Kyrie Irving on Wednesday dazzled in his Brooklyn Nets debut, but his 50 points were not enough as the Nets fell 127-126 in overtime to the Minnesota Timberwolves in their NBA season-opener.
“Outstanding,” was the verdict of Nets coach Kenny Atkinson. “Great debut for him.”
Irving, whose arrival from the Boston Celtics as a free agent helped stamp the Nets as contenders this season, opened the night with an emotional address to fans in Brooklyn — not far from where he grew up in New Jersey.
“I’m eternally grateful to be here, be back home in front of you guys with my teammates,” Irving said, choking up at one point.
However, the Timberwolves jumped out to a faster start, leading by as many as 18 in the second quarter.
Then came Irving, who scored 13 points in the fourth quarter. His step-back three put Brooklyn up 115-112 with 1 minute, 16 seconds left in regulation, but Karl Anthony Towns — who led Minnesota with 36 points and 14 rebounds — answered with a three-pointer as they went to overtime.
They traded the lead five times in the extra period, two baskets from Andrew Wiggins giving the Timberwolves a 127-124 lead.
Irving sank two free throws, but with the ball in his hands for a potential game-winner, he lost his balance, recovered and kept the play alive, but missed the shot.
Irving broke the previous record of 47 for most points by a player in his first game with an NBA team.
“It’s a great starting point,” Irving said. “Obviously, you wanted to come out and get a win in front of our home crowd, but we’ve got another chance on Friday.”
The Celtics’ post-Irving life began with a 93-107 loss to the 76ers in Philadelphia.
Ben Simmons, who opted not to play for Australia in the World Cup to focus on the season, led the Sixers with 24 points, eight rebounds and nine assists.
Five 76ers in double figures included Joel Embiid, who took a beating on the way to 15 points and 13 rebounds.
The Cameroonian center was left with a bloodied face when he took an inadvertent elbow from Jaylen Brown in the third quarter and hit the court hard chasing a loose ball in the same period.
“I think everybody defensively was solid,” Simmons said. “Everybody stayed together and everybody was playing physical ball. That’s who we want to be known as, a physical team.”
Also on Wednesday, it was:
‧ Magic 94, Cavaliers 85
‧ Hornets 126, Bulls 125
‧ Heat 120, Grizzlies 101
‧ Spurs 120, Knicks 111
‧ Jazz 100, Thunder 95
‧ Nuggets 108, Trail Blazers 100
‧ Pistons 119, Pacers 110
‧ Mavericks 108, Wizards 100
‧ Suns 124, Kings 95
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to