Two big names made their debuts with new teams in the NBA on Wednesday night, which was the first full night of games this season. First, Kawhi Leonard fought through all of the controversy to get to where he is now, which is with the Toronto Raptors. Leonard scored 24 points and added 12 rebounds, as the Raptors rolled to a 116-104 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in their season opener. Kyle Lowry added 27 points on the night for the Raptors, who debuted their new-look team with hopes of taking advantage of a LeBron James-less Eastern Conference.
Leonard played 37 minutes in his first regular season game since being acquired from the San Antonio Spurs in a blockbuster trade that featured DeMar DeRozan. He thanked the crowd of 19,915 at the Air Canada Centre, who welcomed him with a standing ovation before the game.
Fred VanVleet had 14 points, while Pascal Siakam chipped in 13 to help the Raptors give their new head coach, Nick Nurse, his first win. Lowry was impressive on the night with eight assists, as he also shot 5-of-8 from three-point range for Toronto. Kevin Love led the Cavaliers with 21 points in the loss and they will move on to visit the Minnesota Timberwovles on Friday. The Raptors will play host to the East favorite Boston Celtics that same night.
Elsewhere, Carmelo Anthony made his debut with the Houston Rockets, and it did not go nearly as well in a 131-112 blowout loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. Anthony was held to just nine points in his debut, while Anthony Davis took over the headlines at the Toyota Center. Davis finished with 32 points and 16 rebounds, while Nikola Mirotic added 30 points in an early-season statement victory for the Rockets. New Orleans shot 53 percent from the field, including 40 percent from three-point range, which was helped out in part by Mirotic's 6-of-8 three-point shooting.
Julius Randle contributed in a big way off the bench in his first game with the Pelicans, as he scored 25 points in the reserve role. The Pelicans used a hot first half to get out to a 17-point lead at halftime, and led by as many as 29 points on the night. They dominated the Rockets in rebounding, 54-37, as well as scoring in the paint at 76-44.
Eric Gordon led the Rockets with 21 points, while James Harden fell short of a triple-double with 18 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds. Anthony played 27 minutes off the bench and shot 3-of-10 in his first game since his whirl-wind off-season landed him with the Rockets. Their schedule has them wasting no time going in to battle with LeBron James, as they will visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night. The Pelicans will return home for their Smooth King Center opener against the Sacramento Kings on Friday.
Leonard played 37 minutes in his first regular season game since being acquired from the San Antonio Spurs in a blockbuster trade that featured DeMar DeRozan. He thanked the crowd of 19,915 at the Air Canada Centre, who welcomed him with a standing ovation before the game.
Fred VanVleet had 14 points, while Pascal Siakam chipped in 13 to help the Raptors give their new head coach, Nick Nurse, his first win. Lowry was impressive on the night with eight assists, as he also shot 5-of-8 from three-point range for Toronto. Kevin Love led the Cavaliers with 21 points in the loss and they will move on to visit the Minnesota Timberwovles on Friday. The Raptors will play host to the East favorite Boston Celtics that same night.
Elsewhere, Carmelo Anthony made his debut with the Houston Rockets, and it did not go nearly as well in a 131-112 blowout loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. Anthony was held to just nine points in his debut, while Anthony Davis took over the headlines at the Toyota Center. Davis finished with 32 points and 16 rebounds, while Nikola Mirotic added 30 points in an early-season statement victory for the Rockets. New Orleans shot 53 percent from the field, including 40 percent from three-point range, which was helped out in part by Mirotic's 6-of-8 three-point shooting.
Julius Randle contributed in a big way off the bench in his first game with the Pelicans, as he scored 25 points in the reserve role. The Pelicans used a hot first half to get out to a 17-point lead at halftime, and led by as many as 29 points on the night. They dominated the Rockets in rebounding, 54-37, as well as scoring in the paint at 76-44.
Eric Gordon led the Rockets with 21 points, while James Harden fell short of a triple-double with 18 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds. Anthony played 27 minutes off the bench and shot 3-of-10 in his first game since his whirl-wind off-season landed him with the Rockets. Their schedule has them wasting no time going in to battle with LeBron James, as they will visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night. The Pelicans will return home for their Smooth King Center opener against the Sacramento Kings on Friday.
