New Orleans’ Zion Williamson scored 22 points in his NBA debut, but LaMarcus Aldridge topped him with 32 points and 14 rebounds as the visiting San Antonio Spurs defeated the Pelicans 121-117 on Wednesday night.
Williamson, the first overall choice in last year’s draft, missed the first 44 games of the season while rehabbing from arthroscopic knee surgery. He struggled for three quarters before scoring 17 consecutive Pelicans points to briefly give them the lead in the fourth quarter before sitting out the final 5 1/2 minutes as Spurs regained control.
Brandon Ingram matched Williamson’s 22 points for New Orleans. Lonzo Ball had 14 points and 12 assists, Jrue Holiday scored 12, Derrick Favors had 11 points and 10 rebounds, and JJ Redick and Josh Hart scored 10 apiece.
Williamson also amassed seven rebounds, three assists and five turnovers while playing 18 minutes, 18 seconds.
Utah Jazz 129 – Golden State Warriors 96
Utah completed its first season-series sweep of Golden State in 10 years, using 23 points from Donovan Mitchell and 22 from Rudy Gobert as the foundation for a runaway victory in San Francisco.
Gobert, who had been a bit iffy for the game after rolling his ankle in a Monday home win over the Indiana Pacers, also had a game-high 15 rebounds for the Jazz, whose first three wins over the Warriors this season had come by a total of just 26 points. Mitchell shot 8-for-13 and Gobert 10-for-13, helping Utah connect on 53.8 percent in the game.
The Warriors were limited to 39.8 percent shooting. Golden State’s D’Angelo Russell led all scorers with 26 points.
Atlanta Hawks 102 – Los Angeles Clippers 95
John Collins scored 33 points and reserve Brandon Goodwin scored all 19 of his points in the second half to help the short-handed Hawks erase a 21-point deficit and defeat short-handed Los Angeles at Atlanta.
Collins was 12 of 22 from the field and added 16 rebounds, matching his season high. It was his ninth double-double and third 30-point effort of the season. The Hawks also got 12 points and seven rebounds from Kevin Huerter plus 10 points and eight rebounds from Cam Reddish.
The Hawks were without leading scorer and floor leader Trae Young, a game-time scratch due to a right thigh contusion. The Clippers were playing without starters Kawhi Leonard (load management), Paul George (left hamstring strain) and Patrick Beverley (groin). Montrezl Harrell led Los Angeles with 30 points.
Los Angeles Lakers 100 – New York Knicks 92
Anthony Davis scored a game-high 28 points for visiting Los Angeles, who held off New York.
Davis was 7 of 14 from the field and 13 of 13 from the free-throw line, matching his most conversions without a miss in a game this season. LeBron James had 21 points and six rebounds, five assists and five steals for the Lakers, who won for the 11th time in 13 games.
Marcus Morris Sr. scored 20 points and Damyean Dotson came off the bench to add 17 for the Knicks, who have lost four of their past five and are 2-9 in their past 11. Julius Randle had 16 points for New York.
Chicago Bulls 117 – Minnesota Timberwolves 110
Zach LaVine scored 25 points — including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:26 to go — and Cristiano Felicio notched a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds to lift host Chicago past slumping Minnesota.
Karl-Anthony Towns scored a game-high 40 points and Andrew Wiggins followed with 25 for Minnesota, but it wasn’t enough as the Timberwolves took their seventh straight defeat.
Lauri Markkanen followed LaVine with 21 points and hit four treys to become the 13th player in league history with 100 made 3-pointers in his first three NBA seasons. Luke Kornet (15 points), Kris Dunn (14) and Coby White (12) also finished in double figures for Chicago.
Toronto Raptors 107 – Philadelphia 76ers 95
Fred VanVleet scored 22 points and added eight assists as Toronto beat visiting Philadelphia.
Pascal Siakam added 18 points and 15 rebounds for the Raptors, who have won five in a row and have won 15 straight regular-season home games against the 76ers. Norman Powell contributed 18 points off the bench for Toronto.
Tobias Harris had 22 points and Ben Simmons had 17 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for the 76ers. Furkan Korkmaz added 17 points, Matisse Thybulle had 13 points, and Al Horford had seven points and 10 rebounds.
Boston Celtics 119 – Memphis Grizzlies 95
Jayson Tatum scored 23 points before exiting with a groin injury in the third quarter as Boston crushed visiting Memphis.
Daniel Theis added 14 points, Enes Kanter chipped in 13 off the bench, and Marcus Smart and Gordon Hayward scored 12 apiece as Boston won its second straight since losing six of eight.
Jonas Valanciunas had a team-high 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Jaren Jackson Jr. and Solomon Hill each added 13 points for the Grizzlies, who lost their second straight since a seven-game win streak. Memphis dropped its eighth consecutive meeting with Boston.
Houston Rockets 121 – Denver Nuggets 105
Russell Westbrook flirted with a triple-double while James Harden added 27 points as Houston snapped a four-game skid with win over visiting Denver.
Westbrook scored a game-high 28 points, grabbed a season-high-tying 16 rebounds and added eight assists to pace the Rockets, who had dropped five of six during their longest slide of the season. Harden was 6 of 13 from the field and 13 of 15 from the free throw line to complement Westbrook, and Eric Gordon added 25 points on 8-for-11 shooting off the Houston bench.
The Nuggets were without guards Jamal Murray and Gary Harris plus forwards Paul Millsap and Michael Porter Jr. It required a yeoman effort for Denver to keep pace, with Nikola Jokic posting a triple-double of 19 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists to steer the patchwork lineup.
Oklahoma City Thunder 120 – Orlando Magic 114
Dennis Schroder tied a season high with 31 points to lead Oklahoma City to a win at Orlando.
The victory was Oklahoma City’s third straight overall and fourth straight on the road. Schroder scored 20 points in the second half to help seal the victory.
Orlando lost for the third time in four games. Terrence Ross scored 19 of his season-high-tying 26 points in the second half, going 6 of 11 from the field.
Detroit Pistons 127 – Sacramento Kings 106
Christian Wood scored 23 points, Reggie Jackson supplied 22 in his return to action, and host Detroit handed Sacramento its sixth consecutive loss.
Jackson had not played since the second game of the season due to a back injury. Derrick Rose also scored 22 points and added 11 assists for the Pistons. Langston Galloway contributed 14 points, while Markieff Morris and Svi Mykhailiuk added 13 apiece. Thon Maker chipped in 10 points and 10 rebounds.
De’Aaron Fox led the Kings with 22 points. Bogdan Bogdanovic fired in 19 points, Nemanja Bjelica and Buddy Hield had 14 points apiece, and Dewayne Dedmon added 13.
Miami Heat 134 – Washington Wizards 129 (OT)
Rookie Tyler Herro scored a team-high 25 points, and Jimmy Butler scored nine of his 24 points in overtime to lead host Miami past Washington.
Herro set a team rookie record with seven 3-pointers, missing only twice for the Heat, who have the NBA’s best home record at 20-1. They went only 19-22 at AmericanAirlines Arena last season. Miami also has the best overtime record in the league at 8-0.
The Wizards, who got a game-high 38 points from Bradley Beal, fell to 0-18 on the road when trailing after three quarters. Beal added nine rebounds and five assists.
Indiana Pacers 112 – Phoenix Suns 87
T.J. Warren scored 25 points against his former team, and Domantas Sabonis added 24 points and 13 rebounds as Indiana seized an early lead and never trailed in a victory at Phoenix.
Doug McDermott had 12 points and Justin Holiday 11 as the Pacers won for the sixth time in their past seven games while recovering from a defeat at Utah on Monday.
Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 17 points and Devin Booker 16 as the Suns lost their second game in a row. Without Cameron Johnson (quad) and Aron Baynes (hip), the Suns were playing with a short bench.
–Field Level Media
