guy like Pascal that a lot of people missed on and has just done wonders his rookie season. Toughness, not afraid, confident — intangibles that don't jump off your stat sheet."

Lakers 122, Pelicans 114

LeBron James had 34 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds and the Lakers overcame Anthony Davis' absence and Zion Williamson's highest-scoring game to beat New Orleans

Williamson finished with 35 points, but his largely productive and highlight-filled night was marred somewhat by six turnovers.

Kyle Kuzma scored 20 points, hitting a 3-pointer that put the Lakers up 113-109 with 3:40 to go. The Lakers gradually pulled away after that, aided by James' 3 with 2:27 left.

Davis, who spent the first seven of his eight seasons with New Orleans, sat out with a sore right knee, one night after playing in the Lakers' 105-88 loss at Memphis. He was on the bench in street clothes and routinely reacted to the action on the court by springing out of his seat and standing on the sideline.

Lonzo Ball had 19 points, nine assists and nine rebounds for New Orleans.

Bucks 93, Hornets 85

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 41 points, 20 rebounds and six assists and Milwaukee beat Charlotte for its sixth straight victory.

Brook Lopez added 16 points and seven rebounds for the NBA-leading Bucks. They've won 20 of their last 22 games and to improve to 52-8.

Antetokounmpo scored in almost every way imaginable — on pick-and-rolls, fast-break dunks, fadeaway jumpers and from the foul line.

Antetokounmpo finished a rebound short of his career high. The Bucks outrebounded the Hornets 61-47.

Devonte Graham had 17 points for Charlotte.

Clippers 136, 76ers 130

Kawhi Leonard scored 30 points, Paul George added 24 and Los Angeles beat Philadelphia to extended its winning streak to four.

Reserves Montrezl Harrell and Lou Williams also had 24 points. The Clippers — who shot 59.2% from the field — trailed by two at halftime but took control in the third quarter, outscoring the Sixers 38-24.

Shake Milton led Philadelphia with 39 points, hitting seven 3-pointers. The first-year guard had 26 points in the first half, which tied a team season high. Former Clippers forward Tobias Harris had 25 points and Alec Burks 15.

Wizards 123, Warriors 110

Bradley Beal had 34 points, eight assists and a season-best five steals and Washington won at Golden State for the first time in six years.

Beal has scored at least 25 points in a franchise-record 18 straight games.

Andrew Wiggins scored 27 points for Golden State. The Warriors have lost nine straight at home.

Mavericks 111, Timberwolves 91

Kristaps Porzingis had a season-high 38 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, Seth Curry scored 27 points and Dallas rolled past Minnesota with Mavericks star Luka Doncic sitting out with a left thumb sprain.

Tim Hardaway Jr. added 19 points to help the Mavericks win for the third time in four games.

D’Angelo Russell had 16 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for Minnesota. The Timberwolves lost for the 20th time in 22 games.

Kings 106, Pistons 100

De’Aaron Fox scored 11 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter and Sacramento overcame a 17-point deficit to beat Detroit.

Buddy Hield added 19 points, Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 15 and Harrison Barnes had 10 points and eight rebounds for Sacramento. The Kings have won four of five since the All-Star break.

Christian Wood had 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Pistons. They lost point guard Derrick Rose to an apparent ankle injury in the first quarter.