The NBA season is in full swing, with several former Syracuse stars making their debuts on Wednesday night. Here’s a rundown of how they did and what’s coming up in the schedule.
Carmelo Anthony (13th NBA season): The New York Knicks and Anthony have their home opener tonight at Madison Square Garden against the Atlanta Hawks. NBA Betting Odds by TonyBet has the Hawks as a 4.5 point favorite. The Knicks opened the season with a 122-97 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday. In his first regular season game since knee surgery last year, Anthony had 11 points, five assists and six rebounds. He struggled with his shot, hitting just 4-of-16 shots and 1-of-5 from downtown.
Michael Carter-Williams (3rd NBA season): Carter-Williams led the Bucks in the loss with 20 points on 6-for-17 shooting, four assists and five rebounds. He also had a game-high six turnovers. But look for Carter-Williams to be more efficient when O.J. Mayo returns from a hamstring injury and Giannis Antetokounmpo returns from suspension. The Bucks are next in action on Friday night against the Wizards for an 8 p.m. tip.
Jerami Grant (2nd NBA season): The Philadelphia 76ers lost their debut 112-95 to the Boston Celtics. Grant played 26 minutes off the bench and scored nine points and collected six rebounds. The Sixers play the Jazz tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Wes Johnson (6th NBA season): The Los Angeles Clippers opened the season with a 114-104 win over the Sacramento Kings. Johnson played 10 minutes off the bench and finished with 3 points and a steal. They host the Dallas Mavericks at 10:30 p.m. and are a 10.5 point favorite.
Dion Waiters (4th NBA season): Waiters came off the bench for 8 points and 4 rebounds on 4-of-8 shooting as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the San Antonio Spurs 112-106. The Thunder play the Orlando Magic tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Other players we’ll follow through the rest of the season include Chris McCullough (rookie) of the Nets, Rakeem Christmas (rookie) on the Indiana Pacers and Tyler Ennis (2nd NBA season), who also plays for the Bucks. Ennis has been recovering from a shoulder injury while McCullough is recovering from an ACL tear. Christmas may have a tough time cracking the rotation, and could spend time with the Pacers D-League affiliate, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.
