Stephen Curry showed why he is the reigning MVP as NBA champions the Golden State Warriors made a winning start to the season with a 111-95 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans.

Curry posted 40 points to lead the Warriors past the Pelicans on the opening night of the 2015-16 NBA campaign in Oakland.

Of Curry's 40 points, the Warriors star scored 23 in a remarkable opening quarter on Tuesday.

Despite retaining almost the entire team that won a league-high 67 games and the NBA Championship last season, the Warriors still have their doubters.

The same goes for Curry. Despite being a fan favourite, the NBA players voted Houston Rockets guard James Harden, not Curry, as the league's MVP. 

All Curry and the Warriors did on Tuesday was show that the road to the NBA title still has to go through the Bay Area as the Warriors downed the Pelicans.

The Pelicans were unable to rely on two-time All-Star Anthony Davis, who scored 18 points but converted just four-of-20 field-goal attempts.

Team-mate Kendrick Perkins, however, was perfect after shooting five-for-five in a 10-point game.

The Chicago Bulls had Pau Gasol to thank as they held on to beat last season's finalist the Cleveland Cavaliers 97-95.

Highlight: Chicago Bulls 97 - 95 Cleveland Cavaliers

Gasol produced a big defensive stop to block a LeBron James layup that would have tied the game just before the buzzer in Chicago.

The block was Gasol's sixth of the night, as the Bulls got a little revenge on the Cavs for knocking them out in the second round of last season's play-offs. 

Derrick Rose scored 18 points for the Bulls, while Nikola Mirotic led the way with 19 of his own.

James had a double-double for the Cavs, posting 25 points and 10 rebounds.

Meanwhile, the Detroit Pistons stunned the Atlanta Hawks 106-94.

Andre Drummond was sensational for the Pistons, scoring 18 points, grabbing 19 rebounds, dishing out three assists and blocking two shots.