(Basketball news) The Golden State Warriors bounced back in Game 2 of the finals as they beat the Boston Celtics 107-89 to level the series 1-1. For the Warriors, Stephen Curry scored 29 points while Poole finished with 17 points, they also got 12 from Kevon Looney on 6-for-6 shooting, and 11 apiece from Andrew Wiggins and Klay Thompson. For the Celtics, Jayson Tatum scored 21 of his 28 points in the first half for Boston. Jaylen Brown added 17 for them, but fought through a 5-for-17 shooting night, and Derrick White scored 12. With this result the 2 matches at San Francisco are done as both the teams will go to Boston to play the next two games.

The Celtics were bidding to join only the 1993 Chicago Bulls and 1995 Houston Rockets to the list of teams that swept two road games to open in the finals. Those Bulls and Rockets teams went on to win the championship, and 31 of the previous 36 teams to open with 2-0 leads in a NBA Final have ended up celebrating a title. But if you ask any Celtics fans if they would have taken a 1-1 series before they come to Boston, all the fans would have taken this scenario considering how strong the Warriors have been this season. The Celtics now technically need to only win their remaining home games to become champions, though that won't be easy against this Warriors team that has won at least one road game in an NBA-record 26 consecutive playoff series. 

''I thought everybody was more engaged,'' Warriors coach Steve Kerr said after his team improved to 5-0 after a loss in these playoffs. ''It's pretty obvious. Just our level of force and physicality was ramped up quite a bit, and it had to be.''

''We said we needed to play with desperation,'' Curry said. ''That's what we did.''

''Steph was breathtaking in that quarter,'' Kerr said.

''I just let them know how I felt throughout the game in a demonstrative way, on purpose, to get a technical,'' Udoka said.

''We have to take better care of the ball,'' Tatum said.

''It is what it is,'' said the Celtics' Al Horford, who had 26 points in Game 1 and was held to two points Sunday. ''On to Game 3.''

Also read: Celtics draw first blood against the Warriors in the NBA Final
 

(Football news) Todd Boehly’s consortium has agreed to buy Chelsea Football Club from Roman Abramovich. Announced by the club on Saturday, the proposed deal is subject to approval by the UK Government and the Premier League before its completion, with the formalities expected to close by late May. The consortium is led by the LA Dodgers’ part owner and has the backing of Clearlake Capital, a US investment firm. 

In a statement released by Chelsea, the club said “Of the total investment being made, £2.5bn will be applied to purchase the shares in the Club and such proceeds will be deposited into a frozen UK bank account with the intention to donate 100 per cent to charitable causes as confirmed by Roman Abramovich. In addition, the proposed new owners will commit £1.75bn in further investment for the benefit of the Club. This includes investments in Stamford Bridge, the Academy, the Women's Team and Kingsmeadow and continued funding for the Chelsea Foundation." 

The Blues had a deadline of May 31st to find new owners as the Government license to operate the club would have expired after that. The Raine Group, hired by current owner Roman Abramovich has been overseeing the takeover and were responsible in choosing the preferred bidder, subject to the government granting a special license for the sale of the Premier League club. Chelsea would need a license before June 8th in order to compete in England’s top flight as the Premier League will meet on the date to constitute the new season. 

Other potential owners were the Pagliuca consortium, who were told that they were out of running at the end of last month while the Broughton consortium - led by former Liverpool and British Airways chairman Sir Martin, billionaire Crystal Palace shareholders Dave Blitzer and Josh Harris as well as Lewis Hamilton and Serena Williams were still in contention. The Ricketts family, who are the owners of Chicago Bulls, hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin and US investment bank Lazard were also interested in buying the club but pulled out in March. 

Roman Abramovich had denied multiple reports claiming that he is looking to alter the deal for the repayment of his £1.5billion loan to Chelsea FC, reaffirming that proceeds from the sale of the club will be given to charity for "all the victims of the war in Ukraine". In a statement released by Roman Abramovich, a spokesperson said “Firstly, Mr Abramovich's intentions in relation to gifting the proceeds from the Chelsea sale to charity have not changed. Since the initial announcement, Mr Abramovich's team has identified senior representatives from UN bodies and large global charitable organizations who have been tasked with forming a Foundation and setting out a plan for its activities. The lead independent expert has had conversations with Government representatives presenting the structure and initial plans. 

"Mr Abramovich has not been involved in this work and it has been managed independently by experts with years of experience working in humanitarian organizations. Secondly, Mr Abramovich has not asked for any loan to be repaid to him - such suggestions are entirely false - as are suggestions that Mr Abramovich increased the price of the Club last minute. As part of Mr Abramovich's objective to find a good custodian for Chelsea FC, he has however encouraged each bidder throughout this process to commit investing in the Club - including in the Academy, Women's team, necessary redevelopment of the stadium as well as maintaining the work of Chelsea Foundation."

The spokesperson added in the statement: "Following sanctions and other restrictions imposed on Mr Abramovich by the UK since announcing that the Club would be sold, the loan has also become subject to EU sanctions, requiring additional approvals. That means that the funds will be frozen and subject to a legal procedure governed by authorities. These funds are still earmarked for the Foundation. The Government is aware of these restrictions as well as the legal implications. To be clear, Mr Abramovich has no access or control of these funds and will not have any access or control of these funds following the sale. Despite the changing circumstances since his initial announcement - he remains committed to finding a good custodian for Chelsea FC and making sure the proceeds go to good causes."

Also read: Real Madrid and Liverpool's contrasting roads to the 2021/22 UCL final

(Basketball news) The Golden State Warriors progressed to the next round after they won the series 4-1 when they defeated the Denver Nuggets 102-98 in game 5. For the Warriors, Curry scored 30 points in his return to the starting five as Draymond Green had 11 points and six assists. Klay Thompson and Gary Payton added 15 points. For the Nuggets, Jokic scored 12 of his 30 points in the final 3:46 and finished with 19 rebounds and eight assists as DeMarcus Cousins contributed 19 points off the bench against his former Golden State team, and Aaron Gordon added 15 points and nine rebounds. With this result the Warriors progressed to the semifinals where they will face the winners of Grizzlies vs Timberwolves.

''Tonight was just a weird feeling because we hadn't been there in a while,'' said Curry, last season's NBA scoring champion. ''We wanted it so bad, it kind of made it a lot more difficult on ourselves. But we still remember how to do it, which is a good feeling.''

''I was a witness, letting him cook and creating plays for him. Try to get him open looks and after that, you know what he does,'' Warriors guard Gary Payton II said.

''He was incredible, both ends of the floor, big shots, big plays,'' teammate Draymond Green said.

''That guy is a warrior. I just don't understand the people that find a way to criticize Nikola Jokic. Is he perfect? No, I'm not saying he is,'' Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. ''But the guy is the definition of a warrior - competitive, consistent. He impacts the game in so many ways. Hell of a season. Hopefully he'll win the MVP again. I think rightfully he deserves it.''He's our leader, our longest-tenured player, our MVP,'' Thompson said of his Splash Brother, ''and without him, life is difficult. Steph Curry is one of a kind, and will continue to do the spectacular and make it look effortless.''

''He's our leader, our longest-tenured player, our MVP,'' Thompson said of his Splash Brother, ''and without him, life is difficult. Steph Curry is one of a kind, and will continue to do the spectacular and make it look effortless.''

The Milwaukee Bucks progressed to the next round as they beat the Chicago Bulls 116-110 and took the series 4-1. For the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo had 33 points and nine rebounds as Pat Connaughton went 6 of 9 on 3-point attempts and scored 20 points, Bobby Portis added 14 points and a career-high 17 rebounds. For the Bulls, DeRozan was held to 11 points while shooting 5 of 10 as Patrick Williams scored 23 points, Nikola Vucevic 19 and Coby White 17 for the Bulls. Vucevic also had 16 rebounds and six assists. With this result the Bucks now face the in-form Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinal playoffs.

“After Game 2, we kind of talked about how we knew what the deal was,'' Antetokounmpo said. ''The team knew what the deal was. We knew what we had to do. We had to be desperate. We had to go out there and compete at a high level, pay attention to detail as much as possible, and help one another defensively. We've got to do it as a team.''

''We've been talking about the depth of the roster, the quality of the roster a lot this season,'' Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. ''Other guys have gotten opportunities and played well. Our defense has tightened up, and we've learned hard from these three games. We've got depth. We've got a good group.''

''This was a lot of our guys' first rodeo, just understanding what it's like to compete in a playoff series,'' Chicago's DeMar DeRozan said. ''There's so much you can learn from that experience, especially going against the defending champs.''

''It was pretty obvious they were going to load up on DeMar,'' Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. ''I thought he played a great game. I thought he generated good shots. He didn't have a high assist total because we really didn't shoot the ball particularly well, but he would have had an enormous amount of assists if we had shot the ball better.''

Also read: NBA: Miami clinch the series as Suns take the lead against NOLA

(Basketball news) The Boston Celtics took a 2-0 lead in the playoff series as they beat the Brooklyn Nets 114-107. For the Celtics, Jaylen Brown scored 22 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter as Jayson Tatum added 19 points for Boston, which held Durant without a basket in the second half. Al Horford had 16 points, Daniel Theis scored 15 and Payton Pritchard had eight of his 10 in the final period. For the Nets, Durant finished with 27 points but struggled from the field for the second straight game, shooting 4 of 17 as Irving had just 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting a day after being fined $50,000 for directing obscene gestures and profane language. Bruce Brown finished with 23 points and Seth Curry added 16. With this result the Celtics will travel to Brooklyn to face the Nets twice in the Barclays Arena.

''This was old-fashioned. old-school playoff game,'' Tatum said. ''You just have to grind it out. That's what we did... we just just stuck with it. Proud of the guys and how we kept responding all game.''

“They're doing a good job trying to cut off my scoring, limit my shot making,'' Durant said. ''It's on me to figure it out.''

''They took the lead and they never looked back in that fourth quarter,'' Irving said. ''We don't really have time to be disappointed, to hold our heads. This is part of playoff basketball.''

“I think we did that,'' Udoka said. ''We want to make him work defensively and offensively, have bodies on him the whole time and try to wear him down.''

''I think our intensity dropped a little bit in the second half. We also didn't convert,'' Nets coach Steve Nash said. ''We had opportunities, we didn't convert.''

The Chicago Bulls made a staggering comeback against the third seed Milwaukee Bucks as they beat them 114-110. For the Bulls, DeRozan scored a career playoff-high 41 points as Nikola Vucevic added 24 points and 13 rebounds, while Zach LaVine had 20 points as the sixth-seeded Bulls beat the third-seeded Bucks for just the second time in their last 19 meetings. For the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo led the scoring with 33 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists. Antetokounmpo increased his career postseason point total to 1,715 to overtake Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1,692) for the most in Bucks history as Brook Lopez had 25 points for the Bucks. Middleton scored 18 and Holiday 15. With this result the Bucks travel to Chicago for two games as the series is finally poised at 1-1.

''No matter what you did in the regular season, this is a brand new start and new mindset,'' DeRozan said. ''You could see it in all the guys. It doesn't matter if we've lost 20 times to those guys. This is an opportunity for us to compete. We've got to take advantage of it.''

''He's always been positive and he knows the type of team that we are and how resilient we are,'' Bucks guard Jrue Holiday said. ''We just want him to get back as quickly as possible and be healthy so he can come out here and help us win games.''

''We expected those guys to make a run,'' Vucevic said. ''They're a championship team for a reason. They've been there before, so we expected them to make a run.''

''I do think that playing some of these higher-level teams at the end of the year has maybe kind of hardened us, helped us grow,'' Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. ''It's helped us get better. It's helped us be able to have that kind of mentality that we've got to move on to the next play. I think at times this year when we played against good teams, when it started to go a little bit the other direction, we didn't have enough in us to get it back going in our direction.''

The Philadelphia 76ers have one step in the second round of the playoffs after their overtime 104-101 victory over the Toronto Raptors. For the Sixers, Embiid made a 3-pointer with 0.8 seconds left in overtime to give the 76ers their third straight victory as he scored 33 points and 13 rebounds. James Harden had 19 points and 10 assists before fouling out in the closing seconds of regulation as Tyrese Maxey scored 19 points and Tobias Harris had 11 points and 12 rebounds. For the Raptors, Anunoby scored 26 points, Gary Trent Jr. had a playoff-high 24, and Precious Achiuwa had 20 as Pascal Siakam and VanVleet each had 12 points. VanVleet shot 3 for 13, going 2 for 10 from 3-point range. Now the Sixers have a chance to wrap the series on Saturday in Toronto after taking a 3-0 lead in the series.

“Great play call,'' Embiid said. ''Tobias set an amazing screen, Danny threw a great pass. All I had to do was finish, and I'm glad I did.

''For him, that's a high-percentage shot, especially on that wing,'' Harris said of Embiid's decisive basket. ''We got the ball to our best player, somebody who makes plays, makes shots.''

''We've been watching his skill set all year long and how great he's been,'' Harden said. ''Tonight was no different. He did all the right things, and when it was time for him to finish the game off, he did that.''

''There's no room to look around and feel sorry for ourselves,'' VanVleet said. ''We did a lot of good things tonight, we played a lot of minutes of great basketball and we're going to have to do it again.''

Also read: NBA: Pelicans make a comeback as Heat's win against the Hawks
 

(Basketball news) The Boston Celtics won their first match 115 - 114 against the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the NBA playoffs. For the Celtics, Tatum scored 31 points, the last two on the first buzzer-beater of his career as it was Boston's first buzzer beater in the postseason since Paul Pierce in 2010 against the Heat. Brown added 23 points as Horford had 20 points and 15 rebounds, and Smart finished with 20 points, including four 3-pointers. For the Nets, Kyrie Irving finished with 39 points, including 18 in the fourth quarter as Durant added 23 points but shot just 9 of 24. With this result the Celtics take a 1-0 lead in the series as they play their next match on Wednesday.

''When he took that dribble we just kind of made eye contact. He made a great pass,'' Tatum said. ''It doesn't get any better than that. A buzzer-beater in a playoff game at home.''

I've always been told you have more time than you realise you have,'' Smart said. ''I was about to throw it to Al (Horford) off the dribble and I saw JT cut at the last minute.''

''I think that's kind of a microcosm for our season, guys moving the ball being unselfish,'' coach Ime Udoka said.

“They did a good job of forcing me away, then helping in the paint. I just got to be more fundamental in my moves,'' said Durant . ''I feel like some shots went in and out for me.''

The top seed in the Western Conference, the Phoenix Suns made easy work of the New Orleans Pelicans as they won 110-99. For the Suns, Paul scored 19 of his 30 points during a brilliant fourth-quarter scoring display as Deandre Ayton was particularly dominant on the defensive end with four blocks, and had 21 points and nine rebounds and Booker finished with 25 points. For the Pelicans, CJ McCollum led the scoring with 25 points, but struggled with his shooting much of the night as he finished 9 of 25 from the field. Valanciunas added 18 points and 25 rebounds as Brandon Ingram scored 18 points. With this result the Suns take the lead in the series as they play their second in Phoenix tomorrow.

''Classic Chris,'' Suns coach Monty Williams said.

''It's just reading the game,'' Paul said. ''We watch games all day, every day. We got to watch all the games yesterday. We watched the games today. We know in the playoffs, teams aren't going to lay down.''

''That man's a true competitor, a true winner,'' Suns guard Devin Booker said. ''He wants it that bad. You can see it in his demeanour, you can see it in his walk. It shouldn't surprise anybody. He's built for these moments.''

''We figured out a way to play,'' Pelicans forward Larry Nance Jr. said. ''This is the playoffs and there are going to be ebbs and flows, ups and downs. We are in a chess match now.''
The Milwaukee Bucks started their title defence in emphatic fashion as they won 93-86 against the Chicago Bulls. For the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo had 27 points and 16 rebounds as Brook Lopez scored 18 points, Holiday had 15, Khris Middleton had 11 and Bobby Portis added 10. Portis also had 12 rebounds. For the Bulls, DeMar DeRozan scored 18 points but shot 6 of 25 as Vucevic had 24 points and 17 rebounds but shot 9 of 27. LaVine had 18 points and 10 rebounds while shooting 6 of 19. With this result the Bucks took a 1-0 lead in the series as they both will face each other on Wednesday in Milwaukee.

''We've got to win the ugly games,'' said Jrue Holiday, whose 3-pointer with 5:03 left put the Bucks ahead for good. ''I feel like today was ugly. It was a battle and it was tough, but it was an ugly one.''

''I thought it was a good shot,'' LaVine said. ''We were down three. I got a really clean look.''

''Every shot I took tonight felt good,'' said DeMar DeRozan, ''I guarantee you that me, Zach and Vooch (Nikola Vucevic) aren't going to miss that many shots again.''

''The whole team was kind of out of rhythm,'' said Antetokounmpo, who didn't score in the fourth quarter while dealing with foul trouble. ''We weren't able to find one another as easy as we usually find one another and make shots. We missed a bunch of open shots today. Usually we make those and we get energy.''

Also read: NBA: Hawks and Pelicans make the final playoff berth
 

(Basketball news) The Chicago Bulls clinched the last playoff position as they beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 124-120. For the Bulls, Troy Brown Jr. added 17 points and 11 rebounds as Patrick Williams scored a career-high 35 points and Ayo Dosunmu had 26 points in a season-high 45 minutes. For the Wolves, Nathan Knight had 17 points and eight rebounds and Jaylen Nowell added 15 points. With this result the Bulls secured 6th place in the Eastern Conference standings as they will face the No. 3 seed Milwaukee in the first round. Chicago, which has returned to the playoffs after a four-year absence, shared the East's best record with Miami at the All-Star break they fell off the pace and too many inconsistencies in their performances dropped them to 6th in the standings.

''We have to maintain a high level of competitive fight. They're champions for a reason,'' coach Billy Donovan said. ''They're battle-tested.''

''It's a good first step. This needs to be the foundation of what we're trying to build, and regardless of what happens from here, we've got a lot of things that we've learned,'' coach Chris Finch said.

''I was running a lot of things at him tonight to try to get him to be like that,'' Donovan said. ''He took it upon himself to do the things that he did, even randomly.'

The Lakers finished off their season with a consolation victory over the Denver Nuggets 146-141 after overtime. For the Lakers, Malik Monk had a career-best 41 points and Austin Reaves set career highs with 31 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists as Wenyen Gabriel had 14 points and 10 rebounds. LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook did not play the last match as this was also Frank Vogel’s last game in charge, he leaves the golden and purple after 3 seasons and won an NBA championship in 2020. For the Nuggets, Markus Howard had a career-high 25 points and Bryn Forbes scored 24 . With this result the Nuggets face the Golden State warriors in the first round of playoff matches.

''My reaction is I haven't been told (anything) and I'm going to enjoy tonight's game,'' Vogel said when asked about the report. ''Celebrate what these young guys did in terms of scratching and clawing and getting back in this game. We'll deal with tomorrow tomorrow.''

''He gave me a chance,'' Monk said. ''This was the only team that called me in the offseason. I have nothing bad to say about him. All praise goes to him. If it wasn't for him I wouldn't have a chance to play basketball. I probably wouldn't be here, so kudos to Frank.''

''This is real basketball,'' Denver's DeMarcus Cousins said. ''This is when talent has to come out. The regular season is one thing, you kind of go through the motions to get through it and be successful.''

Season's over, no one got hurt tonight,'' Malone said. ''We'll focus on moving forward and preparing for Golden State.''

The other results were:

• Cavs 133 - 115 Bucks
• Rockets 114 - 130 Hawks
• Nets 134 - 126 Pacers
• Hornets 124 - 108 Wizards
• 76ers 118 - 106 Pistons
• Magic 125 - 111 Heat
• Knicks 105 - Raptors
• Grizzlies 110 - 139 Celtics
• Timberwolves 120 - 124 Bulls
• Pelicans 107 - 128 Warriors
• Suns 109 - 116 Kings
• Trail Blazers 80 - 111 Jazz
• Clippers 138 - 88 Thunder
• Mavericks 130 - 120 Spurs

Also read: LA Lakers sack head coach Frank Vogel after missing out on play-offs
 

(Basketball news) The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Chicago Bulls quite comprehensively as Giannis and Jrue Holiday inspired a 126-98 victory. For the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo had 25 points and 17 rebounds in his return to action Jrue Holiday had a game-high 27 points to go along with seven assists and no turnovers as the Bucks won for the 15th time in their last 16 meetings with the Bulls, including all three matchups this season. For the Bulls, Nikola Vucevic had 22 points as DeMar DeRozan and LaVine added 21 points each as the Bulls lost for the ninth time in 12 games. With this result the Bucks improved their record to 45-27 and moved second in the Eastern Conference standings.

'He took a fall in the Minnesota game, and it was pretty sore and stiff, so we've had it looked at,'' Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said before the game. ''We feel like it's short term, but we'll see how he feels the next day or two.''

''Jrue was being Jrue,'' Antetokounmpo said. ''Jrue was being aggressive, making good decisions, getting downhill, getting everybody involved, guarding Zach (LaVine). Everybody was doing their job. Obviously we knew that Khris wasn't playing, and Khris is a big part of our team and what we do here, but at the end of the day, even with the team that we have, we're a great team.''

''Shots we would want them to take, they made,'' Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. ''It was a night where they really, really had it going. Credit to them. And it was a night we just didn't shoot the ball particularly well.''

''At some point, we've got to get tired of getting our butt kicked like this and flip that switch of understanding, all right, enough is enough,'' DeRozan said. ''Now it's time to turn it around and show that desperation.''

The Golden State Warriors suffered a shocking defeat to the Orlando Magic 94-90. For the Magic, Wendell Carter Jr. led them with 19 points and Wagner had 18 points and a big finish as did Cole Anthony, who had 14 points and five assists. For the Warriors, Jordan Poole scored 26 points, shot 40% for the game and had seven turnovers in the fourth quarter on the way to their third straight loss as Klay Thompson added 15 points and Otto Porter Jr. had 14 points and 15 rebounds. With this result they slipped down to third in the Western Conference standings behind the Memphis Grizzlies as the Magic improved their record to 20-53.

''Franz can play, man,'' said Magic guard Cole Anthony, who had 14 points and five assists. ''He can hoop. I saw it here first hand tonight.''

''I think we're playing soft, I think we're playing stupid,'' Warriors forward Draymond Green said. ''We're just not playing good basketball. We're getting punked, and we're losing a lot of fourth quarters. No disrespect to the Orlando Magic, but they're one of the worst teams in the league.''

“No, Steph's not going to bring a level of physicality to the game,'' he said. ''That's not his job.'

''We have to look at our lineup, we have to address everything,'' Kerr said. '' ... It's like a domino effect. You saw me searching for lineups tonight. But I was really disappointed in the fourth quarter. We did not execute at all in the fourth quarter.''

''But we stayed engaged in the game,'' Anthony said. ''We realized there's four quarters to a game, and we're not going to lose in one moment like that.''

''Fouling 3-point shooters has killed us in the last two games,'' Kerr said. ''I love these guys, but we have to learn how to win. Right now, we don't know how to win.''

Also read: LeBron James overtakes Karl Malone as the second highest scorer in NBA

The other results were:

• Knicks 111 - 117 Hawks
• Nuggets 127 - 115 Clippers

Tomorrow’s fixtures are:

• Pistons vs Hawks
• Pacers vs Kings
• Hornets vs Knicks
• Grizzlies vs Nets
• Heat vs Warriors
• Celtics vs Jazz
• Timberwolves vs Suns
• Thunder vs Magic
• Lakers vs 76ers 
• Trail Blazers vs Spurs

(Basketball news) Lakers snapped out of their losing streak as they beat the Toronto Raptors in overtime 128-123. For the Lakers, LeBron James scored 19 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter and overtime, Russell Westbrook had 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists as the likes of Wenyen Gabriel scored 17 points, Bradley had 14 and Austin Reaves had 10 points. For the Raptors, Barnes set career-highs with 31 points and 17 rebounds, Gary Trent Jr. scored 23 points and Fred Van Vleet 20. With this victory the Lakers snapped out of their 11 game losing streak away from home as they improved their record to 30-40 and are currently in 9th in the Western Conference standings. 

“To be able to come into a very hostile environment and win a basketball game, and the way we won it, was big for our team,'' James said. ''We needed literally every minute, all 53 of them, to accomplish that.''

''I thought we did a great job of just sticking to our principles, grinding the game out,'' Westbrook said. ''This was a grind-out game.''

''That's part of what makes him the greatest is his ability to just make whatever play is necessary, whatever side of the floor,'' Lakers coach Frank Vogel said.

''We just didn't make one little play there to get the ball in bounds,'' Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. ''We got it in and got a tough pass complete, and then gave it up.''

''He really competed,'' Vogel said. ''I thought tonight he did a great job of really leading the team in terms of organizing our action, not just making plays himself but getting our group organized.''

The Phoenix Suns beat the Chicago Bulls quite comprehensively 129-102 for their 4th straight victory. For the Suns, Ayton scored 20 points he was 8 of 11 from the field as Devin Booker led the scoring with 28 points and Cameron Payne scored 15 points, Torrey Craig, Landry Shamet had 14 each, JaVale McGee 12 and Mikael Bridges 11. For the Bulls, DeMar DeRozan scored 19 points, Nikola Vucevic added 16 points. Coby White had 14, Zach LaVine 12 and Tristan Thompson 11 as they are fifth in the Eastern Conference with a record of 41-29. The Suns improved their record to 57-14 and moved closer to clinching the NBA's best regular-season record this season.

''He is aggressive in the post. I didn't see a ton of finesse,'' Suns coach Monty Williams said

“We don't want to be `Chris and Book' dimensional,'' Williams said. ''We want to be comfortable to go to other guys so that in those key moments it is not something new to them.''

“To get the lead that we got and sustain it, then maintain it throughout the second half was pretty impressive,'' Craig said.

''I don't want to take anything away from Phoenix or teams we've played against, but we've got to be able to have a better response when shots aren't going in,'' Chicago coach Billy Donovan said. ''I thought some of the (Suns') offensive rebounds in the second quarter really hurt us, and then we started missing shots. We gotta develop a resilience when it's not going well.''

DeRozan said the team is dealing with some new adversity after a solid season. ''We're at that time of the year where nothing is a secret,'' he said. ''We've played great basketball and now teams are coming after us no matter who we play. Once we figure it out, we'll be fine.''

Also read: NBA: Luka magic sinks the Nets while Lakers' struggle continues

The other results were:

• 76ers 111 - 101 Mavericks
• Nets 128 - 123 Trail Blazers
• Knicks 100 - 97 Wizards
• Cavaliers 119 - 116 Nuggets
• Hawks 120 - 105 Grizzlies
• Heat 120 - 108 Thunder
• Rockets 118 - 121 Pacers
• Spurs 91 - 124 Pelicans
• Jazz 121 - 92 Clippers
• Kings 97 - 126 Celtics

Tomorrow’s fixtures are:

• Timberwolves vs Bucks
• Hornets vs Mavericks
• Wizards vs Lakers
• Cavs vs Pistons

(Basketball news) The Miami Heats comprehensively beat the Chicago Bulls 112-99. For the Heat, Gabe Vincent and Tyler Herro each scored 20 points as Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo each had 15 points for Miami. Max Strus had all 13 of his points in the fourth quarter for them. For the Bulls, Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 22 points, while Ayo Dosunmu had 18 and Nikola Vucevic added 14 as DeMar DeRozan's streak of 10 consecutive games with at least 30 points ended; he finished with 18. With this result Miami reclaimed the top position in the Western Conference table with their ninth successive win as their record currently stands at 41-21. 

''Whatever people want to say about us is cool,'' Herro said.

''I was just playing,'' DeRozan said of the streak. ''Just going out there playing, competing, doing whatever I could. I was just going out there playing. ... I'm glad it's over with so I can stop hearing everything about it.''

''I think the biggest thing for me is we have to get battle-tested in some of these games and we just don't have a lot of guys who have gone into these kinds of experiences,'' Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. ''I think it's really good for us.''

“When the opportunity comes you want to take advantage of it,'' Vincent said. ''We miss Kyle and can't wait to get him back.''

The Milwaukee Bucks steam rolled past the Charlotte Hornets as they beat them 130-106. For the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo had 26 points and 16 rebounds, Jrue Holiday had 21 points and eight assists, and Bobby Portis added 20 points and 10 rebounds for them. Milwaukee made its first 26 free throws and finished 32 of 37 from the line. Antetokounmpo made all 14 of his free throws. For the Hornets, LaMelo Ball scored 24 points, Terry Rozier finished with 17 points and eight assists. With this result the Bucks improved their record to 37-25 and currently are in 4th place in the Eastern Conference table.

''If we got everybody locked in, giving that effort defensively, who can really score on us at a high level?'' said Jevon Carter, who scored 10 points off the bench. ''And then on the other end, being able to guard us in transition. So, we keep that pace up, sky's the limit.''

''We were in a little bit of an aggressive mindset'' in the second quarter, Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. ''I thought Giannis quarterbacked in some of those situations, whether it was against the press or against the zone and found shooters. Sometimes we were able to play fast against the zone before it could get set, get some corner 3s.''

Also read: NBA: Pelicans thrash the Lakers and Warriors also lose

The other results were:

• Cavs 122 - 127 Timberwolves
• Magic 119 - 103 Pacers
• Nets 97 - 133 Raptors
• Thunder 110 - 131 Kings
• Grizzlies 118 - 105 Spurs

Tomorrow’s fixture are:

• Wizards vs Pistons
• Raptors vs Nets
• Celtics vs Hawks
• Rockets vs Clippers
• Timberwolves vs Warriors
• Lakers vs Mavericks

(Basketball news) The Phoenix Suns in the current form look unbeatable as they beat the Chicago Bulls 127-124. For the Suns, Booker hit the 30-point mark for the third time in four games as the All-Star made 14 of 23 shots, including five 3-pointers, Chris Paul added 19 points and 11 assists. JaVale McGee finished with 16 points and eight rebounds and Mikal Bridges scored 15. For the Bulls, Zach LaVine added 32 points after missing the previous two games because of back spasms and DeMar DeRozan scored 38. With this win it meant that they stretched their winning run to 13 wins in 14 games as they improved to 43-10 overall and a league-leading 21-5 on the road. They also have the best record in the NBA by far as they sit comfortably on top of the Western Conference.

''Just playing within the offense,'' Booker said. ''I understand that's how our team is built, there are gonna be opportunities to score at all times. I've been in this system for a minute now. There's no reason to force anything. We have too many talented players out there.''

''I thought as the game wore on, we played at a higher and higher and higher standard,'' Donovan said. ''To start the game, it was almost like they forced us to play at a higher level. And we've got to be able to do that ourselves.''

“With our team, it's just we're always so balanced,'' Paul said. ''We take the best available shot and not just any shot.''

The Golden State Warriors won against the Oklahoma City Thunders 110-98 as they won their 9th straight match. For the Warriors, Klay Thompson scored 21 points and Stephen Curry added 18 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. For the Warriors, who shot 50% from the field, Andrew Wiggins scored 13 of his 15 points in the first half. For OKC, Dort scored 26 points and Bazley matched a season high with 20 for Oklahoma City. Josh Giddey added 16 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. With this result the Warriors improved their record to 41-13 and sit comfortably in second spot in the Western Conference table. 

''It was great to see Klay hit those back-to-back 3s to kind of seal the win,'' Golden State coach Steve Kerr said. ''Just fun to have him back, and he looks great out there. He's moving great. It's fun to be able to play him.''

'He's so good at shooting the ball, I feel like my hand doesn't really do anything,'' Bazley said. ''You've kind of like just got to bank on him missing. There's some players that are just so good that they don't even see you.''

''We need him,'' Kerr said of Andre Iguodala playing after a month. ''You could see how good he was in that first half. He just does so many things for us. So it's definitely a concern.''

Also read: Chicago Bulls win against the Pacers and the Nets lost against the Jazz

The other results were:

• Hornets 101 - 116 Raptors
• Wizards 100 - 121 Heat
• Jazz 113 - 104 Knicks

Tomorrow’s fixtures are:

• 76ers vs Suns
• Hawks vs Pacers
• Nets vs Celtics
• Grizzlies vs Clippers
• Pelicans vs Rockets
• Mavericks vs Pistons
• Nuggets vs Knicks
• Lakers vs Bucks
• Kings vs Timberwolves
• Trail Blazers vs Magic

(Basketball news) The Chicago Bulls won the Indiana Pacers 122-115 as Nikola Vucevic inspired them to a very good victory. For the Bulls, Vucevic came up big with a season-high 36 points and 17 rebounds, to which DeMar DeRozan added 31 points, Vucevic went 16 of 21 from the field, and had four assists and three blocks. For the Pacers, Caris LeVert had 42 points as he also had eight assists and five rebounds, the recently signed Terry Taylor finished with 21 points, 14 rebounds and five assists. With this result they moved up to top of the Eastern Conference table as they improved to 33-19.

''It's like people think he has this huge size advantage but I'm not really used to playing against smaller guys like that,'' said Vucevic, the 6-foot-11 veteran who only faced one defender taller than 6-7. ''There were a lot of seals in the post so a lot of my points were easy. It's just a different look and different for me.''

“I was really, really impressed with what he did at the rim tonight,'' Donovan said. ''He had a couple of really good blocks and he made some guys miss some shots as well.''

'It's a disappointing result but there's plenty of good things going on,'' coach Rick Carlisle said. ''We've just got to stay in the fight while we're undermanned.''

''He cut me from my last NBA team and offered me my first coaching job - in the same phone call,'' Carlisle said. ''Anytime someone sees you and believes you and gives you that first opportunity, that's very special.''

The Nets lost their seventh consecutive match, after being defeated by the Utah Jazz 125-102 as Donovan Mitchell made his return - and the Utah Jazz suddenly looked like the NBA's best offense again. For the Jazz, Mitchell scored 27 points after missing eight games because of a concussion, Bojan Bogdanovic added 19 points and 11 rebounds as Eric Paschall scored 16 points, Hassan Whiteside had 15 points and Mike Conley 14 for the Jazz, who have won twice after losing seven of eight injury-riddled games. For the Nets, Kyrie Irving, the only Nets star to play, scored 15 points on 20 shots as Brooklyn rookie Cam Thomas posted a career-high 30 points just four games after setting his previous best of 25 last week. With this result the Jazz improved their record to 32-21 as they stayed 4th in the Western Conference.

''There's so much focus other teams have on him that it frees up other guys offensively -- he's Donovan Mitchell and makes life a lot easier for everybody,'' said Alex Jensen, who was Utah's acting coach with Quin Snyder in the COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

''He was unbelievable,'' Udoka Azubuike said. ''It looked like a video game. There was one time I had to catch myself in the moment because I was just watching him. Every shot was going in. Don is a star.''
''I was just happy to be playing basketball,'' Mitchell said. ''I was joking before the game that I didn't care if the ball went in. I was just happy to be out there running around, guarding, thinking the game and playing with my teammates.''

''We're going through a tough stretch,'' Brooklyn coach Steve Nash said. ''We're undermanned and we're asking guys to do more. We played against an excellent offensive team. ... I just keep telling the guys that it's about staying together through this.''

Also read: Lakers snapped out of their losing streak and the Nets lose 6 in a row

The other results were:

• Hornets 101 - 102 Cavaliers
• Pistons 93 - 102 Celtics
• Raptors 125 - 114 Hawks
• Spurs 131 - 106 Rockets
• Nuggets 105 - 113 Pelicans
• Mavericks 107 - 98 76ers
• Trail Blazers 93 - 96 Thunder

Tomorrow’s fixtures are:

• Magic vs Grizzlies
• Wizards vs Suns
• Hornets vs Heat
• Lakers vs Knicks
• Trail Blazers vs Bucks
• Kings vs Thunder

(Basketball news) Lakers snapped out of their losing streak after they won 99-94 against the Portland Trailblazers. For the Lakers, Anthony Davis scored 19 of his 30 points in the final 12 minutes as he also had 15 rebounds, including seven in the fourth, It is the third time this season that he has had at least 30 points and 15 rebounds in a game Carmelo Anthony added 24 as they were missing LeBron James for the fourth consecutive game due to left knee soreness. For the Trailblazers, Powell led them with 30 points and tied a season high with five 3-pointers. Anfernee Simons added 19 points while Jusuf Nurkic had a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds. With this result the Lakers stayed in 9th in the Western Conference table with a record of 25-27.

''I just tried to come out with the mindset of ending the streak,'' said Davis, who is averaging 29.3 points over his last three games. ''We have to play with some urgency. We just fought hard tonight. It was a great game for us.''

''He had some great sequences of grabbing rebounds in traffic,'' coach Frank Vogel said. ''Tonight was about mental toughness and making enough plays and shots. It was a hell of a game by Anthony.''

''We had a couple breakdowns. We had some good stops but gave them second and third-chance opportunities,'' said Powell, who has scored at least 30 points twice this season.

''We did a good job of fighting back and staying with it, but there were some big moments where we couldn't get over the hump,'' coach Chauncey Billups said.

The Brooklyn Nets lost their sixth consecutive match in a row as they lost 112-101 against the Sacramento Kings. For the Kings, Tyrese Haliburton scored seven of his 12 points in the fourth quarter on his way to a double-double,as Harrison Barnes scored 19 points and Haliburton had 11 assists to help the Kings stop a seven-game skid. Buddy Hield and Davion Mitchell scored 18 apiece. For the Nets, Nic Claxton had a career-high 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for Brooklyn. James Johnson added 18 points. James Harden, who has been nursing a sore right hand and a hamstring injury, was held to four points, his fewest since scoring five against the Chicago Bulls on May 15, 2021. The Nets' skid is their longest since a seven-game slide Dec. 26, 2019, to Jan. 7, 2020. Brooklyn as they haven't won since beating the Spurs in San Antonio on Jan. 21.With this result the Nets slumped down to 6th in the Eastern Conference table with a record of 29-22. 

''There's no concern,'' Harden said. ''We don't have our entire team and this is happening to us. We're just trying to figure out what works best, what guys fit, what guys don't. Hopefully after the break we can get our whole roster and start making strides in the right direction.''

''This trip our objective is to get better. The first two games and the first half tonight we were getting better,'' Nash said. ''We didn't contain the ball enough in the second half and we didn't make plays.''

''It felt like we were on a string as a unit,'' Haliburton said. ''We were communicating together and that helped us a lot. That's why good things happened for us.''

''I just thought it was a really good defensive effort,'' Kings interim coach Alvin Gentry said. ''When you can hold that team to (101) points . I really liked the activity in the fourth quarter on the defensive end.''

Also read: Suns extend their winning run in the NBA while Warriors defeat Spurs

The other results were:

• Pacers 118 - 119 Magic
• 76ers 103 - 106 Wizards
• Celtics 113 - 107 Hornets’
• Knicks 108 - 120 Grizzlies
• Rockets 115 - 104 Cavaliers
• Mavericks 114 - 120 Thunder
• Jazz 108 - 104 Nuggets

Tomorrow’s fixtures are:

• Pistons vs Timberwolves
• Hawks vs Suns
• Raptors vs Bulls
• Spurs vs Heat
• Warriors vs Kings
• Clippers vs Lakers
   

(Basketball news) The NBA All Star is just around the corner and the fans have voted LeBron James as the captain of the Western Conference and Kevin Durant as the Eastern Conference captain. James and Durant, as the leading vote-getters in each conference, will be the captains who draft players for the rosters for the Feb. 20 game in Cleveland. LeBron James began his NBA career with the Cavaliers in 2003 and led them to the 2016 championship during his second stint there and was subsequently chosen as an All-Star for the 18th straight time. He has also been a captain every year since the league went away from the East vs. West format. As for Durant’s availability for the game is in doubt because of a sprained knee ligament. He was voted a starter for the 10th time.

2022 NBA All-Star: Eastern Conference starters

Kevin Durant (Brooklyn Nets)
Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks)
Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers)
Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks)
DeMar DeRozan (Chicago Bulls)

2022 NBA All-Star: Western Conference starters

LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers)
Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets)
Andrew Wiggins (Golden State Warriors)
Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors)
Ja Morant (Memphis Grizzlies)

As for the rest of the players, fan ballots will account for 50% of the vote, with a media panel and current players each accounting for 25%. As for first timers Ja Morant, the No. 2 pick behind Zion Williamson in the 2019 draft, was rewarded for elevating Memphis to a surprising third in the Western Conference. Averaging 25.8 points, 6.9 assists and 5.9 rebounds, he joins Marc Gasol as the only Grizzlies players voted All-Star starters. Wiggins was the most surprising selection. The No. 1 pick of the 2014 draft has blossomed since being traded to Golden State two years ago and is averaging 18.1 points this season for the Warriors who have the league’s second-best record.

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry makes his 8th appearance for the Western Conference, while reigning Finals MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo makes his 6th appearance representing the Milwaukee Bucks’ for the Eastern Conference.Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young returns to the All-Star game in 2022 after making his first appearance in 2020. Chicago Bulls guard DeMar DeRozan has been rewarded for his amazing  season he's having as an All-Star starter, his fifth career appearance and first appearance since 2018. Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid also makes his fifth appearance alongside reigning league MVP Nikola Jokic who will play his fourth All-Star game this year.

Also read: NBA: The MVP race is hotting up as the season heads towards its midpoint

The bench players for both conferences will be revealed next week on February 3 after a vote from all the coaches in the NBA. Five more players from each conference will be named to complete  the team’s out and there will be an additional wild card player for each conference. The game will take place on 20th February 2022 in the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. 

(Basketball news) The Suns matched their franchise best start as they won 115-109 against the Utah Jazz. For the Suns, Devin Booker scored 33 points, Paul had 15 of his season-high 27 points in the fourth quarter, and the Suns rallied for their seventh straight win as Cam Johnson started in place of Crowder, he went on to pour in 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including 5 of 8 from 3-point range. Paul just missed a triple-double with 14 assists and nine rebounds as the Suns improved their NBA-best record to 37-9, matching the 2006-07 team for the best start in franchise history. For the Jazz,, Jordan Clarkson led them with 22 points, including three straight 3-pointers in the fourth quarter that made things interesting in the final minute as they were missing all-Stars Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert and Mike Conley. This was subsequently the Jazz losing for the eight time in 11 games.

“We had a good start to the game and then we got a little comfortable,'' Booker said. ''Those guys were ready to play. They took advantage of their opportunity, came out aggressive and confident. Once they got confidence, they were a little tougher to stop.''

“Collectively, we played hard,'' Jazz coach Quin Snyder said. ''That's a credit to our guys because the team we played played hard. That's why it was such a competitive game. I think what Chris (Paul) did in the fourth quarter, he's unique, obviously.''

The Chicago Bulls went back to winning ways in a close encounter as they won 111-110 against the Oklahoma City Thunders. For the Bulls, rookie Nicola Vucevic had 26 points and 15 rebounds, Ayo Dosunmu scored a season-high 24 points and Zach LaVine added 23 as DeMar DeRozan, who averages 26.3 points per game was rested. For the OKC, Gilgeous-Alexander had 31 points and 10 assists and Lu Dort added 16 points for the Thunder, who have lost 11 of 12. With this result the Bulls moved up to second in the Eastern Conference as they improved their record to 29-17.

''Two of our primary ball handlers in Lonzo and Alex are not here, and when you get into these situations in the fourth quarter where teams turn up the defensive pressure and pick up full court, you've got to be able to handle it,'' Bulls coach Billy Donovan said.

''It felt good,'' LaVine said. ''I got tired of just sitting at home watching. I'm about as healthy as I can get, but it just sucks sitting at home and not being able to help.''

''I give our guys a lot of credit,'' Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. ''The ball pressure really amped up and they brought a lot of energy. To go out there and pressure the ball like that was huge for us because it took them out of their offense and didn't allow them to use their size at the (center position).''

Also read: NBA: Lakers lose against the Heat as Warriors rallied past the Utah Jazz

The other results were:

• Cavaliers 95 - 93 Knicks
• Pelicans 117 - 113 Pacers

Tomorrow’s matches are:

• 76ers vs Pelicans
• Raptors vs Hornets
• Pistons vs Nuggets
• Wizards vs Clippers
• Nets vs Lakers
• Celtics vs Kings 
• Rockets vs Spurs 
• Trail Blazers vs Timberwolves
• Warriors vs Mavericks

(Basketball news) The Lakers got back to winning ways as they beat the Orlando Magic 116-105. For the Lakers, LeBron James scored 29 points and played exclusively at center in the second half as the Los Angeles Lakers rallied from an eight-point halftime deficit as Carmelo Anthony scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half, Russell Westbrook had 18 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists and Stanley Johnson added 11 points off the bench, this was also Carmelo’s 8th 20 point game. For the Magic, Rookie guard Jalen Suggs scored a career-best 22 points for the Magic while Wendell Carter Jr. added 19 points as Mo Bamba had 11 points and eight rebounds. With this result Lakers improved their record to 23-23 as they moved upto 7th in the Western Conference standings.

''He's the most unique player in the history of the game,'' Vogel said of James. ''We won a championship with him playing point guard two years ago, he's been a ball-handling wing throughout his career and he's been playing center for us. It's pretty remarkable, and for him to be doing it at this stage of his career, it's even more remarkable.''

''I was upset about (not finishing Wednesday's game) and I was more upset that we didn't win the game,'' Westbrook said. ''I've been here doing my job since Day 1 and doing everything asked of me. I want to continue to do that for the betterment of the team.''

''We feel like the first game on an East Coast road trip is always the toughest game, and that first half is usually when you're trying to get your legs back coming off a long flight from LA,'' James said. ''We knew we could play a lot better in the second half.''

''They came out with a level of intensity to try and push it back up,'' Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said. ''The same thing happened when we were in Los Angeles.'

The Milwaukee Bucks displayed why they are the defending champions as they beat the Chicago Bulls 94-90. For the Bucks, Antetokounmpo had 30 points and 12 rebounds as Middleton had 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Bobby Portis added 12 points and 13 rebounds. Jrue Holiday scored 13 points. For the Bulls, DeMar DeRozan scored 35 points but missed a 3-pointer that would have put the Bulls ahead with 23 seconds left as Nikola Vucevic had 19 points and 11 rebounds and  Matt Thomas added 11 points and went 3 of 5 on 3-point attempts. With this result it meant that the Bulls dropped out of the top spot after the Nets had won their match, which means that the Chicago Bulls have a record of 28-16 sitting second in the Eastern Conference standings. As for the Bucks, they improved their record to 29-19 and sit in 4th place in the standings.

''At the end of the day, a win is a win,'' Antetokounmpo said. ''We did the right things. We created good habits tonight.'

''For Alex to be in the air like that and for (Allen) to take him down like that, he could have ended his career,'' Donovan said. ''(Allen) has a history of this. That, to me, was really dangerous. I really hope the league takes a hard look at something like that because he could have really, really seriously hurt (Caruso).''

''I think Grayson (did) nothing malicious, went to block the shot,'' Budenholzer said. ''I think it's a close call, and they went with flagrant 2. I'm not going to disagree. It's right on the border and that's the direction they went.''

''We talk about versatility in a lot of different ways,'' Budenholzer said. ''And I think you've got to be versatile in the kind of games you can win. I'm very proud of the guys, for them to find a way to win tonight. We had to earn that.''

The Golden State Warriors won a close encounter with the Houston Rockets as they beat them 105-103. Curry nailed a game-winning 20-foot jumper from the top of the key as the clock hit 0.0 and the buzzer blared, scoring 22 points and sending the Warriors past Houston. For the Warriors, Jordan Poole had 20 points as Andrew Wiggins also chipped in with 17 points, Klay Thompson sat out the second game of the back-to-back games. For the Rockets, Christian Wood had 12 of his 19 points in the first quarter and grabbed 15 rebounds and Kevin Porter Jr. scored 17 points for Houston. With this the Warriors stayed 2nd in the Western Conference with a record of 33-13.

''It felt great,'' Curry said. ''The way the whole last 48 hours have been with the way we played grinding out last night, going overtime, losing, the disappointment with that and then coming into this game, the back and forth, just grind-it-out mentality we had, the resilience we showed to give ourselves a chance the second half was impressive

'I was shocked. I just talked to him. It was his first ever walk off game-winner,'' coach Steve Kerr said. ''Obviously he's had plenty in the final seconds. I didn't know that. A fitting end to a grind-out game that we really needed. I think in some ways we had forgotten how hard you have to play to win in this league.

Also read: NBA: Warriors lose against the Pacers as the Suns extend their lead at the top of the table

The other results were:

• Spurs 102 - 117 Nets
• Hornets 121 - 98 Thunder
• 76ers 101 - 102 Clippers
• Celtics 105 - 109 Trail Blazers
• Hawks 110 - 108 Heat
• Wizards 105 - 109 Raptors
• Jazz 111 - 101 Pistons 
• Nuggets 118 - 122 Grizzlies

Tomorrow’s fixtures are:

• Bucks vs Kings
• Cavaliers vs Thunder
• Suns vs Pacers
• Knicks vs Clippers
   

(Basketball news) With the NBA season in full flow there are a lot of players that have gone unnoticed this season. These players are not only contributing to their respective teams but also having amazing productivity when scoring or supporting their big name players. Basketball is a commonplace where  players are called ‘bust’ way too early in their career. Sometimes players have too much expectation as they are top picks that didn’t have instant success or take time to adjust to the big occasions. So let us take a look at these underrated players this season:

3) Lonzo Ball (Chicago Bulls) 
After his tumultuous seasons for the Lakers and the Pelicans, it looks like Lonzo Ball has finally got his mojo back. This season Lonzo is currently averaging around 13 points per game, five rebounds, five assists, two steals, and one block this season. He is also shooting 40 percent from beyond the arc. If his stats hold to form he could be making history as one of two guards in NBA history to average at least a dozen points per game, five rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one block, while shooting at least 40 percent from beyond the arc.

So far this season, Lonzo is playing the perfect role in Billy Donavan’s offense as well as defense. He’s not the flashiest scorer, especially compared to someone like DeRozan or star shooting guard Zach LaVine, but his impact on both ends of the floor is definitely being felt in a big way.

2) Jordan Poole (Golden State Warriors)
This season one of the breakout stars has been Jordan Poole as he’s been averaging 17 points a game with almost 40% shooting from behind the arc. He was drafted at number 30 last season but has gone from strength to strength in the absences of their talisman Klay Thompson. He is the perfect balance of the off ball movement and on ball creation that helps him get free shots and also be the perfect partner in crime for Steph Curry. 

Throughout the 2020-21 season, Poole showed he had talent on and off-ball to navigate through screens and make lazy opponents pay. With the ball, Poole began to flash his craftiness as a dribbler and the minute details in his footwork made him a deadly scorer even without elite speed or athleticism but this season with a little bit of freedom from Steve Kerr has actually unleashed a very good player. Poole is having such a good season that he might end up with the Most Improved Player award this season.

Also read: NBA: The MVP race is hotting up as the season heads towards its midpoint

1) Desmond Bane (Memphis Grizzlies)
The Grizzlies are having an extraordinary season this year as they have third in the Western Conference league and also the by far one of the best teams in the league currently. Desmond Bane has been an integral clog in the team as he is averaging 16.2 PPG, 4.4 REB, 2.3 AST . When Ja Morant was sidelined due to injury, the Grizzlies needed someone to step up. They got all that and more in second year guard Desmond Bane. Nearly doubling his scoring average from last year, Bane has been a key scoring threat for the Grizzlies. Unlike many other players on this list, Bane is an excellent scorer and shooter off-the-dribble. With a combination of hesitations and quick step-backs, his bag runs deep. The Grizzlies have an exciting young core and Bane will be a player to watch out for in the future. This Grizzlies team is pushing well above their expectation as their young core group of players have a genuine chance at the NBA title if they continue playing like this 
 

(Basketball news) With the NBA in full flow there have been certain players who are having extraordinary individual seasons. We take a look at those players who are not only in the MVP reckoning but also helping their team grind out results over these past few months. This season has been really tough on the players especially with the Covid situation and protocols, so to be consistent in an inconsistent season really tells about the players mentality and contribution points wise to their respective teams. Lets us a take look at the top three players in the league currently:

3) DeMar DeRozan (Chicago Bulls) 

This season DeRozan has averaged 26.0 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 4.7 apg. When the Bulls signed DeMar DeRozan on a three-year for a $85 million contract and traded Thaddeus Young plus a future protected first round pick to finish the deal many experts regarded the move as disastrous and doubted his skills but DeRozan had other ideas as he is currently having his best season at the age of 32 and has helped Chicago from being the worst-to-first in the Eastern Conference standings. After finishing last season with the fewest wins in the league over the last four seasons, the Bulls are now a legit contender for the No. 1 seed in the East.

DeRozan has been deadly on the mid-range scoring and hitting clutch shots for the Bulls. He’s leading the league in fourth quarter scoring, which has helped his team capture the top spot in the standings. While DeRozan doesn’t shoot many threes and remains a below average defender but his consistent ability to get to the foul line and score baskets are a crucial part in Billy Donavan’s offence. If DeRozan keeps this up, the Bulls are a legit contender in the East.

2) Kevin Durant (Brooklyn Nets)

This season Kevin Durant has averaged 29.7 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 5.9 apg. He’s leading the league in scoring at about 30 points per game. If KD can maintain a shooting percentage above 61 percent, it will be the 10th straight year he’s done it. He’s also had a major impact on the Nets’ team success with Kyrie Irving still having not played enough games together, James Harden is having a below par season compared to his standards, and Joe Harris is hurt, but Brooklyn are still in the reckoning to win the Eastern Conference
 
Durant has a strong case both as MVP winner as it is remarkable that he’s still playing so well even after tearing his achilles. Brooklyn’s defense has also been playing at a top-five level most of the year, and Durant is a factor on that end as well despite not putting up huge steal or block rates so far. KD is having an incredible season this year and in all possibilities at the end of the season he might just lead the Nets to their maiden NBA crown

1) Steph Curry (Golden State Warriors)

Curry this season is averaging 27.7 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 5.9 apg. At the age of 34 he is still playing his prime. He’s once again one of the league’s leading scorers, and he’s doing this making more three-pointers than ever before. Nowadays he’s been surrounded by a reliable veteran supporting cast that helps his team to win matches even when he's not around. Golden State Warriors have become a team that got knocked out in the play-in tournament last year to one having the best record this season.

Also read: The Bucks win big against the Warriors as Grizzlies made it 11 straight victories

Curry all his life has been a bit of an underrated defender, but with time he's becoming an even better defender than before, his defence has played a pivotal role on what’s clearly the best defense in the league in Golden State. He also broke the all time three point record of Ray Allen at the Madison Square Garden this season. As long as he stays healthy, Golden State remains the No. 1 seed in the West and a third MVP title wouldn’t be far.

(Basketball news) The Milwaukee Bucks made a statement as they won 118-99 against the in form Golden State Warriors. For the Bucks, Antetokounmpo had 30 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists to help Milwaukee rout the Golden State Warriors as Khris Middleton added 23 points, Bobby Portis 20 and Grayson Allen 15 for the Bucks. For the Warriors, Andrew Wiggins led the team with 16 points. Jonathan Kuminga had 15, Curry 12 and Thompson 11 as no one could really get the grips of the game. Antetokounmpo had his third triple-double of the season and 28th of his career as head coach Budenholzer's return from the NBA's COVID-19 protocols. With this result the Bucks improved their record to 27-17 as they moved to 4th in the Eastern Conference standings.

''I think Coach Darvin did a great job stepping up, leading the team, coaching the team and keeping us accountable,'' Antetokounmpo said. ''But, obviously, it's great to have Coach Bud back healthy, happy and getting us ready to go.''

'I think there was a good focus from us tonight,'' Budenholzer said. ''I think when it starts on the defensive end, usually that's when we're at our best. A team like the Warriors, a player like (Stephen) Curry and (Klay) Thompson, they bring out the best in you. They bring out the highest focus.''

'We just got off to a terrible start where everything went wrong on both ends of the floor,'' Curry said.

''I know we just got our butts kicked, but we're just in a rough patch in our season,'' Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. ''It happens to every team, every year pretty much with very few exceptions. We're in a little bit of a rut and we were playing a team that was ready and played a great, great first half. We're a little out of sorts. We've just got to get back on track, and we will.'

The Memphis Grizzlies made it 11 straight victories as they won 116-108 against the Minnesota Timberwolves. For the Grizzlies, Ja Morant had 16 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, and John Konchar added 15 points and a career-best 17 rebounds as Desmond Bane scored 21 points and Jaren Jackson Jr. added 20 to create history for their franchise.  For the Timberwolves, Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 30 points. D'Angelo Russell had 29 points and six assists, and Karl-Anthony Towns added 25 points and nine rebounds. With this result the Grizzlies improved their record to 30-12 and moved up to 3rd in the Western Conference standings. 

''It's all about attention to details,'' Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. ''It's all about the small things. It's all about the winning plays. . You're going to be in close games, and that's going to win you games, and that, right now, is not what we're doing.''

''He just does a lot on the floor for us,'' Morant said, adding of Konchar's shooting ''You really can't leave him open. He's just a spark plug for us off the bench.''

''We don't have time to take the Ls that we should have won. Tonight, I definitely feel we should have won this game, and, especially New Orleans,'' Edwards said, adding: ''These games hurt when you don't have everything right and you come down to the very end and you can't get a rebound to finish a possession.''

Also read: NBA: Lakers slump to their second loss in a row as Nets thump the Chicago Bulls

The other results were:

• Pelicans 113 - 89 Clippers
• Nets 109 - 130 Thunder
• Nuggets 140 - 108 Trail Blazers

Tomorrow’s fixtures are:

• Pacers vs Suns
• Hornets vs Magic
• Pistons vs Raptors
• 76ers vs Celtics
• Bulls vs Warriors
• Heat vs Hawks
• Spurs vs Cavaliers
• Kings vs Rockets 
• Grizzlies vs Mavericks

(Basketball news) Los Angeles lost their second match in a row as they lost to the Sacramento Kings 125-116. For the Kings, De'Aaron Fox scored 29 points, Chimezie Metu made a clutch 3-pointer with 46.7 seconds remaining as Harrison Barnes added 23 points and seven rebounds for the Kings and rookie Tyrese Haliburton had 14 points and 10 assists. For the Lakers, LeBron James had 34 points, seven rebounds and six assists and Malik Monk scored 22 as James has scored 31 or more in 11 of his last 12 games. With this result the Lakers dropped down to 7th in the Western Conference with a record of 21-21 as the Kings improved their record to 17-26.

“It was a much-needed win,'' Kings interim coach Alvin Gentry said. ''We did a good job of attacking the paint - we ended up with 70 points in the paint. That was the difference in the game, we were able to get the ball to the basket.''

''We knew if we didn't put up a stand, put up a fight in the third, we would let this slip away like the previous five,'' Barnes said. ''Tonight from start to finish we did a good job of sticking to the game plan, everyone providing energy, competing. Things that we haven't done consistently.''

''For the second game in a row, our defense let us down,'' Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. ''We have to figure out what we're doing there and be better in that situation.''

The Brooklyn Nets thrashed the Chicago Bulls 138-112 as for the first time this season the big three of Durant, Harden and Irving started a game. For the Nets, Durant scored 27 points, James Harden added 25 points and a season-high 16 assists as Irving had an off night with 9 points but Patty Mills scored 21 and nailed 6 of 8 from beyond the arc, helping Brooklyn come out on top after losing five of seven previous matches. For the Bulls, Zach LaVine scored 22. DeMar DeRozan added 19 points as they lost for the second time in three games after winning nine straight to match their best run since the end of the 2010-11 regular season and Bulls also had their nine-game home win streak snapped. With this result the Nets improved their record to 26-14 but still stayed 2nd in the Eastern Conference standings.

''We're trying to make no statements to the league,'' Durant said. ''I mean, who cares what they think. We know what we bring to the table, and it's all about us. But I'm sure people were watching the game tonight.''

''We're that good,'' Harden said. ''We have a chance to be that good. We just haven't had enough of it.''

''I think you own it,'' coach Billy Donovan said. ''I think our guys have worked hard up to this point to be where we are in the standings, and with that there's a greater responsibility.'

''When that run happened, I think it was just a continuous sort of flow we had from the first half,'' Irving said. ''We just felt like once we break this open, hit a few more 3s, make it tough for them on the defensive end - we felt like we'd have control of the game.''

Also read: NBA: Grizzlies beat the Warriors as the Bulls thump the Pistons

The other results were:

• 76ers 98 - 109 Hornets
• Pacers 100 - 119 Celtics
• Wizards 112 - 106 Magic
• Hawks 91 - 115 Heat
• Knicks 108 - 85 Mavericks
• Spurs 124 - 128 Rockets
• Jazz 91 - 111 Cavaliers

Tomorrow’s fixtures are:

• Bucks vs Warriors
• Grizzlies vs Timberwolves
• Pelicans vs Clippers
• Nets vs Thunder 
• Nuggets vs Trail Blazers
   

(Basketball news) The Memphis Grizzlies continued their amazing form by beating the number 1 seed Golden Warriors 116-108. For the Grizzlies, Morant scored 29 points, including five in the final minute to extend their winning streak to 10 games and made them the most in form team currently. Along with Morant, Ziaire Williams and Tyus Jones had 17 points each. For the Warriors, Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his second triple-double of the season. Klay Thompson finished with 14 points. Andrew Wiggins and Gary Payton II scored 13 each. With this result Memphis Grizzlies improved their record to 29-14 as they currently are 4th in the Western Conference.

''I just like having that pressure,'' Morant said of his scoring down the stretch. ''I feel like that's when I shine the most. I like to be the one taking that shot, hit or miss.''

''I thought Tyus Jones shooting 3s broke the game open. That was the key,'' Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.

'He did a really good job,'' Rajakovic said of Williams' defense. ''He followed the game plan. Obviously, Steph Curry is an amazing scorer and shooter. (Williams) did a really good job of chasing him to get him inside the 3-point line.''

The new Eastern Conference leaders Chicago Bulls thumped the Detroit Pistons 133-87. For the Bulls, Nikola Vučević scored 22 points, DeMar DeRozan had 20 points and 12 rebounds as they made it 9 victories out of the last 10 matches. For the Pistons, Josh Jackson scored 16 points and Saddiq Bey added 14 for the Pistons. Along with their top scores Lonzo Ball added 18 points and Zach LaVine had 10 points and nine rebounds as Chicago picked up its ninth straight home win. With this result they improved their record to 27-11 as they comfortably sit on the top of the Eastern Conference standings.

“In the second half, we came out how we should’ve started the game,” DeRozan said.

“He’s a guy that can course-correct. He just kind of figures things out,” coach Billy Donovan said. “In the third quarter you kind of saw his whole package.”

“You do your job right, you get a raise,” DeRozan said of the growing attention. “You have to put yourself in a position where you need to be seen. I feel like that’s where we’re at.”

“I think it was a false positive,” said Pistons coach Casey, who added he’s received all the recommended vaccinations and takes special precautions due to his asthma. “I tell everyone, get vaccinated and get boosted.”

Also read: NBA: Bucks and Nets both lose as Terry Rozier shines

The other results were:

• Wizards 122 - 118 Thunder
• Raptors 95 - 99 Suns
• Pelicans 128 - 125 Timberwolves
• Clippers 87 - 85 Nuggets

Tomorrow's fixtures are:

• 76ers vs Hornets
• Pacers vs Celtics
• Wizards vs Magic
• Hawks vs Heat
• Knicks vs Mavericks
• Spurs vs Rockets
• Jazz vs Cavaliers
• Kings vs Lakers
• Bulls vs Nets
   

(Basketball news) The Golden State Warriors won 113-98 against the Sacramento Kings. For the Warriors, Draymond Green notched his franchise-leading 31st career triple-double with 16 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, Stephen Curry scored 30 points as the Warriors celebrated him for the 3-point record in his first home game since breaking Ray Allen's mark. For the Kings, Tyrese Haliburton had 24 points and 11 assists to lead Sacramento as Harrison Barnes scored 19 points against his former Warriors team and Hield wound up with 18. With this victory the Warriors improved their record to 25-6 as they moved to the top of the Western Conference. 

'This organization is amazing to allow him ... to sit there and help,'' Green said. ''You miss doing this job and those are the moments where it's all worth it. For him to have that experience, it's special. I don't take that for granted.''

“The bench was great. Every guy who came off the bench played well for us,'' coach Steve Kerr said. ''Gary was everywhere defensively and on the boards, three steals, doing what Gary does.'

The Lakers slumped to their second successive loss as they lost 115-110 to the Chicago Bulls. For the Bulls, DeMar DeRozan scored 38 points after missing two weeks in the NBA's health and safety protocols, Nikola Vucevic had 19 points and 13 rebounds, and Lonzo Ball added 19 points as the Bulls snapped a two-game losing streak. For the Lakers, LeBron James had 31 points, Carmelo Anthony added 21 and Russell Westbrook 20 as Los Angeles lost their second straight game. The Lakers haven't had any games postponed, they currently have six players - Kent Bazemore, Avery Bradley, Talen Horton-Tucker. Dwight Howard, Malik Monk and Austin Reaves - and coach Frank Vogel in the health and safety protocols. With this result the Lakers record fell to 16-15 as they are currently 7th in the Western Conference standings.  

The Bulls turned to DeRozan in crunch time and he delivered. ''It's an honor to be trusted in those moments,'' he said. ''I never take it for granted. It's an adrenaline rush that you can't duplicate, so you try to make the most of it every time you're put in that position. There's nothing like it. You've got to take the good with the bad, and I'm willing to take both.''

''Obviously we're doing things on the fly, figuring out how to play with the lineups we have and the people we have available,'' Westbrook said. ''New guys are stepping in here, so we've got to do what we can. That's it. You've just gotta play hard and let the rest take care of itself.''

''Just pretty amazing what he did being out, missing games and having two days off,'' Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. ''His mental toughness and his competitive spirit are pretty amazing. Just his shot-making ability when we needed buckets.''

The Phoenix Suns increased their winning run to 8 wins from 10 as they beat the Charlotte Hornets 137-106. The Suns had eight players score in double figures as Booker scored 16 points in his return from a hamstring injury and the NBA-leading Suns set a season-scoring high. They dominated the paint behind Deandre Ayton, who had 15 points and 15 rebounds, and Javale McGee, who led Phoenix with 19 points in 16 minutes off the bench. McGee made 9 of 10 shots, Mikal Bridges had 16 points, Landry Shamet 15 and Jae Crowder and Chris Paul had 14 apiece, Cam Johnson scored 12 and Cameron Payne had 11 for the Suns. E Elias Sports Bureau is the Suns had nine players score in double figures for the first time since April 21, 1991. For the Hornets, Miles Bridges had 26 points for Charlotte, and former Sun Kelly Oubre Jr. had 16. LaMelo Ball had nine points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. With this result the Suns improved their record to 24-5 as they have the best record in the NBA currently.

“I learned some things from the sideline that I tried to implement today,'' said Booker, who was 4 of 8 from 3-point range. ''The machine keeps moving even in games we had people out. Somebody steps up and jumps right into that role.'

''The best backup center I have ever had,'' Ayton said. ''I feel so comfortable coming out of the game knowing that this man is a presence at both ends of the floor. The same thing I am doing. It is like I didn't leave.''

''We have a `we score' mentality,'' Suns coach Monty Williams said. ''We score, we defend and I think when you play that way, it creates a lot of opportunity to shoot the ball from range or attack the paint.''

Also read: NBA: Lakers lose to the Timberwolves as Warriors extend their lead

The other results were:

• Celtics 103 - 108 76ers
• Bulls 133 - 118 Rockets
• Grizzlies 99 - 102 Thunder
• Jazz 112 - 102 Hornets
• Clippers 92 - 116 Spurs

The fixtures for tomorrow are:

• Knicks vs Pistons
• Heat vs Pacers
• Pelicans vs Trail Blazers
• Mavericks vs Timberwolves
• Lakers vs Suns
   

(Football news) Phoenix Suns defeated the Detroit Pistons 114-103 as they went onto win their 18 consecutive victory. Cam Johnson and Cameron Payne both scored 19 points to lead the Phoenix Suns to victory as the Suns bench finished with 48 points, Deandre Ayton had 17 points and 12 rebounds and Chris Paul finished with 12 points and 12 assists as Phoenix improved to 19-3 for the season. For the Pistons, Jerami Grant had 34 points which fell to 2-10 on the road. Cunningham, No. 1 overall draft pick, scored 19 points on 8-of-15 shooting. The Suns still haven’t lost since Oct. 27, when Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes hit a 3-pointer as time ran out for a 110-107 victory.

“It is hard to win in this league and we are not satisfied but it is special,'' Williams said. ''To do it in front of our fan base, in a special city like this with the history of this franchise is pretty cool and I want our guys to enjoy it.''

''I haven't talked about streaks of any kind just because we have been so focused on improving,'' Suns coach Monty Williams said of the run that's lasted more than a month. ''But it is really cool to be a part of something like that.''

The Memphis Grizzlies created some NBA history as they defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder by 73 points as the final score was 152-79. Their 152-79 win over the Thunder shattered the NBA record for the largest margin of victory. The 73-point margin easily topped the previous mark, which was Cleveland's 68-point win over Miami. The Cavaliers topped the Heat 148-80 on Dec. 17, 1991. Memphis used 12 players and nine of them reached double figures in scoring, with Jaren Jackson Jr. leading the scoring with 27 points for the Grizzlies. Memphis was also  without its injured guard and best player Ja Morant. The Grizzlies set a franchise record for shooting, making 62.5% of their shots. De'Anthony Melton scored 19 points, Santi Aldama scored 18 and John Konchar scored 17 for the Grizzlies and none of those three players even started. With this result the Grizzlies improved their record to 12-10 as they moved to 5th in the Western Conference.

“Franchise records are obviously great. Obviously proud of our guys that they don't think about that,'' Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins said. ''We're just motivated by what our standards are every single night. Tonight was on pretty full display both offensively and defensively.''

''Obviously, it was a combination of things,'' Daigneault said. ''They played with great force and pace. They made some shots. We didn't shoot it well early and just really couldn't get a grip on the game. Any part of the game

The Chicago Bulls won 119-115 against the New York Knicks as it was a close encounter. DeRozan scored 34 points, Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic each added 27. For the Knicks, Julius Randle had 30 points, 12 rebounds and six assists but missed two free throws in the end as the Knicks (11-11) fell to .500 for the first time this season after starting 5-1, Alec Burks, Evan Fournier and Derrick Rose all had 16 points for the Knicks. With this result the Bulls improved their record to 15-8 as they moved up to 2nd in the Eastern Conference. 

''It's fun when we go out there and compete. We face adversity at times and it felt good when we come out of that on top,'' DeRozan said.

“It helps our team tremendously, especially if we're frantic,'' LaVine said. ''I think it just gives the whole team a sense of, like, a deep breath.''

“We started slowly. I thought there was frustration and so it's hard to play when you're playing frustrated and we can't get wrapped up with that,'' Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. ''Sometimes there's tough calls that go against you and that's just the way it is.''

Also read: NBA: The Milwaukee Bucks rally past the Hornets as Dallas Mavericks keeping their winning run intact

The other results were:

• Raptors 97 - 93 Bucks
• Spurs 114 - 83 Trail Blazers

The fixtures for tomorrow are:

• Heat vs Pacers
• Cavaliers vs Wizards
• 76ers vs Hawks
• Timberwolves vs Nets
• Magic vs Rockets
• Pelicans vs Mavericks]
• Celtics vs Jazz
• Suns vs Warriors
• Clippers vs Lakers

(Basketball news) Utah Jazz beat the Portland Trail Blazers 129-107 as Mitchell scored 30 points, Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 16 rebounds, Jordan Clarkson added 22 points for Utah, which used quick passes and spacing to make 19 3-pointers and shot 53% from the field a game after making a season-high 20 3s. The Jazz matched their season high with 46 made field goals. Anfernee Simons scored a season-high 24 points and Jusuf Nurkic also had 24 as the Trail Blazers fell to 1-10 on the road this season. After making two of his first three shots, Lillard only made two more buckets on nine attempts. Lillard has gone 16 for 45 over his last three games. Utah's defensive plan centered on getting the ball out of Lillard's hands to make someone other than him or CJ McCollum make shots. With this result Utah improved their record to 14-7 as they moved up to 3rd in the Western Conference.

“Aggressive decision making,'' Mitchell said. ''When you start to think too much, that's when the turnovers and the mistakes come in.''

“Our guys were unselfish and got off the ball when they needed to. As you spread it out and make some shots, all of the sudden lanes to the basket open up, too,'' Utah coach Quin Snyder said.

'We're such a different ball club on the road,'' Portland coach Chauncy Billups said. ''We play with this casualness a lot of times, with no urgency. That's dangerous. And at home, you can do that and a team can make a run and you get your crowd behind you and you can overcome a lot of times at home. On the road, you can't do that.''

Denver Nuggets breezed past Miami Heat 120-111 as they were short handed with injuries. Nikola Jokic returned and scored 24 points, Aaron Gordon added 20 and the Nuggets snapped their longest losing streak in nearly six years, Bones Hyland returned from injury to score 19 and Will Barton added 14 for the Nuggets, who had dropped six straight. Jokic hadn't played in the last four of those because of a wrist injury but finished with 15 rebounds and seven assists. Bam Adebayo finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds, Max Strus scored 19 points and Caleb Martin added 18 for the Heat, they got 17 points and 14 assists from Kyle Lowry, which was without its two leading scorers Jimmy Butler who was out with a bruised tailbone and Tyler Herro missed the game with what the Heat called general body soreness. With this result when under .500 as they improved their record to 10-10, the Nuggets moved up to 9th in the Western Conference.

''That's behind us,'' Jokic said. ''We need to move on to the future. We won the game and that's the most important thing.

“Our defense is better than that,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ''I think they played extremely well. And in those pivotal moments in the course of the game, it seemed like they made every shot, every play”.

The Chicago Bulls went back to winning ways as they won 133-119 against the Charlotte Hornets. Chicago shot a season-high 59.6% from the field and had five players score in double figures. Vucevic had a season-best 30 points and grabbed 14 rebounds. DeMar DeRozan scored 28 points, and Zach LaVine, a game-time decision because of an illness, finished with 25.  Lonzo Ball helped the Bulls get back on track after dropping three of four. He had 16 points and eight assists and LaMelo Ball had 18 points and 13 assists as both the brothers went head to head for the third time. For the Hornets, Terry Rozier scored 31 points and Gordon Hayward had 22 for the Hornets, who dropped to 0-2 on their four-game trip. With this result Bulls improved their record to 14-8 as they reclaimed their second place in the Eastern Conference.

“I mean we've been talking about the NBA since we were little boys,'' LaMelo said. ''Just going out there and playing against him, always a dream come true, for real.''

''Obviously we are brothers and it's all love off the court,'' Lonzo Ball said. ''But on the court, like I said, he got a job he got to do, I got a job I got to do.

“I felt like I was getting my rhythm, and then I got COVID and then I had to sit out,'' Vucevic said. ''But obviously tonight was a good game for me. Felt great to make some shots.''

Also read: NBA: Warriors win their 8th straight game as Lakers bounce back with a victory over the Detroit Pistons

The other results were:

• 76ers 101 - 96 Magic
• Rockets 102 - 89 Thunder
• Timberwolves 100 - 98 Pacers
• Spurs 116 - 99 Wizards
• Mavericks 96 - 114 Cavaliers
• Clippers 104 - 123 Pelicans

The fixtures for tomorrow are:

• Raptors vs Grizzlies
• Nets vs Knicks
• Kings vs Lakers
• Trail Blazers vs Pistons 
• Suns vs Warriors
   

(Basketball news) Lakers rally after LeBron James was ejected for drawing blood from Isaiah Stewart as they won 121-116 against the Detroit Pistons. Davis had 30 points, 10 rebounds and two big blocked shots late on rookie Cade Cunningham. Westbrook contributed 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, leading the Los Angeles Lakers to victory. The 20-year-old Cunningham, the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, had 13 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists to become the youngest player in franchise history with a triple-double. The headlines were surrounded by LeBron James and Isaiah Stewart as both got ejected for having a brawl, Detroit's center, who was called for a foul before James hit him, had to be held back more than once to keep him separated from the NBA superstar and was also ejected. With this result the Lakers improve their record to 9-9 as they stand 8th in the Western Conference.

''Everybody's level went up when LB came out. Everybody did a great job trying to deescalate the situation. You never want it to get to that point like 17 years ago. Everyone in the league knows LeBron isn't a dirty guy. As soon as he did it, he looked back and told him, ``my bad,” Davis said.

''I don't think he should be facing anything from the league,'' Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. ''He didn't get off the floor in time, and the league will have to decide about that, and I thought that was why he was ejected from the game

''Up and until that point, we're still trying to figure each other out,'' Los Angeles coach Frank Vogel said.

The Warriors continued their fine start to the season after winning 119-104 against the Toronto Raptors. Jordan Poole had his second straight 30-point performance with 33, Andrew Wiggins added 32 points and seven rebounds as they helped them improve their record to 15-2.Curry scored just 12 points but had eight assists after sitting out a 105-102 win at Detroit on Friday night to rest his sore hip on the second night of a back-to-back. Pascal Siakam scored 21 points and Fred VanVleet had 17 points and seven assists for the Raptors but had no response towards Poole and Wiggins magic. 

“The scoring balance means that teams can't throw everything at Steph. That's what was happening last year. Teams were throwing everything they had at Steph. It's great to have everybody on the roster contributing and understanding that every night's going to be different and they just have to stay ready,'' Kerr said.

''We all know what Wiggs is capable of,'' Poole said.

The Chicago Bulls rallied past the New York Knicks to win 109-103, DeMar DeRozan scored 31 points, Zach LaVine added 21 and the Chicago Bulls rallied in the fourth quarter to help them go on the top spot of Eastern Conference. Coby White scored 10 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter as Chicago won its second straight and fourth in five games. Julius Randle had 34 points on 13-for-18 shooting for New York as there were no significant contributions from the others. 

''I'm just enjoying the moment,'' White said. ''I knew all the work I put in would pay off. I knew it would take some time

'We made some 3s because of those guys passing the ball and getting to the middle of the floor and the guys making the next pass,'' Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. ''It wasn't one of those games where it was easy, but I think we figured some things out in the fourth.''

“I like the way we played for three quarters,'' New York coach Tom Thibodeau said. ''I felt we weren't at our best in the fourth. I felt the effort was there. We have to take a hard look at what happened in the fourth.''

Also read: NBA: Lakers lose to Celtics as they fall under .500, Bulls continue their fine start to the season with a victory over the Denver Nuggets

The other results were:

• Clippers 97 - 91 Mavericks
• Suns 126 - 97 Nuggets

Tomorrow's fixtures are:

• Wizards vs Hornets
• Cavaliers vs Nets
• Hawks vs Thunder
• Celtics vs Rockets
• Pelicans vs Timberwolves
• Bulls vs Pacers
• Bucks vs Magic
• Spurs vs Suns
• Jazz vs Grizzlies
• Kings vs 76ers
   

(Basketball news) Lakers fell under .500 as they lost 130-108 against the Celtics, Jayson Tatum who grew up idolising Kobe Bryant scored 37 points. With LeBron James coming into the line up after missing eight games the Lakers still looked very sloppy. Anthony Davis led Los Angeles with 31 points and James finished with 23 in 32 minutes. They each had six rebounds and two assists.Marcus Smart had 22 points and Dennis Schroder 21 for Boston (8-8), which climbed back to .500. Tatum had 11 rebounds and Al Horford added 18 points. With this result the Lakers record slump to 8-9 as they dropped down to 9th.

It's a surreal moment, obviously, Bill Russell and the impact he had on the Celtics and the NBA,'' Tatum said. ''Having someone like Paul come to the game and someone I have a relationship with.''I remember watching him play,'' Tatum said, breaking into a smile. ''Now he's watching me play, that's crazy

''I felt OK,'' James said. ''Obviously being out 2 1/2 weeks, I felt kind of like a rookie again, just being away from the game. Excited. Felt good enough that I could trust my body.''

'We stress making quick decisions,'' Boston coach Ime Udoka said. ''When he holds it, the crowds get to him. He was extremely aggressive.''

The Golden State Warriors won 105-102 against the Detroit Pistons. Poole scored 22 of his season-high 32 points in the first half and Wiggins had 27, as both made the most of their opportunity to step up as scorers in Stephen Curry's absence.The NBA-leading Warriors sat out Curry with a bruised hip, a night after the two-time MVP and the league's leading scorer had 20 of his 40 points in a fourth-quarter comeback victory at Cleveland. They also also without Draymond Green because of a bruised thigh after he had 14 assists in 29 minutes against the CavaliersDetroit's Cade Cunningham, the No. 1 overall pick, had 19 points, six rebounds and six assists. Jackson scored a season-high 27 points, Grant had 19 and Hamidou Diallo added 10 points.

I'm really proud of Jordan,'' coach Steve Kerr said. ''He struggled the last few games. He was locked in right at the beginning.''

'We competed and fought to get back,'' Casey said. ''Those guys are heartbroken because they put themselves in a position to win and just couldn't get that last shot to go in.'

The Chicago Bulls defeated the Denver Nuggets by 114-108. Zach LaVine took over the night as he scored 36 points,LaVine scored 12 of his 36 points in a pivotal stretch of the fourth quarter, DeRozan hit eight straight late free throws and the Bulls won in Denver for the first time since 2006.DeRozan finished with 26 points, including a 12-for-12 performance at the line. LaVine and DeRozan were sizzling in helping the Bulls win. Aaron Gordon had a season-high 28 points for the Nuggets, who've dropped three straight. He was 10 of 12 from the field and had nine boards as they were without the reigning MVP Nikola Jokic. LaVine has now scored 20-plus points 15 times this season, tied with Kevin Durant of Brooklyn for most in the league

''They've got to pick either me or him,'' LaVine said of the tandem with DeRozan. ''One of us is going to get a good look or create a play.''''I haven't heard that in my tenure here,'' he said. ''Hearing the fans and having them travel and be supportive on the road is incredible.''

'They were making big shots. We were making big shots,'' LaVine said. ''Obviously, if the ball is in me and DeMar's hands, we're going to make the right play, I think, pretty much every time.''

'It's remarkable to watch him,'' Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. ''He's one of the best tough-shot makers in this league.''

Also read: NBA: Curry magic sinks the Cleveland Cavaliers as Miami Heat beat the in-form Washington Wizards

The other results were:

• Hornets 121 - 118 Pacers
• Nets 115 - 113 Magic
• Pelicans 94 - 81 Clippers
• Bucks 96 -  89 Thunder
• Suns 112 - 104 Mavericks
• Kings 89 - 108 Raptors

The fixtures for tomorrow are:

• Knicks vs Rockets
• Wizards vs Heat
• Pacers vs Pelicans
• Celtics vs Thunder
• Hawks vs Hornets
• Bucks vs Magic
• Trail Blazers vs 76ers
• Kings vs Jazz
   

(Basketball news) Lakers continued their poor form as they suffered their seventh loss of the season, DeMar DeRozan scored a season-high 38 points and Zach LaVine had added 26 in the Chicago Bulls' 121-103 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. Former Laker Lonzo Ball put in a statement performance with a season high 27 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists as the promising Bulls made it four wins out of five. For the Lakers, Talen Horton Tucker had a career high scoring 28 points against his hometown team, Anthony Davis scored 20 points before getting ejected in the third quarter after an altercation with the referee, Westbrook scored 25 out of which he scored 19 points in the first half. For the Lakers, who wrapped up a five-game, eight-day homestand with three narrow wins and two embarrassing defeats. 

With this result the Bulls improve their record to 10-4 and occupy the second position in the Eastern Conference, for the Lakers their record stands at 8-7, currently in 7th place in the Western Conference. Ball said,” I think we are one of the top teams in the NBA. We've still got a lot to improve on and a long way to go, but I think we're moving in the right direction.''

“Every night you've got to find some type of extra motivation, We've got a couple of guys that played here, (others who are) from here. Just having that extra juice, that energy to go out there and compete, is always beneficial”. said DeRozan.

Talen Horton-Tucker, who had a career-high 28 points said, “Coming out with (James) out, you always know you've got to play hard and make up the slack for a big piece of our team,''against his hometown team. We've all got to bring our games up to another level”

The Washington Wizards continued their fine start to the season as they 105-100 against the Pelicans, with this victory it also meant that the Wizards extended their best start in 47 years. Spencer Dinwiddie scored 19 of his 27 points in the second half, and the Wizards erased a 19-point deficit to beat the New Orleans Pelicans for their fifth consecutive victory, The Wizards were without Bradley Beal, who missed a second consecutive game mourning the death of his grandmother but without Beal they are 3-0 this season. With this result the Wizards improve their record to 10-3 and lead the Eastern Conference also.

We never want to be without Brad. 'No one wants to be without their best player. But the fact that we can withstand some stretches is great.'' said first-year coach Wes Unseld Jr

We just woke up - I think we flipped a switch,'' said forward Deni Avdija, who scored 11 and contained New Orleans' Brandon Ingram in the fourth quarter. ''When we play together and we have that right energy, it's very hard to stop us.'' 

The Dallas Mavericks slowly but steadily are going about their business with a 111-101 victory over the Denver Nuggets. Kristaps Porzingis had 29 points and 11 rebounds and Tim Hardway scored 13 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter and the Dallas Mavericks rallied behind a small-ball lineup to get their fifth victory in six games. Luka Doncic added 23 points and 11 assists and Jalen Brunson added 17 points off the bench to rally them to a well deserved victory. For the Nuggets Nikola Jokic tried his best to get a victory as he scored a season high 35 points and 16 rebounds which had their five match winning run snapped. With this result the Mavericks improve their record to 9-4 as they stand 3rd in the Western Conference

''We felt that was a lineup that could get going, give us some energy, some physicality,'' Kidd said. ''And that's what they brought

'I think it was funky,'' Hardaway said. ''We knew going into the fourth we wanted to get the pace going real high.''.

Also read: NBA: Lakers win against Spurs as Warriors only lose their second game of the season

The other results were:

• Cavaliers 92 - 98 Celtics
• Knicks 92 - Pacers
• Hawks 129 - 111 Magic
• Thunder 90 - 103 Heat
• Timberwolves 96 - 99 Suns
• Trail Blazers 118 - 113 Raptors
• Grizzlies 136 - 102 Rockets

Tomorrow's fixtures are:

• Nets vs Warriors
• Jazz vs 76 ers
• Clippers vs Spurs
   

(Basketball news) Lakers suffered an embarrassing loss against Timberwolves as Karl Anthony Towns scored 18 of his 29 points during Timberwolves dominant third quarter and they snapped their six match losing streak with a 107- 83 victory at the staples centre. D’Angelo Russell had 22 points against his former team as the Timberwolves outscored the Lakers 40-12 in the third quarter. Anthony Davis had 22 points and eight rebounds as the Lakers dropped to 2-3 with LeBron James sidelined by a strained abdominal muscle, Russell Westbrook scored 20 points on his 33rd birthday but it completely disintegrated after the second half as the Wolves went on 29-4. With this result the Lakers record stands at 7-6 as they move to 7th in the Western Conference

Davis said, “We're not going to win a championship the way we're playing, we have to be better. We've got to decide who we want to be. A championship team? That's not us right now.”

Minnesota coach Chris Finch said, “Desperately needed this one, In this situation, the more desperate team usually wins in the NBA on any given night. We've been playing well. We just haven't been playing well often enough. Felt good to watch some shots go in finally.''

Golden State Warriors beat the in-form Chicago Bulls 119-83 as Steph Curry again lit Chase Centre. The reigning NBA scoring champion piled up 40 points with nine three pointers, Draymond Green delivered an all around performance to guide them to their 7th consecutive win. It was also a historical night for Curry as he passed Ray Allen for the most 3 pointers made in NBA history. Zach LaVine scored 23 points and DeMar DeRozan had 18 to lead the Bulls, who missed star Nikola Vucevic during his absence with COVID-19 as the Bulls had no answer to Curry’s brilliance. With this result Warriors improve their record to 11-1 and sit on top of the Western Conference.

Coach Steve Kerr said, “In general, the high point is establishing our home floor, that this is going to be a tough place to come and win a game. And a lot of that is the way we're playing, a lot of that is our fans, the energy in the building, there's a really good vibe about the team, the fans feel it. Great way to start the year but now we've got to go out on the road and it's going to get a lot tougher. We obviously are very happy to be where we are.''

Curry said of performing for Davidson coach Bob McKillop, “It's special. The schedule gods worked out somewhat in terms of they got to come to the game. Obviously, we're going to Charlotte tomorrow so I'll miss the Davidson-USF game, but to have Coach in the building ... it always gets me going reminding me of the journey to get here and all that went into making me the player and person I am now.''

Brooklyn Nets got back to winning ways after getting 120-112 victory over New Orleans Pelicans. With James Harden and Kevin Durant both hitting clutch shots, the Brooklyn Nets were able to get away with blowing a 21-point second-half lead on the road. Harden highlighted a 39-point, 12-assist performance and also scored a game-sealing 27-foot 3-pointer with 29 seconds left. Durant scored 28 points as Joe Harris heavily contributed with 24 points to get back to winning ways. Valanciunas and Nickeil Alexander Walker added 36 points together but it wasn’t enough for them. With this result Nets move to 2nd in the Eastern Conference with 9-4 record.

Durant said, “We were able to take that nice little haymaker and keep pushing, I think they found something that was working more so than us just playing down to their record.”

Also read: NBA: Clippers beat Miami Heat to win their 6th match on a row as the 76ers lose against the Raptors

The other results were:

• Celtics 122- 113 Bucks
• Hornets 104 - 96 Knicks
• Cavaliers 98 - 78 Pistons
• Rockets 92 - 104 Trail Blazers
• Thunder 105 - 103 Kings
• Grizzlies 94 - 119 Suns
• Spurs 109 - 123 Mavericks
• Nuggets 105 - 96 Hawks

Tomorrow's fixtures are:

• Jazz vs Heat
• Pelicans vs Grizzlies
• Magic vs Wizards
• Pacers vs 76ers
• Raptors vs Pistons
• Cavaliers vs Celtics
• Clippers vs Timberwolves
   

(Basketball news) Lakers snapped out of their two match losing streak as they won 126-123 against a spirited Charlotte Hornets. Anthony Davis scored 32 points, Russell Westbrook had his first triple double with the Lakers but the star of the show was Carmelo Anthony as he came off the bench to score 29 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including 7 of 10 from 3. He is now shooting 52 percent from 3, including 64 percent at home and helping his team get an overtime victory. For the Hornets, Terry Rozier had a season high 29 points after Lamelo Ball had his second triple double of his career with 25 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists. It's the Lakers' first victory in the four games that LeBron James has missed this season; Monday was his third straight sitting due to an abdominal strain. With this result, the Lakers improve their record to 6-5 and stand 8th in the Western Conference.

Curry lit up the chase center in San Francisco as he dropped an NBA season high 50 points with nine 3 pointers, 10 assists and 7 rebounds. He single handedly led the Warriors to a 127-113 victory over the Hawks as the crowd started chanting “MVP! MVP!”. He left the court with 8.48 left on the clock as he was examined for his left shoulder. Trae Young with 28 points  and Bogdanovic 17 points tried their level best to get a result out of it but ultimately their efforts went in vain. With this result Warriors improve their record to 9-1 in the Western Conference.
 
Curry said, “We kind of talked about certain preparations for my shot, just certain mechanics that he called it, even having a little bit more conviction about when it's time to shoot, just a little seed he planted. I took that into warmups and the rest of the game. He was very timely with those words of wisdom.''It's always nice,  You never come out with a certain number in mind. It's just when you get it going, you just keep going

Coach Steve Kerr said, “That was just a stunning performance by Steph,  He was amazing. I want to say I've never seen anything like it but I've been watching it for seven years, so I have seen something like it and still it's just incredible to watch.''  

The Chicago Bulls continued their magnificent start to the season by winning 118-95 against Kevin Durant’s Brooklyn Nets. DeMar DeRozan scored 28 points and Zach LaVine added 24 points as the Bulls rallied in the fourth quarter with 42 points. Kevin Durant’s 38 points went in vain as the Nets five match winning streak came to an end. With this result Bulls improve their record to 7-3 and move up to third in the Eastern Conference,  the Nets slump to sixth in the standings with a 7-4 record.

DeRozan said “We stayed aggressive, We had a couple of stretches, especially in the first half, where we got messy on both ends. Turning the ball over, letting them get out in transition. We stayed resilient, especially going into that fourth quarter. We stayed aggressive and kept attacking, getting out on transition and making everything tough for them.''

Durant said, “They made shots, they were aggressive in everything that they did. They got stops, ran out. They got some high-level shotmakers on that team, so they made tough ones all night. You got to give them credit, they played with a lot of intensity. We're frustrated. We want to win every game.

Also read: NBA: Knicks continued their amazing start to the season as Lakers and Warriors both lose

The other significant results were:

• 76ers 96 - 103 Knicks
• Grizzlies 125 - 118 Timberwolves
• Mavericks 108 - 92 Pelicans
• Nuggets 113 - 96 Heat
• Kings 104 - 109 Suns
• Wizards 101 - 94 Bucks

The fixtures to look out for tomorrow are:

• 76ers vs Bucks
• Jazz vs Hawks
• Clippers vs Trail Blazers

(Football news) Sir Alex Ferguson’s almost 27 years at Manchester United can only be described as a dynasty, few figures in sport have been as impactful in changing the fortunes of a sporting institution with the only other that immediately springs to my mind is Phil Jackson’s time at Chicago Bulls from 1989 to 1998, winning six NBA Championships during his tenure. However, when it comes to prolonged periods of success, few can match the legendary Scotsman who transformed Manchester United from a sleeping giant to one of the biggest football clubs in the world.

In Sir Alex Ferguson’s book Leading, the legendary manager said “We had a virus that infected everyone at United. It was called winning.” The 79 year old’s achievements speak for themself, Premier League champion (13), FA Cup (5), Football League Cup (4), Community Shield (10), UEFA Champions League (2), European Cup Winners Cup (1), European Super Cup (1), Intercontinental Cup (1) and FIFA Club World Cup (1). His individual accolades are simply so many that it would be pointless to list them all, such was his contribution to Manchester United that the former United Road Stand at Old Trafford was renamed The Sir Alex Ferguson Stand on 5th November 2011 and a 9 foot statue was erected outside the stand on 23 November 2012.

What separated Ferguson compared to his peers was his ability to adapt to different eras of the sport while ensuring the present was not compromised in a rebuilding process. He took over a Manchester United team in disarray from Ron Atkinson and despite not getting instant results, transformed the team into a team of world beaters that could compete for the highest honours year after year. The Manchester United way has traditionally been to promote youth and with the Class of 92 the club had produced the likes of Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt and Phil Neville who went on to serve their boyhood club for years if not decades to come. Ferguson was always an authoritative but a father figure at the club and his excellent man management paid dividends in the handling of Eric Cantona, who went on to become one of the most impactful signings in Premier League history.

Sir Alex Ferguson has faced the likes of Arsene Wenger, Jose Mourinho and Rafa Benitez, all top managers in their own capacity but has come out on top every single time. What marks him as a great manager is that every single opponent who has faced him has never had anything but respect and admiration for the Scotsman. He became a symbol of patience in an era where Premier League owners would fire managers if a few results didn’t go their way and changed the way success was perceived in England to a more long term view. It’s fair to say that Ferguson’s retirement did not just signal an end of a dynasty but also an era where managers remained at a club for decades, enjoying unparalleled levels of success in the process. There won’t be another Sir Alex Ferguson in the top flight of football and the Scotsman legacy will remain stuff of legends for generations to come.

Also read: Premier League preview: Man Utd host City while Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool expected to gain three points

(Basketball news) New York Knicks continued their fine start to the NBA season as they beat the unbeaten Chicago Bulls 104-103, Kemba Walker again top scored with 21 points, RJ Barrett also added 20 points to hand Bulls their first loss this season. The victory wasn’t easy for the Knicks, it boiled down to the last possession after the Bulls went on a 12-0 run in the final minutes to nearly tie the score in the end. The Knicks literally had a 104-91 advantage with 3 minutes to play as DeMar DeRozan and Zach Lavine almost inspired a comeback, Zach Lavine top scored for the Bulls with 25 points but the major worry for the fans is that he tore his ligament in his left thumb.

New York coach Tom Thibodeau said, “Right now, we're still getting a feel for each other, every game we're getting better and better. I love the fact that everyone is sacrificing for the team and putting the team first. That's how you win big in his league.''

LaVine said, “It was a good game. It was our first real test and it came down to that last shot. We fought back. I just wish we got into it a little sooner where we could take a lead.''

Golden State Warriors suffered their first loss of the season after they lost to the young and spirited Memphis Grizzlies in overtime 104-101, this was a repeat of the play in game from five months ago that Grizzlies won 117-112 in overtime. Steph Curry scored 36 points but went scoreless in the fourth quarter and in overtime as Ja Morant and co took advantage of this and outscored their opponents. Ja Morant top scored with 30 points with 11-22 shooting, Desmond Bane scored 19 valuable points to snap a two match winless streak for Memphis Grizzlies.

Curry said after the match “The last two shots in regulation, the last one, the game-winner, looked good, those are two shots I'd take every day of the week. Overtime, I think I pressed a little bit, maybe settled a little bit, especially when I didn't have it going from 3, and not getting into the paint and getting my runners off, getting the ball moving. Little critical of myself on those last three shots.''

Miami Heat beat the Brooklyn Nets 106 - 93, Bam Adebayo top scored with 24 points and nine rebounds to better their record to 3 wins and 1 loss. Preseason favourites Nets haven’t had a good start to the season as Kevin Durant did his best with 25 points and 11 rebounds but in the end it was too much for him to do alone, a worrying sign for the Nets fan would be the slow start James Harden is off to as Kyrie Irving still remains unavailable.

Durant said, “I like how we're playing defense the last couple games, I like where our defense is trending. ... I feel like we're generating good shots. We're just (not) knocking them down. If we continue to generate good shots we'll put ourselves in good position”

Los Angeles Lakers suffered their third loss of the season to OKC as Shai Gilgeous Alexander scored 27 points to take them to a 123-115 win. The Oklahoma City Thunder were down by 26 points at one stage as they rallied from behind, this equaled the Thunders biggest comeback in franchise history, to subsequently this was also their first victory of the season.. Early on Westbrook and Anthony Davis dominated the proceedings as they scored 20 and 30 points respectively, Westbrook also managed his first triple double in a Lakers uniform before getting ejected in the final seconds.

Gilgeous-Alexander said Oklahoma City never considered giving up, ''It's a 48-minute game, Crazier things have happened. ... So we knew it was possible. I myself have come back from a deficit almost that big, so I knew it was possible. Just stay the course. Every game, every moment for the whole season.''

Also read: NBA: Lakers win back to back games as Warriors maintain their perfect start to the season

Other significant results were:

• Mavericks 104 - 99 Spurs
• Rockets 91 - 122 Jazz
• 76ers 110 - 102 Pistons
• Wizards 122 - 111 Hawks
• Bucks 108 - 113 Timberwolves

The fixtures to look for tomorrow are:

• Heat vs Hornets
• Nets vs Pacers
• Lakers vs Cavaliers
• Nuggets vs Mavericks
• Raptors vs Magic

(Basketball news) The match between the Suns and Nuggets was a story of two halves, ultimately the Denver Nuggets came out on top as they used lockdown defence and clutch 3 point shots to start off their campaign with a 110-98 victory. Last year's MVP Nikola Jokic started off the campaign with 27 points and 13 rebounds on 13 of 22 shooting from the field as he was too much for the Suns defence to handle, on the other hand Mikal Bridges top scored with 16 points as Chris Paul and co couldn’t get themselves in a groove in the second half

Knicks edged out Celtics 138-134 after playing two overtimes, in what was an enthralling game between these two historical franchises. Evan Fournier in his first match for the New York Knicks scored a career high with 32 points and also hit the game winning three pointer with 56 seconds left in the second overtime. Earlier Jaylen Brown scored 46 points to inspire his team to make a comeback in the fourth quarter as they were down by 11 points, subsequently Brown broke the franchise record for the highest number of points scored on the opening night but ultimately his efforts went in vain as they lost by 4 points in the end. Last year’s most improved player Julius Randle top scored for the Knicks with 35 points, 9 assist and 8 rebounds to help inspire them to a historic victory.

The Chicago Bulls won 94-88 against the Detroit Pistons, this season the Bulls have made significant changes to their roster adding the likes of DeMar DeRozan and Lonzo Ball. These players made their debut and did not disappoint as they scored 17 and 12 points respectively but all the headlines were grabbed by their franchise cornerstone for years Zach Lavine who top scored with 34 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assist. Jerami Grant did his best to inspire a comeback but his 24 points wasn’t enough for them as the Bulls defeated the Pistons for the eight consecutive time.

In tomorrow's matches, the two next generation superstars Trae Young and Luka Doncic go head to head as Hawks take on the Mavericks. Last year's surprise package Hawks will be looking to continue from where they left off from last season as they made it to the Eastern Conference finals under coach Nate McMillan in his first full season. For the Mavericks they will be heading into a new era as coach Rick Carlisle will not be in there for the first time since the 2007-08 season as they have appointed former Dallas player Jason Kidd as their new head coach. 

Also read: NBA: Lakers and Nets both lose their first match of the season as Giannis and Steph Curry both shine on the opening day.

The Miami Heat will play their first match against defending champions Milwaukee Bucks. The Heat will have a renewed vigour and passion to make this year's final after a disappointing season last year, this season Miami have added some extra firepower in the form of former NBA champion Kyle Lowry and also Victor Oldapio who was added to their roster last season will come back from a recurring injury. Miami mainstays Jimmy Butler and along with Bam Adebayo will be hoping that they inspire them to go all the way and win a NBA championship together. This season the Heats have been portrayed as the dark horse for the Championship by the former players and experts.

Last year's Western Conference Finalist LA Clippers will take on Steph Curry’s Golden State Warriors. The Warriors are coming off good form after beating the Lakers and will hope to repeat the same against their city rivals. For Clippers, the task in hand will be difficult as their talisman Kawhi Leonard will be out for quite some time as he suffered an ACL injury in the Western Conference Finals. All the onus will be on Paul George to lead the franchise before Kawhi Leonard comes back.

The other significant results were:

• Trail Blazers 121 - 124 Kings
• Jazz 107 - 86 Thunder
• Spurs 123 - 97 Magic
• Grizzlies 132 - 121 Cavaliers
• Pelicans 97 - 117 76ers
• Raptors 83 - 98 Wizards 
• Hornets 123 - 122 Pacers
• Timberwolves 124 - 106 Rockets
   

(Basketball news) The 75th NBA season is starting with the new trend of super teams in fashion as the likes of Lakers and Nets just added more superstars to become outright favourites to go all the way to the final. This year, teams will be back to playing a full 82 game season with full capacity stadiums as 30 teams will be participating, divided into the Western and Eastern Conferences.

A lot of historical records can be broken this season as Golden State Warriors star player Stephen Curry is set to become NBA’s all time leading three point shooter, he needs only 143 threes to overtake the legendary Ray Allen. Gregg Popvich, the manager of San Antonio Spurs begins his 26th year as a coach, needing only 26 wins to pass Don Nelson for the most victories in NBA history. LeBron James keeps on breaking records as he is going to start in his 19th season, with a total of 35,367 points as he's on the cusp of breaking Karl Malone (36,928) to become the second highest scorer in NBA history.

The Eastern Conference this season is packed with talent and will be an interesting watch to see how teams will adjust to their relatively new roster. Last season's champions Milwaukee Bucks will again win the Conference as well as the Championship this season but their task won't be easy especially teams like Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat all having improved significantly this season. Some of the dark horses from last year like the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks also added all star calibre players in their roster to make the Eastern Conference even more competitive than last season.

The Western Conference was full of surprises last season as the Phoenix Suns made the NBA playoffs after 11 years and shocked everyone when they reached the finals. This gives an indication on how tough the Eastern Conference is, at least 12 teams are eyeing the 8 spots in the NBA playoffs. This season again Lakers will be favourites to come out of the Western Conference as they probably have the best roster on paper but the likes of LA Clippers, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Portland Trailblazers, Dallas Mavericks can cause an upset and go to the NBA final. The unpredictability and the world class players present in the Western Conference tends to be more in the limelight and this season with each roster stacked the competition is going to be tougher.

The race for this year's MVP will be an intriguing watch as last year's winner Nikola Jokic will be looking to make it 4 consecutive MVPs for players from Europe. The likes of Giannis  Antetokounmpo, Steph Curry and LeBron James will all be looking to retain the trophy this season. Some new aged superstars like Luka Doncic, Trae Young and Ja Morant  can also be in the MVP reckoning as they have consistently been their franchise cornerstone in the recent years. 

Also read: Los Angeles Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets: The battle between two superteams

The 75th NBA season tips off tomorrow with two mouthwatering fixtures between Brooklyn Nets vs Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers vs Golden State Warriors at 5 am and 7.30 am respectively. The two championship favourites will battle it out with two former champions is quite a first day matchup for basketball fans. Brooklyn Nets arguably have the best offensive players in Kevin Durant and James Harden in their ranks and will be looking to avenge their loss they had in the Eastern Conference final last season. For the Milwaukee Bucks, their roster remains the same and will be looking to repeat last year's feat by beating the mighty Brooklyn Nets as Ginnas and Khris Middleton will be the key players to look out for if they are to cause an upset.

The LA Lakers are coming off a pretty terrible preseason having lost all their six matches as they will be looking to start the season fresh with their new big three of LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook who will be playing for the first time together against the Golden State Warriors. As for GSW all eyes will be on Steph Curry as he will have to wait 2 or more months for his partner in crime Klay Thompson to return to the court after a 2 year long injury. Lakers have mostly got their 2020 winning squad back as LeBron looks to equal Michaell Jordan's six championship rings.

(Basketball news) Spanish basketball player Pau Gasol has retired from the sport after a long and successful career that has spanned 23 years. The 41 year old won two NBA Championships and three Olympic medals in his illustrious career. Speaking from an opera house in Barcelona, Gasol said “I'm going to retire from professional basketball. It's a difficult decision after so many years, but it's a decision that I really thought over." In attendance were his former teammates and family members, including his wife, his brother Marc and his young daughter.

Gasol made his professional debut in 1998 for Barca as a centre after which the 7 foot 1 inch player was signed by the Memphis Grizzlies in 2001. The Spaniard was selected in the All-Star team on six occasions and won the NBA title with the L.A Lakers in 2009 and 2010. He has also played for Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs, Milwaukee Bucks and spent four months at Portland Trail Blazers despite not playing due to injury.

Gasol had a successful playing career for his country, winning the World Championship in 2006 and European titles in 2009, 2011 and 2015. He helped Spain win a silver medal at the Olympic Games in 2008 and 2012 and guided his country to a bronze medal in 2016. Despite being injured for almost two years, Pau Gasol made a full recovery to participate in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics where Spain was eventually knocked out of the quarter-finals to eventual winners USA. 

While announcing his retirement, Gasol spoke about his battle to overcome the stress fracture he suffered on his left foot in 2019. "Not many doctors thought I'd be able to recover but I'm a person who likes challenges and I wanted to fight to do the improbable. I got to the point where I was relaxed about my career ending, I was at peace, but, when things went well, I took the decision to sign for Barcelona, which wasn't in my plans. I managed to win the league with the club where it all began and where I made my debut. It's been very special."

The 41 year old also paid tribute to the late Kobe Bryant with whom he won two NBA titles. “I'd have liked him to have been here today but sometimes life is unfair. He taught me to be a better competitor, a real winner, I considered him like an older brother.” 

Also read: Los Angeles Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets: The battle between two superteams

(Basketball news) Word has gotten around that the NBA free agency is over, but the reality is far from it. Just because a player is unsigned does not mean he can’t change the fortunes of the club that eventually offers him a contract, and there are always diamonds in the rubble that just need to be unearthed.

Here are our top five picks of free agents in the NBA

1. Langston Galloway

Galloway has been a victim of circumstance and despite there not being a big demand for players on rotation, he would be a solid signing for any team in need of backcourt help. Last season, Galloway played mostly off the ball, shooting 43.8 percent on catch-and-shoot 3s but was stuck behind Chris Paul, Devin Booker and the emerging Cameron Payne. He’s a player that could emerge as a ‘deal’ for any team.

2. Lauri Markkanen

As a restricted free agent, Markkanen finds himself in an unfortunate position where the Bulls can match any offer he receives or negotiate a sign and trade. There have been reports that the New Orleans Pelicans and Charlotte Hornets are interested in Markkanen, who lacks a player of his stature in their teams. Under normal circumstances, a 24 year old of his calibre would be signed in an instant, but Markkanen had not made 3s at an above average rate until shooting 40 percent last season. Teams who would be willing to gamble based on his flashes of brilliance for the Chicago Bulls are the ideal candidate for Lauri Markkanen.

3. Josh Hart

Just like Lauri Markkanen, Josh Hart is a restricted free agent but his quality is much more evident. The 6 feet 5 player is an excellent rebounder and can hold his own guarding bigger players. Being a restricted free agent has complicated Hart’s circumstances as teams love versatile wings but would need to meet New Orleans’ asking price for a sign and trade deal or need cap space to sign him to an offer sheet.

4. Avery Bradley

Thirty one year old Avery Bradley became a free agent after the Rockets rejected his $5.9 million player option. He is expected to be a candidate for Lakers' roster spots after being a part of the team in 2019-2020 and because they need a point-of-attack defensive player and Bradley certainly fits that profile with a decent shoot percentage and smart cutting.

5. Wesley Matthews

Despite having a less than impressive last season where Wesley Matthews had a shoot percentage of 37.5 on catch-and-shoot 3s, the 34 year old remains a solid option for Los Angeles as a switchable defender. It would also be a complete love story if Matthews signs for the Jazz who signed him as an undrafted rookie 12 years ago.

Also read: Virtual development program launched by NBA Academy for top female prospects from outside the US

Have you ever wondered why sports documentaries are so engaging? It’s because sports is more than the result, it’s more than winners or losers, it’s more than politics, drama and fans. Sports documentaries encompass all these aspects and more. It captures emotions, untold stories, interpersonal relationships, overcoming adversity and everything that’s on stake. It’s all about the journey, it brings fans closer to their idols and portrays a humane figure behind all the glitz, glamour and money. It scratches beneath the image of iconic sports stars to showcase that even the best of the best suffer from self doubt and fear of failure. 

If the game itself is the tip of the iceberg, a sports documentary is all the ice hidden from view that is finally showcased to the wider world. Here are our top five picks of sports documentaries that you should stream on Netflix. 



The Last Dance

A 10 part documentary about the 1990’s Chicago Bulls, The Last Dance gives rare insight to the life of arguably the greatest basketball player of all time, Michael Jordan. The documentary explores his journey from Jordan’s rookie years to the height of superstardom, his ultra competitiveness and the complex relationship between the man himself, his sidekick Scottie Pipin, general manager Jerry Krause and team owner Jerry Reinsdorf. ‘The Last Dance’ is a name given by former coach Phil Jackson when the Chicago Bulls attempted to win their sixth NBA Championship in 1997-1998. This sports documentary is a must watch for not just basketball fans but for anyone who enjoys sports.



Senna (2011)

Directed by Asif Kapadia, Ayrton Senna was a three time Formula One racing champion before his untimely death at the age of 34 in an accident at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. Senna’s documentary was released in 2010 and captures his career right from his debut at the 1984 Brazilian Grand Prix to a decade later and sheds some light on his rivalry with Alain Prost. It features a ton of emotional footage provided by Senna’s family, especially when Senna speaks about the sport’s safety when fellow Austrian driver Roland Ratzenberger loses his life a day before Senna tragically suffers the same fate. The documentary has won numerous awards, winning a BAFTA for the best documentary and editing and the Best Documentary Screenplay by the Writers Guild of America among many others.



Diego Maradona (2019)

Diego Maradona is widely considered to be one of the greatest footballers to have ever played the sport. The talented Argentinian’s life was far from straightforward, with allegations of cheating, drug use and infidelity that surrounded Maradona throughout his career. This 2019 British documentary gives a rare insight of Maradona’s life and achievements with carefully compiled archival footage from various sources. Asif Kapadia’s handiwork has shone through this documentary which was first featured in the 2019 Cannes Film Festival.



Icarus (2017)

Icarus is an insightful documentary that delves into the world of illegal doping in sports. Directed by Bryan Fogel, Icarus starts off with Fogel exploring the option of using performance enhancing drugs to win an amateur cycling competition, leading to developing a connection with Russian scientist Grigory Rodchenkov which opens the door to an even bigger scandal, Russia’s state sponsored Olympic doping program.

The documentary premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 90th Academy Awards.



The Dawn Wall (2017)

History was made in 2015 when daredevil climbers Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson free climbed the legendary Dawn Wall section of El Capitan, a 3000 foot granite rock formation in Yosemite National Park. What makes this documentary so special is that it gives the viewer a feeling of being right there, amidst all the action, drama and sheer athleticism. Josh Lowell and Peter Mortimer, the co-directors of the documentary are climbers themselves and have done a fantastic job to capture their 19 days climb on an unforgiving piece of rock.

It perfectly encapsulates some essential human qualities such as patience, perseverance, resilience and the bravery to follow your dreams. It’s a beautiful representation of defying all odds to achieve the impossible and the documentary does a great job capturing all these emotions.