Austin Reaves had a season-best 43 points as the Los Angeles Lakers, without injured star Luka Doncic, built a hefty early lead, then held off the host Detroit Pistons 121-116 on Sunday.
With Doncic, averaging a league-best 40.1 points, sitting with low back tightness, reserves Ziaire Williams and Collin Sexton each scored 17 while Walker Kessler added 12 and 16 rebounds for the Lakers, who hit half of their 84 shots.
Reaves went 14 of 27 from the field and made all 11 free-throw attempts as Los Angeles won its fifth straight game.
Daniss Jenkins had a career-high 31 points and fellow reserve Kevin Huerter added 24 for the Pistons, who lost back-to-back games for the first time this season. Cade Cunningham had 14 points and Duncan Robinson scored 12, but neither made a field goal in the first half for Detroit, which rallied by going 19 of 48 from 3-point range.
76ers 127, Bulls 121
Jaylen Brown scored 29 points, Tyrese Maxey had 27 and LeBron James added 22 as visiting Philadelphia downed skidding Chicago, which has lost seven games in a row.
The 76ers won for the sixth time in seven games. Joel Embiid posted a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds, and VJ Edgecombe chipped in 13 points.
Josh Giddey had 19 points, 15 assists and seven rebounds for the Bulls while Matas Buzelis had 19 points. Caleb Wilson followed with 18 points while Jalen Smith (17 points), Isaac Okoro (12) and Noa Essengue (10) also scored in double figures.
Timberwolves 115, Jazz 100
Ayo Dosunmu scored 26 points on 7-for-13 shooting, and Minnesota pulled away for a win over visiting Utah in Minneapolis.
LaMelo Ball added 24 points on 10-for-20 shooting for the Timberwolves, who won their fourth game in a row. Jaden McDaniels scored 16 points, and Rudy Gobert registered a double-double with 10 points and 15 rebounds.
Darryn Peterson scored 26 points on 11-for-21 shooting to lead the Jazz, who lost for the ninth time in 10 games to start the season. Keyonte George scored 19 points and dished a team-high eight assists, and Jaxson Hayes recorded 18 points with six boards.
Clippers 139, Pelicans 123
Darius Garland scored 24 points and dished out 10 assists, Brook Lopez added 20 points and Los Angeles ended a seven-game losing streak with a victory over visiting New Orleans in Inglewood, Calif.
Gradey Dick scored a season-high 15 points and rookie Keaton Wagler added 15 as the Clippers committed a season-low 11 turnovers, well below their NBA-worst average of 20.1 entering the game.
Trey Murphy II scored 26 points, while Zion Williamson and Jeremiah Fears each scored 25 points for the Pelicans. Saddiq Bey added 13 points for New Orleans, which committed 17 turnovers and had 23 assists compared to Los Angeles’ 34.
Mavericks 130, Nets 93
Cooper Flagg had 25 points and 12 assists to help Dallas coast to a wire-to-wire victory over visiting Brooklyn.
Kyrie Irving added 21 points and Daniel Gafford chipped in 18 for the Mavericks, who shot 57.1% from the field in their second straight win. Santi Aldama scored 12 points and Zaccharie Risacher tallied 11 for Dallas, which won its fourth in a row against the Nets.
Michael Porter Jr. led the Nets with 19 points and nine rebounds, while Nolan Traore followed with 14 points and Julius Randle scored 13. Moritz Wagner came off the bench with 12 points and Josh Minott and Danny Wolf had 10 points apiece for Brooklyn, which has have dropped eight of 10 to begin the season.
Celtics 117, Bucks 97
Paul George scored 27 points and Jayson Tatum added 21 as Boston overcame a slow start to defeat host Milwaukee.
George hit 5 of 10 from 3-point range, while Tatum knocked down 5 of 11 from downtown and dished six assists as the Celtics notched their third straight win overall and second since Wednesday over the Bucks.
Kyle Kuzma scored 21 of his 27 points in the first half and connected on 6 of 13 3-point attempts, as Milwaukee suffered its sixth consecutive loss.
Heat 114, Kings 108
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 29 points and 14 rebounds as Miami topped Sacramento, which has lost five straight at home.
Klay Thompson made seven 3-pointers and scored 23 points for the Heat, who shot 41.9% (18-for-43) from beyond the arc. Bam Adebayo added 18 points and eight rebounds, Davion Mitchell added 17 points and matched his season high with 11 assists, and Pelle Larsson finished with 11 points.
Rookie guard Darius Acuff Jr. led the Kings with 32 points on 11-of-21 shooting and added 10 assists. Zach LaVine scored 15, De’Andre Hunter added 14, Keegan Murray had 10 and Precious Achiuwa grabbed a season-high 14 rebounds.
