NBA: Gordon Hayward pours in 41 as Hornets rout Spurs

Gordon Hayward scored a season-high 41 points for the visiting Charlotte Hornets, who built a 21-point lead in the first quarter and romped to a 131-115 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday.

The Hornets never trailed, enduring a San Antonio surge in the second quarter before taking a 16-point advantage to the half. The Spurs never got closer that 10 points after halftime, and Charlotte led by as many as 30 points while waltzing to the finish.

Hayward shot 15 of 19 from the floor, 5 of 6 from beyond the arc and finished three points shy of his career high. Cody Martin added 21 points for the Hornets, with Miles Bridges hitting for 19, Jalen McDaniels contributing 15 points, Terry Rozier scoring 13, and P.J. Washington tallying 12 points in the win.

The Hornets have won two of their past three games and are 1-1 to open a six-game road trip.

Bryn Forbes paced the Spurs with 25 points. Keldon Johnson while racked up 21, Derrick White scored 18, and Doug McDermott, Dejounte Murray and Devin Vassell hit for 10 points apiece. San Antonio finished a 2-3 homestand.

The Hornets flew out of the gate, going up 44-23 before setting for a 46-31 advantage after 12 minutes of play. Charlotte scored 30 of its points on 3-pointers in the period.

Charlotte's advantage was whittled down to eight after the Spurs opened the second quarter on a 13-6 run. However, most of San Antonio's work to climb back in the game was answered by the Hornets over the final six minutes before the break. Charlotte ran off a 15-3 run of its own to take a 71-51 edge with 1:54 to play in the half.

The Hornets led 73-57 at the break behind 20 points from Hayward, 13 each from Bridges and Martin and 10 by McDaniels off the bench. Charlotte outshot the Spurs 60.4 percent to 46.7 percent in the half and canned 13 shots from beyond the arc to just five by San Antonio.

Forbes paced the Spurs with 13 points for the Spurs in the first half.

For the game, Charlotte outshot San Antonio 59.3 percent to 43.3 percent.

-reuters-

NBA: Hornets knock off Spurs to end 3-game skid

Gordon Hayward scored 27 points and Terry Rozier added 24, 17 of those in the second half, as the visiting Charlotte Hornets held on for a 100-97 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Monday.

The Hornets led by 10 points at the half and by five heading into the fourth. San Antonio rallied to tie the game on DeMar DeRozan's three-point play with 1:45 left, but Rozier answered with a 3-pointer that put the Hornets back on top with 1:26 to play.

The Spurs' Derrick White canned two free throws with 22.4 seconds remaining. Rozier then made two free throws with 18.4 seconds left and the lead was back to three.

DeRozan's dunk with 9.2 seconds remaining cut the Charlotte lead to one point again, but Hayward promptly hit two free throws to force San Antonio into a last-second 3-point attempt, which

Patty Mills missed with 6.7 seconds left.

Malik Monk and Bismack Biyombo added 11 points each for the Hornets, who ended a three-game losing streak, and P.J. Washington finished with 10 points and 13 rebounds.

DeRozan ended up with 28 points for San Antonio. White scored 21, and Mills and Rudy Gay hit for 10 apiece. Jakob Poeltl paced the Spurs with 11 rebounds.

The Hornets led for all but the opening minutes of the game and rolled to a 31-21 lead at the end of the first period. San Antonio cut that advantage to one point with 8:33 left in the second period, but Charlotte responded and led 55-45 at halftime.

Hayward led the Hornets with 13 points in the half, while Washington added 10 points and seven rebounds. White and DeRozan had eight points apiece to lead San Antonio at the break.

Monday's contest was the first of a season-long nine-game homestand over the next two weeks for the Spurs.

-reuters-

Free agent Hayward reportedly headed to Charlotte Hornets in $120M deal

Coveted NBA free agent Gordon Hayward is headed to the Charlotte Hornets on a deal reported by ESPN to be worth $120 million over four years.

Hayward’s agents Priority Sports added confirmation of the move on their Twitter feed with a post saying “Congrats to @gordonhayward on agreeing to terms with @hornets!”

Hayward became a free agent Thursday when he declined a $34.2 million player option with the Boston Celtics for the upcoming season.

He had inked a four-year, $127.8 million contract with the Celtics in 2017, but his tenure in Boston was shadowed by injury, starting with a grisly foot and ankle injury suffered minutes into his regular-season debut with the club.

He missed the rest of that season, and after a spotty 2018-19 campaign he averaged 17.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 52 games of the pandemic-disrupted 2019-20 campaign.

Hayward was sidelined again in the playoffs in the NBA’s quarantine bubble in Orlando, spraining his right ankle in the opening game of Boston’s first-round series against Philadelphia.

He returned during the Eastern Conference finals, in which the Celtics fell in six games to the Miami Heat.

The NBA’s free agency negotiating period began on Friday, but deals can’t be finalized until the signing period starts on Sunday.

Both the New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers had been reported to be in the running to land Hayward, with the 30-year-old forward reported by some to favor a return to his native Indiana before the Hornets apparently swooped in.

Meanwhile, journeyman point guard Rajon Rondo is joining the Atlanta Hawks on a reported two-year, $15 million deal.

The 34-year-old Rondo is entering his 15th NBA season and this will be his sixth team. He spent the last two with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Rondo thanked the Lakers, his teammates and the fans on Instagram earlier Saturday.

“To the fans…thank you for welcoming me with open arms from Day 1 and showing me love. Being apart of #LakeShow was something special and I’m proud we brought it back to you!”

Also, the Toronto Raptors are poised to sign guard Fred VanVleet to a four-year, $85 million deal, Canadian media reported.

The deal represents a huge payday for VanVleet, who entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2016.

VanVleet played a crucial role in the Raptors’ run to a championship in 2019.

Agence France-Presse

Gordon Hayward opts out of Celtics contract

Gordon Hayward opted out of his contract for the 2020-21 season with the Boston Celtics, becoming an unrestricted free agent as one of the biggest names to hit the NBA open market this offseason.

A career 15.3 points-per-game scorer in 10 seasons with Boston and Utah, Hayward could still re-sign for a longer term with the Celtics or agree to a sign-and-trade deal. But the Celtics, who signed Hayward to a four-year max contract worth $128 million in July 2017, now could lose him without compensation.

Earlier in the week, Hayward and the team — coached by his college coach at Butler, Brad Stevens — agreed to a two-day extension before he would decide whether to accept the $34.2 million player option or become a free agent. Despite the extra time, the Celtics weren’t able to convince him to stay.

Hayward’s agent Mark Bartelstein confirmed to ESPN that the 30-year-old Hayward opted out and becomes an unrestricted free agent Friday after an injury plagued three years with the Celtics. He missed all but the first six minutes of the 2017-2018 season with a gruesome foot injury, and then suffered from hand and foot injuries this past season.

For the 2019-20 season, Hayward, averaged 17.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 52 games for Boston. An ankle sprain in the Celtics’ first playoff game limited the 6-foot-7 forward to just five postseason games (averaging 10.8 points and 4.0 rebounds) while Boston reached the Eastern Conference finals.

Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge will now be tasked with finding a Hayward replacement via trade or free agency. With the knowledge they might lose Hayward, the Celtics on Wednesday took two highly regarded shooters in the first round of the NBA Draft — guard Aaron Nesmith out of Vanderbilt at No. 14 and guard Payton Pritchard out of Oregon at No. 26.

In other Celtics news, center Vincent Poirier was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunders for a conditional second round draft pick Thursday. And the Celtics announced they extended qualifying offers to center Tacko Fall and guard Tremont Waters.

Also Thursday, ESPN reported that center Enes Kanter exercised his $5 million player option, Boston picked up forward Semi Ojeleye’s $1.75 million team option and the Celtics didn’t give guard Brad Wanamaker a qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent.

-reuters-

NBA: Hayward scores 29 as Celtics get past T-Wolves

Gordon Hayward scored a game-high 29 points and the visiting Boston Celtics played strong defense down the stretch to hold off the Minnesota Timberwolves 127-117 on Friday night.

Jayson Tatum scored 28 points and Jaylen Brown and Daniel Theis chipped in with 25 apiece as the Celtics came out of the All-Star break to win their fourth road game in the last five. Boston has won 12 of 14 overall.

Malik Beasley had 27 points to pace the Timberwolves, who were without star center Karl-Anthony Towns, out with a sprained left wrist.

Boston led most of the way, including by as many as 13 points in the second quarter and 12 in the third period.

Tatum's 3-pointer put the Celtics up 98-88 with 10:50 remaining, before the Timberwolves made a late push. Minnesota got within 100-98 on Jordan McLaughlin's trey and subsequently within one on three occasions, the last time at 108-107 on two Naz Reid free throws with 6:20 to go.

But Hayward countered with a 3-pointer and the Celtics held the Timberwolves to just four points in the next 4:20 while gradually pulling away.

Hayward shot 12 of 17 and the Celtics outshot the Timberwolves 46.3 percent to 40.4 percent.

Tatum (11 rebounds), Theis (game-high 16 rebounds) and Marcus Smart (10 points, 10 assists) all recorded double-doubles for Boston, which went without injured point guard Kemba Walker.

Beasley connected on 4 of 8 from behind the arc for Minnesota, which lost for the 16th time in its last 17 games.

D'Angelo Russell had 18 points and a game-high 13 assists for the Timberwolves. Reid finished with 19 points, Juan Hernangomez 17, McLaughlin 11 and Josh Okogie 10.

The Timberwolves were outrebounded 58-43 but stayed close by outscoring the Celtics 45-30 on 3-pointers.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Tatum, Celtics rally from 19 down to deny Bucks

Jayson Tatum had 25 points, including 11 during a third-quarter comeback, as the Boston Celtics overcame a 19-point deficit to beat the visiting Milwaukee Bucks 116-105 on Wednesday night.

Kemba Walker led all scorers with 32 points, Gordon Hayward had a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds and Marcus Smart hit five 3-pointers and scored 19 as the Celtics won for the third time in four games. 

Boston played without swingman Jaylen Brown, scratched hours before the game with an illness.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 22 points and 14 rebounds, and Khris Middleton scored 26 for the Bucks, who have dropped two of four. Milwaukee hit just 15 of 24 at the free-throw line.

The Celtics outscored the Bucks 38-18 in the third quarter to overcome a 16-point deficit at halftime. Tatum got Boston within single digits, at 71-62, on a layup with 5:04 left and put the Celtics up for the first time since 1:32 into the game when he followed a block on Antetokounmpo with a try to make it 77-76 with 59 seconds to go.

Tatum hit another 3-pointer with a second left as Boston led 80-76 entering the fourth.

The Celtics carried that momentum into the fourth quarter, extending their lead to seven on a Hayward layup with 8:48 to go. Boston went up by double digits, 91-80, on a one-handed Tatum dunk with 7:23 left.

After a flurry of scoring, Daniel Theis hit a 3-pointer with 5:30 left, but Middleton responded with a trey of his own as Milwaukee got within 98-90.

Walker scored eight straight points for the Celtics to increase their lead to 13 with 3:10 left, and Milwaukee never got closer than 10 the rest of the way.

The Bucks held a 19-point edge, 40-21, at 10:11 of the second quarter. Milwaukee would end the half leading 58-42.

The Bucks first went up by double digits, 22-10, on an Ersan Ilyasova 3-pointer with five minutes remaining in the first, finishing the quarter up 34-19.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Celtics rally past Pacers for 2-0 series lead

Jayson Tatum buried a go-ahead 3-pointer with 50.8 seconds remaining Wednesday night, allowing the host Boston Celtics to overcome a late Indiana Pacers flurry and pull out a 99-91 victory in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series.

With the fourth-seeded Celtics having successfully held serve on their home court to go up 2-0 in the best-of-seven set, the fifth-seeded Pacers will host Games 3 and 4 on Friday night and Sunday afternoon.

Indiana blew a 12-point, fourth-quarter lead. However, the Pacers appeared primed to even the series when Wesley Matthews and Bojan Bogdanovic combined for three 3-pointers in a 70-second spurt, allowing Indiana to retake a 91-89 advantage with 2:16 to go.

But the Pacers didn't score again, and the Celtics finally did when Tatum drilled his third 3-pointer of the game for a one-point lead in the final minute.

After Matthews couldn't connect on a 3-point try at the Indiana end, Gordon Hayward dropped in a layup with 12.1 seconds remaining to increase the Boston lead to 94-91.

The Pacers then turned over the ball with a chance to tie, and the Celtics pulled away with a 3-point play by Tatum and two late free throws by Hayward.

The Celtics scored the game's final 10 points.

Kyrie Irving, who sparked an earlier fourth-quarter comeback, finished with a game-high 37 points for the Celtics, who won the opener 84-74 on Sunday.

Tatum totaled 26 while Hayward added 13.

Boston forward Al Horford, who had been iffy for the game after missing the morning shootaround due to an illness, was able to put in 37 minutes, contributing a game-high 10 rebounds and four points to the win.

Bogdanovic used four 3-pointers as the base for his team-high 23 points for the Pacers, who outscored the Celtics 39-33 from beyond the arc.

Thaddeus Young chipped in with 15 points, while Darren Collison and Tyreke Evans had 13 apiece for Indiana.

The Pacers led for most of the first three quarters, going up by as many as eight in the first half and by 12, 77-65, on a Myles Turner shot with 1:04 remaining in the third period.

Evans made it a 12-point game again with a 3-pointer 40 seconds into the final period before Boston tightened the screws defensively and scored the game's next 16 points to go up 86-82.

Irving hit consecutive 3-pointers, the second of which put the Celtics ahead, and then dropped in a 2-pointer to increase the lead to four.

Matthews ended a nearly eight-minute Indiana drought with a 3-pointer with 3:26 to play to get the Pacers back within one and set up the tight finish.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Celtics paste Pacers in key battle for 4th in East

Jayson Tatum scored 22 points and Gordon Hayward added 21 as the Boston Celtics took over sole possession of fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings with a 117-97 victory Friday over the Indiana Pacers in Indianapolis.

The result puts Boston on track for home-court advantage in the upcoming NBA playoffs.

Kyrie Irving scored 17 points for the Celtics (48-32), who broke a fourth-place tie with the Pacers, doing it on the road, where they have held their ups and downs. Boston is now 20-20 away from home this season.

Hayward was 9 of 9 from the field and 3 of 3 from the free-throw line, while Aron Baynes had 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Celtics.

Myles Turner scored 15 points for the Pacers, who are having their troubles down the stretch, losing eight of their past 11 games. Indiana (47-33) entered Friday's game after consecutive victories over the Detroit Pistons.

While the fourth-place Celtics and fifth-place Pacers are in line to meet each other when the playoffs begin next weekend, Boston did move 1 and a half games behind the third-place Philadelphia 76ers with games remaining at home against the Orlando Magic on Sunday and at the Washington Wizards on Tuesday to close out the regular season.

The Pacers conclude their schedule with a game at home against the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday and a visit to the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.

The Celtics started slowly, trailing 27-24 after one quarter as Indiana worked the ball inside, scoring 16 points in the paint. Boston neutralized the Pacers' inside game by speeding up the tempo, scoring 34 points in the second quarter to take a 58-47 lead into halftime.

Boston remained on the attack in the third quarter, increasing the advantage to as many as 18 points before taking a 91-74 lead into the final quarter by shooting 55.4 percent from the field.

The Celtics effectively put the game away three minutes into the fourth quarter when they turned a pair of Pacers turnovers into back-to-back fastbreak dunks by Tatum for a 102-80 lead.

Pacers forward Bojan Bogdanovic, who entered scoring 21.5 points per game since All-Star Victor Oladipo was lost for the season in January, scored just four points on 1-of-8 shooting from the field. Domantas Sabonis and Tyreke Evans scored 12 points each for Indiana.

The Pacers were playing without point guard Darren Collison (groin), while the Celtics lost guard Terry Rozier after just six minutes on the floor because of illness.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: 6 Celtics score in double figures in beating Pistons

Jayson Tatum led six Boston players in double figures with 19 points and the host Celtics ended the Detroit Pistons' four-game winning streak with a 118-110 victory on Wednesday.

Gordon Hayward contributed 18 points and eight assists, while Al Horford supplied 17 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists. Jaylen Brown had 17 points and seven rebounds, Marcus Smart added 16 points and five assists, and Marcus Morris chipped in 11 points.

The Celtics were missing their top two point guards. All-Star Kyrie Irving sat out for the second consecutive night with a right knee strain, while Terry Rozier was sidelined by an illness.

Blake Griffin led Detroit with 32 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Andre Drummond had 21 points, 17 rebounds and four steals, Reggie Jackson tossed in 18 points, and Wayne Ellington added 13 points off the bench.

Both teams were playing their final game before the All-Star break. Boston was playing the tail end of a back-to-back after winning in Philadelphia on Tuesday.

Hayward scored 11 first-half points as Boston led 57-52 at halftime. Brown contributed 10 points off the bench, while Griffin reached the 20-point mark.

The Celtics took control in the third, outscoring Detroit 34-20 to gain a 91-72 lead.

Boston opened up an 11-point lead early in the third with an 8-0 spurt that included 3-pointers from Hayward and Smart.

When Tatum made a trey from the right side with 6:47 left in the quarter, Boston's lead was 72-58.

Later in the quarter, Smart drained back-to-back 3-pointers to extend the Celtics' advantage to 17 at 85-68.

Tatum fired in another long shot in the final minute of the quarter to make it 89-69. Smart made the last basket of the quarter, scoring along the right baseline while falling down.

The Pistons didn't go quietly. They reeled off a 20-2 run, capped by a Drummond steal and dunk, to cut Boston's lead to 10. Horford made a three to end that outburst. Detroit couldn't get the deficit into single digits until the final two minutes.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Balanced Celtics stop Cavs for 5th straight win

Jayson Tatum scored 25 points and Gordon Hayward scored 18 points off the bench to lead the visiting Boston Celtics to a 103-96 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday.

Marcus Smart added 17 points and Jaylen Brown 13 and seven rebounds for Boston, which won its fifth straight game.

Rookie Collin Sexton led the Cavaliers with 27 points. Alec Burks added 21 points for Cleveland, which lost for the eighth time in 10 tries.

Both teams played short-handed. The Celtics were without Kyrie Irving, who sat out with a hip strain. Boston also did not have Marcus Morris(right knee) and Aron Baynes(foot).

Cedi Osman was held out after injuring his ankle in Cleveland's loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday.

Sexton was in attack mode all night, pushing the ball and helping the Cavaliers turn an eight-point halftime deficit into a four-point lead with 5:11 left in the third.

Smart tied the score when he completed a four-point play. Tatum scored the next four points and Boston went on a 13-5 run to take an eight-point lead.

The Cavaliers cut the deficit to 90-87 on a long 3 by Matthew Dellavedova with just under 10 minutes to go. But another dry spell doomed the Cavs as the Celtics went up 101-91.

The Cavs took advantage of Boston's lack of depth in the middle, outrebounding the Celtics 48-42 and recording 22 second-chance points. Boston had just four second-chance points.

Cleveland grabbed a 30-28 lead after one period. Sexton led the way with nine points while Tatum paced the Celtics with 10.

The Celtics outscored the Cavs 31-21 in the second period to take a 59-51 lead into intermission. Boston went on a 12-0 to turn a six-point deficit into a six-point lead.

Boston took advantage of the Cavs' soft interior defense, scoring on a Brown floater and three straight dunks midway through the period.

Then like he did in Boston's win over Cleveland on Jan. 23, Terry Rozier connected from beyond the 3-point line as time expired to put Boston up by eight.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Irving, Celtics overtake Raptors

Kyrie Irving made a go-ahead jumper and added a 3-pointer during an 11-0 run late in the fourth quarter as the Boston Celtics defeated the visiting Toronto Raptors 117-108 Wednesday night.

Irving finished with 27 points and a career-best 18 assists as the Celtics ended a three-game losing streak and snapped Toronto's five-game winning streak.

Al Horford contributed some big points down the stretch in a 24-point game for the Celtics. Gordon Hayward added 18 off the bench, and Jayson Tatum had 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Kawhi Leonard scored 33 points to top Toronto, which led by four in the middle of the fourth quarter and was tied 106-106 with 2 1/2 minutes to go.

Serge Ibaka added 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Raptors. Danny Green scored 15 points, Norman Powell and Greg Monroe scored 11 each, and Kyle Lowry had 10 points and seven assists.

The Celtics, who led by as many 16 during the third quarter, took a four-point edge into the fourth quarter.

Monroe's tip in completed a 9-0 run to give Toronto a three-point lead, but Aron Baynes tied it at 92 on a 3-pointer with 6:44 left.

Leonard's two free throws gave Toronto a four-point lead with 5:16 remaining.

Tatum's 3-pointer put Boston up by two with three minutes to go before Green tied it with a jumper.

Irving's step-back jumper gave Boston the lead again with 2:15 left, and he added a 3-pointer to give Boston a five-point margin with 1:39 left. Horford's layup gave Boston a seven-point lead, and then his dunk made the lead nine with 45.7 seconds left.

The Raptors used a 9-0 run to lead by 11 with 7:18 remaining in the first quarter and finished the period with a 36-30 lead.

The Celtics took their first lead, 41-40, when Baynes, returning from a fractured hand, nailed a 13-foot jumper with 8:39 left in the half.

Toronto had a stretch of 10 straight missed shots while shooting 28.6 percent in a season-low, 17-point second quarter. The Celtics were up 64-53 at halftime after Hayward's floating jumper at the buzzer.

Irving's jumper and free throw increased the lead to 16 in the third quarter. Green's 3-pointer cut that lead in half with 6:01 left in the period.

Boston led 87-83 after three quarters.

The Raptors were without OG Anunoby (personal).

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Celtics' Hayward explodes for 35 in beating Wolves

Boston's Gordon Hayward scored a season-high 35 points and Terry Rozier got the start for an injured Kyrie Irving and scored 16 points on Wednesday to lead the Celtics to a 115-102 home win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Irving suffered a right eye injury in a loss to San Antonio on New Year's Eve and his status remains day-to-day. Minnesota also was short-handed without Jeff Teague, Derrick Rose and Robert Covington dressing.

Hayward connected on 14 of 18 shots and went 4-for-7 from 3-point range, including a 27-footer from the top of the key with 4:37 left that put the Celtics up 106-92 after Minnesota had cut a 21-point deficit to six.

In the teams' first meeting, Hayward scored 30 points in a Celtics' 118-109 win on December 1.

Andrew Wiggins led the Timberwolves with a season-high 31 points. Karl-Anthony Towns finished 28 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists.

Minnesota came alive in the third quarter after the Celtics had grabbed a 60-42 halftime lead. The Timberwolves cut the deficit to 77-67 on a Towns' 26-foot, 3-pointer.

Boston's Marcus Smart sprained his shoulder in a collision with Towns early in the third with the Celtics up 18. When he returned, the Celtics were up only 85-74.

Towns scored 20 third-quarter points and the Timberwolves trailed just 87-81 heading into the fourth quarter.

Marcus Morris also injured his shoulder on a driving layup in the fourth. Morris left the game and did not return.

Boston shot 61.5 percent from the field in the first half and went 8-for-17 from 3-point range. Minnesota was a dreadful 41 percent from the field and only 3 of 10 from beyond the arc in the first 24 minutes.

The Timberwolves looked like they still were dragging from a New Year's Eve loss to New Orleans as the Celtics went on a 16-0 second-quarter run to go up, 47-27.

Hayward's 23-foot, 3-point jumper ignited the rally that saw Minnesota miss nine straight shots and turn the ball over four times.

Tyus Jones ended the drought with a 12-foot jumper, but Hayward answered with another 3 to give the Celtics a 21-point lead.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Hayward explodes for 30 as Celtics beat T-wolves

Gordon Hayward enjoyed his best game of the season, scoring 30 points while also adding nine rebounds and eight assists to lead the visiting Boston Celtics to a 118-109 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Minneapolis on Saturday night.

The Celtics extended their modest win streak to three games, getting the last two on consecutive nights.

The T-wolves saw their season-best win streak snapped at four games.

In the first quarter, the Celtics crawled back from an early seven-point deficit to lead 29-26 through the end of the opening frame on the strength of strong ball movement.

The second quarter saw the Celtics expand that lead to 57-48 by halftime, built largely with nine 3-pointers to the T-wolves' four triples. Hayward (14 points) and Kyrie Irving (12) were already in double figures for the Celtics at the break, while Derrick Rose responded with 12 for Minnesota.

A high-scoring 3rd quarter saw the Timberwolves shave only two points from the halftime deficit. Boston relied heavily on an inside-out game between Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins.

Trailing 89-81 early in the final frame, the T-wolves ripped off an 8-0 run to tie the game with less than nine minutes remaining before Boston responded with its own 9-0 run. The Celtics never looked back.

For the Celtics, in addition to Heyward they got big performances from Jayson Tatum, who scored 19 points and added nine rebounds. Irving also chipped in with 21 points and nine assists.

Jaylen Brown missed his third straight game for the Celtics because of a nagging back injury, resulting in Marcus Smart's third start of the season.

The Timberwolves were led by Towns, who posted 20 points and nine rebounds. Robert Covington added 17 points, 10 rebounds and four steals in a spirited effort for the losing side. Rose scored 26 off the bench.

Up next for Boston is a four-day gap before the Celtics visit the New York Knicks on Thursday. Minnesota's next contest is the third game of their current 4-game homestand as they host the Houston Rockets on Monday.

--Field Level Media

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Irving scores 43, rallies Celtics past Raptors in OT

Kyrie Irving scored a season-best 43 points, including four in overtime, and added 11 assists as the Boston Celtics came back to defeat the visiting Toronto Raptors 123-116 Friday night.

Gordon Hayward made a jumper and Irving made a layup to give Boston a four-point lead with 3:43 to play in overtime.

When Jayson Tatum made two free throws with 3:09 to play, Boston led by five. Irving's 13-foot pullup jumper gave Boston a seven-point lead.

Tatum added 21 points, Hayward had 15 and Marcus Morris and Al Horford had 11 each for the Celtics.

Kawhi Leonard led the Raptors with 31 points and 15 rebounds.

Serge Ibaka added 21 points, Pascal Siakam 16, Kyle Lowry 14 and Jonas Valanciunas 11 for the Raptors. Danny Green also had 11 points for Toronto before fouling out with 3:43 to play in the fourth quarter.

The Celtics, who had lost their two previous games, handed the Raptors their third straight loss. The teams have split their first two games this season.

The Raptors, who led by as many as 10 points in the third quarter, took a four-point edge into the fourth.

Irving made a running layup after a missed shot by the Raptors to give the Celtics a 92-90 lead with 7:06 to play.

Delon Wright hit a 3-pointer after a Boston miss to give Toronto a four-point lead with 1:29 left.

Boston came back to tie it at 107 with two free throws by Hayward with 24 seconds remaining.

Leonard missed a 17-footer in the final second to force overtime.

The Celtics used a 16-4 burst to lead 21-16 with 3:46 left in the first quarter, which ended with Boston ahead 30-27. Irving topped all scorers with 12 points.

A 15-foot jumper by Morris gave Boston a 44-31 lead with 7:36 left in the second quarter.

The Raptors tightened their defense and took a one-point lead on Ibaka's 20-footer with 1:30 to play in the first half. But Irving's layup gave Boston a 54-52 halftime lead.

Toronto lost OG Anunoby, who scored five points in 9:21, to a sprained right wrist in the first half.

The Raptors led 82-78 after three quarters.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Ingles spoils Hayward's return as Jazz top Celtics

Joe Ingles tied a career high with 27 points and Rudy Gobert added 17 points and 15 rebounds as the Jazz spoiled the return of Gordon Hayward to Utah with an energetic 123-115 victory Friday over the visiting Boston Celtics in Salt Lake City.

Jazz fans booed every move of Hayward, who left Utah for Boston via free agency before the start of last season. 

Hayward then suffered a fractured ankle injury in the Celtics' season opener last year and did not play the remainder of the season.

In limited minutes, as he continues to work his way back from his injury, Hayward scored 13 points on 3-for-9 shooting from the field. 

He had just four points in the first half, earning a cheer from Jazz fans when he airballed a shot from five feet with 9:12 remaining in the second quarter.

Donovan Mitchell had 21 points while former Celtic Jae Crowder scored 20 points, and Ricky Rubio added 17 as the Jazz won consecutive games after losing four in a row. 

Ingles added five rebounds and seven assists while going 10 of 14 from the field, including 5-for-9 from 3-point range.

Terry Rozier scored 22 points and Jayson Tatum added 21 for the Celtics, who have now lost three of the four games they have played on their current five-game road trip. 

Friday's defeat came a day after they needed overtime to defeat the Phoenix Suns.

The Celtics looked poised to pull off a huge rally just as they did in Phoenix. They cut a 20-point deficit in the third quarter to just four points on four different occasions in the fourth quarter. 

But the Jazz had enough energy to finish off the victory.

Burned for 48 points by Denver guard Jamal Murray on Tuesday, the Celtics were intent on not letting the same thing happen again. 

They held the dynamic Mitchell to just six shots until one minute remaining in the third quarter.

Mitchell asserted himself from there, taking three shots and scoring four points in the final 42 seconds of the third quarter, although he was just 5-for-14 from the field and 1-for-6 from 3-point range.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Irving leads Celtics in OT rally past Suns

Kyrie Irving recorded a season-high 39 points and also had seven rebounds and six assists to help the Boston Celtics rally to a 116-109 overtime victory over the host Phoenix Suns on Thursday night.

Marcus Morris added 17 points and drained the tying 3-point basket in regulation as Boston recovered from a 22-point third-quarter deficit. Jaylen Brown connected on the go-ahead 3-pointer in overtime to cap a 17-point effort and Terry Rozier added 10 points.

Devin Booker scored a season-high 38 points and added nine assists and TJ Warren scored a season-high 29 points for Phoenix, which has dropped nine of its 11 games this season. Deandre Ayton contributed 14 points and 10 rebounds and Trevor Ariza added 11 points and nine rebounds.

The Celtics recovered from a poor-shooting first half to finish at 40.2 percent, including 14-of-37 from 3-point range. The Suns shot 44.1 percent and were 11-of-35 from 3-point range.

Boston trailed by 19 points after the opening quarter and by 25 after the third period but rallied with a 20-6 run at the end of regulation to force overtime.

Brown's 3-pointer gave Boston a 112-109 lead with 2:05 left in overtime and Morris added a layup 26 seconds later. Jayson Tatum added two free throws with nine seconds left to close it out.

The Celtics trailed by 14 with 3:45 remaining in regulation before Irving (five) and Brown (four) scored all the points during a 9-0 surge to cut the Suns' lead to 94-89 with 2:05 remaining.

Boston kept on the pressure and moved within 98-95 on Irving's 3-pointer with 35.9 seconds left and Brown's basket with 7.3 seconds left moved the Celtics within one. Warren connected on two free throws with 6.1 seconds remaining to give Phoenix a 100-97 edge.

Morris drained a 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds remaining to knot the score. It was Boston's six trey of the quarter.

Warren scored 19 first-half points as Phoenix led 55-35 at the break.

The Celtics shot a meager 21.7 percent from the field in the half - 10-for-46 -- and committed 10 turnovers.

Irving was the only Boston starter to score in the first half and he was just 3-of-10 shooting while scoring 13 points. The other four starters -- Brown, Gordon Hayward, Al Horford and Tatum -- missed all 15 of their shots.

Irving opened the contest with a 3-pointer before the Suns scored the next 15 points.

Booker's 17-footer with 0.5 seconds left gave the Suns a 32-13 edge in a stanza in which the Celtics went 4-of-22 from the field.

Phoenix stretched its lead to 48-26 on Booker's 3-pointer with 4:31 to play in the half.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Celtics' Hayward dealing with back pain

Boston Celtics forward Gordon Hayward is battling lingering back soreness as his long-awaited regular-season return nears.

Hayward told reporters Wednesday that the soreness in that area is nothing new, though it doesn't typically linger this long. He believes what's at fault is his long layoff from playing.

"In the past, it's bothered me but always calmed down and was fine with treatments and stuff," Hayward said. "But this time it was getting worse, especially after playing.

"I have found out that is going to be a process because of not playing for so long. The rest of my body has to readjust to playing."

Despite the injury, Hayward said he still expects to play in Boston's regular-season opener against Philadelphia on Tuesday.

Hayward has played three preseason games as he makes his return from a dislocated left ankle and fractured left tibia sustained during the Celtics' 2017-18 season opener. He sat out the team's preseason finale against Cleveland on Saturday.

Before his one-game debut season for Boston, Hayward played seven years with the Utah Jazz, making the All-Star Game in 2017. He has career averages of 15.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 517 NBA games.

Hayward, 28, was the Jazz's first-round draft pick (ninth overall) in 2010 out of Butler.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Hornets beat Celtics to spoil Hayward's return

Boston Celtics Gordon Hayward says just getting back on the court Friday felt like a victory after scoring 10 points in his first NBA game in almost a year.

"Been waiting a long time to lace back up and get out there with the guys," said Hayward, who suffered a scary leg injury in the Celtics' season opener last October 17.

"I don't think I was playing my best basketball. But I was having fun out there."

Despite Hayward's return, the Celtics dropped their NBA pre-season opener to the Charlotte Hornets 104-97 on Friday at the Dean E. Smith Center arena in Chappel Hill, North Carolina.

Hayward finished with 10 points in his first game since that serious injury in Cleveland in which he broke his fibula and dislocated his ankle.

Hayward started at forward for the Celtics alongside Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford and Kyrie Irving.

"I missed him," said Irving of Hayward, who wasted no time scoring his first points in front of a crowd of 18,000. Hayward delivered an easy basket early in the first quarter after grabbing an offensive rebound. He finished two-of-seven from the field in just over 20 minutes of playing time.

Irving, who suffered a 2017-18 season-ending injury on March 11 when he hurt his knee, also made his return. Irving finished with just nine points.

"I thought there were a lot of great talking and teaching points in this game," said Boston coach Brad Stevens. "It's a reminder of how hard it is to win in this league."

Jeremy Lamb scored 15 points for Charlotte, which finished with seven players in double figures.

France's Tony Parker made his debut with Charlotte, after 17 seasons with the San Antonio Spurs. 

Parker missed all three shots he attempted and went scoreless on the night.

Cody Zeller scored 13 points and Kemba Walker made 12 for the Hornets.

Brown hit for 14 points and Marcus Morris had 12 for Boston.

Boston led by as many as 20 points in the first half but finished a dismal nine of 47 from three-point range overall.

Charlotte used a huge third-quarter run to enter the fourth trailing 84-81. 

Boston got back up by four with six minutes remaining in the game, but the Hornets closed it out on a 17-6 run, which was highlighted by a pair of dynamic dunks from rookie Miles Bridges. 

"I'm just proud of the guys, proud of how they stuck in the game," said Hornets new head coach James Borrego.

gph/it

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Celtics' Hayward set for preseason opener Friday

The long-awaited return of All-Star Gordon Hayward is expected to occur Friday, when the Boston Celtics forward plans to play in the preseason opener on the road against the Charlotte Hornets.

According to multiple media outlets, Hayward is ready for his first game action since he dislocated his left ankle and fractured his left tibia in a gruesome ending to his Celtics debut during the 2017-18 season opener.

The 6-foot-8 Hayward, who played seven previous seasons with the Utah Jazz, recently said he's "basically 100 percent." On Tuesday, he told reporters that he has dunked off his left foot in practice.

"I'm just excited to be out there," Hayward, 28, told reporters earlier in September. "It's been so much fun to be able to play again and play with my teammates. These past few weeks and the next probably month or so will be good to get back into the game."

According to a report on Celtics.com, Hayward's teammates seemed amazed by his progression, giving him a thumbs-up during media day on Monday.

"I've seen him working out over the last three weeks, since he's been back in Boston, and he's really looking good," said second-year forward Daniel Theis, who sustained a torn meniscus last March.

"When you get hurt and when you've been out for such a long time, you've got to get back the feeling for playing five-on-five, and I think the hardest challenge for him is going to be the mental part, just going in there, playing with contact again.

"But when we played our pickup games, he looked good. He was moving really well, he was shooting the ball really well, so I think for everybody, it's going to be fun to see him out there."

Added second-year forward Semi Ojeleye: "If you didn't know what happened, you wouldn't have guessed that he had that kind of injury. The way he looks now is great. I think he's growing more confident every day with what he can do on the court, and he's getting back to that form that we saw before he became a Celtic."

The Celtics open the regular season against the Philadelphia 76ers on Oct. 16.

"There's nothing like playing basketball," the 28-year-old Hayward told the media on Monday. "There's nothing like doing in-game stuff that you can't get from drills.

"You're guarding somebody, you're reacting, you're getting a rebound and trying to go straight back up with it. Those things I can't really practice, so to have the ability to do that was really big for me."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Banged-up Boston stretches win streak to 11

LOS ANGELES, United States - The Boston Celtics juggernaut continues to steamroll its way through the NBA, extending their winning streak to 11 games on Friday despite a rash of injuries that now includes all-star Kyrie Irving.

With Gordon Hayward out for the season and Al Horford sitting out a second straight game with a concussion, Irving suffered a possible concussion less than two minutes into the game after taking an elbow from teammate Aron Baynes.

No matter -- despite the revolving door on the infirmary -- the Celtics just keep on winning without their Big Three, rallying from an 18-point deficit then hanging on for a 90-87 victory on Friday night over the Charlotte Hornets.

"We're just going to do what we do no matter who we got," Celtics Terry Rozier said. "No matter who we're going to play with, we're going to play hard."

Boston scored a season-low 11 points in the first quarter and was down 18 early in the third before sending the Hornets to their fourth straight loss.

With unheralded guard Shane Larkin leading the way, the Celtics went on a 14-2 fourth-quarter surge to take control of the game and held the Hornets to 11 points in the fourth quarter. But Boston still had to survive a scramble at the end to survive.

Larkin finished with a season-high 16 points, while rookie Jayson Tatum, who is playing with a sore ankle, scored 16 points.

"There's no funner place to play than in Boston in comeback games," Larkin said. "We went out there. Crowd got behind us. We pulled out a victory."

Rozier had 15 points seven rebounds and four assists, Marcus Morris had 14 and seven rebounds and Jaylen Brown scored 10 points and had 13 rebounds.

Kemba Walker led all scorers with 20 points despite missing all six of his three-point shot attempts, while Frank Kaminsky scored all 14 of his points in the first half.

Walker, who missed a jumper that would have put his team ahead with five seconds left, scored Charlotte's final eight points.

Hornets forward Dwight Howard had a dismal night, shooting two-for-eight from the floor, two-for-nine from the foul line, while making seven turnovers.

"We're giving up huge leads. We're not maintaining our game. We've got to be better as a whole," Walker said.

- Jackson's late bombs -

Elsewhere, Reggie Jackson made two clutch three pointers down the stretch as the Detroit Pistons won their fourth straight with a 111-104 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

Jackson had 22 points and six assists for the Pistons, who gave away a 19-point lead before regaining control in front of a crowd of 16,600 at Little Caesars Arena.

Andre Drummond had 16 points, 20 rebounds and a career-high seven assists for Detroit, who improved to 9-3 on the season.

Avery Bradley tallied 20 points and Tobias Harris finished with 16 points and eight rebounds. Ish Smith came off the bench to finish with 17 points and five assists.

Kent Bazemore had 22 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Hawks (2-10).

Detroit led 76-69 heading into the fourth. The Hawks closed the gap to five early in the quarter and once again midway through after Bazemore made a jumper.

Bazemore's three-pointer from the top of the key and another from the wing tied it 94-94 with 3:49 left.

The teams traded scores until Jackson's three with 52.3 seconds left put the Pistons on top 103-100. Following Bellinelli's miss, Bradley made a free throw and collected the rebound after missing the second try. Jackson then drained another key three-pointer to clinch the win.

source: news.abs-cbn.com