Welcome to "Run It Back" a daily recap of NBA action from the previous night. In Sunday night's action, the marquee match-up pitted Memphis' electric rookie point guard Ja Morant against the game's premier point guard in Brooklyn's Kyrie Irving. Irving finished with a game-high 37 points. Not to be outdone was Morant who dropped 30 points and handed out 9 assists. The Grizzlies grabbed an encouraging win at home 134-133, thanks to a Jay Crowder three at the buzzer.
Oklahoma City Thunder 120 - Golden State Warriors 92 - It's open season on the Golden State Warriors. The Oklahoma City Thunder held the Warriors to 25 percent shooting in the first half before cruising to a 120-92 victory. The Thunder led 70-37 at the break and 105-68 heading into the 4th quarter. Steph Curry was 7 of 18 from the floor while his teammates shot 23 of 74. The Thunder were paced by Dennis Schroder, Danillo Galinari and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with 22, 21, and 19 points, respectively. The Warriors fell to 0-2 after dropping their season opener to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Memphis Grizzlies 134 - Brooklyn Nets 133 - In just his third professional game, Grizzlies rookie Ja Morant would be put to the test as he faced off against the Nets Kyrie Irving.
The rook passed with flying colors.
Morant posted career highs in points (30) and assists (9) as the Grizzlies squeaked out a 134-133 victory on a Jay Crowder three at the buzzer. Irving scored a game-high 37 points as teammate Caris LeVert added 27. The Grizzlies posted seven players in double figures.
Portland Trailblazers 121 - Dallas Mavericks 119 - Damian Lillard scored 26 of his 28 points in the second half including the game winner as the Blazers moved past the Mavs 121-119. C.J. McCollum scored a game high 35 points, Kristaps Porzingis led Dallas with 32 points. Lillard implored head coach Terry Stotts to challenge a call late in the game which allowed Portland to preserve the win. The Blazers Rodney Hood was 3 for 3 from beyond the arc, finishing with 20 points. Luka Doncic finished with 29 points, 12 boards and 9 assists for the Mavs.
Minnesota Timberwolves 116 - Miami Heat 109 - Andrew Wiggins scored 16 of his 25 points in the final six minutes of regulation, including three consecutive three-pointers to push the undefeated Wolves past the Heat. This was a big moment for Wiggins who in the second year of his $147 extension. The Heat who fell to 2-1 were without free agent acquisition Jimmy Butler who is on maternity leave. The silver lining in Butler's absence is the emergence of younger players taking advantage of the minutes and shots made available. Kendrick Dunn (25), Duncan Robinson (21), Justise Winslow (20) paced the Heat who overcame a 21-point deficit to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks the night before. Karl Anthony-Towns finished with 23 points and 11 boards and Jeff Teague added 25 points and 8 dimes.
Los Angeles Lakers 120 - Charlotte Hornets 101 - Anthony Davis scored 29 points and grabbed 14 boards and LeBron James chipped in 20 points and contributed 12 assists but the loudest cheers were held for the once exiled Dwight Howard. The former multi Defensive Player of the Year winner added 16 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocked shots as the Lakers blew past the Hornets 120-101. Miles Bridges led the Hornets with 23 points, Cody Zeller was big in the middle with 19 points and 14 boards. Free agent pick up Terry Rozier scored 19 points and added 4 assists.