"If you doubt his quickness, or you doubt his ball-handling ability, you just saw it right there." Truer words were never spoken, Hubie Brown. Yikes-a-daisies.

Hiccup-quick crossovers and eventual detonations weren't all Derrick Rose did right in the first half of Game 3 of his Chicago Bulls' Eastern Conference semifinals series against the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night. After appearing a step slow due to his nagging left ankle sprain in Games 1 and 2, Rose looked none the worse for wear in the first two periods at Philips Arena, scoring 21 points on 9-for-14 shooting, notching three assists with no turnovers, and generally dominating in a manner befitting the league's Most Valuable Player.

Fresh off a fawning piece by some jerk, Hawks point guard Jeff Teague got off to a fast start as well, hitting his first five shots and finishing the half with a team-leading 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting, one assist and one turnover.

Poor shooting by Teague's mates spurred by solid Bulls defense (the other Hawks were a combined 12-for-31 from the field) and hot shooting by Rose's spurred by not-so-solid Hawks defense (the other Bulls were just a tick under 50 percent at 14-for-30) helped tell the tale, as Chicago took a 56-43 lead into halftime.

International readers ("Int'l read'rs"): If the clip above isn't rocking for you, please feel free to check the cross-and-crush elsewhere.

Lamar Odom will be the starter at small forward (or perhaps shooting guard) in place of the suspended Ron Artest. The lineups were just released and Odom was with the...

A game removed from an ankle tweaking that had Chicago fans concerned, Bulls point guard Derrick Rose rebounded with perhaps the best game of his young career. The reigning MVP put up a career-best 44 points in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, and the Bulls beat the Hawks by a 99-82 score.

Rose scored his 44 points within 38 minutes on the court, shooting 16-for-27 with four three-pointers. He also dished seven assists and pulled down five rebounds. Joakim Noah was terrific in a supporting role; though he only scored two points, he was good for 15 rebounds and five blocks in a huge defensive effort.

The Hawks couldn't find an answer for either man, as Rose's shots kept falling and Noah's presence made inside scoring a tough undertaking. Jeff Teague added 21 points and Josh Smith added 17, but the Hawks were out-rebounded 47-34, and center Al Horford wasn't a serious scoring threat until the game was effectively out of reach.

The Bulls now lead the best-of-seven series, two games to one. Game 4 will tip off in Atlanta at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday.

For more on these teams, check out SB Nation's Bulls blog, Blog a Bull, and our Hawks blog, Peachtree Hoops.

According to the league-mandated pregame information released by the Lakers, Kobe Bryant would replace the suspended Ron Artest at small forward, with Shannon Brown starting at shooting guard for Game 3 of their series against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

Bellator's 2011 welterweight tournament concludes in Saturday's captivating headliner, which pits undefeated Judoka Rick Hawn versus Xtreme Couture hitman Jay Hieron.

The remaining match-ups on the card will be previewed briefly tomorrow, but this collision should be a doozy and called for a more detailed analysis.

It's rare to witness Olympic caliber Judo in the cage, and even more unusual to see it whittled into such a functional kickboxing package in such a short span of time.

Rick Hawn (11-0) has taken to MMA like Tank Abbott to cocktails, avoiding the aches and pains that normally plague singularly proficient fighters early in their career. The Dellagrotte product enters the welterweight finals with a perfect record after narrowly escaping the dangerous Lyman Good by split decision, propelled by his ever improving stand-up, strong top control in the 2nd, and a key takedown to close the fight.

Jay Hieron (21-4) has always been one of the highly respected 170-pounders outside of the Octagon, even though he went 0-2 inside it. He was once headed for a shot at Nick Diaz's Strikeforce belt, but some shenanigans involving medicinal Mary Jane, Armando Garcia and CSAC licensing unhinged the bout.

Hieron took out Jesse Taylor and Joe Riggs instead, then set up shop with Bellator for the welterweight tournament. The bracket favorite had a tough journey to the finish line courtesy of Brent Weedman, who had previously upset Dan Hornbuckle and almost pulled off a repeat. Their semifinal contest went to Hieron by unanimous decision, though the fans did not unanimously agree with the judges.

An in-depth look at how the main event fighters stack up follows in the full entry. 

SBN coverage of Bellator 43

Variables

Judging: There is a list of attributes that judges tend to favor in a fighter, and Rick Hawn has many of them. He's aggressive, he moves forward constantly, he throws big punches, and even one substantial throw or takedown often outweighs any number of unsuccessful attempts. This is like handing your teachers a shiny red apple with a twinkling smile right before they grade your paper.

The Unknown: Each fighter will threaten the other with some unknown elements. Hawn has yet to face a top-shelf wrestler, let alone a wrestler with the submission and striking abilities of Hieron. Conversely, Hawn's unparalleled Judo and Sityodtong striking is a tough union for anyone to accommodate.

Experience: At the elite level, Hieron has a lot. Hawn does not, and "The Thoroughbred" is easily Hawn's steepest test.

Free Movement / Striking Phase

I can't commend Hawn enough for the considerable advancements he's made with his stand-up game. He's displayed a strong grasp of overall fundamentals in a short amount of time; a tribute to his athleticism and malleability.

Against savvy striker Lyman Good, his most capable opponent to date, Hawn was understandably a bit gun-shy and fell back on his takedowns to even things out. In his early fights, Hawn was able to corner and contain his opponents, mashing them into the fence or to the mat where his ground-and-pound followed. Leading up to the Good fight, he showed unnerving comfort in his stand-up and waited for his adversaries to press before enforcing his clinch (shown to the right vs. LeVon Maynard), or more impressively, just beat them standing (see Hawn vs. Rough House scrapper "Judo" Jim Wallhead).

Happy to clinch at anytime, Hawn is somewhat immune to some of the striking tendencies that leave the average guy vulnerable (also depicted in the animation). Hawn's been broadsided with singles and doubles in the middle of throwing a combo, but was still able to recover and fend off the attempt. Whether intentional or not, his uncanny balance and ungodly powerful base have allowed him to get caught out of position and emerge unscathed, or even turn the situation to his advantage.

Lyman Good was the first solid striker that threw Hawn's rhythm off and stung with stiff counters while resisting the clinch, and Jay Hieron should do the same. Though he mixes in low, mid, and straight kicks, Hieron is mostly a proficient boxer with sharp counters and substantial power. Good might be the stronger specimen physically, but Hieron's experience, wrestling background, and tight boxing will yield the same problems that Good presented.

I don't think it's coincidental that Hawn's inexperience in other aspects became more apparent against Good. Forming a dual-pronged attack by adding efficient kickboxing to his Judo foundation was what carried him up to the big leagues, and though he's advanced at an alarming rate, I don't think it's been enough to catch up with Hieron. Jay has also settled nicely into the role of the counter-puncher, and should be able to drill some holes through Hawn's adequate but embryonic striking.

Advantage: Hieron

Clinch Phase

It's fascinating to watch a Judoka of Hawn's status adapt his background to MMA's environment. Where a freestyle or Greco-Roman wrestler has a smaller list of adjustments to make to implement their strengths, the lack of a gi and the preference to close distance and tie up makes the transition more difficult for Judo players.

Along with more intense acclimation comes a smaller range of techniques, as that jacket that was specifically designed for clenching and gripping is no longer there, now replaced by slippery skin.

That's why range and distance is a critical tool for Hawn. In close, his hips are still as deadly as ever, and a subtle ballet of footwork, balance, and momentum unfold in his fierce clinch game. There's a good chance the man could hip-bump the Eiffel Tower crooked.

Hieron was a high school state and JuCo national wrestling champion, but -- just as I feel it's unlikely for Hawn to match his experience standing -- I don't see Hieron matching Hawn's skill in the clinch, especially if Hawn can use the cage to restrict his movement. Hieron can survive if he's very escape-minded, stays away from Hawn's waist and doesn't get trapped against the fence.

However, when directly immersed in the clinch and tangling with Hawn, the Olympic-level Judoka gets the nod. With a gi, without a gi, or even in a clown costume, Hawn has spent more time training techniques in this position than fighters like Rory MacDonald have been alive. The disclaimer is that it's even harder to force a clinch when your opponent knows it's coming and doesn't want to play the game (see Machida vs. Couture), and it's no secret that this is where Hawn excels. Hieron is adept with infighting and can survive in the position for short periods of time, but unless avoided at all costs, it's only playing with fire.

Advantage: Hawn

Grappling Phase

If you re-examine the beautiful throw by Hawn above, but this time, replace LeVon Maynard's clumsy forward-lurch with a fine-tuned double leg, and we have an example of the different kind of threat Hieron brings to the table. I'm not sure Hawn can get away with some of his lackadaisical habits against Hieron and simply make up for it with his strength and skill, especially in a three rounder.

To my knowledge, we've yet to see Hawn on his back in MMA, and Hieron's tenacious top game might be overwhelming if he can impose it.

Hieron wreaks havoc with a litany of catches that are conducive to active wrestlers when shooting, sprawling, scrambling, and clinching. The attempts are usually low risk and maintain or improve position rather than sacrifice it.  Backed by Hieron's agile but hefty base:  D'arce, anaconda, and north-south chokes, arm-triangles, americanas and kimuras all punctuate his arsenal. Jumping for the guillotine is the one maneuver he's pursued in the past that will be ill-advised versus Hawn.

Hieron is also a great scrambler, so normally he's able to break loose and recover if he ends up on the bottom. Hieron clearly has the composure to hold his own in the guard, but as we saw against Lyman Good, one mistake against a potent control-and-pound fighter can cost exactly one-third of the fight on the score cards.

There's a little too much mystery for me to make a strong pick here. Weedman was able to take Hieron down, and I can picture Hawn flagging down the popcorn vendor while a small army of wrestlers attempting double-legs bounce off his legs completely unbeknownst to him. Hieron is much more proven with freestyle wrestling, but if Hawn can stuff the shot and wrap him up, it becomes his world.

With the right timing, Hieron could also nail a shot and test Hawn's guard, but in most scenarios, I see Hawn on top. Even though this is a close one with many unknowns and Hawn might be the favorite in a straight takedown war, Hieron's experience and comprehensive style should put him slightly ahead here, even though I wouldn't be entirely surprised if Hawn can muffle him and ride out the round.

Advantage: Hieron (slight)

Summary

Becoming a well-rounded martial artist is imperative, and Hawn's frightening assimilation in only two short years of pro competition is what carried him to the top so quickly. Being a "complete fighter" is a means to an end, and that end is having the ability to implement a system of tactics to exploit your biggest strength or your opponent's biggest weakness.

This is why I see Hieron negating Hawn's strength by staying elusive and peppering him with precise counters. If Hawn does get him in the clinch, Hieron should be able to escape and punish him on the way in and on the way out, stuffing underhooks and circling away with an array of tight hooks and uppercuts.

As with any MMA bout, Hawn could connect on the feet, score some takedowns or maintain top control, but Hieron has the more expansive inventory and should be smart enough to assemble and adhere to a poignant strategy.

My prediction:  Hieron by TKO

Hawn gif courtesy of Caposa

Hieron gif from Smoogy

Poll

Who wins the Bellator 2011 Welterweight Tournament?

• Rick Hawn
• Jay Hieron

  103 votes | Results

Since Sunday is the final day that early-entry candidates who have not signed with an agent can withdraw from the NBA draft and retain their college eligibility, I spoke to an NBA scout about some of the top undecided prospects.

His opinions on eight of those prospects are below. I granted him anonymity so he could speak candidly about each of the players, their draft stock and whether they would be better off staying in the draft or returning to school.

1. Shelvin Mack, G, Butler: "I don't know if he can get a guarantee at the end of the first round, but if he stays and has a good three weeks or four weeks, he can definitely move into the later first round. He's a very high character kid, very coachable, he can shoot the ball. He can definitely be successful in an up-and-down system as well as running pick-and-roll. And he's not bad on defense I just think he's not going to get a promise in the first round. For him to understand the process is very important, but he could definitely benefit from another year in school."

Where he'll go if he stays in the draft: 25 to 40

2. Ashton Gibbs, G, Pittsburgh: "With Jamie Dixon, you always put yourself in position to win. He needs to really work on his game, do the summer circuit, go to the big shoe company camps and work out in front of NBA guys. There's no rush for him to come out. In my opinion, it would be a crazy decision. His lack of running a team hurts him a little bit. He needs to definitely stay another year. I doubt he'd be drafted. He could have some good workouts and anything could happen, but I think he's an afterthought to some of these teams. Why draft him at 52 when I can draft a European with some upside, stash him over there?"

Where he'll go if he stays in the draft: 45 to undrafted

3. Klay Thompson, G, Washington State: "I don't know about his character. I know he's had a couple issues here and there. But as far as him as a player, he's got great size, he can make shots, you can run him off screens. I think he's a kid that will go 20 to 35. I'm really a big fan of his. You can run him off screens for days. He can space your defense out. He can drive on long closeouts. He's a good player, a very good player."

Where he'll go if he stays in the draft: 20 to 35

4. Terrence Jones, F, Kentucky: "Jones definitely has the size, athletic ability and ability to score. I've had him in the top ten all year. He has some character issues and you have to look at that strongly, but I don't see him going past 20 even if his character becomes an issue. He has a lot of ability."

Where he'll go if he stays in the draft: 8 to 20

5. DeAndre Liggins, G, Kentucky: "It's a weird situation. He didn't have a great year individually, but look at his perspective. They've got 100 all-Americans coming in next year. Where's he going to fit? ... I would probably rate him 35 to undrafted, but he's definitely good enough to make a roster. He's a guy I'd put a year into. I'd put him in the D-League, let him develop and see how good he is. He can really guard people, he's good off the dribble and his shooting will develop even if it's not there yet ... He's one of those guys who may have to do it the Bruce Bowen way. He may have to go overseas, may have to go to the D-League and fight his way out."

Where he'll go if he stays in the draft: 35 to undrafted

6. Tobias Harris, F, Tennessee: "Tobias really needs to develop a little bit more. He's a little bit of an undersized four man to be honest. I don't know how he develops. For him to make it, he's going to have to be Ryan Gomes, and he's just not. He's got some talent for sure, but I think he'd be making a mistake."

Where he'll go if he stays in the draft:15 to 30

UPDATE: Tennessee announced Friday evening Harris will enter the draft

7. Ralph Sampson II, F, Minnesota: "He has some upside for sure. He was so clumsy and uncoordinated in high school that I thought he'd be a guy who rides the bench at Minnesota, but he's actually good. He has NBA three-point range. He's more of a four now because he can step out. He's not bad. He can post you up, take you outside, take you inside. He might not be as talented as Jeff Green, but he's got some Jeff Green in him."

Where he'll go if he stays in the draft:40 to undrafted

8. John Shurna, F, Northwestern: "He's an interesting one. He reminds me a little of Matt Carroll, a big wing with good length that can shoot the ball. He's actually a good player. His shot is funky looking, but he's a very effective, efficient shooter. He'll be in that New Jersey workout this weekend. I think he can definitely make a roster. If I was a team at 40, I'd promise him. But with the NBA lockout looming, it might not matter.  He's not going to be a first-round pick. Even if you get a one-year guarantee, what's that worth if the season starts in February? You could have been doing all that at Northwestern."

Where he'll go if he stays in the draft:40 to undrafted

According to the league-mandated pregame information released by the Lakers, Kobe Bryant would replace the suspended Ron Artest at small forward, with Shannon Brown starting at shooting guard for Game 3 of their series against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

Nick Calathes, a Dallas Mavericks prospect who starred for Florida basketball, led Greek power Panathinaikos to a77-69 victory over Italian side Montepaschi Siena in the Euroleague Final Four on Friday. Panathinaikos will face Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv, the winner of Friday's other semifinal against Real Madrid, in Sunday's championship game in Barcelona.

Calathes left the Florida Gators after his sophomore season to enter the 2009 NBA Draft. But soon after declaring and before the draft was held, he signed a multi-year deal with Panathinaikos, which flummoxed observers and drew substantial catcalls from the college basketball punditry. He slipped into the second round of the draft, where the Mavericks picked him up to maintain his NBA rights.

Calathes has flourished in Greece, and led his squad with 17 points. Greek legend Dimitris Diamanditis had eight points and a game-high nine assists for Panathinaikos; Lithuanian guard Rimantas Kaukenas led Montepaschi with 13 points, and former San Antonio Spur Malik Hairston scored 12 on 4-12 shooting.

The Lakers plan to start Shannon Brown at shooting guard and Kobe Bryant at small forward Friday in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinals series with the Dallas Mavericks, according to the Lakers' game notes. Lakers Coach Phil Jackson wouldn't divulge who would start in place of forward Ron Artest, who will serve a one-game suspension for his clothes-lining of Dallas guard J.J. Barea in the waning seconds of the Lakers' Game 2 loss. But by no means are the game notes binding. According to NBA Statscube, the lineup featuring Derek Fisher and Brown sharing backcourt duties, Bryant playing...

According to the league-mandated pregame information released by the Lakers, Kobe Bryant would replace the suspended Ron Artest at small forward, with Shannon Brown starting at shooting guard for Game 3 of their series against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

According to the league-mandated pregame information released by the Lakers, Kobe Bryant would replace the suspended Ron Artest at small forward, with Shannon Brown starting at shooting guard for Game 3 of their series against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

According to the league-mandated pregame information released by the Lakers, Kobe Bryant would replace the suspended Ron Artest at small forward, with Shannon Brown starting at shooting guard for Game 3 of their series against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

DALLAS (AP) -- According to the league-mandated pregame information released by the Lakers, Kobe Bryant will replace the suspended Ron Artest at small forward, with Shannon Brown starting at shooting guard for Game 3 of their series against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

According to the league-mandated pregame information released by the Lakers, Kobe Bryant will replace the suspended Ron Artest at small forward, with Shannon Brown starting at shooting guard for Game 3 of their series against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

Accurately predicting a draft project's growth is tricky business, though oddly enough we should feel relatively comfortable at Ernie Grunfeld's ability to do so, given his track record with the Wizards.  Of course, he's never drafted that way in the mid-to high-lottery, but that's your 2011 rookie class.  Opinions have varied almost as widely as the number of available choices, so let's have a quick and dirty recap.

The Kyrie Irving crowd will point to the possibility of Nick Young leaving and needing the back court help.  But even if he stays; a backcourt of John Wall, Jordan Crawford, Kyrie Irving, and Young Sushi?  Good NIGHT!  And no less than THREE on rookie contracts for at least THREE more years??  Maybe Brandon Knight fans run the same argument.  But then you run into the Portland Trail Blazers problem: an intriguing rotation, but can you find minutes for all of them?

More below the jump.

And of course, the Wizards still have a few piddling issues elsewhere.  The Derrick Williams crowd says he can play the 3 or the 4, it's Trevor Booker with three-point range!  It's Danny Granger on rollerskates!  Another tweener, the others groan.  Not quick enough to defend the 3 or big enough to defend the 4.  Nonsense, they reply!  His frenetic offense will take away their defensive legs and how many true 4s are left in the NBA anyway?

The Enes Kanter crowd screams low post scoring that doesn't involve putbacks or twisting fadeaway layups that get blocked by opposing point guards!  Maybe he'll rebound, too!   Uh huh, the others say.  Based on the mountain of available evidence and the domination of Josh McRoberts in braces?  AND he's a Euro.  [Editor's note: I might be willing to do it just to stick it to Josh McRoberts.]  Not like any you've seen, they reply.  If the Ottoman Empire had him back in World War I, we'd all be speaking Turkish.

The Harrison Barnes crowd wonders why the hell he skipped the draft.

Terrence Jones fans agree he's no first option, but also argue we don't need him to be.  If there's any team that will develop him and find the time to build his confidence back up on the floor, it's Washington.  While you hope for a feature player drafting this high in the lottery, sometimes you just have to hold your breath, and hope for a Gilbert Arenas-like work ethic.

Chad Ford believes the Wizards should take Jan Vesely because he's pogostick AND he STARTED in the Euroleague.  Let's hope Ernie is listening ... so what if he can't shoot?  Hey, the Wiz need someone who can run with John Wall and jump!  I guess Chad Ford forgot we already drafted a quicksilver forward with leaping ability who can't shoot ... except Trevor Booker plays defense AND has a super kewl nickname.

The Bismack Biyombo crowd says they did that weird bone test to figure out his age and he could be as young as sixteen!  He has ferocious energy and a lunch pail work ethic!  I'm sure a mentor that hosts Lap Dance Tuesday will be a solid influence on a teenager.  Yay for his first words in English: "Champagne Room!"

No more than one volume shooting combo guard, Kemba Walker fans.

Jonas Valanciunas fans may post below, so Rook may ban you.

Poll

Regardless of draft position, which player do you feel best projects to fill the needs of a burgeoning Washington contender? If you want a different option, post it below and I'll throw it up here.

• Kyrie Irving/Brandon Knight
• Derrick Williams
• Enes Kanter
• Terrence Jones
• Jan Vesely
• Bismack Biyombo
• Kemba Walker
• Jonas Valanciunas

  94 votes | Results

Jeff Teague played a few more minutes per night as a second-year man during the 2010-11 regular season than he did as a rookie the year before. He scored more points per 36 minutes, improved his field goal and 3-point shooting percentages, showed an improved touch out to about 15 feet, and rebounded a little more often. He assisted on a slightly lower percentage of his Atlanta Hawks teammates' baskets, but he also turned the ball over a bit less.

On balance, then, the numbers say that Teague got better this year; this is to be expected as a player moves from Year 1 as a professional to Year 2. But whether you like your measuring sticks advanced — a regular-season Player Efficiency Rating of 14.6 put him below the league average of 15 — or, um, unadvanced, I guess ("Larry Drew must have seen something he didn't like to only give the kid 14 minutes a night!"), you were hard-pressed to argue that Teague is really a key piece for the Hawks right now.

Sure, he'd had a couple of nice late-season games — 24 points, five steals, three assists and three blocks against the Portland Trail Blazers in March, for example, or 21 points on 10 shots in just 21 minutes against the Indiana Pacers just before the start of the playoffs. But the consensus opinion seemed to be that, whether he deserved a crack or not, he wouldn't really be a player to be reckoned with this postseason.

Then, starting point guard Kirk Hinrich hurt his leg as the Hawks closed out their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series against the Orlando Magic. The severe right hamstring strain would render him a spectator for at least the start of Atlanta's second-round matchup with the top-seeded Chicago Bulls, and there were no other legitimate options for Drew at the one, so Teague was pushed into the starting lineup for just the 11th time in 150 career NBA games.

The smart money (and dumb money like mine, too) pegged Teague's insertion as unfavorable for Atlanta. The thinking was that Derrick Rose, Chicago's MVP trigger-man, would eat the still-ripening Wake Forest product for breakfast (no LeBron), pacing the Bulls to a blitzkrieg of the Hawks en route to the Eastern Conference Finals.

But a funny thing happened on the way to a too-easy blowout: Jeff Teague has played like a man bent on making a reputation for himself. And he's actually doing it.

In Atlanta's stunning Game 1 upset, Teague hustled for nearly 45 of the game's 48 minutes, using his quickness and athleticism (and, as Zach Lowe noted at The Point Forward, quite a bit of help from Josh Smith and Al Horford) to hound Rose into some early misses. Combine the defensive effort with his not-eye-popping-but-steady-enough contributions on the offensive end — 10 points on 5-for-11 shooting, five assists and, most importantly, just one turnover — and the series' most glaring mismatch turned into a much more even affair than most expected, helping the Hawks wrest home-court advantage from Tom Thibodeau's team.

The Bulls evened the series Wednesday night with an ugly Game 2 victory, but Teague turned in another strong performance. As Bret LaGree wrote at Hawks blog Hoopinion, he again "did as good a job on Derrick Rose as can reasonably be expected" defensively, and stepped up his offensive game, making 50 percent of his field-goal attempts and going 6-for-7 from the foul line to score 21 points, and posting three assists, three rebounds, two blocked shots and no turnovers in just under 40 minutes of run.

At times on Wednesday, Teague looked like the steadiest, most collected player on the court for Atlanta. Admittedly, that's not saying a ton when you consider how scattered the Hawks played. But it's damn sure not nothing, especially for a second-year bit-parter making just his second playoff start against the league's newly minted "it" boy.

The showing impressed CBSSports.com's Royce Young:

Teague's effort in the first two games of this series is probably the second best thing the Hawks are taking back with them to Atlanta (a win being the first). [...] In Game 2, he outplayed the guy that was just handed the MVP trophy by David Stern before the game.

That, along with the snatching of homecourt in Game 1, means the Hawks have a chance.

It also drew the comedic ire of Matt McHale at Bulls blog By the Horns:

Oh, and could somebody, anybody, do something about Jeff Teague (21 points, 7-for-14, 6-for-7 from the line, zero turnovers)? Teague is playing so well that the Bulls are praying for Kirk Hinrich to miraculously heal overnight.

While Hinrich works on getting back on the court, the staunch defender, cerebral player and former Bull is doing what he can to prepare Teague for what he'll see on the court, according to Ken Sugiura of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Drew's decision to bring Kirk Hinrich to Chicago despite not having hopes of playing him because of his hamstring injury proved fruitful. Hinrich, a former Bull, offered Jeff Teague and others insight on the Chicago roster.

"He's always in my ear, every timeout, telling me things I can do, how I can guard Derrick Rose on a certain play or what he sees on offense, plays to call, things like that," Teague said.

To be fair, this reservoir of goodwill and positive impressions could dry up in the space of 12 hours. It's possible that Teague has difficulty sustaining his sound, careful offensive play and turns in a less-than-stellar performance, as inexperienced point guards often do in the postseason. That wouldn't be shocking at all; in fact, it's what many of us probably expect to happen sooner or later (and more likely sooner).

More to the point, it's very possible that Rose, after some rest and a couple of days of treatment on his ailing ankle, comes out tonight and plays like the MVP we watched for the last six months. If he's that aggressive, that sharp, that quick and that adept at finishing, there's very little that Teague (or anyone else, for that matter) can do to stop him, no matter what advice Hinrich gives or how much help the Hawks' bigs can offer. If that happens, Chicago will probably win Game 3, re-take home court advantage, and once again be viewed as the team in the driver's seat.

But irrespective of how tonight's game turns out, it's immutable fact that Jeff Teague has made an awful lot of people stand up and take notice of his talents over these last two games. Where many non-Hawks fans once looked in his direction and saw a slightly below-average first-round pick who has yet to bear fruit, a national audience is now seeing what more ardent Atlanta backers like the guys at Peachtree Hoops have long argued was really there:

Sure, Jeff Teague is inconsistent offensively and probably would be for a while in an offense where he'd be the 4th option at best, but the ability to hold his counterpart to a minimal carnage vs. the Hawks has been long undervalued.  Of the 9 games he's started as a Hawk, I recall at least 3 that he was the BEST HAWK on the floor.  [...] Teague has proven that he belongs on the court with the best players in the league in all situations (starting, closing, clutch, defensive stops, etc).

If the coming-out party came in a series that wasn't widely considered to be one of the uglier second-round matchups in recent memory, maybe more people would've shown up and taken note of just how impressive Teague's been. Oh, well. More punch and pie for the rest of us.

• Randy Galloway of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: "For wisdom, maturity and leadership, our new basketball hero is... Dirk? Rick? No. Mark Cuban, you the man. The man who went to LA for four days, was the center of Southern California media attention, particularly since the Dodgers need a new owner, and basically zipped it for his entire stay out there. Didn't say spit. The only way we knew Cuban was still alive was when the TNT cameras picked up a big smile that kept popping up behind the Dallas Mavericks' bench at the Staples Center. I'm wordless over this development, being someone who spent the last decade telling Mark to shut up. He finally did, and improbable stuff has happened to his Mavs. Never thought I'd say this: Everyone needs to now take a behavioral cue from Cuban. Lay low. What you say now can be used against you later. Let Dirk handle it. Let Rick handle it. And even Little J.J. ... Mr. Cuban, what has gotten into you? 'Lot of work still to do,' was his brief and to-the-point e-mail answer on Thursday. Wisdom, maturity and leadership prevails. And I thought 2-0 was a shocker."
• Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times: "About two weeks ago, Derek Fisher gathered together his teammates and told them to look around the room. He warned all the Lakers that if they don't reach their goal of winning a third consecutive NBA championship, next season the faces on the team could look quite different. Fisher pointed out that the possibility of the Lakers' management making changes was realistic because it happened to him during his first tour with the Lakers. 'We discussed that buttons will be pushed,' Fisher said after practice Thursday. 'That's the reality, and it's business with this team. You have to understand it and appreciate it for what it is. I think guys understand it.' The Lakers began the season as the favorites to win the title, but their hopes are fading because of the 0-2 deficit they face against the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference semifinals. Games 3 and 4 are in Dallas this weekend. It's already a given that Lakers Coach Phil Jackson will retire after the season."
• Kevin Ding of The Orange County Register: "For a Lakers team that truly needs everyone to come together now, here was the start. Kobe Bryant strapped it up and actually practiced with the team Thursday. There was no heavy scrimmaging, but there was a lot of work to do -- a lot of teamwork -- in defending Dallas' spread offense, especially. It was Bryant's first practice since his April 15 cameo two days before the playoffs even started, and every Laker reported afterward Thursday what a productive session this was. Then again, if you were out there sweating through practice every day for the past seven months and the league's glamour boy and game-ball dominator wasn't, you'd probably think this is more like it should be, too. In any case, there was a noticeable good vibration about the team as it came off the practice court Thursday, far different from the stink that emanated from them on the Staples Center court just hours before Wednesday night. It was like your dad who is too busy working on his own big deals stopping to take the time not just to help with your homework, but really sharing the experience. By being on the court learning with them instead of lording over them, Bryant was better able to convey to his teammates his personal lack of panic, his trust that they together should stay confident about their capabilities and their corrections."
• Herb Gould of the Chicago Sun-Times: "The controversy about whether forward Carlos Boozer should be given a diminished role in light of his diminished offense might be raging to outsiders. But there’s no debate within the Bulls’ camp. 'He’s nicked up,’ coach Tom Thibodeau said Thursday at the Berto Center. 'He’s giving us everything he has, and that’s all we’re asking him to do. The rebounding hasn’t dropped off at all. He’ll score. He’s scored his whole career.’ After struggling on offense in front of a United Center crowd that turned on him Wednesday, the veteran admitted the turf-toe injury to his right big toe was hampering him. Taj Gibson, who started last season before yielding when Boozer was signed, said he’s not expecting an increased role in light of Boozer’s injury -- and that’s fine with him. 'Thibs knows what he’s doing,’ Gibson said. 'Whatever minutes he gives me, I’m going to go out there and do my job. Carlos has been doing a phenomenal job. ... He’s playing through an injury. People have to recognize that.’ "
• Lacy J. Banks of the Chicago Sun-Times: "With his great energy and athleticism, Joakim Noah strikes me defensively as a poor man’s Dennis Rodman without the freak-show antics. Offensively, it’s no contest. Despite his ugly shooting style, especially from the free-throw line, Noah is a better shooter than Hall of Famer Rodman, who won seven consecutive NBA rebounding titles and helped the Bulls win their last three championships. 'Rodman was my hero when I was growing up,' Noah said. 'He was one of the greatest rebounders ever. I liked the way he played with passion, got into his opponents’ heads and entertained the crowd. I draw a lot of inspiration from him.' Rodman made rebounding sound simple. 'There’s nothing complex or scientific about rebounding,' he once told me. 'You’ve just got to want it more than the other guy. I look at each missed shot as my rebound. So I jump with the intention of keeping anybody else from taking away what’s mine. Rebounding is more will than skill.' ... As for Noah’s competitiveness, it is first-rate. He takes on all comers. How could we expect any less from a guy who even talked a little trash with President Obama last summer when they played in a pickup game Obama scheduled to entertain some injured troops? 'One time he went up and scored on me,' Noah said. 'I told him, ‘You know, you’re lucky you’re the president because I could have blocked your shot.’ But he said, ‘If you would have gone for the block, I would have pulled a reverse move on you.’ I liked that. The president even talks trash. He’s a cool dude. He’s a man of the people.' So is Noah. Just ask Bulls fans."
• Ken Sugiura of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "At the Hawks’ Thursday practice and video session, rebounding was not the only item on the agenda. Shot selection, winning 50-50 balls and response to the Bulls’ aggressive double teaming of Johnson and Jamal Crawford were others. 'We worked [Thursday] to adjust to that,' Crawford said, speaking of the double teams. 'If we get in the right spots, we can take advantage of what they’re doing.' The Hawks successfully walked this road in the first round. The Orlando Magic were second only to the Bulls in rebounding margin in the regular season — the Hawks were 22nd — but the Hawks thwarted center Dwight Howard with a diet of Collins and Zaza Pachulia. In their Game 1 win in Chicago, the Hawks’ hot shooting served to limit rebounding chances for the Bulls. On Thursday, Hawks coach Larry Drew said the coaching staff considered returning Collins or Pachulia to the starting lineup to add bulk, but sounded committed to keeping Horford at center. That leaves the Hawks to try to match Chicago’s activity on the backboards and keep bodies on Noah and Boozer. Either that or don’t miss any shots."
• Dan Le Batard of The Miami Herald: "The Celtics can’t let Miami’s youth get in the open court. The advantage is too obvious and overwhelming there. Boston’s age not only gets beat but shamed there, as Allen trips and Garnett gets twisted and even Boston’s only young starter (Rajon Rondo) has to flop and fake to avoid a spinning tornado of LeBron. Boston will allow Bosh to have all the defensive rebounds in its zeal to get back after misses, to get a head start, an obvious-to-the-eye, white-flag concession that age can’t keep up in that part of the game. So the Celtics will keep trying to drag the fight into the half-court mud, trying with all the experience and will and pride they have to ward off so many opponents at once: They aren’t merely trying to slow down the Miami Heat or the Miami Heat’s speed. They are trying to slow down their own aging and decline. They are, impossible as this is, trying to slow down time."
• Shandel Richardson of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "Chris Bosh was introduced as a member of the Big Three when he and James signed with the Heat last July, joining Wade. That lasted a few months before it was evident Bosh didn't belong in the club, on and off the court. It started when James and Wade began conducting interviews together after practices and games while Bosh spoke alone. It was never a show of disrespect toward Bosh, but a way for James and Wade to display the friendship they had built over the years. For Bosh, it was an easier way to distinguish his preference of standing alone. 'With me, I've always just been different,' Bosh said. 'I've never tried to fit in. I'm one of the fellas, great. I get along with everybody, great. But if I'm going to read my book, I'm going to read my book and this is what I'm doing.' "
• Julian Benbow of The Boston Globe: "The Celtics are down, two games to none, and searching for answers against a team that’s as fast and strong as it is skilled. There will be frustrations in such a situation, but getting through the fiery moments quickly and staying on the same page is critical. 'Emotional hijacks, you can’t have them,’ said Doc Rivers. 'And they happen. When they happen, they always happen when you’re down or you’re in the heat of battle. They happen because it’s an emotional game, but once you let it get to a point where it’s hijacking the team, that’s never good.’ To an extent, conflict is a part of the Celtics’ DNA. They’ve bickered over defensive assignments, disagreed over play calls and ball movement. They’ve argued over the strength of earthquakes and the best backup point guards of the 2000s. 'If I had a tape recorder on me or a video camera on me over the time that I’ve been here, you would see a lot,’ Ray Allen said. 'I’ve always said about this team, we’ve argued and debated more than I’ve argued or debated in my whole NBA career. I’ve been on teams where you never communicated, you never argued about anything. This team, somebody will tell me I didn’t have pancakes for breakfast this morning and they didn’t even have breakfast with me.’ "
• Ronald Tillery of The Commercial-Appeal: "In all that surrounded Game 2, the Oklahoma City Thunder held a players-only meeting. It began1 at Kevin Durant's house and ended in the paint with the Thunder crowded around Grizzlies power forward Zach Randolph. Game 3 will be a test of how well Randolph and the Griz took notes. By their own admission, the Griz didn't handle the aggressive infiltration of their offense with the intelligence that's guided them to this point. Memphis watched film Thursday morning and the popcorn-less viewing only confirmed what the team already knew: Oklahoma City did nothing special. The Griz had poor spacing. They made bad decisions passing the basketball and settled for jump shots. 'They packed it in on us and clogged the lane, but we worked on our spacing and ball movement,' a stone-face Randolph said. 'We'll be prepared for Saturday.' Griz coach Lionel Hollins didn't use practice Thursday to browbeat his troops. It was a refresher course mainly to remind the Griz that smart basketball will prevail.'
• John Rohde of The Oklahoman: "When Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti included a $6.5 million signing bonus with Nick Collison's four-year contract extension last November, the extra cash essentially was a reward for services rendered. This is the only franchise the 30-year-old Collison has ever known as a pro. Since being drafted 12th overall in 2003, the Kansas product has endured double-shoulder surgery his first season, franchise relocation from Seattle, four straight losing seasons, and all while busting his tail without making a peep. 'He embodies what we're trying to do,' Presti said of Collison. 'A lot of things we're always talking about, he's been that.' Collison is still rendering his services, particularly during this Western Conference semifinal against the Memphis Grizzlies, a best-of-7 playoff series that figures to be a shoving match until the final bell. The series stands 1-1, largely because Collison still works hard for his money. If not, the Thunder very easily could be trailing 2-0. ... At a salary of $13.25 million this season thanks to the signing bonus, Collison makes at least twice as much as every teammate except Nazr Mohammed ($6.88 million) and roughly $7.2 million more than Kevin Durant ($6.05 million). 'We really value him,' Durant said of Collison. 'He's a big part of our success. For us to keep getting better, Nick is going to have to be an important piece. He's playing well for us.' "
• Mike Wells of The Indianapolis Star: "Frank Vogel might want to be coach of the Indiana Pacers, but he's not waiting for an interview. Vogel interviewed for the Houston Rockets' coaching position Thursday, according to multiple people with knowledge of the situation. He is one of many people to show an interest in the job. The Rockets and Rick Adelman parted ways last month. Since then, former Atlanta Hawks coach Mike Woodson, who starred at Broad Ripple High School and Indiana University before an 11-year NBA career; Bucks assistant Kelvin Sampson, a former IU coach; former Nets coach Lawrence Frank, who was an IU student manager; Mario Elie, Kevin McHale and others have interviewed. Vogel and Rockets general manager Daryl Morey worked together with the Boston Celtics. Vogel said during his season-ending news conference last week that he would like to return as Pacers coach. Indiana's coaching situation likely won't be resolved until after team president Larry Bird and owner Herb Simon meet Tuesday to discuss Bird's future."
• Joe Davidson of The Sacramento Bee: "The idea of the Kings filing for relocation and actually heading south hit a nerve across the region. It brought out the best in panic-stricken fans and inspired an already determined Mayor Kevin Johnson, but it brought out the competitive worst in the local media. Every regional TV outlet and some radio stations proclaimed at one point to have an 'exclusive' interview or 'a source' with some stunning update. All of it was designed to make fans rush to tune in, but it often left viewers clamoring for substance rather than more wild speculation. TV folks forgot -- or simply ignored -- what 'exclusive' means: to have the only access to an interview subject. Yet the stations touted having 'exclusives' with the Maloofs on relocation filing day when the owners talked extensively to everyone -- print, radio, TV, Internet and news services. What's more, all local media and some national Internet news services drove the word 'sources' into the ground. Electronic media especially chose not to mention names or specifics. The source could have been your buddy at the bar, waving a foam Kings finger, for all we know."
• Michael Lee of The Washington Post: "John Wall hasn’t made a final decision about returning to Kentucky to take summer school courses, but his former coach, John Calipari, has already extended an invitation for the Wizards point guard to work out in Lexington if the league, as expected, has a lockout. 'I told him, if there is a lockout. You come back with us,' Calipari said. 'I said, ‘Use our building. We’ve got facilities here. Whatever you want, if you need to, if there is a lockout, stay here. Be here in the mornings.’ ' Wall finished out his studies after his only season at Kentucky and was a member of the Southeastern Conference freshman academic honor roll. Calipari added that if Wall were to re-enroll at Kentucky -- which one of Wall’s representatives, Dwon Clifton, said on Thursday was unlikely but 'still a possibility' -- he could practice with the Wildcats as well to stay in basketball shape."
• Don Walker of the Journal Sentinel: "The National Basketball Association is working to extend its reach in India, and it has chosen Milwaukee Bucks' guard Brandon Jennings to help make it happen. The NBA is expected to announce Thursday that Jennings will travel to India from May 13-18 to conduct a series of events to promote and grow the game in Mumbai and Pune. Jennings was chosen because of his youth and his experience playing internationally. Jennings, 21, played overseas in Italy before coming to the Bucks. 'Having played in Italy, I have seen firsthand how the sport is growing globally and I am excited to visit India with the NBA to help continue the growth of the game,' Jennings said. 'The NBA has the best basketball players from around the world and it is amazing to think that one of the kids I teach in India could one day play against me in the NBA.' Jennings will be part of the Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA Nationals Skills Challenge Finals on May 15 in Mumbai. The event is the culmination of the largest school-based initiative ever conducted by the NBA in India."
• Justin Rogers of Booth Newspapers: "When the NBA conducts its draft lottery on May 17th, the Detroit Pistons will be represented by their first-round selection from the previous draft, Greg Monroe. The Detroit Pistons enter the draft lottery with the exact same odds as last season, and although the ping pong balls didn't fall their way, many would say the organization was fortunate to land Monroe. Pistons vice president Scott Perry, who was the team representative at last year's lotter, agrees with that sentiment. 'The fact we remained at seven in the lottery process and were able to draft a guy we believe is going to be one of the cornerstones for your team,' Perry commented on the Pistons official website, 'now to have him go back there the following year, hopefully, his presence there will bring the same type of good fortune during this lottery.' "

What a difference ten years makes? On September 11, 2001 America was attacked by Al-Qaeda. In that moment Bin Laden succeeded in initiating a series of events that would eventually kick over the delicate house of cards that was the American Empire. On September 14, 2001 President Bush would stand triumphantly over the rubble of the World Trade Center where he would proceed to beat the drums of war and blow the trumpets of patriotism. A fews later, speaking to the best impulses of Americans as citizen-consumers, Bush told us that to defy the terrorists that we should all go shopping.

Ten years later, President Barack Obama would return to the site of the World Trade Center and bring some closure to the events of that horrific day. Obama put the hit on Osama. The bogeyman was dead. Now we can move forward as a nation. The symbolic politics are powerful here: The President is our national cheerleader, an informal Head of State, and the embodiment of America's hopes and dreams. Thus, the fixation by the Birthers and the New Right in denying America's first Black President the legitimacy of his position as Commander in Chief precisely because the white racial frame cannot accept a person of color as Chief Executive.

The President's return to the hallowed grounds of 9-11 is also pregnant with no small amount of irony in how the politics of race are punctuated by occasional deviations from the script in the Age of Obama. Black folks have always been loyal patriots. We loved a country that did not love us back.

However, our patriotism is also sophisticated and qualified for we are suspicious of power and are keen to the lies (both big and small) that leaders tell--and how American democracy was exclusive of people of color. Moreover, the flag waving drums of war moments that accompany America's call to battle and triumphalism are often moments of violence, where white Americans renew the brotherhood of citizenship by shedding the blood of black and brown folk.

The Zoot Suit Riots, the lynching of African American GI's while still in their uniforms, the Bloody Summer of 1919, and the acts of discrimination both subtle and gross by the Greatest Generation against black and brown folk in the Age of Jim Crow are testimonies to this ugly history. History is not dead. It lingers in our collective consciousness. For a Blues People, history's echoes run deep. By comparison, one of the historical advantages of Whiteness is the ability to be ahistorical--a people without roots, origins or responsibility.

Thus, when black and brown folks hear chants of "U.S.A.! U.S.A.!" we are right to be suspicious and fearful, for those nationalist orgasmic utterances have often accompanied a trip to the lynching tree or a bloodied blow to the head as the imagined fraternity of white men was reinscribed and renewed at our expense. The Birthers, White Populism and the Tea Bag GOP's embrace of real American White Nationalism is one more reminder of this exclusive club's continued existence into the 21st century. But for a moment, Obama's trip to Ground Zero has--for a few days--upset this dynamic.

Here is one from the archives (wow, four years have gone by?). Today, we have quite a few new visitors curious of the kind people at Crooks and Liars, so it always fun to reach back and bring out a classic piece. The following post is on John Horn's shooting of two burglars in Texas a few years back. This essay remains one of my favorite pieces of all time for a variety of reasons.

There is a nice synergy here: the post speaks to the noxious brew of racialized Patriotism and nationalism that is channeled through those old howls of "U.S.A.!"; the coveted shit-huffer award was introduced here; and there is no small dose of ghetto nerdness on display. Good stuff...at least in my opinion.

****

We are a Nation of Liars, Crooks, Fools, Thieves, and Idiots

A few months back, a story circulated regarding a drug called, "jenkem." Apparently, this "new" drug, a product of Africa of course--where those poor natives do nothing but fight famine, suffer under genocide, live in failed States, and huff shit--consists of human feces and urine in a bong. Here, the "user" would take a "hit" by inhaling the noxious fumes generated by this ungodly concoction:

ESPN's Chad Ford has released his first official 2011 NBA Mock Draft of the season. He places a player already mentioned by at least one Sacramento King (Tyreke Evans), star guard Kemba Walker.

The Kings have finally come to two realizations in the past year. One, Tyreke Evans isn't a point guard. Two, character and leadership matter. Enter Walker. Not only does he play the right position, but no one in college basketball showed more heart, leadership or a desire to win than Kemba this past season. He has his weaknesses, but he should give the Kings something they really haven't had in a while -- a winner.

None of Ford's testimony is necessarily true; the Kings certainly haven't announced that Evans will not play point guard going forward, given that 'Reke played with Marcus Thornton (a true shooting guard) a lot in the final weeks of the season, with Beno Udrih on the bench. I'll also note that it's unclear Walker will be any more of a point guard than Evans is.

But that said, while I'm not completely sold Walker can translate to the NBA in terms of a high-usage guard, it's a solid pick that would seem to have a serious chance of coming true. The Kings have said they need another guard, and Walker's the No. 2 guard on the board behind Kyrie Irving.

Pau Gasol is sad...
...AND BRIAN CARDINAL LIKES IT!
The Los Angeles Lakers: I'll admit it. I wrote off the Mavericks before this series even started. Lots of people did. Including, it seems, the Lakers.

But here we are. Not on Planet Earth. I'll tell you that much. It's Bizarro World. The Nuggets are better off without Carmelo Anthony. Danny Ainge willingly busted up a potential championship contender midseason. The Bulls have the best record in the league but look like poop in the playoffs. The Pacers became tough guys. Zach Randolph became superclutch. The Grizzlies dominated the Spurs before sending them home early. And the Lakers are down 2-0 to the Dallas Mavericks.

Despite having homecourt advantage.

Said Dirk Nowitzki: "If you would have told me before that we were going to win both games, it would have been hard to believe."

No kidding.

The situation is both shocking and...not all that shocking. L.A. has been turning it on and off all season. On some nights, Kobe looks like Kobe. Other nights, it appears he's lost half a step. When the season started, Pau Gasol was playing like an MVP candidate. After a month and a half of 40+ minutes per game, he looked like The Old Guy in a pickup league, exhausted and barely getting by on experience and instinct. The bench started off so hot Kevin McHale started calling them "The Killer Bees" but their production dropped off dramatically.

And Ron Artest still looks absolutely lost in Phil Jackson's Triangle.

No, the problems didn't start today, and Andrew Bynum knows it.

Said Bynum: "It's deeply rooted at this point. It's obvious that we have trust issues, individually. All 13 of our guys have trust issues right now. I think it's quite obvious to anyone watching the game -- hesitation on passes, and defensively we're not being a good teammate because he wasn't there for you before -- little things. And unless we come out and discuss them, nothing is going to change."

Countered Kobe: "I think the trust that he's referring to is being able to help each other on the defensive end of the floor. You saw a lot of layups. He gets frustrated when he supports a guard coming off the screen-and-roll and nobody supports him."

The Lakers can talk about defense all they want, but it's not like the Mavericks were setting the world on fire. They went 12-for-21 at the rim, which is good, but not great. Nowitzki was fantastic (24 points, 9-for-16, 2-for-3 from downtown), but Jasons Kidd and Terry combined to shoot 6-for-22. And Peja Stojakovic was flashing back to 2002 with his 2-for-9 (and 0-for-5 on threes) night.

As a team, Dallas shot 42 percent, went 8-for-25 from beyond the arc and got outrebounded 44-39.

L.A.'s defense did a credible job. Their offense, on the other hand, did not. Talk about way off: The Lakers converted only 41 percent of their field goals, shot 2-for-20 on threes and bricked nine of their 20 free throws. Kobe had one of his classic 9-for-20 nights (including 1-for-5 on treys). Gasol (5-for-12), Artest (4-for-10) and Derek Fisher (2-for-7) couldn't have located the basket with a police dog. The bench went 6-for-23, and that was despite Shannon Brown's 3-for-4 performance.

If it wasn't for Bynum's 8-for-11 shooting and 7 offensive rebound, the Lakers might have lost by 20.

You know what it was? The Mavericks were the aggressors. They had no fear. They attacked the Lakers on offense and defense. They never got rattled. Never backed down. They displayed a toughness nobody outside of Dallas believed they had.

Now ESPN's J.A. Adande says the three-peat ain't happening:

The Lakers are done. I say this despite their championship pedigree, their coach's ability to guide teams through apparent calamity and a direct warning from a certain 6-foot-6 guard.

"Be careful what you write," Kobe Bryant said, knowing full well that I and the rest of the media pack walking through the Staples Center corridor were about to type the Lakers' death notice as soon as we returned to the Chick Hearn Press Room.

"Be careful what you write," Bryant repeated. He added an admonition for my ESPN.com colleague. "You too, Stein."

I told Bryant that the Lakers don't have the energy.

"True," he said.

And if you don't have energy, then the schemes or the intent or the pride don't matter.

"True," he said.

There's no way he was leaving it at that. I tried to draw more out of him.

"But?"

"But," he replied with a smile. "But. Dot-dot-dot. "

Kobe's defiant. You expected that. But are any of the other Lakers feeling it?

Said Jackson: "It looked like Dallas had more energy out there on the floor than we did. That's a concern. ... We really got dispirited."

Now the Lakers have to be feeling the dreaded "D" word.

Said Kobe: "Desperate? That's a strong word. I think when you play desperate, you don't play your best basketball. What we need to do is relax, focus on what we're doing wrong and the mistakes that we're making, and we have plenty to review and lock in on that."

If you say so, Mamba.

Said Bynum: "If we go to the root of what's really hurting us and not candy-coat things and not talk around issues, then we'll be fine. If not, then we won't. I think we've addressed them before, but now is the time to really sit down and ask yourself the tough questions."

Good luck with that, Andy.

Stephanie G: "The ship be sinking."
Ron Artest: L.A.'s "defensive stopper" was dispatched on Dirk Nowitzki. And it didn't matter. Dirk still got whatever he wanted. What did you expect? That Artest could really guard a seven-footer? Really?

Still, that's not why Ron is getting a WotN. No, it's because your 2011 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award winner did this:


As Basketbawful reader Peter asked: "Tru Warrior or Ultimate Warrior?"

Now that's the Crazy Pills we've been waiting to see. Artest was ejected and will likely be suspended for Game 3. Although, the way he's been playing, that might actually be good news for the Lakers.

Shawn Marion: Rewatch that Artest video and notice how Marion reacts to his teammate getting clotheslined across the face.

Bonus video: Basetbawful reader Cetti writes: "I do not have words for that." And by "that," Cetti is talking about this:


The Atlanta Hawks: Spider-Man's balls! The Dirty Birds really laid an offensive egg last night. I could eat Vinny Del Negro's offensive playbook and crap out a better game plan than Atlanta had last night. You know it's bad when, during those Mic'd up segments, the coach is bitching out his team for taking stupid shots.

And he wasn't wrong.

The Bulls held the Hawks to 73 points on 33.8 percent shooting and forced them to miss 10 of their 13 three-point attempts. Atlanta finished with a miserable Effective Field Goal Percentage of 35.7 and an Offensive Efficiency of only 81.1. As in points per 100 possessions.

The Hawks missed 11 of their 23 field goal attempts at the rim and went a gag-reflex-testing 6-for-30 from 16-23 feet. They were as cold last night as they were hot in Game 1. Dr. Jekyll, meet Mr. Hyde.

Chicago's D did a number on Josh Smith (4-for-14), Al Horford (3-for-12 and zero free throw attempts), Jamal Crawford (2-for-10) and Marvin Williams (2-for-9). Moreover, the Bulls contained Joe Johnson, who finished with 16 points on 7-for-15 shooting and made only one trip to the foul line. And, outside of Crawford, the Atlanta bench managed only 2 points.

According to ESPN Stats and Information, Atlanta had the lowest FGP of a Bulls playoff opponent since the Michael Jordan era...and the third-lowest since 1995-96.

Seriously, the Hawks couldn't have located the basket even if they'd had help from the CIA agents who tracked down Osama Bin Laden.

The Bulls also outrebounded the Hawks 58-39 and had an 18-10 advantage in second-chance points.

The only reason the Bulls didn't win this one by 30 is because their offense was almost as dreadful as Atlanta's. Derrick Rose had a case of the MVP yips: 10-for-27 from the field, 1-for-8 from downtown and 8 turnovers. Carlos Boozer kept shooting directly into the hands of Smith. Kyle Korver (1-for-9) led a Chicago bench attack that produced a combined 5-for-20 brick-a-palooza.

Noah was the hero of the night, scoring 19 points (6-for-8 from the field and 7-for-8 at the line) to go with 14 rebounds, including 7 big-time offensive boards. Jo also had three steals and countless hustle plays. There was no question he felt a sense of urgency. Still...Noah twice gave up three-point plays by swiping at an Atlanta player who was about to make an easy layup. The second time Noah did that -- fouling Smith with 4:56 remaining -- allowed the Hawks to pull to within six points (75-69).

That was the kind of night it was. It seemed that for every two positive players, somebody on the team made a negative one. Yes, the Bulls won by double-digits. No, it did not feel like a commanding victory even though it probably should have been.

The Bulls need to get their offensive act together. Pronto.

Carlos Boozer: Last night, Boozer went 3-for-8 at the rim, 0-for-1 from 3-9 feet, 0-for-1 from 10-15 feet and 1-for-2 from 16-23 feet. Four of his shots were blocked. Felt like twice that many.

And Booz got booed by the home crowd. Noah wants them to stop.

Said Noah: "Sometimes our home crowd is a tough game to play. We've got a lot of love for our crowd, but through tough times, we got to stick together. I've been in that position before, my rookie year, where I've been booed. It's tough to be booed in your home crowd. With Carlos, people have to understand he's playing through an injury, and he's giving us what he's got. He's somebody who has an unbelievable presence, and he opens up a lot of things for a lot of us. I think sometimes people are quick to bash one player. But this is a team, and we know we need Carlos to get to where we want to go."

Added Ronnie Brewer: "If you know how turf toe is, if you have any injury [like that], anything he can go out and give us is a plus. I think he did a phenomenal job on both ends of the floor."

Further added Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau: "Carlos is giving us everything he has. The rebounding is huge. His offense will come around."

The Bulls better hope so.

Said Boozer: "Obviously I want to make the shots that I missed, or the ones that got blocked. But for the most part, I'm just going to keep playing."

That's all he can do, really.

I just hope he doesn't keep playing the way he has been.

Chris' Playoff Lacktion Report:

Jason Collins fouled once in 3:16 for a +1 and a 1:0 Madsen-level Voskuhl...

...while fellow dirty birds Josh Powell, Hilton Armstrong, and Pape Sy went 55 seconds as MARIO TRIPLETS! (Armstrong checked a board in and avoided true lacktivity).

In 15 fewer seconds, steakhouse master Omer Asik matched Collins's not-so-big-man numbers to a tee.

Omar Calhoun is one the most heralded rising seniors in the New York area. The lethal shooting guard has quickly showed up on the 'must have' list of many of top programs in the nation.

There is a very good reason why Toney Douglas struggled against the Boston Celtics. The Knicks' backup guard was playing with a damaged right shoulder that required surgery Wednesday. According to the club, Douglas had arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shooting arm. Team physician Dr. Answorth Allen performed the operation.

There is a very good reason why Toney Douglas struggled against the Boston Celtics. The Knicks' backup guard was playing with a damaged right shoulder that required surgery Wednesday. According to the club, Douglas had arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shooting arm. Team physician Dr. Answorth Allen performed the operation.

There is a very good reason why Toney Douglas struggled against the Boston Celtics. The Knicks' backup guard was playing with a damaged right shoulder that required surgery Wednesday. According to the club, Douglas had arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shooting arm. Team physician Dr. Answorth Allen performed the operation.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

LOS ANGELES -- Dirk Nowitzki scored 24 points, Shawn Marion added 14 and the Dallas Mavericks stunned the erratic Los Angeles Lakers 93-81 in Game 2 on Wednesday night, taking a 2-0 second-round lead over the two-time defending champions with consecutive road wins.

Jason Kidd scored 10 points for the Mavericks, who pushed the Lakers halfway to playoff elimination with Nowitzki's stellar shooting, another steady defensive performance, and a decisive 9-0 fourth-quarter rally.

Kobe Bryant scored 23 points for the Lakers, who hadn't lost the first two games of a playoff series since the 2008 NBA finals -- also the last series they lost. Only three NBA teams have come back to win a best-of-seven series after losing the first two at home.

Game 3 is Friday night in Dallas.

The Lakers also could be short-handed in Dallas: Ron Artest was ejected with 24.4 seconds left for apparently clotheslining Dallas guard Jose Barea, possibly leading to a suspension.

BULLS 86, HAWKS 73

CHICAGO -- Newly crowned MVP Derrick Rose scored 25 points, and Joakim Noah added 19 points and 14 rebounds to help Chicago tie the Eastern Conference semifinals at a game apiece.

The top-seeded Bulls shook off a dismal performance in the opener and looked more like the team with a league-best 62 wins, building a 14-point lead and ending the game on a 9-2 run after the Hawks got within six.

Jeff Teague had another good game filling in for the injured Kirk Hinrich with 21 points, but Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford struggled after coming up big in the opener for Atlanta. Johnson's output dipped from 34 points to 16, while Crawford had 11 after scoring 22 in Game 1.

Now, the series shifts to Atlanta for Games 3 and 4 on Friday and Sunday, with Chicago at least in better shape after a 103-95 loss in Game 1.

The night began with Commissioner David Stern presenting the MVP trophy to Rose, the youngest player to win the award.

• Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News: "The Mavericks officially have the Los Angeles Lakers’ attention. And the rest of the NBA’s, too. Announcing themselves as serious championship contenders, the Mavericks took down the Lakers for the second time in three nights at the Staples Center. Dirk Nowitzki was a beast, the reserves dominated their LA counterparts and the Mavericks pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 93-81 victory Wednesday night. They took a commanding 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven conference semifinals. The Mavericks have never been up 2-0 in a series that they started on the road. Only once in franchise history -- the 2006 NBA Finals -- have they lost a playoff series after going up 2-0. The Lakers’ series record when falling behind 2-0: 2-16. Theoretically, it could have been the last home game of the season for the two-time defending NBA champs. The next two games are at American Airlines Center and while the series is a long way from over, the Mavericks are in wonderful shape going into Game 3. The two-time defending champions clearly are on the ropes."
• Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: "If this season turns into the special one the Dallas Mavericks hope it will be, they're going to look back at Wednesday night's game against the Los Angeles Lakers as the turning point. With an opportunity to put the two-time defending NBA champions on their heels, the Mavs seized the moment in a big way with a convincing 93-81 victory at Staples Center. With the win, Dallas took a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal series after it stunningly won both games in LA. The Mavs will host Games 3 and 4 Friday and Sunday at American Airlines Center, opening the door for them to sweep the series without having to come back to the West Coast. And who would have imagined that happening before this series started? 'We're a great road team because we're resilient,' center Brendan Haywood said. 'We're a family -- everybody roots for each other. And we have a lot of different guys that can hit big shots. So on the road usually when we're down, we never feel that we're out of it.' "
• Jeff Miller of The Orange County Register: "Ugly, empty and quiet. It was so silent in Staples Center on Wednesday that you could hear a champion drop. That was the Lakers hitting the floor, ironically on a night when they couldn't hit anything else. They fell stunningly and meekly, 93-81, now trail Dallas two games to none and face a mudslide of history and statistical data that suggests their survival is in dire jeopardy. 'It's unfamiliar,' Derek Fisher said of the feeling of being in a 0-2 hole. 'It's not a great place to be. (We have) a big uphill climb to make from here, but the opportunity is still there. We have to clean up a lot of things and get a lot better in 48 hours.' We're not burying the Lakers, yet. But in a postseason that already has made the San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics (for the past two games, at least) look like graying, bygone champions, the Lakers appear mighty creaky at the moment. And before it was over Wednesday, Ron Artest brought even more embarrassment to the prouder franchise, hammering Dallas' J.J. Barea and getting himself booted from the game in the final seconds. Gotta give Artest credit, though. He found a way to do something the Lakers failed to do all night -- discourage Barea. Among other things in Game 2, the Lakers were beaten by a man who stands 6 feet tall but might as well have been a 7-footer while twirling through all those motionless Laker bodies."
• Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times: "When the story of the end of the Lakers' attempt to win three consecutive championships is written, it will begin, and end, with Pau Gasol. You want a scapegoat for a 93-81 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals? You want to attach a name to a two-games-to-none deficit that will be historically improbable to overcome? Gasol is, sadly, your man. He has a great smile, a warm personality, two rings' worth of skills, and the love of Lakers fans who will forever link the team's three-year resurgence to his arrival. He is also disappearing before our disbelieving eyes. The melting that began in the first round against New Orleans ended in a puddle on the Staples Center floor Wednesday when Gasol was once again pushed, shoved, and battered into the sort of submission that the other Lakers could not overcome."
• Rick Telander of the Chicago Sun-Times: "The last time the Bulls had the coach of the year and MVP in the same season, it was 15 years ago, and Hall of Famers Phil Jackson and Michael Jordan received the honors. Now it’s Tom Thibodeau and Derrick Rose’s turn. In the last 72 hours, they received the coveted individual awards. And their futures look pretty good, if still a little unsteady. And that’s mostly because the Bulls have an uneven team with some holes in the lineup and a number of dents. After the 86-73 victory Wednesday, the Bulls even seemed a bit downcast, perhaps angry and resolute. This is not a larger-than-life team. And they know it. This is not West-Chamberlain-Baylor. Not Magic-Kareem-Worthy. Not Bird-McHale-Parish. And certainly not Jordan-Pippen-Rodman. This is a team of one superstar and fill-in-the-blanks. Some darned good fill-in-the-blanks, mind you. But will anyone else on this team ever even be an All-Star? Luol Deng? Maybe. And the once-stellar Carlos Boozer? Injured and blocky, he seems to be disappearing before our eyes."
• Mark Bradley of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "Truth to tell, the Hawks saw nothing in Game 2 that should make them think they can’t beat the Bulls a few more times. They shot poorly. Horford was badly outplayed by his college roomie Joakim Noah. Johnson needed 15 shots to score 16 points, Smith 14 to score 14. With all that, this still was in doubt inside the final four minutes. And that, conveniently enough, is where this series stands: Tied at 1, very much in doubt."
• Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "Through the series’ first two games,  Chris Bosh is averaging 12 points on 40-percent shooting and 11.5 rebounds. For the Celtics, Garnett is averaging 11 points on .379 shooting and 7.0 rebounds. Both can do better. Both teams would appreciate if they did. But if the Heat can offset Garnett and keep Rajon Rondo in relative check, it positions LeBron James and Dwyane Wade to be the difference-makers, which has been the case in the first two games of this series. So far, Bosh is pleased with the effort against Garnett. 'He is a great shooter from outside,' he said. 'We need to keep a body on him and make him work for everything in the post. When he shoots a turnaround jump shot, over his head fading away, he is going to make some of them. We just wanted to limit his easy baskets, push him out, and not let him get those easy post touches.' So far, there has been little easy offense in the post, with backup center Joel Anthony offering a secure second line of defense. Bosh said he has no issue being positioned to merely offset Garnett. 'Our defense is always going to be our backbone,' he said."
• Howard Beck of The New York Times: "As partners, James and Wade have indeed seen their stature erode. James received only four first-place votes for most valuable player, after winning the award in 2009 and 2010. Wade appeared on 10 ballots. In securing a better supporting cast on his own terms, James invited a harsher spotlight. Once he was cheered in nearly every arena. Now the Heat might be the most hated team in the league. Critics contend that James took the easy way out. But James’s experience -- the jeers, the profane taunts, the off-color signs -- indicates otherwise. In a society that is eager to forgive and forget the transgressions of its sports stars -- from Pete Rose to Alex Rodriguez, Ron Artest to Ray Lewis -- James seems destined to rise again. He is no expert in Q scores, but he seems to sense as much. As he considered the antipathy, James said confidently, 'I think it’s going to die down in the next couple years, of course.' "
• Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald: "Kevin Garnett isn’t the problem in the Celtics Eastern Conference semifinal series against Miami. There is too much competition for that title to pick a clear winner. But Garnett needs to be a major part of the solution if their season is to extend beyond Monday. Shaquille O’Neal didn’t walk through that door for Games 1 and 2. Well, he did, but he was limping. Therefore, even if he does play in Game 3 Saturday, he won’t be left out there for long. Garnett simply must be a larger factor on both ends of the court. The fact that he hasn’t been all the Celtics need him to be has the club concerned. The numbers scream and shout. The Celtics took just 40 free throws in the first two games while the Heat were attempting 68. Considering Miami also hoisted a total of 35 treys in its two wins, the fact that the Heat got 28 more shots from the line is stunning. And so, too, is the fact that Garnett didn’t attempt a single free throw. Joel Anthony, meanwhile, is 6-for-6 from the line. Chris Bosh has taken 13."
• Julian Benbow of The Boston Globe: "After several years of discussion and debate stretching from sports talk radio to the White House, Bill Russell, the Celtics’ legend and civil rights activist, will be honored with a statue in Boston. In February, when President Obama invited Russell to the White House to award him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, he could not help but ask a simple question: How was it possible that a city that had honored so many of its sports legends had yet to commemorate the legacy of one of its most transcendent ones? 'I hope that one day in the streets of Boston, children will look up at a statue built not only to Bill Russell the player, but Bill Russell the man,' Obama said. The words will ring true. The Celtics announced plans yesterday to build a statue of Russell, the player who not only helped bring 11 NBA titles to Boston but also served as a symbol for the racial tension in the city during the civil rights movement and the progress ever since."
• Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman: "On Wednesday, Scott Brooks came as close as he'll ever come to lashing out on a topic. It was no surprise it had to do with the growing criticism and scrutiny surrounding point guard Russell Westbrook. 'With Russell, we analyze ever possession,' Brooks started. 'I do that myself when we break down the films. But it seems like everybody's breaking down the film. They're like, in my meetings or in my head. It's not fair to him.' Brooks then brought up Westbrook's achievements and how far he's come in such short time, developing into an All-Star and helping to lead the Thunder to back-to-back playoff appearance despite playing mostly at off guard in college. 'He gets criticized for every bad game,' Brooks said. 'He's not the only player that has a bad game. He's not going to be the only player in the future that has bad games. But the only thing I can say about that is Russell knows what he needs to do. And we talk to him and he's coachable and he wants to get better.' ... When asked if Westbrook is the most overanalyzed point guard in NBA history, Brooks didn't hesitate to put him near the top of the list. 'Maybe not the history,' Brooks said. 'But for what he's accomplished in three years, absolutely. He's right up there.' "
• Ronald Tillery of The Commercial-Appeal: "The Grizzlies began round two of the NBA playoffs against the Oklahoma City Thunder in a similar fashion as their opening series against the San Antonio Spurs. After stealing Game 1 on the road, the Griz lost their identity for most of Game 2 and returned to Memphis with a split. Perhaps the only difference in the early stages of both series is the Grizzlies' reaction after Game 2. Memphis seemed angry after losing to San Antonio because of a prevailing attitude that it was a game it gave away. The team displayed a more solemn mood following its defeat Tuesday night at Oklahoma City. The Griz had been beaten. Yet the series shifts to FedExForum for Game 3 on Saturday night with the Griz owning an edge, even if it appears that the Thunder now have momentum. Memphis left Oklahoma City having accomplished its goal of stealing home-court advantage -- with the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinals series tied at 1-1, the Griz could win just their home games to advance. So far, the Griz are 3-0 in FedExForum during their eye-popping postseason run but are sure to be challenged more in this series than in their waltz with the Spurs."
• Vincent Goodwill Jr. of The Detroit News: "New Pistons owner Tom Gores sat courtside at Game 2 of the Lakers-Mavs series on Wednesday night at Staples Center. In the first half, Ron Artest, who people around these parts are more than familiar with, acquainted himself with the new guy when he dove into the stands after a loose ball. Gores, in a blue shirt and seated next to his brother Alec, didn't seem to flinch when Artest came his way. On the other side of Gores? Jack Nicholson, perhaps the biggest celebrity fan in the NBA. While the deal transferring ownership from Karen Davidson to Gores isn't expected to become official for another two weeks or so, seeing Gores courtside at a big game should make Pistons fans smile. He recognizes the severity, even from a fan's perspective, of the playoffs. Don't forget, he was courtside during Game 7 of the Finals last year, so he is a fan, which should equate to passion."
• Bob Kravitz of The Indianapolis Star: "This is a term you rarely hear in French Lick, but it applies to Larry Bird: The man has chutzpah. How else do you explain his statement that he would consider returning as Indiana Pacers president of basketball operations if owner Herb Simon, who has always been generous with Bird and the franchise, is willing to spend the cash necessary to improve the team? It's OK to have those private concerns; it's not OK to go public with them. It's wrong from a personal standpoint -- Simon has been extraordinarily good to Bird -- and it's wrong from a business standpoint, sucking the air out of the room after the team's energizing late-season improvement. I like Bird immensely, appreciate his accessibility and honesty, but when did his team play in the Eastern Conference finals? Did I miss something? In the last year of The Plan, Bird's team won a sub- mediocre 37 games and only made the playoffs because the Eastern Conference stinks. The truth is, if the Pacers were in the West -- in which case, they probably wouldn't have won 37 games -- Indiana would have missed the playoffs and everybody would be calling for Bird to pack his bags. Now he's talking like he's Pat Riley or even Memphis' Chris Wallace: I might think about coming back, but only if you give me some assurances. Really? Even if Bird's concerns are valid -- though it's never been my sense that Simon is hiding the checkbook -- this isn't something you drop on your owner in a public setting."
• Mike Jensen of The Philadelphia Inquirer: "Of the Sixers top seven players, a majority of respondents wanted only Andre Iguodala gone. Makes sense to me. Let's get rid of the team's top perimeter defender, the guy who often handled the ball down the stretch in tight games. Collins figured out how to use him, Iguodala bought in, the team took off ... and now, goodbye? I'm more than fine with trading Iguodala for value, preferably a shooting version of himself. If this season turned him into a tradable commodity, fantastic. But despite obvious flaws, Iguodala remains the best basketball player in this city and will be next season. Just because he wants to go doesn't mean the Sixers should let him."
• Perry A. Farrell of the Detroit Free Press: "The Pistons are not commenting on the recent comments Grant Hill made about the foot injury and subsequent treatment he received from the Pistons and Orlando Magic medical staffs during the 1999-2000 and 2000-01 seasons. Robert Teitge, the team's orthopedic surgeon when Hill was a Piston, did not return two phone calls from the Free Press, and Arnie Kander, the team's strength and conditioning coach, was advised not to speak on the matter by current management with the potential sale of the team pending. 'The health of our players is and always has been the No. 1 priority of our organization,' said Kevin Grigg, the team's vice president of public relations."
• Buck Harvey of the San Antonio Express-News: "Most wait to say these things, but there’s no reason to. Mike Mitchell deserves to hear them now. He deserves to hear what was lost in transition from franchise to franchise, and in translation from America to Italy. He deserves to hear he was one of the best basketball players San Antonio has seen. Because he was, and because he hasn’t heard that enough. Mitchell is 55 years old now. He has some good days, but mostly bad ones. His wife, Diana, says he rarely leaves his bed in San Antonio, comforted by hospice care and family. His 6-foot-7 body has betrayed him, when it had always been a reliable ally. No current Spur has the combination of power and touch that Mitchell had. ... Mitchell occasionally played charity golf tournaments, and he sometimes made appearances at various Spurs functions. But he lived as he played, quietly going about his business. Then came November of 2009, when he went to see a doctor because of neck and shoulder pain. The diagnosis was staggering -- he has an unusual form of lung cancer, one that takes place outside the lining of the lungs. Treatments followed, as did moments of hope. But the cancer returned last September. Now, at this stage, he needs assistance to stand. When the pain medication doesn’t overwhelm him, he can be awake and alert. He was last week, when he and his family stayed up to watch the Spurs. So, during these times of clarity, he deserves to hear a few things, about how he played, and how his basketball career is remembered. There’s no reason to wait for that."
• Bob Finnan of The News-Herald: "The Cavaliers are accepting applications to be their next radio play-by-play announcer. Hall of Fame broadcaster Joe Tait retired at the conclusion of the 2010-11 season, having been the radio voice of the Cavaliers for 39 seasons. 'We'd like to invite all qualified candidates to apply,' Cavs president Len Komoroski said. '(We have already received) a great mix of impressive broadcasters, but we'd like to also officially encourage anyone that is interested to now apply as we start this important process. We will undergo a deep and thorough review as we search for just the right person to be the new radio play-by-play voice of the Cavs.' "

It's nice to know that you were there Thanks for acting like you cared And making me feel like I was the only one It's nice to know we had it all Thanks for watching as I fall And letting me know we were done Oh oh, oh oh, oh oh... So much for my happy ending Oh oh, oh oh, oh oh... – Avril Lavigne. Going into this series, I felt our Lakers still had enough left to defeat the Dallas Mavericks and move onto their moment of truth against Oklahoma in the western finals. But the last two games in LA have shown this confidence was illusory and the Lakers, so great in going to three straight finals have succumbed to the inevitably of time and change. While we are not yet mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, I have never been to slow on the uptake in understand what I am seeing. The patient is the ICU, the tubes are in place, life support is one, the heart monitors beep on the patient’s chest, vital organs are failing one after another and the prognosis is death. I have visited such patients in hospitals before and I know what they look like. This patient will leave the NBA playoffs dead, in a pine box. It has become more than obvious that this season is a seminal one, bringing concrete change in standings of the NBA’s elite. And like San Antonio and Boston, the Lakers are finally on the wrong end of that change. Since I am not going to wait for the doctor to inevitably declare the heart stopped, I will start my post mortem right now. For those who want to wait for the death certificate to be officially signed, I apologize for doing the autopsy now. First, the most notable cause of death in my view. Ever since the Shaq- Kobe era started, our five championship runs were signature events for one reason: We always had the best, most dominant player on our side. We had to deal with some monster teams in brutal series- Portland, Sacramento, Boston come to mind. There were others. But in all those series, we had the one guy who was hardest to contain, impossible to defend; first Shaq, then Kobe. This edge was incalculable in feeding our title runs. As I look at this series, for the first time, this is not the case. Now it is Dirk Nowitzkie who is that player, not Kobe Bryant. And as this fact gave us that edge in victory over defeat, so it is now giving it to Dallas. This is a signature event in showing that time has finally caught up with our beloved Lakers. For the first time since Shaq came to LA, we are playing a series where the most unstoppable player is no longer in PurpleandGold. In talking to my good friend Gemfow, he said Dirks size makes him harder to defend than Kobe. And this is true. But my point is, if this were the Kobe of five years ago, it wouldn’t matter. Kobe would still be the hardest guy to stop. In this series, because of age, injury, the passage of time and Nowitzkie’s talents, this edge is now gone. Most probably for all time. In looking at our future and the appearance of good young teams being led by their own stars-Miami, Dallas, Chicago, Memphis-it is also apparent that no small cosmetic fix will cure what ails us. There will have to changes made. And the size of the changes seems to predicate that we may not get a another ring for a while. The day of the great Derrek Fisher is over. His clutch shooting just cannot overcome his overall offensive ineptness nor the liability he has become on offense. If Fish is still our starting point guard next year, you can write us off already. This team needs shooters. Not hot/cold scorers, but some real shooters to make shots from the perimeter. Guys who can make teams pay night after night, game after game, month after month for packing it in down low. Without a couple of these, you can write us off. The Lakers need to find a replacement for aging Ron Artest. I was never a big fan of losing Ariza for him. I have always believed in speed and effective athleticism as essential for winning championships in any sport. And I especially hate getting rid of a youthful, fast, athletic guy who fit in this team so well, who brought us so much of what we lacked for an older, slower player. Last year, Artest worked out. Would we have won with Ariza instead of Artest? We will never know. But what we do know is we are now starting to pay a price for making that bargain of age over youth. What to do with Pau Gasol? For two years he was one of the best players in the league. He was essential, vital in us going to three straight championships. For some reason, right when he should be in the prime of his career, he has not only reverted back to soft Gasol, but taken that to new level. There were excuses of fatigue early when Drew was out, but those excuses have gone by the wayside long ago. I think trading Pau should be explored very hard. He just seems like a guy who may begin a big fade from here on out. The question is, what can we get for him now? You can’t give this still talented player away for chopped liver or only serviceable players. You have to get value. Trading Pau for someone who can really help may be hard. If we can get good draft picks for the future, I think I would take that plunge. This team will also need a mental makeover as well as physical one. When Kobe Bryant is no longer the best player on the floor, especially when we are not playing the Lebron-Wade Heat but the Dallas Mavericks, then this is not hard to see. We have one good young player coming up: Andrew Bynum. Both Pau and Kobe will have to adjust and maximize on this fact. If Pau returns, he has to accept that Drew has taken his spot on team. He must adjust his game and concentrate on rebounds and defense instead of wanting to get chances to score on the block. Kobe also has to start to make a strong, concerted effort to incorporate Drew into the offense in a big way. Even if it means he has to play Robin for any game or stretch of games. I am not saying Kobe needs to become a point guard, but he needs to understand and accommodate the reality of what time has wrought. If he and Pau and rest of the team can’t, then you can write us off. As I am writing this, just now, I saw the interview with Drew in the locker. He was asked what the problem is. His response, “The team panicked when we got down by ten and started jacking up shots.” Later, a reporter told Kobe that stated there are trust issues on this team. Boy, this sure tells me Drew is becoming as much more aggressive and confident off the court as he is on the court. His message is clear. Use me. Use the post. Quit playing stupid ball. Whether Drew can back up his very aggressive remarks, I don’t know. But I am very happy he is now confident enough to speak his mind. I wonder how Kobe and the others will take it in the locker room when Drew decides to dispense with the candy coating and speaks his mind. I am sure they won’t like this message too much, but maybe, finally, now they will listen. When you look at this long list of changes, both physical and mental, one begins to see the sheer size of the changes that will need to take place. Since I will assume that no teams will be willing to make trades to help us, the mountain becomes even bigger. This would mean we will have to eventually sign some very good free agents to begin coming back. It may also entail bottoming out for a few years and getting some prime draft choices. None of this signifies a very fast return to true championship contention. If one looks at the very best case scenario next year: Drew becomes a great, great center and his teammates allow and embrace him taking over; there are still problems. He will be leading a team with aging cohorts: Kobe, Pau, Lamar, Artest, Fish. With teams like Dallas, Memphis, Oklahoma, Miami and Chicago out there, it is still hard to envision the Lakers navigating those kinds of waters with an older cast. Once again, change seems mandatory. Playing devil’s advocate, one could say that the team is worn out from its three consecutive finals appearances. But this same excuse could have and probable was used in San Antonio when they stopped going to finals. Old teams that begin to fail usually don’t rebound and win championships. If this team is physically and mentally the same next year, I don’t hope to see any different fate that enveloped San Antonio when the rot set in there. Finally, although I will repeat this thought when the end is official, I want to thank Kobe, Fish, Artest, Lamar, Drew and all our players for their historic run. You guys gave me more fun than a fan ever has a right to. I won’t even try to list the great plays, the great team and individual moments that your hearts and skills gave me as you marched and battled your way into NBA history. And beating Boston is ALWAYS on the top of my list as the very best sports accomplishments. And you guys did it. It was glorious. To Kobe, if you have won your last ring, I want to thank you for being the most physically spectacular player I have ever seen in a Lakers uniform. I also want to send you my dentist bill for the TMJ you gave me because of the hundreds of times my jaw dropped and locked because you just did something AGAIN, for the millionth time, that no human being on the face of this earth should be able to do. I also want to thank you for playing with heart, passion and through injuries in a way that showed your heart was the only thing that was bigger than your skill and work ethic. I will never forget your unbridled ferocity, skill, will and never say die attitude and performances for as long as my heart beats in my body. Thank you for all that and even more. Finally, I hope I am as wrong about the Lakers demise as I was about us beating Dallas. I hope the patient has a miracle recovery, leaves the ICU and the hospital and keeps our hopes for a threepeat alive. I hope this happens. I wouldn’t have written this if I think it would, but here’s a toast to miracles and hoping.

For the second straight game, Chicago's offense eluded them. The long jumpers weren't falling, and the spinners in the paint rarely splashed through the net. It hardly mattered, though, as the Bulls pulled even with Atlanta in their Eastern Conference semifinal series. Two reliable elements -- Chicago's stifling defense, and Atlanta's poor shot selection — allowed the Bulls to hang on for an ugly 86-73 win.

"Defense, rebounding, and turnovers," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau brought up following the clang-fest, "those things are a priority." And though Chicago's 39 percent shooting and terrible 98 points per 100 possessions marks are nothing to grin over, Chicago did take care of the defensive end (Atlanta barely made more than a third of its shots), the rebounding (Chicago out-rebounded the Hawks by 19), and they kept the turnovers in check despite point guard Derrick Rose clearly playing through an ankle that was less than one hundred percent.

And Atlanta did their part; by forcing bad shots or relying too heavily on the sort of isolation-heavy game that often means nothing but trouble for Larry Drew's club.

"We were our biggest enemy tonight on the offensive end," Drew admitted post-game. "When the shots didn't fall we hit the panic button and tried to do it ourselves. We panicked, and you just can't do that in the playoffs."

Though Joe Johnson still hit for 7-15 shots in the win, Chicago made a point to rush two defenders at the Hawks go-to scorer, trapping him as he caught the ball and denying him the sort of long range looks he enjoyed while making five of five three-pointers in Game 1 of the series. Johnson missed two of three bombs on the game, and Jamal Crawford (who clanged eight of 10 shots in Game 2 after scoring 22 in Game 1) was little help.

That's mainly because Chicago helped. "Our defense," Bulls center Joakim Noah noted, "is all five of us. It's us rotating, and not one single player. It's all of us being on the same page." And while Atlanta appeared to spread the floor as effectively as they did in Game 1, the Chicago close-outs were much better, despite Tom Thibodeau's half-joking assertion that "we also did that in Game 1, and [Johnson] made shots."

Thibodeau was not as amused with the team's transition play off of all those newly-available misses (or, as Joakim Noah put it, "there were a lot more boards to be had"). Chicago had 44 defensive rebounds to try and turn into easy fast-break buckets, but Chicago scored just five transition points all night. "We have to play with more pace," Thibodeau insisted. "When we can get Derrick into the open floor, he has more screens where he can get to the rim. I'd like to see the pace be a little bit quicker."

The Bulls coach wasn't upset, at least on record, about Rose's 1-8 shooting mark from behind the arc (a number that included two half-court heaves to end the quarter).

"If he feels like he can get a good look at it," the Coach of the Year explained, "I'm OK with that." But he couldn't have been happy behind the scenes at Rose's somewhat laconic manner when it came to revving the engines and getting into the paint. The newly-crowned MVP attempted six free throws (with one coming on a technical foul), but he appeared hesitant throughout the game to turn the corner and drive.

It can't be a co-incidence that Rose's play has fallen off significantly since spraining his left ankle in the first quarter of Chicago's Game 4 loss to Indiana in the last round. Rose tweaked the ankle again towards the end of Monday's Game 1 loss to Atlanta, and though he gave the press his usual no-excuses routine ("my ankle's fine, it wasn't a factor in the game"), something is definitely up. And with Game 4 scheduled for Friday night, following a plane ride to Atlanta, Rose won't have much time to heal up.

Though Rose wasn't copping to his injured ankle, his teammates didn't think twice before pointing out what big forward Carlos Boozer is going through with his turf toe malady.

The former All-Star struggled again in Game 2; he missed eight of 12 shots and watched as four of his attempts were blocked, with several others altered by the presence of Josh Smith (who finished with, you guessed it, four blocks). The crowd booed Boozer throughout, and the uptick in play with reserve forward Taj Gibson was noticeable. Gibson was the biggest part of a second quarter stretch of a 12-4 run over the first and second quarters that helped Chicago pull away.

When baited with a "Boozer, bad; Gibson, good" question following the game, Joakim Noah wanted no part.

"Sometimes our home crowd …," he started, walking a fine line in front of a lot of cameras, "… it's a tough place to play. It's important for us to stick together. With Carlos, people have to understand that he's playing through an injury right now."

Noah went on to credit Boozer for what he allows the Bulls center to roam defensively, along with praising his screen-setting abilities offensively, before pointing out that "we need Carlos to get to where we want to go."

Where Atlanta wants to go is back home, flush with home court advantage, hoping not to waste what it had earned with its Game 1 win at the United Center.

Though Larry Drew did seem upset that his team did not attempt to match Chicago's amped-up defensive play with some slick moves offensively ("You have to expect pushing and grabbing under the basket. That's playoff basketball. We did not respond to that."), he likes his team's chances heading back to Georgia with a well-earned split.

"We're not going to hang our heads after this game. We'll look at this game and learn from it. We're going home with our heads up, and we have the home court advantage in our building."

And even after clanging away in Game 2, Atlanta would appear to have the momentum. Because, whether it's a result of nagging injuries or just a postseason that has caught up to their attitude, Chicago just cannot seem to turn the collective corner.

It's the Hawks' choice as to whether or not they'll be ready to pounce back in Atlanta. Your guess is as good as theirs.

With each jab step, pump fake and pull-up jumper, Lakers guard Kobe Bryant gradually built up a rhythm that he hopes will prove instrumental in Game 2 Wednesday night at Staples Center against the Dallas Mavericks. The game doesn't begin until 7:30, but Bryant began his half-hour pregame shooting routine at 4:30 p.m., mixing in mid-range shots all around the court. Lakers Coach Phil Jackson expressed displeasure after Bryant engaged in a rigorous postgame workout following the Lakers' loss to Miami in early March, believing it would exacerbate his fatigue level and provide further risk to injury. But similar to...

After sending Scholanda Robinson to San Antonio yesterday, it might seem clear what Tulsa Shock coach Nolan Richardson is going for in adding Betty Lennox: volume shooters who are capable of creating their own scoring opportunities. And of course, with Ivory Latta, Italee Lucas, and Andrea Riley already in the backcourt, one might immediately want to remind Richardson that the WNBA is still only playing with one basketball at a time. However, here's the interesting wrinkle based on Lennox's performance last season - although she only played 11 games, she shot less than she had in her career (career-low 20% usage rate), she had the highest true shooting percentage of her career (55.5%) and had her highest 3-point percentage (36.1%) since 2001. In other words, she had the most efficient scoring year of her career. But that might not be what's most important to the Shock - in shooting less, Lennox was also a significantly different style of player last season. Lennox went from a pure scorer in 2009 to a more well-rounded perimeter player in 2010 and the primary reason for that was that she also passed the ball at a higher rate than normal and had by far the best pure point rating of her career at 3.39. With an assist ratio of 23%, Lennox was essentially putting up point guard-like numbers last season and was a more efficient distributor than anyone on Tulsa's roster. Why might that be important for a team that just added a 6-foot-8 center through the draft? Someone needs to get the ball into the post and Lennox was a more efficient distributor than any point guard on the Shock last year. Even if she isn't necessarily able to play starter's minutes based on her valuable contributions ratio in 11 games, if she maintains anything close to her performance from 2010 with the Shock this signing could be more significant and beneficial than it first seems. The fact that Betty Lennox is from Oklahoma cannot be discounted in this situation and certainly seems to make sense on her end. But she could make a practical, if limited, contribution on the court as well.

Today is the 41st anniversary of the 1970 National Guard killings of Vietnam War protesters at Kent State University. The enhanced audio tape released in 2007 provided evidence the Guards were ordered to shoot.

What precipitated the protest: On Thursday, April 30, 1970, President Richard Nixon told the American people that we were sending troops into Cambodia. He had been elected on his promise to end the war. Rallies began around the country on May 1. [More...]

On why we shouldn't forget, by Mark Weisbrot of the Guardian, published in 2000:

To forgive is a virtue, but forgetting is an indulgence we can ill afford. Our foreign policy establishment remains addicted to empire, and is possessed by a hubris that is arguably even greater than the one that got us into Vietnam. Until they learn the lessons that the anti-war movement tried to teach them, we can expect more Vietnams ahead of us.

Here's Weisbrot's column yesterday on Osama bin Laden and the war on terror. He reminds us:

The "war on terror" was made to order for the post-cold war era, and enthusiasts such as then Vice President Dick Cheney noticed this immediately, before any wars were launched. Within five days of the 9/11 attacks, Cheney was on television proclaiming that the war against terrorism was "a long-term proposition": the "kind of work that will take years".

Indeed, it has, and with US drone strikes in Pakistan killing civilians and generating more hatred weekly, a cycle of violence is perpetuated that can go on for many years to come.

SB Nation

Tony Kimbro Commits To Georgia State Basketball After Second-Team All-Kentucky ... SB Nation Kimbro is a six-foot-six shooting guard from Jefferstown HS in Louisville, Kentucky and was widely considered one of top remaining unsigned players in the state. He was a member of the All-Region team and was a second-team All-State selection. ... Men's Basketball Signs Highly-Touted Tony Kimbro Jr. to NLIDuluth Weekly Jeffersontown's Kimbro commits to Georgia StateLouisville Courier-Journal all 8 news articles »

Micah Mason isn't one for the spotlight.

If it were up to him, he'd have gone on playing basketball at Highlands High in Natrona Heights, Penn., in relative obscurity.

But it's hard to be obscure when you score 64 points in a game on 17-of-19 shooting including 7 of 7 from beyond the 3-point arc. That effort during a 101-83 victory over Valley High on Jan. 14 was the second-highest scoring performance ever in the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League and earned him a two-sentence blurb in Sports Illustrated's "Faces In The Crowd."

That's when obscurity officially went out the window.

That small paragraph piqued the interest of the coaches from Drake University in Des Moines, who promptly made some phone calls and flew 791 miles to Natrona Heights to see Mason, who just completed his junior season, and ultimately offer him a scholarship. Prior to Drake's interest, Mason had received almost no collegiate courtship despite averaging 34 points and nine assists per game.

"I guess someone nominated me for "Faces in the Crowd" and I guess that's how coach Phelps from Drake heard about me," Mason told The Dagger. "After that, he called my coach and then he had an assistant come visit at practice right before our last playoff game. Ever since then, four other coaches (from Drake) came and saw me, so they showed a lot of interest."

After visiting the school two weekends ago -- the first time Mason had ever flown on an airplane -- he decided that Drake was the place for him.

"I went and hung out with the players and I never heard a swear word," Mason said. "You never hear that anymore. I just like being around people like me. I'm a pretty good kid and I like it. It's small up there and just a better fit for me. And an early opportunity to play definitely helps me."

Mason also received interested from Richmond and Butler coach Brad Stevens, who watched him work out last week. Mason said Stevens talked to him about coming to Butler, but said his playing time would be contingent on whether Shelvin Mack decided to stay in the draft after the May 8 withdrawal deadline. It was that caveat that made Mason sure that Drake was the place he wanted to be.

"I just want to go somewhere where they always wanted me," Mason said. "With Butler, it was like a thing with Shelvin Mack entering the draft and I had to wait until May 8 because if he didn't go then he'd be the guard this year. It was just a bunch of little things that I just loved Drake for. They just wanted me always."

Beyond getting a college scholarship, Mason also was invited to a camp in Florida this summer and to play with a team that will travel to China in August. He said he's surprised by the amount of fanfare he's received after a simple Sports Illustrated mention.

"It's pretty crazy because I never really expected this kind of publicity, it kind of just happened," Mason said. "I think there's a little more pressure now because it's almost like you can't make a mistake."

A man has been arrested in the fatal shooting of a security guard during a confrontation at a bar in northwest Houston late last night. Jose Rodrigo Romero, 43, is charged with murder in the death of Carlos Melendez-Solis, 46, at a sports bar at 8104 W. Tidwell near Wyandott about 9 p.m. Sunday, according to the Houston Police Department.

Last month we blogged the suicide of Dave Duerson, a former NFL star who killed himself at the age of 50. In order to preserve his brain for study, he took the unusual step of shooting himself in the chest. He suspected - and the subsequent autopsy confirmed - that he suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative and incurable...

Nick Russell, a 6-4 shooting guard and Arlington Grace Prep alum, will transfer from Kansas State, according to the Kansas City Star. Russell started games for the Wildcats at the beginning of last year but ended the season as a...

Filed under: Movie News

TV star David Boreanaz will make good use of his 'Bones' hiatus downtime to take a leading role in the indie feature 'Officer Down,' a paranormal thriller that stars Stephen Dorff, Dominic Purcell, Stephen Lang, James Woods and AnnaLynne McCord. Here's the film's story line, according to Deadline: When a doctor and security guard dream at night, their dreams consist of what the other person did during the day. They meet when the security guard murders his wife, is then hit by a car and brought into the doctor's emergency room. Boreanaz will play a humorless, ambitious rival detective to a cop played by Dorff. The film, the first feature for director Brian A. Miller, begins shooting in Connecticut this week.

Aussie director Roger Donaldson ('The Bank Job,' 'The Recruit' and 'The World's Fastest Indian') will direct 'Cities,' a financial thriller that will interweave stories set in New York, London and Mumbai that stars Clive Owen and 'Slumdog Millionaire's Anil Kapoor. According to Variety, the film is a cautionary tale about greed and ambition set against the Dow Jones all-time stock market high. Production will begin in October in London, Mumbai and New York.

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The shooting in Ohio on 4 May 1970 of four students by national guardsmen resonates for a nation still embroiled in foreign wars

It turns out there won't be an event at Kent State University this year commemorating the killing of four university students there during a campus protest against the Vietnam war on 4 May 1970. The shootings, carried out by Ohio national guardsmen 41 years ago this Wednesday, shocked the national conscience – and probably helped force the Nixon administration to wind down the Vietnam war more quickly than it intended.

Even today, iconic images from the shooting – most notably, the anguished face of 14-year-old runaway Mary Ann Vecchio, as she leans over the body of one of the dead students, which won a Pulitzer Prize that year – remain disturbingly resonant. They remind us of a time when America was bitterly divided along racial and regional lines, and experiencing violent conflict almost daily. Mere words – and non-violent protest – could get you killed.

The assassination in 1968 of Martin Luther King Jr and Robert Kennedy had already disabused the nation of the idea that only poor, disenfranchised blacks in the south could be victims of violent prejudice and hatred. But now, the deaths of Jeffrey Miller, William Knox Schroeder, Allison Krause and Sandra Scheuer – barely 20, and all good students with promising careers ahead of them, suggested that the Vietnam war had finally "come home". After years of bombing and burning South-east Asian villages in search of an elusive and ill-defined "enemy", the nation's imperial war machine had finally decided to turn its rifles and bayonets on its own privileged children.

Absurdly, perhaps, two of the dead and several of the nine wounded when a small troop of guardsmen suddenly, and without warning, fired 67 shots in the direction of dispersing demonstrators weren't even there to protest the war. Scheuer was crossing the campus parking lot en route to her next class. And Schroeder, a campus basketball star, was actually a member of the campus ROTC recruitment centre, which protesting students had burned to the ground just three days earlier. He'd simply stopped by the protest, and remained on the periphery, to see what all the fuss was about.

The proximate cause of the Kent State protest was the Nixon administration's announcement on 30 April 1970 that it was authorising a military invasion of Cambodia to attack and destroy North Vietnamese communist "sanctuaries". Nixon had been elected largely on his promise to bring the Vietnam war to a close quickly, in part by "Vietnamising" the conflict, which meant bringing US troops home. But he'd never revealed his secret plans to escalate the bombing of North Vietnam, or to draw neighbouring countries into the conflict. Democrats, of course, had long considered Nixon an anti-communist hatchet man, beginning with his political smear campaign against a Democratic opponent, Helen Gahagan Douglas, that launched his political career, and helped earn him the nickname "Tricky Dick".

Nixon also harboured a deep and paranoid animus towards student protesters, whom he frequently called "bums" when he wasn't labelling them "communists". That sentiment spread to other political figures, including Ohio Governor James Rhodes, who was widely viewed as a possible vice-presidential running mate for Nixon in 1972. Four days before the Kent State shootings, Nixon had concluded his speech announcing the Cambodian invasion warning that "we live in a time of anarchy, abroad and at home", and that he would not tolerate attacks on the "great institutions which have been created by free civilizations in the last 500 years", especially, he noted, universities.

And on Sunday 3 May, after a third day of protest at Kent State in which guardsmen had already bayoneted several students, Rhodes denounced the protesters as "unAmerican" and said "they're worse than the brown shirts and the communist element and also the night riders and the vigilantes. They're the worst type of people that we harbour in America". He promised that the national guard would "restore order". And with grisly results, that's what they did.

Public reaction to the killings was swift. Students at some 900 universities and colleges launched a fresh wave of protests, resulting in the first successful student strike in US history. Kent State itself remained closed for six weeks. But the country at large remained as divided over Kent State as it was over the war. A Gallup poll found that 58% of Americans blamed the students for what happened; only 11% blamed the guardsmen, and nearly a third, 31%, remained "undecided". For some, the burning down of the ROTC centre, and the throwing of rocks by students constituted a provocation, and guardsmen interviewed later said they'd genuinely feared for their lives. The campus administration had also banned further campus protests after 3 May, but the students persisted in rallying anyway. And they repeatedly refused to disperse after the guard fired tear gas and tried to clear the area with a minimum of force.

But could anything, in fact, justify the guardsmen, without warning, or apparent provocation, firing on unarmed students?

Even vice-president Spiro Agnew, a former prosecutor, and no friend of the protesters, stunned conservatives when he admitted that while not premeditated, the guardsmen's actions constituted "murder". Interestingly, though, no court ever found the guardsmen, or their superiors, legally culpable for their actions. Most civil lawsuits were also dismissed. Allison Krause's parents, who sued the state of Ohio, eventually received a token "apology", and $15,000 in cash compensation.

The Kent State administration officially commemorated the killings for five years, then withdrew its support, leaving it to grieving families and supporters to sponsor the annual event. ut last year, on the 40th anniversary, the campus administration, responding to continued protest, finally agreed to spend the entire day educating the campus about the events and their implications. To some, Kent State may seem like a symbol from an era that has long passed. But thanks to such commemorative events – and the monuments erected in honour of the dead – it's also a testament to the bitter social and political divisions that continue to simmer in America, and a reminder of the dangers to civil liberties and social peace that can arise when the nation goes to war, and sends thousands of its own youth to die on foreign battlefields for seemingly no good purpose.

No campus today is erupting over recent American interventions in Iraq, Afghanistan or Libya. But the memory of campuses transformed into war zones is still fresh in the minds of US military planners, as they seek to fashion limited engagements relying on a strictly volunteer army. With even the Tea Party movement now calling for an end to wars that needlessly drain the nation's treasury, were Obama or another US president to reinstitute a military draft to put unwilling Americans, especially college students, on the ground to fight and die, is there any doubt that a new season of bitter protest could erupt, once again?

• Israel Gutierrez of The Miami Herald: "Comfort hasn’t always translated into positive results for this Heat team this season. It normally meant a letdown was imminent. It happened as recently as the first round against Philadelphia, a series that lasted a game longer and involved more tense moments than it ever should have because the Heat, at times, figured it would be a comfortable experience. Perhaps that’s why there was no sense of relief Tuesday before or during Game?2 against the Celtics. No luxury in holding a one-game cushion. There was anxiety. There was pressure. There was a feeling that the series hadn’t even begun, because these Celtics weren’t only capable of stealing the momentum and home-court advantage in Game 2, but they were practically expected to. The Heat didn’t win this insanely intense second-round series against Boston on Tuesday, but it certainly could’ve lost it. A Boston win could’ve been catastrophic to the psyche of the Heat. It would’ve put tremendous stress on a team that hasn’t handled stressful moments especially well, particularly not in Boston, for the better part of this season. The Heat avoided that scenario. LeBron James avoided three days of questions and concerns. Chris Bosh avoided being the ultimate target. And Dwyane Wade avoided wasting his spectacular Game 1 effort. A 2-0 series lead may have never felt so necessary. 'This thing is just getting started,' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said."
• Dave Hyde of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "One by one, they made Boston's stars grow old before us. LeBron James made a quick cut and -- ouch! -- Boston's Paul Pierce left for a while with a foot injury. Dwyane Wade made a magic move and -- where'd he go? -- Boston's Kevin Garnett was a lost child in the mall, turned completely around, as Wade blew by for a layup. Wade then made another move, hitting the air brakes. Boston's Ray Allen couldn't stop. Allen fell to the ground, like a supplicant, watching Wade's three-point shot swish. In Tuesday's 102-91 Heat win, the Heat's Big Three played Boston's Big Three like youth plays age. It was that simple. And that convincing. And perhaps that conclusive if the four-day rest before Game 3 doesn't help Boston. Once upon a time, these Celtics played for these spotlit moments, tough and unshakable, the perfect blend of veteran nerves and talent. Through two games it's been the younger, more athletic Heat who have done it."
• Mike Berardino of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "You want to know why the Boston Celtics find themselves trailing 2-0 in a playoff series for the first time in seven years? In a word: Tempo. Every time the wily Celtics try to drag the Miami Heat over to the ropes, LeBron James or Dwyane Wade breaks free and moves back to the center of the ring. Dancing and grinning. Sticking and moving. Floating like a butterfly and, well, you know the rest. The Celtics, 102-91 losers on Tuesday night at AmericanAirlines Arena, might as well have been trying to defend the Heat stars with butterfly nets for all the success they've had through these first two games. Sunday afternoon, Wade went for 38 and James for 22 in a 99-90 Heat win. Tuesday night, it was James going for 35 and Wade for 28 as the roles were reversed but the outcome was eerily similar. 'Just trying to wear them down throughout the game,' James said. A 14-0 Heat run that began with the score knotted at 80 was evidence that plan worked in Game 2. The question now, as the series moves to Boston, is can the Celtics get the tempo under control and at a pace they can survive? Or will it be more of the same from the Go-Go Heat and their suffocating defense?"
• Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald: "At this moment in playoff time, the Celtics aren’t who they purport to be. They aren’t even who the Heat thought they were. To watch the Celts absolutely unravel last night was to witness an aging boxer in an ill-advised comeback. Only they aren’t too old. They threw a couple of decent combinations, but in the late rounds they were Sonny Liston on the canvas while a young Muhammad Ali danced around them. Only they are not knocked out. There are at least two more opening bells to go for the Celtics -- Games 3 and 4 on Saturday and Monday. To earn an all-expenses-paid trip back to Miami, they will have to prove their critics wrong. And prove the Heat right. Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said after last night’s 102-91 shovel of dirt on the Celtics’ reputation that his team needed to take a one-day break from it all before relocating the edge it had in the two games here. 'We have to get back to that edge because of our respect for their experience and their championship DNA,' he said of the Celts. 'This is a very tough-minded team with a lot of pride.' The Celtics would like to think so, but when the going got tough last night, the visitors, after engaging in high-volume debates during timeouts, curled up into the fetal position."
• Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald: "Even Shaquille O’Neal’s former teammates are starting to feel bad about his plight. Yesterday, LeBron James tried to imagine what it’s like at the moment to be Shaq. 'He’s a competitor and he would love to play,' O’Neal’s former Cleveland teammate said. 'Injuries have bothered him the last couple of years. You can’t take away from what he’s done in his career, so we’ll see what happens.' Though Shaq didn’t play last night, Celtics officials continue to express optimism about the improvement in his recovery from soreness in his right Achilles tendon and calf. O’Neal’s most recent big step came in Monday’s practice, which included a scrimmage that marked his first action since a five-minute appearance against Detroit on April 3. O’Neal was sore and hobbled following the workout. 'He looked great yesterday, said Rivers. 'He went through the whole practice and looked phenomenal, actually. He had one stretch that was phenomenal. Then by the end of the practice he was struggling to walk, so we’ll see. Game 3 is becoming likely.' "
• Jenni Carlson of The Oklahoman: "On a night when Oklahoma City's postseason hopes hung in the balance, Russell Westbrook came up big. Those anxious early minutes became a distant memory by the final minutes of this playoff game. Thunder 111, Grizzlies 102. Westbrook was superb. He scored 24 points, dished out six assists and played the type of controlled yet dynamic game that his team needed from him. What's more, the NBA's most overanalyzed point guard wasn't the only Thunder point guard to have a big night. Eric Maynor scored 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting. If the Thunder can get this kind of play out of its point guards, it has a chance not only to win this Western Conference semifinal but also to still be playing in June. No joke. These guys were that good Tuesday night.
• Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman: "In a 111-102 victory over Memphis on Tuesday night, the Thunder went from passive to aggressive, from the bullied to the bullies, from the brink of elimination to a brand new series. With a make-my-day attitude, the Thunder frustrated Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol, who were post monsters in Memphis' Game 1 victory. Randolph and Gasol, who combined for 54 points on 21-of-33 shooting Sunday, had just 28 points on 5-of-22 shooting Tuesday night. Perkins made Gasol look like the little brother that he is -- Pau returned to No. 1 in the Gasol poll -- and Nick Collison played 25 minutes of splendid defense on Randolph, who was beginning to develop a reputation as unstoppable. Instead, Randolph was stopped cold. He made just two shots, and that Gran Torino attitude that Perkins brought from Boston filtered down to every Boomer. In truth, it's an attitude Collison always has had. 'He brings that toughness every time down the court,' Thunder coach Scotty Brooks said. 'He's a winner. He's all about making winning basketball plays.' "
• Geoff Calkins of The Commercial-Appeal: "Everyone in Memphis knows the Grizzlies operate best when they play with an underdog’s edge. They can get back to doing that now. The Oklahoma City Thunder blasted the Grizzlies in Game 2 of their playoff series Tuesday night, 111-102. And while the cognoscenti will now have until Saturday to figure out exactly what happened, it really isn’t all that complicated. The Thunder played harder. The Thunder did all those things Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins talks about. They competed. They defended. They played with the fury you’d expect from a team in peril of going down 0-2 at home. The Grizzlies, well, you know how everyone expected them to come out fat, happy and maybe a little sluggish for Sunday’s game? That’s exactly how they came out Tuesday night. They played like they had finally decided they were as good as everybody was saying, like they no longer had to prove they belonged with every trip down the floor. ... The good news is that the Grizzlies got the split of games they needed in this city. The other good news is that there are no laurels to rest on any more. Said Shane Battier: 'If we don’t have an edge after this game, then we shouldn’t be here.' "
• Michael Cunningham of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "The Bulls are the latest team to realize the postseason Hawks aren’t necessarily like the regular-season version. After playing one good half against the Bulls in three regular-season games, the Hawks delivered a convincing 103-95 victory Monday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Hawks lost two of three games to Chicago during the season -- and had to rally from 19 points down for the lone victory. Chicago had 14 more rebounds per game, and the Hawks couldn’t break 83 points in any of the meetings. In Game 1 the Hawks had a 38-37 rebounding edge and shot 51 percent from the field. 'The regular season is over,' said Hawks guard Joe Johnson, who scored 34 points. 'We’re starting a new season. Collectively, as a team, we’ve been great in the postseason. We’ve approached every game with the same intensity.' It was another turnabout for the Hawks, who won Game 1 against Orlando in the first round, a year after the Magic swept them in the second round. On Monday, the Hawks ended a 15-game losing streak in the second round. 'A lot of people had written us off in the series before it even began,' Hawks coach Larry Drew said Tuesday. 'Now that we have been in these situations a few times, we respond differently. We don’t listen to what’s being said ... and I do believe this team is a little more hungry.' "
• Rick Telander of the Chicago Sun-Times: "There was something about the Derrick Rose MVP presentation Tuesday that was so warmhearted, so uplifting, so quietly dignified that you couldn’t help but be moved by it. Even if you thought Dwight Howard (second place) or LeBron James (third) should have won the 2011 NBA Most Valuable Player Award, you had to admit this young Bulls star is such a humble, hard-working, wildly gifted, caring -- and, thus, spectacular -- role model that he is a credit to everything that sport stands for. ‘As great a player as he is,’ Bulls general manager Gar Forman said at the rostrum, ‘he is an even better person.’ Nobody disagreed. Indeed, what you heard whispered like a breeze after the ceremony, as Rose talked with the media while his family, his teammates and front-office folks mingled in the closed-off ballroom of the Lincolnshire Marriott, was precisely this: ‘Isn’t he something?’ Clichés exist because they once had roots in the truth. Rose is the good kid who did right."
• K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune: "All season, the Bulls liked to say they were chasing. The motivational ploy worked so well they achieved the league's best record, becoming the chased. The chased is now chasing again, dropping Game 1 of their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinals against the Hawks with Game 2 scheduled for Wednesday night at the United Center. And as they try to master the learning curve of being the favorites, they need to get back to what made them the chased. 'We need to be aggressive, especially defensively,' Derrick Rose said. 'If we do that, we can get them off their game. You'll see us getting to the loose balls that we didn't get to in the first game. We'll rebound and be aggressive at both ends.' Indeed, beyond their shotmaking, the Hawks beat the Bulls at their own game -- getting to loose balls, outrebounding them, making the hustle plays."
• Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: "Since they've already gotten at least a split of their first two playoff games with the Los Angeles Lakers, the Dallas Mavericks have now gone into greedy mode. The Mavs would like nothing better than to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series against the two-time defending NBA champions. 'For us, again, we know what our goals are,' guard Jason Terry said. 'We've got to win four games [against LA]. We've won one, and this next one is a big game.' Game 2 is 9:30 tonight at Staples Center. All the Mavericks have to do is win their home games and they'll have stamped a ticket to the Western Conference Finals. 'You can't even look that far ahead,' Terry said. 'You win this next game you put yourself in a great position.' Does Terry believe the Mavs shocked the league with the Game 1 victory? 'Don't know; don't really care,' Terry said. 'It don't really matter.' "
• Jeff Miller of The Orange County Register: "The subject was momentum, specifically, how the Lakers have been lacking it lately and how regaining it now certainly could ease their intended journey. The problem? They aren’t likely to reclaim momentum anytime soon. And that’s not our opinion. That’s Phil Jackson‘s. 'I don’t know if that’s going to happen,' the coach said Tuesday. 'It’s been my experience that that doesn’t always happen because teams are very good at this point in the playoffs. They can make adjustments. They leap-frog each other from game-to-game.' So that means the Lakers and Mavericks could be exchanging blows -- and victories -- in this series. If that’s going to be the case, it has to start with the Laker victory Wednesday."

At a time when dozens of underclassmen are transferring in search of greater player time or a coach with whom they're more compatible, the departure of Gonzaga point guard Demetri Goodson is still noteworthy for one reason.

He's not just leaving the Zags. He's also leaving basketball.

Goodson intends to play college football in his home state of Texas next year, either at Texas A&M where his older brother played or under former Texas A&M coach Dennis Franchione at Texas State. The junior will have two years of football eligibility remaining since Gonzaga doesn't have a program.

"I would like to thank my coaches and staff for the opportunity to play here," Goodson said in a statement released by the school. "I also want to thank the city of Spokane and all of the Zags fans who have supported me over the years. It's been an awesome experience."

It's difficult to evaluate what kind of football prospect Goodson is since he hasn't played the sport since his sophomore year in high school, but there's reason to believe he could follow in the footsteps of older brother Mike, now a running back with the Carolina Panthers. Goodson is talented enough that Arizona State offered him a football scholarship before he signed with Gonzaga and chose to only focus on basketball.

The unexpected departure of Goodson makes Gonzaga younger at guard yet it won't alter expectations for next season much at all.

Although Goodson sank a memorable game-winning runner in the NCAA tournament against Western Kentucky as a freshman, he hasn't progressed since then despite starting 68 of 69 games the past two seasons. He averaged 5.2 points and 2.6 assists last season, shooting just 40.9 percent from the floor and 25.9 percent from three-point range.

Among the candidates to replace Goodson in Gonzaga's starting lineup is freshman Kevin Pangos, a highly touted Canadian recruit named the top point guard at the U-17 World Championships last summer. The Zags also return freshman David Stockton, who excelled off the bench the second half of the season and pushed Goodson for playing time.

The other benefit of Goodson's departure for Gonzaga is it potentially frees up a scholarship for Bryce Jones, a USC transfer scheduled to visit the Zags next week. Jones, a part-time starter at USC as a freshman, is also considering UNLV and San Diego State.

MANHATTAN — After a difficult sophomore season that saw him go from Kansas State's starting shooting guard to seldom-used backup, Nick Russell has decided to transfer.

EXCLUSIVE: David Boreanaz will spent his series hiatus starring in Officer Down, an independent feature helmed by first-timer Brian A. Miller. Boreanaz will star opposite Stephen Dorff, Dominic Purcell, Stephen Lang, James Woods and AnnaLynne McCord in the John Chase-scripted drama. When a doctor and security guard dream at night, their dreams consist of the other's daytime activities. They meet when the security guard murders his wife, and is then hit by a car and brought into the doctor's emergency room. Boreanaz will play a humorless and ambitious rival detective to another cop played by Dorff. Jess Most is producing, and shooting begins this week in Connecticut. We know it's a hiatus movie because Boreanaz sent out a Twitter message telling his fans he'll be reprising his Special Agent Seeley Booth role on Fox's Bones for a seventh season. He's repped by CAA and Tom Parziale.

2011 NBA Mock Draft Lands Alec Burks With the Charlotte Bobcats to Add Scoring Help

Sophomore shooting guard Alec Burks vaulted onto the scene this season by scoring 20.5 points a game. Last week he decided to forgo his last two years of eligibility and is in the draft.

The 6-6 Burks is very dangerous in the open court and can light up opponents in every conceivable way—except for one. He is atrociousness from three-point land, shooting under 30 percent during the season.

ESPN NBA draft expert Chad Ford writes about the big issue with Burks' game:

In a draft devoid of great shooting guard prospects, Burks offers a bit of a quandary. He has the requisite size and athleticism for the position -- but how interested are you in a shooting guard who can't shoot?

When Burks is at his best, he's slicing through defenses and finishing at the basket.

MUST READ: Top College Players That Will Not Get Drafted

If Burks can put in the endless amount of hours in the summer to find a three-point jumper...he is really going to be an explosive scorer in the league.

Good Fit or Bad Fit?

This is perfect fit in the draft.

The Bobcats are quite possibly the worst offensive team in the NBA. They need scoring help desperately and could use Burks right away. They are one of the stingiest defenses in the league, so he wouldn't be exposed by quicker opponents as he would on a team with a lesser defense.

The the right thing Bobcats, draft Burks.

Starting lineups HEAT (1-0) Center: Zydrunas Ilgauskas Power forward: Chris Bosh Small forward: LeBron James Shooting guard: Dwyane Wade Point guard: Mike Bibby Inactive: Erick Dampier, Udonis Haslem, Dexter Pittman. CELTICS (0-1) Center: Jermaine O’Neal Power forward: Kevin Garnett Small forward: Paul Pierce Shooting guard: Ray Allen Point guard: Rajon Rondo Inactive: Avery Bradley, Shaquille O’Neal, Sasha Pavlovic. Referees: Joe Crawford, Greg Willard, Jason Phillips (Tom Washington, alternate). Pregame note of [...]

In Jason Jones' Geoff Petrie Q&A; published this week (and discussed briefly before the spectacle that was Monday's announcement), the Kings' lead personnel man opened up a bit about what Sacramento needs going forward.

I think we need another creator, ballhandler. We need some more leadership on the court, either by the form of maturity or addition to the roster. Certainly we need to try to improve our three-point shooting, which fell off from a year ago. ... We'll have to look to fill out our roster with another frontcourt player of some kind.

In order of mention:

1. Another creator/ball-handler.

2. More leadership.

3. Three-point shooting.

4. "Fill out for roster with another frontcourt player."

What's that mean?

1. Another creator/ball-handler.

The Kings' backcourt for next season is Tyreke Evans and Beno Udrih. Marcus Thornton is a restricted free agent that Sacramento seems almost certain to re-sign. The club has a small team option on Pooh Jeter. "Another creator/ball-handler" can mean an upgrade on Pooh, an upgrade on Beno or a new starting point guard.

Remember: Paul Westphal did go with an Evans/Thornton backcourt at times. If that were the plan, you wouldn't need "another" creator or ball-handler, because you have Beno, and Petrie expressed contentment with Beno elsewhere in the Q&A.; That tells me that Evans/Thornton isn't Petrie's starting backcourt. He'd either prefer Evans at small forward or Thornton as the sixth man. If Evans is the small forward, "another creator" could mean an upgrade on either Pooh or Beno -- an upgrade on Beno would effectively make Beno the new Pooh, which would be an upgrade on Pooh.

So Petrie wants a new point guard. Maybe a bench point guard, but maybe a starting point guard.

2. More leadership.

The Kings have one real veteran leader: Francisco Garcia. Samuel Dalembert is in the mix there, but listing leadership as a target tells me the team won't be afraid to go after an older player in free agency or trades. I don't often consider players older than 28 to be eligible to be in the Kings' blueprint. Petrie's indicating that he might feel differently.

3. Three-point shooting.

This is a no-brainer, and -- under our discussion in point No. 1 -- could fit under the point guard "creator" spot or the small forward opening. It's good to see three-point shooting will be a priority.

4. "Another frontcourt player."

This is maybe the most interesting line for me. Of course, reading into Petrie too literally is dangerous -- he's not reading his blueprint in public in May. BUT ...

In saying that the team needs to add "another frontcourt player" to "fill out the roster" -- that looks like an assumption Dalembert will be back, which I had considered a bit of a leap. Sam will be one of the top center free agents, but there will be at least one and probably two younger, better options on the market: Marc Gasol and Nene. Gasol will be a restricted free agent, and Nene has a player option for $11.6 million. They will cost a pretty penny. But each is, again, better and younger than Sam. Petrie wouldn't show his hand if he were hoping to chase them, but I'm under the belief they are worth chasing a bit, especially if the team manages to land a top-2 pick and can address either point guard (Kyrie Irving) or small forward (Derrick Williams) there. (Actually, the "another creator" spot can be filled no matter where the Kings pick. Someone like Kemba Walker and Brandon Walker should be available at No. 5.)

But the way Petrie's quote reads: he's looking to replace Darnell Jackson (who could be a restricted free agent, if the Kings extend a small qualifying offer -- which they might, because it's not tying up much salary). Petrie obviously likes the three-man big rotation of Dalembert, DeMarcus Cousins and Jason Thompson. And I don't blame him; it's the best big rotation the Kings have had since 2004. But wouldn't Marc-DeMarcus-JT be even better? Or a Nene-DeMarcus tandem?

We'll see how it shakes out. But it appears now that Dalembert and Thornton will be the immediate free agent priorities, followed by blank-filling in the backcourt and wing.

Sunday was the past. Forget about it. Put it out of your mind. Don't talk to me about flagrant fouls, or missed opportunities, or poor officiating. The Celtics need to win 4 games, and they'll have 6 chances to do it, that's where we're at.

Tonight though we as fans should be optimistic. The Celtics have lost the first game of a seven game series four times in the four years Kevin Garnett has been here, and while they have won only two of those four series (Win: Chicago, 2009, Cleveland 2010. Loss: Orlando 2009, LA 2010), they followed up every Game 1 loss with a Game 2 win, whether it be home or away.

I don't think tonight will be any different, but it won't exactly be easy either. 

We know what went wrong in Game 1. Rajon Rondo never quite got the offense moving in the way he would've wanted to. Paul Pierce got maybe a little too aggro. Kevin Garnett was about as offensive as Wayne Brady, and Jermaine O'Neal only played 21 minutes. On top of that Dwyane Wade turned in a superhero-esque performance, James Jones did something he won't do again in the playoffs (score 25 points on only 5 made field goals and 10 free throw attempts) and the Celtics didn't retain momentum long enough in the 4th quarter to catch up from a double-digit deficit *cough refs cough* that they created early by missing 20 of their first 26 shots. 

Tonight there are a lot of smallish things that absolutely need to be done if Boston intends on taking the game *cough, different refs, cough*, but while I hate to feed into vagueries about effort and heart, Boston needs to want it more than Miami from the opening tip. As Doc Rivers said earlier today, Miami 'Hit first the entire game'. The were more aggressive pushing the ball, going for rebounds earlier, and heading into contact. The resulting outcome (Boston's struggles early) pretty much dictated the outcome of the game.

Tonight Boston needs to not only match Miami's energy levels, they need to surpass them. Tonight Boston needs to Bomb First, no more of this catch-up-in-the-second-half garbage.

Probable Starting Lineups And Key Match-Ups Courtesy Of Our Own Saint-In-Residence, FLCeltsFan

   
PG:  Rajon Rondo................................................ SG: Ray Allen


C:  Jermaine O'Neal

 
SF:  Paul Pierce.................................................PF:  Kevin Garnett

Boston Bench Mob
Jeff Green
Glen Davis
Delonte West
Nenad Krstic
Carlos Arroyo
Avery Bradley
Sasha Pavlovic 
Troy Murphy
Von Wafer

Injured
Shaquille O'Neal (calf/old age/Danny Smokescreen)  day to day



 
PG:  Mike Bibby.............................................. SG:  Dwyane Wade


C:  Zydrunas Ilgauskas

 
SF:  LeBron James ..................................................PF:  Chris Bosh

Miami's Reserves
Mario Chalmers
Juwan Howard
Eddie House
Jamaal Magloire
Dexter Pittman
Mike Miller
James Jones
Eric Dampier
Joel Anthony

Injuries
Udonis Haslem (foot)  day to day



Game Notes:
The Celtics have to come into this game angry and ready to play. If they don't, they don't deserve to win.  After being treated unfairly by the refs and punked by the Heat, the Celtics need to have a chip on their shoulders and come out aggressive right from the beginning.   

After bragging about how much better the Celtics bench was than the Heat bench, Big Baby finished with just 4 points and 4 rebounds and a whopping -21 in the +/- column.  Jeff Green must be more aggressive on the boards.  There is no excuse for a guy who is 6'9" tall and who has his athleticism and quickness to play over 21 minutes and not get a rebound.  Delonte was just 3-9 from the field, missing not one but 2 dunks.   One of the keys for this game is for our "superior" bench to play much better. 

The Celtics played like they were the young and inexperienced team in game 1, allowing the Heat to be the more aggressive and physical team.  They reacted to the heat instead of being the instigators and they got caught reacting and that frustrated them even more.  They have to stay composed and execute their game plan without allowing themselves to get frustrated by the lack of calls or by the physical play of the Heat. 

Both teams can point to areas that they can improve.  Both Bosh and LeBron could play better.  No one on the Heat bench played well other than James Jones.  Udonis Haslem is considered day to day and may make his return to the team sometime in this series.  For the Celtics, KG, Rondo and Pierce can all play better.  The Celtics bench certainly can play better.  And Doc has said that Shaq should play in either game 2 or game 3.   Chances are that James Jones doesn't shoot that well in every game.  Hopefully the refs aren't as blatant in calling the game one sided again. If the Celtics play with some intensity and fire and they avoid getting caught up in mind games, they have a good chance of winning this game, regardless of the officiating. 

Key Matchups
  vs 
Rajon Rondo vs Mike Bibby
Rondo was hampered much of game 1 with foul trouble after picking up 3 quick fouls early in the first half.  He played only 29 minutes in the game but while he was in the game, the Celtics outscored the Heat by 7.   While he was sitting, the Celtics struggled to find their offense.  Rondo had just 7 assists for the game and none in the first half.  The Celtics as a team had only 18 assists, which is way below their average.  Rondo shot only 30% in spite of taking all his shots in the paint.  He also was not using his speed to his advantage, allowing the much slower Bibby to stay with him on defense.  The bottom line is that the Celtics need a more Rondo-like game from their point guard if they want to win this game. 

  vs 
Ray Allen vs Dwyane Wade
Dwyane Wade went off for 38 points in game 1 while Ray Allen put up 25 of his own.  The Celtics will need to defend Wade better and not allow him to get the open looks that he was able to get in game 1.  Ray needs to stay hot for the Celtics and they need to set screens to get him open as he is the Celtics most efficient scorer at this point. 

  vs 
Kevin Garnett vs Chris Bosh 
The Celtics once again were able to keep Bosh from being a factor in the game.  He scored just 7 points but did pull down 12 rebounds.  The Celtics weren't able to take advantage of this because KG played just as poorly.  He shot just 3-9 for 6 points to go with 8 rebounds.   The Celtics need KG to be more aggressive and to be a factor if they want to win this game.  They have to work on getting KG going early and hopefully he will hit his shots in this one. 

Honorable Mention
Paul Pierce vs LeBron James
The Celtics held James to a pedestrian 22 points on 8-19 shooting.  Paul Pierce did a good job defending him but sacrificed some of his own offense in doing so.  He struggled on offense early but was heating up in the second half just about the time when he was tossed from the game.   There is no question that both James Jones and Dwyane Wade should have gotten flagrant fouls for their contact with Pierce, but even when the calls are that one sided and terrible,  Pierce has got to keep his cool.   He should expect more of the same in game 2 and not allow it to take him out of his game.  Jones and Wade were clearly the aggressors and Pierce got caught retaliating.  He dodged a bullet by avoiding a suspension and may not be as lucky the next time.  He must not let the refs or the Heat get under his skin and he has to let his game do the talking instead of his mouth. 

Derrick Rose is hitting less than 38 percent of his shots through six playoff games, seemingly guarded by a series of players (Paul George, Dahntay Jones, and Jeff Teague) that your typical late-night sports talk radio show host hasn't heard of. I've spent a lot of time driving over the last few weeks with the AM blaring, so trust me, they don't know.

Russell Westbrook is shooting way too much, turning the ball over way too much, and both these things are fineable offenses because each shot and/or wasted possession is one fewer chance for the sainted Kevin Durant to touch the ball that he was handed some 22 years ago in a manger on high. Goodness, gracious, sakes alive -- will someone think of Kevin Durant?

Both young point guards fought tooth and nail for the title of the league's best point man this season, with Deron Williams struggling and Chris Paul appearing to take every third game off. Both are in charge of teams that are down 0-1 in the second round of the playoffs, and neither can seem to get it right.

When did it all go wrong? What happened?

The answers, possession by possession, vary.

I've seen every one of Rose's possessions in these playoffs in person, and though he's acted as perhaps this postseason's most spectacular performer at his peak (not consistently, Zach Randolph fans, just at his peak), he's also mixed in some ruddy awful play. For him, it's a question of relied-upon habits gone terribly wrong. That elbow-extended 3-pointer on the left side that used to bring him so much success? It hasn't worked for him in the postseason, though that hasn't stopped Rose from trying.

Though Rose made a passable amount of treys from that area during the regular season, his 3-point shooting has sunk like a stone since he hit for well over 40 percent of his treys in December.

Thirty-six percent is the league average, and Rose made just 34 percent of his long-range bombs in January, 25 percent of them in February, and 30 percent in March and April combined. Toss in his 10-44 mark in the playoffs (just under 23 percent; though probably eight or nine of those were last second half-court heaves), and we can finally start to pass December off as a fluke. We have one month out of a three-year career that features Rose as a good 3-point shooter. Everything else is far below par, unless you think chucking up 10 threes over two games while making three is a good thing for a basketball team.

This hasn't stopped Rose, who tossed up seven treys Monday night, making two. When they go in, you credit the player and tell yourself that he's improved in that area. When they don't, you give it an "ooh, so close" take before quickly forgetting. That's not good. Observers, and Rose, need to remember the bad with the good. Instead, the Kobe Bryant Effect has taken hold, where you give a guy credit for the difficulty of the shot he missed instead of discrediting him for passing up other opportunities.

Are there other opportunities for Rose? Defenses have tightened up in the playoffs, and teams are keying in on him, but it doesn't have to be this way. Rose is not a selfish player, far from it, but he is an uncomfortable passer. He rarely lets a pass go towards where he thinks a teammate will end up, and that's a killer in a league that relies on pick-and-roll action so much.

Rose has to start finding teammate Carlos Boozer off of screens, sending the ball to a place that Boozer will step into a second later. Because, and this was especially apparent in Game 1 against Atlanta, teams just aren't playing Rose to pass at all these days. They just follow him around with help, and Rose (though he had 10 assists on Monday and is averaging 6.7 per game in 39 minutes a contest in the postseason) just hasn't made teams pay as they should.

Worse, an unsettling development whooshed back into Chicago in Game 1. Rose failed to get to the line despite playing nearly 41 minutes and taking 27 shots. And, save for one hack job at the rim in the fourth quarter, I didn't really see any reason why he should have gotten to the free-throw line, which reminded of his play before 2010-11. Rose was often criticized for his lack of free-throw attempts heading into this season, as he'd regularly need 20 shots to score 22 points. This year, Rose's freebie attempts grew and grew, and he averaged 10 attempts from the line during the opening round.

On Monday, though, Rose was settling for jumpers, and trying to worm his way around contact in the paint. We're not calling him soft, the dude is as tough as they come, but he often prefers pure basketball (not slumming for whistles) to NBA-styled basketball (watch Paul Pierce and Dwyane Wade's up-fakes on Tuesday for an example), and that just doesn't win games at this level. Rose needs to go ugly, early, if Chicago is going to get back into an offensive rhythm.

There is absolutely no rhythm to Russell Westbrook's game these days. Between the turnovers or iffy decisions with his jump shooting, the target has been placed on the third-year guard's back, and he hasn't responded well to it.

Especially against the Memphis Grizzlies. Nobody has responded well to their pressure, year-long.

Throughout 2010-11, the Grizzlies forced turnovers at a rate that no NBA team could match. It wasn't even close, and on some nights the sheer amount of steals or wayward passes the Grizzlies forced ranked to a ridiculous degree. It was almost laughable.

So for Westbrook, at all of 22 years old and in his third season as not only an NBA point guard, but a point guard full stop? He's going to have his issues. And in Game 1, against Memphis, he had issues.

This all stems from his inexperience at the position. Even at his best, Westbrook has yet to balance out the scoring and playmaking aspects of his game into a create-as-the-defense-allows mindset that the best usually show up with.

You can see it in Westbrook's eyes. Each time down court, he seems bound and determined to either fire up a shot, no matter what the defense does, or find a teammate with a pass. His mind is made up as he gets the ball in the backcourt, and the various permutations that present themselves as a result of shifting amongst the defense or his teammates hardly matter. It's like me, a terrible video game player, attempting to play "Madden" for the first time in a decade. No matter what, I've already called the play in the huddle, I'm not looking anywhere else, and I'm going to pass to that tight end. Doesn't matter who else is open. Doesn't matter how well he's covered.

Though, admittedly, we have seen a selfish streak at times in Westbrook this season, I still think this either/or play is still mainly a function of his inexperience. Throw in Memphis' active hands, and you have a combustible mix.

And this is how it works, now. Both of these young men are 22, both are at the vanguard of their position, and nobody seems to realize how crazy that is. Twenty-two-year-olds are not supposed to be this battle-tested, this familiar with the professional stage, with MVP awards and World Championship pedigrees to their names. Twenty-two-year-olds just aren't usually in this spot, ready to be picked apart. Outside of Magic Johnson (who dealt with all sorts of criticism for missed free throws in the clutch, his relationship with coach Paul Westhead, and the large contract he signed at that age), there just isn't much precedent.

This doesn't mean we need to back off on criticizing both Rose and Westbrook, because we have legitimate gripes with each of their games. We also need to understand, as we lob away, both why they're in the position to be criticized, and why they're in this particular position to begin with.

It's because these two are pretty damned special. Goodness gracious, sakes alive.

The defending national champion Huskies have just one incoming freshman for the 2011-2012 season: point guard Ryan Boatright.Conventional wisdom suggests it would take four or five players to replace Kemba Walker, but with the late-season emergence of Jeremy Lamb and Shabazz Napier, to go along with Alex Oriakhi and a bench full of underclassmen overachievers, UConn should be competitive next season (ESPN ranks them No. 5 in their very early preseason poll). But in a year's time? Who knows. Lamb could be ready for the NBA, and depending on what type of season Oriakhi has, he could be too. And then there are the annual " will he or won't he?" questions about Jim Calhoun's retirement plans, the perpetual uncertainty of which can put off recruits.Still, the Huskies are in the running for Andre Drummond, the best player in the 2012 class, and Omar Calhoun, the 11th-ranked shooting guard, will also visit Storrs soon. Details via the ZagsBlog:Calhoun, a 6-foot-5 sho...