The NBA regular season has started! Tuesday, 18th October marked the opening night of the season and we have updates. Stephen Curry was able to open the season with 33 points, seven assists and six rebounds, and the Golden State Warriors went on to beat LeBron James as well as the Los Angeles Lakers 123-109 on Tuesday night after obtaining their championship rings in a pregame procession.
James went on to earn 31 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists, whereas Russell Westbrook achieved 19 points and was able to grab 11 rebounds after caring for a sore left hamstring. Anthony Davis went on to add 27 points, however, the Lakers were unable to match up in another signature, runaway third quarter by reigning NBA finals MVP Curry and the Warriors.
Klay Thompson also went on to contribute 18 points in around 20 minutes for the Golden State, who commemorated the franchise’s fourth title in 8 years.
Warriors centre James Wiseman also made his first arrival ever since his rookie season of 2019-20 after sitting out all of the previous season due to recovering from right knee surgery. He scored about eight points and seven rebounds.
In other news, Jayson Tatum as well as Jaylen Brown both scored 35 points as the Boston Celtics went on to beat the Philadelphia 76ers 126-117 on Tuesday night during the opening match of the NBA regular season.
Malcolm Brogdon was able to add 16 points and Grant Williams could finish with 15 as the defending Eastern Conference heroes gave interim coach Joe Mazzulla a success in his debut. Mazzulla had been assigned with steering the team after Ime Udoka was suspended for the season when an inquiry by a law firm found out that he engaged in numerous infringements of team rules.
Boston opened up with a 110-97 head with 8 minutes to game and never wandered again. The game ended up with a tie at 63-63 during halftime. Harden was 8 of 8 from the free throw line and tallied 22 points during the half. Brown hurled in 18 and Tatum amassed 16 before the break. All-around, the Celtics retained a 24-2 advantage in fast break points. Boston averaged 11.1 fast break points per game in the previous season.
James Harden was able to score 35 points which is his max ever since entering the 76ers previous season encompassing 12 of 12 amongst the free throw line. He furthermore amassed five three-pointers.
Joel Embiid went on to add 26 points as well as 15 rebounds. Tyrese Maxey scored 21 and Tobias Harris scored 18 with both scoring in double figures for the 76ers.
With Robert Williams sidelined while recovering from surgery on his knee, the Celtics went with the trusted line that they utilized during the preseason, defensive stalwart Derrick White along with side Marcus Smart, Tatum, Brown and Al Horford.
The tinier squad sped Philadelphia up sometimes, compelling the 76ers into 14 turnovers for the game, steering to 22 Boston points.
The 76ers are now looking to contend with the top squads in the Eastern Conference with Harden undertaking his first full season in Philadelphia after being exchanged for Ben Simmons late the previous season with Brooklyn.
Harden seemed refreshed, appearing off a season distinguished by hamstring injuries that hindered his effectiveness in 21 regular-season events with the Sixers the previous season.
The Celtics earned 46 of 82 field-goal attempts (56.1 per cent), containing 12 of 35 endeavours from over the 3-point arc (34.3 per cent).
Boston outperformed Philadelphia 35-25 in the 3rd quarter and steered 98-88 joining the last 12 minutes. The 76ers never got nearer than 6 points in the 4th quarter, and the Celtics lengthened the gap to 16 before Philadelphia tallied the last 7 points in the final 1:44.
In more news, the Celtics donned “City Edition” alternate uniforms as a homage to Hall of Fame centre Bill Russell, who earlier passed away in July at the age of 88. NBA participants are honouring Russell’s legacy by donning a dedicatory patch with Russell’s No. 6 on their jerseys this season.
