Luka Doncic said "everything hurts" after he battled through the pain to propel the Dallas Mavericks to victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday.

Doncic finished with 33 points and 17 assists as the Mavericks defeated LeBron James' Lakers – fresh from their in-season tournament victory last weekend – 127-125.

It marked the second win in as many nights for Dallas, though talisman Doncic had been listed as questionable following Monday's win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

"I don't know how I played," Doncic said.

"I slept very little today. Everything hurts. I'm getting old, man, but we got two back-to-back wins, which is amazing, especially against a team like the Lakers.

"So I'm really proud of these guys."

Speaking to TNT Sports, Doncic added: "You give your best, you want to stay on the court.

"This is an amazing team win, man. Back-to-back, we've got so many guys out, but everybody stepped up, everybody played hard."

Doncic also shared a moment with James, who also had 33 points, at the end of the game.

"It's amazing, the way he talks with me," Doncic said. "One of the best, it's a great relationship. I'm glad, coming from Slovenia, that I can play games like this against LeBron. It's special."

The Mavs needed Doncic to step up, with Kyrie Irving, Maxi Kleber, Josh Green and Derrick Jones Jr all out injured.

"Anytime you play a guy like Luka that's so talented, so good passing the ball, but obviously scores it as well, it makes it tough," Lakers guard Austin Reaves said.

"That's the challenge when you have a guy like that on the other team that you're trying to slow down."

Luka Doncic hailed an "amazing" night after surpassing Larry Bird with the 60th triple-double of his NBA career, helping the Dallas Mavericks crush the Utah Jazz 147-97 on Wednesday. 

Doncic recorded the first first-half triple-double of his career at American Airlines Center, finishing with 40 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in just three periods as the Mavs dominated from the off.

The four-time All-Star brought up his 60th triple-double with just under a minute remaining in the second quarter, moving past Bird to go ninth outright in the league's all-time rankings.

Asked what it meant to surpass the Boston Celtics icon, Doncic said: "It's pretty amazing. I don't know what to say, honestly. We all know who Larry Bird is, so it's pretty special."

Kyrie Irving added 26 points for Dallas, who had their highest-scoring game of this season and came up two points shy of the highest-scoring game ever in regulation.

Dallas guard Tim Hardaway Jr., who added 17 points in 22 minutes on the court, said after the win: "Luka set the tone with that, knocking down shot after shot after shot… after shot after shot after shot! I thought he was going to go 50-20-20!"

While Dallas snapped a two-game losing streak to improve to 12-8, putting them fourth in the Western Conference standings, the Jazz sit 12th at 7-14 after a performance which left coach Will Hardy furious.

"That was an absolutely horrendous performance," Hardy fumed. 

"It seemed like the Mavericks were moving at a different pace than we were from start to finish."

Luka Dončić notched a triple-double by halftime and finished with 40 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in three quarters in the Dallas Mavericks’ 147-97 rout of the Utah Jazz on Wednesday.

Doncic grabbed a rebound with 71 seconds left in the first half and assisted on Dereck Lively II’s dunk 12 seconds later to complete the 60th triple-double of his career. That moved him past Larry Bird into sole possession of ninth on the career list.

The Dallas superstar had the first 25-point first-half triple-double in NBA history. Doncic shot 14 of 25 from the field and was 6 of 12 from long range.

Kyrie Irving added 26 points for Dallas, which had its highest-scoring game of this season and came up two points shy of the highest-scoring game ever in regulation.

Ochai Agbaji scored 21 points for the Jazz, who played without top scorers Lauri Markkanen (hamstring) and Jordan Clarkson (thigh).

Grizzlies’ Bane goes off as Pistons lose again

Desmond Bane poured in 32 of his career-high 49 points in the second half and the Memphis Grizzlies sent the Detroit Pistons to their 18th straight loss, 116-102.

Detroit’s streak is the longest single-season run in franchise history and the longest in the NBA since the Houston Rockets’ 20-game slide in 2020-21. The Philadelphia 76ers hold the NBA record with a 26-game drought in 2013-14.

Bane shot 19 of 31 from the field and 4-of-8 from 3-point range while sinking all seven free-throw attempts. He added eight assists and six rebounds.

The Pistons held a 69-61 lead midway through the third quarter, but Bane scored the next seven points.

Bojan Bogdanovic scored 22 points for Detroit, which was outscored 34-18 in the fourth quarter.

Embiid drops 50 in 76ers’ win

Joel Embiid scored a season-high 50 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 131-126 victory over the Washington Wizards.

Embiid hit the 50-point mark for the sixth time in his career, falling nine points short of his career best set on Nov. 13, 2022, against Utah.

He was 19 of 24 from the floor with a 3-pointer on two attempts and 11 of 13 from the foul line. He also had seven assists and six turnovers in just over 38 minutes.

Tyrese Maxey added 26 points as the 76ers averted a third straight loss.

Luka Doncic said he was simply exhausted after the Dallas Mavericks failed to capitalise on an NBA-record 30-point run in Saturday's "rollercoaster" defeat to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

A depleted Mavericks side found themselves facing a 24-point deficit at one stage, but Doncic played a talismanic role to drag his team back into contention.

Dallas took the lead with a 30-0 run in the fourth quarter, the best in the NBA in the PXP era (since 1996-97), which took them from 111-87 down to 117-111 up.

Doncic finished with a game-high 36 points while also adding 15 rebounds and 18 assists, but his terrific performance wasn't enough as the Thunder rallied again for a 126-120 victory. 

Having played his part in a thrilling contest one day after becoming a father for the first time on Friday, Doncic struggled to hide his fatigue.

"It was the happiest day of my life with the baby, but then today's game was a big rollercoaster too," Doncic said after the game.

"I'm so sad we didn't win this game, but man, we gave a big, big effort. I was a little bit exhausted."

Doncic was frustrated by his finish to the game after committing two turnovers in the last 87 seconds, with the first the result of a travelling call which infuriated the four-time All-Star.

"My view is it probably was a travel, but those travels happen about, in my opinion, 20 times a game," he said. 

"So a minute and a half to go, if you're going to call that travel for the first time in the game… you can't do that. 

"I don't think so. I think those travels happen a lot of times in one game and the NBA doesn't call the travels, so I was really surprised."

The Mavericks are now 11-8 after suffering back-to-back defeats, and they will look to respond when they welcome the Utah Jazz to American Airlines Center on Wednesday.

Jason Kidd claimed Luka Doncic is "taken for granted" before he walked out of his press conference following the Dallas Mavericks' win over the Houston Rockets.

The Mavericks, whose owner Mark Cuban is reportedly close to selling a major stake in the franchise, beat the Rockets 121-115 on Tuesday to prevent Houston from advancing in the NBA's in-season tournament.

Doncic, who played just three days after sustaining a thumb sprain, had 41 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, playing a key role at both ends of the court.

"Sometimes we take him for granted, and we shouldn't," said Kidd. "He's about winning, too. It just happens that he's a walking triple-double.

"Tonight, he had some great looks, but I think he's not looked upon, or you guys haven't really talked about his defense. He's competing defensively. He's taking the challenge.

"But again, when you're that good, someone has to pick at something. Unfortunately, you guys don't see the game totally all the time but he's competing defensively.

"For him to get on the floor, it just shows that he's all about winning, too."

Defiance was a theme of Kidd's post-game news conference, as the coach lashed out at reporters for being overly critical of the time it has taken Kyrie Irving and Doncic to form a formidable partnership.

"Maybe it's the things that you guys thought should have happened day one. It takes time – failing is alright, it's not a bad thing to fail for a pro athlete, as you can learn and get better from it," he said.

"Those two are the best in the world and we feel very comfortable with those two having the ball. Sometimes it goes in, sometimes it doesn't – and we learn from it.

"Write some positive s***. It's alright to write positive stuff, people will read positive s***. You don't have to be negative, the world's already negative enough. Let's see some positive stuff on positive people who are doing their job on a nightly basis."

Irving finished with 27 points, with 22 of those coming in the second half.

"Yeah, he can go off [at] anytime," Doncic said of Irving.

"There were a couple of insane layups, which isn't insane for us because we see it all the time. But his play has been amazing, and his leadership has been amazing. We are just happy to have him on our team."

Luka Doncic underwent an X-ray on his left hand after taking a blow to it during the Dallas Mavericks' 107-88 defeat to the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday.

Doncic's hand hit James Harden's knee during the early stages of the first quarter, and the 24-year-old immediately clutched it in pain.

He went on to score 22 points in the first half before being examined at half-time, though the X-ray reportedly came back as negative and Doncic finished the game with 30 points as the Mavericks ultimately succumbed to defeat.

After the game, Doncic told reporters: "I don't think it's broken. We will see further tomorrow in Dallas."

"I hit his knee, but yeah, I saw the picture [of the play]. It's not good to see."

Doncic was wearing a wrap on his left hand and thumb following the loss, and the Mavericks will nervously wait to see if the four-time All-Star will be able to play in Dallas' home game against the Houston Rockets on Tuesday.

Giannis Antetokounmpo poured in 40 points and Damian Lillard added 27 to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 132-125 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday in a marquee matchup featuring superstars.

Antetokounmpo shot 18 of 26 from the field and grabbed 14 rebounds to go with seven assists, as he bounced back from scoring 16 points Friday at Charlotte.

Pat Connaughton scored 16 points, including a 3-pointer with 67 seconds left to extend the Bucks’ lead to 130-125.

Kyrie Irving scored 39 points and Luka Dončić had 35 with nine boards and nine assists. The duo combined to shoot 31 for 54 from the floor.

 Gilgeous-Alexander scores 40 in Thunder’s OT win

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 40 points and Chet Holmgren has his best game as a pro with 36 points, 10 rebounds and five assists as the Oklahoma City Thunder handed the Golden State Warriors their sixth straight loss, 130-123 in overtime.

Andrew Wiggins sank a 3-pointer with three seconds left in regulation to put Golden State up 117-114, but Holmgren’s 3 with one second remaining forced overtime.

The Thunder outscored the Warriors 13-6 in the extra period, with Gilgeous-Alexander scoring eight straight points.

Wiggins finished with 31 points and Stephen Curry had 25 in his return from a right knee injury, but Golden State dropped to 1-6 on its home court.

Bulls rally to end Heat’s winning streak

DeMar DeRozan hit a key basket late and the Chicago Bulls overcame a 21-point deficit for a 102-97 victory, ending the Miami Heat’s seven-game winning streak.

Chicago fell behind by double digits for the third straight game and trailed 22-1 midway through the first quarter but managed to rally to end a three-game skid.

DeRozan scored 23 points and his 18-foot fadeaway with 22 seconds left put the Bulls ahead for good.

Jimmy Butler had 25 points for Miami, which didn’t trail until the game’s final minute. He missed a pair of 3-pointers in the final seconds.

A 30-point triple-double from LaMelo Ball was not enough to get the Charlotte Hornets across the line against the Dallas Mavericks.

Ball scored 23 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter of Charlotte’s 124-118 defeat, to go along with 10 rebounds and 13 assists.

A quiet start from Luka Doncic allowed the Hornets to gain an early advantage, but the Slovenian eventually found his groove to lead the Mavericks’ second-half comeback.

He finished with 23 points, while Kyrie Irving added 18.

The Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 112-100 on the back of Desmond Bane’s 30-point effort.

The visitors left it until late, launching a 24-point comeback in the final quarter to pick up their first win of the season.

Jerami Grant top-scored for Portland with 27.

The Phoenix Suns snapped a three-game losing streak with a 120-106 win over the Detroit Pistons.

Kevin Durant stepped up in the absence of injured starting duo Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, scoring a season-high 41 points in the 14-point victory.

The Cleveland Cavaliers surprised the Golden State Warriors 115-104, while Scottie Barnes scored 30 points to lead the Toronto Raptors over the San Antonio Spurs 123-116.

Nikola Jokic scored 33 points and fell an assist shy of a triple-double as the Denver Nuggets sent the Dallas Mavericks to their first loss of the season, 125-114 on Friday in the inaugural In-Season Tournament.

Michael Porter Jr. had 24 points and nine rebounds and Jamal Murray added 18 points and 13 assists to help Denver bounce back from its first loss of the season.

Jokic shot 14 of 16 and grabbed a season-high 14 boards, coming up an assist short of his 108th career triple-double.

Luka Doncic also just missed a triple-double with 34 points, 10 boards and eight assists and Kyrie Irving scored 22 points for Dallas, which opened the season 4-0.

The Mavericks were without coach Jason Kidd, who didn’t make the trip due to a non-COVID-19 illness. Top assistant Sean Sweeney took his spot on the bench.

Dallas' loss leaves 4-0 Boston as the league’s lone remaining unbeaten team.

Curry’s last-second layup lifts Warriors

Stephen Curry scored 30 points and made the winning layup with 0.2 seconds left to propel the Golden State Warriors to a 141-139 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the teams’ first In-Season Tournament game.

Curry’s basket was initially waved off because of offensive goaltending, but it was overturned, and the Warriors notched their second straight last-second win. Klay Thompson hit a jumper with less than a second remaining in Wednesday’s win over Sacramento.

Dario Saric had 20 points and Andrew Wiggins added 17 to help Golden State win its fifth straight since a season-opening loss to Phoenix.

Lu Dort led the Thunder with 29 points – including 6 of 6 from 3-point range - and Chet Holmgren had a career-high 24 on 7-of-9 shooting with eight rebounds and five assists.

Oklahoma City played without leading scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who sat out with a sprained knee.

Bucks overcome Brunson, Knicks

Damian Lillard scored six straight points down the stretch on his way to 30 points and the Milwaukee Bucks got past the New York Knicks, 110-105 to open the inaugural In-Season Tournament.

Milwaukee survived Jalen Brunson’s 45 points and blew a 14-point lead before Lillard sank a 3-pointer to give the Bucks a 104-103 lead with 1:03 left.

Lillard converted a three-point play 25 seconds later to make it 107-103 and sealed the win with two free throws in the waning seconds.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 22 points, eight rebounds and six assists for Milwaukee, which has alternated wins and losses in each of its five games this season.

Brunson was 17 of 30 from the field and fell three points shy of his career high, set against Cleveland on March 31.

Luka Doncic amassed 35 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists to help the Dallas Mavericks continue their strong start to the NBA season with Monday's 125-110 road win over the slumping Memphis Grizzlies. 

Coming off a 49-point effort in a win over the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, Doncic followed up by making 6 of 12 attempts from 3-point range and going 11 of 22 overall from the field to lead the way as the Mavericks improved to 3-0.

Derrick Jones added 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting and Tim Hardaway Jr. had 21 points on a night Dallas played without its other star guard, Kyrie Irving, due to a left foot sprain.

Memphis, which had the Western Conference's second-best record at 51-31 last season, fell to 0-4 despite 30 points each from Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane. The Grizzlies also got 23 points and nine assists from Marcus Smart in a losing cause.

The short-handed Grizzlies have opened the season without a pair of starters in All-Star Ja Morant and center Steven Adams. Morant is serving a 25-game suspension by the NBA for conduct detrimental to the league, while Adams is not expected to play in 2023-24 after recently undergoing knee surgery.

Jokic powers 4-0 Nuggets past Jazz

Nikola Jokic recorded the 107th triple-double of his illustrious career with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists to lead the unbeaten Denver Nuggets to a 110-102 win over the Utah Jazz.

Jokic made 12 of 16 field-goal attempts and added a pair of blocks while tying LeBron James and Jason Kidd for fourth on the NBA's all-time list in triple-doubles. 

Denver also got an efficient shooting night from Aaron Gordon, who finished 12 of 16 from the field while compiling 21 points and seven rebounds. Jamal Murray chipped in 18 points and 14 assists as the defending NBA champions moved to 4-0.

Lauri Markkanen paced Utah with 27 points, 14 rebounds and five assists, while Walker Kessler tallied 22 points on 10-of-11 shooting along with 13 rebounds.

The Jazz led for just 16 seconds and trailed by as many as 17 points to fall to 1-3.

Curry's hot hand sparks Warriors' rout of Pelicans

Stephen Curry drained seven 3-pointers and finished with 42 points as the Golden State Warriors continued their recent roll with a 130-102 rout of the New Orleans Pelicans.

With long-time backcourt mate Klay Thompson unavailable with a sore right knee, Curry carried the Warriors' offence by going 15 of 22 from the floor and 7 of 13 on 3-point tries. The two-time NBA MVP added five assists to help the Warriors to a third straight victory following a season-opening loss to the Phoenix Suns.

Curry has now made 24 3-pointers during the Warriors' 3-1 start, the most by any player through four games of a season in NBA history. 

Moses Moody started in place of Thompson and scored 13 points, with Chris Paul and rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis also contributing 13 points off the bench in a game Golden State broke open in the second half.

The Warriors held a slim 59-57 advantage at half-time before outscoring the Pelicans by a 39-21 margin in the third quarter.

New Orleans had a two-game winning streak to begin the season snapped while playing without second-leading scorer Brandon Ingram, who was held out with a sore right knee.

Zion Williamson and CJ McCollum led the Pelicans with 19 points each.

Luka Doncic reminded the basketball world just how good he is, scoring 49 points as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Brooklyn Nets 125-120.

The Slovenian superstar hit four straight three-point shots in the final quarter, adding 10 rebounds and seven assists to his mammoth scoring effort, while Nets small forward Cam Thomas had 30 points in the losing side.

French rookie Victor Wembanyama secured the first win of his NBA career in style with 21 points and 12 rebounds as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Houston Rockets 126-122 in overtime.

The 19-year-old proved he is more than ready for the NBA as he hit the game-tying bucket with 20 seconds left in regulation time and added crucial baskets in overtime.

Guard Alex Caruso handed the Chicago Bulls a dramatic victory over the Toronto Raptors, 104-103, with a go-ahead three with just two seconds left of overtime.

Demar DeRozan starred for the Bulls with 18 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter while Scottie Barnes had a triple double for the Raptors with 22 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.

Steph Curry exploded for the Golden State Warriors with 41 points to get the win over the Sacramento Kings 122-114.

It was the battle of the guards throughout the game with Kings guard De’Aaron Fox trying to keep up with Curry, scoring 39 points.

The Boston Celtics took out last year’s runners up the Miami Heat 119-111, taking revenge on the team who knocked them out in the Eastern Conference finals.

Derrick White starred for the Celtics with 28 points while Tyler Herro matched that for Miami.

Nikola Jokic continued his hot start to the season for the Denver Nuggets with 22 points and 12 rebounds as the NBA champions took down the Memphis Grizzlies 108-104.

The Utah Jazz upset the Los Angeles Clippers 120-118 with forward Lauri Markkanen scoring 35 points with 12 rebounds, while Paul George scored 36 points for the Clippers.

Orlando Magic beat the Portland Trail Blazers, the New York Knicks beat the Atlanta Hawks, Oklahoma City Thunder took down the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Detroit Pistons made easy work of the Charlotte Hornets.

Luka Doncic poured in 49 points and sank a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 26.3 seconds remaining to lift the Dallas Mavericks to a 125-120 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Friday.

Cam Thomas’ 3-pointer with 51 seconds left forged a 120-all tie but Doncic answered 25 seconds later when he banked in a 25-foot hook shot from the right sideline while tightly guarded as the shot clock was about to expire.

The Mavericks superstar shot 16 of 25 – including 9 of 14 from deep – and added 10 rebounds and seven assists.

The game was the first between the teams since the February trade that sent 10-time All-Star Kyrie Irving to Dallas in exchange for Dorian Finney-Smith and Spencer Dinwiddie.

Thomas scored 30 points in his seventh career NBA start, a game after setting a league record by scoring 36 points off the bench in a season opener.

Thomas, though, missed a potential tying 3-pointer with 16 seconds left, and Josh Green sealed Dallas’ win with two free throws three seconds later.

Irving finished with 17 points, seven rebounds and six assists and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 19 points.

Dinwiddie had 23 points and six 3s and Mikal Bridges scored 18 for the winless Nets.

Wembanyama sparks Spurs to OT win

Victor Wembanyama had 21 points, including the tying basket with 20 seconds left in regulation, and the San Antonio Spurs notched a 126-122 win in overtime against the Houston Rockets.

The No. 1 draft pick shook off a slow start and had 16 points, eight rebounds and three blocks in the second half and overtime in his first NBA victory.

Devin Vassell scored 25 points and Keldon Johnson added 20 for the Spurs, who bounced back after a season-opening loss to Dallas on Wednesday.

Wembanyama’s jumper early in overtime sparked a 6-0 run, and he made a pair of free throws with 1:45 left to give San Antonio a 120-115 lead.

Alperen Sengun led the Rockets with 25 points.

Celtics beat Heat in East finals rematch

Derrick White scored 28 points with five 3-pointers and the Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat 119-111 on Friday in a rematch of last season’s Eastern Conference finals.

Jaylen Brown added 27 points and Jayson Tatum had 22 for the Celtics, who followed Wednesday’s season-opening victory over the Knicks with a win in their home opener.

Miami squandered a 3-0 series lead against the Celtics last season before winning Game 7 in Boston to advance to its seventh NBA Finals.

Tyler Herro led the Heat with 28 points and sank five of his team’s 16 3-pointers. Bam Adebayo added 27 points and Jimmy Butler scored 14 on 3-of-11 shooting.

Neither team led by more than five points at the end of any of the first three periods and there were six ties and six lead changes in the game.

Kristaps Porzingis called it an "awesome" feeling after dropping 30 points to lead the Boston Celtics to victory over his former team, the New York Knicks.

Porzingis was drafted by the Knicks with the fourth overall pick of the 2015 draft, spending four years at Madison Square Garden before he was traded to the Dallas Mavericks.

The Latvia native would go on to play for the Washington Wizards before joining the Celtics in a three-team trade prior to this season, and on his return to a hostile Madison Square Garden on Wednesday, Porzingis played a starring role for his new team on debut.

Porzingis finished with 30 points, eight rebounds and four blocks, scoring nine straight points in the fourth quarter to seal a 108-104 victory which got Boston, one of the favourites to reach the NBA Finals, off to a winning start to the new NBA season.

His 30 points were the most ever for a Celtics debut, leaving Porzingis ecstatic with his start in a new uniform and at the performance against his old team, as Jayson Tatum also impressed with a game-high 34 points.

Porzingis said: "Honestly, it’s an awesome feeling to come back now being a Celtic and to play here.

"Playing here at the Garden is always special as the home team, obviously, but also on the road here it's really fun too. Even getting booed and getting all that, it's still cool, I really like that and enjoyed that.

"At one point it got really crazy when the fans got into it and they made the comeback. But we stayed poised, we stayed calm and we were able to finish out the game. 

"Most importantly, we won the game and [I am] very excited about what we have ahead of us."

The Celtics are at home to the Miami Heat on Friday in a repeat of last season's Eastern Conference finals, which Boston lost in a thrilling seven-game series.

Miami started its season with a dramatic 103-102 win over the Detroit Pistons.

Luka Doncic played spoiler in number one draft pick Victor Wembanyama’s NBA debut as the Dallas Mavericks eclipsed the San Antonio Spurs 126-119.

After a solid start from the Spurs, the Mavericks were able to rally in the third quarter and hold on to their lead in the home stretch.

Doncic was central in Dallas’ third-quarter effort and finished with a 33-point triple-double.

Wembanyama had two threes in the opening quarter but was slowed by foul trouble until a fourth-quarter flourish lifted him to 15 points to go along with five rebounds.

New recruit Kristaps Porzingis played a pivotal role in seeing the Boston Celtics past the New York Knicks 108-104.

The former Knick combined with Jayson Tatum for 64 points, which included a tiebreaking three-pointer with 90 seconds left on the clock.

RJ Barrett scored 24 points for New York, while Immanuel Quickley added 24 off the bench.

Last season’s finalists the Miami Heat were pushed to their limit in a 103-102 win over the Detroit Pistons.

Miami looked to have victory all but sealed when they took a 19-point lead with nine minutes left.

Detroit were somehow able to claw their way back to within one, but ultimately fell short as Cade Cunningham missed a 30-foot jump shot at the buzzer.

It was also a close result in Brooklyn, where a late burst from Donovan Mitchell pushed the Cleveland Cavaliers past the Nets 114-113.

Mitchell scored 10 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, including a go-ahead three in the dying seconds.

A 25-point effort from PJ Washington helped the Charlotte Hornets down the Atlanta Hawks 116-110, and Zion Williamson scored 23 in the New Orleans Pelicans’ 111-104 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

Elsewhere, the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder, Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers opened their seasons with double-digit victories, while the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Portland Trail Blazers and the Toronto Raptors scraped past the Minnesota Timberwolves 97-94 in a low-scoring affair.

The NBA’s top free agent is already off the board.

Kyrie Irving has agreed to a contract to remain with the Dallas Mavericks and stay paired with superstar Luka Dončić, multiple media outlets reported Friday.

The deal is reported to be worth $126million over three seasons, with a player option for the final year.

The NBA's negotiating period began Friday at 6 p.m. ET. Deals will not be made official until the end of the league's annual moratorium on July 6.

The Mavericks acquired Irving at last season’s trade deadline for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and draft compensation, but Irving reportedly explored other options in free agency.

Irving had been eligible for a maximum contract of up to five years and $272million with Dallas, but he landed at a shorter deal after playing about 40 games per year over the last four seasons.

Irving accepting less than his maximum eligible contract opens up some or all of the non-taxpayer midlevel exception, up to $12.4million, for Dallas to use on role players.

While the Mavs were determined to keep a co-star to pair with Doncic, some have questioned the viability of the fit.

Dallas finished the season 9-18 after acquiring Irving and missed the playoffs. Irving averaged 27 points, five rebounds and six assists in 20 games with the Mavericks last season.

After helping the Cleveland Cavaliers win the 2016 NBA title, Irving has morphed into one of the more enigmatic players in basketball. His stints with the Cavs and Nets both ended with trade demands.

Irving has played 671 career games since being drafted No. 1 overall in 2011, averaging 23.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 5.7 assists.