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."

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NBA: Gordon, Brown step up for Nuggets in Game 4 win over Heat

MIAMI -- Aaron Gordon scored a career playoff high 27 points in an all-out attack on the Miami Heat on Friday that helped push the Denver Nuggets to the brink of their first NBA championship.

Gordon led all scorers in the Nuggets' 108-95 victory over the Heat in Miami that put Denver up 3-1 in the best-of-seven NBA Finals.

The player once known for his dunking prowess -- including runner-up finishes in the 2016 and 2020 All-Star weekend slam-dunk contests -- showed just how versatile he has become as he connected on 11 of 15 shots from the field -- including three of four from three-point range.

"Making threes, getting to the foul line, guarding at a high level -- Aaron did it all for us tonight, he really did," Nuggets coach Mike Malone said.

Gordon erupted for 15 points in the second quarter as the Nuggets -- who trailed by one after Jimmy Butler's three-pointer to close the first period -- took a 55-51 halftime lead.

"This team does a good job finding the people that are kind of in a rhythm and kind of going," Gordon said. "When it comes down to it, it's just wanting to be great for my teammates. I know when my teammates need me and just doing it for my brothers."

He made his first three attempts from three-point range -- including one from the corner that put Denver up 86-73 with five seconds left in the third quarter.

"I'm just taking the ones that they're giving me, taking the open shots," said Gordon, who was staring down the Heat bench before the ball had cleared the net.

"It's just gamesmanship," he said. "That's part of the game. When you make a three in the corner with the opposition's bench, you can have a little fun with them."

Teammate Kentavious Caldwell-Pope wasn't surprised to see a few long-range shots fall for Gordon -- he's given him some advice.

"I always tell AG, man, continue to play his game. When you're shooting threes, no up, no in, so make sure you get that ball up so it can go in. He did that tonight."

Gordon's big second quarter helped the Nuggets gain control even as Nikola Jokic shook off a twisted ankle.

When foul trouble sidelined Jokic for more than five minutes in the fourth, Bruce Brown took it to Miami.

Brown scored 21 points in 30 minutes off the bench, pouring in 11 in the final period as the Nuggets repelled every Heat run.

Miami had cut the deficit to eight when Brown converted a three-point play to push Denver's lead back to double digits.

His pull-up three-pointer with 1:21 remaining was the final dagger, giving Denver a 108-91 lead.

"We knew they were going to trap Jamal (Murray) and try to get the ball out of his hands, so the other four players were going to have to make plays, and then luckily it was just my time in the fourth quarter," Brown said.

Agence France-Presse

Jokic and Murray dominate as Nuggets take 2-1 lead over Miami

MIAMI, United States - Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray dominated the Miami Heat, both making triple doubles, as the Denver Nuggets took a 2-1 lead in the NBA Finals and regained their home court advantage with a 109-94 win in game three on Wednesday.

Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Jokic scored 32 points with 21 rebounds and 10 assists, an unprecedented triple-double combination in an NBA Finals game.

Murray scored 34 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and 10 assists.

It was the first time any team in a Finals had two players making triple-doubles in the same game.

Miami simply could not find a way to handle the 6 foot, 11-inch (2.11m) Jokic and unless coach Erik Spoelstra can come up with a plan before Friday's game four, the Heat are going to face an uphill battle.

Jokic became the first player in NBA history to reach the 30 points, 20 rebounds, 10 assists mark in a Finals game but took little interest in that achievement.

"To be honest, not much. I'm just glad that we won a game," he said.

"It was a big one for us just because they won in our arena, so we just didn’t want to go down 2-1," he added.

"We were just, I think, more locked in, more focused ... We've got to win the next one, that's our mindset."

After Miami's win in Denver on Sunday, the Nuggets provided the perfect response with the kind of imposing display that coach Michael Malone demanded, and which will have answered any doubts that may have emerged after that loss.

Neither team could get on top in the first quarter, which ended 24-24 after a wonderful turnaround, fadeaway, jump shot from Miami's Kyle Lowry.

But the Heat struggled to contain Murray, who put up 20 points in the first half, while Jokic almost had a triple double by half-time -- the giant Serbian claiming 14 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists in the opening two quarters.

The Nuggets led 53-48 at the half, helped by Miami's lack of precision in the paint where they missed 16 of 25 attempts.

Early in the third though, Denver took a grip on the contest, quickly opening up an 11-point lead. Miami couldn't find either the defensive answers or the offensive potency to get back in the game.

Denver had pushed the lead to 21 with 8:28 left in the fourth quarter and although Miami narrowed the deficit as the Nuggets took their foot off the gas, a third straight loss on home court leaves Spoelstra with plenty to ponder.

Jimmy Butler led Miami with 28 points while Bam Adebayo had 22 points and 17 rebounds.

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Heat rally to beat Nuggets, level NBA Finals at 1-1

DENVER -- The Miami Heat handed the Denver Nuggets their first home defeat of the playoffs Sunday, surging in the fourth quarter for a 111-108 victory that leveled the NBA Finals at one game apiece.

Gabe Vincent scored 23 points and Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo scored 21 points apiece for Miami, who withstood a 41-point performance from Nuggets star Nikola Jokic to get the split in Denver and breathe new life into the championship campaign.

In a game of swinging shifts of momentum, the Heat had the last word, rallying from a 15-point first-half deficit and out-scoring the Nuggets 36-25 in the final period as they silenced the crowd of 19,537 at Ball Arena.

Adebayo sealed it with a pair of free-throws with 48.3 seconds remaining.

"We know we've got to do it on the defensive end," Adebayo said of Miami's fourth-quarter focus. "That's the biggest thing for us. We got to do it on that end because we know we can score, all five guys we believe in. So the biggest thing for us was getting stops."

Denver had a last chance to tie it, but Jamal Murray missed a three-pointer.

"It was a good look, just didn't go down," said Murray, who scored 18 points and handed out 10 assists.

Miami, who came through two play-in games and are trying to become the first eighth-seeded team to win the title, host game three of the best-of-seven series on Wednesday.

"We gutted out one on their home court, so time to go back to the 305," Adebayo said referencing the Miami area code.

Miami, who were dominated in a game one defeat, vowed to step it up and they started strong, leading by 11 with less than five minutes to play in the first quarter.

The Nuggets battled back and were up by 15 in the second quarter on the way to a 57-51 halftime lead.

But Nuggets coach Michael Malone excoriated his team's lack of effort.

"This is NBA Finals, we are talking about effort; that's a huge concern of mine," Malone said. "Tonight, the starting lineup to start the game, it was 10-2 Miami. Start of the third quarter, they scored 11 points in two minutes and 10 seconds.

"We had guys out there that were just, whether feeling sorry for themselves for not making shots or thinking they can just turn it on or off, this is not the preseason, this is not the regular season.

"This is the NBA Finals. That to me is really, really perplexing, disappointing."

Certainly Denver's second-quarter turnaround owed plenty to their bench, which out-scored Miami's reserves 25-5 in the first half.

But it was two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Jokic who asserted himself in the third, scoring 18 points in the period.

Jokic would finish with 11 rebounds but handed out just four assists and coughed up five turnovers as Miami's adjustments limited his effectiveness as a facilitator.

"We had a lot of miscommunication and misunderstanding," Jokic said. "You just need to know where to be or what to do or what's the coverage or whatever."

- Moments of truth -

Miami tied it up at 66-66 midway through the third but didn't manage to get back in front and trailed by eight, 83-75 after Denver closed the third on a 6-0 run.

But the Heat opened the fourth on a 15-2 scoring run, taking the lead for the first time since the first quarter on Vincent's three-pointer with 10:10 to play and never trailing again.

After a disappointing shooting display in game one, the Heat connected on 17 of 35 from beyond the arc on Sunday.

Max Strus, who didn't score a basket in game one, led all scorers in the first half with 14 points.

They connected on 11 of their 16 attempts in the fourth quarter, including five of nine from three-point range.

"During the fourth quarter, our guys love to compete," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "They love to put themselves out there in those moments of truth.

"Fortunately we were able to make a lot of big defensive plays down the stretch, and then we got a lot of contributions, which you're going to need against a team like this."

Agence France-Presse

Nuggets 'haven't done a damn thing' in NBA Finals, says coach

DENVER -- Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone told his players on Saturday that they "haven't done a damn thing" despite an opening-game romp over the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals.

The Nuggets, led by 27 points from Nikola Jokic and 26 by Jamal Murray, ripped visiting Miami 104-93 on Thursday for a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven championship series ahead of Sunday's game two in Denver.

But Malone was not pleased about the opportunities the Nuggets allowed the Heat and urged players not to get swelled heads with pride over winning without playing their best.

"I told our players today, 'Don't read the paper, don't listen to the folks on the radio and TV saying that this series is over and that we've done something, because we haven't done a damn thing,'" Malone said.

"I told our players the reason I was excited this morning is because we won game one and we didn't play well and there are so many things we can do better. If we do those things at a better level, we'll have a chance to win game two."

Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Jokic added 10 rebounds and 14 assists while Murray also contributed 10 assists as the Nuggets led by as many as 24 points in the third quarter before the Heat trimmed the margin in the final quarter.

"They were 5-of-16 on wide-open threes," Malone said of Miami's long-range shooting. "The fact they got 16 wide-open threes is problematic and if you think that Max Strus is going to go 0-for-9 again or Duncan Robinson is going to go 1-for-5 again, you're wrong.

"The fourth quarter, we gave up 30 points, 60% from the field, 6-of-12 from the three-point line.

"I thought our pick-and-roll defense was poor. I thought our shrink the floor was poor... There are so many areas we can clean up.

"I'm not worried about what they're going to do. I'm worried about the things that we have to do better to try to win game two."

Malone said he stressed tougher defending against Bam Adebayo, who led the Heat with 26 points.

"If you're going to score 26 points on 25 shots, that's something we're willing to live with," Malone said. "But we can do a better job. That's something we talked about, giving him different looks, making sure we're contesting, making sure we're shrinking the floor."

Malone is less concerned about making strategy adjustments than he is about matching what he expects will be a higher energy level from the Heat on Sunday.

"I expect the Miami Heat to come out with a much greater energy and force and attack mindset," he said.

- 'Going to be better' -

Serbian superstar Jokic said the Nuggets stumbled with their large fourth-quarter lead.

"In the first three quarters, they score (63) points. I think that's really amazing. And then they scored 30 in the fourth," Jokic said.

"Some possessions we play amazing and some possessions we didn't play good. Some quarters we played really good. That's basketball. That's why it's a live thing. You cannot predict what's going to happen.

"Of course we're going to be better, but we're going to take 1-0 for us. Just being focused for 48 minutes, I think that's going to be the key."

Denver forward Aaron Gordon, who scored 16 points in the opener, said the Nuggets can't relax on Miami even with a big lead.

"You just can't be complacent with this team," he said. "You can't be lackadaisical. You can't sleep on this team. This team has no quit. They will continue to fight through the entirety of the game. You can't take your foot off the gas with these guys.

"We need to cut down on the number of open looks that they get. Getting back in transition, keeping them off the offensive glass, and then just tightening up on the defensive end as well."

In a city thrilled about the Nuggets' first NBA Finals trip, the players must contain themselves.

"You have to keep a poise, like an intense energy but calm, while everybody else is really frenetic, " Gordon said. "It's important to just make the main thing the main thing and be focused on the task at hand."

Agence France-Presse

Nuggets dominate Heat in NBA Finals Game 1

DENVER — The Denver Nuggets launched their first NBA Finals campaign in franchise history with a dominant 104-93 victory over the Miami Heat on Thursday, propelled by yet another Nikola Jokic triple double.

Two-time Most Valuable Player Jokic scored 27 points with 10 rebounds and 14 assists to lead the Nuggets, who will try to double their advantage in the best-of-seven series when they host Game 2 on Sunday.

Jamal Murray scored 26 points, handed out 10 assists and grabbed six rebounds for the Nuggets, who led by 24 points in the third quarter and repelled the resilient Heat's fourth quarter challenge.

"We respect their team a lot," Jokic said. "We just wanted to get the first punch.

"In the first three rounds they won their first game when they traveled on the road and we didn't want to have that to happen. I think we did a good job."

Bam Adebayo scored 26 points to lead Miami. Gabe Vincent added 19 and Haywood Highsmith scored 18 off the bench, but Heat star Jimmy Butler was limited to 13.

Trailing by 21 entering the fourth quarter, Miami used an 11-0 run to cut the deficit to 10. Highsmith's three-pointer got the gap to nine points with 2:34 to play.

But as they had all night, the Nuggets seamlessly pulled away.

Jokic fed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope for a jump shot, Caldwell-Pope came up with a steal and Aaron Gordon made two free throws as the Nuggets rebuilt the lead.

Jokic added a pair of free throws and a turnaround jump shot and the ecstatic crowd of 19,528 at Ball Arena in Denver could start the celebrations.

"Everybody contributed," Jokic said. "It's a great win for us."

Jokic was content to play facilitator in the first quarter, handing out six assists as the Nuggets clicked quickly despite the 10-day gap since they finished off their sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference finals.

Gordon scored 12 points in the first quarter. Jokic didn't take a shot until the waning seconds of the period, when he stripped the ball from Cody Zeller and made a layup that put Denver up, 29-20, at the end of the period.

Meanwhile the Heat, who flew straight to Denver from Boston after finally polishing off the Celtics in game seven of the Eastern Conference finals on Monday, connected on just nine of their 26 attempts in the first quarter.

"They are in a pretty good rhythm, especially in that first half, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "Our disposition, the multiple efforts, the resolve in the second half was much better.

"But you get to this level, it has to be complete games of that kind of disposition."

Any way possible 

Denver kept up the relentless pace in the second quarter, Murray scoring 10 points in the period as the Nuggets connected on 60% of their shots.

Four Denver players scored in double figures in the first half. Adebayo had 16 before the break for Miami, but Caleb Martin went 0-for-5 and Max Strus 0-for-7.

Not only were the Heat unable to convert the good looks they had, they couldn't stop the Nuggets inside. Denver out-scored Miami 32-18 in the paint in the first half.

Jokic's 10 points and 10 assists before the break made him the only player besides LeBron James in the past 25 years to reach double digits in both categories in any half of an NBA Finals game.

He posted his 15th playoff triple double with his 10th rebound in the fourth quarter.

The Heat quickly sliced the deficit to 10 points to open the third quarter, but Denver had the answer to every adjustment they made.

"Right now the most important thing is to win a game," Jokic said. "We're trying to win a game any way possible. I don't need to shoot, I don't need to score to affect the game. I think I did a good job today.

Agence France-Presse

Title-hungry Nuggets face odds-defying Heat in NBA Finals

A Denver Nuggets squad looking to prove its championship quality and an upstart Miami Heat lineup that made defying the odds a trademark are on an NBA Finals collision course.

Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic of Serbia leads the Western Conference top seed Nuggets against sharpshooter Jimmy Butler and the Heat, who needed a play-in victory just to grab an eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.

The best-of-seven championship series begins Thursday at Denver. It's the Nuggets' first trip to the NBA Finals since making their league debut in 1976.

Denver has won hard-earned respect after 46 seasons of futility, this year as a playoff top seed for the first time.

"Our goal is to win a championship, so we have much more work to do," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said.

"Seems like for years now, some dusty old cowtown in the Rocky Mountains, the little respect that we get. You can sit there and complain about it or you can just embrace who we are and what we have.

"Until we win a championship, people are going to keep saying that about us. So that's what drives us. Getting to the finals doesn't do it. It's winning a championship."

Jokic, a 6-foot-11 center, averaged 24.5 points, 11.8 rebounds and a career-high 9.8 assists a game this season and shot a career-best 63.2% from the floor.

Miami center Bam Adebayo says the key to slowing Jokic is "making him take tough shots" but added, "The biggest thing for us is try to limit his assists. Sounds easier said than done. Biggest thing for us is watching film and figuring that out."

The Nuggets have talent and depth around Jokic, led by guard Jamal Murray, who missed the entire 2021-22 season due to a torn left knee ligament. He's averaging 27.7 points in the playoffs.

"I'm so happy for Jamal. He's a special player," Jokic said. "He has been our best player since round one, really stepping up. Even if he doesn't make shots, his energy is always good. He's still fighting."

Denver forwards Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon and Bruce Brown and guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope each average 10-15 points in the playoffs in supporting roles that have made the Nuggets formidable.

"When we're just playing the right way, everything opens up," Murray said. "Everybody eats when we're all playing for each other and we've been doing that for a while. We're just in a great rhythm of playing unselfish basketball."

And there's more to come.

"We've got four more wins to go," Murray said. "First Nuggets team to go all the way. We just want to make the most of the opportunity."

Heat forged into steel 

To do that, the Nuggets must defeat a giant-killer Heat team that became only the second eighth seed to reach the NBA Finals after the 1999 New York Knicks.

Miami, which lost two regular-season games against Denver, lost a play-in game to Atlanta then beat Chicago to grab the last East playoff spot.

The Heat stunned NBA wins-leader Milwaukee, beat New York and edged Boston in seven games in the East final after letting the Celtics pull level from an 0-3 hole.

"We have some incredible competitors in that locker room. They love the challenge," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

"Things don't always go your way. The inevitable setbacks happen and it's how you deal with that collectively. It can sap your spirit. It can take a team down for whatever reason. With this group, it has steeled us and made us closer and made us tougher."

Butler has averaged 28.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.7 assists a game in the playoffs but "Jimmy Buckets" says he isn't finished.

"Nobody is satisfied," he said. "We haven't done anything. We don't play just to win the Eastern Conference. We play to win the whole thing."

And being a huge underdog in the finals is just how Adebayo wants it.

"When you go through what we went through this whole season, people writing us off, to be four games from a championship just speaks volume to, one, we never quit, and two, everybody rallied together," he said.

Agence France-Presse

Heat rout Celtics to book NBA Finals showdown with Denver

BOSTON -- Jimmy Butler played a starring role as the Miami Heat advanced to the NBA Finals by routing Boston 103-84 on Monday, denying the Celtics a historic comeback after trailing the playoff series 3-0.

Butler had 28 points, seven rebounds and six assists while Caleb Martin added 26 points and 10 rebounds to spark Miami, which will visit Denver on Thursday to begin the best-of-seven championship final.

Miami recovered from a gut-punch of a game-six defeat, where they fell on a last-second tip-in, to win the Eastern Conference final 4-3, silencing a loud Boston crowd.

Taking full advantage of an injury to Boston star Jayson Tatum in the opening seconds and a cold-shooting Celtics start, the Heat avoided becoming the first team in 151 attempts to lose a playoff series after leading 3-0.

"We stayed together as a group," Butler said. "We talked about going to get a tough one on the road and we did just that.

"But we're not satisfied. We're happy. We're ecstatic. But we've got one more to get."

Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said he never doubted his resilient squad could win game seven.

"Sometimes you have to suffer for the things you really want," he said. "This group has shown fortitude when there are inevitable let-downs and failures, but had that perseverance to pick yourself up, that collective spirit to keep on forging ahead."

The Heat, seeking a fourth NBA title and first since 2013, last reached the NBA Finals in 2020, losing to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Nuggets, into the NBA Finals for the first time, swept the Lakers in the Western Conference final.

It was a determined effort by a Miami squad that lost to Boston in seven games in last year's East finals. Miami also lacked any momentum after squandering their 3-0 edge to set up a winner-takes-all road game.

"When the ship gets rocky, just stay together and keep believing in one another," said Miami's Bam Adebayo, who had 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Spoelstra said last year's loss had weighed on the team. "They made us get better. We thought about it all season long," he said.

Butler said his teammates enabled him to sink key shots and shut down Boston comeback bids.

"They give me so much confidence to hoop at a high level," he said. "They're the reason we're here. I know how good a team we are and we made it happen."

- 'A shell of myself' -

Tatum, who finished with 14 points on 5-of-13 shooting, turned his left ankle landing awkwardly after a baseline jumper in the opening seconds. He grimaced often and took only one shot in the first 17 minutes.

"It swelled up," Tatum said. "I was like a shell of myself. It was tough to move. It was frustrating especially that it should happen on the first play."

Miami stretched the lead as high as 17 points in the second quarter but Boston pulled within 59-51 early in the third.

Caleb Martin sank a baseline jumper to put Miami ahead 76-66 entering the fourth. Martin sank a three-pointer to ignite a 7-0 Miami run to open the fourth quarter for an 83-66 edge.

"Not shooting the ball well had an effect on us," Tatum said. "And it kind of snowballed."

The Celtics went nearly four minutes without scoring and never again threatened, finishing a woeful 9-of-42 from three-point range.

"They gave it everything they had," Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. "That's the most important thing to take from this. We failed, but it's not because the guys didn't have a sense of togetherness and character."

Jaylen Brown led Boston with 19 points but had a career-high eight turnovers while Derrick White added 18 points.

"We failed. I failed," Brown said. "We let the whole city down."

An 18-6 Heat run to close the first quarter gave Miami a 22-15 lead with the Celtics matching their season low for first-quarter points.

Boston went 0-for-10 from three-point range in the first quarter, missing the first 12 from beyond the arc overall, and made only 6-of-23 from the floor in the opening period.

Agence France-Presse

Jokic outduels LeBron as Nuggets reach NBA Finals for first time

LOS ANGELES  -- Nikola Jokic outdueled LeBron James as the Denver Nuggets completed a 4-0 Western Conference championship sweep over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday to reach the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history.

Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Jokic bagged a 30-point triple-double as the Nuggets overturned a 15-point half-time deficit for a 113-111 victory that sent the Lakers crashing out and left James reportedly contemplating a shock retirement from basketball.

James had looked to be single-handedly keeping the Lakers' season alive after scoring 31 points in a magnificent first-half display that left the 17-time NBA champions leading 73-58 at half-time.

But Jokic led a resurgent Nuggets offense in the third quarter, scoring 13 points as the Western Conference top seeds outscored the Lakers 36-16 to turn the contest on its head.

A dramatic fourth-quarter finale saw Jokic put Denver 113-111 ahead with a typically barnstorming driving layup through heavy traffic with 51.7sec remaining.

With four seconds left, James had one last chance to tie it up and force overtime, but his attempted driving floater was blocked by Denver's Aaron Gordon to leave the Nuggets celebrating a famous win.

A dejected James left the court immediately following the loss as his latest bid for a fifth NBA title ended in disappointment.

James later spoke cryptically about his future in a post-game press conference, while an ESPN report said he was contemplating retirement.

"Just for me personally, going forward with the game of basketball, I've got a lot to think about," James said.

Denver -- one of 11 teams in the league who have never won the NBA championship -- will face either the Miami Heat or Boston Celtics in the finals.

Miami lead Boston 3-0 and can clinch their place in the finals with a victory at home on Tuesday.

"We don't give up," Jokic told ESPN. "I've been saying this for five years -- when we were bad or when we were good -- we don't give up. And that's what happened today.

"They jumped on us the first half, they were better, more aggressive, scoring easily and didn't miss, basically.

"But in the second half we turned the page and everybody stepped up. It was a collective effort, it's not just one guy."

Jokic finished with 30 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists, while Jamal Murray added 25 points. All of Denver's starters finished with double-digit points tallies, reflecting the team's depth and balance.

The Nuggets will head into the finals brimming with confidence that they can end their near-half-century wait for a maiden NBA crown.

James, meanwhile, described Denver as the best team he has faced since joining Los Angeles five years ago.

"They have scoring. They have shooting. They have play-making. They have smarts. They have length. They have depth," James said.

"And one thing about their team, when you have a guy like Jokic, who is as big as he is but also as cerebral as he is, you can't really make many mistakes versus a guy like that."

- 'Self-inflicted wounds' -

James finished with 40 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists for the Lakers in a heroic attempt to keep the series alive.

"He had an amazing game," Jokic said. "We couldn’t stop him in the first half... he's still one of the best to ever play this game."

But the Lakers' supporting cast once again failed to step up when it mattered, with a series of missed baskets in the fourth quarter allowing the Nuggets to hold on to their slender advantage to clinch victory.

Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said his team had paid the price for not making enough shots, praising Denver's ruthlessness down the stretch.

"I just think, again, the phrase for me is 'self-inflicted wounds'. You can't have those," Ham said of the Lakers' performance.

"The sign of a great team is if you make any mistake, they're going to make you pay for it. And they did just that."

Ham, who was appointed last year with a brief to rebuild the Lakers after a dismal failure to reach the playoffs, insisted that the NBA giants were on the right path.

"This is year one," Ham said. "Losing sucks, but I think we can do something special here."

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Curry genius echoes Federer, says Warriors coach

SAN FRANCISCO -- Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr says Stephen Curry's approach to basketball reminds him of tennis great Roger Federer.

Curry wrote another gilded chapter to his glittering career on Friday, delivering a breathtaking 43-point display to haul the Warriors back into NBA Finals contention with a series-leveling victory over the Boston Celtics.

It was the sort of iconic performance that will go down in NBA history, a dazzling reminder of why Curry is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.

For Kerr, Curry's latest masterpiece brought back memories of an encounter between the Warriors and 20-time grand slam champion Federer in Shanghai five years ago.

"We actually met Federer a few years ago in China when we played in Shanghai. He came and spoke to our locker room, and Draymond (Green) asked him, he said, 'How have you been doing this for 20 years?'," Kerr recalled on Sunday.

"And his answer was just simple, yet profound. He said, 'I love my daily ritual.' He said, 'I get up, make my kids breakfast, drop them off at school, go train and I've figured out the right training methods to keep me in the best position at my age. I love competing.' He said, 'But every single day, I put my head on the pillow at the end of the day and think, man, what a great day.'

"So I think of Steph a lot when I think of that story from Roger Federer. Very, very similar just sort of zest for life and just joy for the process."

Curry, 34, will be back on home court for game five on Monday, attempting to help Golden State grab a 3-2 advantage in the best-of-seven series.

- 'Like a metronome' -

Curry's performances so far in the series have left him as Golden State's front-runner for the NBA Finals MVP award, an accolade which would fill one of the few holes on his CV. 

While Curry's remarkable fitness has enabled him to peak during the finals, Kerr is not surprised that the veteran is in prime physical condition. 

"His routine, it's like a metronome. Every day, it's the exact same thing. He's in the training room, he's in the weight room, he's on the court. It's clockwork," Kerr said. 

"But there's also a sense of joy and energy within that work. 

"I think that's one of the things that ties all great athletes together, like talking about the superstar athletes, the Roger Federers of the world, the Steph Currys of the world. There's a routine that not only is super-disciplined but it's really enjoyed each day.

"There's a passion that comes with it, and that's what sustains it over time. When you love something like those guys do, you work at it, you get better and you just keep going.

Curry meanwhile says simply that his form is down to his appetite for hard work.

"I love to work," he told reporters on Sunday. "You kind of get lost in the sessions you have on the court in practice, in the weight room, wherever it is, because you know it's going to lead to you being as prepared as possible for those games.

"Try to have as much fun as possible. Days that you want to get up and do the work, the days that you don't, days you're tired, all that type of stuff. 

"But it's all just built on my approach from the time I started and just trying to carry that every year for as long as I can.

"Win, lose, whatever it is, however you play, you have to keep coming back to the well to keep sharpening the toolkit and finding ways to evolve your game. The hardest part of what we do is the grind of the year-long prep that it takes to be great at this level."

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Warriors' Curry says he'll play game 4 despite foot injury

BOSTON, United States - Golden State star Stephen Curry was emphatic Thursday in confirming he'll play game four of the NBA Finals, despite suffering a foot injury in the Warriors' game three loss to the Boston Celtics.

"I'm going to play," Curry said at practice Thursday. "That's all I know right now."

The Warriors trail 2-1 in the best-of-seven championship series heading into game four at Boston's TD Garden.

Curry was among the Warriors starters who sat out the last few minutes with Boston on the way to a convincing 116-100 victory.

He led the Warriors with 31 points before hurting his foot when he was buried in a scrum of players chasing a loose ball.

He said the injury was reminiscent of the foot sprain he suffered in March and he hadn't pursued any medical imaging tests on it.

"Because I went through what I went through in the regular season and coming back, I know exactly what it is and what I've got to deal with and the soreness/pain level and all that," Curry said. "So once I got checked out last night, I knew I wouldn't have to go get any extra tests just because we've been through this before."

Curry said his treatment so far had consisted of "about ten and a half hours of sleep, a couple dunks in the ice bucket."

Curry said he knew right away that the injury was less severe than his earlier one. 

"As soon as you started to take a couple of steps, you kind of know whether you can run normal, cut normal or not. Back then, I couldn't," he said. "Yesterday, I could. That gave me a little bit of confidence knowing it wasn't as bad.

"We'll see how it feels tomorrow. I know I'm going to play, but (we'll) just see how it responds to that type of impact."

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Warriors sweating on Curry fitness after Game 3 loss

BOSTON -- The Golden State Warriors were left sweating on the fitness of Stephen Curry after the team's bruising NBA Finals Game 3 defeat to the Boston Celtics on Wednesday.

Curry left the Warriors' 116-100 loss to the Celtics with two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter after being buried in a scrum of players tussling for a loose ball.

The 34-year-old star grimaced in pain after the incident in which he appeared to hurt his foot.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he removed Curry from the game once it was clear Boston were assured of a victory which leaves the Celtics 2-1 up with four games remaining.

"The injury didn't force him out of the game," Kerr told reporters. "I took him out down 14 with two minutes left because we weren't going to catch up. We'll know more tomorrow."

Curry, who once again led the Warriors scorers with 31 points, said the pain felt similar to the foot sprain he suffered in March.

However he said he is optimistic of recovering in time for game four on Friday.

"I'll be all right," Curry said. "Obviously in some pain, but I'll be all right. See how it feels tomorrow and get ready for Friday.

"Hopefully it responds well over the next couple days."

Team-mate Klay Thompson said Curry's fitness would be crucial to the Warriors' chances of clawing their way back into the series.

"We need him if we want to win this thing," Thompson said. "I know Steph is going to do everything he can in his power to play. 

"I am really hoping he's okay because he's our identity, and without him, it will be very difficult."

Warriors enforcer Draymond Green picked up a foul for hauling Boston's Al Horford off Curry during the clash which left the Golden State player hobbling.

"I saw him getting dove on and that was about that," Green said. "So I picked up my foul pushing off him because he's screaming at the bottom of the pile."

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Curry stars as Warriors down Celtics to level series

SAN FRANCISCO -- Stephen Curry scored 29 points as the Golden State Warriors roared back into NBA Finals contention on Sunday with a series-levelling 107-88 game two victory over the Boston Celtics.

Curry spearheaded a deadly display of Golden State shooting while a superb Warriors defensive effort shut down Boston's key offensive weapons.

The Warriors, who squandered a 12-point fourth quarter lead in game one, were in no mood to allow lightning to strike twice on Sunday as they cut loose to build a double-digit advantage in the third quarter to tie the best-of-seven series at 1-1.

Curry led the scoring for Golden State, with Jordan Poole (17 points), Andrew Wiggins (11), Kevon Looney (12) and Klay Thompson (11) also making double figures.

Jayson Tatum topped the Boston scorers with 28 points, but crucially 21 of those came in a hardfought first half. 

Only two other Boston players -- Jaylen Brown with 17 points and Derrick White with 12 -- cracked double digits.

The Warriors defense -- marshalled brilliantly by Draymond Green -- suffocated Boston in the second half, with two high-scoring Celtics heroes from game one -- Al Horford and Marcus Smart – held to just four points combined.

The series now moves to Boston with game three scheduled for Wednesday and game four on Friday.

"We said we needed to play with desperation and that's what we did," said Curry. "It's a good feeling to get back on track and now we've got to take it on the road.

"We got off to a better start defensively where we made an imprint on the game and they felt us more than they did in game one. Our third quarter was great and we got a bit more separation that made the fourth quarter easier tonight."

The Warriors put themselves in a winning position after outscoring Boston 35-14 in the third quarter to take an 87-64 lead into the fourth quarter.

- Poole party -

Poole electrified San Francisco's packed Chase Center after launching a buzzer-beating three-pointer from near halfway at the end of the third to cap a devastating passage of play from the home team.

The Warriors kept up the pressure in the early part of the fourth quarter, extending their lead to 29 points as the Celtics scrambled to regroup before closing out a blowout win.

Boston -- who erupted for 40 points in the final quarter to win game one -- picked up where they left off on Sunday, jumping out to an early 13-5 lead with Brown leading the way.

A Brown three-pointer took Boston into a 22-13 lead early in the first quarter before a sustained Warriors rally led by Curry saw the hosts get back to within one point.

A Curry layup on the buzzer gave Golden State a 31-30 lead heading into the second quarter.

Again though Boston found another gear, with Tatum nailing a three-pointer to put the Celtics 33-31 ahead. The Celtics took a five-point lead at 40-35 with a White three-pointer.

The Warriors responded with a 10-0 lead to go up 45-40 and there was little to separate the two teams in the closing stages of the half. Wiggins scored from an offensive rebound to give the Warriors a slender 52-50 half-time lead.

Boston looked the more dangerous team for long periods of the first half, and made 10-of-19 from three-point range, including five from Tatum while Brown finished the half with 15 points.

But the Warriors -- who made only six from beyond the arc in the first half -- erupted after the break to seal the game.

The Celtics meanwhile coughed up 18 turnovers as the Warriors defense took charge.

Agence France-Presse

Warriors ready to 'turn page' on Game 1 stunner: Kerr

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr backed his team to "turn the page" on their shocking NBA Finals opening loss as they attempt to square the series against the Boston Celtics on Sunday.

Golden State, tipped as favorites to claim a seventh NBA championship before the series began, were sent spinning to a stunning defeat in game one on Thursday as the Celtics overturned a 12-point fourth quarter deficit to go 1-0 up.

The manner of that loss—with the Celtics erupting to outscore Golden State by 40-16 in the final quarter—left many commentators wondering whether the shellshocked Warriors had suffered lasting psychological damage.

The Celtics could take a vice-like grip on the best-of-seven series with a victory in game two in San Francisco on Sunday before the series moves back to Boston for games three and four.

Kerr however insisted on Saturday that his experienced line-up had already dusted themselves down after Thursday's defeat.

"The value of experience, playoff experience, is that you really do understand the ups and downs of a playoff series," Kerr said Saturday. 

"It's really important to turn the page one way or the other. You know, if you win and you get happy and you let your guard down, then you're in trouble. 

"And if you lose and you feel sorry for yourself, then you're in trouble doing that, too.

"It's all about how you respond. These guys are the best athletes, best competitors on earth, and a huge part of competition at the highest stage is your emotional and mental approach." 

Kerr and his coaching staff and players have pored over the fine detail of Thursday's loss and pinpointed a lax approach throughout the game -- rather than merely Boston's epic fourth quarter -- as the cause of the defeat.

'Like an avalanche'

"I thought we got away from ourselves in the first quarter in terms of game plan," Kerr said. "I think everything that happened in the first three quarters helped the process in the fourth for them to get going the way they did. 

"The film showed the good and the bad. We had some good stretches, and then obviously the fourth quarter was like an avalanche.

"But again, we let our guard down earlier in the game, and that allows guys to be more comfortable when they are taking shots. And when you get a couple of early ones that you get a really good look at it, it just makes every shot easier after that."

Kerr meanwhile dismissed a suggestion that stars Draymond Green and Stephen Curry might have shown signs of complacency after game one by suggesting the loss was an anomaly.

"Draymond and Steph have been in the Finals six times now. They have seen it all," Kerr said. "They have won championships. They have lost championships. They have had their heart broken. They have had parades. This is all part of it."

"So that's the right mental approach, and that's one that's born out of experience."

Defensive linch pin Green meanwhile said he had paid little attention to the exterior "noise" surrounding the game one defeat.

"It's the world we live in -- clickbait headlines, who can get the most views, who can say the most outlandish thing," Green said Saturday. "That's just the world we live in. 

"Ultimately you have to be able to block the noise out because the noise is going to be there. We come out and win tomorrow, everything's back to normal. The Warriors are fine. 

"They're going to go on the road. You know they can win a playoff game on the road."

Agence France-Presse

NBA Finals: No panic for Warriors after Celtics shocker

Draymond Green said there is no chance of the Golden State Warriors hitting the panic button after the NBA Finals favorites crashed to a series-opening defeat to the Boston Celtics on Thursday.

The Warriors slumped to a stunning 120-108 loss in front of their home fans after the Celtics staged a remarkable fourth-quarter onslaught, outscoring their opponents, 40-16.

It was the first time Golden State were beaten at home this postseason, leaving the Warriors desperately needing to win Sunday's Game 2 in San Francisco.

Green said the Warriors will respond to the challenge after falling behind in the best-of-seven series.

"You get a chance to do something else, do it in a different way, embrace the challenge," Green said. "We've always embraced challenges. We'll embrace this one. It's not a hit to the confidence at all, not one bit."

"Whether you win every game at home, you still want to win one on the road. And our history, we've always won one on the road," he added. "So, it's just nothing to panic about. It's the first team to win four games, not the first to win one."

Green's comments were echoed by Klay Thompson.

"It's never fun and it hurts on the biggest stage, obviously, but there's no reason to panic," Thompson said.

"I like our chances still, and we'll go home and we'll digest what happened. I know we'll be better Game 2.

"There's no reason to hold onto a loss when you have another game so soon."

Warriors coach Steve Kerr said his team will approach Game 2 on Sunday with a sense of "desperation."

"When you win game one at home, there's a sense of comfort, and you kind of have a feel for your opponent at that point and make your adjustments," Kerr said.

"So it's a different feeling. Obviously you go into Game 2 with more of a sense of desperation.

"But that's all part of this stuff. We've been in this position before, and we've won series where we've lost the first game... you always kind of assume that you're going to have to win on the road to win a playoff series."

Agence France-Presse

Celtics beat Heat, advance to face Warriors in NBA Finals

MIAMI -- The Boston Celtics, led by 26 points from Jayson Tatum, advanced to the NBA Finals by defeating Miami, 100-96, on Sunday, setting up a showdown against the Golden State Warriors.

Boston captured the winner-take-all matchup to take the best-of-seven Eastern Conference finals 4-3 and secure a place in the championship series, which begins Thursday in San Francisco.

The Celtics, who eliminated 2021 NBA champion Milwaukee in a seventh game earlier this month, held off the Heat down the stretch to advance after losing the conference finals three times in the past five seasons.

"To get over the hump with this group, it means everything," Tatum said. "Not a lot of people believed in us, but it worked out."

Tatum, who also had 10 rebounds and six assists, was named the Eastern Conference Most Valuable Player after what he called the biggest game of his career.

Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown each added 24 points for Boston while Jimmy Butler led Miami with 35 points in a losing cause.

Boston veteran center Al Horford reached his first NBA Finals at age 35.

"This group is special," he said. "I'm happy to be sharing this moment with these guys."

Golden State split two games with the Celtics in the regular season, winning, 111-107, in December at Boston and losing, 110-88, in March at San Francisco.

The Celtics reached the NBA Finals for the first time since losing the 2010 title to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Celtics haven't won the NBA crown since 2008.

The Warriors, in the NBA Finals for the sixth time in eight years, seek their fourth title in that span and the first since 2018.

Smart had six points in a 10-1 spurt by Boston for a 65-52 Celtics lead early in the third quarter, but a 7-0 Heat run soon after pulled Miami within 72-65 and the Celtics carried an 82-75 lead into the final quarter.

An 8-0 Celtics spurt early in the fourth quarter lifted Boston ahead 90-79, the Heat missing nine shots in a row during the futility run.

Max Strus sank a three-pointer to close an 11-0 Miami run and lift the Heat within 98-96 in the dying seconds, but Smart hit two free throws to produce the final margin and the Celtics kept Miami at bay from there.

"We figured it out," Brown said. "We persevered. We got the job done."

Boston jumped ahead 20-7 and led by as much as 34-17 early in the second quarter, but the Heat closed the second quarter on an 11-2 run to pull within 55-49 at half-time.

Butler scored 24 points in the first half while Brown had 15 and Tatum 13 to lead the Celtics.

Agence France-Presse

Bucks' Antetokounmpo named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player

Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player after leading his team to a 4-2 series victory over the visiting Phoenix Suns on Tuesday.

Antetokounmpo, who was born and raised in Athens to Nigerian parents, joins Dirk Nowitzki (2011), Tony Parker (2007), Tim Duncan (2005 and 2003) and Hakeem Olajuwon (1994 and 1995) as the only international players to be named NBA Finals MVP.

It was a remarkable NBA Finals debut for the 26-year-old Antetokounmpo, especially considering he missed the final two games of the previous series after suffering a gruesome-looking hyperextension of his left knee.

But Antetokounmpo managed to play in each game of the NBA Finals during which he averaged 35.2 points, 13.2 rebounds and 5 assists over six games.

Antetokounmpo saved his best for last as he recorded a playoff career-high 50 points in the championship-clinching game at home to go along with 14 rebounds and five blocks.

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Himani Sarkar and Christian Schmollinger)

-reuters-

Bucks close out Suns for first NBA title in 50 years

The Milwaukee Bucks, powered by a masterpiece from Greek forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, captured the franchise's first NBA championship in 50 years with a 105-98 win over the visiting Phoenix Suns on Tuesday.

With the victory, the Bucks clinched the NBA Finals 4-2 and became only the fifth team to win the best-of-seven championship series after losing the first two games.

Antetokounmpo was named most valuable player of the series after scoring a playoff career-high 50 points in the clinching game that will surely soothe the Bucks' recent history of postseason failure.

"I'm so blessed to work with Giannis every day," Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer said during an on-court interview.

"He's a special human being, he's an even more amazing human being than he is a player. I've learned so much from him and his leadership."

Phoenix overcame a slow start to the game and led by as many as seven points early in the third quarter but could not contain Antetokounmpo down the stretch.

Suns guard Chris Paul had a team-high 26 points.

For Phoenix, who were seeking their first championship in the team's 53-year existence, the defeat marked the first time all season they have lost four consecutive games.

Unlike last year's NBA Finals when the celebratory screams of the Los Angeles Lakers echoed across an arena void of fans due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bucks' win kicked off a wild party for both a capacity crowd of 17,000 inside and the 65,000 supporters who attended a watch party outside the arena.

SHAKY START

Both teams got off to a shaky start that saw poor shooting on both ends of the court and plenty of turnovers but Milwaukee, powered by Antetokounmpo, led 29-16 after the first quarter.

Phoenix, facing elimination for the first time in the 2021 playoffs, shook off their lowest-scoring first quarter of the postseason as they turned up the defense while Chris Paul led the offense as the Suns took a 47-42 lead into the half.

The Suns opened up a seven-point lead early in the third quarter but the Bucks responded with a 16-6 run that put them back in front. From there the teams went back and forth and took a 77-77 tied into the final quarter.

But Milwaukee never trailed the rest of the way and it was Antetokounmpo who took over on the offensive end to deny the Suns' a chance to host a decisive seventh game. 

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Tom Hogue and Muralikumar Anantharaman)

-reuters-

Giannis hungers for NBA title with Bucks on the brink

MILWAUKEE -- Giannis Antetokounmpo finds it harder to focus and stay in the moment with the Milwaukee Bucks on the verge of their first NBA title in 50 years.

The 26-year-old Greek star forward, a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player, can move beyond past playoff failures and win his first crown with a victory in Tuesday's sixth game of the NBA Finals at Milwaukee.

"It means a lot," Antetokounmpo said. "But I can't get too carried away. I have to stay in the present. I can't worry about the outcome.

"We know what the deal is. It's one game away from being an NBA champ, being in the history of this game, being always there. Nobody can take that away from you. It's going to be big."

The Bucks lead the best-of-seven showdown 3-2 and can win their first crown since 1971 before a noisy sellout crowd with 25,000 more people packing the "Deer District" and watching on screens outside the arena.

"It's going to be amazing to do it in front of our fans," Antetokounmpo said. "But there are more steps until we get there.

"We've got to focus. We've got to watch the clips and see what we did well, what we didn't do well, what can we do better.

"When the game starts, we have to take it a possession at a time and hopefully we can be in a position to win."

Milwaukee's Jrue Holiday said control during an emotional roller coaster is vital.

"We've really just got to lock in, not get too high, not get too low," Holiday said. "You've got to give it your all. At this point there's no excuses."

Antetokounmpo led the Bucks to the NBA's best record the previous two seasons only to see Milwaukee make disappointing playoff exits, dropping four in a row to Toronto in 2019 and losing to NBA runner-up Miami in 2020.

"What we've been through the last couple years, it has prepared us to be in this moment," Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. "It's just part of our journey and we've still got a ways to go."

Antetokounmpo stresses the work yet to come.

"We have to enjoy the moment," Antetokounmpo said. "But the job is not done. We have to realize that. We have got to stay in the present.

"We've got to stay humble. When this team is humble, this team is very, very dangerous."

Past playoff failures have taught the Bucks to be champions, Milwaukee's Pat Connaughton said.

"When adversity hit in the playoffs, we weren't able to really get through it," he said.

"Throughout these playoffs, when adversity has hit, we've come together even stronger. We've had each other's backs. That's what championship-caliber basketball is all about."

The Bucks could become only the fifth team to win the title after losing the first two games of the finals, joining the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers, 2006 Miami Heat, 1977 Portland Trail Blazers and 1969 Boston Celtics.

The rare feat would put Antetokounmpo among some of the NBA's greatest legends, including LeBron James, Shaquille O'Neal, Dwyane Wade and record 11-time champion Bill Russell.

"We don't stop," Antetokounmpo said. "Usually when you're down 0-2, you stop competing in a way. But this team, we don't do that. We keep coming, keep competing."

- Greatness in struggle -

The Suns, who dropped game five at home on Saturday, must win Tuesday to force a winner-take-all seventh game Thursday at Phoenix.

"Pressure is a privilege," Suns coach Monty Williams said. "As hard as it is, this is what you want. You're not going to find greatness on a beach. You're going to find it in the struggle."

The Suns chase the first title in their 53-year history.

"If you sulk about it, in the blink of an eye the season is going to be over," Phoenix forward Mikal Bridges said. "So, we'll learn from it. We know what we have to do. We're ready, man, just do or die."

Agence France-Presse