Game 5 of the NBA Finals goes at 9 p.m. ET Saturday night on Sportsnet.
The series is all evened up at 2-2 following a pair of stirring performances from the Milwaukee Bucks over the last two games to get right back into things after going down 2-0 to the Phoenix Suns to open the Finals.
Now a best-of-three, Saturday’s Game 5 is a pivotal game that will see the winner on the brink of winning it all in Game 6.
Here’s three things to keep in mind before you take in Game 5 on Saturday night.
Past adversity has appeared to temper Bucks for this moment
The Bucks have had their fair share of playoff heartbreaks over the past few years.
In 2019, they had a 2-0 series lead over the Toronto Raptors in the conference finals, but then proceeded to drop four straight. Then, last year in the bubble, Milwaukee went down 0-2 to the Miami Heat in the second round and were never able to recover as the team went down quietly in five games.
Those two experiences, in particular, have haunted the Bucks, and have been used as supposedly definitive proof that this is a team that simply can’t get the job done, no matter how much talent on the roster.
This year’s been different, though.
Twice now in the playoffs, we’ve seen Milwaukee come back from down 0-2 to even up a seven-game series — first against the Brooklyn Nets in the second round and now against the Suns in the Finals – and the biggest reason why appears to have stemmed from some past experiences members of this team have been through that have humbled them.
In particularly, those past playoff failure have appeared to really get through to Milwaukee superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo and taught him how to navigate the post-season.
“I think I would say life,” said Antetokounmpo when asked about what’s taught him how to handle his ego in such an even-keeled way at just 26 years of age. “Usually, from my experience, when I think about like, ‘Oh, yeah, I did this, I’m so great, I had 30, I had 25, 10, 10,’ whatever the case might be, you’re going to think about that [and] usually the next day you’re going to suck, you know? Simple as that. The next few days you’re going to be terrible.
“I figured out a mindset to have that when you focus on the past, that’s your ego. ‘I did this, We were able to beat this team 4-0. I did this in the past. I won that in the past.’ When I focus on the future, it’s my pride. ‘Yeah, next game, Game 5, I do this and this and this. I’m going to dominate.’ That’s your pride talking. It doesn’t happen. You’re right here.
“I kind of try to focus on the moment, in the present. That’s humility. That’s being humble. That’s not setting no expectation. That’s going out there, enjoying the game, competing at a high level.”
Can the Suns correct their turnover woes of late?
Over their past two games, the Suns haven’t looked like themselves.
Usually a low-mistake team, the Suns have committed 32 turnovers over their last two games, 10 more than the 22 they committed over their first two games.
The Bucks’ defence has been a cause of this, but there have been unforced errors sprinkled in that simply can’t happen and Phoenix knows this.
“When you turn the ball over that many times with our group, it’s not something you typically see,” said Suns head coach Monty Williams. “[The Bucks] got hands on ball a few times, but a lot of it was things that, like I said at the end, we can correct.”
Williams is naturally confident his team can shore things up, but it’s one thing to have confidence things will turn around and actually seeing it happen all in practice, especially when your All-NBA point guard has been struggling.
After a solid Game 1 performance, Chris Paul has been off all series long. He’s uncharacteristically turned the ball over 15 times alone over the last three games and a major reason for that has been the defence of Jrue Holiday, whose size, length and strength have appeared to really bother Paul, not that anyone on the Suns will admit to it.
“A blip on the screen. That’s how I would term it,” said Williams of Paul’s turnovers problems of late. “You’re not going to see Chris have those kinds of games frequently. I’ve been around him long enough, I’ve coached against him enough. That’s how I would term it: a blip on the screen or the radar.”
Added Paul himself: “It’s something I don’t dwell on. Even though it may be an anomaly, it happens. I turned the ball over hella times before. End of the day, we got to win the game. Me turning the ball over is not giving us enough shots at the basket. I’ll figure it out.”
For the Suns’ sake, let’s hope this relatively unconcerned attitude about Paul’s issues taking care of the ball really is just an anomaly and he gets back on track beginning with Saturday’s Game 5.
This has been a home-dominated series
As the old saying goes, “a series doesn’t start until the home team loses.”
Well, in that case, despite four games having gone by, this is a series that hasn’t really begun yet because the home teams have dominated thus far.
Maybe it’s because these are both fanbases absolutely starved for a championship – neither market has won a major sports title since the Green Bay Packers won Super Bowl XLV in 2010. Between these two teams specifically, only the Bucks have won an NBA championship way back in 1971 when Lew Alcindor, better known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Oscar Robertson were playing for the team. But the energy from both home crowds during these Finals has been absolutely electric and has likely made communication difficult for the opposing side.
Because of how dominant the home side has been in this series, however, coming into Game 5 it feels like there’s a little more pressure on the Suns to hold serve on Saturday night. Those “Bucks in six” chants at Fiserv Forum at the end of Game 4 were sounding quite menacing and that’s because there’s been no better team at home this post-season than Milwaukee. If Phoenix can’t take Game 5 on Saturday, you have to like the Bucks’ chances to close things out at home on Tuesday.
NEW YORK – Toronto Blue Jays reliever Chad Green and Canadian slugger Tyler O’Neill of the Boston Red Sox were named finalists for the Major League Baseball Players’ Association’s American League comeback player award on Monday.
Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet was the other nominee.
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. were named player of the year finalists.
The award winners, selected via player voting, will be named Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series.
Green, who missed most of the 2022 and ’23 seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery, was a high-leverage option for the Blue Jays this past season and filled in at closer over the second half of the campaign.
The right-hander converted his first 16 save opportunities and finished the year with a 4-6 record, 17 saves and a 3.21 earned-run average over 53 appearances.
O’Neill, a native of Burnaby, B.C., also endured back-to-back injury-plagued seasons in ’22 and ’23.
After being traded to the Red Sox in the off-season, O’Neill set an MLB record by hitting a homer in his fifth straight Opening Day. He finished with 31 homers on the year and had an OPS of .847.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
NEW YORK – Florida Panthers centre Sam Reinhart was named NHL first star of the week on Monday after leading all players with nine points over four games last week.
Reinhart had four goals, five assists and a plus-seven rating to help the Stanley Cup champions post a 3-0-1 record on the week and move into first place in the Atlantic Division.
New York Rangers left-winger Artemi Panarin took the second star and Minnesota Wild goaltenderFilip Gustavsson was the third star.
Panarin had eight points (4-4) over three games.
Gustavsson became the 15th goalie in NHL history to score a goal and had a 1.00 goals-against average and .962 save percentage over a pair of victories.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Deshaun Watson won’t finish the season as Cleveland’s starting quarterback for the second straight year.
He’s injured again, and the Browns have new problems.
Watson ruptured his right Achilles tendon in the first half of Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati, collapsing as he began to run and leading some Browns fans to cheer while the divisive QB laid on the ground writhing in pain.
The team feared Watson’s year was over and tests done Monday confirmed the rupture. The Browns said Watson will have surgery and miss the rest of the season but “a full recovery is expected.”
It’s the second significant injury in two seasons for Watson, who broke the glenoid (socket) bone in his throwing shoulder last year after just six starts.
The 29-year-old went down Sunday without being touched on a draw play late in the first half. His right leg buckled and Watson crumpled to the turf. TV replays showed his calf rippling, consistent with an Achilles injury.
He immediately put his hands on his helmet, clearly aware of the severity of an injury similar to the one Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers sustained last year.
As he was being assisted by the team’s medical staff and backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson grabbed a ball to begin warming up, there was some derisive cheers and boos from the stands in Huntington Bank Field.
Cleveland fans have been split over Watson, who has been accused of being sexually inappropriate with women.
The reaction didn’t sit well with several Watson’s teammates, including star end Myles Garrett, the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, who was appalled by the fans’ behavior.
“We should be ashamed of ourselves as Browns and as fans to boo anyone and their downfall. To be season-altering, career-altering injury,” Garrett said. “Man’s not perfect. He doesn’t need to be. None of us are expected to be perfect. Can’t judge him for what he does off the field or on the field because I can’t throw stones for my glass house.
“Ultimately everyone’s human and they’re disappointed just like we are, but we have to be better than that as people. There’s levels to this. At the end of the day, it’s just a game and you don’t boo anybody being injured and you don’t celebrate anyone’s downfall.”
Backup quarterback Jameis Winston also admonished the uncomfortable celebration.
“I am very upset with the reaction to a man that has had the world against him for the past four years, and he put his body and life on the line for this city every single day,” he said. “The way I was raised, I will never pull on a man when he’s down, but I will be the person to lift him up.
“I know you love this game. When I first got here, I knew these were some amazing fans, but Deshaun was treated badly and now he has to overcome another obstacle. So I’m going to support him, I’m going to lift him up and I’m going to be there for him.”
The injury is yet another twist in Watson’s tumultuous time with the Browns.
Cleveland traded three first-round draft picks and five overall to Houston in 2022 to get him, with owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam approving the team giving Watson a fully guaranteed, five-year $230 million contract.
With a solid roster, the Browns were desperate to find a QB who could help them compete against the top AFC teams.
The Browns had moved on from Baker Mayfield despite drafting him No. 1 overall in 2018 and making the playoffs two seasons later.
But Watson has not played up to expectations — fans have been pushing for him to be benched this season — and Cleveland’s move to get him has been labeled an abject failure with the team still on the hook to pay him $46 million in each of the next two seasons.
Watson’s arrival in Cleveland also came amid accusations by more than two dozen women of sexual assault and harassment during massage therapy sessions while he played for the Texans. Two grand juries declined to indict him and he has settled civil lawsuits in all but one of the cases.
Watson was suspended by the NFL for his first 11 games and fined $5 million for violating the league’s personal conduct policy before he took his first snap with the Browns. The long layoff — he sat out the 2021 season in a contract dispute — led to struggles once he got on the field, and Watson made just six starts last season before hurting his shoulder.
Cleveland signed veteran Joe Flacco, who went 4-1 as a starter and led the Browns to the playoffs.
Before Watson got hurt this year, he didn’t play much better. He was one of the league’s lowest-rated passers for a Cleveland team that hasn’t scored 20 points in a game and is back in search of a franchise QB.
