NBA scores 2018: Anthony Davis owned February, and 3 other things from Wednesday night

Davis averaged 35 points and 11 rebounds last month.

Updated Mar 1, 2018, 2:08 PM UTC

NBA: Phoenix Suns at New Orleans Pelicans

Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

Anthony Davis put up 26 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Pelicans to a one-point win over the Spurs on Thursday. Get this: It was the fourth-worst game he had in the month of February.

Davis averaged 35 points and 11 rebounds last month. After New Orleans’ win against the Spurs, he joined Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Moses Malone as the only players to average 35 points and 15 rebounds during a seven-game winning streak, according to Elias Sports Bureau. He also joins Malone as the only player to average at least 35 points and 10 rebounds for an entire month, according to the Pelicans.

Remember when he scored 53 points against the Suns? It was his third 50-point, 15-rebound game, tying the league total over the past 17 seasons.

James Harden may be the runaway favorite for MVP, and it might not even be close. But if there is a distant second for the award, it just might belong to Davis.

Dirk Nowitzki keeps grinding

You couldn’t draw up a fairy-tale ending better than this if you tried. Dirk Nowitzki, with his back to the basket leaning ever-so slightly into his defender, creates just a tiny bit of separation before elevating and draining a fadeaway mid-range jump shot.

The most decorated international player of all-time continues adding to a pristine resume. The only thing left for him to do is chase legends.

Nowitzki recorded his 31,000th career point in the second quarter of the Mavericks’ overtime loss to the Thunder. The only thing Nowitzki was missing was the icing on the cake: a victory over a playoff opponent.

Nowitzki finished the game with 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field. He turns 40 this summer and has one more year left on his contract after this season. That might be all he needs.

Nowitzki isn’t the same super scorer who won MVP in 2007 and led the Mavericks to a championship in 2010. But he’s only 414 points behind Chamberlain for the title as the fifth all-time leading scorer in NBA history. He won’t reach that mark this season.

But one more season for good measure? The Mavericks and the rest of the league would probably welcome it.

James Harden reduced Wesley Johnson to rubble

THE STAREDOWN

This basically sums it up:

Not LaMarcus Aldridge!

Aldridge exited the Spurs’ matchup against the Pelicans in the first quarter with an ankle injury. He then returned in the second quarter, only to leave for the game with three minutes to go.