Finals MVP: LeBron James (6'8''-SF-84) of Cleveland C. Most Valuable Player: Stephen Curry (6'3''-PG-88) of Golden St.W. Most Improved Player: C.J. McCollum (6'4''-G-91) of Portland TB Sixth Man of the Year: Jamal Crawford (6'5''-G-80) of LA Clippers Rookie of the Year: Florian Karl of MIL Baskets Defensive Player of the Year: Kawhi Leonard (6'7''-F-91) of San Antonio S. Sportsmanship Award: Mike Conley (6'1''-PG-87) of Memphis G. Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year: Vince Carter (6'6''-G/F-77) of Memphis G. J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award: Wayne Ellington (6'4''-G-87) of Brooklyn N. Coach of the Year: Steve Kerr of Golden St.W.
All-Defensive 2nd Team
G: Tony Allen (6'4''-G-82) of Memphis G.
G/F: Jimmy Butler (6'7''-G/F-89) of Chicago B.
G/F: Paul George (6'9''-G/F-90) of Indiana P.
F: Paul Millsap (6'8''-F-85) of Atlanta H.
C: Hassan Whiteside (7'0''-C-89) of Miami Heat
Cleveland Cavaliers are NBA Champions! - Jun 20, 2016
Thanks to a late three-pointer from point guard Kyrie Irving (6'3''-G-92, college: Duke), the Cleveland Cavaliers are NBA Champions! Despite being down, 2-0 and 3-1, in the best-of-seven series against the reigning league champion Golden State Warriors, the Cavaliers fought their way to three straight wins, including a 93-89 championship-clinching win in Game 7 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California, Sunday night. It is the Cavaliers' first-ever NBA Championship and the first major sports title for the city of Cleveland since the Browns took home the NFL Championship with an upset win over the Baltimore Colts in December of 1964. A pair of free throws from LeBron James (6'8''-SF-84) with 4.4 seconds showing on the clock gave the Cavaliers a 23-22 lead over the Warriors after the first. LeBron James led the way for the Cavaliers with six points on two-of-five shooting from the field and a pair of free throws. In addition to the scoring, LeBron James collected six rebounds on the defensive side of the floor and handed out three assists in just under 11 minutes of play. Along with LeBron James, the Cavaliers got five points from Kevin Love (6'10''-PF-88, college: UCLA), four each from Smith and Irving and a basket each from Klay Thompson (6'7''-G-90, college: Washington St.) and Jefferson. Despite picking up two fouls, Kevin Love pulled down seven rebounds, four of which were on the offensive glass, which helped the Cavaliers hold a 16-4 edge in points in the paint and a 7-2 advantage in second-chance scoring. Outside of the 18 points scored by Draymond Green (6'7''-F-90, college: Michigan St.) (seven), Stephen Curry (6'3''-PG-88, college: Davidson) (six) and Klay Thompson (five), the Warriors got just four points from the other seven players who entered the game. Although the Cavaliers enjoyed a slim lead, they made just nine of their first 21 looks at the basket and missed on all four of their three-pointers in the first quarter. Other than Draymond Green, the Warriors made just 10 of their 35 shots and five of their 16 looks from three-point range in the first half, but behind his 22-point effort, they held a 49-42 lead over the Cavaliers at halftime of Game 7. Draymond Green sunk eight of his 10 first-half shots, including all five of his looks from three-point range en route to leading the Warriors to the seven-point halftime advantage. Conversely, the Cavaliers were just 16 of 42 from the field and only one of 14 from three-point range over the first 24 minutes of play. However, despite the three-point shooting issues, the Cavaliers dominated situational scoring, 28-12, in points in the paint, 11-4 in second-chance opportunities and 13-0 on the fast break. Individually, LeBron James led the way for the Cavaliers with 12 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots, but committed four of the team's eight turnovers, which resulted in eight points for the Warriors. Irving scored nine points, and then, the Cavaliers got six points from an unlikely source, reserve shooting guard Iman Shumpert, who was responsible for Cleveland's only first-half three-pointer, which turned into a four-point play as he was fouled on the release of the ball. Thanks to a turnaround hook shot from Andre Iguodala (6'6''-SF-84, college: Arizona) in the lane with 4.1 seconds on the clock, the Golden State Warriors took a 76-75 lead over the Cavaliers at the end of the third quarter of Game 7 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. At one point in the quarter, the Cavaliers were down by as many as eight points when shooting guard Klay Klay Thompson hit a fade-away jumper, but they stormed back with a 19-5 run, including 12 straight points, and took a 65-59 lead, but the Warriors had an answer. Golden State closed out the final 4:33 of the third quarter with a 17-10 run of their own that Iguodala capped off with the late conversion for the lead. The Cavaliers converted 11 of their 21 shots from the field in the third quarter, including three of their six looks from three-point range after knocking down just one of their 14 attempts from long distance during the first half of play. Irving led the way with 12 points on four-of-eight shooting, and had a late three-point play that gave the Cavaliers a six-point advantage. Courtesy of: wkyc.com
West beats East 196-173 in highest- scoring NBA All-Star Game ever - Feb 15, 2016
There wasn't much drama in the 2016 NBA All-Star Game from Toronto but there was a lot of scoring. In fact it was a record level of scoring for the two teams as both the East and the West teams each bested the previous team-high record of 163 points, and they set the combined record with 369 points, which bested the previous mark of 321 total points. For such a prolific scorer in the history of the game, Kobe Bryant (6'6''-SG-78) got to see a layup drill and a fireworks display in his 15th (18th selection overall) and final All-Star Game. Bryant, who said earlier in the weekend he planned on capping out at 10 minutes, played 26 minutes and finished with 10 points (4-of-11 shooting), seven assists, and six rebounds. His one steal moved him ahead of Michael Jordan all-time for All-Star Game steals. Paul George (6'9''-G/F-90, college: Fresno St.) led all scorers with 41 points and set the All-Star Game record for 3-pointers with nine. He broke the record held by Carmelo Anthony (6'8''-SF-84, college: Syracuse), who hit eight of them in the 2014 All-Star Game in New Orleans. But it was Russell Westbrook (6'3''-PG-88, college: UCLA) winning his second straight All-Star Game MVP by finishing with 31 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals. He is the first back-to-back All-Star Game MVP since Bob Pettit in 1958 and 1959. Nine players from the West scored in double figures with five getting at least 23 in the game. Stephen Curry (6'3''-PG-88, college: Davidson) scored 26, Anthony Davis (6'10''-C-93, college: Kentucky) had 24 and James Harden tied Kevin Durant (6'9''-SF-88, college: Texas) with 23 each. Chris Paul (6'0''-PG-85, college: Wake Forest)'s 16 assists tied for the fourth-most in an All-Star Game, and was six behind Magic Johnson's record of 22. In the East, John Wall (6'4''-PG-90, college: Kentucky) scored 22 points to support George's scoring, while seven players scored in double digits. Every player who participated in the game scored, which seems perfect considering the records set Sunday night. LeBron James (6'8''-SF-84) finished with 13 points to move ahead of Kobe for the all-time All-Star scoring leader. The 2017 All-Star Game will be hosted by the Charlotte Hornets. Courtesy of: cbssports.com
NBA All-Star Saturday: Zach LaVine defends dunk crown in epic showdown - Feb 14, 2016
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Zach LaVine (6'5''-G-95, college: UCLA) outlasted Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon (6'9''-PF-95, college: Arizona) in an epic final round of the dunk contest, posting four straight perfect 50s to win for the second straight year on Saturday night in Toronto. It has been a special weekend for LaVine, who was also named MVP of the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday. LaVine and Gordon matched each other dunk for dunk for the first two tries in the final round. Then needed two rounds of tie-breakers to decide a winner. Gordon got a 47 with a Harold Miner-style jackknife dunk on his fourth dunk, which opened the door for LaVine in one of the most memorable competitions in years. He ended it with a between-the-legs dunk from a step inside the free throw line to become just the fourth player to win back-to-back titles. LaVine said they should share the trophy "because he did stuff I've never seen before." "He brought the best out of me," he added. LaVine was likely referring to a dunk by Gordon that brought everyone out of their seats when he jumped over his team's mascot. Golden State's Warriors guard Klay Thompson (6'7''-G-90, college: Washington St.) dethroned his "Splash Brother" Stephen Curry (6'3''-PG-88, college: Davidson) to win the three-point shooting contest. Curry made his first seven shots and three of the last four to put up a score of 23. But Thompson, his Warriors teammate, was better, racking up 27 as he hit eight shots in a row in the middle and drained the final rack of money balls as the Air Canada Centre crowd roared. "Not gonna lie, I got nervous when he hit his first eight [seven actually] and I didn't think he was going to miss." said Thompson. "Back-to-back years for Splash Brothers, it's pretty cool," he added. The other player in the championship round, Devin Booker (6'6''-SG-96, college: Kentucky) of the Phoenix Suns, had 16 points. Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (6'0''-PG-86, college: Villanova) was eliminated in the first round, but that didn't stop fans from giving him a warm ovation. Afterwards, Lowry expressed his appreciation for the support, despite the result. Karl-Anthony Towns (7'0''-F/C-95, college: Kentucky) showed big men have skills as the seven-footer from the Minnesota Timberwolves beat Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas (5'9''-PG-89, college: Washington) in the NBA skills challenge. Thomas had the early lead but Towns caught him on their second trip down the court. At the final three-point shot, both men stumbled but Towns made it on his fourth attempt. The 20-year-old Towns, the first-overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, was mobbed by players after he made the winning shot. "I'm glad I was able to help the bigs come out with this trophy," said Towns, the No. 1 overall pick in the June draft. "This is bigger than me. This is for all the bigs out there, with the game changing the way it is, to show that bigs can stand up with guards and skillwise." Courtesy of: cbc.ca
Zach LaVine wins MVP as U.S. tops World - Feb 13, 2016
Zach LaVine (6'5''-G-95, college: UCLA) was keen to dish out a little payback in the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday night. He got it. The Minnesota Timberwolves guard, who started as forward on Friday, scored 30 points and grabbed seven rebounds to earn the game MVP Award and lead the U.S. team to a 157-154 victory over the World team. The U.S. lost last year's game and LaVine's Timberwolves teammate and friend, forward Andrew Wiggins (6'8''-G-95, college: Kansas), won the MVP Award for the game. "I want MVP because he got it last year," LaVine said before the game. After the game, he said. "That's what I was going for. I told you. Y'all saw in that little interview, so it's kind of fun. He got it last year, I got it this year. We won this year, so I think it came down to whatever team won. So we got the W, and that's the main thing. It got really competitive toward the last five minutes, so we started really playing." The wide-open game was made for outstanding individual performances. The World team got 30 points from forward Kristaps Porzingis (7'3''-C/F-95), 21 in the second half, and World guard Emmanuel Mudiay (6'5''-G-96, agency: Three Eye Sports) also had 30 points while dishing out 10 assists. The game one of the events leading to the NBA All-Star Game on Sunday at Air Canada Centre. "It was a high-scoring game, as you all saw," Porzingis said. "Not great defense, but it's about having fun, I guess. And I think we had fun out there. In the second half, we got more competitive, as both teams wanted to get the win, and we fell a little short. It never feels good to lose, so I'm not too happy about the loss." Guard Jordan Clarkson added 25 points for the United States, guard Devin Booker (6'6''-SG-96, college: Kentucky) had 23 and guard D'Angelo Russell (6'5''-SG-96, college: Ohio St.) had 22 while center Karl-Anthony Towns (7'0''-F/C-95, college: Kentucky) had 18 with seven rebounds. Wiggins added 29 points for the World and guard/forward Mario Hezonja had 19 points and 10 rebounds while center Nikola Jokic had 12 points and eight rebounds. Reserve forward/center Dwight Powell (6'11''-F-91, college: Stanford) contributed 12 points and 11 rebounds. The game was played in 20-minute halves. Toronto-native Wiggins, the NBA rookie of the year in 2015, received a huge ovation. "It felt great," he said. "I got to play in front of a lot of people I haven't seen in a long time. My family and friends got to watch it. It's great being back home and playing for my hometown." The U.S. team led 88-79 at the end of the first half. The U.S. team shot 63.2 percent from the floor in the first half and the World hit 65.5 percent of its shots. On the game, the World shot 60.4 percent from the floor and the U.S. team shot 56 percent. Wiggins hit two free throws with 49 seconds left in the game to trim the U.S. team's lead to three points. Forward Jabari Parker clinched the game with a dunk with 15 seconds to play and finished with 12 points. "You know what? It felt good, not for myself but because my team needed it," Parker said. "It got us (a two-possession lead). And the win, that was big because we represent our country every time we have USA on our chest. We try to do that to the maximum." Courtesy of: upi.com
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