THOMAS BRYANT

Deandre Ayton had 20 points and 16 rebounds in an efficient 24 minutes and the NBA-leading Phoenix Suns rebounded from a streak-ending loss to beat the short-handed Washington Wizards 95-80 on Saturday night.

Ja Morant scored 34 points, his sixth straight game of at least 30 points, and the Memphis Grizzlies built an early lead in a 115-95 victory over the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.

Russell Westbrook nearly had a triple-double and Bradley Beal scored 25 points in just 29 minutes to help the Washington Wizards reach the NBA playoffs as the Eastern Conference’s No. 8 seed by overwhelming the Indiana Pacers 142-115 in the play-in round.

The NBA says the rate of players needing to miss games because of injuries is down from last season and within the normal range for what the league has seen over the last five seasons.

Washington Wizards center Thomas Bryant, center, lies injured on the court during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Saturday, Jan. 9, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – The Washington Wizards likely will be without center Thomas Bryant for the remainder of the season because of a partially torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. Bryant is one of only two players who started all 10 games so far this season for the Wizards. He got hurt after incidental contact with two Miami players during the first quarter of the Wizards’ loss to the Heat on Saturday night. The Wizards have not announced when Bryant will have surgery or given an exact timeline for his recovery, but the rehabilitation process following ACL tears and surgery typically take several months at a minimum.

(AP Photo/Chris Szagola)PHILADELPHIA – Joel Embiid scored 38 points and the NBA-leading Philadelphia 76ers overcame a Washington record-tying 60-point performance by Bradley Beal in a 141-136 win over the Wizards on Wednesday night. He hit seven 3s and reached 57 points through three quarters, and that should have been enough to give the Wizards the lead. They gave up 82 points and trailed by as many as 21 points, Beal outscoring the rest of the Wizards. Arenas, who turned 39 on Wednesday, scored 60 points on Dec. 17, 2006. Russell Westbrook scored 20 points for the Wizards.

Orlando Magic guard Markelle Fultz (20) shoots as Washington Wizards forward Isaac Bonga (17) and forward Deni Avdija (9) defend in the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Dec. 26, 2020, in Washington. (Geoff Burke/Pool Photo via AP)WASHINGTON – The Orlando Magic beat Washington 130-120 on Saturday night, overcoming another triple-double by Russell Westbrook in his home debut for the Wizards. Nikola Vucevic had 22 points and 17 rebounds, and Markelle Fultz added 21 points to help the Magic win its second straight to start the season. ... Two-way rookie guard Cassius Winston (hamstring strain) was inactive but has returned to practice…UP NEXTThe Magic and Wizards will complete their back-to-back in Washington on Sunday. It is the only meeting between the two Southeast division foes in the first half of the NBA schedule release.

The 76ers announced Saturday that Simmons will be leaving the NBAs season-restart bubble at Walt Disney World. Simmons left Philadelphias game against Washington on Wednesday midway through the third quarter because of injury, officially diagnosed as a subluxation of the left patella. Tests performed since revealed a loose body inside the knee, which led to the decision for surgery. After consultation with the 76ers medical staff and several specialists, Ben Simmons will undergo surgery in the coming days to remove a loose body in his left knee, the 76ers said on Saturday in a team release. Simmons is averaging 16.4 points, 8.0 assists and 7.8 rebounds this season, and his 35.4 minutes per game leads the 76ers.

There was no immediate word from the 76ers on the extent of Simmons injury, which occurred as he landed awkwardly after grabbing an offensive rebound. Tobias Harris added 17 points for the 76ers, who pulled within a game of the Pacers for fifth place in the Eastern Conference standings. This was the the second game in a five-game stretch in which the 76ers play opponents currently seeded seventh or lower in their respective conference. Wizards: Bryant recorded his third straight double-double and had three blocks. Wizards: Play Pelicans on Friday.

The Nets moved seven games ahead of ninth-place Washington in the Eastern Conference standings, and now the Wizards hopes of forcing a play-in series are fading. Thomas Bryant had a career-high 30 points and 13 rebounds, and Troy Brown Jr. added 22 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for the Wizards. The Nets are without DeAndre Jordan, Spencer Dinwiddie and Taurean Prince because of positive coronavirus tests before the restart. His 170 jams last season tied Kenyon Martin (2002-03) for the most in a season since the stat first was kept during the 1997-98 season. He is in his first season with the Nets after signing a two-way contract with the team in January.