James Harden compiled 29 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds to lift the host Philadelphia 76ers to their first win of the season, a 120-106 decision over the Indiana Pacers.
Joel Embiid added 26 points and three blocked shots and Tobias Harris scored 18 points for the Sixers, who had dropped their first three contests.
Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers with 19 points and 10 assists and Buddy Hield scored 18 points. Jalen Smith also contributed 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Bennedict Mathurin also had 17 points.
After Mathurin hit a trey with 8:12 remaining, the Pacers trailed 99-90. Harden soon made consecutive treys to make it 109-95 with 5:21 left, and the cushion was large enough for the Sixers to cruise to victory from there.
Trail Blazers 135, Nuggets 110
Damian Lillard recorded 31 points, eight assists and six rebounds and Anfernee Simons scored 22 of his 29 points in the third quarter as Portland rallied for a victory over visiting Denver.
Jerami Grant scored 21 points for the Trail Blazers, who have opened the season with four straight wins for the first time since the 1999-2000 season.
Aaron Gordon scored 26 points on 12-of-16 shooting for the Nuggets, who have split their first four games. Michael Porter Jr. scored 18 points and Bones Hyland added 15.
Bulls 120, Celtics 102
DeMar DeRozan scored 25 points, Ayo Dosunmu added 22 and Nikola Vucevic notched 18 points and 23 rebounds to boost Chicago past visiting Boston.
The Bulls snapped a two-game skid while stopping the Celtics’ season-opening three-game winning streak. After trailing by as many as 19 points in the opening quarter, the Bulls led by 23 down the stretch.
Jayson Tatum scored a game-high 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Celtics, and Jaylen Brown added 21 points.
Raptors 98, Heat 90
Precious Achiuwa came off the bench to snatch a career-high 22 rebounds against his former team as Toronto won at Miami.
Fred VanVleet finished with 24 points and nine assists for the Raptors, while Pascal Siakam had 23 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Toronto was without Scottie Barnes (ankle), but Chris Boucher made his season debut and scored 10 points in 12 minutes.
Jimmy Butler led the Heat with a game-high 26 points, but he didn’t take a fourth-quarter shot until there was less than one minute left. Tyler Herro added 22 points and 15 rebounds for Miami.
Rockets 114, Jazz 108
Kevin Porter Jr. posted a double-double while Jalen Green and Jabari Smith Jr. each topped 20 points as host Houston won for the first time this season, defeating previously unbeaten Utah.
Porter paired 26 points with 10 rebounds, while Green added 25 points on 9-of-16 shooting. Smith just missed posting a second consecutive double-double by adding 21 points and nine rebounds. That trio shot a combined 18-for-18 from the free-throw line.
The Jazz, who entered the night with a 3-0 mark thanks to consecutive overtime wins, were led by Jordan Clarkson’s 17 points and Lauri Markkanen’s 14.
Grizzlies 134, Nets 124
Ja Morant scored 38 points and Desmond Bane set career highs with 38 points and eight 3-pointers as Memphis outlasted visiting Brooklyn.
Brooklyn lost despite a stellar performance from Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, who had 37 points apiece. Durant, who shot 14-for-20 from the field, moved past Alex English (25,613 points) into 20th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Durant ended the night with 25,622 points.
The Nets led by seven late in the second quarter and by five at halftime, but the Grizzlies pulled away by outscoring Brooklyn 45-28 in the third quarter.
Spurs 115, Timberwolves 106
Devin Vassell scored 23 points to lead six players in double figures as San Antonio beat Minnesota in the opener of a two-game series between the teams in Minneapolis.
Keldon Johnson added 18 points for the Spurs. Rookie forward Jeremy Sochan and Jakob Poeltl had 14 each, Zach Collins scored 11 off the bench and Joshua Primo tallied 10.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the Timberwolves with 27 points and 11 rebounds. D’Angelo Russell added 25 points and seven assists, Jaylen Nowell scored 13 points and Rudy Gobert contributed 11 points and seven boards.
Knicks 115, Magic 102
Julius Randle posted a double-double and was one of three New York players to score at least 20 points, helping the Knicks fend off visiting Orlando’s second-half comeback attempt.
Randle finished with 25 points and 12 rebounds for his second double-double in the first three games for the Knicks, who have won two in a row. Jalen Brunson scored 21 points, while RJ Barrett added 20 points.
Rookie Paolo Banchero continued his fast start by scoring a team-high 21 points for the Magic, who are 0-4 for the first time since the 2014-15 season. Banchero is only the third No. 1 overall pick to open his career with at least four straight 20-point efforts, following Oscar Robertson in 1960 and Elvin Hayes in 1968.
–Field Level Media
