LeBron James reaches for 500,000 dollar Christmas bonus
The NBA's In-Season Tournament is designed to make the early phase of the season more interesting. To this end, the best basketball league in the world is being generous. Superstar LeBron James takes a pragmatic view after the nail-biting victory in the quarter-finals. If the best players are fighting for something, he wants to be there.
For national basketball player Isaiah Hartenstein, the dream of winning his first NBA title is over. The 25-year-old center lost the quarter-finals of the in-season tournament with the New York Knicks against the Milwaukee Bucks led by the strong top star Giannis Antetokounmpo by a clear 122:146. Hartenstein contributed four points, the Knicks' top scorer was Julius Randle (41 points).
That was not enough against the Bucks. The two-time NBA champions were able to rely on their new top duo of Antetokounmpo (35) and Damian Lillard (28), who combined for 63 points. "We feel more comfortable from game to game," said Antetokounmpo about working with new signing Lillard.
The Los Angeles Lakers are also in the semi-finals. The team led by superstar LeBron James defeated the Phoenix Suns 106:103 in a game that was only decided at the last second. Suns leader Kevin Durant missed a three-pointer with the clock running out to potentially tie the game. The NBA record champions led by basketball superstar LeBron James had previously squandered a 12-point lead at half-time right at the start of the second half. By the end, the teams had exchanged the lead 14 times.
Teams fight for 500,000 dollars each
James scored 15 of his 31 points in the final quarter. The 38-year-old now still has the chance to win a title that he has yet to win in his career. "I've been in this situation many times in my career and I know what my job is. But the important shot came from AR," he said, referring to a three-pointer by Austin Reaves with 15 seconds left that cut the Lakers' lead to four points at 105:101. When asked what the title would mean to him, James replied: "It is what it is: the first time and we have a chance. So why not? The best basketball players in the world are fighting for it, so we're fighting."
The Lakers face the New Orleans Pelicans in the semi-finals in Las Vegas on Thursday, while the Bucks take on the Indiana Pacers. The final game on Saturday will also take place in the gambling metropolis. In addition to a trophy, the professional basketball players will also be competing for prize money of 500,000 US dollars (around 461,000 euros) each in this first-ever competition. With the tournament, the NBA wants to give greater importance to the early phase of the season. All results apart from the final are also included in the regular season standings.
In the in-season tournament, as in the playoffs, the best teams from the East and West play the final at the end of the season. In the first phase of the tournament, both conferences initially played out the quarter-finalists in three groups of five. For the world champions Daniel Theis (Los Angeles Clippers), Dennis Schröder (Toronto Raptors), Franz and Moritz Wagner (both Orlando Magic) and Maximilian Kleber (Dallas Mavericks), that was the end of the line.
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Source: www.ntv.de
