Jayson Tatum delivered 35 points and 11 assists as the visiting Boston Celtics rallied from a 26-point, second-half deficit to defeat the Philadelphia 76ers 118-110 on Sunday.
Boston outscored Philadelphia 54-20 over the final 14-plus minutes to take control of a game that was initially dominated by Philadelphia. In doing so, the Celtics avenged a home loss to the Sixers on Christmas Day and improved to 2-0 on their three-game road trip.
Jaylen Brown had 21 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for Boston, while Kristaps Porzingis notched 18 points, seven rebounds and five blocks. The Celtics made 21 3-pointers, including 14 on 22 attempts in the second half.
Tyrese Maxey led the Sixers with 34 points, while Guerschon Yabusele chipped in with 21 points against his former team. Kelly Oubre Jr. contributed 18 points and 13 boards for Philadelphia, which continued to play without Joel Embiid (knee) and Paul George (finger).
Cavaliers 144, Mavericks 101
Sam Merrill came off the bench to hit nine 3-pointers for a career-high-tying 27 points as host Cleveland coasted to an easy victory over Dallas.
It was a brutal start to a new era for Dallas, which sent shock waves through the sports world about 15 hours before tipoff by sending Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for fellow star Anthony Davis as part of a blockbuster trade. Davis was not active on Sunday due to the pending trade and an abdominal muscle strain. Max Christie, also acquired, was similarly not available.
The Cavaliers wasted little time turning the contest into a blowout, going 9-for-11 from 3-point range in the first quarter to build a 50-19 lead by the end of the frame. It marked the most points that Cleveland has scored in any quarter all season.
Pistons 127, Bulls 119
Cade Cunningham led seven Detroit scorers in double figures with 22 points to go along with 15 assists as the host Pistons downed Chicago.
Jalen Duren supplied 21 points, 13 rebounds and four assists for Detroit, while Malik Beasley had 19 points, five assists and three steals. Chicago had won 18 of its previous 20 meetings with Detroit.
Coby White led the Bulls with 22 points. Nikola Vucevic recorded a triple-double with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, while Josh Giddey had 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Raptors 115, Clippers 108
RJ Barrett had 20 points and seven assists and Toronto used an explosive third quarter to defeat visiting Los Angeles.
The Raptors broke open a halftime tie with a 31-16 third quarter spurred by 19 fastbreak points to gain a split of the season series with the Clippers. Gradey Dick scored 18 points and Scottie Barnes added 15 points and seven rebounds for Toronto.
James Harden had 25 points for the Clippers, who finished a 2-2 road trip. Ivica Zubac added 18 points and former Raptor Kawhi Leonard scored 14.
–Field Level Media
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