DeMar Derozan

From the ashes of an epic playoff failure last year, the Toronto Raptors made a pair of risky moves and wound up winning the first NBA title in their 24-season history.

Masai Ujiri, who only discovered basketball as a teen growing up in Nigeria, made the crucial decisions that lifted the Toronto Raptors from NBA disappointment to title contender.

The San Antonio Spurs weren't about to go quietly in their first round series with the Denver Nuggets, delivering a dominating 120-103 win on Thursday to force a winner-take all game seven.

San Antonio Spurs guard DeMar DeRozan was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Sunday for recklessly throwing the basketball toward a referee and into the stands during a playoff loss.

San Antonio Spurs' DeMar DeRozan was ejected in the Game 4 match against the Denver Nuggets with 5 minutes and one second remaining of the fourth quarter, Sunday (Manila time).

Kevin Durant scored 38 points as the Golden State Warriors made sure they didn't blow another big lead by routing the Los Angeles Clippers 132-105 in game three of their playoff series on Thursday.

Jamal Murray exploded for 21 points in the fourth quarter as the Denver Nuggets staged a dramatic late fightback to clinch a series-levelling 114-105 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday.

The top seeded Golden State Warriors face the first challenge in their quest for a NBA three-peat, which begins on Saturday against the Los Angeles Clippers.