Damian Lillard scored 30 points and Giannis Antetokounmpo added 25 as the Milwaukee Bucks rolled to a 124-109 victory over the injury-depleted Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday in the NBA season-opener for both teams.
The Sixers, without Joel Embiid and off-season acquisition Paul George, just couldn’t keep pace with the Bucks, who had 16 points from Taurean Prince and 13 off the bench from Bobby Portis.
Embiid, the Cameroon-born big man who helped the United States to Olympic gold in Paris, missed all of the pre-season as part of the management plan for his surgically repaired left knee. The Sixers said Tuesday he will miss the first week of the regular season while George, a nine-time All-Star, had his Philadelphia debut delayed by a pre-season bone bruise in his left knee.
A strong start from Philadelphia’s Tyrese Maxey and an energetic attack of the offensive glass saw the Sixers take a one-point lead after the opening quarter.
But Lillard and the Bucks found their groove, Lillard’s three-pointer midway through the second quarter giving Milwaukee a 36-33 lead and his driving finger-roll layup pushing the advantage to 58-45 with 33.4 seconds left in the first half.
Milwaukee led 58-47 at halftime and pushed the advantage to as many as 22 after the break.
Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Antetokounmpo showed no sign of the knee tendinitis that’s been troubling him, adding 14 rebounds and seven assists.
No. 1 overall draft pick Zaccharie Risacher of France got his rookie season off to a promising start in the Atlanta Hawks’ 120-116 victory over the Brooklyn Nets.
The French 19-year-old came off the bench late in the first quarter and drained a three-pointer on his first attempt from the floor. He finished with seven points for Atlanta, who were led by 30 from Trae Young.
Young also handed out 12 assists and Onyeka Okongwu scored a career-high 28 points off the bench for the Hawks.
Cam Thomas scored 36 points to lead the Nets, but it was a defeat for Spain’s Jordi Fernandez in his first game as an NBA head coach.
Pacers top Pistons
A new season brought a familiar sinking feeling for the Detroit Pistons, who took an eight-point lead into the fourth quarter against Indiana only for the Pacers to fight back for a 115-109 victory.
Myles Turner scored 20 points and Bennedict Mathurin scored 14 of his 19 points in the final period, when the Pacers out-scored the Pistons 33-19 to take control.
It was a dream return for Mathurin, whose 2023-24 season was cut short by a shoulder injury that required surgery in March.
“Stepping away from the game for seven months makes you realize how blessed I am,” Mathurin said. “I’m just really excited we got the win tonight.”
Pascal Siakam added 19 points and Tyrese Haliburton had 15 for Indiana, including a three-pointer that pushed the Pacers’ lead to 113-107 with 20.8 seconds remaining.
Haliburton, who allowed himself a celebratory dance, added five rebounds, three steals and two blocked shots for the Pacers, who fell to eventual champions Boston in last season’s Eastern Conference finals.
The Pistons are hoping to turn the page on a league-worst 14-68 campaign last season. But new coach J.B. Bickerstaff’s tenure started with another defeat.
Cade Cunningham scored 28 points and handed out eight assists to lead Detroit, who led by 12 points early in the third quarter.
Jaden Ivey scored 17 points and free agent acquisition Tobias Harris scored 13 as six Detroit players scored in double figures in the defeat.
“I thought our guys did a really good job, they competed their tails off,” Bickerstaff said.
