On Sunday, the Miami Heat and the Indiana Pacers are set to square off in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Before the season began, most people would have expected the Heat to be playing in the second round, but few would have thought that the Pacers would be here. After winning their respective first-round series in five games each, LeBron James and Danny Granger will lead their respective teams in a battle for the right to head
We haven’t had a 76ers-Celtics playoff series in 10 years, so there is a whole generation of NBA fans who may not understand the historical significance of their Eastern Conference semifinal showdown: They once hated each other. This is the 19th playoff meeting between Boston and Philadelphia and should be just an intense as all of the previous matchups. The fourth-seeded Celtics appear to have an edge in experience over the eighth-seeded Sixers. But there is a fine line between
Mike Brown will be coaching his final game for the Los Angeles Lakers tonight if they lose Game 7 to the Denver Nuggets. Says who? Magic Johnson, that’s who. “His job will go,” Johnson said on ESPN, where he is a studio analyst. “The Lakers are about championships. That’s what the Lakers are about. If they lose this game, Mike Brown, I bet you, will not be sitting there.” Johnson sold his 4.5% stake in the Lakers in 2010, but he remains on the
csprtContainer(); Will the return of Metta World Peace give the Lakers an edge in Game 7 vs. the Nuggets? CineSport’s Noah Coslov and SheridanHoops.com’s Chris Sheridan discuss this & the Eastern Conference Semis.
Memphis (2-3) at Los Angeles Clippers (3-2): Injuries have been the story of the first round of the playoffs, and the Los Angeles Clippers have officially joined the party. Caron Butler has been playing with a broken hand, and it seems his two superstar teammates will have to toughen up and join him in playing through injuries. Blake Griffin and Chris Paul each were hurt in Game 5, and though they are likely to play, a gimpy version of the two could prove
PHILADELPHIA—Rick and Ilsa of “Casablanca’’ fame will always have Paris…. and Andre Iguodala, a child scorned around these parts for years by fans who often wish he still wasn’t here, will always have the two free throws that sent the Philadelphia 76ers to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2003. It will be a moment in time not soon forgotten. “Andre’s struggled all year at the foul line,’’ said jubilant Sixers coach Doug Collins, holding his grandson on
What shall be our parting memory of Carlos Boozer? Him sitting on the bench for the final 14 minutes. What shall be our parting memory of Josh Smith? A 21-foot fadeaway jumper, when the Hawks needed him to attack the rim, that never had a shot. And those were the losers whose seasons ended Thursday night. What of the night’s other loser, the Los Angeles Lakers? Let’s just say that if Pau Gasol is that unassertive in the Olympic gold medal game, the United
