BERLIN (AP) — Paolo Banchero had 26 points and 13 rebounds, Franz Wagner had 18 points and nine rebounds in his return to the Magic lineup, and Orlando beat the Memphis Grizzlies 118-111 on Thursday in the NBA’s first regular-season game in Germany.
Wagner had missed more than a month with a high ankle sprain but was able to return in his native country and play alongside his brother, Moritz Wagner, for the first time in more than a year. Moritz Wagner tore his left ACL on Dec. 21, 2024 and returned earlier this week. He had seven points in 14 minutes on Thursday.
Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 30 points, Santi Aldama had 18 and Cedric Coward had 17 for the Grizzlies, who have lost seven of nine. Memphis’ Ja Morant was sidelined with a right calf injury, but NBA Commissioner Adam Silver expressed some optimism that the two-time All-Star will play on Sunday when the Grizzlies and Magic meet again in London.
Anthony Black added 21 points for the Magic, who have won three of four.
The Grizzlies took a 52-32 lead midway through the second quarter, but the Magic got back within nine by halftime and then went on a 13-0 run for an 84-73 advantage late in the third.
Memphis rallied and led 105-102 on GG Jackson’s layup with 4:05 left in the game. Franz Wagner tied it with a 3-pointer and then helped the Magic close it out by scoring five points in the final 1:39.
PISTONS 108, SUNS 105
DETROIT (AP) — Duncan Robinson scored 19 points, Jalen Duren had 16 points and 18 rebounds and Detroit rallied to beat Phoenix.
The Eastern Conference-leading Pistons trailed by 16 points in the first half and were behind after each of the first three quarters. Tobias Harris made a go-ahead jumper over Dillon Brooks midway through the fourth quarter and they held on for their fourth win in five games.
Detroit won despite Cade Cunningham shooting very poorly and the team struggling at the line, including Robinson splitting a pair of free throws that gave Grayson Allen a chance to shoot a 3-pointer just before the buzzer.
Cunningham missed 13 of 16 shots, was 0 of 7 on 3-pointers and 4 of 9 at the line, finishing with 10 points and 11 assists.
Allen scored 21 of his 33 points in the first half, leading the Suns with star Devin Booker sidelined by an ankle injury.
CELTICS 119, HEAT 114
MIAMI (AP) — Anfernee Simons scored 18 of his season-high 39 points in the fourth quarter, Jaylen Brown added 27 and Boston trailed most of the way before rallying to beat Miami.
Sam Hauser added 17 points for the Celtics, who outscored Miami 36-21 in the fourth quarter and won after facing as much as a 19-point deficit. It was their second-biggest comeback win of the season, after coming from 20 down to beat Indiana on Dec. 22.
Simons had the second highest-scoring game for a reserve this season — Utah’s Brice Sensabaugh had 43 on Wednesday night in a loss to Chicago — and became the fourth Celtics player in the last 50 years to score at least 39 off the bench. The others: Larry Bird, Todd Day and Payton Pritchard.
Norman Powell scored 26 points for Miami, which got 22 points apiece from Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro. Andrew Wiggins added 16 for the Heat.
Simons had 11 consecutive Boston points in the fourth quarter to chip away at what was left of the Miami edge, and then Hauser got an open 3-pointer with 5:21 left to give the Celtics their first lead since the opening minute of the game.
THUNDER 111, ROCKETS 91
HOUSTON (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 points, Chet Holmgren added 18 and Oklahoma City pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat Houston.
Cason Wallace added 17 off the bench and the NBA-leading Thunder outscored Houston 34-16 in the final quarter to get a fifth straight victory.
Kevin Durant led Houston with 19 points, but he was 0 for 5 on 3-pointers and 7 for 23 overall on a night the Rockets made just 7 of 24 behind the arc.
The Thunder led by two early in the fourth quarter before using an 11-2 run, with a 3-pointer from Ajay Mitchell and two from Wallace, to make it 90-79 with less than nine minutes to go.
Oklahoma City remained up by nine later in the fourth when Mitchell hit another 3-pointer to start a 7-0 run that made it 99-83 with about four minutes remaining. Jaylin Williams capped that scoring spurt with a two-handed dunk and Houston coach Ime Udoka called a timeout as many fans began streaming toward the exits.
SPURS 119, BUCKS 101
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama returned from a first-quarter injury scare to score 22 points and grab 10 rebounds and lead San Antonio to a victory over Milwaukee.
Stephon Castle added 19 points and 10 assists and Julian Champagnie had 13 points and 11 rebounds for San Antonio. The Spurs led by 39 points early in the fourth quarter.
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 21 points as Milwaukee suffered its third straight loss.
It was the Bucks’ second straight lopsided loss after being booed at home during a 139-106 setback to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday.
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Wembanyama startled the sellout crowd at the Frost Bank Center and it had nothing to do with his freshly shaved scalp.
He returned to the court after making knee-to-knee contact with Antetokounmpo’s left leg under the Bucks basket with 9:18 remaining in the first quarter. Wembanyama dropped to the court in pain before rising and hobbling unassisted in a half sprint toward the locker room.
MAVERICKS 144, JAZZ 122
DALLAS (AP) — Klay Thompson matched his season high with six 3-pointers and moved into fourth place on career list, scoring a season-best 26 points to help Dallas beat Utah.
The Mavericks (16-26) played without rookie star Cooper Flagg after he sprained his left ankle Wednesday night in the first half of a home loss to Denver.
Thompson has 2,809 3-pointers, passing Damian Lillard (2,804) on the career list. Stephen Curry is the leader, followed by James Harden and Ray Allen, who had 2,973. Thompson shot 10 for 18 overall and had a season-high six assists.
The teams — both coming off losses Wednesday night — will meet again Saturday in Dallas.
Naji Marshall added 22 points to help Dallas improve to 16-26. The Mavs had season highs in points and 3-pointers (19) against the team that allows the most points (127.0) and 3-pointers (15.6) in the NBA.
Brice Sensabaugh scored 27 points for Utah as the Jazz dropped to 14-27. Scoring leader Lauri Markkanen sat out for the second consecutive game because of illness.
TRAIL BLAZERS 117, HAWKS 101
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Shaedon Sharpe scored 24 points and Portland overcame high-scoring Deni Avdija’s absence to beat Atlanta.
Avdija missed second straight game because of lower-back soreness He’s averaging 26.1 points, 7.1 rebounds and 6.9 assists.
Portland took an 88-87 lead into the fourth quarter and pulled away. The Trail Blazers had lost two straight after winning five a row.
Jerami Grant added 16 points and Rayan Rupert had 13. Jrue Holiday scored 12 points in his third game back after missing 27 because of a right calf injury.
Onyeka Okongwu led Atlanta with 26 points. The Hawks were 1-3 on a four-game trip. They have lost nine in a row in Portland since Feb. 13, 2017.
CJ McCollum added 20 points in his third game with the Hawks since coming over from Washington in the trade that sent Trae Young to the Wizards. McCollum played his first 8 1/2 seasons with Portland.
WARRIORS 126, KNICKS 113
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Jimmy Butler had 32 points and eight rebounds, Stephen Curry warmed up in the second half to finish with 27 points and seven assists, and Golden State beat New York.
Moses Moody scored 21 points with seven 3-pointers for the Warriors, while Brandin Podziemski had 19 points.
Deuce McBride and OG Anunoby each scored 25 points and Mikal Bridges had 21 as New York lost for the seventh time in nine games. The Knicks were without Jalen Brunson because of a sprained right ankle suffered in a 112-101 loss at Sacramento a night earlier.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 17 points and a season-best 20 rebounds for New York. This has been a two-day reunion tour for Knicks first-year coach Mike Brown, fired by the Kings last season and also a former Warriors top assistant.
Curry missed his first four 3-point tries before connecting from deep with 9:44 left in the third quarter. It marked only the third time this season he didn’t have a 3 in the first half and first since going 0 for 6 in the initial two quarters Dec. 22 against Orlando.
HORNETS 135, LAKERS 117
LOS ANGELES (AP) — LaMelo Ball scored 27 of his 30 points in the second half while tying his career high with nine 3-pointers, and Charlotte overcame Luka Doncic’s 39 points for a victory over Los Angeles.
Ball had 11 assists and six rebounds, and he hit eight 3-pointers in the second half alone, gleefully celebrating each one while quieting the home crowd in his native Los Angeles area.
Brandon Miller also scored 26 points for the Hornets, while Miles Bridges added 25 and rookie Kon Knueppel had 19.
Ten days after the sub-.500 Hornets shocked the NBA-leading Oklahoma City Thunder with a 27-point road victory, Charlotte showed another taste of its considerable promise. The Hornets improved to 2-1 on their five-game West Coast trip by running away from Doncic and LeBron James, who had 29 points and nine rebounds.
Doncic hit six 3-pointers in the slumping Lakers’ fourth defeat in five games, including embarrassing losses to Sacramento and Charlotte in the past four days. Los Angeles’ improved focus in a victory over Atlanta on Tuesday had vanished, with the Hornets scoring 105 points in the final three quarters.
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