Bradley's 3-pointer gives Celtics improable win over Cavs

(TSX / STATS) -- CLEVELAND -- At first glance, maybe the sight of Avery Bradley's 3-point attempt in the waning seconds of Game 3 doesn't come to mind as the perfect shot.

It was good enough to help the Boston Celtics shock the Cleveland Cavaliers 111-108 in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals Sunday, and not just because it eventually went through the hoop.

Bradley's shot left his hands with about 2.8 seconds remaining. It bounced off different parts of the rim four times, and it didn't roll into the basket until there was 0.1 seconds to go.

Not enough time for LeBron James and the Cavaliers to rescue themselves from a pitiful end.

"Thank God it's bouncing on the rim because that's taking time," Celtics coach Brad Stevens said. "If it goes in or doesn't go in, they have a timeout left. So when it bounced around, I was actually hoping it went in, obviously, but not completely disappointed that it was bouncing up there."

Cleveland leads the series 2-1. Game 4 will be Tuesday in Quicken Loans Arena.

Celtics star Isaiah Thomas is out for the remainder of the postseason because of a hip injury, and the Cavs had lost just one game at home to an Eastern team in the playoffs dating to 2015.

However, Thomas' replacement, Marcus Smart, scored a career-high 27 points and handed out seven assists, and Bradley had 20 points. Al Horford added 16 points, Jae Crowder amassed 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Kelly Olynyk contributed 15 off the bench for the Celtics, who were beaten by an average of 28.5 points in the first two games.

When the two teams left Boston after Game 2, the Cavs had beaten the Celtics by 44 points for the most lopsided win in Eastern finals history.

Now this.

"We've got guys that have chips on their shoulders," Stevens said. "A lot of these guys have been overlooked, and this is their first opportunity to really play a meaningful role.

"We knew that Friday was a (44)-point disaster, worth one (game). It wasn't worth four."

The Cavs led by as many as 21 points in the third quarter Sunday, but they shot 2-for-17 from 3-point range in the second half. The Celtics made 18 3-pointers for the game.

Cleveland also committed 16 turnovers that Boston turned into 14 points. The Celtics gave the ball away nine times, leading to five Cavaliers points.

"You let a team grab momentum like that, you almost know that last shot is going in," James said. "It was like, you already knew. As soon as the ball went out of his hands, you kind of knew that shot was going to go in because of how the game was just played throughout the second half."

James was ineffective, scoring just 11 points on 4-of-13 shooting with six turnovers. He was held scoreless in the fourth quarter and was limited to three points in the second half.

"I didn't have it," James said.

Kyrie Irving led the Cavs with 29 points, and Kevin Love added 28 points and 10 rebounds. Tristan Thompson scored 18 points to go with 13 boards.

Cleveland blew a chance to set a playoff record for consecutive wins (14) dating to Game 5 of last year's Finals. The Cavs also squandered an opportunity to become the fourth team in history to start the playoffs 11-0.

"I feel some adversity is all part of the postseason," James said. "I feel like you have to have some type of adversity in order to be successful. If it was going to happen, let it happen now; let us regroup. Let us regroup, and all the narrative and everything that was going on, let's regroup and let's get back to playing desperate basketball, which they did tonight. So we've got to be a lot better, for sure."

NOTES: Cavs F LeBron James won the J. Walter Kennedy citizenship award, given by the writers who cover pro basketball to a player, coach or athletic trainer who shows outstanding service and dedication to the community. ... Celtics coach Brad Stevens said G Isaiah Thomas (right hip injury) would travel outside of Boston to undergo further examination Monday to determine if surgery is needed. ... Stevens also said the Cavs' 130-86 win in Game 2 -- the largest margin of victory ever in an Eastern finals game -- "may have been the best game I've ever seen a team play against us, at least in my time in the NBA." ... Cleveland entered Game 3 leading NBA playoff teams in field-goal percentage (.433), 3-point percentage (.433), offensive rating (119.4) and 3-pointers per game (14.5). ... In addition to G Marcus Smart, Amir Johnson also rejoined the Boston lineup after being replaced by Gerald Green in Game 2. Johnson scored two points in nine minutes, while Green scored five points in seven minutes.

Celtics face deeper hole minus top scorer vs. Cavs

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CLEVELAND -- Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas is done for the playoffs with the right hip injury that cost him the second half of a 44-point loss in Game 2 to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Celtics announced Saturday that Thomas, their leading scorer, was out after reaggravating a "right femoral-acetabular impingement with labral tear."

Even if he had returned to Game 2 with his hip strain, or if he could've played against the Cavaliers on Sunday in the third game of this lopsided Eastern Conference final, Thomas alone is not enough to bridge the gap between Cleveland and Boston.

LeBron James and the Cavs have so thoroughly dominated the series they now lead 2-0, with Game 3 headed for their building at 8:30 p.m. ET

"Not 44 points' worth," Celtics coach Brad Stevens said Friday after his team's historic 130-86 loss to Cleveland in Game 2, when asked if a healthy Thomas could've made a difference. "But I don't want to put that on any one guy. I think ultimately they were terrific, we were poor. You've got to be able to pick up the slack certainly when other guys aren't available. But they were tremendous.

"They've taken advantage of us both nights."

Celtics team physician Dr. Brian McKeon said, "Isaiah has worked tirelessly to manage this injury since it first occurred" in March, and "the swelling increased during the first two games against Cleveland, and in order to avoid more significant long-term damage to his hip, we could no longer allow him to continue."

Marcus Smart started the second half of Game 2 in place of Thomas.

The Cavaliers' win in Game 2 was the most lopsided in Eastern Conference finals and in franchise history. It was also the worst playoff loss for Boston -- the most decorated franchise in the NBA -- at home in team history.

James notched his eighth straight playoff game of at least 30 points, and did it in a 2017 playoff-low 33 minutes.

The Cavs won the first two games in this series by an average of 28.5 points. Sure, the number was skewed by the 44-pointer Friday in Game 2, but Game 1 really wasn't close, either.

Thomas aggravated the hip strain in Game 6 of Boston's conference semifinal win over Washington. He was limited to two points in Game 2, and in Game 1 scored 17 on 7-of-19 shooting from the field.

Already overmatched, Boston seems incapable of competing with a healthy Cavs bunch without Thomas and the 28.9 points per game he averaged during the regular season.

"He's not second-team All-NBA for no reason, top three in the league in scoring," Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue said. "So he's a tough cover. The things they run for him put you in bad positions and tough positions, especially with Al Horford being a stretch five. That's why I'm pleased most of all with our defense and how we just kept reacting and kept moving and kept scrambling."

Lue was in no mood after Friday's win to look past this series.

"I don't care if you win by 200 points," Lue said. "It's one game, and we know this team is a very scrappy team."

The Celtics, after all, did lose the first two games at home to Chicago in the first round and recovered to win the series in six games. Of course, the Bulls lost Rajon Rondo to a broken thumb in Game 2 and the Celtics had Thomas at full tilt, playing like crazy to honor the memory of his sister who died in an auto accident.

This is a totally different scenario. It usually is when James is involved.

James is 73 points from passing Michael Jordan as the NBA's leading scorer in the playoffs. Hem has scored at least 25 points in every game this postseason and is trying to become the first since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1970 to score 30 in nine straight playoff games.

James is 20-0 when he leads 2-0 in a playoff series. The Cavs are 14-0. Together, they need one more win to set an NBA record for consecutive postseason wins, and would become only the third team in league history to start the playoffs 11-0.

"We can get better," James said. "That's the positive for our ballclub. There's no complacency with us right now. There shouldn't be. It's the postseason. But we like where we're headed and the direction we're headed right now."

Durant's big third quarter helps Warriors sink Spurs

(TSX / STATS) -- SAN ANTONIO -- In the unlikely event that the prolific Golden State offense needs a pick-me-up, it can turn to forward Kevin Durant, who is capable of jump-starting the Warriors in clutch situations.

Durant provided the spark the Warriors craved when he scored 17 consecutive points in a three-minute stretch of the decisive third quarter on Saturday as the Warriors easily dispatched the San Antonio Spurs 120-108 in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals at the AT&T Center.

The Warriors lead 3-0 in the best-of-seven series with Game 4, a potential clincher for Golden State, set for Monday in San Antonio. No NBA team has ever come back to win a series after losing the first three games.

Durant had 33 points in all, 19 of them in the third period, and pulled down 10 rebounds.

"Yeah, KD got in a groove," Warriors acting coach Mike Brown said. "He was huge for us. Literally, we didn't do anything tricky. He got hot, and we just wanted to keep him in the middle of the floor attacking downhill and in pick-and-roll situations. He was terrific. He made the right play every time down the floor, and obviously he made shots. He is who he is."

San Antonio trailed by nine points at the half and got as close as 69-65 two minutes into the third quarter before Golden State took charge with its superior firepower and unselfish play. By the middle of the fourth quarter, the Spurs were just worn out, settling for shots early in possessions and missing most of them while the Warriors rebuilt an 18-point lead.

"It feels like (San Antonio) can always stay in the game and always put up a fight and win," Durant said. "So we knew especially (with the Spurs) at home, Game 3, a lot of energy in the building, they were going to come out and hit us in the mouth, and we did a good job of taking that punch and just keep playing."

The Spurs' hopes of getting back in this series were severely damaged earlier on Saturday when the team announced that star forward Kawhi Leonard would not play in Game 3 because of a sprained left ankle. Leonard was originally injured in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Houston Rockets and re-injured the ankle in Game 1 at Golden State.

Stephen Curry added 21 points for the Warriors, who are a perfect 11-0 in the postseason and have won 26 of their past 27 games.

Klay Thompson had 17 points, JaVale McGee hit for 16 (all in the first half) and Draymond Green tallied 10 points, seven rebounds and seven assists as all five of Golden State's starters scored in double figures. The Warriors outshot San Antonio 54.8 percent to 47.3 percent from the floor.

The Spurs got 21 points from the ageless Manu Ginobili, who hit 7 of 9 shots from the field, and 18 points from LaMarcus Aldridge. Jonathon Simmons added 14 points, and Pau Gasol contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds for San Antonio.

"We knew we were going to be able to bounce back at least emotionally today and play a better game," Ginobili said. "The fact is that it's just too tough. We are missing Kawhi's offense and defense in this series. They were just too much for us today offensively. KD got hot in the moment when we had a chance. They got a lead, and they just played their rhythm and they were better than us."

The Spurs took a 26-25 lead on a 3-pointer by Patty Mills late in the first quarter and expanded it to 33-27 with 1.1 seconds to play on two free throws by Ginobili. The Warriors stole the final points of the quarter and a little of the momentum when David West threw an end-to-end pass to Ian Clark, who caught the ball underneath the Spurs' basket and laid it in as the horn sounded, bringing Golden State within 33-29 at the quarter break.

Golden State surged back into the lead in the middle of the second quarter, building a 61-49 advantage with 1:28 remaining while holding the Spurs scoreless for more than three minutes. San Antonio cut the deficit to 61-55 on a free throw and a basket by Ginobili and a put-back by Aldridge, but West canned a 3-pointer with 10.9 seconds left in the half to grant the Warriors a 64-55 lead at intermission.

McGee led the Warriors with 16 points in the half while Ginobili paced the Spurs with 13 points on 4-for-4 shooting from the floor.

Durant caught fire in the third quarter, hitting on 5 of 6 shots as the Warriors built as much as an 18-point lead before settling for a 100-88 advantage through three quarters. Golden State shot 60 percent in the period (12 of 20) but allowed San Antonio some hope when it committed turnovers on three consecutive possessions.

Spurs reserve forward David Lee was forced from the game with a hyperextended left knee late in the first quarter while hitting a layup and being fouled. Lee went straight to the San Antonio locker room and was not able to return to shoot the free throw he earned, meaning he could not return to the game.

"Our competitiveness was great," San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. "Every time you look up, you're playing against four All-Stars, so you better be pretty perfect, and competitiveness-wise I couldn't ask for anything more. We turned it over too much, and we've got to make some more shots. But Golden State is a hell of a team."

NOTES: San Antonio won 33 consecutive home games against the Warriors from the start of the 1997-98 season up until April 10, 2016, when it dropped a 92-86 decision to Golden State for its only home loss on the 2015-16 season. During that stretch, the Spurs posted a 57-13 record against the Warriors. ... In Game 2 of the Western Conference finals, the Warriors dished out a franchise-record 23 assists in the first half on the way to a 2017 playoff-high 39, one shy of the team playoff record. ... San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich served as an assistant for the Warriors under Don Nelson's staff from 1992-93 through the 1994-95 season. ... Warriors coach Steve Kerr had two playing stints with San Antonio, appearing in 131 games while averaging 3.5 points from 1998-2001 and in 75 games during the 2002-03 season while helping lead the Spurs to their second NBA championship.

Leonard iffy as Spurs host Warriors in Game 3

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It is put-up-or-shut-up time for San Antonio when the Spurs face the red-hot Golden State Warriors on Saturday in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas.

San Antonio is trailing 2-0 in the best-of-seven series and has looked completely lost after star forward Kawhi Leonard reinjured his left ankle midway through the third quarter of Game 1. The Spurs were up by as many as 25 points in that contest before losing 113-111 and then, with Leonard unavailable because of the injury, were steamrolled 136-100 in Game 2.

Both of those games were in Oakland, and the Spurs are hoping that the series shift to the Alamo City will change the momentum. Leonard's return would help bolster that change but, even after six full days of rest and rehabilitation, he was listed by the team as questionable for Game 3.

Leonard originally sustained the ankle injury in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Houston Rockets. He is averaging 27.7 points on 52.5 percent shooting, to go along with 7.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists in the postseason.

Leonard said Friday at the Spurs' shootaround that he will make the decision on his playing status.

"I will have a lot of input," Leonard said. "If I feel good, I'm going to play. Part of that is just seeing if I can run and at least be myself on the court. I don't want to hobble around or shoot off-balance shots. I just want to be able to push with both legs."

San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said he was not planning any contingency plans for his team in case Leonard decides he can't play.

"Either Kawhi is going to play, or he's not," he said. "Everything else, you just work on what you want to work on."

The Warriors are expecting Leonard to play Saturday and are readying to handle the boost he and the change of venue could give the Spurs.

"I'm 100 percent sure he's going to play," Golden State's Kevin Durant said after practice Friday. "I haven't talked to anybody, but that's just my gut. It's Game 3 at home, and he's got a few days of rest on that ankle. They're a way better team, obviously, with him on the court. They pose a different threat."

Lost in all the talk about Leonard's injury is Golden State's overall excellent play, especially in Game 2, and the Warriors' ability to step things up when needed. Golden State has won all 10 of its games in the postseason, sweeping Portland and Utah and now taking the first two games from San Antonio.

Warriors acting coach Mike Brown was happy to see his team stroll to an easy win, but understands that things are going to be a lot more difficult moving forward. Game 4 will also be in San Antonio, on Monday, and two Spurs wins would put the series back on track.

"Steve (Kerr) told our guys before Game 2 that we've got to come out and play with a sense of urgency from the beginning," Brown said of his ailing boss' address to the team in the locker room before the game. "Give all of our guys credit. That was the message to the team afterward, too, going into Game 3.

"Think Game 1 was tough?" Brown added. "Oh, down in San Antonio, it's going to be more than a dogfight. Game 3 is going to be tough for us."

Not everything has gone the Warriors' way in this series. San Antonio outrebounded Golden State 49-40 in Game 2, and the Spurs' 22 offensive rebounds were the most the Warriors have surrendered in any game this season. San Antonio also had a significant rebounding advantage in the first two quarters of Game 1 before Leonard's injury.

Golden State's Andre Iguodala (left knee soreness) and Zaza Pachulia (right heel contusion) are listed as questionable for Saturday's Game 3. Iguodala participated in practice Friday and appears closer to a return than Pachulia at this point.

Cavaliers steamroll Celtics to take 2-0 lead

(TSX / STATS) -- BOSTON -- Charles Barkley walked into TD Garden for Friday night's television gig and greeted a familiar face with the words: "Came in for this mercy killing."

Sir Charles clearly had no idea how right he would be.

The defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers exploded to a 41-point halftime lead -- the largest halftime advantage in playoff history -- and cruised to 130-86 blowout of the Boston Celtics to take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.

"It was a good 48-minute game for us on both ends of the ball. We played all the way through for 48 minutes," Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue said after the biggest playoff win ever for the Cavaliers.

The Celtics suffered their worst postseason home loss in history and fell just three points shy of matching their worst playoff defeat. Boston trailed 72-31 at the half.

"It's one game," said Lue. "I don't care if you win by 200 points. It's one game, and we know this team is a very scrappy team. They play hard and compete."

LeBron James, who scored 22 of his 30 points in the first half, has never lost a playoff series when up 2-0 and this series now shifts to Cleveland for Games 3 and 4 Sunday and Tuesday, with outmanned Boston perhaps missing star guard Isaiah Thomas.

Thomas was lost to a right hip strain at halftime. He was scoreless, missing all six shots in the first half, but he did assist on six of his team's 11 baskets in the half.

"He's had a nagging hip injury," said Boston coach Brad Stevens. "He aggravated it pretty significantly on Friday in Washington, Game 6.

"Today I thought he looked much different in the first half. When he went back to the locker room our training staff and doctors got with him. He was pretty despondent not to be able to play. That guy's a tough guy and he plays through a lot. For him to have to sit is really hard."

Thomas didn't miss much.

Asked how much his team missed its top scorer, Stevens said, "Not 44 points' worth. I don't want to put that on any one guy.

"I think ultimately they were terrific, we were poor."

The win was the 13th straight playoff victory for the Cavs, who have not lost since Game 4 of last year's NBA Finals. The streak tied an NBA record.

James, the first player since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1970) with eight straight 30-point playoff games, and the rest of the Cleveland starters were pulled with 1:47 left in the third quarter.

James, who was a plus-46 in the game (plus-63 in two games), dished out seven assists and added four rebounds, four steals and three blocked shots. He is averaging 34.3 points, 8.5 rebounds and 7.1 assists in the playoffs, shooting 56.9 percent from the floor and 45.8 percent from 3-point range.

The plus-46 matched Jimmy Butler's 2015 performance at Milwaukee -- a stat that is tracked back only as far as 2003.

Earlier in the day, James was not one of the three finalists for the league Most Valuable Player Award.

"I didn't see it. What you going to do about it?" James said. "At the end of the day, my only job is try to be the MVP for this team every night.

"I know what I bring to the table. This league knows what I bring to the table. That's for you guys to write about. That's not for me to be concerned about."

Kevin Love had 21 points and 12 rebounds and Kyrie Irving 23 points for Cleveland. The trio went a combined 11 of 21 from 3-point range.

The Cavs, who went 19 of 39 from 3-point range (Boston was 8 of 27), have never trailed in the first two games.

"We just want to try to get better," James said. "I also told you (earlier this season) we had another level. You looked at me crazy. I told you that. I believe we have another level as well.

"As well as we played tonight, there's still some things we could have (done) better.

Rookie Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 19 points and Avery Bradley had 13. But Bradley was a minus-42, one shy of Draymond Green's record.

"We got our (butt) kicked. Point blank, period," said Brown. "Defending champs. They swept us off the floor."

NOTES: The Celtics made one lineup change, starting G/F Gerald Green in place of F Amir Johnson. "He's always been ready, and he always stays ready," Boston coach Brad Stevens said of Green, who logged 13:44 and scored 11 points off the bench in Game 1. Cavs coach Tyronn Lue called it a "smart? Move" and he hit a pair of first-quarter 3-pointers. ... The Cavaliers shrugged off two aggressive plays by Boston G Isaiah Thomas in the opener, the second a hard foul on a driving LeBron James that actually knocked the smaller Thomas' headband from his head. "It wasn't as bad as I thought it was," said Lue, who was asking for a review for a potential flagrant. ... The Cavaliers won their two home games against Boston in the regular season by six points apiece but the Celtics haven't played in Cleveland since Dec. 29.n League lead with 11.

James, Cavs look to take 2-0 lead on Celtics

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BOSTON -- LeBron James offered a rather ominous comment after his Cleveland Cavaliers won the opener of the Eastern Conference finals Wednesday night.

"I don't even think we played that great tonight," James said after the Cavs cruised to a 117-104 victory over the Boston Celtics.

Despite not playing "that great," the Cavaliers took over home-court advantage in the series and look to get a two games to none lead Friday night at TD Garden.

James was, well, James in Game 1. He continued his dynamic playoff run with 38 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in a wire-to-wire victory.

To make it tougher for Boston, James had help and the Cavaliers hit 28 of their first 45 shots and coasted, doing so in a game where Kyrie Irving, who usually kills the Celtics, scored just 11 points.

"They put you in a bad matchup almost every time down the floor," Celtics coach Brad Stevens said Thursday.

Kevin Love, looking like the Kevin Love from his Minnesota days, fired in a career-playoff-high 32 points, including four 3-pointers in the third quarter, and grabbed 12 rebounds. Tristan Thompson had a career-playoff-best 20 points and nine boards.

The win was the Cavs' 12th straight in the playoffs, dating back to the last three games of the finals last year. James has scored 30 points in seven straight games as he looks to visit the finals for the seventh straight season.

"There's gonna be some adjustments made from both sides," James said Thursday. "We have to be ready for it. Obviously, we don't know the exact adjustments but we know they're gonna make adjustments. That's what good teams do and we have to be ready for anything they bring to the table."

One thing the Celtics would love to bring to the table is more offense from Isaiah Thomas. Boston's little big man, who named All-NBA second team Thursday. (James made his 11th straight first team.) Thomas was hounded by the Cavs in the opening game, scoring just 17 points. He did have 10 assists and became the first Celtic since Rajon Rondo in 2012 with back-to-back playoff double-doubles.

"I'm very confident. I believe in these guys," Thomas said. "We just gotta protect our home court in Game 2 and get the win."

Games 3 and 4 are in Cleveland Sunday and Tuesday.

"LeBron's been playing so well that we really haven't had the chance to feature Kevin, but we've been talking and he's been ready," Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said. "Tonight was a huge performance from him. We needed that."

James is averaging 34.8 points, 9.0 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game in these playoffs.

"Amazing, but he's better than when I first got into the league," said Stevens, in his fourth year in the league and now 0-5 against James and the Cavs in the postseason.

The Celtics, who lost the first two games of their first-round series with the Chicago Bulls at home, had won five straight at home since then before losing the opener of this series.

"We got the shots we wanted on the offensive end almost all of the first half," Thomas said, noting the Cavs were rested while his team had just come off a seven-game series with the Washington Wizards. "We got what we wanted, we just couldn't capitalize on it. I think that was a big reason why our defense was let down as well.

"It's tough to continue to keep playing hard even though we need to when you don't see shots fall."

Russell Westbrook, James Harden, LeBron James lead 2016-17 All-NBA first team

Houston Rockets guard James Harden was unanimously voted to the 2016-17 All-NBA First Team, and Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James matched an NBA record with his 11th First Team selection, the NBA announced today.

Harden (500 points) was the only player named to the First Team on all 100 ballots, earning First Team honors for the third time in the last four seasons.  James (498 points) received 99 First Team votes, joining Kobe Bryant and Karl Malone as the only players in league history to make the All-NBA First Team 11 times. 

The All-NBA First Team also features three players who were each selected to the First Team for the second time: Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook, who joined James in totaling 99 First Team votes and 498 points, San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard (96 First Team votes, 490 points) and New Orleans Pelicans center Anthony Davis (45 First Team votes, 343 points).   

The All-NBA Second Team includes three players making their All-NBA debuts: Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert and Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas.  They are joined by two Golden State Warriors, guard Stephen Curry (fourth All-NBA selection) and forward Kevin Durant (seventh All-NBA selection).

The All-NBA Third Team consists of forwards Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls and Draymond Green of the Warriors, guards DeMar DeRozan of the Toronto Raptors and John Wall of the Washington Wizards and center DeAndre Jordan of the LA Clippers.  Butler, DeRozan and Wall are first-time All-NBA selections.  Green was named All-NBA for the second time, while Jordan earned his third All-NBA honor.

The NBA’s remaining 2016-17 award winners will be revealed during the inaugural NBA Awards on TNT, which will be hosted by platinum-selling recording artist and multifaceted entertainer Drake on Monday, June 26 (9 p.m. ET) at Basketball City in New York. 

The finalists for the following awards will be unveiled during a special 90-minute edition of TNT’s NBA Tip-Off presented by Autotrader on Friday, May 19 at 7 p.m. ET.: Kia NBA Most Valuable Player, Kia NBA Rookie of the Year, Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year, Kia NBA Sixth Man Award, Kia NBA Most Improved Player and NBA Coach of the Year.

The All-NBA Teams were chosen by a global panel of sportswriters and broadcasters.  The media voted for All-NBA First, Second and Third Teams by position with points awarded on a 5-3-1 basis.  Voters were asked to select two guards, two forwards and one center for each team, picking players at the position they play regularly.  Players who received votes at multiple positions were slotted at the position where they received the most votes.

Complete media voting results will be posted at NBA.com/official the night of the NBA Awards.  Click here for the list of 100 media voters for the All-NBA Teams.   

Here is a closer look at the All-NBA First Team:

• James Harden, Rockets: Harden averaged career highs of 29.1 points (second in the NBA), 11.2 assists (first) and 8.1 rebounds, helping Houston finish with the league’s third-best record at 55-27.  The 6-5 guard led the NBA in free throws made with 746 and ranked third in three-pointers made with 262.  He recorded a career-high 22 triple-doubles, tied for the NBA’s sixth-highest total in a single season.

• LeBron James, Cavaliers: In his 14th season, James set career highs in assists (8.7 apg; sixth in the NBA), rebounds (8.6 rpg) and triple-doubles (13; third in the NBA).  The 6-8 forward also ranked eighth in the NBA in scoring with 26.4 points per game, extending his league record for consecutive seasons of averaging 25.0 points to 13.  With 11 First Team selections (including 10 straight) to go with two Second Team nods, James has made an All-NBA Team in each of the last 13 seasons. 

• Russell Westbrook, Thunder: Westbrook set an NBA single-season record with 42 triple-doubles and joined Oscar Robertson as the only players in league history to average a triple-double for a season.  He averaged a league-leading 31.6 points to go with 10.7 rebounds (10th in the NBA) and 10.4 assists (third in the NBA).  In winning his second scoring title in three seasons, the 6-3 guard paced the NBA in games with at least 20 points (72), 30 points (44), 40 points (18) and 50 points (four).

• Kawhi Leonard, Spurs: The 6-7 forward finished as the NBA’s ninth-leading scorer at a career-high 25.5 points per game, becoming the first San Antonio player to average 25.0 points since Tim Duncan in the 2001-02 season.  Leonard, the Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year in each of the previous two seasons, helped the Spurs (61-21) post the league’s best defensive rating as they registered their third 60-win season in four years.

• Anthony Davis, Pelicans: Davis ranked fourth in the NBA in scoring (career-high 28.0 ppg), seventh in rebounding (career-high 11.8 rpg) and second in blocked shots (2.23 bpg) while appearing in a career-high 75 games.  The 6-11 forward/center set a single-season franchise scoring record with 2,099 points. 

2016-17 ALL-NBA FIRST TEAM

Pos. | Player (Team) | 1st team votes | 2nd team votes | 3rd team votes | Total

F | LeBron James (Cleveland) | 99 | 1 | -- | 498

F | Kawhi Leonard (San Antonio) | 96 | 3 | 1 | 490

C | Anthony Davis (New Orleans) | 45 | 34 | 16 | 343

G | James Harden (Houston) | 100 | -- | -- | 500

G | Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City) | 99 | 1 | -- | 498

2016-17 ALL-NBA SECOND TEAM

Pos. | Player (Team) | 1st team votes | 2nd team votes | 3rd team votes | Total

F | Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee) | -- | 81 | 15 | 258

F | Kevin Durant (Golden State) | 3 | 66 | 26 | 239

C | Rudy Gobert (Utah) | 43 | 38 | 10 | 339

G | Stephen Curry (Golden State) | 1 | 93 | 6 | 290

G | Isaiah Thomas (Boston) | -- | 71 | 23 | 236

2016-17 ALL-NBA THIRD TEAM

Pos. | Player (Team) | 1st team votes | 2nd team votes | 3rd team votes | Total

F | Draymond Green (Golden State) | 4 | 21 | 51 | 134

F | Jimmy Butler (Chicago) | -- | 19 | 45 | 102

C | DeAndre Jordan (LA Clippers) | 3 | 7 | 18 | 54

G | John Wall (Washington) | -- | 19 | 68 | 125

G | DeMar DeRozan (Toronto) | -- | 4 | 50 | 62

Other players receiving votes, with point totals (First Team votes in parentheses): Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota, 50 (2); Chris Paul, LA Clippers, 49; Marc Gasol, Memphis, 48 (2); DeMarcus Cousins, New Orleans, 42 (2); Paul George, Indiana, 40; Gordon Hayward, Utah, 27; Hassan Whiteside, Miami, 18; Kyrie Irving, Cleveland, 14; Klay Thompson, Golden State, 14; Nikola Jokic, Denver, 12 (1); Damian Lillard, Portland, 12; Paul Millsap, Atlanta, 3; LaMarcus Aldridge, San Antonio, 1; Blake Griffin, LA Clippers, 1; Al Horford, Boston, 1.