Despite a good start, the San Antonio Spurs of Victor Wembanyama, author of 18 points, were beaten at home on Sunday by the Miami Heat (118-113) while Tyrese Maxey signed a career record of 50 points to lead the Sixers to victory against the Pacers (137-126).
If “Wemby” took 11 rebounds and made seven assists in 34 minutes spent on the floor, the French rookie showed too much clumsiness in shooting, particularly long distance with two successful three-point shots out of nine attempts.
His teammates Keldon Johnson and Zach Collins contributed 20 and 18 points, respectively.
Leading by 19 units in the second quarter, Gregg Popovich’s men ended up coming back, committing too many fouls and conceding 17 turnovers compared to only four for their opponents.
For Miami, Duncan Robinson scored 26 points and Bam Adebayo added 24 points and 11 rebounds.
The Heat, still without injured Tyler Herro and Kyle Lowry, managed to turn things around to win a fifth straight victory.
Jimmy Butler, returning after missing Saturday’s game for personal reasons, scored 19 points and former Spurs player Josh Richardson made two crucial shots in the final two minutes before finishing with a pair of free throws.
In Philadelphia, Tyrese Maxey helped lead a Sixers team to victory reeling from the car crash that left winger Kelly Oubre Jr. with a broken rib and other injuries after being hit by a vehicle while walking near his home Saturday.
Oubre was able to leave the hospital, but he was at the center of his teammates’ thoughts.
“It has nothing to do with me, it’s Kelly Oubre, man,” Maxey — whose previous career high was 44 points — said after making 20 of 32 shots, including seven of his 11 attempts. three points.
The 23-year-old guard also added seven rebounds and five assists to his brilliant personal total.
Joel Embiid, the reigning NBA MVP, posted a double-double of 37 points and 13 rebounds, helping the Sixers win their eighth straight victory.
Pacers leader Tyrese Haliburton also achieved a double-double (25 points, 17 assists), but in vain.
In Los Angeles, Desmond Bane scored 27 points to help the Memphis Grizzlies win their second victory of the season (105-101) against the Clippers.
The Grizzlies are facing a 25-game suspension of star Ja Morant, which extends through December.
But they managed to hold their own against a team that is still figuring out how to best use its new acquisition James Harden.
The Clippers remain on five consecutive defeats, including four since the arrival of the former best player in the league as part of a trade with Philadelphia.
“We can’t just wander around offensively,” lamented Clippers coach Tyronn Lue.
The Houston Rockets won their sixth consecutive victory by resisting a triple-double from Denver star Nikola Jokic in a 107-104 victory against the Nuggets.
Fred VanVleet scored 26 points and Turkey’s Alperen Sengun added 23 points for the Rockets, who improved their record to six wins and three losses, after amassing just 22 wins last season.
Jokic’s fourth triple-double of the season included 36 points, 21 rebounds and 11 assists.
The Serbian made a three-pointer with 19.5 seconds left to cut the Rockets’ lead to 103-102, but VanVleet then hit two free throws and Jae’Sean Tate managed to steal the ball as Denver was trying to get it back and Houston held on.
