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LOS ANGELES — When the Oklahoma City Thunder were down by 16 points and struggling to make any shot early in Game 6, they looked all but ready to fold up and head home for a series-deciding finale. Instead, Kevin Durant shouldered the Thunder and carried them into the fourth quarter, where they demonstrated the poise of a championship contender. Durant had 39 points and 16 rebounds, and Oklahoma City advanced to the Western Conference finals with a 104-98 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 6 on Thursday night....

Through five games, there were scant answers. The Celtics lucked into one clunker from James, in Cleveland’s Game 3 loss. But here in Game 5, James was back to his dominant self, helping the Cavs close out Boston on its home floor with a 135-102 drubbing. For James, it was a typically brilliant stat line: 35 points, 13-for-18 shooting, 4 for 7 from the 3-point line, eight rebounds and eight assists....

Will we see Cavs-Warriors IV in the 2018 Finals? Can the Warriors repeat? PLAYOFF PICKS: Eastern Conference | Western Conference AccuScore has simulated the NBA playoffs thousands of times to calculate probabilities for each team to win its first-round series and advance to win the NBA Finals. Championship probabilities for all playoff teams are listed in the table below and will be updated throughout the postseason. AccuScore’s odds to win NBA Finals NBA playoff predictions, values There’s a clear gap after the Warriors’ title chances, but the Houston Rockets are No....

The Bucks clinched a spot in the Eastern Conference finals with a 116-91 win over Boston in Game 5 on Wednesday at Fiserv Forum. Milwaukee took control before halftime, pulled away in the third quarter and cruised to the victory from there. Star Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks’ with 20 points, eight rebounds and eight assists while Eric Bledsoe chipped in 18 points. The Celtics swept the Pacers in the first round and appeared like they would make the series against top-seeded Milwaukee competitive after they won the opener on the road in convincing fashion....

Jokic threw an elbow at Kanter’s injured left shoulder — and Kanter spoke out about the move on social media after the game. He tagged the NBA referees’ official Twitter account with the caption: “Take a freaking look at this please.” Obviously, Kanter was upset with the play but Portland coach Terry Stotts also took offense to it. “Yes, I have seen it and I think it was uncalled for,” Stotts told reporters Saturday (via Yahoo Sports)....

The Warriors are undoubtedly the favorite to win the Western Conference (and the 2019 NBA championship), but they must get past a feisty Clippers team in the first round, then the Rockets or Jazz just to reach the conference finals. The Nuggets are hoping to carry over the success from a 54-win regular season into the playoffs, but the Spurs, Thunder and Trail Blazers could all present the No. 2 seed with problems on that side of the bracket....

The league sent out a memo to all 30 teams with new guidelines that must be followed starting this season as part of its mental health initiative, according to The Athletic. Per the reported memo, all NBA teams must adhere to the following guidelines: Each team must have at least one licensed mental health professional who is available to players on a voluntary basis. The professional or professionals must have “experience in assessing and treating clinical mental health issues....

With the NBA Playoffs now in the rear-view mirror, the focus of general managers around the league has shifted to the NBA Draft. After all of the picks are made on Thursday night, they will then be tasked with reconstructing their rosters in free agency. Given the proximity of those two big events on the NBA calendar, you may be wondering how much money rookies earn after signing their contracts and the impact those deals will have on the rest of the offseason....

While the West was set (apart from seeding in the Clippers-Jazz series), the East playoff picture became clear once the Pacers and Bulls won Wednesday, eliminating the Heat after a valiant effort down the stretch. At the top of the East, the Celtics captured the No. 1 seed with a win over the Bucks as the Cavs punted on trying to take the conference crown. MORE: NBA championship odds...

As Wojnarowski noted, the move helps both sides, as the Rockets get the secondary wing player they coveted and the Nuggets get a backup for Ty Lawson after trading away disgruntled guard Andre Miller. This move also means that Rockets general manager Daryl Morey keeps up his streak of making trades on deadline day. We've reached seven straight years now.

The picks? A 2022 protected first-round pick and two second-round picks. Let’s take a look at what this trade means for both teams with some trade grades. Pelicans trade grade McCollum is one of the league’s better shooting guards. His numbers are down slightly this season, but he’s averaged 21.7 points per game on .455/.397/.830 shooting splits since the 2015-16 season. He’s become a high-volume 3-point shooter during that time, and while he doesn’t get to the rim much, he’s an elite midrange scorer....

Boston “quickly” shut down an inquiry this summer from an opposing team about potentially dealing for the 29-year-old forward, a rival executive recently told NBA insider Keith Smith at Summer League. Hayward was inconsistent last season after he missed almost all of 2017-18 with a devastating leg injury. He averaged 11.5 points and 4.5 rebounds in 25.9 minutes per game while shooting 33.3% from 3-point range. “I never felt like guys were frustrated with me,” Hayward told ESPN in March about his struggles....

And while there have been ample rumors in the past year about Boston chasing the likes of Anthony Davis and Karl-Anthony Towns, the answer could be slightly different: Texas center Mo Bamba, who is expected to be one of the top picks in this year’s draft. Sources told Sporting News that Boston has expressed interest in Bamba, including interviewing him at the Chicago pre-draft combine two weeks ago. Bamba measured in with a record wingspan of 7-10 in Chicago, reinforcing his status as the most ready-made rim protector in the draft....

The Hawks are “no longer engaging” with the Pistons on a deal for the two-time All-Star, according to Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes. Atlanta emerged as a potential destination earlier this month, but the Hawks are comfortable walking away from Drummond and considering other options ahead of the 2020 NBA Draft and free agency, per Haynes. NBA TRADE DEADLINE: Latest news, rumors, targets While the Hawks are out on Drummond, they may be considering a trade involving another big man....

Horst is taking over a Bucks operation that had a breakthrough last year around budding star Giannis Antetokounmpo, winning 42 games for its best record since 2010. But it’s also a franchise that heads into this summer with decidedly few options when it comes to bolstering the roster. NBA DRAFT: Winners and losers | Pick-by-pick grades Reserve big men Spencer Hawes and Greg Monroe have decided to opt in on the final years of their contracts, drying up the Bucks’ cap space and leaving them about $11 million below the luxury tax threshold, depending on what Horst decides to do with Tony Snell, a restricted free agent likely to secure a big raise over the $2....

The Spurs shooting guard could be moved ahead of the 2020 trade deadline, according to The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor, who reports that executives around the league would not be surprised if the Spurs make a DeRozan deal. TRADE RUMORS: Heat might be stuck with Dion Waiters In terms of possible suitors, the Magic are searching for “scoring help” and interested in trading for DeRozan, per O’Connor. While it seems odd at first glance, a Magic-Spurs deal could be beneficial for both sides....

The Pelicans appear to want to trade the star big man before the NBA Draft on June 20 and are engaged in talks with “several teams,” according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Lakers, who have been interested in acquiring Davis since he asked for a trade in January, “remain aggressive,” Wojnarowski said during a Tuesday appearance on SportsCenter. New Orleans executive vice president David Griffin is asking for an “All-Star player, a young player with All-Star potential and two first-round picks” for Davis, according to an earlier report from ESPN....

In return, the Timberwolves reportedly acquired forwards Robert Covington and Dario Saric, as well as veteran guard Jarryd Bayless and a 2022 second-round draft pick. They sent center Justin Patton to Philadelphia to complete the deal. TRADE GRADES: 76ers take calculated risk with Butler deal Butler initially demanded a trade this past offseason. When his request was not met in the first 13 games of the regular season, he openly criticized the team and chose to rest for select games....

NBC decided to show Friday night’s opening ceremony at 8 p.m. ET despite the event kicking off live at 7 p.m. ET. More people home to watch, edit together a better show, avoid any live gaffes, so on and so on. In the end, it was a business decision to reach the largest audience possible. Other events are on tape delays for the same reason. Even if you disagree with the call, you can understand the thought process....

A few years ago, they sent a Stanley Cup trophy replica filled with decorated cupcakes of each team (be still, my cupcake-fiending heart). So how do you top that? Well, you take some stadium ice and turn it into popsicles and then drive around town handing those out to random people on the street! At this point, you're probably thinking one of two things: "nasty!" or "where can I get one?...