LOS ANGELES (AP) — Chris Paul had 21 points and nine assists, Blake Griffin added 20 points and the Los Angeles Clippers blitzed the Brooklyn Nets 127-95 on Monday night to improve to an NBA-best 10-1 with their seventh straight victory.
Los Angeles came in having outscored opponents by an average of 15.1 points, largest in the league. Brooklyn quickly found itself relegated to the Clippers’ quickly growing scrap heap.
SPURS 94, HEAT 90
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Kawhi Leonard had 24 points and 12 rebounds and LaMarcus Aldridge added 18 points, leading San Antonio to the victory.
San Antonio’s projected starting five of Leonard, Aldridge, Pau Gasol, Tony Parker and Danny Green made its home debut after injuries to the starting backcourt led to five different starting lineups in the team’s first nine games.
Gasol had 12 points, Parker added 11 points and six assists and Green was limited to three points in 15 minutes.
The Heat lost their fifth straight game. Dion Waiters, who hurt San Antonio in the playoffs last season while with Oklahoma City, had 27 points for Miami. Hassan Whiteside added had 23 points and 17 rebounds.
PELICANS 106,
CELTICS 105
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Anthony Davis had 25 points, 16 rebounds, four steals and two blocks, and the Pelicans won for only the second time in their first 11 games.
Langston Galloway scored a season-high 21 points, while Terrence Jones added 15 points and a season-high 10 rebounds for New Orleans, which began the season with eight straight losses.
PACERS 88, MAGIC 69
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — C.J. Miles made four 3-pointers and scored 16 points, and the Pacers spoiled Frank Vogel’s return to Indiana.
Vogel coached the Pacers for more than five seasons before he was let go in May. He was quickly scooped up by Orlando.
The crowd cheered when Vogel was introduced before the game.
ROCKETS 115,
76ERS 88
HOUSTON (AP) — James Harden scored 23 of his 33 points in the first quarter, helping Houston to the easy win.
Harden, who posted a triple-double in his previous two games, added nine assists and seven rebounds.
The Rockets had a three-point lead with five minutes left in the first quarter when Harden took over, scoring all of Houston’s points in a 17-9 run to make it 35-24.
KNICKS 93,
MAVERICKS 77
NEW YORK (AP) — Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis each scored 24 points, and the Knicks rolled after a halftime lineup change.
The Knicks benched Joakim Noah, their $72 million free-agent signing, starting guard Justin Holiday and moving Porzingis to center in a small lineup. They responded by scoring 31 points in the third quarter after managing just 36 in an ugly first half.
PISTONS 104,
THUNDER 88
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) — Tobias Harris scored 22 points, Aron Baynes added 20 points and eight rebounds and the short-handed Pistons beat the Thunder.
The Pistons (6-5) improved to 5-0 at home despite being without their two best players. Reggie Jackson hasn’t played this season due to knee tendinitis, and Andre Drummond was sidelined with a sprained ankle.
GRIZZLIES 102, JAZZ 96
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Marc Gasol scored a season-high 22 points, powering Memphis to the road win.
The Grizzlies used a 9-2 run sparked by Mike Conley’s 3-pointer and a 3-point play by Gasol to take a 94-88 lead with 1:25 remaining. Memphis led by as many as 13, but the Jazz kept answering with big plays from Joe Ingles and Trey Lyles.
