NBA News Wire
NBA game roundup: Raptors off to franchise’s best start
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
TORONTO — Guard DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points and grabbed six rebounds as the Toronto Raptors defeated the winless Philadelphia 76ers 120-88 on Sunday for their fourth straight win.
The Raptors are off to the best start in franchise history at 6-1 while the 76ers have lost all seven of their games this season.
Forward Terrence Ross added 17 points for the Raptors while forward Lou Williams had 16 points with guard Kyle Lowry scoring 14. Guard Greivis Vasquez chipped in with 13 points while center Jonas Valanciunas contributed 12 points and five rebounds.
Guard Tony Wroten led the 76ers with 18 points to end a string of four straight games with 20 or more points in a game.
Forward Chris Johnson added 16 points for Philadelphia, guard Alexey Shved added 14 points and center Henry Sims had 12 points with eight rebounds.
The Raptors took a 15-point lead into the third quarter, and bumped it to 19 when DeRozan scored the first four points of the second half. DeRozan, who scored 13 points in the quarter, made a put-back layup to increase the lead to 27 points with 4:28 to play in the third. The quarter finished with the Raptors leading 88-63.
Williams hit a 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter to make it a 28-point Toronto lead. The lead reached 33 when Vasquez put in a layup and followed with a hook shot. With 8:12 to play.
The lead was 41 points after forward James Johnson made a dunk with 2:32 to play. The franchise record for largest margin of victory is 42.
Jazz 97, Pistons 96
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Gordon Hayward scored 11 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter as Utah squeaked past Detroit at The Palace.
Power forward Derrick Favors contributed 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Jazz), who began a five-game road trip, all against Eastern Conference teams. Center Enes Kanter and shooting guard Alec Burks added 14 points apiece and reserve forward Joe Ingles chipped in 10.
Pistons point guard Brandon Jennings led all scorers with 23 points but missed a 15-foot floater in the final seconds.
Heat 105, Mavericks 96
DALLAS — Luol Deng scored a season-high 30 points as Miami cruised to a victory over Dallas at American Airlines Center.
The Heat extended their winning streak over Dallas to seven straight games, while improving to 2-1 on the road this season. Miami has won two in a row after a two-game skid.
Deng surpassed his previous best scoring output in a Miami uniform by 12 points and reached the 30-point plateau for the first time since Dec. 2, 2013, when he was with Chicago. The veteran small forward, signed in the offseason to help offset the loss of LeBron James, made 13 of 19 shots from the floor, including four of nine 3-point attempts.
Heat guard Dwyane Wade and center Chris Bosh both notched 20-10 double-doubles. Wade had 20 points and 10 assists, and Bosh scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in his hometown. Miami guard Mario Chalmers scored 18 off the bench. Dallas guard Monta Ellis scored a team-high 23, with center Tyson Chandler netting his third double-double of the season with 16 points and 15 boards. Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki finished with 17 points, 16 coming in the first half.
Thunder 101, Kings 93
OKLAHOMA CITY — Reggie Jackson scored 22 points to lead Oklahoma City to a victory over Sacramento at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
The win was the second of the season for the Thunder, who moved to 2-5 on the season. Both wins have come at home against teams that were leading their division at the time.
Guard Rudy Gay paced the Kings with 23 points on 9-of-18 shooting.
Suns 107, Warriors 95
PHOENIX — Guards Gerald Green and Isaiah Thomas combined for 31 points in the fourth quarter as Phoenix rallied from a 12-point deficit in the third quarter to hand Golden State its first loss of the season.
Thomas finished with 22 points and Green added 19 as the Suns denied the Warriors their best start since moving to the Bay Area. Guard Goran Dragic had 19 points and forward Marcus Morris added 17 for the Suns, who had lost three of their last four games but avoided the fourth-quarter shooting woes that have plagued them, outscoring Golden State 36-16 in the period to win going away.
Guard Steph Curry had 28 points, 10 assists and 10 of Golden State’s 27 turnovers. The Suns turned those turnovers into 30 points and hit 12 of 30 3-pointers on the night.
Trail Blazers 116, Nuggets 100
PORTLAND — Forward LaMarcus Aldridge scored 28 points and grabbed nine rebounds and guard Wesley Matthews added 21 points and six rebounds as Portland defeated Denver at the Moda Center.
Six players scored in double figures for the Trail Blazers, including center Chris Kaman, who had 12 points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots off the bench. Forward Kenneth Faried scored 19 points and guards Arron Afflalo and Ty Lawson tallied 18 apiece for the Nuggets, who lost their fifth straight game.
Portland won the game on its 3-point proficiency. The Blazers were 16 for 31 (.516), the Nuggets only 5 for 16 from beyond the arc.
