HOUSTON – It wasn’t Kevin Durant, but the other Kevin — a familiar face who turned foe on the brink of the regular season who came back to Houston and delivered the daggers that ended the Rockets’ playoff run Friday night. Kevin Martin moves on. James Harden goes home. Nobody could have predicted the spills, twists and turns this series took along the way before ending in six games with a 103-94 victory for Oklahoma City — including the part about the
Though it’s trumpeted as a launchpad for great big shiny heroics, playoff basketball’s cruel truth is that the no-shows have a particular, formative role to play in the maturation–or atrophy–of each series, as well. [Read more…]
The first round of the playoffs has turned out to be as tense as could have been hoped, with six of the eight series going six games and at least one going the full seven. Meanwhile, the other 14 NBA teams are getting ready for next season, and for quite a few, that means new coaches, or possibly new management. While the Raptors continue to court Phil Jackson, Jackson himself is signing on with the Pistons in what is described as
Many basketball fans, especially Chicago Bulls fans, have lasting memories of an exhausted and visibly weak looking Michael Jordan playing through severe illness in Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals. Seeing him put up 38 points in 44 minutes for a narrow victory over the Utah Jazz set the bar for all athletes confronted with severe “flu-like” symptoms. Such was not the case for Chicago Bulls small forward Luol Deng, who missed Thursday night’s Game 6 tilt against the Brooklyn
As we entered the 2013 playoffs, the Miami Heat were poised to repeat as NBA champions. Or so it would seem. As we wait to see where the challenger will come from, the Heat’s place in history is developing before our eyes. Will they become a dynasty or fold under the real life pressures of free agency and the salary cap? Will they take their place in the discussion of “Greatest Ever?” Or be a team that had a great run? [Read
Vinny Del Negro will be coaching his final game with the Los Angeles Clippers tonight when they lose Game 6 to the Memphis Grizzlies. Wait a minute, is that fair to say? And is that fair to surmise? No, and maybe. This much we know: The Clippers have lost three in a row, Blake Griffin is iffy with a sprained ankle, the Clippers are getting virtually nothing from anyone not named Chris Paul or Jamal Crawford, and the time to take desperate measures
Hinrich’s absence a big factor for Bulls Chicago may have been without top scorer Luol Deng in Thursday’s 95-92 Game 6 home loss to Brooklyn, but its loss of Kirk Hinrich for a second straight game may have hurt the team more. Deron Williams has played better over the last pair of Net wins with Hinrich out of commission, which is a major reason why the series has swung in Brooklyn’s favor. Hinrich last appeared on the floor in last Saturday’s Game
It may be playoff season for 16 teams right now – well, 13 now that three teams have been eliminated – but it’s the offseason for other teams around the league, as they try to figure out the best course of action for next season. [Related: NBA players react to wild Game 6 between Warriors and Nuggets] The biggest news come in the way of hiring and firing of management positions, and we start with the biggest surprise – the hiring of Phil