R. Allen & L. Ridnour, Sonics
117-101 win vs. Lakers
54 pts, 19-29 FG, 5-6 3-pt FG

Carlos Arroyo, Magic
95-82 loss at Hawks
22 pts, 9-9 FG, 1-1 3-pt FG, 3-4 FT

Brent Barry, Spurs
103-94 win at Raptors
16 pts, 5-6 FG, 5-5 3-pt FG

Allen Iverson had a monster offensive effort (31 points and 13 assists), but the other A.I., Andre Iguodala, had the most consistent stat line. Iggy Hop scored 20 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including 2-of-3 from deep, and his thunderous fourth-quarter dunk off a feed from Iverson led to a three-point play that put the Sixers up for good. Iguodala also added seven rebounds and five dimes to an otherwise loaded line.

Hedo Turkoglu, Magic
95-82 loss at Hawks
1-10 FG, 0-4 3-pt FG, 3 pts

T.J. Ford, Raptors
103-94 loss vs. Spurs
5-14 FG, 0-2 3-pt FG, 15 pts

Speedy Claxton, Hawks
95-82 win vs. Magic
1-10 FG, 6 pts

Sonics fans converged on Key Arena to see members of the franchise's 40th anniversary team honored at halftime of Sunday's meeting with the Lakers. No one could blame them if they thought intermission would be the highlight of the affair. After dropping its first two games this season and giving up a league-worst 114 points per game, Seattle needed to defeat the Lakers -- owner's of the NBA's highest-scoring offense -- in order to avoid an 0-3 record for the first time since 1985-86. Perhaps inspired by the presence of former Sonics greats, Rashard Lewis and Ray Allen -- both of whom were part of the 40th anniversary squad -- shot the lights out of the gym and carried Seattle to a 117-101 win. Luke Ridnour did his part, as well, scoring 22 points on 9-of-13 from the floor.

On Sunday, the Hornets played their first home opener in New Orleans since the devastation of Hurricane Katrina forced them to Oklahoma City before last season. The new face of the franchise, Chris Paul, made sure the 18,000-plus fans in attendance went home with smiles on their faces, scoring 12 points and tying a career high with 16 assists, as New Orleans (sorry, Oklahoma City, but it still says "New Orleans" on their jerseys) defeated Houston, 96-90. "You don't want to come out here with all the press and all these people and send them home disappointed,'' said Hornets forward David West, who scored 20 points. "We wanted to make sure we sent them home happy.'' Thanks to their win, West and his teammates can be sure they did just that.

Jordan Farmar provided the Lakers with the lone bright spot in their double-digit loss in Seattle. The 26th pick in this year's draft, Farmar scored 14 points and made five of his six shot attempts, including one from behind the 3-point line. Granted, the UCLA product scored 12 of his points and played the majority of his 18 minutes in the fourth quarter, which Los Angeles entered trailing by 23 points, but Farmar's performance -- along with another solid effort by second-year big man Andrew Bynum -- gave fans in Hollywood reason to believe their young guns may be ready to fire with Kobe and the big boys a bit sooner than expected.

The theme of Sunday's matinee between the Sixers and Heat was three, but Kyle Korver showed everyone the value of of a good sixth man. Korver nailed his first five 3-pointers, extending his personal streak to nine in a row, before missing his final attempt of the day. He got hot in the third quarter and scored 13 of his 22 points to help Philly turn a seven-point halftime hole into a 17-point lead, which it rode to a 107-98 win. "He has to be that sparkplug off the bench,'' Allen Iverson said. "It's great how he handled the responsibility of being the sixth man.'' Korver's prowess off the pine helped Philly to its first 3-0 start in six seasons.

Lamar Odom entered play Sunday averaging 28 points through three games so far this season, all of which ended in Lakers victories. Couple his scoring output with a matchup against the league's most porous defense, and the recipe for an Odom eruption was brewing. But the Sonics -- who Odom burned for 28 points two nights ago -- stepped up their defensive effort and stifled Odom all night long. The frontcourt trio of starters Chris Wilcox and Johan Petro and backup forward Nick Collison forced Odom into four turnovers and held him to just six field-goal and four free-throw attempts. He finished with a paltry 11 points.