NBA: Gobert suspended one game after punching teammate

LOS ANGELES -- The Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday suspended Rudy Gobert for one game for punching a teammate, ruling him out of the team's play-in clash with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Minnesota said in a statement Gobert would not travel to Los Angeles for Tuesday's clash with the Lakers, where the winner will secure a postseason berth.

"The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has suspended center Rudy Gobert for one game following yesterday's incident," the Timberwolves said in a statement.

Gobert was benched by the Timberwolves on Sunday during the team's roller-coaster 113-108 defeat of New Orleans after a stunning incident in the second quarter where he aimed a punch at teammate Kyle Anderson.

The players were forcibly separated by other Timberwolves players. Gobert was pulled from the game following the clash.

The French center later apologized for the incident on Twitter, saying that "emotions got the best of me".

"I should not have reacted the way I did regardless of what was said," Gobert wrote.

"I wanna apologize to the fans, the organization and particularly to Kyle, who is someone that I truly love and respect as a teammate."

Agence France-Presse

NBA: T-Wolves center Rudy Gobert says refs helping stars win

NEW YORK - Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert says NBA referees try to help teams with star players defeat teams from smaller markets with unfair foul calls.

The 30-year-old French 7-footer (2.16m) launched his tirade after the T-Wolves lost 107-100 to the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday, the Star Tribune newspaper and The Athletic reported.

"It's really not fair," Gobert said of officiating calls, which sent Phoenix to the free throw line 27 times to only 12 for Minnesota.

"I've been in this league for 10 years and I try to always give the benefit of the doubt, but it's hard for me to think (referees) are not trying to help (the Suns) win tonight. It's hard for me to think they didn't try to help the (reigning champion Golden State) Warriors win the other night or the Sacramento Kings the other night."

Gobert, a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year and last season's top NBA rebounder, played nine seasons for the Utah Jazz before joining the Timberwolves this season.

"It's just so obvious. As a basketball player that's been in this league for so long, it's disrespectful, and it sucks, to be honest," Gobert added.

"We work so hard to be in a position to compete with the best and we just get manipulated into those situations where it just impacts the game for the other team too much. They know how to do it. They do it a lot of different ways. Tonight was another way of doing it."

Gobert, who was whistled for five fouls, and the T-Wolves fell to 39-38, one game behind Golden State for the last guaranteed playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Minnesota slipped into the group of teams set for a play-in series to reach the playoffs, with Gobert implying referees were helping to boost playoff bids for teams with stars like Phoenix's Kevin Durant, Golden State's Stephen Curry and LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers, who are just behind Minnesota in the Western Conference.

"We understand that it's also a business," Gobert said. "Unfortunately. It's sad, but it's good also. It's really good. But it's true. We understand that we're not the biggest of the markets.

"I think you want to see (Durant) in the playoffs, Steph in the playoffs, you want to see LeBron in the playoffs. The Timberwolves are not there yet. We got to keep putting our head down, keep playing through that, and it's frustrating for sure, especially for me."

The T-Wolves play host to James and the Lakers on Friday in a crucial games for the playoff chances of both clubs. The Lakers lead the NBA in free throw attempts per game with 26.7, three more on average than Minnesota.

Last week, the NBA fined Phoenix coach Monty Williams $20,000 for complaining about officiating in a loss to the Lakers during which Los Angeles shot 46 free throws to only 20 for the Suns.

Agence France-Presse

Old rivals Spain, France set up Eurobasket title showdown

Spain edged Germany 96-91 in a Eurobasket semifinal to set up a showdown with the continent's other recent dominant nation, France, in the final.

World champions Spain, who are using the tournament to rebuild their team, reached their 10th Euro final. They have won three of the last five.

France won their only European crown, led by Tony Parker, in 2013, two years after losing to Spain, led by Pau Gasol, in the final.

On Friday, in the evening's opening match, France thrashed Poland 95-54 as NBA star Rudy Gobert dominated defensively and Guerschon Yabusele top-scored with 22 points.

The Olympic silver medallists held the bewildered Poles to just 32 percent shooting.

Poland had created one of the shocks of the tournament by beating Luka Doncic's Slovenia in the quarterfinals, but were swamped in Berlin. Not a single Polish player scored in double figures.

"We wanted to show that we can defend and tonight we proved that we can," said Gobert.

"If we carry on with the same spirit we can go on and win this thing."

Gobert and fellow big man Vincent Poirier allowed the Poles little space inside and Real Madrid's Yabusele and NBA small forward Evan Fournier were clinical in attack for the French.

Hosts Germany led Spain by seven points in the fourth quarter but neither the support of 14,000 spectators nor 30 points from point guard Dennis Schroeder were enough to hold off the Spanish.

Naturalized American point guard Lorenzo Brown scored 29 points for a Spanish squad with eight of its 12 players appearing in a first international tournament.

One veteran Rudy Fernandez, 37, was carried off court by his teammates after reaching his fifth Eurobasket final. 

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Jazz aim to continue dominance over Kings

The Utah Jazz opened their campaign in the manner you would expect from a team that compiled the best record in the league last season.

Now Utah looks to improve to 2-0 when it visits the Sacramento Kings on Friday night.

The Jazz dealt with the disappointment of a second-round playoff exit after last season's 52-20 record but there was no residue remaining on Wednesday when they opened with a 107-86 home victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Jazz held the Thunder to 37.4 percent shooting, and three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert was in midseason form with 16 points and 21 rebounds.

"You can't control if you make shots or not but you can control how you play defense," Gobert said afterward. "I think if we control what we can control every night and focus on that, we're going to win a lot of games."

Gobert was one of six Utah players to score in double digits. Bojan Bogdanovic led the way with 22 points.

Among the double-digit scorers were reigning Sixth Man of the Year Jordan Clarkson (18 points) and fellow reserve Joe Ingles (14).

Also thriving off the bench was Hassan Whiteside with 10 rebounds in his Utah debut.

"We have five (bench) guys that can be starters on most other teams in the NBA," Bogdanovic said. "Our bench is our biggest strength."

The other two Utah players who reached double figures were the starting backcourt of Donovan Mitchell (16 points) and Mike Conley. Mitchell was just 6-of-17 shooting and Conley finished 4 of 12.

Sacramento opened its season with a 124-121 road win over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday, but the team has routinely struggled with Utah.

The Jazz have won 13 of the past 15 meetings, including all three of last season's matchups by an average of 29 points.

Utah set a franchise record for points when it demolished the Kings 154-105 in Sacramento on April 28.

The Kings will look to compete much better against the Jazz after holding off Portland. Sacramento held an 18-point, final-quarter lead but had to survive a last-second missed 3-pointer from Damian Lillard to leave victorious.

Harrison Barnes carried the Kings with career highs of 36 points and eight 3-pointers. Coach Luke Walton was thrilled to see Barnes take 11 3-point shots.

"I've challenged Harrison, I want him to get eight threes up a night," Walton said afterward. "He's a very good shooter, and there's no reason he can't make those shots.

"We needed all those points. And that's really how we want to see Harrison playing all the time."

De'Aaron Fox added 27 points and eight assists, and Richaun Holmes had 21 points and 11 rebounds for Sacramento. Buddy Hield scored 17 points and made four 3-pointers to tie the franchise career mark of 1,070 set by Peja Stojakovic (1998-2006).

One player who never left the bench was former No. 2 overall pick Marvin Bagley III. The player the Kings infamously selected over Luka Doncic in the 2018 NBA Draft isn't part of the rotation.

Agent Jeff Schwartz blasted the Kings earlier this week for their "mismanagement" of Bagley. Walton, though, isn't interested in a debate.

"I'm not getting into any of that," Walton said. "For me, we're a team. We know we have a plan. We know what that plan is and we're going to need everyone this season."

-Field Level Media-

NBA: Jazz blow out Lakers for split of two-game set

With frontline players Rudy Gobert, Derrick Favors and Mike Conley Jr. back in the lineup, the Utah Jazz made quick work of the host Los Angeles Lakers in the second straight matchup between the teams, prevailing 111-97 on Monday.

The Lakers won the opener of the two-game set 127-115 in overtime on Saturday. With the Jazz having earned a home win over the Indiana Pacers on Friday, Utah coach Quin Snyder chose to rest three of his regulars for the first matchup against the Lakers. High-scoring Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell missed both games, though.

The Jazz never trailed Monday, seizing control early and leading by as many as 25 points in the second half, showing why they are the leaders of the Western Conference.

With the return of Gobert, a two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, the Jazz controlled things inside, finishing with a 52-36 advantage on points in the paint and a 42-32 rebounding edge.

Jordan Clarkson led the Jazz with 22 points off the bench. Joe Ingles finished with 21 points. Bojan Bogdanovic totaled 19 points, and Gobert finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Conley posted 14 points and 10 assists while teammate Royce O'Neale added 13 points and nine rebounds. All five starters finished in double figures for Utah.

Talen Horton-Tucker topped the Lakers with a career-high 24 points. Kyle Kuzma totaled 17 points, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Dennis Schroder added 15 points apiece.

Los Angeles did receive some good news on the injury front regarding sidelined stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Coach Frank Vogel said James has progressed to the point where he's doing light work on the court after being out since March 20 with an sprain injury.

Vogel said Davis (calf) is getting closer to returning but needs to work on his conditioning. Davis has been cleared for full-contact practices and could return by the end of this month if things continue to go well during his ramp-up.

After the loss, Los Angeles heads out for a four-game road trip starting against the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday. The Jazz head to Houston to take on the Rockets on Wednesday.

-reuters-

76ers' Simmons named Rookie of the Year

Philadelphia 76ers point guard Ben Simmons has been named the NBA's Rookie of the Year after the former No. 1 overall pick helped the team break its five-year playoff drought.

Simmons beat out Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum. The award was presented at Monday night's NBA Awards show in Santa Monica, Calif.

"I'd like to thank my family, to start off with," Simmons said. "My family, friends, you know I wouldn't be here without them, and my teammates of course and my great coach (Brett Brown), and the city of Philadelphia for really embracing me."


Simmons was taken with the top pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, but a broken foot sidelined him for the 2016-17 season.

The 6-foot-10 guard averaged 15.8 points, 8.2 assists, 8.1 rebounds and 1.7 steals over 81 games last season.

Simmons, who turns 22 next month, helped the 76ers advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals, where they lost to the Boston Celtics in a five-game series. He averaged 16.3 points, 9.4 boards, 7.7 assists and 1.7 steals in the playoffs.

Pacers guard Victor Oladipo is the NBA's Most Improved Player after a stellar first season in Indiana that ended in a playoff showdown with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

He beat out fellow finalists Clint Capela of the Houston Rockets and Spencer Dinwiddie of the Brooklyn Nets.

"Shout out to the Pacers organization for believing in me," said Oladipo, who was dealt to Indiana last offseason in the deal that sent Paul George to the Oklahoma City Thunder. "It's only the beginning for us."

Oladipo, 26, averaged a career-high 23.1 points with 5.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.4 steals to earn his first career All-Star selection, as well as a spot on the All-NBA third team and the All-Defensive first team.

In the playoffs, Oladipo averaged 22.7 points, 8.3 boards, 6.0 assists and 2.4 steals, but it wasn't enough to send the Pacers onto the conference semifinals, as they lost to the Cavaliers in seven games.

Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert won the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year award, beating out Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans and Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Gobert, who turns 26 on Tuesday, missed 26 games during the regular season with multiple injuries, but still anchored a Jazz defense that posted the second-best defensive rating (101.6) in the NBA last season.

The Frenchman averaged 13.5 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 56 games to earn his second straight NBA All-Defensive first-team selection. Gobert led the league in blocks in 2016-17 with 2.6 per game.

Los Angeles Clippers guard Lou Williams is now a two-time NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award winner after being named the league's best bench player for the 2017-18 campaign.

Williams, who also won the award with the Toronto Raptors in 2014-15, averaged career highs of 22.6 points and 5.3 assists, along with 1.1 steals in 79 games (19 starts) last season with the Clippers.

"I want to thank the Clippers organization for giving me an opportunity to be myself," Williams said.

He beat out finalists Eric Gordon of the Houston Rockets and Fred VanVleet of the Raptors. Gordon won the award last season.

Dwane Casey earned Coach of the Year honors after guiding the Raptors to a first-place finish in the Eastern Conference.

Casey beat out Boston Celtics coach Brad Stevens and Jazz coach Quin Snyder for the honor.

Under Casey, the Raptors won a franchise-record 59 games opposite 23 losses to claim the No. 1 seed in the East. However, Casey was fired after the Raptors' second consecutive second-round loss to James and the Cavaliers. He was hired as the new coach of the Detroit Pistons, replacing Stan Van Gundy.

Casey also coached the Eastern Conference in this year's All-Star Game.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Jazz center Gobert sidelined with sprained knee

LOS ANGELES -- Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert is expected to miss up to a month of NBA action after the team said Saturday he had been diagnosed with a sprained left knee.

The French big man went down awkwardly two minutes into Utah's 107-95 win over Boston on Friday.

He tangled with teammate Derrick Favors, who was trying to elude a Celtics defender but fell onto Gobert's left leg.

Gobert tried to rise, but fell back clutching his knee in pain.

   
Surrounded by his teammates and team medical personnel, he remained on the court for several minutes before making his way to the locker room.

On Saturday he underwent an MRI exam which revealed a left knee sprain, the team said in a statement.

The Jazz said Gobert's injury would be re-assessed in two weeks, and further updates would be provided "when appropriate".

Multiple US media outlets reported Gobert would be sidelined up to four weeks.

The seven-foot-tall Gobert is currently averaging 11.6 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game in his fifth NBA season.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Durant propels Warriors past Jazz

LOS ANGELES -- Kevin Durant scored 38 points and the Golden State Warriors withstood a determined Utah effort to down the Jazz 102-91 on Saturday to take a commanding 3-0 lead in their NBA playoff series.

The Warriors will try to close out the best-of-seven Western Conference second-round series in game four on Monday in Salt Lake City.

The Jazz had hoped a return to their home floor on Saturday would spark a resurgence, and it briefly looked as if it had.

Although the Warriors got off to another fast start, leading by 10 after the first quarter, the Jazz, fueled by a standout performance from French center Rudy Gobert, responded.


They seized the lead for the first time in the series when they went up 48-47 in the second period, and led 50-49 at halftime.

The hosts stretched their lead to as many as nine in the third quarter before the Warriors reasserted themselves.

Durant did the heavy lifting as Stephen Curry connected on just six of 20 shots en route to 23 points and Klay Thompson made just one basket in scoring six points.

Trailing 75-74 early in the fourth, the Warriors launched a 10-4 scoring run to regain a lead they wouldn't relinquish.

The Warriors out-scored the Jazz by nine points in the final four minutes, Curry warming up late to contribute to the surge with a three-pointer that made it 89-84.

On the next possession Durant came off a screen and drained a pull-up three over Gobert to make it 92-84.

Not long after, Durant and Gobert were involved in a testy exchange, with Durant called for a flagrant foul and a technical. Gobert, however, missed both free throws.

Gobert finished the night with 21 points and 15 rebounds for the Jazz, who were led by Gordon Hayward's 29 points but still find themselves one defeat away from elimination.

source: news.abs-cbn.com