Despite strides, Cavaliers cut coach
J.B. Bickerstaff was fired as Cleveland’s coach on Thursday despite the Cavaliers improving in each of his four seasons and making it to the second round of the playoffs this year despite numerous injuries.
His dismissal came one week after the Cavaliers were eliminated by Boston in the Eastern Conference semifinals while playing the final two games without AllStar guard Donovan Mitchell or center Jarrett Allen.
The coaching change could trigger a summer shift for the Cavaliers, who are hoping to sign Mitchell to a long-term extension and could make major moves.
“The NBA is a unique business that sometimes requires aggressive risk-taking to move a franchise forward and ultimately compete for championships,” general manager Koby Altman said in a statement.
Late playoff game
Luka Doncic scored 15 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter, and Dallas stole home-court advantage from Minnesota with a 108-105 victory in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals on Wednesday night.
“We made important ones,” said Doncic, who was selected to the All-NBA first team and scored seven straight points over 63 seconds early in the fourth quarter to fuel a 13-0 run by Dallas for a 97-89 lead.
Minnesota rallied and led 102-98 after a three-pointer by Anthony Edwards with 3:37 left, but Dallas answered with an 8-0 run and the Timberwolves didn’t score again until a tip-in with 10.5 seconds to go.
All-NBA teams
LeBron James is now the youngest — and oldest — player to make an All-NBA team, voted a third-team selection. Lakers teammate
Anthony Davis was a second-team selection with the Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard.
Denver’s Nikola Jokic and Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander were the only unanimous firstteam selections, joined by Doncic, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo and
Boston’s Jayson Tatum.