OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kevin Durant watched from home in the Bay Area as the Golden State Warriors finished off James Harden and the Houston Rockets on the road.The two-time reigning NBA Finals MVP has a bit more cheerleading to do before he gets back on the court.Durant is likely to miss Games 1 and 2 of the Western Conference Finals against the Portland Trail Blazers while he recovers from a strained right calf. Durant was injured in Game 5 against Houston."Everyone needs to slow down a little bit on the Kevin stuff. He hasn't even stepped on the floor yet," coach Steve Kerr said Monday, a day before Game 1, noting a more extensive update would come Thursday.Golden State showed it can win without KD: Stephen Curry came alive at last in the second half of the clincher at Houston, scoring all 33 of his points after the break.Curry and Splash Brother Klay Thompson will look to build off strong performances in that final game against the Rockets to lead the top-seeded Warriors. The two-time... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — James Harden and the Houston Rockets were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors yet again.Now the Rockets are left to ponder how they'll get over the hump and past the Warriors to contend for a title.The two-time defending champion Warriors beat Houston 118-113 in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals on Friday night despite the absence of Kevin Durant and behind 33 second-half points from Stephen Curry to send the Rockets home for the fourth postseason in the last five years.With each early playoff exit, the Rockets vow to find a way to defeat the Warriors and get their first championship since winning back-to-back titles in 1994-95. But year after year they are unable to do that and are faced with questions about whether this team ever will.Despite the latest disappointment, team owner and casino and restaurant magnate Tilman Fertitta remains confident Harden will be able to lead them to a title soon."I can promise you, we're going to win some championships with... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — The Golden State Warriors still have plenty of work to do if they hope to win their third straight championship.But after fending off the Houston Rockets on Friday night without leading playoff scorer Kevin Durant to advance to the Western Conference finals, they did take a moment to celebrate the accomplishment."It shows you how much respect we have for Houston," coach Steve Kerr said. "We just finished the conference semifinals series. We're only halfway home to where we want to be. And yet the celebration in there felt like a much bigger occasion and that's because of the challenge that this team put before us."Stephen Curry scored all of his 33 points in the second half to lead the Warriors to a 118-113 win.Klay Thompson added 27 points to help two-time defending champion Golden State reach the conference finals for a franchise-record fifth straight year and eliminate Houston for the fourth time in five seasons. The Warriors did it with Durant sidelined by a calf injury... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Golden State Warriors will be without postseason scoring leader Kevin Durant as they try to close out the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference semifinals."Well, we'll just find somebody on the bench who can give us 35 points and two blocks and 11 boards and nine assists," coach Steve Kerr said once the team arrived back in Houston on Thursday evening.An MRI exam Thursday confirmed the Warriors' initial diagnosis of a strained right calf announced during Wednesday's 104-99 win at Oracle Arena.As the Warriors returned to Houston for Friday's Game 6, Durant stayed behind in the Bay Area to undergo treatment. He is scheduled to be re-evaluated next week, meaning if there is a decisive Game 7 in the series Sunday he would be out of that one as well. The Warriors lead the series 3-2."He's been the best player in the NBA, in the playoffs. He's been phenomenal, so it's obviously a huge loss, but our team has a lot of confidence," Kerr said. "They trust each other.... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — In the Western Conference finals last season, the Houston Rockets had home-court advantage and took a 3-2 lead over the Golden State Warriors before Houston star Chris Paul went down with a hamstring injury that kept him out for the rest of the series.As these teams prepare for Game 6 of the conference semifinals Friday night, the Warriors find themselves in almost the same situation Houston was in last year.The Warriors are just a win away from advancing to the conference finals for the fifth straight time, but will have to do it without NBA-playoffs leading scorer Kevin Durant, who will miss the rest of the series with a strained right calf.The two-time defending champions took advantage of Paul's injury in 2018 to win two straight after falling behind 3-2 and eliminated the Rockets on their home court to advance.The Rockets don't want to see Golden State celebrate a series victory on their home court again and are determined to bounce back after Wednesday night's loss... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kevin Durant will miss the remainder of the Golden State Warriors' Western Conference semifinals against the Houston Rockets with a strained right calf.An MRI exam Thursday confirmed the Warriors' initial diagnosis announced during Wednesday's 104-99 win at Oracle Arena.The team has returned to Houston for Game 6 on Friday but Durant stayed behind in the Bay Area to undergo treatment. He is scheduled to be re-evaluated next week, meaning if there is a decisive Game 7 in the series Sunday he would be out of that one as well. The Warriors lead the series 3-2."It's a tough injury," teammate Klay Thompson said. "We'll have to collectively make up for what he does. We've done it before. It's going to be incredibly difficult. It's the playoffs. I know they're not going to feel sorry for us, the media, the fans. It will be a gut check time. We go down there and give it our best effort. That's all we can do. If we do that, I have confidence every man on this team will step... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kevin Durant will miss the remainder of the Golden State Warriors' Western Conference semifinal against the Houston Rockets with a strained right calf.An MRI exam Thursday confirmed the Warriors' initial diagnosis. The team is traveling back to Houston for Friday's Game 6 but Durant stayed behind in the Bay Area to undergo treatment. He is to be re-evaluated next week, meaning if there is a Game 7 in the series Sunday he would be out of that one as well. The Warriors lead the series 3-2.Durant limped to the locker room after landing awkwardly on his right foot following a baseline jumper with 2:11 left in the third quarter of Wednesday's 104-99 victory at Oracle Arena.The Warriors initially feared the two-time reigning NBA Finals MVP might have injured his Achilles, a far more serious issue.He finished with 22 points, five rebounds and four assists. Durant was averaging 35.4 points in the playoffs coming into the day.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Latest on Kevin Durant's injury (all times local):12:57 p.m.Kevin Durant will miss the remainder of Golden State's Western Conference semifinal against the Houston Rockets with a strained right calf.An MRI exam Thursday confirmed the Warriors' diagnosis of the calf injury. The team was traveling to Houston for Friday's Game 6 but Durant stayed behind in the Bay Area to undergo treatment. He is to be re-evaluated next week, meaning if there is a Game 7 in the series Sunday he would be out of that game as well.In the third quarter of Wednesday's 104-99 victory at Oracle Arena, Durant limped to the locker room after landing awkwardly on his right foot following a baseline jumper with 2:11 left in the quarter.The Warriors feared the two-time reigning NBA Finals MVP might have injured his Achilles, a far more serious issue.___12:01 a.m.Golden State star Kevin Durant has left Game 5 of the Warriors' playoff series against the Houston Rockets with a strained right calf.Durant... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Golden State star Kevin Durant strained his right calf during the third quarter of the Warriors' 104-99 playoff victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night, leaving his status uncertain for the remainder of the Western Conference semifinal.The Warriors took a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series, but Durant's status cast a shadow over the win."He's obviously down because he's injured and doesn't really know the extent of it," Stephen Curry said.Durant was scheduled for an MRI exam Thursday and his status for Game 6 on Friday night in Houston had yet to be determined."You lose your best player, it's deflating," said Klay Thompson, who scored 27 points and had a layup to seal it with 4.1 seconds remaining.Curry and the rest of the Warriors were thankful Durant wasn't more seriously hurt.Even coach Steve Kerr initially feared Durant might have injured his Achilles."When I walked into the coaches office after the game the replay of the play was going on and I... [More]

It begins.When the buzzer sounded in Milwaukee on Wednesday night, the question immediately became this: Has Kyrie Irving played his last game for the Boston Celtics?It's very possible.Welcome to free agency, Kyrie.He's now in the place that other big names like Kevin Durant, Jimmy Butler, Kawhi Leonard and Klay Thompson all will be whenever their respective seasons end, whether that happens with a playoff defeat, or with an injury — Durant left Game 5 of Golden State's Western Conference semifinal series against Houston on Wednesday night with a right calf strain — or with their fingerprints smudging the golden surface of the Larry O'Brien Trophy.They will all hear some version of the question that Irving got.Free agency doesn't technically start until July 1, but in actuality it began for the superstar point guard with 8:40 left in the fourth quarter of Game 5 — when he checked out for the last time in what capped Boston's ousting from the Eastern Conference semifinals by the Milwaukee... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Golden State star Kevin Durant strained his right calf during the third quarter of the Warriors' 104-99 playoff victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.The Warriors grabbed a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal, but Durant's status cast a shadow over the win.Durant was scheduled for an MRI exam Thursday and his status for Game 6 on Friday night in Houston had yet to be determined.Even coach Steve Kerr initially feared Durant might have hurt his Achilles."When I walked into the coaches office after the game the replay of the play was going on and I thought the same thing because he kind of looked back like he had been kicked or something," Kerr said. "I thought, I've seen that before with guys who have hurt their Achilles. That was my first question and I was assured it's the calf. It's a calf strain and not the Achilles."Durant limped to the locker room after landing awkwardly on his right foot following a baseline jumper with 2:11... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Golden State star Kevin Durant has left Game 5 of the Warriors' playoff series against the Houston Rockets with a strained right calf.Durant limped to the locker room after landing awkwardly on his right foot following a baseline jumper with 2:11 left in the third quarter. The team says he will not return.Durant had 22 points, five rebounds and four assists Wednesday night. The two-time reigning NBA Finals MVP was averaging 35.4 points in the playoffs coming into the day.The best-of-seven series was tied at two games apiece. Game 6 is Friday back in Houston.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kevin Durant vs. James Harden. This duel may just go the distance, and the two stars know it.Everyone figured the Western Conference semifinal between Golden State and Houston had a chance to be more like the NBA Finals in terms of talent on each side, and now it's tied at 2-all.The NBA's best are dazzling on defense and trading big shots on offense."The way both teams are playing with such intensity and aggression, it's fun to be out there," Durant said. "We're looking forward to Game 5."The series resumes Wednesday night at Oracle Arena, which could host its final game if Golden State doesn't handle business at home. The Warriors will move to new Chase Center in San Francisco next season."The mood's good. Playoffs, this is what it's about," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Tuesday afternoon once his team touched down in Oakland. "Our team has been here many times. We've been in much worse situations, being down in a series, being on the road for Game 7s. We've pretty... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kevin Durant vs. James Harden. This duel may just go the distance, and the two stars know it.Everyone figured the Western Conference semifinal between Golden State and Houston had a chance to be more like the NBA Finals in terms of talent on each side, and now it's tied at 2-all.The NBA's best are dazzling on defense and trading big shots on offense."The way both teams are playing with such intensity and aggression, it's fun to be out there," Durant said. "We're looking forward to Game 5."The series resumes Wednesday night at Oracle Arena, which could host its final game if Golden State doesn't handle business at home. The Warriors will move to new Chase Center in San Francisco next season."The mood's good. Playoffs, this is what it's about," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Tuesday afternoon once his team touched down in Oakland. "Our team has been here many times. We've been in much worse situations, being down in a series, being on the road for Game 7s. We've pretty... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kevin Durant vs. James Harden. This duel may just go the distance, and the two stars know it.Everyone figured the Western Conference semifinal between Golden State and Houston had a chance to be more like the NBA Finals in terms of talent on each side, and now it's tied at 2-all.The NBA's best are dazzling on defense and trading big shots on offense."The way both teams are playing with such intensity and aggression, it's fun to be out there," Durant said. "We're looking forward to Game 5."The series resumes Wednesday night at Oracle Arena, which could host its final game if Golden State doesn't handle business at home. The Warriors will move to new Chase Center in San Francisco next season."Nothing's really happened yet. Both teams have won two home games," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.Also Wednesday, Boston will try to stave off elimination playing at Milwaukee. The Bucks are up 3-1."These kinds of situations show a lot about people," Celtics coach Brad Stevens... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — James Harden knows the success or failure of the Houston Rockets falls on him regardless of what the rest of the team does in the Western Conference semifinals against the Golden Warriors.That burden, he says, is one that most people can't understand but that makes him better, something he'll need to be if the Rockets hope to avoid falling into a 0-3 hole Saturday night when they host Game 3."How can I explain it," he asked. "If you've never been in that situation before or don't know what it feels like I can't give you the (feeling)."Last year's MVP and a front-runner this season thrives on that pressure and is ready for the challenge facing him as the Rockets try to close the gap in the series."It makes me who I am and I wouldn't expect anyone who hasn't been in this position or doesn't got the world on their shoulders to get it," he said.Harden is recovering after both of his eyes were injured in the first quarter of Game 2 when he was hit by Golden State's Draymond Green... [More]

Golden State and Houston should be embarrassed.And NBA fans should be livid.Steve Kerr, the Warriors' coach and about as classy an act as there is in the league, opened his media session Monday by pantomiming a flop on a reporter in the most thinly veiled jab he could possibly take at Houston's James Harden. Not long after that, Rockets general manager Daryl Morey just happened to tweet out a story from 2016 about Kerr complaining about calls and getting fined.This is what this series has come to after one game: Trolling and subtweeting?Enough already.Just play.What went on during — and more specifically, after — Game 1 is a bad look for both the Warriors and for the Rockets. Basketball is not the story in this series heading into Tuesday night's Game 2. And given the quality of these teams, the best rivalry in the NBA, that's a shame.Harden is the reigning MVP who takes more free throws than anyone on the planet and still says he doesn't get a fair whistle. His backcourt mate Chris Paul... [More]

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma City Thunder plan to keep coach Billy Donovan for a fifth year.Thunder general manager Sam Presti said Monday that he doesn't expect to switch coaches, despite Oklahoma City's third consecutive first-round playoff exit.Presti does expect Russell Westbrook to change, though. The All-Star point guard averaged a triple-double for the third straight season, but his image came under scrutiny after he collected a league-high 16 technical fouls that led to a one-game suspension, trash talked with Portland point guard Damian Lillard before losing the playoff series and refused to answer some of the media's questions."Would we prefer if he handled a few things differently? Sure," Presti said. "We've talked about that. I also think it would probably be worthy and noteworthy to establish the fact that he made some adjustments to that particular approach, and I think that's a sign of tremendous leadership and a sign that he is understanding that when he speaks, he... [More]

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma City Thunder plan to keep coach Billy Donovan for a fifth year.Thunder general manager Sam Presti said Monday that he doesn't expect change despite Oklahoma City's third consecutive first-round playoff exit.The Thunder have reached the playoffs each of Donovan's four years with the team, but they haven't won a playoff series since Kevin Durant left for Golden State in free agency after the 2015-16 season. Donovan has a 199-129 regular-season record, but he is 15-19 in the playoffs. Portland rolled past the Thunder 4-1 in their playoff series this season.Presti said he plans to sit down with Donovan and discuss why the team went through a 6-13 stretch from late February to the end of March after a promising first two-thirds of the season. He called the last part of the season "disappointing" after a start that created whispers that the Thunder might challenge Golden State at the top of the Western Conference.___Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CliffBruntAP___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

HOUSTON (AP) — Houston coach Mike D'Antoni thinks James Harden should win a second straight MVP award.The veteran coach also believes the Beard should take home another award, too."I don't know if he'll get MVP, he should in my opinion," D'Antoni said. "But he definitely should get most improved player because he's improved his game."It's daunting to think: Harden is actually getting better. And there are plenty of numbers to back it up as the Rockets prepare to play the Warriors in the Western Conference semifinals starting Sunday.A year after Harden became the first Rocket to win MVP since Hakeem Olajuwon in 1994 when he led the team to the first of two titles Harden has improved in almost every statistical category.He raised his scoring average from 30.4 to 36.1 points lead the NBA, upped his rebounds from 5.4 to 6.6, improved his steals from 1.8 to 2.0, raised his free throw percentage from 85.8 to 87.9 and made 4.8 3-pointers a game after averaging 3.7 a year ago.And those numbers... [More]