James Harden and the Houston Rockets got back to winning ways after a pair of defeats by edging out the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center in one of eight NBA games on Sunday.
The Clippers cut a 12-point gap in the final quarter but couldn't force overtime as Chris Paul missed a jumper in the final seconds. Harden finished as the top scorer with 34 points, making 17 of his 18 free-throw attempts.
The San Antonio Spurs took advantage of the Clippers losing and leapfrogged them to go fifth in the Western Conference with a big win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, who have lost four in a row.
Eight Spurs players recorded double-figure scoring as the team dished out a season-high 38 assists in an unselfish performance at AT&T Center.
At Amway Center, Kyrie Irving's impressive recent form continued as he scored 33 points on 12-15 shooting from the field in the Cleveland Cavaliers' 15-point win over the Orlando Magic.
After hitting 7-7 from three-point range on his way to an NBA season-high 57 in Thursday's overtime win over the Spurs, Irving was again in the groove from range with 5-6 attempts finding the net as Cleveland won their fourth game in a row.
The Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta Hawks overcame the Los Angeles Lakers without three of their key starting players.
DeMarre Carroll, Paul Millsap and Jeff Teague were all rested at Staples Center, but back-up point-guard Dennis Schroder stepped up with 24 points and 10 assists to lead the Hawks to a five-point win.
The Portland Trail Blazers closed to within a game of the second-placed Memphis Grizzlies in the West's loss column by seeing off the struggling Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre.
LaMarcus Aldridge led the way for the Blazers with 24 points and 10 rebounds as they won their third game in a row and condemned Toronto to their 10th defeat in 12 matches.
Double overtime was required to separate the Denver Nuggets and New Orleans Pelicans and it was the visiting Nuggets that outlasted playoff-chasing New Orleans in a game between two sides on three-game winning streaks.
Anthony Davis stood out for the hosts with 36 points, 14 rebounds, seven assists and a whopping nine blocks, but it wasn't enough for victory as Will Barton's 25 points, including a key three-pointer in the first overtime, led Denver to victory.
With New Orleans losing, the Oklahoma City Thunder have gone back above them into the eighth and final playoff spot following their nine-point triumph over the Chicago Bulls in Sunday's early game.
Russell Westbrook again stood out for the Thunder with 36 points, 11 rebounds and six assists as OKC won for the 16th time in their last 18 games at home.
The Phoenix Suns' hopes of catching OKC and New Orleans are still alive following their come-from-behind victory against the New York Knicks.
New York led by as many as 11 in the first half, but the Suns fought back after the break as Eric Bledsoe finished one rebound shy of a triple-double (21 points, 11 assists, nine rebounds).
Results in full: Chicago Bulls 100-109 Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets 100-98 Los Angeles Clippers, Denver Nuggets 118-111 New Orleans Pelicans, Cleveland Cavaliers 123-108 Orlando Magic, Minnesota Timberwolves 97-123 San Antonio Spurs, Portland Trail Blazers 113-97 Toronto Raptors, New York Knicks 89-102 Phoenix Suns, Atlanta Hawks 91-86 Los Angeles Lakers
Pascal Lemesre
