Not even a Josh Giddey masterclass could stop the Chicago Bulls from suffering another NBA defeat, this time at the hands of the Los Angeles Clippers.
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The 23-year-old Australian, who has been in brilliant form in a season dogged by injury, again shone for the Bulls, but the Clippers triumphed 119-108 in Los Angeles on Friday night (Saturday AEDT).
Giddey recorded his 11th triple-double of the season for the Bulls, finishing with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.
Despite Giddey's sensational performance, Kawhi Leonard scored 28 points and Bennedict Mathurin chipped in with 26 as the Clippers extended their winning streak to four games.
Jordan Miller added 14 points to help the eighth-placed Clippers win for the seventh time in eight games to solidify their hold on a spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament. After starting the season 6-21, Los Angeles are now 34-32.
Leonard scored at least 20 points for the 44th consecutive game to tie Bob McAdoo's franchise record set for the Buffalo Braves in 1974-75.
Apart from Giddey's triple-double, Tre Jones scored 21 points and Matas Buzelis added 18 as the Bulls went 2-3 on a West Coast trip.
Chicago shot 44.2 per cent from the floor and 29.3 per cent from three-point range while falling to 3-4 following an 11-game losing streak.
The Bulls (27-39) lost on consecutive nights in the Los Angeles area after falling to the Lakers 142-130 on Thursday.
In Detroit, Jalen Duren had 30 points and 13 rebounds and Cade Cunningham added 17 points and 15 assists as the Pistons beat the Memphis Grizzlies 126-110, handing the visitors their seventh straight loss.
The Pistons have won their past three games by an average of 25.3 points after a season-worst four-game losing streak.
Javon Small led the Grizzlies with 23 points, while Ty Jerome had 21. Taj Gibson made his season debut for the Grizzlies after signing with them in late February. The 40-year-old played nearly 12 minutes with three points and three rebounds.
In Indianapolis, Jalen Brunson finished with 29 points and nine assists and OG Anunoby added 25 points and eight rebounds as the New York Knicks beat the Indiana Pacers 101-92.
Jarace Walker scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead the Pacers. Aaron Nesmith had 12 points as injury-riddled Indiana lost their 12th straight game.
In other results, the Houston Rockets outlasted the New Orleans Pelicans 107-105, the Timberwolves held off the Golden State Warriors 127-117, the Trail Blazers beat the Utah Jazz 124-114, the Cavaliers crushed the Dallas Mavericks 138-105, and the Toronto Raptors rallied to beat Phoenix 122-115.
Australian Associated Press
