Five-time NBA All-Star Blake Griffin scored 24 points and tallied 10 rebounds in his debut for the Detroit Pistons
Blake Griffin made his debut for the Detroit Pistons and the star forward did not disappoint in Thursday’s 104-102 victory against the Memphis Grizzlies, while the Denver Nuggets trumped the Oklahoma City Thunder on the buzzer.
Griffin was sensationally traded to the Pistons by the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday and the five-time NBA All-Star made an immediate impact, posting 24 points and 10 rebounds.
“I wanted to just come out and play hard, being very limited in my knowledge of our offense,” Griffin said.
“I thought [head] coach Stan Van Gundy did a great job of just putting in five things that we could go to, and we ran them to death, but they worked and everybody just played hard.”
The Houston Rockets are now 21-1 with James Harden, Chris Paul and Clint Capela in the line-up following their 102-91 road win against the San Antonio Spurs.
Capela (13 points, 14 rebounds) and Harden (28 points, 11 assists) both posted double-doubles in the win, while Paul scored 10 points.
The victory extended Houston’s winning streak to three games.
TOWNS LEADS TIMBERWOLVES
Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns scored 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting in addition to 11 rebounds in Minnesota’s 108-89 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Kyle Lowry scored a game-high 29 points with five rebounds, five assists and three steals, but the Toronto Raptors fell to the Washington Wizards 122-119.
SELDEN ENDURES FORGETTABLE GAME
Grizzlies forward Wayne Selden scored just seven points on two-of-nine shooting with more turnovers (three) than field goals made in Memphis’ loss to the Pistons.
HARRIS WINS IT ON THE BUZZER!
With just 1.4 seconds left on the clock, Gary Harris nailed a three-pointer to lift the Nuggets to a thrilling 127-124 win over the Thunder.
THURSDAY’S RESULTS
Detroit Pistons 104-102 Memphis Grizzlies
Houston Rockets 102-91 San Antonio Spurs
Denver Nuggets 127-124 Oklahoma City Thunder
Washington Wizards 122-119 Toronto Raptors
Minnesota Timberwolves 108-89 Milwaukee Bucks
HEAT AT 76ERS
Miami Heat’s Goran Dragic got the nod to replace Kevin Love in the All-Star game. Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons would have loved to make the team as a rookie. The pair will go head-to-head on the court in Philadelphia on Friday.