LeBron James’ 41st birthday was spoiled by the Detroit Pistons, who claimed a 128-106 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Cade Cunningham scored 27 points for the Pistons, who remain top of the Eastern Conference with 25 wins from 33 games after avoiding a season-worst three-game losing streak.
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Luka Doncic registered 30 points and 11 assists for the Lakers, with NBA all-time leading scorer James adding 17 points.
James became just the 12th player in NBA history to compete at age 41 or older.
He has now played 1,577 career games – second only to Robert Parish’s 1,611 – as he contests his record 23rd NBA season.
The Lakers end 2025 having lost four of their past five games and sit fifth in the Western Conference.
Rookie VJ Edgecombe scored with 1.7 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Philadelphia 76ers victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.
The 20-year-old contributed 25 points – including his clutch three-pointer – as the 76ers earned a 139-136 victory on the road.
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Team-mates Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid led their side with 34 points apiece as the 76ers ended a three-game losing streak.
Ja Morant responded with 40 points for the Grizzlies, while rookie Cedric Coward added a career-high 28 points, but the hosts fell to back-to-back defeats.
There were also wins for the Los Angeles Clippers and the Boston Celtics on Tuesday.
The Clippers claimed a fifth straight victory with a dominant 131-90 win over the Sacramento Kings, while the Celtics beat the Utah Jazz 129-119.
