Radio interview in August that he advised Rodriguez to accept a suspension of a cert

NEW ORLEANS -- The Eastern Conference finally stopped Kevin Durant and Blake Griffin -- then stopped its losing streak at the NBA All-Star game. Kyrie Irving had 31 points and 14 assists and was voted the games MVP, Carmelo Anthony made an All-Star record eight 3-pointers and scored 30 points, and the East rallied for a 163-155 victory over the West on Sunday night. "Its a great honour," Irving said. "We had a few MVPs. Everyone out here today is an MVP." Durant and Griffin each finished with 38 points, four shy of Wilt Chamberlains All-Star game record. But the East scored the final 10 points to pull out a game it trailed by 18. Irving scored 15 points in the fourth quarter as the East ended a three-game losing streak. LeBron James had 22 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. "The superstars of our league were just telling us to compete on every play," Irving said. "Trying to play as much defence as possible. You know, sticking to our game plan. We had a game plan going in and we executed." Griffin shot 19 of 23, while Durant finished with 10 rebounds and six assists. But the West was shut out after Durants 3-pointer gave it a 155-153 lead with 1:59 left. Indianas Paul George made three free throws, Anthony nailed his final 3-pointer, and James scored to make it 161-155. George closed it out with two more free throws and finished with 18 points. The game that usually doesnt get tight until the final minutes was close throughout the fourth quarter, neither team leading by more than four until the final minute. Chris Paul had 11 points and 13 assists, and first-time All-Star Stephen Curry had 12 points and 11 assists for the West. But the best point guard on the floor was Irving, who shot 14 of 17 and helped the East ring up 87 points in the second half after it surrendered a record 89 in the first. In a colorful tribute to New Orleans, players wore sneakers and socks that ranged from green and blue to orange and purple, making the game look like a Mardi Gras parade. The parade was one of layups and dunks for the West, which scored 44 points in the first quarter and 45 in the second. Griffin had 18 points in the first quarter and Durant had 22 at halftime, both two shy of records set by Glen Rice in 1997. And there was plenty of music, the rosters and starting lineups introduced around a concert by Pharrell Williams, who was joined by his own All-Stars in Nelly, Busta Rhymes, Sean "Diddy" Combs and Snoop Dogg. Magic Johnson led a band, too, encouraging the All-Stars to join him in singing "Happy Birthday" after the first quarter to Hall of Famer Bill Russell, the NBAs greatest champion who was celebrating his 80th. The All-Stars played better than they sang. The East finished with 61 per cent shooting, needing all sorts of offence after it simply couldnt defend Durant and Griffin. Durant made 6 3-pointers and easily blew past the 28.8 points he had been averaging in All-Star games, which was an NBA record. Outside of the ugly sleeved jerseys, it was a good look for the NBAs midseason showcase, bouncing back strongly from an even All-Star Saturday night. The new format of the slam dunk contest Saturday wasnt a hit, but every night is a dunk contest when Griffin is involved. The guy who once jumped over a car to win a slam dunk contest had eight slams in the first 11 minutes, the backboard often barely finished shaking from the last one when he threw down the next. The West began to open a gap in the second quarter behind a hometown star and a former one -- Anthony Davis of the Pelicans for former New Orleans guard Paul. Durant made a 3-pointer with 26 seconds left to make it 89-76 at the break, one point better than he and the West had two years ago in Orlando. Durant and Griffin each had 30 points by the end of the third quarter, but the East trimmed what was a West 18-point lead to 126-123 after three. DeMar DeRozan of the Toronto Raptors made his first All-Star game appearance, and had eight points in his 15 minutes of playing time for the East. Jodie Meeks Raptors Jersey . Louis Blues were workmanlike, methodical and -- most of all -- effective on Monday night. OG Anunoby Raptors Jersey . Granada goalkeeper Roberto Fernandez saved Morenos first two headers from corner kicks taken by Sergio Garcia, but the defender beat him on his third try after Garcia found Moreno unmarked at the near post in the 78th minute. http://www.nbaraptorsonline.com/ . Torres tells Spanish daily AS "in football you never know where you will be inside one month. Im going to work hard, thats all you can do with this last part of the season so important. Custom Toronto Raptors Jerseys . The Tournament of Champions, which starts Friday, is his first event since a freak accident in Shanghai two months ago. Snedeker was on a Segway scooter during a corporate outing at Sheshan International when he took a tumble and injured his left knee. Kyle Lowry Jersey . Braden Calverts Winnipeg rink rallied to defeat Italy 8-7. After giving up three points in the second end, Calvert came back with a single, then stole two more points in the next two ends to tie it up at the fifth-end break.NEW YORK -- Alex Rodriguez expanded his assault on the baseball establishment with a lawsuit accusing the Yankees team physician and a New York City hospital of mishandling his medical care during the 2012 AL playoffs. In a suit filed late Friday in New York Supreme Court in the Bronx, lawyers for Rodriguez say he was given an MRI on Oct. 11, 2012, that revealed an injury to his left hip joint. The suit said that Yankees physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad did not inform him of the tear and cleared him to continue playing, and accused them of medical malpractice. As a result, the suit claims, Rodriguez further injured himself and also "sustained great pain, agony, injury, suffering, disability, hospitalization, as well as mental anguish and emotional distress." The suit also names New York-Presbyterian Hospital as a defendant. "We are not commenting due to pending litigation," hospital spokeswoman Myrna Manners said Saturday. Ahmad did not respond to a telephone message seeking comment. The hospital and Ahmad may claim that the proper forum for Rodriguezs complaint is either Workmans Compensation or the grievance process of Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association. The union is attempting to overturn the 211-game suspension given to Rodriguez by MLB on Aug. 5 for alleged violations of its drug agreement and labour contract. The penalty was stayed pending a grievance filed by the union, and a hearing began Monday before arbitrator Fredric Horowitz, who is chairman of the three-man arbitration panel that includes a representative of management and the union. Barring a settlement, a decision is not expected until winter. Also Saturday, The New York Times reported on its website that Rodriguezs lawyers at Reed Smith sent a letter to the players association General Counsel David Prouty on Aug. 22 asking that a union lawyer be replaced as his representative in the grievance by one of his personal attorneys. The lawyers also criticized union head Michael Weiner, who is battling a brain tumour, for comments he made about the case. Rodriguez hit .120 (3 for 25) with no RBIs during the 2012 post-season, then had left hip surgery in January that kept him from rejoining the Yankees until August. One of Rodriguezs lawyers, Joseph Tacopina, said in August that the Yaankees "put him out there in that condition when he shouldnt have even been walking, much less playing baseball.dddddddddddd" The Yankees maintain that Rodriguez had been complaining at the time only of a problem with his right hip, not the left one. Rodriguez had right hip surgery in 2009. Rodriguez filed the medical lawsuit a day after suing MLB and baseball Commissioner Bud Selig in New York Supreme Court in Manhattan, accusing them of orchestrating a "witch hunt" intended to force him out of baseball as part of its investigation of the now-closed Biogenesis of America anti-aging clinic in Florida. Both suits came during the first week of hearings on a players association grievance seeking to overturn the suspension. Thirteen other players accepted suspensions this summer, including former NL MVP Ryan Braun, who was suspended for Milwaukees final 65 games of the regular season. The August letter from Rodriguezs lawyers to the players association accused the union of failing to "fairly represent his interests" and said it "made matters worse by failing to protest MLBs thuggish tactics in its investigation." A-Rods lawyers were critical of Weiner for saying in an XM Radio interview in August that he advised Rodriguez to accept a suspension of a certain length -- less than MLB was willing to settle for. They said in the letter that Weiners statements could "irretrievably corrupt the arbitration process" and "are clearly inconsistent with the MLBPAs duty to fairly and ardently represent Mr. Rodriguez." MLB Chief Operating Officer Rob Manfred represents management on the arbitration panel and Prouty represents the players association. Rodriguez spokesman Ron Berkowitz declined comment on both the latest lawsuit and the letter. Tacopina said in a statement Saturday that Selig and MLB have an "inexplicable personal animus toward Alex Rodriguez" and called former Biogenesis head Anthony Bosch "a witness under federal investigation for dealing performance enhancing drugs to minors." "Every player in the league, every fan who spends money on MLB tickets and gear, and every team whose money is being spent on this witch hunt should be asking Selig to explain and justify his actions," Tacopina said. ' ' '