It was a modest four-game slate around the NBA on Wednesday, but it still brought lots of excitement, with Damian Lillard and Jayson Tatum as the big stars. Let’s get right to it, shall we?
Damian Lillard Breaks Out Dame Time in LA
Damian Lillard’s return to the Portland Trail Blazers is proving to be a feel-good story so far, as the Blazers won their third straight on Wednesday.
Lillard fired 21 points to help the Trail Blazers outlast the Los Angeles Lakers in LA, 136-129. He notably hit a dagger trey with 43 seconds left to ice the game for Portland. Afterward, he broke out his patented Dame Time celebration as the crowd fell silent. The Blazers also got 23 points apiece from Deni Avdija and Ja Morant, as well as 22 from Jrue Holiday, as they carved up the Lakers defense.
Luka Doncic continued his torrid start to the season as the Purple and Gold’s undisputed alpha with 41 points, 5 rebounds, and 9 assists. Austin Reaves added 26 points, 4 rebounds, and 7 assists.
Jayson Tatum Wins It for Boston
At the TD Garden, the Boston Celtics narrowly escaped the upset axe, coming away with a 125-124 victory over the Brooklyn Nets in an overtime thriller.
Up one, 124-123, with under 10 seconds remaining, Nets rookie Mikel Brown Jr., who sent the game to extra time with a trey with 0.2 left in regulation, went for the layup instead of running the clock out. He missed, the Celtics got the rebound, and called a timeout. Boston set up Jayson Tatum in the ensuing possession, and the many-time All-Star delivered the game-winner—a pull-up at just below the foul line.
Tatum finished with 40 points, 5 rebounds, and 8 assists while also drilling the season’s first game-winning basket. Paul George added 20 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists, while Derrick White chipped in 16. Michael Porter Jr. led Brooklyn with 27 points, and Julius Randle put up 24.
Knicks Finally Win
Over at Madison Square Garden, the New York Knicks averted a 0-4 start with a 111-97 win over the Detroit Pistons.
Karl-Anthony Towns, who has a contract stalemate with the Knicks, led the way with 27 points and 20 rebounds, while Jalen Brunson had 23 points and 7 dimes. Detroit, meanwhile, got a boost from Paul Reed and Cade Cunningham, with the former firing 22 points on top of 9 boards and the latter putting up 19 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists.
With the win, the Knicks avoided joining the 1969-70 Celtics as defending champs who started the season with four straight setbacks.
