The Minnesota Timberwolves had Anthony Edwards on the court for only three minutes on Sunday, but they were able to overcome the three-time NBA All-Star’s hamstring injury to defeat the banged-up Indiana Pacers 114-110.

Edwards exited 3:08 into the first quarter with tightness in his right hamstring after the first overall selection in the 2020 NBA Draft combined for 72 points in the first two games of the season for Minnesota (2-1).

Julius Randle stepped up for the Timberwolves after Edwards went down, finishing with 31 points and six assists, while Rudy Gobert provided a big lift with 14 points and 18 boards.

The defending Eastern Conference champion Pacers dropped to 0-3 on the season as Pascal Siakam’s 33 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and three steals weren’t enough for depleted Indiana.

Leading scorer Bennedict Mathurin was one of seven Indiana players unavailable due to injuries, and the Pacers then lost key reserve Obi Toppin to a right hamstring injury in the third quarter.

THIS GUY pic.twitter.com/KzKhbIiD36

— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) October 27, 2025

Reaves' 51 lift Lakers team without James, Doncic

Hours after announcing that Luka Doncic would join LeBron James on the sidelines, the Los Angeles Lakers got a career-high 51 points from Austin Reaves in a 127-120 road win over the Sacramento Kings.

Doncic is expected to miss at least one week due to a left finger sprain and lower left leg contusion after he began the season with back-to-back 40-point games, including 49 in a 128-110 win over Minnesota on Friday night after the five-time first-team All-NBA selection injured his non-shooting hand in the opening minutes.

Doncic had taken on an even larger load with James out until at least mid-November because of sciatica, combining for 23 rebounds and 17 assists while shooting 31 of 50 (62 per cent) for the Lakers (2-1).

Reaves stepped into a larger role against Sacramento (1-2) and shot 12 of 22 overall, 6 of 10 from three-point range and 21 of 22 from the free-throw line in addition to grabbing 11 rebounds, dishing out nine assists and picking up two steals.

Reaves is averaging 34.0 points, 9.7 assists and 7.7 boards in Los Angeles’ first three contests.

51 for 15 pic.twitter.com/QMCI2AWUAV

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) October 27, 2025

Wembanyama shines again for unbeaten San Antonio

Victor Wembanyama continued his torrid start to the season with another stat-sheet stuffing performance to help the undefeated San Antonio Spurs beat the Brooklyn Nets 118-107 in their home opener.

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft had 31 points, 14 rebounds, six blocks, four assists and three steals as the Spurs began a season with three straight wins for the first time since 2019-20.

The former NBA Rookie of the Year is averaging 33.3 points, 13.3 rebounds and 6.0 blocks just eight months after his 2024-25 campaign ended due to a blood clot in the 7-foot-3 center’s right shoulder.

Wembanyama was limited to 46 games last season and averaged 24.3 points, 11.0 boards, 3.7 assists and 3.83 blocks.

San Antonio rookie point guard Dylan Harper, the second overall selection in June’s Draft, came off the bench to add 20 points, eight assists, six rebounds and two steals.

Cam Thomas poured in 40 points for the Nets, but only two other players scored in double figures as Brooklyn fell to 0-3 for the first time since opening 2015-26 with seven consecutive defeats.

THAT 3-0 FEELING pic.twitter.com/8xjLj7JBQ5

— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) October 26, 2025

Heat hand Knicks first loss of season

The Miami Heat ended the New York Knicks’ bid for a rare 3-0 start by recording a 115-107 victory in their home opener.

Norman Powell led Miami with 29 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals, while Bam Adebayo scored 19, pulled down 13 boards and dished out three assists.

The Heat won for the second straight time after beginning the season with a four-point loss to the Orlando Magic.

The Knicks were trying to open with three consecutive wins for the first time since 2012-13 and got 37 points on 14-of-26 shooting from Jalen Brunson, but the rest of the team combined to shoot just 33.3 per cent (24 of 72).

Chat...are we... pic.twitter.com/NeiVKzE0lj

— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) October 27, 2025