PHILADELPHIA — Tyrese Maxey scored 43 points, including eight straight in the decisive fourth quarter, and rookie VJ Edgecomb added 26 points as the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Joel Embiid-less Orlando Magic 136-124 to improve to 3-0.
Embiid, the 2023 MVP and two-time scoring champion, was sidelined to rest his surgically repaired left knee. After playing just 19 games last season, Embiid played the first two under a 20-minute limit.
Philadelphia has done just fine without its star center. Maxey followed with a 3-pointer to the basket with just over a minute left to give the 76ers a comfortable 12-point lead. He averages 37.0 points per game. Edgecomb, the third overall pick in the NBA Draft, continues to impress and has scored 75 points in three games. Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 25 points.
Paolo Banchero scored 32 points to lead the Magic, who opened a 10-day, five-game road trip with their third straight loss. Desmond Bane scored 24 points and Franz Wagner added 22.
The Sixers' Andre Drummond finished with six rebounds, becoming the 32nd player in NBA history with at least 11,000 rebounds.
CAVLIERS 116, PISTONS 95
DETROIT – Donovan Mitchell scored 35 points in just 29 minutes and Cleveland beat Detroit for its third straight victory.
The Cavaliers went on a 14-0 run in the second quarter, turning a seven-point lead into a 43-26 lead, and Mitchell's layup made it 63-41 at the break. He scored 14 more in the third quarter and left shortly after his basket made it 108-73 with 7:07 remaining.
Mitchell made 13 of 18 field goals, including 2 of 4 from 3-point range, and 7 of 8 from the free throw line. Jarrett Allen added 20 points and seven rebounds for the Cavaliers, and Evan Mobley finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds and five assists.
Cleveland beat Detroit for the 13th time in the last 14 meetings.
Cade Cunningham finished with 12 points for the Pistons, but made 3 of 14 shots and committed five of 25 turnovers. Ron Holland II and Tolu Smith added 11 points each.
HOUSTON — Tari Eason scored 22 points, Alperen Sengun added 21 points, six rebounds and six assists and Houston beat Brooklyn for its first win of the season.
Kevin Durant scored 19 points against his former team as the record fell to 0-4. Eason made five 3-pointers off the bench, while fellow reserve Reid Sheppard added 15 points and eight assists.
Houston lost in two overtimes to Oklahoma City in the NBA season opener and then lost Game 2 to Detroit by four, but it never got close.
The Rockets led 42-25 after shooting 62.5 percent in the first quarter, then outscored the Nets 32-17 in the third to extend their 11-point halftime lead to 103-77.
In the fourth quarter, the lead grew to 33 points. Amen Thompson had 12 points and eight assists.
Terance Mann scored 21 points and Michael Porter Jr. had 18 for the Nets.
NEW ORLEANS — Anfernee Simons hit six 3-pointers and scored 25 points as Boston pulled away to beat New Orleans for its first win of the season.
Payton Pritchard added 18 points for the Celtics, who beat the Pelicans 31-4 at 9:14 in the final after leading by just five.
Simons scored 12 goals in the fourth quarter for Boston, which had lost its first three games. Luka Garza scored 16 points, while Jaylen Brown and Josh Minott finished with 15 points each.
Jordan Poole scored 22 points for the Pelicans, who played without Zion Williamson and fell to 0-3. Rookie Derick Queen scored 12 points.
Williamson missed his first game of the season with a bone bruise in his left foot. He scored 27 points in both of his first two games.
Poole's 3-pointer cut the lead to 91-86 early in the fourth quarter before Simons made three 3-pointers and Sam Houser two in Boston's strong finish.
CHICAGO — Ayo Dosunmu scored 21 points, Josh Giddey had 18 points and 13 rebounds and Chicago led Atlanta.
Nikola Vucevic had 17 points and 17 rebounds as Chicago rallied from an initial 13-point deficit to improve to 3-0, its best start in four years.
Kristaps Porzingis scored 27 points and Jalen Johnson 15 in his return to the Hawks' lineup, but Atlanta lost its second straight and the first of four games to fall to 1-3.
Trae Young had 21 points and 17 assists, including several highlight reels. Onyeka Okongwu had 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Eight Chicago players, including all five stars, scored in double figures. Matas Bouzelis scored 16 points and Tre Jones added 14 with nine assists.
SAN ANTONIO – Victor Wembanyama had 24 points and 15 rebounds as San Antonio remained undefeated with a win over Toronto.
San Antonio leads 4-0 for the first time since 2017.
Stephon Castle added 22 points and Harrison Barnes 18 for San Antonio, which didn't win its fourth game until Nov. 7 last season.
Toronto lost for the third time in a row after winning the season opener.
RJ Barrett had 25 points, Collin Murray-Boyles added 19 and Immanuel Quickley scored 15 points for the Raptors.
Wembanyama, who was named Western Conference Player of the Week earlier on Monday, continued to impress spectators. He drove to the rim, passed Jakob Poeltl, spun 360 degrees to avoid Scottie Barnes and ripped the ball off the glass for a first-half layup.
Vembanyama made 7 of 8 from the field and 10 of 10 on free throws.
GROM 101, MAVERIX 94
DALLAS — Isaiah Hartenstein had 16 points and 12 rebounds — and made Oklahoma City's only two field goals in the final 8:28 — withstanding a furious Dallas rally to win and improve to 4-0.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 23 points to lead the defending NBA champions. Chet Holmgren had 18 points, 11 rebounds and four blocked shots.
Anthony Davis had 26 points and 11 rebounds for the Mavericks (1-3), playing their fourth straight home game to open the season.
Oklahoma City led 93-74 before Dallas went on a 13-0 run before Hartenstein's tip gave the Thunder a 95-89 lead with 2:52 to play. The Mavericks took a one-point lead on D'Angelo Russell's shot with 54 seconds left, and Hartenstein answered with a left-handed layup with 33 seconds to play. Gilgeous-Alexander made two free throws with 21.3 seconds left and Holmgren added two more with 3.3 seconds remaining.
