Thunder eliminate defending champ Mavericks in 4-game sweep

james harden

Down by 13 points with less than 10 minutes remaining, youthful Oklahoma City could have easily have been content knowing they could go home for a Game 5 still needing to win only one more game.

The Thunder, with their 20-something All-Star duo Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, are instead going home to wait and see who they will play next.

And it was their other emerging star who led the way.

James Harden scored 15 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter, including nine in a 12-0 run, and the Thunder rallied for a 103-97 victory Saturday night to complete a first-round series sweep of the defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks.

”I got into attack mode. I was determined to make plays,” Harden said.

”He was phenomenal,” said Durant, who scored 24 points. ”His pick and roll game is unreal. It’s fun to watch, fun to be part of. The best part about our team is that we have a lot of guys who can play off each other, and we complement each other well.” …

Durant had 11 rebounds, while Westbrook and Fisher had 12 points each…

”It was an up and down year,” said Nowitzki, the 11-time All-Star who had 34 points. ”We weren’t consistent enough throughout to be an elite team.” …

Jason Kidd, the Mavericks’ 39-year-old point guard, had 16 points and eight assists. Jason Terry had 11 points in what might have also been his last game in Dallas.

— Reported by Stephen Hawkins of the Associated Press

Paul, Griffin lead Clippers over Grizzlies, 87-86

chris paul

Chris Paul had 24 points and 11 assists and high-flying Blake Griffin added 17 points for the Los Angeles Clippers, who beat the Memphis Grizzles 87-86 Saturday only after Rudy Gay missed a jumper just before the buzzer.

The Clippers won their first home playoff game in six seasons to take a 2-1 series lead in the Western Conference playoffs.

Paul hit a fadeaway jumper with 2:02 left for an 82-80 lead. On the next possession he had a no-look bounce pass to Griffin coming in off the baseline for a monster slam.

Trailing 86-80 after two free throws by Paul, Gay hit a 3-pointer with 12.9 seconds left, Memphis’ first field goal since 7:10. After Los Angeles missed three of four free throws, Gay hit another 3-pointer with 8.9 seconds.

Eric Bledsoe missed two more free throws, Gay got a good look but missed. Gay finished with 24 points.

Memphis had seemingly taken the red-clad home crowd out of the game in the third quarter, when it outscored the Clippers 25-14 to take a 71-64 lead…

Zach Randolph scored 17 for Memphis while Gasol and Quincy Pondexter had 11.

Foye had 16 for L.A.

— Reported by Bernie Wilson of the Associated Press

Pacers beat Magic in OT, take 3-1 series lead

david west

George Hill hit a pair of free throws with 2.2 seconds left in overtime to help the Indiana Pacers survive squandering a 19-point fourth quarter lead and beat the Orlando Magic 101-99 on Saturday to take a 3-1 series lead.

David West scored 26 points, including 12 in the third quarter and four in overtime for Indiana. Danny Granger added 21 points.

The Pacers won their third straight game and will try to close out it out Tuesday in Indianapolis.

Orlando had a final chance to tie the game in the closing seconds, but Glen Davis’ fade away jumper bounced off the side of the rim.

Jason Richardson led the Magic with 25 points and Davis added 24 points and 11 rebounds…

Hibbert finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Hill started slow, but was huge down the stretch and ended up with 12.

All five Magic starters reached double figures, with Nelson adding 12 points and Ryan Anderson and Hedo Turkoglu chipping in 11.

— Reported by Kyle Hightower of the Associated Press

Avery Bradley suffers dislocated shoulder

avery bradley

Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers said starting shooting guard Avery Bradley dislocated his left shoulder during Friday’s Game 3 win over the Atlanta Hawks in an Eastern Conference quarterfinal series and his status is uncertain.

“Shoulder went out,” Rivers said. “And he’s had that problem all year. Usually they’re able to — like a Lego — snap it back in. It wouldn’t go back in. So we’ll find out more (Saturday).”

Bradley suffered the injury late in the third quarter and departed for the locker room along with team doctor Brian McKeon with 2:06 to play in the frame. The team initially said Bradley would return, but soon ruled him out for the rest of the game.

— Reported by Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston

Lawson scores 25 as Nuggets beat Lakers in Game 3

ty lawson

Ty Lawson scored 25 points and the Denver Nuggets raced to an early 24-point lead on their way to a 99-84 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night in Game 3 of their first-round series.

JaVale McGee had 16 points and 15 rebounds for the Nuggets, who will try to even the best-of-seven series at two games each on Sunday night at the Pepsi Center.

Playing with an energy and enthusiasm that had been missing in the playoffs, the Nuggets grabbed a 55-39 halftime lead by stifling Andrew Bynum down low and forcing Kobe Bryant to work harder for his baskets.

Although both Bynum and Bryant got it going after halftime and the Lakers cut their deficit to four points in the third quarter, the hole was too big to climb out of.

Bynum’s putback with 1:18 left in the third quarter not only pulled the Lakers to 68-64 but his inadvertent elbow on the play broke Al Harrington’s nose. He didn’t return, but the Nuggets went on a 12-5 run to regain their composure and control of the game.

Bryant finished with 22 points on 7-of-23 shooting after scoring 31 and 38 points in L.A.’s two wins at the Staples Center, and Bynum had 18 points and 12 rebounds.

Kenneth Faried had a double-double for Denver, scoring 12 points and pulling down 15 rebounds as the Nuggets outrebounded the Lakers 55-44. Denver’s bench outscored the Lakers’ reserves 39-9.

— Reported by Arnie Stapleton of the Associated Press

76ers beat Bulls 79-74 in Game 3 for 2-1 lead

spencer hawes

Spencer Hawes scored 21 points, grabbed nine rebounds and hit the go-ahead jumper late in the fourth quarter to help the Philadelphia 76ers rally to beat the Chicago Bulls 79-74 on Friday night and take a 2-1 lead in their Eastern Conference playoff series.

Hawes scored 10 clutch points in the fourth to give the eighth-seeded Sixers the surprising series lead.

Game 4 is Sunday in Philadelphia.

Already playing the rest of the series without reigning MVP Derrick Rose, the Bulls got another scare in the third quarter when Joakim Noah left with a sprained left ankle. Noah, who scored 12 points, returned in the fourth quarter and mostly hobbled around the court…

The Bulls missed 10 straight field goals over 5-plus minutes in the fourth to lose all of their 14-point lead.

Holiday scored 17 points and Turner had 16 while reserve Lou Williams added 14.

Carlos Boozer had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Bulls and Richard Hamilton scored 17 points…

The Bulls need to figure out a new way to play without Rose and to protect Noah if they don’t want this series to slip away.

— Reported by Dan Gelston of the Associated Press

Rondo helps Celtics beat Hawks 90-84 in OT

rajon rondo

Rajon Rondo had a triple-double with 17 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists to lead the Celtics to a 90-84 overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night and give Boston a 2-1 lead in the first-round playoff series.

It was the seventh career playoff triple-double for Rondo, who missed Game 2 because he was suspended for bumping a referee in the closing minutes of the series opener.

Game 4 is Sunday night.

Ray Allen returned for Boston after missing almost a month and scored 13 points in 38 minutes. Kevin Garnett had 20 points and 13 rebounds, and Paul Pierce had 21 points one game after having 36 points and 14 rebounds to help the Celtics swipe home-court advantage with a Game 2 victory in Atlanta.

Joe Johnson scored 29 points and Jeff Teague had 23 for the Hawks. Tracy McGrady had 12 points – his highest total since he had 40 for Houston in 2008 – but 10 were in the first half, before he landed awkwardly on his right ankle and went to the locker room. He did not have a field goal in the second half.

— Reported by Jimmy Golen of the Associated Press

Julius Erving hired as strategic adviser to Philadelphia 76ers owners

Philadelphia 76ers CEO and Co-Owner Adam Aron announced today that the team has reached an agreement with Julius Erving under which Dr. J will for the next several years formally associate himself in a part-time capacity with his former team as a Strategic Adviser.

In his new role, which runs at least through 2015, Erving will offer advice and counsel to Aron and Sixers Managing Owner Joshua Harris; will be available to the 76ers front office and coaches as they may wish from time to time; and in numerous ways as his primary focus will interact with Sixers fans and sponsors as a goodwill ambassador for the team.

Looking forward, the 76ers will also explore other ways which will evolve and become apparent over time in which the 76ers can be cooperative with Julius in his other professional activities through his holding companies, “Dr. J Enterprises” and “The Erving Group.”

The announcement was made during the first home playoff game of the 2011-2012 season, at which Erving had the honor to present the evening’s game ball to the referees before a packed house at the Wells Fargo Center. This same evening, Harris and Aron also hosted Erving as the guest of honor at a pre-game dinner for a select group of about a hundred Philadelphia 76ers season ticket holders. This is Julius’ third Sixers game of the year, having attended both the first and last games of the regular season as well. He is expected to be at Sunday’s fourth playoff game against the Chicago Bulls as well.

Erving’s brilliant basketball career saw him become the 3rd leading scorer of all time in professional basketball, scoring more than 30,000 points in the ABA and NBA. Most of those took place in his 11 seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers, including the memorable ‘82-‘83 season in which the 76ers won the NBA Championship. Erving repeatedly has been named an All-Star and a Most Valuable Player. In 1993, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. In 1996, Erving was named one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history.  His number 6 was retired by the 76ers, and hangs in the rafters of the Wells Fargo Center as a lasting reminder of Julius Erving’s electrifying skills and accomplishments both on and off the court. To this day, Erving remains quite close with many of his former 76ers teammates, including Doug Collins, the immensely popular Head Coach of the Sixers.

Aron said, “Julius Erving is not only one of the greatest players ever to play basketball, he is also one of the classiest and most dignified gentlemen I have ever known. If ever there was an exemplary role model among professional sportsmen, it would have to be the Doctor, Julius Erving. On behalf of the all of us at the 76ers, we are thrilled he is reuniting with his former Sixers team, some 25 years after his retirement as an active player in the NBA. We know that Sixers fans and sponsors especially will enjoy getting to reunite with Julius as well.” Aron concluded, “After his brilliant career as a Sixer, the legacy of Dr. J in Philadelphia is unparalleled. He is nothing less than revered in Philadelphia, and we are so excited that Julius Erving is a 76er once again. We know that his help will be invaluable to us as we continue to strengthen the bond between the 76ers of today and tomorrow with Philadelphia area sports fans.”

Erving said, “I have such fond memories of my many playing years with the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1970s and 1980s. I look forward to continuing that long association with the 76ers in this day. I have been impressed by the initial steps taken by this new ownership group to reconnect the Sixers with their fans, and I am confident that the future of the 76ers looks quite bright. I know that I will greatly enjoy being able to offer advice and counsel to the team and its owners. It will also be particularly pleasing to me to have frequent and sustained contact directly with the 76ers fan base, who have been so kind to me over the years. Once a Sixer, always a Sixer.”

Erving will continue to reside in Atlanta, and expects to make multiple trips and appearances in the Philadelphia area in each of the seasons ahead.

Since Harris acquired the Sixers in 2011, the team has engaged with several distinguished 76ers alumni. In addition to Julius, such other Sixers greats as Moses Malone, Bobby Jones, Andrew Toney, Maurice Cheeks, Earl Cureton, Darryl Dawkins, Rick Mahorn and the surviving family of Wilt Chamberlain all have appeared and been saluted at Sixers home games this season. The team also has had private communications and interactions with a vast number of additional former Sixers players.

Erving becomes the second former Sixers player to assume a more enduring and formal role. For many years, World B. Free has ably served as a fulltime Goodwill Ambassador for the Sixers and will continue to do so.

Wolves owner Glen Taylor seeks eventual successor

Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor is in the market for his eventual successor.

Taylor told The Associated Press on Friday that he is looking to add a minority partner who could buy a part of the team that includes an option to buy Taylor out after observing the day-to-day operations of running a professional sports team.

Taylor said he has yet to speak to any specific candidates, but made it clear that one of the biggest priorities for him will be a commitment to keeping the Timberwolves in Minnesota.

“I could find somebody to buy the team. That’s not my problem,” Taylor said at his office at Taylor Corp., a privately held printing and marketing giant. “I have to find someone that’s committed to here. It’s always best if it would be a Minnesotan. I’m telling you I don’t know that’s the way it’s going to work out. I haven’t had a lot of Minnesotans step up.”

There has long been speculation about who would take over for Taylor, who saved the Wolves from moving to New Orleans when he purchased the team in 1994. Now, Taylor thinks the timing is right to open up the search.

— Reported by the Associated Press