An emotional Mike Budenholzer struggled to sum up Giannis Antetokounmpo's incredible impact for the Milwaukee Bucks as the NBA Finals MVP looked on.
Antetokounmpo scored 50 points for the Bucks in Game 6 on Tuesday, inspiring a 105-98 win against the Phoenix Suns that clinched the team's first title in 50 years.
Coach Budenholzer was close to tears as he described his post-game celebrations with the team and was not entirely comfortable discussing Antetokounmpo's performance as the 'Greek Freak' himself waited for his own media duties.
But Budeholzer was keen to highlight the two-time MVP's display from the foul line, so often criticised in recent seasons.
A 50-point showing was the best of Antetokounmpo's playoff career – and the joint-best in the clinching game of a Finals series – and was boosted by a remarkable 17 made free throws from just 19 attempts.
Only three times in Antetokounmpo's career – regular season or playoffs – has he previously made more shots from the foul line.
This was his best return in a playoff game, ahead of the 16 made from 22 attempts against the Boston Celtics in 2019.
Antetokounmpo's 89.5 per cent free-throw shooting in Game 6 was way up on his playoff career average of 61.3, but Budenholzer insisted he had no doubts the 26-year-old would deliver.
"It's hard to find more words to describe what Giannis does," the coach said as Antetokounmpo waited in the room.
"But the way he made his free throws, the way he did everything, stepped up, the poise, the confidence, the leadership... he has been working on it.
"We say we want Giannis to get to the free throw line. We believe. We talked about it this past summer.
"To win a championship, you've got to make free throws and you've got to make shots. He's made shots throughout the playoffs. He's made free throws throughout the playoffs.
"[Five] blocked shots, however many points. He's off the charts. He's the MVP of the NBA Finals."
Antetokounmpo made seven of seven from the line and six of 10 from the field in the third quarter as he put up 20 points.
Having also scored 20 in the third quarter of Game 2, Antetokounmpo became the first player in the past 50 seasons to have multiple 20-point quarters in a Finals series.
"Mostly in halftime, we were talking about defense. We had 47 points against us and we think we can be better," Budenholzer said.
"But I think he embraces us being great defensively – Giannis does, the whole team [does].
"When we get stops and get out and run and get Giannis in space, get our team in space, I think he's special.
"He was able to put his stamp on the game in the third quarter and flip the score. And then some big plays in the fourth quarter – big plays, big blocks. It's hard to keep finding words for Giannis."
Giannis Antetokounmpo has explained how the late, great Kobe Bryant made him believe he could become a superstar in the NBA.
Milwaukee Bucks talisman Antetokounmpo led his team to their first NBA title in 50 years on Tuesday, scoring 50 points – the joint-most in the clinching game of a Finals series – in a 105-98 Game 6 win over the Phoenix Suns.
Antetokounmpo's efforts were recognised with the NBA Finals MVP award, adding to his 2020 double of the regular season MVP and Defensive Player of the Year. Only Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon have also taken all three individual honours across their careers.
But Antetokounmpo's first MVP recognition in 2019 represented a breakthrough, rising to a challenge set by Bryant.
Replying to an Antetokounmpo message that said he was "still waiting for my challenge" in 2017, Bryant replied on Twitter: "MVP".
The Los Angeles Lakers great – a five-time champion and two-time Finals MVP – then raised the bar further once Antetokounmpo established himself as the regular season's best.
In a Twitter post that was shared by the NBA again on Tuesday, Bryant wrote: "My man....M.V.P. Greatness. Next up: Championship. #MambaMentality"
The league posted at the end of Game 6: "Challenge complete."
Pau Gasol, Bryant's team-mate on the 2009 and 2010 title-winning Lakers teams, added: "He did it, brother #MambaMentality #KobesLegacy"
Antetokounmpo was asked about his 2017 exchange with Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash in January 2020, in his post-game media duties and explained: "It means a lot. This started almost like a joke at first.
"It was a Nike ad and he was sending challenges to players, to Isaiah Thomas, DeMar DeRozan, all of that. And I was like, 'Let me just shoot my shot... what's my challenge?'
"He said MVP, and at first I was joking, I didn't think he was going to respond to me.
"But when he did, he made me believe. Kobe Bryant thinks I can do this? I can play at a higher level, lift my team and win MVP?
"I had to do it. I had to work hard. It's not necessarily that I didn't want to let him down, I had to work because people believed that I could do it.
"That's the thing, I'm a people pleaser. I don't like letting people down.
"When I re-signed with the city of Milwaukee, that's the main reason I re-signed: because I didn't want to let the people down and [have them] think I don't work extremely hard for them, which I do.
"Being able to accomplish those things in this period of time is crazy. It's unreal, freakin' unreal. I can't believe it."
Will Smith hit a walk-off home run as the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers claimed a come-from-behind 8-6 win over the San Francisco Giants in MLB on Tuesday.
With the Dodgers trailing 6-5 at the bottom of the ninth inning with two runners on base, Smith homered off Tyler Rogers.
Smith's three-run home run was his third career walk-off homer and first since 2019.
It capped a thrilling game where the Giants had led 6-1 after their fifth inning at bat, before the Dodgers stormed back with three runs in the sixth.
Dodgers pitcher Josiah Gray had seven strikeouts on the mound across four innings.
But there were a few concerns for the Dodgers, too, with Max Muncy and Justin Turner leaving the game with shoulder and knee issues respectively.
Altuve doubles up
Jose Altuve homered twice as the Houston Astros won 9-3 against the Cleveland Indians. Leading off, Altuve hit a solo home run, with his second homer marking his sixth career multi-home run game and second of the 2021 season.
Freddie Freeman hit a solo go-ahead home run in the sixth inning, his 22nd homer of the season, to help the Atlanta Braves to a 2-1 victory over the San Diego Padres.
Estevan Florial homered in his third career game as the New York Yankees won 6-4 against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Reyes and Cardinals let it slip
Alex Reyes normally has a good record closing games out, but he walked two batters after the St Louis Cardinals had held a 6-1 lead heading into the ninth inning. The Chicago Cubs got going and Ian Happ drove in two as they produced a six-run ninth to win 7-6.
Abreu crushed a mammoth
Jose Abreu produced something special for the Chicago White Sox with his three-run home run sealing a 9-5 triumph over the Minnesota Twins. Abreu has hit safely in eight of his last nine games, with five doubles, three home runs and 12 RBI.
Tuesday's results
Oakland Athletics 6-0 Los Angeles Angels
Kansas City Royals 5-2 Milwaukee Brewers
Washington Nationals 6-3 Miami Marlins
New York Yankees 6-4 Philadelphia Phillies
Cincinnati Reds 4-3 New York Mets
Tampa Bay Rays 9-3 Baltimore Orioles
Detroit Tigers 4-1 Texas Rangers
Atlanta Braves 2-1 San Diego Padres
Houston Astros 9-3 Cleveland Indians
Chicago White Sox 9-5 Minnesota Twins
Chicago Cubs 7-6 St Louis Cardinals
Seattle Mariners 6-4 Colorado Rockies
Arizona Diamondbacks 11-6 Pittsburgh Pirates
Los Angeles Dodgers 8-6 San Francisco Giants
Giants at Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers' series against the San Francisco Giants has been captivating with Tuesday's walk-off win, and they will meet for the third time on Wednesday.
Giannis Antetokounmpo says it means everything to him to win the NBA title with the Milwaukee Bucks who drafted him in 2013.
Antetokounmpo starred with 50 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks as the Bucks won the NBA Finals in six with a 105-98 Game 6 win over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday.
The Bucks' triumph ends their half-century wait for an NBA title and comes after losing in the Conference semi-finals in 2020 and the Conference finals in 2019 when Antetokounmpo was MVP on both occasions.
"It means a lot," Antetokounmpo, who was pick 15 in the 2013 NBA Draft, said post-game about winning the title with the Bucks.
"I want to thank Milwaukee for believing in me. I want to thank my team-mates, they played hard every single game.
"I wanted to do it in this city, I wanted to do it with these guys. I'm so happy we were able to get it done."
Antetokounmpo was full of praise for team-mate Khris Middleton who came up with some key late shots to finish with 17 points and get the Bucks home.
The pair have been team-mates at Milwaukee since Antetokounmpo was drafted by the Bucks and Middleton was traded from the Detroit Pistons in 2013.
"This guy doesn’t really know how much he pushes me," 26-year-old Antetokounmpo said about Middleton. "He pushes me every day to be great.
"I'm happy that I can step on the floor with this guy. We've been together for eight years.
"I'm happy I was able to do it with him, with these guys and as coach Bud [Mike Budenholzer] says, we've got to do it again."
Veteran guard Jrue Holiday arrived from the New Orleans Pelicans ahead of this season, seen as one of the missing pieces in the Bucks' jigsaw.
Holiday only contributed 12 points and 11 assists offensively, but he played a key role defensively, blanketed Devin Booker, who finished with 19 points.
"They embraced me," Holiday said post-game about the Bucks after being traded from the Pelicans.
"They told me what to do from the beginning. I've seen all the work they've been doing and how close they've gotten. They believed in me.
"Coming here was obviously the greatest thing in my career."
Giannis Antetokounmpo has produced a performance for the ages to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to their first NBA title since 1971 after a 105-98 win over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday.
The Greek forward scored 50 points with 14 rebounds and five blocks in a monster Game 6 performance, including a 20-point third quarter after the Suns charged back in the second.
Antetokounmpo's haul was his third 40-plus-point display in the NBA Finals, while he reached 20 points in a quarter for the second time in the series, which is a feat which had not been achieved since Michael Jordan in 1993.
The 26-year-old, who shook off his demons to be exceptional from the free-throw line with 17-from-19, also becomes only the seventh player in the history of NBA Finals to have a 50-point game.
It came as no surprise as Antetokounmpo was named MVP of the NBA Finals after a heroic series. His achievement is more remarkable given he overcame injury after he hyperextended his knee in the Conference Finals.
Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday were subdued early in Game 6, with Antetokounmpo ably taking the lead role. Middleton came through with some key late buckets, finishing with 17 points, while Holiday had 12 points, nine rebounds and 11 assists.
Veteran Suns guard Chris Paul scored 26 points with five assists, while Devin Booker's shooting radar was off, with 19 points at 36.4 per cent from the field.
Antetokounmpo was the lead act as the Bucks ended their half-century wait for an NBA title, helping Milwaukee get off to a flying start with a 29-16 opening quarter at the Fiserv Forum.
Bobby Portis provided early support with 10 points as Holiday struggled for offensive impact, before the Suns responded with an 8-0 second-quarter run to lead 47-42 at half-time.
Phoenix led by as much as seven points early in the third quarter but Antetokounmpo was at the forefront of the Bucks' response, with a memorable 20-point period.
The Suns got as close as four points with less than 90 seconds remaining after Jae Crowder's pair of free-throws, but Middleton's jumper followed by a duo from the stripe sealed victory for the Bucks.
Fresh off the back of semi-final appearances at the Hamburg European Open, Federico Delbonis and Laslo Djere coasted through their respective first-round matches on the second day of the Swiss Open Gstaad, which included no upsets at the round-of-32 stage.
Delbonis, who is seeded fifth and lost to eventual winner Pablo Carenno Busta last week in Hamburg, cruised to a 6-3 6-3 victory against Leandro Riedi as the Swiss player struggled to make home advantage count.
Seventh seed and loser of the other semi-final in Germany last week, Djere continued his good form and wasted no time in thrashing Brazilian Thiago Seyboth Wild 6-4 6-3.
The other game on day two saw Dennis Novak dispatch of Kacper Zuk 6-4 6-4 and that straight-sets victory means the Austrian will next face the number three seeded player Casper Ruud, who won the Nordea Open last week to secure his third ATP title and second of 2021.
Alongside Ruud, the three other top four seeds - Denis Shapovalov, Roberto Bautista Agut and Cristian Garin - will now enter the draw, after benefiting from byes in the first round of the competition.
There was a surprise at the Croatia Open in Umag, though. Fifth seed Aljaz Bedene went down 6-1- 6-4 to Marco Cecchinato, who will now challenge fellow qualifier Damir Dzumhur to set up a potential quarter-final clash with Richard Gasquet if the Frenchman makes it through his round-of-16 tie.
The Milwaukee Bucks can clinch a first NBA title since 1971 with victory over the Phoenix Suns in Game 6 of the Finals on Tuesday, with Giannis Antetokounmpo preaching the importance of a team-first approach and staying in the moment.
Having fallen 2-0 behind in the series with back-to-back defeats in Phoenix, the Bucks are on the cusp of glory having reeled off three successive wins.
Milwaukee clinched a dramatic Game 5 triumph in Phoenix on Saturday, Jrue Holiday combining with Antetokounmpo for the defining play late in the fourth quarter as he stole the ball from Devin Booker and then lofted a pass for the two-time MVP to send down a thunderous dunk.
That has set the stage for the Bucks to end their 50-year wait in front of their home fans, but Antetokounmpo is not focusing on the potential celebrations should the Bucks close out the series.
"It's going to be amazing. Hopefully we can focus what we got to do and be in the present, compete as much as possible, play good basketball and be the team that wins at the end," said Antetokounmpo
"Hopefully we can enjoy it with our family and with the fans and they can enjoy it also. I feel like it's something that you can feel the excitement in the city. The last time we were in the NBA Finals was 1974.
"It's been a while. I'm happy that the fans are enjoying it. There's 20,000 people in the arena, 25,000 people outside the arena. But we got to focus. We got to do our job. Then they can do their job celebrating at the end. But we got to do our job first.
"So we got to be in the present as much as possible. I can't focus on celebrating. I can't focus on that right now because I feel like you get too ahead of yourself. We got to focus. I got to focus right now, and then when the game comes tomorrow, focus on each possession at a time, a possession at a time.
"As I said, play good basketball, compete as hard as possible and put ourselves in a position to be able to win that game. That's all can you ask for. Hopefully we win.
"If we win, great. If we don't, we have one more chance. But if we win, it would be nice to celebrate with the fans inside and outside and with our families, because this is something historical that is happening in the city right now."
While Antetokounmpo is averaging a double-double in the series with 32.2 points and 13 rebounds, Holiday and Khris Middleton have each played a pivotal role for the Bucks.
The Bucks have scored 344 points in the Finals when that trio have been on the court, with images of Antetokounmpo leaning on Holiday or Middleton a frequent feature of this series.
Asked if he has improved at making it a "we not me" journey, Antetokounmpo replied: "Have to. Everybody is a part of this process. I don't think there's been anybody that has gone through this process by himself and go all the way and win the NBA championship.
"We have to do it together. I need Khris to be great, I need Jrue to be great, I need Bobby [Portis], all of those guys to be great.
"I'm tired. I look next to me, Khris is tired and Jrue is tired or whatever the case might be. It's like they're my brothers. That's when you want to hug them, put your arm around them and, like, we got this, we got this together, we got to keep doing this together until the end."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Milwaukee Bucks – Jrue Holiday
All the focus will be on Antetokounmpo but, as he proved in Game 5, Holiday is just as key to the Bucks' hopes.
He is averaging a series-high nine assists per game in the Finals, and his influence on Antetokounmpo is clear.
Antetokounmpo is averaging 41.1 points per 100 possessions with Holiday on the court in the Finals, compared to 38.2 when he is off the floor.
The Finals' top facilitator and top scorer must each be at their best to ensure the Bucks are celebrating come the final buzzer.
Phoenix Suns - Chris Paul
Paul had a double-double in Game 5 with 21 points and 11 assists, but there is evidence to suggest his influence has waned over the course of the series.
He had a plus/minus of -6 on Saturday, the third consecutive game he has finished in the negative column in that regard.
If the Suns are to keep their hopes of a first title alive, they may need a repeat of his 32-point showing from Game 1.
World Cup-winning captain Siya Kolisi will lead South Africa against the British and Irish Lions on Saturday after returning from 10 days in isolation following a COVID-19 positive test.
South Africa head coach Jacques Nienaber announced his team on Tuesday, and the 23-man group features 21 players who helped South Africa to their global triumph two years ago in Japan.
Handre Pollard, who will act as vice-captain, will earn his 50th cap as the three-Test series gets under way in Cape Town.
Ox Nche and Makazole Mapimpi, with Kolisi, were the last to join the camp in Cape Town on Monday but all have proved their fitness following the self-isolation period in Johannesburg.
Nienaber's men breezed past Georgia 40-9 in a warm-up Test two weeks ago but the scheduled second match was cancelled due to coronavirus outbreaks in both camps, meaning Saturday will be just the Springboks' second Test since the World Cup success.
The Springboks opt for changes on the wing, where Mapimpi and Cheslin Kolbe will start, and in the centres where Damian de Allende resumes his partnership with Lukhanyo Am.
South Africa make two further changes to their replacements, with Lood de Jager of Sale Sharks and Rynhardt Elstadt of Toulouse replacing Marvin Orie and Jasper Wiese.
Warren Gatland is expected to reveal his 23-man Lions selection on Wednesday as the tourists prepare for the highly anticipated series opener.
South Africa: Willie le Roux, Cheslin Kolbe, Lukhanyo Am, Damian de Allende, Makazole Mapimpi, Handre Pollard, Faf de Klerk; Ox Nche, Bongi Mbonambi, Trevor Nyakane, Eben Etzebeth, Franco Mostert, Siya Kolisi (captain), Pieter-Steph du Toit, Kwagga Smith.
Replacements: Malcolm Marx, Steven Kitshoff, Frans Malherbe, Lood de Jager, Rynhardt Elstadt, Herschel Jantjies, Elton Jantjies, Damian Willemse.
The top two teams in MLB opened a four-game series at Dodger Stadium on Monday, with the San Francisco Giants taking a 7-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The latest installment in the decades-old rivalry started with a bang, as the Giants got home runs from Buster Posey and Wilmer Flores in the top of the first inning and the Dodgers answered with two of their own from Max Muncy and Justin Turner in the bottom half.
But the pitchers recovered from there and the teams went scoreless until the seventh, when the Giants put four more on the board thanks to a sacrifice fly from Jason Vosler and run-scoring doubles by Thairo Estrada and Austin Slater.
That proved to be the winning margin as the Dodgers' bats went silent. After Giants starter Kevin Gausman escaped a bases-loaded jam in the second by striking out Will Smith to end the inning, San Francisco pitchers allowed only two more Dodgers to reach base the rest of the game.
The victory improved San Francisco's MLB-best record to 59-34 and gave the Giants a two-game lead on the Dodgers in the National League (NL) West.
Red Sox explode early against Jays
The Boston Red Sox got a grand slam from Hunter Renfroe and two-run homers from Jarren Duran and Kike Hernandez in an eight-run first inning, then added three more homers later in the game on the way to a 13-4 rout of the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Oakland Athletics had no luck against Shohei Ohtani, so they bided their time until he left the mound. After Ohtani limited them to three hits in six scoreless innings, Oakland pounced on Los Angeles Angels reliever Steve Cishek in the seventh, with Ramon Laureano's three-run homer providing all the offence they needed in a 4-1 win.
A day after rallying from a 6-0 first-inning deficit, the New York Mets won another wild game, this time in Cincinnati. Trailing 7-3 after two innings, the Mets fought back to take a 9-8 lead in the eighth, saw the Reds tie it in the ninth, then scored five in the top of the 11th for a 15-11 victory, hitting seven home runs in all.
Rangers blanked again
After being shut out in both games of a doubleheader against the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday, the Texas Rangers lost 14-0 to the Detroit Tigers on Monday. They have not scored a run since putting two on the board in the ninth against the Blue Jays on Friday, giving them 23 consecutive scoreless innings, and have been outscored 39-2 since the All-Star break.
Lester does it all for Nats
Washington Nationals pitcher Jon Lester turned in his first scoreless outing since his April 30 season debut, striking out seven without walking a batter in seven innings, but the real highlight of the Nats' 18-1 demolition of the Miami Marlins was Lester's fourth career home run.
Noted Slugger Jon Lester launched a 419-foot home run.
NOTED SLUGGER JON LESTER LAUNCHED A 419-FOOT HOME RUN @JLester34 // #NATITUDE pic.twitter.com/SRlV0zoFBS
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) July 20, 2021
Monday's results
Minnesota Twins 3-2 Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox 5-3 Minnesota Twins
Washington Nationals 18-1 Miami Marlins
Baltimore Orioles 6-1 Tampa Bay Rays
New York Mets 15-11 Cincinnati Reds
Boston Red Sox 13-4 Toronto Blue Jays
Detroit Tigers 14-0 Texas Rangers
Houston Astros 4-3 Cleveland Indians
St Louis Cardinals 8-3 Chicago Cubs
Oakland Athletics 4-1 Los Angeles Angels
Arizona Diamondbacks 4-2 Pittsburgh Pirates
San Francisco Giants 7-2 Los Angeles Dodgers
San Diego Padres v Atlanta Braves (postponed)
Phillies at Yankees
The Philadelphia Phillies send Aaron Nola to the mound on Tuesday as they open a two-game series at the New York Yankees, who will give Domingo German the start.
It has been a long two years for the Golden State Warriors since falling to the Toronto Raptors in the 2019 NBA Finals, but head coach Steve Kerr is taking an optimistic view of what lies ahead.
Kerr has been busy this summer as an assistant coach for the US Olympic team, but he told The Athletic in an interview at Team USA's camp last week there are positve developments around Klay Thompson and James Wiseman as the pair return from injuries, leaving him "really excited" to get going again.
Thompson has not played for the Warriors since tearing his ACL in the decisive Game 6 against the Raptors in June 2019, rehabbing from that injury only to tear his Achilles tendon in a pickup game last November.
The five-time All-Star is not back to full speed yet, but he is getting close.
"He’s still aways away from actually playing basketball in a 5-on-5 setting," Kerr said. "But there’s a big step with the Achilles when you can actually start running again. It’s a huge psychological boost. The rest of the body gets going, you start feeling the soreness and aches and pains that actually feel good when you’ve been out for a while. He’s at that point."
Wiseman, the second overall pick in last summer's NBA Draft, played in only 39 games as a rookie and saw his season end in mid-April due to a torn meniscus, but Kerr said the 20-year-old is "right on schedule" to be ready for the start of training camp.
Their injuries and other issues made last season a struggle for Golden State despite an MVP-caliber campaign from Stephen Curry, who set career highs with 32 points and 5.5 rebounds per game and willed the Warriors into a shot at the postseason.
After winning seven of their last nine regular-season games to make the play-in tournament, the Warriors dropped both games there and failed to advance, but plenty of positives have emerged heading toward next year -- not least of which is Golden State holding two of the top 14 picks in the upcoming draft.
"I'm really excited. I feel like we got our mojo back at the end of the year," Kerr said. "The offseason has been productive in terms of Klay now breaking through. He’s on the court, he’s running, he’s feeling really good. I talked to him last week. He’s just in a completely different mindset. The light’s at the end of the tunnel.
"Steph (Curry) and Draymond (Green) are both in a great place after that close to the season, feeling like they are on top of their games.
"Andrew (Wiggins) had a really good season for us. Jordan Poole emerged. Juan (Toscano-Anderson) has turned himself into a rotation player, perfect for our style.
"Now we get a training camp with James, a whole season of development, plus seven and 14 in a deep draft."
In search of his first championship in his 16th NBA season, Chris Paul has written a mantra on his shoes throughout the playoffs.
"Can't give up now" has become a rallying cry for Phoenix Suns fans and the sentiment has never been more appropriate than it is now.
Tuesday's Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Milwaukee Bucks will be the Suns' 22nd playoff game this season, and it will be the first in which they have faced elimination.
"It's for real," Paul told reporters Monday. "It's no looking back now. We got to come out, be ready to play and it's either win or go home.
"Coach [Monty Williams] has said all season long, everything you want is on the other side of hard, and it doesn't get any harder than this.
"So we know that this is a must-win game for us. Nothing more than that. Now we got to hoop."
The Suns have done just that throughout their playoff run, winning nine in a row across three series at one point.
They have now dropped three straight games for only the second time this season, the other skid coming in late January.
Despite those setbacks after taking a 2-0 series lead, multiple Phoenix players spoke Monday about embracing the challenge.
Suns forward Jae Crowder was in the same position as a member of the Miami Heat last season, and although they lost Game 6 and the Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers, he will take what he remembers from that disappointment into Tuesday's game.
"As a player, it brings out a sense of desperation," he said. "It brings out a sense of urgency. It brings a sense of collectiveness within your group, knowing what you're battling and knowing what you're going up against.
"I just feel like you have to continue to fight each and every position. You have to take it a possession at a time. It's a dogfight. I've been on both sides of it. I've tried to close out teams and I know how hard it is.
"It's just a sense of desperation on our end, a sense of just collectively get the job done by any means, have a positive mindset and just have a mindset of just get the job done by any means necessary, and that's each and every possession, just giving it your all, selling out each and every possession for your team and for your team-mates."
With no margin for error, the Suns remain appreciative of the opportunity they have, particularly on the heels of a 34-39 campaign in 2019-20.
"It's definitely exciting," said Paul. "Something that Coach and everybody has been saying: If you went to the beginning of the season and said we had a chance to be where we are right now, would you take it? Absolutely. Absolutely.
"And we get a chance to determine the outcome. It's not like the game is going to be simulated or somebody else got to play. We get a chance. We control our own destiny."
Every Milwaukee Bucks player knows what is at stake Tuesday in Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Phoenix Suns.
Leading the series 3-2, a win at home would give the Bucks their second NBA championship and first since 1971, the franchise's third season of existence.
Beyond potentially ending that half-century wait for their fans, none of the Bucks' players has ever won a title.
The key to completing such a monumental achievement for player, team and community alike?
Do whatever you can to stay calm and focussed, says Giannis Antetokounmpo, who acknowledged that is far easier said than done.
"It's hard. It's hard, man, it's hard," the Bucks' star told reporters Monday. "Because you work so hard to be in that moment, which is tomorrow. It's hard not to get ahead of yourself. But this is the time that you got to be the most disciplined.
"That's what I'm going to try to do. I'm going to try to be as disciplined as possible. Don't get too excited. Don't get too pumped up for the game. None of that. I can't play the game right now. ...
"Right now, there's nothing I can do about that. So I don't even try to think about that. But it's very hard not to. Sometimes you sleep and you're dreaming about the game.
"But this is the time that we have to be disciplined individually. ... We cannot worry about having plans of celebrating. None of that, until it's done. And that is the mindset I'm going to have until tomorrow."
It helps that Antetokounmpo takes the same approach into every game, trying to break it down mentally into one possession and then the next so he is not overwhelmed by the bigger picture.
At this stage, he has enough confidence in himself and his team-mates to believe in their ability to come through at the moment it matters most.
"You have to be in the present," he said. "Once that present comes, you'll know what it takes to be you successful. But right now, you don't know what it's going to take.
"It might be a defensive stop. It might be Jrue [Holiday] coming and saving the day again. It might be Khris [Middleton] getting points. It might be me blocking a shot. You don't know what it's going to take.
"But I know that we have to be in the present. You have to enjoy it. We have to compete. For now, that's the three things I know.
"Once the game starts, every possession is going to be different and we're going to figure out what it takes to win the game."
That mindset stretches beyond the Greek star. Milwaukee head coach Mike Budenholzer said that type of attitude across the board has been critical to the Bucks' success so far.
"It's the maturity of the group, the intelligence of it. I think it comes through," he said. "They understand that we have to keep our focus. We have to be prepared. We have to do the things that go into winning, the competitiveness of those moments, those opportunities to compete. That's all that matters.
"Whether you're down, you're up, I think you go back to your competitive spirit. You draw on that. That's how this team is built, so they got to continue to do that."
Benoit Paire made a strong start as the Swiss Open Gstaad got under way on Monday.
Number six seed Paire was a 6-3 7-6 (7-2) winner in his first-round match against Jozef Kovalik.
The Frenchman was not broken in the match, saving all eight of the break-point opportunities he offered up to Kovalik during a competitive 85-minute contest.
Paire's win follows a quarter-final appearance at the Hamburg European Open last week as the 32-year-old begins to recover from a dreadful first half of 2021.
Prior to his run in Hamburg, Paire had only won two ATP Tour matches this year.
Mikael Ymer had to come from behind before he progressed with a 4-6 6-3 6-3 win over lucky loser Enzo Couacaud.
The top four seeds at the ATP 250 event – led by Wimbledon semi-finalist Denis Shapovalov – get a bye through the first round and are therefore yet to begin their campaigns.
At the Croatia Open Umag, meanwhile, Radu Albot came out on top as he claimed a three-set victory over Holger Rune, with top seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas and defending champion Dusan Lajovic not in action on day one.
Nashville Predators' defenseman Luke Prokop has announced he is gay, making him the first contracted NHL player to come out publicly.
Prokop, 19, is yet to make his debut in the NHL but marked a historic day on Monday as he made his announcement on Instagram.
"It has been quite the journey to get to this point in my life, but I could not be happier with my decision to come out," Prokop wrote in his post.
"From a young age I have dreamed of being an NHL player, and I believe that living my authentic life will allow me to bring my whole self to the rink and improve my chances of fulfilling my dreams."
Originally from Edmonton, Alberta, Prokop was selected as a third-round draft pick by the Predators in the 2020 NHL Draft.
He signed a three-year deal after previously impressing for Calgary Hitmen in the Western Hockey League.
Prokop's decision to come out follows that of Las Vegas Raiders defensive lineman Carl Nassib, who became the first openly gay active NFL player last month.
"It's been very special, talking to my friends, my family, my coaches, my agents," Prokop told The Athletic. "And them being very supportive, me coming out and being OK with who I was. ... I've noticed myself being a lot more confident on the ice.
"Being able to truly be who I am. This is the best I've ever felt in the summer and I think a large part of that is due to this process of me coming out."
Having made his decision in April during the COVID-19 enforced season break, Prokop told three of his Hitmen team-mates and hopes he can inspire others to feel comfortable coming out.
"They've [Prokop's team-mates] been really great," he added. "The part of me coming out is that I'm just one of the guys.
"Who I love and who I go home with that night, that's private and it shouldn't matter anymore. I'm just there to play hockey, I'm there to win a championship.
"If I can inspire or help make a difference to one person, then I've done my job in wanting to create change and to create an environment where it's healthy for players to come out now."
Gary Bettman, the NHL commissioner, said in a statement on Monday that the league would support Prokop and praised him for "sharing his truth and for being so brave".
"We pledge to do everything possible to ensure that Luke's experience is a welcoming and affirmative one and continue to work to ensure that any current or future NHL player contemplating following in his trailblazing footsteps knows our League is ready to provide full support."
Mercedes have revealed Lewis Hamilton would have been forced to retire from the British Grand Prix were it not for a timely red flag.
Formula One title rivals Hamilton and Max Verstappen collided during a sensational first lap at Silverstone.
Hamilton was handed a 10-second time penalty that he disagreed with but Red Bull argued was not severe enough.
The Briton recovered to record a famous race win, while Verstappen ended up in hospital for checks after a 51G impact with the tyre barrier.
It meant Hamilton cut Verstappen's lead to just eight points in the drivers' championship.
But the outcome would have been very different had the race not been red-flagged to repair the barrier, as Hamilton would not have been able to continue without the opportunity to repair damage to his wheel rim.
"We'd failed the rim where we'd had the contact on the front-left, so that would have been a DNF had it not been red-flagged," said Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin.
"The rest of the damage was actually remarkably little. A tyre temperature sensor had got knocked loose, so it was waggling around, but amazingly, it's the least important part on the front wing."
Hamilton passed Charles Leclerc for a famous victory – his eighth at his home race – with two laps to go.
"From our planners' view in the race, who were forecasting it live, we were looking at catching [Leclerc] up with two laps to go," added Shovlin.
"When we thought it was on I'd say was five laps into that [push]. You normally see the drop on the tyres, but you could just see Lewis holding this eight-tenths advantage to Charles every lap.
"And to be honest with Lewis, you can hear it in his voice and in what he's saying on the radio; you just get this switch where he knows in his head he's going to do it."
FIA race director Michael Masi – who was bombarded on radio with messages from Mercedes and Red Bull stating their case during the controversy – felt the stewards had got Hamilton's penalty right.
Masi insisted the severity of any crash, an injury to a driver or the race situation are factors that cannot be taken into account when applying punishments.
"Looking at the incident, I agree with the stewards and the penalty they applied," Masi said.
"I think the wording was clear as per the regulations, [Hamilton] was 'predominantly to blame', not 'wholly to blame' for it.
"He could have tucked in further like what happened with Charles later on and that may have changed the outcome, but we don't know – we have to judge on the incident itself.
"One of the big parts [of stewarding] that has been a mainstay for many, many years [is] that you should not consider the consequences in an incident.
"So when you judge incidents, they judge the incident itself, the merits of the incident and not what happens after as a consequence.
"The stewards have been advised to do from the top down – and I'm talking team involvement and so forth.
"That's the way the stewards judge it, because if you start taking consequences into it, there are so many variables rather than judging the incident itself."
British and Irish Lions captain Alun Wyn Jones is "fit and raring to go" for Saturday's first Test against South Africa, according to defence coach Steve Tandy.
Jones, the most-capped international of all time with 158 appearances for Wales and the Lions, was initially ruled out of the tour after dislocating his shoulder against Japan on June 26.
However, the 35-year-old has made a remarkable comeback and played 30 minutes off the bench in the 49-3 victory against Stormers at the weekend.
That win, on what was Jones' 22nd appearance for the Lions, ensured Warren Gatland's side avoided losing two successive non-Test matches since a three-game streak in New Zealand in 1993
After coming through that match unscathed, Jones in contention to start this week's much-anticipated showdown with reigning world champions South Africa in Cape Town.
Asked if Jones – one of only four players selected to play on four Lions tours – has enough minutes under his belt to return to the starting line-up, Tandy said: "I believe so.
"Al historically does some pretty special things. He is fit, he is raring to go. He keeps himself in great shape, so there will be no issues there.
"He has got unbelievable experience. His leadership qualities are outstanding as well. He will be fine."
The Lions have won five of their six warm-up fixtures ahead of the three-match series with the Springboks, the exception being a 17-13 loss to South Africa A last week.
Fly-half Finn Russell is the Lions' only unavailable player for the series opener due to an Achilles issue, leaving Gatland and his coaching staff with some big selection calls.
Following a meeting that lasted more than an hour and a half on Sunday, Tandy revealed the Lions' XV for the first Test is now as good as selected.
"It is one of the toughest things I have been involved in," Tandy said. "So many players put their hands up. There will be massive decisions made and a lot of unlucky players.
"We had the initial selection meeting last night and it was a long one in fairness. There was robust discussion, but now there are just one or two things to confirm. It is mostly done.
"There will be bitter disappointment for some players, but everyone will be geared up to win the first Test and those not playing will support the team."
Red Bull have said they are "disgusted and saddened" to see their on-track Formula One rival Lewis Hamilton targeted by online racist abuse.
Formula 1, the FIA and Mercedes released a joint statement on Monday condemning the "unacceptable" abuse aimed at Hamilton following his collision with Max Verstappen at the British Grand Prix.
Seven-time world champion Hamilton claimed a dramatic victory in Sunday's home race at Silverstone after overtaking Charles Leclerc towards the end.
Red Bull were unhappy with Hamilton over an incident which contributed to them scoring zero points, but they were unequivocal in their stance on the racist abuse he has received as a result.
"While we may be fierce rivals on-track, we are all united against racism," Red Bull wrote.
"We condemn racist abuse of any time towards our team, our competitors and our fans.
"As a team we are disgusted and saddened to witness the racist abuse Lewis received yesterday [Sunday] on social media after the collision with Max.
"There is never any excuse for it, there is certainly no place for it in our sport and those responsible should be held accountable."
McLaren also issued a message of support for their former driver Hamilton, urging all teams to unite and eliminate racism.
The team said: "McLaren stands with Formula 1, the FIA, and our fellow teams and drivers in condemning the deplorable racist abuse towards Lewis Hamilton.
"Racism must be driven out of our sport, and it’s our shared responsibility to unite and eliminate it."
McLaren CEO Zak Brown added in a Twitter post: "Totally unacceptable racist abuse of Lewis Hamilton. These people do not represent F1 fans or our sport. We must come together to get rid of this disgraceful abuse and racism."
The race was a memorable one, with Hamilton recovering from a 10-second time penalty handed to him for the first-lap Verstappen crash as he cut his title rival's championship lead to only eight points.
Hamilton was accused of "dirty driving" by Red Bull boss Christian Horner after clipping Verstappen on Copse Corner, while the Belgian-born Dutch driver labelled his opponent "disrespectful and unsportsmanlike".
Verstappen required hospital checks after hitting the safety barriers in an impact measuring 51G, but he was released later on Sunday after being given the all-clear.
In the aftermath of his controversial but famous victory, Hamilton was subjected to vile racist abuse on Instagram in the comments section of a post by Mercedes celebrating the win.
Formula 1, the FIA and Mercedes have released a joint statement condemning the "unacceptable" online racist abuse aimed at Lewis Hamilton following his collision with Max Verstappen.
Seven-time world champion Hamilton claimed a dramatic victory in Sunday's home British Grand Prix at Silverstone after overtaking Charles Leclerc late in the race.
The 36-year-old recovered from a 10-second time penalty handed to him for a first-lap crash with Verstappen as he cut his title rival's championship lead to only eight points.
Hamilton was accused of "dirty driving" by Red Bull boss Christian Horner after clipping Verstappen on Copse Corner, while the Belgian-born Dutch driver labelled his opponent "disrespectful and unsportsmanlike".
Verstappen required hospital checks after hitting the safety barriers in an impact measuring 51G, but he was released later on Sunday after being given the all-clear.
After Hamilton went on to win the race for an eighth time in his illustrious career, the Englishman was subjected to vile racist abuse on Instagram in the comments section of a post by Mercedes celebrating the victory.
Mercedes, Formula 1 and the sport's governing body the FIA united on Monday to call for action to be taken against those responsible for posting the racial slurs.
"During, and after, yesterday's British Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton was subjected to multiple instances of racist abuse on social media following an in-race collision," the statement read.
"Formula 1, The FIA and Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team condemn this behaviour in the strongest possible terms. These people have no place in our sport and we urge that those responsible should be held accountable for their actions.
"Formula 1, the FIA, the drivers and the teams are working to build a more diverse and inclusive sport, and such unacceptable instances of online abuse must be highlighted and eliminated."
Hamilton recently voiced his support for Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho after the England footballers were also subjected to racist abuse on social media after missing penalties in their side's Euro 2020 final shoot-out defeat to Italy.
The England international trio called on social media giants Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to do more to tackle problem users on their platforms.
Speaking last year, Hamilton also called for increased diversity in Formula 1 and accused the sport of not doing enough to tackle racism amid the George Floyd protests.
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