So we finally come to the conclusion of the regular season. In terms of who’s making the playoffs, anyway. With only one spot – the eighth seed of the Western Conference – still left for grabs, the Utah Jazz sealed the deal on Tuesday night by defeating the Phoenix Suns for their fourth consecutive victory, on national television, and clinched the final available seed. They are not done either, as they still have a chance to move up to the seventh seed, albeit
With the wild race for a playoff spot in the Western Conference reaching its final days, the Phoenix Suns and the Utah Jazz have yet to settle the score to claim the final seed. Fittingly in terms of timeliness, they will match up against against each other tonight in the most important game of the season for both teams to determine which team will make the playoffs or go home. The Suns (33-31) look to sweep the season series for the second
It took awhile, but the Nuggets finally clinched the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season. But just because they are in, that doesn’t mean George Karl is about to rest his players. Quite the contrary actually; Following the win, Karl said “We have three games left, and we are going to try to win all three of them. There won’t be any rest going on here.” It only makes sense. The Nuggets still have a chance to catch the Mavericks (who lost
As we all saw coming, it looks as if the race for the last seeds in the West may very well come to the final game of the season. The benefits of winning this game vary for both teams, however. Denver (34-28), 1 1/2 games ahead of the Suns (33-30), could clinch a playoff berth with a win. They would seal the 7th seed, leaving the Utah Jazz (33-30) and Phoenix Suns to fight for the last spot. If the Suns win,
As the season winds down with the playoffs set to begin one week from tomorrow, players and teams are starting to feel more tension and desperation. It showed on a Thursday night that featured 11 technical fouls, five flagrant fouls and three ejections in three games with teams jockeying for playoff positioning. We start with the Miami Heat, who extended their winning streak to five games as they beat the league-leading Chicago Bulls 83-72. Despite missing Chris Bosh and Derrick Rose, the game
NEWS If any doubt remained, the Phoenix Suns’ Steve Nash established his bona fides as one of the organization’s all-time greats on Feb. 1, when he blew past Kevin Johnson as the franchise’s all-time leader in career assists. (Nash also holds team records for three-pointers made and attempted, as well as three-point and free throw shooting percentages.) Now, he’s on the cusp of passing an NBA icon. With Phoenix set to host the Los Angeles Clippers tonight on TNT (10:30 p.m. ET)
Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns were far from playoff contention heading into the All-Star break. Since the beginning of March, however, they have turned a corner, compiling an 18-10 record and are just a half-game behind the Utah Jazz for the eighth seed in the Western Conference. Phoenix (32-30) looks to bounce back from a loss and stay squarely in the playoff picture as they host the Los Angeles Clippers in Thursday’s best game on TNT. They defeated the Clippers in the
Anyone have a problem with all five of Kentucky’s starters declaring for the draft? I don’t. And if you do, you need to join all of us in the 21st century. The decisions by UK freshmen Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Marquis Teague and sophomores Terrence Jones and Doron Lamb to leave school early and enter the NBA may seem somewhat striking. Among purists, fuddy-duddies and others trying to stand in front of the tidal wave of progress, there was some sense that the