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Lakers-Thunder Game 3: L.A. wins free throw contest by a lot, wins game by 3
May 19, 2012, 3:15 AM EDT
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Forty-two free throws is a lot of free throw attempts. Forty-one free throws made is a lot of makes. The Lakers got one, made the other, and walked out of Staples with a win in Game 4, 99-96. We can talk about a lot of things. The way that the Lakers attacked the Thunder defensively,…
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Lakers-Thunder Game 2: A Thunder magic trick, a Lakers disappearing act, and a change of the guard
May 17, 2012, 1:40 AM EDT
In Game 1, everything went wrong for the Lakers, everything went right for the Thunder. Thunder won. In Game 2, for 46 minutes, at least some things went right for the Lakers, everything went wrong for the Thunder. The pace was slow. The defense was incredible for the Lakers. The Thunder weren’t hitting jumpers. A…
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So what do the Los Angeles Lakers need to do to improve in Game 2 vs. the Thunder? A brief list: 1. Do not be terrible 2. Defend jumpshots better 3. Have Pau Gasol act like an NBA player 4. Work the ball inside to draw more contact and get to the line 5. Again,…
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This was a beating. A smackdown. A trouncing. A demolition. A boat race. A blowout. A “hit ‘em in the head with a shovel and drag their team to an unmarked grave,” “nail ‘em with a 2X4, watch them stagger around and then slam the door on them on the way out,” downright unavoidable-to-say butt…
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Lakers-Thunder Western Conference Semifinals Preview: No longer a feel good story
May 14, 2012, 4:42 PM EDT
Two years ago, the Oklahoma City Thunder faced the Los Angeles Lakers in the first-round of the 2010 NBA Playoffs. It was supposed to be a nice learning experience for a team on the rise, a quick lesson from the reigning champs as to how the playoffs work. Instead, the world was introduced to the…
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Metta World Peace won’t be fist-bumping Harden because he’s a reserve, apparently
May 13, 2012, 11:16 PM EDT
Metta World Peace will not be reaching out to James Harden in Game 1 regarding that whole “elbowing him in the head and knocking him unconscious” bit that happened last month. From the L.A. Times: World Peace has not spoken to Harden since elbowing him in the second quarter of the Lakers 114-106 double-overtime victory…
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It does not sound like Andre Miller will return to the Nuggets
May 13, 2012, 4:03 PM EDT
Andre Miller was traded on draft night last year to Denver, and from the start it was an odd fit. Miller had signed with Portland as a free agent and wanted to be considered a top tier player. He had struggled with Nate McMillan and despite his chemistry with LaMarcus Aldridge, was moved for what…
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Clippers-Grizzlies Game 7: Somebody’s going to the second round, somebody’s going home
May 13, 2012, 12:20 PM EDT
The Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Clippers face off in Game 7 Sunday. Here are five things to watch. 1. At Least You’ve Got Your Health, Or Not: It’s become a pretty big deal that Blake Griffin has a sore knee (no ligament damage known of at this time) and that Chris Paul has a…
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The Raptors are constantly going to be linked to Steve Nash because of Bryan Colangelo’s link to Nash’s Suns which Colangelo was GM for. So naturally, with the Raptors improving, having cap space, and Nash poised to hit the open market, there’s talk of him heading to his native country to finish his career. But…
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Stop us if you’ve heard this one before. The Boston Celtics play badly for 2.5 quarters, scrap and grind their way to get the deficit into reasonable territory, then turn on the jets while the other team does a series of remarkably stupid things, going away from everything that had worked the entire game through,…
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Lakers enter damage control around Magic’s Mike Brown statements
May 12, 2012, 6:40 PM EDT
See, and here’s the problem with having your franchise legend, former owner, and acting VP as an “analyst” on television. When Magic Johnson made comments regarding Mike Brown being fired if the Lakers were to lose Game 7 Saturday night, it set off more alarms than usual. Typically, a studio analyst making a comment like…
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Kobe Bryant has just about had it with his teammates not showing up, and that’s pretty evident. When he refused to quit and played well with gastroenteritis in Game 6 and his teammates no-showed, you knew there would be consequences. Bryant has come too far and done too much to get that kind of performance from…
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For just about anyone else winning the NBA’s Most Valuable Award would be a good thing, with no downside. It’s an award that carries legitimate weight, not just in terms of current cultural cache, but longer-lasting greatness in the context of a player’s legacy. It should be cause for celebration. But for LeBron James, it’s…
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It’s amazing when people tend to dismiss what Magic Johnson says about the Lakers. He’s arguably the greatest player in franchise history, is known as a close and personal friend of owner Jerry Buss, still holds an official positions inside the front office, has held an ownership stake in the team as recently as two…
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Spurs sweep Jazz in Game 4: the Plague moves on as the youngsters have a lot to learn
May 7, 2012, 11:16 PM EDT
Thank God that’s over with. Spurs win 87-81. The Spurs swept the Jazz Monday night in a contest where the Spurs controlled the entire game. The Jazz made a late run based mostly on the hustle of DeMarre Carroll, but it fell short went the Spurs picked off a pass and Manu Ginobili daggered the…
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Jazz-Spurs Game 3: The Jazz have a bad case of the Spurs plague
May 6, 2012, 12:53 AM EDT
This thing is over. 102-90 Spurs. The exact same thing we’ve seen for the first two games replicated only with a little bit of excitement from Derrick Favors who showed out against the Spurs. Tony Parker is just too much. Let’s start there. The Spurs can space the floor so well on offense that you can’t…
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UPDATE 8:53 pm: Not good news, Bulls fans. Here is the quote from Tom Thibodeau via our friends at CSNChicago.com: “Most likely, he’ll be out tomorrow,” Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau said Saturday afternoon following a film session at the team’s hotel. “I haven’t gotten the grade yet, but it’s doubtful. We’ll see tomorrow, though.”…
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Pacers 101 Magic 99: Pacers fail to give game away despite best efforts
May 5, 2012, 7:29 PM EDT
Well, they almost blew it. Twice. The Indiana Pacers held on to win Game 4 in Orlando and go up 3-1 on the Magic headed back to Indiana. The Pacers held a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter, but a furious run by the Magic tied it behind some brilliant play at the rim by…
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Utah doesn’t need to just win against the Spurs in Game 3 in Utah Saturday. They need to outright dominate in order to make a statement that they aren’t going to be pushed over. Because at this rate, they’re headed for a sweep in short order. The Jazz had some positive things going in Game…
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Caron Butler will start Game 3 with a broken hand, because he’s TuffJuice
May 5, 2012, 3:42 PM EDT
Caron Butler was supposed to be out 4-6 weeks with a fractured hand. Instead, he’s still got that broken hand, but he’s starting today against Memphis in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series. Butler playing could be a big swing for the Clippers. They’ve shot the ball extremely well in this series, over 50%…
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Avery Bradley has been a huge contributor for the Celtics this season, filling in for both Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen who have missed time with injuries. He’s a dogged defender and can attack the rim with his athleticism. He’s fought a shoulder injury all season, however, and on Friday, re-injured it against the Hawks.…
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Sixers 79 Bulls 74: A crushing Bulls collapse as a postseason of misery continues for Chicago
May 4, 2012, 11:35 PM EDT
The Bulls had everything going for them. They were the number one seed, they had beaten all the contenders, they had homecourt advantage, the best defense, one of the best coaches, a superstar. And then it all went wrong. In Game 3, they had a 14-point lead, had everything going for them. They had gotten…
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Spurs 114 Jazz 83: Warning, violent basketball destruction of one team by another
May 2, 2012, 9:37 PM EDT
Hmmm. How can I properly express to you the beatdown of the Spurs’ 114-83 win over the Jazz? Imagine a Hummer driving over a camel. Or Godzilla stepping on a power transformer, only with fewer fireworks. It was kind of like a train running over a cart of moldy peaches. Or a buzzsaw ripping through…
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The San Antonio Spurs beat the Utah Jazz 106-91 Sunday in Game 1 of their first round series, behind 28 points and 8 assists from Tony Parker. The Spurs have taken a 1-0 lead in their best-of-seven series. For San Antonio, it was a way to wipe clean the memories of last year’s embarrassing first-round…
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Jerry Colangelo is rethinking adding players to USA roster after Rose injury
Apr 29, 2012, 3:38 PM EDT
Jerry Colangelo had said last week that despite the injury to Dwight Howard, Team USA would not be changing its list of invitees for camp. They were going to stick with their guys. That plan lasted right up until the 1:20 mark of the fourth quarter of Saturday’s Game 1 between Chicago and Philadelphia. After…
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Video: Grizzlies ready for 'running' Spurs
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Video: Durant won't 'compromise himself' like other stars
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Video: Knicks avoid elimination
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Video: Heat finish off Bulls, James 'has no energy left'
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Video: Health woes make Heat vulnerable
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Video: Good news for Sacramento, Kings stay
