Monday night preseason wins for New York Knicks, New Orleans Pelicans, Orlando Magic and Cleveland Cavaliers
Tuesday 8 October 2019 08:10, UK
Brook Lopez led the Milwaukee Bucks to a 122-112 victory over the Chicago Bulls in their opening preseason game on Monday night.
Brook Lopez led the Milwaukee Bucks to a 122-112 victory over the Chicago Bulls in their opening preseason game on Monday night.
Lopez drained 3-of-6 three-pointers on the way to 13 points and stuffed the stat sheet with five rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block. His brother Robin, making his Bucks debut, added 14 points and five rebounds.
Milwaukee's All-Stars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton did not play in the game but Giannis' brother Thanasis, signed by the Bucks over the summer, played 20 minutes and supplied nine points and 10 rebounds.
No 3 draft pick RJ Barrett played just shy of 40 minutes and scored 17 points as the New York Knicks defeated the Washington Wizards 104-99.
Barrett connected on 6-of-13 shots, including 2-of-6 from beyond the three-point line, as the Knicks got their preseason off to a winning start.
Knicks summer signing Marcus Morris was ejected from the game early in the third quarter following an altercation with the Wizards' Justin Anderson.
With Anderson guarding him at the top of the key, Morris repeatedly swung his elbows near Anderson's face, then bonked Anderson on the top of the head with the ball, though Morris never let go of the ball. The players subsequently got into a verbal exchange.
Morris was assessed a flagrant-2 foul and thrown out of the game. If the NBA upholds the ruling, he will be suspended for the Knicks' first regular-season game.
Zion Williamson starred in his preseason debut, generating a series of highlight-reel dunks as the Pelicans rolled to a comfortable victory over the Atlanta Hawks.
Williamson finished with 16 points, seven rebounds and three assists in 28 minutes.
In a match-up of the NBA's two fastest-paced teams from last season, New Orleans outran and overpowered Atlanta, holding a significant upper hand in the second and third quarters.
Six New Orleans players ended the game in double figures, including rookie Nickeil Alexander-Walker who netted 12 points in 15 minutes.
Aaron Gordon scored 19 of his 25 points in the first half and the Magic played well throughout on the defensive end in a 115-91 romp past the Pistons.
On a sleepy Monday night in downtown Detroit with a sparse crowd of 7,411 on hand at Little Caesars Arena, Gordon stole the show with the wide array of shots that he hit throughout the game.
He scored 13 of the Magic's first 25 points and picked the Pistons' defense apart by making eight of his first 13 shots. He finished 10-of-17 from the floor with eight rebounds and a trio of three-pointers.
The Magic also got stellar performances from forward Jonathan Isaac (16 points, seven rebounds and two steals), guard Markelle Fultz (eight points and seven assists) and center Mo Bamba (13 points, eight rebounds and three three-pointers)
Strong second-half performances by Cleveland's veterans righted the ship as the Cavaliers pulled past San Lorenzo, 120-89, in the newly-renovated Rocket Mortgage Field House.
The Argentinian squad actually led the Cavaliers after one period, but John Beilein's squad found their footing in the second period, piling up 43 points to take an 11-point edge into the locker room.
Jordan Clarkson - spending some time at small forward with rookie Darius Garland and Collin Sexton in the backcourt - led Cleveland with 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including 3-of-7 from long-range, to go with three boards, two assists and a game-high three steals.
Larry Nance Jr came off the bench to finish with 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the floor and 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.
