The Miami Heat recovered from a slow start to secure a win over the Washington Wizards in their first game since LeBron James's departure.

Having taken a lead in the first quarter, the Wizards fought back late on to cut Miami's lead to a single point, but Norris Cole and Mario Chalmers both made three-pointers in the final minutes to clinch the win.

Derrick Rose returned from injury to help the Chicago Bulls thrash the New York Knicks in their first game under new coach Derek Fisher.

Rose missed most of last season with a torn meniscus, but came off the bench in the second half to add 13 points, while Pau Gasol finished with 21 on his debut for the team.

Carmelo Anthony kept the Knicks in contention in the first half, but had little impact in the third as Chicago opened up a 24-point lead.

The Los Angeles Lakers slipped to their second defeat in as many nights with a heavy loss at the Phoenix Suns.

The visitors fell 14 points behind by the end of the first quarter, and despite a 31-point game from Kobe Bryant LA were unable to get back into the game.

Goran Dragic made sure that the Suns ended any hope of a Lakers comeback in the third quarter, scoring 12 of his 18 points straight after the break as Phoenix built up a lead of 29 points.

The Charlotte Hornets secured their first win since changing their name from Bobcats, edging out the Milwaukee Bucks in overtime.

Kemba Walker, who signed a new contract with the team earlier this week, led the team with 26 points, and also made a block with five seconds left to prevent the visitors from completing their comeback.

The Indiana Pacers needed a strong second-half performance to secure a victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Sixers had a narrow lead heading into half time following a bright start by Nerlens Noel on his NBA debut, but Roy Hibbert led the Pacers fightback in the second half, finishing the night with 22 points.

The Oklahoma City Thunder slipped to a heavy defeat to the Portland Trail Blazers, despite a 38-point game from Russell Westbrook.

The Thunder, who are without injured MVP Kevin Durant, made a bright start, opening up a five-point advantage in the first 12 minutes, but LaMarcus Aldridge found his feet in the second half to lead the Portland comeback.

Rajon Rondo led the Boston Celtics to a comfortable victory over the Brooklyn Nets to get their season off to a winning start.

Having sat out the pre-season with a broken hand, the guard passed a late fitness test to score 13 points and have 12 assists, while Kelly Olynyk finished the game with 19 points.

The Toronto Raptors held off a strong fourth-quarter comeback from the Atlanta Hawks to finish their opening game with a win.

DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry gave the hosts a lead, but their shooting accuracy dropped in the second half to let the Hawks back into the game before DeRozan added a couple of free shots late on to clinch the win.

The Houston Rockets secured back-to-back wins at the start of the new season with a nine-point victory over the Utah Jazz.

Dwight Howard put his scuffle with Kobe Bryant behind him to lead the team with 22 points, which was enough for the Rockets to hold off a third-quarter charge led by Alec Burks.

Steve Kerr made a winning start to his career as Golden State Warriors coach, as his side cruised to a win over the Sacramento Kings.

The home side kept the scores close in the first half, but dominant shooting displays from Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson ensured that the Warriors pulled away in the second half.

Marc Gasol scored a career-high 32 points against the Minnesota Timberwolves to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to their first season-opener win since 2000.

The Timberwolves had a narrow lead at the start of the fourth quarter, but Memphis finished strongly, with Gasol making a 21-foot shot with just over a minute to play to ensure that they started the season with a win for the first time in 14 years.

The Denver Nuggets needed a strong finish to ensure that they got off to a winning start against the Detroit Pistons.

The hosts edged ahead in the first quarter, but were unable to extend their advantage until the final period when Timofey Mozgov and Kenneth Faried made sure of the victory.

Results in full: Milwaukee Bucks 106-108 Charlotte Hornets, Philadelphia 76ers 91-103 Indiana Pacers, Brooklyn Nets 105-121 Boston Celtics, Washington Wizards 95-107 Miami Heat, Atlanta Hawks 102-109 Toronto Raptors, Minnesota Timberwolves 101-105 Memphis Grizzlies, Chicago Bulls 104-80 New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons 79-89 Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets 104-93 Utah Jazz, Los Angeles Lakers 99-119 Phoenix Suns, Golden State Warriors 95-77 Sacramento Kings, Oklahoma City Thunder 89-106 Portland Trail Blazers