Tyrese Maxey scored a game-high 28 points Tuesday night for the visiting Philadelphia 76ers, who spoiled the New York Knicks’ ring and banner-raising ceremony with a 106-100 victory in the season opener for both teams.
Prior to the game, the Knicks received their championship rings from Walt “Clyde” Frazier — a member of the franchise’s previous title-winning teams in 1970 and 1973 and an analyst on New York’s television broadcast team — and raised the banner commemorating the long-awaited crown.
However, the 76ers, who were swept by the Knicks in the Eastern Conference semifinals before adding Jaylen Brown and LeBron James over the summer, dampened the festivities by taking the lead for good with an 11-0 run to end the third quarter. Brown (19 points, eight rebounds, six assists) and James (14 points, nine rebounds, seven assists) produced strong debuts for the 76ers, who haven’t won the title since 1983.
Karl-Anthony Towns (19 points, 12 rebounds) and Andre Drummond (12 points, 14 rebounds) recorded double-doubles for the Knicks. Brunson finished with 21 points but shot just 6-of-19 from the field. Josh Hart had 14 points while OG Anunoby added 10 points.
Pistons 121, Celtics 113
Duncan Robinson scored 15 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter as Detroit reeled off 23 unanswered points and downed visiting Boston in the first game of the NBA regular season.
Jalen Duren and Cade Cunningham scored 22 points apiece for the Pistons, who had an Eastern Conference-best 60 wins last season. Javonte Green came off the bench to score 19 points in 18 minutes, spurring Detroit’s run which turned a 10-point deficit into a 112-99 lead with 3:33 left.
Paul George, making his Celtics debut, had a game-high 38 points. Payton Pritchard and Derrick White scored 17 points apiece, but Jayson Tatum was held to 13 points on 6-for-23 shooting and contributed a game-high 11 assists.
Thunder 116, Spurs 104
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander poured in 32 points as visiting Oklahoma City built a huge first-half lead and held on for a victory over San Antonio in the season opener between last year’s top two teams in the Western Conference.
Jared McCain added 20 points and matched his career high with six 3-pointers for the Thunder. Chet Holmgren had 14 points and Jalen Williams finished with 12.
Stephon Castle led San Antonio with 24 points while Dylan Harper added 18, De’Aaron Fox hit for 14, Victor Wembanyama had 12 points, 13 rebounds and six blocked shots, and Keldon Johnson tallied 10 points. Wembanyama went 1 of 13 from the field, with his only basket on a dunk on a lob to end the third quarter.
