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Welcome to the latest edition of Georges Niangs 2022-23 Sixers diary. Throughout the season, the reserve forward will exclusively share first-person insights about his on-court and off-court life as part of an NBA team with championship aspirations.

In this entry, Niang describes how the Sixers pushed through their grueling stretch-run schedule and looks ahead to a critical postseason.

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April 12, 2023

This is an opportunity that weve all been waiting for. The older you get, you kind of realize how excited you are to let the regular season pass and have the real, meaningful games start. You just want to be dialed in. I dont think anybodys looking ahead. We want to beat Brooklyn. Thats our main focus right now.

When our schedule came out, I know that we looked at after the All-Star break being like, Damn, that is no joke. You start off with a Memphis team. You start off with the Celtics. You start off with Miami. We lost two out of three, and then we had to go down to Miami and then we kind of went on a roll. I just remember, toward the end of that run in March, it felt like I never got to lay in my bed and be comfortable. I feel like I came home, unpacked my stuff, then packed to leave again. That was a tough stretch, considering we were barely home. The next time that we have two weeks full of home games, Im going to appreciate the [expletive] out of those.

The toughest part about that schedule is the unknowns, whether thats guys missing time or getting guys acclimated after the trade deadline. The theme all year is were finding ways to win games when people arent expecting us to win games, or even be in games. James was out for four games. Joel was out with the calf. Our team has just done such a good job of, with the variables and whatever happens, that we all come together and when we arent full strength, making things happen. Its kind of been a growth for us finding ways to deal with adversity when, in other times, we didnt do such a great job of that. It just goes to show how deep our team is and what we have with the coaching staff. Even when we dont have our top guys out there, we can win games against other teams that are playoff-bound. I thought that was really cool, especially going into the postseason getting everybody confident.

Theres so much to be said about that. Doc doesnt get enough credit for kind of envisioning that. We clinched the third seed. Obviously, you could ride your guys and see how many wins you get and make it about you. But, obviously, getting everybody confident and ready to go before the playoffs starts, youve got to give credit to him. We sat our top six guys in Atlanta, and then you go in there and beat a team that really needed that win. At the end of the day, its crucial that a coach sees that and knows that hes going to need everybody.

We could have gotten beat in Atlanta, but we come back and win. You look at the development of Jaden Springer, everything that hes been through in his two years as a young kid. Coming in as a one-and-done. Most guys ruin their NBA careers within the first two years not being able to play or getting called up or being down in the G League. They start getting discouraged and they start losing focus of the end goal. He stuck with it for two long years, and when his moment came which was probably Game One-hundred-and-freaking-63 of the time that hes been here and he was ready to knock his opportunity out of the park. He can really freaking play, and people see that. Its so cool to see people relish in the opportunities that theyre given, when theyre given. Because you never know when its going to come. You sit there and tell people to be ready, be ready, be ready. You dont understand how hard it is to be ready for five months, but you just consistently stick to your routine and do what you do and it comes along.

I think everybody at this level or everybody in life kind of has that happen to them. You wake up and youre like, Damn, I dont know if I want to do this. Even the small victories. Im struggling for seven or eight games, and I get the opportunity in Atlanta to break out of that, and now Im feeling confident going into the playoffs. Your story is just always being written, and its totally up to you to be mentally and physically prepared to not stress over the little stuff but to focus on your daily routine. Im going to continue to double down on the work thats got me here, and Im just gonna stick to my process and the things that help me go. Knowing that Ive put the work in, so that when the opportunity comes, Im just flowing. Im not putting any pressure on myself. Im just flowing.

Steph Curry said it best. I heard it in an interview: The playoffs are like two regular-season games in one. Thats how freaking hard youre playing. Guys minutes may go down. Guys minutes may go up. But thats how hard youre playing. Its super physical. There are not ticky-tack fouls being called. It is very intense. Theres no helping people up off the floor. Its cut-throat. Everybody wants to win it. Its the most intense part of the season. When I first got into the NBA, Kevin Pritchard in Indiana told me theres five stints in the season. Preseason. The beginning of the season, when everybodys kind of feeling each other out. Pre-All-Star break, when everybodys exhausted and cant wait until the break. After All-Star break. And then playoffs. Playoffs are when young boys get exposed, and the men really flourish. Ive always taken that to heart and realized that playoff basketball is just so intense with the attention to detail. Youre going to know everything that they run. Theyre going to know everything that you run. Its just whos going to fight through the crap and all that to come out victorious. Its like going into the room and being like, All right, whos coming out alive?

Down in the bubble with Utah, we were up 3-1 against Denver. Youre thinking were going to beat them, and anything can happen. Then you kind of realize the knockout game is the hardest freaking game. All weve got to do is get one out of the next three, and they come back and we lose three straight because the unexpected happened. So you always have to prepare to cover all your bases. Theres no taking your foot off the gas. Sometimes, in the regular season, you can get away with doing that. Theres no place for that at all in the playoffs.

We only got to play this version of the Nets once. Theyre a very good team. They do a good job of really spacing you out and moving the ball and making a crap-ton of threes and driving the ball and just shifting the defense. And theyre really good in transition, so were going to have to do a good job of taking care of the ball, not having careless turnovers, closing out possessions, but then getting our guys to our spots. I feel like if we can continuously do that and make it hard for them to be successful with their junk defenses or their switching and punish them for the switching, I think well be in a good spot. They do a really good job and have a lot of good players, but were definitely going to try to limit them with their transition and easy baskets, because I feel like thats kind of what gets their guys going.

READ MORE:Nets vs. 76ers prediction: Betting value is with Brooklyn in Game 1 in Philadelphia

Its just so crucial having guys that have been there before. P.J. is great because hes been there and hes friggin not afraid to open his mouth and tell people what it is and what they need to do. You have a guy like Tobias Harris, who completely bought into his role, where in other instances there may be some guys in the NBA that are like, I dont like what I do on a day-to-day basis. Hes all-in on defending, making shots, taking advantage of mismatches. Thats been huge for us. The rest of it is we all genuinely like each other and enjoy being around each other.

And, in the playoffs, you really realize, if you dont win, this is it. Quin Snyder, when I was in Utah, he was like, Every season is a life. You will never have the same team twice in a row. Doc even says it all the time, Some of you may go on and have a better deal somewhere else, but you dont know how many times youll actually have a team that has a chance to win. So take advantage of these opportunities. I think that all hit home with us. We started 12-12, he made that speech, and youre like, Shoot, we have a chance to make this happen. Im not getting any younger. We need to relish in those opportunities and continue to grow and be better, and I think thats what weve done.

I dont think we feel any pressure. One, because were confident in what we do and its proven it works. Theres no point in us being like, Oh, this is too much to handle, because I think all of us realize, if we do our job, it has a proven success rate. I think thats the most exciting thing for us right now. Obviously, playing in Philly has its own pressures. You dont want to lose, because you better not be going out to eat after that. But at the same time, if you win, you know how well youll be taken care of. Thats another thing that I think most of us look at: Winning and being beloved by this great fan base.

Georges Niang, as told to Gina Mizell

See original here:
This is an opportunity that weve all been waiting for: Georges Niangs Inquirer diary lifts curtain on Sixers playoff run - The Philadelphia Inquirer

20:05, UK, Tuesday 18 April 2023

Chelsea are not a broken team and the club's co-owner Todd Boehly had every right to address the squad he has invested in, manager Frank Lampard said on Monday ahead of their Champions League quarter-final return leg against holders Real Madrid.

Chelsea, who trail 2-0 from the first game at the Santiago Bernabeu, are on a six-match winless run, with interim boss Lampard losing his first three games in charge.

With Chelsea 17 points off the Premier League top four despite spending more than 530m on players, winning the Champions League is their only realistic chance of qualifying for the elite competition next season.

The situation is similar to when Chelsea finished sixth in the league in 2011-12 when Lampard was a player at the club and they qualified for the Champions League by winning the trophy.

The 44-year-old said: "We are not where we want to be. I think broken is a bit much. League position is a reality and we are 2-0 down in this game. We have to work against that.

"I don't think anything tomorrow will be better than winning the Champions League in my opinion because we had many moments of that run of difficulties against Barcelona and Napoli.

"But because of the moment we are in, we have to fight very hard to get through, so winning it would be special."

Lampard also issued a rallying cry to the Stamford Bridge support to create a real atmosphere on Tuesday night.

"I think anything is possible in football," he said. "There is no doubt that we are competitive and we deserve to be here. The opponent is a really high-level.

"I've been here too many times at Stamford Bridge for a midweek Champions League knockout game to understand the atmosphere will be great.

"We need to engage the fans throughout because they can help us. It's why this two-legged competition is one of the best out there. I'm confident in that - we just need to play our part."

Lampard said he would have no problem should Chelsea fail to advance as he was proud to manage the club.

"What will be, will be after tomorrow," he added. "Every game is an opportunity to win games... an opportunity to get back to winning. Every game is and should be a huge game."

The Daily Telegraph claimed Boehly entered the Chelsea dressing room after the Blues' 2-1 home loss to Brighton at the weekend, which left the club in 11th place in the Premier League and without a win in six.

The report added that Boehly described Chelsea's current form as "embarrassing" as he singled out one senior player signed in the summer for not performing well enough.

Speaking before Lampard's press conference, Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalga claimed Boehly comes into the changing room after "every game" - something which the caretaker boss is happy with.

Speaking on the eve of Chelsea's Champions League quarter-final second leg against Real Madrid, with the Blues trailing 2-0 in the tie, Lampard said of Boehly's post-game behaviour: "I am comfortable with that.

"For me, there was some criticism of our old owner about not coming and being around - and that wasn't always true, to be fair. When an owner is very invested in the team and wants to help and improve, it's his prerogative to have the input that they want.

"I remember, as a player, the moments of when owners came into dressing rooms. It happened first here at Chelsea and it never really happened here before. I remember being happy that you could touch them and high-five them, you could listen to them and feel them. I don't think that's a bad thing in terms of the identity of the club and where you want to get to.

"I have no problems with it. I have my things I want to say after the game. If an owner wants to be positive and wants to speak to the players, then it's his part to do that.

"As Kepa said, it can be very regular in the modern day. In fact, it shows passion. That's what I like."

Pictures emerged of Boehly speaking with an angry Chelsea fan during the game at Stamford Bridge on Saturday and Lampard continued to insist that the passion at the club - however disgruntled it may be - is not a problem.

"Passion goes both ways," he added. "Fans show passion. I don't think the ownership would come in and be involved at Chelsea and expect anything other than complete passion for wanting this club to do well.

"We've been fortunate to have been very successful for a lot of years, the last 20 years, which means you want more of it. So I don't think anyone is schooling on that.

"Passionate owners want to make a difference and have a real vision for the club. We're in the early stages of the process on those terms.

"When you look at processes in the Premier League, we know we're off that, as we know. People always question everything at the beginning and in the early part of the process. We have to get our heads down with what is in front of us.

"Passion is normal, I think. I don't find it as a problem. We can all work with passion to work in the same direction to get where we want to be."

Carlo Ancelotti warned Chelsea will see their Champions League quarter-final second-leg meeting against his Real Madrid side as a "great opportunity" to turn a disappointing season around.

European champions Real lead 2-0 from last week's first leg at the Bernabeu after a dominant display against Lampard's side, who played the final 30 minutes with 10 men and were outclassed.

Victory would see Ancelotti's team move a step closer to retaining the trophy they won for the 14th time last season, when they knocked out the Blues in the last eight after a thrilling tie that saw Chelsea fight back from two goals down and still lose.

Fortunes have altered dramatically for the west London club in the 12 months since.

They are currently 11th in the Premier League having been eliminated early from both domestic cup competitions, with hopes of returning to the Champions League next season resting on winning the competition in June.

First they will need to give Stamford Bridge another memorable European night if they are to overturn the first-leg deficit and eliminate the holders.

"Chelsea has a difficult moment," said Ancelotti, who won a league and FA Cup double as Blues manager in 2010.

"I'm thinking the game tomorrow can be a great opportunity for them to move from this situation. We're aware of this, we take it into consideration. We will try to play at our best.

"We're good. We're motivated as always. These are all important games. We have to have a very complete game. Ninety minutes remain and in this type of competition anything can happen. We'll be ready to play at our best.

"We're not thinking that it's easy. That's the opposite of what we think. I know this competition well. I know what can happen in football.

"Last year, we thought [the quarter-final second leg against Chelsea] would be the most difficult game, and we had the advantage [Real won 3-1 at Stamford Bridge in the first leg]. Then what happened, happened. We want to struggle less [on Tuesday]."

Read more here:
Frank Lampard: Chelsea caretaker boss insists team is not broken with 'anything possible' against Real Madrid - Sky Sports

April 9, 2023 - Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) - Florida Tropics SC News Release

TOWSON, Maryland -- The Florida Tropics forced a third and final game in their Major Arena Soccer League Eastern Conference semi-finals, but fell to the Baltimore Blast 3-2 in the 15-minute "knockout" game to end their 2022-23 season.

Florida, which fell at home Friday night 5-4, took Saturday's game two by a 14-1 score as the Blast elected to rest some of their regulars to keep them fresh for the knockout game.

Thiago Freitas had five goals to lead the Florida offense in Game Two.

"We fought, and when you have a knockout game, anything can happen," Florida Coach Clay Roberts said. "We were confident going into Baltimore, having had a lot of success there, but we just didn't get the result we wanted in the end."

Baltimore will move on to face either Milwaukee, Kansas City or Utica in the MASL East Conference finals.

Discuss this story on the Major Arena Soccer League message board...

The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Originally posted here:
Tropics Force "Knockout" Game, But Fall to Blast 3-2 to End 2022-23 ... - OurSports Central

The Raptors missed 18 free throw to end their season. Diar DeRozans shrieking did that.

Everyone watching the Toronto Raptors vs. the Chicago Bulls in the 2023 NBA play-in tournament on Wednesday night noticed the same thing early in the game. It was impossible not to notice it. Whenever the Raptors stepped to the foul line, a woman started loudly shrieking as they attempted their free throws.

The person in question did not stop the making the high-pitched, piercing cry all night. If the Raptors shot a free throw, she was doing her best to distract them. It was working: even as Toronto built a 19-point lead against Chicago in the elimination game, the Raps were missing a bunch of the line.

ESPN eventually identified the shrieker as Diar DeRozan, the young daughter of Bulls star DeMar DeRozan. Eventually, all those missed free throws caught up to the Raptors and ended their season.

The Bulls beat Toronto, 109-105, in the play-in game. Torontos season is over, and it happened in large part because they shot 18-of-36 from the free throw line. Diar DeRozan legitimately made a huge contribution to her dads team winning a knockout game.

Heres the video of ESPN finally identifying the screamer as DeRozans daughter.

Heres Diar forcing the Raptors into one of their 18 misses on the night.

Toronto had a chance to tie the game late when Pascal Siakam stepped to the line for three free throws with the Raptors down three. There was only one thing standing in his way: a shrieking Diar DeRozan.

Siakam missed.

She really put in a full 48 minute performance. She was screaming to distract the Raptors at the foul line from the start of the game to the very end of it.

The Raptors made 78.4 percent of their free throws on the year as a team. In their biggest game of the season, they shot 50 percent from the foul line and missed 18 free throws. Unbelievable.

The context here makes the whole story even better. According to one source, Diar DeRozan was born in May 2013, which means shes about to turn 10. In 2013, her father DeMar was the star player for the Raptors. DeRozan turned the Raptors into a winning team they won 50+ games three seasons in a row, and made one trip to the Eastern Conference Finals but they could never breakthrough to the Finals.

Heres a photo of DeMar and Diar during their Toronto years together:

Toronto then traded DeRozan to San Antonio in 2018 for Kawhi Leonard. The Raptors famously won the championship the very next year, and then Leonard left for LA.

DeRozan has always been very open about his struggles with mental health, and has admitted how hard that trade was for him. Toronto loves DeMar and DeMar loves Toronto, but getting traded from the team that drafted him and watching them win a title the next season with his replacement was the low point of his professional career.

For one night, DeRozans daughter helped him get some revenge and end the Raptors season.

Next up, the Bulls play the Miami Heat, and the winner gets the No. 8 seed in the NBA Playoffs which means a first round matchup with the mighty Milwaukee Bucks. For now, DeMar says Diar cant come to the game because she has to be in school.

Well see if that changes.

The Bulls season would be over if not for Diar DeRozans elite screaming ability. The Bulls know who their real MVP is:

By the way, Zach LaVine scored 39 points in the Bulls win in what was the best game of his career. Thats great, but for one night, Diar DeRozan stole the show.

Read more

Read the original here:
DeMar DeRozans screaming daughter was the key to Bulls play-in victory vs. Raptors - SB Nation

April 11, 2023 - Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) - Milwaukee Wave News Release

After wrapping the regular season over a week ago, the 7-time champion Milwaukee Wave had to wait to see would they would play in the opening round of the Major Arena Soccer League Ron Newman Cup Playoffs; they got that answer Monday night as Utica City FC forced overtime and defeated the Kansas City Comets 6-5.

"That was an exciting game last night," said Milwaukee Wave Head Coach Giuliano Oliviero. "Utica has been, outside of San Diego, the hottest team in the MASL the second half the season."

Milwaukee and Utica met three times during the regular season with the Wave winning the season series 2-1.

Away vs. Home Score Date

Milwaukee vs Utica 5 - 7 Feb 19

Utica vs Milwaukee 3 - 5 Feb 5

Utica vs Milwaukee 7 - 9 Dec 31

Milwaukee's Ian Bennett led the Wave during the regular season with 45 points, 35 points and 10 assists. Utica's Gordy Gurson led City FC during the regular season with 41 points, 22 goals, 19 assists.

"You look at us and Utica and there are some similarities amongst the teams," added Oliviero. "And then there's Head Coach Hewerton."

Former Milwaukee Wave champion and now Utica City FC Head Coach Hewerton Moreira won three championships during his seven seasons with the Wave. He also won numerous individual awards and was a three-time all-star.

"Hewerton has done a great job getting Utica into the postseason and now he's coming home," stated Oliviero. "This is where he spent most of his career and he always wants to do well in Milwaukee whether it be a postseason, regular season, pre-season game; that part of it I don't think matters. He relishes the opportunity to play and try to beat the Wave."

Game One: Milwaukee Wave vs Utica City FC

Thursday, April 13, 6:05pm CT from UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.

Tickets are on sale now atMilwaukeeWave.comor at the Box Office prior to the game.

Game Two: Milwaukee Wave at Utica City FC

Sunday, April 16, 2:05pm CT from Adirondack Bank Center.

Watch the game LIVE! and for FREE! on Twitch.

Game Three: (Knockout Game) *if necessary. If the playoff series is tied after the 2nd game, there will be an additional knockout game which will be treated as an entirely new game. The 1st period of the knockout game will be a full 15-minute period. New lineups will be submitted just like the start of a new game. If tied after the 1st full 15-minute period, additional overtime periods of 10-minutes sudden victory periods will be played.

"We've worked so hard to get here to the postseason and we want to take care of business in our building, in front of our fans and put the pressure on Utica heading back to upstate New York on Sunday," exclaimed Oliviero. "We know it'll be intense all the way through but we have to rely on our good habits that got us here, we have to play smart and make good decisions. We're ready and looking forward to it!"

Discuss this story on the Major Arena Soccer League message board...

The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

See more here:
Wave Takes on Utica in Game One of MASL Eastern Conference ... - OurSports Central