LOS ANGELES – Carmelo Anthony scored 28 points and the Los Angeles Lakers overcame Ja Morant´s 40-point game to beat the Memphis Grizzlies 121-118 for their first victory of the season.
Morant had a chance to tie it after Kent Bazemore fouled him on a 3-point try with 2.5 seconds left, but missed the third free throw.
Anthony Davis had 22 points and four blocks to help the Lakers rebound from two opening losses.
LeBron James finished with 19 points after a slow start. Anthony moved into ninth on the NBA´s career scoring list with 27,423 points, AP reported.
Morant had 10 assists and made a career-best five 3-pointers. The Grizzlies are 2-1.
Elsewhere, Miles Bridges had 32 points and nine rebounds, Ish Smith added 11 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter and Charlotte beat Brooklyn to improve to 3-0 for the first time.
LaMelo Ball had 18 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Hornets, but it was their backups who led them in a dominant final quarter. Cody Martin had eight of his 12 in the final 12 minutes.
Before that, it was another night for Bridges, who had his second 30-point outing in the first three games and finished a point shy of his career high.
Kevin Durant scored 38 points for the Nets, who fell to 1-2. James Harden had 15 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for Brooklyn.
It was a disappointing home opener that featured demonstrators outside the arena supporting Nets guard Kyrie Irving and protesting New York´s vaccine mandate.
The Nets are not allowing Irving to play while he is not vaccinated against COVID-19, which the city´s mandate says pro athletes playing for a local team must do.
Stephen Curry scored 27 points and became the first player in Warriors franchise history to reach 5,000 assists, helping Golden State beat Sacramento to improve to 3-0.
Curry had 10 assists and seven rebounds. Jordan Poole added 22 points, and Draymond Green had 14 points, six rebounds and seven assists.
Harrison Barnes scored 24 points for the Kings, and Richaun Holmes had 16 points and 11 rebounds. They are 1-2.
Seth Curry scored 28 points to help Philadelphia beat Oklahoma City. Joel Embiid added 22 points and nine rebounds for Philadelphia. The 76ers are off to a 2-1 start as they work through issues with Ben Simmons, the point guard the team listed as out because of personal reasons.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 29 points, and rookie Josh Giddey had 19 points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals for the Thunder. They are 0-3. Curry scored 23 points in the first quarter and made 6 of 7 3-pointers to help the 76ers take a 36-26 lead.
Jayson Tatum had 31 points and nine rebounds and Boston beat Houston to avoid its first 0-3 start since 2013.
Tatum, had 20 points in the first half on 8-of-13 shooting. Al Horford added 17 points, including 11 in the third quarter, and 10 rebounds. Dennis Schröder, who started for the injured Jaylen Brown, finished with 18 points, and Grant Williams added 18 points.
Second overall pick Jalen Green had 30 points, making 8 of 10 on 3-pointers, for Houston. Christian Wood had 20 points and nine rebounds.
Cole Anthony had 29 points and a career-high 16 rebounds and Terrence Ross scored all 22 of his points in the fourth quarter in Orlando’s victory over New York.
Jalen Suggs and Wendell Carter Jr. added 11 points apiece to Orlando help Orlando end a season-opening, two-game losing streak.
Julius Randle had 30 points and 16 rebounds for New York. The Knicks lost for the first time in three games this season.
