World News – US – Celtics were ‘in love’ with Tyler Herro, whom Heat took before Boston

The Celtics – holding the Kings’ first-round pick – lost a tiebreaker with the Hornets and Heat in last year’s draft Charlotte picked No 12, Miami No 13 and Boston No 14

During last year’s NBA Draft Night, there was a collective moan among the Boston Celtics members just as the Miami Heat used the No 13 pick to select Tyler Herro

The project is full of smokescreens and disinformation, especially from Boston So this cannot be considered a gospel

But it’s yet another fun chapter in the Pat Riley-Danny Ainge rivalry, which includes a previous example of Heat drafting a player the Celtics coveted

Herro was a second-team All-Rookie and now assists Miami against Boston in the Eastern Conference Finals – no small feat for a rookie

The Celtics have settled for Romeo Langford, who had a much less productive first season and is now out for the year

Of course, it’s far too early to declare that one player will have a better career than the other.Besides, Boston never chose between Herro and Langford The Heat had a choice and took the player away. , both teams apparently agreed it was better

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) – LeBron James sent the word to the Los Angeles Lakers in a group text Wednesday afternoon, and basketball suddenly seemed out of place

A Kentucky grand jury had finally spoken and James was letting his team know that NBA players, who spent months seeking justice for Breonna Taylor, didn’t get what they wanted

Wednesday’s decision by the grand jury, which brought no charges against Louisville Police for Taylor’s murder and only three counts of gratuitous endangerment against sacked officer Brett Hankison for shooting the homes of Taylor’s neighbors, was not unexpected by many NBA players and coaches They felt it wasn’t going to turn out the way they hoped

« I know we have used our platform here to try to bring education and a voice to a lot of the players on our team, especially also for justice for Breonna Taylor, » Denver coach Michael said. Malone « We did not get this justice »

Teams came to Walt Disney World to end the season and crown a champion, and hoping the NBA’s reboot bubble platform could help amplify calls for change Players and coaches have used the NBA spotlight for making statements at a time when the demand for racial equality and an end to police brutality resonates as loud as it has for generations

And the Taylor story – the story of a 26-year-old black woman who was killed on March 13 by police in Louisville when they broke into her apartment on a restraining warrant during narcotics investigation centered on suspect who didn’t bring him to life there – captivated NBA players Many have met, virtually, with family members to offer support They say his name in lectures press, wear it on shirts, scribble it on their sneakers

« We have moms We have sisters, nieces, aunts And just as men of color have been through traumatic situations, so have women, » said Boston forward Jaylen Brown. “This is an example of some of the things that happen to women in our country So we wanted to be by their side, but also make sure that it wasn’t just us I think the future is female, so it’s important to show our sisters that we care about ourselves That’s why it’s important « 

Even for teams that weren’t in the bubble, it counted Atlanta coach Lloyd Pierce heads an NBA coaching committee tasked with finding new ways to use their own platform to create change, and he encouraged his own players – black and white – to speak out and take action, whether in Atlanta or in their own community

« Yes there was a grand jury and yes they went through the information and yes they have facts to back it up whatever the claims » said Pierce « But that doesn’t do those who are outside, those who feel that the police and law enforcement are there to protect them … What is happening now is not enough « 

I don’t have a lot of words right now … but all I can say is that I’m praying for the city of Louisville right now !!! 😔😔

I have lived in the CITY for three years of my life and it has become another home for me, but what is going on? Are these the fees that you are actually offering? 😔🤦🏿‍♂️ Nothing to say but WOW SPEECHLESS!

National Basketball Players Association Executive Director Michele Roberts went further « Unfortunately there was no justice today for Breonna Taylor, » said Roberts « Her murder was the result of ‘a series of callous and reckless decisions made with disrespect for humanity, ultimately culminating in the death of an innocent and beautiful woman with her whole life ahead of her »

The league closed for three days last month when a boycott launched by the Milwaukee Bucks – in response to police shooting of a black man, Jacob Blake, in Kenosha, Wisconsin – nearly brought players to end the season because they felt that their calls for change were not taken seriously enough

“We feel like we’ve stepped back, that we haven’t made the progress that we were looking for,” said Green “Our voices aren’t heard loud enough But we’re not going to stop We will continue We will continue to fight, we will continue to push, we will continue to use our voices « 

Not just falling 2-1 in an NBA bubble playoff series and having to come back from behind, but the pattern of it – his team gets stronger and gets on with things as the opponent hesitates

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« For me it’s a bit similar to the last set, » Malone said after the Nuggets won in Game 3 « The first game, the Clippers blew us away Game 2 we win Game 3, we felt we had given this game against the Clippers

« [The Lakers] blew us up in the first Game 2 game we gave at the end We had to correct that mistake and try to have a game under our belt, which we did tonight. gives us a lot more confidence in this series by letting them know that we are here, we are here for the long haul We will continue to fight and do whatever we can « 

“You definitely learn more about your opponent, what to try to look for, trends, and all that…” Jamal Murray explained why Denver is improving as the series grows « Like I said, just deal with things we can control, whether it’s turnovers, communications, switches, bounce back The areas we should control, we have to do so if we want to win If we are consistent in our game, as we mentioned earlier, we can win a lot of games, put a lot of pressure on other teams »

These trends and models, this success story, make Denver feel more and more that this is a series they can win There is a confidence that overflows from the stars of the Nuggets, especially Murray He stepped up his game, and it’s not just the three-point shooting – 346% regular season 477% playoff – it’s his aggressive attacks and rim finish Murry, an inconsistent rim finisher even during this regular season, was off when he entered the playoffs It comes from confidence

« I think what I’ve seen from Jamal this year, aside from the defensive growth, which has been tremendous, I’m so proud of him in that regard, but now I know every night what I’m doing. pulls Jamal, ”said Malone“ Last year we knew what we were getting from Nikola, but what kind of game would Jamal have This is no longer the case We have two superstars in Nikola and Jamal and a lot of youngsters talented players behind them « 

It shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that the Nuggets have played their best basketball back-to-wall – this team has made four straight, seven-game playoffs, winning three They’re used to the pressure It doesn’t. Also shouldn’t have surprised anyone not to leave quietly Some members of the Lakers country believed Anthony Davis’ three wins to put the Lakers ahead 2-0 was a punch that would melt the Nuggets

“[Monday], when we met and watched the movie, I started by watching the last part of the game,” said Malone “Take the elephant out of the room Let’s talk about the room, of what happened When we find ourselves in this situation, let’s learn about it Yes, we all take ownership Let’s learn it

« After that my goal was when we were done with this movie they saw so many positive clips of doing the right things to us which put us in a position to win Now we had to do it for more of a second half We had to do it for four quarters « 

They did it for three, but it was enough to secure the victory thanks to some late heroics from Murray

Denver is not an elite defensive team, they were in the middle of the pack for the regular season What they can do throughout a series becomes more disruptive They did this series, calming Lakers’ half court offense The Lakers scored less than a point per possession – 928 points per 100 possessions – in their half court in Game 3 (stats via Cleaning The Glass) Add to that the fact that LeBron James is fading as the games go on – he’s dominant in the first quarter but struggles more in the fourth Denver got a fantastic play from Jerami Grant in Game 3, they’ll need more of those plays, but the Nuggets have a plan that works and they can execute

The heart of this plan is to keep the Lakers out of the transition, which brings us to the other side of the equation: the intensity and physicality of the defending Lakers almost won them over in Game 3. The Lakers forced turnovers – six in a row at one point – and turned them into transition buckets The Lakers are as good a transition team as there are in the league and the Nuggets are terrible at defending them When the Lakers run they win It’s just harder to do than when you take the ball out of the basket every time the Lakers need saves

Expect the Lakers to come out with intensity in Game 4, perhaps helping them take a big lead. Maybe But even if that happens, the Nuggets won’t be scaled – they came from 16 and 19 against the Clippers to win the last round

The NBA is at the conference finals – and the bubble has provided us with upheaval galore There are unexpected teams in the NBA Final Four, but of course LeBron James is still here The Lakers are the greats favorites at this stage

• The NBA continues to pick up the pace with games every alternate day – except in the East, when ESPN wants a break so they don’t clash with the NFL and let the West catch up The fast pace of games will return with the NBA Finals
• The families of the players, and with the last four now the coaches, are in the bubble
• The NBA has released a schedule for the NBA Finals to teams and their target is still a September 30 Game 1 If any of the conference finals are seven games long, that date will have to be pushed back

Game 1: Heat 117, Celtics 114, OT
Game 2: Heat 106, Celtics 101
Game 3: Celtics 117, Heat 106 (Miami leads series 2-1)
Thu 4: September 23, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Thu 5: September 25, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Thu 6: September 27, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) *
Game 7: TBD (ESPN) ** If necessary

Game 1: Lakers 126, Nuggets 114
Game 2: Lakers 105, Nuggets 103
Game 3: Nuggets 114, Lakers 106 (Lakers lead series 2-1)
Thu 4: September 24, 9 pm (TNT)
Thu 5: September 26, 9 pm (TNT)
Thu 6: September 28, TBD (TNT) *
Thu 7: September 30, TBD (TNT) ** If necessary

Dwight Howard thrives in his role as Nikola Jokic’s runner and antagonist for the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals – and he talks a lot on the pitch so everyone knows thatBased on the NBAcom match stats, Jokic is 3 of 7 in shooting under Howard’s custody, with an extra 10 points on the free throw line, meaning he’s doing better than JaVale McGee or Anthony Davis (and he’s keeping Davis out of trouble)

Dwight Howard was a spark of energy for the Lakers in the role, but he was nearly ejected in the first half of Game 3 because of his tongue, reports Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports Howard already has a technique because, 7 minutes from the end of the second quarter, Howard picked up a foul keeper Jokic and, frustrated with the call, threw the ball in the air, which will result in n any player a technique to show the referee and delay the game

Jerami Grant, who finished with 26 points, was on the free throw line midway through the second period, and Howard made an obscene remark towards the officials It was apparently so off-putting that official Marc Davis shouted, “Hey, stop this now! Are you serious? I’ve heard that twice now Twice Stop it now! « 

Rajon Rondo must have caught Howard’s attention before he made another mistake about who to discard on the free throw

The Lakers will need better focus and play across the board to win the series than they’ve shown in the last two games, especially on the defensive end – the Lakers need saves and stops. ‘transition opportunities as their half-court attack continues to get bogged down Howard can be a big part of that Jokic keeper, but he can’t cross the line and hurt the team

Game 4 between the Lakers and the Nuggets is Thursday at 9 p.m. EST Lakers lead series 2-1

Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, Gordon Hayward, Marcus Smart, Eastern Conference, Brad Stevens