NBA Preseason-October 11th

Denver 128, Indiana 112

The Good:Carmelo Anthony had 45 points on 14-of-19 from the floor to lead the Nuggets, who also got 21 points from Nene on their way to a victory over the Pacers in Beijing. Roy Hibbert had 21 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 blocked shots for Inidiana.
The Bad: Danny Granger scored only 8 points on 1-of-5 from the field and Dahntay Jones was 2-of-7 on his way to fouling out in 23 minutes.

Boston 100, New Jersey 93

The Good: Paul Pierce scored 25 points for the Celtics, who also got solid performances off the bench from Eddie House (13 points) and Marquis Daniels (9 points and a +12 rating in 19 minutes). Brook Lopez led the Nets with 21 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 blocked shots, and rookie Yi Jianlian scored 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting.
The Bad: Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, and Rasheed Wallace combined to shoot just 5-of-19 from the field for Boston.
The Ugly: The Nets one-upped the Celtics, as new additions Terrence Williams, Rafer Alston, and Courtney Lee combined to shoot 5-of-20 in the loss.

Toronto 100, Washington 93

The Good: Rookie DeMar DeRozan had a strong showing for Toronto, posting 19 points, and the team shot a remarkable 90% (36-for-40) from the free throw line. Washington got double-doubles from Antawn Jamison and Andray Blatche, and Gilbert Arenas overcame a poor shooting night to contribute 14 points and 7 assists.
The Bad: Although Blatche notched a double-double, the Wizards were outscored by 21 points while he was on the floor. Nick Young also had an off night, going 2-of-11 from the field. Jarrett Jack played 32 minutes in relief of Jose Calderon, but only managed 10 points on a dreadful 3-of-13 shooting.

Detroit 100, Atlanta 91

The Good: Detroit has come a long way from the defensive-minded group that won the NBA Championship in 2004. They have a number of quick, athletic guards who can score in bunches, and their new faster paced offense was visible against Atlanta. Ben Gordon led Detroit with 22, while Rodney Stuckey had 20, and Richard Hamilton added 15. Marvin Williams led the Hawks with 19 points, who also got 12 points and 8 assists from rookie Jeff Teague.
The Bad: Tayshaun Prince went scorless, shooting 0-for-5, with 3 rebounds and 2 assists in his 21 minutes.
The Ugly: Atlanta shot 39.5% from the field as a team, including an 0-for-4 showing from Mike Bibby, a 1-for-7 outing from Al Horford, and a 3-for-9 effort from Josh Smith.

San Antonio 95, Miami 93

The Good: Second-round steal DeJuan Blair exploded with a 28 point, 11-for-13 shooting performance off the bench for the Spurs. He also added 4 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals in only 26 minutes. Miami had to rely heavily on their young players without Dwyane Wade and Jermaine O'Neal in the lineup. The Heat got 20 points from Daequan Cook, 17 from Mario Chalmers, and 16 from Michael Beasley.
The Bad: Keith Bogans shot 0-for-6 for San Antonio and James Jones shot 0-for-5 for Miami in 21 minutes apiece.
The Ugly: Miami could only muster a disappointing 65% from the free throw line.

Dallas 114, Memphis 107

The Good: Kris Humphries had another strong showing for Dallas, posting 16 points and 9 rebounds in 21 minutes, and Dirk Nowitzki (26) and Jason Terry (23) surpassed the 20-point plateau. Mike Conley and Darrell Arthur had 17 apiece for the Grizzlies, who also got 13 apiece from Zach Randolph and rookie DeMarre Carroll.
The Bad: OJ Mayo had 10 points and 10 assists, but didn't gather a single rebound, or record a steal or a block. Second overall pick Hasheem Thabeet got his first preseason start, and had another lackluster showing, posting 5 points, 6 rebounds, and a block in 20 minutes.
The Ugly: There were only 2 blocked shots in this game, both recorded by Memphis.