Category: Uncategorized

Angel Reese says foul on Caitlin Clark a basketball play

On: By: admin


Angel Reese #5 of the Chicago Sky reacts after fouling Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever during the second half  of a WNBA game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 16, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Emilee Chinn/Getty Images/AFP

INDIANAPOLIS –Angel Reese insisted all she did Sunday was make a basketball play against Caitlin Clark.

The former Iowa star agreed with her college rival.

But that isn’t likely to defuse what happens next.

After the Indiana Fever rookie wound up on the ground courtesy of Reese’s right elbow striking Clark’s head on a drive to the basket, the referees used replay review to upgrade the foul call to a flagrant-1 and almost assuredly setting off yet another debate about the contact Clark seems to be facing each game.

READ: Caitlin Clark, WNBA rookies draw near-record crowds for 1st month

“I can’t control the refs and they affected the game, obviously, a lot tonight,” Reese said after finishing with 11 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and five fouls in the Chicago Sky’s 91-83 loss at Indiana in the WNBA. “Y’all are probably going to play that clip like 20 times before Monday.”

Naturally, it didn’t take long for the highlight to start making the social media rounds.

But regardless of whether the elbow was intentional, the result was the same — Clark taking a head shot most sports leagues want to prevent.

Clark’s response was to walk calmly to the free-throw line late in the third quarter, make both shots and help lead her team to its second straight victory before again downplaying the situation in her postgame news conference.

“It is what it is, you know, she’s trying to make a play on the ball and get the block,” Clark said after finishing with 23 points, nine assists and eight rebounds in her best all-around game as a pro. “I mean it happens and then those free throws when you have to shoot with nobody at the line are kind of hard. So I was just focusing on making those free throws.”

READ: WNBA fashionistas showcase styles at draft

Still, Sunday’s scene was quite different from the one that played out two weeks earlier between these same teams in front of another sellout crowd in Indianapolis.

Back then, Sky guard Chennedy Carter hit Clark on an inbound play that sent the unsuspecting guard to the ground. Carter was tagged with an away-from-the-ball call, which resulted in one free throw and league officials later upgraded the call to a flagrant-1.

Fever fans serenaded Carter and Reese with cheers any time either was called for a foul in Sunday’s rematch.

No, Fever coach Christie Sides wasn’t happy to see her star player hit the deck yet again, but at least this time, she thought they got it right.

“The right call was made in that moment,” Sides said. “Just make the right call in those moments, and we can move forward. But when we don’t make the right call in those moments, that’s when there’s a problem and they made the right call tonight.”



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

Reese, clearly, did not agree.

“I think we went up really strong a lot of times and didn’t get a lot of calls,” she said. “Going back and looking, I’ve seen a lot of calls that weren’t made, I guess some people get a special whistle.”

Team USA faces ‘mountain to climb’ as VNL unfolds in Manila

On: By: admin


USA team captain Micah Christenson during a press conference ahead of the VNL Week 3 in Manila. –PNVF PHOTO

VNL 2024 schedule: Week 3 Manila, Philippines leg

MANILA, Philippines — Team USA braces for a tough climb to the Final Eight of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) as it plays crucial games in its first stint in Manila for Week 3.

All eyes are on the Americans as they play at Mall of Asia Arena for the first time in the Philippines’ third straight hosting of the prestigious world tournament.

“It’s a pleasure to be here. It’s our first year here. We felt a lot of love online and on social media from Filipino fans so to finally be here and experience it in person is a real pleasure,” USA skipper Micah Christenson said. “We’re excited to experience it all.”

Christenson, the reigning VNL Best Setter, knows his team is facing the daunting task of making it to the Top 8 as they are currently in 12th place with a 3-5 record.

“I think we’re trying to just improve and get better. We’ve got a bit of a mountain to climb in terms of qualifying for the finals,” he said. “But we brought our climbing gears so we’re going to try our best to get up there.”

READ: ‘Great expectations’ ahead for Japan in VNL Manila leg

USA coach John Speraw, meanwhile, said is awe of the Philippine volleyball’s popularity that they will finally get to experience it in Manila, where the FIVB Men’s World Championship next year will also be held. 

“We were talking about the fact that we had not had an opportunity to come to the Philippines yet we were looking forward to that day. Here we are so we’re excited to be here and grateful for the opportunity to experience it,” Speraw said.

“I’ve heard so much about which is the support of the Philippine fans and how much volleyball has grown here in this country. And certainly a precursor to the world championships next year.”

The USA will debut in Manila on Wednesday against Iran at 7 p.m. after the 3 p.m. game between France and Germany.

“We’re trying to have our best week of VNL and play our best volleyball this summer and as we look to continue to improve with the ultimate goal in mind. We’re excited to get out and compete and see all the fans,” said the USA coach.

The Top 8 teams will qualify in the VNL Final Round in Poland. The league is also serving as the final volleyball tournament before the Paris Olympics with five tickets based on the FIVB World Rankings up for grabs.



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

Only seven countries – USA, host France, Germany, Brazil, Japan, Poland, and Canada – have booked their Olympic seats so far.

The Netherlands and Brazil open the VNL Leg 3 on Tuesday at 5 p.m., followed by the main game between Japan and Canada at 8:30 p.m.

Andy Murray uncertain if he’ll play in Paris Olympics

On: By: admin


FILE–Britain’s Andy Murray gestures to the public after playing against Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka during their men’s singles match on day one of The French Open tennis tournament on Court Philippe-Chatrier at The Roland Garros Complex in Paris on May 26, 2024. (Photo by Alain JOCARD / AFP)

Andy Murray said Sunday he was “not 100 percent sure” he will play at the Paris Olympics despite being selected just hours earlier for his fifth Games.

Murray, who has said he intends to retire later this year, was granted an International Tennis Federation (ITF) place to compete at the Games despite his lowly singles ranking of 97 because he is a former Grand Slam winner and Olympic champion.

Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski will represent Team GB in the men’s doubles and the pairing of Murray and Dan Evans has been nominated for an additional space in that competition, which will be determined by the ITF — the governing body of world tennis who run the tournament — on June 25.

The 37-year-old Murray said his participation at the Games was partly dependent on whether he was involved in the doubles, as well as singles, competition.

READ: Andy Murray named for fifth Olympics

“I am not 100 percent sure,” Murray told reporters at Queen’s Club, while dressed in a Team GB tracksuit. “It depends a little bit physically how I am doing. How the next few weeks go as well. Yeah, my plan just now is to play, but it is not straightforward.

“I’ll find out in the next 10 days or so on the doubles and what’s going to happen there. Hopefully me and Evo get the chance to play.”

Murray, who won Olympic gold at London 2012 and Rio in 2016, was one of four British male singles players selected alongside Jack Draper, Cameron Norrie and Dan Evans.

It was a landmark day for Draper, the incoming British number one, as just hours later the 22-year-old won his maiden ATP tour title, beating former Wimbledon runner-up Matteo Berrettini 3-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 in the final of the Stuttgart Open.

Team GB was also notified on Thursday that 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu would be in the mix for an ITF place, but she turned down the chance because of the multiple changes in surface over the coming weeks and after only recently returning from a lengthy injury lay-off.

Katie Boulter — who beat Raducanu in the semi-finals of the Nottingham Open on Sunday — was the sole female player included in the British team.



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

Carlo Paalam, Nesthy Petecio to carry PH flag in Paris Olympics

On: By: admin


FILE–Nesthy Petecio.–POOL PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–Boxers Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio will carry the Philippine flag in the parade of nations at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Paalam and Petecio, who both secured silver medals in the previous Olympics in Tokyo, were designated flag-bearers by the Philippine Olympic Committee for the opening rites of the global sports showpiece on July 26.

The 25-year-old Paalam got the silver after a split-decision defeat to Galal Yafai of Great Britain during their men’s flyweight finale three years ago while Petecio, 32, earned the distinction as the first Filipino woman boxer who reached the podium in the Olympics.

READ: Carlo Paalam hurries to be 100 percent battle-ready for Paris Olympics

Carlo Paalam qualifies for Paris Olympics

FILE–The Philippines’ Carlo Paalam reacts after winning against Uzbekistan’s Shakhobidin Zoirov during their men’s fly (48-52kg) quarter-final boxing match during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Kokugikan Arena in Tokyo on August 3, 2021. (Photo by Luis ROBAYO / POOL / AFP)

The silver finish of both Paalam and Petecio plus the bronze medal of boxer Eumir Marcial in the middleweight division broke the country’s medal drought in the sport since Mansueto “Onyok” Velasco claimed a silver medal in the 1996 Atlanta Summer Games.

A total of 15 Filipinos have already booked their spots in Paris headed by pole vaulter EJ Obiena, gymnasts Carlos Yulo, Aleah Finnegan, Emma Malabuyo, Levi Ruivivar and weightlifters Vanessa Sarno, Elreen Ando and John Ceniza.

READ: Hard work continues for Nesthy Petecio after clinching Paris Olympics berth

Joining them are fencer Samantha Catantan, rower Joanie Delgaco and boxers Hergie Bacyadan, Aira Villegas and Marcial.

Several more athletes from athletics and swimming are expected to qualify after the Olympic qualification door closes on June 30.



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

Celtics aim to regroup after Mavericks avoid sweep

On: By: admin


Boston Celtics players sit on the bench during the final moments of their loss to the Dallas Mavericks in Game 4 of the NBA finals, Friday, June 14, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

NBA Finals 2024 Boston Celtics vs Dallas Mavericks

Poised for an NBA coronation in Dallas, the Boston Celtics instead suffered the most lopsided Finals loss in franchise history, but with a 3-1 series lead Jaylen Brown says there’s no need to panic.

“These are the moments that can make you or break you,” Brown said after the Mavericks demolished the Celtics 122-84 in game four of the best-of-seven championship series.

“We have to reassemble,” Brown said. “We have to look at it and learn from it, and then we’ve got to embrace it and attack it.

“It’s going to be hard to do what we’re trying to do. We didn’t expect anything to be easy, but it’s no reason to lose our head.”

Boston forward Jayson Tatum said the key to moving past the big defeat was “not to harp on it too much”.

“We’re not making any excuses,” Tatum said. “We need to be better, and we will.”

READ: NBA Finals: Celtics back home with chance to clinch record 18th title

Certainly, the Celtics still have the upper hand heading into game five on Monday, where they’ll try to clinch a record-setting 18th NBA crown.

After all, no team has come back from 0-3 down to win an NBA playoff series.

But a Celtics squad schooled by coach Joe Mazzulla on the hunting tactics of killer whales looked more like the hapless seal pups on the beach as Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and the rest of the Mavs roared to a 38-point game-four win.

It was the third-largest margin of victory in Finals history, and the worst pounding the 17-time champion Celtics had ever taken in the title series — surpassing their 137-104 loss to the Lakers in game three in 1984.

Kyrie Irving Dallas Mavericks beat Boston Celtics Game 4 NBA Finals

Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving, center, drives to the basket against the Boston Celtics during the first half in Game 4 of the NBA basketball finals, Friday, June 14, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

The Celtics won that series in seven games, and they still have three chances to close out the Mavs.

But from talk of a sweep the question now is could they become the first team to blow a 3-0 series lead.

Dallas, meanwhile, know the magnitude of the task they face.

“History is going to be made either way,” said Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving, who won a title alongside LeBron James in Cleveland in 2016. “We’d like to be on the right side of it.

READ: Celtics knocked down hard in Game 4, but go home with chance to clinch

“We waited until game four to ultimately play our best game,” Irving added. “Took long enough for all of us to get the party together and to play for each other the way we did (Friday).

“But it’s definitely a possibility that we can replicate it.”

Irving will have to perform better than he did in games one and two in Boston, where Celtics fans still bitter over his 2019 exit after a two-year tenure with the team, hounded him relentlessly.

“When we go to Boston, there’s going to be a bunch of them yelling a whole bunch of crazy stuff still, but I think we’ve been able to grow and face kind of this adversity head on.”

Mavs star Luka Doncic will also have to maintain the intensity he displayed in game four, when he scored 29 points with five rebounds and five assists while sitting out all of the fourth quarter to answer critics who questioned his maturity and effort.



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

“I think he made a few people eat their words — in a healthy way,” Irving said.

‘Great expectations’ ahead for Japan in VNL Manila leg

On: By: admin


Team captains and coaches who will be participating in the VNL men’s volleyball
competition that will be held in MOA Arena in Pasay City. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Yuki Ishikawa and Japan are elated to play in Manila for the third time in a row in the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) 2024 Week 3 starting Tuesday at Mall of Asia Arena. 

The Japanese men’s volleyball team, the fan-favorite of Filipinos, resumes its VNL campaign against Canada at 8:30 p.m. after the Netherlands and Brazil’s match at 5 p.m.

“We are so happy to be here again. We played for the last two years and we are doing well. This week is very important for us because, after our pool matches, we have the (VNL) finals and the Olympic Games,” said Ishiwaka, who will play in the Paris Olympics 2024. “Our goal is we’ll take good lessons to the Olympic Games. We’ll do well this weekend.”

READ: Fan favorites USA, Japan arrive in Manila for VNL

The Japan team captain, who will be with Ran Takahashi and Yuji Nishida, is determined to solidify their chances to the Final 8 with a 6-2 record in fifth place.

“Now we are preparing well, everybody here. I had some lapses in the first week and the second. We have to think always (about the) big games and we have to play well,” Ishikawa said.

Playing crucial matches in Manila, Japan’s French coach Philippe Blain vows his wards will play their best in front of the Filipino crowd.

READ: VNL set for Manila leg with Japan, USA headlining

“We know that we have great expectations also here in the Philippines with the fans. So we will do our best to make the best spectacle and the best volleyball possible to come,” Blain said.

Ishikawa agreed with his coach as Japan remains hungry despite being one of the seven countries with host France, Germany, Brazil, USA, Poland, and Canada that qualified for the Olympics.

“We are so excited to play here in front of Filipino fans. We will do our best to really show our best volleyball. I can’t way to play in front of Filipino fans,” said the reigning VNL Best Outside Spiker.



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

Mbappe rules out representing France at Paris Olympics

On: By: admin


France’s forward #10 Kylian Mbappe looks on during an MD-1 training session at Paul Janes Stadium in Duesseldorf on June 16, 2024, on the eve of their UEFA Euro 2024 Group D football match against Austria. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP)

France captain Kylian Mbappe on Sunday admitted that he will not represent his country at the upcoming Paris Olympics.

“For the Olympics my club has a position which is very clear so that means I think I will not participate in the Olympics. That is how it is,” Mbappe said.

The 25-year-old, who was speaking ahead of France’s opening Euro 2024 game on Monday against Austria, has just signed for Real Madrid and will join the European champions for the new season under freedom of contract from Paris Saint-Germain.

READ: Kylian Mbappe finally joins Real Madrid

The men’s Olympics football tournament begins on July 24, with the final on August 9.

The Spanish season is due to start a week later, while Madrid is also due to play Atalanta in the UEFA Super Cup in Warsaw on August 14.

“Joining a new team in September would not be the best way to begin my adventure,” admitted Mbappe, who had previously stated a wish to be able to play for Thierry Henry’s French Olympic team.

READ: PSG, French football prepare for challenges of post-Mbappe era

“I wish the best to the France team. I will of course watch all their games as a spectator rather than an actor, and I hope they bring back the gold medal.”

This week Lionel Messi confirmed he would also not go to the Olympics, turning down the chance to win the gold medal with Argentina for a second time.



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

Ferrari wins second successive Le Mans 24 Hours race

On: By: admin


Ferrari 499P Hybrid Hypercar WEC’s team, Spanish driver Miguel Molina, Italian driver Antonio Fuoco, and Danish driver Nicklas Nielsen celebrate on the podium after winning Le 24 Hours of Le Mans sports-car race Sunday, June 16, 2024, in Le Mans, France. (AP Photo/Jeremias Gonzalez)

Ferrari won a wild and wet 92nd edition of the Le Mans 24 Hours race on Sunday.

Nicklas Nielsen took the chequered flag after a vintage and grueling race, the Dane sharing driving duties in the Italian constructor’s No 50 car with Italian Antonio Fuoco and Spaniard Miguel Molina.

Toyota’s No 7 car took second with Ferrari’s No 51 car, which triumphed last year, completing the podium.

Twenty-four long hours, 311 laps and 4,238 kilometers after French football great Zinedine Zidane had sent the 62 car-grid on its way on Saturday, the Ferrari that emerged victorious after a classic version of motorsport’s supreme endurance test.

READ: Ferrari take first pole in 50 years as Le Mans turns 100

Porsche’s pole-sitting No 6 car narrowly missed a podium place in fourth ahead of Toyota’s No 8 car, with just over a minute covering the first five.

In an attritional affair, the night proved long and tedious with incessant rain forcing long yellow flag periods.

That reduced the gleaming high-spec racing cars capable of going well in excess of 300kph to pottering along at speeds normally associated with a family hatchback heading to the local supermarket.

Drivers like Toyota’s previous winner New Zealander Brendon Hartley complained of knee cramp as they were unable to put their foot on the gas in the confined cockpits.

READ: ‘Fantastic’ Ferrari makes triumphant return at Le Mans

Molina constantly complained of boredom on the team radio.

This year’s Le Mans set an invidious record of over six hours-racing neutralized by safety cars. Four were used at any one time, with some even having ‘to pit’ to refuel.

Mechanics used the period to grab some much needed shut eye, but that was not a luxury all the unpaid track marshalls from France and Britain could afford.

 Daytime mayhem

Ferrari 499P Hybrid Hypercar Le Mans

Spanish driver Miguel Molina, right, Italian driver Antonio Fuoco, left, and Danish driver Nicklas Nielsen, driving the car, a Ferrari 499P Hybrid Hypercar of WEC’s team, celebrate after winning Le 24 Hours of Le Mans sports-car race Sunday, June 16, 2024, in Le Mans, France. (AP Photo/Jeremias Gonzalez)

At the midway point – 0400 local time – with the rain tipping down, visibility minimal and the spray flying in the dead of night – Hartley’s Toyota led Kevin Estre in one of Porsche’s six Hypercar entries.

After daylight broke over the saturated Sarthe circuit, the safety cars retreated to give the weary 250,000 crowd a welcome dawn chorus of car engines roaring again in anger.

Nocturnal tedium made way for daytime mayhem.

At around 0930, mechanics in the Aston Martin garage had their hearts in their mouths watching Daniel Mancinelli suffer a terrible-looking crash.

The 35-year-old Italian rolled his car, and there was an agonizing wait before he forced open his side door and scrambled out, thankfully unscathed.

With six hours to go and a restart after another safety car interlude Earl Bamber in the No. 2 Cadillac was told on the team radio “it’s time to make the eagle fly”.

The closing hours developed into a mesmerizing battle between four constructors – Porsche, Ferrari, Toyota and Cadillac.

Ferrari’s No 50 car led from last year’s winning No 51 car with under 120 minutes to go, from Toyota’s No 7 then the No 2 Cadillac.

Nielsen in the leading Ferrari then had to pit after orders from race control due to an unsafe open door which he had tried frantically to shut himself.

That gifted Jose Maria Lopez’s Toyota the lead but only momentarily as Nielsen with an hour remaining had regained control, the Dane establishing a 30sec cushion as the long awaited 1400GMT finish approached.

A frantic conclusion in the rain, with pit stops aplenty triggered multiple changes in the lead with Ferrari crossing the line 14 seconds ahead.



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

With winners, come losers and one team leaving a memorable edition of a race first staged in 1923 downcast, were Alpine, whose two cars failed to finish, and motorcycling legend Valentino Rossi, whose BMW in the LMGT3 category crashed out.

Jayson Tatum reflects how being a dad changed his life, career

On: By: admin


FILE – Fans reach out to Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) as he leaves the court holding his son, Deuce, after the Celtics defeated the Los Angeles Clippers in a double overtime NBA basketball game, Feb. 13, 2020, in Boston. Tatum spent part of his Father’s Day, Sunday, June 16, 2024, thinking about how his son made him a better person — and probably a better basketball player, too. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File)

BOSTON — Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum spent part of his Father’s Day thinking about how his son made him a better person — and probably a better basketball player, too.

Speaking at practice the day before Game 5 of the NBA Finals, Tatum acknowledged that he was “a little selfish” when he learned, as a teenager still in college with hopes of basketball stardom, that he would be a father.

“I’d be the first to say I wasn’t super-thrilled to find out I was going to be a dad, and quickly realized that it was the best thing that ever could have happened to me. There’s nothing better than being a dad,” Tatum said Sunday. “I’m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason.”

READ: NBA Finals: Celtics take season’s worth of lessons in Game 5

Now 26 and in his seventh season, Tatum is a five-time All-Star who has led Boston to the Eastern Conference finals five times and to the NBA Finals twice. The Celtics lead the Dallas Mavericks 3-1 in the best-of-seven series; after missing their first chance to clinch a title on Friday, they have a second shot at an unprecedented 18th championship banner on Monday night.

Tatum had just turned 19 and was in his only year at Duke when he learned his girlfriend at the time was pregnant.

“I wasn’t ecstatic,” Tatum said Sunday. “I was a little selfish at that point because I knew that I was about to go chase my dream and be in the NBA. I felt like that was going to affect what people thought of me, affect where I went in the draft.”

READ: Celtics will win NBA title if Tatum, Brown focus on details, not emotions

Tatum was picked No. 3 overall by the Celtics, and Jayson Tatum Jr. – familiar around the Celtics as “Deuce” – was born in December of his father’s rookie season. Having a son helped the NBA star manage the expectations of his new wealth and fame, and the temptations that came along with them, too.

“It taught me a sense of responsibility,” Tatum said. “Nobody can help you or prepare you for what it’s like to be 19 and have millions of dollars.

“And I think — not that I think, I know — that having Deuce at that age grounded me. Because whatever decision I wanted to make, I had to make sure that he was taken care of. I couldn’t just up and go or do everything that some of my peers were doing because I had to go home and put him to bed. Or for Father’s Day weekend I was going out of town, or I had to skip out on this trip with my friends because it was my weekend with him.

“Not that it’s a sacrifice. I willingly would choose those things. But it has taught me a sense of responsibility — as well as just making the right decisions, knowing that there’s a 6-year-old ‘mini me’ essentially watching everything that I do and knowing that I have to be the best version of myself. I have to make the right decisions, because he’s always watching.”



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

Rookie leaving impression as Mavs try to stay alive

On: By: admin


Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II (2) scores against the Boston Celtics during Game 4 of the NBA basketball finals, Friday, June 14, 2024, in Dallas. (Stacy Revere/Pool Photo via AP)

Dereck Lively II drained the first 3-pointer of his career, forced a missed layup at the other end and ping-ponged back down the court to slam home an alley-oop pass.

The Dallas Mavericks didn’t trail again in Game 4 of the NBA Finals against Boston following that first-quarter sequence from their 7-foot-1 rookie center.

And while a series loss to the Celtics with the title on the line still seems inevitable, the 20-year-old from Duke has left an impression on the global basketball stage.

Never mind the unmistakable imprint from Lively on a franchise that tanked to try to preserve the first-round draft pick that landed him — but wasn’t really expecting this much this soon.

“I think people forget he’s a rookie,” superstar Luka Doncic said after the 122-84 blowout in Game 4 that kept Boston from sweeping. “He’s a rookie doing this stuff. He’s been amazing the whole season. Just watching him grow was unbelievable.”

READ: NBA Finals: Irving ends skid vs Celtics, now Mavs try to win in Boston

Next up for Lively is trying to make a little more noise in Boston. The chance comes in Game 5 on Monday night.

In the two Dallas losses at TD Garden, he had a combined four points on four shots with 12 rebounds.

Lively grabbed at least that many rebounds in each game in Dallas, scoring 11 points both times to join Magic Johnson (1980) as the only rookies with consecutive double-doubles in the NBA Finals.

He won’t be the focal point for the jeers from the opposing crowd — fellow Duke alum Kyrie Irving is the foil for Boston fans after spurning their team in free agency five years ago and fueling the rage with his antics on the parquet floor since then.

Lively feels the need to prepare for it nonetheless.

“It’s going to be loud and nasty,” Lively said. “You do your best not to focus on the crowd. There’s going to be a lot of people talking to you. It’s part of the game. Part of the job.”

READ: NBA Finals: Mavericks crush Celtics to avoid sweep

When the Mavericks added another pick-and-roller and rim protector before the trade deadline in Daniel Gafford, it figured to be for depth behind Lively.

But Lively was in and out of the lineup because of injuries in the second half of the season, and the Mavs went 18-2 in a 20-game stretch with Gafford as the starter.

Gafford has started every playoff game, but the pendulum has swung back to Lively as the primary contributor at center. His earliest entry into a game in the finals, with 9:30 left in the first quarter in Game 4, came not long before the corner 3 that sent the crowd into a frenzy.

Had the score been closer, Lively probably would have had a second consecutive 30-minute game. At one point in the second half, he already had all 12 of his rebounds while Boston’s entire team had 16.

“A lot of this playoff season, playoff series, has just been finding out who we are, finding how much can we get hit and then throw one back,” Lively said. “It’s definitely been an enjoyable time to just see my teammates and myself just grow and adapt with one another with what’s going on on the floor.”

Fans might have been asking what was going on when Doncic passed to Lively behind the 3-point line in the corner — and Lively shot it. The scene unfolded seven months to the day since Lively’s most recent shot from behind the arc, one of just two in the regular season.

His fellow Mavs shrugged it off after the game.

“He can shoot,” coach Jason Kidd. “But as a 20-year-old, he’s grown up in the AAU circuit where in high school, he could shoot, he could handle. He’d tell you he played point guard.”

Irving probably wouldn’t dispute it.

“I mean, if you’re familiar with D-Live’s game, you know in high school he was shooting those 3s,” Irving said. “It’s crazy. I was watching highlights not too long ago.”

The first priority for Lively in the offseason might be free throws. Oklahoma City fouled him on purpose a few times in the second-round series. He shot 50.6% from the line in the regular season but has improved to 59% (36 of 61) in the playoffs.

As for those 3s, Lively was seen shooting them during portions of practice open to reporters during the playoffs, and Kidd has called them the next step in his development.

Such talk bodes well for Lively’s development in the areas where the Mavs will depend on him the most — around the basket.

“I wouldn’t have expected myself to be in this spot whenever I looked at the draft a year ago,” said Lively, who was taken 12th overall. “The draft is a week away. Last year, a week away from the draft, my heart was pumping because I didn’t know what was going to happen. And now I’m playing in the NBA Finals.”



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

And leaving an impression — again.