NBA Playoffs: Red-hot Heat bury Trae, Hawks to take Game 1

Miami reserve Duncan Robinson scored a career playoff high 27 points and the Heat defensively dominated Atlanta for a 115-91 victory in an NBA playoff series opener on Sunday.

Robinson sparkled by making 9-of-10 shots, including 8-of-9 from 3-point range, while Jimmy Butler added 21 points and P.J. Tucker contributed 16 for the Heat, who seized a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven first round series.

"We saw the confident Duncan," Butler said. "He doesn't care what anybody thinks. He saw some threes and he made them and that's what we need from him."

The Hawks and their star guard Trae Young suffered through a miserable night against Miami's defense.

Young went 1-of-12 from the floor, 0-of-7 from 3-point range, and had a season-low eight points.

"Just make it physical on him, challenge every shot, make him pass," Butler said of the Heat's strategy to shut down Young. "He can score in bunches and we don't want him to do that."

Atlanta opened with its worst-shooting quarter and worst-shooting half of the season. Although they started 3-of-17 from the floor, the Hawks trailed only 23-17 after the first.

Miami surged ahead in the second quarter to a 59-40 halftime lead. 

Young was only 1-of-9 in the first half as the Hawks went 11-for-38.

Asked if their defensive scheme had worked perfectly, Butler admitted, "We were really close. They missed a lot of shots."

The Hawks welcomed back forward John Collins, who missed the past 18 games with foot and finger sprains, but were without star big man Clint Capela, out with a right knee injury.

Later opening games Sunday found Brooklyn at Boston, Chicago at defending champion Milwaukee and New Orleans at Phoenix.

Agence France-Presse

Hawks, Pelicans book final NBA playoff berths

Trae Young scored 32 of his 38 points in the second half as the Atlanta Hawks rallied to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday and book the final NBA Eastern Conference playoff berth.

The New Orleans Pelicans, meanwhile, grabbed the last spot in the West, thwarting a Clippers rally in a 105-101 victory in Los Angeles.

The Hawks erased a double-digit halftime deficit in the play-in contest to line up a first-round series with Eastern Conference top seeds Miami, with game one scheduled for Sunday.

The Pelicans will face the Western Conference top-seeded Phoenix Suns in the first round.

New Orleans booked their first playoff berth since 2018 in dramatic style.

Brandon Ingram scored 30 points and Larry Nance Jr. added 14 points with 16 rebounds for New Orleans, who jumped out to a 16-point lead in the second quarter against a Clippers team that learned Friday morning they would be without All-Star Paul George because of coronavirus concerns.

But the Clippers charged back in the third quarter, opening the second half on a 20-2 scoring run. Los Angeles led by as many as 13 points in the fourth quarter before the Pelicans roared back.

"I knew what the stakes were, all of us wanted to be in the playoffs," said Ingram. "Whatever it took tonight, whether it was on the defensive end, offensive end, whatever it took I was going to do it."

In Cleveland, it was a heartbreaking finish to the season for a young Cavaliers squad, who fell one step shy of qualifying for the post-season for the first time since LeBron James departed the club in 2018.

The Cavs dominated early, but Young found his touch in the second half and five Hawks players scored in double figures to complete the turnaround.

"I felt like I was letting my team down in the first half," said Young, who had four turnovers along with six points before the interval.

"I was missing some shots. We were only down 10 in the halftime and I knew I needed to make some more shots for my teammates."

In fact, Young stepped up his game on all fronts. He scored or assisted on 43 of 56 second-half points for Atlanta, accounting for more than the 40 points that Cleveland scored after the break.

Young said it was just "more motivation" when center Clint Capela departed with a hyper-extended right knee moments before halftime.

Capela had grabbed Cavs rookie Evan Mobley from behind as Mobley was shooting, but Mobley fell back into Capela's legs and the veteran fell to the court holding his knee in pain.

After officials reviewed the play the call of a common foul stood, but Capela was ruled out for the rest of the contest.

- 'Show it' -

"We wanted to win for him," Young said. "We know how hard he's worked all year wanting to get in the playoffs. We hope he's going to be able to bounce back for us."

Cleveland had jumped to a double-digit lead in the first quarter, boosted by the three-point shooting of Lauri Markkanen who scored 17 first-half points.

Markkanen led the Cavaliers with 26 points and Darius Garland added 21.

All-Star center Jarrett Allen returned to Cleveland's starting lineup after missing 19 games with a broken left finger, scoring 11 points with three rebounds.

But with Young leading the way the Hawks turned the tables in the third quarter, taking the lead for the first time on a three-pointer from Young with 1:42 left in the period.

"Nobody had to say anything to me," said Young, whose driving basket early in the fourth quarter put the Hawks up for good. "I know the work I put in, the confidence I have and I've got to go out and show it."

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Young, Hunter star as Hawks sting Hornets

LOS ANGELES -- Trae Young scored 24 points as the Atlanta Hawks thrashed the Charlotte Hornets 132-103 to keep their playoff hopes alive on Wednesday.

A decisive burst of scoring from Young and De'Andre Hunter in the third quarter saw the Hawks take control against an outclassed Charlotte team at Atlanta's State Farm Arena.

Atlanta will now face Cleveland in the final round of the play-in tournament on Friday, where a place in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs -- against top-seeded Miami -- will be up for grabs.

"We're clicking at the right time and this is the time to be clicking," Young said after the blowout. "We're a good team."

After edging into a 60-52 halftime lead, Atlanta effectively sealed victory with a devastating third quarter performance, outscoring the Hornets 42-24 and racing into a lead that stretched to 26 points at one stage.

Hunter and Young combined for 30 of those points in the third quarter, Hunter scoring 16 and Young adding 14, including three from outside the arc.

Hunter finished with 22 points as Atlanta's balanced offense once again shared the scoring around. 

Six Atlanta players finished in double figures, with Danilo Gallinari claiming 18 points, Clint Capela chipping in with 15 and Kevin Huerter and Bogdan Bogdanovic adding 13 points apiece.

"It took me a couple of quarters to get going, but my teammates did a hell of a job making plays," Young said. 

"We've got a lot of guys who can play. We've dealt with a lot of injuries this year but we've got a lot of guys who can step up and make plays anytime throughout the game."

In Wednesday's other play-in game, the San Antonio Spurs face the New Orleans Pelicans in another sudden death elimination game. 

The winner of the Spurs-Pelicans game will advance to a clash with the Los Angeles Clippers for a place in the Western Conference playoffs and a meeting against top seeds Phoenix.

Agence France-Presse

NBA: DeMar DeRozan extends scoring record as Bulls top Hawks

DeMar DeRozan converted the go-ahead 3-point play with 15.1 seconds remaining as part of a 37-point scoring effort to give the Chicago Bulls a 112-108 victory over the visiting Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night.

DeRozan was 15 of 21 from the field to extend his NBA record of scoring at least 35 points and shooting 50 percent or better to eight consecutive games. 

He also scored at least 30 points for the ninth straight game to move within two of the franchise mark set by Michael Jordan during the 1986-87 season.

Zach LaVine scored 20 points as Chicago won its sixth straight game and moved a half-game ahead of the Miami Heat atop the Eastern Conference. Nikola Vucevic added 12 points and 10 rebounds, Ayo Dosunmu also scored 12 points and Tristan Thompson added 11 points.

Bogdan Bogdanovich scored a season-best 27 points and Danilo Gallinari scored a season-high 26 points and equaled his season best of nine rebounds for Atlanta. Trae Young had 14 points and 10 assists and Clint Capela added 14 points and 17 rebounds as the Hawks had a two-game winning streak snapped.

DeRozan knocked down a jumper to pull Chicago within one with 46.9 seconds before converting the go-ahead three-point play.

Bogdanovic missed the possible go-ahead 3-pointer and Javonte Green added two free throws with 4.5 seconds left to give the Bulls a four-point edge.

Chicago made 48.8 percent of its field-goal attempts, including 8 of 27 from 3-point range.

The Hawks shot 42.3 percent and were 8 of 28 from behind the arc.

Atlanta's John Collins (foot) sat out his fourth straight game, while teammate De'Andre Hunter (two points in 13 minutes) missed the second half with an illness.

Dosunmu made consecutive baskets and Coby White followed with a hoop to cap a 14-4 burst that saw Chicago take a 102-94 lead with 5:51 left.

A short time later, Atlanta rolled off nine straight points to take a 105-104 lead. Bogdanovic hit a 3-pointer and Gallinari scored the next six.

DeRozan split two free throws with 2:31 left to knot the score. But Capela scored on a dunk 16 seconds later and Gallinari split two free throws with 1:59 remaining to give the Hawks a 108-105 lead.

Bogdanovic and Huerter knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to give Atlanta its first lead of the game at 67-65 with 6:30 left in the third quarter.

Bogdanovic drained his third 3-pointer of the quarter with 1.8 seconds left to knot the score at 82.

DeRozan had 16 first-quarter points and 22 in the half as Chicago led 52-50 at the break.

-reuters

NBA: Trae Young scores 41 to lead Hawks past Cavs

Trae Young scored 41 points -- his fifth game with 40-plus points this season -- to lead the Atlanta Hawks to a 124-116 win over the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night.

Young was 13 of 22 from the floor, including 4 of 7 from long distance. He also went 11 of 13 from the foul line and had nine assists. 

It marked the second straight 30-plus-point effort for Young and the 23rd time this season to reach that milestone.

Atlanta also got a season-high 25 points from Danilo Gallinari, who started at forward in place of John Collins, the team's No. 2 scorer, who missed his second straight game with a foot injury.

Cleveland was led by Darius Garland, who scored 30 points and added eight assists. 

Garland has 20-plus points in nine of his past 11 games and remained on pace to become the second player in league history to average 20 points, eight-plus assists, shoot 46-plus percent from the field and 90-plus percent from the line.

Evan Mobley added 22 points and 10 rebounds, and Kevin Love came off the bench to score 21 for the Cavs, who have lost two in a row.

Atlanta, which ended a two-game skid, leads the season series, 2-1. The teams split two earlier games in Cleveland and will meet for the final time on March 31.

Both teams were hot from the field in the first quarter, with Cleveland shooting 56.5 percent -- including eight 3-pointers -- and Atlanta making 54.2 percent. 

The Cavs led, 36-34, and Love scored 14 points, putting him over 14,000 for his career.

Atlanta, led by Young's 11 second-quarter points, took a 66-61 lead into intermission. Garland had 18 points in the first half.

The Hawks led, 94-90, after three quarters and were able to squash any Cleveland attempt to regain the lead in the final period.

The Cavs got within 105-102 on a bucket by Love with 6:33 left, but Atlanta answered with an 8-2 run that included 3-pointers from Young and Hunter that established a nine-point lead. 

Cleveland never got closer than four thereafter.

-reuters

NBA: Trae Young’s double-double leads surging Hawks past Spurs

Trae Young scored 31 points and dished out 11 assists and keyed an early third-quarter run that broke open the game as the visiting Atlanta Hawks steamrolled the San Antonio Spurs, 124-106, on Wednesday to capture their sixth straight contest.

The Hawks led by seven points at the half and stretched that advantage to 17 by midway through the third period. Young had 10 points in that pivotal stretch and scored 17 of his points after halftime as Atlanta dominated in the second half and won on the road for just the second time this season.

Bogdan Bogdanovic added 18 points for the Hawks, with John Collins scoring 15, Lou Williams and Cam Reddish hitting for 12 apiece, Clint Capela tallying 11 points and taking 13 rebounds, and Kevin Huerter and Danilo Gallinari scoring 10 points each.

Bryn Forbes led the Spurs with 23 points, while Dejounte Murray added 22 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds, and Jakob Poeltl and Keldon Johnson scored 15 points each. Poeltl also grabbed 10 rebounds for San Antonio, which has lost six straight games and is off to its worst start since the 1996-97 season

The Spurs led by as many as seven points in the first quarter, thanks to Murray's 13 points, before two baskets by Young in the final 39.6 seconds evened the game at 27 at the end of the period. The game went back and forth in the second period before the Hawks took a 55-54 lead on Bogdanovic's 3-pointer at the 3:24 mark and pushed their advantage to 65-58 at the half as Young again hit two late baskets.

Murray led all scorers with 15 points at the half, with Poeltl adding 12 and Forbes contributing 11 points off the bench for the Spurs. San Antonio stayed close thanks to 13 second-chance points.

Young had 14 points at the half for Atlanta while Bogdanovic hit for 10. The Hawks outshot San Antonio 53.1 percent to 43.4 percent over the first two quarters.

Atlanta took charge of the game in the first half of the third quarter, as Young hit for 10 points and assisted on a dunk by Capela to help the Hawks go up 84-67 by the 6:12 mark.

-reuters- 

NBA: Kevin Huerter, Hawks upset No. 1 seeded 76ers in Game 7

Kevin Huerter scored a playoff career-high 27 points, Trae Young added 21 points and 10 assists and the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks stunned the host Philadelphia 76ers, 103-96, in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday.

The Hawks will face the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Young shot 5 of 23, but made a couple of clutch shots down the stretch.

John Collins had 14 points and 16 rebounds, while Danilo Gallinari had 17 points and Clint Capela 13 for the Hawks, who reached the conference finals for the first time since 2015. The Hawks won three games at Philadelphia in this series.

Joel Embiid led the top-seeded Sixers with 31 points and 11 rebounds yet committed eight turnovers. Tobias Harris added 24 points and 14 rebounds, Seth Curry had 16 points and Ben Simmons contributed 13 assists.

The Sixers haven't reached the conference finals since 2001.

The Hawks led, 48-46, at halftime, thanks in large part to Huerter's 12 points. Young shot just 1 of 12 in the opening half.

Embiid had 15 points but committed four turnovers and appeared to tweak his injured right knee shortly before halftime.

The game was tight throughout the third as the Hawks moved out to a 64-63 advantage with 4:45 left after a tough jumper by Huerter. He was fouled as well but missed the free throw.

Matisse Thybulle scored four late points in the period, but the Hawks closed the third strong and led, 76-71.

Embiid scored the first five points of the fourth -- a jumper and a 3-pointer -- to tie the game at 76 with 10:37 to go.

The Hawks missed their first nine shots of the fourth but only trailed 81-77. Gallinari then connected on a trey to close the Hawks within one.

When Young drove to the basket and scored with 5:11 left, the Hawks took an 86-84 lead.

Embiid responded with a jumper with 4:14 remaining to tie the game at 86.

Young drained a deep 30-foot trey with 2:31 to go and the Hawks led 93-87.

The Sixers went on a 5-0 run to close within one with 1:09 remaining.

Huerter was then fouled on a 3-pointer and dropped in all three for a 96-92 lead with 54 seconds left.

-reuters

LeBron powers Lakers past Hawks

LOS ANGELES – LeBron James scored 33 points as the Los Angeles Lakers cruised to a 122-101 win over the struggling Atlanta Hawks at the Staples Center here Sunday (Monday, Manila time).

The Lakers jumped out to a 25-point lead in the first quarter and never looked back.

Rajon Rondo scored 15 points and Anthony Davis added 14 as the Lakers posted their 11th win in their last 12 games since a season-opening loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Trae Young scored 31 points and Cam Reddish added 13 as the Hawks lost their third straight game.

Atlanta was blown out in Los Angeles for the second consecutive night after losing by 49 points to the Clippers.

Also, Denver's Jamal Murray scored 39 points and Paul Millsap added 23 to lead the Nuggets over host Memphis 131-114 for their fifth win in six road contests. Jaren Jackson led the Grizzlies with 22 points.

Tobias Harris scored 27 points to lead six Philadelphia players in double figures as the 76ers rolled to a 114-95 triumph at Cleveland.

Cameroon center Joel Embiid added 14 points for the 76ers and Australia's Ben Simmons had 10 points and 11 assists for Philadelphia. Collin Sexton led the Cavaliers with 17 points.


With Orlando clinging to a three-point lead, Magic guard Markelle Fultz made a steal and dunk then sank a free throw with 36 seconds remaining to lift the hosts over the Washington Wizards 125-121 in a matchup of struggling Eastern Conference clubs.

Montenegrin big man Nikola Vucevic led Orlando (6-7) with 30 points and 17 rebounds while Frenchman Evan Fournier had 25 points and Fultz had a 45-game career-high 19 points for the Magic, who ended a 4-1 homestand.

Bradley Beal scored 34 points to lead Washington (3-8) and crack the NBA career 10,000-point mark.

source: philstar.com

Durant powers Warriors past Hawks after Green's suspension

OAKLAND, Calif. — Kevin Durant scored 29 points with a key jumper in the final minute, a day after a shouting episode on the bench with Draymond Green led to his teammate's suspension Tuesday (Wednesday Manila time), and the undermanned Golden State Warriors held off the Atlanta Hawks, 110-103.

Klay Thompson added 24 points as Splash Brother Stephen Curry missed his third straight game with a strained left groin. The two-time MVP shuffled and danced as he celebrated big plays from the bench.

Taurean Prince scored 22 points, making four 3-pointers and finishing 8 for 14 from the floor in the Hawks' fifth straight loss and ninth in 10.

Durant led the way hours after the Warriors suspended All-Star Green for one game without pay for conduct detrimental to the team. He got into it with Durant on the bench at the end of regulation in a 121-116 overtime road loss to the Clippers and Green wasn't even at the arena Tuesday.

source: philstar.com

Hawks owner to sell team after another NBA racism scandal

NEW YORK – Atlanta Hawks co-owner Bruce Levenson said Sunday he’ll sell his controlling interest in the NBA team in the wake of racially charged remarks he made in an e-mail two years ago.

Levenson’s decision to voluntarily sell comes after the NBA’s ugly fight to remove Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling after racist remarks he made to a girlfriend became public.

After months of legal wrangling and resistance by Sterling, the Los Angeles club’s $2 billion sale to former Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer was made official in August.

Levenson, who has been the Hawks’ controlling owner since 2004, clearly hopes to spare the NBA a similar episode.

“After much long and difficult contemplation, I have decided that it is in the best interests of the team, the Atlanta community, and the NBA to sell my controlling interest in the Hawks franchise,” he said in a statement on Sunday.

He said chief executive Steve Koonin will oversee all team operations and take all organizational reports as the sale process proceeds.

Levenson said he was “truly embarrassed” by the words in the e-mail, which he said were “inappropriate and offensive”.

Writing to Hawks President Danny Ferry, Levenson tries to address issues relating to low attendance and the need for more season ticket holders and corporate sponsorship — giving the opinion that the team needed to attract more affluent white fans.

In the e-mail Levenson says he believes “the black crowd scared away the whites and there are simply not enough affluent black fans to build a signficant season ticket base.”

Levenson says the e-mail “trivialized our fans by making cliched assumptions about their interests (i.e. hip hop vs. country, white vs. black cheerleaders, etc.) and by stereotyping their perceptions of one another (i.e. that white fans might be afraid of our black fans).

“By focusing on race, I also sent the unintentional and hurtful message that our white fans are more valuable than our black fans.”

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, who banned Sterling for life from all league activities, praised Levenson for notifying the league himself of the e-mail.

The league launched its own investigation into the circumstances, but Levenson told Silver he was selling before the probe was completed.

“As Mr. Levenson acknowledged, the views he expressed are entirely unacceptable and are in stark contrast to the core principles of the National Basketball Association,” Silver said.

“He shared with me how truly remorseful he is for using those hurtful words and how apologetic he is to the entire NBA family — fans, players, team employees, business partners and fellow team owners — for having diverted attention away from our game.

“I commend Mr. Levenson for self-reporting to the league office, for being fully cooperative with the league and its independent investigator, and for putting the best interests of the Hawks, the Atlanta community, and the NBA first,” the commissioner said.

Zero tolerance

Koonin issued a statement of his own, posted on the team’s website, calling Levenson’s statement “extremely disappointing” and the e-mail in question “alarming, offensive and most of all, completely unacceptable …

“In partnership with the NBA, we will work to ensure that a new ownership team will be put in place that is united and committed to the Atlanta community.”

When the recording of Sterling’s comments scolding V. Stiviano for associating with black friends was made public by TMZ.com in April, Levenson was among the NBA owners to quickly denounce the 80-year-old Clippers owner.

At the time, Levenson, the co-founder of United Communications Group, told an Atlanta radio station the league should have “zero tolerance” for racism and discrimination.

The scandal roiled the entire NBA, and in the storm that followed, Sterling initially agreed to the sale of the team, but then abruptly withdrew his support.

His wife, however, moved to sell the Clippers as a trustee of the family trust that owned the team after Sterling had been declared mentally incapacitated — triggering a court battle between husband and wife.

interaksyon.com

Kevin Durant scores 41, hits game-winning shot to lift Thunder past Hawks

OKLAHOMA CITY — NBA games in late January are supposed to be tedious. With the All-Star break around the corner, many players and teams don’t put much stock into them.

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant is not one of them. On a night he described as emotional, the MVP candidate scored 41 points and hit the game-winning shot in a 111-109 comeback victory over the Atlanta Hawks Monday at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.

“I’m just trying to inspire the team by my play,” Durant said. “Just playing hard. Being emotional, hopefully it helps. Sometimes it may not. I got to take that risk. Take that chance. That’s how I am on the court. I’m an emotional player. I know we play a lot of games. A lot of people say January don’t mean anything. But when you are playing this game with your heart and passion like we do, sometimes you have to sit back and just enjoy it.”

With 2:34 left on the clock, Durant went to the foul line and hit one of two to close Atlanta’s (23-21) lead down to 107-105. Hawks forward Paul Millsap missed a jumper and Durant made him pay with a contested layup to tie the game.

Millsap tried to post up guard Reggie Jackson but Durant came from behind with the blocked shot.

After another loose-ball scramble, the Hawks got a wide-open 3-point attempt that was off. But Millsap got the rebound. However, a few seconds later, Millsap was called for traveling and Oklahoma City (36-10) got the ball back with 34 seconds on the clock.

Coming out of a timeout, guard Derek Fisher got the ball to Durant. With Atlanta forward DeMarre Carroll guarding him, Durant hit a step-back jumper to put the Thunder up 109-107 with 25 seconds left.

Millsap answered right back when he drove into the lane and flipped a left-handed shot over guard Thabo Sefolosha. With 22 seconds left, the Thunder took over. Durant got the ball with seven seconds remaining at the top of the key and quickly recognized the “San Antonio umbrella defense” as the Hawks sent a double-team at him. He drove the other way and knocked down a 15-foot jumper with 1.5 seconds left.

“I was going to pass it, then I saw I was in my spot and I just had to pull up,” Durant said.

Atlanta was unable to get a shot off in the final seconds. Along with Durant’s 41 points (15-for-25), he collected five assists and three blocked shots. He also extended his scoring streak to 11 games with at least 30 points.

Jackson added 18 points and five assists. Forward Serge Ibaka had six blocked shots and nine points.

The Hawks had seven players score in double figures. Millsap led with 23 points on 9-for-19 shooting. Guard Shelvin Mack and Carroll each posted 15 points. Forward Mike Scott came off the bench to score 16 points.

“Losing is very hard in this league and our guys are hurting,” Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said. “You have to give Oklahoma City a lot of credit. It was a heck of a fourth quarter and a heck of a basketball game. They made a couple of more plays than we did.”

The Hawks bullied the Thunder on the offensive backboards. Even though they only had a 15-10 advantage, they led in 31-15 in second-chance points.

But that wasn’t enough to offset Durant’s clutch fourth quarter, which has become the norm for the league’s leading scorer.

“It was an emotional game,” Durant said. “I was up and down the whole game. My emotions were everywhere. So I just had to try and keep it together at the end of the game and come through for my team. By the grace of God, I was able to hit a few shots.”

NOTES: For the second week in a row and the fourth time this season, Oklahoma City F Kevin Durant was named the NBA’s Western Conference Player of the Week after averaging 38.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and 6.3 assists for games played Jan. 20 through Jan. 26. Durant was joined on the court by the Eastern Conference Player of the Week, Atlanta F Paul Millsap. He led the Hawks to a 3-1 record while posting 21.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.5 steals. “I think that’s a huge compliment to him,” Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said. “Obviously he’s been great for us all year. To get that recognition is something that is good for him and good for our group.” … Atlanta G Kyle Korver hit a 3-pointer to start the game. It extended his streak to 113 consecutive games with a 3-pointer. … Oklahoma City continued its tradition of honoring the military with the sixth annual Military Appreciation Night Monday. More than 1,000 military personnel were in attendance for the game against Atlanta. “I think it’s great,” Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said. “It’s very cool to see. Our season ticket holders are very generous to give up a lot of their tickets for tonight. It’s an honor for us to have them here. I wouldn’t be surprised one day in the future if all 19,000 of our season ticket holders give it up for a game.”

source: interaksyon.com