Los Angeles, October 30: Anthony Davis posted a triple-double to lead the Los Angeles Lakers past the Memphis Grizzlies, while the Miami Heat downed the Atlanta Hawks as Jimmy Butler made his debut.
Davis starred with 40 points and 20 rebounds to help the Lakers to a 120-91 win over the Grizzlies in NBA action on Tuesday.
The All-Star - who made a franchise record 26 free throws - recorded his fourth 40-20 career game and became the first Lakers player to accomplish the feat since Shaquille O'Neal in 2003.
LeBron James added 23 points for the Lakers, who improved to 3-1 for the season following three consecutive victories.
Butler made his long-awaited Heat debut in Miami's 112-97 win against the Hawks.
The Miami guard missed the first three games of the year to bond with his newborn daughter but did not miss a beat once he got back on the court.
Butler – who arrived from the Philadelphia 76ers – finished with 21 points, five rebounds, and three steals.
But rookie sensation Tyler Herro also made his presence known with a team-high 29 points and seven rebounds. He scored 19 points off the bench in the second quarter alone.
Unfortunately for Atlanta, Hawks start Trae Young went down with an ankle sprain in the second quarter and was ruled out for the remainder of the game.
Dragic helps ignite Heat
Miami's Goran Dragic scored 21 points off the bench.
Paul Millsap tallied a game-high 23 points as the Denver Nuggets fell to the Dallas Mavericks 109-106.
Reddish struggles as Heat ground Hawks
Atlanta's Cam Reddish scored six points on two-of-10 shooting.
Mavericks star Luka Doncic was held to 12 points on 12 shots.
LeBron says no!
James made a sensational block, leading to an alley-oop for Lakers team-mate JaVale McGee.
Bron with the chasedown. JaVale with the oop. Some things never change.
(: @SpectrumSN ) pic.twitter.com/D1kap1cKsG
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) October 30, 2019
Tuesday's results
Miami Heat 112-97 Atlanta Hawks Dallas Mavericks 109-106 Denver Nuggets Los Angeles Lakers 120-91 Memphis Grizzlies
Bucks at Celtics
The Milwaukee Bucks eliminated the Boston Celtics from the playoffs last season, but now the latter have a very different group. Are the Bucks and Giannis Antetokounmpo still too hot to handle? That remains to be seen.