Kevin Durant will make a long-awaited return to the Bay Area on Saturday as the Brooklyn Nets visit the Golden State Warriors in a mouth-watering NBA clash at Chase Center.
It is a game that pits the league's newest 'big three' (Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden) against a Warriors team led by Stephen Curry, whose incredible performances this season merit MVP votes.
But more significantly it is Durant's first road game against the Warriors since leaving them to join the Nets after the 2018-19 season that ended with Golden State losing the NBA Finals to the Toronto Raptors in a series that saw the 2014 MVP suffer an Achilles injury.
Having missed the last three games because of coronavirus contact tracing protocols, Durant has been cleared and will face the team with whom he won two NBA titles and two Finals MVPs, though Curry does not expect his former team-mate to treat the contest any differently.
Reflecting on Durant's time with the Warriors, Curry told a media conference: "Two championships, an unfortunate ending with injuries and not getting it done in the 2019 Finals, but it was some of the best basketball the world has ever seen.
"The ability to put that much talent and experience together and make it work, there was no guarantee it was going to work, and we figured it out and it was an amazing run."
Asked about the emotions of his return, Curry added: "Honestly, I don't know how special it'll be because it's not at Oracle [Arena] and there's no fans, so it's kind of weird that whole vibe.
"We've got a tribute video which he deserves, and hopefully it'll be a moment that he'll appreciate. But outside of that it is kind of weird to be honest, in terms of all the things that have changed since 18-19.
"If you ask him how he feels he'll probably say it's another game and I'm sure that's how it will be once the ball drops on Saturday."
TOP PERFORMERS
Stephen Curry - Golden State Warriors
Curry has bounced back from a 2019-20 season lost to injury in utterly remarkable form.
He is averaging 30 points a game, the only other season in which he has done so was in 2015-16, when he was named the league MVP in a unanimous vote.
Curry is shooting 43.5 per cent from beyond the arc, having made 10 threes in Thursday's win over the Orlando Magic, which he finished with 40 points.
That his tally against the Magic was not close to his season-high is indicative of the level at which he is playing.
The six-time All-Star has a 62-point game and a 57-point game this season, and has topped 30 points on 10 other occasions. Curry is back, and he's back to his best.
James Harden - Brooklyn Nets
Harden may not be scoring at the same level as Curry but his impact this season is undoubted.
The former Houston Rockets star is sixth in the NBA in PAR (Points + Assists + Rebounds) per game with 41.8, so far justifying the Nets' blockbuster trade for his services.
He started the month with his fourth triple-double of the season against the Los Angeles Clippers and has four successive double-doubles since.
Whether it's as a scorer, facilitator or rebounder, the Warriors will have to do all they can to limit Harden's influence.
KEY BATTLE: CAN DRAYMOND STOP DURANT?
With the Warriors still without rookie center James Wiseman because of a wrist injury and DeAndre Jordan out for the Nets, Durant may have to matchup with Draymond Green at center.
In the absence of Wiseman, the Warriors have had to turn to small ball and play Green at the five, and his clash with Durant promises to be a feisty one, given they weren't afraid to get in each other's faces as team-mates.
One of Green's tasks will be to stop Durant from getting into the paint consistently. That is no easy feat, but the Warriors have had success stopping teams in that regard this season.
Their 43.5 points in the paint allowed per game are the sixth-fewest in the NBA. If Green and the Warriors can limit Durant's opportunities to get to the hoop, they will have a much better shot of pulling off the upset.
HEAD TO HEAD
Durant and Irving inspired the Nets to a blowout win over the Warriors to start the new season.
The Nets emerged 125-99 victors, Durant scoring 22 points and leading Brooklyn with a plus-minus rating of plus 26.
That game was illustrative of the massive changes both teams have undergone. It was Brooklyn's second successive win over the Warriors but they had lost their previous eight meetings with one of most dominant teams in NBA history.
Giannis and Lillard 'very' close to returning as Bucks keep Pacers series alive
Having kept their Eastern Conference first-round series with the Indiana Pacers alive with Tuesday's Game 5 win, the Milwaukee Bucks could recover their two leading scorers for Game 6.
Despite star duo Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard missing out due to injury, the third-seeded Bucks dragged the series back to 3-2 with a 115-92 victory at Fiserv Forum.
Khris Middleton had 29 points and 12 rebounds – his third straight game with at least 25 points – while Bobby Portis Jr. also had 29 as he made amends for being ejected in Milwaukee's Game 4 defeat.
That meant they became the first team in NBA history to win a playoff game when deprived of their two top scorers from the regular season.
The Bucks will go back on the road for another must-win game on Thursday, and they are hoping to have reinforcements.
Two-time NBA MVP Antetokounmpo has missed all five games in the series with a left calf strain, while Lillard has missed the last two contests after hurting his Achilles last week.
After Tuesday's game, coach Doc Rivers said both players were scheduled to work out on Wednesday and suggested they could be in contention for Game 6.
"I think they're very, very, very close," Rivers said.
Rivers was delighted by the way their team-mates stepped up in difficult circumstances, adding: "You could feel the energy in our film and in our walk-through.
"We were coming to play and win tonight. You could feel it in the preparation, that was not a team walking through a walk-through, thinking this was it. That's a team thinking they can win."
For Middleton, it was simply about staying alive and giving the Bucks' stars a chance to impact the series.
"We have to find a way to win, whatever it takes," Middleton said. "We're still confident. Our backs were up against the wall tonight, we had a great home crowd that got us going.
"So we're going to have to find a way. That's the only way to put it, find a way to get this next one and force a Game 7."
NBA: Maxey, 76ers stun Knicks with late rally for OT win in Game 5
Tyrese Maxey scored seven points in the final 25 seconds of regulation to save Philadelphia’s season and finished with a playoff career-high 46 as the 76ers staved off elimination in their Eastern Conference first-round series with an unlikely 112-106 victory over the New York Knicks on Tuesday.
Down six with 28 seconds left in regulation, Maxey converted the rare four-point play with 25 seconds to play, and after Josh Hart’s free throw, hit a 35-foot 3-pointer to tie it at 97 with 8.1 seconds remaining in front of a stunned Madison Square Garden crowd.
Joel Embiid had 19 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists and nine turnovers for the 76ers, who will host Game 6 on Thursday.
Maxey added nine assists and was 7 of 12 from 3-point range.
Brunson scored 40 points and Hart had 18 with nine rebounds for the Knicks, who were tantalisingly close to reaching the Eastern Conference semifinals for the second straight season.
Brunson scored the first five points of overtime but Maxey's 3 triggered a 9-0 run that Embiid capped with a 3-point play with 1:40 left for a 106-102 lead. Brunson tied it with a 3 but Kelly Oubre Jr. made the tiebreaking basket with 62 seconds to play, and Tobias Harris sealed it with two free throws.
Short-handed Bucks stay alive
Khris Middleton had 29 points and 12 rebounds and Bobby Portis added 29 with 10 boards as the Milwaukee Bucks stayed alive with a 115-92 win over the Indiana Pacers in Game 5 despite missing leading scorers Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard.
Portis had the highest point total of his playoff career and made amends after he was ejected from a Game 4 loss. Middleton had his third straight game with at least 25 points.
Tyrese Haliburton scored 16 points and Myles Turner added 13 for the Pacers, who still lead the series 3-2 and will try to close it out at home in Game 6 on Thursday. Indiana hasn’t advanced past the first round since 2014.
The Bucks got a balanced effort without Antetokounmpo and Lillard, as every starter scored in double figures. Antetokounmpo has missed the entire series and hasn’t played since straining his left calf on April 9. Lillard sat out a second consecutive game after injuring his Achilles tendon in Game 3 on Friday.
Cavs edge Magic for 3-2 lead
Donovan Mitchell scored 28 points and Evan Mobley came up with a huge block in the final seconds to lift the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 104-103 win over the Orlando Magic to take a 3-2 lead in their Eastern Conference series.
After Mitchell missed a jumper with 15.7 seconds left, Franz Wagner drove the left side for a potential game-tying layup but was denied at the rim by Mobley with six seconds left.
Mitchell, who had 14 fourth-quarter points, was then fouled and made two free throws with 3.2 seconds remaining to up Cleveland’s lead to 104-100. Paolo Banchero made a 3-pointer in the final second for the final margin.
The Cavs bounced back at home after losing two road games and can finish off the Magic in Orlando in Game 6 on Friday.
Max Strus scored 16 points to help Cleveland offset the loss of starting center Jarrett Allen (bruised rib) and Mobley added 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Banchero scored 16 of his 39 points in the fourth quarter and grabbed eight rebounds, but the next closest Magic player was Wagner with 14 points.
Celtics mindset needed to change after Porzingis injury - Horford
Al Horford said that the Boston Celtics needed to change their mindset after losing Kristaps Porzingis to injury during their convincing Game 4 102-88 victory over the Miami Heat.
The Celtics now have a 3-1 series lead after Derrick White scored a career-high 38 points to edge the top seeds one step closer to the Conference Semifinals.
The win came at a cost though, as Porzingis was forced off with right calf tightness just before the end of the second quarter, but the Celtics rallied to win their sixth straight game in Miami.
Horford replaced Porzingis for the second half and told ESPN that the team had to change their approach after losing a key player.
“All of us, our mindset has to shift," he said.
“I talked to Luke [Kornet] and Xavier [Tillman] and let them know that all of us have to be ready to step up and do a little more because KP was playing so well defensively.
“It’s definitely concerning for me. He's in good spirits, but we don't know what it's going to be. I'm just hoping that it's nothing serious, and he can get back to us quick.”
Bam Adebayo finished with 25 points, 17 rebounds and five assists for Miami, but they struggled on offence once more, with Tyler Herro scoring 19 points and Caleb Martin adding 18.
The Heat coach, Erik Spoelstra, bemoaned his side’s struggles to get more points on the board, saying: “Offensively, we struggled again. We had some decent looks early on, weren't able to knock those down, and Derrick White was very good tonight — obviously. He was just very efficient, very good.
“I know in my heart we have a game that's there. It's just a matter of the ball going in a few more times, and all of a sudden it ignites.”
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