CLEVELAND (AP) — LeBron James walked sluggishly down a corridor inside Quicken Loans Arena following Game 7 surrounded by the usual squadron of security personnel, some business associates and his publicist.Each step seemed a challenge. His eyes were heavy. He ached from head to toe. He wanted to lie down.James was moving on to the second round of the NBA playoffs — almost on his hands and knees."I don't think he's appreciated enough for just how much energy he puts into every single game to do what he does," Cavaliers forward Kyle Korver said of James. "It's just unbelievable."Pushed to his physical limits by the Indiana Pacers, and barely helped by Cleveland teammates until they finally showed up when it mattered most Sunday in a 105-101 win, James willed the Cavs into the next round, where they'll face the top-seeded Toronto Raptors for the third straight postseason.If the Indiana series was any indication, James might have to do it again.James scored 45 points — his third game over... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — LeBron James is on the brink of his earliest NBA playoff exit — and maybe another departure from Cleveland.This Game 7 has a win-or-leave-home element.After being bloodied and blown off the floor in Game 6 by the Pacers in Indianapolis, James and the Cavaliers staggered home with their roller-coaster season possibly headed toward a crash.Only a win on Sunday over Indiana will prevent elimination and kick-start a summer in Cleveland that will center on James, who can opt out of his $35.6 million contract and become a free agent on July 1.The stakes couldn't be much higher. It's the kind of game James lives to play."It's just the love of the game and wanting to be remembered," James said following a demoralizing 121-87 loss Friday night. "Game 7, I always said, is the two greatest words in sports. Us having a Game 7 on our floor, our fans are going to be truly excited to be a part of that. And hope our guys are excited about that as well, and understand that just don't take... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — As postgame questions go, it was relatively innocuous, and maybe because of that, and because it came at a news conference after the Toronto Raptors moved into the second round of the playoffs by eliminating the Washington Wizards in Game 6, DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry were in a playful mood.So as Toronto's pair of All-Star guards sat there, waiting for the other to talk, DeRozan eventually spoke up, not to respond, but to kid to his running mate: "You want me to answer everything." To which Lowry retorted, referring to the reporter, "He didn't say 'Kyle.'"DeRozan: "He said both of us." Lowry pointed a hand in his teammate's direction, indicating DeRozan needed to reply, and instructed: "That's how this works." And then Lowry teased: "You don't even remember the question." DeRozan, with a grin, conceded: "No, I don't."As long as the DeRozan-Lowry duo works in harmony on the court — and gets plenty of help from a terrific bench unit, just as it did while No. 1 seed Toronto... [More]

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Pacers have been winning together, losing together and fighting together all season.Now they need to demonstrate their resilience once more as they try to save their season by rebounding from an emotional loss to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers."Nobody thought we'd be in this situation," Victor Oladipo said, referring to the playoffs. "It's important for us to stick together now because we've seen where it can go, where it can take us and it's great."The immediate problem is recent history doesn't bode well for the underdog Pacers, who trail 3-2 with Game 5 set for Friday in Indianapolis.Cleveland swept Indiana in the first round last year, winning four games by a record low 16 total points. James has won 10 straight close-out games and has never lost a first-round series. Indiana, meanwhile, is trying to reach the conference semifinals for the first time since 2014.But the Pacers don't care about stats, projections or conventional wisdom — as they've... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — The NBA said LeBron James' block in the closing seconds of Game 5 on Indiana's Victor Oladipo should have been called goaltending.In the league's Last Two Minute Report posted Thursday, the NBA said the three officials missed the call with 5.1 seconds left. The league said the video shows James blocked Oladipo's shot "after it makes contact with the backboard."Under league rules, the play could not be reviewed because it wasn't called on the floor. James then hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Cavaliers a 98-95 win and a 3-2 lead in the series.The Pacers did not contest the block while on the floor, but later in their locker room they complained about the no-call.The NBA's report also said the Pacers were incorrectly awarded the ball on a play with 27.6 seconds left. The ball went off Indiana's Thaddeus Young and went out of bounds, but the referees gave the ball to Indiana.

LeBron James saved a game. Russell Westbrook and Paul George saved a season.And now, Game 6 awaits them all.A trio of possible series-ending games are on Friday night's NBA playoff schedule: Cleveland at Indiana, Toronto at Washington and Oklahoma City at Utah. For the Cavaliers and Raptors, the scenario is they advance with a road win or head back home for Game 7 on Sunday. The Thunder don't have such a safety net; they must win in Salt Lake City, or it'll be the Jazz going to the second round.James went from goaltending to game-winning in a matter of seconds in Game 5 on Wednesday night, his straightaway 3-pointer at the buzzer giving Cleveland a three-point win and a 3-2 series lead. Westbrook and George looked well on their way to summer vacation in their Game 5 matchup with the Jazz , before they combined for 54 points in a 61-28 Oklahoma City run that rallied the Thunder from a 25-point second-half deficit.The stars carried the Cavs and Thunder.The Raptors, they have a 3-2 lead thanks... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Less than three weeks ago, Ty Lawson was playing professional basketball in China.Nowadays, he's one of the first subs off the bench for the Washington Wizards in their Eastern Conference first-round series against the Toronto Raptors.Lawson is hardly the only player who went from not having a spot on an NBA roster to getting some run, and maybe even filling a key role, during these playoffs. As much as teams develop plans for acquiring talent via the draft, free agency or trades, sometimes a late pickup can become a piece that completes the puzzle."It's not ideal," Wizards coach Scott Brooks said about adding someone on short notice. "It (requires) a lot of work that has to be done in trying to figure it out and try to incorporate him and integrate him into our offense and defensive schemes."With Lawson, though, Brooks added, "It probably is not as much of a disadvantage because he's been in the league, understands the NBA and understands the schemes. A lot of the schemes... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Indiana Pacers felt cheated — by LeBron James and the officials.Moments before James beat them with a game-winning, step-back 3-pointer at the buzzer, the Pacers were poised to take the lead in Game 5 on Victor Oladipo's driving layup. However, James came from behind and blocked Oladipo's shot, which appeared to hit the backboard before Cleveland's star touched it — a goaltending violation.Instead, there was no call and James then dropped his 28-footer over Thaddeus Young to give Cleveland a 98-95 win and a 3-2 lead in this tight Eastern Conference first-round series.The Pacers didn't complain on the floor. But later in their locker room they were angry about the game-swinging play. Several of the Pacers shook their heads while watching replays."Of course, I thought it was goaltending," Lance Stephenson said. "We should've got the ref's attention. When you look at it on the replay, it's clearly goaltending."Under NBA rules, goaltending is only reviewable if the call... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Indiana Pacers felt cheated — by LeBron James and the officials.Moments before James beat them with a game-winning, step-back 3-pointer at the buzzer, the Pacers were poised to take the lead in Game 5 on Victor Oladipo's driving layup. However, James came from behind and blocked Oladipo's shot, which appeared to hit the backboard before Cleveland's star touched it — a goaltending violation.Instead, there was no call and James then dropped his 28-footer over Thaddeus Young to give Cleveland a 98-95 win and a 3-2 lead in this tight Eastern Conference first-round series.The Pacers didn't complain on the floor. But later in their locker room they were angry about the game-swinging play. Several of the Pacers shook their heads while watching replays."Of course, I thought it was goaltending," Lance Stephenson said. "We should've got the ref's attention. When you look at it on the replay, it's clearly goal tending."Oladipo thought he was fouled by James before the non-call."I... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Dwyane Wade's first NBA game was in Philadelphia.His last NBA game may have been there as well.Retirement is a very — very — real option for Wade, who has been not-so-quietly saying for weeks that he isn't sure if he'll be back next season. The offseason is here now, after the Miami Heat were ousted by the 76ers on Tuesday night in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference first-round series, and the face of the franchise may have taken his jersey off for the final time.He has not decided.But some of his closest friends believe this could really be the end."I appreciate y'all concern," Wade said in Philadelphia on Tuesday night. "But we'll worry about that later."Of course, his fans want him to come back. One prominent fan cast her vote before he even left the floor after Game 5."I hope this isn't the end, but my God," his wife, Gabrielle Union, wrote on Twitter. "Dwyane Wade has a career most people dream of. He is a damn legend. An icon. And he's cute."No one, not even Wade, knows... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Dwyane Wade's first NBA game was in Philadelphia.His last NBA game may have been there as well.Retirement is a very — very — real option for Wade, who has been not-so-quietly saying for weeks that he isn't sure if he'll be back next season. The offseason is here now, after the Miami Heat were ousted by the 76ers on Tuesday night in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference first-round series, and the face of the franchise may have taken his jersey off for the final time.He has not decided.But some of his closest friends believe this could really be the end."I appreciate y'all concern," Wade said in Philadelphia on Tuesday night. "But we'll worry about that later."Of course, his fans want him to come back. One prominent fan cast her vote before he even left the floor after Game 5."I hope this isn't the end, but my God," his wife, Gabrielle Union, wrote on Twitter. "Dwyane Wade has a career most people dream of. He is a damn legend. An icon. And he's cute."No one, not even Wade, knows... [More]

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio (AP) — By now, LeBron James is usually getting some rest in the NBA playoffs.The Pacers are making him work much harder than he has in years.After splitting the first four games, Indiana and Cleveland will meet on Wednesday night in the critical Game 5 of a first-round series that has been unpredictable, uneven and for James, unusual.This first round hasn't been the norm for the three-time champion.While he's 12-0 in the opening round, before the Cavs dropped Game 1 to the Pacers at home, James had never lost a playoff opener. In fact, James came in with a 21-game winning streak in first-round games and this will be his first Game 5 in Round 1 since 2012 when he was with Miami.The Cavs and Pacers aren't the only ones in a tussle in the Eastern Conference as Washington and Toronto resume their series in Canada tied 2-2. Things aren't quite as tight In the West as Utah holds a 3-1 lead over a fraying Oklahoma City team, and Houston, which dropped 50 points in one quarter... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Thon Maker is having his biggest games at the biggest time of the year.Not bad for a bench guy and someone who, as recently as last week, was a roster afterthought.Maker had never blocked five shots in any NBA game before this postseason began — and now he's blocked that many in each of the last two playoff contests for the Milwaukee Bucks. There's an old coaching adage that tells players to stay ready, because they never know when their chance to make an impact has arrived.Maker is proving that axiom to be correct."Just trying to be there for my teammates, playing aggressive," said Maker, the Bucks' backup center. "It's the playoffs. These are the moments everybody plays for. You've got to find a way to win, you've got to find a way to impact the game. I try to do that every single time."Maker is almost an out-of-nowhere story for the Bucks, who've pulled even with the Boston Celtics four games into their Eastern Conference first-round series in large part because of a... [More]

LeBron James is keeping his thoughts to himself.Whatever concerns — or confidence — he might harbor about his Cleveland Cavaliers facing a 2-1 first-round Eastern Conference series hole heading into Game 4 at the Indiana Pacers on Sunday were not going to be made available for public consumption.James decided not to speak to reporters on Saturday.And he did not have a whole lot to say in the immediate aftermath of Game 3, either, when Indiana erased a 17-point deficit and then held on for a 92-90 victory over the Cavs.Not only has the four-time MVP and three-time NBA champ never lost an opening NBA postseason series, going 12-0 in the past, he had never even trailed in the first round until this one, when Cleveland dropped Game 1 at home.Now he is behind again."We've had some good quarters," James said Friday, "and we didn't have some good quarters."Well, that explains a lot.Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue's synopsis?"They won a game we should have won," Lue said. "That's what's disappointing.... [More]

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — LeBron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers teammates arrived in style Friday.Each wore the same suit with a white shirt and a dark tie. Some even wore sunglasses for the pivotal Game 3 against the Pacers.It was all by design.James wanted the three-time defending Eastern Conference championships to show they were unified when they arrived at Indiana.So the four-time MVP and three-time NBA champion reached out to designer Thom Browne, and suddenly the Cavs were all the rage of the fashion world.Much has been made that James needs more help from his teammates to survive what has been a tougher-than-expected series.But James didn't seem worried before the team's morning shootaround."I have confidence in all my guys going out and playing the game the right way, so we'll see what happens," James said.The message seemed to resonate within the locker room.After getting blown out in Game 1, and hanging on for a 100-97 win in Game 2, the Cavs forced 10 first-half turnovers.And the offense got in sync, too, during a 15-2 first-quarter run. Cleveland jumped out to 57-40 halftime lead.___More NBA basketball: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tryonn Lue expects injured forward Kevin Love to play Friday in Game 3 at Indiana.Love hurt his left thumb late in Wednesday's victory that evened the series at 1-1. He did not return but did participate in Friday's morning shootaround with what appeared to be a taped-up thumb.Lue told reporters Love felt better and noted he is a right-handed shooter. Love did not speak with reporters.The All-Star would be one of the key ingredients in helping to provide a stronger supporting cast for LeBron James, who scored 46 points in Game 2.When asked if he expected more help, James explained his teammates play the game the right way and "we'll see what happens."___More NBA basketball: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — LeBron James fought back tears. Former President Bill Clinton offered condolences. Craig Sager's daughter tweeted that she was "just sick" over the news.Such is the regard that so many, from so many walks of life, have for San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, whose 67-year-old wife, Erin, died Wednesday after a long battle with a respiratory problem.Spurs star Manu Ginobili says the team is "devastated, we are all hurting." But the players will "go out there and compete" and respect Popovich's philosophy of playing with "fire" and "determination."Added San Antonio's Tony Parker: "It puts everything in perspective. It's way bigger than basketball."The Spurs trail the Golden State Warriors 3-0 in the first round after losing in San Antonio 110-97 on Thursday night. The 69-year-old coach ran practice Wednesday but was not on the sideline for the game. Assistant Ettore Messina coached the team.Clinton reached out on Twitter to the coach and his daughters: "I join the NBA... [More]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — LeBron James fought back tears. Former President Bill Clinton offered condolences. Craig Sager's daughter tweeted that she was "just sick" over the news.Such is the regard that so many, from so many walks of life, have for San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, whose 67-year-old wife, Erin, died Wednesday after a long battle with a respiratory problem.Spurs star Manu Ginobili says the team is "devastated, we are all hurting." But the players will "go out there and compete" and respect Popovich's philosophy of playing with "fire" and "determination."Added San Antonio's Tony Parker: "It puts everything in perspective. It's way bigger than basketball."The Spurs trail the Golden State Warriors 2-0 in the first round, with Game 3 in San Antonio on Thursday night. The 69-year-old coach ran practice Wednesday but will not be on the sideline for the game. Assistant Ettore Messina will coach the team.Clinton reached out on Twitter to the coach and his daughters: "I join the NBA... [More]

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Pacers look loose and sound confident.They were laughing, smiling and joking around at practice Thursday as turned to a new task — protecting their home court this weekend against LeBron James.Sure, his sensational 46-point, 12-rebound effort in Game 2 exposed flaws in Indiana's defense and allowed Cleveland to even the series, but it sure didn't shake the faith of the fearless Pacers."It's a good sign when you lose by three and the best player in the world has a game like that," Indiana point guard Darren Collison said.The Pacers shouldn't be rattled.They are 4-2 against the three-time defending Eastern Conference champs this season, fought back from an early 18-point deficit Wednesday with Victor Oladipo in foul trouble and still had a chance to tie the score on Oladipo's wide-open 3-pointer with 27 seconds left.They still can seize control of the series by winning the next two in Indianapolis.To avoid such a plight, the Cavs could give their star player... [More]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — LeBron James fought back tears. Former President Bill Clinton offered condolences. Craig Sager's daughter tweeted that she was "just sick" over the news.Such is the regard that so many, from so many walks of life, have for San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, whose 67-year-old wife, Erin, died Wednesday after a long battle with a respiratory problem.Spurs star Manu Ginobili says the team is "devastated, we are all hurting." But the players will "go out there and compete" and respect Popovich's philosophy of playing with "fire" and "determination."Added San Antonio's Tony Parker: "It puts everything in perspective. It's way bigger than basketball."The Spurs trail the Golden State Warriors 2-0 in the first round, with the playoff series shifting to San Antonio on Thursday night. The 69-year-old coach ran practice Wednesday but will not be on the sideline for Game 3. Assistant Ettore Messina will coach the team.Clinton reached out on Twitter to the coach and his daughters:... [More]