Smashing debut: Giannis, Bucks cruise in new arena’s opener
Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks put on a smashing opening-night performance at their new arena.
Antetokounmpo had 19 points, 13 rebounds and five assists, and the Bucks routed the Chicago Bulls 116-82 on Wednesday night in the first game at the Fiserv Forum.
The Bucks had the look of contenders under new coach Mike Budenholzer, scoring 63 points in the first half of their preseason opener and leading by as much as 34 points.
Their new arena opened in August and the Bucks looked right at home there against the Bulls, overwhelming them on the backboards with a 64-43 rebound advantage.
Bobby Portis led Chicago with 17 points and Kris Dunn added 10.
BUCKS: Eric Bledsoe added 16 points, Khris Middleton scored 15 and Pat Connaughton had 12 points on four 3-pointers. ... First-rounder Donte DiVincenzo scored just two points on 1-of-9 shooting but grabbed seven boards in 19 minutes ... Budenholzer spent the last five seasons as Atlanta coach.
BULLS: Jabari Parker was 1 of 12 from the field and scored two points in his return to Milwaukee, where the Bucks' former No. 2 pick played his first four seasons. ... No. 7 pick Wendell Carter Jr. had nine points on 4-of-8 shooting.
UP NEXT: The Bucks (1-0) play Minnesota at the Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa, on Sunday. The Bulls (1-1) visit Charlotte on Monday.
Andre Drummond had 31 points and 16 rebounds, and scored the go-ahead points on a three-point play that gave visiting Detroit a 94-91 lead with 1:37 left. Ish Smith's 3-pointer with 17 seconds left capped the scoring.
Stanley Johnson scored 10 of his 14 points in the first half for the Pistons.
Dennis Schroder had 21 points and nine assists and Steven Adams added 17 points and 12 boards for Oklahoma City.
PISTONS: Blake Griffin did not play. ... Glen Robinson III had 11 points, and Reggie Bullock and Zaza Pachulia scored 10 each. ... Dwane Casey made his debut as the Pistons' head coach after seven seasons in Toronto, including a 59-win campaign in 2017-18.
THUNDER: Russell Westbrook and Paul George did not play. ... Raymond Felton had 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting in 19 minutes.
UP NEXT: The Pistons (1-0) travel to San Antonio on Thursday. The Thunder (0-1) visit Minnesota on Friday.
Rookie Allonzo Trier scored 25 points, Enes Kanter had 22 points and 20 rebounds, and the Knicks took the first of two preseason meetings between the city rivals.
Caris LeVert scored 15 points for the Nets in their preseason opener.
The teams meet again at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 12 on the final night of preseason play.
KNICKS: New York closed the first half with a 24-6 burst, turning a 40-26 deficit into a 50-46 lead. ... Rookie Mitchell Robinson limped to the locker room early in the fourth quarter with an apparent ankle injury. ... Veteran Courtney Lee missed his second straight game with a strained neck.
NETS: Spencer Dinwiddie and rookie Rodions Kurucs each scored 13 points. ... D'Angelo Russell had 11 points but shot just 4 for 12. ... The Nets were 8 for 41 (19.5 percent) from 3-point range. DeMarre Carroll missed all four of his attempts in an overall 0-for-5, scoreless performance. ... Brooklyn was without veteran forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (left abductor strain) and newcomers Shabazz Napier (strained right hamstring) and Kenneth Faried (sore left ankle).
UP NEXT: New York (2-0) hosts New Orleans on Friday. ... Brooklyn (0-1) visits Detroit on Monday.
SUNS 91, NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS 86
No. 1 pick Deandre Ayton reached a double-double with five minutes left in the second quarter and finished with 21 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks.
The Suns briefly trailed in the middle of the first quarter before taking the lead for good at 17-15.
Corey Webster led the Breakers with 27 points and seven assists.
SUNS: Ayton is shooting 62.1 percent from the field and averaging 22.5 points and 12 rebounds in two preseason games. ... Trevor Ariza added 16 points and TJ Warren scored 13. ... No. 10 pick Mikal Bridges had two points in 19 minutes.
NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS: Tai Wesley added 15 points and Patrick Richard scored 11. ... New Zealand made just 35.6 percent from the field and 6 of 25 from 3-point range.
UP NEXT: The Suns (1-1) host Portland on Friday.
CLIPPERS 128, TIMBERWOLVES 101
Tobias Harris shot 4 for 5 from 3-point range and scored 23 points, and Danilo Gallinari added 22 points and Boban Marjanovic had 15 points in 11 minutes for the Clippers.
Los Angeles never trailed after the early moments and pulled away in the second quarter.
Karl Anthony-Towns led Minnesota with 18 points. Andrew Wiggins and Tyus Jones added 12 points each.
CLIPPERS: Rookie Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter and finished with 12 points. ... The Clippers' other first-round pick Jerome Robinson scored five. ... Gallinari had 14 points in the first eight minutes and 20 in the first half. ... Avery Bradley and Luc Mbah A Moute did not play.
TIMBERWOLVES: Jimmy Butler, the subject of ongoing trade rumors, did not play for a second straight game. ... Second-round pick Keita Bates-Diop had 11 points and Anthony Tolliver scored 10.
UP NEXT: The Clippers (2-0) face the Lakers at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, on Saturday. The Timberwolves (1-1) host Oklahoma City on Friday.
