Cleveland Cavaliers get season off and running at seventh attempt

The Cleveland Cavaliers finally celebrated their first win since LeBron James’ departure as they beat the Atlanta Hawks 136-114.

The Cavaliers, who reached the NBA Finals in each of the past four years during James’ second spell at the franchise, had started the season with six straight defeats.

Bu, after firing head coach Tyronn Lue, they ended the miserable run in the first game under interim coach Larry Drew, with Rodney Hood scoring 26 points and Cedi Osman chipping in with 20.

Elsewhere, former Cavalier Kyrie Irving scored a season-high 31 points to lead the Boston Celtics to a 108-105 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

Irving, who had previously reached 22 points against the Orlando Magic last week, added five assists and five rebounds at TD Garden.

With the Pistons leading at half-time, Irving sparked a third-quarter rally, scoring 13, to put the Celtics on top.

The Pistons mounted a fightback in the fourth, twice cutting Boston’s lead to within a point – the second time with only 12 seconds remaining – but Boston held on for their third win in a row.

Russell Westbrook had 32 points in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 128-110 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Thunder ran away with the game in the third quarter, outscoring the Clippers 39-10, but it was Westbrook and Patrick Beverley’s heated rivalry which stood out in the fourth, with both players receiving a technical foul.

The Philadelphia 76ers were downed 129-112 by the Toronto Raptors as Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points and Pascal Siakam had a career-best 15 rebounds, while the Sacramento Kings saw off the Orlando Magic 107-99.

Damian Lillard and Jusuf Nurkic both scored 22 points as the Portland Trail Blazers swept aside the Houston Rockets 104-85, the Washington Wizards fell to a fourth straight loss as the Memphis Grizzlies triumphed 107-95 and the Charlotte Hornets beat the Miami Heat 125-113.