The victory pushed their record to a remarkable 22-1, the best start since the Golden State Warriors began the 2015-16 season 24-0, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the charge with 33 points, while Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren contributed 15 points each. With a 30-point lead through three quarters, the Thunder rested their starters in the final period, ending the Mavericks' three-game winning streak.
Dallas struggled without star center Anthony Davis, who scored just two points and left the game in the third quarter with a knee injury. Jaden Hardy led the Mavericks with 23 points.
Meanwhile, the Boston Celtics cruised to a 126-105 win over the depleted Los Angeles Lakers. Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 30 points in a game that lost some of its excitement due to the absence of LeBron James, sidelined by sciatica and foot issues. Despite a strong 36-point performance from Austin Reaves, the Lakers were no match for Boston, who led by as many as 29 points.
In other action, Denver's Nikola Jokic scored 30 of his 40 points in the second half, propelling the Nuggets to a 134-133 win over the Atlanta Hawks. Despite a triple-double from Jalen Johnson (21 points, 18 rebounds, 16 assists), the Hawks couldn't hold off the Nuggets' second-half surge, with Jamal Murray adding 23 points and a crucial block in the final seconds.
In Orlando, Franz Wagner scored 32 points, and Jalen Suggs contributed 22 as the Magic narrowly defeated the Miami Heat 106-105. Miami, trailing by 10 in the fourth quarter, nearly pulled off a late comeback, but missed several key opportunities in the final moments, including a missed fadeaway jumper by Norman Powell and a three-pointer by Bam Adebayo as time expired.
It was a milestone night for Houston star Kevin Durant, who became the eighth player in NBA history to score 31,000 career points in the Rockets' 117-98 victory over the Phoenix Suns.
Durant came into his first game against his former team since a blockbuster July trade needing just four points to reach the mark, which he achieved with a jump shot midway through the first quarter.
Durant, eighth on the league's all-time scoring list, finished with 28 points and teammate Amen Thompson scored his season-high of 31 as the Rockets claimed a fifth victory in six games.
"I'm just grateful to be in this position to live out my dreams every single day," Durant, a former NBA Most Valuable Player and a two-time champion, said of his latest milestone. "So many people have invested in my life. I'm just grateful for them and I want to keep it going."
At Madison Square Garden, the New York Knicks opened on a 23-0 scoring run and kept the pedal down in a 146-112 rout of the Utah Jazz.
