The first 50-piece of the season goes to the Orlando Magic’s Paolo Banchero, as the defending champion Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers--alongside the OKC Thunder--remain as the only unbeaten teams around the Association.
PAOLO BANCHERO’S CAREER NIGHT
- Orlando Magic (3-1) def. Indiana Pacers (1-3), 119-115: Paolo Banchero’s record-setting night and Anthony Black’s late-game heroics towed the Magic to a thrilling bounce-back win at home against the Pacers.
- 50-PIECE FOR PB: Banchero went off with a new-career high 50 points on top 13 rebounds and nine dimes for a near-triple double outing.
The former Rookie of the Year shot 16-of-26 from the field and went to the free throw line 22 times, a personal-high, and connected 15 of them.
Banchero had 37 first-half points with seven rebounds and six assists, becoming just the third player ever after James Harden and Donovan Mitchell to record at least a 35-5-5 statline in half since the play-by-play era.
Paolo Banchero MONSTER 37-point 1st half AND a triple-double watch 🤯
— NBA (@NBA) October 29, 2024
🪄 37 PTS
🪄 7 REB
🪄 6 AST
🪄 3 3PM
🪄 13-17 FGM
He is the third player in the play-by-play era (1997-1998) to record at least 35 PTS, 5 REB and 5 AST in a half, joining James Harden and Donovan Mitchell! 👏 pic.twitter.com/faHD7Vdq4b
He also became just the fourth player aged 21 years old or younger in league history to post 50 or more points and 10 or more rebounds in a single game, joining LeBron James, Jamal Mashburn, and Rick Barry.
Paolo Banchero becomes just the 4th player in NBA history to record 50+ PTS and 10+ REB in a game, age 21 or younger, joining:
— NBA History (@NBAHistory) October 29, 2024
LeBron James
Jamal Mashburn
Rick Barry https://t.co/HoZsk01WJr pic.twitter.com/kYmtIctnNV
- Black Magic: Banchero’s career-night would be wasted if it is not for Black’s clutch plays, including hitting the corner three that gave the Magic a 118-115 lead with 9.5 seconds left.
WHAT A GAME IN ORLANDO 🍿
— NBA (@NBA) October 29, 2024
Anthony Black drills the 3 to break the tie at 115!
Magic at the FT line with 9.5 remaining on NBA League Pass: https://t.co/5o9gBCiWA7 pic.twitter.com/V3Qz2YenBO
Black, the sixth overall pick of the 2023 Draft, finished with eight points, three rebounds and two triples in 31 minutes.
- Banchero on Black’s heroics: "He basically won the game for us. So proud of that kid man. That’s my dawg. He got a lot more in his future, he’s a special player.”
"I just wanted to get the win."@Pp_doesit on the W pic.twitter.com/eGs5JF4Pfi
— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) October 29, 2024
LEAGUE-LEADERS CELTICS, CAVALIERS CONTINUE HOT START
- Boston Celtics (4-0) def. Milwaukee Bucks (1-3), 119-108: The reigning champions now took down two of perhaps the biggest threats to their title repeat in the East after grounding the Milwaukee Bucks.
[ALSO READ: Payton Pritchard’s hot hands push Celtics past Bucks for NBA-leading 4-0 record]
- Plug, play, and preach: Payton Pritchard went on a tear from deep, hitting eight triples to tie former Celtic Eddie House for the most threes made in a single off the bench performance set in 2009.
Pritchard also finished with 28 points and was one shy of his personal-best nine threes.
Payton Pritchard ties the @celtics franchise record for 3s off the bench (8).
— NBA (@NBA) October 29, 2024
Jaylen Brown drops 30.
The defending champs move to 4-0. 🍀 pic.twitter.com/CPFfEVuFl1
- Bucks head coach Doc Rivers on Bucks’ third straight loss: “Payton Pritchard happened… this morning, I literally circled his name.”
Doc Rivers says he circled Payton Pritchard’s name before the game.
— Justin Turpin (@JustinmTurpin) October 29, 2024
“Payton Pritchard happened… this morning, I literally circled his name. It’s like, this guy comes in and he’s a game changer… He got their three ball going… I thought that changed the game.” pic.twitter.com/sjrnk7krf1
Despite Bucks superstars Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo scoring 30 or more points in a single for the first time this season, the Bucks faltered and trailed by as many as 18 points.
- JB’s historic start: Jaylen Brown finished with team-high 30 points and six rebounds, his fourth straight game with at least 23 points and six rebounds in as many games to open the season.
He became just the second Celtic ever to accomplish such a feat since joining Larry Bird (1984, 1986).
Jaylen Brown is the second player in Celtics history to log at least 23 points and six rebounds in the first four games to start a season, joining Larry Bird (1984 and 1986).
— Celtics Stats (@celtics_stats) October 29, 2024
- Cleveland Cavaliers (4-0) def. New York Knicks (1-2), 110-104: The Cavaliers are off to their best start in franchise history since going 6-0 to open the 2016-2017 season after holding off the Knicks in New York.
- DG, the PG: Darius Garland saved the best for last with a 19-point explosion in the fourth quarter alone while Donovan Mitchell added 25 points.
Darius Garland finished with 34 PTS (15 in the 4th) to lead the @cavs to the win in New York! pic.twitter.com/RHSClkDDnB
— NBA (@NBA) October 29, 2024
Garland ended up with 34 markers– the same combined scoring output of the Knicks’ new duo of Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns — and five triples.
- Good but not good for Spida: If Mitchell launched this shot a little bit early, it would be one of the longest made field goals in league history.
But it didn’t.
After Evan Mobley grabbed the rebound in the final possession of the opening frame game, he passed it to Mitchell, who took one dribble, waited for the time to expire before casually firing in a one-handed shot from around 85 feet.
DONOVAN MITCHELL NEARLY MADE THIS FULL COURT SHOT IN TIME 😳😮 pic.twitter.com/FzN5IoCdTm
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 29, 2024
SUNS, HEAT, ROCKETS GONE STREAKING
- Phoenix Suns (3-1) def. Los Angeles Lakers (3-1), 109-105: In their second meeting in the last three days, the Suns gave the Lakers a taste of their own medicine in a 18-point comeback in Phoenix.
[ALSO READ: Devin Booker, Suns get payback with gutsy comeback dub against Lakers]
- Pure Scorer Indeed: Durant finished with 30 points, his third straight 30-point game of the season just two days after passing Shaquille O’Neal for the eight spot in the all-time scoring list.
At 36 years old, he is the oldest player in NBA history to start a season with four straight 25-point games.
Kevin Durant is the oldest player in NBA history to start a season with four straight 25-point games. pic.twitter.com/GVbpgePEAs
— StatMamba (@StatMamba) October 29, 2024
- Spooky D-Book: Booker registered his first 30-point game of the season wearing a Halloween-inspired “Book 1.”
Devin Booker in a Halloween-inspired Nike Book 1 PE tonight 🎃🔥 pic.twitter.com/jAtfrJEJmW
— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) October 29, 2024
- A not-so Kingly night: In a rather unusual night, LeBron James was held to just 11 points and struggled all-game long behind a measly 3-of-14 shooting– his lowest shooting clip in a regular season game since 2007.
LeBron James shot his lowest field goal percentage in a regular season game since 2007 🤯 pic.twitter.com/Q5T7ZmvyOJ
— ESPN (@espn) October 29, 2024
His last field goal of the game extended his streak of scoring at least 10 markers in a game to 1,226 and counting.
LeBron James’ last three gets him to double digits 👀
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) October 29, 2024
The streak of 1,266 straight games is ALIVE 👑 pic.twitter.com/bR0RiXi62o
Trailing by two points at 105-107, James intentionally missed the free throw as the Lakers failed to secure the offensive rebound that led to the game slipping into their hands.
- Head coach JJ Reddick on James’ intentional miss: "We communicated that... Everybody that was on the floor, knew what was happening... It was an insane miss. I don't think I've ever seen an intentional miss hit the bottom of the rim and go straight down."
- Houston Rockets (2-2) def. San Antonio Spurs (1-2), 106-103: Jalen Green poured 36 points to help the Rockets return to the winning column with a close win against the Spurs in the Battle of Texas.
- Green Machine: Green now has 115 points across four games this season, tying Giannis with third most points just behind Anthony Davis (131).
Jalen Green this season:
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) October 29, 2024
36 PTS - 2 AST - 7 3PM
29 PTS - 6 REB - 5 AST
22 PTS - 6 REB - 4 AST
28 PTS - 2 REB - 0 AST
All-Star leap? 👀
(Via @realapp_ ) pic.twitter.com/B7t0r13y4M
- First of Many: Victor Wembanyama had 14 points, a career-high 20 rebounds and four blocks for his first double-double of the season despite the loss.
OUTTA HERE! pic.twitter.com/AQTIW4hX15
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) October 29, 2024
Last season, Wemby had 43 double-doubles last season, the tenth most.
- Miami Heat (2-1) def. Detroit Pistons (0-4), 106-98: The Heat continue to pile up woes on winless Pistons, thanks to their second straight win.
- Back in the Groove: After scoring just three points in their season-opening loss to the Magic, Jimmy Butler now averaged 24.5 points in his last two games that resulted in back-to-back Heat wins.
Against the Pistons, Butler churned in 23 markers, four rebounds, seven dimes and four steals.
Jimmy Butler sent his man flying for the easiest points of the night 😅pic.twitter.com/EYU4Z9NB2t
— Heat Nation (@HeatNationCP) October 29, 2024
- Butler on former teammate Dwyane Wade getting his statue in Miami: "I'm pretty sure he won't be the last one to get one."
Jimmy Butler on Dwyane Wade's statue:
— Wes Goldberg (@wcgoldberg) October 29, 2024
"I'm pretty sure he won't be the last one to get one." pic.twitter.com/LeDdD5nFIs
NUGGETS, MAVS, KINGS, BULLS WIZARDS RACKED UP DUBS
- Denver Nuggets (1-2) def. Toronto Raptors (1-3), 127-125: Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets were made to work to earn their first win of the season with an overtime thriller up north.
- Joker 🤝 Melo: Jokic dropped his second-straight 40-point game after hitting a career-high seven triples in their 109-104 loss against the Clippers in their last outing.
The three-time MVP finished with 10 rebounds, four assists, and two blocks. He became just the second player in Nuggets history to record back-to-back 40-point games after Carmelo Anthony (2009).
Nikola Jokic tonight:
— StatMamba (@StatMamba) October 29, 2024
40 PTS
10 REB
4 AST
2 BLK
First Nugget with back-to-back 40-point games since Carmelo Anthony in 2009. pic.twitter.com/NgjEt3nIOn
- Home Sweet Home: In his first game back in his native country of Canada this season, Jamal Murray finished with 17 points, including the overtime–sending basket off a reverse layup with a three-tenths of a second remaining.
Murray suited up for Team Canada in the Olympic Games Paris 2024 where they crashed out in the quarterfinals against host France.
JAMAL MURRAY TIES IT AT 112 🔥🔥
— NBA (@NBA) October 29, 2024
WHAT A MOVE TO SEND THE GAME OT!! pic.twitter.com/l7ADF49uiv
- Dallas Mavericks (2-1) def. Utah Jazz (0-3), 110-92: Kyrie Irving, Luka Doncic, and Klay Thompson combined for 56 points in a bounce-back Mavericks home win against the win-seeking Jazz.
- Settling in the Big D: Thompson came up with 18 points and now recorded three straight games with at least three triples for the Mavericks.
The four-time NBA champion connected a total of 15 threes as a Maverick, the most in the first three games with a franchise in league history.
Klay Thompson this season:
— StatMamba (@StatMamba) October 29, 2024
19.7 PPG
5.0 3PM
45.5% 3PT
His 15 three-pointers are the most in the first three games with a franchise in NBA history 🎯 pic.twitter.com/uFhuzORyNJ
- Sacramento Kings (1-2) def. Portland Trail Blazers (1-3), 111-98: First win is in the books for the Kings, thanks to a big home dub against the Trail Blazers.
First-Dub DeeBow: DeMar Derozan finally got his first win as a member of the Kings, logging 23 points as he became just the third player after Oscar Robertson and Chris Webber in franchise history to open the season with three-straight 20-point games.
DeMar DeRozan is the 3rd Kings player to start his tenure with three straight 20-point games.
— StatMamba (@StatMamba) October 29, 2024
Joining Chris Webber & Oscar Robertson. pic.twitter.com/2FaMGm06lT
- Washington Wizards (1-2) def. Atlanta Hawk (2-2), 121-119: Jordan Poole and Kyle Kuzma joined forces to give the Wizards their first win of the season at expense of the Hawks.
- Double Wizardry: Poole paced the Wizards with 26 points built on six triples while Kuzma tallied a double-double of 25 markers and 11 rebounds, on top seven assists and five treys.
Kyle Kuzma & Jordan Poole tonight:
— Halftime Hoops (@_halftimehoops) October 29, 2024
Kuz: 25 PTS | 5 3PM | 11 REB | 7 AST
Poole: 26 PTS | 5 AST | 6 3PM#Wizards pick up their first win of the season
(📸 @WashWizards) pic.twitter.com/iTWhrEgskZ
Washington, which dropped its first two games at home, will face the Hawks again on Thursday back in the nation’s capital.
- Chicago Bulls (2-2) def. Memphis Grizzlies (2-2), 126-123: Zach Lavine recorded his first 30-point game of the season in a close road victory over the Grizzlies.
- Zach Attack: Lavine hit five triples on his way to shooting an efficient 55% shooting as Chicago got back to their feet after a 19-point loss against the Thunder in their last outing.
He has now scored 25 or more points in three of the Bulls first four games and is currently the team’s scoring leader averaging 26 points per game.
Zach LaVine drops 30 PTS on 54.5 FG% as the @chicagobulls win a close one in Memphis! pic.twitter.com/VdZFZfkZCb
— NBA (@NBA) October 29, 2024
Star Stat
- 50 points, 13 rebounds, 9 assists: Paolo Banchero recorded this statline in their 119-115 win over the Indiana Pacers, becoming the second youngest player in league history–behind LeBron James–to post a 50-10-5 game.
