Game 2 of the NBA Finals is in the bag, and here we are, left without a basketball game until Sunday night. Luckily, we have news for you to read about, from LeBron James’ clutch play, Russell Westbrook’s demise, Tony Parker’s brawl story and more.
An epic battle has taken shape between LeBron James and Kevin Durant, writes Adrian Wojnarowski: “These are the Finals everyone wanted, the moments of truth for Durant and James that shape the sport’s history, that make this the most compelling of theater. In the end, it becomes so simple: Makes and misses. The ball had come to Durant with the clock ticking down, and here was a shot that he had made a million times in his life. James grabbed onto him for dear life, and still those endless arms of Durant unfolded, that wrist flicked and the ball had a chance.”
- Alex Kennedy explains how James came through in the clutch: “Hate him or love him, there’s no denying that LeBron James delivered when the Miami HEAT needed him most during Game 2 of the NBA Finals. As the Oklahoma City Thunder fought back after trailing by as many as 17 points, it was James who stepped up in the fourth quarter and sealed the win.”
- The success of Thunder’s starting lineup has been shaky, and Zach Lowe thinks a change is in order: “And in a one-game sample size, a few good bounces and a random outburst of energy could turn the tables for the Thunder’s maligned starters. But the bigger picture suggests that this lineup is a liability against Miami, and that Brooks needs to adjust accordingly. It’s a huge adjustment, one that might bruise an ego or two and stretch the coaching staff.”
- Serge Ibaka had some spectacular blocks in Game 2 against Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and most notably, LeBron James.
- Our Chris Sheridan stirred up some controversy with his thoughts on Kevin Durant’s final shot against James. Here is the play, if you missed it.
Erik Spoelstra put Chris Bosh in the starting lineup for Game 2. Here is what made up his mind, from Michael Wallace: After the Heat watched film of Tuesday’s 105-94 loss and prepared for Game 2, Spoelstra called for his red team — the starters — to take the court to begin Wednesday’s practice. “And Chris walked right out and put his head under the rim [at center],” Spoelstra recounted Thursday night. “And so that told me what we were doing in terms of starting him. He gave us a lot in the paint, and we need that again and again and again. We needed every bit of his ‘big’ and that’s what he brought.”
- Bosh needs to work on his ability to high-five correctly, according to Trey Kerby.
- Our Jeremy Bauman details the impact of Shane Battier: “Despite the fact that he hadn’t connected on four-plus 3-pointers in consecutive games in roughly five years, Battier has gotten off to a sweltering start during the Finals by knocking home 9-of-13 from distance.”
- Russell Westbrook’s inconsistent play has been an issue for the Thunder, and he doesn’t even know it, writes Gregg Doyel: “Specifically, Russell Westbrook doesn’t understand why it happened. Which is a problem, because Russell Westbrook is why it has happened. And if he doesn’t realize he’s the problem? That’s a problem.”
- Magic Johnson and the crew criticized the play of Westbrook here, and Stephen A. Smith ripped him here.
Here is my take on Westbrook’s performance.
- Jerry Sloan helped narrow the Bobcats search of a new coach by taking himself out of the equation, from Sam Amick: “I took myself out today,” Sloan said by phone. “I don’t want to comment on it because it’s never profitable for anybody. It just makes it sound like you’re making a statement about someone. But they were wonderful and there were no problems. I just took myself out.”
- Mike Woodson may need to hire an offensive assistant, from Jared Zwerling: “On paper, as of now, the Knicks have a deep enough roster to compete for home court in next year’s postseason, but they’re going to need much better offensive execution in 2012-13. Defensively, Woodson has it covered. But just like he was brought in as a defensive assistant last year, he could use the help of a lead offensive assistant this year.”
- Neil Olshey thinks Portland needs to take a chill pill: “He’s been on the job all of 10 days and he says he feels like the media and some of the fan base want him to already have hired a coach, decided who he is going to draft with the Nos. 6 and 11 overall picks, and chart a course for free agency.”
Tony Parker was involved in a brawl, but not voluntarily, from Deadspin: NBA superstar Tony Parker says he suffered a serious eye injury during the Chris Brown vs. Drake bottle-tossing mega-brawl. Parker was inside club W.i.P in NYC Wednesday night when the bottle and the fists began to fly.[…] Parker continued, “The cornea has been touched. I can’t do anything for seven days. But I was lucky. The injury won’t prevent me from competing in the Olympics in any way.”
- Jamal Crawford seems likely to test free agency this summer: “I’m a free agent, so I’m excited about what’s there moving forward,” Crawford said when asked about his future. “There will be a lot of teams out there with a lot of interest. I’ll sit back after July (free agency begins July 1) and see what happens.”
- Austin Rivers believes he will be a good fit with the Toronto Raptors, from RealGM: “I have kept up with teams that fit me and the Raptors are one of those places,” Rivers said. “I think I fit in this program well. I like the way they play. I like the new coach, I like how he gets after it on defense. As far as offensively, they like to get up and down and go at them and that’s something I like to do.”
For the complaint on Russell Westbrook, click here.
For Kobe Bryant’s thoughts on Kevin Durant, click here.
For all previous blog entries, click here.
James Park is a regular contributor and blogger for SheridanHoops.com. You can follow him on twitter @nbatupark.