It used to be that the path from player to coach in the NBA required at least a couple of years as an assistant, executive or broadcaster. Not anymore. Jason Kidd has shattered that notion, making the switch from player to coach in less than a month when he was hired by the Brooklyn Nets, the same franchise he led to consecutive appearances in the NBA Finals 10 years ago. Kidd is one of the smartest players in league history, and has
MIAMI – The Miami Heat knew they could not go to San Antonio down 2-0, and as much as the Spurs wanted Game 2, once it started to get away from them it simply snowballed into a blowout. [Read more…]
Manu Ginobili MIAMI — Manu Ginobili walked to the podium and took a look around the room before he sat down. His shoulders slouched a bit, but he tried to remain upbeat. He sighed before he spoke. “After having played a great Game 1, you don’t want to come back and feel like this and perform this like,” he said. “In the second half, they ran us over.” LeBron James—despite a relatively poor showing through the game’s first three quarters—left
We know the Miami Heat have to be better in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night. But can the San Antonio Spurs be better? The Heat’s issues have been well-documented. LeBron James needs to be more of a scorer. Role players such as Udonis Haslem and Norris Cole have to contribute more than the collective 6-of-15 showing they managed in the opener. [Read more…]
MIAMI – Nobody is talking about LeBron James’ triple-double this morning. We have come to expect as much from The King. The question of the day Friday, in the wake of San Antonio’s Game 1 victory in the NBA Finals, is whether we should have expected better from every single member of the Miami Heat in the fourth quarter. When you shoot 5-for-18, that ain’t gonna get it done. When your five field goals are matched by your five turnovers, that ain’t gonna
MIAMI — Time waits for no man … unless you happen to be Tony Parker in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. He held the fate of the league’s two best teams and the collective attention of the basketball universe in his hands. For 23.9 seconds, the Spurs held the ball, ahead by two points. They needed one final basket to steal a Game 1 victory they knew they had come too far to leave Miami without. Parker made a shot for the
MIAMI — Over Biscayne Bay, the skies are gray. And on Miami Beach, sunbathers are sparse. But still, in humid South Florida, the heat is on. And inside of the American Airlines Arena, the Miami Heat are on. The clock, that is. [Read more…]
NEW YORK — Like ants in a nest, the media scurried around the New York Knicks locker room. Some wanted to speak with Jason Kidd, others were looking for J.R. Smith and Amar’e Stoudemire. To top it all off, Tyson Chandler and Kenyon Martin spoke simultaneously while the press stood on top of one another. Then, abruptly, everyone stopped what they were doing. Chris Copeland—the man who helped put the Knicks over the top in a do-or-die Game 5—was on his way to the podium. The