Opening night belongs to the road teams: Sixers take the Knicks' opener as Detroit erases 22-point lead

A new era starts in Manhattan

The Philadelphia 76ers opened a new chapter with a 106-100 road win over the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden in the season opener, the first game of the LeBron James era in Philadelphia. Farzetti's coverage treated the road win as a tone-setter for the new era. m:…4906

The third quarter decided it. The 76ers outscored the Knicks by 11 points in the period, while New York managed only 18 points in the quarter. On the Locked On Knicks postcast, host Chris Sachi pinned the loss on foul trouble, starting with Carl Anthony Towns. m:…4906 m:…8670

Tyrese Maxey led the 76ers with 28 points. Newcomer Jalen Brown backed him with 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting, 8 rebounds and 6 assists, posting a plus-17 that led Philadelphia on the night. The bench contributed too: Anthony Simons and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope combined for 23 points, including five three-pointers. Joel Embiid's night was uneven, with 13 points on 4-of-15 shooting and four turnovers, though Farzetti noted his late-game blocks. LeBron James recorded 7 assists in his 76ers debut and was spotted jawing with a Knicks fan sitting behind Bobby Bacala. m:…4906

For New York, Towns' foul trouble was the defining problem, and it pushed Andre Drummond into a larger role with the second unit. Mikal Bridges shot 8 field goals but made none of his two three-point attempts and never reached the free-throw line, and Sachi said he needs to play more aggressively. Towns finished with 10 points in the fourth quarter. Sachi kept perspective: it was one game out of an 82-game season, with the second unit's play across the third and fourth quarters the clearest turning point. m:…8670

A 22-point lead evaporates in Boston

Boston's season opener produced the night's steepest collapse. The Celtics led the Detroit Pistons by 22 points, then gave the game away as Detroit closed on a 23-0 fourth-quarter run. Locked On Celtics host John Corrales described a locker room of a night gone wrong: Boston was laughing and joking with a 22-point lead, and then the lead was gone. m:…8373

What stung most is that Boston wasted a record debut. Paul George scored 38 points in his first game as a Celtic, the most ever for a new Celtic in a debut, and it still wasn't enough to hold off Detroit. Jayson Tatum shot 6-of-23 from the field, committed four turnovers and attempted a single free throw. Corrales pointed to two costly fouls on jump shooters as the plays that handed Detroit momentum, and to Devontae Green's entry into the game as the moment the game turned toward the Pistons. He also argued Boston's preseason slate, against teams that treated the games as throwaways, left the Celtics unprepared for Detroit's intensity. m:…8373

OKC's defense does the talking

Oklahoma City delivered the third statement of the night, beating the San Antonio Spurs 116-104 in the season opener. The story of the game was the defense: Chet Holmgren's containment of Victor Wembanyama held the Spurs star to 1-for-13 from the floor. Holmgren backed it up offensively with 14 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 blocks. m:…9556

The Thunder shot 10-for-14 from three-point range in the first half while the Spurs shot 5-for-20. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 11 points in the first 12 minutes on 5-for-7 shooting and played more than 36 minutes in the contest, and Jalen Williams returned to the lineup. Locked On Thunder host Rylan Stiles framed the night as a change in the team's identity: the Thunder's physical response after a foul on Holmgren read as a roster declaring it would no longer be pushed around. m:…9556

Three openers, one thread. The first night of the season is when home crowds expect to set the tone, but the tone was set by visitors and newcomers instead: Philadelphia opened its new era with a road win at the Garden, Detroit erased a 22-point deficit in Boston, and Oklahoma City quieted a star in its own building. The home teams got the opening-night atmosphere. The visitors took the results. m:…4906 m:…8373 m:…9556