Category: Basketball

Kerr pushes all the right buttons in Warriors' Game 4 lineup change originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – Continuity is king to Warriors coach Steve Kerr. 

If it were up to him, he wouldn’t have had to use 38 different starting lineups in the 2024-25 NBA regular season. Kerr had to search far and wide to find the right combinations that made the Warriors’ puzzle complete. On Monday in the Warriors’ 109-106 Game 4 win against the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, Kerr pushed all the right buttons in making yet another change to his starting five.

The Warriors used the same group of Steph Curry, Brandin Podziemski, Jimmy Butler, Moses Moody and Draymond Green that dominated down the stretch together in the regular season to open the series with a Game 1 win. That group didn’t even last the first quarter together in Game 2 when Butler’s left pelvic contusion kept him out the rest of the night. Butler’s absence in Game 3 forced Kerr to rethink everything, putting Jonathan Kuminga and Quinten Post into the starting lineup. 

While the Warriors found a way to earn a win without Butler, it wasn’t because of that group. When it was announced Butler would return for Game 4, it was easy to assume Kerr would go back to his usual starters. Instead, he stuck with the hot hand and kept Moses Moody on the bench, inserting Buddy Hield, who had a phenomenal Game 3 performance, into the first five on the floor. 

Hield’s ability to be a 3-point threat is ideal with how the Rockets are defending Curry, but it was his defense, often seen as a weakness, that set a tone. 

The nine-year veteran making his first playoff start was tasked with defending electric guard Jalen Green from the jump, and in back-to-back sequences within the first four minutes, Hield picked his pockets clean. The first steal led to two free throws for Podziemski and the second turned into an easy fastbreak layup for Hield on the other side, pushing the Warriors’ lead to 13-2, which prompted a timeout from Rockets coach Ime Udoka.

Buddy is making plays in his first playoff start 💪pic.twitter.com/ps11E7DpKC

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 29, 2025

“He took on the challenge,” Draymond Green told NBC Sports Bay Area. “Steve made that change with all belief in him, knowing that your matchup is Jalen. He made that decision with all that confidence in him that he’d go out there and take on the matchup. He won the matchup in those two possessions, because it just sped him up. 

“It’s beautiful to see him take on that challenge, because obviously, what it did for our lineup. We got off to a great start, which hasn’t been the case this series. That was big time.”

Jalen Green only scored eight points, having more turnovers (five) than made shots (three).

Golden State’s offense mustered just 18 points in the first quarter of the first three games. It put up 28 in the first quarter of Game 4. Though Hield only had two of those points and missed all three of his 3-point attempts, his energy was infectious and his threat from deep shifted the layout of the floor. 

Even in an up-and-down season, Hield still managed his way to a seventh straight campaign of 200 threes and always keeps a defense honest from downtown. 

“Great start to the first quarter, great start to the third quarter,” Kerr said of the starting five. “I think that unit gave us more speed, more shooting and it forced some matchups for them to make the game a little more difficult.” 

Down 57-50 at halftime, the Warriors regrouped and came out as the composed team that ran past the Rockets to start the third quarter. The starters went on a 13-0 run before Green had to sit with five fouls. They were trusted for the majority of clutch time in the fourth quarter, too, with Gary Payton II and Kevon Looney also coming in for short stints. 

Overall, a group that only spent 27 minutes together in the regular season played 14 and a half minutes together in Game 4 and outscored the Rockets 41-20. 

“That’s crazy,” Green said when I told him the unit was a plus-21. 

“Obviously, it spaces the floor really well,” he continued. “Fast lineup. Those were the two keys.” 

Hield, after scoring 17 points off the bench on 6-of-13 shooting from the field and 5 of 11 on threes in Game 3, wound up with 15 points in his starting role, going 6 of 15 overall and 3 of 9 beyond the arc. His scoring didn’t come in bunches, but his final three points were when the Warriors needed them most, using a side dribble to his left to evade Alperen Sengun before nailing a 3-pointer from the right wing to gain a 102-101 lead with three and a half minutes left in the game. 

BUDDY BUCKET FOR THE LEAD 👌 pic.twitter.com/juLvhX7Ygb

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 29, 2025

As the new comedy duo of the Warriors’ locker room, Butler had to give credit where credit’s due, even if it pained him to do so. 

“I hate to give Buddy a compliment, so I’m not going to,” Butler joked. “But No. 7 on our team really brought the defensive mentality tonight. Made some big shots … and he stinks, I just got to add that too.”

In his 11 years with the Warriors, Kerr now has coached 144 playoff games. Monday night’s Game 4 win gave him 102 playoff victories, meeting the moment and making the right adjustment yet again.

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Has a No. 7 seed ever defeated a No. 2 seed in the NBA playoffs? originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Golden State Warriors have the Houston Rockets on the ropes.

No. 7 Golden State on Monday took a commanding 3-1 series lead over No. 2 Houston in the first round of the 2025 NBA playoffs. The Warriors won a second straight home game, this time beating the Rockets in a 109-106 thriller.

The series now shifts back to Houston for Game 5 on Wednesday, when the Rockets will be playing to keep their season alive. Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler and Co., meanwhile, are on the verge of advancing to the conference semifinals.

But just how many No. 7 seeds have pulled off first-round upsets in NBA playoff history? Here’s a look at the company this year’s Dubs can join:

How many No. 7 seeds have defeated a No. 2 seed in the NBA playoffs?

Since the playoff field expanded from 12 to 16 teams in 1984, a total of six No. 7 seeds have made it past Round 1.

The 1986-87 Seattle SuperSonics were the first seven seed to accomplish the feat. After a regular season where they posted a losing record of 39-43, the SuperSonics eliminated the No. 2 Dallas Mavericks in four games. Seattle lost to Dallas by 22 points in Game 1 before reeling off three straight wins.

In the 1988-89 season, Chris Mullin and the No. 7 Warriors swept Karl Malone, John Stockton and the No. 2 Utah Jazz in three games. The Warriors then repeated history two postseasons later, with the No. 7 Run TMC Dubs disposing of the David Robinson-led No. 2 San Antonio Spurs in four games.

The 1997-98 New York Knicks are the lone No. 7 seed to go the distance in a first-round series and win the decisive final game. Allan Houston powered the Knicks to a series-clinching Game 5 win over the No. 2 Miami Heat after New York was down 2-1 in the series. The following season, the Knicks pulled off another Round 1 upset of the Heat in five games, except this time New York was an eight seed. The No. 8 Knicks went all the way to the Finals, where they fell to the Spurs in five games.

Speaking of San Antonio, the 2009-10 Spurs also made it to Round 2 as a No. 7 seed by eliminating the No. 2 Mavs in six games. Dirk Nowitzki and Co. bounced back from the defeat the following year by winning the Finals.

The most recent No. 7 seed to advance was the 2022-23 Los Angeles Lakers, who beat the Memphis Grizzlies in six games. That Lakers team and the 2009-10 Spurs squad are the lone No. 7 seeds to win a seven-game first-round series.

Of the six No. 7 seeds to emerge from the first round, the 1986-87 SuperSonics and 2022-23 Lakers are the only ones that went on to win another series. Seattle beat Hakeem Olajuwon’s No. 6 Rockets in the conference semifinals before being swept by the eventual champion Lakers in the West Finals. And the Lakers beat the Warriors in six games before being swept by the eventual champion Denver Nuggets in the conference finals.

The 1988-89 Warriors, 1990-91 Warriors and 1997-98 Knicks all lost in five games in the conference semifinals, while the 2009-10 Spurs were swept.

Here’s a full look at each of the No. 7 seeds that have advanced past Round 1:

• Seattle SuperSonics, 1986-87: Beat Mavericks in four games, lost in conference finals
• Golden State Warriors, 1988-89: Beat Jazz in three games, lost in second round
• Golden State Warriors, 1990-91: Beat Spurs in four games, lost in second round
• New York Knicks, 1997-98: Beat Heat in five games, lost in second round
• San Antonio Spurs, 2009-10: Beat Mavericks in six games, lost in second round
• Los Angeles Lakers, 2022-23: Beat Grizzlies in six games, lost in conference finals

Editor’s note: The original version of this story was published in April 2024.

Report: Kings finalizing deal to hire Doug Christie as full-time head coach originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

It’s official. The “interim” title no longer is attached to Doug Christie’s job description.

The Kings are finalizing a multiyear contract to make Christie their next coach, a source confirmed to NBC Sports California. ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the news Tuesday morning, citing sources.

Christie took over for Mike Brown, who was fired in late December following a 13-18 start to the 2024-25 NBA season. Under Christie, the Kings went 27-24 and finished as the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference.

Sacramento was eliminated in the first NBA play-in game.

This story will be updated.

Report: Kings finalizing deal to hire Doug Christie as full-time head coach originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

It’s official. The “interim” title no longer is attached to Doug Christie’s job description.

The Kings are finalizing a multiyear contract to make Christie their next coach, a source confirmed to NBC Sports California. ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the news Tuesday morning, citing sources.

Christie took over for Mike Brown, who was fired in late December following a 13-18 start to the 2024-25 NBA season. Under Christie, the Kings went 27-24 and finished as the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference.

After Sacramento’s season-ending NBA play-in loss to the Dallas Mavericks, Sacramento replaced former general manager Monte McNair with longtime executive Scott Perry. While speaking at his introductory press conference last week, Perry didn’t want to disclose too much information on the coaching search but detailed his relationship with Christie over the years.

“What I can tell you is I spent time with Doug Christie already,” Perry said. “I first met Doug Christie when he was a player at Toronto, so I admired him as a player, his career. I’ve watched him this year from afar in terms of his ability to have a presence on the court. I think he’s made a connection with players. We’ve had a few conversations up to this point. He was one of the first people I met with yesterday when I got into town.”

Perry added that his phone had been “incessantly” ringing with other potential coaching candidates interested in the job, and that he wanted to have a few more conversations before making a final decision.

Amongst the fired coaches who potentially were available for a new coaching gig are: Mike Budenholzer (last with Phoenix Suns), Michael Malone (last with Denver Nuggets) and Taylor Jenkins (last with Memphis Grizzlies).

And depending on how the rest of the NBA playoffs shake out, several other possible candidates could have become available, such as Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers, who currently is trying to dig his team out of a first-round playoff exit.

But Perry seemingly didn’t want to wait any longer. With a busy offseason ahead, he ticked one box off his long list of to-dos.

Christie, who played with the Kings for five seasons from 2000 to 2005, has a personal love and appreciation for the organization and city of Sacramento. You could see it through his emotions and feel it through his words each and every time he spoke at a pre- or postgame podium.

“This is where I want to be,” Christie said after the Kings’ season-ending loss. “I need to finish what I started, and that’s the only reason I ever stepped onto the sideline from where I was at initially. I had to exorcise some demons for myself.”

He also had support from several of his players.

“He did a good job for us when he came in, he tried to keep it real simple for us,” Kings guard Keon Ellis said during end-of-season exit interviews. “We have some really talented players on our team, so just try not to overdo anything, and let us go out there and be pros. He definitely didn’t want to do too much. … As far as his professionalism and his leadership, I think that’s a big thing when you’re talking about Doug. Former player. He has respect from everyone.

“I think he’s telling us the right things game in, game out, practice, whatever. The messages he’s given us are either the ones you don’t want to hear or the tough ones we need to hear. So just keeping it real with us and if you have that, you’re not going into any game with him telling you something that it’s not going to be. I think he did a good job at that. Those are the things that you need.”

Players during their exit interviews also talked about longing for some organizational stability and consistency, something lacking in Sacramento for several years. Perhaps hiring a man who has been tied to the franchise for more than two decades is the first step in bringing just that.

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NBA considers turning All-Star Game into international format originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

More changes are coming to the NBA All-Star Game.

The league has experimented with various iterations over the past several years, including drafting teams, Elam Endings and, most recently, a tournament involving four teams — a format that has already been shelved.

Now, Adam Silver has told The Athletic that the NBA is looking into a potential showdown in 2026 between American players and worldwide stars.

One factor that the league is considering is that NBC will air the game next February for the first time since 2002. The All-Star festivities will take place in the midst of the Milan Cortina Olympics, which NBC will also broadcast.

“Our All-Star Game will return to NBC next season in the middle of their coverage of the Winter Olympics,” Silver told The Athletic. “Given the strong interest we’ve seen in international basketball competitions, most recently in last summer’s Olympics in Paris, we’re discussing concepts with the players association that focus on NBA players representing their countries or regions instead of the more traditional formats that we’ve used in the past.”

Byron Spruell, the NBA’s president of league operations, echoed Silver’s sentiments.

“NBC is very much leaning into it, given their role — we are, as well,” Spruell said. “Looking to do something new and different yet again, but excited about the possibility.”

The newly opened Intuit Dome in Los Angeles will play host to the 2026 All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 15, during the afternoon. By moving the game up a few hours, NBC will follow it up with Olympic prime-time coverage from Italy.

Silver added that the arena, which will host basketball games during the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, gives the NBA a unique chance to play on the international theme.

“We’ll be competing in the arena at Intuit, where the basketball competition will take place in the 2028 Olympics,” Silver said. “So, I think all of those factors, when they come together, it presents an enormous opportunity for us to do something with an international competition instead of the traditional All-Star formats that we’ve used.”

At one time, it would’ve been far-fetched to have a competition pitting American players against everyone else. But many of the world’s best players now hail from outside the United States — including every NBA MVP from 2019 through this season (three outsiders are MVP finalists in 2025).

The pool of foreign players includes Nikola Jokić (Serbia), Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece), Luka Dončić (Slovenia), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada), Victor Wembanyama (France), Pascal Siakam (Cameroon) Alperen Şengün (Turkey). Joel Embiid was born in Cameroon, but has competed internationally for Team USA as an American citizen.

The NHL used a similar idea for its 2025 All-Star format, where the 4 National Face-Off was seen as a massive success. While the NBA wouldn’t use a drawn out tournament like the NHL did, it would attempt to build that sense of pride in representing your country.

Will Celtics close out series vs. Magic in Game 5? Here's what history says originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Celtics are a little banged up right now. Jayson Tatum is dealing with a bone bruise in his wrist. Jaylen Brown had a knee injury over the final few weeks of the regular season. Jrue Holiday has missed the last two games of the NBA playoffs with a right hamstring strain.

Therefore, it would greatly benefit the C’s to end their first-round series against the Orlando Magic with a Game 5 win Tuesday night at TD Garden. The Celtics took a 3-1 series lead with a Game 4 victory at Orlando on Sunday.

What does history say about Boston’s chances of closing out the series in short order?

For starters, the C’s are 31-0 all-time when leading a series 3-1, per stats guru Dick Lipe. In those 31 series, they eliminated the opponent in five games 20 times, in six games nine times and in seven games twice.

The Magic are 0-7 all-time when they trail a series 3-1. They also have lost four consecutive elimination games. Orlando is 0-8 all-time on the road in Game 5 of a best-of-7 postseason series.

Wrapping up this first-round series as quickly as possible would give the Celtics some extra time to rest and recover before the Eastern Conference semifinals.

But the Magic aren’t likely to quit.

Paolo Banchero is a rising superstar. Franz Wagner is a confident player. Orlando has lost three times in four games but has played Boston pretty competitively throughout the series. This series could easily be tied 2-2 right now, but Tatum and Brown stepped up in the fouth quarter Sunday to lead the C’s to a much-needed win.

The Celtics excelled at ending series quickly in last year’s playoffs. None of their four series went past five games. Can they continue that trend? We’ll find out tonight.

Tip-off for Game 5 is set for 8:30 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Boston, with our coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.

Butler has blunt Brooks admission after heated Warriors-Rockets Game 4 originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Warriors superstar Jimmy Butler wants to make one thing clear: he and Houston Rockets forward Dillon Brooks are not buddies.

After the 109-106 Golden State win in Game 4 of the Western Conference playoffs, Butler was asked if he and Brooks were having fun during the game, a notion the 35-year-old instantly dismissed.

“No, we’re not having fun,” Butler said. “Get me on the record with this: I don’t like Dillon Brooks. We’re never having fun. I’m a fierce competitor. He’s a fierce competitor. There ain’t nothing fun about that.”

"I don't like Dillon Brooks." — Jimmy Butler 😳 pic.twitter.com/84vxd5v4bz

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 29, 2025

Game 4 was emblematic of the series up until this point: a brutal slugfest with both teams attempting to break the other mentally and physically. Technical and flagrant fouls abounded as longtime Warriors foe Brooks sparred with Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Butler. The Rockets played their typical rough-and-tumble style, contesting every shot and pestering the Warriors at every turn.

Butler returned from a one-game absence and gutted things out, performing masterfully down the stretch despite reeling from a painful pelvic contusion sustained in Game 2. Thanks to his gritty performance and another vintage defensive effort from Green, Golden State pulled out the win to go up 3-1 on Houston in the best-of-seven first-round series.

With a must-win Game 5 looming for Houston on its home court, expect Brooks and Butler to continue their fierce competition. And even if they might crack a smile or two while battling it out, remember: they’re not playing around.

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Source: Kings finalizing contract to make Christie next coach originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

It’s official. The “interim” title no longer is attached to Doug Christie’s job description.

The Kings are finalizing a multiyear contract to make Christie their next coach, a source confirmed to NBC Sports California. ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the news Tuesday morning, citing sources.

Christie took over for Mike Brown, who was fired in late December following a 13-18 start to the 2024-25 NBA season. Under Christie, the Kings went 27-24 and finished as the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference.

After Sacramento’s season-ending NBA play-in loss to the Dallas Mavericks, Sacramento replaced former general manager Monte McNair with longtime executive Scott Perry. While speaking at his introductory press conference last week, Perry didn’t want to disclose too much information on the coaching search but detailed his relationship with Christie over the years.

“What I can tell you is I spent time with Doug Christie already,” Perry said. “I first met Doug Christie when he was a player at Toronto, so I admired him as a player, his career. I’ve watched him this year from afar in terms of his ability to have a presence on the court. I think he’s made a connection with players. We’ve had a few conversations up to this point. He was one of the first people I met with yesterday when I got into town.”

Perry added that his phone had been “incessantly” ringing with other potential coaching candidates interested in the job, and that he wanted to have a few more conversations before making a final decision.

Amongst the fired coaches who potentially were available for a new coaching gig are: Mike Budenholzer (last with Phoenix Suns), Michael Malone (last with Denver Nuggets) and Taylor Jenkins (last with Memphis Grizzlies).

And depending on how the rest of the NBA playoffs shake out, several other possible candidates could have become available, such as Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers, who currently is trying to dig his team out of a first-round playoff exit.

But Perry seemingly didn’t want to wait any longer. With a busy offseason ahead, he ticked one box off his long list of to-dos.

Christie, who played with the Kings for five seasons from 2000 to 2005, has a personal love and appreciation for the organization and city of Sacramento. You could see it through his emotions and feel it through his words each and every time he spoke at a pre- or postgame podium.

“This is where I want to be,” Christie said after the Kings’ season-ending loss. “I need to finish what I started, and that’s the only reason I ever stepped onto the sideline from where I was at initially. I had to exorcise some demons for myself.”

He also had support from several of his players.

“He did a good job for us when he came in, he tried to keep it real simple for us,” Kings guard Keon Ellis said during end-of-season exit interviews. “We have some really talented players on our team, so just try not to overdo anything, and let us go out there and be pros. He definitely didn’t want to do too much. … As far as his professionalism and his leadership, I think that’s a big thing when you’re talking about Doug. Former player. He has respect from everyone.

“I think he’s telling us the right things game in, game out, practice, whatever. The messages he’s given us are either the ones you don’t want to hear or the tough ones we need to hear. So just keeping it real with us and if you have that, you’re not going into any game with him telling you something that it’s not going to be. I think he did a good job at that. Those are the things that you need.”

Players during their exit interviews also talked about longing for some organizational stability and consistency, something lacking in Sacramento for several years. Perhaps hiring a man who has been tied to the franchise for more than two decades is the first step in bringing just that.

Download and follow The Deuce & Mo Podcast

Source: Kings finalizing contract to make Christie next coach originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

It’s official. The “interim” title no longer is attached to Doug Christie’s job description.

The Kings are finalizing a multiyear contract to make Christie their next coach, a source confirmed to NBC Sports California. ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the news Tuesday morning, citing sources.

Christie took over for Mike Brown, who was fired in late December following a 13-18 start to the 2024-25 NBA season. Under Christie, the Kings went 27-24 and finished as the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference.

Sacramento was eliminated in the first NBA play-in game.

This story will be updated.

Podziemski shines in big, little ways in Warriors' Game 4 win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – As good as Brandin Podziemski was in terms of scoring – he was all that and a bag of chips, pouring in a playoff career-high 26 points – he was equally effective doing all of the other little things that Warriors fans have come to expect from the plucky second-year guard.

With his patented stand-your-ground mindset, Podziemski absorbed yet another charging foul, had five rebounds, five assists, two steals, and made a brilliant defensive gem after Rockets guard Fred VanVleet zipped around him headed for the hoop. Podziemski didn’t flinch and chased Van Vleet down, making a clutch block from behind with 4:22 minutes remaining to preserve Golden State’s slim lead.

When the Rockets got the ball back a few minutes then threw the ball out of bounds, Podziemski flexed and appeared to growl at the frenzied crowd.

Podz gets the block 🚫
Jimmy gets the layup 🤝 pic.twitter.com/QBEe0LRaV1

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 29, 2025

“Obviously, it’s magnified a little bit because it was a key possession,” Podziemski said after Golden State’s 109-106 win. “But just understanding watching film, (Van Vleet) is not the best finisher in the paint. Either he wants to spray it out or shoot 3s a lot of the time.

“I wasn’t too worried when he got past me. Just kind of rode the drive. He went for a floater, I just tried to help (Draymond Green) out a little and get a piece of it.”

Podziemski has been doing the little things ever since he entered the NBA as Golden State’s first-round pick (No. 19 overall) in the 2023 NBA Draft.

That earned him a big spot in coach Steve Kerr’s rotations and has raised his standing in the hearts of many Warriors fans, including some of his own teammates.

“The skill is there but it’s his heart,” Green said. “I like to call it irrational confidence. He puts work in but he has irrational confidence. It’s one of those things I actually wish I had. He just has the ultimate belief in himself and his abilities. He’s been showing it for the last few months. 

“Tonight we need it in a major way and he stepped up.”

The 6-foot-5 Podziemski always has played bigger than his size and has had a no-fear mentality to go with that aggressive style. That earned him a spot with the closing five Monday when he was locked up with Van Vleet.

“Brandin’s big-time,” Kerr said. “Second-year player but plays like a 10th-year guy. He’s got so much poise and confidence. He was obviously a key to everything.”

Kerr noted that Podziemski, among several others, has benefited greatly since the team traded for Jimmy Butler.

“Jimmy’s arrival was huge for him,” Kerr said. “Once we got Jimmy, we were running a lot of offense through Jimmy, and that allowed Brandin to play on the other side. He’s at his best when he can do that.”

Podziemski didn’t get that deep and kept it pretty simple when summing up his performance in Game 4.

“Just tried to do my best to help (Stephen Curry) and we ended up getting the win,” he said. “That’s all we wanted tonight.”

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The Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Miami Heat 138-83 to secure a 4-0 first-round play-off series win and book their place in the Eastern Conference semi-finals.

Donovan Mitchell scored 22 points for the visiting Cavaliers, who were also helped by De'Andre Hunter adding 19 points, Ty Jerome scoring 18 points and Evan Mobley contributing 17 points as they won by the fourth-largest winning margin in an NBA play-off game.

"We came out here with a goal in mind, to keep our foot on their throat and on their neck and continue to play 48 minutes of basketball," Mitchell told TNT television

The 55-point margin was Miami's biggest play-off defeat and overtook the previous record of 37 points which had been set in the third game of the best-of-seven series.

"We were humbled, but they had so much to do with how we looked," said Miami coach Erik Spoelstra.

"None of us would have guessed this series would have gone this way coming out of our two play-ins. They just took it to another level. They left us behind these past two games."

The Cavaliers will play either the Milwaukee Bucks or the Indiana Pacers in the next round, with the latter leading that series 3-1.

In San Francisco, the Golden State Warriors took a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference first-round play-off series against the Houston Rockets with a 109-106 home win.

Jimmy Butler was back for the Warriors after missing game three with a pelvic injury and scored 14 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, while team-mate Brandin Podziemski made six three-pointers in his 26 points.

The Warriors had trailed by seven points at half-time before going on an 18-1 run at the start of the third quarter, but the score was tied at 104 with one minute 20 seconds left of the contest.

Fred VanVleet scored 24 of his 25 points from three-point distance for the Rockets but missed a long-range shot in the final second that would have tied the game.

Game five will be in Houston on Wednesday, 30 April at 19:30 local time.

Bruised Jimmy Butler guts through pain, lifts Warriors past Rockets in Game 4 originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – When a desperation heave by Houston’s Fred VanVleet, who couldn’t miss most of the night, went awry at the buzzer, the Warriors rejoiced with celebratory roars, high-fives and flying chest bumps.

Most of the Warriors, that is. Not Jimmy Butler III, who secured this 109-106 Game 4 victory Monday night by scoring Golden State’s final seven points and grabbing the most majestic and essential rebound of the series.

Nobody dared slam into Butler because everyone inside Chase Center knew that would be the most foolish moment on a night when foolishness was splattered all over the floor.

Butler was limited to understated satisfaction – with the tiniest trickle of a grin while limping triumphantly off the court – for a good reason. He’d spent part of his terrific second half clutching that bruised pelvis that kept him out of Game 3 and didn’t receive medical clearance until about an hour before tipoff.

“We had to have him,” coach Steve Kerr said. “If this were the regular season, he’d probably miss another week or two. But it’s the playoffs. He’s Jimmy Butler, so . . . this is what he does.”

Butler’s final few minutes were straight from the fantasies of everyone in the Warriors’ orbit, from CEO Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy, who acquired Butler in February at a steep financial cost, to every player, coach, marketing associate and card-carrying member of Dub Nation.

A driving layup to give the Warriors a 104-101 lead with 2:12 remaining. Three free throws to give them a 107-106 lead with 58.7 seconds remaining. And The Rebound, a soaring snag that led to a foul that sent Butler to the line for the game-clinching free throws with four seconds left.

“First three quarters he couldn’t move,” Draymond Green said of Butler. “Yet he never complained. He stuck with it. I think what was most important, when the time was right, everybody on our side looked to get him the ball. When you get him the ball, he made great things happen for himself or for others. It was huge.

“I think my favorite play was the last rebound. I looked up, I thought it was (Jonathan) Kuminga out there flying. It was Jimmy.”

Jimmy with the pelvic bruise. Jimmy, whose discomfort was obvious. Jimmy, who, no matter his pain, couldn’t stomach the idea of missing another playoff game.

Butler ignored his pain and chased that rebound with the conviction of a man who would not be denied. Didn’t matter that his barrier was Houston’s massive Steven Adams, four inches taller, 35 pounds heavier, one of the best offensive rebounders in the league.

Green had forced a miss from Alperen Şengun, and an offensive rebound with 6.4 seconds remaining would have meant another shot for the Rockets, who trailed 107-106.

“I saw that I wasn’t battling with Adams the last play, so I was able to go up there and be a semi-athlete,” Butler said. “But I wanted the rebound. I told Dray, if you get a stop, I will get the rebound. He got the stop, and I got the rebound.”

Butler scored a team-high 27 points, 23 of which came after halftime and 14 of which came in the fourth quarter – representing most of Golden State’s 27 points – during which he played all 12 minutes.

“I thought it was winning time,” Butler said. “Doing certain things that the team needed me to do to go out there and help win finally. I started moving a little bit better.”

Butler acknowledged that he received extra motivation from the verbal volleys from Houston’s Dillon Brooks. The two sparred most of the night, barking at each other and bumping with each other. That’s typical of Brooks, but it backfired, putting the Rockets one game away from elimination.

“No, we’re not having fun,” Butler said. “Give me this: I don’t like Dillon Brooks. We’re never having fun. I’m a fierce competitor. He’s a fierce competitor. There ain’t nothing fun about that.”

The fun came at the final buzzer. Butler enjoyed it, but not nearly as rambunctiously as his teammates.

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