The Golden State Warriors had a big 139 : 104 win against the Trail Blazers at their first NBA game in this season. The Milwaukee Bucks demolished the favored Philadelphia 76ers – without their new stars Paul George and Embiid – with 124 : 109. And a heroic Clippers team – without Kawhi Leonard and fouled out with Zubac and Mann – lost in overtime to the star-studded Phoenix Suns with a fantastic duo Durant and Booker with only 113 : 116 an the second day of the new NBA-season and the opening night of the 2-b billion-Intuit Dome in Los Angeles.
Curry leads Golden State Warriors in 139-104 season-opening rout of the Portland Trail Blazers
Stephen Curry had 17 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds before sitting for the fourth quarter, and the Golden State Warriors opened the season Wednesday night with a 139-104 rout of the Portland Trail Blazers.
Buddy Hield had 22 points off the bench for the Warriors, who missed out on the playoffs last year.
Portland led by as many as nine points in the opening quarter, but the Warriors pulled ahead and led 62-50 at the break. Curry had a 3-pointer to open the second half and Golden State led by as many as 37 points the rest of the way.
Portland was led by Scoot Henderson with 22 points off the bench. Shaedon Sharpe didn’t play because of a shoulder injury.
Takeaways
Terry Stotts, head coach of the Blazers from 2012 to 2021, is now an assistant under Steve Kerr with the Warriors. Stotts saluted the crowd in the opening quarter when the Blazers played a tribute to him on the video scoreboard.
‘We’re definitely more organized this year, I think, than we’ve been in the past. Terry has been a huge part of that,” Kerr said. “He’s added so much to our staff and given us some different stuff that we’re excited about.”
Key moment
Late in the first half Draymond Green, jawed at the refs after being called for a foul and earned his first technical of the season. Kerr put an arm around Green’s shoulder and led him off the court.
Key stat
Curry, fresh off winning a gold medal at the Paris Olympics this summer, had seven assists in the first quarter alone to move him ahead of Clyde Drexler (6,125) into 38th on the NBA’s all-time career list.
Up next
The Trail Blazers continue their three-game homestand on Friday against the Pelicans, while the Warriors visit the Jazz also on Friday.
Durant, Beal lead Suns to 116-113 OT victory over Clippers, spoiling LA’s Intuit Dome opener
Kevin Durant scored 25 points, Bradley Beal added 24 and the Phoenix Suns beat the Clippers 116-113 in overtime Wednesday night, spoiling Los Angeles’ Intuit Dome debut in the opener for both teams.
James Harden had 29 points and 12 rebounds for the Clippers. He had a chance to send it to double overtime, but missed the second of two free throws with 4.8 seconds remaining.
Jusuf Nurkic gave the Suns a three-point advantage with a pair of free throws. The Clippers had one last chance to send it to another extra session, but Grayson Allen forced a turnover near midcourt after the inbounds pass.
Ivica Zubac had 21 points for the Clippers, but fouled out with 2:15 remaining in overtime.
Takeaways
Suns: Mike Budenholzer picked up the victory in his first game as Phoenix’s coach and improved to 12-9 in his career against the Clippers.
Clippers: Norman Powell will go down as the player who made the first basket at Intuit Dome with his jumper 17 second into the game. … LA had a 62-42 advantage in points in the paint and outrebounded the Suns by nine (51-42), but Zubac’s foul trouble in overtime played a huge role.
Key moment
The Clippers had a 99-90 lead before the Suns scored 11 straight points to go back on top. Devin Booker had four points during Phoenix’s rally, but fouled out with 1:27 remaining. Harden scored four straight points to give LA a 103-101 advantage, but Durant tied it with a 15-footer with 21.2 seconds remaining.
Key stat
The Suns were 1 of 4 from the field in overtime, but made all 10 of their foul shots. Nurkic and Beal were 4 of 4 and Durant made a pair.
Up next
The Suns remain in Southern California to face the Lakers on Friday night, while the Clippers are at Denver on Saturday
