Pacers' move paid off. Evan Turner, Scola and Copeland scored big. Miami lost to Memphis, so they are all tied up, heading to a showdown a few days from now. What a finish!
New Album & The Beginning of Basketball Season
- Thread starter Ron Party
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Normally I wouldn't root for the Heat but I'm not a fan of Memphis. Pacers did pull out a close one with no starers playing.
Clippers were down big to the Thunder but couldn't pull it out with a furious rally in the fourth quarter. Thunder win by 6 in LA to tie the season series at 2 - 2.
Clippers were down big to the Thunder but couldn't pull it out with a furious rally in the fourth quarter. Thunder win by 6 in LA to tie the season series at 2 - 2.
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
I just read that Pau Gasol Lakers jersey is on sale at LAX for 50% off MSRP. Handwriting is on the wall
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
History, flexibility make Lakers' future brighter than it appears
By Mark Deeks, SB Nation
Interesting read
http://www.sbnation.com/2014/4/11/5605168/la-lakers-nba-free-agency-summer-kobe-bryant
By Mark Deeks, SB Nation
Interesting read
http://www.sbnation.com/2014/4/11/5605168/la-lakers-nba-free-agency-summer-kobe-bryant
Big win by Pacers over OKC. They control their own destiny by needing to win 1 more against ORL in their last game. Win and take home court in the East. Worrisome though, is Hibbert. 0-9 for a career 11 ppg big man. Is he burned out? While Bird has good intentions with getting Bynum, Bynum's health just wouldn't cooperate.
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Heat rests James and Bosh, loses to Wizards, gives home court ad to Pacers. Thanks.
We'll take it. It's tough to threepeat
Yeah. Hope the Pacers make the most out of it.
Over in the West, despite a strong push in the last few months, the Suns got eliminated and will not go to the playoffs.
Spurs head to the playoffs with the league's best record.
Can't wait for the playoffs to begin.
Clippers beat Denver last night. Griffin picked up his 16th technical foul so he will not play tonight in Portland.
Clippers will finish with the third seed and most likely open the playoffs against the sixth seed Warriors.
Should be a good series. Clippers and Warriors are not on friendly terms.
Golden State will be without Bogut who is sidelined for two to three weeks with a cracked rib.
Clippers will finish with the third seed and most likely open the playoffs against the sixth seed Warriors.
Should be a good series. Clippers and Warriors are not on friendly terms.
Golden State will be without Bogut who is sidelined for two to three weeks with a cracked rib.
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Prediction time?
Reggie Miller picks Clips over Spurs, Heat over Pacers and Clips taking it all.
Reggie Miller picks Clips over Spurs, Heat over Pacers and Clips taking it all.
Finals' contestants will be a repeat of last year, pending dubious health status of D. Wade and almost the entire Spurs roster. Winner? First need to see who's healthy enough to play.
Clippers have to pass through either OKC or SAS. Tough job for Doc and company. He certainly has some weapons now, and he knows how to deal with playoff atmosphere. He will be elavated into a real elite class of coaches if he wins it all with the Clippers in his first year.
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
You've gotta love this guy. How he fools every teams' GM's is beyond me........
Bynum unavailable for Hawks' series, Pacers coach says
NBA News
Posted Apr 17, 2014 7:57 PM
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Top-seeded Indiana won't have Andrew Bynum for its first-round series against Atlanta.
Coach Frank Vogel said Thursday that he believes the Pacers' oft-injured center could still work his way back for the playoffs. But he won't be available for the first round, which opens Saturday in Indianapolis.
The Pacers signed the free agent in early February with hope he would add depth behind All-Star center Roy Hibbert. Bynum looked good in his Pacers debut, finishing with eight points and 10 rebounds. But he hasn't played since March 15 because of a sore right knee.
Bynum unavailable for Hawks' series, Pacers coach says
NBA News
Posted Apr 17, 2014 7:57 PM
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Top-seeded Indiana won't have Andrew Bynum for its first-round series against Atlanta.
Coach Frank Vogel said Thursday that he believes the Pacers' oft-injured center could still work his way back for the playoffs. But he won't be available for the first round, which opens Saturday in Indianapolis.
The Pacers signed the free agent in early February with hope he would add depth behind All-Star center Roy Hibbert. Bynum looked good in his Pacers debut, finishing with eight points and 10 rebounds. But he hasn't played since March 15 because of a sore right knee.
Yeah, kinda baffling, Steve. I am reminded of one Jermaine O'Neil, who may actually be 'helping' the Warriors now.
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
TNT's Sager to miss playoffs with leukemia
Posted Apr 18, 2014 7:32 PM
ATLANTA (AP) -- TNT analyst Craig Sager will miss the NBA playoffs as he undergoes treatment for leukemia.
A sideline reporter famous for his brightly colored suits, Sager's sense of humor was intact in a statement released by Turner Sports on Friday.
Sager describes the postseason as "my favorite time of year - city to city, round by round, 40 games in 40 nights." He says that "a dramatic turn has matched me with acute myeloid leukemia. From the sidelines to being sidelined, 40 veins and 40 electrolytes."
Sager jokes about the often-terse in-game interviews with San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich: "Too bad, I had some probing questions for Pop."
Posted Apr 18, 2014 7:32 PM
ATLANTA (AP) -- TNT analyst Craig Sager will miss the NBA playoffs as he undergoes treatment for leukemia.
A sideline reporter famous for his brightly colored suits, Sager's sense of humor was intact in a statement released by Turner Sports on Friday.
Sager describes the postseason as "my favorite time of year - city to city, round by round, 40 games in 40 nights." He says that "a dramatic turn has matched me with acute myeloid leukemia. From the sidelines to being sidelined, 40 veins and 40 electrolytes."
Sager jokes about the often-terse in-game interviews with San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich: "Too bad, I had some probing questions for Pop."
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
D'Antoni, Lakers to meet soon to discuss future
Posted Apr 18, 2014 8:22 PM - Updated Apr 18, 2014 9:07 PM
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) -- Mike D'Antoni was still the Los Angeles Lakers' coach when he left their training complex to spend the Easter weekend out of town with his family.
How long D'Antoni retains his job won't be decided at least until next week.
General manager Mitch Kupchak praised his embattled coach Friday while the Lakers finished their final exit interviews and headed to an unusually early summer following a franchise-worst 55-loss season. D'Antoni will meet with Kupchak and Lakers owner Jim Buss in the near future to determine whether the veteran coach returns.
"He's under contract for two more years," Kupchak said. "If anything changes, we'll let you know."
D'Antoni will make $4 million next year, and the Lakers hold an option for 2015-16. If he is asked to leave, the Lakers will have their fourth head coach in just over three years since Phil Jackson walked away from the team in 2011.
The Lakers' decision on D'Antoni will be both a reaction to a miserable season and a reflection of the franchise's ambition for the future. With just three players under contract for next season and a top-10 pick in a strong draft, the Lakers' reconfiguration will begin in earnest this summer, but it's uncertain whether Buss and Kupchak want D'Antoni to lead it.
D'Antoni isn't disturbed or surprised by the scrutiny around him. He is 67-87 since taking over for Mike Brown early last season, occasionally clashing with stars Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol while the Lakers fell to their worst winning percentage since 1958.
"Every coach should be under scrutiny," D'Antoni said. "Some coaches get fired even after the best years they've ever had. ... There's always things we could have done better, and it's easier with hindsight. Things don't always go smoothly. For the most part, our guys were very competitive. For us, there are some silver linings in there, but in hindsight, it's disappointing for everybody."
Kupchak didn't blame D'Antoni for the Lakers' season, instead citing the injury woes that hurt them before the season even began. Bryant and Steve Nash spent most of the year on the sideline as Los Angeles lost a league-worst 319 man-games to injury.
Kupchak also had nothing critical to say about Bryant, who was in Europe this week while his teammates wrapped up the season. The fourth-leading scorer in NBA history has said he's not interested in a lengthy rebuilding process, but Kupchak hopes to emulate the Lakers' turnaround in the middle of the last decade when they went from their last playoff absence in 2005 to the NBA Finals in 2008.
"I would be happy if it took the same amount of time," Kupchak said. "I don't want to put a number on the number of summers, but I believe we can. I believe this is an attractive destination."
The Lakers' last revival hinged on acquiring Gasol, who is an unrestricted free agent. Although Gasol and D'Antoni seemed an ill fit for most of the past two years, Kupchak said the Lakers will talk to the 7-foot Spaniard.
"Absolutely, he is a priority," Kupchak said. "If you look at the free-agent board ... there's probably not a player as good as Pau on the board. I think Pau has a great relationship with the organization. I know he loves the city. But he'll be pursued and he'll have options, and we'll just have to see what the marketplace dictates."
Only Bryant, Nash and center Robert Sacre are under contract for next season. The Lakers have an option on point guard Kendall Marshall, who received praise from Kupchak, while leading scorer Nick Young has a player option that he is unlikely to exercise.
Although Bryant's $48.5 million contract eats up a big chunk of that space, the Lakers have the freedom to make a few moves. They also have their highest draft pick since 1982, when the franchise chose Hall of Famer James Worthy.
Kupchak doesn't envision a magic fix for the 16-time NBA champions, but the veteran GM has spent months working on a plan. Whether it includes D'Antoni should be known soon.
"There is a degree of patience here," Kupchak said. "It's not like we've worked four years to create financial flexibility and now no matter what on July 8 we've got to spend it all or lose it all. We have to make sure that we use it wisely. If we can use it wisely right away, we will. If we have to use part of it and wait a year to use the other part of it, we'll do that."
Posted Apr 18, 2014 8:22 PM - Updated Apr 18, 2014 9:07 PM
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) -- Mike D'Antoni was still the Los Angeles Lakers' coach when he left their training complex to spend the Easter weekend out of town with his family.
How long D'Antoni retains his job won't be decided at least until next week.
General manager Mitch Kupchak praised his embattled coach Friday while the Lakers finished their final exit interviews and headed to an unusually early summer following a franchise-worst 55-loss season. D'Antoni will meet with Kupchak and Lakers owner Jim Buss in the near future to determine whether the veteran coach returns.
"He's under contract for two more years," Kupchak said. "If anything changes, we'll let you know."
D'Antoni will make $4 million next year, and the Lakers hold an option for 2015-16. If he is asked to leave, the Lakers will have their fourth head coach in just over three years since Phil Jackson walked away from the team in 2011.
The Lakers' decision on D'Antoni will be both a reaction to a miserable season and a reflection of the franchise's ambition for the future. With just three players under contract for next season and a top-10 pick in a strong draft, the Lakers' reconfiguration will begin in earnest this summer, but it's uncertain whether Buss and Kupchak want D'Antoni to lead it.
D'Antoni isn't disturbed or surprised by the scrutiny around him. He is 67-87 since taking over for Mike Brown early last season, occasionally clashing with stars Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol while the Lakers fell to their worst winning percentage since 1958.
"Every coach should be under scrutiny," D'Antoni said. "Some coaches get fired even after the best years they've ever had. ... There's always things we could have done better, and it's easier with hindsight. Things don't always go smoothly. For the most part, our guys were very competitive. For us, there are some silver linings in there, but in hindsight, it's disappointing for everybody."
Kupchak didn't blame D'Antoni for the Lakers' season, instead citing the injury woes that hurt them before the season even began. Bryant and Steve Nash spent most of the year on the sideline as Los Angeles lost a league-worst 319 man-games to injury.
Kupchak also had nothing critical to say about Bryant, who was in Europe this week while his teammates wrapped up the season. The fourth-leading scorer in NBA history has said he's not interested in a lengthy rebuilding process, but Kupchak hopes to emulate the Lakers' turnaround in the middle of the last decade when they went from their last playoff absence in 2005 to the NBA Finals in 2008.
"I would be happy if it took the same amount of time," Kupchak said. "I don't want to put a number on the number of summers, but I believe we can. I believe this is an attractive destination."
The Lakers' last revival hinged on acquiring Gasol, who is an unrestricted free agent. Although Gasol and D'Antoni seemed an ill fit for most of the past two years, Kupchak said the Lakers will talk to the 7-foot Spaniard.
"Absolutely, he is a priority," Kupchak said. "If you look at the free-agent board ... there's probably not a player as good as Pau on the board. I think Pau has a great relationship with the organization. I know he loves the city. But he'll be pursued and he'll have options, and we'll just have to see what the marketplace dictates."
Only Bryant, Nash and center Robert Sacre are under contract for next season. The Lakers have an option on point guard Kendall Marshall, who received praise from Kupchak, while leading scorer Nick Young has a player option that he is unlikely to exercise.
Although Bryant's $48.5 million contract eats up a big chunk of that space, the Lakers have the freedom to make a few moves. They also have their highest draft pick since 1982, when the franchise chose Hall of Famer James Worthy.
Kupchak doesn't envision a magic fix for the 16-time NBA champions, but the veteran GM has spent months working on a plan. Whether it includes D'Antoni should be known soon.
"There is a degree of patience here," Kupchak said. "It's not like we've worked four years to create financial flexibility and now no matter what on July 8 we've got to spend it all or lose it all. We have to make sure that we use it wisely. If we can use it wisely right away, we will. If we have to use part of it and wait a year to use the other part of it, we'll do that."
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