The Houston Rockets traded for Kevin Durant in the offseason to give the team a veteran leader and offensive superstar. While that pairing has mostly worked out well this season, things didn’t quite come together Monday night.

The Rockets struggled in a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, falling 100-92. It marked the second time in the last three games that Houston failed to reach 100 points. The team also had a hard time hitting from long range, shooting an abysmal 19% from beyond the arc.

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While Durant called out the latter issue following the loss, he put most of the blame on himself, saying, “I lost the game for us tonight,” per ESPN.

“I just felt like I lost the game for us tonight,” said Durant, who scored only two of his 18 points in the second half and committed seven of the Rockets’ 24 turnovers. “It’s that simple. Of course we probably could make more 3s, but it’s on me. I mean, to be honest, I’m the offense and the opposing team is going to use all their resources and not let me get comfortable.”

Durant finished the contest with 18 points. He went 8-of-16 from the field, but was 0-for-3 from beyond the arc. He also gave the ball away too much, turning it over seven times.

Most of those struggles came in the second half, when the Lakers started double-teaming Durant. He went just 1-of-5 from the floor during the second half, and registered six of his seven turnovers once the Lakers started to apply more pressure.

The Rockets will need to figure out a way to beat that strategy in time for the playoffs. At 41-26, they’re firmly in the hunt in the Western Conference. In order to pull off some upsets in the postseason, however, someone other than Durant will need to step up when opposing teams start sending multiple resources at the future Hall of Famer.

The Atlanta Hawks have won 10 consecutive games in a season for the first time in 11 years, extending their streak with a 124-112 victory over the Orlando Magic on Monday.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored a career-high 41 points to lead the Hawks, shooting 9-for-15 on 3-pointers. He added 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. Jalen Johnson recorded a triple-double — his 13th of the season — with 24 points, 13 boards and 13 assists.

The Hawks soared to a 34-21 first-quarter lead. Alexander-Walker scored 13 in the frame, perhaps hinting at the big night to come.

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Atlanta extended its lead to 67-50 at halftime, then outscored Orlando in the third quarter for a 104-83 margin going into the final 12 minutes of the game. The Magic couldn’t get closer than 12 points through the fourth quarter and the Hawks maintained a hold on the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference and a berth in the play-in tournament.

Alexander-Walker, 27, is in his first season with the Hawks after being acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves and signing a four-year, $62 million contract last summer. He’s putting up his best numbers by far, scoring 20.3 points per game after Monday’s performance. The seven-year veteran is also averaging 3.5 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.3 steals per game, while shooting 39% on 3-pointers.

Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane each finished with 18 points for Orlando. Banchero also grabbed 10 rebounds. Wendell Carter Jr. added 17 points and Jevon Carter contributed 13 off the bench. The Magic dropped to 38-29 with the defeat, tying them with the Toronto Raptors for the fifth spot in the East.

Still a Magic Monday in Atlanta

Two weeks ago, Monday’s Magic-Hawks matchup was more anticipated for a bold promotion billed as “Magic City Monday,” which would celebrate the Atlanta strip club — which the team called an “iconic cultural institution” — famous for its lemon pepper wings.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lou Williams, then with the Los Angeles Clippers, left the Orlando bubble and broke containment protocols to visit Magic City for some of those wings.

The promotion was controversial, considering what was being celebrated. San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet was among those who publicly criticized the Hawks for “being complicit in the potential objectification and mistreatment of women in our society“ and called for the team to cancel the planned festivities.

Last week, the NBA stepped in and canceled the promotion, citing “significant concern from a broad array of league stakeholders, including fans, partners and employees.”

Following the announcement, the Hawks released a statement saying the team was disappointed with the decision. Yet the release promoting the event, hosted on NBA.com, was never taken down. That may have tipped that the Hawks still intended to go forward with its celebration with a wink and a smile.

Those lemon pepper wings were still on the scene at State Farm Arena on Monday, according to 680 The Fan’s Brandon Leak. And many fans, including team principal owner Jami Gertz, were seen wearing Magic City branded hoodies that were preordered. The evening still ended up being a magical one.

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New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor played his first spring training game on Sunday since undergoing surgery on the hamate bone in his left hand. Days after taking live batting practice and ground balls in the field. he batted leadoff and played shortstop in an 8-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. He finished 1-for-3 with a run scored and a strikeout.

Lindor, 32, was expected to be sidelined for six weeks when he had the procedure on Feb. 11 to repair a stress reaction in the bone, located on the lower outside edge of the hand. At the time, the Mets expected him to be ready by Opening Day, which is now less than two weeks away.

Going into Sunday, the Mets had eight games remaining on their Grapefruit League schedule before opening the season at home on March 26 versus the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Lindor had surgery the day before pitchers and catchers reported to Port St. Lucie, Florida, for spring training. He had complained of soreness in his left hand previously, but played through the discomfort. However, with the issue lingering before preparations for this season began, the team encouraged Lindor to get evaluated by a specialist.

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“I felt like I was pretty much like myself, and I finished the game healthy,” Lindor said after the game, via MLB.com. “Overall, it was a good day for me.”

Returning in time for Opening Day is an encouraging sign for Lindor when comparing to other major leaguers who also had surgery in early February to repair hamate injuries this spring.

Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll played in his first Cactus League game on Wednesday. Unlike Lindor’s stress reaction, Carroll broke his hamate bone during batting practice and underwent surgery on Feb. 11. He was unable to play for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic because of the injury and the D-Backs have not said whether he’ll be ready for Opening Day.

Baltimore Orioles infielder Jackson Holliday suffered his hamate injury during early spring workouts and had surgery on Feb. 12. Like Lindor and Carroll, he had the hamate removed in surgery. The Orioles have already said he will not be in their Opening Day lineup.

Last season, Lindor hit .267/.346/.466 with 31 home runs, 35 doubles, 86 RBI and 31 stolen bases in 732 plate appearances. He played in 160 games, the third time during his Mets career that he appeared in at least that many games.

Washington Wizards star Trae Young left their matchup with the Golden State Warriors early on Monday night due to a leg injury.

Young collided with Warriors guard Will Richard while trying to get through a screen midway through the third quarter at Capital One Arena, and was called for an offensive foul after knocking Richard down. Young immediately started limping as officials called the foul, clearly shaken up.

He remained on the floor for one more play, still in noticeable pain, before he was finally taken out of the game. He limped off the court, went back to the locker room and did not return.

The Wizards quickly ruled Young out with what they called a right quad contusion. Further specifics of his injury are not yet known.

Young finished the night with a team-high 21 points after he went 7-of-10 from the field. He had five assists and two rebounds, too. Monday night was just Young’s fourth game with the Wizards. He made his debut with the team earlier this month after being dealt there from the Atlanta Hawks ahead of the deadline.

This post will be updated with more information shortly.