Draymond apologizes after Poole 'altercation', Warriors say

Golden State star Draymond Green apologized to teammates on Thursday after reportedly aiming a punch at Jordan Poole during practice, Warriors general manager Bob Myers confirmed.

Myers did not go into details about the skirmish during a practice on Wednesday, but said reports of an "altercation" between Green and Poole were accurate.

"As you know yesterday, as reported, there was an altercation. The people that were reported to be in it, that's accurate," Myers said.

"Everybody's fine ... Look, it's the NBA – professional sports, these things happen. Nobody likes it, we don't condone it, but it happened."

Myers said Poole had practiced normally on Thursday while Green sat out the session.

The Warriors chief would not go into details of what discipline Green would face.

"Draymond apologized to the team this morning," Myers said. "As far as any suspension or fine, we'll handle that internally."

Myers, meanwhile, insisted that the NBA champions' pre-season preparations were progressing smoothly despite the incident.

"I've actually seen a really good group, one of the best vibes that we've had in my 12 years here in terms of camp, mental health and camaraderie," Myers said.

"It's unfortunate and I'm not going to deny it. It will take some time to move through, but we'll move through it.

"This isn't our first sense of adversity. We've gone through some of this before. We don't like going through it but it's part of the NBA and part of sports."

Agence France-Presse

NBA Finals tied, as Curry leads Warriors past Celtics in Game 4

Stephen Curry produced a dazzling 43-point display as the Golden State Warriors battled past the Boston Celtics 107-97 to level the NBA Finals series at 2-2 on Saturday (Manila time).

With the Warriors needing a victory at Boston's TD Garden to avoid going down 3-1 in the best-of-seven series, Curry delivered one of the best performances of his glittering career to reignite Golden State's hopes of a seventh championship.

Curry had entered game four with concerns swirling over his fitness after suffering a knock to his foot in the Warriors game three defeat on Wednesday.

But the 34-year-old two-time NBA Most Valuable Player emphatically laid to rest any doubts about his fitness as he single-handedly hauled Golden State back into the finals with game five back in San Francisco on Monday.

Curry finished with 43 points, 10 rebounds and four assists on a night when Golden State again struggled to find their offensive rhythm for long periods against a powerful Boston line-up.

Klay Thompson added 18 points for the Warriors while Andrew Wiggins produced 17 points and 16 rebounds in a crucial contribution. Jordan Poole added 14 from the bench.

"A lot of pride in our group, a lot of talk over the last 48 hours about how we can get back into this series," said Curry. 

"It's crazy because I still feel we can play a little bit better. But to win on the road and get home court advantage back, is big for this group. We've been here six times, we've got a lot of experience of staying confident and composed. 

"I'm just thankful for everyone on our team because we brought a lot of toughness and physicality tonight.

"We knew how big this game was. For us to come out and do what we did and go home. That five-and-a-half hour flight home got a little better after tonight."

- Green struggles -

Warriors coach Steve Kerr, meanwhile, took the bold decision to remove Draymond Green from the fray during the fourth quarter before returning him to the court for the closing passage of play.

Green again struggled on offense with only two points but finished with nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals.

But the undeniable man of the hour was once again Curry, a model of clear-headed composure as bedlam raged around Boston’s raucous arena.

"Just stunning," was how Kerr described Curry's performance. "The physicality out there is, you know, pretty dramatic. I mean, Boston's got obviously, best defense in the league.

"Huge and powerful at every position, and for Steph to take that -- that kind of pressure all game long and still be able to defend at the other end when they are coming at him shows you, I think, this is the strongest physically he's ever been in his career, and it's allowing him to do what he's doing."

Boston had led by four points at 94-90 with just under five minutes remaining before a Wiggins layup and a Thompson three-pointer put Golden State up 95-94. Curry then extended the lead with a layup to make it 97-94 before driving in the dagger with a three-pointer to leave the Warriors 100-94 ahead.

Al Horford cut the deficit for Boston with a corner three, but Kevon Looney’s layup restored the Warriors' five-point cushion.

Curry then closed out the game, cleverly drawing fouls from Boston to nail five points from the free throw line.

Jayson Tatum led the Boston scorers with 23 points while Jaylen Brown finished with 21 points. Marcus Smart added 18 points and Derrick White chipped in with 16.

Agence France-Presse

Curry, Warriors comeback stuns Luka, Mavs to take 2-0 series lead

Stephen Curry scored 32 points as the Golden State Warriors staged a stunning fightback to defeat the Dallas Mavericks 126-117 on Friday and seize control of their NBA Western Conference finals series.

A pulsating clash at San Francisco's Chase Center saw the Warriors overturn a 19-point first-half deficit for a victory that leaves the six-time NBA champions 2-0 up in the best-of-seven series.

Curry may have led the Warriors scoring but the remarkable turnaround owed everything to a dogged team performance.

Six Golden State players finished in double figures, with Jordan Poole, Kevon Looney and Andrew Wiggins all coming up with crucial plays.

Looney in particular delivered a crucial performance with a career-high 21 points and 12 rebounds.

Luka Doncic meanwhile produced another high-scoring masterclass for Dallas with 42 points, five rebounds and eight assists, while Jalen Brunson had 31 points.

But the night and victory belonged to the Warriors, who had been left shellshocked by Dallas in a wild first half.

The Mavericks erupted for 72 points in the first two quarters that left them 14 points clear, leading 72-58 at the break.

Doncic led the offensive bombardment with 24 first-half points, with Brunson nailing four three-pointers for a 20-point haul.

Reggie Bullock was also deadly from downtown, making four of out five attempts from three-point range in the first half.

The Mavs led from the outset, with Doncic putting them 5-0 ahead before a 13-0 run left Dallas 23-8 up with just a few minutes gone.

Stung into action, the Warriors produced a 13-0 run of their own to get back within three points at 26-23, but once again Dallas pulled clear with deadly long-range shooting.

Dallas made 15 of 27 three-pointers during the first half, almost double the eight-of-15 converted by the Warriors.

Doncic put the seal on an incredible display with a 29-foot three-pointer on the stroke of half-time.

But the momentum swung back towards Golden State in the third quarter, with the Warriors chipping away at the Mavs lead to close within two at 85-83 heading into the fourth quarter.

A three-pointer from Otto Porter Jr. gave the Warriors their first lead of the night at 86-85 early in the fourth quarter, and with their noses in front Golden State were not to be denied.

The Warriors outscored Dallas 43-32 in the final quarter to complete a thrilling win as the series heads to Texas for game three on Sunday.

Agence France-Presse

Curry's MVP odds improve following 50-point explosion

Golden State guard Stephen Curry's odds of winning the regular season Most Valuable Player award shot up on Tuesday following his 50-point, 10-assist performance in the Warriors' win over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.

Three-time champion Curry, who took home MVP honors in 2015 and 2016 seasons, connected on 9 3-pointers and was 14-for-28 from the field in the 127-113 win in San Francisco.

With the victory, the Warriors improved to an NBA-best 9-1 in the young season. The crowd chanted "MVP" when Curry went to the free-throw line, where he was a perfect 13-for-13.

Curry is now the favorite to win the trophy for a third time at +200, or 2-1, odds, SportsBetting.ag said on Tuesday.

The next-closest competitors are Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brooklyn's Kevin Durant at 13-2, or +650.

Curry came into the season with 8-1 MVP odds, the website said.

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr marveled at Curry's dazzling play.

"That was just a stunning performance by Steph," Kerr said, according to ESPN.

"He was amazing. I want to say I've never seen anything like it but I've been watching it for seven years, so I have seen something like it and still it's just incredible to watch."

(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles Editing by Toby Davis)

-reuters-

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

source: news.abs-cbn.com