NBA Jazz trade with Hawks for big man Collins

NEW YORK, United States - The NBA's Utah Jazz obtained forward John Collins from the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for swingman Rudy Gay and a future NBA Draft pick, according to multiple reports on Monday.

The deal, which cannot be completed until July 6 under league rules as a new free agency period looms, opens a $25.3 million trade exception, the largest in the NBA, for the Hawks, according to reports by ESPN and The Athletic.

Collins, a 25-year-old Utah native entering his seventh NBA campaign, averaged 13.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.0 blocked shots a game for Atlanta this past season.

With the Jazz, Collins will be on a frontline alongside Finnish forward Lauri Markkanen, last year's NBA Most Improved Player with a career-best 25.6 points a game, and All-Rookie center Walker Kessler, who averaged 9.2 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.3 blocked shots -- fourth-most in the NBA -- per game.

The Hawks have a year to use the trade exception, which could be used to help Atlanta keep free agents or chase available talent to add alongside All-Star guard Trae Young.

Gay, 36, is a 17-year NBA veteran who averaged 5.2 points and 2.9 rebounds a game in a reserve role for the Jazz last season.

Utah went 37-45 last season, three games behind Oklahoma City for the final Western Conference play-in berth.

Atlanta went 41-41 and grabbed the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs after a play-in triumph over Miami, but the Hawks were ousted by Boston in the opening round of the playoffs.

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Luka Doncic-led Mavericks hand Jazz fourth straight setback

Luka Doncic scored 32 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, Jalen Brunson added another double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds, and the Dallas Mavericks took over fourth place in the Western Conference and handed the visiting Utah Jazz their fourth consecutive loss, 114-100 on Sunday.

After trailing for almost the entire first half and by as many as 11 points, Dallas (46-29) came alive in the third quarter. Dorian Finney-Smith knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and Brunson added one of his own, part of a 14-4 Mavericks run in the first 3:33 coming out of intermission.

Dallas outscored Utah in the third quarter, 32-20, then erupted for a 17-9 run over the first 5:55 of the fourth quarter to effectively put the game away.

The Mavericks held Donovan Mitchell, averaging 26.1 points per game coming into Sunday's matchup, to 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting. He was a non-factor in the second half at 1-of-3 shooting from the floor.

Mitchell also shot just 1-of-4 from beyond the 3-point arc, part of a 12-of-34 performance from long range for the Jazz (45-30). Dallas shot 17-of-34 from deep, paced by Reggie Bullock's career-high-tying seven made on 11 attempts.

Bullock finished with 23 points. Spencer Dinwiddie added 12 points off the bench.

While three Mavericks scored at least 22 points, no one from Utah finished with more than 18. Rudy Gay led the Jazz with 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds, second on the team to Juancho Hernangomez's nine.

Jordan Clarkson shot 3-of-5 from 3-point range for 14 points off the bench, Trent Forrest chipped in another 10 points from the bench, and Mike Conley led the Utah starters with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor. Conley also dished a game-high seven assists.

Sunday's win pushed Dallas ahead of Utah for fourth place in the West with seven games remaining on its schedule.

-reuters

NBA: Celtics roll past Jazz for 5th straight victory

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown each scored 26 points to lead the Boston Celtics to a 125-97 win over the visiting Utah Jazz on Wednesday night.

Boston (46-28) led by as many as 32 points on the way to its fifth consecutive win and snapped a four-game losing streak against Utah (45-28).

Robert Williams III added 12 points and 10 rebounds to lead four other Celtics in double figures. Marcus Smart fired off nine of his career-high 13 assists in the first quarter.

Donovan Mitchell had 37 points to lead the Jazz, who have lost back-to-back games after a three-game winning streak.

Boston's lead was cut to 18 on Mitchell's 3-pointer with 6:41 to go in the third quarter, but 12 of the next 15 points went the hosts' way and made it a 27-point edge again. Derrick White ended that stretch with a corner 3-pointer at the 3:32 mark.

The Celtics hit three of their first four field goals in the fourth quarter, capped by a Payton Pritchard trey with 9:49 left. With the starters out, a Luke Kornet turnaround hook shot with 1:12 left gave Boston its largest lead at 123-91.

The teams put on an offensive clinic in the first half, combining for 26 points over the opening four minutes. But it didn't take long for the Celtics to start coasting.

Boston jumped out to a six-point lead in that initial span and extended it throughout the first quarter. At the buzzer, it was a 39-24 game and the Celtics had shot 15-for-19 from the field.

The hosts hit 10 straight field goals and six from 3-point range to start before missing their first shot at the 4:05 mark. Tatum canned three of the team's six first-quarter threes, while Brown was 5-for-6 inside the arc and hit his only triple for a game-high 13 points.

In the second quarter, Pritchard hit a hook shot that gave Boston a 30-point lead with 5:54 left.

Utah ended the opening half with six straight points. Mitchell led the Jazz with 19 in the first half, shooting 7-for-13 from the field.

-reuters

NBA: Kevin Durant scores 37 as scorching Nets top Jazz

Kevin Durant scored 15 of his 37 points in the third quarter as the Brooklyn Nets surged ahead and held on for a 114-106 victory over the Utah Jazz on Monday night in New York.

The Nets won for the sixth time in seven games following a 3-17 skid as Durant posted his 20th 30-point showing of the season. He made 5 of 7 shots in the third when the Nets shot 60.9 percent (14 of 23) and outscored Utah 38-24.

Durant finished 15 of 23 from the floor and scored at least 35 points in consecutive games for the first time this season. He added nine rebounds and also collected eight of Brooklyn's 31 assists.

Bruce Brown added a season-best 22 points with seven rebounds and five assists as the Nets shot 54.2 percent. Nic Claxton filled in for starting center Andre Drummond (non-COVID illness) and added 11 of his 15 in the decisive third.

Patty Mills contributed 13 as the Nets began taking control shortly after Seth Curry exited with a left ankle sprain. Curry slipped on a wet spot opposite Utah's bench with about four minutes left in the second quarter and was ruled out for the game at halftime.

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points on 9-for-23 shooting as the Jazz saw their three-game winning streak stopped. Jordan Clarkson added 19 and Mike Conley chipped in 18 with seven assists as Utah was held to 44.6 percent from the field.

Clarkson scored 10 points as the Jazz took a 28-25 lead when he hit a 3-pointer with 17 seconds left in the opening quarter. The Jazz went scoreless for the final 3:01 of the second as the Nets ripped off eight straight points for a 53-51 lead by halftime.

Brooklyn ripped off a 10-0 run to get a 75-62 lead on Durant's 12-footer with 6:24 remaining. Brooklyn stretched the lead to 84-68 when Durant knocked down a 3-pointer with 2:52 remaining and held a 91-75 edge into the fourth.

Durant appeared to clinch it by hitting an 11-footer and a 3-pointer on consecutive possessions to give Brooklyn a 108-87 lead with 6:09 remaining.

Utah was within 110-102 on Rudy Gobert's dunk with 98 seconds left but Durant hit a 10-footer on the next possession. Following an errant pass by Blake Griffin, Mitchell hit two free throws to make it 112-106 with 57.2 seconds left but Durant connected with Claxton for an alley-oop dunk with 37.4 seconds left.

-reuters

Popovich sets coaching wins record, as Spurs clip Jazz

Gregg Popovich became the NBA's all-time leader in regular-season coaching wins after his San Antonio Spurs rallied from 15 points down in the fourth quarter to beat the visiting Utah Jazz 104-102 on Friday.

The victory lifted Popovich to 1,336 wins, breaking a tie with Don Nelson. Popovich, in his 26th NBA season, all with the Spurs, tied the record on March 7 via a victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, but lost their next game.

The Spurs trailed by 10 entering the 4th quarter and by 15 with 10:02 left in the game, but they rallied and were up 98-95 after Jakob Poeltl made a floater with 31.3 seconds remaining. Utah's Donovan Mitchell canned a jumper with 17.6 seconds left to cut the lead to a point.

Josh Richardson then made 1 free throw with 14.2 seconds to play but missed the 2nd. The Spurs' Keldon Johnson swooped in for the offensive rebound, was fouled, and made both of the free throws with 12.5 seconds remaining to make it a 4-point game.Mitchell's bucket with 5.9 seconds to play cut the lead back to 2, before Dejounte Murray made a pair of free throws with 4.8 seconds left.

Utah's Rudy Gay hit a 3-pointer with 2 seconds left, but Murray added another free throw and the Jazz could not get off another shot.

San Antonio had been 0 for 33 in games it was trailing entering the fourth quarter.

Murray led the Spurs with 27 points, with Poeltl adding 15 points and 11 rebounds. Zach Collins also scored 15 points, Johnson finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds, and Richardson and Lonnie Walker IV scored 11 points each.

Mitchell scored 24 points to lead the Jazz. Jordan Clarkson had 17, and Rudy Gobert (13 points, 16 rebounds) and Hassan Whiteside (13 points and 10 rebounds) recorded double-doubles for Utah.

Mitchell scored 10 points in a stretch of the second period when the Jazz turned a two-point deficit into a 57-45 lead with 2:22 to play in the half.

Utah took a 59-50 advantage into the break behind Mitchell's 18 points in the first half. The Jazz hit 9 of its 22 shots from beyond the arc in the half, with Mitchell making 4 of 8.

Collins paced the Spurs with 13 points in the half and Murray added 12. San Antonio shot only 39.5 percent in the half.

-reuters

NBA: Karl-Anthony Towns leads Wild past struggling Jazz

Karl-Anthony Towns posted a triple-double with 31 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, and the Minnesota Timberwolves pulled away for a 126-106 win over the Utah Jazz on Sunday night in Minneapolis.

Jaden McDaniels added 22 points on a perfect 9-for-9 shooting performance for Minnesota, which snapped a two-game skid. Anthony Edwards scored 15 points and Jordan McLaughlin had 12.

Bojan Bogdanovic scored 23 points on 7-for-11 shooting to lead Utah, which has lost a season-worst five games in a row. Mike Conley scored 22, and Jordan Clarkson had 17 off the bench.

Utah played without Donovan Mitchell (concussion) and Rudy Gobert (left calf strain). The Timberwolves did not have D'Angelo Russell (shin).

Minnesota posted a 40-27 advantage in the third quarter to build a 92-75 lead entering the final 12 minutes.

Conley made a driving layup to trim the Minnesota lead to 54-53 with 9:39 left in the third quarter. From there, the Timberwolves took charge with a 22-7 run over the next 5:22 to pull ahead 76-60 with 4:17 remaining.

Minnesota increased its lead to 19 in the final minute of the third quarter before Clarkson made two free throws to cut it back to 17.

The Jazz never threatened in the fourth quarter, as Minnesota went ahead by 20 points with 9:12 remaining on a 3-pointer by Taurean Prince.

Minnesota led 52-48 at the half.

The Timberwolves opened an eight-point lead late in the first quarter. Jaylen Nowell made a pull-up jump shot to increase the advantage to 26-18 with 52.6 seconds remaining.

In the second quarter, the Jazz went on a 9-0 run to grab the lead. Bogdanovic buried a pair of 3-pointers during the run, and Rudy Gay also drained a shot from beyond the arc.

Utah increased its lead to 48-41 later in the quarter on another 3-pointer by Bogdanovic, this time with 2:23 to go in the first half.

Minnesota closed the half on an 11-0 run to take the lead into intermission. McDaniels and Towns each made a 3-pointer, Edwards and Nowell added baskets and Jarred Vanderbilt contributed a free throw.

-reuters

NBA: Jazz remain on roll, defeat Clippers for 8th straight win

Donovan Mitchell scored 19 of his 27 points in the second half and three other Utah Jazz players scored at least 20 points in a 124-103 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night in Salt Lake City.

Jordan Clarkson scored 21 points, Rudy Gobert tallied 20 points with 17 rebounds and Bojan Bogdanovic added 20 points to help lift the Jazz to their eighth straight win.

Marcus Morris Sr. led the Clippers with 24 points and eight rebounds, while Eric Bledsoe contributed 21 points with eight assists as Los Angeles saw its four-game winning streak come to an end.

The Clippers played without Paul George (sore right elbow) for a fourth straight game. Kawhi Leonard (knee) and Nicolas Batum (ankle) were also on the sideline for this rematch of the 2021 Western Conference semifinals.

Mitchell, who had a quiet first half, gave Utah its first double-digit lead, 76-65, with 7:18 left in the third quarter. Mitchell continued to attack the basket and finished with 13 points in that quarter after scoring just eight in the opening half.

Mike Conley opened the quarter with a 3 and closed it with a bucket to put Utah up 93-81. He finished with nine points.

The Jazz outscored the Clippers 31-22 in the fourth quarter to ice the victory.

Utah scored the final six points of the first quarter to take a 35-31 lead.

The Jazz were up 38-33 when the Clippers went on a tear, scoring 12 straight sparked by back-to-back 3-pointers from Jackson and Bledsoe. Ivica Zubac then gave L.A. its biggest lead at 47-40.

Utah responded with a 13-2 surge, which included seven points from Clarkson. That helped the Jazz go into the break ahead 65-59.

Hassan Whiteside had another nice game for Utah off the bench with 11 points and seven rebounds, while starter Royce O'Neale added seven points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.

-reuters

NBA: Donovan Mitchell scores 27 to lead Jazz over Hawks

Donovan Mitchell scored 27 points to lead five Utah Jazz players in double digits en route to a 110-98 home win over the struggling Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night in Salt Lake City.

Utah's defense, led by reigning Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert, also had a big night, holding the Hawks to just 18 points in the fourth quarter and to 43.5 percent shooting overall. 

The Jazz also held Kevin Huerter and Trae Young scoreless in the final quarter after they scored 28 and 27 points, respectively, in the first 36 minutes.

Atlanta, in the midst of a tough four-game Western Conference road trip, dropped its fifth straight game. The Jazz, meanwhile, began a five-game homestand on the right note after playing seven of their first 10 games on the road.

Utah also had a low-scoring fourth quarter with just 15 points, but they had a timely 8-0 offensive spurt to turn a competitive game into a blowout. Mitchell sparked that surge with a 3-pointer after which he waved his arms to the crowd to cheer louder.

Soon after, Jordan Clarkson hit a 3 and Hassan Whiteside scored inside to help Utah go ahead 108-93. That advantage proved big enough to help the Jazz bounce back after losing a pair of road games in Florida over the weekend.

Clarkson had 16 points and Bojan Bogdanovic scored 18 points for the Jazz, and Whiteside contributed eight points and eight rebounds off the bench in one of his best outings with his new team. Royce O'Neale added 11 points and Mike Conley dished out six assists with 12 points.

Young scored the final five points of the half to bring the Hawks within a dozen points at halftime at 62-50. He carried that momentum over to the third quarter by making a floater that sparked an 8-0 run finished by 3-pointers from John Collins and Huerter. Overall, that was a 13-0 run for Atlanta. Young then followed a Mitchell jumper with a 3-pointer to pull Atlanta within 64-61.

Fueled by Mitchell and Gobert, Utah used a 7-0 run to again go up by double figures at 75-64. A 13-2 run near the end of the third quarter helped the Jazz take a 95-77 advantage.

Lou Williams hit a 3 to make it 98-91 as the Hawks began the fourth with renewed energy and an 11-3 run, but the Jazz finished tough for the win.

-reuters

NBA: Donovan Mitchell's 28 pace Utah past Milwaukee

Donovan Mitchell scored 28, including 11 in the fourth quarter, and Mike Conley Jr. netted 20 points in his return to the lineup as the visiting Utah Jazz defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 107-95 on Sunday night.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 25 points, seven rebounds and six assists, but Milwaukee still fell at home for the third time in its three-game homestand. Kris Middleton didn't play because of a non-COVID-19 illness.

Utah led for most of the game -- and never trailed -- but the Bucks got within four points late in the fourth quarter after trailing by as many as 17. Grayson Allen's hot hand played a big role in that rally, as the former Jazzman scored seven of his 18 points in the final minutes.

Jordan Clarkson, who had 15 points despite an 0-for-7 night from beyond the arc, put Utah up 84-67 late in the third quarter.

The Bucks chipped away at the lead to get within seven after two George Hill baskets made it 86-79 with eight minutes to go. A Bobby Portis Jr. jumpshot cut the deficit to five a minute and a half later.

That's when Mitchell went to work, scoring seven points in just over two minutes as Utah pulled ahead 99-87 with just over three minutes remaining.

The Bucks weren't quite finished, though.

Allen, the former Jazz player who replaced Giannis Antetokounmpo late in the game, sandwiched a pair of 3-pointers around a Thanasis Antetokounmpo dunk as Milwaukee clawed back to make it a four-point game, 99-95, with 1:39 remaining.

Mitchell padded the Jazz's lead to six with an 8-foot shot, and Royce O'Neale made a huge defensive play by blocking an Allen 3-point attempt to all but end the Bucks' comeback effort.

The victory was the fifth in six games for Utah, which suffered its first loss of the season in Chicago on Saturday night. The defending champion Bucks, meanwhile, dipped below .500 with a third-straight loss.

-reuters

NBA: Jazz top Kings to finish with best record in NBA

Jordan Clarkson scored 33 points and made six 3-pointers and Bojan Bogdanovic added 18 to lead the Utah Jazz to a 121-99 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Sunday night.

Rudy Gobert added 13 points and 16 rebounds. Mike Conley chipped in 11 points, nine assists, and six rebounds. Utah (52-20) clinched the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference and will have home-court advantage throughout the playoffs after finishing with the league's best regular-season record.

Terence Davis scored 20 points to lead the Kings. Damian Jones chipped in 19 points. Buddy Hield added 13 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for Sacramento.

The Kings (31-41) rested several key players in their final game of the season. De'Aaron Fox, Tyrese Haliburton, Harrison Barnes, Marvin Bagley III and Richaun Holmes were all the sidelines but being short-handed did not faze Sacramento early in the game.Utah played sloppy to start the first quarter. The Jazz had six turnovers compared to only five baskets in the game's first nine minutes.

Sacramento took advantage, ripping off an 11-0 run to stake an 11-5 lead. Delon Wright assisted a basket to start the run and capped it off with a 3-pointer. Utah climbed back to within a point on a 3-point play from Clarkson. 

The Kings answered with a 14-3 run -- highlighted by three straight baskets from Davis -- to extend their lead to 25-13.

Clarkson helped Utah erase the deficit before the first quarter ended. The Jazz scored on six straight possessions to mount a 15-0 run. Clarkson scored three baskets to help Utah reclaim a 28-25 lead going into the second quarter.

The Kings struggled to keep pace as the second quarter progressed. After Sacramento trimmed Utah's lead to 50-45 on back-to-back baskets from Wright and Jahmi'us Ramsey, the Jazz closed the half on a 14-4 run to take a 64-49 lead. Conley scored a pair of baskets and assisted another to fuel the run.

Utah put the game out of reach after opening the third quarter with a 20-6 run. Clarkson capped the run with a pair of 3-pointers that gave the Jazz an 84-55 lead.

-reuters

Another solid night for Giannis Antetokounmpo as Bucks trip Jazz

MILWAUKEE  — After not playing at all in the Milwaukee Bucks’ previous game, Thon Maker got a chance to shine in a hard-fought win over the Utah Jazz on Monday night.

Maker had a season-high 15 points off the bench for the Bucks, who clamped down on defense in the second half to secure a 114-102 victory.

“We won the game because of him,” said Giannis Antetokounmpo, who led the Bucks with 30 points. “He brought energy, played hard, he made shots. It was just amazing seeing Thon compete hard out there.”

Maker had seen regular minutes off the bench recently with Ersan Ilyasova out with a broken nose. His playing time diminished after Ilyasova’s return and the emergence of second-year player D.J. Wilson.

“That’s when your professionalism comes in,” Maker said. “You’ve just got to stay ready whenever your name is called.”


Maker shot 6 of 8 from the field, including 2 for 3 from beyond the arc.

Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said Maker’s performance “flipped the script.”

“He made a lot of different things happen on the court,” Budenholzer said. “I really feel like he was a difference-maker tonight.”

Budenholzer specifically pointed to Maker’s three-point play early in the fourth quarter after Utah had made a 3 on the other end.

“He was a spark plug for us,” Brook Lopez said. “He had such great energy and emotion. He got us going, he got the crowd going and everyone on the bench was going. We really fed off him tonight.”

Malcolm Brogdon added 21 points for the Bucks, who were coming off a 123-116 loss to Toronto on Saturday night. Milwaukee improved to 28-11, the second-best record in the NBA.

Donovan Mitchell scored 26 points and Rudy Gobert had 14 points and 15 rebounds for the Jazz, who lost starting point guard Ricky Rubio to a right hamstring injury less than five minutes into the game. He didn’t return.

“We can’t sulk,” Mitchell said. “We’ve got to go out there and compete.”

The Jazz held a three-point advantage heading to the fourth quarter, but Milwaukee grabbed control late after Brogdon’s 3-pointer pushed its lead to 105-99. The Bucks built the margin to eight with about three minutes left on two free throws by Lopez, who nailed a deep 3 about a minute later to give Milwaukee an 11-point cushion and seal the victory.

Antetokounmpo, who grabbed 10 rebounds, fouled out with 42.9 seconds remaining.

After a tightly contested first half, the Jazz opened an 11-point lead early in the third quarter before the Bucks stormed back, taking a lead late in the period when Brogdon hit back-to-back shots. Utah rebounded and led 86-83 heading into the fourth.


The Jazz were up 62-58 at halftime, with Mitchell providing 15 points and Jae Crowder adding 11 off the bench. The first half featured 19 lead changes and eight ties.

GETTING DEFENSIVE

After allowing 62 points in the first half, the Bucks held the Jazz to 40 in the second half.

“We weren’t very happy at halftime with our defense,” Budenholzer said. “The way we improved and got better in the second half gave us a chance to find a way offensively in the fourth quarter.”

Utah scored just 16 points in the fourth quarter.

“We had some open looks,” Jazz coach Quin Snyder said. “We just weren’t able to get them to go.”

STAT LINE

The Bucks scored 68 points in the paint to 36 for the Jazz. Milwaukee also had a 19-2 edge in fast-break points.

BOUNCING BACK

Milwaukee hasn’t lost back-to-back games this season, improving to 11-0 after a loss.

TIP-INS

Jazz: Rubio scored nine points on 4-of-5 shooting before exiting. … Gobert had 12 rebounds in the first half, matching his average for a full game this season.

Bucks: Wilson didn’t play due to a left hip pointer. Budenholzer said he is hopeful Wilson will be able to return Wednesday at Houston. … G Donte DiVincenzo sat out with right ankle soreness. “It’s a little bit of a recurring theme,” Budenholzer said. “There wasn’t an incident or twisted ankle or anything like that.” … Milwaukee recalled F Christian Wood from its G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd.

UP NEXT

Jazz: Host the Orlando Magic on Wednesday. Utah has won 12 of the last 16 meetings.

Bucks: At the Houston Rockets on Wednesday as the teams meet for the first time this season.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Mitchell, Gobert lead Jazz over Suns for 8th straight win

SALT LAKE CITY — When Ricky Rubio was shoved to the floor twice, it didn’t take long for the rest of his Utah Jazz teammates to come to his defense.

“On this team, we all love each other, so that makes it easy to stick up for each other,” rookie Donovan Mitchell said.

Mitchell scored 23 points to lead the Jazz to a 116-88 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Thursday night, their eighth consecutive victory.

“We have a group of guys here that put the team first and we all care about winning and defending,” said Rudy Gobert, who had 21 points and 13 rebounds.

Joe Ingles scored 17 points, including four 3-pointers, and Jae Crowder added 12 for the Jazz, who have won 20 of their last 22 games.

T.J. Warren paced Phoenix with 19 points while Josh Jackson had 17 and Devin Booker added 12. The Suns have lost seven in a row.

The Suns’ body language showed frustration and it boiled over as the Jazz took firm control of the game.

With Utah leading 69-50 in the third quarter, Rubio was headed full speed on a fast break when Jared Dudley body-blocked him to the floor, starting a scrum in front of the Suns bench. Dudley got a flagrant 2 foul and was ejected, along with Marquese Chriss for pushing Rubio back down after Dudley’s shove. Ingles and Mitchell were assessed technical fouls.

“I could understand why Marquese got ejected. That’s the only one though,” Phoenix coach Jay Triano said. “If you’re going to eject anybody else, Ingles ran in to instigate as much as anybody else did. And Mitchell. They were in there escalating rather than diffusing more than anybody. I don’t think there was a foul enough to warrant a flagrant 2.”

Ingles and Mitchell disagreed, saying they just backing up their point guard.

“There is a camaraderie and a sense of brotherhood and they defend each other,” Utah coach Quin Snyder said of his team.

Rubio had 12 points and 11 assists, and Dante Exum made his first appearance of the season for the Jazz and finished with 10 points.

With 1:16 left in the first quarter, Exum entered to a loud ovation after a long rehabilitation from shoulder surgery in October.

Because of Gobert’s presence, the Suns took a number of twisting high-arcing floaters and often cut short drives to the baskets. The Suns also committed 22 turnovers while struggling to get clean looks.

“(Gobert) definitely bothers a lot of shots around the basket,” Jackson said. “It’s definitely tougher when he’s out there on the floor.”

Spurred by Mitchell’s two dunks and a 3-pointer in the final two minutes, the Jazz opened a 56-43 lead at halftime after trailing early in the second quarter.

TIP-INS

Suns: Booker, who injured his right hand during practice Wednesday, was a game-time decision and couldn’t find much success against the Jazz. Facing a variety of defenders, Booker shot 3 for 18 and had four turnovers. … Starters Dragan Bender and Alex Len both went scoreless in the first half.

Jazz: Crowder has led the Jazz bench in scoring in 12 of the 14 games since coming over from Cleveland in a trade. … Utah ranks second in scoring defense and improved to 27-5 when holding opponents under the century mark.

THE EXUM FACTOR

Oft-injured point guard Dante Exum, who has played in just 149 games since he was drafted fifth in 2014, was cleared to play for the first time this season. “He made a choice that he was going to attack it. There’s been a determination … not just to rehabilitate his shoulder, but also to stay connected mentally and stay a part of the group is something that he’s (done). It would be easy to disconnect and become detached and wallow in your misery and he just didn’t do that,” Snyder said.

SCHOOL IN SESSION

Utah led by 20 in the fourth but Snyder was still coaching. While Mitchell celebrated an alley-oop to Gobert, Snyder called a timeout and charged out to mid-court to correct Mitchell’s positioning a couple plays earlier. “He wants me to understand matchups and situations,” the rookie said. “It’s all part of the learning process … for a coach to come out and talk to a player like that and help me out was huge.” Mitchell wasn’t embarrassed by being singled out.

UP NEXT

Suns: Host the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night.

Jazz: Host the Sacramento Kings on Saturday night.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Green shows range, leads Warriors past Jazz for 2-0 lead

OAKLAND, California — Draymond Green showed Quin Snyder his hot hand and range up close, knocking down five 3-pointers and scoring 21 points before a brief knee scare late in the Golden State Warriors’ 115-104 victory over the Utah Jazz on Thursday (Friday Manila time) for a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinals.

Kevin Durant added 25 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, while Stephen Curry had 23 points, seven assists and played smothering defense as Golden State stayed unblemished through six playoff games.

Gordon Hayward overcame a poor Game 1 and slow start in this one to score 33 points, and Rudy Gobert had 16 points and 16 rebounds before fouling out for a Jazz team missing injured point guard George Hill. He was ruled out earlier in the day because of a sore left big toe.

Game 3 is Saturday night in Salt Lake City.

Green received chants of “Dray-mond!” when he headed for the locker room with 7:24 to play, then cheers when he returned at the 5:16 mark. He came up awkwardly after hitting the floor on a drive, then grabbed at his left knee – which the team said he “tweaked.”

Snyder made it clear when the series began he won’t be alienating Green again by daring him to let it fly from long range – or saying anything that could be perceived as criticism.

Five months after the Jazz coach questioned Green’s perimeter range and commented about allowing the emotional Golden State star to shoot from way out, Snyder said before the game he had learned his lesson about fueling the All-Star forward.

Green has been fueling himself just fine, and his teammates, too – delivering on the offensive side this game after establishing the Warriors’ defensive intensity during the first five playoff games.

All his 3s were in the first half as the Warriors led wire to wire again. Golden State’s six straight victories to begin a postseason are a franchise record.

Green also had seven rebounds, six assists, four steals and another block to bring his six-game playoff total to 20.

The Jazz will have to hope more of their shots start falling once back home at altitude.

Hayward began 1 for 5 but bounced back after going 4 for 15 in Game 1.

Utah cut the lead to six on Rodney Hood’s jumper with 9:55 remaining in the third and trailed by 10 heading into the final 12 minutes. The Warriors went on a 5-0 run and the Jazz couldn’t do much more to threaten.

Shelvin Mack started in Hill’s place and scored 14.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr missed his fourth straight game as he deals with symptoms stemming from complications after two back surgeries following the 2015 championship run. Kerr won’t travel with the team to Utah as he seeks answers in his healing and goes to medical appointments. Mike Brown and a veteran coaching staff are leading the way.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Kobe scores 60 points in unbelievable farewell victory

LOS ANGELES — Kobe Bryant went out with a Hollywood ending to his remarkable career.

He scored 60 points in his final NBA game Wednesday night, wrapping up 20 years in the NBA with an unbelievable offensive showcase in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 101-96 victory over the Utah Jazz.

Bryant scored 23 points in the fourth quarter, posting his first 50-point game since February 2009 and rallying the Lakers from a 15-point deficit to win the final game of the worst season in franchise history.


With the entire Staples Center crowd standing, Bryant drained a 3-pointer with 59 seconds left. He hit another with 31 seconds to play, putting the Lakers ahead 97-96. He finished with an assist before checking out for good with 4.1 seconds left in just the Lakers’ 17th win of the worst season in franchise history.

Bryant took a career-high 50 shots to get there. He posted his highest-scoring performance since getting 61 against New York in 2009. It was the fifth highest-scoring game of his career, and he became the oldest player to score 50 points in an NBA game.

The entire night was a tribute to Bryant, who is retiring after 20 seasons, five championship rings and 18 All-Star selections with the Lakers, who honored him before and after the game. Bryant is just the fifth player in NBA history to play 20 seasons, and the first with just one team.

Between the whistles, Bryant and his teammates conspired for one last omnivorous scoring performance by the third-leading scorer in NBA history.

Bryant surpassed his previous career high of 47 shots, taken in a loss to Boston on Nov. 7, 2002.

It was daylong tribute with thousands of fans thronging the downtown streets around Staples Center and chanting his name from early afternoon. Fans lucky enough to get inside Staples Center greeted him with ovations at every opportunity. Magic Johnson anchored a brief pregame tribute by calling Bryant “the biggest and greatest celebrity we’ve had in this town for 20 years” and “the greatest to wear the purple and gold.”

After blowing kisses and pounding his heart before the game, Bryant got right to work on what the fans wanted to see. But he missed his first five shots before finally pump-faking and finally connecting on a jumper.

Bryant found a rhythm then, finishing the first quarter with 15 points on 13 shots. He kept it up after sitting out the first six minutes of the second, finishing with 22 points despite missing a last-minute shot, his 20th of the first half.

source: sports.inquirer.net