NBA opening night winners, losers: LeBron pays dividends; Knicks suffer letdown

NBA opening night winners, losers: LeBron pays dividends; Knicks suffer letdown.

Key points

• The New York Knicks celebrated their 2026 title in front of a celebrity crowd at Madison Square Garden before hosting the new-look, star-studded Philadelphia 76ers.
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did what Shai Gilgeous-Alexander does and scored 32 points in the Thunder's opening game, a rematch of the Western Conference finals against the Spurs.
• The 36-year-old George, who came to Boston in the Jaylen Brown trade this offseason, created 10 of his first 14 shots from the field including six 3-pointers.
• USA TODAY Sports' NBA experts ranked the top 100 NBA players for the 2026-27 season and put the Thunder star at the top of the list.
• The 2026-27 NBA season is officially underway with an unprecedented opening-day tripleheader that began with a rare weekday matinee game between the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons.

NBA opening night winners, losers: LeBron pays dividends; Knicks suffer letdown. Mark Giannotto, Lorenzo Reyes, Scooby Axson, Victoria Hernandez USA TODAY. Why Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the NBA's No. 1 player entering 2026-27.

Notably, the 2026-27 NBA season is officially underway with an unprecedented opening-day tripleheader that began with a rare weekday matinee game between the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons.

For context, the Pistons rallied from a 22-point deficit to stun Boston in the league's first game of the season, setting the stage for two marquee games featuring the past two NBA champions.

Notably, the New York Knicks celebrated their 2026 title in front of a celebrity crowd at Madison Square Garden before hosting the new-look, star-studded Philadelphia 76ers. The Knicks obtained the bling, but the Sixers walked away with the win in the season-opener.

In practice, the Oklahoma City Thunder obtained a measure of revenge on the San Antonio Spurs for last season's Western Conference finals. MVP favorites Victor Wembanyama and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander faced off with the Thunder star continuing a historic streak while the French sensation struggled to find an offensive rhythm.

Here's a live breakdown of the players, moments and storylines that emerged as winners and losers from the NBA's opening day.

NBA: We ranked the best player on every NBA team. Sixers among biggest surprises. NBA opening day winners. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's leadership puts Thunder on right track.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did what Shai Gilgeous-Alexander does and scored 32 points in the Thunder's opening game, a rematch of the Western Conference finals against the Spurs. It was his 141st straight game with 20-plus points, the longest streak in NBA history. The reigning MVP continued six rebounds and four assists and was a robust defensive presence with three steals and three blocks.

Yes, the numbers are solid. But Gilgeous-Alexander's composure to keep Oklahoma City in control, and his perspective that this is one win in a long season, demonstrates the maturity that puts him among the game's greats.

"One of 82. This doesn't prove anything. This doesn't mean anything besides the fact that we won tonight, " he remarked on the NBC broadcast after the game. "We took a step in the right direction. We gotta do it 81 more times." Jared McCain's long-range jumper shines bright.

Jared McCain has become a fan favorite since of his fun-loving personality and the freedom in his personal expression. He arrived at the Thunder's matchup against Western Conference foe the Spurs with fashionable plaid nails and was confident as ever off the bench in the win. He finished with 20 points, second only to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and went 6-of-8 in three-point shots.

It's clear Oklahoma City is on mission yet again this season. If they are to have another deep playoff run and even win another NBA Finals after their 2024-25 title, they are going to need a team effort and the former Duke star is setting the tone early.

It's so particularly early, but the LeBron James addition has already paid dividends.

As he has throughout his career, LeBron James did a little bit of everything. He handled the ball and whistled passes to cutting teammates for straightforward looks. He hit timely shots. He obtained to the line. He collected defensive rebounds to round out his stat line: 14 points on 5-of-13 field goals, 9 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal and 1 block.

But the underrated part of James' 76ers debut was his willingness to play all over the floor, even at center. For sizeable stretches of the second half, James guarded Knicks stretch center Karl-Anthony Towns, matching his physicality and allowing the 76ers to both play smaller and quicker, and freeing up Joel Embiid to be more of an offensive anchor on the other end. It's early, but that versatility makes Philadelphia dangerous. Andre Drummond stuffs the stat sheet in first half.

For any Knicks fans worried regarding the loss of the reserve center and spark plug who signed with the Boston Celtics, Andre Drummond has stepped in nicely.

Drummond posted a double-double in the first half in 17 minutes of spirited play. Drummond was active in the paint and on the glass, hauling in a game-high 12 boards in the first half; the next closest player was LeBron James. This person scooped up 4 boards. Drummond was additionally 4-of-8 from the floor for 10 points and swatted away 2 blocks. As Drummond comes in at a far more affordable salary, it was just one half, but the decision to let Robinson walk is looking to be a wise one.

It took some time, but the Sixers finally cleared the glass and forced turnovers.

In the first half, the Knicks – fueled by Drummond's 6 offensive rebounds – kept possessions alive. Overall, New York scooped 8 offensive boards before intermission, leading to 14 second chance points (compared to only 4 from Philadelphia). Unsurprisingly, the Knicks carried a lead at the end of the second quarter.

In the third, the Knicks could not replicate that. They shot just 5-of-21 (23.8%) in the period, and much of that was since Philadelphia outworked New York on the glass; the Knicks grabbed just a pair of offensive boards. But what really sunk the offense were 5 third-quarter turnovers. That offered the Sixers new life as they sprinted out in transition, scoring 8 fast break points in the period. From then on, New York was only playing catch-up. Javonte Green provides Pistons' spark.

Much of the offseason discussion in Detroit centered on whether the Pistons had continued enough shooting around Cade Cunningham. But Detroit coach J.B. Bickerstaff turned to a lesser-known returning player on Tuesday to provide an unlikely spark that kick-started Detroit after beginning its season opener 4 of 22 from beyond the arc.

Green had 19 points and played almost 18 minutes in the second half after not playing during the first two quarters of the game. A veteran in his second season with the Pistons, Green drilled three consecutive 3-pointers shortly after entering in the third quarter before adding two more in the fourth, including the go-ahead basket. Paul George's record-setting Celtics' debut.

George set a new Celtics record by scoring 38 points in his Boston debut and was especially good as the Celtics built a 22-point lead that the Pistons eventually erased. The 36-year-old George, who came to Boston in the Jaylen Brown trade this offseason, created 10 of his first 14 shots from the field including six 3-pointers. He seemed to work well with Jayson Tatum and took on the defensive assignment of guarding Cade Cunningham at times. Though George missed a couple 3-pointers late as the Celtics tried to reverse the momentum, this performance was a good sign that he can form an elite combination with Tatum if he can stay healthy.

Philadelphia's starting five can't complain regarding not getting enough shots. Each starter obtained at least 10 shots at the rim, led by Tyrese Maxey. This person had 19 attempts and scored a game-high 28 points. LeBron James had 13 attempts in his first game with the team and finished with 14 points. As the Sixers shot only 42% and an abysmal 28% (11-40) from downtown, those shot attempts didn't result in a good percentage. NBA opening day losers. Victor Wembanyama's shot is nowhere to be discovered.

Notably, an early favorite for this year's MVP, Victor Wembanyama was almost silent on offense in the Spurs loss to the Western Conference rival Thunder. His three blocks reminded fans why he won last season's Defensive Player of the Year. But he began the game 0-for-12 from the field and failed to score his first, and only, field goal until the last play of the third quarter. It was an exciting alley-oop dunk, but expectations are high on the French superstar and one highlight is not cutting the mustard.

Yes, it's only the first game of the season, but Wemby has to find the rhythm with his shot if he's going to lead this team deep into the playoffs, if not back to the NBA Finals. Scuffle between Thunder and Spurs feels silly.

For context, the Western Conference rivalry between the Thunder and Spurs continues to heat up. Players from both teams obtained into a scuffle in the third quarter of their matchup when De'Aaron Fox had a hard foul against Chet Holmgren. Victor Wembanyama obtained caught up in the melee and was given a technical foul along with Thunder players Kenrich Williams, Jalen Williams and Jaylin Williams.

Not that these incidents are inherently bad. Playing with passion is a good thing! But for the Spurs, losing by 12 points having this be one of the main headlines of your opening game leaves a bad taste in fans' mouths.

When nothing they tried worked, offensively or defensively, the Knicks' challenges against the 76ers began in the third quarter. New York shot 5-for-21 in the quarter, and their defense collapsed late as Philadelphia discovered wide-open space beyond the three-point line and took the lead.

Philadelphia leaned on two bench players, Anfernee Simons and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, to create the Knicks pay when the defense broke down. Simons hit three shots from beyond the arc for 13 points, and Caldwell-Pope created two from downtown for 10 points. That final third-quarter spurt. It included two Jaylen Brown three-pointers, was part of an 11-0 run that offered the 76ers a lead they never relinquished. Jayson Tatum's second-half struggles.

As he finished with 11 assists, tatum's evolution as a playmaker was evident Tuesday. But Boston additionally needs him to be its primary scorer, particularly after trading Jaylen Brown, and he couldn't fill that role in the second half. His poor shooting performance contributed to the team's collapse. He was 1 for 9 from the floor after halftime and his lone field goal came with less than three minutes left and the Pistons' lead in double digits. Tatum was just 6 of 23 from the floor and 0 for 7 from 3-point range overall on Tuesday.

NBA on NBC's matinee rollout.

Meanwhile, the NBA is closely watching the audience response to its opening-day matinee experiment, but some fans encountered problems as Tuesday's opening game unfolded. Social media was filled with complaints from viewers who remarked Celtics-Pistons was unavailable in their market, with YouTube TV subscribers appearing particularly affected. The firm wrote on its X account that "the availability of games/programs on YouTube TV depends on our network partners."

It will be interesting to see what the ratings turn out to be considering the NBA is evaluating this initial game to determine whether to continue having daytime openers going forward. SMS Facebook Twitter Email. Share your feedback to support improve our site! Share your feedback to support improve our site!

Taken together, the developments around NBA opening night winners, losers: LeBron pays dividends; Knicks suffer letdown point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.