A heated exchange saw two NBA rivals ejected as #LaMelo #Ball silenced his critics with another strong showing in the #Charlotte #Hornets’ 118-99 win over the #Dallas #Mavericks.
#Both #James #Johnson and #Cody #Martin were ejected after the pair came together following a shoulder and headbutt from the former.
#Tempers flared with 2:40 remaining on the clock in the final quarter and with the #Hornets leading 114-95.
#Watch #Live coverage every week of the NBA #Regular #Season with ESPN on #Kayo. #New to #Kayo? #Get your free trial now & start streaming instantly >
#Johnson and #Martin were both ejected for physical taunt.
LAMELO’S SCORELESS DEBUT ALL BUT A MERE BLIP
#When #LaMelo #Ball went scoreless in his NBA debut, some pundits already thought there was reason for concern.
#It was his first game in the league and so no-one was expecting #Ball to be on fire on the offensive end of the court but 0-for-5 from the field and 0-for-3 on 3-point attempts did not exactly instil confidence moving forward.
#Particularly considering #Ball’s issues on the defensive end were supposed to be somewhat offset by his playmaking abilities.
#LaMelo lights up the scoreboard
0:36
#Well, now everyone has suddenly changed their tune and it is #Ball who has forced them to with a few brilliant showings.
#He scored 13 points and went 5-for-6 from the field in the first half of his second game and now he made an eight-year #Hornets first against #Dallas.
#Ball had 15 points, six rebounds and four assists in the first half alone to power #Charlotte’s offence.
#While his defence is still a work in progress, #Ball was playing with enough aggression at the glass and confidence to suggest he had shook off any doubts lingering from his scoreless debut.
#He also had a steal and block to go with his offensive output from the first half.
#Coach #James #Boreggo signalled earlier in the week that he would consider giving #Ball an increased role in the side and he may simply have no choice now to continue that.
#Ball was given far more minutes than usual and had 22 points, eight rebounds and five assists while shooting 80 per cent of 3s.
The obvious question now is whether #Ball can play this well on a consistent basis but it is clear he is really warming into the NBA now and finding his rhythm.
CELTICS STAR’S CAREER-BEST HAUL
#Jaylen #Brown is somewhat overshadowed by #Jayson #Tatum and #Kemba #Walker at the #Boston #Celtics but the 24-year old well and truly stepped out into the spotlight on #Thursday [AEDT].
#Brown set the court alight against the #Memphis #Grizzlies with 42 points in 28 minutes – a career-high haul.
The #Celtics rode that impressive performance from #Brown all the way to a 126-107 win over the #Grizzlies.
#Suns continue hot start against #Pelicans
1:04
The young star became the first #Boston player to score 42-plus points while draining seven-plus 3-pointers and shooting at least 70-per cent from the field.
#His 42 points through the first three quarters were the most by a #Celtics player in 25 years too, further illustrating just how much an impression #Brown was making.
#Boston were well supported by the other usual suspects too with #Jayson #Tatum (16 points in 23 minutes) and #Marcus #Smart (14 points in 26 minutes) helping power the offence.
#Both #Tatum and #Brown needed to continue their rise towards becoming leaders of the team after last season’s big success and they had already combined for a piece of history not seen a decade heading into the #Grizzlies clash.
#Tatum and #Brown’s 90-point effort through the first four games was the first time a pair of #Celtics players had scored that many together since #Kevin #Garnett and #Paul #Pierce in 2007-08.
#Get all the latest basketball news, highlights and analysis delivered straight to your inbox with #Fox #Sports #Sportmail. #Sign up now!!!
#Bucks set NBA record in historic blowout
1:00
#Brown was already scoring a career-best 24.5 points per game on 52 percent shooting before #Thursday’s career-best outing and #Tatum is seeing plenty of growth in him.
“He’s become a better shooter each and every year. #His confidence continues to grow. #He’s going to continue to get better,” he said post-game.
#Meanwhile, #Celtics coach #Brad #Stevens said #Brown’s stellar rise is all on the 24-year old.
“He’s just really improved. #Worked hard to improve. #Got a lot on his plate, he wants to have a lot on his plate and that’s good,” he said.
#Through five games this season #Brown is now averaging 28 points per game while shooting 56.2 per cent from the field and 44 per cent of 3s.
NEW LOOK KAWHI WASTES NO TIME ON RETURN
#Los #Angeles #Clippers star #Kawhi #Leonard returned in a protective mask to score a game-high 28 points in his team’s 128-105 victory over the #Portland #Trail #Blazers.
The last time #Leonard was on a basketball court he was on the floor, with NBA fans holding their breath after the #Clippers star copped an accidental elbow from teammate #Serge #Ibaka.
#Leonard was left bleeding on the floor and needed eight stitches before taking to the court.
#He also needed something else – a transparent mask – which left his eyes and nose exposed but gave his jaw, cheekbones and forehead much-needed protection.
#Leonard looked anything but bothered by the mask as he powered the #Clippers to their third win from four starts.
The usually dangerous #Damian #Lilliard finished with 20 points but shot just 21.4 per cent from the floor after being terrorised by the #Clippers.
CJ #McCollum had 25 points, four rebounds and seven assists, shooting 47.1 per cent of his shots from the floor.
#Paul #George assisted #Leonard strongly with 23 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.
#Reggie #Jackson and #Lou #Williams impressed from the bench with 26 points while #Ivica #Zubac had three blocks and two steals.
#Aussie #Rook drops the HAMMER
0:17
KD AND KYRIE EXPLODE LATE FOR NETS
#Great players aren’t always great. #Just when they need to be. #Kevin #Durant and #Kyrie #Irving were just that #Wednesday night.
#With the #Nets’ heretofore-stout defense suddenly looking like a sieve, #Durant and #Irving shook off a slow first half with a stellar second to lead #Brooklyn to a 145-141 come-from-behind gut check over the previously unbeaten #Hawks at #Barclays #Center.
#Durant had 16 of his game-high 31 points in the fourth quarter, when the #Nets outscored #Atlanta 44-37. #And #Irving poured in 17 of his 25 in the final period, when the #Nets turned a three-point deficit into a victory.
The #Nets shot 54 percent and 46.3 percent from deep on a night they couldn’t slow the #Hawks, much less stop them.
#Stars set themselves apart early
1:01
The #Nets put seven players in double figures, with #Joe #Harris (23 points, 6 of 8 from deep) getting hot from the outside and the stars taking over in crunch time.
#Irving and #Durant came in #No. 1 and 2 in the NBA in plus-minus by a wide margin.
The #Nets had been a plus-64 in 95 minutes with their stars on the court together, but minus-17 in 102 minutes without both playing.
#After sitting out #Monday (on the tail end of a back-to-back), it took them awhile to get going against #Atlanta.
The #Nets’ previously stout defense let point guard #Trae #Young (30 points, 11 assists) and power forward #John #Collins (30 points, 10 rebounds) get wherever and whatever they wanted, falling behind early.
The #Nets trailed 47-40 after #De’#Andre #Hunter’s 3-pointer, having allowed 64 percent shooting and 7 of 13 from deep. #And while they tightened the defense up just enough to let their offense get them back in the game, it wasn’t enough.
#Sabonis calls GAME on #Celtics
0:17
The #Hawks led 68-67 after a first half in which #Irving mustered just four points and missed nine of 10 shots, and all five from deep. #Taurean #Prince (12 points) and #Landry #Shamet (14 points) — both struggling badly coming in — went a combined 10-for-10 and kept them in it with encouraging bounce-back efforts. #But the defense never found a way to slow #Atlanta.
#After clawing ahead 76-74 on a #Harris left corner 3-pointer, the #Nets surrendered eight straight unanswered points, the last by #Young to fall back behind 82-76.
The #Nets pulled even again at 94-all in the third, but surrendered a 9-1 run, a #Solomon #Hill 3-pointer making it 103-95. The last period was a tooth-and-nail affair, coming right down to the final minutes.
#With the score knotted at 120-all, #Timothe #Luwawu-Cabarrot got in the paint and kicked out to #Harris for a corner 3 that put #Brooklyn ahead for good. #Irving’s 3-pointer made it 130-126 with 4:32 remaining.
#Another #Irving 3-pointer made it 137-132 with 2:01 to play, and his bucket with 32 seconds left in regulation put the #Nets up 139-136. They held onto that lead for dear life.
– #New #York #Post
MIAMI’S INCREDIBLE TURNAROUND
The #Miami #Heat rebounded from an embarrassing 47-point loss to #Milwaukee with a 119-108 NBA victory over the #Bucks on #Wednesday.
The #Heat didn’t have to wait long for revenge as they hosted the #Bucks for the second straight night.
#Goran #Dragic came off the bench to lead #Miami with 26 points, #Bam #Adebayo added 22 points, eight rebounds and 10 assists and #Tyler #Herro scored 21 points with a career-best 15 rebounds as the #Heat rallied to stave off another home defeat.
The #Bucks had dominated on #Tuesday with an NBA-record 29 three-pointers in their 144-97 triumph.
The #Bucks, fueled by a triple-double of 26 points 13 rebounds and 10 assists from two-time NBA #Most #Valuable #Player #Giannis #Antetokounmpo, looked like making it two wins in a row when they led by 14 in the third quarter.
#Donte #DiVincenzo scored 15 points and #Jrue #Holiday added 13 for the #Bucks, but the #Heat rallied despite missing #Jimmy #Butler for the second straight game.
#Herro’s three-pointer to end the third quarter pulled #Miami within three points. #Dragic tied it with another three pointer and #Miami seized the lead for good when they went ahead 96-93 on #Kelly #Olynyk’s three-pointer with 9:04 remaining.
– AFP
[ source link ]
https://www.foxsports.com.au/basketball/nba/nba-2020-jaylen-brown-boston-celtics-vs-memphis-grizzlies-charlotte-hornets-vs-dallas-mavericks-los-angeles-clippers-vs-portland-trail-blazers/news-story/8b3ecbc70febfef6e87d2cdfdf8626ca?nk=f0ab8261a529b9a477a7f47e8e4704c6-1609441439
#NBA #live #scores ##Los ##Angeles ##Clippers ##Portland ##Trail ##Blazers ##Jaylen ##Brown ##Boston ##Celtics ##Memphis ##Grizzlies ##Charlotte ##Hornets ##Dallas ##Mavericks ##LaMelo ##Ball ##Kevin ##Durant ##Kyrie ##Irving