Led by a strong Dennis Schröder, the Los Angeles Lakers have won an important victory in the North American basketball league NBA.

Against his former team, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the national team captain had 26 points and was the leading Lakers pro in the 123-117 win. Without the rested Anthony Davis and the injured LeBron James and D'Angelo Russell at his side, Schröder got off to a weak start but improved strongly in the second half.

Kevin Durant, meanwhile, had 23 points on his debut for the Phoenix Suns. The Suns won 105-91 against the five-game undefeated Charlotte Hornets and played for the first time with the combination of new signing Durant, DeAndre Ayton, Devin Booker and Chris Paul. Durant recently had to recover from knee problems and has therefore not played for the Suns since the change at the beginning of February. "Everyone out there went out of their way to make me feel comfortable," said Durant, who previously played for the Brooklyn Nets.

Bucks extend winning streak

His ex-team lost the New York duel with the Knicks 118:142 and now has four bankruptcies in a row. Isaiah Hartenstein had eight points, eight rebounds and three assists for the Knicks, who widened their lead over the Nets in the Eastern Conference and are on course for the playoffs.

At the top, the Milwaukee Bucks extended their streak to 16 wins and also won at the Orlando Magic. At 139:117, Giannis Antetokounmpo was the best pitcher with 31 points for the Bucks, Cole Anthony had 28 points for Orlando. Franz Wagner recorded 18 points, his brother Moritz only hit one of his three throws and stayed at 2 points.

The Boston Celtics stayed on the heels of the Bucks with a 117-113 in the top game against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Both teams have 45 wins, the Celtics have lost a game more with 18 defeats.