Sixth Man of the Year New York Knicks' J.R. Smith hangs from the rim after dunking the ball during an NBA game against the Atlanta Hawks in Atlanta, April 3, 2013. A person with knowledge of the voting results told the Associated Press that J.R. Smith has won the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year award. The eighth-year guard has averaged 18.1 points in 80 games, all off the bench. He had 29 games in which he scored 20 points as a reserve, tying him with the Clippers' Jamal Crawford for the NBA lead. Smith helped the Knicks win the Atlantic Division title for the first time since 1994. New York is the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference. — AP
OKLAHOMA CITY — Kevin Durant scored 24 points, Russell Westbrook made a run at a triple-double in three quarters and the Oklahoma City Thunder routed ex-teammate James Harden and the Houston Rockets 120-91 Sunday night in Game 1 of their playoff series. After letting Houston wipe away an 11-point deficit in the first half, the Thunder regained control with a 14-1 surge just before halftime and kept pouring it on. Just after a fan nailed a half-court shot to win $20,000 in the break after the third quarter, Durant drove for a two-handed slam while getting fouled and Oklahoma City was soon up by 30. Harden, playing against the team that traded him away just before the season started, had 20 points but the league's second-highest scoring offence was held 15 points below its regular-season average while shooting 36 per cent. Game 2 is Wednesday night in Oklahoma City. Heat 110, Bucks 87: LeBron “King” James and the reigning NBA champion Miami Heat opened its playoff campaign in regal style Sunday with a wire-to-wire 110-87 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. James fell two assists shy of a triple-double, scoring 27 points and grabbing 10 rebounds with eight assists as the Heat drew first blood in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference first-round series. Ray Allen scored 20 points, Dwyane Wade added 16 and Chris Bosh chipped in 15 for the Heat, who carried their strong form of the second half of the regular season seamlessly into the playoffs. Since the All-Star break the Heat had gone 30-2 — the best second-half winning percentage in NBA history. Their league-leading regular season record of 66-16 included a 27-game winning streak and assured them of home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. Miami held the Bucks to 42 percent shooting and out-rebounded them 46-31. Brandon Jennings scored 18 of his 26 points in the first half for Milwaukee. Monta Ellis added 22 for the Bucks. Game 2 is Tuesday in Miami. Spurs 91, Lakers 79: Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker scored 18 points each and the Spurs beat the Lakers in Game 1 of their Western Conference first-round series. Tim Duncan added 17 points and 10 rebounds, Matt Bonner had 10 points and Kawhi Leonard had eight points and 11 rebounds for San Antonio. Dwight Howard had 20 points and 15 rebounds, Steve Nash scored 16 points and Pau Gasol added 16 points and 16 rebounds for Los Angeles. Despite the double-doubles from Howard and Gasol, the Lakers failed to take full advantage of their inside presence, much to the consternation of the Kobe Bryant, who watched the national broadcast. “Post. Post. Post,” Bryant tweeted in reference to the Lakers' offence.
Pacers 107, Hawks 90: Paul George scored 23 points and recorded his first playoff triple double, leading Indiana past Atlanta for a 1-0 lead in the Eastern Conference series. George made just 3 of 13 shots but was 17 of 18 from the free-throw line, had 11 rebounds and 12 assists. George Hill added 18 points. It's the first time since 2006 that the Pacers have opened a playoff series with a win. The best-of-seven series resumes Wednesday at Indy. Atlanta was led by Jeff Teague with 21 points and Josh Smith with 15. — Agencies
