Holiday and Bucks stop Celtics’ last two plays
Jokic captures 2nd straight MVP
BOSTON » Bobby Portis made a putback off Giannis Antetokounmpo’s missed free throw with 15 seconds left, Jrue Holiday snuffed Marcus Smart on Boston’s final two possessions and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Celtics 110-107 on Wednesday night to take a 3-2 series lead.
Antetokounmpo had 40 points and 11 rebounds, Holiday finished with 24 points, eight rebounds and eight assists and Portis added 14 points and 15 rebounds.
The Celtics led by 14 in the fourth quarter before the Bucks tied it on Holiday’s 3-pointer with 43 seconds left. Jayson Tatum, who scored 34 points, hit two free throws to give Boston the lead.
Antetokounmpo went to the the line with a chance to tie it and made the first, then Portis grabbed the rebound of the second and put it in off the backboard to give Milwaukee the lead.
DENVER » Nikola Jokic plays for Denver. And for Serbia. Both places can once again make the same claim: For the second consecutive season, they’re home to the NBA’s Most Valuable Player.
The league announced Wednesday night that Jokic won back-to-back MVP awards. The Nuggets’ big man is the second consecutive international player to win two in a row, after Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo — from Greece — was honored in 2019 and 2020.
This marks the first time international players have won the award in four consecutive seasons. Canada’s Steve Nash went backto-back for Phoenix in 2005 and 2006, followed by Germany’s Dirk Nowitzki for Dallas in 2007.
Lanier dies at 73
Bob Lanier, the left-handed big man who muscled up beside the likes of Kareem AbdulJabbar as one of the NBA’s top players of the 1970s, has died. He was 73.
The NBA said Lanier died Tuesday after a short illness. The Hall of Famer had worked for the league as a global ambassador. The Athletic reported in 2019 that Lanier was being treated for bladder cancer.
Lanier played 14 seasons with the Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks and averaged 20.1 points and 10.1 rebounds for his career. He is third on the Pistons’ career list in both points and rebounds. Detroit drafted Lanier with the No. 1 overall pick in 1970 after he led St. Bonaventure to the Final Four.