Anthony Davis scored 35 points, Austin Reaves added 26 and the Los Angeles Lakers rallied to beat the Phoenix Suns 123-116 on Friday night for their first 2-0 start since 2010-11.
LeBron James had 17 of his 21 points in the second half for the Lakers, who trailed by 22 points in the second quarter.
Davis is the 3rd Lakers player with consecutive 35-point games to start a season in franchise history, joining Elgin Baylor in 1962 and Jerry West in 1969.
Kevin Durant led Phoenix (1-1) with 30 points and Devin Booker had 23.
The Lakers were down 61-52 at halftime, then outscored Phoenix 35-24 in the third quarter to take the lead as Davis and James each scored 11 in the period.
Phoenix made 21 of its first 30 shots, including nine straight 3-pointers, before going 21 of 52 the rest of the game. Phoenix was 24 of 39 from the field in the first half, but 9 of 27 in the third quarter.
The Lakers trailed 81-74 with three minutes left in the third before scoring nine straight points to grab the lead. That was part of a 20-6 run during a nearly five-minute span from late in the third to early in the fourth.
Certified Hooper. pic.twitter.com/4LGz7SfufN
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) October 26, 2024
Young lifts Hawks over Ball, Hornets
Trae Young scored 38 points and the Atlanta Hawks overcame LaMelo Ball's 34 points and career-best nine 3-pointers to beat the Charlotte Hornets 125-120.
Ball made 9 of 14 3-pointers, surpassing his previous career high of eight.
De'Andre Hunter added 24 points and Dyson Daniels scored 18 for Atlanta, which has won its first two games.
Ball scored 34 points in the Hornets' 110-105 win at Houston on Wednesday to open the regular season. He matched that total with his ninth 3 with 7:31 remaining.
The Hornets were without two starters, including guard Brandon Miller. The team said Miller will be out at least a week because of a strained left glute. Center Mark Williams was held out with a strained tendon in his left foot.
Despite missing two starters, Charlotte showed depth with four players in double figures. Miles Bridges scored 27 points, Tre Mann had 17 and Nick Richards tallied 12 points and 13 rebounds.
With the game tied at 90, Young's 3 gave the lead back to Atlanta. Following a tying 3 by Charlotte's Josh Green, Young answered with a short jumper.
HAWKS WIN! pic.twitter.com/Lo45cMMnhc
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) October 26, 2024
Bulls sink 21 3-pointers to beat Bucks
Coby White scored 35 points, and the hot-shooting Chicago Bulls spoiled Milwaukee’s home opener with a 133-122 victory over the Bucks.
Zach LaVine added 25 points, Nikola Vucevic had 22 and Josh Giddey scored 17 for the Bulls, who shot 21 of 47 from 3-point range.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 38 points, 11 rebounds and five assists. Damian Lillard had 28 points, but only went 3 of 12 from deep.
After the first three minutes of the third quarter featured five lead changes, the Bulls broke a 72-all tie and pulled ahead for good by scoring seven straight points.
After Milwaukee's A.J. Green made a pair of 3s in the first minute of the fourth quarter to cut Chicago's lead to 102-101, Patrick Williams answered with a 3 of his own. Williams' basket ignited a 13-1 run, and the Bucks never seriously threatened again.
That's a lot of hot sauce https://t.co/fVxgNeOl54 pic.twitter.com/VcCkYmFsMv
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) October 26, 2024