NBA: Celtics use huge second-half run to topple Jokic, Nuggets

Jayson Tatum had 28 points and 10 rebounds, Jaylen Brown finished with 20 points and eight rebounds and the visiting Boston Celtics rallied to beat the Denver Nuggets 105-87 on Sunday.

Marcus Smart and Kemba Walker scored 14 each and Robert Williams III scored 10 points for the Celtics, who went on a 31-3 run in the third and fourth quarters.

Nikola Jokic had 17 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, Michael Porter Jr. had 22 points and 11 rebounds, Facundo Campazzo scored 14 and Will Barton had 13 for Denver. The Nuggets had their eight-game winning streak snapped.

Denver led 79-65 with 2:17 left in the third quarter but the Celtics took control from that point.

Walker scored seven points, Brown had six to get Boston within a point early in the fourth quarter, and Langford hit two free throws to give the Celtics an 80-79 lead, their first of the game.

The Nuggets missed 10 straight shots and had five turnovers following Campazzo's 3-pointer that put them ahead by 14. The run ended with Monte Morris' jumper with 10-footer with 7:08 remaining.

Tatum then hit a jumper and a long 3-pointer to give Boston a 90-82 lead with 6:20 left.

Jokic got a rebound to get his 14th triple-double of the season and 55th of his career but he turned it over, leading to a dunk by Williams. The Celtics made two more field goals after misses by Jokic to push the lead to 96-82 with 4:41 left.

Porter's three-point play broke another Denver drought and was just the second Nuggets field goal since late in the third quarter.

The Nuggets scored just eight points over the final 14:17 of the game and missed 22 of their final 25 shots.

Denver led by 14 late in the first quarter and by 11 in the final minute of the second after two free throws by Porter. Smart hit a 3-pointer and Tatum a layup with less than a second left in the period to cut the Nuggets' lead to 51-45 at halftime.

-reuters

Celtics eye Walker for $141M

MANILA, Philippines — The Boston Celtics are expected to make All-Star guard Kemba Walker a four-year, $141 million contract offer when free agency opens Sunday, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported.

Walker, who spent his first eight seasons in the league with the Charlotte Hornets, is expected to accept the offer, Wojnarowski reported, citing league sources.

Just two weeks ago, Walker said he would take less than the five-year, $221 million “supermax” contract only the Hornets could offer him to stay in Charlotte.

Wojnarowski reported Thursday, however, that Hornets owner Michael Jordan no longer is “determined to extend far enough financially to re-sign his franchise player.”

In Boston, Walker would replace Kyrie Irving, who is expected to sign elsewhere. The 29-year-old Connecticut product averaged 25.6 points and 5.9 assists while starting all 82 games for the Hornets last season.

• The Los Angeles Lakers reworked their trade for Anthony Davis to clear enough cap space to sign a free agent to a max deal, according to multiple reports.

The Lakers expanded their pending deal with the New Orleans Pelicans by adding the Washington Wizards, who will receive center Mo Wagner, guard Isaac Bonga and forward Jemerrio Jones, as well as a future second-round pick, from Los Angeles, according to ESPN. The Wizards will send the Pelicans $1.1 million, the Washington Post reported.

Davis also agreed to waive his $4 million trade bonus, giving the team $32 million for the free agency period, which begins Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. Contracts cannot be signed until July 6.

• LeBron James is set to give his No. 23 to Davis, according to Yahoo Sports.

The NBA has been told of the planned change, according to the report.

Davis wore No. 23 during his seven years in New Orleans, and James wore it during his 11 seasons in Cleveland and last year with the Lakers. James chose No. 6 when he joined the Miami Heat in 2010 and played there four seasons. What number James will pick with the Lakers is up in the air.

• The New York Knicks still have hopes of signing Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant or Kawhi Leonard but are preparing for the possibility they don’t land the one they seemingly covet the most: Durant.

The New York Times’ Marc Stein reported the Knicks could offer a one-year contract to Durant’s Golden State Warriors teammate, 6-foot-11 center DeMarcus Cousins, if they can’t lure Durant to Madison Square Garden.

Cousins, who will turn 29 before the season starts, was a four-time All-Star with the Sacramento Kings and New Orleans Pelicans. He suffered a ruptured left Achilles tendon playing for the Pelicans against the Houston Rockets on Jan. 26, 2018, and returned to the NBA a year later.

• The Celtics will hire former WNBA and Olympic champion Kara Lawson as an assistant coach, ESPN reported.

Lawson, 38, has been a TV analyst for ESPN and the Washington Wizards.

source: philstar.com

Al Jefferson stars as Bobcats end Knicks’ win streak

Bobcats 108, Knicks 98: Al Jefferson exploded for a season-best 35 points as Charlotte ended visiting New York’s five-game winning streak.

Jefferson was a force on the offensive end, hitting 14-of-20 shots as the Bobcats won for just the second time in their past 10 games. Kemba Walker poured in 25 points while Gerald Henderson added 17 in the win.

Carmelo Anthony’s 20 points paced the Knicks, who trail 2-1 in the season series. Amar’e Stoudemire had 17 points while Raymond Felton added 13.

Jefferson’s 19 points and a 17-3 run to end the half gave the Bobcats a 55-46 edge at the break. The lead grew to double digits on a Walker jumper early in the third quarter, but New York whittled down the deficit on a late run fueled by seven points from Anthony to go into the fourth trailing 78-73.

Walker delighted the home crowd with a long 3-pointer from the right wing to extend the advantage to nine, and he hit another 3 on Charlotte’s next possession with 8:36 left. He then put the finishing touches on the victory with a 19-footer that quelled a New York rally with just under five minutes remaining.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Bobcats SG Michael Kidd-Gilchrist finished with eight points and seven rebounds in his first action since missing five weeks with a broken hand. … After returning from a benching to appear in back-to-back games, New York G J.R. Smith did not play against Charlotte. No reason was given for his absence. … Knicks C Tyson Chandler had five points and four rebounds in 16 minutes in his return from a four-game absence due to bronchitis.

source: interaksyon.com