NEW YORK—The New York Knicks gave the city’s suffering residents something to cheer with a surprisingly comfortable 104-84 win over the Miami Heat in their storm-delayed NBA season opener on Friday.
In the first sporting event in New York since Superstorm Sandy, the Knicks dominated a game the Heat players weren’t sure should even be played with the city still so devastated. But the Knicks hoped they could provide a distraction for a few hours, and fans who were able to watch surely loved what they saw from a team that could barely compete with Miami last season.
Carmelo Anthony had 30 points and 10 rebounds while Steve Novak, a non-factor against the Heat in last season’s playoffs, added 17 points off the bench.
LeBron James scored 23 points for the Heat, so impressive in a season-opening victory over Boston on Tuesday but never really in this one.
As much as the Knicks may be pleasing their fans, the Los Angeles Lakers are letting down theirs. The Lakers made it an 0-3 start to the season with a 105-95 loss to their co-tenant Los Angeles Clippers.
Even 40 points from Kobe Bryant was not enough to prevent the Lakers slipping to 0-3 for the first time since 1978.
Chris Paul had 18 points and 15 assists for the Clippers, who pulled away steadily in the second half.
Along with the Knicks, another team that looks to have improved—they could scarcely have got worse—is the Charlotte Bobcats, who edged the Indiana Pacers 90-89.
The Bobcats lost their final 23 games last season to finish 7-59, the worst winning percentage (.106) in NBA history, prompting owner Michael Jordan to proclaim the franchise had “hit rock bottom.”
The Houston Rockets had a 109-102 win over the Atlanta Hawks, thanks chiefly to new signing James Harden, who scored a career-high 45 points. Another new Rocket, Jeremy Lin, had 21 points and 10 rebounds.
Harden’s old team, the Oklahoma City Thunder, beat the Portland Trail Blazers 106-92 to notch a fourth-straight win in home openers.
The Chicago Bulls crushed the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-86, sinking 44 of 69 shots from the field.
The Milwaukee Bucks won their first season opener for six years with a 99-88 win over the Boston Celtics. AP