Spurs go shorthanded but still rout Pelicans
New Orleans coach Alvin Gentry said the San Antonio Spurs will quickly expose any team’s weakness.
The Pelicans learned that not only do they have a lot to work on, but they also need some rest.
Kawhi Leonard had 20 points and the Spurs beat the Pelicans 98-79 on Saturday night in their home opener.
“We didn’t have the same energy that we’re usually playing with,” Pelicans forward Anthony Davis said. “We wasn’t making shots. There was some miscommunication. Against a team like this, you can’t have plays where we have a mental breakdown. That’s what they want and they always capitalize.”
The Spurs won in their first home opener in 20 years without Tim Duncan, who retired in the offseason. San Antonio played without any of its Big Three as Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili both sat out to rest on the first night of backto-back games.
San Antonio didn’t appear to miss them, as 11 players were part of a balanced effort that helped the team remain unbeaten at 3-0. Patty Mills scored 18 points starting for Parker.
LaMarcus Aldridge added 12 points along with solid defense against the league’s leading scorer.
Davis was held to 18 points after scoring 50 and 45 points in the season’s first two games. He was limited to 3:13 in the final quarter as San Antonio led by as many as 27 points in the fourth.
“I got some shots I wanted,” Davis said. “I got some jumpers that I wanted, just missed them. I’m not worried about offense, really. Shots are going to come.”
Kings 106, T-wolves 103:
DeMarcus Cousins had 29 points, Rudy Gay added 28, and Sacramento won for the first time at its new Golden 1 Arena. Andrew Wiggins scored 29 points for Minnesota, which is off to an 0-2 start under new coach Tom Thibodeau. Zach Lavine had three threepointers and 21 points, and Karl Anthony-Towns had 15 points.
Trail Blazers 115, Nuggets 113:
Damian Lillard scored 37 points, including the go-ahead floater with less than a second remaining in overtime for visiting Portland, which got a spark with seven overtime points from CJ McCollum. Lillard blew past big man Kenneth Faried in the lane and floated in a shot with 0.3 of a second left. Lillard had tied the game on a runner in regulation with 2.1 seconds left.
Celtics 104, Hornets 98:
Avery Bradley had 31 points on a career-high eight threepointers as visiting Boston shot 75 percent from the field in the fourth quarter. Bradley added 11 rebounds, Isaiah Thomas had 24 points and seven assists and Al Horford added 14 points for the Celtics. Kemba Walker led the Hornets with 29 points.
Bucks 110, Nets 108:
John Henson’s tip-in at the buzzer gave host Milwaukee its first victory of the season. Rashad Vaughn scored a career-high 22 points, including six threepointers, for Milwaukee. Giannis Antetokounmpo added 21 points and 11 rebounds. He scored all of his points in the paint, including seven dunks. Bojan Bogdanovic scored 26 points to lead the Nets, who made 11 of 35 three-point attempts.
Knicks 111, Grizzlies 104:
Kristaps Porzingis scored 21 points and Carmelo Anthony had 20 as New York used a fast start and strong finish to beat Memphis in its home opener. Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Courtney Lee all had impressive moments in their first home games at Madison Square Garden. Rose had a couple of crossovers and quick bursts into the lane that showed his legs looked healthy and scored 13 points. Noah finished with six points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, and Lee scored 16 points as the Knicks got their first win under coach Jeff Hornacek.
Cavaliers 105, Magic 99:
LeBron James scored 23 points, Kyrie Irving added 20 and Cleveland beat visiting Orlando for the 15th straight time. Kevin Love scored 19 points to help the NBA champion Cavaliers improve to 3-0. They haven’t lost to the Magic since Nov. 23, 2012, in Orlando. Evan Fournier scored 22 points for Orlando. The Magic cut a 22-point deficit to 88-85 with 4 minutes to play, but J.R. Smith hit three three-pointers and scored 11 in the fourth quarter.
Bulls 118, Pacers 101:
Doug McDermott had 23 points, Jimmy Butler added 16 on 6-of-9 shooting and Rajon Rondo had 13 assists to lead host Chicago to its second straight victory to open the season. McDermott scored 11 points in the fourth quarter as coach Fred Hoiberg gave his veteran starters — Butler, Rondo and Dwyane Wade, who had 14 points — the rest of the night off after the third quarter. Paul George and Myles Turner had 20 points apiece for the Pacers (1-2).
Hawks 104, 76ers 72:
Paul Millsap scored 17 points to lead five players in double figures for visiting Atlanta. Kyle Korver chipped in 15 points and Mike Muscala added 14 for Atlanta. The Hawks barely needed top offseason acquisition Dwight Howard. The big man had just two points and seven rebounds in his second game for his hometown team after signing a three-year, $70 million free-agent contract this summer. Joel Embiid and Sergio Rodriguez had 14 points apiece for the 76ers.