That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast with Barbara Mason: Will Irving reunite with LeBron in L.A.?; Leonard’s 4-bouncer rim shot gets Raptors in the semi Finals; plus more

Photo credit: @AFordTaurus

Barbara Mason is filling in for Amaury on That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast:

#1 What about all the talk from ESPN radio that they can see a LeBron James and Kyrie Irving reunion at the Los Angeles Lakers especially if Jason Kidd had come on board as head coach but Frank Vogel got the job as Lakers head coach? Stephen A Smith says that not going to happen that his sources tell him that Irving is going to the Knicks and Brooklyn is trying to weigh in on Irving, but Irving is focused on going to the Knicks and Madison Square Garden.

#2 The Toronto Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard sunk a four-bouncer on the rim and got the Raptors into the next round defeating the Philadelphia 76ers 92-90 on a buzzer beater. Leonard had himself a game finishing with 41 points in a Game 7 elimination contest to advance to face the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals.

#3 The Portland Trail Blazers’ Damian Lilliard will be all the rage as the Blazers are coming off a narrow 4-3 win past the Denver Nuggets. It took seven games for the Blazers to advance. Do the Blazers have enough to go deep with Golden State? In game one the Warriors rolled past Portland 116-94.

#4 In hockey, the San Jose Sharks and St Louis Blues played Game 2 Monday night in the best of seven in this third round of the NHL Stanley Cup Western Conference Final. The Sharks have been getting help from all around, but the Sharks’ Timo Meier has been on fire with two goals scored in Game 1. The Sharks had home ice in game for the first two games.

#5 The Oakland A’s opened up a two-game series in Seattle on Monday night the A’s got five homers but couldn’t win it in the end. The A’s and M’s are battling for that third place spot in the American League West and are two games out of second place but eight games behind Houston. The A’s and M’s have almost identical records in a short series that could prove to test the A’s on the road and the M’s against an A’s team who’s capable to break out the bats and get good pitching.

Barbara does That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary every Tuesday night and is a freelance writer for Area Grande Spanish papers at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: Strange to see Warriors lose two of last four; get win against Charlotte on Tuesday

Photo credit: @warriors

On the Warriors podcast with David:

#1 It’s kind of strange to look at the past scores on the Golden State Warriors (43-17) most recent four games and to see them at 2-2 with recent losses to the Houston Rockets and the Portland Trailblazers. Are the walls of success starting to crack for Golden State or is this just a passing phase?

#2 After Golden State got a win over the Charlotte Hornets (28-32) 121-110, that might help get their confidence back. They left little doubt with an 11-point win on Tuesday night in Charlotte.

David Zizmor does the Warriors podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NBA podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: Thunder in the house, Westbrook and George, led the way; Lillard can’t be contained, scores 24; plus more

Photo credit: @okcthunder

On the NBA podcast with Jerry:

#1 The Oklahoma City Thunder got offensive help from Russell Westbrook and Paul George. Both scored 23 to lead the Thunder over the New Orleans Pelicans 122-116.

#2 Damian Lillard led the Portland Trailblazers with 24 points as the Blazers defeated the Phoenix Suns 120-106. A big road win for the Blazers in the Valley of the Sun.

#3 The Washington Wizards got rolled by the Golden State Warriors 126-118 in the nation’s capital. The Warriors’ Stephen Curry led with 38 points.

#4 Minnesota vs. LA Lakers: Karl Anthony Towns scored 27 points and had 12 rebounds in the Minnesota Timberwolves win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night 120-105.

Jerry is a Golden State Warriors beat writer and does the NBA podcast each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

The Warriors, behind Kevin Durant, overwhelm the Portland Trailblazers

by Jerry Feitelberg

Oakland- Kevin Durant hit his first shot, a three-pointer, to put the Dubs up 3-0. They never, ever trailed in the game as they blew out the Blazer by forty-five points 135-90 at the Oracle Arena Saturday night before another sellout crowd. The Dubs won all phases of the game. They shot 58.6% from the floor. They held the Blazers to 39.5%. They had another game with more than 30 assists. They finished with 36. They outrebounded the Blazers 66 to 36. The Dubs bench led by Ian Clark’s career-high twenty-three and JaVale McGee’s eleven were too much for Portland to handle.

In the first quarter, Durant and Steph Curry each had thirteen points. The Dubs made five three-point shots, including one by Ian Clark to end the first quarter on a 15-6 run to go up by eighteen 39-21. The Dubs outscored the Blazers 31-24 in the second quarter. Kevin Durant scored eight more in the quarter to finish the half with twenty-one. Klay Thompson had eleven and bench players Andre Iguodala, David West, Shaun Livingstone all contributed to the Dubs taking a twenty-five point lead at the half 70-45.

The third quarter belonged to the Dubs. They had it all going for the. They scored thirty-eight points on offense and held Portland to twenty-seven as they increased the lead to thirty-six 108-72. Kevin Durant was hot all night long he scored thirty-four points in just thirty-one minutes of action. He made eleven buckets on thirteen attempts. JaVale McGee scored nine points in seven minutes of action. He made three dunks on lobs and had a bucket on an offensive rebound and a foul shot. He finished the game with eleven. Steph Curry made a three-pointer as the buzzer sounded to end the quarter. Dubs lead 108-72

Steve Kerr removed all the starters from the game. Ian Clark, Shaun Livingstone, JaVale McGee, Andre Iguodala, David West, Patrick McCaw James Michael McAdoo, and Kevon Looney all played in the quarter. The Dubs reserves outscored the Blazer reserves 27-18 to give the Dubs the win 135-90.

Game Notes- The Dubs had five players in double figures Saturday night. KD had a double-double with thirty-four points, eleven rebounds plus 4 assists and one blocked shot. Steph had nineteen to go along with six assists and three rebounds. Klay had sixteen, Ian Clark 23 and McGee 11. Draymond Green had a double-double, too. He had thirteen assists with twelve boards and just three points. The Blazers were led by Damian Lillard’s twenty points. Maurice Harkness added 17, C.J.McCollum 10, and Allen Crabbe 9.

The Dubs improved their record for the season to 24-4 while the Blazers, who have lost seven of the last eight, drop to 13-16. The Dubs are off for two days but return to action Tuesday night against the Utah Jazz at the Oracle Arena. Game time will be at 7:30 pm.The Dubs will be handing on Nate Thurmond Bobbleheads for the first 10,000 fans. Thurmond, who is basketball’s Hall of Fame, Passed away earlier this year and the Warriors remember him as they wear his number 42 on their uniforms every game this year.

 

Warriors send Rockets packing in dominating fashion

by Michael Martinez

picture credit CBS 46 Atlanta

Well, Steph Curry did not play and yet the Warriors showed why they made history for the best record in NBA history. Normally, a team without their star player has a lot to worry about. The Warriors showed no problems minus the reigning MVP and proved why they are the team to beat besides the fact their last year’s champs. Golden State annihilated the Houston Rockets in a 114-81 victory at Oracle Arena.

Let’s be honest, there’s not much to say about this game. The game went exactly as most would have figured given that the Warriors routed Houston in game four and not to mention they’re the Golden State Warriors.

The Warriors played great, the Rockets played atrociously, which is a recipe for disaster. The Warriors played with great togetherness and to nobody’s surprise, they shot out of this world. Golden State made it look easy as they finished with a 54.9 shooting percentage while Houston could not find a way to score with a 32.6 shooting percentage. Golden State played solid defense as they forced 18 turnovers for 25 points.

James Harden was the only Rockets’ player to show any offensive life finishing with 35 points. Besides Harden, Michael Beasley was the only other Houston player to finish the game in double figures.

Klay Thompson did his best to fill Curry’s shoes and finished with 27 points. Thompson knocked down seven buckets from behind the arc on 11 shots and finished 10 of 14 from the field overall. Draymond Green was tremendous overall as usual and totaled 15 points, grabbed nine boards and dropped eight dimes.

Shaun Livingston had a good game on offense as well and scored 16 points on seven of eight shooting. The Warriors looked just as good as they always are and bounced the Rockets out of the playoffs.

Throughout the game, Curry showed incredible excitement from the bench and supported his teammates like no other. And this is why the Warriors are so dangerous, they have some of the greatest team chemistry I have witnessed in my lifetime.

The Warriors won the series and only allowed the Rockets to win one game, which came down to the wire.

Golden State will either face the Los Angeles Clippers who are without Chris Paul and Blake Griffin or the Portland Trailblazers. Portland won game five in their series to go up 3-2 and it appears like they will be Golden State’s semifinal opponent.

Whoever the Warriors play, fans are hopeful that Curry can make his way back into the playoffs. But, with the way Golden State played tonight, let Curry take as much time as he needs to get ready for the Western Conference Finals. I am knocking on wood though, so the whole Bay Area doesn’t freak out on me and say I jinxed them.

 

Warriors snap home losing streak, smother Blazers 103-88

By Gabe Schapiro

The Golden State Warriors (27-18) got back in the win column, easily beating the tough Portland Trail Blazers (33-12), 103-88, Sunday night, at Oracle Arena. They won this one thanks to strong team defense and the lethal Stephen Curry. The Trail Blazers came into the contest as the NBA’s top scoring offense, and the Warriors made them look helpless for several stretches. For Portland the 88 points are a season-low, to go with 33% shooting from the field, also a season-low.

With their poor play as of late, it was important for the dubs to come out of the gates strong, and they did just that. They established an early lead, and set the tone with smothering defensive play. The splash brothers started especially hot, combining to score 18 of the team’s first 20 points, on 3-3 from beyond the arc. Through 12 minutes of play they led 28-22.

In the second quarter, however, the Blazers swung the momentum back in their favor. They scratched their way back and eventually took back the lead, which they hadn’t owned since the opening moments of the game. They led by as many as seven, before the Warriors re-inserted most of their starters and made a strong late push before halftime. Heading into the locker room, Golden State trailed by one, 55-54. Thankfully, the second was basically the only blip on the radar.

The Warriors thoroughly dominated the third quarter, and early portion of the fourth. At one point, during a 16 minute span, they outscored the Trailblazers 35-10, eventually building a 21-point advantage.  Portland had one last gasp in them. They went on a 16-3 run late in the fourth, momentarily making Golden State sweat a little. The Warriors weren’t going to let this one slip away, however, and closed it out strong.

Curry finished with a game-high 38 points, to go along with eight assists and seven rebounds. David Lee had a prototypical David Lee game, posting 17 points and 12 boards. Andre Iguodala notched his second double-double of the season, with 12 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. Klay Thompson had an off shooting night, hitting just 6-of-21 shots, but still contributed 17 points and fantastic defense.

The theme of the night, however, was of course their superb defense. LeMarcus Aldridge lit up the Warriors in their last meeting, and tonight they held him to just 2-of-14 from the field. He still managed to finish with a double-double, but ultimately didn’t have much of an impact on the contest. They also held star point guard Damian Lillard at bay. He finished with 16 points, 5-of-16 from the field, and five assists.

Tonight was a textbook look into how the Warriors need to play to compete with the league’s best. Hopefully they can springboard off of this win and continue this kind of play.

Golden State’s home stand continues this Tuesday, when they will be taking on the Washington Wizards. The game begins at 7:30 pm.

Curry Returns But Warriors Drop a Chippy 113-101 Contest to Trailblazers

By Matthew Harrington

The Golden State Warriors became another victim in the Portland Trailblazers’ 10-game unbeaten streak, suffering a 113-101 loss at Oracle Arena Saturday night. The Trailblazers (12-2) rallied in the closing minutes of the third and start of the fourth quarter to come from behind in a chippy affair that saw three ejections, 53 combined personal fouls and seven technical fouls.

LaMarcus Aldrige had his third career 20-20 game, dropping 30 points on the Warriors while reeling in 21 rebounds. Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 30 points before fouling out in the fourth while Stephen Curry added 22 points on 8 of 21 shooting in his return to the lineup. Andre Iguodala did not play for the short-handed Warriors (8-6) after straining his left hamstring in Friday night’s loss to the Lakers.

Golden State held a 54-49 lead at the half, but a third-quarter scuffle sparked a Portland comeback. The Warriors held a 77-63 lead when Aldridge was leveled to the court. Wesley Matthews received a technical foul after taking exception to the play and in the aftermath the Trailblazers’ Joel Freeland and Andrew Bogut began jawing and shoving each other, sending both benches into chaos. The referees restored order, handing out six technical fouls and ejecting Draymond Green from the game along with Portland’s Mo Williams and Matthews.

The skirmish inspired the Trailblazers to go on a run for the remainder of the quarter, cutting the Golden State lead to 84-81 before completing the comeback on a 12-2 run to open the final stanza, coasting for a victory from there.

The Warriors now face unusual territory this season, sputtering through a three-game losing streak, including a two-game winless stretch at home. Last season, the Warriors only lost consecutive home games once, falling to the Houston Rockets and Milwaukee backs in both ends of a back-to-back. The Warriors have not lost more three games or more in a row at home since a five-game skid to end the 2011-12 season.

Golden State do not receive an opportunity to defend home-court until December, going on a four-game road trip with stops in New Orleans, Dallas, Oklahoma City before a return to California for clash with the Kings in Sacramento.

Tuesday’s tilt against New Orleans will give the Warriors their first look at the newly-branded Pelicans as well as a chance to try to regain a tie atop the Pacific Division standings with the Los Angeles Clippers. Golden State sits one back of first while New Orleans stands in dead last in the Southwest Division with a 6-6 record, tied for third-worst in the Western Conference.