The NBA Finals gets underway tonight at Oracle Arena in Oakland for Game 1 between Cleveland and Golden State. Same teams in the finals for the last four years. Will it be a series where LeBron has to depend on his teammates to get past the Warriors’ best of Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson?
The Philadelphia 76ers team president Bryan Colangelo. who opened five Twitter accounts only to criticize his own players, was found out. The worst of it was when he disclosed an Jahlil Okafar injury that was supposed to be private, but was made public on twitter by Colangelo.
Turning to football: The Oakland Raiders’ practice on Tuesday was obviously missing some key players wide receivers Jordy Nelson and Seth Roberts, safety Reggie Nelson, and defensive end Khalil Mack all are in contract discussions. Preseason starts in August so the Raiders would like to get them in camp soon.
This is the fourth consecutive time that these two teams the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors will meet for the NBA Finals and this is the first time that the same two teams meet in the NBA Finals for the most times four for the finals and it should be noted in major professional sports as well. To achieve such an accomplishment. this is a testimony to the Warriors and Cavaliers that both teams could get this far four times in row.
This is a testament about how successful how head coach Steve Kerr, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, who contributed in that mix. This has been an amazing team that the Warriors have put together this season. They had a game plan, a system that they bought into and selflessly contributed to.
Photo credit @ABC: The Milwaukee Bucks Sterling Brown is detained by Milwaukee Police for a parking violation and later is tased from this body cam video furnished by police
On Headline Sports with Tony:
#1 The NFL has ordered all players to stand during the national anthem. They must stand at full attention respectfully, and if these orders are not followed, the NFL will fine the respective team. The NFL players’ union said they might consider appealing the new policy.
#2 Milwaukee Bucks player Sterling Brown was stopped by the Milwaukee Police for a parking violation. The police on video ordered Brown to back up the video showed Brown cooperating, but when other officers showed up the initial officer said that Brown got in his face–a lie, which was not in the video–and didn’t show Brown getting aggressive. Brown was then tased by the police as five to six other officers arrived. The Milwaukee police have disciplined the police officers who handled the incident. Tony answers the question had it not been for Brown being a player, would this had been a story?
#3 The Vegas Golden Knights now in the NHL Stanley Cup Finals, a first for any first-year expansion team in any sport. Tony answers how they’ll do against the Washington Capitals in the NHL Finals.
#4 San Francisco 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster’s charges have been dropped and will now be able to join the 49ers. Foster’s ex-girlfriend said there was no domestic abuse and that she had been in a fight with two other women the day before Foster was arrested. Foster has been charged by the Santa Clara DA’s office for possession of a illegal firearm dropped from a felony to a misdemeanor.
#5 The Golden State Warriors will face the Houston Rockets tonight in Game 5 in Houston. The series is tied 2-2. Tony answers the question if this series is unpredictable at this point.
#1 Big night for the Cleveland Cavaliers LeBron James as the Cavaliers came back to tie the series up with a Game 4 win over the Boston Celtics 111-102 at 2-2. LeBron has averaged 32 assists, 6.8 rebounds, and 9.0 assists.
#2 The Warriors and Rockets tip off for game 4 tonight at Oracle Arena with the Warriors leading 2-1. The Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni says the pressure is on the Warriors while the Warriors head coach Steve Kerr says that’s good, but the pressure is also on the Rockets.
#3 The Oakland A’s, who just got a four-game sweep over the Toronto Blue Jays, have been on a roll. Amaury talks about what he attribute to the A’s recent success.
#4 The Seattle Mariners are in Oakland tonight for a three-game series at the Oakland Coliseum. Much of the attention last week had been on Robinson Cano, who said he was taking a substance from his doctor in the Dominican Republic that he didn’t know was banned, and the MLB suspended him for 80 games
#5 Tonight, the Oakland A’s will start Trevor Cahill and the Seattle M’s will start Mike Leake to kick off this three-game series at 7:05 pm for the first pitch. Wednesday’s game also will be a 7:05 pm first pitch followed by a day game on Thursday at 12:30 pm.
The Golden State Warriors who return back to Oracle Arena after their electric victory in Game 3 will host Game 4 tonight. The Warriors are up 2-1 in the Western Conference Finals can take a 3-1 series lead and be in a good position to clinch in Houston on Thursday in Game 5. Houston Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni says that the pressure is on Golden State while Warriors head coach Steve Kerr says while D’Antoni is right the pressure also on the Rockets tonight.
The Warriors’ Kevin Durant has dominated in the playoffs and Stephen Curry has found his shot in the third game leading the Warriors to a one-game lead. The Rockets are aiming to key in on Durant and Curry, but the way the two have been lights out, it just might be too much to handle for Houston and the Warriors very likely could force a Game 5 tonight.
OAKLAND, Calif. — The Golden State Warriors and Steph Curry, in particular, had it all going for them Sunday night at home as they beat the Houston Rockets 126-85 at Oracle Arena Sunday.
The 41-point margin of victory was the largest in NBA playoff history. The Warriors, who were routed by Houston last Wednesday, looked like an entirely different team as they played exceptionally well on defense. Curry and Kevin Durant paced them on offense. Curry did not look like himself in the first two games of the series. He had missed several weeks of action due to ankle and knee injuries and was slow to return to form. Curry showed the fans at Oracle and all those watching on television knew that he was back. He got off to a slow start in the first half of the game, but got it going in the third quarter. He scored 18 points and was 7-for-7 from the floor as the Warrior blew open the game.
The Rockets came into town having won the second game of the series by routing Golden State in Houston. They appeared to have found the recipe for beating the Warriors and were eager to pull an upset by winning Game 3. The Warriors could not stop James Harden. Eric Gordon, Trevor Ariza, and P.J.Tucker had it all working for them in Game 2.
The Warriors had to figure out a way to stop the vaunted Houston offense and their 3-point excellence. They did it. The Rockets and Warriors both got off to slow starts. The Rockets led 22-21 when the Warriors went on an 11-0 run at the end of the first quarter to complete the first 12 minutes of play with a nine-point lead 31-22. The second quarter was also pretty even. The Warriors won the quarter 23-21 and finished the first half leading 54-43.
Curry and Durant each scored five points each to give the Warriors a 21-point advantage. The Warriors again owned the third quarter, and Curry was the ringleader with 18 points and three 3-pointers. The Warriors finished the quarter, leading 88-67.
The Warriors refused to let the Rockets get back in the game. The defense continued to force Houston turnovers as they continued to increase the lead. Steve Kerr rested the starters with less than five minutes to play and the bench, led by Quinn Cook’s 11 points, increased the lead to 41. The Warriors win 126-85.
Game Notes and Stats: The Warriors made NBA history as they won their 16th consecutive home playoff win to break the mark of 15 that was set by the Chicago Bulls. The Rockets have played 295 playoff games and it was their worst loss ever. Steph Curry made 11-of-13 shots in the second half and ended the night with 35 points, six rebounds, and five 3-point shots. Kevin Durant added 25 points to go along with six rebounds, and six assists. Draymond Green knocked down 10 and was a monster on the boards as he pulled down 17 rebounds. Klay Thompson had 13, and Andre Iguodala added 10. All five starters were in double figures.
James Harden led the Rockets with 20. Chris Paul and Clint Capela had 13 each. Eric Gordon was the only other Rocket in double figures with 11.
The Warriors shot 52.25% from the floor and held the Rockets to 39.5%. The Rockets made 11 3-pointers. However, the Dubs made 13. On defense, the Warriors made 11 steals and blocked seven shots, and they forced Houston to commit 19 turnovers. The Warriors committed just eight.
The Warriors and the fans observed a moment of silence for the victims of the school shooting in Santa Fe, Texas. The Warriors introduced Run TMC to the crowd during a timeout in the first period. On hand were Chris Mullen, Mitch Richmond, and Tim Hardaway. The trio received a standing ovation from the fans. Hardaway is being installed in the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame Monday night. Mullen and Richmond were inducted earlier.
On the Headlines Sports podcast with Tony Renteria:
#1 Tony will be looking back a bit on that first game with the Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors when the Rockets’ James Harden and the Warriors’ Draymond Green got into a scrap in the first few minutes.
#2 The Seattle Mariners’ Robinson Can came clean admitting he took a substance Furosemide, a diuretic he told reporters that he was given the substance by a doctor in the Dominican Republic, but didn’t realize it was a banned substance. Cano was suspended by MLB for 80 games and is one of the highest-paid players in the MLB.
#3 Oakland Raiders head coach Jon Gruden has been getting some criticism about the way he’s handled personnel so far. He’s let go of Michael Crabtree, punter Marquete King and now Kahlil Mack’s contract, whose contract is coming up could be leaving. The Raiders are looking for some cap room.
#4 In spite of the A’s having the usual arm problems their starters have been coming through with Sean Manaea helping Oakland get a one run 6-5 win and Tuesday night with pitcher Daniel Mengden improving his record to 3-4, going six innings, eight hits, two runs, and three strikeouts and two wins in the series against Boston.
#5 The Giants, after losing five straight all on the road, have now won three straight and are preparing for the Colorado Rockies starting on Thursday night. The Rockies, who are in second place in the NL West, will be a test for San Francisco at AT&T Park after success against a last-place Reds team.
The NBA Draft Lottery order was selected in Chicago on Tuesday night, and the big winners of the night were the Sacramento Kings. The Kings entered the evening slotted to pick seventh on draft night in June. The Kings finished the season tied with the Chicago Bulls but lost a coin toss so the Bulls owned the sixth selection pre-lottery draw.
@NBADraftLottery
The Kings had just an 18.3-percent chance of winding up in the Top-3 in the Draft Lottery. Those odds may have been helped a little because the team was represented by first-year point guard De’Aaron Fox who has been a positive force for Sacramento ever since his arrival in June of 2017 from the University of Kentucky.
The Kings moved into the Top-3 in the 2017 Draft Lottery back fell back to the number five pick because Philadelphia had the right to swap selections if the Sacramento pick was higher than the Sixers. With the number five selection, the Kings took De’Aaron Fox.
This good fortune becomes even more important because the Kings will not have a first-round pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. The 2019 first-round selection was dealt away early in the tenure of Vlade Divac’s administration of basketball operations. This makes the 2018 draft selection even more important than it would normally be because it has to count for two seasons.
Who will be the number two draft pick?
Photo: @LukaDoncic
Virtually every mock draft site has Luka Doncic going as the number two selection in the 2018 NBA Draft. He is an international player currently playing with Real Madrid of Spain originally from Slovenia. Doncic is a 6-foot-7 small forward/shooting guard who is capable of playing positionless basketball that has become so popular in the NBA today.
Doncic is just 19-years old and definitely plays older than his years. He is an outstanding assists player who also is a strong rebounder on offense and defense. Doncic is an above average scorer and shooter at the free throw line. He needs work on his three-point shooting percentage and his number of turnovers needs to be lower.
The Kings front office has two prominent members – Vlade Divac and Peja Stojakovic – who are Eastern Europeans and should be able to make Doncic feel comfortable in Sacramento. One of the Kings up and coming stars is former Euro star – Bogdan Bogdanovic – who certainly understands the style of basketball Doncic has been playing and could help make the transition to the NBA.
It looks like a match made in heaven right? Well, wait just one minute. The Phoenix Suns believe that Doncic can play point guard in the NBA. That’s right. They think this 6-foot-7 budding superstar can play point guard in “the association” alongside their star shooting guard Devin Booker. If the Suns believe Doncic can play that role, he could become the number one pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.
If Doncic goes number one, who goes number two?
Photo:NBADraftLottery
That would leave DeAndre Ayton from Arizona available for the number two pick. Ayton is a 7-foot-1, 250-pound center who has an NBA body. He scores in multiple ways and has even been developing a three-point shot. Ayton runs the floor well and is not afraid of contact. He has great hands and good footwork.
His weakness is his defense. Ayton tends to get caught flat-footed too many times. He needs to do a better job defending against the pick and roll – a staple of the NBA. He needs to be more consistent about contesting shots.
Ayton is going to be a star in the NBA.
The Suns are going to be under immense pressure to draft the Arizona product and keep him in Phoenix. However, the Suns may opt to pass and go with Doncic who may pay off with more long-term results for them.
Either way, the Kings cannot go wrong. They are going to be able to draft a player who is going to become a star in the NBA.
On That’s Amaury’s podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson:
The Golden State Warriors started this third round of the playoffs with a road victory over the Houston Rockets 119-106 in Game 1 on Monday night. It looked like five guys (from Golden State) versus the Houston Rockets’ James Harden, who handled much of the scoring by himself.
Those five guys were referring to is the Warriors’ Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala, Stephen Curry, and Klay Thompson, who all combined for 99 points. Durant had his second-highest point total with 37 for this post season. The Rockets’ James Harden finished also with his second-highest postseason total with 41 points.
Houston head coach Mike D’Antoni called the Rockets performance a game of “mental lapses.” Game 2 is Wednesday night in Houston. The Rockets have the home floor after watching them in Game 1. Do the Rockets need to pick up the pace with a faster tempo?
Talk about how the Warriors Kevin Durant dominated on offense Monday night in Game 1 in Houston with 37 points coming in with his second-highest total for the postseason. His opponent, the Rockets’ James Harden, finished with his second-highest total of 41 points. It looked like Harden against five Warriors players.
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