NBA: Cavs ride huge first half to crushing win over Warriors

LOS ANGELES  -- The Cleveland Cavaliers continued their perfect start to the NBA season in sensational style on Friday, seizing a 41-point halftime lead on the way to a 136-117 rout of the Golden State Warriors.

The Cavs improved to 10-0, ending the Warriors' five-game winning streak and handing them their first road defeat of the season.

The damage was done early, the Cavs' 83 first-half points tying a franchise record for most scored in any half and their 41-point halftime lead was the biggest in team history.

Against the Warriors' second-ranked defense, the Cavs posted their fifth game of the young season with at least 130 points.

That ties a team record for the most 130-plus point games for an entire season.

"Ten-0 is a magic number," Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said. "We're playing really good basketball and I'm just really pleased with where the group is.

"I was worried about tonight -- they're 7-1 and rolling and they're coming in here, they're champions and they're going to try and knock our block off."

Darius Garland scored 27 points, Evan Mobley added 23 and Ty Jerome chipped in 20 off the bench as six Cavs players scored in double figures against a Warriors defense that came in ranked second in the league.

Meanwhile, they kept the potentially explosive Warriors offense in check, opening the game on a 20-2 scoring run.

"The way we came out tonight -- that surprised me, how ready we were, how hungry we were," Atkinson said.

Andrew Wiggins with nine points and Stephen Curry with seven were the only Warriors starters to score before the break.

Golden State were able to adjust after the break, out-scoring the Cavs 41-29 in the third quarter.

"First half, can't play much better than that," Atkinson said. "But second half, way we came out, they scored 13 points in the first three minutes. It was a little frustrating."

The Warriors, however, were in too deep a hole.

Jonathan Kuminga led Golden State with 21 points off the bench, Curry finished with 12 on five-of-10 shooting, making just one from three-point range.

"We've got to execute better," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "Thirteen turnovers in the first half -- we were completely disorganized."

- Celtics edge Nets -

In Boston, Jayson Tatum scored 33 points to lead the Celtics in a 108-104 overtime victory over the Brooklyn Nets, who led by as many as 14 in the first half and didn't surrender the lead until the fourth quarter.

In Detroit, Cade Cunningham drove for the go-ahead basket with 8.5 seconds left to play in the Pistons' 122-121 victory over Atlanta, then sealed the victory with a block on a driving Onyeka Okongwu.

Cunningham finished with a triple-double of 22 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists with a steal and the game-saving block.

Jusuf Nurkic's free throw with eight-tenths of a second remaining lifted the Phoenix Suns to a 114-113 victory over the Mavericks in Dallas.

Kevin Durant scored 26 points and Nurkic added 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Suns, who notched a seventh straight victory to improve to 8-1.

"It's been fun," Durant said of the Suns' start. "(It has) definitely been nerve-wracking with the tight games we've been in, but I think that's great for our team to understand what it's like in crunch time."

Luka Doncic scored 30 points and Kyrie Irving added 29 for Dallas, who have now lost twice this season to Phoenix.

Elsewhere Friday, the Los Angeles Lakers got back to winning ways with a 116-106 defeat of the Philadelphia 76ers at home.

The Lakers had lost four of their five previous games but overpowered the Sixers thanks to 31 points from Anthony Davis and 21 from LeBron James with Austin Reaves adding 20.

In New York, Karl-Anthony Towns scored 32 points for the Knicks, who led by as many as 30 in a 116-94 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 24 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Milwaukee, who trailed all the way.

Agence France-Presse

Edwards, Towns lead Wolves' 106-80 blitz of Murray, Jokic for 2-0 series lead over champion Nuggets

DENVER (AP) — Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns powered Minnesota's 106-80 blitz of the Denver Nuggets on Monday night that gave the Timberwolves a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinals over the reigning but reeling NBA champions.

Towns and Edwards both scored 27 points as the Wolves improved to 6-0 in the playoffs and gave themselves a chance to close out the fuming Nuggets with wins Friday night and Sunday in Minneapolis.

So dominant were the Wolves that they had the Nuggets throwing both fits (Michael Malone) and objects onto the court (Jamal Murray).

Aaron Gordon led Denver with 20 points, Nikola Jokic had 16 points and 16 rebounds but their third-leading scorer was sub Justin Holliday with 13 points. Murray scored 8 points on 3-of-18 shooting.

The Wolves staggered the Nuggets with body blow after body blow even though their starting center Rudy Gobert was back home in Minneapolis attending the birth of his son Sunday. But they didn't need Gobert's shot blocking prowess and rim protection on this night to continue their domination of the Nuggets at Ball Arena, where Denver was 36-8 before their back-to-back losses to Minnesota.

Kyle Andeson replaced Gobert in the starting lineup and the Timberwolves hounded Jokic and disrupted Denver's offense just the same.

During a 43-18 first-half flourish by the Timberwolves — Edwards was on the bench for much of it, no less — the Nuggets grew so frustrated that Malone ran way out onto the court and got in official Marc Davis' face for an extended blowup during a timeout and somehow avoided a technical.

So did Murray after Denver's ailing point guard threw a heat pack onto the court in frustration as Towns was about to score on a layup in the second quarter.

It wasn't clear if the officials realized it was Murray who threw the object onto the court and not a fan. He will likely face punishment from the league, however.

Frustrated by their slow starts — the Nuggets have trailed by double digits in six of their seven playoff games and by nine in the other — Malone challenged his team to get off to a strong start for once.

“What are we waiting for?" he pleaded after Sunday's practice.

Only Aaron Gordon heeded his coach's call, scoring 13 quick points, including a 3-pointer that brought the Nuggets to 18-17 late in the first quarter.

Things unraveled for Denver after that because Jokic was the only other starter to score for the Nuggets before the second quarter. Jokic had just eight points by halftime and Murray, still bothered by a strained left calf, scored just two first-half points for the duo's worst offensive output in a half this season.

Trailing 61-35 at the break, the Nuggets' 26-point halftime deficit was Denver's largest in a home playoff game in franchise history.

The Wolves led 82-60 after three quarters and cruised the rest of the way.

-Associated Press-

NBA: Doncic, Irving carry Mavs past Clippers to advance to second round

DALLAS (AP) — Luka Doncic had 28 points and 13 assists, Kyrie Irving scored 28 of his 30 points in a second-half surge and the Dallas Mavericks advanced to the second round of the playoffs with a 114-101 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night.

Doncic pushed through another rough shooting night with his ailing right knee to do what the Slovenian superstar couldn't three years earlier — close out the Clippers in Dallas in Game 6 of a first-round series.

The fifth-seeded Mavericks beat the Clippers for the first time in three first-round tries over the past five seasons and will open the Western Conference semifinals at the top seed, Oklahoma City, on Tuesday night.

Paul George had 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Clippers, who won the first two times they played without Kawhi Leonard in the series but didn't have enough scoring punch in the last two he was sidelined by right knee inflammation.

James Harden had 16 points and 13 assists but was just 5 of 16 from the field and missed all six of his 3-pointers as LA was eliminated in the first round for the second consecutive season.

Irving, Doncic's co-star added at the trade deadline last year for the kind of playoff run the Mavs hope they just started, gave Dallas its biggest lead with a flashy four-point play when he hit a leaning 3-pointer as he was bumped by P.J. Tucker, and made the free throw for a 106-82 lead.

The Clippers answered with an 11-2 run to get within 13 but never seriously threatened a big comeback in the final minutes.

The Mavs broke a 52-52 halftime tie by outscoring the Clippers 35-20 in the third quarter — the same quarter that fueled the Game 5 win in Los Angeles for a chance to clinch — and pushed the lead to 20 early in the fourth.

Doncic, who also has dealt with illness in addition to a sore knee, started 0 of 7 from 3-point range to drop below 25% for the series but made his first try of the second half to start the third-quarter surge.

The NBA scoring champion was 9 of 26 from the field and just 1 of 10 from 3 while going 9 of 11 on free throws. Irving was 10 of 13 from the field after halftime.

Norman Powell scored 20 for the Clippers, and Ivica Zubac had 17 points and 11 rebounds.

P.J. Washington scored 14 points with some big 3-pointers for the Mavs, going 4 of 8 from deep, and Daniel Gafford had 13 points with several emphatic buckets down low.

Dallas' Maxi Kleber didn't return after spraining his right shoulder when he took a hard fall on a blocking foul against Amir Coffey on a drive in the first minute of the second quarter.

Kleber, whose 3-point shooting was a boost for Dallas in the series, returned to shoot free throws, making one of two before leaving at the next dead ball.

-Associated Press-

Pacers thrash Bucks to clinch NBA playoff series

The Indiana Pacers powered into the second round of the NBA playoffs on Thursday, thrashing the depleted Milwaukee Bucks, 120-98, to win their Eastern Conference series, 4-2.

Unable to close out the Bucks on Tuesday, the Pacers got their uptempo offense flowing again, relentlessly pulling away after trailing by seven in the opening minutes.

All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton delivered a double-double of 17 points and 10 assists, but it was reserve guard Obi Toppin leading the Pacers scoring with a career playoff high 21 points.

T.J. McConnell added 20 points off the bench along with nine assists and four steals as the Pacers reserves contributed a whopping 50 points.

"I'm so proud of the perseverance," Haliburton said of Toppin and McConnell. "Obviously neither of them had a really good game last game -- none of us did. We just responded the right way."

Indiana led by 12 at halftime, and after the Bucks cut the deficit to seven on a Brook Lopez layup with 1:05 left in the third the Pacers authored an 11-0 scoring run and romped away in the final period.

Eight-time All-Star Damian Lillard returned from a two-game injury absence and led the Bucks with 28 points.

Lopez and Bobby Portis scored 20 points apiece, but with two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo still sidelined by the calf injury suffered late in the regular season the Bucks couldn't find an answer.

The Bucks, who won the title in 2021, lost in the first round for the second straight season after falling to Miami last year.

The Pacers hadn't won a playoff series since 2014, when they reached the Eastern Conference finals.

In the Eastern Conference semi-finals Indiana will take on either the second-seeded New York Knicks or the Philadelphia 76ers, who clashed later Thursday in Philadelphia with the Sixers trying to stave off elimination.

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Haliburton hits winner as Pacers hold off Bucks in overtime, Mavs thump Clippers

LOS ANGELES -- Tyrese Haliburton drove for the game-winning basket as the Indiana Pacers held off a late Milwaukee charge to beat the Bucks 121-118 in overtime on Friday and take a 2-1 lead in their NBA Eastern Conference playoff series.

The Dallas Mavericks also won at home, cruising to a 101-90 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers for a 2-1 lead in their best-of-seven Western Conference set.

But a return to Phoenix provided no respite for Kevin Durant and the Suns, who were one defeat away from elimination after falling 126-109 to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

In Indianapolis, Haliburton delivered a triple-double of 18 points, 10 rebounds and 16 assists to help the Pacers withstand a 42-point performance from Milwaukee forward Khris Middleton, who drilled a three-pointer to tie it with 2.3 seconds left in regulation and made another trey to knot it at 118-118 with eight seconds left in overtime.

With 1.6 seconds remaining in overtime, Haliburton took an inbound pass and split the Bucks' defense as he drove for a one-handed floater.

Fouled on the play, he made the free throw to cap the scoring. Middleton, playing through a sprained right ankle, was unable to work another three-point miracle as time expired.

"I just knew I was shooting it no matter what," Haliburton said.

"And I finally made a shot, added the Pacers star, who connected on just eight of his 22 attempts from the field. "I couldn't buy a bucket today, so I'm glad that one went in."

The Pacers escaped with the win in a game they led by 19 points in the first quarter and by 17 in the third.

With two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo still sidelined by a calf injury, the Bucks couldn't match Indiana's early pace.

An early injury scare saw Damian Lillard limp off with a sore knee briefly in the first quarter. He returned to score 19 of his 28 points in the second half before aggravating an Achilles tendon injury in late in regulation.

The Bucks took the lead for the first time on Lillard's three-pointer early in the fourth quarter, the lead changing hands six times in the fourth as they battled to overtime.

"Every possession is so valuable," Haliburton said. "You've got to dig in. The game's never over."

Myles Turner scored 29 points for the Pacers, who will try to stretch their lead when they host game four on Sunday.

In Phoenix, Anthony Edwards scored 36 points to lead a comprehensive Timberwolves team effort that included 19 points and 14 rebounds from Rudy Gobert and 18 points and 13 rebounds from Karl-Anthony Towns.

Six players scored in double figures for the Timberwolves.

Bradley Beal led the Suns with 28 points. Durant scored 25 and Devin Booker added 23, but had no answer when the Timberwolves broke open a six-point game with a third-quarter scoring surge.

The Timberwolves have a 3-0 series lead for the first time in franchise history.

They'll try on Sunday to close out the Suns, and even though both teams are well aware that no NBA team has rallied from 0-3 down to win a series, Edwards said the Timberwolves would take nothing for granted.

"We can't look past the next game," he said.

- Dallas dominate -

In Dallas, NBA scoring leader Luka Doncic limped out early but returned to score 22 points with 10 rebounds and nine assists to lead the Mavericks in a testy clash with the Clippers.

Los Angeles' Russell Westbrook and P.J. Washington of Dallas were both ejected after a shoving match that started with Westbrook's hard foul on Doncic.

Westbrook received a double technical while Washington had a second tech to go with one he'd picked up after a verbal exchange with Terance Mann.

The Mavs were up by 16 points when the players were tossed midway through the fourth quarter.

The Clippers had sliced an 18-point deficit to six late in the third quarter, but Kyrie Irving, who had just two points until the final two minutes of the third period, scored 19 the rest of the way to help Dallas rebuild their lead.

"It's the will of the champion," Irving said of staying the course until his shots started falling. "Two points really doesn't matter -- all I care about is winning games."

James Harden and Norman Powell both scored 21 for the Clippers, but Harden had just seven points in the second half and the Mavs held Clippers star Paul George to seven points and Kawhi Leonard to nine.

In Friday's last game, Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns hosted the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Suns trying to avoid falling into an 0-3 hole after the Timberwolves won the first two games of their Western Conference series in Minneapolis.

No NBA team has rallied from an 0-3 deficit to win a playoff series.

Agence France-Presse

Warriors star Curry named NBA Clutch Player of the Year

LOS ANGELES, United States - Four-time NBA champion Stephen Curry was named the NBA's Clutch Player of the Year on Thursday in recognition of his performance in tight, late-game situations.

Curry led the league in points scored in clutch time -- defined as games within five points with less than five minutes to play -- with 189.

He shot an average of 49.6% from the field -- including 45.7% from three-point range -- in clutch situations, both above his season averages.

Curry's late-game heroics included a pair of game-winning shots, one a 33-footer to beat the Phoenix Suns on February 10 and another a layup at the buzzer to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in the In-Season Tournament.

"You've got to be able to fail," Curry told broadcaster TNT during the televised announcement of the award.

"I don't know if anything clicked other than just knowing how much time you put into the game and with that time comes deserved confidence of 'OK, I'm ready for whatever moment.'"

Curry is just the second recipient of the award. Sacramento's De'Aaron Fox won the inaugural title last season.

He was one of three finalists, along with Chicago's DeMar DeRozan and Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Gilgeous-Alexander is also a finalist for Most Valuable Player.

Curry's clutch prowess isn't getting a test in the playoffs. The Warriors finished 10th in the Western Conference and were eliminated by the Sacramento Kings in the play-in tournament.

Agence France-Presse

Bucks, Celtics, Knicks advance in NBA In-Season Tournament

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 33 points and Damian Lillard added 32 as the Milwaukee Bucks beat Miami, 131-124, on Tuesday to reach the knockout rounds of the NBA In-Season Tournament.

On the final night of group-stage play in the NBA's inaugural version of a World Cup, the Bucks won the East Group B crown at 4-0, taking the top Eastern Conference seed in the fight to reach next month's semi-finals in Las Vegas.

"We completed the task," Milwaukee's Khris Middleton said. "To get to Vegas now, we've got to do a little bit more.

"We want it. We're hungry for it. It's exciting times for us. We want to go to Vegas so we're happy."

The quarterfinals will find Boston at Indiana and New Orleans at Sacramento on Monday, with New York at Milwaukee and Phoenix at the Los Angeles Lakers next Tuesday.

Boston routed Chicago, 124-97, to win East Group C and advance, while New York, second behind Milwaukee in Group B, beat Charlotte, 115-91, and advanced as a wildcard based on superior point differential over Cleveland, 42-29.

Sacramento edged Golden State, 124-123, to win West Group C, rallying from 24 points down in the second quarter to advance.

The Warriors knew they had to win by 12 points to win the group on a point differential tiebreaker and took a 72-55 half-time lead before the Kings, led by 29 points from De'Aaron Fox, rallied late to trim the margin then swipe the triumph.

"We still wanted to win the game, it counts for the regular season, but we knew what the number was," Fox said.

Phoenix took a West wildcard spot when Minnesota beat Oklahoma City, 106-103, while New Orleans won West Group B when the Dallas Mavericks downed visiting Houston, 121-115.

At Miami, the Bucks opened a 15-2 lead, Miami answered with a 16-4 run, then Milwaukee closed the first quarter on a 12-4 spurt for a 31-22 lead.

"We started out great, but it's hard," Middleton said.

"You're just not going to knock a team down in the first five minutes. They did a great job coming back. We did a great job keeping our composure and finding a way to close this thing out."

Miami, lacking Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro due to ankle sprains, led 97-93 after three quarters.

Middleton, who had 17 points and eight rebounds, hit back-to-back jumpers for a four-point lead and dunks by Brook Lopez and Antetokounmpo settled matters.

"Thankfully I was able to hit a couple shots," Middleton said. "I'm just happy we won a tough game."

Antetokounmpo made 11-of-16 from the floor and 10-of-13 from the free-throw line and grabbed 10 rebounds with five assists, while Lillard, 9-of-18 from the floor and 10-of-10 from the line, added nine assists.

At New York, Julius Randle scored 25 points and grabbed 20 rebounds while Immanuel Quickley had 23 points off the bench to spark the Knicks.

Boston needed a lopsided win to advance and got it as Jaylen Brown scored 30 points, grabbed eight rebounds and passed off six assists to lead the hosts over Chicago.

Jayson Tatum added 21 points and Al Horford had 16 points, nine rebounds and six assists for the Celtics.

Injuries hit Warriors 

Golden State's Chris Paul went out in the first quarter with lower left leg soreness and Gary Payton II went down with a right calf injury in the third quarter at Sacramento, which had lost two prior meetings with the Warriors this season.

Golden State's Draymond Green, back from a five-game ban for putting Minnesota's Rudy Gobert in a headlock, received a technical foul in the fourth quarter for arguing referee calls.

Dallas star Luka Doncic dominated Houston with 41 points, nine rebounds and nine assists while Kyrie Irving added 27 points for the Mavs, keeping the Rockets winless on the road this season.

Western Conference overall season leader Minnesota (13-4) hung on to top spot by edging visiting Oklahoma City (11-6).

Anthony Edwards, who left the game with a bruised right hip, led the Timberwolves with 21 points, while Gobert added 17 points and 16 rebounds.

But Phoenix took the West wildcard on point differential 34-0 over Minnesota.

Agence France-Presse

Damian Lillard is being traded from the Trail Blazers to the Bucks, AP source says, ending long saga

Damian Lillard is being traded by Portland to play alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee, a person with knowledge of the agreement said Wednesday, a deal that ends his 11-year run with the Trail Blazers and a three-month saga surrounding his wish to be moved elsewhere in hopes of winning an NBA title.

The seven-time All-Star — a player so elite that he was selected to the NBA’s 75th anniversary team — goes from the Trail Blazers to the Bucks in a three-team deal that sends Jrue Holiday from the Bucks to Portland, Deandre Ayton from Phoenix to Portland and Jusuf Nurkic from the Blazers to the Suns, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because none of the involved teams had announced the agreement.

As with all trades, it cannot be finalized until NBA attorneys review the terms and approve the deal.

It became known on July 1 that Lillard asked the Trail Blazers for a trade, which he was long speculated to be considering given his desire to play for a contender and Portland not seeming to have much of a chance with its current roster.

He wanted to go to Miami and made that clear. Portland decided not to accommodate that request, and instead, it’s the Bucks who now have an incredibly strong 1-2 punch of Lillard and Antetokounmpo heading into the new season.

The trade continues the Bucks’ dramatic offseason makeover in response to their surprising first-round playoff loss to Miami.

They followed up that playoff loss by firing coach Mike Budenholzer and replacing him with Adrian Griffin, who spent the last five seasons as a Toronto Raptors assistant. Now they trade away the two-time All-Star Holiday to acquire Lillard, a seven-time All-NBA selection.

The acquisition of Lillard comes after Antetokounmpo, a two-time MVP, told The New York Times over the summer that he wanted to see how committed the Bucks are toward winning another championship before deciding whether to sign a long-term deal to stay in Milwaukee.

Antetokounmpo’s contract runs through the 2024-25 season, with a player option for 2025-26.

Bringing Lillard to Milwaukee certainly suggests the commitment is there. It also keeps the high-scoring guard away from Miami, one of the Bucks’ biggest Eastern Conference challengers.

When Lillard’s request was made public by the Blazers, general manager Joe Cronin said he would do “what’s best for the team” while grudgingly seeking to facilitate his wishes.

In the end, the deal with Bucks is what Cronin and the Blazers deemed best for all involved. It took a massive package to make the trade happen, especially because Lillard is owed a ransom over the next four years. He will make almost $46 million this coming season and could make as much as $216 million over the next four years if he exercises his option for the 2026-27 season.

It will be a large, and possibly very worthwhile, investment because acquiring Lillard figures to make the Bucks even more of a title contender. He averaged 32.2 points per game this past season, has averaged at least 24 points per game in each of the last eight seasons and has an offensive ignitability that few players in the NBA possess.

He became just the seventh player in NBA history to score more than 70 points in a game when he finished with 71 against the Houston Rockets on Feb. 26. The other names on that list are Wilt Chamberlain (who did it five times), Kobe Bryant, David Thompson, David Robinson, Elgin Baylor and Donovan Mitchell.

All six of the other players on that list were between 23 and 28 when they had their games of 71 points or more; Lillard was 32, a clear indicator that — even after 11 NBA seasons — he’s far from past his prime.

He has been great. The Blazers have not. And evidently, he didn’t see that changing anytime soon.

Lillard was beloved in Portland, but the speculation about his future with the team only intensified when the Blazers took point guard Scoot Henderson with the No. 3 overall pick in the June draft rather than package the pick for a proven commodity that could immediately help transform the team into a contender.

Portland won only four playoff series in Lillard’s 11 seasons, getting to the Western Conference Finals once. The team went 33-49 this past season, the second consecutive year of finishing well outside the playoff picture.

That’s not Lillard’s fault. His career average of 25.2 points per game ranks 11th among all players in NBA history who have appeared in at least 500 games. He’s had 17 games of at least 50 points in his career — two of them in the playoffs — and is a past rookie of the year, teammate of the year and winner of the NBA’s citizenship award.

He’s been an Olympic gold medalist, was the unanimous selection as MVP of the seeding games when the “bubble” season resumed at Walt Disney World during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and even won the 3-point contest at All-Star weekend in February.

And he has an absolute flair for drama. His series-winning shot to eliminate Oklahoma City from the 2019 NBA playoffs — a stepback 3-pointer over Paul George from nearly 40 feet as time expired — is one of the iconic postseason moments in not just Portland history but NBA history as well.

-Associated Press

Tennis: Djokovic honors Kobe Bryant after US Open win

NEW YORK -- Novak Djokovic paid tribute to late basketball star Kobe Bryant after he won his record-equaling 24th Grand Slam title at the US Open on Sunday, wearing a "Mamba Forever" shirt during the trophy presentation.

Djokovic beat Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 7-6 (7/5), 6-3 to clinch his fourth US Open crown and gain revenge for his loss to the Russian two years ago which shattered his dreams of a calendar Grand Slam.

Afterwards Djokovic revealed a t-shirt with an image of him alongside Bryant -- the ferociously competitive basketball great whose nickname was "Black Mamba". On the back was 24, the number worn by the Los Angeles Lakers icon during his NBA career.

Djokovic said Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash three years ago, had helped him through some of the most challenging times of his career -- notably a career-threatening elbow injury in 2017.

"I thought about doing this t-shirt a few days ago," said Djokovic.

"I didn't share it with anybody. Kobe was a close friend of mine, we chatted a lot, about the winner's mentality.

"When I was struggling with injury and trying to work my way back to the top he was one of the people I relied on the most he was always there for support in the most friendly way.

"His passing hurt me deeply and 24 is the jersey he wore at Lakers so I thought it would be nice to acknowledge him."

Agence France-Presse

Bronny James's cardiac arrest likely caused by heart defect: family

LOS ANGELES -- LeBron James's teenage son Bronny's cardiac arrest last month was likely caused by a congenital heart defect, the family said in a statement on Friday.

Bronny James, 18, collapsed on court while training with his University of Southern California basketball teammates Los Angeles.

He was rushed to hospital but was discharged a few days later.

"After a comprehensive initial evaluation at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center... the probable cause of Mr. James' sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) has been identified.

"It is an anatomically and functionally significant Congenital Heart Defect which can and will be treated," said the statement.

"We are very confident in Bronny’s full recovery and return to basketball in the very near future. We will continue to provide updates to media and respectfully reiterate the family’s request for privacy," the statement concluded.

Bronny James committed to playing for the USC Trojans in May after becoming one of the top prospects in US high school basketball.

He crowned an outstanding senior year campaign at the exclusive Sierra Canyon school in Los Angeles with 15 points in an all-star game of top college candidates, sinking five 3-pointers.

His famous father -- the NBA's all-time leading scorer as well as a four-time NBA champion and four-time NBA Most Valuable Player -- has long spoken of his desire to extend his career in order to play in the league with his son.

The statement comes days after LeBron and Bronny James accompanied rapper Drake to the stage during a concert at the Crypto.com Arena -- the same venue where the Lakers play -- then watched the show from VIP seats.

Agence France-Presse

NBA star Lillard wants trade, prefers deal to Miami: reports

NEW YORK -- Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard has requested a trade and the seven-time NBA All-Star guard prefers a deal to the Miami Heat, according to multiple reports on Saturday.

Lillard, who turns 33 on July 15, is due $204 million over the next four years. He has spent all 11 of his NBA campaigns with Portland but has gone past the second round only once in eight trips to the playoffs.

Lillard's request was reported by ESPN and The Athletic with the Miami Herald also reporting Lillard wants only the Heat, being a close friend of Heat star Bam Adebayo and having respect for playmaker Jimmy Butler.

Butler and Adebayo were keys in the Heat making a run from the play-in games to the NBA Finals last month, where Miami lost to the Denver Nuggets.

Lillard averaged a career-high 32.2 points and 7.3 assists and matched a career-best by shooting 46.3% over 58 games last season. He would be the largest point scorer in NBA history to swap teams for the next campaign, ESPN reported.

"We want Dame here but he notified us today he wants out and he'd prefer to play someplace else," Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin said.

"What has not changed for us is that we're committed to winning, and we are going to do what's best for the team in pursuit of that goal."

Portland finished 33-49 and missed the playoffs for the second season in a row.

The Trail Blazers are expected to want young talent and draft picks in exchange from any team interested in Lillard. Those with salary cap room to make the deal include the Heat, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Clippers and Brooklyn Nets.

Players on the Heat who could be moved in exchange likely include guards Kyle Lowry and Tyler Herro and forward Duncan Robinson.

ESPN reported Lillard has a "deep respect" for the San Antonio Spurs, who just landed French teen star big man Victor Wembanyama. But the Spurs finished 22-60 last season and missed the playoffs for a fourth consecutive campaign.

Lillard played under Spurs coach Gregg Popovich on the US Tokyo Olympic gold medal squad.

The Spurs also have the most salary cap space available among NBA clubs in the latest round of free agency.

Another talented guard in a similar situation is Philadelphia's James Harden, a three-time NBA scoring champion who opted in on a one-year deal and also seeks a trade.

Lillard's requested move was revealed only hours after the start of NBA free agency for the 2023-24 season.

Talks were allowed to begin Friday but no contracts can be signed until next Thursday, leaving only unconfirmed reports to signal the flow of talent around the NBA as dozens of deals were said to have been agreed upon by clubs and available players.

Among those deals was Portland's pact with forward Jerami Grant on a five-year deal worth $160 million, ESPN and The Athletic said.

- Lopez stays with Bucks -

Fred VanVleet, a 29-year-old point guard who helped Toronto win the 2019 crown, is going to Houston on a three-year deal worth $130 million.

But center Brook Lopez has agreed to a two-year deal worth $48 million to stay with the Bucks. He was among Houston's reported targets.

The Bucks, the 2021 NBA champions, reportedly agreed to a three-year deal Friday with forward Khris Middleton.

Keeping both players should help ensure the Bucks also keep Greek star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who could become a free agent in 2025.

Houston made a four-year deal worth $80 million with Canadian swingman Dillon Brooks, dropped by Memphis after calling LeBron James "old" before his Los Angeles Lakers beat Memphis in six games in the playoffs.

Houston also agreed to a four-year deal worth $32 million with center Jock Landle.

The Lakers will reportedly keep guard D'Angelo Russell on a two-year deal worth $37 million while the Clippers keep Russell Westbrook with a two-year deal.

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Wembanyama gets warm welcome in first practice with Spurs

WASHINGTON -- Top NBA Draft pick Victor Wembanyama said Friday he felt good after his first practice with the San Antonio Spurs and received a warm welcome that excited him for actual games.

The 19-year-old Frenchman, considered the greatest NBA prospect since four-time Most Valuable Player LeBron James, joined his new teammates ahead of next week's start of Summer League contests.

"Felt really good," Wembanyama told reporters after the workout. "I had a warm welcome with the guys and I just can't wait."

The 7-foot-4 (2.24m) center will join the Spurs in Las Vegas, where they are set to face the Charlotte Hornets next Friday and the Portland Trail Blazers on July 9.

That would send Wembanyama against second overall pick Brandon Miller of Charlotte and third selection Scoot Henderson of Portland.

Wembanyama said he expects to play one or two games in Las Vegas.

He's coming off a run to the French league finals that ended earlier this month and a decision not to play for France in the Basketball World Cup later this year.

Wembanyama said he felt even better about his selection by the Spurs after getting some time with other players on the court.

"I was told beforehand there was a good dynamic with the team on and off the court and I started to feel it already," Wembanyama said.

"It just makes me even more certain that this is a good environment."

Wembanyama is just getting to know Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, the 74-year-old Hall of Fame legend who is the longest-tenured head coach in American sports after guiding the Spurs since 1996.

"I thought I would experience the yelling a bit earlier, but I haven't yet," Wembanyama said.

Popovich, a five-time NBA champion who guided US NBA stars to Tokyo Olympic gold, has mentored star big men David Robinson and Tim Duncan as well as French guard Tony Parker in their adjustments to the NBA.

"He works out more than I thought. Every morning he's there, running on the treadmill, lifting weights," Wembanyama said of Popovich.

"Other than that, he really communicates a lot with me and he doesn't want me to make -- he wants to take care of me and wants me to avoid making some mistakes."

It has been a whirlwind arrival from France for the teen superstar, who was hailed in San Antonio by fans and the focus of attention for days at last week's NBA Draft in New York.

"Every day has been different ever since I stepped in the States," said Wembanyama. "I think I've spent more time with the media than on the court. I'm glad it's beginning to settle down a little bit."

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Rock-star welcome as Wembanyama arrives in San Antonio

SAN ANTONIO -- Hundreds of San Antonio Spurs fans braved sweltering temperatures to greet Victor Wembanyama on Friday as the French basketball prodigy and newly minted No.1 NBA Draft pick touched down in Texas.

Around 300 excited fans gathered at San Antonio Airport in ferocious 38-degree Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) heat as a private jet carrying Wembanyama touched down.

While media were allowed near the airport tarmac to report on Wembanyama's arrival, fans equipped with parasols and drinks coolers were kept behind a fence.

Cheers greeted the plane's arrival and a huge roar went up from fans when Wembanyama's brother Oscar appeared from within the plane, mistaken momentarily for his sibling.

When Wembanyama finally appeared he was greeted with more cheering before being hugged by San Antonio's team mascot, a coyote.

Wembanyama then obliged his fans by posing for selfies and giving autographs before shaking hands with police escort riders.

Wembanyama, who will be formally presented by the Spurs at an event in San Antonio on Saturday, was then whisked away as fans continued to cheer.

The teenager's selection by San Antonio at the draft in Brooklyn has sparked huge excitement in the Texas city, with Spurs fans hoping he will lead a revival of the club's fortunes.

The 7ft 4in (2.24m) forward is widely regarded as a once-in-a-generation talent, the most sought-after No.1 draft pick since LeBron James entered the NBA in 2003.

Agence France-Presse

Wembanyama chosen by Spurs with No. 1 pick in NBA Draft

NEW YORK -- France's Victor Wembanyama was chosen with the top pick in the NBA Draft by the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday, sparking wild celebrations as the Texas club reveled in landing the gifted teenager seen as a once-in-a-generation talent.

The 7-foot-4 19-year-old hugged family members as the Spurs confirmed a decision which had been a mere formality ever since San Antonio were handed the No. 1 selection in the Draft last month.

"Just accomplishing something that I've been dreaming about my whole life," Wembanyama said after his No. 1 status was announced by NBA commissioner Adam Silver at the Barclays Center in New York.

"Hearing that sentence from Adam Silver, I've dreamed of it so much -- I've gotta cry," he added.

Wembanyama is widely regarded as a transformational talent, who arrives in the NBA as the most coveted No. 1 pick since LeBron James entered the league in 2003.

In San Antonio, Spurs fans packed into the team's 19,000-capacity AT&T Center to watch the draft ceremony on a giant screen and roared with delight as Wembanyama's selection was confirmed.

Celebrations also erupted in the streets of the Texas city, with fans honking car horns in celebration of Wembanyama's selection.

"My message to them is I'm going to give 100 percent, make all that's in my power to make this franchise win, to have impact on the franchise and the fan base and the community," Wembanyama said.

Wembanyama has cut a relaxed figure since arriving in the United States earlier this week, brushing off the soaring hype that has surged in the build-up to the draft.

On Thursday, the Frenchman, wearing a dark green suit, happily signed autographs for fans in the minutes before the draft ceremony got under way.

In an interview with ESPN before his selection, Wembanyama said he was relishing the challenge of being a star both on and off the court.

More than basketball 

"I know I can bring so much more than just basketball to a franchise," Wembanyama said.

"My goal is always going to be to win titles, obviously. But also to the community, the franchise, to the fan base I know I can bring so much more."

Wembanyama will begin his NBA career under the watchful eye of Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, the widely revered 74-year-old who has led San Antonio to five NBA Championships since taking over in 1996.

"We're thrilled that we're able to bring Victor on board," Popovich said at a press conference in San Antonio on Thursday.

"Anybody would be excited about getting the number one pick. I'm very excited. You don't want me to jump and down, or put on a show do you? I'd do a somersault but I'd be out for three months."

Popovich, meanwhile, brushed off invitations to compare Wembanyama with some of the greats of NBA history.

"I don't compare players, that'll never happen," Popovich said. "He's Victor -- and that's who I want him to be, and that's who myself and my staff will coach."

Wembanyama meanwhile earned a congratulatory message from France's President Emmanuel Macron.

"You're already making us dream...no doubt about it: you'll change the game," Macron wrote on Twitter.

With his potentially dominant blend of size and skill, Wembanyama has already drawn a legion of admirers across the NBA before even setting foot in the league.

LeBron James says Wembanyama's skillset makes him less a "unicorn" and "more like an alien."

"No one has ever seen someone as tall as he is and as fluid and as graceful as he is on the floor," James said last year.

"He's for sure a generational talent."

If Wembanyama manages to live up to the hype, he could conceivably be one of the faces of the NBA for years to come, with the likes of stars such as James, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant all well into the final phase of their playing careers.

NBA officials, meanwhile, say there is already evidence of a "Wembanyama effect," citing spikes on streaming platforms and social media.

"Victor is an incredibly promising young player who seemingly has all the attributes of a true game-changer," NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said.

Agence France-Presse

All eyes on 'game-changer' Wembanyama at NBA Draft

NEW YORK -- A new era for basketball gets under way on Thursday when French prodigy Victor Wembanyama is set to be chosen by the San Antonio Spurs with the top pick in the NBA Draft.

The annual ritual to allocate the top young talent entering the league is often accompanied by a swirl of intrigue over which player is likely to be selected No. 1 overall.

But that guessing game will be notably absent at Thursday's event in Brooklyn, with San Antonio's selection of the 19-year-old Wembanyama a mere formality.

The 7ft 4in (2.24m) French teenager is widely regarded as a transformational talent, a once-in-a-generation player regarded as the most sought-after No. 1 pick since LeBron James entered the league two decades ago.

Wild celebrations erupted among San Antonio's fans last month when the Spurs won the NBA Draft Lottery to determine which team would own the No. 1 pick.

Spurs staff also struggled in vain to keep a lid on their excitement, with chairman Peter J. Holt admitting: "I might faint."

San Antonio general manager Brian Wright sees Wembanyama, who will be formally unveiled by the team in Texas on Saturday, as a "unique talent."

"People talk about generational talent, and they only think on-court skill, but it's bigger than that," Wright told ESPN.

"You see him doing things that you wouldn't even have guessed someone could do," Wright added.

With his potentially dominant blend of size and skill, Wembanyama has already drawn a legion of admirers across the NBA before even setting foot in the league.

LeBron James says Wembanyama's skillset makes him less a "unicorn" and "more like an alien."

"No one has ever seen someone as tall as he is and as fluid and as graceful as he is on the floor," James said after watching Wembanyama play a game for French club Metropolitans 92 in Nevada last year. "He's for sure a generational talent."

- 'True game-changer' -

Wembanyama, meanwhile, has remained level-headed as the hype surrounding reaches stratospheric levels.

The teenager arrived in New Jersey on Monday for draft week to be greeted by fans clad in Spurs jerseys requesting autographs.

"I don't know how they knew what flight I was on," Wembanyama said.

"But you know, it's fun, it's different, seeing that you can have such impact on people."

If Wembanyama manages to live up to the hype, he could conceivably be one of the faces of the NBA for years to come, with the likes of stars such as James, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant all well into the final phase of their playing careers.

"The league would love to have new stars that capture the imagination of America and the world," said Eric Pincus, an NBA writer for the Bleacher Report website. "Luka Doncic is a starting point, but the hope is Wembanyama will do the same."

NBA officials, meanwhile, say there is already evidence of a "Wembanyama effect", citing spikes on streaming platforms and social media.

"Victor is an incredibly promising young player who seemingly has all the attributes of a true game-changer," NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said.

"We've already seen the enormous interest he has generated among NBA fans from streaming his games on the NBA App and featuring his highlights on NBA social media channels."

Unsurprisingly, Wembanyama's arrival in the NBA has sparked a commercial bonanza.

He is widely expected to sign a record-breaking, improved sponsorship deal with Nike that some analysts say could reach $100 million.

Other lucrative endorsement deals are also expected to follow, although Wembanyama has indicated that his priority remains on-court success.

"Victor is rejecting some rich million-dollar deals right now because he wants to focus on basketball," Wembanyama's agent, Bouna Ndiaye, said.

Agence France-Presse

Legendary 'Coach Pop' to oversee Wembanyama's NBA start

NEW YORK -- Victor Wembanyama's early NBA days will be overseen by one of the league's most legendary coaches, outspoken Gregg Popovich, who helped transform another French teen, Tony Parker, into a superstar.

Popovich, the 74-year-old son of a Serbian father and Croatian mother, is the longest-tenured coach in any major American sports league, having guided the Spurs since 1996.

With discipline and priorities formed while at the US Air Force Academy in the 1960s, Popovich has become a five-time NBA champion head coach, a three-time NBA Coach of the Year and in August will be enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame.

"What makes a great coach is getting a lot of young men and helping them become men, adding to their life," said NBA guard Dwyane Wade. "Coach Pop has done an amazing job of helping young men become grown-ass men."

Golden State coach Steve Kerr, who won two NBA titles playing under Popovich, praised his impact.

"He's amazing," Kerr said. "There are just so many people like me whose lives have been impacted so dramatically and so positively by Pop. One of the most influential people ever in my life. I owe him so much."

Popovich mentored top draft pick Tim Duncan in 1997 and Parker when he came to the NBA in 2001.

"I loved playing for Pop," Parker said. "Pop was huge. I always trust Pop's judgment."

Popovich accepts the challenge of a new generation with Wembanyama, the most talented prospect since LeBron James with size like Duncan and Parker-esque skills.

"He has still got it. He can do this for a lot longer," said Kerr. "One of Pop's great abilities has been his willingness and eagerness to adapt.

"He really understood what was happening around the league with speed, pace and ball movement. He was ahead of the curve all the time."

The Spurs, who made the playoffs 22 straight years under Pop, have missed the playoffs for four seasons, going 20-62 this past campaign.

A grizzled, gritty and sometimes grumpy Popovich will try to teach Wembanyama to maximize his unique talents as he did with Parker.

"At one of (Parker's) first practices, I brought a few guys to get in his face," Popovich said. "I wanted to see what he had in the belly. I was impressed with him. So I told him, 'The ball is yours, find solutions, I'll love you and yell at you at the same time.'"

Popovich embraced global talent early, bringing more than 40 players from beyond US borders onto the Spurs roster, and made Becky Hammon the NBA's first female assistant coach.

Popovich passed Lenny Wilkens to become the NBA's all-time winningest coach in 2019 with his 1,413th career triumph in playoff and regular-season games.

In 2022, he won an NBA record 1,336th regular-season game, accepting the feat with sarcasm.

"What I could do in my retirement, what kind of wine I could drink, all these things become bland when I think about the number of victories I have," Popovich deadpanned.

Humor is one of the ways Popovich measures people, saying in 2015 that those "who don't appreciate funny moments won't be able to give their all for a group."

- Social justice champion -

Popovich, a noted wine collector, is also outspoken on social justice.

Popovich spoke out about reparations for Black people in 2020, saying protests helped "get all the way to the reparations discussion and not just wait for legislation and laws."

Last July, Popovich ripped "rampant" US racism, saying, "I had no idea it was to this level... it pisses me off, it hurts me, it confounds me."

After 21 people were killed in a Texas elementary school shooting, Popovich railed against officials sending "thoughts and prayers" without changing gun laws.

"They're the same statements after every massacre," he said. "They think we're stupid so they'll keep bringing it up, but they'll listen to us if we're angry enough and we're committed enough."

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Michael Jordan to sell majority stake in Charlotte Hornets

NEW YORK  -- Basketball legend Michael Jordan has agreed to sell his majority stake in the NBA's Charlotte Hornets to an investment consortium, the team announced Friday.

The buyer group is led by Gabe Plotkin, chief investment officer at Tallwoods Capital LLC, and Rick Schnall, co-president of private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice.

The group also includes musicians J. Cole and Eric Church, said a press release from Hornets Sports & Entertainment that did not disclose financial terms.

Jordan will retain a minority stake in the franchise, the team said. The transaction is subject to NBA approval.

Jordan acquired a controlling investment in the Hornets in 2010 for $275 million. The franchise has been the league's sole team with Black-majority ownership.

Under the terms of the deal, the Hornets as a whole were valued at $3 billion, according to the New York Times. Other outlets have valued the Hornets at closer to $1.7 billion. It was not clear how much of Jordan's initial stake he would retain.

Often considered the greatest-ever basketball player, Jordan led teams to six NBA titles, won the league's Most Valuable Player award five times and garnered two Olympic gold medals. He played his last game professionally in 2003.

However, Jordan's tenure as the only Black owner of an NBA team has been less successful.

- 'On-court failure' -

During his 13-year reign, Charlotte reached the playoffs just three times, losing in the first round on all three occasions.

Last season, Charlotte finished one place off the bottom of the Eastern Conference at 27-55.

Rumors of Jordan's interest in selling his stake have circulated for several weeks.

Speaking on the eve of the NBA Finals last month, league commissioner Adam Silver said Jordan had "the absolute right to sell", but admitted he hoped to see more Black team owners in future.

"I would love to have better representation in terms of principal governors," Silver said. "It's a marketplace. It's something that if we were expanding that the league would be in a position to focus directly on that, but in individual team transactions, the market takes us where we are.

"I will say I know that increasingly our governors are focused on diversity in their ownership groups just as they are in their front office, so the trend lines have been positive over the last several years."

News of Jordan's decision to sell up went largely unlamented by commentators in Charlotte.

Charlotte Observer sports columnist Scott Fowler said that Jordan's departure marked the "end of an era" as the NBA's only Black majority owner of a team.

"But he failed as the Hornets owner in the way he would consider most important: he never turned Charlotte into a winner," Fowler wrote on Friday.

"Jordan's reign as Charlotte's most famous sports owner ever was ultimately a PR success but an on-court failure."

The Hornets sale marks the third change of franchise ownership in the NBA in the past year and coincides with a period in which team values are believed to have skyrocketed.

The Phoenix Suns were taken over in December by a consortium led by billionaire Mat Ishbia while the Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry sold his 25% stake in the club to Jimmy and Dee Haslam, the owners of the Cleveland Browns NFL team.

According to Forbes, Jordan has a net worth of around $2 billion, with around $1.8 billion of his career earnings coming from deals with corporate partners such as Nike, Hanes and Gatorade.

The origin of Jordan's lucrative partnership with Nike was chronicled earlier this year in the film "Air," which was directed by Ben Affleck.

Agence France-Presse

NBA legend Jordan shoes sell at auction for $1.38 million

NEW YORK - Shoes worn by NBA legend Michael Jordan in the famous "Flu Game" of the 1997 NBA Finals were sold at auction for $1.38 million, Goldin memorabilia marketplace announced Thursday.

The sneakers were part of history for Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, who won six NBA titles in the 1990s

The Bulls and Utah were tied in the 1997 best-of-seven NBA Finals at two wins each ahead of game five, when Jordan felt ill, feverish and dehydrated due to a stomach virus but played for Chicago anyway.

Jordan scored 38 points in 44 minutes and made the decisive 3-pointer in the dying seconds for a 90-88 Bulls triumph -- delivering the only Jazz home loss of the playoffs -- and Chicago went on to capture the crown in six games, with Jordan taking the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player award.

The shoes, which had belonged to a former Jazz ballboy, were first sold at auction 10 years ago for almost $105,000.

Agence France-Presse

Nuggets close out Heat in thriller to clinch NBA title

DENVER  -- The Denver Nuggets sealed their first title in franchise history on Monday, defeating the Miami Heat 94-89 to end a 47-season wait for a maiden NBA championship.

Nikola Jokic scored 28 points with 16 rebounds as the Nuggets won the best-of-seven NBA Finals 4-1 to bring the Mile High City an NBA crown as a sellout crowd roared in delight and pondered what more the young squad could achieve.

"I've got news for everybody out there. We're not satisfied with one," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said afterwards. "We want more."

The championship filled the final gap in the impressive resume of Serbian star Jokic, a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player and five-time All-Star center in his eighth NBA campaign.

Two days after countryman Novak Djokovic won the French Open for his record 23rd Grand Slam tennis crown, Jokic was named the NBA Finals MVP.

"For us he's the best ever of course," Jokic said of Djokovic. "Now we have our NBA championship. It's a really good moment to be a Serbian."

Jokic delivered on a night when the team struggled with early shooting futility but blanked Miami for more than five minutes of the fourth quarter.

"It was amazing effort by the team," Jokic said. "It was an ugly game. We couldn't make shots. But at the end we figured it out, how to defend and we scored 90 points. That's why we won. I'm just happy we won the game.

"It's good. The job is done and we can go home now."

Michael Porter Jr. added 16 points and 13 rebounds and Jamal Murray added 14 points, eight rebounds and eight assists for the Nuggets.

"We had the belief from the get-go," Murray said. "It's just great to see it through."

"To do it with this group of guys, nothing could feel better than this," Porter added.

Jimmy Butler led Miami with 21 points while Bam Adebayo added 20 and 12 rebounds.

Denver was the playoff top seed in the Western Conference while the eighth-seeded Heat, who had to win a play-in game just to reach the playoffs, lost in the finals for the third time in 10 seasons.

"One hell of a basketball team that we couldn't really find enough solutions to be able to get us over the top," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

With their seasons on the line, players brought intensity and physical defending over the final minutes to create an electric atmosphere inside Ball Arena.

The Nuggets, down by as many as 10 points in the first half, pulled within 51-44 at half-time despite going 1-for-15 from 3-point range, the worst-ever NBA Finals shooting half from beyond the arc.

A Murray jumper gave Denver an 81-76 lead with 6:43 remaining while the Heat began the fourth quarter hitting only 2-for-14 from the floor and going scoreless for more than five minutes.

Butler, who had struggled all night, sank back-to-back 3-pointers and made three free throws after a controversial foul on Denver's Aaron Gordon was upheld on video review.

Butler and Jokic traded hoops and Butler followed with two free throws to give Miami an 89-88 lead.

Bruce Brown answered with a rebound basket to put Denver ahead 90-89.

"Those last three or four minutes felt like a scene out of a movie," Spoelstra said. "Two teams in the center of the ring throwing haymaker after haymaker.

"It will probably rank as our hardest, competitive, most active defensive game of the season, and it still fell short."

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope stole a pass by Butler and sank two clutch free throws with 24 seconds remaining to give Denver a 92-89 edge.

"For me it was all about defense," Caldwell-Pope said. "We've got to get stops. Defense was going to win us a championship. I always told them that."

Butler missed a 3-pointer, Brown grabbed a rebound for Denver and then made two free throws to seal the victory with 14 seconds remaining.

Agence France-Presse

Nuggets must defy human nature to close out series: Malone

DENVER -- Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone knows the mind can play tricks on players when it comes to crunch time in the NBA Finals, so he's trying out some mental games himself.

His team needs one more win against the Miami Heat to secure their first NBA championship title, after Friday's victory in South Florida gave them a 3-1 lead in the series.

Back on home court Monday, the odds favor the Nuggets who in the last two games have had the measure of Miami in every department of the game.

The home crowd will turn up expecting a celebration and the pundits will talk of Denver needing to simply wrap-up the series but Malone knows that kind of mood spells danger.

"My biggest concern going into any close-out game is human nature and fighting against that," he told reporters.

"You're up 3-1. Most teams, when you're up 3-1, they come up for air. They relax and they just kind of take it for granted that, 'oh, we're going to win this,'" he said.

"The neat thing for us is that going back to the (Covid) bubble, we've been down 3-1. We've come back and won. We know anything is possible," he said.

Three years ago the Nuggets pulled off the relatively rare series comeback twice in the same post-season.

They overturned the Utah Jazz's 3-1 lead in the Western Conference first round and then did the same against the Los Angeles Clippers in the semi-finals.

So Malone has told his team to put themselves in Miami's shoes and play like a team who have to win to survive in the series.

"That's why my message to our team (on Sunday) was our approach has to be we are down 3-1. They are desperate; we have to be more desperate. They are hungry; we have to be hungrier," he said.

"There is no celebrating after Game 4. We have another game that we have to win, and the close-out game is always the hardest game ever," he said.

There have only been eleven other cases in the NBA of a team winning from a 3-1 deficit and only once has it occurred in the finals -- in 2016 when the Cleveland Cavaliers fought back against the Golden State Warriors.

At the same time, while demanding that hunger, Malone has been reminding his team that they must stick with the approach that has taken them to their first ever finals.

"Stay in the moment and once that jump ball goes up tomorrow night, our players, every possession, every moment of that game can't be (thinking) 'We have to win this game.'"

"We have to stay true to ourselves, trust what's gotten us to this point," he said.

"After game four in Miami, everybody was yelling, 'Just one more win.' Hey, let's just win the first quarter tomorrow night. Take it in small bites. And if you do that possession by possession, quarter by quarter, hopefully when 48 minutes are over, you've done what you needed to do."

That is a mindset that requires cool heads and luckily for Malone, his star man Luka Jokic is ice-cool.

Asked about how he and the team would handle the emotions of such a momentous game, Jokic was utterly on-brand.

"I think it's not going to be emotional," said the Serb.

"It's going to be a job that we need to do to be done. I think we are ready. I think we are going to be locked in and ready to go. It's just going to be a game that we need to win."

Agence France-Presse