The NBA Finals are leaving the pizza oven of San Antonio and headed back to the cut-with-a-knife humidity of Miami with the Spurs holding a 3-2 lead. So which team faces more pressure entering Game 6 on Tuesday night? Are the Spurs – who absolutely had to win Game 5 and did – under the gun because they have to win Game 6 in order to avoid the specter of winning a Game 7 on the road, which no team has done
SAN ANTONIO — Whatever was said to Manu Ginobili by Gregg Popovich must have been one hell of an inspirational speech. It was a Lazarus speech, because it brought Manu Ginobili back from the dead. So what exactly was said in between Games 4 and 5 — a time when Ginobili was openly pondering retirement despite secretly knowing that he would be making his first start of the season. What stuck in his head? What inspired him the most? “That’s just family stuff,”
SAN ANTONIO — Manu Ginobili is so down on himself, he is actually considering retirement. Not that he is leaning toward retirement, but on Saturday at practice, the day before the Finals against the Miami Heat resume with the series tied 2-2, Ginobili sounded like a player who is ready to move on to the next stage of his life — maybe after one more year in the NBA, maybe sooner. [Read more…]
SAN ANTONIO — They were a beauty to behold. They were a beast to behold. You sat there watching Game 4, a night of precision and perfection from the Miami Heat, and you couldn’t keep the thought out of your head — you were watching one of the greatest teams of all time. Except that they aren’t. Because this was the exception, not the rule. This was the Heat at their very, very best. Championship material. Dynasty material. “Not two, not three,
SAN ANTONIO — Once again Wednesday, LeBron James heaping all the blame and the pressure on himself. His mood was better, his defiance was not manufactured, and he made a lot of good points while making a guarantee that he would play better. Not that the Heat would win Game 4, but that he’d play better. As guarantees go, it is certainly not the boldest one ever made. [Read more…]
When Mike Miller is your best player, you have problems. When LeBron James can’t score 20 points, you have problems. In this video with CineSport’s Brian Clark, we break down those problems and how they manifested themselves Tuesday night in Miami’s 36-point loss to the San Antonio Spurs. [Read more…]
SAN ANTONIO — The King has been reduced to a pawn, so we will spare you another column devoted entirely to the troubles and travails of LeBron James. You can find that elsewhere. All you need to know about the king (lower case is intentional) after the Miami Heat’s 36-point blowout loss in Game 3 of the NBA Finals was that he put the blame squarely on his own shoulders and said “I’m not doing my part.” The eunuching of James
Brian Shaw won five championships in Los Angeles with the Lakers, three as a player and two as an assistant coach. Clippers general manager Gary Sacks likes him, and Lamar Odom has endorsed his hiring. Makes sense, right? Well, nothing ever completely makes sense with the Clippers, where Donald Sterling rules the roost. [Read more…]