Sports is always in search of something special – rivalries, dynasties, the greatest. In so many ways, the rivalry between the Lakers and Spurs should qualify as classic. But the reality of the NBA is that there is one true lasting rivalry – Celtics and Lakers. One franchise has 17 titles, the other 16. They have met 12 times in the Finals with Boston holding a 9-3 edge. Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson was Lakers-Celtics. Bill Russell vs. Wilt Chamberlain is the NBA’s
What are you going to do, Stu? All eyes in Los Angeles and around the NBA will be on Olympic Tower in New York today, wondering how long Metta World Peace will be suspended for after he struck James Harden behind the ear with a vicious elbow that knocked the likely Sixth Man of the Year to the floor for a full minute. The initial guess here was 2 games, one of which would be a playoff game since the Lakers only have
After trouncing the Los Angeles Lakers in Kobe Bryant’s return, the San Antonio Spurs are in the driver’s seat for the top seed in the West. They have four games left, and they only need to win three to be the West’s No. 1 seed for the second consecutive season. If they win all four, they could finish with the best record in the entire NBA. As for the Lakers, they may need to win out in their final two games against
The San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Lakers did not play each other one single time in December, January, February or March. They’ve played twice in April, and strangely have blown each other out on the other’s home court. The series will get even more interesting as Kobe Bryant is set to return for the Lakers (40-23) from a seven-game absence to face the Spurs for the first time this season in Friday’s best game. Bryant leads the league in scoring with 28.1 points
LOS ANGELES — I didn’t set out to major in Kobe Bryant, having long since graduated when he showed up here at 17. Things just led that way. I covered his father, Joe, whom he called Jellybean, as a 76ers rookie in the 1970s. I knew the family from Baker League games, where I met Joe’s gregarious father, Big Joe. After not having seen Joe for decades, I ran into him at the 1995 Adidas camp at Fairleigh Dickinson where his
… and don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out. Hey, gotta try to one-up the Sixers’ fans, right? In the city where they once booed Santa Claus, the patrons were not quite so delighted last night. And they let the home team know about it. The Philadelphia 76ers were booed off their home floor in their final home game of the regular season Tuesday night, a 102-97 loss to the Indiana Pacers that cut their lead over
The San Antonio Spurs are healthy and playing their best basketball of the season as they gear up for the playoffs. They sit atop the Western Conference by percentage points, and a win tonight would provide a 1/2 game lead over the idle Oklahoma City. However, the team has been unable to solve one team in their recent meetings: the Los Angeles Lakers, who they play again in Tuesday’s best game. The Spurs (43-16) hope to avoid a fourth consecutive loss to the
Centers Kevin Garnett of the Boston Celtics and Andrew Bynum of the Los Angeles Lakers were named NBA Players of the Week on Monday. Garnett won for the Eastern Conference, leading the Celtics to a 4-1 record. He played in four games and averaged 20.0 points, 10.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.3 steals – not bad for a guy forced to play out of position. Garnett had 22 points, 12 rebounds and three steals in an 88-86 home win over Atlanta. During