Nov 3, 2005 3 min read

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – Ron Artest behaved perfectly in his return to the NBA on Wednesday night. He played pretty well, too. Artest had 16 points, three rebounds and five assists, and the Indiana Pacers began life without Reggie Miller with a 90-78 victory over the Orlando Magic.

Cavs 109, Hornets 87

CLEVELAND – LeBron James hardly needed any assistance from the hired help.

Cleveland’s All-Star forward, playing his first regular-season game with new teammates brought in to help get him to the playoffs, made six 3-pointers and scored 31 points as the Cavaliers beat New Orleans to help rookie coach Mike Brown win his debut.

Wizards 99, Raptors 96

TORONTO – Antawn Jamison had 29 points and Washington held off the Raptors.

Gilbert Arenas added 21 points for the Wizards, who escaped with the victory.

Jalen Rose had 20 points for the Raptors, but just two in the fourth quarter as he missed a number of shots down the stretch.

Bucks 110, Nets 96

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Michael Redd scored 41 points and Maurice Williams added 23 off the bench to lead Milwaukee past New Jersey.

Redd, who topped 30 points for the second straight game, scored 33 of his points in the second half. Andrew Bogut had 10 points and 17 rebounds for the Bucks.

T’wolves 90, Blazers 86

MINNEAPOLIS – Dwane Casey’s first head coaching victory came at the expense of an old friend.

Kevin Garnett had 18 points, seven rebounds and seven assists and Richie Frahm hit his first five 3-pointers to lead the Timberwolves over Portland and new coach Nate McMillan, who either coached with or played for Casey in Seattle for the past 11 years.

Pistons 108, 76ers 88

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – The only difference was the coaches.

Richard Hamilton scored 37 points to lead the Detroit Pistons past the Philadelphia 76ers in a game that looked a lot like their first-round series six months ago.

Heat 97, Grizzlies 78

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Antoine Walker scored 25 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, and Dwyane Wade added 23 points as Miami defeated the Grizzlies.

Walker shot 10-of-17 from the field, including 4-of-7 from 3-point range in Miami’s season opener.

Shaquille O’Neal scored 12 points, and Jason Williams, playing his first game as the Heat point guard after four seasons in Memphis, finished with 10.

Despite holding O’Neal to four points in the first half, Memphis lost its fifth consecutive season opener, all at home. Pau Gasol led the Grizzlies with 26 points and 12 rebounds, and Eddie Jones scored 15 points. Damon Stoudamire had 10 points and five assists.