Published: 15:44, February 10, 2023 | Updated: 16:15, February 10, 2023
NBA: Nets snap two-game skid without Irving and Durant
By Xinhua

Brooklyn Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith (28) guards against Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine (8) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, on Feb 9, 2023, in New York. (PHOTO / AP)

NEW YORK - Without Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, the Brooklyn Nets snapped a two-game skid by taming the Chicago Bulls 116-105 on Thursday.

Spencer Dinwiddie, who returned to Brooklyn from Dallas, scored 25 points to make a key contribution to the win.

Dinwiddie had played five seasons for the Nets before he was traded in 2020.

Durant shockingly dealt to the Phoenix Suns days after Irving was sent to the Mavericks on Monday.

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"You don't lose a talent like Kyrie and Durant and get better immediately, it just doesn't happen," Dinwiddie said. "But at the end of the day, we've got a lot of good pieces. We've got a chance to do a little bit of something."

Nets' Yuta Watanabe was another key man in the Bulls game, collecting a pair of three-pointers at the crucial moments in the fourth quarter.

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Elsewhere, the Atlanta Hawks beat the Phoenix Suns 116-107, the Orlando Magic defeated the Western Conference-leading Denver Nuggets 115-104, and the Milwaukee Bucks upset the Los Angeles Lakers 115-106.