Category: Basketball

Following a 109-86 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka spoke on the physical aspect of the game that played a role in this pivotal win:

“That was a thing we really talked about in Game 1, where we’ve been a bigger physical team all year. I didn’t love how we didn’t react to them being physical — we adjusted well, we learned some things from Game 1, and it felt like we knew we didn’t react to the way they were playing.”

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Ime Udoka on getting more physical in Game 2: “I didn’t love how we didn’t react to them being physical… our guys took that to heart and we knew we’d come out with the right effort tonight.” pic.twitter.com/PMXcozK6XI

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) May 4, 2022

Coach Udoka also added that being ‘outmuscled’ in Game 1 was a motivating factor for his team:

“Two big teams, but we haven’t kind of been outmuscled like that all year, and I think our guys took that to heart, and we knew we’d come out with the right effort tonight.”

Udoka’s Celtics leave Boston with the series tied 1-1, headed to Milwaukee for Game 3 on Saturday.

The Boston Celtics pulled through in Game 2, winning 109-86 over the Milwaukee Bucks to even the series 1-1. A big part of the reason Boston was able to win was by limiting Giannis Antetokounmpo’s offensive output as much as possible. Grant Williams, who was a primary defender on the Greek Freak, spoke on how he viewed the assignment:

“I view it as guarding him on an island where it’s just you and him, and you have to do your job… he started being a lot more aggressive in the second half and getting downhill and creating for himself. But, it’s just one of those things you just hunker down and trust the work you’ve done and do your best to contain one of the best players in the world.”

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Grant on guarding Giannis: “You just hunker down and trust the work you’ve done and do your best to contain one of the best players in the world.”

Presented by your NE Ford Dealers. Built for America. Built Ford Proud. pic.twitter.com/czN4ZQIuvh

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) May 4, 2022

Through the two games thus far, the two-time MVP has been guarded by Williams for ten minutes and 20 seconds. He’s shot 44.4 percent from the field, a drastic 12.4 percent difference from his field goal percentage in the first round (56.8 percent).

For comparison’s sake, when you add up the minutes total of Giannis being guarded by Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Robert Williams III, the Greek Freak has shot 72.3 percent from the field in six minutes and 31 seconds.

Grant Williams will look to bring that number down in Game 3, which is Saturday at 3:30 pm EST in Milwaukee.

The Golden State Warriors announced that Gary Payton II suffered a fractured left elbow on Tuesday after a Flagrant 2 foul Dillon Brooks committed on him nearly three minutes into Game 2.

The infraction occurred when Brooks chased Payton down in transition in an attempt to stop a fast-break layup. Brooks hit Payton in the head in the subsequent action; the hard foul resulted in Payton hitting the court hard and staying down for several minutes. The incident makes the second straight game in the second-round series where a starter will miss a large chunk of a playoff game due to a Flagrant 2 ejection.

“I don’t know if it was intentional, but it was dirty,” Kerr said per ESPN. “There is a code. This code that players follow where you never put a guy’s season [or] career in jeopardy by taking somebody out in midair and clubbing him across the head, ultimately fracturing Gary’s elbow … He broke the code. Dillon Brooks broke the code.”

“The line is pretty clear; you don’t hit on the head when he’s in midair, breaking his elbow. That’s where the line is.”

Payton will undergo an MRI on Tuesday for further evaluation. A timetable for his return has not been determined.

The second-round series has undoubtedly lived up to the hype. Heading into Game 2, Memphis and Golden State were aware that their series would be a physical affair. Kerr said Game 2 would be their most physical game all season, which turned out to be accurate by all accounts.

“Playoff basketball is supposed to be physical,” Kerr said. “Everybody’s going to compete. Everyone is going to fight for everything.”

Without Payton in the lineup, who started Games 1 and 2 due to his defensive acumen, the Warriors will have to rely on someone else to guard Ja Morant, who just dropped 47-points in the Grizzlies’ 106-101 win over the Warriors.

Kerr said he hopes Andre Iguodala can fill the task once he returns from a back injury, hopefully by Game 3. Another solution might be to guard the reigning Most Improved Player by committee and hopefully slow him down with different coverages and defenders.

The Grizzlies-Warriors series shifts to San Francisco on Saturday.

The full array of Ja Morant’s skill, talent, and dominance was on display Tuesday as the Memphis Grizzlies took back home-court advantage and tied their second-round series 1-1 with a 106-101 win over the Golden State Warriors.

The 47-point effort Morant put on the veteran Warriors feels as inevitable as Thanos collecting the infinity stones. Each bucket felt heavier and heavier as it fell through the nylon. The Murray State product made 15-31 field goal attempts, knocked down 5-12 triples, and hit 12-13 free throws. Can’t forget the eight rebounds, eight assists, and three steals he collected, either.

The newly crowned Most Improved Player award winner started the night off hot, scoring 21 points and five dimes in the first half, punctuating his Hulk-like evening with a hammer in transition. Morant’s athletic exploits are well-chronicled at this point, and when you’re that athletic and explosive, the main question fellow hoopers and media will ask is, where is the jumper?

The Warriors’ decision to make Morant beat them as a shooter didn’t pay off on Tuesday didn’t pay off as Morant trusted his jump shot when the Warriors sagged off him in the lane; the 2022 All-Star matched the sure-fire Splash Brothers in made three-pointers. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined to bury 5-23 shots from beyond the arc against the Grizzlies’ lengthy and physical perimeter defense for the night.

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Stepback 12 🥶

(via @NBAonTNT) pic.twitter.com/9agrz2sMNd

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) May 4, 2022

Speaking of Curry, Morant outdueled the former MVP once again in Game 2. Morant scored the final 15 points of the night, hitting a three, and walked Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins down the lane for two tough finishes on a pair of isolation possessions in the final two and a half minutes. Morant also sank a floater to give the Warriors a 104-101 lead and then the final free-throws of the night to seal the Grizzlies’ series-tying win.

“Definitely big time,” Morant said per ESPN. “I felt like this was a must-win game for us. For me, I was frustrated with myself missing that layup in Game 1.

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As if 47 points wasn’t INCREDIBLE enough, @JaMorant scored the final 15 points to lead the @memgrizz to the Game 2 win and even the series at 1-1! #GrindCity pic.twitter.com/4sUG8KZSaL

— NBA (@NBA) May 4, 2022

The Grizzlies-Warriors series heads back to San Francisco for Game 3 on Thursday. After Game 1, Curry let Morant know this second-round matchup would be a battle but fun. As the Grizzlies celebrated their hard-fought win, Morant returned the favor as the two superstars walked past each other.

“I was able to return that message tonight — I am having a lot of fun.”

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JA DROPS 4️⃣7️⃣

GRIZZLIES EVEN UP THE SERIES 🍿 #NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/IJXeDcpQaP

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 4, 2022

The Dallas Mavericks dropped Game 1 to the Phoenix Suns despite Luka Doncic’s 45 points. What can Luka, Jalen Brunson, Spencer Dinwiddie, and head coach Jason Kidd change in Game 2?

Locked On Mavericks’ Nick Angstadt and Isaac Harris discuss the things the Dallas Mavericks should have learned from Game 1 and then what adjustments they’d like to see in Game 2.

How much can the Mavs play their small-ball unit with Dorian Finney-Smith at the 5? How can Jalen Brunson get his offensive game going? How can the Mavs get off to a better start than In Game 1? Who can and can’t play in the rotation during this series?

The Mavs are in the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2011 when they won the NBA Championship against LeBron James and the Miami Heat.

The Dallas Mavericks and the Phoenix Suns will play Game 2 of their Western Conference Semifinals playoff series on Wednesday evening in Arizona.

Ja Morant went off for career-high 47 points as the Grizzlies tied the second round series against the Warriors by winning Game 2. His stellar performance received praise from LeBron James.

The Lakers superstar did not think that the 22-year-old point guard should have been in the Most Improved Player — the award that was just given to Morant — conversation because he is already a superstar.

“JA so damn tough!!!! There’s no way Ja should even have been in MIP talks. This guy is a flat out ⭐️ and always have been!! Real basketball 🧠s know. Not the majority of dweebs who don’t even watch basketball on those voting ballots,” the four-time NBA champion tweeted.

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JA so damn tough!!!! There’s no way Ja should even have been in MIP talks. This guy is a flat out ⭐️ and always have been!! Real basketball 🧠s know. Not the majority of dweebs who don’t even watch basketball on those voting ballots.

— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 4, 2022

Jaylen Brown scored 25 of his 30 points in the first half, Jayson Tatum added 29 points along with eight assists and the Boston Celtics beat the Milwaukee Bucks 109-86 on Tuesday night to even the Eastern Conference semifinals at one game apiece.

On the other hand, Giannis Antetokounmpo posted 28 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists, Jrue Holiday added 19 points and seven assists for the Bucks. Game 3 is on Saturday in Milwaukee.

Following the game, the Celtics power forward Grant Williams (21 points) talked about guarding Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo: “You just hunker down and trust the work you’ve done and do your best to contain one of the best players in the world.”

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Grant on guarding Giannis: “You just hunker down and trust the work you’ve done and do your best to contain one of the best players in the world.”

Presented by your NE Ford Dealers. Built for America. Built Ford Proud. pic.twitter.com/czN4ZQIuvh

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) May 4, 2022

The NBA announced that Tyler Herro won the 2021-22 Sixth Man of the Year award on Tuesday.

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Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro has won the 2021-22 NBA Sixth Man of the Year award.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 3, 2022

The Kentucky product won the award over fellow finalists Kevin Love and Cam Johnson. Love finished as the runner-up for the award after receiving 214 total votes from award voters. Herro received 488 total votes, including 96 first-place votes.

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Herro pulled the flamethrower out. (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/069VqQ5lnl

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) May 3, 2022

Herro averaged 20.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game on 44.7 percent shooting from the field and 39.9 percent from beyond the arc. He was the second-leading scorer for the No. 1 seeded Miami Heat. Herro thrived coming off the bench a season after he was maligned for not meeting expectations coming into his second season. He put up 15.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game during his up and down sophomore season.

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The Boy Wonder’s range is limitless. (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/HGyraBkjF9

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) May 3, 2022

Herro became the first Heat player in franchise history to be named Sixth Man of the Year. He also broke up a streak of six straight Western Conference players earning the honor, with the Clippers winning four of them.

Herro is coming off a 25-point, seven-dimes performance in a 106-92 Game 1 win over the 76ers. Game 2 of the Heat-Sixers second-round series will take place on Wednesday.

Since Draymond Green was ejected late in the first half of the Warriors’ eventual Game 1, 117-116, win over the Memphis Grizzlies, much has been made about his physical playstyle and the reputation and legacy he’s gained as the ultimate glue guy of the Warriors dynasty.

Green has even gone to social media to make a case that other players, who don’t necessarily have the same reputation for the physical play he does, should be kicked after Player A accidentally kicked Player B in the groin or Player C committed a hard foul on Player D.

When the Inside the NBA crew questioned him about his aggressiveness, he reminded the legendary basketball media crew that the Warriors still won thanks to the collective defensive effort of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, who both got clutch defensive stops against Ja Morant late in the fourth quarter to secure their tight win and the hot scoring of Jordan Poole who scored a team-high 31 points.

“We won the game,” Green said.

That doesn’t negate the fact that the Warriors and Green need each other. The former DPOY missed two months due to a back injury, and without the Michigan State product in the lineup, the Warriors went from 34-12 when Green played to 19-17 without him.

In the 17 minutes Green played in Game 1, he posted six points, four rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Without Green on the floor, Poole, Kevon Looney, Jonathon Kuminga, Otto Porter Jr., and Andrew Wiggins picked up the slack on the rebounding side, helping the Warriors win the rebound battle 50-47. The Grizzlies led the League in rebounding, corraling 49.2 boards per game; in the playoffs, they bring down 46.4.

“That’s what it takes when you lose a guy,” Green said.

In the meantime, the Warriors and Green will have to contend with Green’s physical play and a looming suspension if Green picks up another Flagrant 2 foul. League rules state if a player picks up four flagrant foul points, one point for a Flagrant 1 and two for a Flagrant 2.

The last time those rules reared their ugly heads in the playoffs for the Warriors was Game 5 of the infamous 2016 NBA Finals, which Green missed due to picking up a Flagrant 2 and his fourth point in the previous game. The Cleveland Cavaliers used his absence to spark a 3-1 comeback, the first time a team climbed back from a 3-1 deficit to win the NBA Finals.

Defiant as ever, Green won’t allow those memories to deter him from playing hard. He also expressed some frustration with the flagrant foul system.

“My reputation is a badge of honor,” he said. “Not everybody can earn that reputation. So, life goes on. I’m never going to change the way I play basketball. It’s gotten me this far: Three championships, four All-Stars, Defensive Player of the Year. Not gonna change that.”

“There’s a lot of things in this league that are probably old and outdated and (don’t) make sense, and people are too lazy to go change things; there’s a laundry list of things that are old, and they worked in the ‘60s, but they probably don’t work today, but people are too lazy to go change them.”

Game 2 of the Warriors-Grizzles story takes place in Memphis on Tuesday.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the former Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson, who coached the team from 1999 to 2004 and again from 2005 to 2011, will advise the Lakers in their search for a new head coach.

“One person who is significantly involved in this process is Phil Jackson. He’s got a voice in this. He did last time when they hired Frank Vogel. You know, Kurt Rambis [as well],” Woj said.

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“One person who is significantly involved in this process is Phil Jackson. He’s got a voice in this. He did last time when they hired Frank Vogel. You know, Kurt Rambis [as well].”

– @wojespn on the Lakers’ coaching search process.

(via @_Talkin_NBA)pic.twitter.com/1MVN2BLCKK

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) May 3, 2022