DeRozan gets best of Butler
Jimmy Butler scored 23 points in the Timberwolves’ 112-108 season-opening loss to the Spurs in a matchup of teams coming off a tumultuous offseason.
Butler, who has told Minnesota that he will not re-sign with the team in the offseason, added seven rebounds, three assists and four steals in an active 31 minutes.
DeMar DeRozan, who was acquired from the Raptors after the Spurs responded to Kawhi Leonard’s trade demands, scored 28 points in his debut.
DeRozan banked in the eventual winning shot in the final minute against Butler, driving hard to the basket against the 6-8 forward and then pulling up from 12 feet to give San Antonio a 110-108 lead with 32.4 seconds left.
♦ Bojan Bogdanovic scored 19 points and Victor Oladipo 16 to help the Pacers rout the Grizzlies 111-83. It was the largest opening-night victory margin in the franchise’s NBA era, breaking the mark of 27 set against the then-New Jersey Nets in 1985.
♦ Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 31 points, sparking the Knicks during their franchise-record 49-point second quarter, in a 126-107 season-opening victory against the Hawks in their first game under coach David Fizdale. New York led 72-49 at the break.
♦ Kawhi Leonard had 24 points and a team-high 13 rebounds in his Raptors debut in a 116-104 victory against the Cavaliers.
♦ The Suns signed veteran guard Jamal Crawford, who is entering his 19th season, to a one-year, $2.4 million contract.