NBA India Blog: Akshay Manwani

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The Man Behind It All
By Akshay Manwani June 13, 2011

Dirk Nowitzki won the Bill Russell Finals’ Most Valuable Player award. Jason Kidd got a ring. So did Tyson Chandler. Jason Terry avenged the Dallas Mavericks’ 2006 NBA Finals defeat to the Miami Heat. JJ Barea…well, he just became the most celebrated sportsman in all of Puerto Rico.

For all their aforementioned achievements en-route to winning the franchise’s first ever NBA title, these Mavericks must acknowledge the efforts of one man above all.

Rick Carlisle.

After the Mavs went down 2-1 in the series, Carlisle pressed all the right buttons to send Dallas to a 4-2 win in the Finals.

Yes, Carlisle! The largely reticent head coach of the Dallas Mavericks who explodes into a state of animation only when the refs wrongly overlook a foul to one of his players or call the game against his team by mistake. Otherwise, Carlisle is probably the best poker-faced individual never to have played a game of poker.

This is not to take anything away from Nowitzki, who led the Mavericks in the 2011 NBA Finals like a future Hall-of-Famer should. Without his 26.0 PPG and 9.7 rebounds or his late game heroics in Games 2 and 4, the Mavericks wouldn’t have tasted success in the form of a 4-2 series win against the Miami Heat. Neither is this an attempt to discount Tyson Chandler’s 9.7 PPG and 8.3 RPG or Jason Terry’s 17, 21 and 27–point efforts in Games 4, 5 and 6 for the Mavericks.

But beyond all those commendable performances, pause for a moment and think about the two biggest factors in this series that changed the course of these Finals once and for all. One was LeBron James’ scoring woes in the fourth quarter of all six games which ruined the Heat’s chances of coming good in the clutch. The other was a little before the opening minutes of Game 4, when the starting five for the Dallas Mavericks was announced. Carlisle has decided to replace DeShawn Stevenson with JJ Barea, to play alongside Nowitzki, Chandler, Shawn Marion and Kidd in the starting line-up for the Mavs.

Where the James factor was about inaction, Carlisle’s move was about pro-activity. Before Barea replaced Stevenson, the Mavericks were down 1-2 in the Finals. After Stevenson made way for Barea, Dallas went a perfect 3-for-3, giving them a 4-2 series win in the NBA Finals. Had Carlisle pulled off a similar shift of strategy in corporate America, turning the fortunes of an ailing behemoth, he would have been rewarded with a million-dollar bonus and stock options that would have made him the undisputed toast of Wall Street.

The numbers vindicate Carlisle’s adjustment. After the first three games, the Dallas reserves, expected to be a huge bonus for the Mavs before the start of the series, outscored the Heat bench by just eight points, 65-57. But in the last three games of the Finals, with DeShawn Stevenson coming off the bench, the Mavs’ reserves outscored the Heat’s supporting cast 103-75.

Nowitzki, Kidd, Marion, Chandler and Stevenson had started all 18 games for the Mavericks in the 2011 post-season. For Carlisle to change his opening rotation in the NBA Finals, when his team was down 1-2 in the series, was as dangerous a gamble as one could take.

There were other adjustments made by Carlisle. From using the zone defense at regular intervals in these Finals to suffocate the Heat offense to giving extended minutes to Brian Cardinal in the absence of Brendan Haywood, Carlisle was always in control of this series.

John Hollinger writing for ESPN.com said of Carlisle’s impact on the series, “Carlisle was reluctant to toot his own horn, deflecting praise to the players and calling out two assistant coaches in his opening remarks of the postgame interview. So let me do it for him. Going up against four fairly accomplished coaches in this postseason, he and the Dallas staff consistently stayed a half-step ahead of all four of them. To say “every button he pushed worked” is technically true, but also misses the point. He wasn’t throwing stuff at the wall and seeing what would stick, he was making calculated adjustments that he knew had a great chance of success. That’s why they all worked.”

Carlisle, who oddly resembles actors Jim Carrey and Robert Carlyle (or is it just my brain working overtime?), also won an NBA Championship as a player in 1986 with the great Boston Celtics’ team that included Hall-of-Famers Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Bill Walton and Dennis Johnson.

I’m certain he’d value this one more though.

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The Fight, Not the Foreground
By Akshay Manwani June 8, 2011

There’s a new heavyweight champ in town by the name Tyson. Not Mike Tyson, that flawed boxing champ from the ’90s, but the 7-foot, 1-inch, 235-pound (107-kg) center of the Dallas Mavericks, Tyson Chandler. Yes, with Dirk Nowitzki battling fever and Dallas desperate to get a win to tie the NBA Finals, Chandler was the X-factor in the Mavericks’ series levelling [2-2] victory.

With 13 points and 16 rebounds, Chandler’s numbers proved to be the difference for Dallas who had been crying out loud for some assistance to Nowitzki. Further, after their disappointing loss in Game 3, the Dallas players had spoken of treating every game from thereon as a potential Game 7. After today’s performance, Chandler played Robin to Batman and walked the talk of his Dallas teammates.

Like in Game 2, Dallas won after trailing the Heat for most of the game. Here, they were down by nine points at the start of the fourth quarter. Except that in Game 2, Dallas had the luxury of playing with a fit Nowitzki. But in Game 4, the German came into the American Airlines Center with a 101-degree fever. It showed when after making his first three shots and scoring the Mavericks' first six points of the game, Nowitzki missed 10 of his next 11 shots.

“When I saw the man [Dirk Nowitzki] walk in today, he was barely able to talk, I knew I had to have a big night. I just told myself what can I do that I haven’t been doing of late. And I felt like I can get out and run, open things up, get on some screen-and-rolls and open myself up on the glass,” said Chandler on the impact Nowitzki’s situation had on his own performance.

What made Chandler’s effort extra special was that Brendan Haywood, the backup center for the Dallas Mavericks, who did not play Game 3 owing to a strained right hip flexor, looked completely out of sorts in the three odd minutes that he spent on the floor in this game. As a result, Chandler played a season-high 42:56 minutes, including all but 1:59 of the second half.

“I told coach, ‘You have to get me back out there. I will play 48 if I need to,’” said Chandler.

And despite those extra minutes, as NBA.com’s John Schuhmann correctly observed, “He looked to have the most energy of anyone in the fourth quarter.”

Dallas also had to contend with a change in their rotation at the start of Game 4 with JJ Barea replacing DeShawn Stevenson in the starting line-up. That move appeared to pay dividends as Barea and Stevenson combined to give Dallas 19 points and five assists as against nine and two in their Game 3 loss to the Heat. Still, having to deal with a changed rotation in a must-win game would have put extra pressure even on the seasoned Mavs.

“It was just all about effort. We knew that it was going to be a tough night with the line-up change and the way Dirk was feeling. We were going to have to step up. And we had to do whatever it took to get the win. I knew my guys would need more shots tonight. So, I tried to crash the boards as well as get out in the lane and run and get some early baskets,” said Chandler.

And crash the boards he did. His 16 rebounds were the most by any player on either side in this game, five clear of Nowitzki’s 11, the next highest rebounder in the game. More importantly as Schuhmann noted, “Four of Chandler’s nine offensive rebounds came in the final six minutes of the game. Only one of those – a Chandler put-back that cut the Heat lead to one point with 5:43 to go – resulted in second-chance points for the Mavs, but the other three each extended possessions in the final 3 1/2 minutes, giving the Heat fewer opportunities to play catch up.”

With the 2011 NBA Finals now reduced to a best-of-three affair, Chandler has already spelt out his agenda for the remainder of the series.

“This is the finals. And I’m going to give it all every second I’m out there.”

Miami, are you listening?

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Top 5 of the Conference Finals
By Akshay Manwani June 3, 2011

The Conference Finals are now in the rear-view mirror. The Miami Heat came up with a clinical performance to dismantle the Chicago Bulls 4-1 while the Dallas Mavericks continued their good showing in the post-season to get past the Oklahoma City Thunder in five. Along the way, there were some brilliant individual performances that had fans go delirious with joy.

Here’s a quick look of the top five performances from the Western and Eastern Conference Finals:

Game 2 – May 19, 2011 – Oklahoma City Thunder v Dallas Mavericks, American Airlines Center

The OKC Thunder had lost Game 1 of the series owing to a sub-par showing from their bench. Having been outscored by the Dallas reserves 53-22 in Game 1, the Thunder bench came roaring back in Game 2, outscoring Dallas 50-29. James Harden led the Thunder’s reserves’ effort with a 23-point display. 10 of Harden’s points came in the fourth quarter as OKC managed to square the series 1-1. “We have a lot of confidence in James. I personally do, our team does, our staff does. He made plays. He made big basketball plays, and James is not just a spot-up shooter. He is a penetrator. He is a playmaker, and I thought he did it all tonight,” said Thunder head coach, Scott Brooks, in appreciation of Harden’s effort

Harden’s stats - 23 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists – FGM-A: 6-9, 3PM-A: 4-7, FTM-A: 7-8


Game 2 – May 18, 2011 – Miami Heat v Chicago Bulls, United Center

After having been restricted to just 15 points [FGM-A: 5-for-15] by a suffocating Chicago defense that also saw Miami lose Game 1, the onus was on LeBron James to even things up for the Heat heading into Game 2. And respond he did. The alpha superstar in Miami’s roster scored 29 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and forced three steals as the Heat beat Chicago 85-75. James’ performance also included some clutch play as with the game tied at 73 with 7:16 left, James scored nine of the Heat's last 12 points. A former Chicago legend, who went by the name Michael Jeffrey Jordan, would certainly have approved of LeBron’s dazzling performance on that night.

LeBron’s stats - 29 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals – FGM-A: 12-21, 3PM-A: 2-6, FTM-A: 3-7


Game 3 – May 22, 2011 – Chicago Bulls v Miami Heat, American Airlines Arena

Having had his performance questioned all season long, Chris Bosh finally came good with a strong showing that also helped Miami pull ahead in this series. Having missed his first three shots of the game, Bosh went 13-for-15 for the rest of the game to score 34 points. Like most of the games in this series, this game too ran close for most part with Miami up only by four [72-68] in the fourth quarter. But Bosh went hot suddenly, scoring the next eight points for Miami which helped them finally register a 96-85 win. Appreciation for Bosh came from no less than Chicago head coach, Tom Thibodeau, who said, “Bosh was terrific right from the start of the game, very aggressive. I thought we allowed him to get his confidence early. He's hard to close down once he gets going like that.”

Bosh’s stats - 34 points – FGM-A: 13-18, FTM-A: 8-10

Game 4 – May 23, 2011 – Dallas Mavericks v Oklahoma City Thunder, Oklahoma City Arena

The OKC Thunder seemed to have Game 4 firmly in control, leading by 15 points [99-84] with less than five minutes to play. A win for the Thunder would’ve made it a tied, 2-2 series. Instead, the Mavs, inspired by Dirk Nowitzki, went on a 17-2 run to tie the game and send it into overtime. Nowitzki scored 12 points during the spurt, the German eventually finishing the game with 40 points. The significance of Nowitzki’s act can be gauged by the following fact provided by NBA.com/India blogger, Karan Madhok, that in the last 10 years, teams have trailed by 15+ in the last five minutes of a game in 5,016 regular season and playoff games. In Game 4 against the Thunder, the Mavericks became the only team to come-back and win one, taking the series to 3-1.

Nowitzki’s stats – 40 points, 5 rebounds – FGM-A: 12-20, 3PM-A: 2-3, FTM-A: 14-15


Game 1 – May 17, 2011 – Oklahoma City Thunder v Dallas Mavericks, American Airlines Center

Heading into the Western Conference Finals, it was important that either team, the OKC Thunder or the Dallas Mavericks, seize the initial advantage by winning Game 1. And the responsibility of getting that win for their respective teams fell squarely on the shoulders of Dirk Nowitzki for Dallas and Kevin Durant for the Thunder. However, it was Nowitzki who came good, scoring 48 points in the Mavericks' 121-112 win in the game. So hot was Nowitzki that he shot a record 24-for-24 from the free throw line. OKC tried to stop Nowitzki with a variety of players, including Serge Ibaka, Nick Collison, Thabo Sefolosha, Kendrick Perkins, James Harden and Durant but without any success. “I was really looking to shoot early and really was able to get my rhythm. I made the first couple of shots and that is always big for a shooter. After that I just kept attacking. My teammates were feeding me the ball and we got some matchups with smaller guys and were able to take advantage,” said Nowitzki of his vintage showing.

Nowitzki’s stats – 48 points, 6 rebounds – FGM-A: 12-15, FTM-A: 24-24

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NBA Finals Preview: Time for Revenge?
By Akshay Manwani June 1, 2011

It all comes down to this.

After 82 regular season games played over a punishing grind and 15 postseason games each, the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks are set to square off in the 2011 NBA Finals. Both teams have earned the right to be here, having dethroned the incumbent conference champions on the way to a rematch of the 2006 NBA Finals. Dallas beat the LA Lakers 4-0 in the Western Conference Semi-Finals while Miami whipped the Boston Celtics 4-1 in the Eastern Conference semis.

So as both teams get set to clash for the Larry O’Brien trophy, here’s a quick preview of what promises to be a pulsating finish to a wild season.

Game 1: June 1, 2011 @ Miami – 6:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports

Series schedule: Game 2 @ Miami – June 3 – 6:30 AM (IST), Game 3 @ Dallas - June 6 – 5:30 AM (IST), Game 4 @ Dallas – June 8 – 6:30 AM (IST). Game 5, Game 6 and Game 7 - only if necessary

Home Court Advantage: Miami Heat [American Airlines Arena]. Dallas to host Miami at American Airlines Center, Dallas.

Regular season series: Dallas won 2-0

2011 Playoffs home record: Miami Heat – 8-0, Dallas Mavericks – 7-1

2011 Playoffs road record: Miami Heat – 4-3, Dallas Mavericks – 5-2

2011 Playoffs Leader board:


How they got here:


Preview: They clashed for the big prize as recently as the 2006 NBA Finals. Back then, the Heat came back from a 0-2 deficit to win the Finals in six games. Much has changed since then. The Heat are now led by one the best trios in the history of the league in Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh. Dallas, on the other hand, are older, more experienced and have a far better bench than the one that lost in the 2006 Finals.

Miami have the home-court advantage, which is a big plus to have before the start of a high octane series. Other than that, Wade, LeBron and Bosh have really upped their games in these Playoffs. LeBron has been sensational in this postseason with former Chicago Bulls legend Scottie Pippen even calling him the greatest ever to have played the game. Even Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem have stepped up to finally give the Heat’s reserves some potency.

Dallas, meanwhile, are riding high on Dirk Nowitzki’s champagne performances right through these Playoffs. The big German was a handful for all of the Mavs opponents, be it the Trail Blazers, the Lakers or the OKC Thunder in the lead-up to these Finals. And whenever teams looked to double him, the other scoring options that the Mavs have in J.J. Barea, Jason Kidd, Peja Stojakovic, Jason Terry and Shawn Marion came alive.

Man-to-man: The Heat have started with LBJ, D-Wade, Bosh, Mike Bibby and Joel Anthony since Game 4 of their series against the Boston Celtics. The Mavs, on the other hand, have had the same starting five in all their 15 games of the 2011 post-season – Nowitzki, Kidd, DeShwan Stevenson, Shawn Marion and Tyson Chandler. Player against player the Mavs are better placed at the one, four and five positions viz. Kidd (point-guard), Nowitzki (forward) and Chandler (center). The Heat, definitely, have the two better players in Wade (shooting-guard) and LeBron (forward) at two and three. As far as bench strength is concerned, Dallas’ reserves provide far more depth to their side than Miami’s bench. However, Miami’s home-court advantage and the athleticism of James and Wade, more than make-up for that handicap.

Numbers Game: [10-0] Since losing the 2006 NBA Finals to the Miami Heat, the Mavs have a perfect 10-0 record against the Heat. However, nothing would give the Mavs more pleasure than keeping a clean slate against the Heat in this series and getting revenge for those 2006 Finals, when they let the Larry O'Brien Trophy slip from their grasp with a 2-0 series advantage and a 13-point lead with five minutes to play in Game 3.

Akshay’s Take: Basically it boils down to the Heat’s defense [keeping opponents down to 88.3 PPG in the 2011 post-season to Dallas’ 92.5 PPG] versus Dallas’ offense [scoring 99.7 PPG in the 2011 Playoffs as against Miami’s 92.9 PPG in the same period]. Miami will look to beat the Mavericks with their up-tempo style of basketball while Dallas will look to settle into their half-court game and score.

Miami have really impressed in the post-season, particularly after their 4-1 series wins over Boston and Chicago. But Dallas will offer them a challenge like no other team they have played in this post-season. The Mavs are not as banged up as Boston were, neither do they depend only on Nowitzki for scoring like Chicago did on Derrick Rose. Any attempts by the Heat’s players to double-team Nowitzki and either one of Barea, Terry, Kidd or Stojakovic will burn you from behind the three-point line.

I know offense wins you games and defense, championships. But in this series, expect that other cliché – revenge is a dish best served cold - to ring true as well. Basically, Dallas in six.

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Where Have You Gone, Carlos?
By Akshay Manwani May 26, 2011

Everyone knows of a restaurant where the quality of the food doesn’t justify its price. Or a car that doesn’t deliver half as much as its MRP -- the people who’ve been suckered into buying the latest automobile on the market replete with all the latest technological innovations. Except that, a few months after making the purchase, the owners realize that the alleged new-age vehicle is no better than the beat-up Chevy lying in their parents’ garage.

Right now, the Chicago Bulls, presumably, find themselves feeling the same way about Carlos Boozer.

Yes, the 6-feet-9-inch tall Boozer -- for whom Chicago committed to pay USD 80 million over five years in July 2010. At that price, one would have expected Boozer to perform at levels similar to the great power forwards of the 1990s – Charles Barkley or Karl Malone. Except that, right now, should the 48-year old Barkley or the 47-year old Malone decide to make a return to basketball, they might be expected to play better than the 29-year old Boozer.

There is no other way to explain Boozer’s 13.1 PPG averaged in the 2011 NBA Playoffs vis-à-vis his career average of 17.3 PPG. Sure Boozer’s numbers are up in the series against the Heat [averaging 16.8 PPG as against 13.3 PPG versus Atlanta and 10.0 PPG versus Indiana] but that is far too myopic a view to take of this former All-Star with the Bulls down 1-3 against Miami in the Eastern Conference Finals.

But first let’s get a little perspective on Boozer’s career.

Boozer joined the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2002 after helping Duke University win the 2001 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship. After registering impressive numbers with Cleveland in his first two seasons in the league [15.5 PPG and 11.4 RPG in 2003-04], controversy landed at Boozer’s doorstep when he decided to play for the Utah Jazz at the start of the 2004-2005 season. This because although Boozer decided to join Utah after becoming a restricted free agent, the Cavs, at that time, maintained they had a verbal agreement in place with Boozer to work out a long-term contract. From the Cavs point of view, Boozer had betrayed and bolted out at the same time.

A chequered association followed between Boozer and the Jazz over the course of the next six seasons [between 2004-05 and 2009-10]. Although he made it two successive NBA All-Star teams in 2007 and 2008, Boozer often found his ability to stay healthy in Utah questioned by fans and media alike. In 2004-05, he played just 51 games and missed the latter half of the season owing to injury. Then in 2005-06, he played just 33 games after aggravating his hamstring at the start of the regular season. Finally, in 2008-09, he missed 44 games following arthroscopic left knee surgery. But, perhaps, what was most discouraging for Boozer was the late Jazz owner Larry Miller’s criticism of a lack of effort on Boozer’s part during his playing days with the Jazz.

Yet, despite all these brickbats, Boozer’s numbers improved. In 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2009-10 he averaged 20.9 PPG, 21.1 PPG and 19.5 PPG on the scoring glass and 11.7 RPG, 10.4 RPG and 11.4 RPG on the rebounding front respectively. Derek Fisher, who was Boozer’s teammate in the 2006-07 season, was quoted as saying of Boozer’s dangerous scoring ability, “I think his ability to, first of all, make shots facing the basket sets guys up to have to play close to him. You can't just back off of him. Then once you step closer to him, his ability to go both ways separates him from a lot of guys. That's why he's so effective on a regular basis.”

It was on that promise that the champagne bottles were uncorked when Boozer chose Chicago in the great free agency melee of 2010. Having been spurned by local boy Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, the Bulls rejoiced at the thought of having Boozer playing alongside Derrick Rose, a la John Stockton-Karl Malone. And despite missing 23 games due to a broken right hand, Boozer, with 17.5 PPG and 9.6 RPG, justified that faith by helping the Bulls get the first seed in the Eastern Conference.

But Boozer has fallen short when it has mattered the most. Against the Indiana Pacers, whom the Bulls vanquished 4-1 in a scrappy first-round series, Boozer averaged just 10.0 PPG. With Indiana getting physical with Rose in that series, Boozer, despite his big frame, just didn’t step up for his MVP teammate or the team. NBA.com’s Steve Aschburner wrote of Boozer’s performance mid-way through that series, “He struggled, as he is known to do, against Indiana's longer players. And while he is known far and wide within the confines of United Center as Chicago's LOUDEST player -- hollering switches, slapping the ball on rebounds, encouraging his own “and 1!” calls -- Boozer was way too quiet where it counted.”

And now with Chicago finding themselves perilously close to elimination against Miami, Boozer, once again, has failed to justify his rather hefty price tag. With Derrick Rose struggling against Miami’s tenacious defense, one would have expected Boozer to at least win his mini-battle against Chris Bosh. Instead, Bosh has outscored Boozer 96-67 over four games in this series. No wonder when Rose struggles to creates Chicago’s offense, the analysts and the fans shout themselves hoarse saying Chicago is a one-man show. And with Boozer’s defensive skills being no better than bottom placed English football club West Ham United, how does one justify the USD 80 million price tag on him.

When the game, or in this case when the series is on the line, the great players, invariably step up. It is a stage that befits their stature. We saw Zach Randolph, the Memphis Grizzlies’ forward, play well above his career 17.6 PPG, as his team beat the San Antonio Spurs in six [Randolph averaged 21.5 PPG in that series] in a Western Conference first-round matchup . Then, when the Grizzlies took the Oklahoma City Thunder to the limit in seven, no one person could fault Randolph’s effort in that series with his 22.9 PPG and 12.3 RPG.

Bosh, himself, after having endured all kinds of barbs [see: "Two and a Half Men"] all season long, has come alive for Miami against Chicago. In Game 3, his 34 points powered the Heat to a 2-1 series lead. Then, in Game 4, a 22-point effort alongside LeBron James’ 35 points now has the Heat sitting comfortably at 3-1 against Chicago.

Even now it’s not too late for Boozer. If he can raise his game to the levels expected of him, Chicago can still claw their way back into this series. Otherwise, having earned the ill will of fans in Cleveland and Utah, it will be the beginning of another painful stay in Chicago for Boozer should the Bulls crash out.

If he can turn things around, however, the Bulls may have a couple of those bottles of champagne still on ice...

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Weekend Wrap-Up: May 21-22
By Akshay Manwani May 23, 2011

Two days, two big wins. First, the Dallas Mavericks won their fourth consecutive road game of the 2011 NBA Playoffs to gain a 2-1 advantage over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Then, in the Eastern Conference Finals, Chris Bosh’s 34-point effort powered the Miami Heat to a 96-85 win at home putting them 2-1 up against the Chicago Bulls.

Here’s an in-depth look at the happenings in the two Conference Finals:

Series Score: Dallas leads series 2-1

Series Story: Never mind what Dirk Nowitzki has done for the Mavs [48 points in Game 1 and some clutch play in Game 3] or what Kevin Durant has done for the Oklahoma City Thunder [averaging 29.33 PPG] in three games, the difference in this series has come from the bench. In Dallas' wins in Games 1 and 3, their bench outscored the OKC Thunder bench 53-22 and 28-16 respectively. On the other hand, in the Thunder's 106-100 win in Game 2, James Harden (23 points) inspired the Thunder bench to outscore the Dallas reserves 50-29.

The Stat: 24-for-24: The number of free throws successfully made and attempted by Dirk Nowitzki in Game 1 of this series. Dirk had 48 points in the game with 12-for-15 shooting from the field but his perfect record from the foul line broke the NBA playoff record for free throws made without a miss. Boston Celtics’ Paul Pierce had gone 21-for-21 in a 2003 first-round series game against the Indiana Pacers.

What next: With Dallas having won one game on the road, the home-court advantage comes right back to them. If the Thunder want to get ahead in this series, they need All-Star Russell Westbrook to step up. He is just 18-for-50 [36 percent] from the field in three games and has turned the ball over far too often [15 times] for an elite point-guard. But be that as it may, Dallas, with their array of offensive options [Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, Shawn Marion, Peja Stojakovic and J.J. Barea], hold most of the aces.

Next Game: Game 4 @ Oklahoma City – May 24 – 6:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports

Series Score: Miami leads series 2-1

Series Story: Defense. That in one word summarises this series. Grinding, attritional and tenacious, both teams have played high-quality defense without pause through the first three games. If it was Chicago’s rebounding that cost Miami Game 1 [the Bulls had a 45-33 edge in boards], then it has been Miami’s defensive strain that saw the Bulls collapse to their first set of successive defeats in the 2011 NBA playoffs. Under some severe Miami pressure, the Bulls shot just 34.1 percent and 41.6 percent from the field in Games 2 and 3 which consequently finds them trailing 1-2 in this series.

The Stat: [39.8 percent]: Chicago’s field-goal shooting percentage after three games. In the three-game regular season drubbings that the Bulls handed the Heat, Chicago shot 44.6 percent from the field. However, it is their woeful shooting form in this series, coupled with Miami’s awesome defensive pressure that finds the Bulls suffering through a pedestrian shooting spell with the ball.

What next: Miami’s trinity of superstars – Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and LeBron James – have stepped up big time on both ends of the floor to negate their own team’s lack of depth. If only Derrick Rose [7-for-23 in Game 2 and 8-for-19 in Game 3] can similarly step up for Chicago and reaffirm his MVP credentials, Chicago can still make a comeback in this series.

Next Game: Game 4 @ Miami – May 25 – 6:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix

All stats are as on and include games played on May 22, 2011 (ET)

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The Men in the Shadows
By Akshay Manwani May 20, 2011

They aren’t the guys who have the teams running after them in the off-season. Their names won't evoke the kind of frenzy associated with the likes of Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwight Howard and Dwayne Wade. Instead of forming the core of an NBA team, these guys, mostly, come off the bench. They may not have it in them to take their ballclub all the way to championship victory but are often the most crucial piece in the quest for the Larry O’Brien trophy. Here then is a quick look at some of the role players who have made an impact (one way or the other) on their respective team's fortunes in the 2011 NBA playoffs:

J.J. Barea: Officially listed at six feet, Barea isn’t likely to give most NBA teams sleepless nights. But just ask the LA Lakers about him and they’ll give you a different story. In four games in this postseason, Barea, the backup point-guard of the Dallas Mavericks, sprinted around the Laker big-men like a hare among dinosaurs. So frustrated was Andrew Bynum with Barea’s constant forays into the paint, that he intentionally elbowed Barea in the chest while the guard was in the air for a layup in Game 4 of their playoff series. Vindication of Barea’s arrival on the big stage has been his 11.5 PPG and 16.0 PPG in the 2011 Western Conference Semifinals and Finals, respectively, compared to his career average of 7.1 PPG

James Harden: Arguably, the best player to come off the bench for any team in the 2011 NBA Playoffs. The 21-year old backup guard of the OKC Thunder has been enjoying a solid run in these playoffs, averaging 13.1 PPG, 5.0 RPG and 3.7 APG. His most recent contribution, a 23-point effort against the Dallas Mavericks in Game 2 -- 10 of which came in the fourth quarter -- helped OKC square the Western Conference Finals 1-1.

“We have a lot of confidence in James. I personally do, our team does, our staff does. He made plays. He made big basketball plays, and James is not just a spot-up shooter. He is a penetrator. He is a playmaker, and I thought he did it all tonight,” Thunder coach Scott Brooks said in appreciation of Harden’s Game 2 effort.

Tony Allen: Excellent. That in one word describes Allen’s performances in the 2011 Playoffs. With 25 steals to his credit in 13 playoff games this postseason, Allen was the hound in the Memphis Grizzlies’ starting five. In round one of the Playoffs, he had the unenviable task of guarding San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili but came away with flying colours. Then in round two, as the Grizzlies went to seven games with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Allen played a stellar role in limiting Kevin Durant’s offense. Even during last year’s Playoffs, when Allen was playing for the Boston Celtics, he was often given the task of guarding LeBron James and Kobe Bryant during Boston’s matchups with Cleveland and LA. Recognition for his defense has come by way of a first ever selection to the 2010-11 NBA All-Defensive Team.

Udonis Haslem: He was consigned to the bench for most of the year owing to a ruptured ligament in his left foot. Yet, with Miami trailing Chicago 0-1, it was Udonis who sparked the Heat’s comeback victory in Game 2. Thirteen points and five rebounds in just over 23 minutes on the court and Haslem’s infectious energy has given Miami the upper hand as the series shifts to Chicago.

Said Bulls’ coach Tom Thibodeau of Haslem’s high octane effort after that game, “He's one of those guys that you really can't measure him statistically. He brings a lot of toughness to their team, high-energy guy, terrific defensively.”

Glen Davis: ‘Big Baby Davis’ had a tough postseason. After shooting an impressive 47.6 percent from the field in the 2010 Playoffs, Davis went missing in the 2011 Playoffs. He shot just 39.1 percent from the field as his points-per-game dipped from 7.3 to 4.9 from the 2010 postseason to the 2011 postseason. A solid defensive player otherwise, Davis, still only 25, has many years to improve upon his stumble in these Playoffs.

Jason Terry: The 33-year old veteran has been enjoying a second coming with the Dallas Mavericks in these Playoffs. In 12 games for Dallas in the post-season, Terry has shot an unbelievable 48.1 percent [26-from-54] from behind the arc. His Game 4 performance against the Los Angeles Lakers, where he went nine out of 10 from the 3-point line, tied a league post-season record. Terry’s shooting allows Dallas to spread the floor and gives Dirk Nowitzki the opportunity to find a genuine scoring alternative should his opponents dare to double-team him. A fan favourite in Dallas, the ‘JET’, as Terry is known, often gets the crowd going with his airplane like gesticulations after a successful 3-point play.

Delonte West: As ordinary as he was against the New York Knicks [2.0 PPG, 27.3 percent from the field], Delonte West came up big for the Boston Celtics against the Miami Heat. Playing an average 23.2 minutes-per-game, West shot 52.8 percent from the field for the C's in that series while going 46.7 percent from behind the 3-point line. His 10.2 PPG against Miami look all the more commendable given that he played most of that series with a bruised left shoulder.

Kyle Korver: Right now Korver is falling short of the expectations the Chicago Bulls have in his 3-point scoring ability. A career 41.1 percent shooter from behind the arc, Korver has shot just 28.6 percent [2-from-7] in Chicago’s two games against the Miami Heat. If Korver, who shot an astonishing 47.8 percent from the distance for the Utah Jazz in the 2010 NBA Playoffs, doesn’t rediscover his touch soon, the Bulls will find themselves severely handicapped against a Miami team that can derail their championship hopes.

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Weekend Wrap-Up: May 14-15
By Akshay Manwani May 16, 2011

Yet another enthralling weekend of NBA basketball. The Memphis Grizzlies went down fighting against the Oklahoma City Thunder in a classic seven game series. Down 2-3 at the start of the weekend, the Grizzlies came back to square the series riding on a Zach Randolph special. That set the stage for Kevin Durant to deliver one of the all-time great playoff performances as the OKC Thunder finally edged the Grizzlies 4-3.

Elsewhere, the much anticipated Eastern Conference Finals got underway between the Chicago Bulls and the Miami Heat. And although the Bulls’ victory didn’t come as a complete surprise, it was the manner in which they limited the Heat that deserves special appreciation.

Here’s an in-depth look at all the weekend action plus a look ahead at the Western Conference Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and the Oklahoma City Thunder:

Series Score: Oklahoma win series 4-3

Series Story: A week ago it were the Grizzlies who were up 1-2 in this series. Yet, seven days later, Zach Randolph and his teammates have had their Cinderella run in the 2011 NBA Playoffs cut short by some inspired play by the awesome pairing of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant. In Game 4, Westbrook inspired the Thunder to overcome an 18-point deficit with a 40-point effort as the game went into triple OT. Then after Zach Randolph produced a 30-point, 13-rebound game to tie the series in Game 6, Kevin Durant produced 39 points to rout the Grizzlies 105-90 in Game 7. Clearly, in this see-saw battle between the superstars, it was the OKC Thunder’s double threat of Durant-Westbrook that trumped Memphis’ alpha grizzly, Zach Randolph.

The Stat: [25]: That’s the number of steals Basketball-Reference.com credits Memphis Grizzlies’ Tony Allen with over two series in the 2011 Playoffs. Allen had 11 in this series where he spent most of his time guarding Durant while he had 14 in the six-game series against the Spurs where he was doing his thing against Manu Ginobili. That effort gives him first position in the steals column in the 2011 NBA Playoffs, five better than the 20 notched up by Dwayne Wade. Well done!

Series Score: Chicago leads series 1-0

Series Story: Basically, this game came down to the two areas where the Heat are severly lacking. They were outrebounded 45-33 by Chicago, including 19-6 on the offensive boards. Additionally, the Bulls exploited the Heat’s lack of depth as their bench outscored the Heat’s reserves 28-15. Chris Bosh got 30 points but since the Bulls did a terrific job of restricting Dwayne Wade [FGM-A: 7-17] and LeBron James [FGM-A: 5-15] to just 18 and 15 points respectively, the Heat’s offensive weapons were severely blunted. The Stat: [55-34]: This game was tied at the half [48-48], before Chicago outscored Miami 55-34 in the second half. The Heat got up only 28 field-goal attempts in the last two quarters while the Bulls got up 43 shots correspondingly.

What next: Do not count Miami out of the series despite the 21-point game drubbing in Game 1. James and Wade will look to undo their below par performances from the first game and come out aggressively in the next few games. Yet, if Chicago can keep up their tenacious defense, something they’ve managed to do all season long, they should remain clear of the Heat’s best challenge. Even going to Miami for Games 3 and 4 won’t influence the Heat’s chances much in that scenario.

Next Game: Game 2 @ Chicago – May 19 – 6:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix

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Game 1: May 18, 2011 @ Dallas – 6:30 AM (IST)

Series schedule: Game 2 @ Dallas - May 20 – 6:30 AM (IST), Game 3 @ Oklahoma - May 22 – 6:30 AM (IST), Game 4 @ Oklahoma - May 24 – 6:30 AM (IST). Game 5, Game 6 and Game 7 - only if necessary

Regular season record: Dallas Mavericks - 57-25, OKC Thunder - 55-27

Home Court Advantage: Dallas Mavericks [American Airlines Center]. OKC Thunder to host Dallas at Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City.

Regular season home record: Dallas Mavericks – 29-12, OKC Thunder – 30-11

Regular season road record: Dallas Mavericks – 28-13, OKC Thunder – 25-16

Regular season series: Dallas beat OKC Thunder – 2-1

How they got here:

First Round: Dallas beat Portland Trail Blazers 4-2; OKC Thunder beat Denver Nuggets 4-1

Conference Semifinals: Dallas beat LA Lakers 4-0; OKC Thunder beat Memphis Grizzlies 4-3

Preview: A dampener only for those who were rooting for a San Antonio Spurs – LA Lakers matchup in the Western Conference Finals. But otherwise this is as good as it gets. Both teams play deep instead of depending on just one or two players. Oklahoma have the younger line-up with Kevin Durant [22] and Russell Westbrook [also 22] leading the way while Dallas will, essentially, rely on veterans Dirk Nowitzki [32] and Jason Kidd [38] to do the job. At the center position, Kendrick Perkins of the OKC Thunder matches up well against Mavericks’ Tyson Chandler. However, the one area where Dallas are far better than the OKC Thunder are in their 3-point shooting ability. In 10 games in the playoffs, the Mavs have shot an impressive 47 percent from beyond the arc.

Numbers Game: [97]: The number of free throws made by Kevin Durant in 12 playoff games in 2011 for the OKC Thunder. That’s three shy of a century of free throw points. Durant is the leading free throw scorer in these playoffs currently and has gone to the line as many as 118 times.

Akshay’s Take: The OKC Thunder will look to play an up-tempo style of basketball with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook at the helm. While Durant will get his points, Westbrook, too, will have to shoulder a lot of the scoring burden while limiting his turnovers. In the series against the Grizzlies, Westbrook turned the ball over as many as 34 times. That was twice as many as the next highest number of turnovers committed by any other player in that series [Mike Conley – Memphis – 17].

But huff and puff as they may it is unlikely they will blow the Mavs’ house down. Not only do the Thunder surrender home court advantage to the Mavs but they will play Game 1 in little over 48 hours after an exhausting, emotional, seven-game series with the Grizzlies. Additionally, there is no one player on the Thunder squad who can guard Dirk Nowitzki. The German can play in the low post while putting up solid numbers with his outside shooting. Add the contributions from Peja Stojakovic, J.J. Barea, DeShawn Stevenson, Jason Terry, Shawn Marion and Kidd and the Mavs have just too much firepower. Mavs in six.

All stats are as on and include games played on May 15, 2011 (ET)

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Top 5 Second-Round Performances (So Far)
By Akshay Manwani May 13, 2011

If Round 1 of the 2011 NBA Playoffs saw some spectacular individual heroics, then Round 2 took the game to an altogether different level. As the stakes got bigger, so did the play on the court. So many were the number of inspiring displays, that drawing up a list of just five of the very best performances was an exercise in itself. Nevertheless, at the risk of having excluded some other stellar contributions, here are the five that left me in disbelief:


Game 1 – May 1, 2011 – Boston Celtics v Miami Heat, American Airlines Arena

Dwayne Wade averaged just 12.8 PPG as the Heat were handed a 1-3 drubbing by the Celtics in the regular season. An encore of that regular season no-show in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals would have set the critics’ tongues wagging about Wade’s inability to come good against the Eastern Conference Champions. So, with a 38-point effort, 13 of which came in the first quarter, Wade pre-empted any such criticism and gave the Heat a 99-90 victory in Game 1.

Wade’s stats - 38 points, 5 assists – FGM-A: 14-21, 3PM-A: 2-5, FTM-A: 8-9


Game 4 – May 9, 2011 – Oklahoma City Thunder v Memphis Grizzlies, FedExForum

With point-guard Russell Westbrook turning the ball over 18 times in the previous three games of this series, the OKC Thunder found themselves trailing 1-2 to the Memphis Grizzlies. Then in Game 4, with the Grizzlies leading by as many as 18 points in the second quarter, a 1-3 series score seemed inevitable. Instead, the Thunder, led by Westbrook, pulled things back as the game went into triple overtime. In the end, Westbrook’s 40 points, coupled with just three turnovers in more than 51 minutes on the court, gave Oklahoma a nerve wracking 133-123 win. More importantly, Westbrook’s effort helped the OKC Thunder square the series 2-2.

Westbrook’s stats - 40 points, 5 assists, 3 steals – FGM-A: 15-33, 3PM-A: 0-2, FTM-A: 10-11


Game 1 – May 2, 2011 – Dallas Mavericks v Los Angeles Lakers, Staples Center

In recent years, the Dallas Mavericks have often been criticized of combusting in winnings situations. Blowing away a 2-0 series lead to the Miami Heat in the 2006 NBA Finals [the Heat won 4-2] is the most famous example of this criticism. More recently, in Round 1 of the 2011 NBA Playoffs, they allowed the Portland Trail Blazers to come back from a 23-point deficit in Game 4 of that series and register an 84-82 win. So when these very same Mavericks trailed the LA Lakers by 16 points in the second half of Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals, few believed that they had a Lazarus-like comeback in them. But come back they did. Riding on Dirk Nowitzki’s 28 points, 11 of which came in the fourth quarter, and 14 rebounds, Dallas stunned the Lakers in their den 96-94.

Nowitzki’s stats - 28 points, 14 rebounds – FGM-A: 11-22, 3PM-A: 1-2, FTM-A: 5-5


Game 3 – May 7, 2011 – Miami Heat v Boston Celtics, TD Garden

From Game 7 of the 1970 NBA finals comes the legend of Willis Reed. Kept out of Game 6 due to a thigh injury, Reed surprised many by walking onto the court for the deciding game against the Lakers. Even more heroic, despite the injury, Reed scored the Knicks’ opening two buckets, thereby inspiring his team to a 113–99 win and giving New York its first ever NBA title.

Fast forward to circa 2011. With his team trailing the Heat by 0-2 in their Eastern Conference Semi-Final series, Rajon Rondo was desperate to give the Celtics a lift. Instead, with seven minutes left to play in the third quarter, Rondo got tangled up with Dwayne Wade and had a nasty fall that dislocated his left elbow. Most people thought the Celtics’ guard was done right there for the series and the season. Yet, Rondo made his return. Playing with one hand for the whole of the fourth quarter, Rondo finished with six points and 11 assists as the effort propelled Boston to a 97-81 win.

“Shorty’s a tough dude,” said Kevin Garnett of Rondo’s heroics.

Rondo’s stats – 6 points, 11 assists – FGM-A: 3-7

Game 5 – May 11, 2011 –Boston Celtics v Miami Heat, American Airlines Arena

About a year ago, LeBron James, probably, hit the lowest moment in his NBA career. The Cleveland Cavaliers stumbled to a 4-2 defeat against the Boston Celtics in the 2010 Eastern Conference Semifinals and LeBron was often criticized for failing to step up when it mattered most for the Cavaliers. And although James found his team leading 3-1 against the Celtics in this year's Eastern Conference semis, the proud Celtic team still had to be put away. With Game 5 tied at 87 late in the fourth quarter, LeBron found the opportune moment to get his revenge against the Celtics. He went on a 10-point scoring spree [33 points in the game] that helped the Heat get past their toughest opponent 97-87 and exorcise the ghosts of the last year.

LeBron’s stats – 33 points, 4 assists – FGM-A: 11-20, 3PM-A: 5-7, FTM-A: 6-9

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Weekend Wrap-Up: May 7-8
By Akshay Manwani May 9, 2011

The weekend that witnessed the passing of an era. Yes, the LA Lakers, the defending NBA champions of the past two seasons and three-time Western Conference champions in the running were eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks in a 4-0 series sweep. Elsewhere, Atlanta very much managed to keep pace with the Chicago Bulls while the Celtics, riding on an inspirational individual performance by Rajon Rondo, managed to pull one game back against the Miami Heat. Also, the Memphis Grizzlies continued to impress, keeping their nose ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Here’s an in-depth look at all the weekend action:

Series Score: Memphis lead series 2-1

Series Story: It’s been a see-saw battle between these two thus far. Thanks to two big games from Zach Randolph (34 points in Game 1 and 21 points, 21 rebounds in Game 3), the Grizzlies now find themselves ahead in the series. It's no coincidence that, while Randolph struggled in Game 2, so did the Grizz. ZThat, along with some tenacious defense, from Tony Allen in particular, has seen the Grizzlies nudge ahead of the OKC Thunder.

The Stat: [18]: The number of times Russell Westbrook has turned the ball over in the first three games of this series. In Game 1, which the Thunder lost, Westbrook had seven turnovers, while in Game 3, where the Thunder led by 13 points in the final period, Westbrook committed five of his seven turnovers in the fourth quarter and in overtime, thereby allowing the Grizzlies to make a decisive comeback. No other player in this series, on either side, has posted double-digit turnovers in this series.

What to expect: Even though the Grizzlies find themselves ahead in this series, there’s still a long way to go. They need to focus one game at a time which means that they must look to close out the next game at home if they are to improve their chances of winning the series.

Oklahoma will continue to depend on Kevin Durant (averaging 27 PPG) to show them the way. The one area where the Thunder are being shown up severely is points in the paint [non restricted area]. A StatsCube shooting analysis report shows that the OKC Thunder are a mere 4-from-27 [15 percent] in that area against the Grizzlies. They will need to improve on that sub-par showing if they harbor any hopes of winning this series.

Next Game: Game 4 @ Memphis – May 10 – 7:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports

Series Score: Miami leads series 2-1

Series Story: This series has gone way of the home-court team thus far. Dwayne Wade [38 points] and LeBron James [35 points] led the way for Miami in Game 1 and 2 respectively while Kevin Garnett’s 28 points, 18 rebounds was the difference for the Celtics in Game 3. However, more than Garnett’s effort, it was Rajon Rondo, who having dislocated his left elbow in the third quarter of Game 3, made a comeback to inspire the entire Celtics’ roster to a sensational victory.

The Stat: [87-57]: Miami has made 30 more free throw attempts than Boston this series. Dwayne Wade has led the Heat in this department, going 25-for-29 from the free-throw line.

What next: Boston are banged up right now. Rondo is suffering from the dislocated left elbow. Backup point-guard Delonte West has a bruised left shoulder while Shaquille O'Neal, playing in just his second game since February 1, also had some swelling after playing 8 1/2 minutes in Game 3. However, like Rondo said, “Boston is a no-excuses team.” And so expect the Cs to defend their home-court hard in Game 4 if they want to remain in contention.

Miami, meanwhile, were shown up Boston’s stifling defense in Game 3. That and Chris Bosh’s inability to win the battle of the big forwards against Kevin Garnett [Bosh was outscored 6 to Garnett’s 28]. All this means that if Miami are to win against this proud Celtics team, they will have to depend on an encore of their game-winning performances in Game 1 and 2 respectively from Wade and James.

Next Game: Game 4 @ Boston – May 10 – 4:30 AM (IST)

Series Score: Dallas wins series 4-0

Series Story: For all those who questioned Dallas’ credentials in winning from tough situations, this series should have given them pause. Twice in four games, Dallas overcame deficits, to win crucial games. In Game 1, Dirk Nowitzki’s 28-points and 14-rebounds helped the Mavs overcome a 16-point deficit while in Game 3 the Mavs trailed 78-85 before going on a tremendous 20-7 run that resulted in a 98-92 victory. Besides Dallas’ all-round showing, the Lakers were hurt by crucial under-performances from their star players. Ron Artest, suspended for Game 3, with a career scoring average of 14.8 PPG, averaged just 8.0 PPG in the other three games for LA. Pau Gasol was a similar disappointment, racking up just 12.5 PPG against a career average of 18.8 PPG.

The Stat: [49-106]: Dallas finished the series 49-for-106 [an awesome 46.2 percent] from 3-point land and set the NBA record for the most 3-pointers made in a four-game series, surpassing the 45 Orlando made against Charlotte in the first round last season. Twenty of those 46 3-pointers came in Game 4 where Dallas inflicted a 122-86 thrashing on the Lakers

What next: The Lakers bid adieu to Phil Jackson who had decided to retire at the end of this season. Yet, they have Kobe Bryant, a future Hall-of-Famer, around whom they must rebuild their franchise. Andrew Bynum should figure in their future plans given his contributions in this post season [14.4 PPG and 9.6 RPG]. Mostly, though, it was a passing of an era for a great team.

Dallas, meanwhile, have some time off, as they await the series winner of Memphis versus the OKC Thunder. Either opponent should not intimidate the Mavericks much, given that in their 4-0 annihilation of LA, the Mavs played a near-flawless brand of basketball.

Series Score: Series tied at 2-2

Series Story: It’s been Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls versus Joe Johnson and Josh Smith of the Atlanta Hawks. Rose’s 44-point effort helped the Bulls pull ahead in Game 3 but the Hawks came right back on Josh Smith’s 23 points in Game 4 before Joe Johnson’s 34 points had given them the lead in Game 1.

The Stat: [127]: Derrick Rose’s point tally in this series [31.75 PPG]. After having had a relatively quiet Game 1 and 2 [24 and 25 points] respectively, the 2010-11 regular season MVP exploded for a game-winning 44 points in Game 3 before notching up 34 points in Game 4. Compared to Rose’s prolific scoring, Joe Johnson’s 84-point tally appears a distant second.

What next: It’s been a scrappy series so far. Both teams have won one game each at home and won one game on the road. Chicago’s key to winning this series is Rose. Even in Game 4, it was his relatively ordinary performance [just 12-for-32 from the field and committed all three of his turnovers in the fourth quarter as Atlanta outscored Chicago 33-19 in the period] that cost Chicago the game. If the Hawks continue to keep him down to a low scoring percentage then they give themselves every chance of creating an upset series win.

Next Game: Game 5 @ Chicago – May 11 – 5:30 AM (IST)

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The Redemption of Z
By Akshay Manwani May 4, 2011

“Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I built my life.”
J.K. Rowling

Like in life, sport, too, offers the truant another shot. Perhaps, as a way of atoning for our own erring ways, we, humans, have eternally romanticised the competitor who has risen above his past failings to walk the path of propriety en route to sporting success. It is why we shed a happy tear or two for Christian Bale’s redemption in ‘The Fighter’ or read of Andre Agassi’s journey from the lows of using a banned substance to the dizzying heights of World Number One at the age of 30 in his autobiography, ‘Open’, with awe.

In similar vein, from the 2011 NBA Playoffs, comes the story of Zach Randolph.

Randolph or Z-Bo as he is popularly nicknamed, grew up in Marion, Indiana. Right from his adolescent years, Zach often found himself in trouble. In just his teenage years, Zach served time at a juvenile detention center and found himself under house arrest for incidents ranging from shoplifting to being convicted for battery to selling a stolen gun. That last offense led to Randolph being suspended for the remainder of the basketball season in the junior year of high school.

But in a telling statement regarding his character, Randolph returned to the basketball team the next year and led Marion High School to a state title.

In an article written by John Eligon that appeared in The New York Times in July 2007, Moe Smedley, who coached Randolph at Marion High School, said about Randolph’s comeback, “There’s a fork in the road where you can go completely the wrong way, and he came back his senior year and led us down to the state finals. That kind shows you what Zach’s made of.”

Soon after, Randolph was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers as the 19th overall pick in the first round in 2001. A 2003-04 NBA Most Improved Player Award, coming immediately after Zach averaged 20.1 points and 10.5 rebounds in that season, was the highlight of his six seasons spent with the Trail Blazers. However, barring that individual accolade and two trips to the playoffs in the previous two seasons, Z-Bo’s stay with Portland was, mostly, filled with controversy. He would once again repeat the misdemeanours of his early years.

In 2003, he punched his then teammate, Ruben Patterson, breaking his eye socket, during a fight in practice. Later, in the same year, Randolph was arrested for driving under the influence of intoxicants. Then, in 2004, Randolph was nearly charged with misleading the police after an incident at a nightclub close to his hometown, Marion, Indiana. Randolph, in an attempt to protect his brother, Roger, was alleged to have withheld information about Roger firing a gun in the nightclub. That nearly led to charges against him. Randolph, however, eventually, cooperated with the authorities.

Randolph’s transgressions, coupled with those of some of his teammates- Patterson, Rasheed Wallace, Damon Stoudamire and Qyntel Woods - fit in perfectly with the ‘Jail Blazers’ image of the Portland franchise created by the media at that time.

For a man who has a Bible at the entrance of his home, lists ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ as his all-time favorite television show and rates ‘The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ as his all-time favorite cartoon, Randolph’s follies were at complete odds with a God-fearing, child-like, mostly humorous personality.

That positive aspect to his character was reinforced by Eligon’s own description of Randolph as a man who, “Often attends family picnics and makes sure to buy presents for his children, nieces and nephews.”

Yet, even after being traded from Portland to the New York Knicks in mid-2007 to the LA Clippers in November 2008, it was Randolph’s Mr Hyde that manifested itself more often than the Dr Jekyll in him. While playing for the Clippers against the Phoenix Suns on February 17, 2009, Randolph was ejected, and subsequently suspended, for punching the Suns’ Louis Amundson in the jaw.

With a reputation of being a serial offender pretty much cast in stone, Randolph, despite his talent and productivity [between ’03-04 and ’08-09 Randolph consistently averaged at least 17 PPG and 8.0 RPG every season] was self-deconstructing at the rate of knots.

It was here that Memphis Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins, like the proverbial angel from up above, entered Randolph’s life and orchestrated this mercurial forward’s revival.

Hollins got to know Randolph from spending summers coaching him in summer basketball in Las Vegas. And when the LA Clippers landed Blake Griffin in the 2009 draft, Randolph was traded to the Grizzlies by the Clippers in exchange for Quentin Richardson.

It was a difficult job for Hollins convincing the Grizzlies to buy into Randolph’s potential but he did it nevertheless.

“I told management there was a player I thought we could get who could make us solid, make us legitimate. Oh, I had to do a selling job, maybe my best ever,” Hollins said to Fran Blinebury.

But Hollins still had to reach out to Randolph and convince him of buying into the Grizzlies’ team-first philosophy.

“I asked him, ‘What have you ever won doing it your way?’” Hollins said.

That question hit home as Randolph was selected for his first NBA All-Star Game in 2010. Despite failing to make it to the 2010 Playoffs, the Grizzlies, riding on Randolph’s 20.8 PPG and 11.7 RPG, improved to a 40-42 regular season record for ’09-10 compared to 24-58 in ’08-09. In doing so, Randolph was one of three players in the NBA (Chris Bosh, David Lee) to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds per game in 2009-10. In the same season, his 330 offensive rebounds, which also set a career-high and franchise-record, were tops in the NBA.

But Randolph’s crowning moment has to be the first round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs. Having produced a 20.1 PPG and 11.7 RPG season for 2010-11, that had the Grizzlies clinch the eighth seed in the Western Conference, Randolph led Memphis in toppling the number one seed, San Antonio Spurs. His 21.5 PPG and 9.2 RPG, which included a 31-point and 11-rebound effort in Game 6 of that series, powered the Grizzlies to their first ever playoff series victory while providing only the second instance of the No. 8 seed knocking off a No. 1 seed since the NBA went to a best-of-seven series in the first round.

Amidst a number of multiple All-Star and future Hall-of-Fame players - Derrick Rose, Kevin Garnett, Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire, Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Dirk Nowitzki, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Dwight Howard - on show in the first round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs, it was Randolph who most influenced the outcome of his team’s series result. Perhaps, Rose and Durant were the respective big factors in their team’s series wins against the Indian Pacers and Denver Nuggets, but in both those matchups Chicago and Oklahoma were favourites to win. Randolph’s Grizzlies, on the other hand, were the classic example of the underdog playing the heavily favoured Spurs.

And just to prove his credentials once again, Randolph then led the Grizzlies to an opening game win in their Western Conference Semi-Final series, posting a playoff-career high 34 points, as the Grizzlies defeated the OKC Thunder 114-101.

On April 18, 2011, a little before his round one exploits against the Spurs reached a crescendo, the much vilified Randolph of the past, agreed to terms on a four-year deal with the Grizzlies that could pay him up to $71 million.

J.K. Rowling, herself no stranger to a good story, would have approved.

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Weekend Look-Back: April 30-May 1
By Akshay Manwani May 2, 2011

What an incredible weekend of NBA Playoff action. The Memphis Grizzlies, the eighth seed in the Western Conference, completed a stunning series victory against the San Antonio Spurs, the top seed in the same conference, in Round one of the 2011 NBA Playoffs. Then, in less than 48 hours, the Grizzlies shocked the basketball pundits once again by beating the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 of the Western Conference semi-finals. Elsewhere, the Boston Celtics dropped Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semi-finals against the Miami Heat.

Here’s an in-depth look at all the weekend action:

Series Score: Memphis win series, 4-2

Series Summary: Jeff Van Gundy summed up this series best by saying, “The regular season is about character and the Spurs did fantastically to win 61 games over a grinding schedule. But the post season is about talent and the Grizzlies were just the more talented team in this series.” Van Gundy’s words hit the nail on the head as the Grizzlies kept the Spurs down to a scoring average of 94.3 PPG, far shy of their regular season average of 103.7 PPG. The Memphis big men, Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph, patrolled the paint [non restricted area] better keeping the Spurs to just 21-from-71 [30%] in that area. In achieving a series win against the San Antonio Spurs, the Grizzlies became just the second No. 8 seed to knock off a No. 1 seed since the NBA went to a best-of-seven series in the first round.

The Stat: [29.4%] – San Antonio’s offense this season was built around their 3-point shooting ability. They were the NBA’s best 3-point shooting team in the regular season, hitting a remarkable 39.7 percent from behind the arc. Yet, against the Grizzlies, that number plummeted to just 29.4 percent. Anytime your best offensive option suffers, there isn’t much a team can do but pay the price.

Series hero: Without a doubt, this series was about Zach Randolph announcing himself on the big stage. With a series average of 21.5 PPG and 9.2 RPG, which included a 31-point and 11-rebound effort in Game 6, the Grizzlies’ forward was the big difference between the two sides. Fran Blinebury of NBA.com wrote well of Randolph’s game, giving it a poetic tinge, “He has silk pillow hands at the end of long arms, a bullish demeanor with a child-like smile and a knack for making jumpers from the wing along with some of the most improbable shots from the crowd around the basket that one could ever imagine. Like the Grizzlies, when his path is blocked, he somehow finds a way.”

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Series Score: Memphis lead series 1-0

Series Story: Having stunned the basketball fraternity with an upset win against the Spurs, the Grizzlies went one step further and stole Game 1 of their Western Conference semi-final matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder. That it came less than 40 hours after that San Antonio upset makes the Grizzlies’ fairytale run in these Playoffs all the more creditable.

Zach Randolph once again led all scorers as he hit 34 points for the Grizzlies in this game. Randolph’s effort helped the Grizzlies dominate the paint as they outscored the OKC Thunder 52-38 in this department. But the clinching difference between the two sides in this game was Memphis leading almost every hustle stat against the Thunder. They forced 18 turnovers, grabbed 17 offensive rebounds, thereby scoring 22 second chance points.

The Stat: [9-for-23] – OKC All-Stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook may have combined for 62 points in this game but where Durant’s points came at a field goal percentage of 52.4, Westbrook was just 9-for-23 [39.1 percent]. He started the game 5-for-6 but finished 4-for-17. To make it worse, Westbrook also had seven turnovers.

What to expect: The Grizzlies have negated OKC’s home-court advantage by winning Game 1 of this series. If Oklahoma are to win back that advantage and emerge victorious in this series, they need to stop Randolph. He is the Grizzlies’ go-to-guy and unless Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins [Perk was a non entity in Game 1 with just six rebounds, two turnovers and two points] can figure out a way to stop him, OKC will find it hard to win. The Spurs will tell you the same.

Next Game: Game 2 @ Oklahoma City – May 4 – 7:00 AM (IST)

Series Score: Miami leads series 1-0

Series Story: Game 1 of this series was basically Dwayne Wade and James Jones versus the Boston Celtics. Wade burned the Celtics for a game-high 38 points, including 13 first-quarter points, while Jones, coming off the bench for Miami, posted 25 points, which included 5-for-7 from 3-point land.

The Stat: [Eight minutes]: That’s how much time Rajon Rondo spent on the floor for the Celtics in the first half. In the end, Rondo’s absence in the first-half, owing to foul trouble, proved to be the Celtics’ Achilles ’ heel as they were outscored 51-36 by Miami in the first two quarters. With Rondo playing most of the remaining two quarters, the Celtics actually outscored the Heat in 54-48 in the second-half.

What next: Rondo has to step up for the Celtics. It’s as simple as that. When he is on the floor, pushing the ball up for Boston, the Celtics are unbeatable. He is able to create the offense for the rest of the Cs and make them roll. Boston needs to win the next game in Miami if they have to harbor any real hope of winning this series because coming back from a 0-2 deficit to win a seven-game series is extremely difficult.

Miami, on the other hand, have to be tenacious at the defensive end like they were in Game 1. Both Wade and Lebron James were terrific on this front. More importantly, the Heat must hope for their bench to contribute on a regular basis instead of a one off case.

Next Game: Game 2 @ Miami – May 4 – 4:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports



Other upcoming games:

Game 1 – Western Conference Semi-Final - Dallas Mavericks @ LA Lakers - May 3 – 8:00 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Game 2 – Western Conference Semi-Final - Dallas Mavericks @ LA Lakers - May 5 – 8:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix

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Top 5 Performances of the First Round (So Far)
By Akshay Manwani April 28, 2011

Although Round One of the 2011 Playoffs is yet to draw to a complete close, there have been some scintillating individual performances already. From Carmelo Anthony to Zach Randolph to Chris Paul, the stars have stepped up on the big stage. Here’s a quick look at the five best performances in the first round:

After an up-and-down regular season, Chris Paul has proven himself to still be among the NBA's elite.
NBAE/Getty Images

No. 5 - Anthony (42 points) stands tall amidst the ruins

April 19, 2011 – New York Knicks v Boston Celtics, TD Garden - Game 2

The Knicks were already handicapped by the absence of Chauncey Billups before the start of this game. Then with Amar’e Stoudemire forced to quit Game 2 before the end of the second quarter owing to back spasms, the Knicks resembled a second division English football club ready for a massacre at the hands of league champions, Manchester United.

Enter Carmelo Antony. With fate conspiring against his team, Anthony single-handedly kept the Knicks in this game with a 42-point effort. Twenty-six of Anthony’s 42 points came in the second-half, including 13 straight points over a seven-minute stretch overlapping the third and fourth quarter. Unfortunately for Anthony, Boston were able to withstand his hot hand as they eked out a three-point victory to take a 2-0 lead in the series.

Anthony’s stats - 42 points, 17 rebounds, 6 assists – FGM-A: 14-30, 3PM-A: 4-8, FTM-A: 10-11

No. 4 – DWIGHTstanding Howard slams 46

April 16, 2011 – Atlanta Hawks v Orlando Magic, Amway Center - Game 1

Dwight Howard underlined his MVP credentials as he slammed 46 points against the Atlanta Hawks in Game 1 of this series. Howard’s effort, a 46-point performance, improved his career-high for points in a playoff game, tied Tracy McGrady for a franchise playoff record for points in a game and set the franchise playoff record for points in a half with 31. To add to that Howard also managed to grab 19 rebounds on the night. Despite that virtuoso performance, the Magic found themselves on the losing side as only one other Magic player [Jameer Nelson] besides Howard managed double digit scoring for Orlando on the night.

Howard’s stats - 46 points, 19 rebounds – FGM-A: 16-23, FTM-A: 14-22

No. 3 – This Rose proves to be a thorn for the Pacers

April 16, 2011 – Indiana Pacers v Chicago Bulls, United Center - Game 1

The less-ancied Pacers played a hard-fought Game 1 at the United Center. On another day they might have even escaped with a win. But standing between them and victory was Derrick Rose. The Chicago Bulls’ MVP candidate for the regular season scorched the Pacers with a 39-point effort, including scoring five of the Bulls’ last 16 points in the game, as the Bulls edged the Pacers 104-99. Rose’s 39 points came on 44 shot attempts while attempting 21 free throws, four more than the Pacers had as a team. Danny Granger aptly summarized Rose’s relentless style of attacking the rim in that game by likening him to a ‘crazy-stalker ex-girlfriend.’

“Every time you tell her you don't want to talk to her, she shows up at your door again,” said the Pacers’ forward.

Rose’s stats - 39 points, 6 assists – FGM-A: 10-23, FTM-A: 19-21

No. 2 – Roy’s surreal night

April 23, 2011 – Dallas Mavericks v Portland Trail Blazers, Rose Garden - Game 4

Brandon Roy had vented his frustration at his limited playing minutes with the Portland Trail Blazers after the side had lost the first two games of this series to Dallas. Then came a 16-point effort from Roy in Game 3 that helped the Trail Blazers pull one back against Dallas. A few nights later, Roy would improve upon that performance, scoring 24 points as the Trail Blazers leveled the series against Dallas. The most impressive part of Roy’s 24-point burst, 18 of which came in the fourth quarter, was that it helped Portland overcome a 23-point deficit before they edged Dallas 84-82 on the night.

“It still doesn't feel real yet. Just an unbelievable game, the comeback. With everything I've been through this season, it all came into that moment there on the court, when guys were grabbing me and cheering me on. It was real special,” said Roy of his magical performance.

Roy’s stats - 24 points, 5 assists – FGM-A: 9-13, 3PM-A: 2-5, FTM-A: 4-5

No. 1 – Hornets, riding on Chris Paul triple-double, sting the Lakers

April 23, 2011 – Los Angeles Lakers v New Orleans Hornets, New Orleans Arena - Game 4

In Game 1 of this series Chris Paul posted a 33 points, 14 assists and 7 rebounds to help the Hornets shock the Lakers at the Staples Center. Yet, with the Hornets trailing 1-2 in the series, Paul tapped into his reservoir of skill and produced an even better performance in Game 4. The All-Star point-guard notched up a triple double with 27 points, 15 assists and 13 rebounds as the Hornets leveled the series with the Lakers. What made Paul's numbers even more significant is that his triple double hasn’t been achieved in the postseason in the last 20 seasons. In fact, it's only been topped once in the last 18 seasons as a whole when LeBron James had 43 points, 15 assists and 13 rebounds against Denver on Feb. 18, 2010.

Paul’s stats - 27 points, 15 assists, 13 rebounds – FGM-A: 7-14, 3PM-A: 2-4, FTM-A: 11-11

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Weekend Wrap-Up: April 23-24
By Akshay Manwani April 26, 2011

It’s been a mixed run at the 2011 Playoffs thus far. A couple of series which were expected to be competitive right from the start have turned into one-sided contests. The others, meanwhile, have turned into nail-biting, edge of the seat affairs. Memphis Grizzlies have given the fans in San Antonio a scare while the Boston Celtics have swept the New York Knicks in four straight.

Here’s an in-depth look at what’s transpired in the first-round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs so far:

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Memphis Grizzlies v San Antonio Spurs

Series Score: Memphis leads series 2-1

Series Story: As incredible as it sounds but the Grizzlies, 46-36 in the regular season, lead the Spurs who posted the best regular season record in the Western Conference [61-21]. You could point to Manu Ginobili’s absence for the Spurs’ loss in Game 1 of this series but even Ginobili’s return hasn’t stopped the Grizzlies awesome play. They have played excellent defense, a reflection of which can be seen in San Antonio’s reduced Field Goal and 3-Point efficiency [41.7 percent and 31.9 percent respectively vis-à-vis 47.5 percent and 39.7 percent in the regular season].

The Stat: [7-38] – Perhaps the best stat to explain the Spurs’ shooting travails. A StatsCube shooting analysis report suggests that the Grizzlies have restricted the Spurs to just 7 off 38 shooting [just 18 percent] in the paint [non restricted area]. Memphis, meanwhile, has shot the ball with a 39 percent success rate in the same area [17 off 44].

What to expect: It’s at times like this that I wish I could predict the future with absolute certainty. It’s hard to imagine San Antonio losing this series to the Grizzlies.

Zac Randolph and Marc Gasol have been incredible for Memphis, but I still think the Spurs, owing to their experience, might still sneak past the Grizzlies.

Next Game: Game 4 @ Memphis - April 26 – 5:30 AM (IST)

Portland Trail Blazers v Dallas Mavericks

Series Score: Series tied 2-2

Series Story: This one has been a fairytale comeback for Brandon Roy. Disgruntled about his role [Roy scored just two points in the first two games] after the Trail Blazers lost the first two games to Dallas, Roy has led Portland [scored 16 and 24 in Games 3 and 4 respectively] to two fine victories at home. Besides Roy, Portland’s raucous fans have also played a crucial role in inspiring their team to two consecutive wins at the Rose Garden.

The Stat: [43 percent] – Dallas have been awesome from behind the 3-point line in this series. They have hit 37 off 86 from behind the 3-point arc. Between Jason Kidd [14 off 29] and Peja Stojakovic [10 off 23], the Mavericks have hit more 3s than the entire Portland unit [21 in all].

What to expect: Like it or not, the home fans have been the difference in this series. First, Dallas won two at the American Airlines Center before Portland squared the series at the Rose Garden. Going forward, it should stay that way which means that Dallas will win this in seven. Next Game: Game 5 @ Dallas - April 26 – 6:00 AM (IST)

Oklahoma City Thunder v Denver Nuggets

Series Score: Oklahoma City leads series 3-0

Series Story: Right now, Denver are being shown up by the All-Star combination of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant. Between them, Westbrook and Durant have scored 165 of the 310 points scored by OKC in this series [53.23 percent]. And when that double threat gets a fillip from Serge Ibaka [career high 22 points in Game 3], the OKC Thunder are, indeed, unbeatable.

The Stat: [11.7 to 6.7] – With 11.7 offensive rebounds per game, the OKC Thunder are getting a lot of second chance opportunities to score. Denver, on the other hand, are averaging only 6.7 offensive rebounds in this series. Clearly the OKC’s big men, Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins, are proving to be a handful for the Nuggets’ defense in this series.

What to expect: Most fans and experts had thought that this series might see an upset or go the distance. But until the Nuggets figure out a way to stop Durant and Westbrook, there is little chance of Denver catching up, leave aside upsetting the OKC Thunder.

Next Game: Game 4 @ Denver - April 26 – 8:00 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!

Chicago Bulls v Indiana Pacers

Series Score: Chicago leads series 3-1

Series Story: Indiana may have managed to keep their pride intact by winning the last game played in this series but they simply have no answers for Chicago’s Derrick Rose. In the first three games that the Bulls won, Rose averaged 32.67 PPG. Even with the Pacers opting to hack Rose, in order to slow him down, Rose has killed them with his free throw shooting [46 off 53, 86.8 percent].

The Stat: [48.5 to 38.5] – If you look at the field goal and 3-point shooting percentage of both teams, the Pacers at 41.3 percent and 36.1 percent are actually better than Chicago [39.8 percent and 31.1 percent respectively]. But where Chicago has made up that gap is on the rebounding front, out-rebounding the Pacers 48.5 to 38.5 in the series.

What to expect: With the series headed back to Chicago, only a miracle can save the Pacers from being eliminated from the 2011 Playoffs. Not only did Chicago win both their games at home, they also boast the best regular season record at home [tied with San Antonio at 36-5]. And with D Rose expected to have the full support of the fans at the United Center, expect this series to be done in five.

Next Game: Game 5 @ Chicago - April 27 – 5:30 AM (IST)

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Los Angeles Lakers v New Orleans Hornets

Series Score: Series 2-2

Series Story: Chris Paul. Much like Derrick Rose in the Chicago versus Indiana series, Paul has been the single biggest reason why the Hornets have become so much of an irritant to the Lakers. In the two games that New Orleans beat the Lakers (Games 1 and 4), Paul posted 33 points-14 assists-7 rebounds and 27-15-13 respectively.

The Stat: [102-46-28 v 92-17-19] - In the battle of the superstar players, Chris Paul has had the better of Kobe Bryant all through the series. He is outscoring Bryant by 2.5 PPG [25.5PPG v 23PPG], has 29 more assists and has, in perhaps the biggest surprise of all, accumulated nine more rebounds than Bryant.

What to expect: As much as I like the Hornets’ tenacity and Chris Paul’s surreal play in this series, it’s hard to believe that the defending champions will go down to them. With two of the remaining three games in the series to be played in LA, expect Bryant and co. to raise their game and overcome a spirited New Orleans’ challenge.

Next Game: Game 5 @ Los Angeles - April 27 – 8:00 AM (IST)

Miami Heat v Philadelphia 76ers

Series Score: Miami leads series 3-1

Series Story: For most of the series, the 76ers’ bandwagon has huffed and puffed but has not been able to blow away the Miami Heat. The Heat have led the 76ers in almost every aspect of the game from rebounding [47.3RPG to 40.5RPG] to field goal percentage [43.2 percent to 40.0 percent] to free throw attempts per game [29.8 to 17.5].

The Stat: [23.9 percent]: Miami are just 16 off 67 from behind the 3-point arc. Mike Bibby, who was brought in during the mid-season trade, for his ability to knock down 3-pointers has been a poor 4-19 [21.05 percent] in the four games played thus far. Philadelphia, on the other hand, are shooting the ball at a healthy 41.7 percent from 3-point territory.

What to expect: The 76ers have shown much fight through the series. But LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh have always looked in control of proceedings. Expect the Heat to finish off this series at the American Airlines Arena in Game 5.

Next Game: Game 5 @ Miami - April 28 – 4:30 AM (IST)

New York Knicks v Boston Celtics

Series Score: Boston win series 4-0

Series Story: Honestly, a lot of us had expected the Knicks to put up a better fight. But even taking into account the injuries to Chauncey Billups and Amar’e Stoudemire, the Knicks lacked direction right through this series. Even Carmelo Anthony, besides a 42-point showing in Game 2, failed to consistently elevate his game in the absence of Anthony and Billups. And while Boston looked good on the offensive front in the last two games of the series, it was their consistent, tenacious defensive pressure that helped brush aside the Knicks

The Stat: [17 off 26] – At 65.4 percent, Ray Allen has been hot from the behind the 3-point line. A career 39.9 percent shooter, the 35-year old Allen elevated his 3-point shooting this regular season by shooting 44.4 percent from 3-point land. Clearly, the 2011 Playoffs have brought the best out of Allen.

What next: Even though the Knicks’ season draws to a close on a dismal note, the future remains bright for them. By landing Anthony and Stoudemire they are assured of better things to come in the future, provided they can add more role players to their roster. Boston, meanwhile, should look forward to playing the Miami Heat in what promises to be a terrific series.

Orlando Magic v Atlanta Hawks

Series Score: Atlanta leads series 3-1

Series Story: Yet another series which has upset every possible prediction. Dwight Howard [32.25 PPG and 17.5 RPG] has put up impressive numbers for the Magic, but besides him the rest of the Magic have looked ordinary. The Magic’s perceived strength, their 3-point shooting ability, has in fact proved to be their Achilles’ heel as they’ve shot a mere 21.9 percent in this department. Game 4 saw them at their lowest ebb as they went just 8.7 percent from three-point territory.

The Stat: [96 to 69] - Jamal Crawford, coming off the bench, has been a huge plus for Atlanta in this series. The Atlanta guard’s 96 points over four games have outscored the Magic’s entire bench by 27 points.

What to expect: Unless the rest of the Magic roster, barring Howard, shed aside their insipid form, the season might well come to an abrupt end for Orlando. They are now faced with the daunting task of winning three straight games against Atlanta, a side who had the better of them in the regular season [3-1] as well.

Next Game: Game 5 @ Orlando - April 27 – 5:00 AM (IST)

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Weekend Wrap-Up: April 16-17
By Akshay Manwani April 18, 2011

If the weekend was anything to go by, then the 2011 Playoffs are living up to their billing. A couple of close finishes in the Eastern Conference on Saturday only set the tone for a couple of big upsets in the Western Conference on Sunday. Derrick Rose, Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul and Kevin Durant all stepped up for their respective teams on the first couple of days of the Playoffs, as almost every game went down to the wire.

Here is a quick wrap-up of what transpired over the weekend as the 2011 Playoffs got off to a riveting start:

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Indiana 99 Chicago 104

Where: United Center, Chicago

Game Story: For about as much as 46 minutes in this game, the Indiana Pacers, unthinkably, led the top-seeded Chicago Bulls. Then Derrick Rose took over and Chicago managed to sneak by the Pacers by a five-point margin. Still, by playing Derrick Rose aggressively at both ends of the floor, Indiana may have just shown the way to beat the Bulls in the playoffs. Danny Granger led the Pacers with 24 points, while Rose once again validated his MVP credentials with a 39-point effort on the night.

The Stat: [55.6 percent] – The 3-point shooting percentage of the Pacers in this game. For a team that shot only 35.4 percent in the regular season, Saturday’s effort [10 off 18] was a commendable improvement.

Series Score: Chicago leads 1-0

Next Game: Game 2 @ Chicago - April 19 – 7:00 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!

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Philadelphia 89 Miami 97

Where: American Airlines Arena, Miami

Game Story: This one was a roller coaster. At 31-19, Philadelphia led at the end of the first quarter. Then Miami switched to a zone defense and secured a 11-point lead [80-69] at the end of three quarters. But with 2:20 left in the game, Philadelphia came to within one point of the Heat with the score reading 87-88. Dwayne Wade then produced a terrific drive to the basket while LeBron James swatted a Jrue Holiday layup at the other end of the floor to give Miami a win on their home court.

The Stat: [52-39] - The Heat pounded the 76ers on the boards at both ends of the floor to notch up 52 rebounds in the game as against 39 for Philadelphia.

Series Score: Miami leads 1-0

Next Game: Game 2 @ Miami - April 19 – 4:30 AM (IST)

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Atlanta 103 Orlando 93

Where: Amway Center, Orlando

Game Story: Call it an upsetm but it was a comfortable win for Atlanta. Besides Dwight Howard, who put up 46 points and 19 rebounds on the night, and Jameer Nelson [27 points], the rest of the Orlando team did not turn up for this game. Atlanta shot the ball well [51.4percent from the field and 42.9percent from the 3-point line] to record their first win of the seven-game series.

The Stat: [33-10] - The Hawks’ bench, with 33 points between them, outscored Orlando’s bench by a whopping 23-point margin. Orlando’s woes were compounded by the fact that besides Howard and Nelson no other Magic player posted a double digit score.

Series Score: Atlanta leads 1-0

Next Game: Game 2 @ Orlando - April 20 – 5:00 AM (IST)

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Portland 81 Dallas 89

Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas

Game Story: My fellow NBA.com/India blogger, Karan Madhok, had predicted an upset in this series by suggesting Portland would beat the higher placed Mavericks in six games. With 5:30 left in the game and Portland leading 72-66, Karan’s prediction appeared to be headed in the right direction. But veterans Jason Kidd and Dirk Nowitzki stepped up to hit some clutch shots to give Dallas the eight-point win.

The Stat: [6 of 10] – Jason Kidd is a career 34.8 percent 3-point shooter. But in this game, Kidd made six [off 10] 3-point shots, including one with 26 seconds left in the game, to produce a 60 percent 3-point effort.

Series Score: Dallas leads 1-0

Next Game: Game 2 @ Dallas - April 20 – 7:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports

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Sunday, April 17, 2011

Memphis 101 San Antonio 98

Where: AT&T Center, San Antonio

Game Story: One of two upsets in the Western Conference. Manu Ginobili did not play for the Spurs and his absence cost San Antonio. Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol combined for 49 points while Shane Battier gave the Grizzlies 10 points, including a big 3-pointer in the dying seconds of the game, coming off the bench. It was a poor shooting effort for San Antonio who shot 40 percent both from the field and 3-point line as against 55.2percent and 60.0percent by the Grizzlies.

The Stat: [47] - The Spurs made as many as 47 trips to the free throw line, converting 36 of them [76.6 percent]. George Hill [11-13] and Tony Parker [12-16] alone made 29 attempts, four less than the combined 33 free throw attempts by the Grizzlies.

Series Score: Memphis leads 1-0

Next Game: Game 2 @ San Antonio - April 21 – 6:00 AM (IST)

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New Orleans 109 Los Angeles 100

Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles

Game Story: Perhaps the biggest upset on the weekend. Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant were locked in an All-Star battle for much of this game. But Paul with 33 points, 14 assists and 7 rebounds eventually trumped Bryant’s effort of 34 points and 5 assists to lead the Hornets to an improbable victory against LA.

The Stat: [52-34] – Before this series had started, everyone had thought that New Orleans’ size disadvantage would show up against Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol. Despite that size mismatch, the Hornets toyed with the Lakers’ big men, scoring 52 points in the paint while allowing only 34 to LA at their end.

Series Score: New Orleans leads 1-0

Next Game: Game 2 @ Los Angeles - April 21 – 8:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix

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New York 85 Boston 87

Where: TD Garden, Boston

Game Story: New York led the Celtics at the half-way mark but Ray Allen hit 18 off his 24 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 11 seconds remaining, in the second-half as Boston managed a gritty comeback victory. Amar’e Stoudemire was the Knicks leading scorer with 28 points but the real star of the night, particularly if you were a Boston fan, had to be Jermaine O’Neal. All the Celtics’ starters posted double digit scores but it was O’Neal with his 12 points and 4 blocks that gave Boston’ fortunes a real fillip.

The Stat: [34] – After allowing the Knicks to score from pretty much everywhere in the first half [51 points], the Boston defense buckled up in the last two quarters. They allowed only 34 points to their opponents while scoring a decisive 48 points after the break to edge the Knicks.

Series Score: Boston leads 1-0

Next Game: Game 2 @ Boston - April 20 – 4:30 AM (IST)

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Denver 103 Oklahoma City 107

Where: Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City

Game Story: With the way this one played out, it's got the makings of one heck of a series. Denver led by as many as 13 points at one stage but Oklahoma managed to rally back in the second half. A controversial turning point in the game was with 1:05 to play, when Thunder center Kendrick Perkins grabbed a rebound off a Russell Westbrook miss by putting his hand through the net, and tapped it back in to put the Thunder ahead by one. Nuggets’ players and coaches thought goaltending should have been called on the play, but there was no whistle. OKC had just let a 98-90 lead disappear and trailed 101-100 when the play occurred. The Thunder held on the rest of the way.

The Stat: [72] – Kevin Durant [41] and Russell Westbrook [31] combined for 72 of OKC’s 107 points. The Denver Nuggets’ starters, in contrast, managed just 69 points among themselves.

Series Score: Oklahoma City leads 1-0

Next Game: Game 2 @ Oklahoma City - April 21 – 5:30 AM (IST)

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Eastern Conference Playoffs Primer
By Akshay Manwani April 15, 2011

It’s that time of the year. After a fascinating 2010-11 regular season, the Playoffs are upon us. The Chicago Bulls edged the San Antonio Spurs on the last day for the best regular season record in the league. Now, as we head into the business end of the season, an exciting two months await us. There are almost as many as five legitimate contenders for the 2011 NBA championship, making this one of the most open postseasons in recent years. Without further ado, here is a quick glance at the first round matches in the Eastern Conference:

Chicago Bulls (1) v Indiana Pacers (8)

Game 1: April 16, 2011 @ Chicago – 10:30 PM (IST)

Series schedule: Game 2 @ Chicago - April 19 – 7:00 AM (IST), Game 3 @ Indiana - April 22 – 4:30 AM (IST), Game 4 @ Indiana - April 24 – 12:00 AM (IST). Game 5, Game 6 and Game 7 - only if necessary

Regular season record: Chicago Bulls - 62-20, Indiana Pacers - 37-45

Home Court Advantage: Chicago Bulls [United Center]. Indiana to host Chicago at Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis in Games 3, 4 and (if necessary) 6

Regular season home record: Chicago Bulls - 36-5, Indiana Pacers – 24-17

Regular season road record: Chicago Bulls - 26-15, Indiana Pacers – 13-28

Regular season series: Chicago won 3-1

Preview: The team with the best record in the league, Chicago, takes on an Indiana Pacers’ outfit that just barely made it to the Playoffs [the Pacers, well below .500, were only two games ahead of the Milwaukee Bucks]. Not only is Chicago the best defensive team in the league, but the Bulls also have in Derrick Rose a player who is the odds-on favourite to win the MVP award. Further, at 36-5, Chicago, is tied with San Antonio for the best home record in the league – all of which should make it even more difficult for the Pacers, who are a woeful 13-28 on the road, to win anything at the United Center.

Numbers Game: [62-20] - The last time Chicago posted a 62-20 regular season record was in the 1997-98 regular season. It was also the last time Chicago won an NBA title. Also, each of the five times the Bulls reached 60 wins before this season, they won the NBA title. Could this set the stage for an encore?

Akshay’s Take: Critics are pointing to Chicago’s inexperience in the Playoffs and that ever since Rose joined the Bulls, they have never gone past the first round. However, playing a Pacers’ team that is nowhere near the Bulls’ pedigree, this could be the beginning of a long Playoffs’ run for Chicago. Chicago to win in five.

Miami Heat (2) v Philadelphia 76ers (7)

Game 1: April 17, 2011 @ Miami – 1:00 AM (IST)

Series schedule: Game 2 @ Miami - April 19 – 4:30 AM (IST), Game 3 @ Philadelphia - April 22 – 5:30 AM (IST), Game 4 @ Philadelphia - April 24 – 10:30 PM (IST). Game 5, Game 6 and Game 7 - only if necessary

Regular season record: Miami Heat - 58-24, Philadelphia 76ers - 41-41

Home Court Advantage: Miami Heat [American Airlines Arena]. Philadelphia to host Miami at Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia in Games 3, 4 and (if necessary) 6

Regular season home record: Miami Heat - 30-11, Philadelphia 76ers – 26-15

Regular season road record: Miami Heat - 28-13, Philadelphia 76ers – 15-26

Regular season series: Miami won 3-0

Preview: Philadelphia are expecting to see the return of point-guard Lou Williams in this series, which should give a fillip to their fortunes. One area where the Sixers are also better stacked-up versus the Heat is that they have a better bench, and in Doug Collins, they have a veteran coach who far edges the Heat’s Erik Spoelstra in terms of experience. But the Heat are the only team in the league to rank in the top five both offensively and defensively. That with their trilogy of All-Stars, LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, makes this a battle between David [the 76ers] and Goliath with very little chance of the series result going way it did in The Bible.

Numbers Game: [+ 575] – That is the point differential over a 72-game period this regular season when LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh have been on the floor for Miami at the same time. The star trio have scored 4,280 points between them while allowing 3,705 points to their opponents, making them the best three-man unit in the league.

Akshay’s Take: Even without a high quality point-guard (although Mike Bibby has been great lately) or a big center, Miami should prove to be just too hot for the 76ers. Philly may have had a Cinderella-like run until now, but this is when the clock strikes mid-night for them. Miami to win in five.

Boston Celtics (3) v New York Knicks (6)

Game 1: April 18, 2011 @ Boston – 4:30 AM (IST)

Series schedule: Game 2 @ Boston - April 20 – 4:30 AM (IST), Game 3 @ New York - April 23 – 4:30 AM (IST), Game 4 @ New York - April 25 – 1:00 AM (IST). Game 5, Game 6 and Game 7 - only if necessary

Regular season record: Boston Celtics - 56-26, New York Knicks - 42-40

Home Court Advantage: Boston Celtics [TD Garden]. New York to host Boston at Madison Square Garden, New York in Games 3,4 and (if necessary) 6

Regular season home record: Boston Celtics - 33-8, New York Knicks – 23-18

Regular season road record: Boston Celtics - 23-18, New York Knicks – 19-22

Regular season series: Boston won 4-0

Preview: Easily the best playoff match-up in the Eastern Conference, if not across both conferences. And don’t go by the regular season series score line, because two of those four games were before Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups came to New York. Also, in the last game played on April 13, Anthony and Billups were getting some much-needed rest before this playoff series, as were Celtics stars Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce. Yet, Boston’s ability to keep its opponents down to just 91.13 PPG [the best clip in the league] while New York’s magnanimity in giving away 105.73 PPG [third-worst record in the league] to their opponents is what defines the two teams in a nutshell. And if Boston can have Shaquille O’Neal fit for this series, the Knicks will find it extremely difficult to compete with the Celtics either in the frontcourt or in the backcourt.

Numbers Game: [50.9] – At 25.6 PPG and 25.3 PPG respectively, Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire have combined to produce 50.9 PPG this regular season. This makes them the second-most potent offensive combination in the league behind the 52.2 PPG LeBron James [26.7] and Dwayne Wade [25.5] provide the Miami Heat.

Akshay’s Take: It’s a cliché, certainly, but when you say offense wins games and defense wins championships it is also, more often than not, the truth. Neither of New York’s stars, Amar’e or Carmelo, is known for their defensive ability while the Celtics, on the other hand, are defined by their defensive tenacity. Boston to win in six.

Orlando Magic (4) v Atlanta Hawks (5)

Game 1: April 17, 2011 @ Orlando – 4:30 AM (IST)

Series schedule: Game 2 @ Orlando - April 20 – 5:00 AM (IST), Game 3 @ Atlanta - April 23 – 5:30 AM (IST), Game 4 @ Atlanta - April 25 – 4:30 AM (IST). Game 5, Game 6 and Game 7 - only if necessary

Regular season record: Orlando Magic - 52-30, Atlanta Hawks – 44-38

Home Court Advantage: Orlando Magic [Amway Center]. Atlanta to host Orlando at Philips Arena, Atlanta in Games 3, 4 and (if necessary) 6

Regular season home record: Orlando Magic - 29-12, Atlanta Hawks – 24-17

Regular season road record: Orlando Magic - 23-18, Atlanta Hawks – 20-21

Regular season series: Atlanta won 3-1

Preview: Orlando’s All-star center Dwight Howard, a candidate for the Defensive Player of the Year and MVP Awards, registers as the biggest difference between the two sides. Howard’s post presence also spreads open the floor for the Magic’s three-point shooters, notably Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson, Ryan Anderson and Jameer Nelson. The Hawks’ chances all boil down to, as NBA.com’s John Schumann puts it, “Whether Jason Collins [Hawks’ center] can defend Dwight Howard one-on-one. Collins doesn't need to shut down Howard, but if he can allow his teammates to stay at home on Orlando's shooters, the Hawks have a chance to win ugly like they did three times in the regular season.” Numbers Game: [+3.51] Grabbing 43.21 rebounds-per-game while allowing only 39.70 RPG to their opponents, Orlando have the second-best rebounding differential in the league [behind Chicago, who are +5.74].

Akshay’s Take: The regular season series score line might paint a different picture but treat that as an anomaly. Orlando have far too much experience and firepower in their roster to let Atlanta dominate them in the Playoffs. Orlando to win in five.

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Week Watchers: April 12-14
By Akshay Manwani April 12, 2011

It's finally here. Ahead of us is an NBA week which will see a fight to the finish in the regular season, with several teams locked in a battle for home-court advantage heading into the playoffs and still more waging wars for position. With every team having no more than two couple of games left, the margin for error is minimal. One loss can see a team surrendering home-court advantage, which could prove fatal to their chances in the playoffs.

With that perspective in mind, here is a quick look at some of the marquee matchups in the last few days of what has been a fantastic 2010-11 regular season:

April 12, 2011

After a season full of ups and downs, the Lakers look to make one final push with a win against the West's No. 1 seed.
NBAE/Getty Images

Miami Heat v Atlanta Hawks
When: April 12, 2011 – 4:30 AM (IST)
Where: Philips Arena, Atlanta
Regular season records: Miami Heat (56-24), Atlanta Hawks (44-36)
Preview: The Miami Heat have managed to edge ahead of the Boston Celtics for the second spot in the Eastern Conference after beating the Celtics with an impressive performance on Sunday night [Miami won 100-77]. However, Miami still needs to win both its remaining games in the regular season if the Heat are to lock up that spot and get home court advantage against the Celtics in the playoffs. Atlanta, similarly, would be desperate to pull off a win in this game as they are being hounded by the New York Knicks for fifth position in the Eastern Conference. Currently, New York is two games adrift of Atlanta. The season series between the Heat and Atlanta is 2-1 in favour of the former.

Minnesota Timberwolves v Phoenix Suns
When: April 12, 2011 – 7:30 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: US Airways Center, Phoenix
Regular season records: Minnesota Timberwolves (17-63), Phoenix Suns (38-42)
Preview: The game is of academic interest since both teams are out of the reckoning for a place in the playoffs. Phoenix would be disappointed with their showing this season after having made it to the Western Conference Finals last year. Clearly, the absence of Amar’e Stoudemire hurt the Suns big time this season. Minnesota, despite Kevin Love’s superlative showing, too, struggled to rise above a below par showing in the season.

April 13, 2011

Chicago Bulls v New York Knicks
When: April 13, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York
Regular season records: Chicago Bulls (60-20), New York Knicks (42-38)
Preview: The Bulls are sitting pretty, having clinched the top spot in the Eastern Conference. However, they would be keen to win both their remaining games in the regular season and hope that the San Antonio Spurs [61-19] slip up in their last two games so that the Bulls can have home court advantage right through the playoffs to the finals. New York, meanwhile, are on a seven-game winning streak [like Chicago] and are in a frenetic race to edge Atlanta for the fifth seed in the Western Conference. A win against Chicago would help the Knicks close the gap against the Hawks [NY currently sits two games behind Atlanta].

San Antonio Spurs v LA Lakers
When: April 13, 2011 – 8:00 AM (IST)
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles
Regular season records: San Antonio Spurs (61-19), LA Lakers (55-25)
Preview: This could be a preview to the 2011 Western Conference Finals. It seems like yesterday that the San Antonio Spurs were suffering through a six-game losing streak (it was actually 11 days ago) -- now, it's the Lakers who are scuffling, with with four losses in the last week, and five in a row. LA are desperate to reverse the slide because any further losses might see them having to surrender home court advantage to their opponents beyond the first round of the 2011 playoffs. The season series between the two sides stands at 2-1 in favour of San Antonio.



New York Knicks v Boston Celtics
When: April 14, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST)
Where: TD Garden, Boston
Regular season records: New York Knicks (42-38), Boston Celtics (55-25)
Preview: A potential first-round match up in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Knicks are a team in red hot form having gone on a seven-game winning run. Besides wanting to beat the Celtics to gain the psychological advantage heading into the playoffs, they would be desperate to win against Boston simply because they have been unable to do so the last three times these two sides have met this regular season. From Boston’s point of view, a win against the Knicks in their last regular season game would round off a roller-coaster two month period [15-11 since the All-Star break] on a positive note.

San Antonio Spurs v Phoenix Suns
When: April 14, 2011 – 8:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: US Airways Center, Phoenix
Regular season records: San Antonio Spurs (61-19), Phoenix Suns (38-42)
Preview: San Antonio have the best record in the league currently, which means the Spurs will have home-court advantage right through to the 2011 Finals, if they get there. But with Chicago in the Eastern Conference [60-20 regular season record] snapping at their heels, the Spurs will be keen not to slip up in their last game. Phoenix are out of the reckoning of the 2011 playoffs. San Antonio has already closed out the four-game season series against the Suns 3-0.

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Injuries Take Their Toll
By Akshay Manwani April 7, 2011

From ancient Greek history comes the legend of the Spartans. The Spartans, who put their young children through an exhaustive physical regime, that prepared them for the rigours of a military life ahead. Every element of a young Spartan’s education involved honing his martial skills and preparing him for a life in combat and discipline.

An NBA player’s journey is no different. Apart from possessing an innate athletic ability, players must hone their craft over several hours of practice, day after day, week after week, month after month and year after year. All in the hope of competing at the highest level for the elusive Larry O’Brien Championship trophy.

Read of Michael Jordan’s or Kobe Bryant’s or LeBron James’ early years and you will find mention of the long hours spent in the gym. A relentless work ethic that saw these players sacrifice the inane pleasures of adolescence and youth for the lofty, intangible idea of perfection.

Cruelly though, all it takes is one injury to undo all those zillion seconds of hard work.

Take the case of Greg Oden. Riding on the back of an outstanding 2006-07 college season, Oden was named to the 2007 Associated Press All-America First Team. Yet, ever since having been picked as the number one draft pick by the Portland Trail Blazers in 2007, Oden has played just 13 games for Portland. Microfracture surgery on both his knees have kept this talented center away from showcasing his mettle for four consecutive seasons.

The Chicago Bulls’ Kurt Thomas, currently the second-oldest player in the NBA, will relate to Oden’s plight. When Thomas was drafted 10th by the Miami Heat in 1995 he was viewed as a player who could bring in a double-double every night, after becoming only the third player in NCAA history to lead the nation in both scoring (28.9 ppg) and rebounding (14.6 rpg), joining Hank Gathers and Xavier McDaniel.

But after breaking his ankle four times over a period of two years, between 1996 and 1998, Thomas faltered at fulfilling that promise. Even then, the fact that Thomas has stuck on to become only the 96th player in NBA history to play 1,000 games is commendable. Thirteen years ago, while in the midst of those ankle injuries, the 1000-game distinction was unthinkable for Thomas.

There is no knowing when these injuries strike. If a player is lucky, it could limit his absence to a few games in the regular season. If he is unlucky, it could happen at the most critical stage of his career, a la Oden. Even worse, if it happens at a moment that decides his team’s fortunes for the season. In Game six of last year’s NBA finals, Kendrick Perkins of the Boston Celtics, having torn his right ACL, went down in a heap in the opening minutes of that game. Perkins missed the last two games of the Finals, and the Celtics lost both those games as they were unable to match up to the size advantage of the LA Lakers’ big men.

This year history threatens to repeat itself for Boston. Having missed about two months of basketball owing to an Achilles injury, Shaquille O’Neal gave Boston fans a scare by limping off the TD Garden floor in the second quarter of his return game with the Celtics against the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night. However, when news came through that Shaq’s injury had nothing to do with his Achilles but was classified as a minor calf strain, the entire city of Boston heaved a collective sigh of relief. But with Shaq at the wrong end of the age spectrum, his body hanging on like an old motor car on its last legs, Boston fans are hoping for a Championship winning performance from the Big Shamrock with a prayer on their lips.

And while injuries heal, even if in the really long term, it the mental strain that comes along with the injury that players fear more. Michael Redd, who because of a knee injury has played only 55 games in the last three seasons of his 11-year association with the Milwaukee Bucks, said of the mental trauma, “Words can't describe what I've been through over the last year and a half, two years, to be healthy.”

Fans often jump the gun on passing opinion on a player whose form has dipped, coming back from injury. What they don’t see is the blood, sweat and toil of these players to get back into peak physical condition. To some extent the fans are justified, for what is sport without passionate sentiment being expressed on part of the viewing public. But for these players the sport is their livelihood. They never would willingly slack on the job that feeds them and their families.

Here, I am reminded of Andrew Bynum’s case. The Lakers’ center, after having surgery in his right knee in the 2010 off season, didn’t exactly set the Staples Center on fire with his defense and rebounding after coming back from injury in December 2010. No wonder then that ahead of the mid-term trade deadline, rumours were afloat that Bynum might be traded to the Denver Nuggets for Carmelo Anthony. Fortunately, none of that was true and Bynum switched gears in the month of March by averaging 13.3 RPG and 12.7 PPG well above his career stats of 7.0 RPG and 10.5 PPG.

But not everyone gets a second opportunity. Yao Ming, who was selected as the number one draft pick by the Houston Rockets in 2002, perhaps now knows as much of the human anatomy as one of the graduating students from The John Hopkins School of Medicine. This, after injuries of all kind [toe, knee, ankle, foot] have cut short Ming’s last five seasons in the NBA. His latest injury, a stress fracture in his left ankle on December 16, 2010, have led many people to believe that Ming’s playing days in the league are over.

About 15 years ago, the San Antonio Spurs benefitted from an injury to their best player David Robinson. Owing to a foot injury, which saw Robinson play just six games in the entire 1996-97 season, the Spurs crashed to a 20-62 record. However, the upshot of the dismal record was that the Spurs got the rights to the number one draft pick in 1997 which saw them land Tim Duncan. A few years later, the Spurs riding on the strength of their Twin Towers [as David Robinson and Tim Duncan came to be known] won their first NBA Championship in 1999.

Not everyone, though, has it so lucky.

In this league, a player dribbles the ball with one hand, while holding on to his fate and guarding against injury with the other.

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Week Watchers: April 5-9
By Akshay Manwani April 5, 2011

At the start of last week in the NBA, the San Antonio Spurs, the league’s best team were coming off a three game-losing streak. However, the past week brought no better tidings for Gregg Popovich and his Spurs as the team lost three more games on the trot. As a result of San Antonio's defeats, the Los Angeles Lakers have moved to within two-and-half-games of the leading position in the Western Conference.

With that perspective in mind, here’s a look ahead at a few of the key matchups in the days ahead:



San Antonio Spurs v Atlanta Hawks
When: April 6, 2011 – 4:30 AM (IST)
Where: Philips Arena, Atlanta
Regular season records: San Antonio Spurs (58-19), Atlanta Hawks (44-33)
Preview: While San Antonio did go on that six-game losing streak, they began this week on a positive note with an impressive 114-97 win over the Phoenix Suns. As impressive as the Spurs have been all season long, they need to ensure that they do not drop a majority of their five games left in the regular season or else the LA Lakers might just pip them for the best regular season record in the Western Conference. However, in the Atlanta Hawks, the Spurs are meeting one of the better teams in the league, who just last week surprised many by beating the higher placed Eastern Conference teams, Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics. San Antonio leads the two-game season series 1-0.

Oklahoma City Thunder v Denver Nuggets
When: April 6, 2011 – 6:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: Pepsi Center, Denver
Regular season records: Oklahoma City Thunder (50-26), Denver Nuggets (47-29)
Preview: Oklahoma and Denver are the fourth and fifth best teams in the Western Conference currently. As a result, this game could be a preview of the first round Western Conference playoff battle between the two sides. Denver is the hottest team in the league right now, having been on a six-game winning streak. Their most recent victory includes a victory over the LA Lakers at the Staples Center on Sunday night [95-90]. The OKC Thunder, conversely, have lost their last two games. And the probability of the OKC Thunder beating Denver in their den seems a difficult one, simply because at 31-7, Denver has the second best home record in the Western Conference. The four-game season series is tied 1-1 with the last two games between the two teams to be played over the next few days.



Denver Nuggets v Dallas Mavericks
When: April 7, 2011 – 6:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas
Regular season records: Denver Nuggets (47-29), Dallas Mavericks (53-24)
Preview: As impressive as Denver have been in the past few weeks, the Dallas Mavericks have been equally disappointing. They are currently on a three-game losing streak having dropped games to the LA Lakers, Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers. Where they were once snapping at the heels of the San Antonio Spurs for first position in the Western Conference, the Mavs are now placed in third position, two-and-a-half games adrift of the LA Lakers. Playing a red hot Denver team, the Mavs are faced with the troubling prospect of losing yet another game towards the end of the regular season.

Los Angeles Lakers v Golden State Warriors
When: April 7, 2011 – 8:00 AM (IST)
Where: Oracle Arena, Oakland
Regular season records: Los Angeles Lakers (55-21), Golden State Warriors (33-44)
Preview: Denver apart, the other Western Conference team that was the flavor of the league in the month of March was the LA Lakers. The Lakers may have dropped their most recent game against the Nuggets, but have gone 9-1 in their last 10 games. Even more impressive was the Lakers’ 12-1 record for the month of March for which Phil Jackson won coach of the month honours in the Western Conference. In Golden State, the Lakers have an easy opponent. They are already 3-0 against Golden State in the regular season and should look to use this game for inflicting a series whitewash on the Warriors.



Boston Celtics v Chicago Bulls
When: April 8, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: United Center, Chicago
Regular season records: Boston Celtics (53-23), Chicago Bulls (56-20)
Preview: If the Lakers were the best team in the Western Conference in the month of March, then the Chicago Bulls were the best team in the Eastern Conference in the same period. The Bulls posted a 13-3 record in the past month leading Tom Thibodeau to win the Eastern Conference Coach of the month award. Boston, on the other hand, have been a having a bit of a roller-coaster ride since the all-star break. One night they beat the league’s best team, San Antonio Spurs, 107-97 while the next night they lose to the Atlanta Hawks 83-88. With Boston having given up the best record in the East to Chicago, a win over here would at least give the Celtics a psychological edge over the Bulls should the two meet in the playoffs.

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Who's Your Coach of the Year?
By Akshay Manwani March 31, 2011

While I had been thinking of doing this piece for some time, today’s poll question on NBA.com forced me to finally put down my thoughts on Coach of the Year. For the record, the poll question listed just four options – Doug Collins, George Karl, Gregg Popovich and Nate McMillan – for the readers to vote in their choice for Coach of the year. But I will expand my list to include one more name besides the four aforementioned gentlemen...and that man is Tom Thibodeau, head coach of the Chicago Bulls.

Let’s take a quick glance at what each man has meant for his roster:

Doug Collins [Philadelphia 76ers]: Collins joined the Philadelphia 76ers before this year, coming on the heels of a 2009-10 season in which the 76ers posted a disastrous 27-55 record. That nightmarish season promised to continue unabated as the 76ers went 3-13 in their first 16 games of the 2010-2011 season. However, Collins infused a rare team ethic in the roster that has since seen the 76ers post a remarkable turnaround where they currently hold a 38-36 record. That performance has seen them holding on to the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs’ race. This, without having a single player named to the all-star game in February 2011. Really, if there has been one rags to riches story in the league this year it has been of Doug Collins and his 76ers.

George Karl [Denver Nuggets]: We all know what has happened to the Cleveland Cavaliers after LeBron James’ exit from the franchise. No matter what newly appointed head coach Byron Scott tried, the Cavaliers have struggled right through this season. You would have imagined a similar fate to befall George Karl and the Denver Nuggets, after he lost two of his star players in Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups at the mid-season trade deadline. However, since that trade, the Nuggets have posted an impressive 12-4 run that has put them on course to get to the 50-win mark this regular season [currently 44-29]. What has been more admirable about Karl is that he came into the 2010-11 season having successfully fought off a bout of neck and throat cancer that was diagnosed immediately after the 2009-10 all-star game. Truly, Karl has been the comeback king on all counts this NBA regular season.

Gregg Popovich [San Antonio Spurs]: After a 0-4 drubbing at the hands of the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference semi-finals last year, everyone believed that San Antonio’s glory days were behind them. Heading into the 2010-11 season, their best players, Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili were heading into their mid-30s, while Tony Parker at 29 was no spring chicken. Yet, Popovich managed to defy all those odds and took San Antonio to their best regular season in franchise history [currently 57-17]. They may be on a four-game losing streak right now [Duncan’s out with a knee injury], but playing an up-tempo style of basketball, the Spurs have burned their opponents with their three-point shooting ability this season. They are currently the number one team in the league in three-point shooting percentage [.399]. All credit to Popovich then, who realized the age issues with Duncan and instead of relying solely on his low-post presence, focused on San Antonio playing a high-speed ball game. The results have been for everyone to see.

Nate McMillan [Portland Trail Blazers]: Last year when Portland had players miss a combined 311 games, Nate McMillan still had the team finish 50-32. Injuries once again dogged Portland right through this season as center Greg Oden remained unavailable before he played a game while Brandon Roy missed a near two-and-a-half month period between December 15, 2010 and February 24, 2011. But with a 21-20 record at the half-way mark in the current regular season, it seemed McMillan’s ability to inspire the Trail Blazers to do better had waned. Yet, having taken them on a 22-11 run since, it is clear that McMillan has been able to deliver for the second successive year in running. Like Collins, McMillan, too, had no all-star name on his roster but the Trail Blazers hold a one game lead over the New Orleans Hornets for the sixth spot in the Western Conference. Certainly, a worthy contender for the Coach of the year award.

Tom Thibodeau [Chicago Bulls]: Just last week I had praised Thibodeau’s role at Chicago. Here was a man who in his rookie season as head coach had inspired Chicago to the best regular season record in the Eastern Conference [currently 53-20]. The team had been hampered by injuries to Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah, but the Bulls hardly slipped during their absence. Thibodeau’s credentials as a stickler for defense have also shone through his stay at Chicago, as the Bulls rank first in keeping opponents down to a mere 42.8 percent from the field and 32.7 percent from behind the 3-point line. They come in second at points allowed to opponents – just 91.18 PPG. Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports summed up the critics viewpoint on Thibodeau’s effect on the Bulls perfectly, “I don’t know of too many rookie coaches who have been able to come in and do what Thibodeau has been able to do in his first season.”

The list of contenders is as impressive as it can get. In Doug Collins, George Karl and Gregg Popovich you have veteran personalities who have been able to channelize their experience in the league to inspire their teams. Nate McMillan and Tom Thibodeau, on the other hand, in a relative sense, represent the other end of the experience divide.

Yet, if I had to stick my head out and pick one of these names for coach of the year award, it would be McMillan’s. Popovich and Thibodeau have some quality all-star players on their roster and it would have been interesting to see how these coaches would have fared without their presence. Geroge Karl’s recent winning run is too short a duration for him to be judged over the course of the entire regular season. Finally, between the 76ers and the Trail Blazers, both of who are currently placed at sixth spot in their respective conferences, the latter are more likely to beat the third placed team in the opening round of their respective playoff matchups. The scribes at Sekou Smith’s Hang Time Blog also back this opinion.

On that count alone, I think the time is nigh for coach McMillan to be appreciated for his efforts.

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Week Watchers: March 29-31
By Akshay Manwani March 29, 2011

Last week bore witness to the contrasting fortunes of last year’s NBA finalists. Where the Boston Celtics looked ordinary, dropping games to the Memphis Grizzlies [87-90] and Charlotte Bobcats [81-83] at home, the Los Angeles Lakers made an emphatic statement by vanquishing all their opponents [Phoenix Suns, LA Clippers, New Orleans] to continue a seven-game winning streak.

With the regular season drawing to a close in just over two weeks, here is a quick look at some of the marquee matchups ahead of us in the following days:



Boston Celtics v Indiana Pacers
When: March 29, 2011 – 4:30 AM (IST)
Where: Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
Regular season records: Boston Celtics (51-21), Indiana Pacers (32-42)
Preview: Boston are in the middle of a slump. They may have won their most recent game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night [85-82] but have also gone 5-6 in their last 11 games. More than their defense, which everyone feared would suffer with the Kendrick Perkins trade, it is their offense which is causing the real problem. Indiana are clinging on to the eighth playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but not by much. They are on a two-game losing streak and with the Charlotte Bobcats breathing down their neck [30-42], it is important that the Pacers reverse the slide. Boston has already sealed the edge in the four-game season series, with a 3-0 lead.

Washington Wizards v Utah Jazz
When: March 29, 2011 – 6:30 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: EnergySolutions Arena, Salt Lake City
Regular season records: Washington Wizards (17-55), Utah Jazz (36-38)
Preview: Utah have been hurt badly by the departure of two major personalities in the month of February. First, Hall-of-Fame coach Jerry Sloan resigned on February 10 and then All-Star point guard Deron Williams was traded by the Jazz to New Jersey Nets on February 23. Since the Williams’ trade, the Jazz, who were earlier in playoff contention, have posted a 5-12 record which has put them five games behind the eighth best team in the Western Conference. However, in the Washington Wizards the Jazz play a team with the third-worst record in the league. This, then, would be a good opportunity for the Jazz to change their fortunes.



Golden State Warriors v Oklahoma City Thunder
When: March 30, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City
Regular season records: Golden State Warriors (32-42), Oklahoma City Thunder (48-24)
Preview: The Oklahoma City Thunder are one of only three teams [Chicago and the LA Lakers] that currently boast a 9-1 record in their last 10 games. However, the Golden State Warriros, led by point guard Monta Ellis are not expected to be easy pushovers. They may be nine games adrift of the eighth placed team in the Western Conference but can still spring a surprise. The last time these two teams met, on February 13, Golden State edged the OKC Thunder by six points. So, with the series tied at 1-1 and one game left to play between the two sides in the regular season, the winner takes all.



Chicago Bulls v Minnesota Timberwolves When: March 31, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST) Where: Target Center, Minneapolis Regular season records: Chicago Bulls (53-19), Minnesota Timberwolves (17-57) Preview: Where the Boston Celtics have struggled over the last couple of weeks, the Chicago Bulls have been nothing but impressive. In fact, since the All-Star break the Bulls have been on a 15-3 run, which includes a 9-1 record in their last 10 games. This winning run has given Chicago a two-game advantage over the Celtics for the number one spot in the Eastern Conference. And in playing the Minnesota Timberwolves, the second worst team in the league, Chicago’s impressive run is unlikely to come to an end anytime soon.

Oklahoma City Thunder v Phoenix Suns
When: March 31, 2011 – 7:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: US Airways Center, Phoenix
Regular season records: Oklahoma City Thunder (48-24), Phoenix Suns (36-36)
Preview: The Phoenix Suns are a very different team from the team that made it to the Western Conference finals last year. At 36-36, they are a fair distance from the Memphis Grizzlies [41-33], the eighth placed team in the Western Conference. This, despite the fact that the Suns made several trades this season including bringing the likes of Vince Carter, Mickael Pietrus and Marcin Gortat from Orlando to strengthen their roster. Although they have shown that they are capable of competing with the best in the league [137-139 triple overtime loss to LA Lakers last week] occasionally, those moments have been few and far between this season. The OKC Thunder lead the four-game season series 2-1.

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Where The Bulls Get Their Horns
By Akshay Manwani March 23, 2011

TOM Thibodeau and PHIL Jackson. That single syllable in their first names notwithstanding, there is little in common between the two gentlemen. In just his first season as head coach of the Chicago Bulls, Thibodeau has much catching up to do if he hopes to emulate Jackson’s 11 NBA titles as head coach. While Jackson marshals his Los Angeles Lakers while sitting comfortably on the sidelines, Thibodeau, in contrast, is always on his feet and means absolute business. He perpetually wears the look of a man entrusted with the responsibility of declaring his company’s bankruptcy on national television.

Yet, Thibodeau, like Jackson, is destined for greater things

Defense is his middle name

Two weeks ago, NBA.com writer Steve Aschburner mentioned an interesting piece of trivia between Thibodeau and Jackson. “Phil Jackson's first road game as an NBA head coach was Tom Thibodeau's first home game on an NBA bench, period. They were sitting about 60 feet apart… On Nov. 8, 1989, on a chilly Minneapolis evening, Jackson, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls made their first-ever trip to face the expansion Minnesota Timberwolves. Jackson, after two seasons as a Bulls assistant, had replaced Doug Collins as head coach. Thibodeau was the low man on Wolves coach Bill Musselman's staff of two, recently hired after stints as an assistant at Harvard and head coach at Salem State.”

However, following that initial run with Jackson, several nondescript years in the 1990s followed for Thibodeau -- mostly as assistant coach [Minnesota Timberwolves, San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers].

Moving to the New York Knicks in 1996, though, turned a new chapter in Thibodeau’s career. Serving as part of Jeff Van Gundy’s staff, he helped the Knicks set a then-NBA record by holding 33 consecutive opponents under 100 points in the 2000–01 season. It was this ability to improve defense for which Thibodeau was hired by the Boston Celtics as associate head coach before the start of the 2007-2008 season.

In that season, his first year with the Celtics, Boston held its opponents to 90.3 PPG, an improvement of 8.9 PPG from the previous season, and limited its foes to an NBA-low .419 field goal shooting, down from .468 the year before. Then, during Boston’s 2008 playoff run that culminated in the franchise’s NBA-record 17th world championship, the Celtics held the Los Angeles Lakers to 93.8 PPG and .441 field-goal shooting in the NBA Finals (L.A. averaged 102.4 PPG and shot .468 from the field across the 2008 playoffs).

The Chicago Bulls

The upshot of that Championship-winning season and two impressive subsequent seasons with the Celtics was that Thibodeau got his first job as head coach of the Chicago Bulls at the start of the 2010-2011 season.

Right at the start of this latest assignment with Chicago, Thibodeau said of his plans for the team, “We want to be a well-balanced team. We want to be strong on defense and strong on offense… We’re going to start with our defense and our rebounding. And obviously we want to be a low turnover team… And we want to play unselfishly. We think that’s what wins in the playoffs and that’s what we’re going to strive for.”

That philosophy seems to have paid off as under Thibodeau, the Bulls have played such stellar defense that they rank first in keeping opponents down to a mere 42.7 percent from the field and 32.6 percent from behind the 3-point line. They come in second at points allowed to opponents – just 91.23 PPG. At +5.42 they also rank as the number one team in the league for difference between rebounds per game [44.39] and rebounds allowed to opponents [38.97].

Striving for perfection

Mind you, Thibodeau hasn’t had it all easy. Two of his starting five players, Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer, have missed 31 and 23 games, respectively, in this regular season, owing to injury. But all those injuries haven’t slowed the Bulls down. They have gone past the 50-win mark in this regular season [currently 51-19] -- a first since Jackson quit the Bulls in 1998 -- and are now tied with the Boston Celtics for first place in the Eastern Conference.

Admiration for Thibodeau has come from many quarters. Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports complimented Thibodeau’s ability to weather those injuries by saying, “We knew he was a great assistant. But when he’s come in there [to the Chicago Bulls] from the beginning, he’s done a fantastic job. People talk about him [Thibodeau] and Greg Popovich [San Antonio Spurs] for coach of the year. But for a rookie coach to do what he’s doing, with the injuries, with brand new personnel, other than Brian Scalbarine, I’m really amazed and impressed by what he’s done. I don’t know of too many rookie coaches who have been able to come in and do what Thibodeau has been able to do in his first season.”

But all these achievements and high praise haven’t satisfied coach Thibodeau yet. In an earlier article on Thibodeau’s exacting standards, Steve Achburner had written, “With Thibodeau, satisfaction and progress in the product he and his players put out on the floor is measured in the tiniest increments. The raising of one eyebrow by a fraction of an inch. A bit more glimmer in his eyes when something goes right from the first second of a possession to the 24th.”

Aschburner also quoted Chicago forward Taj Gibson, who said of Thibodeau’s relentless dedication to perfection, “He shows [satisfaction] sometimes. But one thing about him is, he doesn't just relax. He wants us to keep pushing. You see him on the sideline, you see the intensity.”

And so while they have little in common currently and their paths may have crossed one evening 21 years ago, Thibodeau has it in him to emulate Jackson.

After all, the road to success for Thibodeau, like Jackson, may well begin right here in Chicago.

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Week Watchers: March 22-24
By Akshay Manwani March 21, 2011

With about three weeks left in the regular season, teams across the league are battling either for home-court advantage at playoff time or simply trying to make it in to the playoffs. If the Eastern Conference is seeing a keen tussle unfold between the Boston Celtics and the Chicago Bulls for No. 1 seed, then the Western Conference is seeing a similar jostling for second seed between the LA Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks.

Here is a quick look at some of the marquee matchups ahead of us in the following days:



Boston Celtics v New York Knicks
When: March 22, 2011 – 5:00 AM (IST)
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York
Regular season records: Boston Celtics (49-19), New York Knicks (35-34)
Preview: Boston has won the earlier two meeting against the Knicks this season. But that was from an earlier era when the Celtics had Nate Robinson and Kendrick Perkins (although Perk was out injured at that time) on their squad. And the Knicks had not yet traded Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton and Wilson Chandler for the services of Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups from the Denver Nuggets. Yet, the addition of Anthony and Billups has only led to a downward slide in the Knicks’ fortunes, as the team has gone 7-8 since the two men came to New York. Perhaps New York will reverse the slide starting this game.

Toronto Raptors v Denver Nuggets
When: March 22, 2011 – 6:30 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: Pepsi Center, Denver
Regular season records: Toronto Raptors (20-49), Denver Nuggets (41-29)
Preview: If the Knicks appear to have lost from that trade involving Billups and Anthony moving to New York, then the Nuggets seem to have gained equally. They are on an 8-4 roll since having made the trade. That winning run also reflects well on Denver coach, George Karl, who has proven yet again that if he has young talent at his disposal he can deliver the goods. In Toronto, Denver face a team that are third from the bottom in the Eastern Conference. So, really, this one looks like it could be lambs to the slaughter when Toronto visit Denver on Tuesday morning (India time).



Chicago Bulls v Atlanta Hawks
When: March 23, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: Philips Arena, Atlanta
Regular season records: Chicago Bulls (49-19), Atlanta Hawks (40-30)
Preview: The clash of the best (Chicago, tied with Boston Celtics) and the fifth-best teams in the Eastern Conference. Chicago have been in really good form of late, notching up an 8-2 run in their last 10 games. Yet, if there is one weakness in the Chicago armour, it is that they are not a very good road team. This, of course, is in a relative sense -- the the Bulls are the second best team in the league with a 30-4 record at home (the Spurs are 32-3). That home-win percentage of 0.88 drops drastically to 0.56 though, with the Bulls having posted only a 19-15 record on the road. It is this stat that should give the Hawks much hope, given that they are hosting the Bulls in Atlanta. The three-game season series is tied at 1-1.



Orlando Magic v New York Knicks
When: March 24, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST)
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York
Regular season records: Orlando Magic (44-26), New York Knicks (35-34)
Preview: Orlando leads the four-game season series 2-0. Orlando’s most recent win against the Knicks came on March 1, after Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups had already made their way to New York. The Knicks need to win now much more than Orlando because the former are within a game of overtaking Philadelphia as the sixth best team in the Eastern Conference. Orlando, meanwhile, are placed fourth in the Eastern Conference, four games behind the Miami Heat and ahead of the fifth placed Atlanta Hawks by a similar margin.

San Antonio Spurs v Denver Nuggets
When: March 24, 2011 – 8:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: Pepsi Center, Denver
Regular season records: San Antonio Spurs (56-13), Denver Nuggets (41-29)
Preview: While the Nuggets have been very impressive in the post-Carmelo Anthony era, they should have their hands full when they host the best team in the league, the San Antonio Spurs. Even the advantage of playing at home should not do much for Denver as at 24-10, San Antonio are also the best road team in the league. With the Spurs already having wrapped up the four-game series 3-0, expect a whitewash when the Nuggets host Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and the remaining Spurs come Thursday morning.

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The Mojo of Mamba
By Akshay Manwani March 17, 2011

Kobe Bryant.

A name that evokes awe, respect and fear in the game of basketball. The name that, sometimes, polarizes opinion like no other NBA superstar, past or present. People scoff at his comparisons with Michael Jordan. Others take offense if his name is not mentioned among the five greatest players of all time. Yet, when Kobe Bryant went past Moses Malone to rank sixth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list last week -- after he began the season at No. 12 on the list -- Bryant added yet another impressive achievement to his glittering career in the NBA.

A meteoric rise:

Seldom has one seen so precocious a young player as when Bryant made his debut in the NBA. When he did, in 1996, he became the first-ever player in Los Angeles Lakers’ franchise history to make the transition from high school to the NBA directly. Additionally, Bryant is the second-youngest player in Los Angeles franchise history (behind Andrew Bynum) to appear in a regular season game in his NBA debut (November 3, 1996 vs. Minnesota -- 18 years, two months and 11 days) and is the third-youngest player to ever appear in an NBA game (only Andrew Bynum and Jermaine O’Neal were younger).

In his very first season in the league he won the 1997 Gatorade Slam Dunk Contest during All-Star Weekend. However, his first season in the league ended in disappointment, as Bryant had three air balls in the final minutes of a closeout game against the Utah Jazz. But even in defeat, Kobe’ willingness to take the game-winning shot shone through. His former teammate Shaquille O'Neal said of Bryant, “[Kobe] was the only guy who had the guts at the time to take shots like that.”

Success would come to Kobe not very much later, as partnering with Shaq, the dynamic pairing of shooting-guard [Bryant] and center [Shaq] led the Lakers to three back-to-back titles between 2000 and 2002.

Brought down to Earth:

Perhaps it was the immaturity of youth that caused Kobe to spar with Shaq after that glorious winning run. Individual egos triumphed as the Lakers failed to land championships in 2003 and 2004. Shaq was traded out of LA, but with Phil Jackson calling Kobe ‘uncoachable’, the daggers were out for Bryant. Equally devastating were allegations of sexual assault on Kobe in this period. And with the Lakers failing to make it to the 2005 playoffs for the first time in over a decade, Kobe had gone from being the prince-in-waiting to His Airness’ throne to the lad who had killed the proverbial ‘golden goose’.

Just 26 then, before many of us had bought our first vehicle or got that first promotion, Bryant had seen dizzying success and bruising infamy up close and personal.

Back to where he belongs:

But Bryant, resilient and tenacious on and off the court, made the long haul back to stardom. Slowly and steadily, inch by inch, Bryant worked his way back into fans’ hearts. First, he led the Lakers to consecutive playoff appearances in 2006 and 2007. Both seasons also saw him notch up his best regular season scoring averages at 35.4 PPG and 31.6 PPG. Then, in the 2007-08 season, he took the Lakers on a 57-25 run which earned him his first Most Valuable Player Award. The Lakers would eventually come up short against Boston in the 2008 Finals, but with two back-to-back Finals’ MVP performances in 2009 and 2010 Bryant has given the Lakers the chance of pulling off yet another three-peat with a win in the 2011 NBA Finals.

The Kobe dilemma:

Fifty years from now, Bryant’s records will sculpt the model of the consummate basketball player. Thirteen-time All-Star and counting. Eight times NBA All-Defensive First Team. Five times NBA champion, four times NBA All-Star Game MVP and 2008 Beijing Olympics Gold medalist. Like Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point effort in 1962 has become stuff of fables today, Bryant’s 62 points in three quarters against the Dallas Mavericks on December 20, 2005, will in the distant future acquire a sepia tinge. Of a similar texture will be his career-high 81 points in a victory against the Toronto Raptors on January 22, 2006.

But all these splendid accomplishments may still not accord Bryant his due place in NBA history and, might I say, our hearts. Part of the reason that Bryant’s name evokes some kind of immediate distaste is because he follows so close in the heels of the greatest player who played the game of basketball. Michael Jordan. Playing at virtually the same position, shooting guard, with a similar build, in the very same Phil Jackson’s triangle offense, the media and the fans have been desperate to label Kobe, depending on their own leanings, either as Jordan’s true heir or caricature. That Kobe is now one short of Michael’s six NBA rings, gives the former’s critics more reason to point out his shortcomings vis-à-vis the latter. Most of them outright flimsy. Like, how can extra shooting practice after a defeat be reason to criticize Kobe?

What also doesn’t work in Bryant’s favour is that he has now been the undisputed leader of the Lakers’ roster, following Shaq’s exit, for the past seven years. There is an immediate tendency, therefore, to contrast his leadership with, perhaps, the greatest Laker of all time, Magic Johnson. And Johnson, a tough as nails competitor, appeared the model team man in that glorious decade of the ’80s when the Lakers won five titles.

Johnson’s smile, which could light up a thousand homes, and his infectious enthusiasm are at complete odds with Kobe’s dour personality on the court, in the heat of battle. Bryant’s open criticism of his team mates when the chips are down [following the Christmas Day 80-96 loss to the Miami Heat Bryant said, “These games mean more to our opponents then they do to us.”] stand out in sharp contrast to Magic’s ability to gather the respect of the greatest basketball team ever assembled [the 1992 Dream Team].

There will not be another like him:

But make no mistake about it; there will not be another like Bryant. On the basis of numbers alone, Bryant, 32 today, is projected to cross Kareem Abdul–Jabbar as the NBA’s all-time leading scorer in December 2016. Bryant will be 38 then. Given that Jordan played till he was 39, Abdul-Jabbar till he was 41, perhaps even Mount 40k seems within Bryant’s reach.

Yet, the Bryant story goes beyond statistical superlatives. Of his illustrious peers, Allen Iverson has consigned himself to oblivion in faraway Turkey. Only a miracle can get Shaquille O’Neal’s, Kevin Garnett’s and Tim Duncan’s knees to hold up for anything more than a couple of years. The Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady myth went bust even before it started. The others, Dirk Nowitzki, Ray Allen, Chauncey Billups, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash and Paul Pierce, all possess worthy individual accomplishments but are nowhere near Bryant’s league or class.

And of those that immediately followed Bryant - Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard and LeBron James – all over 25 years of age, between the four of them have one ring to show for their NBA careers. Honestly, with the exception of Wade, there is not one among the other three who has shown the same winning mentality like Bryant. For all his athletic ability and superstar status, James does not inspire the same amount of confidence in hitting the game-winning shot like Bryant does.

At their same age, Bryant had done it all.

And he ain’t finished yet. Like the good things in life he continues to get better with age.

It is why Kobe Bryant a.k.a The Black Mamba continues to evoke awe, respect and fear in the game of basketball.

All numbers are through Wednesday, Mar. 16 and were compiled with the help of the NBA and StatsCube.

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Week Watchers: March 15-17
By Akshay Manwani March 15, 2011

It was all Los Angeles Lakers last week in the NBA. First, Kobe Bryant passed the legendary Moses Malone into sixth place on the NBA all-time scoring list. Then, following a loss to the Heat that ended the Lakers’ eight-game win streak, the two-time defending champs got back on track with a 96-91 win over the hard-charging Dallas Mavericks to keep pace in the West.

Here is a quick look at some of the marquee matchups ahead of us in the following days:



San Antonio Spurs v Miami Heat
When: March 15, 2011 – 6:30 AM (IST)
Where: American Airlines Arena, Miami
Regular season records: San Antonio Spurs (54-12), Miami Heat (45-21)
Preview: The last time these two teams met, on Mar. 4, the Heat were handed a lesson in up-tempo basketball as the Spurs thrashed them by 30 points (125-95). With Miami seemingly having put their nightmarish five-game losing streak behind them following wins against the Lakers and the Memphis Grizzlies last week, they can be expected to put up a better show against the best team in the league. Also, the last time these two teams met the game was played at San Antonio. Now with LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh having the benefit of playing at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, the pressure is on the original ‘big three’ of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker.

Orlando Magic v Los Angeles Lakers
When: March 15, 2011 – 8:00 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles
Regular season records: Orlando Magic (42-25), Los Angeles Lakers (47-20)
Preview: In Andrew Bynum, the Lakers have one of the best defensive weapons in the league to counter the threat and size of Orlando all-star Andrew Bynum. Yet, it didn’t work out that way in February this year, when the Magic beat the Lakers 89-75 in their first matchup of the season. Howard outscored Bynum 31 to 17 and out-rebounded him 13 to 9. That loss for LA came right at the beginning of a three-game slump, which also saw them lose to the League’s worst team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, as well. But the Lakers have been a totally different ball club, having gone on a 9-1 run since then. Playing at home, the Lakers should square the season series against the Magic.



Dallas Mavericks v Portland Trail Blazers
When: March 16, 2011 – 7:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: Rose Garden, Portland
Regular season records: Dallas Mavericks (47-19), Portland Trail Blazers (37-29)
Preview: The month of March seems to have brought less-than-good tidings for the Mavericks. Where they posted a 11-1 record in the month of February, Dallas has gone 4-3 in this month. This recent run has nearly wiped out the three-game lead they had over the LA Lakers for home-court advantage come the playoffs. In the Trail Blazers, the Mavs have tough opponents who have made the most of their strengths never mind the many injury worries that have cropped up about their roster this season. Dallas won the last two games played earlier in the season against the Trail Blazers. But that was on their home court. Now with the action moving to Portland for the remaining two games of the regular season, Dallas should expect a more spirited fight from the Trail Blazers.



Oklahoma City Thunder v Miami Heat
When: March 17, 2011 – 6:30 AM (IST)
Where: American Airlines Arena, Miami
Regular season records: Oklahoma City Thunder (42-23), Miami Heat (45-21)
Preview: Even with Kendrick Perkins, the former ‘Beast of the East’, out of the lineup since being traded to Oklahoma City in late February, the Thunder have done well, going 6-1 in the month of March. Now they come up against a Miami team, who are copping some heavy criticism following their poor record against the elite teams in the league. Against the Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs and the Dallas Mavericks, the Heat are 0-9. But with Miami having beaten the Lakers twice and Oklahoma once earlier in the season, they could improve upon their record against the elite teams by winning another game against OKC this Thursday.

Dallas Mavericks v Golden State Warriors
When: March 17, 2011 – 8:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: ORACLE Arena, Oakland
Regular season records: Dallas Mavericks (47-19), Golden State Warriors (30-36)
Preview: This is a much-mismatched clash. Golden State are fourth from the bottom in the Western Conference while Dallas are second from the top in the same conference. Over the next three weeks both teams are going to meet as many as three times to finish their regular season quota of four games. And with Dallas already having proven their pedigree with a win in the first game in December, expect no let up when the heavyweight (Dallas) takes on the featherweight contender (Golden State) in Oakland on Thursday.

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The Trail Less Travelled
By Akshay Manwani March 9, 2011

Just about a week ago my fellow NBA.com/India writer, Karan Madhok, showered wholesome praise on the Philadelphia 76ers. Deservedly so, for, as Karan pointed out, the 76ers have still managed to prime themselves for a place in the Eastern Conference Playoffs -- all without a single All-Star.

“Alone, none of them might be able to accomplish what the all-stars can do by themselves, but together, they have combined to become a well-formed, completely-complementary, and above all, unselfish unit, that finds a way to win NBA games through teamwork and defense,” wrote Karan of the 76ers.

Well, there's another team in the Western Conference that's been almost as low-key and beneath-the-radar.

While being better.

The Portland Trail Blazers have also gone without a single All-Star among their midst, yet the Blazers have posted a 37-27 regular season record (the 76ers are currently 33-30) which puts them at sixth position in the Western Conference (while the Sixers sit at seventh).

Not bad at all for a team that lost an All-Star centre in the making, Greg Oden, to yet another injury before he had played a game this season. A player who, despite his injury riddled first two seasons in the NBA, gave the Trail Blazers a definitive presence in the middle, at 12.6PPG and 8.6 RPG.

Just as debilitating was the unavailability of three-time All-Star Brandon Roy, who did not play for the Trail Blazers since Dec. 15 because of soreness in both knees -- leading to arthroscopic surgery on Jan. 17 this year. With Roy averaging 19.7 PPG since his 2006-07 debut in the league, the Trail Blazers were without a combined 32.3 PPG when you factor in Oden’s 12.6 PPG.

Yet, the Trail Blazers have managed to close ranks and make up for the losses. Their winning season so far has been an enviable mix of veteran experience and the athleticism of youth.

In Marcus Camby, a 36-year old veteran, the Trail Blazers have found a centre who is currently ranked eighth on the NBA’s rebounding list for the season. And Camby has raised his game, for his 11.0 RPG in the 44 games that he has played and started in for the Trail Blazers are a whole point better than his career 10.0 RPG. Add to that his 5.6 PPG and 1.68 BPG (currently 14th best in the league) and with Camby having joined the Trail Blazers just this season, Oden’s absence does not hurt any longer.

A similar story unfolds with the Trail Blazers’ point guard, Andre Miller. Miller is currently ranked 12th on the assists sheet for the 2010-11 season. The 34-year old is currently averaging 7.3 APG, nearly two assists better thanm his 5.4 APG from a season ago.

These performances from the Blazers’ veterans have inspired the young legs in the roster to step up. Guard Wesley Matthews looks a totally different ball player from the 9.4 PPG he averaged last season with the Utah Jazz vis-à-vis the 16.3 PPG he is averaging for the Trail Blazers in 63 games this year. Equally impressive has been 22-year old forward Nicolas Batum, who is giving the Portland team 12.0 PPG (after averaging 8.7 PPG for his career).

But if there is one player who has stepped up most for the Trail Blazers this season, it is the young LaMarcus Aldridge. The 25-year old has put in numbers worthy of any All-Star player in the league this season. His 22.3 PPG and 8.8 RPG, up from his career average of 17.1 PPG and 7.4 RPG, are a welcome change for the Trail Blazers. He is ranked ninth on the list for Double-Doubles this season with 29 such efforts to his credit. The biggest surprise of all is that with an efficiency rating of +23.32, Aldridge ranks 13th in the league, ahead of the likes of Derrick Rose (16th), Carmelo Anthony (18th), Kevin Garnett (20th) and even Kobe Bryant (21st).

All of this led to Aldridge being named the Western Conference player of the month for February 2011, making him only the third Trail Blazers’ player to achieve this feat after Clyde Drexler (1991) and Kelvin Ramsey (1981).

Yet, one must not forget the role played by head coach Nate McMillan in all the Trail Blazers’ success this season. It is easy to sit back and blame fate (injuries) for all that has gone bad. It is harder to rally the team in times of such crisis and get them to deliver beyond expectation. For two continuous seasons McMillan has been able to do just that.

Last season, when Portland had players miss a combined 311 games, he still had the team finish at 50-32.

Then at the half-way mark in the current regular season, with a 21-20 record, it seemed McMillan’s ability to inspire the Trail Blazers to do better had waned. But having taken them on a 16-7 run since, it is clear that McMillan, the former ‘Mr. Sonic’ (he played for the Seattle SuperSonics for 12 seasons, appearing in a franchise-record 98 playoff games), is no quitter.

Appreciation for McMillan has come in the form of a two-year contract extension, terms for which were agreed upon as recently as Mar. 8.

And the future certainly seems a lot brighter for this Western Conference team. The addition of forward Gerald Wallace (15.1 PPG and 8.1 RPG for 2010-11) from the Charlotte Bobcats on February 24 and the return of Brandon Roy from injury on the same day have already improved their fortunes. With those roster additions, the Trail Blazers are currently on a four-game winning streak. In just their last game on Tuesday night, Aldridge, Roy and Wallace combined to give the Trail Blazers 62 points, as Portland handed the Miami Heat their fifth straight loss in a 105-96 win.

Were the playoffs to begin today, the Trail Blazers would have the not-so-enviable task of playing the two-time-defending champions Lakers, who themselves are on an eight-game winning run.

Then again...what was that bit about Portland defying the odds?

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Week Watchers: March 8-10
By Akshay Manwani March 7, 2011


The other big news from last week came from the Miami Heat. The NBA’s most-followed team this season lost four games in a row between Feb. 27 and March 6. What was particularly disappointing for Miami faithful was that in the game against the Orlando Magic on March 3, the Heat allowed the Magic to rally from a 24-point third-quarter deficit to beat them 99-96. Equally shocking was their listless display against the San Antonio Spurs a day later, who hammered the Heat by a whopping thirty-point margin with a 125-95 win.

With those developments behind us, here is a quick look at some of the games in the week ahead:

Suddenly, the slow-starting 76ers look like playoff locks, while the Thunder look like title-contenders. Watch them square off Thursday morning.
NBAE/Getty Images

March 8, 2011

Houston Rockets v Sacramento Kings
When: March 8, 2011 – 8:30 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: Power Balance Pavilion, Sacramento
Regular season records: Houston Rockets (32-32), Sacramento Kings (15-45)
Preview: Sacramento are among the bottom three teams in the league right now and are currently on a two-game losing streak. In their two earlier regular season meetings with the Rockets, they finished on the losing side on both occasions. In DeMarcus Cousins the Kings have a future superstar in the making, but unless the Kings are able to close out the remainder of their season with some wins under their belt, Cousins’ stock will lack the blue chip edge. Houston, minus Shane Battier (traded to Memphis Grizzlies), should look to wrap up the four-game season series here.

March 9, 2011

Los Angeles Lakers v Atlanta Hawks
When: March 9, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: Philips Arena, Atlanta
Regular season records: Los Angeles Lakers (45-19), Atlanta Hawks (37-26)
Preview: The last time these two teams met, the Lakers hammered the Hawks, 104-80. Chances of an encore appear high as the Lakers are the hottest team in the league with seven consecutive wins under their collective belts. Just last night, they put an end to the San Antonio Spurs’ 22-game home win streak with a convincing 16-point win (99-83). With the Hawks having lost their last two games and lacking depth and size compared to the Lakers, Al Horford and Joe Johnson will be under pressure to come up big if the Hawks are to end LA’s winning run.

Portland Trail Blazers v Miami Heat
When: March 9, 2011 – 6:00 AM (IST)
Where: American Airlines Arena, Miami
Regular season records: Portland Trail Blazers (35-27), Miami Heat (43-20)
Preview: Miami lost to the Chicago Bulls (86-87) on Sunday, which means that the Heat are a combined 0-6 against both the Boston Celtics and the Bulls in this season. Over and above their four-game losing streak, this last result has raised serious questions about their ability to win games against their two biggest competitors in the East. But Miami need to put these horrors of this last week behind them. And fast. Every loss from hereon will hurt their chances of getting home court advantage against the Bulls and the Celtics in the playoffs.

Portland, though, are no pushovers. In Nate McMillan they have one of the best and most underrated coaches in the league. A man who has been able to tide past his roster’s injury woes and still keep them in playoff contention. With Miami playing at home, which puts the odds of winning very much in their favour, expect Nate to inspire his team to another improbable win.

March 10, 2011

Oklahoma City Thunder v Philadelphia 76ers
When: March 10, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST)
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia
Regular season records: Oklahoma City Thunder (39-22), Philadelphia 76ers (32-30)
Preview: Having acquired Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson (currently out with an injury) from the Boston Celtics, the Oklahoma City Thunder seem to have created a buzz about themselves. Most analysts believe that the acquisition of Perkins gives the Thunder much needed size in the backcourt to stand up to their opponents in the Western Conference, particularly the Lakers’ big men. The trade has also borne fruit as OKC have won their last three games on the trot.

Philadelphia has been the surprise of the season thus far. Bereft of any star players and remaining pretty much out of everyone’s radar, the 76ers have kept themselves in the hunt for a playoff berth. With the 76ers playing at home (21-10), this should be an interesting game to follow.

Orlando Magic v Sacramento Kings
When: March 10, 2011 – 8:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: Power Balance Pavilion, Sacramento
Regular season records: Orlando Magic (40-23), Sacramento Kings (15-45)
Preview: Although, the Magic lost their game to Chicago (81-89) on Friday, the manner in which they overcame that 24-point deficit against the Heat a day earlier, would have given the side immense confidence. Also, with the Sacramento Kings having beaten Orlando in their previous meeting in February, expect the Magic to set the record straight in this game.

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Say Hello To the Legend Next Door
By Akshay Manwani March 2, 2011

From Billups' very first game in New York, it's been clear that there's still a spark left in the 14-year veteran.
NBAE/Getty Images

With all the hype and hoopla surrounding the Carmelo Anthony show coming to Madison Square garden, the arrival of Chauncey Billups at the New York Knicks almost went unnoticed. It was Batman arriving to a hero’s welcome in Gotham City with Robin having to live in The Caped Crusader’s shadow. Or Sherlock Holmes being honoured at Her Majesty’s palatial abode with Dr. Watson merely providing company to his more illustrious London resident.

Except that Billups is not Robin. Nor is he Watson. Or Scottie Pippen to the Michael Jordan show. Or Goose to Maverick.

No, the 14-season league veteran is nobody’s wingman. At the summit of his best years in the NBA, Billups, 34, was the anchor man of the Detroit Pistons, guiding them to six straight Eastern conference championship series, two NBA finals and an NBA Championship victory.

In 2004, when the Pistons beat the much-fancied LA Lakers -- Phil Jackson, Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant were all sporting the purple and gold colours then -- in one of the most stunning NBA finals’ results, Billups was declared MVP of the finals, averaging 21 points and 5.2 assists per game.

Former Boston Celtics player and NBA legend Kevin McHale, recognized Billups' value to the Knicks roster (see video below) by saying, “Well he brings a ring with him, so he brings some credibility. The other guys [Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo] haven’t won yet. So he can walk in and say if we want to win, this is what we got to do. We got to move the ball, we got to play a certain way. And they will listen to him.”

And every time a team has superstars, like the Knicks have, who need to jell from the very beginning if the team is to do well in the immediate short term, a veteran personality like Billups can help manage the locker room balance between superstars.

In this role, Billups is expected to provide much of the same boost that Kevin Garnett did when he first came to Boston. When Garnett came to the Celtics in 2007, he put aside his ego to accommodate the other stars' personas (Paul Pierce and Ray Allen) in the side so that the Celtics could dedicate themselves to winning championships.

Billups, though, might find the situation a little more challenging in New York. Garnett found willing companions in Pierce and Allen because all three were virtually coming to the end of their prime, making the quest for an NBA title a now-or-never proposition. It remains to be seen, however, if Anthony and Stoudemire, may still want to indulge in one-upmanship, what with the best years of their respective professional careers still ahead of them.

In short, it could be like Kobe and Shaq circa 2004 all over again.

And so Billups, with his pedigree, his experience and his demeanour, will be the vital cog that helps the Knicks translate their NBA championship dream into reality in the near future.

Already the Knicks have sampled his mettle. Billups was not happy moving to the Knicks in the least bit. He was born and brought up in Denver and had stated his desire to end his playing days in the capital city of Colorado. The city which is home to his three daughters, Cydney, Ciara and Cenaiya and wife Piper.

American sportswriter Lisa Olson wrote of Billups’ disappointment in leaving Denver in her AOL column: “We rip professional athletes all the time when they're disinterested fathers or wandering husbands. Billups’ tears are a fresh reminder that not all fit into the box reserved for scoundrels… This is a man who once turned down an opportunity to play with Team USA because he had promised his wife, Piper, that he'd be a stay-at-home dad for a summer and help take care of Cenaiya, their new baby. Bonding over diaper changes and late-night feeds meant more than another notch on his illustrious career.”

Olson also quoted Billups’ reaction on parting ways with family to make the move to the Knicks: “Oh it was hard -- the hardest thing I've ever had to do. I had to tell my girls that daddy was traded, that he was leaving to play across the country. I told them it wasn't my choice, that nothing could be done about it. I had to go. It wasn't a happy scene.”

Yet, Billups has delivered like the consummate professional. In the four games that he has played with the Knicks, he is averaging 23.3 PPG and 6.0 APG, a whole lot better than the 16.5 PPG and 5.3 APG he averaged in the 51 games he played with the Nuggets this season.

On Sunday night while playing the Heat in Miami, Billups also came up big down the stretch (Video), including hitting a clutch three with about a minute left in the game, to help the Knicks beat the Heat 91-86.

Based on that performance alone, who would think Billups, currently, was a man caught bang in the middle of an emotional upheaval in his personal life?

And so while Carmelo adds several millions to his bank account with the trade to the Knicks, it is Billups who added another coat of platinum to his legend.

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Week Watchers: March 1-3 (Extreme Team Makeover Edition)
By Akshay Manwani February 28, 2011

With the trade deadline drawing to a close last week, teams around the league were in a frenetic race to tweak their rosters for necessary impact both in the short and long term. There were all kinds of emotions at play in these trades.

Where the New York Knicks brought much cheer to their home fans by finally snaring Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups out of the Denver Nuggets, the Boston Celtics raised hackles at the trade of their defensive linchpin Kendrick Perkins to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

With about 45 days left in the regular season, here is a sneak peek into some of the marquee games to be played this week between teams with revamped rosters:

March 1, 2011

The Portland Trailblazers, this year's best example of toughness and perseverence, were rewarded with a powerful big man at the Trade Deadline, in the form of Gerald Wallace.
NBAE/Getty Images

Boston Celtics v Utah Jazz
When: March 1, 2011 – 7:30 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: EnergySolutions Arena, Utah
Regular season records: Boston Celtics (42-15), Utah Jazz (32-28)
Preview: The Celtics are on a four-game road trip which will draw to a close with this game against Utah. Having traded Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson to the OKC Thunder, everyone around the league is curious to know how long will it take for Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic to fit into coach Doc Rivers’ defensive setup. Also gone are forward Luke Harangody and center Semih Erden, the two sent to Cleveland for a 2013 second-round draft pick. The Jazz on the other hand, traded all-star Deron Williams to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Devin Harris and rookie Derrick Favors. With the Jazz building for the future and Boston on a championship quest in this very season, this is a clash between the present and the future. Boston leads the season series 1-0.

March 2, 2011

New York Knicks v Orlando Magic
When: March 2, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: Amway Center, Orlando
Regular season records: New York Knicks (30-27), Orlando Magic (38-22)
Preview: Although the two teams clashed last on the 30th of December, with Orlando edging the Knicks in a nine-point victory, that game carries little relevance now. In Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire the Knicks have a two pronged offensive threat, one that can trump the best in the league as the Miami Heat learnt Sunday night in an 86-91 loss to the Knicks. Orlando will rely heavily on Dwight Howard to see them through at home where they are 23-9 in the regular season. Yet, with both teams set to clash as many as three times in March to complete their regular season matchups, expect New York to square the series in this game.

Houston Rockets v Portland Trail Blazers
When: March 2, 2011 – 8:30 AM (IST)
Where: Rose Garden, Portland
Regular season records: Houston Rockets (30-31), Portland Trail Blazers (33-25)
Preview: The Rockets are on a four-game win streak and will look to continue that run as they hope to do better than their rivals in clinching the eighth and final spot in the Western Conference at playoff time. But the Rockets are playing with a new look team as Aaron Brooks, Shane Battier and Ishmael Smith have been traded in exchange for guard Goran Dragic, center Hasheem Thabeet and forward DeMarre Carroll.

But Portland will not be an easy team to beat at home especially now that they have added forward Gerald Wallace from the Charlotte Bobcats to their squad. Brandon Roy too made a return to the Blazers’ roster last week from injury. With Portland already having clinched the three-game season series 2-0, a win here would give the Trail Blazers the opportunity to inflict a whitewash on their Western Conference brethren.

March 3, 2011

Phoenix Suns v Boston Celtics
When: March 3, 2011 – 6:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: TD Garden, Boston
Regular season records: Phoenix Suns (30-27), Boston Celtics (42-15)
Preview: Before the start of the 2010-11 regular season the Suns lost Amar’e Stoudemire to the New York Knicks. Then in December, Phoenix was involved in a trade with the Orlando Magic which saw Vince Carter and Marcin Gortat join the team from the Magic. Yet, despite all their trades and roster maneuvering the Suns, 2010 Western Conference runners-up, are struggling to remain in playoff contention this season. It now remains to be seen whether their latest trade involving acquiring Aaron Brooks from Houston in exchange for guard Goran Dragic will spark their revival, beginning with a win against a much revamped Boston team.

Charlotte Bobcats v Denver Nuggets
When: March 3, 2011 – 7:30 AM (IST)
Where: Pepsi Center, Denver
Regular season records: Charlotte Bobcats (26-33), Denver Nuggets (34-26)
Preview: Ever since taking over as owner of the Bobcats, Michael Jordan has enjoyed the reputation of being trade-happy. Since 2006, Jordan has made 13 trades involving 35 players. And that figure does not include his most recent trade involving sending forward Gerald Wallace to Portland for center Joel Przybilla. Denver, too, is a team now bereft of stars what with the departure of Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups to the Knicks. But with plenty of young legs - Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton and Wilson Chandler - on their side, the Nuggets, playing at home (24-7), should be able to square the season series, which they currently trail 0-1.

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The Big 3 in MSG
By Akshay Manwani February 23, 2011

Chauncey Billups and Carmelo Anthony (R) are New York-bound. And you see that space in the middle of the photo? It's reserved for Amar'e Stoudemire.
NBAE/Getty Images

Last read in one of the New York City tabloids - "The Three Musketeers" hits Broadway.

In the same tabloid, a few pages later: David O. Russell Planning a Sequel to His 1999 Action Flick ‘Three Kings’.

Later in the issue: "'The Three Stooges' Set to Make A Comeback."

But wait. None of that is actually true. All those, instead, were the various knee-jerk reactions going around the rounds of the internet as the ‘The Big Three 4.0’ come into being in the NBA. This, after it was officially confirmed on Monday morning that Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups of the Denver Nuggets were to be traded to the New York Knicks, where they would join forces with Amar’e Stoudemire.

So after months of dilly-dallying and tedious word-play around Car ‘Melo’ (melo-drama, melo-dious, me[ga]lo-mania), the deal was finally done and dusted. Besides Anthony and Billups, the Knicks got guard Anthony Carter, forward Renaldo Balkman and centre Shelden Williams. The Nuggets in return got guard Reymond Felton, forwards Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari and centre Timofey Mozgov. As an an offshoot of the deal, the Knicks dealt Eddy Curry and Anthony Randolph, plus $ 3 million in cash, to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Corey Brewer.

The Knicks now stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the San Antonio Spurs (Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili), the Boston Celtics (Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce) and the Miami Heat (LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh) as ball clubs with an elite troika of players on their roster.

But can the Knicks actually harness the combined skill of Anthony, Billups and Stoudemire into big time success immediately?

I should think not. Here I am in agreement with NBA.com’s Shaun Powell, who immediately labeled the addition of Melo to the Knicks a good one, but not a "special" one. Powell explained by saying that trading three young and talented players – Gallinari, Chandler and Felton - was too big a price paid by the Knicks for Melo. And so, to quote Powell, “what the 'Melo deal means is that the rebuilding of the Knicks isn't complete; it merely continues. They're hardly a polished product, not with 'Melo, Stoudemire, an aging Chauncey Billups, an underachieving Corey Brewer and assorted misfits.”

Neither will the addition of Melo improve the defensive ability of the Knicks, a must if the franchise is to remain in championship contention.

The other thing, a lesson we’ve learnt from the Miami experience earlier in the season, is that the addition of superstars does not make a team an overnight success. Before Miami went on a tear (the Heat stand at 42-15), they went 9-8 in their first 17 games of the season. If the Knicks, currently 28-26 in their regular season, were to post a similar run in their next 17 games, it would hardly improve their sixth place standing in the Eastern Conference. That would mean the Knicks would not have home court advantage when they meet the stronger teams in the Eastern Conference viz. Chicago, Boston or the Heat.

But if this deal is viewed over the long term (defined here as the next three to five years) it has far more advantages. In Stoudemire and Anthony the Knicks have the league's second-highest scoring tandem (51.3 ppg) behind LeBron James and Dwayne Wade. Should they manage to land Dwight Howard, Deron Williams or Chris Paul (all three become free agents within the next couple of years), it will be the biggest gathering of superstars on one team (the aging Chauncey included). And boy, will those Knicks be a dangerous proposition -- never mind what the ‘Three Amigos’ in Miami do.

However, if there is one thing that really excites me about the Carmelo trade, it's that the Knicks will finally have a team worthy of their fans, their arena. It’s been more than a decade since Patrick Ewing, the Knicks legend, bid goodbye to the franchise, and since then New York has struggled to make it to the playoffs. So distant are the memories of the Knicks' playoff battles with the Chicago Bulls and the Indiana Pacers in the ’90s that they're little more than a blur.

And if there is one arena in the league that deserves better, it is the Knicks’ Madison Square Garden. Even Michael Jordan reserved some of his greatest performances for this venerated arena.

And so, without further ado, let the trumpets blow and the bugles sound at MSG.

Carmelo, ladies and gentlemen, is finally in town.

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Week Watchers: February 23-24
By Akshay Manwani February 21, 2011

The 2010-2011 NBA All-Star weekend closed on a high behind Kobe Bryant’s 37-point MVP performance as the Western Conference edged out the Eastern Conference 148-143. The other star attractions on a weekend of glitz, glamour and show time were the Slam Dunk competition where Blake Griffin beat some serious competition posed by Serge Ibaka, JaVale McGee and DeMar DeRozan to emerge victorious. Stephen Curry showed his all-round ability with the basketball as he went on to beat Russell Westbrook to wint he Skills Challenge Contest. But the biggest surprise came from James Jones, who beat the twin Boston Celtics’ threat of Ray Allen and Paul Pierce to win the three-point shootout. My main man, Karan Madhok, was at the Staples Center in Los Angeles covering the event of a lifetime.

With the All-Star weekend out of the way, it’s time to focus our attention to what is left of the regular season. With the All-Star break extending to Tuesday (India time), here is a quick preview of the games being played on the 23rd and 24th of February:

Does James Jones' upset win in the Three-Point Contest mean the Heat now have yet another big scoring option? Find out when Miami takes on the struggling Kings on Wednesday morning.
NBAE/Getty Images

February 23, 2011

Sacramento Kings v Miami Heat
When: February 23, 2011 – 6:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: American Airlines Arena, Miami
Regular season records: Sacramento Kings (13-40), Miami Heat (41-15)
Preview: The second best team in the Eastern conference takes on the second worst team from the Western conference -- in short, a tough draw for the Kings. They have struggled on the road (6-18) and don’t have the talent, even with DeMarcus Cousins in their roster, to challenge the triple threat posed by Miami’s LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh. The last time these two teams met was on the 11th of December, 2010, when Miami inflicted a 21-point blowout on the Kings. Expect a similar result this time round.

Boston Celtics v Golden State Warriors
When: February 23, 2011 – 9:00 AM (IST)
Where: Oracle Arena, Oakland
Regular season records: Boston Celtics (40-14), Golden State Warriors (26-29)
Preview: The first game of the two match regular season series between the two sides. From Boston’s point of view the interesting thing to see will be whether Delonte West makes a return after having suffered a broken wrist earlier in the season. With 28 games left in the Celtics’ regular season, Doc Rivers, coach of the C's, is desperate to have all his injured players (Marquis Daniels, Shaquille O’Neal, Jermaine O’Neal) fit for the playoffs. Now would be a good time for West to return and ease the pressure on some of the Celtics’ starters, Ray Allen in particular, so that they have enough gas left in their tank deep in the 2011 playoffs. It should be a good contest since the Warriors are a better team when they play at home (19-11).

February 24, 2011

Oklahoma City Thunder v San Antonio Spurs
When: February 24, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST)
Where: AT & T Center, San Antonio
Regular season records: Oklahoma City Thunder (35-19), San Antonio Spurs (46-10)
Preview: The best team in the league (San Antonio) taking on the best team in the Northwest division of the Western conference. Both teams have a similar record in their last 10 games (7-3), which may point more to San Antonio slowing down after their fantastic start to the regular season. Yet, having beaten Oklahoma by 13 and 27 points in their previous two meetings in this season, San Antonio, playing at home (25-2), should wrap up the season series 3-0.

Utah Jazz v Dallas Mavericks
When: February 24, 2011 – 7:00 AM (IST)
Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas
Regular season records: Utah Jazz (31-26), Dallas Mavericks (40-16)
Preview: Look to see if Utah's superstar point guard Deron Williams can come up with a solid performance and inspire his team to beat the second best ball club in the Western conference, and end a losing streak. But the chances of that happening appear slim at best, because the Mavs, with Dirk Nowitzki having another champagne season, are on a three-game winning streak and have won nine of their last 10 games.

Los Angeles Lakers v Portland Trail Blazers
When: February 24, 2011 – 9:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: Rose Garden, Portland
Regular season records: Los Angeles Lakers (38-19), Portland Trail Blazers (32-24)
Preview: The LA Lakers, defending NBA champions, are under fire. They're still near the top of the West, but when your most recent loss comes against the worst team in the league, Cleveland Cavaliers, who very recently broke the league record for most consecutive losses (26), something is amiss. To top that, the Lakers are on a three-game losing streak. Yet, Lakers’ GM Mitch Kupchak has gone on record to suggest that the team will not make any trades before the trade deadline to address the situation. At the other end, the Trail Blazers have been extremely impressive. They are on a six-game winning streak and look set to challenge some of the better teams in the Western conference at playoff time. This despite all their injury woes to players like Greg Oden and Brandon Roy. Will they add to the Lakers’ woes then?

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When The Stars Come Out
By Akshay Manwani February 16, 2011

The dunk worth a thousand words -- and the 1988 Slam Dunk crown.
NBAE/Getty Images

Most sports offer their fans the vicarious experience of seeing their favourite stars play together by regularly producing what they call ‘dream teams’. These lists are circulated periodically -- the football lists come in heaps at the end of every World Cup; in cricket the ICC, the game’s parent body, comes up with its Test and ODI Team of the year.

And while the lists excite the fan into thinking of the scenario where Lionel Messi will strike terror in the hearts of defenders with Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney playing on either side, they remain, at the end of the day, proverbial wish lists.

The NBA All-Star Game, though, is the real deal. Here, watching Kobe Bryant play alongside Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant is no exercise in delusion. Instead, if you are in the anywhere in the Los Angeles neighbourhood on Sunday, the 20th of February 2011, I suggest you head straight to the Staples Centre, home of the Los Angeles Lakers, where Bryant, Anthony and Durant will lead the Western Conference all-stars into battle against the Eastern Conference’s LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Dwight Howard, Amar’e Stoudamire and Derrick Rose -- if you can find a way to get tickets, that is.

The All-Star Game -- which comes as the final act of an All-Star weekend that features the Rookie Challenge, the Slam Dunk contest and the Three-Point contest -- promises to live up to the hype and hoopla of previous editions. In addition to all the starters mentioned above, the Eastern reserves will be led by the awesome foursome of the Boston Celtics’ roster viz. Kevin Garnett, Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. The Western reserves see a great mix of the old and the new, with veterans Tim Duncan and Dirk Nowitzki sharing bench space with the young Blake Griffin and Russell Westbrook.

Over the years, the greatest names in the NBA, have represented their respective conferences in, arguably, the best annual advertisement for the league. There have been some truly outstanding individual performances, including some great athletic statements at this annual extravaganza. Here are my three most treasured moments from past All-Star weekends:

When his Airness took off: Although Michael Jordan first took off from the free throw line at both the 1985 and the 1987 Slam Dunk competition, it was his take off in the 1988 Slam Dunk edition that endured. Locked in the heat of battle with challenger Dominique Wilkins, who had defeated Jordan at the 1985 competition, Jordan needed a score of 49 points in his last Slam Dunk attempt to retain his position as the defending Slam Dunk champion. Jordan did better. By taking off from the free throw line, in front of the Chicago fans, Jordan appeared in cruise mode enroute to slamming the ball in the basket. He scored a perfect 50 that trumped Dominique’s challenge and for that brief period when Jordan took off, it was like Clark Kent had taken flight in a Bulls jersey.

When Hardaway made way for Magic: Tim Hardaway was an affable point-guard who started his NBA career with the Golden State Warriors in 1989, but had his best years with the Miami Heat between 1996 and 2001. Well his occasion was the 1992 All-Star Game. It was the season at the beginning of which Magic Johnson had announced his retirement because he had tested positive for HIV. And though the fans had voted Johnson to represent the Western Conference, there were a few players who had voiced their skepticism in playing with and against Johnson for fear of contracting the deadly virus. Johnson did play and was even crowned the All-Star MVP for his performance. At the award ceremony Johnson passed on the credit for the MVP trophy to Hardaway saying, “I will have to dedicate part of this trophy to Tim Hardaway because he decided to let me start in front of him.” Hardaway, after receiving the second-highest vote total among guards for the 1992 NBA All-Star Game, had graciously stepped aside so the retired Magic Johnson could start for the Western Conference. It was a truly magnanimous act, worthy of an All-Star.

When Vinsanity took over: It was the 2000 All- Star Slam Dunk competition. The competition, Tracy McGrady, Steve Francis and Jerry Stackhouse among a few other names was stiff. Yet Vince Carter made it a no contest. Performing an array of dunks including a 360° windmill, a between the legs bounce dunk, and an "elbow in the rim" dunk, Carter had fans, commentators and anything that showed life on the court go delirious with excitement. His final dunk, a two handed slam where he took off just a little after the free throw line brought back memories of Air Jordan. Isiah Thomas doing commentary during the contest, actually jumped over his table and went to congratulate Carter.

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Week Watchers: February 15-17
By Akshay Manwani February 14, 2011

After a wild week in the NBA, where do we even start?

How about with a deep, deep breath...

The Bobcats have tripped up Derrick Rose and the Bulls twice already this year. watch Charlotte go for a perfect 3-0 on Wednesday morning!
NBAE/Getty Images

Here goes: Jerry Sloan resigned as coach of the Utah Jazz after spending 23 long years with the franchise. Ray Allen of the Boston Celtics broke the NBA record for three-pointers on Thursday night, sinking two in the first quarter against the Los Angeles Lakers as the man he passed, Reggie Miller, sat courtside working the TV broadcast. Then the Cleveland Cavaliers finally snapped their NBA-record losing streak at 26 games with a 126-119 overtime win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday at Cleveland. Somewhere in between, Michael Jordan, Hall of Famer and Charlotte Bobcats’ owner, hit practice with his Bobcats – sparking some rumors of a comeback – but only because the team was short on players for practice.

And be forewarned: This week doesn't look to be slowing down much, either. With the All-Star weekend ahead of us, here’s a look at some of the games over the next few days:

February 15, 2011

Los Angeles Lakers v Charlotte Bobcats
When: February 15, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST)
Where: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte
Regular season records: Los Angeles Lakers (38-17), Charlotte Bobcats (23-31)
Preview: The Lakers are coming to the end of a seven-game road trip that has included some quality wins over the New Orleans Hornets, the Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks. However, their most recent result on that road trip, a 14-point loss (75-89) to the Orlando Magic, would have left them disappointed. The Bobcats, too, have put in some equally strong performances last week having defeated the Boston Celtics (94-89) and the Atlanta Hawks in a game that saw Stephen Jackson hit a 19-foot jump shot at the final buzzer to give the Bobcats an 88-86 win Saturday night. This is the first meeting between the Lakers and the Bobcats in the two-game season series.

Denver Nuggets v Houston Rockets
When: February 15, 2011 – 7:00 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: Toyota Center, Houston
Regular season records: Denver Nuggets (31-24), Houston Rockets (25-30)
Preview: The two teams met just at the start of last week when the Houston Rockets beat the Nuggets, 108-103. This, despite Carmelo Anthony matching his career high of 50 points in that game. However, the Rockets are not coming into this game with the best of form behind them. They have dropped their last two games, losing 112-108 to Minnesota on Tuesday and 106-102 to the Mavericks on Saturday. Chauncey Billups, the Nuggets’ point guard who left last week's matchup against the Rockets late in the first quarter with a left knee strain, could be the difference in the last season game between the two sides which Denver leads 2-1.

February 16, 2011

Charlotte Bobcats v Chicago Bulls
When: February 16, 2011 – 6:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: United Center, Chicago
Regular season records: Charlotte Bobcats (23-31), Chicago Bulls (38-16)
Preview: Surprisingly, the Bobcats lead the Bulls 2-0 in the four-game season series. Accordingly, the Bulls will be desperate to reverse their fortunes against the Bobcats beginning this game. And playing at the United Center, where the Bulls boast of a 23-4 record, should appear a steep climb for the Bobcats, who are 10-17 on the road. Also, with Chicago’s all-star point-guard Derrick Rose having a MVP kind of season (24.7 PPG, 8.1 APG), the Bulls might prove just too much for the Bobcats. But Charlotte need look no further than their team owner Michael Jordan for inspiration whose statue outside the United Center is testimony of his exploits at that venue.

Philadelphia 76ers v Memphis Grizzlies
When: February 16, 2011 – 6:30 AM (IST)
Where: FedExForum, Memphis
Regular season records: Philadelphia 76ers (26-28), Memphis Grizzlies (30-26)
Preview: The irony of the whole situation is that if the playoffs were to begin today, Memphis, sporting a better regular season record would not make it to the playoffs, while the 76ers would. That said, the 76ers are a team that have been steadily improving. Where they were a 5-13 team at the end of November, they have improved to 21-15 team since then. Equally interesting should be which forward, Elton Brand (15.3 PPG, 8.7 RPG) of the 76ers and Zach Randolph (20.1 PPG, 13.3 RPG) of the Grizzlies, inspires his team to victory. Memphis leads the two-game season series 1-0.

February 17, 2011

Denver Nuggets v Milwaukee Bucks
When: February 17, 2011 – 7:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: Bradley Center, Milwaukee
Regular season records: Denver Nuggets (31-24), Milwaukee Bucks (20-33)
Preview: The Bucks are on a three-game losing streak that has opened up a gap between them and the Indiana Pacers (24-28) and the Charlotte Bobcats (23-31) for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. With just another 29 games left in their regular season, the Bucks need to reverse that losing streak quickly. But mostly, even though they are 9-17 on the road, Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups should have this game wrapped up in favour of the Nuggets. A win for Denver would also give them a decisive 2-0 victory in the season series.

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A Family Affair
By Akshay Manwani February 9, 2011

Stan Van Gundy, now coach of the Orlando Magic, shared a title and a mentor (Pat Riley) with his brother, Jeff.
NBAE/Getty Images

As I watched the Boston Celtics take on the Orlando Magic this past Sunday night (India time) on NBA League Pass, something suddenly caught my attention. Jeff Van Gundy commentating on the game, along with Mark Jackson and Mike Breen on ABC television network, was being critical of the Magic’s three-point shooting ability (for the record the Magic only shot a miserable 12.5% from the three-point line in that game). However, as Van Gundy continued with his assessment of the Magic’s problems from the three-point line, the camera zoomed in on Stan Van Gundy, the Orlando Magic head coach and Jeff Van Gundy’s older brother.

But the Van Gundys aren't alone. Over the years, there have been some prominent filial associations to have served the NBA, both on and off the court. Here is a partial list of some such names:

The Van Gundy family: Although Stan is older to Jeff, it was Jeff who was first off the blocks as Head Coach. Following Don Nelson’s exit from New York in 1996, Jeff took over as Head Coach of the New York Knicks and took the team to six consecutive playoffs through to 2001. He would also coach the Houston Rockets between 2003 and 2007 but never managed to get them past the first round of the playoffs. Stan, on the other hand, got his opportunity to become Head Coach, much later, in 2003. He coached the Miami Heat for close to two-and-a-half seasons, before abruptly resigning from that post on Dec. 12, 2005. He has since been a coach of the Orlando Magic, with whom he has enjoyed a visit to the NBA Finals (2009) and has been to the Conference Finals in 2010. The one thing that both brothers have in common is that both have served as assistant coaches under Pat Riley; Jeff at the New York Knicks and Stan when Riley was at the Miami Heat.

In his father’s shoes: Sometimes I wonder if father (Bill Walton)-son (Luke Walton) ever get along. This because Bill finished his career as a vital member of the Boston Celtics and Luke currently plays for the Celtics’ arch rivals, the Los Angeles Lakers. Bill began his career with the Portland Trail Blazers, then moved on to the Los Angeles Clippers before finally settling in with the C's. And although injuries kept Bill restricted to the sidelines for most of his career, he is the only man ever to have won an NBA Finals MVP (1977), regular season MVP (1977-78) and Sixth Man Award (1985-86). Luke, though, has been with the Lakers since he entered the NBA in 2003 and has been a vital role player for them coming off the bench. However, like his father, injuries have played a big part in preventing Luke from fulfilling his complete potential. In a particularly poignant article, Scott Howard Cooper of NBA.com brought out Bill’s anxiety in watching his son go through the same trials and tribulations that he did.

The brothers Wilkins: Dominique Wilkins regaled the NBA for most of the ’80s with his dunks which earned him the nickname, ‘The Human Highlight Reel’. Fans would also remember his battles with Michael Jordan at the 1985 and 1988 slam-dunk contests, which were split between the two. Wilkins played most of his career with the Atlanta Hawks, was a nine time all-star and was inducted to the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in 2006. His brother Gerald Wilkins, also had a long run in the league, although nothing compared to what Dominique put up. He was a role player with the New York Knicks in his best years, between 1985 and 1992. Both brothers finally got an opportunity to play together, while in the autumn of their careers, in 1998-1999 with the Orlando Magic but were used sparingly.

Twins by birth, foes by teams: Harvey and Horace Grant are, like Brook and Robin Lopez, a rare pair of twins to both have played in the NBA. Here again, Horace achieved much more compared to brother Harvey. Playing with the Chicago Bulls, Horace a solid defender won three back-to-back titles with the Bulls between 1991 and 1993. He then joined Orlando where he served them creditably until 1999. He would win one final NBA title, coming off the bench, with the Lakers in 2001. Harvey, other than finishing runner-up in the 1991 NBA Most Improved Player Award, hardly had as many bright moments in his career with the Washington Bullets (1988-1993, 1996-1998), Portland Trail Blazers (1993-1996) and Philadelphia 76ers (1998-1999).

Spanish pride: Pau and Marc Gasol have become Spain’s ambassadors in the NBA currently. Although Pau is having a phenomenal few seasons with the LA Lakers, and is a four time NBA All-star, brother Marc is also catching the league’s attention since joining the Memphis Grizzlies in 2008. Pau who came to the Lakers after a mid-season trade in 2008, has been an integral part of the Lakers’ team that is now attempting a three-peat, having won the NBA Championship in 2009 and 2010. Ironically, Marc, who was drafted initially by the Lakers, was acquired by the Grizzlies when brother Pau went to the Lakers on Feb. 1, 2008. Both brothers also represented Spain at the 2006 FIBA World Championship, where they helped their country win a gold medal.

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Week Watchers: February 8-10
By Akshay Manwani February 7, 2011

Another exciting week of NBA action drew to a close with some keenly contested games played around the league. The Dallas Mavericks beat the Boston Celtics at the TD Garden to wrap up their season series with a 2-0 edge. The San Antonio Spurs maintained their winning run by beating the Sacramento Kings 113-100, while the L.A. Lakers edged out the New Orleans Hornets, 101-95, in a clash of two of the top five teams in the Western Conference.

This week in itself has started on a promising note with the Celtics retaining their superiority over their Eastern Conference rivals, the Orlando Magic. Riding on a season-high 26 points by Rajon Rondo, the C's handed the Magic a 91-80 loss, to take the season series between the two 2-1.

Here’s a look at some of the games over the next few days:

February 8, 2011

Two of the league's most exciting players -- a pair on opposite sides of the age spectrum -- will meet when the Suns and Warriors clash, live on NBA.com/India on Tuesday morning!
NBAE/Getty Images

Cleveland Cavaliers v Dallas Mavericks
When: February 8, 2011 – 7:00 AM (IST)
Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas
Regular season records: Cleveland Cavaliers (8-43), Dallas Mavericks (35-15)
Preview: The Cavaliers set a NBA single-season record with their 24th straight loss, falling, 111-105 to Portland Trail Blazers last week. There can be no bigger example of how much LeBron James meant to this team than the dubious nature of that record.

Dallas, meanwhile, is once again looking like a seriously impressive team after Dirk Nowitzki’s return from injury. The Mavs, who are currently on an eight-game winning streak, lead their season series against the Cavs 1-0. They are the odds-on favourite to make it 2-0 when they hosts the Cavs, not least because of the fact that the Cavs are an even poorer team away from home having lost 25 straight on the road.

Phoenix Suns v Golden State Warriors
When: February 8, 2011 – 9:00 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: Oracle Arena, Oakland
Regular season records: Phoenix Suns (23-25), Golden State Warriors (22-27)
Preview: It's a battle of old and the new. Steve Nash, a battle-hardy veteran of the league, is leading the Suns in scoring at 16.7 PPG. In Monta Ellis, the Warriors have quickest point guards in the NBA, who is buoyed by the spunk of youth. Ellis leads the Warriors’ scoring at 25.3 PPG. Equally exciting is the matchup between the Suns’ Marcin Gortat (7.8 RPG) and David Lee (9.5 RPG). The Suns lead the series at 1-0, but with three games still to be played between the two teams, including two in the current week, we might be in for a competitive game of basketball.

February 9, 2011

Philadelphia 76ers v Atlanta Hawks
When: February 9, 2011 – 5:30 AM (IST)
Where: Philips Arena, Atlanta
Regular season records: Philadelphia 76ers (23-27), Atlanta Hawks (33-18)
Preview: Although their regular-season records might suggest there is a big gap between these two teams, this is not entirely the case. Agreed the Hawks are one of the elite teams in the Eastern Conference and are currently placed ahead of the higher-profile Orlando Magic. But the 76ers are no longer pushovers. Since Nov. 27, when they stood in last place in the Eastern Conference at 3-13, the 76ers have been on a winning run at 20-14. John Schuhmann of NBA.com also suggested in a recent article that the 76ers have the best five-man unit in the league. All of which makes the 76ers’ clash against all-star Al Horford and the Hawks all the more intriguing.

Memphis Grizzlies v Oklahoma City Thunder
When: February 9, 2011 – 6:30 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma
Regular season records: Memphis Grizzlies (27-25), Oklahoma City Thunder (33-17)
Preview: Memphis won the first game of their four-match regular season series against the Thunder at home in early January. But OKC stormed right back and tied the series, a few days later, at the Oklahoma City Arena. The Grizzlies are 8-2 in their last 10 games and would have to keep up a similar record if they are to jump the Portland Trail Blazers for the eighth playoff spot in the West. However, expect a big performance from All-Stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook in front of the home crowd in OKC.

February 10, 2011

Denver Nuggets v Golden State Warriors
When: February 10, 2011 – 9:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: Oracle Arena, Oakland
Regular season records: Denver Nuggets (30-21), Golden State Warriors (22-27)
Preview: Now that the Carmelo Anthony trade talks have died down (have they really, or is this the calm before the storm?), it's time the Nuggets focus on improving their regular season record. They are currently placed sixth in the Western Conference, which means that should the playoffs start today they would have to play the L.A. Lakers, not a very pleasing proposition to say the least. Don’t, however, expect Monta Ellis and the rest of the Golden State roster to hand the Nuggets an easy win. With the Warriors playing solid basketball at home (16-10) and the Nuggets having a tough time on the road (9-15), this should be an exciting matchup.

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L.A. Blues
By Akshay Manwani February 2, 2011

The Lakers were unanimously picked to take the Western Conference title, and were the experts' favourites to claim the NBA title -- their third straight. So how come they're losing to the Kings?
NBAE/Getty Images

At the start of the 2010-11 NBA regular season, NBA.com’s experts picked their winners for the upcoming season. The 11-member panel made their annual predictions regarding Division champions, Conference champions followed by Finals champions. This league of extraordinary gentlemen unanimously picked the Los Angeles Lakers as the Western Conference Champions. Eight of them (two-thirds! ...if you're keeping score) even went on to suggest that the Lakers would go the entire distance and win the 2011 NBA Finals.

Forty-nine games into the Lakers’ regular season, it’s time for a reality check.

For one, the San Antonio Spurs, at a 40-8 regular season record, are favourites to top the Western Conference over the 34-15 Lakers. And the Lakers, who lost a mere seven home games last year en route to a regular-season record of 57-25, have already dropped seven at the Staples Center in the current regular season.

Even their most recent victory -- coming off consecutive losses against the Sacramento Kings and Boston Celtics -- against the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night (EST) was a scrappy one. The Rockets sans Yao Ming, at 22-28, are struggling to remain in playoff contention in the West. And for the Lakers to win against them in overtime, at home, is not the kind of performance you would expect from the defending champions. Certainly not from the team that has been picked to win it all by some of the best minds commenting on the NBA.

Agreed, Andrew Bynum was missing from the game. But the presence or absence of Bynum hasn’t really impacted the Lakers’ performance this season. Without Bynum in the first 24 games of the season, the Lakers were off to a 17-7 (win percentage - 0.70833) start. With Bynum in the lineup, the Lakers actually went down a couple of notches as they went 16-8 (win percentage - 0.67) in their next 24 games leading up to today’s game against Houston.

Through this dismal (relative to their own standards) run, the Lakers have also set the skeptics’ tongues wagging by dropping games against those teams that are best placed to dislodge the Lakers as the incumbent NBA champions. They may have split their season series 1-1 with Chicago, but are 0-1 against each one of the San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat, Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks. And what is worse is that the losses to the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics have come at the Staples Center, in front of home fans. It is why Kobe Bryant, speaking after the 80-96 loss to the Heat on Christmas Day said, “These games mean more to our opponents then they do to us.”

What is surprising, though, is one doesn’t quite know where the problem lies with the Lakers. Barring Ron Artest, who is averaging 8.1 PPG and 3.0 RPG this season, compared to 11.0 PPG and 4.3 RPG from last season, all the Lakers’ starters have more or less kept up the same performances statistically. Even their scoring looks to have improved. Where the Lakers averaged 101.7 PPG while holding their opponents to 97.0 PPG in the previous 82-game regular season, the Lakers are doing far better at posting 103.4 PPG and restricting their opponents to 96.6 PPG this season.

Yet, things are amiss at LA. And Mitch Kupchak, the Lakers’ General Manager, believes that it is perhaps time to shake things up at LA. In an article by NBA.com’s Scott Howard-Cooper on Monday, Kupchak is reported to have said about the Lakers, “I try to be as objective as possible, but I'm concerned that our performance is not living up to our talent level. Our record is certainly OK. But we've lost a bunch of home games. We've lost a couple of big games at home. And to me, those are red flags.”

Today, while the game against the Rockets was on, Kupchak went even hinted at using the current trade window to address the Lakers’ situation. “Quite frankly, this time of the year, that’s what a general manager does. As you approach the trade deadline you look at opportunities, you are on the phone and you look for ways to improve your team. And really what drives you whether you make a trade or not, can you make a trade that’s going to help your team and then you try to evaluate your team at that point to see how they are playing. So we are not playing our best basketball, so to do my job I do have to look for opportunities and see what’s out there,” he said.

Kupchak also felt that the Lakers certainly had room to improve. “I’d like to see us compete on a daily basis. Sometimes it looks to me like we’re a little complacent, maybe a little bit comfortable and perhaps waiting for the spring to roll around, when, maybe, you can flip a switch and be ready for the playoffs. But I think, internally, we all know that it doesn’t work that way,” said the Lakers’ GM.

Prophetic, strong words those by the man who orchestrated Pau Gasol’s coming to the Lakers three seasons ago in a mid-season trade. Kupchak will need to do something similar in the 21-day period before the trade deadline expires, if the Lakers are to pull off their much hyped three-peat. Either that or the marquee team from LA scripts a turnaround from this point onwards.

Otherwise, all those predictions, about the Lakers huffing and puffing and blowing everyone’s house down, may well and truly come to naught.

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Week Watchers: February 1-3
By Akshay Manwani January 31, 2011

It was an exciting start to the week as the 2010 NBA finalists – the LA Lakers and Boston Celtics - finally met for the first time in the 2010-2011 regular season on Sunday afternoon (Monday early morning if you were following in India). The game played at the Staples Center, was a tight one for most of three quarters. But Rajon Rondo sparked the Celtics offense in the fourth quarter and Boston finished winners with a 109-96 score line. Paul Pierce had 32 points for the Cs while Rondo had 16 assists. Kobe Bryant had 41 points to lead the Lakers’ scorers.

Here’s a look at some of the other marquee games in the days ahead:

February 1, 2011

Kobe and the gang have now dropped two straight at the Staples Center. Watch on Wednesday morning as they try to stem the tide.
NBAE/Getty Images

Charlotte Bobcats v Utah Jazz
When: February 1, 2011 – 7:30 AM (IST)
Where: EnergySolutions Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah
Regular season records: Charlotte Bobcats (20-26) v Utah Jazz (28-20)
Preview: The last time these two teams met came early in the regular season, when the Jazz just managed to edge the Bobcats in a tight game – 96-95. At that time the Jazz had gotten off to a solid start to their 82-game season. Now, owing to the unavailability of Deron Williams (out with an injury), they are 3-7 in their last 10 games. However, the Jazz have some of the best home-court advantage in the league, with their fans often disarming the opposition through their frenetic, deafening support. It shows in the Jazz’s home record (16-8), something the Bobcats (8-15) with their disappointing road record need to be wary of.

Milwaukee Bucks v LA Clippers
When: February 1, 2011 – 9:00 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles
Regular season records: Milwaukee Bucks (19-26), LA Clippers (18-28)
Preview: Milwaukee are on a mini roll having won three games in a row. But the prospect of facing Blake Griffin, Baron Davis and Eric Gordon on the Clippers’ home court is an altogether different story. Also, with Milwaukee having struggled on the road (8-16), the Clippers, a far better home team (15-13), should have the advantage heading into the game. But if Milwaukee (currently ninth best in the Eastern Conference) are hoping to edge the Charlotte Bobcats (eighth in the Eastern Conference) in the race to making it to the playoffs they would do well to continue their winning run against the Clippers.

February 2, 2011

San Antonio Spurs v Portland Trail Blazers
When: February 2, 2011 – 8:30 AM (IST)
Where: Rose Garden, Portland
Regular season records: San Antonio Spurs (40-7), Portland Trail Blazers (25-22)
Preview: The best team in the league (San Antonio) takes on a Trail Blazers team that is learning to live without Brandon Roy. In LeMarcus Aldridge the Blazers have found a new go-to-guy who, at a team-best 21.0 PPG, has been glad to play that role. Whether Aldridge and Marcus Camby can shut down Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, though, remains a big "if." When they met in December last, the Spurs downed the Blazers by 17. However, expect the hosts to put in a better show in front of the Portland faithful.

Houston Rockets v LA Lakers
When: February 2, 2011 – 9:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Ten Sports
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles
Regular season records: Houston Rockets (22-27), LA Lakers (33-15)
Preview: The season series score line between the two teams is tied at 1-1, with both teams having beaten the other at home. And so the winner of this game, the last between the teams in this regular season, will probably have a psychological edge should the two teams meet again in the playoffs. Besides that, both teams have had an ordinary run in the last couple of weeks. Portland are on a two-game losing streak and have been 5-5 in their last 10 games. The Lakers, too, are on a two-game losing streak and have a 6-4 record from their last 10. However, given that the Lakers lost those last two games at home, it would really set off the alarm bells if they drop a third straight game at the Staples Center.

February 3, 2011

Chicago Bulls v LA Clippers
When: February 3, 2011 – 9:00 AM (IST) -- Watch it live on Sony Pix
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles
Regular season records: Chicago Bulls (33-14), LA Clippers (18-28)
Preview: The Bulls are on a five-game winning streak. And riding on that form they have suddenly overtaken the Miami Heat as the second best-team in the East. The Clippers, on the other hand, are hoping to orchestrate a turnaround that should help them make it to the Western Conference Playoffs. But more than anything else, this game should be viewed simply for the battle of skill between 2009 Rookie of the Year, Derrick Rose, and the best candidate for this season’s Rookie of the Year award, Blake Griffin.

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The Beast Returns To Boston
By Akshay Manwani January 26, 2011

Kendrick Perkins' ACL tear in Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals was supposed to keep the big man out far longer than six months. He came back Tuesday night.
NBAE/Getty Images

This blog was supposed to be about Russell Westbrook. The 6-foot-3 Oklahoma City Thunder guard is having an incredible year posting numbers like 22.5 PPG, 8.4 APG while averaging nearly 2 steals-per-game.

Westbrook’s play has even led ‘The Czar’, Mike Fratello, to pick Westbrook as one of the most improved players in this season’s league. Said Fratello of Westbrook, “The biggest challenge for any guard who takes a larger burden of the offense is to maintain his efficiency in the process. Westbrook has actually surpassed Kevin Durant as the Thunder’s leader in usage rate but hasn’t suffered from the field. He’s seeking out open creases on the floor and has started to hit that pull-up, mid-range, jump-shot.”

Well done Westbrook. His performance this season has eased some of the pressure on Durant while making the OKC Thunder, currently boasting a 28-16 regular season record, a serious playoff contender.

On another day, this blog would have traced Westbrook’s career and analyzed his potential in much detail. But not today.

Today is not about Westbrook’s beautiful play. Instead it focuses on the return of The Beast to the Boston Celtics.

Today belongs to Kendrick Perkins.

Widely anticipated to make his return, after a knee injury had him leave Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals, in early February, just before the 2011 All-Star break, Perkins surprised everybody today by checking into Boston’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers just 4 minutes into the first quarter.

Perkins received a standing ovation from the fans at the TD Garden in Boston and made his presence felt immediately, within a minute of checking into the game, as he scored on a reverse layup, drawing a foul but missing the free throw.

Earlier this week, David Aldridge, longtime NBA reporter and columnist, had put Perkins’ comeback date at February 3. This would have meant that Perkins would have watched the Celtics take on the LA Lakers, in their first game since Game 7 of the 2010 NBA finals, on January 30 from the sidelines. And with a knee injury to Jermaine O’Neal, that has ruled him out for four weeks, the Celtics would have depended far too much on Kevin Garnett to offset the physical presence of the Lakers’ big men.

And just how much of a disadvantage the lack of big physical presence is against the Lakers is shown by the fact that without Perkins the Celtics got destroyed on the glass 53-40 in Game 7 of last year’s finals and L.A. won 83-79.

But now, with Perkins back in the lineup and Shaquille O’Neal, currently out with a hip injury, expected to make a comeback in Boston’s next game against Portland on January 27, the Cs play their historical rivals, the Lakers, without much of a handicap.

Even more significant is the fact that at 34-10 the Celtics can only get better with the inclusion of Perkins in the playing roster. In today’s game only, where the Cs thrashed the Cavaliers 112-95, Perkins notched up an impressive 7 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists. All of that in just 16 minutes of play.

Speaking to NBA.com after the game Perkins said, “I think I did alright tonight. I could have done a whole lot better, but it was a good day for my first day back.”

And here’s the chilling thought for all of Boston’s opponents in the remainder of the season. That with Perkins in the starting lineup, alongside Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, Boston have not been beaten in the playoffs. It was this five that saw them win pole position in the 2008 Finals. Then with Garnett out in 2009 and Perkins injured in the last two games of the 2010 finals, the Celtics lost out on the coveted Larry O’Brien trophy for two successive years.

So with Perkins putting up such a solid show tonight, the time isn’t far when Rivers will put him back where he belongs – in Boston’s starting five.

In a nutshell, it’s yesterday once more for Boston fans.

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Week Watchers: January 25-27
By Akshay Manwani January 24, 2011

We know the work week is long. So, as we pass the time until Friday (and a weekend packed with games), let Week Watchers be your guide to the best mid-week action the NBA has to offer. Click here for a full schedule of games broadcast live on Indian television and right here on NBA.com/india!

With the League having crossed the half-way mark, the focus now shifts to the second half of the season. Already there is a buzz whether certain teams, like the LA Clippers, can make it to the Playoffs and whether those that do, like the Boston Celtics, can they retain home-court advantage all the way leading up to the 2011 NBA Finals.

While all these queries will answer themselves in the course of time, we need to pay extra focus on the performance of teams leading into their remaining games in the season. Here then, is the first of many previews of some exciting games lined up during the week:

January 25, 2011

LaMarcus Aldridge and the injury-plagued yet ever-resilient Portland Trail Blazers have become one of the best stories in the NBA this season. Watch live on Tuesday morning as the Blazers take on DeMarcus Cousins and the Kings.
NBAE/Getty Images

Sacramento Kings v Portland Trail Blazers:
When: January 25, 2011 – 8:30 AM (IST) -- Watch Live on NBA.com/india!
Where: At Rose Garden, Portland
Regular season records: Sacramento Kings (9-32), Portland Trail Blazers (25-20)
Preview: A battle between the eighth best team (the Trail Blazers) and the worst team (the Kings) in the Western Conference. Both DeMarcus Cousins and Tyreke Evans have had disappointing seasons for the Kings and if both those players do not start playing to their potential soon, there is little chance of the Trail Blazers doing any better than they already have this season.

Portland on the other hand are reeling under a spate of injuries. They lost center Greg Oden early in the season and have been hampered by injuries to Brandon Roy and Marcus Camby of late. Yet, coach Nate McMillan has been able to get his roster to overcome adversity and keep themselves in playoff contention. And given that Portland has a good record at home (16-5), this would also be a good chance for them to extend their season-high winning streak to six.

San Antonio Spurs v Golden State Warriors
When: January 25, 2011 – 9:00 AM (IST)
Where: Oracle Arena, Oakland
Regular season records: San Antonio Spurs (37-7), Golden State Warriors (19-24)
Preview: The Spurs, the League’s best team up to this point, are coming off a rare loss heading into this game. With Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker producing All-Star performances this year, complemented ably by DeJuan Blair, Tim Duncan and Richard Jefferson, the Spurs have simply too much firepower for the Warriors.

The Warriors lost both previous regular season meetings to the Spurs. They would expect their star point guard, Monta Ellis, to come up with something special on the night if they are to pull off an upset win. Playing on their home court should give the Warriors some advantage, but until their defense gets some serious stops there is little chance of them humbling the Spurs.

January 26, 2011

Cleveland Cavaliers v Boston Celtics
When: January 26, 2011 – 6:00 AM (IST)
Where: TD Garden, Boston
Regular season records: Cleveland Cavaliers (8-35), Boston Celtics (33-10)
Preview: Looking at their record, the worst in the League, it is clear the Cleveland is nowhere near recovered from LeBron James’ exit. Yet, this is the very team that took down the Boston Celtics in the Cs’ second game of the season. JJ Hickson, Antawn Jamison and Anderson Varejao will have to produce a much better, physical performance against the Boston bigs if they are to repeat that performance.

Boston dropped a game, in a lazy effort, to the Washington Wizards in the Celtics' last match. It would be surprising, if they don’t use this game against Cleveland to put things back on track.

Utah Jazz v Los Angeles Lakers
When: January 26, 2011 – 9:00 AM (IST)
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles
Regular season records: Utah Jazz (27-17), Los Angeles Lakers (32-13)
Preview: Old foes Jerry Sloan and Phil Jackson meet for the umpteenth time, though the setting isn’t anywhere near as dramatic as when the Utah Jazz (coached even back then by Sloan) squared off against the Chicago Bulls (Phil Jackson was the coach) in the NBA Finals of 1997 and 1998.

This is a matchup between two of the top six teams in the West. The Lakers appear to have the winning edge for this game, but with a possible future Hall-of-Famer in point guard Deron Williams, the Lakers, particularly Derek Fisher, will be stretched each time Williams has the ball in his hand.

January 27, 2011

Los Angeles Clippers v Houston Rockets
When: January 27, 2011 – 7:00 AM (IST)
Where: Toyota Center, Houston
Regular season records: Los Angeles Clippers (17-26), Houston Rockets (20-25)
Preview: Houston leads the regular season series 1-0, having beaten the Clippers 97-92 on the 22nd of December last year. However, times are different now. The Clippers have turned things around in the last few weeks (and are on a 7-3 run in their last 10 games), with Blake Griffin putting in seriously impressive Rookie-of-the-Year performances. Also, the Rockets hampered by the injury to Yao Ming, do not have – be it Brad Miller, Shane Battier or Luis Scola - a big or strong enough body to match up to Griffin. Expect the series to be squared at the end of this game.

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The Heart (And Head) Of A Champion
By Akshay Manwani January 19, 2011

Kevin Garnett's presence has given the Boston Celtics a constant edge in intensity.
NBAE/Getty Images

A familiar sight played itself out in the dying seconds of the Boston Celtics-Orlando Magic matchup at the TD Garden in Boston yesterday. With the score at 107-104 in Boston’s favour and 16 seconds left in the game, the ball was in Orlando’s Jameer Nelson’s hands. Nelson, hoping to execute a play set up by coach Stan van Gundy in the previous timeout, looked to pass the ball to Jason Richardson for the 3-point play that would tie the game.

Instead, Kevin Garnett, towering over the diminutive frame of Nelson, like Gulliver would over the citizens of Lilliput, reached his arm out and plucked the ball from behind Nelson. Garnett’s steal, his second of the night, was enough to seal a 109-106 win for the Cs.

That is what Garnett’s presence means to this Boston team.

With Garnett in the lineup, Boston have had a 25-6 run (win percentage 0.806) this regular season. Without Garnett, who missed nine games between the 31st of December 2010 and the 16th of January 2011 with a right calf strain, Boston's win percentage dipped to 0.66, with a 6-3 record.

This is not to suggest that an injury to Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo or even Shaquille O’Neal wouldn’t have a similar dent on the Cs’ championship aspirations. We all know how much of a difference the absence of Kendrick Perkins made in Game 7 of last year’s NBA finals, even with Garnett in the starting lineup.

But what sets Garnett apart from his illustrious peers, as he proved in the game against Orlando, is his ability to play tenacious defense. He is an 8-time All-Defensive First Team player and won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award as recently as in 2008. Between them Pierce, Allen, Rondo and the ‘Big Shamrock’ have only one All-Defensive First Team appearance to show for, owing to Rondo’s credit.

His defensive intensity has proved to be infectious for the Celtics, who have consistently been amongst the best defensive teams in the league since Garnett came to Boston. Reggie Miller, commentating in the game between the Celtics and the Magic, showered the ultimate compliment toward Garnett’s contribution on the defensive end by saying, “He (Garnett) has to be the best defensive communicator in the history of the league, never mind Hakeem Olajuwon or Dikembe Mutombo.”

And at the risk of sounding hackneyed, we must still remind ourselves of that old cliché that offense may only win you a few games but it is the defense that wins ball clubs championships. Can there be a better explanation for Garnett being named Defensive Player of the Year in 2008 and the Celtics winning their last NBA title also in the same year?

Moreover, Garnett brings so much versatility to the Celtics’ roster. He is difficult to guard in the low post and can also spread the opposition defense by hitting the 20-foot jump shot. He is quick off his feet, a rarity amongst forwards in the league. With a career average of 15.1 PPG and 9.5 RPG, he assures the Celtics of a near double-double every game night.

And ever since Garnett came to Boston, after several heartbreaking years with the Minnesota Timberwolves, it was he who set the tone for the Celtics’ superstars by willingly putting aside his ego or any other star tantrums for the purpose of helping Boston return to its glory days. It is his dedication to submit to the larger purpose of the franchise that has rubbed off on subsequent superstar additions like Shaquille.

Never mind the brains behind this Boston team, but given his all-round contribution, Kevin Garnett is simply the heart of this Celtics franchise.

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Home Improvements
By Akshay Manwani January 17, 2011

The leap, in the 1988 Slam Dunk Contest, that sold a million Nikes. Nobody could fly like Michael.
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Videos: Michael at the Hall of Fame | Jordan's Hall of Fame Speech

Watching the Chicago Bulls host the Miami Heat this past weekend, my mind could not help wander to the glory days of the Bulls and their marquee player Michael Jordan. No other player, past or since Jordan retired from the sport, has had such an impact on the game of basketball. And even if explaining the Jordan phenomenon in a few hundred words is like enjoying the spectacle of Bora Bora through photographs, the effort is worth investing in.

Rings, scoring titles, MVP accolades do not tell the Jordan story. They merely provide a reference point. That with six NBA titles, five MVP awards, six Finals MVP awards and 14 NBA All-Star appearances Jordan belonged to the game’s elite. But where great players are concerned, statistics and records are often a casualty. When the Australian Roy Emerson was done with playing Men’s tennis, in the late 1960s, hardly anyone imagined that his tally of 12 career Grand Slam titles would be bettered.

But then Pete Sampras came along.

Followed next by Roger Federer.

And yet Jordan transcends comparisons with the game’s greatest. A true reflection of his iconic stature emerges when sportswriters mention Muhammad Ali, Babe Ruth, Tiger Woods, Michael Schumacher and Federer as the Michael Jordan of their respective sports. The Indian sportswriter Rohit Brijnath, who, while writing on Sachin Tendulkar, even took the Jordan comparison, beyond sport, to a more artistic plane, saying “No sportsperson in 20 years has moved me like him (Tendulkar) except the elastic Michael Jordan, who was like a Michelangelo statue come to athletic life.”

It is what leads Diego Maradona to write in his autobiography - El Diego - that the only person whose autograph he would willingly solicit would be Michael Jordan.

This coming from a man whose own popularity is a notch higher than Jordan’s and who held the football world in a trance, nearly half a decade before Jordan became, well, Jordan.

Just reading the names of players Jordan went through to win NBA titles is like reading an honour roll of the game’s greats. First between 1991 to 1993 and then between 1996 to 1998, when the Chicago Bulls won six NBA titles, players like Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson, Patrick Ewing, Clyde Drexler, Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Gary Payton, John Stockton and Karl Malone experienced the Jordan show in flesh and blood.

From scoring champion to a stellar defensive player, from an individual who could slay opponents all by himself to a leader who was willing to involve his teammates while dismantling the opposition, Jordan showed a willingness to improve. When teams, like the Detroit Pistons, roughed him up, he added muscle. When teams didn’t allow him an easy path to the basket, he developed a lethal fade away shot. Whatever one threw at him, he turned it into an opportunity to overthrow his adversary.

It is a characteristic that found resonance in this line from his autobiography - For the Love of the Game – “I listened, I was aware of my success, but I never stopped trying to get better.”

Along his glittering career, he provided so many highlight reels. Like that time in 1987 and 1988, at the All-Star weekend Slam Dunk competition, when he took off from the free throw line, leading the many spectators in attendance to believe that he was Clark Kent dressed in a Bulls uniform.

Or when he changed hands on the LA Lakers in Game 2 of the 1991 NBA finals, a moment which NBA.com’s Steve Aschburner summarized ever so eloquently by writing, “When Michael Jordan switched hands on the Lakers in Game 2 of the 1991 Finals, he might as well have had a “Genius At Work” sign hanging from his neck. Defying gravity and conventional wisdom in the same instant, the Chicago Bulls' superstar was like young Mozart on the piano keys, something marvelous -- impulsive, creative, explosive -- welling up inside him.”

On many similar instances, where His Airness had just executed a spectacular move, the commentators would use his name as an exclamation point. Jordan!

In that moment you could be certain that Jordan existed in a sporting utopia all by himself – a space where grace, athleticism and creativity blended with each other in perfect symphony.

Yet, it was his toughness that was his greatest ally. He had an uncanny ability to look defeat in the eye and intimidate it to such an extent that it often beat a hasty retreat.

Take ‘The Shot’ he hit against Craig Ehlo in Game 5 of the 1989 Eastern Conference playoffs with three seconds left on the game clock. Or his leading from the front, 42-point, Game-7 performance against the New York Knicks in the second round of the 1992 Playoffs. Or his ‘flu game’ where he hit 38 points to propel the Bulls to a crucial Game-5 win against the Utah Jazz in the 1997 NBA finals.

Or the circumstances leading up to that famous last shot against Bryon Russell in Game 6 of the 1998 NBA finals. With 22 seconds left on the game clock, the ball finds its way to Utah’s best player on the night - Karl Malone. Ahead by a point, this was the moment Jazz fans were waiting for. Surely, their superstar would score and take them closer to a possible Game 7, where, given their home court advantage, they would surely trump Michael and his Bulls. But Jordan, in one seamless passage of play, strips Malone of the ball and hits, against a hapless Bryan Russell, arguably the greatest clutch shot of all time to give the Bulls their sixth title.

Even the Bard would have struggled to write a better finishing act for Jordan’s years with the Chicago Bulls. NBA.com’s John Schuhmann wrote of the moment, “It represents Jordan's excellence and his dominance over the league in the 90s.”

In all these aforementioned situations, Jordan came out the winner, despite the odds.

It is why when the German composer, Ludwig van Beethoven, once famously said, “I shall seize Fate by the throat; it shall certainly not bend and crush me completely,” he could have been referring to Michael Jordan.

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Home Improvements
By Akshay Manwani January 12, 2011

Clyde 'The Glide' Drexler became an essential cog in the Rockets' 1995 NBA Championship after coming over from a floundering Portland team.
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Not even a month has passed since the overhaul at the Orlando Magic. And already there is a great deal of buzz of another, blockbuster -- three-way deal between the Detroit Pistons, the Denver Nuggets and the New Jersey Nets.

The deal would, as David Aldridge first reported on NBA.com, send Carmelo Anthony to the Nets, along with fellow Nuggets Chauncey Billups, Anthony Carter and Shelden Williams. Detroit would send veteran Rip Hamilton to New Jersey. The Nets would then send guard Devin Harris, rookie forward Derrick Favors, Anthony Morrow, Stephen Graham, Quinton Ross, Ben Uzoh and two first-round picks to the Nuggets. New Jersey would send center Johan Petro and forward Troy Murphy (and his expiring $12 million contract) to Detroit.

While the modalities of that deal are yet to be finalized, here is a sampling on similar in-season trades over the last 15 years that have worked wonders for the teams involved:

Clyde ‘Glides’ to the Houston Rockets: It was February 1995. With the Portland Trail Blazers having no hopes of making it to the playoffs, Clyde ‘The Glide’ Drexler made a request to the Trail Blazers to be traded to a contender. The Trailblazers obliged, sending Drexler to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Otis Thorpe in mid-season, right before the trade deadline. Despite finishing the regular season with an average record (47–35), which placed the Rockets sixth out of eight playoff teams in the Western Conference, Drexler and long-time friend Hakeem Olajuwon helped propel them to an improbable second consecutive championship in 1995.

Tim Hardaway to the Miami Heat: Pat Riley had been hired by the Heat in the 1995 off-season. Given that the Heat had not made it to the 1995 playoffs (32-50 regular season record), Riley immediately swung into action by initiating a couple of big moves for the franchise. Right before the start of the 1995-1996 season, he acquired Alonzo Mourning from the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Glen Rice and Matt Geiger. Equally inspiring was Riley’s decision to get Tim Hardaway, mid way through the season, from the Golden State Warriors. The returns, through these deals, were immediate for Miami in that they posted a winning record of 42-40 and made it to the 1996 playoffs. However, Miami’s run was short lived as they lost in the first round of the playoffs in a 3-game sweep to the Chicago Bulls.

Dikembe Mutombo goes to the Philadelphia 76ers: Led by All-Star Allen Iverson, the Sixers were having a terrific 2000-2001 season when Theo Ratliff, the 76ers’ centre, was lost for the season with a wrist injury. Knowing that a centre would be required if the team was to go deep into the playoffs, the 76ers acquired Dikembe Mutombo from the Atlanta Hawks in a deal that sent Ratliff, Nazr Mohammed, Toni Kukoč, and Pepe Sanchez to Atlanta. In total, the Sixers went 56–26 to clinch their first Atlantic Division title since 1989-90, and eventually lost the 2001 NBA finals to the LA Lakers in 5 games.

Rasheed comes to Detroit: Besides the Drexler deal, this was the other one that yielded an immediate C (as in Championship). On February 19, 2004 the Detroit Pistons, involved in a three-team deal with the Boston Celtics and the Atlanta Hawks, traded Lindsey Hunter, Chucky Atkins, its 2004 first round pick and cash to Boston in exchange for Mike James while sending Zeljko Rebraca, Bob Sura and a first round pick to Atlanta in exchange for Rasheed Wallace. Combining with the other Wallace (Ben) in Detroit, Rasheed and the other Pistons (Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince) unexpectedly dumped the LA Lakers 4-1 to win the 2004 NBA Championship.

Lakers get some much needed GASol: The Lakers were having a good run in the 2007-08 season (25-11 start), when Andrew Bynum, who was leading the league in field-goal percentage, was lost for the year due to a knee injury in mid-January. As a recourse to addressing the void at the centre’s position, the Lakers acquired power forward Pau Gasol from the Memphis Grizzlies in a trade in early February that saw them finish the regular season, with a 57-25 record, as top seeds in the Western Conference. They would, however, lose to the Boston Celtics in six games in the 2008 NBA Finals.

Magic pull a few rabbits out of the hat: After a not-so-promising start to their 2010-2011 season, Orlando Magic GM Otis Smith finally pulled some big moves that gave the Magic a new look just a week before Christmas Day. Vince Carter, Mickael Pietrus and Marcin Gortat were traded to the Phoenix Suns for Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson and Earl Clark while Rashard Lewis was sent to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Gilbert Arenas. The moves have appeared to work as the Magic are on a 9-1 winning streak in their last 10 games with the revamped roster.

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How We Got Here
By Akshay Manwani January 10, 2011

After a 10-8 start to the season, the Heat have been all smiles of late.
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We’re nearly at the halfway mark of the 2010-2011 NBA regular season. It’s been a great two-and-a-half months of basketball, with some stellar individual achievements, good team runs and interesting roster overhauls characterizing the League in this time.

Here then, is a quick overview of some of the notable occurrences around the League, since the start of this regular season:

Paul Pierce: The Boston Celtics player became just the third player to record 20,000 points in Celtics history. Pierce now trails Larry Bird and John Havlicek in the list of all-time leading Celtics’ scorers. Pierce’s record also means that the Celtics became the first team in NBA history to have four active players (Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, Shaquille O’Neal) with at least 20,000 career points.

Kobe Bryant: On Nov. 11, 2010, the Lakers star became the youngest player to record 26,000 points, in a 118–112 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Bryant achieved the mark at the age of 32 years and 80 days, surpassing Wilt Chamberlain by 34 days.

Jason Kidd: On Nov. 12, 2010, Kidd became just the second player in NBA history to record 11,000 assists. The only player to have more assists to his name over a career is John Stockton, who, with 15,806 assists, is well ahead of Kidd.

A 30-30 game: By scoring 31 points and gathering 31 rebounds against the New York Knicks on November 12, Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves became the first player in nearly 30 years to record a 30-30 game. The last player to achieve this feat was Moses Malone on February 11, 1982.

Tim Duncan: With a 94-83 win over the Utah Jazz on November 19, Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs surpassed Spurs’ legend and one- time teammate David Robinson as the Spurs’ all-time leading scorer and all-time leader in games played. Robinson, it must be noted, played 987 games and scored 20,790 points in the Spurs uniform.

George Karl: By leading the Denver Nuggets to a 123–116 road victory over the Toronto Raptors on December 10, 2010, Karl became just the seventh coach in League history to win 1,000 games. However, Karl deserves a bigger round of applause for having successfully overcome neck and throat cancer -- which was diagnosed immediately after the 2010 NBA All-Star Game -- and having coached the Nuggets in every single game in the 2010-2011 season.

Orlando Magic overhaul: After a not-so-promising start to their season (16-10), Orlando Magic GM Otis Smith finally pulled some big moves that gave the Magic a new look just a week before Christmas Day. Vince Carter, Mickael Pietrus and Marcin Gortat were traded to the Phoenix Suns for Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson and Earl Clark while Rashard Lewis was sent to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Gilbert Arenas. The moves have appeared to work, as the Magic are on a 9-1 winning streak in their last 10 games.

Larry Brown: One of only seven coaches to have won more than 1000 regular season games, Brown was fired by the Charlotte Bobcats as head coach of the franchise late last December. This after the Bobcats had a disastrous start to their season (9-19), leading owner Michael Jordan to replace Brown with former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Paul Silas.

The Miami Heat: After a 10-8 start to their regular season, the Heat appeared to have found their stride in December. Since the start of that month, they have boasted an enviable 20-1 record, which has taken them to a second best 30-9 record in the Eastern Conference. Heat coach Eric Spoelstra, under so much fire at the start of the season, deservedly won the Eastern Conference Coach of the month award for December.

Blake Griffin: After having been sidelined for the 2009-2010 season owing to a stress fracture in his left knee, Griffin has announced his credentials for the 2010-11 NBA Rookie of the Year Award quite emphatically. Having already won the Rookie of the Month award in the Western Conference twice this year, Blake number’s 21.8 PPG, 12.6 RPG and shooting percentage over 50 percent have him looking, in so many ways, as the answers to the Clippers' prayers.

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Cultural Spaghetti
By Akshay Manwani January 5, 2011

Former teammates Dirk Nowitzki (from Germany) and Steve Nash (from Canada) have combined to win three MVP awards and play in 16 All-Star Games.
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Indian fans await the day a player from back home makes his debut in the NBA. They hope the young Satnam Singh Bhamara, a strapping 7-foot, 15-year old lad currently undergoing basketball training in Tampa, Florida, while on a sports scholarship to the USA, shall be the answer to their prayers.

Meanwhile, the NBA has already proved to be a cultural melting pot for players from all around the globe. Here, then is a select list of players, both past and present, who have done their nations proud by taking their talents to the NBA:

Luc Longley: Anybody remember this guy? Longley, an Australian national, first played for the Minnesota Timberwolves between 1991 and 1994 and later for the Phoenix Suns (1998-2000) and New York Knicks (2000-2001). Before that he even played for a local Australian ball club, the Perth Wildcats, in 1986. Oh yeah, somewhere in between, he also starred with Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Ron Harper and Dennis Rodman in the Chicago Bulls’ Championship years between 1996 and 1998.

Dirk Nowitzki: The tall German power forward who is now a franchise player for the Dallas Mavericks. Nowitzki’s association with the Mavericks dates way back to 1998. In this time, he has made it to nine NBA All-Star teams, four All-NBA First Teams while notching up more than 20,000 points. An NBA Championship, in coming seasons, would round off a stellar career.

Manu Ginóbili: An Argentine national who is enjoying an outstanding run with the San Antonio Spurs in the current regular season. Ginobilli came to San Antonio in 2002 and became an integral part of their Championship years in 2003, 2005 and 2007. Apart from his shooting prowess and quickness on the floor, it is his clutch play that has gone on to define his association with the Spurs.

Steve Nash: A seven time All-Star, whose ball handling skills are among the best in the business. Nash, who hails from Canada, has played for only two NBA franchises - the Phoenix Suns and the Dallas Mavericks - in his 15-year career in the league. A winner of several individual accolades and honours, the quest for an NBA ring still has him playing at his peak.

Yao Ming: The Chinese national whose debut in the League also coincided with the world’s most populous nation, China, tuning into the NBA. Yao’s injury woes may have prevented him from fulfilling his potential in the NBA, but there is no denying his role in making the NBA popular across Asia.

Toni Kukoc: Another member of the illustrious Chicago Bulls dynasty between 1996 and 1998. Kukoc, who is of Croatian descent, gave the Bulls tremendous versatility as he could shoot from the outside and because he was a left-hander it made the job of guarding him all the more difficult. He also won the NBA Sixth-Man-of-the-Year Award in 1996.

Dikembe Mutombo: Coming from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mutombo was an awesome defensive presence on the basketball court. His shot blocking ability often brought the crowd to its feet as Mutombo would himself wave his index finger to remind the opponent that nobody scored when he was guarding the rim. A four time NBA-Defensive-Player-of-the-Year, Mutombo finished as the second leading shot blocker of all time.

Vlade Divac: The Serbian national who became the LA Lakers’ first ever non-American draft pick in 1989. Although Divac had the honour of playing under the mentorship of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson in his early years and with Kobe Bryant in the final year of his NBA career (2004-2005), it is his stay with the Sacramento Kings that brought him most success. Starting with Mike Bibby, Peja Stojakovic and Chris Webber, Divac led the Kings to the 2002 Western Conference finals where they suffered a hard fought Game 7 loss at the hands of the Lakers.

Pau Gasol: The current star forward of the Los Angeles Lakers, Gasol, a Spanish national, has helped his ball club win two back-to-back NBA championships in recent years. Apart from improving his game, so that he can match up to the other power forwards in the League, Gasol has also helped popularize the game across the world, like by his visit to India last summer. A little known fact about him – his brother Marc Gasol also plays in the NBA, for the Memphis Grizzlies.

Rik Smits: The Dunkin Dutchman was a vital cog of the Indian Pacers team that was a regular playoff contender in the 1990s. His best year though was in 1998 when he was named to the NBA All-Star team, Disappointingly though, it would also be the year, that would see the Pacers lose a closely fought Game 7 to the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals.

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The Sun Never Sets On This Hill
By Akshay Manwani January 3, 2011

Back in 1995, a season that saw him take home Rookie of the Year honors, Grant Hill's career was nothing but promise.
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Grant Hill played his first NBA game way back in 1994. Back then, Roger Federer was only a 13-year old. Kobe Bryant was yet to make his debut in the NBA. Yugoslavia was still one nation. And – it’s amazing to think – almost nobody had heard of the Spice Girls.

Now, 17 NBA seasons later, Roger Federer has cemented his stature as one of the all-time great tennis players having won a record 16 Grand Slam titles. Kobe Bryant, winner of five NBA titles, is within touching distance of breaking into the top 10 leading all-time NBA scorers. Yugoslavia has disintegrated into a series of states. And the Spice Girls, well – you get the idea.

Grant Hill, though, has remained constant.

Folks might point to Shaquille O’Neal as one of those other ageless wonders of the League, but longevity is easier to sustain in the glory of stardom than in the disappointment of a much-promised-career-that fell a little short of expectations. Ask Anfernee ‘Penny’ Hardaway about it and he will tell you the same.

Hill came into the league just as Michael Jordan’s days with the Chicago Bulls were coming to an end. Based on some seriously impressive collegiate achievements at perennial power Duke University, including the 1994 ACC Player Of The Year, Hill was seen by the league and its many fans as a bridge to help them tide through the post Jordan era. And initially, Hill did just that.

Assuming the role of the Point Forward with the Detroit Pistons, not only did Hill share the Rookie-of-the-Year award with Jason Kidd in 1995, he also made it to four consecutive All-Star teams between 1995 and 1998. Like Scottie Pippen, Hill’s game had versatility to it. He could score, feed his teammates with assists and even rebound the basketball. The 1999-2000 season would be his best yet, as he averaged 25.8 points, the season's third-highest scoring average, while also averaging 6.6 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game. After the first six seasons of his career, between 1994 and 2000, Hill had a total of 9,393 points, 3,417 rebounds and 2,720 assists. Only Oscar Robertson, Larry Bird, and LeBron James had better numbers after their first six seasons in the NBA.

But in spite of all those individual accolades, Hill struggled to take his Pistons to Championship glory. And with it came the stigma of being labeled a softie, a player who could not see his team through in crunch time. Things would get worse, as after being dealt to the Orlando Magic in 2000, Hill began to suffer chronic injuries that would plague him the rest of his career. First came a debilitating ankle injury that held him to a cumulative 47 games in the three seasons between 2000 and 2003, while missing out on the entire 2003-2004 season.

He would return to post impressive numbers in the 2004-2005 season (19.7 PPG, while shooting over 50%) for the Magic, but with a groin injury then limiting him to only 21 games in the 2005-2006 season, his career with the Magic was less fairytale and more horror.

Yet, Hill didn’t lose heart, and continued to play. After playing 65 games for the Magic in the 2006-07 season he signed up with the Phoenix seasons for the 2007-08 season, in the 13th year of his association with the League.

Since then, Hill appears to be enjoying a rejuvenated second innings with the Suns for the last four seasons. He has averaged double digit PPG in all these years, while also notching up approx. 5 rebounds-per-game in this time. In the first 32 games the Suns have played this season, his 14.8 PPG are the best he has averaged since the 2004-05 season when he played more than 25 games. Last year, he was also part of the Phoenix Suns roster that lost the Western Conference Finals to the LA Lakers.

And this is what makes the Grant Hill story so inspiring and admirable. That, despite losing the best years of his career to injury, he will still end up as a player with more than 16,000 regular season points, 6,000 rebounds and 4,000 assists. That, despite the many bad hands lady luck dealt him, he always came back stronger. There have been no tantrums on the way, no fading into oblivion without a fight. He has responded to his many travails with absolute dignity and rare grace.

Not too many tough people would have been able to do it any better.

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The Inimitable Shaq
By Akshay Manwani December 29, 2010

Shaq may have expanded and slowed since this 1994 picture, but he hasn't lost one ounce of his electricity.
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It was the 2004 All-Star game. With about 30 seconds left to go in the third quarter, Shaquille O’Neal, playing for the Western Conference, received the ball from Sam Cassell in the low post. Jamaal Magloire, given the arduous task of guarding O’Neal, tried desperately, by pulling at O’Neal’s jersey, to prevent the big man from scoring. But O’Neal, in yet another advertisement of his size and strength, just pulled away from Magloire’s hold, like Superman would when tied down by cotton yarn, and scored the easy bucket.

The play in itself was nowhere comparable to some of Shaq’s other career highlights, except that in the very next instant, after making Magloire appear hopelessly featherweight, Shaq picked up a camera from the sidelines and admired himself in the full glare of its lens. It was a moment that brought the fans to their feet, the commentary to a crescendo. A moment where O’Neal, like on several such occasions, brought out his charisma in its entirety and simultaneously reveled in it.

Now, at the age of 38, O’Neal has taken that same magnetism to the Boston Celtics. Playing with the distinction of being the oldest player in the league, Shaq has brought both, game and glamour to the C's and their fans.

Before the start of the current season, three League veterans – Allen Iverson, Tracy McGrady and O’Neal were facing difficulty in finding franchises that would buy into their allure combined with the promise of their productivity. In Iverson’s case, the problems were of his own doing, in his reluctance to come off the bench for any team. In McGrady's case, meanwhile, his frequent dalliances with injury prevented teams from buying into him. And so, while Iverson found recourse by playing ball for a club in faraway Turkey, McGrady, even though he was signed by the Detroit Pistons before the start of the current season, has had a most uneventful 2010-11 campaign thus far.

O’Neal, though, has proved to be an exception. In the 20 games he has played for Boston this season, he has embraced the Celtics’ style of play, instead of expecting them to make him the focus of their strategy. He has shed aside any ego that may come up by way of 15 All-Star game appearances, 4 times NBA champion, 3 times Finals MVP, Fifth all time leading NBA scorer and stepped in and contributed.

His 10.8 points-per-game for the current season may be his worst showing since he first played in the league in 1992-1993, but a better measure of his contribution to the C's, hampered by the absence of Kendrick Perkins, shines through in Boston’s 24-5 record -- which makes them the best team in the Eastern Conference. Yet another reminder of his prowess came on Christmas Day, where, even though Boston lost to Orlando, O’Neal kept Dwight Howard, 13 years his junior, to just 6 points in the game.

And with O’Neal around, Boston’s fan base has increased. In what was considered a Spartan-like Celtics team led by the no nonsense trio of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, Shaq’s personality has added much needed flair to the roster. Be it his presence as the conductor of the Boston Pops or his histrionics after he has finished dunking the ball on a hapless opponent, Shaq has made the Boston Celtics eminently watchable.

With Shaq already having indicated that his two year contract with the Celtics would mark the end of his playing days, every moment of his presence in the league ought to be cherished. For playing alongside a generation of players that included Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Garnett and Iverson, Shaq’s star quality was overwhelming. In terms of his legacy, he will always remain a phenom - a colossal aggregate of his physical size and charismatic appeal - like no other player the game has ever known.

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Have The Heat Turned The Corner?
By Akshay Manwani December 27, 2010

Dwyane Wade and his Miami Heat teammates have had plenty of reasons to smile lately.
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It was Christmas day and the NBA served up a veritable treat as the defending champions, the LA Lakers, took on the much-hyped Miami Heat. This was the game everyone had been looking forward to since the 2010-11 season schedule was drawn up. And with a 96-80 pummeling, not only did Miami humble the Lakers, but also raised the all important question of whether the Heat are now, really, the team to beat?

With all the hype and hoopla surrounding LeBron James and Chris Bosh joining Dwayne Wade in Miami, the Heat didn’t exactly have the ideal start to their season. After the first 18 games, played in October and November, they posted a modest 10-8 record. It wasn’t the kind of return Miami’s fans, owners or management were expecting when they had signed James, Wade and Bosh with a combined investment of USD 350 million plus in the off season. There were all kinds of conspiracy theories surrounding the Heat’s travails – of James not getting on with Coach Eric Spoelstra, of Wade and James not being able to share the ball with each other, of Spoelstra giving way to Pat Riley in the coaching role and of Bosh being an overrated signing.

But beginning December, the Heat have managed to turn things around. In the 14 games they have played in this month they have boasted an envious 13-1 record, which now makes their 23-9 record for the season look a whole lot more impressive. Including the Lakers, they have also beaten the New York Knicks and Utah Jazz at home in this month.

The big three have put in improved scoring performances as is shown in the table below:

Player Name	October 2010 - PPG	November 2010 - PPG	December - 2010 PPG
LeBron James	20.5	24.6	26.1
Dwayne Wade	21.5	21.6	25.6
Chris Bosh	13.0	19.4	19.2

And what has served the Heat’s winning momentum the most has been the up tempo aspect to their game in this run. They are utilizing James’ and Wade’s quickness to push the ball up the floor and score easy baskets. Opposition defenses are not being given time to set up with the Heat’s ability to score off the fast break.

They are also now one of the best defensive units in the league. Where the Heat have scored 100.5 point on an average in the 32 games played in the season, they have given allowed just 90.1 points in the same number of games. At an average victory margin of 9.66, theirs is the best winning margin in the league. Be it Rebounds-per-Game (42.69) or Blocks-per-Game (5.41) the Heat are amongst the top 10 teams in the league on both parameters.

The role players have also stepped up and contributed. Mario Chalmers, also playing point guard for Miami, is spending more time on the floor (26.1 MPG in December compared to 10.9 MPG and 3.1 MPG in November and October) which reflects in his improved contributions 8.5 PPG in December vis-à-vis 2.3 PPG in November. James Jones’ minutes may have dropped (21.7 MPG in December versus28.5 MPG in October) but his rebounds have increased from 3.2 RPG to 1.5 RPG in the same period.

But should the celebrations begin? Last year James’ Cavaliers beat the Lakers on both occasions in the regular season, including a victory on Christmas Day. But far from playing the Lakers in the 2010 NBA finals, the Cavaliers couldn’t even progress beyond the Eastern Conference Semifinals. This year, Miami’s toughest competitors en-route to the finals are likely to be Boston, Chicago and Orlando. While they are yet to play Chicago, the Heat have split their two games against Orlando and have lost both games against Boston.

One thing for sure though, while the 2011 NBA playoffs are still some time away, with the much improved performances since the start of the month, this Miami Heat franchise is no longer a team looking to fulfill its potential. They are now, instead, a team in quest of NBA glory.

Competition beware!

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A Christmas List For Santa
By Akshay Manwani December 22, 2010

Blake Griffin's high-wire act has dazzled fans thus far this season. But to stay healthy, he may need a little help from Santa.
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It’s Christmas season. And it seems like everyone, from the young to the old, to boys and girls of different ages, has a wish list for Santa. With two months of the 2010-11 NBA season almost drawing to a close, the teams and players in the league also have a good perspective on what they need to make the future worth looking forward to.

Here then, is a glimpse of the possible things that a few of the NBA’s stakeholders (players, franchises, fans and coaches) might want from Santa on Christmas eve:

Kobe Bryant: Ring No. 6. Bryant knows that winning the 2011 NBA Championship would not only have the Lakers emulate the Chicago Bulls in terms of two three-peats, but that this ring would further his comparisons with ‘His Airness’ – Michael Jordan. A sixth championship would also put Bryant ahead of Magic Johnson in that ledger, passing arguably the greatest player to have played in a Lakers uniform.

Eric Spoelstra: Job security. The Heat look like a far better – even championship-worthy – team than they did a few weeks ago, but there are always whispers, true or not, that Pat Riley’s peering over Spoelstra’s shoulder to make sure his investment in LeBron James and Chris Bosh comes to fruition. But, if Miami fails to go deep in the playoffs, Spoelstra cannot and should not be the fall guy.

Yao Ming: A miracle. After yet another injury ruled Yao Ming out for this year’s season, the Chinese national appears to have reached a premature end to his days of immense promise in the NBA. If only Yao could be fit once again, it would mark the return of a player whose presence is why the world’s most populated nation, China, tunes into the NBA.

Allen Iverson: An NBA team. Iverson is in the autumn of his career and is yet not willing to play as a role player, who comes off the bench, for any team. He still wants to be the go-to-guy, which makes it difficult for most teams to invest in him. Perhaps, a more realistic tuning of expectations on Iverson’s part, instead of the dependence on Santa, should solve his problems.

Doc Rivers: No more injuries. And a speedy recovery for the guys on the injured list. Boston is currently on a double-digit winning streak, but playing with a 10-man roster as against the 15 that should be available, the C’s are in grave danger of running out of gas.

Denver fans: Carmelo Anthony. With all the hype and hoopla surrounding their franchise player, of him wanting to join Amar’e Stoudamire in New York next year, Denver, a championship-starved franchise, would certainly not want Carmelo to pull a LeBron James on them.

Otis Smith: Gilbert Arenas rediscovers his groove in Orlando. Of the four players that Otis brought to Orlando this past weekend, the maximum attention will be on Arenas. The former Washington Wizards, three time, All-Star has had a history of playing truant in Washington and should the same continue in Orlando, Otis will face a lot of flak, given his allegedly close relationship with Arenas.

Blake Griffin: Some good luck. Griffin plays basketball like a high-flying rugby player, elevating as high as anyone in the league and throwing his body around with reckless abandon. But if he wants to continue his Rookie of the Year pace, he’ll need to stay healthy, which is no easy task in the NBA – especially for someone who spent all of last year on IR.

NBA fans (the world over): A Boston Celtics v LA Lakers rematch in the 2011 NBA finals. You have to want this no matter what the Miami Heat promise to do. There is a sense of history when Boston and LA play each other. Also, since two of the last three finals (2008 and 2010) have been split between the two, the 2011 NBA finals winner could potentially decide the better team of the last 4 years.

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Breaking Down A Blockbuster
By Akshay Manwani December 20, 2010

Gilbert Arenas leaves behind a tumultuous career in Washington for a Magic team that's looking to make a title run.
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After a first-round elimination in the 2010 playoffs, the Chicago Bulls went all out to get LeBron James in the great free agent market of 2010. They got Carlos Boozer instead. The Boston Celtics, similarly, made some big-ticket acquisitions in the off-season, despite being losing 2010 NBA finalists. Clearly, the objective for both teams, heading into the new season, was to get better.

The Orlando Magic, in contrast, were happy to sit back and watch the off-season go by.

The Magic didn’t seem to need to partake in the frenzy involving all the big ticket free agents. At that time, in the summer of 2010, Magic GM, Otis Smith, had ruled out the possibility of any overhaul, believing instead that the franchise was within striking distance of a Championship.

“We're not a team that's that far away, so I can't sit here and say, ‘Yeah, we're going to make all these drastic changes because we're miles away.’ We're not miles away. We're not at the bottom third of our league. We're at the top of our league,” Smith said.

Twenty-six games into the 2010-11 season though, the Orlando Magic have stalled. This, after the 2009 NBA finalists and 2010 Eastern Conference finalists have lost 6 of their last 10 games in this year’s regular season – and while the Magic’s biggest rivals in the Eastern Conference, the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat are currently riding double-digit win streaks. Meanwhile, Orlando, at a 16-10 regular season record, is struggling to regain the form that had made it a championship contender in the past two seasons.

So when news first broke on Saturday of the Magic trading Vince Carter, Mickael Pietrus and Marcin Gortat to the Phoenix Suns for Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson and Earl Clark as well as getting Washington Wizards All-Star Gilbert Arenas in exchange for Rashard Lewis, it all made perfect sense. That after the initial bravado of the off season, this Orlando franchise is now keen to make amends. Perhaps, Otis Smith had just finished reading the parable of the Hare and the Tortoise.

Nevertheless, here is a more concrete perspective of the player movement between the three teams:

For the Orlando Magic:

On first glance, it really doesn’t appear that the Magic are going to do any better than what they achieved in the 2010 playoffs with these transactions. Marcin Gortat was no All-Star centre but gave an adequate backup option to the Magic for Dwight Howard. Earl Clark, only a 2009 first round pick, is far too inexperienced to provide the kind of cover that Gortat could for Howard.

But the two additions, that possibly make the net result of the trades positive for the Magic are that of Turkoglu and Arenas. Turkoglu is familiar with the Magic’s style of play, having been part of the 2009 team that reached the NBA finals. A career 38.5 percent 3-point shooter, Turkoglu will create more scoring opportunities on the outside for the Magic, whenever Howard gets double teamed in the post.

And the most exciting addition to the Magic, by far, is Arenas. Never mind the many distractions he provided the Wizards, including his infamous suspension from the League for bringing guns into the Verizon Center locker room last December, Arenas has got game. He can create scoring opportunities by himself, which in itself should take pressure off Howard and has an edge in big game temperament over Carter and Lewis.

With Stan Van Gundy already having clarified unequivocally that the acquisition of the four players would not result in Magic guard Jameer Nelson coming in off the bench, and that Arenas would have to play alongside Jameer, it certainly means that Jason Richardson, a 10-year league veteran, will not form part of the starting five for Orlando.

Even then, with Boston, Miami and Chicago having made significant additions to their rosters, Orlando, despite the addition of Turkoglu and Arenas, will still have to make a couple of more changes to their roster before they can hope of doing any better than their 2010 playoffs performance.

For the Phoenix Suns:

If the regular season were to end today, the Suns, currently a sub-.500 team, would not make it to the playoffs. For a franchise that made it to the 2010 Western Conference Finals that would be a huge step down. Phoenix’s biggest problem this season has been the absence of a genuine centre with the exit of Amar’e Stoudemire. So, the addition of Marcin Gortat in that position is most welcome. Also, while Vince Carter may have always promised a whole lot more than he has actually delivered, adding him along with Mickael Pietrus, a career 36 percent 3-point shooter, should add to the up-tempo style of the Suns.

For the Washington Wizards:

Washington’s biggest concern at the start of this year’s regular season was how do they handle the having John Wall and Gilbert Arenas, both premier point guards, on the same team. With all the off court problems surrounding Arenas, the Wizards had decided to invest in the future by choosing Wall as the first pick in the 2010 NBA draft. With that decision made, it was clear that Arenas would have to play second fiddle to Wall if he wanted to continue at Washington. In that context, offloading Arenas is a win-win proposition for both Washington and Arenas. And in Rashard Lewis, Washington now have a two time All-Star capable of playing the power forward position. The Wall-Lewis combination adds a whole lot more value, at least on paper, to Washington than the Wall-Arenas conflicting position scenario.

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The Race Against Time
By Akshay Manwani December 15, 2010

Ron Artest's last-second bucket off Kobe Bryant's miss sent the Lakers to a thrilling win -- and an eventual NBA title -- in Game 5 of the 2010 Western Conference Finals.
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The past week in the NBA saw two keenly contested games that went right down to the wire. First, on Dec. 8, the LA Lakers trailed 85-86 against the LA Clippers with 3.1 seconds left on the game clock, but got a buzzer-beater from the ageless Derek Fisher to lift the Lakers to a 87-86 win. The very next night, Boston, trailing by a point with 6.6 seconds left in the game against the Philadelphia 76ers, set up a play for Kevin Garnett, who banked in a shot off an alley-oop pass to give the Cs a thrilling 102-101 win.

Over the years, there have been countless buzzer beating moments in the NBA. These moments, exhilarating to watch, have also gone on to define the players who have executed them. Here, then, are some hair-splitting, game-winning shots by NBA stars that have since become part of the game’s legacy:

Bird steal, DJ layup: It was Game 5 of the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals. Detroit were up 107-106, with five seconds left in the game and Isiah Thomas, one of the best ball handlers in the game, was supposed to inbound the ball for Detroit. Yet, the moment Thomas aimed the inbounds pass to Bill Laimbeer, Larry Bird stole the ball and passed it to a streaking Dennis Johnson who, with a layup, gave Boston a legendary win.

Jordan on Ehlo: It was the deciding game of the five match series in the 1989 playoffs. With three seconds left in the game and Chicago trailing 99-100, Michael Jordan somehow broke free of Craig Ehlo and made a shot over the hapless Ehlo from atop the free-throw line that gave Chicago a famous 101-100 win. That play – and the ensuing, picturesque fist-pump celebration – by Michael has since been called ‘The Shot’.

The Chuckster gives the Suns plenty to smile about: Post retirement, Charles Barkley may provide everyone with a few good laughs, but in Game 6 of the 1993 Western Conference Semifinals between the Phoenix Suns and the San Antonio Spurs, Barkley was all business. With a little over 9 seconds left in the game and the score tied at 100, Barkley sunk a 20-footer from just inside the 3-point line to take the Suns to the Western Conference Finals.

Kerr responds to Jordan: The year was 1997 and the Chicago Bulls, playing Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz, were looking for a second consecutive NBA ring. With the game tied at 86 and 9 seconds left to play, Michael Jordan found himself double teamed by the Jazz. Aware of the opening it provided to Steve Kerr, Jordan passed the ball to his teammate who hit a three to give Chicago its fifth NBA title in seven years.

McGrady’s 13 prove unlucky for SA: His years with the Houston Rockets are best forgotten. But on December 9, 2004 Tracy McGrady delivered one of the great clutch performances in NBA history. With Houston trailing the San Antonio Spurs by 68-76, McGrady scored 13 points in the final 35 seconds of the game to give Houston an improbable 81-80 win. Tony Parker’s shell shocked expression at the end of the game put McGrady’s efforts in proper perspective.

‘Big shot Bob’ hits 21 for SA: It was Game 5 of the 2005 NBA Finals. Robert Horry had just struck a purple patch for San Antonio by scoring 18 points in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons. Yet, for all of Horry’s efforts the Spurs still trailed Detroit by 2 points (93-95) with 9.4 seconds left to play in the game. But with Rasheed Wallace (playing for the Pistons) leaving Horry open in the dying seconds, ‘Big Shot Rob’ hit a big three to give San Antonio the crucial 3-2 series lead.

Artest delivers for LA: It was Game 5 of the 2010 Western Conference Finals. The Phoenix Suns had just hit a big three to tie the game at 101. But with 3.5 seconds left on the game clock, Lamar Odom inbounded a pass to Kobe Bryant, whose 3-point attempt fell well short of the basket. Except, that a hustling Ron Artest, off-balance, caught Bryant’s failed attempt and banked a layup as time expired.

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Spurs on a Roll for Now
By Akshay Manwani December 13, 2010

Through 23 games, Manu Ginobili is averaging 20.0 points per game, which is nearly five points more than his career average.
D. Clarke Evans/NBAE/Getty Images

The San Antonio Spurs are on a roll. This in itself shouldn’t be surprising, for since 1999 the Spurs have been the second most successful NBA team in terms of Championships won (4, the Lakers have won 5). But after 2007, when the Spurs won the last of their four titles, they have resembled a ball club past its prime. Playoff appearances may have continued for them in the last three seasons, but they’ve struggled to repeat the kind of form that won them championships in 1999, 2003, 2005 and 2007.

But the latest season has given much hope to the folks in SA. With a 20-3 season record, the Spurs are currently the best team in the NBA. Their latest win against the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday night, puts them on a five-game winning streak. With a 47 percent conversion rate they are one of the top shooting team teams in the NBA, and lead all teams when it comes to shooting from 3-point land (41 percent). They are also within the top three teams when it comes to assists-per-game (23.82) and are second best in the league when it comes to steals-per-game (9.14). All these factors have combined to make the Spurs a potent offensive threat, vindicated by their 106.96 points-per-game, which is currently third best in the league.

And the man driving the Spurs resurgence is none other than Manu Ginobili. At 33 years of age, Ginobili appears to be playing like a second round draft pick eager to prove himself in the big league. In the first 22 games the Spurs played this season, Ginobili has played four more minutes per game than his career average of 28 minutes. And the impact of those extra minutes reflects in Ginobili’s improved 20 PPG for the season vis-à-vis his career average of 15.2 PPG. Tim Duncan, roughly a year older than Ginobili, is playing 28.8 MPG while averaging only 13.6 PPG in comparison.

What has also helped the Spurs this season is that they have some very good bench strength. George Hill, Matt Bonner, James Anderson, Gary Neal, Antonio McDyess and Tiago Splitter aren’t names that are going to leave the opposition quivering, but are capable enough of holding their own against the best of teams.

Yet, it is difficult to see the Spurs maintaining the same kind of winning momentum. For one they are yet to play some of the better teams in the League like the Boston Celtics, the LA Lakers, the New York Knicks or the Miami Heat. Their win against Orlando came at home while they beat Chicago, on November 17, when the Bulls were playing without their All-Star power forward Carlos Boozer. The one game that they have played against their closest rival in the Western Conference, the Dallas Mavericks, resulted in a 94-103 home loss for the Spurs. In that light, a truer reflection of this San Antonio team then ought to emerge by the end of this month, when they are done with playing Orlando (away), the Lakers at home and Dallas (away).

The bigger worry for San Antonio should be their lack of big physical presence inside the paint. At 41.91 RPG, the Spurs are at 11th position in terms of their rebounding ability in the league while their 4.82 blocks-per-game puts them outside of the top 15 teams. Even then, should the Spurs make it deep into the 2011 playoffs, Duncan, McDyess, DeJuan Blair, Splitter and Bonner don’t have the same sort of intimidating presence that Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom, Pau Gasol, Ron Artest or Theo Ratliff have for the Lakers or Shaquille O’Neal, Kevin Garnett, Kendrick Perkins, Jermaine O’Neal or Glen Davis have for Boston. And we all know how much of a difference rebounding can make on a team’s fortunes, after last year’s Game 7 when Boston was getting hammered on the boards by the Lakers.

And so while San Antonio fans are, and deservingly so, enjoying the team’s latest run, Gregg Popovich is surely racking his brain to address the Spurs’ shortcomings for this season.

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Generals in Gym Shorts
By Akshay Manwani December 8, 2010

John Stockton (R) and Tim Hardaway both exemplified, through two very different styles, the many responsibilities of the point guard.
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Of all the positions in a basketball unit, the point guard might be the most important. It is the nerve centre of a basketball team, with the concerned player controlling his team’s fortunes like a ship’s captain commanding his vessel on the high seas.

The point guard influences the game’s momentum, runs plays and creates his team’s offense. He has to be a player of exceptional ball handling capabilities – creating passes where there are none, all the while staying nimble on his feet – able to rush past defenses like a streak of lightning. And, finally, he needs to remain ever aware of the shot clock, like a good doctor is of his patient’s pulse.

In no other sport is one player entrusted with so much responsibility.

And yet, what never ceases to amaze me is the NBA’s ability to throw up remarkable point guards over the years. From John Stockton in the mid ’80s (I was a toddler before that) to Rajon Rondo in the present day, here are a few point guards who have made and continue to make the game look incredibly easy:

John Stockton: He was quick, effective but not flashy. Where others would have struggled to find daylight, Stockton had an uncanny ability to find his teammates. His position as the all-time leader in assists (15,806) is confirmation of his talent.

Isiah Thomas: He led the Detroit Pistons to back-to-back NBA titles in 1989 and 1990 and was the heart of the Pistons’ outfit. A tough competitor, Isiah provided one of the enduring images of the NBA when he once scored 25 points in a single quarter of a playoff game with a sprained ankle.

Tim Hardaway: Best known for his years with the Miami Heat (1996-2001), where he partnered with Alonzo Mourning and gave the Heat some of its best years in the league. Hardaway was also an excellent 3-point shooter, with his 1,542 career threes the 11th best in the league.

Mark Jackson: Whether it were his no look passes or behind the back ball movement Jackson brought an element of showtime to his game. A 1988 NBA Rookie-of-the-Year winner, Jackson created spaces where other point guards would have found it difficult to put a needle through.

Gary Payton: They called him The Glove for his tenacious defense but he could also give his opponents the slip in the proverbial blink of an eye. Probably the best point guard if one is to look at contributions at both ends of the floor.

Jason Kidd: Again one of the most comprehensive point guards ever to have played the game. Kidd is amongst the all time leaders in Assists (ranks 2nd), Steals (ranks 4th), 3FGM (ranks 5th) and Triple Doubles (Ranks 3rd). An NBA title would be the icing on a stellar career.

Steve Nash: Nashinating to watch. Steve is one of the best shooters in the game, with an ability to leave fans, opponents and teammates awestruck with his fleet-footedness. He is also a two-time NBA Skills Challenge Champion.

Tony Parker: Probably in the same league as a John Stockton in that he too is not very flashy. But having guided the San Antonio Spurs to three NBA titles in this century, Parker knows what it takes to get the job done.

Rajon Rondo: The man leading the Celtics’ show this year. At 14.1 APG in the current regular season, Rondo is averaging nearly twice as many assists as his career average of 7.1 APG. Did we just hear the Boston Big 3 expanding to call themselves the Big 4?

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No Worms Allowed?
By Akshay Manwani December 5, 2010

Is this the face (and hair) of a Hall of Famer?
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A recent news report on NBA.com suggested that Reggie Miller was at the forefront of the list of nominees for the 2011 Hall of Fame class. No surprises there, for not only is Miller the NBA’s leading three point scorer; he was also one of the greatest clutch players of all time.

But the same news piece also speculated upon Dennis Rodman’s chances of making it to the list of inductees for next year’s Hall of Fame ceremony. It said, “It's Year 2 of the great debate, of Rodman's obvious statistical accomplishments as a defender and rebounder against Rodman's obvious ability to turn off panelists with his personality.” The article even went to the extent of suggesting, “If he (Rodman) doesn't at least advance to that next round (part of the Hall of Fame induction process) this time, it could signal the Worm (Rodman) is forever doomed.”

Can someone please explain that last bit to me or did I just miss the plot?

Rodman was an oddball. Of that there can be no opinion to the contrary. He had an uncanny ability to irk officials, fans, opponents, teammates and anything that showed life around a basketball court.

He was unpredictable – he once kicked a cameraman, in the 1996-97 NBA season, in the groin for no apparent reason. He dressed in drag to promote his book Bad As I Wanna Be. Had he played under the league’s recently introduced ‘Respect for the Game’ rules, he wouldn’t have lasted beyond the opening quarter of any game. Even at his best behaviour, he made Ron Artest and Rasheed Wallace appear like gentlemen in comparison.

But he was one heck of a ballplayer.

His 11,954 career rebounds place him 21st all-time. At 13.1 Rebounds-per-Game, only a handful of players, which include Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell, have a better RPG than Rodman. But compared to most men on that list, Rodman was a dwarf in comparison. Where Wilt grabbed his rebounds (23,924) from a height of 7-ft-1-in, Shaquille O’Neal from a similar altitude (13,014 rebounds) and Walt Bellamy (14,241 rebounds) at 6-11, Rodman earned his rebounding stats from the relatively puny frame of 6-6.

He was, in short, all heart.

And Rodman made it to seven NBA All-Defensive First Teams (1989-1993, 1995 and 1996) at a time when some of the best defenders – Hakeem Olajuwon, Michael Jordan, Dikembe Mutambo, Scottie Pippen, Patrick Ewing, Gary Payton, John Stockton – played in the league. It was against this competition that he won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award for two consecutive years, too – in 1990 and in 1991. His 18.7 RPG in 1991-92 and 18.3 RPG in 1992-93 have been the best rebounding performances, for a single season, in the league since 1973. And it is with Rodman in their starting lineup that Chicago went through with their 72-10 record setting regular season performance in 1995-96.

So why the debate?

Sure Rodman did some things in his life as a ball player that are unacceptable. Head butting referees (Ted Bernhardt in a game against the New Jersey Nets in 1996) isn’t the best way to make a point, but does (and should) that negate all the good work that he did? And didn’t he already get fined for those transgressions? So why the continued persecution?

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is about accomplishment and player excellence. Propriety, or the lack of it, cannot be the sole reason to overlook a player of Rodman’s caliber. Never mind the ever-changing colour of his hair (red, purple, blue, blonde), but it was his rebounding style, with all the instinctive hustle, that became a style statement in the NBA. In a league obsessed with scoring ability, his presence on the offensive and defensive boards earned his teams NBA rings on more than one occasion – two for the Detroit Pistons (1989, 1990) and three for the Chicago Bulls (1996, 1997 and 1998).

But most importantly, Rodman’s induction into the Hall of Fame also sends out a larger message: That it takes all kinds of people to make this world an interesting place to live. Just because some people are not part of the mainstream, it does not make their contributions any less worthy. And that when we remember individuals, we ought to look for the good in them, instead of picking on the traits that make them human.

And, I, personally, would love to see what Rodman wears to his Hall of Fame induction. Wouldn’t you as well?

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Unhappy Returns
By Akshay Manwani December 1, 2010

LeBron James took his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers from a backwater franchise to a top-of-the-line contender. Then, one summer night, the King abandoned his throne.
NBAE/Getty Images

In another context it might have been termed as the Return of the King.

But when LeBron James returns to Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena on Thursday night for his first NBA game as a Miami Heat player, expect anything but the red carpet to be laid out for him.

Cleveland fans have been seething since the day James spurned the Cavaliers for the company of Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami. Theirs is not a city with a rich basketball history. Before LeBron took the Cavs to the NBA playoffs in 2006, the last time they had made it to the playoffs was in 1998. In all their years in the NBA (the franchise formed in 1970), they have never won an NBA title and have only once, with LeBron, won the Eastern Conference title in 2007. In LeBron, Cleveland saw a messiah who would make the franchise one of the marquee names in the league. He, they hoped, would deliver the coveted Larry O’Brien trophy to them and not just once but several times over.

And so when LeBron chose to join the Miami Heat, Cleveland felt like a jilted lover. Also, the manner in which LeBron had made his decision, on national television, further added to their pain.

And nowhere was the collective sentiment of Cleveland better expressed than in Cavs owner Dan Gilbert’s open letter to the fans, “As you now know, our former hero, who grew up in the very region that he deserted this evening, is no longer a Cleveland Cavalier. This was announced with a several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his ‘decision’ unlike anything ever ‘witnessed’ in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment… You simply don't deserve this kind of cowardly betrayal… This shocking act of disloyalty from our home grown ‘chosen one’ sends the exact opposite lesson of what we would want our children to learn… But the good news is that this heartless and callous action can only serve as the antidote to the so-called ‘curse’ on Cleveland, Ohio. The self-declared former ‘King’ will be taking the ‘curse’ with him down south. And until he does ‘right’ by Cleveland and Ohio, James (and the town where he plays) will unfortunately own this dreaded spell and bad karma.” NBA commissioner David Stern, correctly so, immediately fined Gilbert $100,000 for his remarks in the letter.

LeBron was well within his rights to leave Cleveland. The manner in which he aired (literally) his decision, could be debated, but as a professional athlete James had every right to choose the Heat or play for the Timbuktu Topcats if he wanted. How many franchises or clubs, across sport, think of what the players want once they are past their prime? Professional sport, at one level, is like any other business, where the players, like employees, ought to decide what is best for them.

And what should really matter to the Cavs’ fans is their own team’s performance. A 7-10 record @ 0.412 is much better than what many thought the Cavs would do in the post LeBron era – but will it get them to the playoffs? Additionally, LeBron’s joining Miami, in what has become the ‘Big Three 3.0’ (after Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili 1.0 and Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen 2.0), hasn’t necessarily spelled success for the Heat either. At 10-8 in the regular season, there is already a buzz about Pat Riley replacing Eric Spoelstra should the Heat do any worse.

And so when the Heat visit the Cavs this Thursday night, sanity must prevail. Any untoward act towards LeBron will only put at risk Cleveland’s image in the basketball community. Whatever his actions this past summer, LeBron has also been the single biggest source of joy for Cavs’ fans in the last seven years. Instead of landing another cheap shot on LeBron, the time is ripe for Cleveland to bury the ill will and show some class.

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Twilight of a Legend
By Akshay Manwani November 29, 2010

In his prime, Iverson was as electric of a ballhandler as the NBA has ever seen, not to mention a leader who could carry a team on his back.
NBAE/Getty Images

While the world watched LeBron James make his much- anticipated decision of joining the Miami Heat this past summer, Allen Iverson, the NBA’s often controversial superstar, made an equally compelling decision of plying his trade in faraway Turkey. Except, where James made his services available to the Heat for a staggering USD 110 million, Iverson signed a modest $4 million, two-year contract with Turkish club – Besiktas. It was a steal by Besiktas, the kind John Stockton would have been proud of.

It was an ignominious summer for Iverson, one where he struggled to find an NBA team that would agree to take him on their roster. For staunch Iverson fans, it was an unbelievable situation. Yet, for most part, Iverson’s predicament can be traced back to his own 14-year career in the NBA. A fractious relationship with coach Larry Brown while at the Philadelphia 76ers, a refusal to come off the bench while at the Detroit Pistons and Memphis Grizzlies and various controversies from his personal life all caught up with him, painting the picture of a player that caused more trouble than his ball skills could off-set.

Yet, for all his problems on and off the court, Iverson is a perennial fan favourite. He is a 11-time NBA All-Star. Whenever he returned to play in or for the Philadelphia 76ers, he was greeted by sellout crowds and genuine applause. More recently, when he arrived in Turkey, in early November, to begin his stint at Besiktas, fans lined up in huge numbers at Ataturk airport to welcome Iverson.

What works for Iverson is his innate toughness, his ability to challenge a situation where nothing seems to be in his favour. At 6 feet tall, Iverson doesn’t come anywhere near the size of the all-time great shooting guards of the league. Michael Jordan scored his points from a 6-6 frame. Jerry West stood at 6-2, Kobe Bryant 6-6, Dwayne Wade 6-4. And yet, at 24,368 points, Iverson is ranked 17th in the list of all time NBA scoring leaders. Where Bryant averages 25.6 PPG, Iverson scored his points at a 26.7 PPG clip.

When everyone predicted the LA Lakers to sweep aside the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2001 NBA finals, Iverson pulled off a playoff-high 48 points and led the 76ers to beat the heavily favored Lakers 107–101 in Game One of that series. It is why NBA.com writer Fran Blinebury wrote of Iverson, “There wasn't a fiercer warrior in the league for nearly a decade, including those named Kobe and LeBron. In fact, Iverson in his prime might have been pound-for-pound the toughest player ever to lace up a pair of sneakers.”It is this singular facet of Iverson’s persona – of the underdog beating the odds to emerge a worthy winner – that endears himself to fans.

While no individual has ever been bigger than the sport he plays, the absence of Iverson from this year’s NBA season is disappointing. For all of his distractions, the sight of Iverson, a man with more tattoos on his body than frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, carrying the ball up the floor made for engrossing viewing. The passion with which he played, the intensity in his eyes, the explosive crossover coupled with his astonishing quickness all made the league richer for its quality.

For someone who gave NBA fans much to cheer about at his peak, seeing out the autumn of that career with Besiktas (no disrespect meant) is a little bit of an anti climax. And so who knows: Could Iverson, like he always did, still beat the odds, return to the NBA and script his own fairytale ending?

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The Book of Carter
By Akshay Manwani November 24, 2010

During his early years in Toronto, Vince Carter amazed fans on a nightly basis with his incredible feats of athleticism.
NBAE/Getty Images

Somewhere, closer to the 2011 All-Star game, Vince Carter will make an entry in the 20,000 points club. As and when Carter reaches that milestone, it will undoubtedly be a moment of great personal achievement for the Orlando Magic shooting guard, but it should also allow Carter the opportunity to reflect on an NBA career that promised a lot more.

Carter burst on the NBA scene, in 1998, promising to lift the gloom that had descended on the league in the post Michael Jordan – Chicago Bulls era. His athleticism coupled with his slam dunking ability gave fans much hope about the arrival of a player who, like a young Jordan coming to Chicago in the mid 1980s, would lift his little known ball club - the Toronto Raptors - to the dizzying heights of NBA glory. But after six long seasons with the Raptors, only two of which saw Toronts reach the playoffs, it was clear that Carter was anything but the blue chip stock he had promised to be. Injuries and an inability to win crunch games for Toronto, led him to part ways with that franchise.

Next stop for Carter – the New Jersey Nets. Here Carter did better, with the Nets even making it to the playoffs for three consecutive years between 2005 and 2007. His PPG at 24.2 and 25.2 for the 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons, were among the best he had averaged in his career. But after Jason Kidd was traded from the Nets, the team’s fortunes plummeted and the Nets failed to make it to the playoffs for the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons.

This leads us to Carter’s current team, the Orlando Magic, to which Carter was traded in June 2009. Partnering with some serious talent - Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, Rashard Lewis, JJ Redick and Matt Barnes - the expectation in Orlando was that with the addition of Carter, the team would do one better than their NBA runners up tag from 2009. Instead, Orlando lost the 2010 Eastern Conference Finals to Boston in six games and Carter, along with a few of his other team mates, came in for much criticism for their less than average performances. Steve Aschburner, wrote of Carter’s performance in that series against Boston, “Watching and waiting for Carter to properly rise to the occasion of the Eastern Conference finals is no different, really, than watching and waiting for Nate Robinson to finish another bounce-it-and-dunk-it move on All-Star Saturday. Pointless. A waste of time.”

And this really is the problem with Carter. He fails to switch on when his team needs him the most. He may be an eight time All-Star player, but when competing against other All-Star players – against Allen Iverson in the 2001 Eastern Conference Semifinals, or Dwayne Wade in the 2006 Eastern Conference Playoffs, against LeBron James in the 2007 Eastern Conference Playoffs or against Paul Pierce in the 2010 Eastern Conference Finals – he consistently comes up short. Case in point - for the 2009-10 Playoffs Carter’s 15.5 PPG were his worst playoff average ever.

Carter, currently at 19,679 points, is 321 short of the impressive 20,000 points mark. He is unlike an Iverson (24,368 points) who, despite never having won an NBA ring or his bad boy image, is remembered for his tenacity and never-say-die spirit. Neither is Carter close to becoming a Pierce (a recent entrant into the 20,000 points club), who, despite the many inglorious years with Boston, is recognized as a franchise player for the Celtics. To put it curtly, for someone on the cusp of making it to a most select group of players, Carter would perhaps be its least celebrated entrant.

In this season alone, Carter’s PPG average is down to 13.9 PPG from a career season average of 22.8 PPG. With the Magic scheduled to host the Miami Heat, a team to whom they lost the season’s previous encounter 70-96, in a few hours from now, a strong showing from Carter leading to an Orlando victory could still make for a new beginning for him and bring a lot more cheer to the moment ‘Vinsanity’ reaches 20,000 career points.

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Coming Into His Own
By Akshay Manwani November 22, 2010

Lamar Odom has long been a staple with the Los Angeles Lakers. But in 2010-11, he's meant more than ever.
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The L.A. Lakers, the defending NBA champs, are off to a solid start in the 2010-11 regular season. At a 12-2 season performance, they are only behind the New Orleans Hornets (11-1) and the San Antonio Spurs (also 11-1) in the Western Conference standings and are currently the best team in the Pacific Division.

Truth be told, not many had expected the Lakers to get off to this kind of a resounding start without the presence of Andrew Bynum, currently recovering from knee surgery, in their starting line-up. Neither had many expected Lamar Odom, the versatile forward of the Lakers, to step up and produce in the manner he has in Bynum’s absence.

For Odom, it’s been a great few months. During the summer, he won a gold medal with Team USA at the 2010 FIBA World Championship, becoming the first player in history to win both an NBA championship and FIBA Gold in the same year. He led the US team in rebounds at the tournament (69 rebounds over 9 games at 7.7 RPG) and showed himself to be a guide to some of the younger members on that team.

But Odom’s biggest contribution might just be what he’s given the Lakers in Bynum’s absence. Having averaged only 11.3 PPG and 10.8 PPG in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 season respectively, Lamar has upped that clip to 14.6 PPG in the few games the Lakers have played in the current season. He is shooting close to 58 percent from the floor – much more than his career average of 46.5 percent – and even his 3-point shooting stands at a much improved 52.6 percent from a career average of 31.7 percent.

Critics may point to the improved performances of the other Lakers’ players (Pau Gasol is averaging 22.4 PPG compared to a career average of 18.9 PPG, while Shannon Brown coming off the bench is giving the Lakers 10.7 PPG vis-à-vis a career average of 6.4 PPG) in filling up for Bynum. While there is no denying the enhanced contributions of these players, the point about Lamar is that not too very long ago, during the 2010 NBA finals, he was being criticized for his ordinary performance against a tenacious Boston outfit.

Not only has Odom’s scoring ability improved this season, but so has his rebounding capacity (up from a career ledger of 8.9 RPG to 10.6 RPG). Gasol may be playing centre in Bynum’s absence for the Lakers, but combining with Ron Artest, Odom has made the Lakers’ offense look more potent, a theory vindicated by the fact that in the first 13 games of this year’s regular season the Lakers are averaging a 112.2 PPG while their 82-game average for last year’s regular season was a distant 101.7 PPG.

In the 2009 off season, the Lakers paid a small fortune ($27 million with the chance to go as high as $33 million) to keep Odom with them for another four years. The reason for such a premium on a player who did not even figure in the Lakers’ starting line-up was that Odom gave the Lakers, despite his size, the ability to take the ball all the way to the basket and add to the outside (3-point) shooting prowess of the Lakers. And given that Odom is left-handed, it makes the job of guarding him all the more unfamiliar for opposition teams.

The Lakers are bound to get better once Andrew Bynum returns to the Lakers’ roster. Their regular season record, assuming all other players remain fit, will further improve from thereon. And if the Lakers make it to the 2011 playoffs as the team with the best regular season record, which would give them home court advantage right through to the finals, this improved contribution from Lamar Odom, early in the season, should surely not be missed.

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The Number Crunch
By Akshay Manwani November 17, 2010

One of the pinnacles of statistical complexity: Oscar Robertson notched 181 triple-doubles in his career.
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Indians love the game of cricket. It is, by far, our favourite sport. A sport which, with its wide array of statistics on offer, lends itself easily to another obsession of ours – numbers. Every time drawing room conversations hone in on a cricket game, statistics -- batting averages, strike-rates, dot balls, highest scores -- immediately dot the landscape of the discussion.

Which leads me to believe that the NBA with its equally significant, if not higher, emphasis on number crunching should be an instant hit with Indian audiences. From talking about points per game, to the number of rebounds -– offensive and defensive, to assists or steals per game -- the NBA should be a veritable treat for the Indian sporting buff. Here all kinds of records tumble every other night and new statistical highs are immediately received with much appreciation. A case in point – Kevin Love’s (of the Minnesota Timberwolves) recent 31-point, 31-rebound performance against the New York Knicks, which made him the first player since Moses Malone in 1982 to have a 30-30 game.

Here are some other numbers that have stood the test of time in the NBA:

3265 – The number of steals by John Stockton in his 19-year career with the Utah Jazz. The significance of that stat lies in the fact that other than Jason Kidd (currently at No. 4 with 2343 steals in the all time list), already a 16-year veteran in the League, there is no other active player in the top 10 list.

100 - The number of points scored by Wilt Chamberlain -- the most dominant centre in NBA history, according to most experts -- in a single NBA game. Chamberlain put up this virtuoso performance on March 2, 1962, against the New York Knicks. The closest any player has got to Wilt’s feat was when Kobe Bryant managed to post 81 points against the Toronto Raptors in 2006.

181 – The number of triple doubles (double-digits in three different stat categories in a game: usually points, rebounds and assists) achieved by the legendary Oscar Robertson, who played in the NBA between 1960 and 1974. At 138, Magic Johnson is a distant second in the All-time list of players with triple doubles, while Jason Kidd with 105 triple doubles is the only active player with more than 100 triple doubles.

3830 – The total number of blocks recorded by Hakeem Olajuwon over the course of his 18-year career in the NBA. Olajuwon who led the Houston Rockets to two back-to-back NBA titles in 1994 and 1995, averaged 3.09 blocks-per-game making him a defensive nightmare for most oppositions. Rightfully, he was a 5-time member of the NBA All-Defensive first Team (1987-1988, 1990, 1993-1994) and is 1140 blocks clear of Shaquille O’Neal, the only active player in the All-time top 10 list in this category.

186 – The number of points scored by Detroit Pistons in their triple-overtime win against the Denver Nuggets on December 13, 1983. The Nuggets lost by a narrow margin of two points, which has made the game’s aggregate tally of 370 points, the most in a single NBA game, a near impossible feat to achieve.

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The Number 70
By Akshay Manwani November 15, 2010

The bruising nature of the NBA, and the pounding players take night in and night out, make it nearly impossible to win 70 games over the course of a year.
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Fifteen years ago, during the 1995-1996 NBA regular season, the Chicago Bulls achieved the impossible.

By posting a regular season record of 70 plus wins (72-10), they became the first team in NBA history to cross the 70 wins mark. But that purpose of this article isn't to analyze that season or offer any further tribute to that Bulls team. The focus instead is on why, exactly, no other team has ever joined the Bulls in the 70-win club.

The NBA season is one of the most grueling sporting schedules in the world. The players have to partake in 82 league games, spread over five and a half months – approx. 165 days. That makes it one game every other day, with teams sometimes even having to play three back-to-back games on consecutive days. Then there is the prospect of playing half of those regular season games on the road, and if Boston has to play Los Angeles in LA the travel time by air alone, 5-6 hours, is as much time as it would take a person in Mumbai to get to Kenya. In contrast, footballers in the EPL, playing for one of the top four clubs, even after taking into account Champions League, FA Cup and Carling Cup matches, have only 60-65 games to play in a season that stretches for far longer, between mid August to mid May, over approximately 270 days.

All of this makes the NBA regular season an exhausting grind for the players, which makes it difficult even for the best teams to come out with their A game night in and night out. Champion performances have to give way to ordinary, amateur exhibitions, occasionally, in the face of such grueling physical odds.

Nevertheless, every few seasons one franchise threatens to match the Bulls’ record of 70 plus wins. The Lakers in 1999-2000, the Dallas Mavericks in 2006-07, the Boston Celtics in 2007-08 and the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2008-09 are but a few examples. Yet, despite the initial promise shown by all these teams in those seasons, they have all eventually run out of steam and fallen short of equaling Chicago’s ’95-’96 achievement. The Lakers and the Mavericks posted 67-15 regular season records, while both Boston and Cleveland had a 66-16 record to show for their efforts in 2007-08 and 2008-09 respectively.

In the current season, the Lakers and the New Orleans Hornets, until very recently, were the only two undefeated teams in the league. A lot of people expect the defending NBA champions Lakers, with their off-season acquisitions (Matt Barnes, Steve Blake) having made them a better outfit, to make a run at Chicago’s record. Yet, two consecutive defeats in their last two games, has made the Lakers’ task of getting to ‘Mount 70’ nearly impossible. On the other hand riding on All-Star point guard Chris Paul’s performance the Hornets have jumped to a an 8-0 start, making it the best ever start to a regular season in Hornets’ franchise history.

Are we in for an unexpected surprise this season, with the sprightly New Orleans Hornets emulating the legendary Chicago outfit from yore?

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The Highest Honor
By Akshay Manwani November 10, 2010

Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon, fierce competitors during their time in the NBA, are now immortalized forever with their teams.
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Among the many ways that the NBA celebrates its greatest players, the retirement of a player’s jersey by his franchise is perhaps the most special. From being voted in to a place on the annual All-Star team, to winning the league’s Most Valuable Player, the decision to put away a player’s jersey number is an immediate reminder of the individual’s importance to his former franchise.

In comparison, entry into the hallowed company of the Naismith Memorial Basketball of Fame, while establishing the player’s eminence for posterity, is more a celebration of individual excellence. It is why LeBron James, particularly after ‘Decision 2010’, is more likely to become a ‘Hall of Famer’, instead of having his jersey retired by a jilted Cleveland franchise.

In that context, here are a few names (players that I grew up watching) that have the pride of having their jerseys retired by the ball clubs they were once associated with:

Hakeem Olajuwon: They called him ‘The Dream’ back in Houston, for he played like one too. Standing tall at seven feet, he moved his feet with the grace of a ballerina. The only player in NBA history to have won MVP, Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season - 1994. He led the Houston Rockets to two consecutive titles, in 1994 and 1995, an achievement the Rockets recognized by retiring his jersey number 34, shortly after Hakeem bid adieu to the game.

Patrick Ewing: Ever the tenacious centre, Ewing led the New York Knicks’ quest for an NBA championship for 15 long seasons. An aggressive player on the court, Ewing was remembered by Magic Johnson for his genial personality as a member of the 1992 Dream Team. A visit to Madison Square Garden in New York shows jersey number 33 hanging proudly from the lofty heights that Ewing took his Knicks too.

Charles Barkley: Never mind the amount of fun everyone around the NBA makes of him, but Barkley was one of the game’s toughest competitors in his prime – from the late ’80s to mid ’90s. He is one of a handful of players in NBA history to record at least 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds and 4,000 assists in their career and both teams with which he spent his best years in the NBA – the Philadelphia 76ers (1984-1992) and the Phoenix Suns (1992-1996) have since retired his jersey (Number 34).

Clyde Drexler: Nicknamed ‘The Glide’, Drexler was the perfect illustration of an oxymoron – for he was always the affable adversary. He led the Portland Trailblazers, unsuccessfully, to the NBA Finals in 1990 against the Detroit Pistons and 1992 versus the Chicago Bulls, but was to taste NBA Championship success finally with his long time friend Hakeem Olajuwon in Houston in 1995. His jersey number 22 has since been retired by both the Trailblazers and the Rockets.

David Robinson: One of the nicest guys the NBA has ever seen, David was the backbone of the San Antonio Spurs for much of his years with that franchise (1989 – 2003). He scored more than 20,000 points over the course of his 14 year career and is one among only five players to record more than 70 points in a single game (with 71 points against the Los Angeles Clippers on April 24, 1994). David’s jersey number 50 was retired by the Spurs on November 10, 2003.

Reggie Miller: Perhaps the greatest clutch player of all time, Miller played all of his 18 seasons for the Indiana Pacers. Born with hip deformities, Miller overcame the challenges presented by his physical state of health to become one of the NBA’s leading scorers of all time (currently ranked 14th). He is also the league’s leading 3 point scorer of all time, having made as many as 2560 shots in his days with the NBA. Miller’s jersey number 31 has since been retired by the Indian Pacers.

John Stockton: Despite being the league’s all time leader in career assists (15806) and steals (3265), John Stockton never had an NBA ring to show for his stellar achievements as a player. He was a fierce competitor whose partnership with Karl Malone took the Utah Jazz to the cusp of NBA glory in 1997 and 1998, but on both occasions the Jazz were beaten by a more determined Chicago Bulls outfit. Stockton retired, after playing 19 consecutive seasons for the Utah Jazz, in 2003. His number-12 jersey was retired by the Jazz during a game in November 2004.

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Paul Pierce: One In 20,000
By Akshay Manwani November 8, 2010

Paul Pierce spent years in Boston before the Celtics joined the league's elite. Now, he's one of the all-time greats for one of the NBA's most historic franchises.
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Born on October 13, 1977, Paul Pierce grew up wanting to play for the LA Lakers. It was a time when Magic Johnson and his Lakers, with their brand of “Showtime” basketball became synonymous with success in the NBA (the Lakers won five titles between 1980 and 1988). The joy of watching the Lakers made an impact on the impressionable Pierce and he nursed a desire to join the team that represented his home state of California. Except that, since being drafted into the NBA in 1998, Paul has played for the Boston Celtics – a team that has shared a historic, and at times acrimonious, rivalry with the Lakers since the beginning of time (read the NBA). It’s what can happen to a Spanish kid, who grows up dreaming to represent Real Madrid, but ends up playing football for Barcelona instead.

And Pierce has grown into a franchise player in his time with the Celtics. Just last week, he became only the third player in Celtics’ history to cross the 20,000 career-points mark. Only John Havilcek (26,395) and Larry Bird (21,791) have more points for Boston than Pierce. The addition of Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen (in 2007) and Shaquille O’Neal (in 2010) may have given the Celtics a lot more star quality in recent times, but it is the presence of Pierce in the Boston roster that drives fans crazy.

Pierce’s numbers alone (20,015 points at 22.5 PPG) don’t tell his entire value. He is the book that ought not to be judged by its cover. For years he played for a Boston side that struggled to make it to the playoffs, doing so only in 2002 after a gap of seven years. Also, when Antoine Walker was traded out of Boston in 2004, Pierce carried the franchise single handedly, even bearing the ignominy of a 24-58 season in 2006-2007. There were rumours that he would be traded out of Boston in 2006 and for a player in the prime of his life, who had made it to five consecutive All-Star teams, between 2002 to 2006, money and a better team would have come at the snap of a finger. Yet, Pierce chose to stay on then and more recently (in July 2010) even committed himself to yet another four-year extension with the Celtics. Maybe there is a lesson in this for Wayne Rooney.

Players attain greatness not only by the numbers they put up on the scoreboard every game night but also by the strength of their character, which often becomes a rallying point for fans in hard times. It is why Patrick Ewing, despite never winning a championship over 15 seasons with the New York Knicks, had his jersey number 33 retired by the Knicks in 2003. It is why the name - Ryan Giggs - is mentioned with a reverential tone in the county of Greater Manchester, England.

In Pierce’s case, the desire to play for the Lakers was always there. In that context, perhaps Pierce even considered never playing for Boston, LA’s proverbial nemesis. Yet, by dedicating himself to Boston’s cause since the beginning of his NBA career, Pierce has proved that he had that rare quality of transcending personal desire.

They don’t make men like Pierce anymore.

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Respect For The Game Policy Brings Focus Back To Basketball
By Akshay Manwani November 3, 2010

Are the days of players like Rasheed Wallace berating officials over? Akshay Manwani hopes so.
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Rasheed Wallace’s exit from the NBA couldn’t have been better timed. With the NBA’s new Respect for the Game policy in place before the start of the 2010-11 season, Wallace, the league’s all-time leader in technical fouls, would have found the league a most unfriendly place.

Wallace, otherwise a multi-faceted player, endeared himself to public memory for his constant umbrage at officiating calls that didn’t go his way. In Rasheed’s absence, the NBA, eager not to let anyone inherit Wallace’s place as the League’s Resident Malcontent, proposed a no-nonsense policy toward player rants. What that means is that, effectively from the beginning of the current season, players are being called for technical fouls for overt gestures, such as punching the air, when an official’s call is not to their liking. Other examples of punishable offenses this season include:

• Waving off an official as a sign of disrespect
• Running up to an official from across the court
• Waving arms in disbelief, or jumping up and down in disbelief
• Clapping sarcastically at an official

And since each technical foul comes with a steep fine of USD 2000, the players, as it is unhappy about their curtailment of expression, are also crying ‘foul’ over the financial pinch they will be made to bear under the new policy.

Public opinion has been sharply divided. Steve Aschburner, writing for NBA.com, wrote that while nobody likes complainers, the new policy has gone a "tad too far. But the NBA seems bent on automating as many decisions as possible, too. Limiting personal exchanges or interactions with players is just one more step toward homogenizing every decision in every town, every night," wrote Aschburner in his assessment of the League’s proposed new policy.

Fran Blinebury though, also writing on NBA.com, had a diametrically opposite view, saying players ought to shut up and just play the game. "Every night brings another round of reports about outrage because several more referees did not allow several more players to strut like peacocks on amphetamines or throw a public snit,” wrote Blinebury, taking a critical view of all the howling and growling that players indulge in each time an official blows his whistle.

As for my own two bits, I tend to side with Mr. Blinebury. The NBA is one of the best officiated sports, compared to any other sport played anywhere else in the world. The players are not allowed to argue or swear at officials, a sight which regularly and quite disappointingly plays itself out in a sport like football or baseball. If a player wants to crib or complain, he is better served by enlisting the services of a time machine which allows him the luxury of going back in time to the age when such behaviour could be excused for being associated with a toddler.

And for all those arguments that a little bit of player emotion fuels spectator interest, I only ask that between watching Kevin Garnett hounding an official over a supposedly bad call and Ray Allen quietly hitting a pair of back to back three pointers, which of the two situations is more likely to have the fans on their feet?

A sportswriter, Rahul Bhattacharya, writing this time about cricket, might have summed it up perfectly:, “There is only so much trouble everybody can stomach. And it certainly cannot be justified by some artistic ideal of being able to observe the panorama of human character unfold before you. I suppose there is life itself for that.”

In a nutshell, the ‘Respect for the game’ comes at a most opportune time. Rasheed’s antics R.I.P.

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Jordan, The Knicks and My Favourite Game
By Akshay Manwani November 1, 2010

With the Bulls and Knicks battling for a spot in the 1992 NBA Finals and the world watching, Michael Jordan took over.
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Reliving a classic NBA moment is always an exhilarating exercise, but when those moments are penned by NBA.com’s very own writing team it makes the affair even more special. Whether it was Aschburner serving up his favorite moment or Shaun Powell sizing up the impact of the Bird-Thompson play, the effect, a mix of nostalgia and an appreciation of the game’s history, was 100 percent sublime. And after reading those, I couldn't help but write about my own favorite moment, from among the very many that had given me goose bumps over the years.

This goes back to the 1992 playoffs when the Chicago Bulls were reigning NBA champions. Led by Michael Jordan and his ever-dependable lieutenant Scottie Pippen, the Bulls had an unmistakable swagger. After putting up a 67-15 record in the regular season, a 3-0 whitewash of the Miami Heat in the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs only confirmed the belief that a second consecutive NBA championship was theirs for the taking. Most expected a similar fate to befall the Bulls’ next round opponents – the New York Knicks. Except that the Knicks didn’t roll over.

Playing a brand of basketball that was at once physical and intimidating, the Knicks’ players -- Xavier McDaniel, Charles Oakley, John Starks, Anthony Mason and Patrick Ewing -- gave no inch to their more illustrious opponents. Over the course of the series, Jordan was given a bloody nose, Pippen had his chin bandaged, John Paxson suffered a cut on his arm while Bill Cartwright and Horace Grant were repeatedly, and quite literally, brought down to earth. There was a genuine fear among Chicago fans that their team, firm favorites to win a second title, would be beaten by a hungrier and more aggressive New York side.

And yet Jordan and his Bulls managed to weather the storm and take the series to a decisive seventh game, which, given their better regular season record, was played in Chicago. Jordan, keen to stamp his greatness on the outcome of this game, was aggressive from the tip-off. There were nearly half a dozen pull up jump shots that hit nothing but net and a dizzying spin move executed on a hapless Gerald Wilkins that left fans in the United Centre giddy with excitement. Towards the end of the first quarter, he even exchanged words with Xavier McDaniel, which although it resulted in technical fouls being called on both players, had the raucous approval of the fans at the United Centre.

But in spite of Jordan’s heroics, the Knicks refused to go away. Until midway through the third quarter they remained within six points of the Bulls’ score. Perhaps it was this refusal on part of the Knicks to disappear quietly into the night that led Jordan to conjure one final act of genius.

With the score in Chicago’s favour at 65-59 and under five minutes left to play in the third quarter, Pippen inbounded a pass to Jordan, who in a blur, first split the Charles Oakley-John Starks double team on him and then used his exaggerated hang time in air to beat McDaniel and score a bucket. That play was enough to bring the crowd to their feet as they revelled in yet another Jordan heroic. The other Bulls’ players too appeared frozen in the moment as they acknowledged their leader’s virtuosity. But Jordan, ever alert, far removed from all the adulation coming his way, was not done yet.

In a flash, he stole Oakley’s attempted pass to Starks to score a quick basket, and even though McDaniel stole the ball right back from him the next possession, Jordan chased McDaniel down to the Bulls’ end of the court and at the opportune moment, without committing a foul, rejected McDaniel’s own attempt at a shot. It was the most seamless combination of Jordan’s genius, presence of mind and never-say-die-attitude, and perhaps the best advertisement of his prowess on both ends of the floor. That it came with McDaniel at the receiving end of Jordan’s ability made it even more extra special. Watching that play, even today, gives me goose bumps.

After that, the Bulls never looked back. They pulled away and inflicted a 29-point defeat (110-81) on the Knicks to win the Eastern Conference Semifinals 4-3. And Jordan’s play, every second of it a piece of sporting memorabilia, had proved to be the defining act on the night. And the only real description of that play came from Earvin Johnson, who, while commentating on television, would exclaim, "Whose game is it? It’s Michael Jordan’s game!"

It was a fitting tribute from Magic to a magical sequence of basketball.

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Why I Love This Game (and why you should, too)
By Akshay Manwani October 27, 2010

Thanks to the 27 points from Kobe Bryant, one of the most dangerous scorers in the history of the NBA, the Lakers were able to surge from behind and win their season-opener.
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The NBA isn’t for the faint of heart.

No matter how out-of-reach a game looks, no matter how mis-matched two teams can appear coming into the game, you can never – never – be sure of the outcome of the game until it’s finally over and done with. Yes, Akshay, you’ll say, but isn’t that the case with any sport? Sure, but in no other sport in the world do fortunes change so dramatically, so often (even every few seconds!), without there being an element of conclusiveness to it.

Just take a look at the games on the opening night of the 2010-11 NBA season. In the premiere match-up of the night, the Boston Celtics led the Miami Heat by as many as 19 points at one stage. But with 70 seconds left to play in the game, Miami looked to steal the game from right under Boston’s nose, coming within three points of the Celtics before the hosts pulled away at the very end.

Or how about the game between the LA Lakers and the Houston Rockets, where the Rockets, who led for most of the game, were upstaged by the defending champions in the final half of the 4th quarter and lost by only two points? And witness the Phoenix Suns against the Portland Trailblazers, which played itself out like a seesaw until the home team (Portland) made a decisive run in the fourth quarter to emerge winners.

But what is it about these games gives them their edginess, the sheer unpredictability, that’s missing in most sports around the globe?

Firstly, a game of basketball is not about ball possession, which, like in football, can see your team go without the ball for what seems like hours at a time. Instead, basketball plays itself out like a game of chess, where every move or play made by one team is followed by a counter-move or play by the opposition side. Except, unlike chess, it’s all happening instantaneously and executed by some of the best athletes on the planet.

Every basket scored or every missed play automatically brings the opposition back into the picture. It is a debate, a crucible in which the sparring entities must outwit each other through a series of arguments and counter arguments played out by their offensive and defensive routines.

These exchanges between the two sides are also time-bound. Every play has to be made within the restrictions of the 24-second shot clock. In that sense, every 24-second play becomes a miniature battle of the 48-minute war that the two sides are eager to win. In no other sport is time of such essence.

Finally – and lucky for us – basketball puts a premium on big plays. Take the three-point-shot, awarded for attempts made from beyond the the arc around the basket. Such incentive imbues some players, more than others, with an inherent air of excitement (or doom – depending upon which side you support) about them that accompanies the ball coming into their hands.

These players, like Reggie Miller in the past and Ray Allen in the present, can change the course of the game in the proverbial blink of an eye with their deadly accuracy from behind the arc. Miller (the NBA’s all-time leading 3-point scorer) once scored eight points, six of which came from behind the 3-point line, in the final 11 seconds of Game 1 of the 1995 Eastern Conference semifinals to give his Indiana Pacers an improbable 107-105 victory over the New York Knicks.

Simply put, never mind the nerves, and let yourself fall in love with this game.

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Doc Knows Best
By Akshay Manwani October 25, 2010

In his four years playing under Rivers, Rajon Rondo has blossomed into one of the game's top point guards.
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Sometime early last week, Boston Celtics fans across the world heaved a collective sigh of relief. The reason for their pre-season anxiety? Doc Rivers, Boston’s head coach, had undergone a biopsy for cancerous lesions on his throat. Then came the news that the lesions were cancer-free and Rivers’ family, well-wishers and fans alike breathed a whole lot easier.

Make no mistake about it, of all the good things that happened to the Celtics this past summer – the returns of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Nate Robinson and additions of Shaquille O’Neal and Jermaine O’Neal – it was Rivers’ decision to pledge another year in Boston that matters most to the team’s fortunes. His presence is why, Art Garcia writes on NBA.com, the C’s were able to keep their older players together for one more run.

Rivers is not the kind of larger-than-life coach the NBA fan has been accustomed to seeing in the last 20-30 years. He is not Phil Jackson, the NBA’s most successful coach in terms of championships (11), a man who epitomizes calm in the eye of the storm. Where Rivers can be heard screaming himself hoarse even when his team are up 20 points, Jackson is seldom seen in an animated state, even when his team are perilously close of throwing away a hard-earned advantage.

Neither is he Pat Riley, the slick-looking, glib-talking head coach of the Championship-winning LA Lakers in the ’80s and Miami Heat in 2006. Or Greg Popovich or Jerry Sloan – men whose presence by the sidelines is enough to drive their respective teams, San Antonio Spurs and Utah Jazz, into giving a complete 100 percent each time they step out on to the floor.

Instead, in Rivers one finds the reassuring presence of an elder brother on the sidelines. A man who hasn’t stopped emphasizing the power of the collective since the Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce teamed up to constitute the original ‘Big three’ in 2007. It is this philosophy that makes a clashing of egos in the Celtics locker room, even with the addition of two former All-Star players (Shaq and Jermaine O’Neal) a possibility about as likely as snow in the Sahara.

Rivers has shown, time and time again, that he has what it takes to improve this Boston team and motivate them to perform up to their potential. Under Rivers' guidance, point guard Rajon Rondo, who initially came off the bench in his rookie season for Boston in 2006-07, has now expanded the Celtics’ core to make it the ‘Big 4’. All through the 2010 NBA playoffs, Rivers kept predicting that Nate Robinson was a performance away from winning a game for the Celtics, and Robinson did just that when he produced 13 points in a single quarter to help the Celtics past the Orlando Magic in Game 6 of the 2010 Eastern Conference Finals.

But the best example of Rivers’ belief in his team was the gauntlet that he threw before them following the win over the Lakers in LA on February 18, 2010. Rivers demanded $100 each from Boston's players, coaching staff, and even team managers. He stuffed the dough in an envelope, and told his team that they can have the money back the next time they play the Lakers inside the Staples Center. Since this was the team’s only game inside the Staples Center during the 2009-2010 regular season, the only way the Boston players were going to recover that money is if they made it to the NBA Finals, some 3 1/2 months later. It is exactly the kind of strategy Jose Mourinho, who paraded his Champions League medal won with Porto in front of the Chelsea football team on his first day as their coach in 2004, used to bring the best out of his team.

As the clock winds down on Boston’s opening game of the 2010-11 season against the Miami Heat, the Celtics’ players and fans would be happy to see a fit and healthy Rivers herald their fortunes from just in front of the team bench. The sight of Rivers, dressed in a jacket and tie, breaking into a flurry of instructions and encouragement for each of the game's 48 minutes, could be just what the Doctor ordered if the Celtics are to win their 18th NBA championship this season.

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Let the Games Begin
By Akshay Manwani October 21, 2010

The King has more than enough firepower, with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, but does he have enough magic to lead the Heat to their second NBA title in 2010-11?
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Never mind the difference in time zones. Never mind the enormity of the geographical distance between the two countries. Never mind the fact that the sport itself is nowhere near cricket, by far the number one sport in India.

Never mind all of that -- the 2010-11 NBA season can’t start soon enough for Indian basketball fans. This, after a hectic summer of transfers in the NBA that saw a handful of superstars change teams, altering the DNA of their past and current rosters and the league as a whole for at least the next 5-6 years.

More than anything, fans in this part of the world are eager to see what the trio of Dwayne Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh can do for the Miami Heat. Will every regular season game be a formality for? Isn’t a second Championship win guaranteed for the franchise with a troika of talent who could easily snatch the lead roles in a celluloid flick titled ‘The Invincibles’? Or will Pat Riley’s stellar efforts suffer the fate of several other blockbuster productions that sink in the absence of an adequate supporting cast?

Three other teams in the Eastern Conference that have a buzz about them are the New York Knicks, the Chicago Bulls and a revitalized Boston Celtics.

The Knicks landed Amar’e Stoudamire from the Phoenix Suns, and with him at the front, made their best pitch to land LeBron – only to watch King declare on national television that he’d be “taking [his] talents to South Beach.” Nonetheless, the inclusion of Amar’e to the Knicks’ ranks would go a long way in improving their 2009-10 regular season record of 29-53 and might even entice Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony to head to New York the when their contracts expire at the end of the season.

Not since the Michael Jordan era ended in 1998 have the Bulls had a Championship to cheer about, after six NBA titles in the 1990’s. But with the franchise pulling a few proverbial rabbits out of the magician’s hat, the Bulls might just return to the glory days sometime soon.

First up was the induction of Tom Thibodeau, the man credited with building Boston’s stellar defensive unit of the past few seasons, as the new head coach of the franchise. Then with LeBron turning down Chicago’s overtures, the Bulls landed Carlos Boozer and Kyle Korver from Utah Jazz. The addition of Boozer – who will be out of the lineup until at least late-November with a broken hand – and Krover to a young Bulls’ outfit that already boasts names like Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson and Luol Deng, gives their fans every reason to be optimistic about their team’s chances at playoff time next year.

When the Boston Celtics lost the 2010 NBA finals in seven games, watching their bitter-rival Los Angeles Lakers claim their 17th NBA Championship, a dirge seemed in order for Boston’s basketball future. Rumors sprung up about the possibility of Ray Allen bidding adieu to the Celtics, of head coach Doc Rivers taking a sabbatical and of Danny Ainge, President of Celtics’ basketball operations, spending the next 3-4 years rebuilding the franchise. But then Ainge went to work and refashioned a team that kept Rivers at the helm; held onto the Big Three of Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett; features a precocious Rajon Rondo and the ‘Shrek and Donkey’ combine of Glen Davis and Nate Robinson; and added the physical presence of Shaquille O’Neal and Jermaine O’Neal. Would Queen’s ‘We are the Champions’ be on the lips of the Celtics fans at the end of the 2011 NBA finals?

But if the Eastern Conference was in a state of flux, the Western Conference had an air of continuity to it.

Nothing characterized this stability more than rising star Kevin Durant’s 5-year contract extension with the Oklahoma City Thunder, veteran Dirk Nowitzki’s decision to re-sign with the Dallas Mavericks and the ageless Derek Fisher’s willingness to take a pay cut and stay put with the LA Lakers.

Regardless of the upheaval in the Eastern Conference – with Miami, Chicago and Boston looking like championship-caliber squads – the might of Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, Ron Artest and Pau Gasol remains with the Lakers, and it would take the mind of a lunatic with the pocket of a millionaire to bet against LA from making a Championship run.

That said, let the games begin.