SAN ANTONIO: LeBron James became the youngest player ever with 30,000 career points, but LaMarcus Aldridge scored 30 points to lift the San Antonio Spurs over the slumping Cleveland Cavaliers 114-102 on Tuesday night.
James had 28 points while becoming the seventh member of the 30,000-point club, yet he couldn’t keep the Cavaliers from dropping their 10th in 13 games.
Spurs point guard Dejounte Murray — friend and mentee of James — had 19 points, 10 rebounds and seven steals in his second start since replacing a healthy Tony Parker. Murray soared for a tip follow and then rose to disrupt James’ driving layup, which led to a 3-pointer by Danny Green that gave the Spurs a 105-94 lead with 4:20 remaining.
Murray’s effort helped San Antonio push past Cleveland in a battle between teams entangled in turmoil.
The Spurs denied reports that injured superstar Kawhi Leonard is unhappy with how the team is handling his right quadriceps tendinopathy and wants to be traded.
The Cavaliers, meanwhile, acknowledged reports that they held a team meeting to address Kevin Love’s early exit due to illness from a blowout loss at Oklahoma City and his subsequent absence from the following day’s practice.
Love said the Cavs have a history of thriving on chaos, and they seemed to put the dysfunction aside early as James got the seven points he needed to reach his milestone.
After missing his first two midrange jumpers and a pair of free throws, James made two driving layups and a 20-footer, and then rose above Danny Green for a 19-foot jumper with one second remaining in the first quarter to reach the mark. The shot put Cleveland up 29-25.
At 33 years and 24 days, James is the youngest player to get 30,000. Bryant was 34 years and 104 days when he got there.
LeBron James gets 30,000, but Spurs beat slumping Cavs 114-102
LeBron James gets 30,000, but Spurs beat slumping Cavs 114-102
American Tien beats Belgian Blockx to win Next Gen ATP Finals title
- Tien, who won his first trophy on the tour at the Moselle Open last month, held his nerve and made only 12 unforced errors while Blockx had 23, as the American won the match in just under an hour
- Tien: I’m really happy. I knew it was going to be a tough match. I don’t think (Blockx) missed a serve for the first set-and-a-half
JEDDAH: American Learner Tien overpowered Belgian opponent Alexander Blockx 4-3(4) 4-2 4-1 to win the Next Gen ATP Finals on Sunday, the year-ending exhibition tournament between the eight highest-ranked players on the tour aged 20 and under.
The tournament uses a modified format, where a player needs to win four games to clinch a set, and winning one point at deuce is enough to take the game.
Tien, who won his first trophy on the tour at the Moselle Open last month, held his nerve and made only 12 unforced errors while Blockx had 23, as the American won the match in just under an hour. “I’m really happy. I knew it was going to be a tough match. I don’t think (Blockx) missed a serve for the first set-and-a-half. He’s been playing great in these conditions all week,” said Tien, who lost last year’s final to Joao Fonseca.
Blockx, who served seven aces while his opponent had only one, made his intentions clear from the start, attacking the left-handed Tien’s backhand with a fast serve and running up to the net to apply pressure. Tien, ranked 28th in the world, pushed Blockx back with a well-placed lob before winning the point with a drive volley and although Blockx, ranked 116th, saved a break point and pushed the first set into a tiebreaker, top seed Tien outplayed his fellow 20-year-old.
Tien won the second set with a decisive break, using his powerful forehand to push Blockx back until the under-pressure Belgian second seed hit over the baseline. The American, who has clinched five victories over top-10 ranked players this year including a straight-sets win over Alexander Zverev in February, got another break in the third set to go 3-1 up, leaving Blockx with little chance of fighting back.
“What a year you’ve had,” Blockx told Tien at the trophy presentation ceremony. “There are not a lot of days I feel helpless on court but today was one of them. You’re just too good.”
