DeRozan lead Spurs past Timberwolves
SAN ANTONIO — DeMar DeRozan had 28 points in his San Antonio debut, LaMarcus Aldridge added 21 points and 19 rebounds and the Spurs overcame a 23-point performance by Minnesota’s Jimmy Butler in a 112-108 victory Wednesday night in a matchup of teams coming off a tumultuous offseason.
DeRozan was acquired from Toronto after the Spurs responded to Kawhi Leonard’s trade demands by dealing their star forward and Danny Green for the Raptors’ All-Star guard and Jakob Poeltl.
Minnesota is facing a similar trade demand from Butler, who has opted to play through it. Butler, who has told Minnesota that he will not re-sign with the team in the offseason, added seven rebounds and three assists in an active 31 minutes.
DeRozan banked in the eventual winning shot in the final minute against Butler, driving hard to the basket against the 6-foot-8 forward and then pulling up from 12 feet to give San Antonio a 110-108 lead with 32.4 seconds remaining. DeRozan sealed the victory with a pair of free throws with 7.8 seconds remaining after Minnesota’s Derrick Rose missed a runner in lane.
Kawhi Leonard had 24 points and 12 rebounds in his Toronto debut, Kyle Lowry scored 27 points and the Raptors beat Cleveland.
Fred VanVleet scored 14 points, Pascal Siakam had 13 and Danny Green 11 to help the Raptors win their sixth straight season opener and give Nick Nurse a victory in his first game as head coach.
Kevin Love scored 21 points, and Cedi Osman had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Cavaliers.
Anthony Davis had 32 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists, and Nikola Mirotic scored 30 points to lead New Orleans past Houston.
Davis added three blocks and three steals, Mirotic was 6 of 8 from 3-point range, and Julius Randle had 25 points off the bench.