With defensive tenacity and a punishing, menacing front line, the Indiana Pacers have reached the Eastern Conference finals. But if vanquishing the New York Knicks in six games seemed like a tall task, their path to the NBA Finals seems preposterously gargantuan in comparison. To defeat LeBron James in his prime and the Miami Heat in a best-of-seven series is akin to defeating a Michael Jordan-led Bulls team in his prime. James is the best player in the world. He has several
The evolution of the Memphis Grizzlies franchise since its infant days in Vancouver is really something to marvel at when you consider where they are as of today. They are currently on their 7th head coach in their franchise’s history with Lionel Hollins and are out of the first round for just the second time in their 18-year history. If you parlay that with the fact that Memphis traded their top scorer, Rudy Gay, at the end of January for Ed
Some quick thoughts on the New York Knicks’ loss to the Indiana Pacers, who are going to give the Miami Heat some problems but will lose the Eastern Conference finals if they shoot free throws and have as many unforced turnovers as they did against the Knicks. First of all, Carmelo Anthony will not live this one down for a long time. He was 0-for-5 in the fourth quarter with two turnovers before making his first shot of the final period.
Uvo, take me back to 2011. (Sorry, I’ve been watching too many Blake Griffin commercials.) Just two years ago, the eighth-seeded Grizzlies stunned the top-seeded Spurs in the first round of the playoffs, sending San Antonio back to its rocking chairs a little bit earlier than anyone expected. Memphis used a breakout performance by Zach Randolph (31 points, 11 boards in Game 6) to close out the Spurs, then took the Thunder to seven games before bowing out in the West semifinals. Back
The conference finals should be set. If not for Indiana’s horrid Thursday night performance against the Knicks, San Antonio’s Game 6 victory over Golden State would have ended the NBA’s second round. How did the Spurs end up taking the final game of what looked like an incredibly tight and engaging series? Knicks are lucky to still be alive Let’s not sugarcoat this: The Knicks are lucky to be in the playoffs right now, and are only still alive because the Pacers
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
MIAMI – I’m through doubting Dwyane Wade. I’ve done it a few times over the years for various reasons – knee surgery, shoulder surgery, ankle injury, etc… — and Wade, the Miami Heat’s superstar guard, always comes back strong. We saw it after his injury-shortened 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons, we saw it in last year’s playoffs, we saw it in the second half of this season. We saw it again Wednesday in the Heat’s 94-91 Game 5 second round series-clinching victory over
Bruised and bloodied, the Chicago Bulls have no chance of overcoming a 3-1 deficit against LeBron James and the Miami Heat, right? Right? Well, don’t be so sure. Some pretty good players have been on the wrong end of 3-1 comebacks in the playoffs. Guys like Kobe Bryant. Patrick Ewing. Julius Erving. Charles Barkley. George Gervin. Jerry West. And Wilt Chamberlain. And Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant and New York’s Carmelo Anthony don’t have enough help to overcome a 3-1 deficit and win their