NBA: Grizzlies agree to let Iguodala stay home -- reports

Andre Iguodala will not report to the Memphis Grizzlies' training camp as he and the team continue to work toward his expected exit from the team.

The Daily Memphian first reported the story Monday, and ESPN.com confirmed it.

The Golden State Warriors traded Iguodala and a protected first-round draft pick to Memphis on July 7 in exchange for forward Julian Washburn.

Multiple media outlets have reported that the Grizzlies do not intend to buy out the $17.2 million that Iguodala is owed this year in the final season of his three-year, $48 million contract, instead looking to find another team willing to trade for the three-time NBA champion and 2015 NBA Finals MVP.

The 35-year-old veteran will continue to work out separately from the Grizzlies but might remain on their roster into the regular season, according to the Daily Memphian.

Iguodala told NBC Sports Bay Area on Monday regarding his status with Memphis, "We'll see. OK, maybe I shouldn't say we'll see. But we're trying to figure out things on both sides. They're trying to figure out some things, and I'm trying to figure out some things. As of today, we're on the same page. Camp opens the next week. We'll see. We're on the same page, though."

He added, "At this point, the only buyout that makes sense -- if I'm speaking on someone else's behalf, thinking as an agent -- is you don't leave money on the table. Especially in this league. Because you'll never get it back, no matter what people say.

"Negotiations are a tactic, so you've got to be careful how you approach it, or how you verbalize what you would do going forward. But you can't leave anything on the table."

Iguodala, an All-Star in 2012 when he played for the Philadelphia 76ers, was part of five consecutive NBA Finals teams with Golden State. Last season, he averaged 5.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 68 games (13 starts). For his career, he is averaging 12.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 1,108 games (779 starts).

Philadelphia made him the ninth overall pick in the 2004 draft out of Arizona, and he played for the 76ers through the 2011-12 season.

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NBA: Grizzlies now interested in trading Iguodala

The Memphis Grizzlies are looking for trade partners in order to deal new forward Andre Iguodala and do not intend to buy him out before the season, ESPN reported Thursday.

The Grizzlies acquired Iguodala this week in a trade with the Golden State Warriors, who were looking to shed his $17.2 million salary for the upcoming season in order to acquire D'Angelo Russell. A contract buyout of Iguodala, which would allow contenders to court him, was speculated for the rebuilding Grizzlies.

But the Grizzlies are reportedly now looking at the 35-year-old veteran as a way to add young players in a trade as they rebuild their roster.

Memphis also acquired a first-round draft pick along with Iguodala as Russell went to the Warriors and Kevin Durant went to the Brooklyn Nets. The Grizz also acquired Grayson Allen, Kyle Korver and Jae Crowder from the Utah Jazz in a trade for guard Mike Conley earlier this offseason.

Memphis then shipped Korver to the Phoenix Suns for Josh Jackson, De'Anthony Melton and two future second-round picks on Wednesday. Korver is expected to be waived by the Suns.

The Grizzlies are likely to explore other young players or draft picks in a trade by including Iguodala, who is known for his perimeter defense and helped the Warriors to five consecutive NBA Finals appearances and three championships in that stretch.

Iguodala, 35, averaged 5.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 68 games (13 starts) for the Warriors last season, his sixth with the team and his 15th in the NBA.

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NBA: Disrespect an issue in Warriors' narrow Game 2 escape

TORONTO -- Stephen Curry saw it as an insult that the Toronto left Andre Iguodala open for what became the decisive 3-point basket in Golden State's victory Sunday in the NBA Finals.

That made it all the sweeter when Iguodala, who was 1-of-14 from beyond the arc before his crucial shot, sank the bucket to clinch a 109-104 victory that pulled the defending champions level 1-1 in the best-of-seven series.

"It's kind of disrespectful to leave Andre Iguodala open like that," Curry said. "He has made big shots like that before."

Raptors reserve Fred VanVleet, who struck for 17 points in the loss, said Toronto was not insulting Iguodala, but he simply was the option they were most willing to have take a long-range shot in the late-game situation.

"They found Iggy on the way back out and he got a wide-open look," said VanVleet. "He knocked it down. So that was a really big shot for him. We would like to have contested that a little bit more.

"We don't disrespect those guys. We know Iggy's made big shots in his whole career. We've seen that movie before."

When the alternative is leaving the ball in the hands of 30-point sharpshooter Stephen Curry, who struck for 23 points, Iguodala didn't seem so bad a choice.

"I'm going to probably live with that," Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. "It wasn't like we were disrespecting him and not trying to guard him.

"He misses that we call timeout, we go down with a chance to win the ball game unbelievably, somehow."

The Raptors led by 12 in the second quarter, surrendered the first 18 points of the third quarter to fall behind by 13 and nearly battled back to win by silencing Golden State more more than 5:30 until Iguodala's shot.

"He's just got a lot of experience," Kerr said. "He has done everything in his career, been in the Olympics, won three rings, one of the smartest players I've ever been around.

"I think he sensed that we needed his production in that second half and he came alive.

Warriors teammate Draymond Green said Iguodala's shot was simply what the team knows he can do.

"As big as Andre's shot was, we have come to expect Andre to hit big shots," Green said. "Since he's been here I've seen him hit several game winners. I've seen him put the icing on the cake at several wins."

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NBA: Warriors stay hot, dominate short-handed Spurs

The Golden State Warriors made 24 of 25 shots bridging the second and third quarters Wednesday night, breaking open a close game en route to a 141-102 shellacking of the short-handed San Antonio Spurs in Oakland, Calif.

The Spurs elected to rest their top two scorers, LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan, in the second game of their eight-game "Rodeo Trip," with the second half of a back-to-back looming Thursday night against the Trail Blazers in Portland, Ore.

Facing a team that held them to 92 points in November, the Warriors led just 49-45 late in the second period before finishing the half 7-for-7, extending the advantage to 66-52 at halftime.

The two-time defending champs then made their first seven shots of the second half, a flurry they extended to 17 of 18 while turning the contest into a 114-81 blowout in the final minute of the third period.

The Warriors scored 49 points in the quarter, giving them 115 for three periods, the most ever allowed through three quarters in the Gregg Popovich era in San Antonio.

Klay Thompson had 26 points and Kevin Durant 23 for the Warriors, who won for the 13th time in their last 14 games.

Durant also found time in his 29 minutes to record team highs with eight rebounds and nine assists.

Stephen Curry had 19 points, DeMarcus Cousins 15, Andre Iguodala 11 and Kevon Looney 10 for Golden State, which accumulated 42 assists, the most by the Warriors this season.

Golden State shot 57.9 percent for the game and 16 of 34 on 3-pointers.

Pressed into his first start of the season with three regulars -- including Derrick White -- out of action, Patty Mills made four 3-pointers to lead the Spurs with 16 points.

Rudy Gay added 15 points, Davis Bertans 12, Dante Cunningham 11 and Bryn Forbes 10 for San Antonio, which began its long road excursion with a 127-112 loss at Sacramento on Monday.

The Spurs shot 43.2 percent, 12 of 32 on 3-pointers.

San Antonio hung within 53-50 on Mills' third 3-pointer of the first half with 3:04 remaining in the second period before the Warriors used three steals to ignite an 11-0 flurry.

Durant, Curry and Draymond Green had steals in the 1:38 spurt, with Iguodala benefiting with two dunks at the other end among five Golden State hoops.

The Warriors led 66-52 at the break, with Durant scoring 17 of his 23 and Thompson 16 of his 26.

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Warriors crush Conley-less Grizzlies

Andre Iguodala returned from a three-game absence to hit two second-quarter 3-pointers Monday night, helping the Golden State Warriors pull away from the Memphis Grizzlies for a 110-93 victory in Oakland, Calif.

Kevin Durant had 23 points, Stephen Curry 20 and Klay Thompson and Jonas Jerebko 16 apiece for the Warriors, who won for the sixth time in their past seven games.

Omri Casspi, a member of Golden State's championship team last season, had a team-high 20 points for the Grizzlies, who found out shortly before game time that star point guard Mike Conley would be unavailable due to a sore hamstring.

The Warriors wasted little time taking control, leading by as many as 10 points in the first quarter and then 30-24 before Iguodala (two), Jerebko (one) and Curry (one) combined for four 3-pointers, helping the hosts run off to as much as a 25-point lead in the second period.

The Grizzlies got no closer than 12 in the second half.

Jerebko connected on four of his seven 3-point attempts for the Warriors, who outscored the Grizzlies 36-21 from beyond the arc.

Iguodala, who had been bothered by a sore hip, wound up with 10 points.

The win was the Warriors' fifth straight at home over Memphis, all by at least 12 points.

Casspi shot 8-for-10 from the field en route to his season-high point total. He hadn't scored more than 12 points previously for Memphis.

Marc Gasol had 15 points, Kyle Anderson 14 and Garrett Temple 13 for the Grizzlies, who were opening a four-game trip. Memphis lost for the fifth time in six games.

Gasol had game-high assist honors with six.

The Grizzlies outshot the Warriors overall 45.6 percent to 43.5 percent.

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NBA: Curry torches Nets for 34, Warriors pull away late

Andre Iguodala threw down dunks on consecutive possessions to cap a 28-9 burst bridging the third and fourth quarters Tuesday night, helping the Golden State Warriors pull away from the pesky Brooklyn Nets en route to a 114-101 victory in Oakland, California.

The win was the Warriors' sixth in a row since the All-Star break and their 50th of the season, allowing them to reach the 50-win plateau a couple of hours after the Houston Rockets had been the first in the NBA to do it this season.

The loss was the Nets' 10th straight on the road and came on their fourth stop on a 10-day, five-game trip necessitated by the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament taking over the Barclays Center this week.

Stephen Curry had a game-high 34 points for the Warriors, who used a 25-0 flurry early in the game to build as much as a 21-point lead, only to see the Nets come all the way back.

In fact, Brooklyn led, 76-73, with 2:39 remaining in the third quarter before Curry contributed a pair of 3-pointers to a 13-4 period-closing run that put Golden State on top 86-80 headed into the final 12 minutes.

The Warriors picked up in the fourth quarter right where they left off in the third, getting two hoops apiece by Draymond Green and Klay Thompson, and then Iguodala's two roof-raisers, in a 15-5 burst that finally put the defending champions in command at 101-85 with just 6:35 to go.

Curry, who twisted his troublesome right ankle in the Warriors' win Friday at Atlanta, hit 12 of his 20 shots, including six 3-pointers, in 34 minutes.

Curry had 39 points when the Warriors won 118-111 at Brooklyn in November.

Kevin Durant chipped in with 19 points, Thompson with 18 and Green with 16 for Golden State, which reached 50 wins for the fifth straight season.

Green also finished with a game-high nine assists.

D'Angelo Russell had a team-high 22 points for the Nets, whose streak of 10 straight games with 12 or more 3-pointers ended on a 9-for-34 night.

Russell, who also led the Nets with eight assists, made three of his six 3-point shots.

DeMarre Carroll had 19 points, Spencer Dinwiddie 13 and Caris LeVert 10 for the Nets, who were outshot 56.6 percent to 42.4.

Carroll finished with a game-high seven rebounds.

A teeter-totter of a first half featured a 25-0 run by the Warriors, turning a 14-10 deficit into a 35-14 lead late in the first period, and a 20-2 Nets counter that got them even at 39-all midway through the second quarter.

The Nets led 53-48 at halftime, with Russell (10 points) and LeVert (10) both having already reached double figures in scoring.

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Curry fined $50,000 for hurling mouthguard at official

SAN FRANCISCO - Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry was fined $50,000 but has escaped a suspension for hurling his mouthguard at a game official, the NBA said on Monday.

Curry was ejected after the flashpoint late in the fourth quarter of the Warriors' 111-101 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday.

The 29-year-old point guard could be seen tossing his mouthpiece after a disputed call.

Team-mate Andre Iguodala was fined $15,000 for verbally abusing a game official in the same incident. Team-mate Kevin Durant was also ejected after the stormy end to the defeat.

Curry on Monday said he had not been aiming at the official in question when he tossed his mouthpiece.

"I think once he saw the mouthpiece flying, he was already throwing me out," Curry said before his fine was announced.

"I don't even know if he knew where it went, let alone where it ended up. I would say I wasn't trying to hit him with it or put him in danger by any type of stretch of the imagination.

"Again, it was a dumb thing to do. It was stupid. Learn from it and try to move on and be better.

"We were playing terrible, I was frustrated because I was fouling and I thought I got fouled on the last play. The reaction was definitely a little over the top."

The fine means Curry will be free to play later Monday in the Dubs game against the Dallas Mavericks.

rcw/as

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Iguodala, Curry lead Warriors past Hawks

LOS ANGELES -- Stephen Curry and Andre Iguodala weighed in with 24 points each as the Golden State Warriors defeated the Atlanta Hawks 119-111 on Monday.

The Warriors maintained their grip on the Western Conference rankings after an inspired performance from Iguodala, who scored his points after coming off the bench to lead a second-quarter rally.


Iguodala made six of eight shots from the field as well as grabbing five rebounds, three steals and providing four assists as the Warriors improved to 52-11 for the season.

It was a vintage display from Iguodala, who is eager to help fill the void created by the injury to Kevin Durant.

"Collectively, as a unit, we try to make up for KD's presence," Iguodala said. "Tonight we did a great job of that," added Iguodala, a pivotal figure in the Dubs' 2015 NBA Finals win.

Iguodala's performance delighted Warriors coach Steve Kerr.

"I told him it looked like he was 25 out there again," he said of the 33-year-old.

"Andre has been absolutely phenomenal the last couple of weeks. He just looks so spry out there and young and confident and such a great basketball player."

Curry's 24-point haul included six three-pointers and he also contributed nine assists and four rebounds.

Klay Thompson meanwhile finished with 13 points, all scored in the second half, while Draymond Green had eight rebounds, six assists and 12 points.

Atlanta, who fell to 34-29, saw point guard Dennis Schroder net 23 points.

However, Schroder was hooked with 9:30 left in the third quarter, with coach Mike Budenholzer clearly unhappy with his defensive work.

At one point, an unmarked Curry calmly drained a three as Schroder argued with center Dwight Howard.

"There were moments when it felt like we were close to getting back in it and competing," Budenholzer said. "A few more plays from our guys here and there and a few less threes from Iguodala... but that's the game."

The Hawks leading scorers also included Paul Millsap with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Tim Hardaway Jr. had 19 points, four rebounds and five assists while Kent Bazemore had 18 points.

It was a third straight loss for Atlanta, who led by 15 points in the second quarter before the Warriors gradually built momentum to close to 66-61 at the half.

Thompson led the Warriors fightback in the third period with nine points before Golden State went on to close out the win.

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Golden State takes Game 1

The Golden State Warriors needed a big lift from their bench to down the Cleveland Cavaliers 104-89 in the NBA Finals opener in Oakland on Thursday.

With Warriors sharpshooters Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson going cold, Shaun Livingston, Andre Iguodala and Leandro Barbosa came through to spearhead a decisive 15-0 run at end of the third and beginning of the fourth quarter.

"I missed some shots and didn't get a rhythm, but the way that they defended, we'll be able to find some adjustments for Game Two. Not worried about that," said Curry, who settled for 11 points, two more than his backcourt team mate, Thompson.

"Just really proud of the way everybody contributed. You don't win championships without the entire squad coming in and making an impact on games."

In a rematch of last year's championship series, won by the Warriors in six games, LeBron James and the Cavaliers had taken the lead for the first time since the opening minute with a surge midway through the third quarter.

Livingston, who scored a playoff career-high 20 points, Iguodala (12) and Barbosa (11) picked up the slack for the defending champions, however, with the Warriors bench outscoring their Cleveland counterparts 45-10.

"This was a strange game for us," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "We're not use to having both Steph and Klay off like that with their shooting.

"But we've said all year that if we defend and take care of the ball we're going to have somebody score enough points, whether it's the starters or the bench.

"I thought we played great defense. We had nine turnovers total and that allowed us to control the game, and our bench obviously gave us a huge lift."

Livingston has played for nine different teams in his 14-year career but has found a home with the Warriors in the last two seasons.

"Steph and Klay, they're our guys," said the 30-year-old, whose team have now won four straight games since falling behind 3-1 to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference final series.

"I think the series with [Oklahoma City] really prepared us for this series.

"It can be anybody on any given night. We just have to stay ready."

As well as a standout performance on offense, Iguodala helped limit James to 23 points and made the most of his knack of stripping opponents of the ball when in close.

"He's great at doing that, for sure," James said. "Just got to do a better job protecting the ball. It's that simple."

Game Two is in Oakland on Sunday. (Reporting by Tim Wharnsby, editing by Nick Mulvenney)

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Warriors shoot past Thunder, extend West finals

Andre Iguodala and Harrison Barnes bombed in three-pointers on consecutive possessions during an eight-point flurry that opened a 12-point lead early in the fourth quarter, and the Golden State Warriors held on from there to stay alive in the Western Conference finals with a 120-111 victory over the Oklahoma Thunder on Thursday night.

The victory trimmed Golden State's deficit in the best-of-seven to 3-2, with the series returning to Oklahoma City for another possible close-out game for the Thunder on Saturday night.

Game 7, if necessary, would be Monday in Oakland.

Stephen Curry poured in 31 points, going 10-for-10 from the free-throw line, as the Warriors overcame a 40-point explosion by Thunder star Kevin Durant to keep their hopes of a title repeat alive.

The Warriors led just 81-77 before backup guard Shaun Livingston opened the fourth period with a short jumper.

Iguodala and Barnes then nailed their three-pointers, opening an 89-77 advantage, Golden State's biggest lead of the game to that point.

The advantage reached 13, but power forward Serge Ibaka wouldn't let the Thunder go quietly. He swished a pair of three-pointers, and when Durant added a third, all of a sudden Golden State's lead was just 103-98 with still 4:34 to go.

Curry then responded with his biggest hoop of the night, a driving left-handed floater on which he was fouled. He converted the three-point play, pushing the lead to eight.

The Golden State defense took it from there, holding the Thunder without a field goal until a Durant dunk with 56.9 seconds left, by which point the Warriors had pulled away into a commanding 112-101 advantage.

Klay Thompson overcame 2-for-9 shooting on three-pointers to back Curry with 27 points for the Warriors, who are now 4-1 after losses in the playoffs.

The Warriors won despite making just nine of their 24 3-point attempts.

Andrew Bogut had 15 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, and Draymond Green had an 11-point, 13-rebound double-double for the Warriors.

The Warriors shot 47.1 percent for the game to 42.9 percent for Oklahoma City. Golden State battled the Thunder even on the boards, 45-45.

Durant's 40 points came on 12-for-31 shooting. Like Curry, he did serious damage at the free-throw line, going 13-for-13.

Russell Westbrook backed Durant with 31 points to go with seven rebounds and a team-high eight assists.

Ibaka had 13 points and Steven Adams a team-high 10 rebounds for the Thunder, who were able to eliminated Dallas and San Antonio in earlier series at first opportunity.

The Thunder made 13 of their 30 3-point attempts, outscoring the Warriors 39-27 from beyond the arc.

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Warriors shrug off Curry absence to beat Rockets

With Stephen Curry out of action due to an ankle injury Monday night, Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr was comforted knowing he had Shaun Livingston in reserve.

Oh, and the 2015 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player, too.

Livingston began and ended a key fourth-quarter spurt with baskets, and super-sub Andre Iguodala helped make up for Curry's lost firepower with four 3-pointers as the Warriors won a second straight from the Houston Rockets in their best-of-seven series, 115-106.

Golden State, now 2-0 in the postseason after a record-setting, 73-win regular season, was able to win without Curry, who injured his right ankle late in the second quarter of the Warriors' blowout win in Game 1 on Saturday. He had been listed as questionable for Game 2.

The reigning regular-season Most Valuable Player, who scored 24 points in just 20 minutes in Game 1, declared himself out shortly after cutting short a pregame warm-up that was designed to test the ankle.

"When you lost the MVP, you have concern," Kerr said. "But we believe in our depth and in our ability to win when we're down a man, even if it is Steph."

Curry's status for Game 3, which is scheduled for Thursday night in Houston, remains up in the air.

"We never want to put winning ahead of a player's career and his health," Kerr said. "We want to make sure Steph is right and his (ankle) is fine and healthy.

"Obviously, being up 2-0 does give us more cushion if we decide to sit him (in Game 3). But it will be based on his health, not the series score."

Livingston started in Curry's place and complemented guard Klay Thompson's 34 points with 16 of his own. He also found time for six assists in 29 minutes.

"He was playing so well, it was tough to take him out," Kerr said of Livingston. "His effort was fantastic."

Livingston's two biggest hoops came in an 11-1 flurry in the fourth quarter after the Rockets, trying to put Saturday's 26-point loss behind them, clung within 88-85 with 9:51 to play.

Livingston began the key run with a jumper, after which the Warriors made seven consecutive free throws, including five by Thompson.

Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff got nailed with a technical foul along the way, accounting for one of Thompson's foul shots.

Livingston then capped the burst with a fastbreak hoop that created the Warriors' biggest lead of the game to that point, 99-85, with 6:48 left.

"They do such a good job of capitalizing off your missed shots," said Rockets star James Harden, who missed a 4-footer that could have pulled Houston within one before Livingston began the run. "So it went from a three-point lead to six, seven, whatever ... and they just built on it. It's hard to recover from there."

Golden State was never threatened the rest of the way, beating Houston for a sixth consecutive meeting and the 14th time in their past 15 match-ups.

Thompson, hitting three 3-pointers and 15 of 16 from the free-throw line, led all scorers. He never attempted more than 12 foul shots nor made more than 10 all season.

Draymond Green had team highs in rebounds (14) and assists (eight) to go with 12 points, and Iguodala dropped seven of his 10 shots en route to 18 points for the Warriors, who shot 49.4 percent from the field and hit eight of their 23 3-point attempts.

Center Andrew Bogut also helped out with 10 points (on 5-for-6 shooting) and seven rebounds.

"You know, there is something to the slogan 'Strength in Numbers.' It's something we really do play by," Thompson said. "We always use it every night."

Harden led the Rockets with 28 points, 13 coming from the line on 15 free throws. However, he shot just 7-for-19 from the field, including 1-for-8 from 3-point range.

Harden, who also had 11 assists, thought a golden opportunity slipped away.

"For sure," he said of Curry's absence. "We played a little bit better (than Game 1) today. Just didn't play well enough to get a win."

Harden noted two key shortcomings: allowing 23 Warriors points after 19 turnovers, and giving up 13 offensive rebounds that produced 18 Golden State points.

Dwight Howard posted a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double for the Rockets, who bettered Golden State in 3-pointers, making 10 of 25, but fell well short from shorter range, finishing at 44.3 percent overall.

"We like to take 3-point shots, and that hasn't changed," Bickerstaff said. "But at certain points in the game, we need to put pressure on the rim. We just have to be a little more patient."

Patrick Beverley and Jason Terry added 13 points apiece for the Rockets, who also will host Game 4 of the series on Sunday.

Down by as many as 11 points in the first half, the Rockets got seven third-quarter points from Harden and rallied within three late in the period.

An interior hoop by Warriors reserve guard Leandro Barbosa extended the lead back to 88-79 in the first minute of the fourth quarter. But as occurred all night, the Rockets wouldn't go away.

Harden hit a tough jumper and Terry added a hoop and two free throws to make it a three-point game.

However, each then missed interior attempts that could have sliced the deficit to one, and the Warriors followed with Livingston's hoops and a parade to the free-throw line, finally pushing the visitors an arm's length away.

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Curry magic as Warriors down Rockets

Stephen Curry turned on the style as the Golden State Warriors overcame a brave Houston Rockets fightback to triumph 123-110 and stretch their winning streak to 10 games.

Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Curry scored 35 points in a pulsating battle in Oakland to take the Warriors' record to 47-4 for the season.

The highlight of Curry's latest masterclass was his role in a remarkable passage of play in the third quarter, when he stripped the ball inside the Warriors paint and then darted forward to launch an attack.

An incredible behind-the-back pass found Andre Iguodala, who flipped to Leandro Barbosa to score.

The Rockets had fought back after a disastrous first quarter which saw the Warriors jump out to a 38-22 lead after only 11 minutes.

Houston fought back however with James Harden (37 points) and led 74-69 early in the second half.

Curry's 35-point night came despite 12-for-24 shooting for the Warriors, who improved to 24-0 at home this season with their 42nd consecutive victory at Oracle Arena.

Curry made seven three-pointers along with nine assists. Warriors' Australian center Andrew Bogut added 13 points while blocking six shots.

The Warriors now have the Chicago Bulls' remarkable 72-win season in their sights, a record benchmark long seen as unbeatable.

Elsewhere Tuesday, Carmelo Anthony scored 31 points but it was not enough to prevent the New York Knicks from sliding to defeat against the Washington Wizards in their first match since the dismissal of coach Derek Fisher.

Anthony drained a three-pointer with 67 seconds left to reduce Washington's lead to 106-101 but the Wizards held on for a 111-108 victory at Madison Square Garden.

Washington guards Bradley Beal and John Wall made a series of clutch shots down the stretch to seal the Wizards win.

Beal amassed 26 points while Wall weighed in with 28 points, 15 of them coming in an important fourth-quarter cameo.

In-form rookie forward Kristaps Porzingis finished with 20 points for the Knicks, who abruptly axed Fisher on Monday to replace him with assistant Kurt Rambis.

Anthony said shortly before tip-off that the Knicks locker room had been taken by surprise by team president Phil Jackson's decision to dump Fisher.

"This was something that I don't really know if it was a quick decision or was lingering," said Anthony.

"I'm not going to try to figure that part out but everybody found out as far as players around the same time yesterday morning."

Fisher was fired after the Knicks went on a protracted losing streak with nine losses in 10 games, including Sunday's defeat to the Denver Nuggets.

"It's tough," Anthony said. "When I wrap my brain around it and put everything into perspective, it's hard with how many coaches I've been through, how many players, how many different teammates.

"You just try to find some kind of consistency. The business of basketball is a tough business."

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Warriors rout Cavaliers in NBA Finals rematch

Stephen Curry scored 35 points, including seven three-pointers, in just three quarters as Golden State pounded the Cavaliers 132-98 in Cleveland on Monday in an NBA Finals rematch.

The Cavs (28-11) narrowly avoided their worst ever home loss while the Warriors (38-4) swept the season series and have won the last five games between the teams.

"That's who we know we can be," Warriors interim coach Luke Walton said. "They were absolutely phenomenal tonight. We can't really ask to play much better than that."

The Cavs suffered just their second home loss this season but were never really in it. They trailed by 26 at the half and fell behind by 43 in the second half -- their largest deficit of the season.

Cleveland's worst-ever home loss was a 114-75 setback against the Chicago Bulls on Jan. 20, 2012.

"Tonight was an example of how far we have to go to be a championship team," said James, who scored 16 points.

J.R. Smith had 14 for the Cavs, who fell to 0-3 this season against the West's elite -- the Warriors and San Antonio Spurs.

Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love shot a combined four-for-16 and totaled 11 points. Love's only basket was a three-pointer late in the first half.

"They definitely played like the champions," Irving said.

The Warriors entered having dropped two of their last three games, including an 18-point loss at Detroit on Saturday. That loss seemed to be a wake-up call for the Warriors, who stormed to a 24-0 start this season.

The Warriors shot 54.1 percent and made 19 three-pointers.

Curry said before arriving in Cleveland he hoped the visiting locker room still smelled like the hundreds of bottles of champagne the Warriors sprayed in it last June when they clinched the Finals in Game Six.

The quip did not go down well in Cleveland.

"It was an overreaction to a comment," Curry said.

"Obviously, when I walked into the locker room, that's the last time I was there. We had a trophy, we had champagne and we had goggles. We had a good time.

"So the first time anybody on our team walks in there, that's what we're going to feel. The way I said it, in a sarcastic way ... it is what it is.

"It smelled like Morton's, our caterer, after the game. That's a good smell."

Golden State's Draymond Green flirted with what would have been his ninth triple-double before finishing with 16 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds in three quarters, while Klay Thompson had 15 points.

Frustration set in for the Cavs in the second half.

Smith was assessed a 'flagrant-2' foul and ejected for running through Harrison Barnes' screen early in the third quarter, and James was whistled for a technical for pushing Festus Ezeli.

"We had a breakdown and we didn't respond to it," Cavs coach David Blatt said. "That and the lack of mental preparation more than anything else really hurt us.

"I told my guys that it starts with me. If they're not mentally ready to play, I take responsibility for that."

For the second time this season, the Cavs fell behind by 30 or more points in a game. They were also blown-out at the Portland Trail Blazers the night after they fell to the Warriors on Christmas Day.

Still, Walton does not believe the Warriors sweeping the season series in such emphatic fashion will give his team any type of edge should they meet again in June.

"To some teams, yeah. To a team that was in the NBA Finals last year and has LeBron James on it, it doesn't send anything," Walton said. "He's not going to let those guys get intimidated at all. I wouldn't imagine that does anything to them."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Warriors survive double OT in Boston

The Golden State Warriors extended their season-opening winning streak to 24 games but had to scratch and claw their way to victory over Boston on Friday.

Stephen Curry hit two free throws with 13.4 seconds left in the second overtime and Andre Iguodala added two foul shots with 5.4 on the clock as the Warriors held off the Celtics 124-119.

Draymond Green was asked what he learned about his team after they had to dig deep to beat Boston.

"Everything we already knew," the forward said. "This is a group that's going to continue to fight no matter what."


The Warriors, winning their 28th straight regular season game dating back to last season, trailed by five with 2:07 left in regulation, fought back to tie, survived a sloppy first overtime and then pulled out the win.

"We continue to fight. We believe in ourselves. We believe in each other and we trust each other. So, nothing new. The same old same old, which has made us who we are."

Curry finished with 38 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists but made just nine of 27 shots from the floor and was guilty of eight turnovers.

"We appreciate (the streak) because we know that this hasn't been done in history before, so every game we win from here on out is adding to that record," Curry said.

"I think the beauty of our team is when we get out there, nobody's thinking about if we lose, the streak's over, or we've got to go out here and throw a huge home run play out in the first quarter to win the game or what have you to keep the streak going.

"That's not on our minds, and I think that's why we are where we are."

The two free throws were Curry's only points of the second overtime but Iguodala scored six points in the frame and finished with 13, 10 rebounds and five assists off the bench.

The Celtics (13-10) rallied from 11 points down but fell short against the Warriors, who won their second overtime game of the season and are 6-0 on their current road trip.

"I thought we played really hard," said Boston coach Brad Stevens. "You know, if you're playing against these guys you have to play hard."

Asked if there's such a thing as a great loss, Stevens said, "No. Not even a good one."

Kelly Olynyk came off the bench and scored a season-high 28 points and Isaiah Thomas added 18, 10 assists and six rebounds for the Celtics. Avery Bradley, who did much of the defensive work on Curry, had 15 of his 19 points in the first quarter.

"It hurts. We were there the whole time," said Olynyk.

The Warriors will look to make it 25-0 in Milwaukee as they wrap up a seven-game trip on Saturday while the Celtics visit Charlotte.

(Editing by Peter Rutherford)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

LOOK: Iguodala gets cool Father's Day gift from son

Not only did Andre Iguodala win the Most Valuable Player award in the NBA Finals, he was also named as “Dad of the Year 2015” by his son, Andre Jr.

The proud father posted an Instagram photo of a sculpture created by his son.

"This kid is amazing," the Golden State Warrior said in the caption. "Although I don't celebrate many holidays, he sculpted this Larry O'Brien Championship trophy back in April in art class. Saved it until Father's Day to give to me. This might be my new favorite trophy."

Iguodala helped the Golden State Warriors win the 2015 NBA championship through his stifling defense on Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James.

He also scored 25 points in the deciding Game 6 as the Warriors clinched the championship, their first since 1975.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com




 

Warriors win first NBA title in 40 years

The Golden State Warriors weathered a late charge by the Cleveland Cavaliers to come away with a 105-96 victory in Game 6 and win their first NBA championship in forty years.

The Warriors led by 15-points, 94-79, with five minutes to go in the game and were still up by 13, 98-85, when Stephen Curry scored on an open lay-up.

But JR Smith, after struggling all game, hit three three-pointers in the final minute, including a booming trey that made it a four-point game, 97-101, with still 33 seconds to go.

That proved to be the Cavaliers' last hurrah, however, as Curry made two clutch free throws, and Andre Iguodala added two insurance charities of his own to ice the game for the Warriors.

Curry and Iguodala both had 25 points to lead the Warriors in scoring, while Draymond Green had a triple double with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists.

LeBron James was one assist shy of another triple double, finishing with 32 points, 18 rebounds, and nine assists, but the four-time league MVP looked exhausted at times and missed 20 of his 33 field goal attempts.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Warriors can end 40-year drought by downing Cavs

CLEVELAND -- Steph Curry and his Golden State teammates face the biggest game of their careers Tuesday as the Warriors visit Cleveland with a chance to capture their first NBA title in 40 years.

Coming off a 104-91 home triumph Sunday, the Warriors own a 3-2 edge in the best-of-seven championship series with the Cavaliers needing a game-six victory to force a seventh game Friday back in California.

"This is going to be the biggest game any of us have ever played in our careers," said Warriors forward Andre Iguodala.

"It's all about staying locked in, about knowing it's not going to be given to us. We have to earn it."

NBA Most Valuable Player Curry has recovered from dehydration after a 37-point performance in game five and will be ready Tuesday.

"The closeout game is always the hardest game in every series, but particularly in the finals," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.

"There's a lot of emotion. You're right there on the cusp of something, but you still have to get the job done, and in this case we'll be on the road against a great team."

None of Golden State's players were alive in 1975 when the Warriors last won the NBA Finals. And the lineup could become the first with no prior NBA Finals experience to take the crown since the 1991 Chicago Bulls.

"Treat it like game seven," Warriors guard Klay Thompson said. "As much as we would love to win it in front of our fans, we really want to finish it in Cleveland."

But LeBron James, carrying the scoring and set-up load for the injury-hit Cavaliers around a set of role players, has other ideas.

"We don't want them celebrating at all, no matter if it's on our home floor or their home floor," James said. "We've come this far and we've been very good at home."

Fatigued by a fast-paced Warriors lineup and limited substitution options, the Cavaliers were beaten handily at home in game four, something they hope to avoid repeating.

"We have to understand why we weren't good in game four," James said. "We had a lack of energy. We had a lack of effort in a lot of areas in game four and we can't repeat that or they will raise the trophy for sure."

The Warriors could become the first team with a rookie coach to win the title since Pat Riley with the 1982 Los Angeles Lakers.

But James is a threat for a breakout game at any stage after an all-around performance for the ages in the final.

"He's phenomenal. He does everything," Kerr said of James. "But I'm not enjoying the marveling."

- Cavs 'in a dogfight' -

Cleveland guard J.R. Smith vows the Cavaliers will not go down without a fight.

"We just have to come out swinging. That's the only thing we can do," Smith said.

"We're in a dogfight and our backs are against the wall. You just have to find a way to dig down and come up with those plays."

Iguodala, who has come off the Golden State bench to tightly guard James and provide a speed and scoring spark, would be only the second teammate of an NBA MVP to win the NBA Finals MVP award, the first being Magic Johnson in 1980 as a Lakers rookie after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won the season MVP award.

"We have to come out early and try to establish ourselves. The first few minutes is going to be really important," Iguodala said. "They might be tired but they can push through (fatigue) for a game or two and we have to realize that.

"They are going to keep fighting. Their mentality is fight to the end. We know how tough it's going to be. We've had some tough games closing out series and this will probably be 10 times as tough."

But Golden State has the confidence to trade big shots with the game on the line or battle back from behind.

"It's a very confident group," Kerr said. "They have had a heck of a season and they are playing at a high level."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Cavaliers mull over possible Game 5 tweaks

Just as Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr did not want to reveal details of an altered game plan for Game 4, his Cleveland Cavaliers counterpart did not want to tip his hand for Game 5.

Cavaliers head coach David Blatt was asked how he would counter Kerr's decision to go smaller with his starting five last Thursday, replacing center Andrew Bogut with swing-man Andre Iguodala.

Iguodala scored 22 points in the 103-82 win in Cleveland to tie the NBA Finals at 2-2 with Game 5 at Oracle Arena in Oakland on Sunday (Monday, Manila time).

"I think that we've made more than our share of adjustments throughout the course of the entire playoffs, not only in this series," said Blatt, referring to the adjustments he has been forced to make because of injuries to starters Kevin Love (shoulder), Kyrie Irving (knee) and a suspension to J.R. Smith.

"Every game brings out new things and certainly presents new challenges. If you look at the one game, it makes you think 'okay, we've got to change this, that and the other thing.' If you look at the four games, in three out of four of those games we were pretty good doing the things that we did. So I think you'll see a combination of both of those possibilities.

"We've got to continue to do certain things really well. What we need to change, we will."

If Cavaliers superstar LeBron James has his way, he wants his coach to stick with the team's starting five of James, Matthew Dellavedova, Iman Shumpert, Tristan Thompson and Timofey Mozgov.

"In this case with our bigs, Timo and Tristan, Timo's starting off on (Iguodala), it's a different match up than Bogut, obviously," James said.

"You've got a guy that's primarily on the perimeter in Game 4 versus guarding a guy that's always in the paint, for the most part, unless he's initiating offense.

"So it's definitely a different change for us. But I think we'll be much more prepared for it tomorrow night if they go with the same lineup.

"We're going to play our game. We've gotten to this point by playing the way we play, and we're not going to change. We'll make adjustments throughout the game, but we won't change our starting lineup."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Racism cloud hangs as Clippers turned inside out

OAKLAND - Mired in controversy after racist comments attributed to their owner, the Los Angeles Clippers suffered one of their worst losses in NBA playoff history on Sunday.

Stephen Curry scored 33 points, 17 of them in the first 8:30, to power the Golden State Warriors to a 118-97 victory over the visiting Clippers, leveling their Western Conference best-of-seven opening-round series at two wins each with game five Tuesday in Los Angeles.

Andre Iguodala added 22 points for the Warriors while Jamal Crawford came off the bench to lead the Clippers with 26 points.

Blake Griffin added 21 points and Chris Paul had 16 for the Clippers, who made a silent protest before the game by dumping their warm-up uniforms in the middle of the court and turning their red shirts inside out so the team name and logo were not visible.

"It was just something guys talked about," Clippers star guard Paul said. "It had nothing to do with the game."

But for many, the focus was less upon the outcome and more on the aftermath of Saturday's release of recordings that purport to have Clippers owner Donald Sterling saying he does not want black people to attend his team's games.

"I think both teams were somewhat bothered by what has taken place in the last 24 hours," Golden State coach Mark Jackson said. "It was insulting to all of us. Everyone was affected, not just the Clippers."

The Clippers played like the controversy was a distraction, even though they denied it had any impact upon their performance.

"It was just like any other game," said Clippers star Blake Griffin.

"There are distractions all the time. We didn't do what we were supposed to do. We didn't stick to the things that made us successful. We've just got to lock in and get ready for game five. We've got to correct our mistakes and get better."

When asked if the racist remarks could have sapped the team's spirit and taken a toll, Paul replied, "Nope.

"It's about those guys in the locker room. We prepared. We went to training camp. It's what we've been working to do."

Blocking it out "is what we do," said Paul, who blamed himself for not guarding Curry better.

Clippers coach Glenn "Doc" Rivers took the blame on himself for not preparing the team better.

"I thought I did the right stuff to get them ready and I really didn't. I have to do a better job," Rivers said. "And if it's because of the other things, it's still my fault.

"I know what's going on. I get it. But we still have jobs to do and we didn't do them tonight. It starts at the top and it starts with me. I just didn't like our spirit. I liked it before the game. I was just wrong on it. I can't blame them for that."

For now, Rivers is searching for the common thread to unite his players before the series and the season slip away.

"I've got a job to get our team right no matter what is circling," Rivers said. "They are getting pulled in so many direction. We have to figure out how to pull them in one direction."

Curry applauded the Clippers for how they handled the controversy.

"It's unfortunate that it's taking off what's going on on the court," Curry said. "Kudos to the Clippers for handling it the way they have. It's all about the players and what's happening on the court. Hopefully fans can focus on that."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com