Basketball - Lakers and Pacers in the first final of the NBA tournament
The Los Angeles Lakers and the Indiana Pacers have reached the final of the new NBA tournament and will play for 500,000 US dollars in prize money for each basketball player on the winning team on Sunday night.
After the Pacers' 128:119 win over the Milwaukee Bucks, the NBA record champions led by superstar LeBron James gave the New Orleans Pelicans no chance in a 133:89 victory.
James impressed with 30 points and eight assists and now has the opportunity to win another title in his career. The NBA tournament is being held for the first time and should add excitement to an otherwise rather boring phase of the season.
"If we defend, we have a good chance of winning every game," said James, but also cautioned caution. "It's still only December, I'm not going to go crazy now. The in-season tournament is great, but it's still only December. It's another opportunity to get even better, that's what we want and we're excited."
The semi-finals on a bright blue and red court in Las Vegas in front of a mostly neutral crowd drew applause and cheers, especially after strong individual efforts. Tyrese Haliburton with 27 points and 15 assists for the Pacers excelled as he did in the win against the Boston Celtics and led the young team from Indianapolis into the final.
"We don't have any Hollywood guys in the team. We just have a lot of guys on the team who keep their heads down and work," said Myles Turner, his team's second-best scorer with 26 points. Giannis Antetokounmpo's 37 points were worthless for the Bucks in the end.
In the late game between the Lakers and Pelicans, James was joined by Anthony Davis, who added 15 rebounds to his 16 points, and Austin Reaves, who contributed 17 points off the bench. The 29:30 deficit after the first quarter was turned around in particular by the soon-to-be 39-year-old James, who scored eleven points in a row. He hit three threes in a row, two of them while still standing on the logo with the new trophy, causing jubilation on the bench and in the stands.
The Lakers have now won three games in a row. In contrast to the previous games, Saturday's final does not count towards the main round for Los Angeles and Indiana. The winners will receive generous prize money.
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Source: www.stern.de
