ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A slow start didn't help Giannis Antetokounmpo's shot at NBA history, but the Milwaukee Bucks are hardly a one-man show.Khris Middleton hit a 3-pointer less than 20 seconds into the game, and the team with the league's best record never trailed Saturday night in a 111-95 victory over the Orlando Magic. It's the 13th time the Bucks have led from wire to wire this season.“It's nice to not trail ... but it doesn't really mean anything. We have to keep playing good basketball," Antetokounmpo said.“We were up 27 and they came back, cut the lead to 11. So it doesn't mean anything," the league's reigning MVP added. “We just try to take it quarter by quarter."Antetokounmpo nearly had a triple-double with 18 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists while also falling short of becoming the first player in league history with at least 30 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists in six consecutive games.Antetokounmpo was originally listed with 19 points, but the NBA announced later Saturday... [More]

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A slow start didn't help Giannis Antetokounmpo's shot at NBA history, but the Milwaukee Bucks are hardly a one-man show.Khris Middleton hit a 3-pointer less than 20 seconds into the game, and the team with the league's best record never trailed Saturday night in a 112-95 victory over the Orlando Magic. It's the 13th time the Bucks have led from wire to wire this season.“It's nice to not trail ... but it doesn't really mean anything. We have to keep playing good basketball," Antetokounmpo said.“We were up 27 and they came back, cut the lead to 11. So it doesn't mean anything," the league's reigning MVP added. “We just try to take it quarter by quarter."Antetokounmpo nearly had a triple double with 19 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists while also falling short of becoming the first player in league history with at least 30 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists in six consecutive games.With Middleton, Brook Lopez and Eric Bledsoe picking up the slack, it didn't matter as... [More]

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo nearly had a triple double with 19 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists, helping the NBA-best Milwaukee Bucks beat the Orlando Magic 112-95 on Saturday night.The Bucks won for the 13th time in 14 games, improving the league’s best record to 45-7 and remaining on course to become just the third team to top 70 wins in a regular season.Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, fell short in a personal bid to become the first player with at least 30 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists in six consecutive games, scoring two points in the first quarter and finishing 6 of 17 from the field.Wilt Chamberlain is the only other player with a stretch of five straight games with 30, 15 and 5, accomplishing it from Dec. 10-17, 1965, with the Philadelphia Warriors.Brook Lopez led the Bucks with 23 points, including 5 for 5 on 3-point attempts. Khris Middleton had 21 points and 13 rebounds, and Eric Bledsoe finished with 18 points for the Bucks, who led by as many as 27 in the third... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer dug into his team after Thursday night's win.Giannis Antetokounmpo had 32 points and 17 rebounds, Khris Middleton scored 23 and the Bucks held off the Boston Celtics 128-123 despite blowing two separate 20-point leads.“We were up 20 twice and they came back,” Antetokounmpo said. "... We didn’t play the best basketball and how we usually play. I was kind of upset after the game. We talked in the locker room. We talked to one another. We were up 20 and we won but we’ve got to play for 48 minutes. "Coach Bud came in here and he was steaming hot. He was angry and that’s good. He doesn’t really care about this game or the next game. He cares about how we can get better and how can we be good for 48 minutes. That’s what our goal is.”Despite the lapses, the NBA-leading Bucks (37-6) extended their winning streak to five games, while Boston lost its second game in as many nights.“It's a very long season, still,” Celtics guard Kemba Walker said.... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer dug into his team after Thursday night's win.Giannis Antetokounmpo had 32 points and 17 rebounds, Khris Middleton scored 23 and the Bucks held off the Boston Celtics 128-123 despite blowing two separate 20-point leads.“We were up 20 twice and they came back,” Antetokounmpo said. "... We didn’t play the best basketball and how we usually play. I was kind of upset after the game. We talked in the locker room. We talked to one another. We were up 20 and we won but we’ve got to play for 48 minutes. "Coach Bud came in here and he was steaming hot. He was angry and that’s good. He doesn’t really care about this game or the next game. He cares about how we can get better and how can we be good for 48 minutes. That’s what our goal is.”Despite the lapses, the NBA-leading Bucks (37-6) extended their winning streak to five games, while Boston lost its second game in as many nights.“It's a very long season, still,” Celtics guard Kemba Walker said.... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo had 32 points and 17 rebounds, Khris Middleton scored 23 and the Milwaukee Bucks held off the Boston Celtics 128-123 on Thursday night.With the victory, the NBA-leading Bucks (37-6) extended their winning streak to five games.Kemba Walker scored a game-high 40 points to lead the Celtics, who took the floor without Jaylen Brown. The 6-foot-6 forward suffered a sprained right thumb in a 13-point loss to Detroit on Wednesday.“We saw a play late in the first half and we think that might have been when it happened," Boston coach Brad Stevens said. "Maybe it got worse as the game went on. He didn’t say much about it at halftime. Certainly, after the game it was sore. Today, more sore.”Stevens said they will do more tests on Brown's thumb on Friday.Marcus Smart, who started in place of Brown, had 24 points.Antetokounmpo, who also had seven assists, had his 35th double-double of the season.After trailing by as many as 27, the Celtics outscored Milwaukee 36-22... [More]

Protesters handed out T-shirts and held up signs in support of Hong Kong on Wednesday night when the Washington Wizards hosted a team from the Chinese Basketball Association.The Wizards beat the Guangzhou Long-Lions 137-98 in a game that included more than a half-dozen protests inside Capital One Arena over the NBA's ongoing rift with the Chinese government.Protesters handed out "Free Hong Kong" T-shirts on the street outside the arena before the exhibition game. The protesters, who said they were from Freedom House, held up signs reading, "Shame the NBA," ''South Park was right" and "Memo to the NBA: Principles over profit! No censorship! USA loves Hong Kong."The problems between the NBA and China began after Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey posted a tweet last week that showed support for anti-government protesters in Hong Kong.The NBA has not apologized for Morey's remarks.A Freedom House spokeswoman said some members were planning to protest inside during the game. A spokeswoman... [More]

Robin Lopez and Frank Mason III both scored 14 points to lead the Milwaukee Bucks over the Chicago Bulls 122-112 in preseason action on Monday night.Milwaukee didn't play most of its major contributors, including last year's league Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo, Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton.Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said before the game that most of them had a good scrimmage on Sunday so he didn't want to play them in what was essentially a back-to-back stretch.All five of the Bucks' starters scored in double figures. Brook Lopez scored 13 points, Sterling Brown added 12 points and nine rebounds and Wesley Matthews scored 10.Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 16 points. Lauri Markkanen added 14 points, making 4 of 8 of his 3-point attempts.PELICANS 133, HAWKS 109Jrue Holiday led New Orleans with 21 points and Zion Williamson scored 16, including several highlight-reel dunks.Williamson, the No. 1 overall pick in June's draft, threw down his first preseason dunk, a tomahawk... [More]

Robin Lopez and Frank Mason III both scored 14 points to lead the Milwaukee Bucks over the Chicago Bulls 122-112 in preseason action on Monday night.Milwaukee didn't play most of its major contributors, including last year's league Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo, Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton.Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said before the game that most of them had a good scrimmage on Sunday so he didn't want to play them in what was essentially a back-to-back stretch.All five of the Bucks' starters scored in double figures. Brook Lopez scored 13 points, Sterling Brown added 12 points and nine rebounds and Wesley Matthews scored 10.Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 16 points. Lauri Markkanen added 14 points, making 4 of 8 of his 3-point attempts.PELICANS 133, HAWKS 109Jrue Holiday led New Orleans with 21 points and Zion Williamson scored 16, including several highlight-reel dunks.Williamson, the No. 1 overall pick in June's draft, threw down his first preseason dunk, a tomahawk... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst took a break from his busy schedule Monday night to collect the 2018-19 NBA Executive of the Year Award.Horst won the honor during the league's awards show in Santa Monica, California, four days after he and his staff put a bow on the draft and six days before the anticipated NBA free agency."We congratulate Jon on earning this well-deserved award," Bucks owners Wes Edens, Marc Lasry and Jamie Dinan said in a statement. "Jon has played an instrumental role in building the Bucks into a championship-caliber organization and we are thrilled that his fellow team executives throughout the league recognize his great work."The Bucks' ownership group presented Horst with a multiyear extension earlier this month and for good reason. In his second season as the team's general manager, Horst hired Mike Budenholzer, who was honored as the NBA's Coach of the Year on Monday night, and assembled a team that had the best record in the NBA at 60-22."The... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Mired in their worst skid of the season at the worst possible time, the Milwaukee Bucks need an answer in the Eastern Conference finals.A lineup change didn't provide one, so the Bucks have to come up with something else in Toronto.The Bucks returned to the starting five they used most of the season in Game 5, the lineup that helped them to the NBA's best record. But they were left with the same result as the third and fourth games and now face elimination when the series resumes Saturday.Guard Malcolm Brogdon finished with 18 points, 11 rebounds and six assists Thursday in his first start since returning from a foot injury in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Boston Celtics. But his first career postseason double-double wasn't enough as Milwaukee lost 105-99 to the Raptors.The top-seeded Bucks need a win in Toronto after falling there twice already in the series."You know, we've been a resilient group all year," Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said.... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo has carried the Milwaukee Bucks to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2001.The Bucks have reason to believe they can go even further, thanks to a deep roster that received a boost with the return of guard Malcolm Brogdon for the clinching game of their semifinal series win over the Boston Celtics.Brogdon missed the Bucks' first eight playoff games and final 13 regular-season games with a plantar fascia injury in his right foot. He was able to shake off some of the rust as he scored 10 points and played 17 minutes in Milwaukee's 116-91 victory over Boston in Game 5 on Wednesday."It was like he never left," Bucks center Brook Lopez said of Brogdon's long-awaited return. "He just picked everyone up. Our crowd felt it; our team felt it."Now the Bucks will turn their attention to a conference final matchup against either Toronto or Philadelphia. Either way, they will host the first two games next week — and the reserves are heating up.Bench... [More]

Just a few months ago, Enes Kanter was toiling for a New York Knicks team that was heading nowhere.Now, he's a significant contributor for a Portland Trail Blazers team heading to the Western Conference semifinals.Kanter is one of several players starring in their supporting roles and helped put their respective teams in the second round of the NBA playoffs. Others have helped put their teams on the brink of advancing.The Knicks waived Kanter after the trade deadline in February and Portland swooped in to pick him up. The 6-foot-11 center stepped in as a starter for the Trail Blazers after Jusuf Nurkic suffered a leg injury. The Blazers' playoff hopes looked bleak after Nurkic went down, but Kanter has taken full advantage of his new situation. Kanter averaged 13.2 points and 10.2 rebounds in the Trail Blazers' 4-1 series win against Oklahoma City."I would like to appreciate the teams that didn't pick me," Kanter said after Portland's clinching Game 5 win on Thursday night. "I tried to... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo will have his unique talents on display in the second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time in his six-year career.If Milwaukee's superstar can match or beat his latest jaw-dropping highlight, everyone is in for a treat, unless they play or root for the Boston Celtics.Antetokounmpo scored a career playoff-high 41 points to lift the Bucks a 127-104 sweep-sealing win over the Detroit Pistons on Monday night."This means a lot," he said softly.The top-seeded Bucks will face fourth-seeded Boston in a postseason rematch. The Celtics are also coming off a sweep, against Indiana, and should have confidence in the matchup after eliminating Milwaukee in the first round last year.The Bucks swept a seven-game series for the first time since 1983, when they did it in the conference semifinals against Boston."We're going to celebrate it and have fun, but we'll quickly focus on Boston," Milwaukee guard Sterling Brown said. "It's going to be a fun series. Last... [More]

In case more proof was needed that the game of basketball has changed wildly in the last few years, check out the starting center for the team with the best record in the NBA — he is often nowhere near the basket.It's by design.Milwaukee's Brook Lopez hardly ever took 3-pointers in high school, or college, or his first eight seasons in the NBA. He's a 7-footer, and 7-footers were told forever to go to the low post and wait to see if someone throws you the ball. Those days are largely gone and perhaps no NBA big man has seen his job description change more than Lopez.He's taken more 3-pointers this season — 461 and counting — than any 7-footer in any NBA season. And that comes after he was 3 for 31, total, from beyond the arc in his first eight seasons as a pro, with many of those heaves coming in end-of-game or end-of-shot-clock situations."In our practice facility we have boxes out deep beyond the 3-point line, from areas we know we can get reps at," Lopez said. "Eventually, you just get... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Khris Middleton thought Nikola Mirotic tilted a playoff series in Chicago's favor nearly four years ago when the Bulls beat his Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.Mirotic will be on Middleton's side for the postseason this time around.The Bucks had already surged to the NBA's best record when general manager Jon Horst got the 6-foot-10 Mirotic, an adept 3-point shooter, in a three-team trade that sent Milwaukee's Jason Smith and Detroit's Stanley Johnson to New Orleans. The Pistons got Thon Maker from Milwaukee.The Pelicans made a similar move to add Mirotic last February, and he helped them rally to make the playoffs and advance to the second round after a season-ending injury to DeMarcus Cousins."Another guy that has playoff experience, one," Middleton said. "Two, he can stretch the floor and he knows how to play. I remember back when we played him in the Chicago series ... and how he changed that series for them, the way he knocked down shots."The Bucks are among the more... [More]

Milwaukee didn't get out of the first round of the playoffs last year. Denver didn't even get into the first round of the playoffs, its postseason hopes thwarted by a loss in the last game of the regular season.As such, few may have seen this coming.The perk of getting to coach the All-Star Game goes to the staffs of the teams with the best records in the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference two weeks before the matchup — which this year meant the Bucks' Mike Budenholzer and the Nuggets' Michael Malone got the jobs.So for only the second time in the last 35 seasons, the All-Star coaches are people who weren't participants in the previous year's NBA playoffs. Malone missed by a game, and Budenholzer was coaching Atlanta to a 24-58 record. Yet on Feb. 17 in Charlotte, Budenholzer and Malone will be front and center with their chance to strategize for one night with the best players in the world."I feel like me and Mike are cut from the same cloth," Budenholzer said. "We want to be... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Dynamic offense jump-started the Milwaukee Bucks' season. Tighter defense has propelled them to the best record in the NBA.The Bucks are 15 games over .500, an impressive beginning for Mike Budenholzer's tenure as Milwaukee's head coach.Now comes the tough part: staying on top."At the end of the day, we can't be satisfied," forward Giannis Antetokounmpo said. "We're the No. 1 team in the East, but we got to keep pushing."True, there are no championships awarded in December.But the rest of the season looks promisingAntetokounmpo is having an MVP caliber season. He is averaging 26.6 points and 12.8 rebounds, while scoring on 66 percent of his two-point shots thanks to length and athleticism that makes him nearly unstoppable in the paint.He's a gym rat and his work ethic is contagious. Antetokounmpo was drafted by the Bucks in the first round in 2013, which was also the year that Chris Middleton arrived from Detroit in a trade. The Bucks finished 15-67 in 2013, a franchise... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Dynamic offense jump-started the Milwaukee Bucks' season. Tighter defense has propelled them to the best record in the NBA.The Bucks are 15 games over .500, and impressive beginning for Mike Budenholzer's tenure as Milwaukee's head coach.Now comes the tough part: staying on top."At the end of the day, we can't be satisfied," forward Giannis Antetokounmpo said. "We're the No. 1 team in the East, but we got to keep pushing."True, there are no championships awarded in December.But the rest of the season looks promisingAntetokounmpo is having an MVP caliber season. He is averaging 26.6 points and 12.8 rebounds, while scoring on 66 percent of his two-point shots thanks to length and athleticism that makes him nearly unstoppable in the paint.He's a gym rat and his work ethic is contagious. Antetokounmpo was drafted by the Bucks in the first round in 2013, which was also the year that Chris Middleton arrived from Detroit in a trade. The Bucks finished 15-67 in 2013, a franchise... [More]

There has been some early tinkering to lineups, a few hiccups and lots of drama to start the NBA season.None of the league's final four teams from last season — Boston, Cleveland, Houston, Golden State — look like locks to hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy this time.The addition of Carmelo Anthony to the Rockets' roster produced more thorns than fruit, and now he is out.In Boston, the Celtics are having early trouble trying to figure out how best to use their overflowing mix of young and veteran talent following the return of Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward from injuries.And Cleveland has gotten off to a predictable slow start to the post-LeBron James' era, but few expected the total collapse by the Cavaliers.However, there is no drama like championship drama and the defending champion Warriors suddenly look more like the cast of a reality series than a harmonious lineup rolling along and vying for a third straight championship.Draymond's Green public outburst at Kevin Durant during the Warriors'... [More]