NBA wrap: Dante Exum debuts, Bulls hammer Knicks, Nuggets edge Pistons, Suns down Lakers
IT’S been a big day for Aussies in the NBA with Dante Exum, Joe Ingles and Cam Bairstow hitting the court for the first time.
IT’S been a big day for Aussies in the NBA with Dante Exum, Joe Ingles and Cam Bairstow debuting while a host of stars took to the court for the first time this season.
AUSSIES IN ACTION
Dante Exum scored five points on two-from-three shooting in his NBA debut for the Utah Jazz. Exum also contributed a steal and an assist — the latter a brilliant alley-oop with Rudy Gobert — in 9:37 minutes.
Exum’s Utah teammate, Joe Ingles, also made his NBA debut in the Jazz’s 104-93 defeat to the Houston Rockets but didn’t trouble the statistician in his 4:10 on court.
Golden State veteran Andrew Bogut got in early foul trouble but still found a way to contribute against Sacramento, recording four blocks - more than his entire opposition team.
Bogut also had five defensive rebounds and four points on two of two shooting as the Warriors opened their season with a 95-77 win on the road.
Power forward Cameron Bairstow played 3:31 minutes in the Chicago Bulls’ 108-90 demolition of the New York Knicks. He conceded one turnover.
DAILY WRAP
Hornets 108 — Bucks 106
Kemba Walker of the Hornets took a whopping 26 attempted field goals and finished on 26 points to lead all scorers while Lance Stephenson was, well Lance Stephenson with 13 boards and 8 dimes but a woeful 7 points thanks to some off target 3 frm 12 shooting. Brandon Knight was massive for the Bucks with 13 assists, 8 boards and a perfect 10 from 10 at the line — fantasy sleeper alert!
Pacers 103 — 76ers 91
Roy Hibbert was a dominant force for the Pacers, posting 22 points, eight rebounds and a whopping 7 blocks. Donald Sloan staked his claim to the point guard slot for the injury plagued team from Indianapolis with 16 points, a game high tying 10 rebounds and six assists in a stat stuffing effort. Tony Wroten was a rare bright light for the 76ers leading the team in points (22) and assists (seven) while nabbing three steals and posting eight boards as well.
Nets 105 — Celtics 121
Rajon Rondo is back baby! Rondo handed out a whopping 12 assists, grabbed seven boards and scored 13 points on efficient six from nine shooting. Young centre Kelly Olynyk impressed with a team leading 19 points including one from beyond the arc. Deron Williams was the best of the Brooklyn starters with 19 points and eight assists but the veteran was upstaged by power forward Mirza Teletovic, who came off the bench to score 20 points, six rebounds and a couple of blocks, making the most of an injury to Mason Plumlee.
Heat 107 — Wizards 95
Who needs LeBroon James? Chris Bosh relished the chance to step up for Miami and the versatile big man dropped 26 points, three three-pointers, 15 rebounds, four assists and a steal and a block for good measure. MVP figures right there. Paul “The Truth” Pierce showed he’s not ready to call time just yet with 17 points, six boards and five assists for his new team while John Wall led all comers with 11 dimes in a losing effort.
Raptors 109 — Hawks 102
An even team effort saw Toronto record a win for home fans with all 5 starters reaching double figures with double-doubles for Amir Johnson (10 boards), DeMar Rozan (11 boards) and Kyle Lowry (10 assists). From Atlanta Kyle Korver did what Kyle Korver does draining six threes from seven attempts while Jeff Teague had a mixed night for the Hawks with 20 points and eight assists offset by six turnovers.
Grizzlies 105 — Timberwolves 101
The Grizzlie big men Zach Randolph 25 points, 13 rebounds) and Marc Gasol (32 points, nine rebounds, two steals and two blocks) were too good for the T-Wolves. Minnesota’s big name recruit Andrew Wiggins only scored six points in 19 minutes while swingman Thaddeus Young impressed with 26 points on 10 from 18 shooting to go with four rebounds and four assists.
Bulls 104 — Knicks 80
Chicago won early bragging rights in this battle of east-coast heavyweights thanks to a monster effort by Taj Gibson off the bench with 22 points (10-12), eight boards, a block and a steal. Derrick Rose looked comfortable on his long awaited return and posted 13 points with 5 assists in just 21 minutes. Carmelo Anthony ascored 14 for the Knicks as the team struggled to implement the triangle offence without point guard Jose Calderon, who was a late withdrawal due to injury.
Nuggets 80 — Pistons 79
Kenneth Faried kept his hot FIBA World Cup form rolling with a massive double double line of 22 points and 17 rebounds while seven-foot centre Timofey Mozgov added his own double double (13 points, 11 rebounds). Josh Smith was smooth as always, draining 25 points, five boards, three assists and two blocks for Detroit.
Rockets 104 — Jazz 93
Dwight Howard led the Rockets with 22 points and 10 rebounds while James Harden was as impressive as ever posting 18 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds for Houston. Derrick Favors was best for Utah with 16 points, seven rebounds, three steals and four blocks on the night.
Suns 119 - Lakers 99
The Suns beat Los Angeles despite Kobe Bryant’s 31 points after Isaiah Thomas scored 23 points in his Phoenix debut and Marcus Morris matched his career high with five 3-pointers.
Goran Dragic scored 12 of his 18 points in the third quarter, when the Suns outscored the Lakers 39-24 and led by as many as 29. Phoenix’s Eric Bledsoe had 16 points and nine assists before he drew his second technical foul and was ejected with 30 seconds left in the third quarter.
Bryant, 11 of 25 from the field, didn’t play in the fourth quarter. Ed Davis scored 14 points and Wayne Ellington 13 for Los Angeles.
Trail Blazers 106 - Thunder 89
LaMarcus Aldridge had 27 points as Portland rallied in the fourth quarter to beat the injury-depleted Oklahoma City. The Thunder only suited up nine players. Most notably they were without reigning NBA MVP Kevin Durant, who had surgery for a fractured bone in his right foot this month and will likely be sidelined until December.
Russell Westbrook picked up the slack, with 38 points, including 26 in the first half.
After trailing for much of the game, Portland pulled to an 89-80 lead with 7 minutes left on Damian Lillard’s 3-pointer. Nicolas Batum passed to Aldridge for the alley-oop dunk to put the Blazers up 93-83 and the Thunder could not catch up. Portland outscored the Thunder 31-12 in the fourth quarter. With 14 straight home-opening victories, the Blazers’ matched the Boston Celtics’ record set from 1979-92.
Warriors 95 - Kings 77
Stephen Curry had 24 points and 10 rebounds, and Klay Thompson scored 19 points as an undermanned Golden State made Steve Kerr a winner in his coaching debut, rolling past Sacramento. Marreese Speights added 16 points to help the Warriors overcome the first hurdle of Kerr’s tenure. Golden State played without power forward David Lee (strained left hamstring) and reserve Brandon Rush (lower back spasms). Center Andrew Bogut also was limited to 18 minutes because of an illness. The Warriors went ahead by 15 late in the third quarter.
DeMarcus Cousins had 20 points and 11 rebounds for Sacramento.
Originally published as NBA wrap: Dante Exum debuts, Bulls hammer Knicks, Nuggets edge Pistons, Suns down Lakers
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