Timberwolves vs. Thunder: Score and Twitter Reaction from Christmas Day 2016
December 25th, 2016 by Rob Goldberg No comments »
Russell Westbrook had another big day, although it was the help of his teammates that made a difference on Christmas Day.
Steven Adams and Enes Kanter also had strong showings for the Oklahoma City Thunder, as they earned a 112-100 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Westbrook finished with 31 points, and although he struggled with his shot (11-of-25 from the field), he was more than happy to distribute the ball with 15 assists.
He also added this impressive block in the first half on Karl-Anthony Towns, via NBA on ESPN:
Adams was the beneficiary of a lot of those passes, totaling 22 points, just short of his career high of 24. Kanter was a difference-maker off the bench as well with 20 points, four rebounds and four assists.
Fred Katz of the Norman Transcript provided an interesting note on the big men:
Towns did his part for Minnesota with 26 points and eight rebounds and a ...
Christmas Day NBA Roundup: Kyrie Irving Writes Another Chapter in Growing Legend
December 25th, 2016 by Dan Favale No comments »
In a game that saw LeBron James catch fire from beyond the arc and the Golden State Warriors build a 14-point fourth-quarter lead, Kyrie Irving made the ending about him.
It didn't look like the Cleveland Cavaliers would pull off a 109-108 victory in this NBA Finals rematch. They entered the final frame Sunday shooting under 35 percent from the floor, staving off each Warriors run with a steady diet of offensive rebounds and a supernova LeBron James (31 points, 13 rebounds, four assists).
But Golden State opened the fourth with a 7-0 blitz, extending its lead to a game-high 14. That felt like the end.
Kevin Durant (36 points, 15 rebounds) was in rhythm. Klay Thompson (24 points), seldom idle, kept the Cavaliers defense on its toes away from the ball. Stephen Curry (15 points, three assists) could barely buy a bucket, but he set quality screens, and the Warriors didn't seem ...
Bulls vs. Spurs: Score and Twitter Reaction from Christmas Day 2016
December 25th, 2016 by Rob Goldberg No comments »
Despite some shaky moments, the San Antonio Spurs took care of business on Christmas Day.
The team squandered a 20-point first-half lead but fought back to earn a 119-100 home win over the Chicago Bulls.
LaMarcus Aldridge was the star of the day with 33 points on 15-of-20 shooting from the field, plus nine rebounds. He did most of his damage right out of the gate with 20 points on 9-of-9 shooting in the first quarter.
Jabari Young of the San Antonio Express-News noted the change in aggressiveness:
Kawhi Leonard helped out as well with 25 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and three steals.
The team simply couldn't miss from the field, making 56.5 percent from the field and 9-of-18 from three-point range.
Cassidy Hubbarth of ESPN joked about the Spurs being underrated on a day where the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors stole headlines:
Dwyane Wade was the best player on the floor for the Bulls, ...
Warriors vs. Cavaliers: Score and Twitter Reaction from Christmas Day 2016
December 25th, 2016 by Alec Nathan No comments »
The Cleveland Cavaliers are masters at erasing big deficits.
Months removed from their historic comeback from 3-1 down in the NBA Finals, the defending champions made the Golden State Warriors' 13-point lead with 8:17 remaining in the fourth quarter disappear before Kyrie Irving hit a game-winning jumper over Klay Thompson with 3.4 seconds left to catapult the Cavs to a 109-108 win at Quicken Loans Arena.
Irving finished with 25 points, 10 assists and seven steals, and as always, LeBron James came to play with a signature performance.
In 40 minutes, James poured in a team-high 31 points (12-of-22 shooting) to go with 13 rebounds, four assists and a show-stopping dunk that punctuated Cleveland's momentum swing late in the fourth, as NBA TV documented on Twitter:
ESPN's Tom Haberstroh took time to praise James in the midst of the Cavaliers' epic comeback triumph:
Kevin Durant led the Warriors with 36 points and Klay ...
Celtics vs. Knicks: Score and Twitter Reaction from Christmas Day 2016
December 25th, 2016 by Alec Nathan No comments »
The New York Knicks trotted into Sunday's Christmas matinee against the Boston Celtics looking to extend their winning streak to three games, but the visitors had other ideas.
With their sights set on washing away memories of a tough loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday, the Celtics dispatched the Knicks 119-114 at Madison Square Garden thanks to a go-ahead three-pointer by Marcus Smart with 47 seconds remaining.
Smart's long-range conversion came on the heels of a 16-3 New York run that tied the game at 112 after the Knicks had trailed by nine points with less than two-and-a-half minutes to go, via the NBA:
Boston's Isaiah Thomas starred with 27 points and four assists, while Kelly Olynyk and Smart came up large with 16 and 15 points, respectively, off the bench.
Then there was Al Horford, who operated deftly below the free-throw line, recording 15 points, seven rebounds, five assists, three steals, ...
Cleveland Cavaliers Have Surpassed Golden State Warriors’ 3-Point Dominance
December 25th, 2016 by David Cassilo No comments »
CLEVELAND — If the Cleveland Cavaliers win their NBA Finals rematch on Christmas Day, it will at least be partially because they beat the Golden State Warriors at their own game.
While Steve Kerr's group has a reputation as the league's elite long-range shooting team, the Cavaliers are actually better than Golden State in three-point percentage, attempts and makes per game so far this season.
In fact, Cleveland—at 40 percent from long range—trails only the San Antonio Spurs (40.8) in three-point percentage this season.
"I think it's the offense we run," said Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue. "I think it's the attention that Kevin [Love], Kyrie [Irving] and LeBron [James] draw. And we have great three-point shooters."
The Cavaliers are also second behind the Houston Rockets in NBA three-point makes (13.4) and attempts (33.4) per game. The Warriors are third and fourth in those respective categories and fifth in three-point percentage. If the season ends ...
How the Serge Ibaka Trade Set Up Oklahoma City’s Future
December 25th, 2016 by Michael Pina No comments »
BOSTON — Even as Russell Westbrook turns the oceanic NBA into his very own above-ground swimming pool, the Oklahoma City Thunder have no choice but to look ahead.
In the franchise’s first 30 games without Kevin Durant on its roster, short-term championship contention is in the rearview mirror, with day-to-day, big-picture improvement from their overhauled, inexperienced group now the primary focus.
Expectations are significantly lower than they were seven months ago, and everyone knows why: Durant now plays for the Golden State Warriors. But that decision was out of Oklahoma City’s control. The other foundation-changing shakeup, however, was not.
Thunder general manager Sam Presti always has his eyes on the future, and a couple of weeks before Durant left to team up with three other All-Stars, one of the NBA’s shrewdest tastemakers shipped Serge Ibaka’s expiring contract to the Orlando Magic for Victor Oladipo, Domas Sabonis and Ersan Ilyasova (who was ...
It’s Time to Stop Stalling and Move Kristaps Porzingis to Center
December 25th, 2016 by Yaron Weitzman No comments »
NEW YORK — For all the promise the New York Knicks have shown this season—a 16-13 record, one of the top marks in the Eastern Conference—they're still a team littered with flaws.
Their defense—which has allowed 107.5 points surrendered per 100 possessions, the NBA's sixth-worst mark—has been atrocious. Their mediocre offense is putting up 104.6 points scored per 100 possessions and ranks 14th in the league.
They and the Memphis Grizzlies are the only two NBA teams with winning records and negative point differentials, though the record of 2.9 points per 100 possessions that the Knicks are being outscored by suggests theirs might be a bit of a mirage.
Yet there's still much to like about these Knicks, still reasons to feel optimistic about their chances going forward. They have two top-25 players in Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis. Derrick Rose seems to be getting more comfortable by the day. Also, they ...
NBA Trade Rumors: Latest Buzz on Rudy Gay, Nikola Vucevic and More
December 25th, 2016 by Andy Bailey No comments »
While most NBA fans are all snug in their beds, executives for their favorite teams are still working the phones in an effort to find the right trades.
If reports are to be trusted, the Orlando Magic have been particularly busy of late. It looks like they've taken (or placed) calls regarding the Sacramento Kings' Rudy Gay. And two of their current players, Nikola Vucevic and Elfrid Payton, may not be long for the Orlando pinstripes.
Most of the NBA's holiday cheer will come in the form of the slate of games on Christmas Day but if any of the above materializes into a deal, we'll have plenty more to talk about.
Rudy Gay on the Magic?
Gay might as well buy property in this space. He seems to show up here at least once a week. What's new this time is the team connected to him.
According to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders, that ...
George Karl’s Book ‘Furious George’ Reportedly Had Parts on Kings Tenure Removed
December 25th, 2016 by Scott Polacek No comments »
The Sacramento Kings fired George Karl after the 2015-16 season following two years of lackluster basketball, but the final version of the former head coach's book will reportedly be less critical of that tenure than initially planned.
According to Marc J. Spears and Marc Stein of ESPN.com, Karl's time with the Kings is discussed in the book Furious George, "but there have been passages critical of various aspects that have been removed."
Spears and Stein noted the book had "unflattering views in a proof copy" about big man DeMarcus Cousins, general manager Vlade Divac and owner Vivek Ranadive. However, they cited sources who said the edition of Furious George that will be made available to the public won't have Karl's negative views after part of his settlement with the team was to abstain from critical commentary.
According to Spears and Stein, ESPN.com obtained an excerpt in November that included a passage where swingman ...