Bradley Beal scored 31 points to lift the Washington Wizards to their first win of the season, 130-109 over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday in Minneapolis.
Beal became the first player in franchise history to start a season with at least 25 points in the team’s first six games.
Washington’s Thomas Bryant finished with 18 points after making all seven of his shots from the floor. The sharp-shooting performance came one day after Bryant went 10 of 11 from the field for 28 points in the Wizards’ 133-130 loss to the Chicago Bulls. Wizards star Russell Westbrook (rest) didn’t play.
Malik Beasley scored 12 of his 21 points in the first quarter for the Timberwolves, who have lost three in a row while playing without star Karl-Anthony Towns (dislocated left wrist).
Los Angeles Lakers 109 – San Antonio Spurs 103
Anthony Davis had 34 points and 11 rebounds, and Los Angeles won at San Antonio for the second time in three days.
LeBron James had 26 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists and two steals for the Lakers, who beat the Spurs 121-107 at San Antonio on Wednesday behind 26 points from James. Dennis Schroder added 15 points and Kyle Kuzma contributed 11 for the Lakers.
Keldon Johnson led the Spurs with 26 points while DeMar DeRozan collected 23 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Rudy Gay chipped in 15 points.
Atlanta Hawks 114 – Brooklyn Nets 96
De’Andre Hunter scored 23 points, Trae Young added 21 points and Atlanta never trailed in continuing its quick start with a victory over Brooklyn in New York.
The Hawks ended a six-game losing streak at Brooklyn and rebounded nicely from allowing 145 points Wednesday in a four-point loss to the Nets. Hunter made 9 of 10 shots while Young hit 7 of 21 and only got to the free throw line four times. He added seven assists. John Collins added 20 points and eight rebounds, highlighting his big night with two emphatic dunks in the fourth quarter.
Kevin Durant paced the Nets with 28 points on 10 of 21 shooting, but Kyrie Irving struggled at times. Irving had 18 points and 11 rebounds but shot 6 of 21 and missed 9 of 11 of his 3-point attempts.
Portland Trail Blazers 123 – Golden State Warriors 98
CJ McCollum led an early barrage of 3-pointers with four in the first nine minutes, helping Portland build a big early lead en route to a victory over Golden State in San Francisco.
Damian Lillard led all scorers with 34 points and McCollum totaled 28 as the Trail Blazers improved to 2-1 on their four-game California road trip. The clubs will meet again Sunday night, also in San Francisco.
Stephen Curry had a team-high 26 points for the Warriors, who were making their season home debut. Curry shot 4-for-12 on 3-point attempts. His teammates, however, added just three other 3-pointers on 23 attempts as the team finished at 20 percent from long range.
Utah Jazz 106 – Los Angeles Clippers 100
Mike Conley scored 33 points and hit a career-high-tying seven 3-pointers to lift Utah to a victory over Los Angeles in Salt Lake City.
On a night when Jazz leading scorer Donovan Mitchell had a quiet outing with just 15 points, Conley picked up the slack with his first 30-point game since March 2019. Conley scored seven of the Jazz’s last nine points, hitting a shot-clock-beating 3-pointer and sinking four free throws in the final 1:48.
Paul George scored 25 points to lead the Clippers, who had won four of their previous five games. Kawhi Leonard, sporting a mask for his injured mouth, contributed 20 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists.
Dallas Mavericks 93 – Miami Heat 83
Luka Doncic amassed 27 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists as host Dallas earned a win over Miami.
The Heat missed their first 14 3-point attempts, finally sinking a long-range shot when Duncan Robinson converted with 9:07 left in the third quarter. In the end, Miami shot 7-for-33 (21.2 percent) from beyond the arc. Dallas was 12 of 37 (32.4 percent) on 3-point attempts.
Heat star Jimmy Butler returned after missing two games due to a sprained right ankle, but he was held to two points, three rebounds and two assists in 27 minutes. Miami’s Bam Adebayo contributed 19 points, 11 rebounds and a game-high four steals.
Detroit Pistons 96 – Boston Celtics 93
Jerami Grant had 24 points and host Detroit scored the final eight points to beat Boston for its first win of the season.
Saddiq Bey had 17 points and seven rebounds, Derrick Rose contributed 17 points, five rebounds and four assists, and Josh Jackson added 11 points for the Pistons. Mason Plumlee pulled down a game-high 17 rebounds.
Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 28 points, and Jaylen Brown tossed in 25 points and nine rebounds.
Milwaukee Bucks 126 – Chicago Bulls 96
Giannis Antetokounmpo produced 29 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists while Bryn Forbes scored 18 points as host Milwaukee routed Chicago.
Milwaukee led by as many as 32 points while riding 22-of-45 accuracy from 3-point range to snap the Bulls’ two-game winning streak.
Seven Bucks finished in double figures, including Khris Middleton (14 points) and Bobby Portis (13). Portis added 12 rebounds. Zach LaVine had 16 points and six rebounds for Chicago.
Phoenix Suns 106 – Denver Nuggets 103
Deandre Ayton had 22 points and 11 rebounds, Devin Booker also scored 22, and Phoenix won at Denver. Chris Paul added 21 points and Mikal Bridges scored 14 for the Suns, who earned their four straight victory.
Jamal Murray had 31 points in his return to the lineup and Nikola Jokic contributed 17 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds for Denver. Paul Millsap added 15 points and Monte Morris scored 10 off the bench.
The Nuggets played without Michael Porter Jr. and will be without their third-leading scorer for multiple games due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols regarding COVID-19 contact tracing.
Memphis Grizzlies 108 – Charlotte Hornets 93
Dillon Brooks scored 21 points as short-handed Memphis didn’t seem fazed having to play without star Ja Morant (ankle injury), trouncing host Charlotte.
Kyle Anderson notched 18 points and 11 rebounds, Brandon Clarke added 15 points and Jonas Valanciunas and Gorgui Dieng each had 14 points for Memphis. Desmond Bane chipped in with 10 points, and Tyus Jones contributed 12 assists with just one turnover.
Bismack Biyombo had 16 points and 12 rebounds and LaMelo Ball provided 15 points for the Hornets, who had their two-game winning streak snapped. Gordon Hayward and Caleb Martin both posted 14 points.
–Field Level Media
