Category: Basketball

A rough offensive night for the Lakers left them struggling to find enough scoring to keep up with the Thunder in Game 1 as they fell to OKC, 108-90.

After a fast start to the contest, LA trailed OKC for the final three quarters. However, the lead would ebb and flow as the purple and gold had brief runs that seemed to get them back into the game.

Each time, though, the Thunder had a response to gain breathing room once more. By the end of the game, the Lakers had run out of gas as OKC had repeatedly found answers to the problems LA presented them.

The Lakers shot 41.7% from the field and 33.3% from the 3-point line. They turned the ball over 17 times, leading to 20 points for OKC.

LA started hot offensively, going up by seven early. OKC eventually caught up and tied the game, but LeBron continued his hot shooting. He was cooking with 10 points, the first player from either team in double figures. Chet Holmgren was leading the Thunder with seven points.

At the 6:56 mark, it was a tie game.

The Lakers did a great job defending Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who only had three points on two shot attempts. Los Angeles was shooting 47% from the field, while Oklahoma City was at 42%. 

At the 2:37 mark, LA was up by three. 

Jaylin Williams scored on a triple to tie it up again as part of a 9-2 OKC run to take a five-point lead going into the second. 

The Lakers led 24-22 with 1:44 left in the 1st Q, but allowed a 9-2 OKC run that put them down by 5 after 12 minutes of action.

LeBron's 12 points led all scorers.

— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) May 6, 2026

Both teams opened the second period missing their first shot attempts before Ajay Mitchell was fouled and converted on both free throws. Jared McCain then drained a 3-pointer, putting even more distance on OKC’s lead and forcing a timeout.

Ayton stopped the bleeding for LA with back-to-back baskets. 

The Lakers cut the deficit to three thanks to Ayton scoring again and Luke Kennard converting on three free throws. Cason Wallace stopped Los Angeles’ run with a triple. OKC responded well, giving themselves a bigger lead. 

Austin Reaves scored his first field goal on a layup. 

After a dunk by Holmgren, Jarred Vanderbilt, who was defending him, doubled over in pain and went straight to the locker room. He would eventually be ruled out for the game.

Marcus Smart splashed his first 3-pointer of the half. SGA started cooking, scoring a quick four points to make it a double-digit lead for Oklahoma City.

Smart stopped OKC’s 8-1 run with a triple. With the half winding down, Kennard knocked down a much-needed 3-pointer. On the other end, LeBron stole the ball and took it all the way for a dunk to make it a single-digit deficit. 

At halftime, the purple and gold were down by eight. 

The Thunder lead the Lakers 61-53 at the half. LeBron James has 16 points. Deandre Ayton has 10 and a team-high six rebounds. Luke Kennard has six points off the bench.

— Edwin Garcia (@ECreates88) May 6, 2026

Mitchell opened the third with a layup for the Thunder. After a few missed attempts from Ayton, Holmgren dunked on the other end. He was now up to 20 points. Smart got the Lakers on the board with a midrange jumper. 

LA continued to hang around with Smart scoring again, and Rui Hachimura knocked down his first 3-pointer of the game. 

It was a seven-point deficit at the 8:03 mark. Los Angeles was playing good defense and doing well, keeping themselves within striking distance. Hachimura drained another triple and made it a four-point deficit. 

SGA was up to five turnovers. 

It didn’t matter as OKC scored seven in a row, forcing a timeout from Los Angeles. Out of the break, LeBron scored a bucket in the paint. The quarter closed on a four-point play by Mitchell. Going into the fourth, the Lakers were down by 12. 

Instead of holding for the last shot of the quarter as is typical, Mitchell rose up for a contested corner 3 with 12.3 seconds in the 3rd … and hit it, plus the foul on Smart.

That gave OKC an 84-72 cushion heading into the 4th Q.

— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) May 6, 2026

A Los Angeles turnover started the final frame. Luckily for LA, the Thunder missed on the other end, which led to Hachimura being fouled and converting one of two free throws.

Oklahoma City then scored four in a row, which included a dunk by Alex Caruso, to make it a 15-point game. McCain drained two triples in a row as OKC built the lead to 19 points.

The Lakers tried one last time to get back into the game, pulling within 14 points with 6:08 left after a Hachimura triple. However, it’s as close as they would get as, with 3:50 left, Oklahoma City went up by 17, sealing the win for the Thunder. 

Key Player Stats

LeBron finished with 27 points, four rebounds and six assists. Ayton had 10 points, 11 rebounds and two assists. Austin Reaves had a rough offensive game with eight points on 3-16 shooting to go with his five rebounds and six assists. 

Smart pitched in with 12 points, four rebounds and seven assists. Hachimura put up 18 points, going 7-13 from the field. Kennard ended with seven points and five rebounds. 

Game 2 will be on Thursday against the Oklahoma City Thunder at 6:30 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.

Luka Doncic is still building towards a return, but it won't come in time for the start of the Western Conference semifinals.

The Los Angeles Lakers will be without Doncic for the start of their second-round playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday, ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported on "Inside the NBA."

Charania reports the Lakers are evaluating Doncic on a week-to-week basis, and he is currently on a "slow path" in his recovery from a Grade 2 hamstring strain that has kept him sidelined for the past month.

"He's doing more and more on the court," Charania reported. "But right now, still not full-fledged running or full-contact workouts."

Did Luka Doncic play Tuesday night vs. Thunder?

No, he was out for Game 1.

When is Luka Doncic returning?

The timeline for his return is also still unclear, according to ESPN.

Doncic was seen putting shots up during Lakers practice on Monday, May 4, but he has yet to progress to 3-on-3 or 5-on-5 drills. Lakers head coach JJ Redick had no update for reporters.

Doncic has missed 11 games since straining his left hamstring against Oklahoma City on April 2. The Lakers have gone 7-4 in that span and ran out to a 3-0 lead in the first round of the playoffs against the Houston Rockets before winning the series in six games.

Luka Doncic, getting up shots Monday. When asked about his availability for Game 1, JJ Redick said, “no update.” pic.twitter.com/UZBw9x2E9R

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) May 4, 2026

The odds are stacked against Los Angeles yet again with a matchup against the defending NBA champion Thunder, who won a league-best 64 games in the regular season. The absence of Jalen Williams makes things slightly less lopsided, especially if the Lakers keep producing total team efforts with contributions from Marcus Smart, Luke Kennard, Deandre Ayton and Rui Hachimura.

Make no mistake, though: Doncic, who led the league in scoring with 33.5 points per game and finished third in assists with 8.3 per game, will be needed this series, as evidenced by the result of Game 1.

It just remains to be seen when – or if – he'll be back in time.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When will Luka Doncic return? Status for Lakers vs. Thunder series

Two years ago, the Knicks outscored the 76ers by just one point (650-649) throughout their thrilling six-game first-round series.

The rematch began with the 76ers’ worst playoff loss since 1982, their most points allowed in a playoff game since 1970 and the ninth-biggest blowout of any series opener in NBA history. The Knicks’ 137-98 win in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals also resulted in the 76ers becoming the second team in NBA history to lose three playoff games by at least 30 points in the same postseason.

But the Sixers bounced back from similar beatdowns in the first round, responding to a series-opening blowout loss in Boston with a 14-point win in Game 2.

Then, after being embarrassed in Game 4 by the heavily favored Celtics, Philadelphia found rhythm and resolve, becoming the first team in franchise history to come back from a 3-1 series deficit.

“If we lose by seven points, or 70 points, it doesn’t really matter,” Tyrese Maxey said after Monday’s loss. “They won one game and we lost one game. We’re gonna make some adjustments and we’ll be ready for Game 2. Game 1 doesn’t carry over to Game 2.”

The Knicks started this series with advantages on paper, but also the edge of being off the previous three days, following three stress-free victories over the Hawks. 

The 76ers played their sixth game in 11 days, entering Madison Square Garden less than 48 hours after leaving Boston with one of the team’s biggest victories in decades.

“We can’t use the fatigue as an excuse,” Paul George said. “But it has been an emotional roller coaster. You go from a Game 7, you get one day off and then you’re right back into another matchup. I think there was some carryover of us trying to get up and trying to get prepared for this next matchup. But we definitely should have come out and did a better job.”

Rest and renewed purpose may not help against Jalen Brunson, who averaged 35.5 points in the 2024 series and just carved up the Sixers for 35 points in 31 minutes. Philly may have no answers for newly designated point center Karl-Anthony Towns, who is averaging eight assists in the past four games.

But the 76ers should expect more from Maxey, who attempted just one shot in the first 15 minutes of Game 1 and finished with his fewest points (13) since Jan. 26.

Embiid, who shot 3-for-11 from the field, scored his fewest points (14) since Dec. 4. And the 76ers — who rank seventh in fewest turnovers committed — gave away the ball 19 times in Game 1, leading to 25 points for the Knicks.

“We have to wash that one away and get back and provide a bunch more energy and physicality,” said 76ers coach Nick Nurse, who attended his brother’s funeral in Iowa on Tuesday, but is expected to be at the Garden tonight for Game 2. “I just felt like we were a full step slower defensively. We just seemed like we were chasing everything, didn’t guard the ball well enough, didn’t contest shooters well enough. They were obviously picking us apart, just moving a lot better than we were.

“I think it was a pretty tough night for everybody. I didn’t think we shot it particularly well, but I don’t think we generated good enough shots. We’re gonna have to figure out how to run more offense to get some of the same looks we got in the past series. Obviously it’s a new series. We gotta figure it out.”

DETROIT — Cade Cunningham scored 23 points, Tobias Harris had 20 and the Detroit Pistons beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 111-101 on Tuesday night in Game 1 of their second-round series.

Duncan Robinson added 19 points for the top-seeded Pistons, who ended an NBA record-tying 12-game postseason losing streak against a single opponent, a drought that dated to the 2007 Eastern Conference finals.

Game 2 is Thursday night in Detroit.

The Pistons forced 20 turnovers that led to 31 points in a strong performance against Cleveland’s potent backcourt of Donovan Mitchell and James Harden.

“That’s what this series presents, but we’re up for a challenge,” Harris said. “I thought tonight we did a great job of that.”

Mitchell scored 23 points, ending his NBA-record streak of scoring 30-plus points in nine straight series openers.

Harden had 22 points and Max Strus scored 19 for the No. 4-seeded Cavs, who pulled into a tie midway through the fourth quarter after trailing for most of the night and by as much as 18 points.

Harden committed seven turnovers and pointed the blame at himself.

“You look within first,” he said. “Look at my turnovers and a lot of them are just on me and nothing they did.”

Cleveland center Jarrett Allen was limited to two points and three rebounds, coming off a 22-point, 19-rebound performance in an elimination game against Toronto.

Two days after both teams won a Game 7, the Pistons started strong and led 37-31 after a quarter. Detroit took a 59-46 lead into the second half, when the cushion was no longer comfortable.

Cleveland pulled within three points late in the third and Ron Holland hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to end the quarter and put the Pistons up 83-76.

After the Cavs cut their deficit to three again early in the fourth, the Pistons responded with eight consecutive points to restore a double-digit lead.

Cleveland, though, wouldn’t go away.

Harden, playing the Pistons for the first time since Cleveland acquired him, scored seven straight points to pull the Cavs into a 93-all tie with 5:28 left.

Jalen Duren blocked Harden’s next shot and dunked on Detroit’s next three possessions — each off Cunningham assists.

The Pistons won the Central Division this year by eight games ahead of the defending champion Cavs, splitting four games during the regular season.

Detroit earned 60 victories and the top seed in the East just two years after losing 68 games and setting a single-season NBA record with 28 straight losses.

The Pistons rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the first round against Orlando to advance in the playoffs for the first time since 2008.

Cleveland outlasted Toronto in seven games to reach the second round for the third straight year, a run that started with Bickerstaff, who was fired by the Cavs and hired a month later by the Pistons.

OKLAHOMA CITY — Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt had an early exit from Tuesday’s Game 1 against the Thunder because of a right pinky injury that was later diagnosed as a dislocation, a source confirmed to the California Post.

Another source told the Post that a bone in Vanderbilt’s pinky broke skin as a result of the play the injury occurred.

Vanderbilt suffered the finger injury midway through the second quarter while attempting to block an alley-oop for Chet Holmgren, with Vanderbilt’s pinky hitting the backboard as he swiped for the ball. 

The 6-foot-8 forward immediately went to the ground in pain, holding his right hand near the Thunder bench, with Oklahoma City players reacting in disgust when they saw Vanderbilt’s hand. 

“I had to go check on him because it just looked bad,” coach JJ Redick said postgame. “I mean, he was audibly screaming, and you knew he had done something. So we’re obviously disappointed that happened. It’s just a freak injury.

Better view of the Jared Vanderbilt injury

Likely right 5th digit (pinky) dislocation/and or fracture pic.twitter.com/81HG70NN4r

— Dr. Evan Jeffries, DPT (@GameInjuryDoc) May 6, 2026

He immediately went back to the locker room at the 5:51 mark of the second quarter.

“He’s tough as nails,” LeBron James said. “So if Vando was in pain, then something actually really happened. So, it sucks.”

The Lakers ruled Vanderbilt out for the remainder of the game at halftime.

“I just talked to him,” Redick said. “He’s in as good of spirits as you can be in this situation. Obviously, frustrated with what happened.”

The Cleveland Cavaliers erased an 18-point deficit to tie the Detroit Pistons midway through the fourth, but an inability to get stops and scores when they needed them wound up in Detroit escaping with a 111-101 Game 1 victory.

All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents that player performing to our expectations for them.

James Harden

22 points, 7 assists, 8 rebounds

Harden was brought in to help with games like this. They needed someone who could provide consistent ball-handling, playmaking, and relieve some of the pressure off Donovan Mitchell. Throughout the regular season and parts of the first-round series against the Toronto Raptors, he did that. However, there’s also been too many times he seems a step slow and isn’t able to take care of the ball. We saw that latter version far too much in Game 1.

Turnovers are painful in any context, but they hurt so much more against a team that struggles with its half-court offense. The amount of giveaways allowed Detroit to get out in transition and pick up easy baskets.

To be clear, turnovers were a team-wide issue. Harden isn’t the only one to blame. At the same time, there’s no excuse for your starting point guard to have seven giveaways.

Harden turned things around in the fourth quarter. Seven-straight points allowed the Cavs to tie the game. However, if he takes care of the ball like he should’ve they don’t find themselves in the hole they were in.

Grade: D

Donovan Mitchell

23 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists

Mitchell hasn’t been himself since Game 2 of the first round. He’s registered fewer than 25 points in his last six games and hasn’t been forceful in getting to the basket. This game was no different, as he took just one shot in the restricted area and had only two free-throw attempts.

There isn’t much else to Mitchell’s game if he isn’t a premier scoring threat. Additionally, Cleveland’s margin for error is so thin if he’s not scoring at an elite level. This team was built around him taking games like this over.

Twenty-three points on 9-19 shooting just isn’t going to cut it in a road playoff game.

Grade: D+

Evan Mobley

14 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks

The Cavs needed a big game from one of the members of the core four to steal this one. There were times in the first half where it felt like it was going to come from Mobley, but that didn’t pan out.

Cleveland needed Mobley to step up with Allen in foul trouble, and he didn’t. Detroit’s offensive rebounding helped win them this game. And even though it’s unfair to pin that all on one person, Mobley could’ve done a better job of keeping Detroit’s bigs, particularly Jalen Duren, off the glass.

There were some positive signs from Mobley. I thought the passing was quite good. But this is a game they needed their big man to set the tone in the paint, and he couldn’t.

Grade: D+

Max Strus

19 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists

Strus’s 10-point third quarter got the Cavs back into a game. His shooting and grit helped turn the momentum and were much needed on a night that Cleveland struggled to get any offensive consistency.

Sometimes Strus’s impact isn’t felt on the box score. It was tonight with his efficient 19 points on 13 shots.

Grade: A+

Keon Ellis

3 points, 3 rebounds, 0 assists

Ellis got his first real minutes of the postseason since he was benched after Game 4 against the Raptors, after Sam Merrill left the game in the first half with a hamstring injury.

He performed adequately in his role. Ellis picked up Cade Cunningham full court and showed his active hands, registering two steals. That’s exactly what you want to see from Ellis if he’s forced into minutes.

Grade: B-

Jarrett Allen

2 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist

Allen picked up three fouls in the first quarter, which limited his minutes the rest of the game. Head coach Kenny Atkinson should’ve given him more than just 16 minutes after the first quarter, but Allen also can’t put himself in that position in the first place.

The Cavs needed Allen’s rebounding and the rim pressure he provides. Neither was possible due to foul trouble.

Grade: D

Dennis Schroder

9 points, 3 assists, 1 rebound

Schroder provided some scoring punch and energy off the bench. That was needed. What wasn’t was the four turnovers he also committed.

Giveaways were what cost them this game. Schroder was the team’s second biggest offender. That’s going to knock his grade significantly.

Grade: D+

Dean Wade

5 points, 1 assist, 3 rebounds

The Cavs needed Wade’s defense on Cade Cunningham. Conversely, they also struggled offensively whenever he was on the floor due to Detroit cheating off him and his inability to make them pay with either his outside shot or attacking off-the-dribble.

Grade: C-

Thomas Bryant

4 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists

I’m not sure why Bryant got meaningful minutes in the second half of this game. He hasn’t made a positive impact in the previous postseason games he’s played in, and didn’t do so again tonight. Once again, Bryant was a step slow defensively, wasn’t able to clean the glass, and didn’t provide anything on offense.

I get that they needed some additional minutes at center with Allen in foul trouble. But there wasn’t room in this game to give him 10 minutes of run.

Grade: D

Sam Merrill

0 points, 0 rebounds, 1 assist

Merrill left the game in the first half with a hamstring injury. He was limited to under seven minutes in Game 1.

Grade: Incomplete

Jaylon Tyson

0 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist

Tyson didn’t make an impact as a scorer, but he did a good job of staying with Detroit’s wings — including Cunningham — defensively. That, combined with being a reliable rebounder, made him a useful player.

Grade: C+

The injury luck for the Los Angeles Lakers, somehow, just got worse.

Backup forward Jarred Vanderbilt suffered a right hand injury on Tuesday, May 5 during the second quarter of Los Angeles’ conference semifinal game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The injury took place with 5:51 left in the first half, when Vanderbilt’s fingers swiped against the left side of the backboard as he attempted to block a shot by Thunder center Chet Holmgren.

As soon as Vanderbilt made contact into the padding, he went down to the court in visible discomfort and was yelling as he was grabbing his hand.

According to ESPN, Vanderbilt suffered a full dislocation of his right, pinky finger.

“I just talked to him,” Lakers coach JJ Redick told reporters after the game. “He’s in as good of spirits as you can be in this situation, obviously frustrated with what happened.”

pic.twitter.com/JqH86uzL8B

— Follow: @PurpGoldLakers (@PGMediaaa) May 6, 2026

It’s unclear how long this might keep him out, but it’s worth noting that Vanderbilt is a left-handed shooter.

The NBC broadcast reported the injury was “gruesome” and indicated that Lakers trainers had to put a towel over it to conceal the injury.

In fact, the NBC broadcast showed the moment when it happened, and the Oklahoma City bench had a visible reaction when players got a closer look at Vanderbilt’s hand as he was being ushered off the floor.

“I went to go check on him (during the game) because it looked bad,” Redick said. “He was screaming and knew he had done something. We’re obviously disappointed that it happened. It’s just a freak injury.”

Look at the Thunders reaction to Vando’s injury. pic.twitter.com/KknAV1Yg2e

— Showtime Luka (@showtimeluka) May 6, 2026

The Lakers ruled Vanderbilt out for the rest of the game.

His injury comes as the team continues to be without All-Star guard Luka Dončić (left hamstring strain) and is only a week or so since Austin Reaves returned from his oblique injury.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jarred Vanderbilt injury update: Lakers forward suffers finger injury

Well, I missed the first few minutes of this game because we had to take our puppy to the pet urgent care after she found some chocolate on the floor of the pantry – just to turn right back around as soon as we got there to find out she didn’t eat enough chocolate for it to be toxic. Fun times!

Now, back to basketball.

Cleveland big man Jarrett Allen picked up three quick fouls early and Detroit was able to take advantage. After Cleveland started the game 5-0, Detroit responded with a 30-9 run to take a 30-14 lead late in the first quarter. Javonte Green drilled a buzzer-beating three to give Detroit a 37-21 lead after one.

Donovan Mitchell looked good early as he was the focal point of the Cavs offense. They opened the quarter on a 7-2 run, but James Harden was struggling against Detroit’s defense as the Pistons held a 49-35 lead with five minutes left in the half. Ausar Thompson chased down Keon Ellis in transition with one of the nastiest chase-down blocks I’ve ever seen:

DEFENSIVE MENACE https://t.co/Ws2wzJQe4wpic.twitter.com/LtqABmVtf4

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) May 6, 2026

Detroit was up 59-46 at halftime after leading by 18 late in the first quarter. Cleveland turned the ball over 11 times in the half as Detroit’s defense was giving the Cavs issues, particularly for Harden as he was guarded mostly by Cade. Cunningham led the way for the Pistons with 14 points while Tobias added 10 – the two combined to shoot 11-for-13 from the free throw line. Donovan Mitchell had 14, but no other Cavs player was in double-digits.

The Pistons opened the second half with back-to-back threes from Duncan Robinson, but Cleveland was battling back despite more Harden turnovers turning into Detroit points. After being up 16 early in the third, Cleveland cut the Detroit lead to four after a 23-10 run. The momentum looked to be shifting in the Cavs direction until a Ron Holland three at the buzzer ended the third with Detroit up 83-76.

In what should be an incredibly fun series, things got chippy after Dennis Schröder got a technical foul for standing over Robinson. Detroit responded with some incredible play from Jalen Duren. He had a great block at the rim on Thomas Bryant, then snagged an offensive rebound off a missed free throw to find Duncan for an open three. After Robinson followed that up with an and-one layup, both of them let James Harden hear about it – this picture captures it in all its glory:

GAME ONE SECURED. ✅ pic.twitter.com/Jd6qQPnyZI

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) May 6, 2026

Cleveland responded with an 11-0 run behind some Harden floaters and flopping free throws to tie the game at 93, but that’s when Cade and Duren took over. Cunningham found JD on three consecutive possessions for dunks, including two pretty drop off passes after Cade collapsed the Cleveland defense. It was too much for Cleveland to come back from and Detroit would go on to win Game 1 111-101.

THAT CADE TO JD CONNECTION 😤 pic.twitter.com/4fdZyUDBph

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) May 6, 2026

Cunningham led the way for Detroit with 23 points despite not shooting it well, but five other Pistons were in double-digits to help him out. Tobias “Unc” Harris had another 20-point game along with eight rebounds and continues to wear the #2 scorer’s hat for the Pistons this postseason. Duncan Robinson had 19 points and added five threes while Daniss Jenkins provided some quality backup PG minutes off the bench with 12 points and seven rebounds.

Ausar Thompson and Jalen Duren both had 11 points, but Detroit does not win this game without their effort, rebounding, and defense. Duren added 12 rebounds and four assists while Thompson had eight rebounds and five assists. If you only check the box score, it’s going to severely underscore the impact that Duren had on this game. He had some fantastic contests at the rim and had multiple sequences that helped Detroit maintain the lead – the few that come to mind are the block on Thomas Bryant, the offensive rebound and pass to Duncan for three, and his three consecutive dunks late in the fourth. This was JD’s best game of the postseason.

It was way more of a team performance for Detroit in their first game of Round 2. They were able to force 19 Cleveland turnovers to turn that into 31 points, and I believe them turning their defense into offense was what carried them to beating the Cavs tonight. We’ll see if they can repeat this performance in Game 2 Thursday night on Amazon Prime.

Three more wins to go.

Go Stones.

If failing to get out of the first round of the playoffs was bad enough, Jaylen Brown’s wallet is also taking a loss.

The NBA announced Tuesday that the Celtics star has been fined $50,000 for comments he made about referees on his Twitch livestream after Boston was eliminated by the 76ers on Saturday.

Brown’s point of contention was over push-offs and offensive fouls, the latter of which he was called for 10 times during the seven-game series. Brown speculated the reason behind the calls against him could have been because of prior comments he made against officials.

He went as far as to say the refs had an “agenda.”

“Every good basketball player does this. What are y’all talking about? They clearly had an agenda,” Brown said. “‘If Jaylen does this move, call the offensive foul and follow him every time.’ I don’t know if it’s because I pissed the refs off. I’ve been critical about them, and I called them out a bunch of times. So, they were like, ‘You know what, I got you in the playoffs. Watch this.’ [Because] that’s exactly what they did.

“It’s clearly an agenda. Look at the same move. Some referees that if I had to choose, if I had to, like, say there’s some referees that need to be investigated. We had three of them in the last three games.”

Brown also had some strong words for 76ers star Joel Embiid.

“Joel Embiid is a great player. One of the best bigs in basketball history. [But he] flops. He know it,” Brown said. “This ain’t breaking news. It is what it is.”

Without Jayson Tatum, Brown scored 33 points with nine rebounds and four assists in a 109-100 season-ending loss. In Games 5 and 6, though, he was held to 18 and 22 points, respectively.

Ex-Celtics star and current ESPN NBA pundit Kendrick Perkins called out Brown for his rant and said the reason the Celtics got bounced was that they “died by” the 3-pointer and lost three games at home.

“You can miss me with all this s–t,” Perkins said during an appearance on “Road Trippin’ Show.” “You were up 3-1. Motherf–ker, yo ass flops at times. I don’t want to hear that. There was no agenda whatsoever.

“The agenda was that y’all couldn’t make shots.”

The Cleveland Cavaliers have yet to win a playoff series in the Donovan Mitchell era after losing Game 1. They hope that trend ends after they were defeated by the Detroit Pistons 111-101.

Cleveland had plenty of chances to win this game, but a poor start and too many turnovers allowed Detroit to come away with the win.

The Cavs found themselves down early. They opened the game on a 5-0 run, but quickly relinquished all the momentum from there. The Cavs turned it over six times in the first quarter, which led to 12 points going the other way.

Meanwhile, Detroit didn’t turn it over once in the first quarter.

This meant that the Cavs had to work for everything offensively in the half-court, while the Pistons were able to supplement their offense with easy transition baskets. This all added up to Detroit taking an 18-point lead in the first quarter and closing the frame up 16.

Cleveland settled down a bit in the second quarter. They closed the gap to nine midway through the quarter, but couldn’t get it lower than that. Turnovers, particularly from the guards, remained an issue.

The Cavs got back into the game in the third. A 7-0 run at the start and middle of the quarter allowed Cleveland to chip away at the deficit.

Max Strus provided a scoring spark in that frame. He had 10 points on 4-6 shooting, which included going 2-3 from beyond the arc with a steal.

The Cavs cut the Pistons’ lead down to three, but a strong close to the quarter, which included a Ronald Holland buzzer-beating triple, gave Detroit a seven-point lead heading into the fourth.

Cleveland carried the momentum into the fourth quarter. They pulled even midway through the final frame with seven-straight points by James Harden, after he had an awful first three quarters.

Detroit’s offense responded from there. After coming up empty on their next trip down the court, the Pistons scored on their next six possessions. The Cavs couldn’t keep pace as the Pistons came away with a 10-point victory.

Head coach Kenny Atkinson has stressed the importance of winning the possession battle all year. This game showed why.

The Cavs lost this one with their careless turnovers and inability to secure defensive rebounds.

Cleveland gave it away on 21.3% of their possessions (5th percentile). This translated to 20 turnovers, leading to 31 points for Detroit.

Harden was the worst offender. He gave it away seven times of his own. That’s unacceptable from a veteran starting point guard who was brought in to help in high-leverage situations.

This was coupled with the Pistons retrieving 34% of their missed shots (77th percentile). This allowed them to win in second-chance points 19-11.

The Cavs weren’t able to overcome these issues with their star backcourt

Donovan Mitchell wasn’t great by his standards. He was held to just 23 points on 9-19 shooting and had just two attempts at the free-throw line. Mitchell has yet to register 25 or more points or shoot better than 50% from the field in a road playoff game this season.

Harden provided 22 points, seven assists, eight rebounds, and seven turnovers in the loss. He shot just 6-15 from the field, which included going 1-7 from three. Most of Harden’s scoring came at the line, where he went 9-9.

Strus had 19 points on 7-13 shooting with five rebounds and two assists.

Evan Mobley was good for spurts, but couldn’t establish a consistent scoring rhythm. He had 14 points on 6-11 shooting with nine rebounds, five assists, and two blocks.

Foul trouble limited Game 7 hero Jarrett Allen to just 18 minutes. He had just two points on 1-4 shooting.

The Pistons were led by 23 points from Cade Cunningham on 6-19 shooting with seven assists. Tobias Harris and 20 points on 6-14 shooting, while Duncan Robinson provided 19 points on 5-8 shooting from three.

The Cavs had chances to win this game, but they couldn’t make the plays on either end when they needed to.

Game 2 in Detroit is set for Thursday at 7 PM.

NEW YORK (AP) — The NBA has fined Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown $50,000 for public criticism of game officials following Boston's first-round exit from the playoffs.

The fine was announced by NBA Executive Vice President and Head of Basketball Operations James Jones on Tuesday night, two days after Brown said in a livestream he hosts that game officials “clearly had an agenda” to call fouls against him for "pushing off" when he drove toward the basket while handling the ball.

“There’s some referees that need to be investigated,” Brown said on the livestream Sunday, a day after the Celtics' 109-100 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of their first-round playoff series.

“Every good basketball player does this. What are y’all talking about? They clearly had an agenda,” Brown said.

Brown was previously fined $35,000 in January after a two-minute postgame rant about the officiating following Boston's loss to San Antonio.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Turns out smack-talking officials on Twitch comes with a cost.

Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown learned this the hard way.

The NBA announced Tuesday, May 5 that Brown has been fined $50,000 for comments he made during a Twitch livestream Sunday, May 3, one day after the Celtics fell in Game 7 of the first round of the NBA playoffs.

NBA executive vice president, head of basketball operations James Jones announced the fine in a statement.

Brown expressed his displeasure about several specific plays from Boston’s 109-100 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers and insinuated that he was being officiated differently from his competitors.

“They clearly had an agenda, maybe because I spoke so critically of them in the regular season,” Brown said during the livestream. “I actually spoke to some refs, and they told me there’s an agenda going on each game, every time Jaylen puts his arm up, just call it.”

Brown said that it was a simple basketball play that several other players do.

“Philly took advantage of that and the officiating and it cost us to some degree,” he added.

During the livestream, Brown even replayed film of the plays in question and also called out 76ers center Joel Embiid by name, accusing him of embellishing contact to get to the line.

“Flopping has ruined our league,” Brown said. “Joel Embiid is a great player. One of the best bigs in basketball history. Flops. He knows it.”

The first-round elimination was Boston’s earliest exit in the postseason since 2021.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA punishes Jaylen Brown for comments about refs

The back half of the NBA conference semifinals tipped off with another pair of series openers.

In the first game Tuesday, May 5, the No. 1 Pistons built an early lead against No. 4 Cavaliers, extending it to as many as 18 points, but Detroit needed to fend off a Cleveland rally in the fourth to defend homecourt.

In the nightcap, the No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder continued their quest to repeat with a defensive masterclass at home against the No. 4 seed Los Angeles Lakers.

Here are the winners and losers from Tuesday night’s conference semifinal games between the Pistons and Cavaliers and Thunder and Lakers:

LAKERS VS. THUNDER: Updates, highlights, scores from Game 1

Lakers vs. Thunder Game 1 box score

• Oklahoma City Thunder 108, Los Angeles Lakers 90

Cavaliers vs. Pistons Game 1 box score

• Detroit Pistons 111, Cleveland Cavaliers 101

WINNERS

Jared McCain, Cason Wallace and the Thunder bench deliver

Oklahoma City’s bench is one of its several strengths, and the group was ready in Game 1. The Thunder bench outscored L.A.’s by a 34-15 margin, which put intense pressure on the Lakers when their starters sat.

Jared McCain led the way with 12 points, but Isaiah Joe chipped in 9 and Alex Caruso and Cason Wallce added 5 points apiece. It’s not just offense, however, where this group makes its mark. Wallace and Caruso are excellent defenders and Wallace — as he has most of the season — was a menace; he swiped 3 steals and also recorded 1 block.

So on a night when the Lakers threw bodies at Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the role players delivered.

Detroit gets to the line

How does a team shoot a worse percentage than its opponent, have only one more field goal yet win by 10? Get to the free throw line.

The plan for the Pistons early in the game was clear: attack the paint and put Cavs defenders in compromising positions. The Pistons went to the line 35 times and converted 27 of those for a solid 77.1% from the stripe.

And for all the free throws the Pistons shot, the Cavaliers were on the opposite end, going 15-of-16 (93.8%). That means that, in a 10-point game, Detroit’s advantage from the line created a +12 edge.

“I want to separate this from the game,” Donovan Mitchell told reporters after the loss. “The free throw disparity is not why we lost tonight — I want to make sure I say that, but I don’t know, I’m trying to get downhill.

“A friend of mine (Jaylen Brown) got fined for talking about flopping, so I’m not going to try to double down, but, like, I feel like that’s what I’ve got to do at this point. I’m trying to get downhill, get to the bucket and sometimes people are in my way and I’m trying to fight through contact and I’m not getting these calls.”

JAYLEN BROWN: NBA punishes Celtics star for Twitch comments about refs

Pistons turn turnovers into points

The other reason Detroit launched massive runs was because it turned defense into offense. Detroit’s perimeter players smothered Cleveland’s guards, jumping passing lanes and forcing tough passes in pick-and-roll actions. That flustered the Cavs and led to easy Pistons points in transition.

The Pistons forced 19 turnovers (compared to only 11 committed), which led to a 31-16 edge in points off turnovers.

Not surprisingly, Detroit also sprinted to a 15-6 advantage in fastbreak points.

The Pistons find balance

They’ll still want more offense out of Jalen Duren (11 points on 4-of-11 shooting), but the Pistons didn’t need to rely entirely on Cade Cunningham. And, for Detroit, that’s a recipe for success.

Tobias Harris (20 points) continued his hot start to the playoffs, Duncan Robinson (19) drained 5 3-pointers and Daniss Jenkins  (12) provided a spark off the bench.

LOSERS

Austin Reaves

Essentially, with Dončić out, the Lakers need to play as close to perfect hoops as possible to have a chance against the defending champs. Austin Reaves is playing in just his third game since returning from an oblique injury, so some initial struggles are to be expected. Los Angeles, however, cannot afford that.

Reaves was harassed by Oklahoma City’s perimeter defense and he shot just 3-of-16 from the field, finishing with only 8 points.

One issue Reaves may face in this series is the size and length of the Thunder defenders. Whether it was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cason Wallace, Luguentz Dort, Alex Caruso — all excellent defenders in their own right — their physicality made it tough for Reaves all night long.

Cavaliers' James Harden and Donovan Mitchell

Simply put: there’s no way the Cavaliers will have a chance in this series if their top two scorers struggle through three quarters the way they did Tuesday night. Mitchell showed some promise in the first half, scoring 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting. Yet, he scored only 3 in the third quarter.

The night for Harden was even worse. After averaging 23.6 points per game in the regular season, Harden had committed more turnovers (5) through three quarters than he had made field goals (2).

The pair did pick it up in the fourth to combine for 19 points, but playing from behind is a tough task against Detroit.

Jarrett Allen's early fouls cost Cavs

He was, arguably, the biggest reason why Cleveland topped the Toronto Raptors in Game 7 in the first round. Allen was a force Sunday, May 3, scoring 22 points and hauling in 19 rebounds, eight of which were offensive.

Tuesday night it was a different story. The Pistons went right at Allen in the first quarter, drawing three early fouls on him in the first 5:58 of the game. That took him out of the game completely, and he finished the night with just 2 points and 3 rebounds in 18:22 on the floor.  

Jarred Vanderbilt injury worsens Lakers tough luck

It’s bad enough that Luka Dončić (left hamstring strain) remains out and may miss the entire second round against the Thunder, but things got worse for Los Angeles.

Backup forward Jarred Vanderbilt suffered a right hand injury when his fingers swiped against the left side of the backboard as he attempted to block a shot. The NBC broadcast reported the injury was “gruesome” and indicated that Lakers trainers had to put a towel over it to conceal the injury. The Lakers ruled him out for the rest of the game.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cavaliers vs Pistons, Lakers vs Thunder: Winners, losers in NBA today

It was one of the biggest questions ahead of the series. 

Who on the Knicks would get the responsibility of guarding the explosive and dynamic Tyrese Maxey? 

Josh Hart spent the end of the first round guarding the Hawks’ most dangerous guard, CJ McCollum. OG Anunoby often guards the opponent’s best scorer, regardless of their position. But Maxey’s quickness isn’t a great fit for Hart or Anunoby. 

So Mikal Bridges, back as the Knicks point-of-attack defender, got the assignment. When he came out of the game, it was Miles McBride who matched up with Maxey. 

And they both aced the test. 

“That was huge,” Josh Hart said after practice Tuesday. “Both of those guys obviously are blessed enough athletically to be able to keep up with them, use their physicality, use their length to their advantage. Maxey obviously is an offense unto himself, being able to break out in transition. He’s tough to guard off those handoffs and ball screens so they did an amazing job on him and just have to continue it.” 

Maxey finished with just 13 points on rough 3-for-9 shooting from the field while missing all three 3-pointers he took. None of those three field goals came against Bridges or McBride. He committed four turnovers. 

It was his lowest point total since Jan. 26. In the first round against the Celtics, he averaged 26.9 points on 46.4 percent shooting from the field and 41.8 percent shooting from 3-point range. 

“I feel like the whole team was just locked in, honestly,” McBride said Tuesday. “Mikal started off on him really well and then I came in, but there were times where other guys were matched up with him, and all of our antennas are up just guarding him as a team.” 

It was clear the Knicks placed an emphasis on slowing down Maxey, often having a second defender ready to help Bridges or McBride. They were physical with him — particularly when the 76ers tried to get him going in the pick-and-roll. The only concern was that he was able to get to the free-throw line more than the Knicks would have wanted — he took seven free throws, making all of them. 

His usage was also a bit perplexing — there were long stretches where he was not assertive. He didn’t make a field goal until midway through the second quarter. His nine shots were by far the fewest he took so far in the postseason — and fewest in any game since Feb. 3. 

The Knicks expect that to change. 

“We know Maxey is going to be more aggressive,” coach Mike Brown said Tuesday. “So we have to be more alert than we were in our last game.” 

They also acknowledge they perhaps benefited from a bit of luck. 

“He missed some shots, too,” Brown said. “We know his aggression is gonna be at a higher level in Game 2. Like we told all our guys, it’s five guys guarding the basketball, but at the point of attack, we have to be pretty good. The biggest thing with guarding Maxey at the point of attack is, he just moves so well and he can score at all three levels. His quickness, his athleticism for his size is second to none, because he’s able to score from all three levels. So you have to give a multiple effort on every single possession because when he gives it up, you can best bet that he’s gonna get it back at some point on that possession, if not right away.” 

The 76ers will certainly have countermoves they try in Game 2 to get Maxey going. Because if he’s as poor as he was in Game 1, they have little chance. 

But in Bridges and McBride, the Knicks might have the answers.