Opening gala by Dennis Schröder, strong performance by Franz Wagner: The German World Cup heroes have made a successful start to the new NBA season.
In his debut for his new club, Schröder led the Toronto Raptors as top scorer with 22 points to a 97:94 win against the Minnesota Timberwolves, while Wagner scored 19 points in the Orlando Magic’s 116:86 win against the Houston Rockets.
Moritz Wagner also contributed two points and four rebounds in 15 minutes off the bench for the Magic. Daniel Theis, the fourth German world champion in the NBA, was not used in his Indiana Pacers’ 143:120 win against the Washington Wizards.
National team captain Schröder immediately put his stamp on the Raptors’ game. In the 33 minutes on the field, the Braunschweig native not only scored valuable points but also had seven assists – also his team’s best. Schröder also grabbed three rebounds.
Maximilian Kleber also caused a stir with the Dallas Mavericks. His team won 126:119 at the San Antonio Spurs and ruined the much-anticipated NBA debut of celebrated basketball super talent Victor Wembanyama. The Frenchman’s 15 points and five rebounds could not prevent the Spurs from losing.
Kleber, who was not at the World Cup, had six points and seven rebounds in 23 minutes for the Mavs. Luka Doncic once again became the man of the evening with his triple-double. In addition to his 33 points, the Slovenian had 13 rebounds and 10 assists.
Meanwhile, Isaiah Hartenstein suffered an opening defeat with the New York Knicks. In the 104:108 win against the Boston Celtics, the son of former Bundesliga player Florian Hartenstein had seven points and eight rebounds in his 26 minutes at Madison Square Garden.