LOS ANGELES (AP) — Damian Lillard scored 41 points, Jerami Grant made a driving layup with three seconds left, and the unbeaten Portland Trail Blazers kept the Los Angeles Lakers winless under new coach Darvin Ham with a 106-104 victory Sunday.
Portland trailed 102-95 with 1:56 to play, but ended the game on an 11-2 run and won it when LeBron James missed a 17-footer at the buzzer.
Patrick Beverley, James and Russell Westbrook all missed shots for LA down the stretch, and Anfernee Simons hit a leaning layup over Anthony Davis with 36 seconds left to trim Portland’s deficit to 102-101. Lillard then drilled his sixth 3-pointer, but James drove straight through the paint for an uncontested tying dunk with 7.7 seconds to play.
Grant, who finished with 16 points, then drove and scored the tiebreaking bucket. James had a decent look at the basket on the final play, but couldn’t connect.
James had 31 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, while Davis finished with 22 points, 10 rebounds and six blocked shots for the Lakers (0-3).
JAZZ 122, PELICANS 121, OT
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Lauri Markkanen capped a 31-point performance with clutch free throws late in overtime, Kelly Olynyk hit a go-ahead, driving scoop with 3 seconds to go in the extra period, and overhauled Utah beat New Orleans to remain unbeaten through three games under new coach Will Hardy.
Utah had to regroup after losing a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter and trailing 110-107 when CJ McCollum hit a 3-pointer in the final minute of regulation. But Jordan Clarkson hit a tying 3 to force overtime and Utah had the benefit of not having to play against Brandon Ingram or Zion Williamson in overtime.
Ingram left the Pelicans’ home opener in the second quarter with concussion symptoms after a collision with teammate Naji Marshall. Williamson scored 25 points in his first regular-season game in New Orleans since May 4, 2021. But the star power forward also hit the floor hard on his lower back when Clarkson blocked his transition dunk attempt from behind in the fourth quarter.
McCollum finished with 28 points, but his off-balance, 27-foot attempt from the right wing at the end of overtime bounced off the rim.
SUNS 112, CLIPPERS 95
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Devin Booker scored 35 points, Chris Paul became the third player in NBA history to reach 11,000 assists, and Phoenix beat Los Angeles.
The Suns didn’t waste any time getting started on the blowout. They raced to an 11-0 lead from the opening tip and led by 20 points at halftime and again in the third.
Marcus Morris scored 22 points, John Wall added 17 points and Paul George had 16 points in the Clippers’ home opener after winning their first two games on the road. Kawhi Leonard had 11 points and six rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench in his second game of the season.
Paul assisted on the Suns’ first basket of the game, a 3-pointer by Booker. Paul followed with an alley-oop pass to Deandre Ayton, who dunked, to give him 11,000 assists.
CAVALIERS 117, WIZARDS 107, OT
CLEVELAND (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 37 points in his home debut and atoned for some critical mistakes in the final minute of regulation with two big plays in overtime, leading Cleveland over Washington.
Mitchell had a three-point play and steal in the final 1:43 of OT as the Cavs thrilled a sellout crowd that got its first look at the three-time All-Star since he came over from Utah in a blockbuster offseason trade.
Cedi Osman also had a three-point play in the extra session and finished with 16 points for Cleveland, which blew a seven-point lead in the last 47 seconds of regulation. Jarrett Allen had 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Cavs.
Bradley Beal scored 27 points and Kristaps Porzingis 18 for the Wizards, who stayed close in the fourth and forced overtime when Mitchell melted down.
WARRIORS 130, KINGS 125
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Stephen Curry scored 28 of his 33 points during an 89-point first half, and Golden State beat former top assistant Mike Brown and Sacramento.
Curry, who recorded his third straight 30-point performance to start the season, scored 21 points in the second quarter with five 3-pointers and shot 11 for 22 overall, including 7 of 12 on 3s. The reigning NBA Finals MVP helped Golden State to its third-most points in any half in franchise history and second-most in a first half. The Warriors’ 50 points in the second quarter were a franchise record and matched the third-most points in any period.
Andrew Wiggins added 24 points with a driving slam to beat the final buzzer and Jordan Poole also scored 24 as the Warriors shot 51.7%. Klay Thompson was held to eight points on 3-for-10 shooting.
De’Aaron Fox scored 26 after two 30-point games and Domantas Sabonis contributed 19 points and 14 rebounds, but didn’t play in the fourth for winless Sacramento (0-3) in the second night of a back-to-back. The Kings, who
HORNETS 126, HAWKS 109
ATLANTA (AP) — Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 24 points, Nick Richards added a career-high 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in a reserve role, and Charlotte coasted past Atlanta.
The Hornets won decisively despite being without three projected leading scorers. LaMelo Ball has missed the first three games this season with a left ankle sprain. Terry Rozier couldn’t play after spraining his right ankle in the home-opening loss to New Orleans on Friday, and Miles Bridges has been sidelined since early July with three felony domestic violence charges.
Dennis Smith Jr., who started in Rozier’s spot, scored 18 points as the Hornets improved to 2-1 on the young season.
Trae Young finished with 28 points and Dejounte Murray had 19 for Atlanta, which dropped to 2-1. John Collins and Clint Capela each had 10 rebounds.
TIMBERWOLVES 116, THUNDER 106
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Anthony Edwards scored 30 points, and Minnesota beat Oklahoma City.
Edwards made 13 of 19 field goals and had 11 rebounds. He also scored 30 points in his previous game on Friday against Utah.
Minnesota’s two 7-footers were effective. Rudy Gobert had 15 points and 15 rebounds, and Karl-Anthony Towns added 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists. They helped Minnesota outrebound Oklahoma City 54-42.
Lu Dort scored 20 points and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl added 15 for Oklahoma City, which dropped its home opener and fell to 0-3 for the season. The Thunder made just 9 of 41 3-pointers.
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The Associated Press
