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Wall's status unclear after fractures

 
John Wall missed Tuesday’s game with a swollen left wrist. Later exams revealed fractures.
John Wall missed Tuesday’s game with a swollen left wrist. Later exams revealed fractures.
Published May 8, 2015

WASHINGTON — John Wall has five nondisplaced fractures in his left wrist and hand, and the All-Star guard's playing status has not been determined.

Wall was hurt in Game 1 of the Wizards' Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Hawks. Initial X-rays were negative, but "multiple examinations" Wednesday revealed the injuries, the team announced Thursday.

Washington hosts Atlanta for Game 3 on Saturday. The top-seeded Hawks won Game 2 to even the series at one game each.

"Obviously not the news you want to hear," Wizards coach Randy Wittman said. "With the swelling, we knew maybe there was not good news there. We're still consulting with doctors. It's still pretty swollen."

Wall, who led the Wizards with 17.6 points and 10 assists per game during the regular season, was not made available to speak with reporters.

Though he practiced after Sunday's series-opening win in Atlanta, Wall was a surprise inactive for Game 2 on Tuesday. With his left wrist noticeably swollen, the point guard struggled with various drills during pregame warm-ups.

Wall injured the hand when bracing himself as he fell along the baseline. He remained and finished with 18 points and 13 assists.

Butler most improved

CHICAGO — Jimmy Butler of the Bulls was named the league's most improved player after making his first All-Star team and averaging a career-high 20 points per game. Butler received 92 of 129 first-place votes and 535 points. Draymond Green of the Warriors (11 first-place votes, 200 points) was second and Rudy Gobert of the Jazz (12 first-place votes, 189 points) was third.

Harden leads comeback

HOUSTON — Stuck on the bench with four fouls for most of the third quarter, James Harden returned to score 16 of his 32 in the fourth quarter to lift the Rockets to a 115-109 victory over the Clippers late Wednesday.

"I knew my team was battling extremely hard and basically it was up to me to go out there and push us forward," Harden said.

Dwight Howard had 24 points and 16 rebounds for the Rockets. Houston made 42 of its 64 free throws. Both were franchise playoff records.

Clippers point guard Chris Paul worked out on the court Thursday, though it was not decided if he can play tonight in Game 3. He has been out with a strained left hamstring.

AROUND THE LEAGUE: The Cavaliers apologized for a video parody that showed a man violently throwing a woman across a room for wearing a Bulls T-shirt. The team showed a video on its scoreboard spoofing a United Healthcare TV commercial and the famous dancing-lift scene from Dirty Dancing. … The league fined Rockets swingman and former Gator Corey Brewer $5,000 for flopping against Clippers guard Lester Hudson on Wednesday.

Conference semifinals

East

WIZARDS 1, HAWKS 1

Game 1: Wizards 104, Hawks 98

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Game 2: Hawks 106, Wizards 90

Saturday: at Washington, 5, ESPN

Monday: at Washington, 7, TNT

Wednesday: at Atlanta, 7, TNT

* May 15: at Washington, TBD, ESPN

* May 18: at Atlanta, 8, TNT

Bulls 1, Cavaliers 1

Game 1: Bulls 99, Cavaliers 92

Game 2: Cavaliers 106, Bulls 91

Tonight: at Chicago, 8, ESPN

Sunday: at Chicago, 3:30, Ch. 28

Tuesday: at Cleveland, TBD, TNT

* May 14: at Chicago, TBD, ESPN

* May 17: at Cleveland, TBD, TNT

West

Clippers 1, Rockets 1

Game 1: Clippers 117, Rockets 101

Game 2: Rockets 115, Clippers 109

Tonight: at Los Angeles, 10:30, ESPN

Sunday: at Los Angeles, 8:30, TNT

Tuesday: at Houston, TBD, TNT

* May 14: at Los Angeles, TBD, ESPN

* May 17: at Houston, TBD

Grizzlies 1, Warriors 1

Game 1: Warriors 101, Grizzlies 86

Game 2: Grizzlies 97, Warriors 90

Saturday: at Memphis, 8, Ch. 28

Monday: at Memphis, 9:30, TNT

Wednesday: at Golden St., TBD, TNT

* May 15: at Memphis, TBD, ESPN

* May 17: at Golden State, TBD

* If necessary