Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Harden breach part of cancellation
HOUSTON — The James Harden soap opera in Houston now comes with a canceled season opener — and a $50,000 fine for the league’s leading scorer.
Houston’s opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night was scrapped after coronavirus cases and Harden’s violation of the NBA’s covid-19 protocols left the Rockets without the league-mandated eight players available.
It was a dispiriting blow to the NBA on just the second night of an uncertain season launching with the pandemic still raging.
The NBA announced the postponement in a release that said three Rockets players had returned tests that were either positive or inconclusive
and that four other players were quarantined because of contract tracing.
The release also said that Harden was unavailable for the game because of a violation of health and safety protocols after video of the disgruntled star surfaced on social media where he was without a mask at a crowded party in a private event space Monday night.
The league later announced
the fine for Harden, saying the protocols prohibit attending indoor social gatherings of 15 or more people or entering bars, lounges, clubs or similar establishments.
Already a distraction to the team amid months of rumors that he wants to be traded, Harden’s latest move potentially threatened the health and safety of his team and kept the Rockets from beginning their season.
Houston has 16 players on its roster, with seven dealing with tests or quarantine and one hurt. That would have left eight eligible players, which is the league minimum to start a game. Harden’s unavailability lowered Houston’s total of available players to seven.
Houston’s injury report released Wednesday morning stated Ben McLemore and rookie KJ Martin were not with the team and were self-isolating, and that DeMarcus Cousins was questionable because of a sprained right ankle.
Harden’s since-deleted Instagram post explaining why he attended the event in question would certainly suggest that he was in violation of those rules.
In the post he wrote: “One thing after another. I went to show love to my homegirl at her event [not a strip club] because she is becoming a boss and putting her people in a position of success and now it’s a problem. Everyday it’s something different. No matter how many times people try to drag my name under you can’t. The real people always end up on top.”
But for now the eight-time All-Star is on the shelf after admitting to breaking the rules set forth in the protocols.
“In light of the serious and highly infectious nature of the coronavirus … individuals must not engage in activities or conduct that a reasonable person would regard as posing unnecessary risk relative to the significance (or lack thereof) of such activity or conduct,” the protocols say.
Harden, according to the protocols, may now be ordered into quarantine and could lose about $280,000 for each game missed. Houston’s next scheduled game is Saturday at Portland.
Teams have been told by the league that any player
who misses games while in quarantine because he broke protocols will miss game checks.
Oklahoma City also was involved in the March 11 game that led to the league shutting down for the coronavirus pandemic; the Thunder were to have been the home team that night for a game against Utah, called off when it was learned Jazz center Rudy Gobert was the NBA’s first player to test positive for covid-19.
The Thunder, unwittingly, now find themselves part of history again.
CAVALIERS 121, HORNETS 114
CLEVELAND — Collin Sexton scored 27 points, Darius Garland added 22 and the Cleveland Cavaliers won their first home game in nearly 300 days, overcoming the hot shooting of Terry Rozier for a win over the Charlotte Hornets.
Rozier made a career- high 10 three-pointers and scored 42 points to lead the Hornets.
Rookie LaMelo Ball didn’t score in his NBA debut with Charlotte, and Hornets center Cody Zeller broke his left hand.
Gordon Hayward scored 28 points in his first game with the Hornets.
MAGIC 113, HEAT 107
ORLANDO, Fla. — Evan Fournier gave Orlando the lead with a late three-pointer, converted a three-point play in the final minute and scored 25 points in the Magic’s victory over the Miami Heat.
Aaron Gordon had 20 points and seven rebounds, Terrence Ross had 19 points, Nikola Vucevic added 15 points and 11 rebounds, and Markelle Fultz had 15 points.
Bam Adebayo led Miami with 25 points and 11 rebounds.
PACERS 121, KNICKS 107
INDIANAPOLIS — Domantas Sabonis scored a career-high 32 points and Victor Oladipo added 16 of his 22 in the second half, leading the Indiana Pacers to a victory over the New York Knicks.
Sabonis also grabbed 13 rebounds as new Coach Nate Bjorkgren celebrated his first career victory.
RJ Barrett finished with 26 points and Alec Burks had 22 for New York.
76ERS 113, WIZARDS 107
PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid scored the go-ahead basket with 1:09 left and had 29 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a win over Washington to spoil Russell Westbrook’s triple-double Wizards’ debut.
Westbrook had 21 points, 15 assists and 11 rebounds. Bradley Beal, a two-time All-Star who was second in the league in scoring last season, had 31 points.
CELTICS 122, BUCKS 121
BOSTON — Jayson Tatum banked in a fallaway, go-ahead three-pointer in the final second, and Giannis Antetokounmpo missed the potential tying free throw with 0.4 seconds left, allowing the Boston Celtics to escape with a victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Tatum scored 30 points and Jaylen Brown had 33 for Boston. Antetokounmpo scored 18 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter, and Khris Middleton had 27 points and 14 rebounds for Milwaukee.
PELICANS 113, RAPTORS 99
TAMPA, Fla. — JJ Redick converted a four-point play with just over a minute remaining and finished with 23 points, and Brandon Ingram led all scorers with 24 points as the New Orleans Pelicans rallied from an 11-point deficit to beat the relocated Toronto Raptors.
Zion Williamson finished with 15 points
and 10 rebounds to help deliver new Coach Stan Van Gundy a victory in his New Orleans debut.
Pascal Siakam led the Raptors with 20 points.
HAWKS 124, BULLS 104
CHICAGO — Trae Young scored 37 points and the Atlanta Hawks pounded Chicago, spoiling Billy Donovan’s debut as Bulls coach.
Zach LaVine scored 22 points and Lauri Markkanen had 21 points and 7 rebounds for the Bulls. Patrick Williams, the No. 4 overall pick in this year’s draft, had 16 points for Chicago in his NBA debut.
T-WOLVES 111, PISTONS 101
MINNEAPOLIS — Malik Beasley scored 23 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 22 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists, leading the Minnesota Timberwolves’ rally to beat the Detroit Pistons.
D’Angelo Russell pitched in 18 points, and Anthony Edwards — the first overall pick in the NBA Draft last month — added 15 points in his debut.
Josh Jackson (19 points) and Derrick Rose (15 points) provided plenty of production off the bench, but the Pistons were outscored 31-16 in the fourth quarter.
SPURS 131, GRIZZLIES 119
MEMPHIS — DeMar DeRozan had 28 points and 9 assists, and Dejounte Murray added 21 points as the San Antonio Spurs used a balanced attack to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies, overcoming a huge game by Ja Morant.
Morant — the reigning rookie of the year — had 34 of his 44 points in the second half. Dillon Brooks scored 16 for the Grizzlies, while Jonas Valanciunas added 15 points and 13 rebounds.
LaMarcus Aldridge added 20 points for San Antonio.