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Ammon News - Kevin Durant scored 23 points as he made his debut for the Phoenix Suns in a 105-91 win at the Charlotte Hornets.

The former league MVP joined from the Brooklyn Nets in a blockbuster trade three weeks ago but has been recovering from a sprained knee ligament.

Durant played restricted minutes as he continues towards full fitness and new team-mate Devin Booker hit 37 points.

"I've played in almost a thousand basketball games, but today I was nervous," said Durant, 34.

"But once the ball was tipped my team-mates were incredible in making me feel comfortable and I just tried to go out there and play my game.

"Man, I missed the game. I'm glad my knee's back right, I'm glad I'm on the road to playing more and more minutes each game.

"I'm looking forward to what we can build from this."

Durant scored 12 points as Phoenix took a 16-point lead in the first half and although Charlotte got within six going into the final quarter, Durant helped the Suns pull away.

Phoenix are looking to climb the table in the Western Conference and are fourth, 10 games behind conference leaders the Denver Nuggets.

As Durant made his Suns bow, the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics continued to jockey for dominance in the Eastern Conference.

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 31 points as the Bucks beat the Orlando Magic 139-117 for their 16th consecutive victory.

That kept the Bucks top of the conference, half a game ahead of Boston, for who a resurgent Jayson Tatum scored 41 points in a 117-113 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Tatum, who was MVP in this year's All-Star game on 19 February, was ejected late in Boston's loss to the Knicks in New York on Monday but bounced back for his ninth 40-point game of the season.

"We got off to a good start and just kept staying aggressive," he said. "It just felt good to get back home - after the All-Star break, [and playing at] Indiana, it's been two weeks since I slept in my own bed."

The New York Knicks claimed their seventh successive win, defeating Brooklyn 142-118 at Madison Square Garden, while the Los Angeles Lakers, missing LeBron James with a foot injury, beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 123-117.