OAKLAND, California – NBA MVP Stephen Curry showed in a hurry he hasn’t lost a step or his swagger, scoring 40 points to lead the Golden State Warriors to a 111-95 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night to open their title defense.
Curry put on a familiar shooting clinic from all over the court, knocking down seven of his first nine shots with four 3-pointers for 24 first-quarter points. He finished 14 for 26 with seven assists and six rebounds in a rematch of the first round of the playoffs that Golden State swept 4-0. It was his 10th career 40-point game.
Curry and the Warriors raised the championship banner and received their rings in an elaborate pregame ceremony featuring glitz, glow sticks and fire. Coach Steve Kerr attended, then left for the locker room to rest his surgically repaired back as interim Luke Walton coached the team.
Meanwhile in Chicago, for all the talk about their fast-paced offense, defense once again lifted the Chicago Bulls in their season opener.
Pau Gasol’s block of LeBron James and a pass deflection in the closing seconds helped preserve the win for new coach Fred Hoiberg. And that had to please the president.
Nikola Mirotic scored 19 points and Derrick Rose added 18 to lead the Bulls to a 97-95 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers with President Barack Obama watching on Tuesday night.
After Gasol blocked James’ potential tying layup in the closing seconds, Jimmy Butler then broke up an inbounds pass intended for James as time expired.
Obama sat courtside for most of the game as his beloved Bulls got contributions from a variety of players to knock off the defending Eastern Conference champions and give Hoiberg a narrow win in his first game.
James scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, but the Cavaliers came up short against the team they knocked out in the conference semifinals last season.
In Atlanta, the Detroit Pistons dominated the boards and went on to fashion out a 106-94 victory with Andre Drummond finishing with 18 points and 19 rebounds and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hitting four triples for a 21-point effort.
Marcus Morris scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Ersan Ilyasova added 16 points. Both were making their Pistons debuts. Detroit guard Reggie Jackson contributed 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists.