Warriors tie series with Lakers
Klay Thompson scored 30 points with eight 3-pointers, Golden State limited Anthony Davis while allowing LeBron James 23 points, and the defending champion Warriors evened their Western Conference semifinal with the Lakers at one game apiece with a 127100 win Thursday night.
Stephen Curry added 20 points and 12 assists as Splash Brother Thompson shined to help Golden State make 21 more 3-pointers — giving the Warriors an NBA record for most in the first two games of a playoff series at 42. James’s Cavaliers hit 40 against Atlanta in the 2016 second round.
Coach Steve Kerr switched things up and inserted JaMychal Green into the starting lineup for Kevon Looney, who had a career-high 23 rebounds in Game 1 but has been dealing with an illness. Kerr aimed to give a different look with scoring options and perhaps more free-throw chances by going hard at Davis in the paint — where Golden State got thoroughly outplayed in a 117-112 loss in the opener.
Thompson's basket with 7:48 left in the third gave Golden State its biggest lead at 82-64 and the Warriors rolled from there. The Warriors had more fast-break points and points in the paint. JaMychal Green matched his playoff career high with 15 points, and Draymond Green contributed 11 points, 11 rebounds, and 9 assists after insisting he had to get more aggressive.
Budenholzer fired
The Bucks fired coach Mike Budenholzer just over a week after their stunning first-round playoff loss to the Heat spoiled a season in which they owned the NBA’s best record.
Budenholzer’s ouster comes just two years after he directed the Bucks to their first NBA title in half a century. The move also comes three weeks after the
NBA finalized Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam’s purchase of a 25 percent stake in the team.
“The decision to make this change was very difficult,” Bucks general manager Jon Horst said Thursday in a statement announcing the move. “Bud helped lead our team for five incredible seasons, to the Bucks’ first title in 50 years, and into an era of sustained success. We are grateful for the culture of winning and leadership that Bud helped create in Milwaukee.
“This is an opportunity for us to refocus and reenergize our efforts as we continue building toward our next championship season.”
The Bucks posted the most combined regular-season and playoff wins of any team during Budenholzer’s tenure and had the league’s best regular-season record in three of his five seasons.
He posted a 271-120 regularseason record and 39-26 playoff mark in Milwaukee.
Butler still in doubt
NBA playoff scoring leader Jimmy Butler was with the Heat for their film session, without any clarity yet if his sprained ankle will be healed enough for him to play in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Knicks Saturday. And if Heat coach Erik Spoelstra has an answer, he’s not tipping his hand. “No update . . . I’m not going to get into all the minutiae of it,” Spoelstra said. “When we find out how he is feeling on Saturday, we’ll let you know. That’s what the deal is.” . . . Former NBA star Shawn Kemp pleaded not guilty to an assault charge after prosecutors accused him of shooting at a man while attempting to retrieve a stolen cell phone. No one was injured in the March 8 incident at a mall in Tacoma, and Kemp’s lawyers insisted he returned fire in self defense Kemp was released without bail following the arraignment in Pierce County Superior Court in Washington state.