De’Aaron Fox shines in NBA season debut as San Antonio Spurs down New Orleans Pelicans
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San Antonio Spurs guard De'Aaron Fox dribbling against New Orleans Pelicans guard Jeremiah Fears in the second half of the Spurs' 126-119 NBA win at Frost Bank Centre.
PHOTO: IMAGN IMAGES
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LOS ANGELES – De’Aaron Fox celebrated his National Basketball Association (NBA) 2025-26 season-debut with a sparkling 24-point performance in the San Antonio Spurs’ 126-119 victory over New Orleans on Nov 8.
All-Star guard Fox, who missed San Antonio’s first eight games recovering from a hamstring injury, scored 24 points to lead eight Spurs players in double figures.
“We’ve been waiting for Fox to get back, really all summer,” San Antonio guard Stephon Castle told ESPN. “It’s great to have him back on the court. Obviously, you see how much of a help offensively he is for us. It’s only up from here.”
French star Victor Wembanyama added 18 points and 18 rebounds as the Spurs withstood a 41-point outburst from New Orleans’ Trey Murphy.
The Spurs led all the way against a Pelicans team playing without star big man Zion Williamson.
Fox missed his only two attempts in the first quarter, but that was enough to shake off the rust. He went six-for-six in the second period and had 15 points by half-time, when the Spurs led 66-58.
The Pelicans had cut a 14-point fourth quarter deficit to three in the final minute when Fox drove for a basket. He added two free throws on San Antonio’s next possession.
“Oh, I was extremely excited,” Fox said. “Obviously I’m just like anybody, I have nerves, but coming out here, man, my teammates trust me, I trust them... I’m just trying to help them get wins.”
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers arrived in Atlanta riding a five-game winning streak behind the high-scoring efforts of Luka Doncic, but that came to an end in a 122-102 loss to the Hawks.
Doncic scored a game-high 22 points and handed out 11 assists, but he committed five of the 19 Lakers turnovers that led to 36 Hawks points. “Just not a lot to like tonight,” Lakers coach J.J. Redick said. “Very disappointing.”
Forward Mouhamed Gueye had 21 points, seven boards and seven assists for the Hawks, who were missing several key players. The Lakers, missing Austin Reaves for a third straight game and still waiting for superstar LeBron James to make his season debut as he recovers from sciatica, trailed by as many as 30.
Elsewhere, the Denver Nuggets, fuelled by Nikola Jokic’s sixth triple-double of the season, beat the Indiana Pacers 117-100.
In Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell’s 29 points included the go-ahead basket with 33.4 seconds remaining in the Cavaliers’ 128-122 victory over the Chicago Bulls. In Miami, the Heat prevailed 136-131 in a fast-paced back-and-forth battle with the Portland Trail Blazers.
In other Nov 8 games, the Dallas Mavericks beat the Washington Wizards 111-105, the Philadelphia 76ers saw off the Toronto Raptors 130-120, the Miami Heat trumped the Portland Trail Blazers 136-131 and the Phoenix Suns registered a rare road win, beating the Los Angeles Clippers 114-103. AFP
