Orlando stuns East-leading Detroit; Thunder, Celtics and Spurs sweep
Paolo Banchero scored 23 points and Germany's Franz Wagner added 11 of his 19 in the final quarter as Orlando responded to a phenomenal 39-point performance from Pistons star Cade Cunningham.
(Voice / Christian Camacho)
Orlando Magic delivered a surprise on Sunday by beating the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons in the opening game of their first-round playoff series of the NBA, while the Boston Celtics, San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder won hands down.
Orlando hits the table
Eighth in the East and into the playoffs after beating the Charlotte Hornets in the play-in, the Orlando Magic pulled off the upset by beating that conference's solid leaders, the Pistons, at Detroit's Little Caesars Arena 112-101.
Paolo Banchero scored 23 points and Germany's Franz Wagner added 11 of his 19 in the final quarter as Orlando responded to a phenomenal 39-point performance by Pistons star Cade Cunningham.
Detroit trailed by as many as 13 in the first quarter and by 11 at the start of the third.
A three-pointer by Cunningham tied the score with 7:04 minutes left in the third quarter, but the Magic again pulled away.
Wembanyama debuts with 35 points
French prodigy Victor Wembanyama, 22, made his NBA playoff debut Sunday with 35 points in the San Antonio Spurs' 111-98 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Wemby had earlier been confirmed as a finalist for the season's Most Valuable Player (MVP) award, along with Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder), the reigning MVP, and Serbia's Nikola Jokic (Nuggets), already a three-time choice (2021, 2022 and 2024).
The 2.24-meter French center is also among the three finalists for the Defensive Player of the Year trophy, which he seems to have practically in the bag.
He delivered in his postseason debut a memorable performance with 35 points, plus five rebounds, in front of his home crowd at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio.
The five-time NBA champion Spurs, playing in their first playoffs since 2019, thus took a 1-0 lead in this first-round series and will be home again on Tuesday in Game 2.
Thunder, in champion mode
The defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder, who finished with their best record in a regular season with 64 wins and only 18 losses, proved Sunday that they are serious contenders to retain the title.
The Thunder beat the Phoenix Suns, eighth in the West, 119-84 at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, with 25 points from their star Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning NBA and Finals MVP, followed by 22 points from Jalen Williams.
The champion dominated the entire game and at halftime was already 21 points ahead of the Suns (65-44), who never offered any resistance despite the 23 points scored by Devin Booker.
On Wednesday, again at the Paycom Center, the second game of this Western series will take place.
Tatum and Brown unstoppable for the Sixers
The indomitable duo took full advantage of the Sixers' severe shooting woes to post the largest point differential in Celtics history in a playoff opener.
Tatum led the offense, scoring 21 points in the first half.
After halftime, it was Brown's turn, scoring 16 points in the third quarter to put the game away.
Both players stayed on the bench for most of the final half, resting for Tuesday's game, also at TD Garden in Boston.
In one of the NBA's classic rivalries, Boston has won its last six postseason series against the Sixers, a streak that dates back to the 1985 Eastern Conference Finals.
Tatum showed no after-effects from the ruptured Achilles tendon he suffered nearly a year ago and showed why his return has made the surging Celtics the top bet of many pundits' to win this year's NBA title.
He finished with 25 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists.
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