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      Lost Lead Reminds Mavericks Fans of 2006 Collapse

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      Fifteen years ago, the Mavericks lost the N.B.A. finals after winning the first two games of the series. Now they have blown a 2-0 lead over the Clippers.DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks are one of only four teams to win the first two games in the N.B.A. finals and still lose the series. It was always assumed thereafter that, for this franchise and its fans, no playoff collapse could inflict as much pain as Dallas’s disintegration against the Miami Heat in 2006.Chances are the sentiment still applies, since a first-round series will never be confused with a championship series, but the Luka Doncic-led Mavericks are suddenly careening toward a doozy of an unraveling that might wind up in the same conversation.After seizing a 2-0 lead over the Los Angeles Clippers, with back-to-back road victories that had the league buzzing, Dallas welcomed crowds of nearly 18,000 fans on Friday night and Sunday night at American Airlines Center — and promptly disappointed them both.The series now resting at 2-2 is even worse than it sounds for the Mavericks, because they amassed a 30-11 lead in the first quarter of Game 3 that could have easily caused the Clippers, on the brink of a full-blown franchise crisis, to capsize. Two defeats later, and with Doncic clearly compromised by a neck strain he sustained during Game 3, Dallas has been forced to confront the painful reality that it actually squandered more than a 2-0 lead.“We’ve got to hope in the next couple of days that he can be better — hopefully substantially better,” Mavericks Coach Rick Carlisle said of Doncic’s health. “There’s a two-day break between games, which is a positive in this case.”An extra day off before Wednesday’s Game 5 back at Staples Center in Los Angeles was the lone positive Carlisle could realistically pinpoint.Fueled by Coach Tyronn Lue’s small-ball lineups, stout team defense in Sunday’s 106-81 rout in Game 4 and, most of all, relentless paint attacks from Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, the Clippers have mustered a show of unity and resolve that maybe no one in the N.B.A. outside of Lue expected.Leonard, in particular, has been as dominant as ever offensively in response to last week’s chatter about Doncic’s emergence as the best player in the series, averaging 33.0 points per game on ridiculous 62.7 percent shooting from the field.Mocking the Clippers’ moxie had evolved into a sport within the sport since their collapse against the Denver Nuggets in last summer’s bubble playoffs at Walt Disney World in Florida.On the brink of a Western Conference finals showdown with the Los Angeles Lakers, their storied Staples Center co-tenants, the Clippers went from a 3-1 cushion to a second-round exit by losing three consecutive games to Denver. Coach Doc Rivers was fired and the rigors stemming from the isolation of bubble life were blamed.But then the Clippers appeared to go out of their way to lose their final two games this season to lowly Houston and Oklahoma City, locking in the first-round matchup they preferred with Dallas and ensuring that they would avoid the Lakers until the conference finals.When Doncic and the Mavericks shredded the Clippers twice in Los Angeles to open the series, Lue and his players were lampooned for messing with basketball karma and, worse, reinforcing perceived frailties as a group that could potentially convince Leonard to leave the club in free agency this summer.Reggie Jackson, in the Clippers’s starting lineup for his ball-handling and shooting, scored 15 points in Game 4.Kevin Jairaj/USA Today Sports, via ReutersLue responded with his best work since his coaching contributions to the Cleveland Cavaliers’ historic comeback from a 3-1 deficit in the 2016 N.B.A. finals to Golden State.He made the 6-foot-8 Nicolas Batum his primary center in hopes of keeping more mobile players on the floor to cope with the brilliant Doncic, who averaged 38.0 points through the first games before his 9-for-24 shooting struggles and quiet 19 points on Sunday.Lue also made Reggie Jackson a starter in the backcourt for a boost in shooting and ball-handling and expanded roles for Rajon Rondo and Terance Mann, even though that meant relegating the boisterous Patrick Beverley, his original starter at point guard, out of the rotation.Lue admitted that the Clippers want to “try to wear Luka down” and “let him play one on one” by switching defenders on him constantly, and living with the results as long as they can “keep his assists down.”The smaller, quicker lineups likewise exacerbated the mobility issues that have plagued Dallas’ Kristaps Porzingis defensively since Porzingis, who tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee as a Knick in 2018, sustained a meniscus tear in his right knee in last season’s first-round series against the Clippers.“We still haven’t done anything yet,” Lue said.A reserved approach is wise in a series in which the home team has yet to win a game, and when Dallas is 3-0 on the Clippers’ floor this season. But there is a strong case to be made that the Mavericks won the first two games thanks as much to their unsustainable success from 3-point range as to the damage Doncic caused at full strength.The Mavericks shot 35-for-70 from deep in those two games, then cratered to 5-for-30 on 3-pointers in Game 4, with Doncic’s supporting cast fading badly, after wasting a 20-for-39 showing in Game 3.Carlisle said that, from his vantage point, Doncic’s injury left him unable to “turn his neck to the left.” That would help explain the lack of zip in his game and Doncic’s joyless expression from the start, with strips of black protective tape from the back of his neck and across his left shoulder protruding from his uniform.Doncic is shooting 40.6 percent from the free-throw line.Jerome Miron/USA Today Sports, via ReutersThere is another growing worry for the Mavericks on top of their star guard’s uncertain health: Doncic’s free-throw shooting. He shot 0-for-5 from the line in Sunday’s loss, taking the All-Star guard down to an indefensible 40.6 percent (13 for 32) for the series.“I don’t think that matters right now,” Doncic said of his injury. “I played terrible.”The Mavericks of 2005-6, who orbited around Dirk Nowitzki, avenged their finals collapse by beating Miami in the 2011 N.B.A. finals after the Heat had signed LeBron James and Chris Bosh to flank Dwyane Wade. Dallas, though, has not won a single playoff series since. These Mavericks came home after stunning the host Clippers twice, believing they had a shot at a sweep to end that drought, given the Clippers’ recent history of folding, and lost all the momentum.N.B.A. teams that lose the first two games at home in a best-of-seven series have rallied to win only four times in 31 tries.The Mavericks know how unlikely the feat is because they pulled it off it in the Nowitzki era in 2005, falling into a 2-0 hole before completing the comeback with a 40-point humiliation of the Houston Rockets in Game 7. Alas, in that series, Dallas had the luxury of playing the deciding game on its own floor after its dreadful start. The Clippers have reclaimed home-court advantage in this series and, more worryingly for Dallas, seem to be enjoying themselves for the first time in a long time after so much doomsday talk.George said he and Leonard did “an incredible job complementing each other” in Dallas and described the victories as two prime examples of “ultimately what we wanted to get to” as a partnership.“And, you know, it’s fun,” George said. More

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      In the N.B.A., Money Speaks Louder Than Stars

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The NBA SeasonVirus Hotspots in the N.B.A.The Friendship of LeBron and Anthony DavisThe N.B.A. Wanted HerMissing Klay ThompsonKobe the #GirlDadAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storymarc stein on basketballIn the N.B.A., Money Speaks Louder Than StarsWith tens of millions of dollars at stake, the All-Star Game is unlikely to be derailed by pushback from the league’s biggest stars about the health risks or the need for a break.The N.B.A.’s biggest stars are speaking out against the All-Star Game, but money has the megaphone for now.Credit…Kyle Terada/USA Today Sports, via ReutersFeb. 10, 2021, 11:30 a.m. ETDavid Stern was in his final full season as the N.B.A. commissioner in 2012-13 when LeBron James won his fourth and most recent Most Valuable Player Award. Eight years later, James is in his 18th season and a leading candidate in the race to receive the Maurice Podoloff trophy from Commissioner Adam Silver.James can still do many things in his supposed twilight years with the Los Angeles Lakers. He remains the game’s most high-profile figure and, by playing at an M.V.P. level at age 36, is constantly reminding us that basketball has its own answer to the N.F.L.’s time-defying Tom Brady.It would appear not even James, though, can stop the N.B.A. from staging an All-Star Game next month in Atlanta.He couldn’t have come out much stronger against the concept than he did late last week, blasting the N.B.A.’s plans to stuff three days’ worth of All-Star events into a one-shot Turner Sports extravaganza on March 7. League and players’ union officials are nonetheless expected to soon announce that those plans have been locked in.It is reminiscent of how the season started — and another illustration of the louder-than-ever say held by the N.B.A.’s broadcast partners at such challenging financial times for the sport’s various stakeholders.Players largely left the summer bubble expecting the 2020-21 season to be contested exclusively in 2021, starting no earlier than January and perhaps as late as March. Opening night was then suddenly moved up to Dec. 22 at the strong urging of the league’s two national broadcast partners, who wanted to preserve two valuable television properties: Disney’s five-game Christmas slate on ESPN and ABC, and Turner’s traditional Tuesday night doubleheader to start the season.As James said in a postgame session with reporters on Thursday, many players assumed there would not be an All-Star Game during the extended break scheduled from March 5 to 10. Those players were surprised when it emerged in late January that the league and the union were working on a one-night-only window for All-Star festivities that would enable TNT to air the event, the jewel of its annual N.B.A. coverage.The 2020 All-Star Game in Chicago, for example, attracted 7.3 million viewers for TNT. That was better than the viewing figures for any of the Christmas games on Disney-owned channels.The big difference between December and now is that no one has pinpointed the financial impact of a modified All-Star program. League officials maintain that it’s difficult to project figures for All-Star festivities in terms of basketball-related income, which owners and players split nearly 50/50. The New York Times was among the news outlets to report in December that starting the season before Christmas, rather than in mid-January, was expected to generate at least $500 million more in revenue.Chris Paul, left, has been working with the league to plan for the All-Star Game as president of the players’ union.Credit…Ralph Freso/Associated PressTwo estimates I was provided by industry insiders pegged the value of Turner’s All-Star coverage at $30 million to $60 million — money that the N.B.A. would have to make up to Turner later if the game was not played. You can safely assume that the overall potential loss (with B.R.I. added) would be much higher, given the way players of considerable stature, such as Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers, have talked about what’s motivating the league to take the health risk of bringing together the top players during the coronavirus pandemic.“It is what it is at this point,” Leonard said. “We all know why we’re playing it — there’s money on the line.”Leonard seemed to grasp better than most that, 11 months into the N.B.A.’s new reality (and the world’s), trade-offs for the big picture are a constant.Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Nets’ James Harden are among the marquee players who have joined James in publicly questioning the All-Star plans, contributing to an uncharacteristic swirl of pushback for Silver from the league’s stars. Phoenix’s Chris Paul, the players’ association president, said in response that “guys are entitled to their feelings” — but Paul insisted that “decisions are being made” with “the full body of players in mind.”Translation: More than 400 players who won’t be invited to participate in the resuscitated All-Star gathering are counting on those who do take part to ensure TNT can proceed with its usual showcase event and insulate them from a costly financial hit.The league’s deals with Disney and TNT, worth $24 billion over nine years, do not expire until after the 2024-25 season, but it is never too soon in coronavirus times to re-establish oneself as an exemplary partner. The N.B.A., for all the criticism it has absorbed in recent days, is certainly on a winning streak there, from conceiving a bubble to safely usher the 2019-20 season to a conclusion … to engineering that bubble at Walt Disney World as opposed to Las Vegas or any other interested city … to this All-Star save.I’m told Phoenix was proposed as a potential venue for March 7. Holding it in Atlanta instead would put the game in TNT’s backyard, eliminating travel for its coverage crews.Yet it’s the opposite for the participants, and that’s the unsettling part — even after the N.B.A. announced zero positives in leaguewide coronavirus testing last week. The All-Stars face extra travel to a function steeped in fraternization between players at a time when teams, in their day-to-day existence, are strongly discouraged from postgame interactions of any kind. There’s seemingly no way to avoid describing this game — an exhibition — as risky.The All-Star Game “has been an important tradition throughout the history of the league and remains one of our top events for global fan interest and engagement,” Mike Bass, an N.B.A. spokesman, said in a statement to The Times last week. “The health and safety of everyone involved is at the forefront of our discussions with the players’ association.”The league and the union have been adamant that the game will feature a significant philanthropic component to benefit historically Black colleges and universities as well as Covid-19 relief efforts. The broadcast itself is certain to amplify a league campaign that urges fans to take the coronavirus vaccine as it becomes available and features Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Gregg Popovich in commercial spots.Murmurs persist that some All-Stars will seek to opt out of playing what has been a mandatory assignment for those selected, according to the league’s bylaws, but all signs indicate the game will go ahead.James surely knows it, too. Don’t forget that, dismayed as he was about a game that “I don’t even understand” and a trip that will take 24 All-Stars “into one city that’s open,” he also said he would be there if selected.Even for the face of the N.B.A.’s player empowerment era, even when he’s playing Brady-esque ball, there are limits.Corner ThreeKobe Bryant, left, and Shaquille O’Neal, right, won three championships in eight seasons together in Los Angeles.Credit…Matt Campbell/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesYou ask; I answer. Every week in this space, I’ll field three questions posed via email at marcstein-newsletter@nytimes.com. Please include your first and last name, as well as the city you’re writing in from, and make sure “Corner Three” is in the subject line.(Responses may be lightly edited or condensed for clarity.)Q: Who you got? Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant? Or LeBron James and Anthony Davis? I know you’ve covered both duos. I bet you go with Kobe and Shaq. — Chris Williams (Laguna Beach, Calif.)Stein: We’ve seen James and Davis together for less than a season and a half. As fearsome as they look as a tag team, even after winning a championship on their first try and quickly establishing the Lakers as this season’s title favorites, I can’t put them ahead of the twosome at the center of the N.B.A.’s last three-peat.Not yet.But I reserve the right to change this vote down the road.For all their success together, O’Neal and Bryant had to settle for three titles in eight seasons. They dominated every aspect of the league for nearly a decade, with their drama as much as with the on-court havoc they caused, but the partnership was dissolved in acrimony when the Lakers decided it was untenable to keep orbiting the team around O’Neal and traded him to Miami in July 2004. There will always be a sense that these two divorced prematurely and could have won more together.James and Davis so far have a harmony that O’Neal and Bryant scarcely achieved. It’s still the honeymoon phase, with no guarantee things stay this way, but the Lakers also have their two biggest stars under contract together through 2022-23. The outlook is rather rosy — as long as they stay healthy. (Davis, as we speak, is nursing some nagging discomfort in his right leg and foot.)It’s important to remember the circumstances when making your assessments. O’Neal hadn’t won an N.B.A. championship and was still reasonably young himself, at 24, when he was paired with Bryant, then the most ambitious teenager in basketball history. James and Davis not only have games that mesh together beautifully, as offensive fulcrum and defensive anchor, but they came together when they were clearly ready to team up.James is in the later stages of his career and, with his legacy secure, has willingly ceded a chunk of the spotlight to Davis that might have been much harder to share in his 20s. Davis couldn’t carry New Orleans to glory as the face of that franchise and has clearly reveled in the boost he gets from James’s presence to unlock his full potential.Q: Why did the Nets feel compelled to give away so much in the James Harden trade? Couldn’t this transaction have gone forward without including Cleveland and Jarrett Allen? — Tom Cartelli (Milford, N.J.)Stein: No chance.The three future first-round draft picks that the Nets parted with were the headliner trade assets they used to win the Harden sweepstakes, but they were not going to have any shot at constructing a workable deal without including both Caris LeVert and Allen. Rather than keep Allen, Houston routed him to the Cavaliers for another first-round pick (Milwaukee’s 2021 first-rounder) and to reduce the Rockets’ luxury-tax bill.Harden’s incoming $41,254,920 salary required the Nets to send out a minimum of $32,923,936 to make the salary-cap math work. Allen’s $3,909,902 salary didn’t make much of a dent into that figure, but combining him with another blossoming talent in LeVert at $16,203,704, those three first-round picks and the rights for Houston to swap first-rounders in four additional drafts enabled the Nets to outbid Philadelphia and Boston.Q: Given the potential voter fatigue with the Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo this season and Luka Doncic’s Mavericks off to a slow start, could we see someone in his 30s win the Most Valuable Player Award for the first time in 15 years? Steve Nash was the last to win the award in his 30s in 2006. — David Anderson (Raleigh, N.C.)Stein: You’re onto something for sure. Denver’s Nikola Jokic (26 on Feb. 19) and Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid (27 in March) are at the forefront of the M.V.P. race with roughly one-third of the regular season complete, but there are more 30-somethings in the conversation than players in their 20s.The Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James (36), Golden State’s Stephen Curry (33 in March) and the Nets’ Kevin Durant (32) would be in my top five with Jokic and Embiid if voting ended today.The duel between Curry (57 points) and Doncic (42 points, 11 assists and 7 rebounds) Saturday night in a 134-132 victory for Dallas was one of the games of the season so far — and reminded you that Curry is back to his best after missing almost all of last season with a broken hand.(The Los Angeles Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard, in case you’re wondering, turns 30 in June.)Numbers GameAnthony Davis is struggling from the free-throw line this season.Credit…Daniel Dunn/USA Today Sports, via Reuters17The Western Conference-leading Utah Jazz (20-5) are making 17 3-pointers per game — which puts them on pace for a league record. The 2018-19 Houston Rockets made 16.1 3s per game to set the record, according to Stathead.70.2For all the justified praised we heaped on the Lakers’ Anthony Davis last week for how perfectly he complemented LeBron James, there’s no avoiding one prime area of slippage in his game this season: Davis is shooting a career-worst 70.2 percent from the free-throw line. He shot a career-best 84.6 percent last season.2Jeremy Lin of the Santa Cruz Warriors (Golden State’s affiliate) and Nik Stauskas of the Raptors 905 (Toronto’s affiliate) were the only two N.B.A. veterans allocated to the G League team of their choosing via the N.B.A. developmental league’s new veteran selection rule — which is also known unofficially as “the Jeremy Lin rule.” The G League’s 20th season opens Wednesday with 18 teams playing in a restricted-access zone at Walt Disney World near Orlando, Fla., similar to last summer’s N.B.A. bubble.5We’re down to just five teams that have not faced a game postponement through the season’s opening seven weeks. That group includes both New York teams (Knicks and Nets), both Los Angeles teams (Lakers and Clippers) and Toronto (which is playing its home games in Tampa, Fla.).3Atlanta appears poised host to the All-Star Game for the third time. It was the host city in 1978 (when my beloved Randy Smith of the Buffalo Braves won most valuable player honors) and in 2003.Hit me up anytime on Twitter (@TheSteinLine) or Facebook (@MarcSteinNBA) or Instagram (@thesteinline). Send any other feedback to marcstein-newsletter@nytimes.com.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      Growing Chorus of N.B.A. Stars Boos League’s Virus Strategy

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The NBA SeasonVirus Hotspots in the N.B.A.The Friendship of LeBron and Anthony DavisThe N.B.A. Wanted HerMissing Klay ThompsonKobe the #GirlDadAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyGrowing Chorus of N.B.A. Stars Boos League’s Virus StrategyGiannis Antetokounmpo and Kawhi Leonard joined LeBron James in criticizing the league’s plans for an All-Star Game, while Kevin Durant questioned protocols.Kevin Durant spoke out against the N.B.A. on social media on Friday night after he was pulled from a game because of the league’s coronavirus health and safety protocols. He had already played 19 minutes.Credit…Frank Franklin Ii/Associated PressFeb. 6, 2021Updated 4:53 p.m. ETMultiple N.B.A. stars, including Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard and Kevin Durant, added their voices to the growing chorus of players criticizing the league’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, particularly plans to hold the All-Star Game in Atlanta on March 7.“We’ve got to all follow the big dog,” Antetokounmpo told reporters on Friday night, referring to LeBron James, who this week said that holding the game would be “a slap in the face” for players. Echoing James, Antetokounmpo, the reigning Most Valuable Player Award winner, said he had “zero excitement, zero energy” for the game.Following Antetokounmpo’s comments, Leonard, the Los Angeles Clippers forward, said he was not surprised by the league’s plans, but that it was “just putting money over health right now, pretty much.”“We all know why we’re playing it,” said Leonard, a four-time All-Star. “It’s money on the line. There’s the opportunity to make more money.”The All-Star events are a chance to showcase the N.B.A.’s top talent. There is also a financial benefit, although how much is unclear. This year, the league, in conjunction with the players’ union, is planning to hold the 3-point contest and the skills competition on the same day as the game to condense an affair that typically lasts days. The N.B.A.’s collective bargaining agreement requires those selected for the All-Star Game to play if they are healthy.Nonetheless, a condensed schedule does not eliminate the added health risks of an event bringing together the game’s best players from across the country for an exhibition — and presents a sharp contrast to rules that bar players from sharing hugs and handshakes after games to help reduce the chances of infection spread.The league’s protocols appear to be wearing on some players, including Durant of the Nets, who was pulled from a game on Friday night in a strange spectacle that played out on TV and social media. About 20 minutes before the Nets were to tip off against the Toronto Raptors, the Nets announced that Durant would not start the game because of the league’s virus protocols. Just after the game started, the Nets announced that Durant had been cleared to play. But then, after Durant played a little more than 19 minutes, he was pulled from the game and ruled out because of the protocols.Shortly after leaving the game, Durant posted on Twitter, “Free me.” He had appeared frustrated on the TV broadcast as he walked out of the arena after being removed from the game, tossing a water bottle to the side as he walked into the tunnel.The N.B.A. then released a statement saying that Durant had tested negative for the coronavirus three times in the past 24 hours but had “interacted” with someone who first had an inconclusive test result before the game on Friday, then a positive result during the game. An inconclusive test, according to the N.B.A.’s protocols, does not necessarily require quarantine, so Durant was allowed to play. But when the positive result came in, the league pulled Durant “out of an abundance of caution.”In response to the statement, Durant tweeted: “Yo @nba, your fans aren’t dumb!!!! You can’t fool em with your Wack ass PR tactics.”Mike Bass, a spokesman for the N.B.A., told The New York Times that the All-Star Game “has been an important tradition throughout the history of the league and remains one of our top events for global fan interest and engagement. The health and safety of everyone involved is at the forefront of our discussions with the Players Association.”The players’ union declined to comment, but Chris Paul, the Phoenix Suns guard and president of the players’ union, told reporters on Friday: “Guys are entitled to their feelings, their decisions, everything. I think the job for the union has been to try to make sure our players are healthy and safe.“This is something that was a decision by the league, and we are definitely day in and day out trying to figure it out,” he added. “But we’ve got 450 players that we are always trying to get insight from. It’s tough, but we are trying to figure it out right now.”Paul also said that he had previously spoken to James about the topic.The league has struggled to contain virus outbreaks this season. The N.B.A. has postponed 23 games in connection with infections and contact tracing, and has stationed security guards on the court before and after games to discourage players from socializing. Only five of the league’s 30 teams have not had a virus-related postponement.On Jan. 12, the league and the players’ union announced new health protocols to deal with a rash of game postponements. Among the new rules, players and staff have been directed to remain at their homes or hotels when on the road except for team activities and essential tasks. After a recent game between the Miami Heat and the Nets, a security official interrupted Nets guard Kyrie Irving’s attempt to exchange jerseys with the Heat’s Bam Adebayo — much to the bafflement of Irving. (Irving slipped a jersey to Adebayo after their next game two days later.)Others players have weighed in on the All-Star game as well. On Friday, Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics, who was selected to his first All-Star team last season, said: “I feel like, for the most part, they have done a great job of trying to keep us safe,” referring to the league, “though you can’t control everything. But I do understand the concerns about it, especially in Atlanta.”His teammate Kemba Walker, a four-time All Star, told reporters on Friday that he agreed with James.“He’s a smart man,” Walker said. “He’s been around. He’s a leader. A lot of things he says are correct. He feels the way he feels. I’m probably going to be on vacation.”Earlier in the week, De’Aaron Fox, the top guard on the Sacramento Kings, said holding the game would be “stupid.”“If we have to wear masks and do all this for a regular game, then what’s the point of bringing the All-Star game back?” Fox told reporters. “Obviously, money makes the world go ’round so it is what it is.”For the moment, the N.B.A.’s virus-related game postponements have died down. The most recent one was on Monday, when the Detroit Pistons and Denver Nuggets were supposed to play in Denver. Two days later, the league said in its weekly report that no new players had tested positive for the coronavirus. The week before there had been one case, a sharp reduction from the 27 reported over the two weeks prior. In January, several teams were missing multiple players because of infections and contact tracing, but now most teams are no longer missing anyone for that reason.N.B.A. players — like much of the country — are under enormous mental strain, as Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors said in a podcast interview that was posted on Friday. He said this season has been particularly difficult with longer days as a result of daily testing and restrictions in the league’s protocols.“Even on off days, you have to go to the facility and test,” Green said. “And so even just seeing that facility that day, although you may not even go in and work out, but you drive into that facility every day. Mentally, it’s exhausting and so it’s been a very tough season to say the least, and I think a lot of guys are struggling with it.”AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      Nets and Clippers Open N.B.A. Season With Big Wins

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The NBA SeasonNets and Clippers Win BigMVP: LeBron or Luka?The Reloaded LakersWill the Nets Reign?AdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyNets and Clippers Open N.B.A. Season With Big WinsThe Nets dominated the Warriors, and the Clippers staved off a comeback attempt by the Lakers. Kevin Durant and Paul George were the night’s stars.Paul George had a strong performance for the Clippers on Tuesday, with 33 points on 13-of-18 shooting.Credit…Harry How/Getty ImagesScott Cacciola and Published More

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      Lakers vs Clippers: Live NBA Season Opener Updates

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The NBA SeasonWarriors vs. NetsMVP: LeBron or Luka?The Reloaded LakersWill the Nets Reign?AdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyLIVE UPDATESN.B.A. Live Updates: Lakers vs. ClippersIt’s opening night, which means the official debut of the Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving pairing, and a ring ceremony for LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers.Scott Cacciola and Right NowFrontline workers are presenting the Lakers with their championship rings.The N.B.A. is back (so soon!) with a doubleheader on opening night, featuring several of the league’s biggest names: LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Kawhi Leonard.For Durant, it’s a much-anticipated regular-season debut with the Nets, alongside Kyrie Irving. And for James, it’s a short turnaround for his Los Angeles Lakers after winning the championship just over 10 weeks ago.Follow along with us live.What: Warriors @ Nets, 7 p.m. Eastern time; Clippers @ Lakers, 10 p.m.How to watch: TNTExtras: Western Conference preview | Eastern Conference preview | Times staff predictionsHere’s what you need to know:The Lakers get their championship rings.LeBron says he’s ready, even with little rest this off-season.The Nets beat the Warriors big, 125-99.4th Quarter: Up and down debut for the Warriors rookie James Wiseman.End 3rd Quarter: It might be a wrap.3rd Quarter: 3-pointers are only falling for the Nets.3rd Quarter: Yikes.Kevin Durant got off to a hot start in his regular-season debut with the Nets.Credit…Kathy Willens/Associated PressClick here to refresh for live updates.The Lakers get their championship rings.Before the Lakers took the court for their spectator-free championship ring ceremony, Coach Frank Vogel reflected on just how “surreal” the team’s title run still felt to him.“I don’t really know if it ever really hits you,” he told reporters before the game. “It’s what you dream about. It’s what you work for your whole career. I’m just happy for my family, who made so many sacrifices to allow me to have these opportunities. Grateful to the league for letting us finish the season and creating the bubble environment.”Because of the coronavirus pandemic and the massive shutdowns it caused, Vogel said he had only sporadically been able to get a sense of what the championship meant to fans in Southern California. But whenever he goes grocery shopping or stops by Target, someone will thank him for what the team was able to do, he said.The ring ceremony itself, even without fans in the arena, was surprisingly emotional. In recorded video presentations, the players’ families congratulated them, one by one, before they went to collect their rings. There was even a cameo from the Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo, whose younger brother, Kostas, spent last season on a two-way contract with the Lakers.And in a nice touch, frontline medical workers presented the rings to the team’s assistant coaches. LeBron says he’s ready, even with little rest this off-season.The Lakers added a bunch of new pieces over the off-season, but LeBron James, who will turn 36 on Dec. 30, is back for more. Neither he nor his returning teammates got much of a break following last season’s championship run, which concluded in October, and James’s minutes will be something to monitor early this season. It might behoove the Lakers to rest him more than he usually does, and they appear to have the depth to be able to do that.Before the game, Lakers Coach Frank Vogel said he planned to play — and rest — James in bursts. He does not want James playing extended minutes, or sitting for long stretches and getting cold.“If he’s on the bench for too long of a stretch and has to come back in cold, that’s where you’re in a riskier situation,” Vogel said.In a video call with reporters last week, James was asked whether he expected to be the team’s primary ballhandler, much like he was last season. He said it was too early to tell, though it seems likely that Dennis Schröder will step in to handle more of those duties. James also mentioned how Marc Gasol can operate as a playmaker from the high post.But, as always, James said he was ready to carry an outsize load.“Whatever it takes for our ball club to win, I’m going to bring my game,” James said, “and you know what my game brings for this ball club.”The Nets beat the Warriors big, 125-99.Steve Nash got his first win as an N.B.A. head coach in dominating fashion, as the Nets blew out the Golden State Warriors at home, 125-99. The Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant partnership got off to a fast start: Irving had 26 points and Durant added 22, both in 25 minutes. Neither played in the fourth quarter. But for all 48 minutes, the Nets looked like the championship contenders they were billed to be. The Nets were particularly proficient from the perimeter, shooting 15-35 from deep (43 percent). Caris LeVert, who came off the bench, scored 20 points and grabbed 9 rebounds.Golden State, missing Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, struggled mightily on both ends of the floor. Offensively, the Warriors looked as if they would miss even if they threw a basketball into space from the International Space Station. They shot 10-33 from three (30 percent). Stephen Curry, who missed most of last season, looked overmatched, scoring 20 points on 21 shots. He did, however, have 10 assists. Curry did not get much help from his teammates. Andrew Wiggins, whom the Warriors acquired last season, shot 4-16 from the field for 13 points. James Wiseman, the heralded rookie, scored 19 points and grabbed 6 rebounds, a solid debut, but much of his production came in the fourth quarter when the outcome of the game was not in doubt.4th Quarter: Up and down debut for the Warriors rookie James Wiseman.James Wiseman, the highly touted prospect whom the Warriors drafted second overall in November, has had a mixed N.B.A. debut after Coach Steve Kerr put him in the starting lineup. So far, through 17 minutes, Wiseman has 10 points and 6 rebounds on 3-of-8 shooting. The 19-year-old looked nimble handling the ball but sometimes struggled finishing under the basket and on the defensive end.End 3rd Quarter: It might be a wrap.The game became a blowout early on … is still a blowout entering the final quarter, as the Nets outscored the Warriors by 10 in the third, to lead 99-71. We are all about bright spots here, so we found one for Golden State: Stephen Curry has 10 assists. So there’s that. Aside from that? The Warriors are shooting 24 percent from 3 and only have two players in double figures. Andrew Wiggins is shooting an awful 4-14 from the field for 13 points. For the Nets, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving have combined for 48 points and may not have to play anymore tonight. Caris LeVert has 16 points, Joe Harris has 10, and DeAndre Jordan has 10 rebounds.3rd Quarter: 3-pointers are only falling for the Nets.It got ugly here in Brooklyn (depending on your vantage point). The Nets pushed the lead to 31 in the third quarter. The Warriors are only shooting 5 of 21 from deep, compared to 10 of 22 for the Nets. That has essentially been the ball game. Durant now has 16 points; Irving has 26.3rd Quarter: Yikes.So, this is Kevin Durant:And this is how the Warriors are doing:Halftime: Kyrie Irving leads with 24 points.The onslaught continued for the Nets, as they ended the first half up 63-45. Kyrie Irving continued to put on a show, pouring in 24 points on 13 shots and hitting several momentum-stopping jump shots to keep the Warriors from sustaining any sort of run. Kevin Durant had 12 points on 11 shots. Caris LeVert ended the half with 12 points. For Golden State, every point seemed to be a labor. Stephen Curry led with 16 points, but it took 15 shots. He also had 5 assists. Andrew Wiggins shot 2-10 for 8 points. The Nets have looked faster and more aggressive, keeping the game mostly uncompetitive. Their defense also was effective in stopping the Warriors from getting uncontested shots. One potential red flag for the Nets: They only had 10 assists to 13 turnovers. They’re winning based on a lot of isolation basketball. But who can complain when it works?Silver: Others need the vaccine ‘much more desperately’ than N.B.A. players.Commissioner Adam Silver, in a pregame interview on TNT, reiterated that he did not think that N.B.A. players should receive the vaccine right now, saying that he did not want players prioritized over more vulnerable populations.“While there is no doubt a role our that our players can play at the appropriate time, and whether it’s in the African-American community in certain cases, whether it’s demonstrating to young people that it’s safe to get the vaccine should our players feel that way, I just think right now, given that there’s limited doses and given that there’s another cohort of people out there who need it much more desperately than young, healthy people, my sense is we should wait,” Silver said.“But ultimately we’ll follow what the public health officials tell us to do. I know we’ve already had some conversations with public health officials who suggested that there is a role that our players can play in demonstrating to the broader public that it is safe to go ahead and get vaccinated.”2nd Quarter: Caris LeVert is key off the Nets’ bench.It’s just one game. But Andrew Wiggins, who will now have to fill some of the gap left by Klay Thompson’s absence, has had a rough start to the game. He started 1-8 and has missed multiple wide-open jumpers.On the other end, Caris LeVert is thriving early on in his role as sixth man for the Nets. He has 12 points on 7 shots along with 3 rebounds and an assist, providing a spark off the bench while Durant and Irving sit for a spell. LeVert’s ability to keep the offense afloat while the Nets’ star duo rests will be crucial as the season progresses.Side note: TNT’s audio appears to be out of sync with the video. I just heard the clank of a missed jumper seconds after the ball hit the rim on the screen. Look, it’s not just the players who are getting themselves into shape. End of 1st Quarter: The Warriors are struggling.The Nets jumped out to a 40-19 lead in the first quarter, while the Warriors looked out of sorts on offense, before the Nets ended the opening frame leading 40-25. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving were dominant, scoring 27 points on 10-of-15 shooting combined. Joe Harris also scored 6 points, hitting a pair of triples. Kelly Oubre, a new Warriors addition, had a rim-rattling dunk and Stephen Curry had 9 points on 3-of-7 shooting to keep the Warriors afloat, but Golden State had trouble generating quality offensive possessions as a whole.Kevin Durant is hot to start.It’s a beautiful sight to see. Kevin Durant has hit 4 of his first 5 shots. What’s impressive is that all four of his makes have been different. One was a runner, another a 3-pointer, a pull-up jumper which also sent him to the line, and, finally, a baseline dunk. He scored 8 points in the first three minutes of the game. An impressive start so far, pushing the Nets to an early double-digit lead, 18-8. Kyrie Irving has hit 2 of 3 so far for 5 points.Klay Thompson says there’s a ‘huge hole in my soul.’Klay Thompson, the Golden State Warriors guard who will miss this entire season, said on Instagram shortly before Tuesday night’s game that “It pains me every day knowing I won’t be able to chase a chip.”Thompson, a five-time All Star, missed all of last year’s campaign after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in the 2019 finals. In November, as he was gearing up to return for this season, Thompson tore his right Achilles’ tendon, one of the most devastating injuries for a basketball player. He had surgery and was ruled out for his second straight season.“I do not want to be writing this,” Thompson wrote on Tuesday. “My soul is in Brooklyn taking a pregame nap. Unfortunately, reality looks a bit different.”He added: “There’s a huge hole in my soul when I can’t do what I love and compete against the best players in the world. But I plan on playing for a long time and will continue to work every day to get back on the court and help my team bring more championships to the Bay.”It’s a reunion for Durant and Curry.Credit…Sarah Stier/Getty ImagesOpening night won’t just be a long-awaited return to the court for Kevin Durant. His teammate, Stephen Curry, with whom Durant won two championships, also will play. Curry, a two-time Most Valuable Player Award winner, missed 60 games last season because of a broken left hand. Curry and Durant will face each other as opponents for the first time since 2016. After that season, Durant shocked the basketball world by joining Curry in Golden State, forming one of the most talented partnerships in the history of the league. “You always kind of find yourself in awe of stuff he can do on the floor,” Curry told reporters this week, adding, “That was a big part of our success: kind of feeding off of each other, that energy and that pursuit of greatness every day. Seeing it up close and personal, you had no choice but to meet it every day.”Durant, for his part, is not outwardly putting extra stock in Tuesday night’s game, even though it is against his former team. “Playing against old teammates never really ratcheted me up,” Durant told reporters this week. “I always felt like I was on that level no matter who is on the floor. I feel like each game is important to me.”‘Nerves and anxiety’ for Steve Nash in his coaching debut.Before his first regular-season game as an N.B.A. head coach, Steve Nash told reporters that Kevin Durant “does look exactly like he did before the injury, but he also needs a little bit of breathing room to get himself acclimated to competitive basketball.” “The only thing I say about it is that he’s done everything and he’s in absolutely the ultimate position to come back from this injury,” Nash said of Durant, who tore his right Achilles’ tendon during the 2019 N.B.A. finals, which sidelined him for all of last season.Nash continued: “But I think we also have to give Kevin time to play N.B.A. games and not get carried away.” As far as his coaching debut — Nash’s first direct involvement in a N.B.A. game since he retired as a player in 2015 — Nash said that this gameday had a “different rhythm but similar nerves and anxiety” as when he was a player. “I always felt a little nerves until I actually got out there in pregame warm-ups. So I feel that a little bit tonight and that’s probably a good thing,” Nash said.Here’s hoping the Warriors can be great again.I’m not ready to say goodbye to the Golden State Warriors.I find myself pining for the splendor of Steph Curry, the snarl of Draymond Green, the beautiful basketball, the sheer dominance. I fear we may never see it again — at least, not at the level we once did.Klay Thompson’s shredded Achilles’ tendon probably means a second straight lost season, and possibly a fatal blow to the Warriors’ hopes for a revival. And that’s where I truly become wistful.I don’t miss the Warriors as a fan would (my San Jose roots notwithstanding). It’s not just that I’ll miss writing about their roundball artistry (though that’s certainly true, too). It’s more personal than that.To their fans, the Warriors provided endless basketball bliss — a montage of deep 3s and shimmies and raucous parades. To others, they provided a standard of selfless play and joyful domination. They defined an era, and redefined the formula for building a superteam.But they gave me something far more precious: a final few hours with my father. I just didn’t know it at the time.Continue reading by clicking here.Drama for the Clippers. New deals for the Lakers.In some ways, it feels like Kawhi Leonard joined the Clippers a million years ago. In fact, it was only during the summer of 2019 when the Clippers signed Leonard and traded for Paul George, a momentous one-two punch that reshaped the franchise.But some of the behind-the-scenes intrigue of that momentous summer recently resurfaced when Johnny Wilkes, a man who claims to be a Leonard family confidante, accused Jerry West, one of the team’s executives, of reneging on a pledge to pay him for helping deliver Leonard to the Clippers.After Wilkes, who played high school basketball with Leonard’s uncle Dennis Robertson filed a lawsuit, the N.B.A. opened an investigation. The Clippers have denied any wrongdoing, calling Wilkes’s allegations “baseless,” and Leonard told reporters that Wilkes had nothing to do with his decision to sign with the Clippers.Leonard has never been considered among the N.B.A.’s most charismatic stars, but his short tenure with the Clippers has produced no shortage of drama. Also percolating in the background: his contract situation. Leonard suggested this week that he would decline his player option for next season, meaning he would become a free agent.Meanwhile, all is copacetic in Laker-land: LeBron James and Anthony Davis both agreed to new long-term deals over the off-season.More about the Lakers and Clippers:AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More