A writer and an NBA junkie, Karan works in communications for the Basketball Federation of India (BFI). He's also the writer of the blog Hoopistani, your source for Basketball, India, Philosophy, and everything else in between. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter. All season long, Karan will provide a weekly look at the NBA, touching on everything we've missed and filling you in on everything you need to know. NBA India Blog: Karan MadhokThe International Basketball Association By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani June 25, 2011 No. 1. Born in Australia, Australian/American. No. 2. American. No. 3. Born in Switzerland, Turkish. No. 4. Canadian No. 5. Lithuanian No. 6. Czech No. 7. Congolese. The list above isn’t a directory of the attendants at a United Nations Convention; it’s the origin and nationalities of the first seven names called yesterday at the NBA Draft. The NBA is by far the most competitive, exciting, and talented basketball league in the world. The acronym stands for ‘National Basketball Association’, although the league is technically internationally-based, since one of the 30 teams in the NBA is Canadian (Toronto Raptors). Still, the NBA is mostly an American operation, but one that also features some of the best international talent from around the world. Now look at that list again: six of the first seven players picked in the draft -- meaning, six of the first seven players who NBA franchises will place their faith on to lead them into the future -- were born outside the United States. Granted that most experts considered this to be one of the weaker draft in recent years, but its still a great accomplishment by a number of international players to be picked so high. The NBA has long been making the transition to becoming a more international league, with overseas talent playing a bigger and bigger role in shaping the league’s future, but the last 12 months have sent the most powerful message to hoop lovers worldwide. The teams in the NBA might be (mostly) American, but the players comprising and slowly dominating this league are from all the corners of the world. At the beginning of the 2010-11 season, the NBA opened with a record 84 international players. The most-hyped player added to any team’s roster this off-season was a belated signing from the 2009 draft, as Spanish wonder-kid Ricky Rubio finally joined the Minnesota Timberwolves. The current draft featured players who have made their journey via Australia, Turkey, Switzerland, Canada, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Congo, Belgium, Serbia, Montenegro, Spain, Latvia, Brazil, Croatia, France, Germany, Georgia, and Hungary. The question with international players in the NBA wasn’t about whether or not they can contribute to a team, but even that perception has been changed by the likes of former international MVPs Hakeem Olajuwan, Steve Nash, Finals MVPs Tony Parker and Dirk Nowitzki. Even Tim Duncan, who has won everything in sight and is considered of the greatest power forwards to play the game, was born in the US Virgin Islands. Outside the realm of its NBA-playing cities in North America, the league has spread itself to across Europe, South America, Africa, and Asia via game broadcasts, merchandise sales, grassroots programmes, NBA player visits, and exhibition games. Earlier this year, the Nets and the Raptors made history by playing the first two regular season games outside of North America, in London. The phenomenal growth of the league has spread to India, too, where the league has more fans than ever. The NBA.com/India website, NBA Mahindra Challenge and Jr. NBA/WNBA events, jersey sales, visits from over a dozen players in the last few years, and better TV broadcast has helped achieve this. Still, there's no secret that the apex of basketball playing and coaching talent as well as marketability lies in America: For every Dirk Nowitzki, there are a dozen LeBrons, Kobes, Wades, Kobes, Dwights, and Roses. Team USA, comprising of American NBA stars, are the gold medal winners of both the Olympic Basketball Tournament and the FIBA World Championship. But times are certainly changing - and with the influx of great young international talent, mixed with the global popularity of the league, the NBA is truly becoming an International Basketball Association. Help Wanted By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani June 23, 2011 Quick! Think of the first five NBA teams that come to your mind: Chances are, apart from your personal favourite, you will immediately blurt out the first teams you remember from your recent memory. Mavericks. Heat. Bulls. Thunder. Lakers. Success has its many perks, and one of them is that, as the post-season moves on and teams get eliminated, the concerns of the ones left behind leave us behind, too. This is also the time of the year that teams begin thinking and preparing for the next season, using the draft as a vehicle to make trades and upgrade their roster. So in honour of upgrades and the unfortunate teams who have been absent from our collective memories for the past few months, let’s talk about how the league’s worst four teams from last season will be hoping to fill their needs and improve for the next season. Minnesota Timberwolves (2010-11 record: 17-65): It’s crazy to think that a team looking so stacked with promise had the league’s worst record in 2010-11. For the Wolves, the strength lies in the front court: They have a double-double machine in Kevin Love, who should surely remain as the cornerstone of this young franchise. In Michael Beasley, their other forward, they have a talented pure scorer, and in Darko Milicic they have a serviceable starting center. This season, the Wolves will have their point guard issues solved with one more belated visitor. Drafted two years ago, Spanish 20-year-old phenom Ricky Rubio finally signed a contract with the Timberwolves and made his way to Minnesota last week. With this young, intelligent, and hugely talented floor leader pulling the strings, the Wolves can hope to reward their fans with some exciting play. With nicely-developing shooting guard Wesley Johnson on the side, the starting five of the team looks solid. The Wolves have the second pick in the draft, and it is looking likely that they will pick up combo-forward Derrick Williams, who's quicker than the average power forward, and bigger than the usual small forward. Yes, they are stacked up front, but this pick could be useful in trading in for some talented bench players to add some depth to their promising young starting lineup. Cleveland Cavaliers (2010-11 record: 19-63): What a wild ride this is – the Cavs had the league’s best record for two straight years, only to lose LeBron James and post up the league’s second-worst record last season. Lucky for them, they could bounce back to credibility immediately, as they will be choosing the first and fourth picks of the draft and adding two young stars to their squad. The Cavs roster, unfortunately, is filled with holes, all of which need addressing. With point guard Kyrie Irving looking like a lock at the first pick, the Cavs will have the luxury of trading their other asset in the same position, Baron Davis, to bring in some depth or talent in another position. Meanwhile, with the fourth pick, they should bring a young big player who can develop under the tutelage of JJ Hickson, Anderson Varejao, and Antawn Jamison. Toronto Raptors (2010-11 record: 22-60): The two things needed most in Toronto are leadership and defense. Former Number One pick Andrea Bargnani has mostly been a disappointment, but can figure to be a good role player if the team can find another number one option. This could be forward DeMar DeRozan or someone they pick in the draft. The Raptors have a brand new coach Dwane Casey, who has been preaching defense and toughness ever since his appointment, and should look to draft (they have the fifth pick) or trade for someone who will be willing to lead from the defensive end of the floor. Washington Wizards (2010-11 record: 23-59): Another team with a promising future and a starting lineup that looks (almost) set for the next season. Look for last year’s top pick John Wall to develop into a better floor leader this year and be a superstar for this Wizards side. He will be assisted by dependable big men Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee. The Wizards have too many talented but inconsistent players in the team, such as Nick Young, Jordan Crawford, Rashard Lewis, and China’s Yi Jianlian. It will be imperative for them to do a little roster clean-up, giving up several of their ‘average’ players for one good one. They hold the sixth pick in the draft, and should look to add a talented swingman or a back-up big man from the draft to beef up their roster. Season Review: The Highs & Lows By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani June 17, 2011 I find myself in a dark and empty place. The NBA season is over, and after spending the better part of the last eight months waking up at random hours of the morning to catch up on the live games, or spending my days thinking and writing about every nook or cranny of the league, or enjoying the ultimate dream as a basketball fan – watching NBA games in person, including the All Star Weekend, and meeting some of my favourite NBA players – I now face the ultimate existential crisis. The season is over. So, what else is there to do? It was indeed one of the most remarkable seasons in recent memory, and it ended with the Dallas Mavericks going on a dream run to lift their first-ever NBA Championship trophy. But before we close the chapters on a historic year of basketball, I thought this would be a perfect time to look back at some of the highs and the lows, recalling the best and the worst moments for me as a fan of the 2010/11 season. Low: The Cavaliers drop off the basketball stratosphere - For the previous two seasons, the Cleveland Cavaliers, led by two-time MVP LeBron James, were the best regular-season team in basketball. When LeBron decided to ditch them for sunnier pastures in Miami, the Cavs fell off – hard! Cleveland finished the season winning just 19 games, worst in the Eastern Conference, suffering an incredible 42-game drop from last year. High: A Rose Blooms in Chicago - In just his third season as a pro, Derrick Rose quickly grew into a basketball superstar and carried the weight of the defense-first Bulls on his shoulders. Chicago surprised everyone in the regular season and finished with the best record in the league. Averaging 25 points a game, Rose was named MVP, becoming the youngest in league history to be given that honour. But neither he nor his team could keep the momentum going in the playoffs, where they lost to the more talented and experienced stars of the Miami Heat. Low: Lakers disappoint in playoffs - After the two-time defending champions entered the season with another strong squad, they earned the benefit to the doubt – whenever the Lakers played poorly or half-heartedly this season, we pretended that once the playoffs begin, they would somehow ‘turn it on’ and go on a winning run to complete their three-peat. It was of course not to be. The Lakers were still good enough to be second in the West, but once the playoffs began, the talented squad seemed to lose the edge it had had over its opponents in the past. The Lakers struggled against the Hornets and were swept mercilessly by the Mavs. On the way, they saw some inexcusable conduct by Andrew Bynum, saw Pau Gasol pull a disappearing act and ended the career of one of the all-time greatest coaches in basketball, Phil Jackson, in an anti-climatic fashion. High: Dirk and Kidd finally win a title - Facing allegations that he wilted in the biggest moments, despite his extraordinary skill, Dirk Nowitzki finally reached the promised land after 13 years of toil with the Dallas Mavericks. He did it in impressive fashion too, sweeping the defending champions Lakers on the way and stepping up against LeBron James and Dwyane Wade in the Finals. His point guard, Jason Kidd, also got rewarded with his first title after 17 years in the league. Both are future Hall of Fame players, and both of them will now have a ring in their resume. Low: Everybody Hates Bron - He went from a media darling to the media’s whipping boy – LeBron James had a season of both the highs and the lows. He made a historical “superteam” with Wade and Bosh in Miami, but in the controversial decision to leave Cleveland and the controversial “Decision” show that he used to announce his choice left fans with a bitter taste. Every loss for the Miami was equivalent to five losses for another team, and every molehill was made into a mountain. LeBron kept fighting through it though, but after an inspired run in the playoffs, he was finally stopped in the Finals by a tougher opponent and by his own inability. With our standards and expectations at an all-time high for James, anything less than a championship season, especially in a talented team like the Miami Heat, will be considered a low. Talent, Redefined By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani June 15, 2011 At the top of the basketball pinnacle, seconds after holding the NBA Championship trophy, Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle ‘complimented’ his winning team with these words: “This is a true team. We don’t run fast or jump high. These guys have each other’s back. This is a phenomenal group.” Wait a second – something about what Carlisle just said sounds terribly, terribly wrong, doesn’t it? No, not the part about the Mavs being a ‘true team’, or being a group of guys having ‘each other’s back’. No I mean these specific words: “We don’t run fast or jump high.” The Mavericks are the 2011 NBA Champions, the kings of the toughest league in the sport of basketball, and their coach, the person behind their growth into victors, admits that his side isn’t particularly good that the two things that form some of the basic building-blocks of success in basketball: speed and athletic ability. Near-unstoppable, I repeat, because obviously, the “slow running” and “low jumping” Mavs somehow figured out a way to win the series. Everyone kept saying that in Wade and James, the Heat had the two most “talented” players in the Finals. The most outrageous statements of them all came via Scottie Pippen, formerly the running-buddy of basketball’s near-unanimous “greatest-ever”, Michael Jordan. After the Heat took care of Pippen’s Bulls and dominated MVP Derrick Rose, Pippen went on a radio show and claimed: “Michael Jordan is probably the greatest scorer to play the game, but I may go as far as to say LeBron James may be the greatest player to ever play the game.” “Best all-round talent”; “Greatest player”; “Chosen One”: The superlatives kept coming for James; Meanwhile, his counterpart on the Mavs, Dirk Nowitzki, despite getting appreciated for his talents, never received the same type of adulation, and the reason behind that was that Nowitzki succeeded via a more old-school skill-set, sharp-shooting and his savvy, whereas James succeeded on his strength, his speed and his ability to jump really, really high. We all know now what happened in the Finals. Nowitizki put up an MVP performance, averaging 27 points and 9.4 rebounds per game, hitting countless clutch shots and especially showing up heroically on a fever-ridden night. On the other hand, James shrank away, averaging much lower than his season average in the Finals, and shrinking spectacularly in the crunch time moments. James TOTALLED 18 points in the six fourth quarters of the series, averaging just three points in the fourth quarter per game. He was passive, he didn’t get to the free throw line, and he was a defensive liability during several key moments. Is that who we call the ‘most talented’? Is that who someone with great basketball perspective – Scottie Pippen – called the ‘greatest player ever’? I think the Finals offer us an opportunity to redefine what we describe as ‘talent’. If Carlisle’s Mavs, led by Dirk, could do it without jumping particularly high or running particularly fast, then ‘talent’ is something else. ‘Talent’ is not just to be a good athlete but to know exactly when to use the full potential of your talents. ‘Talent’ is the ability to figure out a way to win, no matter what the situation. ‘Talent’ is playing as a team, and being there for your teammates. The Miami Heat have players who can run fast and jump high. The Dallas Mavericks have talent. Look Ahead: The Knockout Punch By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani June 9, 2011 No, we’re not patients in a war hospital. We’re talking about NBA players currently battling for the biggest prize, the NBA championship, who are now in the final stretch of a testing, grueling NBA season. By the time Game 4 was over, both the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks had played their 101st competitive game of the NBA season. With the series tied at 2-2, both of them have two or three more to go, two or three final efforts that could enshrine their effort this year into immortality or limit them to an afterthought. And this being the final stretch of the year, neither team is holding anything back. The two Finals MVP candidates so far – Dirk Nowitzki and Dwyane Wade – have been particularly inspirational. Nowitzki shrugged off a high fever for a heroic performance in Game 4, while Wade has been playing through nerve damage in his left shoulder and averaging a series high 29.8 points per game. But these are the Finals, and in the NBA Finals, pain is nothing but a reminder that you’re still battling, still active. This is the time of the year that NBA players hope to prime themselves for, the time of the year that Wade, Nowitzki, Shaun Marion, Brendan Haywood, Mike Miller, and Chris Bosh ignore their respective niggles, because this is it, this is the final stretch, the last lap. Wade himself said it best after Nowitzki’s amazing performance despite a high fever. “Everyone is injured at this time. “I’m not going to get into the fun-loving story of him being sick, either. Once you show up on the court, you show up on the court. Everyone is equal.” Indeed, once you’re on the court, you’re on. It’s now a best-of-three series, with Game 5 to be played in Dallas on Thursday night (Friday morning in India), Game 6 on Sunday night (Monday morning), and a Game 7, if necessary, on Tuesday night (Wednesday morning). Little has separated these two sides so far – they have alternated wins and have both won on the opposition’s home court. And with so little to tell between them, the line between celebration and heartbreak gets thinner. The finish line is near: in less than a week, we will see someone lift up the Larry O’Brien trophy. This isn’t a time to sit back and nurse your injuries – it’s the time to lick your wounds, stand up again, and deliver the knockout punch. It’s the time to crown a new champion. Supporting Casts By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani June 7, 2011 The NBA Finals, if anything, are one hell of a great story. Before the curtains parted, we, as the audience, brought with ourselves certain preconceptions of the characters from the previous stories about them. On one side were the Miami Heat, led by three ultra-protagonists, three All-Stars attempting to lead a top-heavy squad to a happy ending. But the audience also knew that the Heat’s weakness was their supporting cast – with barely any production from the rest of the crew, the three All Stars would have to provide most of the drama themselves. The Mavericks, on the other hand, were a very different team. They had just one marquee All-Star, just one actor who was still in his prime, but he was surrounded by the perfect set of supporting roles that money could buy. Who needed three great names when you had a long list of talented good ones? We, the audience, have now witnessed three Acts of a possible seven, and as the show reaches intermission, we suddenly realise that our preconceptions about the characters could be wrong. So far, it seems like the supporting cast around the lead stars in each team have reversed roles. The Mavericks’ squad, successful because of their strength in depth, seems to be faltering because of the inability of that same depth to rise above their conflict: a tricky Miami defense. “We’re a team where it may take seven guys scoring four points or more,” said Rick Carlisle, the Mavs coach, of his team. Before the Finals began, the Mavs had just one all star in Nowitzki but he was ably supported by a large number role-players who do their job well, including Jason Kidd, DeShawn Stevenson, Tyson Chandler, Shawn Marion, Jason Terry, JJ Barea, and Peja Stojakovic. At different points in the playoffs, all of these players stepped up to provide leadership, defense, rebounding, 3-point shooting, and late-game clutchness to help the Mavs reach the stage they are at now. For Dirk Nowitzki, who is averaging 28.3 points per game, the Finals must be feeling like he has mostly been in a monologue. Perhaps the most blame falls upon Jason Terry, who is expected to carry most of the Mavs’ scoring load after the high-scoring German. But apart from the eight crucial points in an amazing Game 2 rally, Terry has struggled to play with the confidence that he is famous for. With LeBron James defending him, Terry was shut down in the fourth quarters of both Games 1 and 3, both losses for the Mavs. Then there’s their other bench spark-plug, JJ Barea, who was one of the biggest surprises in this post-season. After impressive play against the Lakers and the Thunder, Barea has only made 5-23 shots against Miami. The other major drop in production has been from Peja Stojakovic, who has only made 1-5 shots in the three games and has been a defensive liability. Even the evergreen Jason Kidd hasn’t stepped up to the plate in the Finals as expected. The second-best player for the Mavs has been Shawn Marion, who seems to be the only one other than Nowitzki showing consistency in this series. Marion has been scoring well, and along with DeShawn Stevenson, has done a great job in containing LeBron James so far. Meanwhile, the Heat’s support crew is coming alive just when their stars needed them the most. Now that Udonis Haslem is back from his almost-season-long injury, he has been a menace on defense, and also contributed with important rebounds and points. Joel Anthony may have only scored two points in the three games, but he has been playing at the highest defensive level of his career. Mario Chalmers has been Miami’s best bench producer, giving his team 11 points a game. And even Mike Bibby who has struggled with his shot during the playoffs had a big performance in Game 2. LeBron James (20.3 ppg) has been playing mostly a support role and Chris Bosh (16.3 ppg) has struggled with his shot (until the winner in Game 3). This has laid out a script similar to what we saw in the Finals five years ago: Dwyane Wade has emerged once more as the Heat's top option, 29 points per game in the series. Overall, Miami’s Big 3 are still carrying most of the scoring load, but they have found some relief from the play of their other guys. The audience has noticed this curious twist in the tale: the actors are the same, but their roles have changed. In Miami, we’ve seen the bench step up to take the load off their superstars; in Dallas, we’ve seen the superstar provide the inspiration that he’s expected to provide, but his crew hasn’t been consistently behind him. Intermission is over and the second half is about to begin. And as the climax of our story nears, the audience will sit back and wonder what they should expect from their characters – because what they do now will determine the conclusion and who will go home with the happy ending. Hot/Cold: Who has elevated their game in the playoffs? And who has fallen off? Fresh Jalebi Hot: Dwyane Wade – The NBA Finals seem to be Wade's playground. After averaging over 34 ppg en-route to the 2006 Finals MVP, Wade looks primed to repeat the act. In the three 2011 Finals games so far, Wade has averaged 29 points, 8.7 rebounds, and five assists with 57 percent shooting from the field. More than the numbers though, he has been a tough leader for the Heat on the court and orchestrated two big fourth-quarter performances in the two wins. Frosty Kulfi Cold: JJ Barea - Everything is at a bigger stage in the NBA Finals - every correct play is highlighted and celebrated and every mistake shows a big blotch. After wowing fans in the past two series, Barea has been largely annonymous against Miami in the Finals. Many Dallas fans believed before the series that Barea's penetration scoring and creating off the bench would provide the right type of balance for the Mavericks, but so far, Miami's defense has dealth with him handidly. Look-Ahead: Three Games in Dallas By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani June 2, 2011 Miami won game 1 of the Finals and immediately tipped the scales in their favour. Leading 1-0 and having home court is already enough advantage for the Heat, but there is another statistic that stands in their favour – teams who have won Game 1 of the Finals go on to win 73.4 percent of the time.  When the Finals shift to Dallas, will the Mavericks and Heat be tied at one game each or will Miami hold a commanding 2-0 lead? NBAE/Getty Images At the time of writing, Game 2 hadn’t been played yet – and what happens in that game could mean everything. If Dallas wins and ties the series at 1-1, they would have stolen home advantage and would then have three consecutive games at home. But if Miami wins Game 2, the scales will tip even further in their favour – the odds for their victory will increase of course, but if there are any teams in the NBA that know about owning a 2-0 lead and losing it, it’s Dallas and Miami. Let’s rewind back to 2006, the last time either of these two teams were in the NBA Finals. Mavericks had the home advantage back then, and Dirk Nowitzki and his team protected their home-court as they were supposed to, winning both games in Dallas comfortably. But things changed drastically when the series shifted back to Miami. Dwyane Wade led a remarkable comeback in the fourth quarter to win Game 3. And the momentum began to shift, as Wade dominated Game 4 and Game 5 and Miami won all their home games, toppling the series score to 3-2. By the time the Finals shifted back to Dallas for Game 6, the damage was done. Deflated after three straight losses, Dallas lost at home and Miami became NBA champions. The tables have turned now – it is Miami who holds the home advantage, and it will be Dallas who will enjoy the three games back at home. The Mavs are a deeper and better team now than they were five years ago, and the balance could tip in their favour if Dirk Nowitzki can hit form and exact revenge on the team that tortured him in 2006. But the Miami Heat are a much better team than 2006, too: Will Dwyane Wade, armed with LeBron James as his running mate, a confident Chris Bosh, a resurgent bench, and a suffocating Heat defense, continue to pit more misery on Dallas and win a second NBA Final over them? We’ll just have to wait and find out. The O’Brien Files: A little taste of Playoff history - Win or lose, Dallas point guard Jason Kidd will leave the NBA Finals making history, as he becomes the oldest ever guard to start a Finals game. At 38, Kidd is two years older than the last oldest guard to start in the Finals, 36-year-old Ron Harper for the Lakers in 2000. Harper also became the oldest starting guard to win an NBA championship. The oldest overall player to start for a championship team is the legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - three of his six titles came at age 38 or older - Kareem won a championship and a Finals MVP in 1985 (age 38), a championship in 1987 (age 40), and another at 1988 (age 41). The Final Hurdle -- Each Other By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani May 31, 2011 Let’s play a little game of ‘Guess Who’ shall we? I will write a little bit about an NBA player, and you have to guess the answer. You only have two options – the subjects of this article: Dirk Nowitizki and LeBron James. The player we speak of has been the best player in the 2011 Playoffs. He has led his team to the NBA Finals once before, but has returned empty-handed. His team has had the best regular season record in the NBA before, but they have ended up disappointing in the playoffs. He has been regular season MVP before, but not this year. He has a unique skill-set, unmatched by anyone else in the league, and is capable of doing things no other can. He has had consistently incredible statistics for most of this career. For the first time in his career, his on-court performance is near-perfect. All that is separating him from cementing his legacy as one of the greatest is a championship ring. This year, he is in the NBA Finals with the best team he has ever played with supporting him. And he is four wins away from winning that ever-elusive championship. So who is he? The answer, as most of you would have figured out by now, is both of them: LeBron and Dirk. Dirk and LeBron. The two superstars may not have a shared past or a rivalry, but now, at the last step before their second chance at a championship, both these players must be realising that they have a lot more in common than they would’ve previously thought. Their names don’t evoke the same emotion as the other great rivalry of the past – Bird and Magic – but their games are certainly compared to the two legends of the 80s. Nowitzki is like Bird, with a dead-eye shooting stroke and a talent for the niftiest of plays, of making something out of nothing. LeBron is a little like Magic, an oversized body with handles of a point-guard, simultaneously the best at grabbing the rebound and the best at leading a fast-break. But the very slight Bird and Magic comparisons aside, LeBron and Nowitzki are both unique players, unstoppable in their own right. Nowitzki is a seven-footer with the best mid-range jump-shot in the league – it is near-impossible to defend him. LeBron has somehow managed to construct the perfect basketball body: with his speed, toughness, and athleticism, he is physically unmatched, and at the same time, he has the court vision evoking memories of Magic. And now, both these players are at the biggest stage of their careers. They have both played better basketball than anyone else during these playoffs. You be the judge of who’s been better: LeBron with his dominating all-around play, clutch baskets and suffocating defense or Dirk with his high-scoring, accurate shooting and never-say-die toughness. Both of them have been to the Finals before: Nowitzki and the Mavs lost to the Heat, and another familiar face, Dwyane Wade, in 2006. James and the Cavs were swept by the Spurs a year later. Nowitzki was MVP the year LeBron first got to the Finals, and LeBron has been MVP twice, in 2009 and 2010. In the past, both these players, despite their enticing skill-sets, had failed to turn potential into actuality. They had led their respective teams to amazing regular season records and even into the Finals, but come back empty-handed. Critics had a single complain – when the going got tougher, both LeBron and Nowitzki failed to grasp the big moment. Finally, in these playoffs, they seemed to have turned it around and filled that one last hole in their repertoire. Nowitzki and LeBron have stepped up to the plate and have sealed wins for their teams when most required. On their way, they both beat traditional conference powerhouses, and last year’s finalists, Lakers and Celtics. Nowitzki’s Mavs beat LA, who had been the Western Conference champs the last three years. James, after a heartbreaking loss to Celtics last year which bolted him out of Cleveland, regrouped with Wade in Miami and beat his Boston demons with a 4-1 second round win. In the Conference Finals, both players beat two superstars in young teams that will make the future of the league – LeBron outperformed Derrick Rose, the NBA’s youngest MVP, in the last round; Nowitzki won the shoot-out between him and Kevin Durant, who has been the NBA’s youngest scoring leader. So what now? Both the men in our puzzle are now in the Finals. They have taken different routes have but have suffered the same roadblocks. They have achieved everyting as inviduals and as part of a team except the last, most important hurdle: The championship. And now, the only thing separating them from history and legend, their last roadblock, is each other. Which one of them will finish the journey? Weekend Look-Ahead: The Final Stand By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani May 26, 2011 By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani With every passing day, it looks like the 2011 NBA Finals will invoke 2006 all over again: Showing incredible savvy and heart, the Mavericks made two big comebacks in back to back games to bring an end to the Western Conference Finals, becoming the first team to proceed to the NBA Finals after a 4-1 series against the young Thunder. So what happens next? By the time you read this, the Miami Heat could’ve already followed on the Mavs’ footsteps and joined them for the final stand. Each game from now onwards is a do-or-die match-up for the Chicago Bulls, who will have to do what only 8 NBA teams have done before – comeback from a 3-1 deficit to win the Eastern Conference Finals. To do that, the Bulls will have to survive this weekend and win three straight games. Bulls vs. Heat Weekend Preview So who will join the Mavericks in the NBA Finals? After the first four games, Miami have a comfortable 3-1 lead over the Bulls. One more will take them through – but two of the last three possible games of this series will be held in Chicago. Game 5 in Chicago will be the first legitimate ‘must win’ for the Bulls, but that is much easier said than done. Ever since their Game 1 victory, the Bulls haven’t figured out a way to get Derrick Rose going efficiently on the offensive end, while having equal trouble stopping the Big 3 on the defensive side. Rose got an opportunity to level the series 2-2 but came up short late in Game 4. LeBron James have been playing incredible man defense on Rose, and on the other end, has been clinical when scoring the basket. To stop Miami, Chicago will have to hope their shooters get going so there is more space for Rose to operate. The bad news for the Bulls is that they have many more problems – Even with Carlos Boozer and Luol Deng contributing offensively, the Bulls haven’t figured out a way to win games. Plus Miami are 3-1 up despite a single dominant game by Dwyane Wade in this series. If Bulls win, they will play the Heat again in Miami in Game 6 - the Heat are the only team undefeated at home so far in this postseason and they will look unstoppable again at the American Airlines Arena. It will only take a rare emotional momentum shift for the Bulls to regain their confidence and be able to force a Game 7 back at their home court. And if the Bulls fail? Then the 2nd of June has already been penciled in as the date that the Heat and the Mavs meet again in the finals after five years. The grand finale is nearly here… The O’Brien Files: A little taste of Playoff history - With five minutes left on the clock in Game 4, the Dallas Mavericks trailed to the Thunder by 15 points in OKC’s home court. A win for the Thunder would’ve made it a tied, 2-2 series. In the last 10 years, teams have trailed by 15+ in last five minutes of a game in 5,016 regular season and playoff games. In Game 4 of the WCF, the Mavericks became the only team to come-back and win one, taking the series to 3-1. Eastern Conference Grind-House By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani May 24, 2011 LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Derrick Rose might be three of the most exciting players in the NBA, but with the three of them on-court together in an epic Eastern Conference match-up, the basketball has been anything but flashy. Instead, the series has been a low-scoring, poor-shooting, gritty and grimy affair. And that is all because of a beautiful little, dirty secret – no matter how much the stars glitter, it is the defense played in the Miami-Heat series that will decide which team will be crowned the Best of the East. To the layman, the style of play in the East was supposed to be more exciting: In the East, it was the top-seeded teams in the standings, Bulls (1) facing the Heat (2), whereas the battle out West featured the No. 3 (Dallas) and No. 4 (OKC) seeds. In terms of star power too, the East had the biggest names at the biggest stage: Rose. James. Wade. It isn’t that the two biggest stars out West – Nowitzki and Durant – are any less talented; the difference is that Nowitzki and Durant excel as the part of well-oiled systems in the Mavericks and the Thunder respectively; whereas the likes of Rose, James, and Wade are offensively above the system, creating and dominating almost all by themselves. The truth, though, lives somewhere below the hype. Because no matter how many All-Stars the Eastern Conference Finals field on the court, the result was always going to depend on defense. The Bulls and the Heat are two of the best defensive teams in the league, but unfortunately, since defense isn’t easily translated into statistics and is rarely highlight-worthy, it is the offensive contributions and big plays by the likes of Rose, Wade, and James that catch the fan’s attention. But basketball is a game that exists further beyond the highlight-reel, and the Bulls-Heat series has been a hallmark for the lovers of defensive, grind-house basketball. The Miami Heat, whose season will be remembered for the big names the team has acquired, are actually a team who succeed more because of the defensive aggression of their players more than they do on their individual offensive brilliance. In the ECF, every possession has been a gift, and every good look at the basket has to be earned. The series hasn’t been pretty on the eyes of the lovers of run-n-gun, hot-shooting, ‘Showtime’ basketball. Instead, it has been a boon for those who appreciate the effort put on the defensive end of the floors. Coaches on both the sides, Tom Thibodeau and Erik Spoelstra, have been working on overdrive to come up with the perfect defensive schemes to limit the opposing team’s best players. So far, the series hasn’t been about how many points Rose, James, or Wade are scoring, but about how well the opposition has limited them. For the season, these were the averages of the three superstars: Derrick Rose: 25.0 ppg off 44.5 percent shooting; LeBron James: 26.7 ppg off 51.0 percent shooting; Dwyane Wade: 25.5 ppg off 50 percent shooting. Now, let’s take a look at those same numbers after the first three games of the ECF – Rose: 23.0 ppg off 37.5 percent shooting; James: 22.0 ppg off 46.9 percent shooting; Wade: 19.7 ppg off 42 percent shooting. With so much defensive attention being paid to stopping the three who create so well for themselves and for their teammates, it has been the role players who have had to step up and fill in the offensive void. Luol Deng and Carlos Boozer have had to assist Rose on the offensive end for the Bulls, but the story so far has been of Chris Bosh, who has been the highest scorer in this series after 74 points in the three games. Meanwhile, the West has been a shootout, with faster basketball, more possessions, more shooting, better shooting percentages, and bigger individual performances. Dirk Nowitzki has already notched two 40-point games and Kevin Durant recorded one of his own. Don’t be fooled by the names and the numbers – The East may have the hype, but it isn’t the All-Stars who are running the show, it is their team’s defense. And the West may have slightly less-marketable players, but the free-flowing basketball has been much easier on the eye. So take your pick – fast and furious or rough and tough? One thing is for sure – no matter which teams emerge to play in the NBA Finals together, it is going to be a battle between two contrasting styles of play. Hot/Cold: Who has elevated their game in the playoffs? And who has fallen off? Fresh Jalebi Hot: Chris Bosh – We knew that Chris Bosh is an all-star level player, but few expected that in a series with Rose, LeBron, and Wade, it would be Bosh that has had the greatest input on the offensive end after the first three games. Bosh scored 30 points in the Game 1 loss and had the best game of his playoff career with an aggressive and efficient 34 in Game 3. It is already difficult marking Heat with Wade and James running down the court, but when Bosh steps up his contribution, this team becomes a match-up nightmare. Frosty Kulfi Cold: Kendrick Perkins – Perkins was never going to be a big-time contributor offensively, but it has been his inability at the defensive end that has really disappointed Thunder fans so far in the Western Finals. Perkins has been unable to contain Tyson Chandler and Nowitzki, and the Thunder have gone long stretches of the series without him, choosing to play with Nick Collison instead. Where The Stars Shine Brightest By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani May 19, 2011 No matter what an NBA player does in the regular season, it is in the performances in the Playoffs that truly leave an indelible memory. And the deeper into the Playoffs we go, and the higher the stakes are raised, the more crucial each big performance becomes. We’re now in the Final Four – the Conference Finals – and each heroic effort becomes stuff of myth, separating the Occasionally Brilliant from the Legendary. Looking at the match-ups this weekend, it seems that several players will have to play at the highest levels of their careers to ensure survival or promotion into the NBA Finals. The absolute standard for greatness has been set by Dirk Nowitzki, who followed a dominating performance in the previous series with an incredibly efficient 48 points in just 15 field goals against the Thunder. But it’s not like everyone else at this stage has been a slouch, either. Kevin Durant poured in 40 points in his very first Conference Final game, while Derrick Rose and Luol Deng were the heroes as the Bulls won Game 1 against Miami. But in Game 2, LeBron James came to life at the end to help Heat even the series. Who will step up to the plate next? WCF: Mavericks vs. Thunder: Game 2 of this series will be held Friday morning in India, before the series shifts to Oklahoma City for Game 3 on Sunday morning. Already, we have seen the best performance of the 2011 Playoffs in Nowitzki’s 48-point effort. Unless someone figures out a way to slow him down, expect Dirk to continue his rampage. He will be assisted ably by players such as JJ Barea and Jason Terry on the offensive end. The Mavericks are looking almost unstoppable at this point – and could bring this series to its virtual end by the time the weekend is over… … That is, if the Thunder don’t come back strong, which I fully expect them to. Even without Nowitzki, the Mavericks squad is more experienced and savvy than OKC, but Thunder can use its own strengths – youth and athleticism – to bounce back. There is little more that Durant could’ve done to help his squad win, but it will be his supporting cast, and particularly Russell Westbrook, who will have to find their touch again if Thunder wish to contend in this series. ECF: Heat vs. Bulls: Anybody’s guess is the right guess at this point. While there’s a pure shoot-out taking place out West, the Eastern Conference Finals are a fantasy for fans of old-school, grind-it-down, defensive basketball. The Heat and the Bulls are two of the best defensive teams in the league, and no matter how many stars descend on the floor every time these two teams face each other, the winner will always be decided by the better defensive squad on the night. Heat bounced back well after a Game 1 setback to even the series, and will now take the advantage back to Miami where Chicago will now be under pressure to steal a win (or two) on the road. So far, the four all stars in the two teams (Rose, LeBron, Wade, Bosh) have taken turns and played well in spurts. For Chicago, the likes of Carlos Boozer cannot afford to take a night off again, or the pressure may well be too much for Derrick Rose’s young shoulders to carry the Bulls offensively. For Miami, it is now time to build upon their positive momentum. The O’Brien Files: A little taste of Playoff history - Dirk Nowitzki was absolutely unstoppable in Game 1, especially from the free-throw line, where he netted 24 of the 24 shots he took on the night. In the process, Nowitzki set a new NBA Playoffs record for most free-throws made in a game without a miss, beating Paul Pierce’s 2003 record of 21. Where Tireless Repetition Happens By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani May 17, 2011  Durant, after struggling in Game 6, came back with 39 points in Game 7 to pace the Thunder to a Western Conference Finals berth. NBAE/Getty Images See Kevin Durant and you see, in one man, The Amazing. See that 22-year-old, who would’ve been in the final year of his college Bachelor’s degree if he wasn’t one of the most gifted basketball players in the planet. See him become the most dominating player in high school and college, the winner of the 2007 College Player of the year Award, the second pick of the 2008 NBA draft, the 2008 Rookie of the Year, the two-time All-Star, the two-time scoring champion. See him become the world’s best player as he led USA to a Basketball World Championship last summer. See him dominate like few others have done at his age. See him become a leader for the young Oklahoma City Thunder, a team that has skipped several rungs as it climbs the ladder to success. Now, zoom in and look a little closer. On the surface you see yet another dominating game by the high-schooler at the Montrose Christian School; look closer and you’ll see the young boy who lived so far away from school that he had to leave home at 4:30 in the morning to get to school by 6:30 and cram in a couple of extra hours of practice before school started. On the surface you see the stick-thin young boy – who was criticised because he failed to bench-press 185 pounds at the pre-draft camp – and see him go pound-for-pound with the toughest and meanest in the NBA. Look a little closer and you’ll find that the young forward began working with a strength and conditioning coach from his youth, and carried on to get stronger, leaner, and fitter, working hard in the gym day after day to prepare for the grueling test of the NBA. An article on Durant in Stack Magazine even found that when Durant was 10 years old, his grandfather had him bring out a sheet of paper and write down this line 300 times: “Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard.” On the surface you see the boy who became into a national and international basketball phenomenon who quickly caught up to the likes of Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Dwight Howard with his unstoppable offensive game. But what you find through closer inspection is a dedicated youth that learnt well from his grandfather’s advice, didn’t take his talent for granted, and made sure it was hard work that kept him on top. It is the words of his peers and opponents that put his pursuit of excellence in perspective. Said Zach Randolph of the Memphis Grizzlies after the Western Conference Semi-Finals: “The kid is a gym-rat, he works hard...You see what he does night in and night out and he’s just relentless.” You see a team that went from winning 22 games two years ago to one that won 50 last year and made the playoffs, and won 55 this year, and is now one of the four remaining teams still challenging for an NBA title. You see a leader of youth in Durant, a 22-year in a team where none of the top four scorers are older than 22. In the grueling test of the playoffs, where only the strongest and the most experienced survive, you see a youngster showing the mental toughness rarely seen in even the most seasoned veterans. With the Thunder leading Western Conference Semi-Finals 3-2 over the Grizzlies, Memphis protected their home court to survive game six and tie the series at 3-3. Durant played one of the worst games of his short career, scoring just 11 points off 3-14 shooting. Game 7 beckoned – one game, a do-or-die opportunity to decide it all, and the single biggest game of basketball, so far, of Durant’s life. Durant started slow in Game 7, making just two of his first nine shots, before everything kicked in. The train he took for practice at 4:30 in the morning. The hours he spent with the weight trainer in the gym. The practice sessions to get the form for the perfect jumpshot. The game tapes to completely understand his opponent. The mental toughness that he picked up in less than four years as a young leader of his squad. Durant proceeded to attack relentlessly for the rest of the game, scoring at will, shooting 11 of 16 after his cold start, and ended up with 39 points to go with his nine rebounds. When the dust settled, Durant found himself leading his squad into a date with the Dallas Mavericks in the Conference Finals. Hard work had beaten talent when talent hadn't worked as hard. This is the story of Kevin Durant, and it’s the story of every hard-working superstar in the NBA. Of those who persistently practice day and night, repeat their drills over and over again, and perfect their game to not just climb up to the elite level but to stay there. The NBA: Where Tireless Repetition Happens. Weekend Look-Ahead: Survivor Series By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani May 12, 2011  This year's NBA Finals will be the first without Kobe, Shaq or Tim Duncan since 1998. NBAE/Getty Images While the Mavs and the Heat are looking like the cream of the crop of the playoffs, there are still two more series left to play in the second round. Both the Bulls and Thunder are leading 3-2 over their opponents, but with away games looming against energetic lower-seeded sides over the weekend, this unpredictable year in the Playoffs may spring up a few more surprises. Will the Hawks and the Grizzlies survive to see another day? Bulls vs. Hawks: The Hawks have been one of the most maddeningly inconsistent sides of the year, playing inspired basketball one day and lethargically lumbering through the next. Trailing 3-2 to the Bulls, the Hawks have to protect their home court if they want to see this series head back to Chicago for a seventh. It will be the biggest game of the season for the Hawks stars like Al Horford, Josh Smith, and Joe Johnson, but the key may lie with the surprise package Jeff Teague, who has been a revelation at the starting point guard role for Atlanta. The Bulls, who have so long relied on their two D’s (Derrick and Defense), finally got strong support from Derrick Rose’s surrounding crew. The ‘other’ D – Luol Deng – will have to once again have a big game in Atlanta, and the likes of Boozer, Gibson, and Kyle Korver will have to play their roles in perfection. In the end, I feel that Derrick Rose will once again dominate to ensure that this series ends as soon as possible and to see the Bulls move into the next round. Thunder vs. Grizzlies The wildest series in the playoffs so far, highlighted by the two Overtime games in Memphis over the last week (the second of which went into three overtimes!). The Grizzlies continue to surprise everyone and see the emergence of new heroes every day, from Tony Allen and OJ Mayo to Mike Conley and Grievis Vasquez, to back up their big man combo of Randolph and Marc Gasol. But they have lost two consectutive games - one in triple OT and the other in a blowout - it is do or die time for Grizzlies in Game 6 back home. The home team will have to go back to their two basics if they wish to make this is seven-game series: a dominating Zach Randolph, and Tony Allen’s defense on Kevin Durant. The Thunder seem to be finding their identity as they go, but the triple-overtime victory may have just been the moment that has instilled belief for greatness in this side. They followed that win with a blowout victory in Game 5, doing it with defense and by sharing the ball. The offensive domination of Durant and Westbrook may make for more exciting basketball, but Thunder will want to copy their Game 5 blueprint in Game 6 to see off the Grizzlies. The O’Brien Files: A little taste of Playoff history - The Thunder/Grizzlies triple OT classic in Game 4 was as rare an occurrence as they come – only five times prior to this game has an NBA playoff game gone to triple overtime, which means an amazing 63 minutes of game-time. One of them went on for the fourth overtime, which means, 68 minutes! 1. 1953 Eastern Semi-Finals Game 2: Boston Celtics 111 bt. Syracuse Nationals 104 – 4 OT. 2. 1976 NBA Finals Game 5: Boston Celtics 128 bt. Phoenix Suns 106 – 3 OT. 3. 1993 NBA Finals Game 3: Phoenix Suns 129 bt. Chicago Bulls 121 – 3 OT. 4. 2004 Eastern Semi Finals Game 5: New Jersey Nets bt. Detroit Pistons 120 – 3 OT. 5. 2009 Eastern First Round Game 6: Chicago Bulls 128 bt. Boston Celtics 127 – 3 OT. Phil Jackson: Seeing Triple By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani May 10, 2011  Phil Jackson, seen here with Michael Jordan in 1996, finishes his career with 11 NBA Titles as a head coach. NBAE/Getty Images In the first 10 words, Lazenby summed up the career of a man widely regarded as the greatest NBA coach of all time. In the next six, he explained how this storied career came to a spectacular end at the American Airlines Arena in Dallas on Sunday night. In the last 21 years as a head coach, not one Phil Jackson's teams had ever been swept in a playoff series. That was changed of course, in the most dramatic of fashions, when teh Mavericks dominated LA in four games. The Lakers, back to back NBA champions, were one more championship away from getting their three-peat. The Hollywood Ending for the Los Angeles squad was dreamt about long before it could happen: Phil Jackson, in his last season as head coach, would win his fourth three-peat, his 12 title as a coach, and his 14th ring altogether, counting the two he won as a player for the New York Knicks. But perhaps the reigning champions spent too much time dreaming and too little achieving: the perfect finish was not meant to be. Jackson's fourth three-peat was not to be, and now, it seems that the coach known reverently as ‘The Zen Master’ may finally close the chapter on his illustrious career. Jackson has indeed spent his career seeing triple. He is the mastermind that put the in best application of the famed ‘Triangle Offense’, considered to be one of basketball’s most impressive and its most complicated offensive sets. In the last 20 years, Phil Jackson teams (Bulls & Lakers) won 11 of the 20 NBA Championships, and he made the NBA Finals two other times with the Lakers. For six years with the Jordan-Pippen Bulls, for three years with the Shaq-Kobe Lakers, and for another two with the Kobe-Gasol Lakers, Jackson pulled off the triangle to its ultimate potential, using the talents of the superstars he had at his disposal but also incorporating crucial role players like John Paxson, Steve Kerr, Robert Horry, and Derek Fisher, who completed the Zen Master’s offensive vision by regularly hitting three-pointers at the most crucial of times. Meanwhile, his obsession with ‘threes’ began to show in a freakish pattern of the result of his work. Phil Jackson is the only coach in the ‘Modern Era’ of the NBA (post the ABA merger in 1974) to win three straight championships. Before Jackson, John Kundla led the Minneapolis Lakers to three championships between 1952-54, and then the legendary Red Auerbach did with the Boston Celtics, winning an incredible eight consecutive between 1959-66. Jackson won his first three-peat with the Bulls from 91-93, and then repeated the feat, winning another three from 96-98. As Lakers head coach, he showed his inclination toward threes again, winning three more rings from 2000-2002. And until this point, he had won championships with three different teams: twice as a player with the New York Knicks (where he was known to be a smart, defensive big man), and nine times as a coach. In the process of his 'second' career, Phil Jackson became more than just a coach: He became a motivator, a philosopher, and a psychologist. In 1975, he wrote a book called Maverick, where he said that he would never be an NBA coach because he couldn’t deal with the egos – 36 years later, he ends his career as the most successful NBA coach of all time, and he did it while dealing the most combustible of superstar egos in basketball, balancing Michael Jordan’s uber-competitiveness with the power struggle between Scottie Pippen and Toni Kukoc, and then bringing in the unpredictable Dennis Rodman to the mix. As a Lakers coach, he balanced the regular clashes between Shaq and Kobe in the early 2000s, worked with the selfish sides of Kobe Bryant’s infamous personality, and tamed the NBA’s latest bad-boy – Ron Artest – to become a championship contributor. Throughout this time, Jackson became the one coach that even the egos of the NBA’s finest players bowed down to. In a league where even most of the league’s best coaches are undermined by the overhyped stars in the squad, Jackson commanded the respect of his troops like few others. And he did it in threes: Three three-peats with the triangle offense. But as much as the Zen Master loved the three, it was almost as if there was a curse against the ‘four’. He never won four championships in a row: After the first three-peat, Michael Jordan retired for the first time; after the second three-peat, Michael Jordan retired again; After the third three-peat, it seemed that Shaq and Kobe had finally had enough of each other. In 2008, the Lakers’ owners brought him Pau Gasol, and from 2009-10, Jackson brought the team another two trophies. This year was his chance to get the fourth three-peat: but as Lazenby said, Phil Jackson died by the three. Over the course of their short series against the Mavericks, the Lakers struggled to find their outside shot, making only 15 of 76 three-pointers attempted over the four games. But on the defensive end, Lakers had no answer for the Mavs’ domination on the three-point line. In Game 4, the Mavericks hit more three pointers in one game (20) than the Lakers did all series (15), and they won comfortably to complete the series sweep. An excellent Mavericks team wasn’t going to allow another three-peat for Jackson. And only the Zen Master knows if this is really the end. Maybe it was the curse of ‘four’: the greatest coach ever will have to contend with three three-peats, and barring an unexpected comeback, his decorated career will finally come to an early end. Not all Hollywood stories come to a perfect ending, but as Jackson’s career has proven, the story itself should be celebrated no matter how tragically it ends. Hot/Cold: Who has elevated their game in the playoffs? And who has fallen off Fresh Jalebi Hot: Dirk Nowitzki - The man who is being considered to be, so far, the MVP of the NBA Playoffs, played the series of his life against the Lakers, helping the Mavericks pull off an improbable sweep. Nowitzki scored and rebounded in bunches and hit big shots whenever his team required it of him. He averaged 25.3 points per game in the series. Frosty Kulfi Cold: Pau Gasol - For the second consecutive series, Gasol left fans disappointed with his below-the-par play. He lacked aggression offensively and didn't have the mettle to stop Nowitzki in the defensive end. After having all star numbers in the regular season (19 points and 10 rebounds), Gasol only mustered 13 and 8 in the playoffs - and he shoulders the heaviest burden of the blame for the Lakers getting ousted so early in the playoffs. Weekend Look-Ahead: A Round of Upsets By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani May 6, 2011 Before the playoffs began, a few friends and I made brackets to predict how each series would pan out, and who would progress through the tournament. Apart from the occasional upset, these predictions are usually spot-on, at least in the early rounds. Not this year though – With the Grizzlies pulling a major win over the Spurs and the Hawks beating Orlando in the 1st round, they succeeded to mess up many predictions. And then both these squads did the unthinkable, winning their Game 1s against favoured opponents on the road. Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, the lower-seeded Mavericks are threatening to put an end to the Lakers’ two-year command of the NBA’s summit. Few expected that both of last year’s finalists (Lakers & Celtics) would find themselves in a 0-2 hole at this point. As the games shift towards home court for the lower-seeded teams this weekend, will the second round see many more upsets? Bulls vs. Hawks: Games three and four of this series are set to be held in Atlanta this weekend, and the Hawks have done well to split their away games in Chicago. With the series tied at 1-1, will Atlanta be able to take advantage and bring down the Bulls? Chicago were the surprise of the season, over-achieving to finish first in the league, but they have so far shown hesitant play in the playoffs. But the Bulls do have the trump card here in newly-crowned MVP Derrick Rose, the youngest ever to receive the award: Look for Rose and the Bulls to come charging back and stamp their command over this series. Lakers vs. Mavericks: Along with the Heat, it’s the Mavs who have so far looked as the best team in the playoffs. Everything is clicking for Dallas – from Dirk Nowitzki’s crucial scoring, Jason Kidd’s leadership, Tyson Chanlder bringing the tough defensive edge, to bench players like JJ Barea and Jason Terry making big contributions. Dallas are in the comfort zone, up 2-0 and heading home for two more games. On the other hand, the two-time defending champions need to find their groove soon before the series goes out of hand. Games 3 and 4 this weekend in Dallas are must wins for LA – and unless Pau Gasol can find some sort of rhythm again, we may see a premature end to the Lakers’ bid for a three-peat. Thunder vs. Grizzlies: Game 1 was all about Zach Randolph and Memphis continuing their positive vibes of the previous series and defeating the OKC Thunder on their home court. In Game 2 though, OKC regrouped and made the Grizzlies look like an 8th seed again. The 1-1 series now shifts to Memphis this weekend for Game 3. Like the first two games, I expect the next two to be split even between these young, athletic sides. And I expect that the alpha dogs for both sides – Durant & Randolph – to continue bringing their ‘A’ games to this match-up. The O’Brien Files: A little taste of Playoff history - The Lakers are certainly up against history. Only three times has the home team ever come back to win a best-of-seven series after losing the first two at home. The first time, it was done by the Lakers themselves, in 1969, who lost the first two games to the San Francisco Warriors in the first round but rallied to win the next four. The next time was in the 1994 Second Round, when the Houston Rockets lost the first two home games to the Phoenix Suns but came back to win the series in seven games. Most recently, in 2005, it was the Mavs who made the improbably comeback, losing the first two home games against the Rockets, but then came back to win the see-saw series 4-3. In Wade’s World, the underestimated is the unstoppable By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani May 3, 2011 Anyone who has an older sibling knows that there are few things more enjoyable for the younger ones (like me) than to contradict our elder. Some psychologists say that, between siblings, identical circumstances can sometimes lead to opposite personalities. This has been no truer than between my older brother and me. Our identical circumstances was a shared addiction to NBA basketball; but our fan personalities -- and by that I mean the players and teams we chose to like -- couldn’t have been more different. Growing up in India, far and away from an NBA city or from an NBA-borne player (so far) meant that we did what most other international fans do: pick a favourite team/player almost by random - a classic game, a telling statistic, a funny interview – and then go our separate ways, following our favourites passionately and defying each other as often as we could. It made for some great family discussions: while I supported the ’99 Knicks, my brother quickly jumped on the Champion Spurs’ bandwagon. When he liked athletic do-it-all forwards like Grant Hill, Scottie Pippen, or Tracy McGrady, I chose to side with small guards with big games, like Gary Payton, Allen Iverson, or Stephon Marbury. And 2003 became an especially telling year in our relationship with the NBA: with the No. 1 pick in the 2003 draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers picked LeBron James, my brother’s favourite player. With the 5th pick, the Miami Heat picked Dwyane Wade, my favourite. As you can imagine, the arguments grew only wilder: LeBron, in his brutal, ultra-athletic dominant style of play, stacked up the hype, the statistics and the MVP awards. Wade was the underdog, the smaller, underrated one, who grew in stature as he won a championship, a Finals MVP, and became one of the most clutch performers in the game. Over the years, both of them suffered tarnishes to their respective reputations. For Wade, it was injuries; for LeBron, it was The Decision that made him into the NBA’s overnight villain. But overall, the 2003 draftees remained two of the best in the game. Then, of course, 'The Decision brought' LeBron to Miami last summer, and it took the Lebron-or-Wade debate to fever pitch. My brother and I got older and (theoretically) more mature, but a fan always thinks with his (or her) heart first and head later. Between LeBron or Wade – ‘The Supertwins’ – Who is the best player in Miami? Who will be Finals MVP if the Heat were to win a championship? Who is Batman and who is Robin? Between both these players, who are at the top of their game and at the top of the league, playing such similar roles of scoring, creating, defending, penetrating, and dominating, it is near impossible to choose one over the other. Unlike LeBron though, Wade has never enjoyed the kind of fame that his new Miami teammate does: How is it possible for one of the most popular and talented players in the world to actually be underestimated and underrated? Well, between Kobe Bryant winning the championships, LeBron James winning the MVP awards, Dwight Howard’s Slam Dunk and Defensive Player of the Year nods, Kevin Durant becoming the hippest young ‘alternative’ star to support, the Celtics finding gracefulness with age, and fellow Chicagoan Derrick Rose having an MVP-caliber campaign, Dwyane Wade has actually found himself forgotten in the eyes of popular media and casual fans. The old Japanese proverb says ‘Fall down seven times, get up eight’. And when the Converse shoe brand chose to capitalise on the motivational proverb, they chose no better example of the ‘persistent riser’ than Dwyane Wade. Coming out of high-school, when he wasn't as highly recruited into college as his fellow peers, he had big games for Marquette and increased his draft rating. When he was picked fifth in the NBA draft, below LeBron, Darko Milicic, Carmelo Anthony, and Chris Bosh, Wade worked relentlessly to improve, until he became the biggest winner of the five (Darko watching the Pistons win a ring from the end of the bench doesn't count) and one of the best players in basketball, conjuring memories of a young Michael Jordan in the process. He fell again, when he missed several games due to injury and had doubters raising red flags. But once more Wade rose up, coming off the bench to become the best player for the USA 2008 Olympic team and leading them to the gold medal. He followed that with two more years of domination, carrying a paper-thin Miami team all by himself into the post-season. Now, this all-world talent isn't even the most-popular player on his own team, and once again, he is the underestimated underdog. But it only took a dominating 38 point performance against rival Boston Celtics in the first game of the second-round series for people to sit up and take notice again. Miami has another superstar – and half the time, he is better than LeBron James. So until one of the ‘Supertwins’ truly separates one from the other, there will be no clear answer to who is the Pippen to the other’s Jordan, or the Robin to the other’s Batman. Although if Miami keep winning, their fans won’t mind who is #1 and who is #2, just as long as both of them wear a Heat jersey. The 'better player' argument may remain inconclusive, but all I ask for is that Wade get the same level of respect from the fans and the media that LeBron does. Until then, go ahead and underrate him, misjudge his talent, and forget about him; but remember that in Wade's world, the deeper he falls, the higher he bounces back. Hot/Cold: Who has elevated their game in the playoffs? And who has fallen off? Fresh Jalebi Hot: Zach Randolph – Few power forwards have stood up strong against the San Antonio Spurs frontline and come up on top. But Zach Randolph and the Grizzlies helped usher the Spurs era towards an end with a stunning 4-2 upset in the first round. Randolph was at the center of it all, scoring 31 points and grabbing 11 rebounds in the Game 6 that brought his team their first ever playoffs series win. But he wasn't done, as less than 48 hours later, the Grizzlies pulled an upset victory in their first 2nd round game against the Thunder in Oklahama City. Once again, 'Z-Bo' led the way, with a dominating 33 points, 11 rebounds, and compliments from rival Kevin Durant who called him the "best power forward in the NBA". Frosty Kulfi Cold: Rajon Rondo – Will it be fair to judge Rondo after just one game in the second round? Perhaps not, but if Game 1 is any indication, this could be a stinker of a series for the Celtics if their point guard doesn't get his groove back. In a foul-plagued 32 minutes, Rondo only scored 8 points off 3-10 shooting. But the most telling story of Game 1 came beyond the statistics, as Rondo failed to attack the basket and create for his teammates as regularly as he is expected to. Will he bounce back in Game 2? Weekend Look-Ahead: Sixes and Sevens By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani April 28, 2011  The Spurs-Grizzlies series may come down to the guys in the trenches, like Tiago Splitter (top) and Darrell Arthur. NBAE/Getty Images And this weekend promises to be even bigger than the last: Four series are over, which means four teams (Celtics, Bulls, Heat, Thunder) have advanced to the next round. Between Thursday and Sunday, the other remaining eight teams, all locked in with 3-2 scorelines, will fight to win or survive a Game 6, and if needed, set up a showdown in do-or-die Game 7s. Magic vs. Hawks: The only first-round series left in the East – Leading 3-2, Hawks have been surprisingly dominant over the Magic, but Orlando showed signs of life with a huge blowout win in Game 5. Now, the series shifts back to Atlanta, where the Hawks have a chance to close the Magic out and move into the next round. The story of the series so far has been the clutch play of Jamal Crawford and the lack of a killer instinct shown by an otherwise-dominant Dwight Howard. Look for Hawks to go all out in Game 6, because a Magic win will bring the momentum back to Orlando. Spurs vs. Grizzlies: The West has been insanely unpredictable this season, and the Spurs-Grizzlies series has been the centerpiece of the madness. Few expected Memphis to push San Antonio to the brink of elimination, and it took an unbelievably big 3-pointer by Spurs rookie Gary Neal at the buzzer to save Game 5 and the Western Conference leaders. Now, Memphis go back to their home court. The wily, experienced Spurs can never be counted out, even when down 3-2 and playing a Game 6 on the road, but if the Grizzlies can pull off a win, it could be the biggest first-round upset since the Warriors beat the Mavericks in 2007. Lakers vs. Hornets: As hard as they try, the Lakers can’t shake Chris Paul and the pesky Hornets away. Game 6 is in New Orleans, and Paul will once again look to continue the epic form he has shown all series to force a Game 7 back in Los Angeles. Despite improved recent performances, the two best Lakers, Kobe Bryant (injury) and Pau Gasol (shaken confidence), are playing far from 100 percent, yet LA hold on to a 3-2 lead. It has been a boon for the Lakers’ support cast, and if Bynum, Artest, Odom, Blake, Brown, and Barnes keep up their good work, they should be good enough to see off the Hornets. Mavericks vs. Blazers: An up-and-down series where no one has been able to win an away game yet. If this trend continues, the advantage lies with the Mavs, who hold on to a 3-2 lead and will see a Game 7 (if necessary) come back to Dallas. Portland have their backs against the wall, and will need to protect their home court in Game 6 before putting up a massive effort in the deciding game if they want to pull an upset and progress to the second round. The O’Brien Files: A little taste of Playoff history - The Grizzlies, if they can upset the Spurs, will be part of an exclusive club. Only three times in the past has a bottom (eighth) seeded team has beaten the top-seeded team in the first round of the playoffs. Earlier, when the first round in the playoffs was a best-of-five series, Denver Nuggets upset the Seattle Supersonics 3-2 in 1994 to become the first eighth seed to advance past the first round. In 1999, the New York Knicks became the second, defeating the top-seeded Miami Heat in five games. But the first (and only) time that an eighth seed has beaten a top seed in a best-of-seven series was the Golden State Warriors riding their momentum to beat the NBA’s best Mavericks in 2007, winning 4-2. Dirk, Kidd look for winning combination By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani April 26, 2011  Will this finally be the year for the Mavericks? NBAE/Getty Images The NBA Championship. Kidd’s and Nowitzki’s NBA careers started at the same place where they seem to be heading towards their likely ends. Kidd (38), one of the NBA’s oldest active players, was drafted by the Mavericks in 1994, for whom he had an auspicious start by winning the 1995 Rookie of the Year. The crafty point guard then travelled from Dallas to Phoenix, and from Phoenix to New Jersey, which was his most memorable stop yet: Kidd let the unfancied Nets to two Finals appearances in 2002 and 2003, but each time, he came up short against first the Lakers and then the Spurs. A trade finally brought him to Dallas in 2008, where he has given the deep team much-needed veteran presence. Through his career, Kidd has been the perfect model of an elite point guard: showing the ability to assist, rebound, and score with equal ease, and stacking triple-doubles at a faster rate than most other players of his generation. More than the numbers though, it has been Kidd’s ability to be a true team leader and to make his teammates better that has truly ascended him into one of the games greats. Nowitzki, meanwhile, has been a Maverick faithful from Day 1. Drafted in 1998 by the Bucks, Nowitzki was immediately traded to the Mavs, and has since transformed the Power Forward position. He became the first of his kind: a seven-footer with the range of a shooting guard. And over the past decade, Nowitzki has been the Mavs’ franchise player, making them one of the most consistently successful teams and a constant championship threat. The Mavericks made the NBA Finals in 2006, where after being 2-0 up, they succumbed to one of the greatest collapses in recent history by losing the next four games to Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat. The following season, Nowitzki and the Mavs improved even further, winning an NBA-best 67 games, and Nowitzki was named the MVP. But another collapse against eighth-seeded Warriors branded the team as perennial chokers, and tarnished Nowitzki’s reputation. For both Nowitzki and Kidd, their brilliant careers with individual and team success have been left with an asterix to their respective legacies. Nowitzki’s teams underperformed when they needed to win the most, and Kidd’s teams usually over-performed, but fell short at the highest level. When these two players were united in 2008, basketball minds were intrigued by what the two could achieve together: Kidd and Nowitzki seem to fill the holes in each other’s games perfectly – where Kidd is criticised for the lack of a consistent jump shot, Nowitki is one of the best at the mid-range game; while Nowitzki is criticised for his shortcomings as a leader or on the defensive end, Kidd brings top-class experience in both these qualities. And yet, the Championship eludes them. The Mavericks have continued to be perennial threats in the West during the regular season and continue to be disappointing in the playoffs. Finishing at the third seed this season, the Mavs are playing the sixth-seeded Trailblazers in the first round, who are arguably the most dangerous lower seed in the playoffs this year. A tough back and forth series has emerged since, and once again, Kidd and Nowitzki are searching for that winning combination. The question, as always, will be: is this finally the year of the Mavericks? Is this finally the year that Kidd and Nowitzki get to the promised land? Hot/Cold: Who has elevated their game in the playoffs? And who has fallen off Fresh Jalebi Hot: Brandon Roy – As Kidd and Nowitzki look to complete their own legacies, it has been the resurgence of Roy that has become the story of the series. Succumbing to series knee injuries and relegated to the bench, Roy was considered an afterthought for the Blazers. But after showing disappointment over his reduced role in the first two losses of the series, Roy was given his chance to shine, and he grabbed the horns with both hands, averaging 20 points a game off the bench in the next two wins, including an epic comeback in Game 4 where he finished with 18 points in the fourth quarter to help bring his team back into the series. Frosty Kulfi Cold: Amar’e Stoudemire – Few expected the Knicks to beat Celtics, but even fewer expected that Celtics would end up making the 4-0 sweep look so clinical. After two close games in Boston, the Knicks failed to show the same passion and strength back home in New York. The biggest reason was Amar’e Stoudemire, who missed a half of Game 2 due to a back injury, and then was a shadow of his former self in the next three games. Between Games 2-4, Amar’e shot 9-37, and Carmelo Anthony alone wasn’t enough to defeat the deep Celtics. Weekend Look-Ahead: No Place Like Home By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani April 22, 2011  The Hornets managed to snag one from the Lakers at Staples. Now, the upset-hunt is on back in New Orleans. NBAE/Getty Images Here is what you should look out for in each of the eight playoff series across the board. Bulls vs. Pacers: The Bulls struggled mightily in their first two games at home, but all that really matters is the series score-line: 2-0 in Chicago’s favour. But going back to Indiana and to the Conseco Fieldhouse won’t be easy. With the Pacers feeling confident, they will be looking to swing the momentum of the series back their way. Chicago needs to get a grasp on the top-class defense that was their bread-and-butter all season, and someone else needs to be a consistent offensive force so that Derrick Rose doesn’t get too burned out in the first round alone. Heat vs 76ers: This one is probably looking like the most lop-sided series so far – 76ers have had no answers to LeBron, Bosh, and even a migraine-affected Wade. Miami haven’t needed to look beyond the brilliance of their big three so far in this series. Philly’s problems run deeper than stopping the three, because Miami have been on fire defensively, too. All the odds seem to be stacked in Miami’s favour and only the perfectly-executed effort from the home-side can avoid a sweep. Celtics vs Knicks: The series score-line will say 2-0, but the truth goes way beyond the numbers. Two classic games have already been played in Boston, where the home-team had to play its best end-game basketball to avoid an upset against the hobbled Knicks. Celtics won Games 1 & 2 by two and three points respectively. Games 3 & 4 will see the return to playoff basketball for the world’s most famous arena, the Madison Square Garden. The MSG will be rocking, and after two close losses, revenge will be in the air for the Knicks. At different times in this series, Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony have been brilliant in losing efforts: can it all come together in front of their fans in New York? Or will Boston’s depth and experience be too much? Magic vs Hawks: I will be watching this series for one thing: What more can Dwight Howard do? In the first two games, which the teams split 1-1, the newly-named, three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Howard has averaged 39.5 points and 19 rebounds in almost 47 minutes per game. That means that Howard has only rested for two minutes of basketball in the last two games. Atlanta are happy for Dwight to dominate as long as they shut down the rest of the Orlando squad. Now as they go back home for Games 3 & 4, will Atlanta be able to go for the kill in this series? Or will someone else come to Howard’s aid in the Magic? Spurs vs Grizzlies: After a surprise Game 1 loss, the Spurs bounced back to win a hard-fought second game. Even with the series tied 1-1 and the next two games to be held in Memphis, the inexperienced Grizzlies are still the underdogs against the veteran, top-seeded Spurs. Whatever happens over Games 3 and 4, I predict that neither of these teams will be going down without a fight. Lakers vs. Hornets: The Lakers are in a similar situation to the Spurs - both the teams lost their Game 1s, and it took a tougher-than-expected effort from each to win Game 2. New Orleans will now be hoping that their home crowd can back them up for more heroics from the Hornets. But how long can Chris Paul's undersized body hold up against the longest team in the league? Expect a couple more defensive-minded, bruising games in this series. Mavericks vs. Blazers: The only series that I had predicted to be an upset has turned out to be, perhaps the most predictable. Mavericks’ veterans, behind Nowitzki and Kidd, did what they were supposed to do in the first two games: protect their home court and take a 2-0 lead. But watch out for one of the most electrifying home crowds in the league at the Rose Garden in Portland to help bring their team back to form. The Blazers have one of the best home records in the league, and if an upset has to take shape, now is the time for the Blazers to do it. Thunder vs. Nuggets: Nuggets cried foul over the Game 1 loss, but they have no reason to complain when the Thunder dominated Game 2 from end to end. Oklahoma City seem to have the upper hand in every department in this series, but no matter how Games 3 and 4 go, one thing is for sure: this will continue to be a series that showcases some breathtaking basketball - one side featuring two of the best young players in the league (Durant and Westbrook), and the other side becoming living proof of the philosophy that teamwork, rather than superstars, can win big games too. The question is: Who will the Nuggets turn to in the clutch? The O’Brien Files: A little taste of Playoff history - The Lakers, who lost Game 1 of their first round playoff series against the Hornets, have never won an NBA title when they have lost the first game of the playoffs since moving to Los Angeles in 1959. In all their 11 championship years since (1972, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2010), the Lakers won their first playoff game. Not a good omen for the two-time defending champions. X-Men By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani April 20, 2011  While Dwight Howard will receive most of the press -- and draw the double taems -- if Gilbert Arenas could regain some of his old form, the Magic will be a force. NBAE/Getty Images But basketball games aren’t won on superstars alone. And especially in the playoffs, when each match-up is grinded down, scrutinized to the umpteenth point, where teams play four to seven consecutive games against each other. The superhuman efforts of the Basketball Demigods may be enough to get through a few battles, but it takes a lot more to win the wars. This is where the ‘X-Men’ come in: the relatively-unsung heroes whose efforts can be the X-Factor between a good team and a great team. As we reach the end of the first week of playoff action, these are the players who, if on song, will elevate their squads to the next level. Luol Deng (Bulls): A quiet assassin for the Bulls throughout the season. For a team that has an elite point and scorer (Rose), an elite defensive post player and rebounder (Noah), and an above-average lost post scorer (Boozer), it is Deng who becomes the glue-guy in the starting lineup, using his various array of skills and applying himself however and wherever necessary. Deng is a good perimeter defender, a scorer with the ability to create his own shot, and a decent rebounder for his height. Rose has been the top threat to Bulls’ opponents this season, but it is Deng’s consistency that has helped the team sustain its high level of play. Mike Bibby (Heat): You can talk about the ‘Big Three’ all you want, but championships aren’t won on three men alone. Miami has a top-heavy roster and can count the inconsistencies of their support players as potentially the biggest roadblock in their championship aspirations. That is why the mid-season acquisition of Bibby was so crucial: an experienced performer at the playoff level, Mike Bibby brings poise to Miami’s point guard position and brings the ability of hit big shots when Wade, LeBron, or Bosh kick the ball out to him. Watch out for Bibby to have some clutch plays in the playoffs. Shaquille O’Neal (Celtics): I know what you’re going to say – We are talking about someone has played only five minutes of competitive basketball in two and a half months, who is the league’s oldest player at 39, and who is a constant doubt for injury: how can he possibly be a factor? Well, it seems that the Celtics’ top brass were confident enough of the start they had to the season with Shaq to trade away their previous X-Factor (Kendrick Perkins). Shaq was a seamless fit for Boston on both ends of the floor before his injury, and although the Celtics have no shortage of talent without him (Rondo, Allen, Pierce, & Garnett), it will be Shaq’s imminent return that might give this team the edge they seemed to have lacked since the Perkins trade. Gilbert Arenas (Magic): When Orlando is playing at its best, Dwight Howard dominates the offensive and defensive glass, puts up double-doubles with ease, kicks it out to the league’s best perimeter shooting support staff (Jason Richardson, JJ Redick, Hedo Turkoglu, Quentin Richardson), and get good leadership and clutch play from Jameer Nelson. But they still seem to lose their way, especially in playoff situations, and most of their problems arise from having a superstar offensive force to takeover close games. That is, until they realise that riding on their bench is a man who averaged between 28-29 points a game just four to five years ago. Arenas is lacking in confidence and in match-fitness, and will never be the offensive force he once was. But if Orlando can figure out how to re-ignite the man called ‘Hibachi’, even a limited amount of brilliance in each game can go a long way in the playoffs. Andrew Bynum (Lakers): Kobe Bryant you know: one of the NBA’s best player, and probably the best player to hand the ball to on the biggest stage. Pau Gasol you know: perhaps the best offensive big man in the NBA. Names are Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher, and Ron Artest will bring what they brought to the champions last year. But the X-Factor is Andrew Bynum: the Lakers are a good team without Bynum, but with him, they could be near–unstoppable. Skilled seven-foot bodies don't come around every day in this league. Although they struggled in Game 1 against New Orleans, the Lakers are perhaps still the best bet for raising a trophy and completing the three-peat. With a healthy and productive Bynum, the odds stack significantly more in their favour. Kendrick Perkins (Thunder): Rarely has the mid-season trade of a man who has, for his career, averaged less than seven points and rebounds per game, caused as much talk as the Thunder's acquisition of Kendrick Perkins did. Oklahoma City gave up a few important offensive pieces for the trade and still came out looking like winners. Why? Because Perkins was epitome of the Celtics' defensive identity - now, this identity shifts West, and Perkins fills up the only holes (championship experience, inside toughness) that the young Thunder side seemed to lack. With a deep squad, talented leaders in Durant and Westbrook, and an elite post-defender in Perkins, OKC now have the balance required to challenge for the title. Hot/Cold: Who has elevated their game in the playoffs? And who has fallen off Fresh Jalebi Hot: Chris Paul – Should it even have been a surprise? Once unanimously considered the league’s best PG, Paul saved his best performance of a relatively underwhelming season for the biggest stage. In Game 1 of the Playoffs, CP3 scored 33 points - 17 in the fourth quarter - handed out 14 assists, grabbed seven rebounds, and stole the ball four times as the undermanned and undersized Hornets beat Lakers at their own home court. Frosty Kulfi Cold: Pau Gasol – No one fell off worse in the Game 1s across the league than the otherwise brilliant Spaniard. Gasol, who went against a depleted New Orleans front court (because of an injury to David West), mustered only 2/9 shooting in Lakers’ shock loss to the Hornets. Kobe can’t do it all by himself – and it will take Gasol to find a way out of his uninspired play for the Lakers to bounce back from the 1-0 deficit. NBA Eye: Jostling For Position By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani April 12, 2011  Things haven't gone so well for the Lakers down the stretch. NBAE/Getty Images Wednesday: OKC Thunder @ Denver Nuggets Two of the hottest up-and-coming sides in the league faced each other in what could be a very exciting and unpredictable first round match-up. Currently, Thunder and Nuggets are placed at fourth and fifth, respectively, in the West, which means that they would be drawn against each other. The Nuggets have shown admirable consistency since trading away Carmelo Anthony, while the Thunder have quietly become one of the league’s most dangerous teams. After a best-ever month in April, OKC kept the momentum going. Nuggets held a three-point lead in the third quarter, but Thunder turned on their defense, going on a 16-0 run and sustaining their form to win 101-94 in the end. Kevin Durant seems to be getting primed as the playoffs come closer, and he scored a game high 32 points to go with nine rebounds in the win. Point guard Ty Lawson of Nuggets had a career-high 28 points. Thursday: Denver Nuggets @ Dallas Mavericks Another potential first-round match-up: If Thunder can finish above Dallas, then Dallas would play Denver in the first round. And if Denver coach George Carl had his way, this would be his dream scenario. The Nuggets feel confident in their match-up against the Mavs, and they showed it on the road. The Mavs had already been struggling off late, and in this close game, they suffered late-game heroics by Denver’s JR Smith, who lifted his side to a crucial 104-96 victory. Friday: Boston Celtics @ Chicago Bulls Perhaps the biggest statement of them all was made by Chicago – already the East’s best team, the Bulls continued their fairytale season by clinching the top seed in the East by defeating second seeded Boston in a confident, dominating manner. These two teams could well meet each other in an explosive Eastern Conference Final, but for now, it was all about Derrick Rose, who had 30 points and eight assists and completely outplayed his opposite number Rondo. When the game ended at 97-81 in Chicago’s favour, It was the Bulls’ 17th win in 19 games. Rose got plenty of help from Luol Deng and his other teammates, while the Celtics showed their lethargy against a clearly hungrier opposition. Saturday: LA Lakers @ Portland Trailblazers After going on a dream run post the All Star Break, the Laker wagon has slowed a little. On the other side, the Trailblazers remain a threat to surprise any of the top teams with their depth. This match-up could be possible in the first round if the Lakers were to finish third in the West and play the Blazers at sixth. And with this kind of performance, maybe that won’t be too bad for Portland – Portland played with intensity throughout the game. LaMarcus Aldridge (24 points, 11 rebs) and Gerald Wallace (19 points, 13 rebs) were a deadly 1-2 punch for the hosts who pushed the champions into their fourth straight loss, 93-86. Sunday: Utah Jazz @ San Antonio Spurs The only team playing on TV this week who will not be in the post-season is Utah, and their game fell against the league’s current best, San Antonio. Spurs did what they do best – share the ball – and it helped them sustain their efficient offense. Although they are destined to become the top team in the West, the Spurs needed to be sure to have the best record in the entire league and seal home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, especially against the Bulls, who have been catching up fast from the East side. In the end, the Spurs team ball helped them pull away for a 111-102 win. Monday: OKC Thunder @ LA Lakers The week’s trends continued in the last game – Thunder rising, Lakers falling. Thunder led most of the way in a competitive game, but the Lakers rallied to get a slight two point advantage going into the fourth. It was here that Thunder’s Kevin Durant went into superstar mode, making all the right decisions to help his team pull away in the final minutes. The team played smart basketball at both ends of the floor, and some big shots by Durant and a four-point play by Russell Westbrook helped the visitors score a valuable, 120-106 victory. The game featured big time performances by Durant (31 pts), Westbrook (26, along with 7 rebs and 6 assists), Kobe Bryant (31), and Pau Gasol (26). Thunder’s victory has moved them just one game behind LA in the West. And the rest of the weekend… There were several crucial games for teams making a statement or jostling for positions around the league. The biggest news came out of Miami, where the Heat finally broke their Celtic hoodoo and defeated Boston 100-77. Chicago got another crucial road win against Eastern rival Orlando, and New York Knicks won their seventh straight game behind more clutch performances by Carmelo Anthony. On your TV sets this week: Wed – Bulls @ Knicks, Thu – Spurs @ Suns. And then, on to the Playoffs! A Clockwork Duncan By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani April 8, 2011  There's a reason why Duncan has come to be known as 'The Big Fundamental.' NBAE/Getty Images Time, in the end, is boring. But time is unstoppable. This article is about Tim Duncan, perhaps the least-celebrated living legend in the game of basketball today. And why is that so? Because Tim Duncan is boring. Timothy Theodore Duncan. He is a machine, a robot, a T-Robot, as he is otherwise known. He's like an analog clock, ticking away, game after game. In the new NBA where most fans celebrate Kobe’s tenacity, LeBron’s powerhouse dunks, Garnett’s snarl and defensive intensity, Dwight Howard’s blocks and infectious smile and superstar alliances from Miami to Boston to New York, Duncan’s consistency goes forgotten, almost ignored. His dominance, like the arrow of time, is inevitable. With just around 10 days left before the playoffs begin, there are only a few constants that have ticked by with the NBA, like clockwork, year after year. Since the 1997-98 season, the only team to make the playoffs every year has been the San Antonio Spurs. It is no coincidence that this streak, now set to move into the 14th year, coincides with 14 seasons in San Antonio by Tim Duncan. During these 14 years, Duncan was Rookie of the Year in his first season, won an NBA championship and Finals MVP in his second, earned All-Star MVP honors in his third, won consecutive NBA MVP awards in 2002 and 2003 -- including an NBA title and a corresponding Finals MVP in 2003 -- won another championship and Finals MVP in 1005 and the fourth championship in 2007. Year after year after year, as Michael Jordan retired, the Bulls won, lost, and began winning again, the Lakers dominated, disappeared, and dominated again, the Celtics went from the league’s afterthought to its most-feared force, Tim Duncan and the Spurs stood standing consistently, playing, more or less, the same way every year. In his 14 years, Duncan has battled through the peak years of the Shaq-Kobe Lakers, the defense-first Knicks teams, the NBA lockout, the Jason Kidd-led Nets, the Steve Nash-led Suns, the Dirk Nowitzki-led Mavericks, the Chris Webber Kings, the dominant Detroit Pistons teams, the best playoff performance by LeBron James’ Cavs, and the new Kobe-Gasol era Lakers. And through it all -- through all these storms, through some setbacks, but mostly, through dominant performances -- Tim Duncan keeps delivering. He keeps ticking forward, further and further into time. The Spurs are once again the league’s best team, and although Duncan’s production has slowed down, he continues to be a low-post threat at both ends of the floor. His dominance has morphed from playing in an alliance besides David Robinson to a one-man post scoring machine, owner of the league’s most consistently dangerous offensive move, the bank shot. To keep winning, he changed his play slightly to incorporate talented wing players like Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili in the mid 2000s, and this year, changed it again as his team took up a faster approach to their scoring, dividing the point production between even more players. And when it comes to game-saving clutch performances, Kobe's jump shots, Iverson's ankle-breakers, or LeBron's drives may look more spectactar, but few players have stepped up in the biggest of occasions with quiet, influential performances like The T-Robot has. Besides all this, we shouldn't forget that, during all these years, Duncan was perhaps a bigger force on the defensive end, named to eight NBA All-Defensive first teams and five All-Defensive second teams. Add that to his 13 overall All NBA team appearances, 13 All Star appearances, two-time MVP awards, three Finals MVP awards, and four championships, and you get a resume that can be approached by only a few others in his field of play. The only other players to have come close to dominating the last decade and a half like him have been Shaq and Kobe, and even they haven’t done it as consistently as Mr. Fundamental himself. At their worst in the 14 years of the Duncan era, the Spurs won 61 percent of their games. At their best, they won 76.8 percent. At no point should one undermine the efforts of Gregg Popovich, currently the longest-tenured coach in the league and the mastermind behind the team's extraordinary run. But on the court, it is Duncan who has very silently become one of the best power forwards to ever play the game of basketball. Tick tick tick tick. He moves forward consistently and steadily, and even he is stopped and slowed by injuries, he returns to keep going forward. Duncan doesn’t stop. Duncan hypnotises, moves on and on. No matter if the opponents grind if down slowly or play a fast-paced game, Duncan is there, just as he has always been, going at the same speed. Duncan is boring. But Duncan is Unstoppable. NBA Eye: Wild Western Conference By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani April 6, 2011  Pau Gasol and the Lakers eliminated the Jazz from playoff contention after a disappointing year in Utah. NBAE/Getty Images The Eastern Conference is top heavy, but compared to the West, remarkably weak in the mid-table and below. That is why the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs could possibly be a lot more competitive. The difference between one and eight in the East (22 games) is much higher than one and eight out West (14 games). With some crucial results for Western Conference teams this week, the gap between top and bottom continued to shrink. Wednesday: Golden State Warriors @ OKC Thunder Here were two young, exciting Western Conference teams, seemingly going in different directions: For Thunder, March was the most successful month in franchise history. For the first time since the team left Seattle and ceased to be the Supersonics, the team went 14-2 over the course of the month. The trade for Kendrick Perkins was looking better and better… The Warriors, meanwhile, have struggled for consistency off late, but in this game, they were motivated to give OKC a run for their money. In a free-flowing game, OKC took several double digit leads, but behind Stephen Curry (35 points), the Warriors made inspired comebacks each time. With less than seven seconds on the clock, Monta Ellis hit a big three to tie the game for Warriors and take it into overtime. In OT, Thunder’s superstar Kevin Durant took the game into his hands, scoring eight of his 39 points. It took a couple of clutch free-throws from his teammate Russell Westbrook to seal a tight 115-114 victory for OKC. Thursday: OKC Thunder @ Phoenix Suns Thunder took on another team outside the Western playoff seeding the next night, but the Suns looked lethargic defending their home court from the start. OKC played clinical team defense to keep their opponents in check and stay in control of the game. The Suns’ only bright spark was veteran Vince Carter, who came off the bench to score a game-high 28 points and amaze fans with several plays that had made him into a household name over a decade ago. But Thunder were too efficient, behind 22 points each by Durant and James Harden, as they cruised to a 116-98 victory, winning their 50th game of the season. Friday: Boston Celtics @ San Antonio Spurs Here was a match-up straight out of the top drawer! Two veteran teams, known for unselfish play, both having strong seasons, but both going through a bit of a rough patch, got a chance to remedy their form against each other. After missing out on a couple of weeks while his team lost four straight games, Tim Duncan came back for the Spurs. But it was all Celtics for most of the way – the reinvigorated Rajon Rondo had a huge game at the right time, scoring 22 points and dishing out 14 assists. Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett also had 20 point games. Duncan showed flashes of dominance with a scoring spurt in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough and Celtics got a big road win over the league’s best team, 107-97. Saturday: LA Lakers @ Utah Jazz With the Spurs stuttering, second seeded Lakers saw the perfect opportunity to close the gap between the two teams. While Utah may have looked to be an easy opponent on paper, their effort made sure that this was anything but. For Utah, the game was about staying in the playoff hunt, for LA, who were on an eight game winning streak, it was about continuing to dominate. Jazz took a double-digit early lead behind Al Jefferson and were in control of the first half. It took a big third quarter by Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, and the rest of the Lakers to take the lead; by the fourth quarter, the Lakers’ veteran savvy and deep bench made sure that the game was a no-contest. Lakers cruised to win 96-85 and eliminated Utah from playoff contention. Sunday: Philadelphia 76ers @ Milwaukee Bucks Milwaukee may still be in the hunt for a playoff appearance, but hosting an improving-76ers side was never going to be easy. It was a close, low-scoring game, where neither team threatened to pull away. Bucks point guard Brandon Jennings missed a possible game-winner, but when the game went into OT, Jennings seized control, scoring nine of his 13 points and getting his team a crucial victory, 93-87. Monday: Dallas Mavericks @ Portland Trailblazers The Mavs are currently in third place in the West, and the Blazers in sixth, which means that these two teams could possibly face each other in the first round of the playoffs. Portland have been one of the most-improved teams in the second half of the season behind consistent play by power forward LaMarcus Aldridge, and hosting the mighty Mavs did not faze them. Making a statement to their possible playoff rivals, the Blazers played a high-energy game to stay in front of the Mavs, matching the depth in the visitors’ roster with their own. Newly-acquired Blazer Gerald Wallace led with 19 points and Portland managed to get a heartening win, 104-96. And the rest of the weekend… Every game around the league seemed to be carrying playoff significance. The Celtics had an up-and-down weekend, losing to Hawks on Friday night but defeating Detroit two days later. Meanwhile, the Lakers finally saw an end to their winning streak at the hands of the surging Denver Nuggets, who got a big win to announce themselves as a threat come playoff time. After 11 straight losses to the Cavs, the New York Knicks finally found a way to beat the lowlw Cleveland Cavs, behind the big three of Carmelo, Amar’e, and Billups, and in the process punch their playoff tickets for the first time in seven years. On your TV sets this week: Thunder @ Nuggets (Wed), Nuggets @ Mavericks (Thu), Celtics @ Bulls (Fri), Lakers @ Blazers (Sat), Jazz @ Spurs (Sun), & Thunder @ Lakers (Mon). No League for Big Men By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani March 31, 2011  Portland's Lamarcus Aldridge is just one of many big men to take their game (and succeed) outside the pain. NBAE/Getty Images Back then, the league belonged to the giants - seven-footers dominated offense, defense, and everything else in between! And when you take time to reflect no it, the vast divide in talent in the center position between 1994 and today is bound to leave you stumped. In '94, the best centers in the league were Hakeem Olajuwan (who won the MVP in '94 and two championships in 1993-94 and 1994-95), David Robinson ('94 MVP), Shaquille O’Neal ('93 Rookie of the Year), Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning, and Dikembe Mutombo –- each and every one of them either Hall of Famers by now, or potential Hall inductees. Look at the six best centers today – Dwight Howard, Nene, Andrew Bynum, Al Horford, Al Jefferson, and Andrew Bogut. The likes of Joakim Noah, Marc Gasol or Emeka Okafor could be the next few in this list. But outside of Dwight and maybe Bynum (if he lives up to his potential), I would be surprised if any other 2010-11 center came close to having a Hall of Fame career. There is no wonder, then, that Dwight Howard is unanimously considered to be the best at his position in the NBA. He is by far the best choice in an extremely weak list. Dwight is the last true dominating center standing, especially in the offensive end – which is funny to say because Dwight has historically struggled offensively. In 1994, the top three scorers in the Post-Jordan NBA were David Robinson, Shaq, and Olajuwan, with Ewing and Mourning also in the top 10. In 2011, the only center in the top 10 is Dwight, at 10th. Today’s NBA is no league for big men. Since the change of the NBA’s hand-checking rules in 2004, the league has been heaven for speedy perimeter stars, and the likes of Steve Nash, Dwyane Wade, Derrick Rose, and Chris Paul have benefitted greatly. The staple plan for building every NBA franchise used to be ‘get a good big guy and build around him’, but the formula has changed now. In the past, nearly every NBA era has been sprayed with dominating big guys, each one a frightening force at their time. These include the great George Mikan, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Willis Reed, Dave Cowens, Bill Walton, Moses Malone, Hakeem Olajuwan, David Robinson, and Shaq. But now, beyond Dwight, it is hard to see any competition. Shaq’s fall from domination coincided with the change in rules; the passing over to the small man was officially confirmed when Steve Nash was handed the 2005 MVP award over O’Neal. In the 12 year period between 1992-2004, nine of the 12 MVP awards went to post players – the only exceptions were Michael Jordan (twice) and Allen Iverson. Since 2004? The only ‘big’ to win an MVP has been Dirk Nowitzki – and he plays a perimeter game, too. With the evolutionary games of Garnett and Nowitzki – two big players who don’t play so much in the post – a lot of modern bigs have chosen to adopt an outside game too, like Amar'e Stoudemire, Chris Bosh, or LaMarcus Aldridge. What perhaps adds to the dearth in competition for Dwight Howard today is the list of centers who could’ve been great but failed, either due to injury (Yao Ming, Greg Oden) or were simply not as good as they were advertised to be (Kwame Brown, Eddy Curry). That is why, night after night, Howard defends a position which doesn’t really have a threatening scorer to defend. Most of the best NBA teams have fairly average talent when it comes to the big man in the middle: The Celtics have Krstic or a 38-year-old Shaq, while the Heat rotate between Joel Anthony, Ilgauskas, and Dampier. Several teams play forwards as centers, such as the Hawks (Horford), Jazz (Jefferson), or Knicks (Stoudemire/Turiaf/Jefferies). Others stack their 'Position 5' with talented but mostly defensive-minded guys, like the Bulls (Noah), Mavericks (Chandler), Thunder (Perkins), Hornets (Okafor), Grizzlies (Marc Gasol), and Bucks (Bogut). The likes of Brook Lopez and DeMarcus Cousins have shown some potential, but only time will tell how well they develop. Unlike today, even the second-string centers in the mid 90s, like Brad Daugherty, Arvydas Sabonis, Vlade Divac, or Rik Smits, were each forces to contend with. Which is the reason why the Lakers, who are perhaps the NBA’s longest team, have refused to go small. LA rejected a rumoured Bynum-for-Carmelo Anthony trade at the deadline, choosing to stick by their oft-injured but occasionally dominant center. With Bynum, Gasol, and Odom, the Lakers remain a threat in the low post. Wilt Chamberlain, and later Shaq, both admitted that “No One Likes Goliath” – no one likes to root for the big guy. And as the top talent of the league gets smaller, it seems that the ‘Davids’ will continue their domination. NBA Eye: For Nuggets, Less Is More By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani March 29, 2011  Ty Lawson has become one of a number of role players who have stepped into the spotlight for the Nuggets. NBAE/Getty Images Wednesday: Chicago Bulls @ Atlanta Hawks At this point, it seems that the Bulls can do no wrong: The young side has only lost two games in the month of March and has surged to the top of the Eastern Conference. One of those losses came in a close game against the Hawks about a week ago, and it seemed like Derrick Rose was on a mission to get his revenge. Carlos Boozer missed the game with a sprained ankle, and the Bulls were leading by two points at halftime. But they played their trademark stifling defense to go on a strong 24-10 run in the third quarter. Rose scored 18 of his 34 points in the third and Chicago pulled away to a 94-76 win. Thursday: San Antonio Spurs @ Denver Nuggets The improving Nuggets couldn’t have found a better time to face the league’s best team, the Spurs. Spurs were playing in their first game without Tim Duncan, whom they lost to an ankle sprain a few nights before. Still, San Antonio continued to be well-oiled machine, running an efficient offense in the first half and keeping a lead. But Al Harrington (27 points) found his shooting stroke for Denver, and several other Nuggets chipped in to make the game competitive in the final minutes. It took former New York Knicks’ Wilson Chandler’s jump-shot in the last minute of the game to give the Nuggets the lead and the big win, 115-112. Friday: New Orleans Hornets @ Utah Jazz The wildest game of the week saw the Hornets and the Jazz meet in a testy affair in Utah. Both the sides exchanged blows throughout the game and both teams had big front-courts to match-up against each other: Hornets boasted of David West and Emeka Okafor, Jazz countered with Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap. The game remained close into the dying seconds as Millsap’s free throws gave the Jazz a two-point lead, before an improbably difficult shot by Okafor, with a little less than a second to go, tied it for New Orleans, taking the game into overtime. Encouraged, the Hornets caught fire in the OT period and pulled away to a tough 121-117 victory. The celebrations were marred because Hornets lost their star power forward David West to a season-ending injury after he scored 29 points in the game. Chris Paul had 24 points and 12 assists for New Orleans, while Millsap (33) and Jefferson (22) led the way for Utah. Saturday: Washington Wizards @ Denver Nuggets After an emotional win over the Spurs, Denver were given a much easier task when they faced the cellar-dwelling Wizards. Boasting amazing balance, as six players scored in double digits, the Nuggets cruised for most of the way towards a 114-94 win. The Wizards added another blemish to their woeful road record this season of 1-34. Sunday: Dallas Mavericks @ Utah Jazz Utah couldn’t stop their slide against a Mavericks side, who for most of the game, couldn’t find a way to pull away. It was a close game halfway into the fourth quarter before the Mavs began to sharpen up their play. Jason Terry scored 10 of his game-high 22 points in the fourth, and the Mavs played tough defense, holding Utah to just seven points in the last six minutes of the game. Mavericks won easily in the end, 94-77. Monday: Dallas Mavericks @ Phoenix Suns Although these two teams had several interlinked stories, they were fighting very different wars before the battle of this match-up. The Mavs were hoping to catch up with the Lakers for the Number Two seed in the West, while the Suns were hoping to do the improbable and jump up to the eighth and final playoff spot in the conference. A number of familiar faces faced each other again, as the likes of Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, and Shaun Marion had all played for both the teams. It became a game of an intriguing competition between the two legendary veteran point guards: Nash and Kidd. Nash started off on fire, handing out seven assists in the first quarter alone and giving Phoenix a double digit lead. But the Mavs, chasing for the rest of the game, chipped away at the deficit to tie in the game in the dying minutes. It were here that Nash’s opposing number, Kidd took over, hitting two big three-pointers and two free throws for eight of the game’s last points in the final two minutes to help his team secure a 91-83 win. … And the rest of the weekend Miami Heat continued their road to recovery and to dominance, as they beat the 76ers on Friday night and the Rockets on Sunday. In both games, the Miami’s Big Three of Wade, LeBron, and Bosh combined to an incredible total of 185 points and 64 rebounds! Meanwhile the Lakers also continued their surge to the top, winning two more games over the weekend against the Clippers and the Hornets to make it a total of 15 of the last 16 since the All Star Break. On your TV sets this week: Wed – Warriors @ Thunder, Thu – Thunder @ Suns, Fri – Celtics @ Spurs, Sat – Lakers @ Jazz, Sun - 76ers @ Bucks, Mon – Mavericks @ Blazers The Tortoise, The Hare and the Old Fox By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani March 24, 2011  Could the Magic make a late run and take down the three powers in the Eastern Conference? NBAE/Getty Images A similar, fascinating race is currently being paced in the NBA between the three teams atop the East for the Number One Spot in the Conference. Like the fastest creature in the forest, the Miami Heat, with their trip of superstars, are like the Hare, as they carry high expectations for success, and yet, their biggest roadblock this season has been their own adjustments. The Chicago Bulls, with their defensively-charged, low scoring style of play, have been the Tortoise, both in game-play as well as in their response to their season. No one expected them to be challenging for the Eastern Conference title, but here they are, moving along at a consistent pace, and standing strong amongst the best. But in this race, there is a third competitor: the Fox. Quite fitting to the analogy of the Fox playing the judge at the finish line of the fable, the Boston Celtics are the savvy old side, and despite what else other teams in the East might do this season, there is a feeling that last year’s Finalists Celtics will once again be waiting at the finish line – the Conference Finals – ready to test whoever comes their way. Regardless of what the naysayers may say – there is a massive advantage of finishing at Number One in the regular season. The playoff format always favours the home team, which in every series is the team that finishes higher. And the team that finishes first is likely to avoid the other two in the second round of the playoffs - barring any upsets, the number two and number three sides in the East will play each other while number one waits for them in the conference finals. As we near the Finish Line, with each team having only a dozen or so games left this season, it seems that the Tortoise’s steady and consistent ways has thrust it into the front. Chicago currently lead the East with a 51-19 record, holding a slight edge over Boston. Behind top MVP candidate Derrick Rose and the brilliant coaching of Tom Thibodeau, Chicago have been a surprise of the season. They haven’t had any huge winning streaks but have rarely lost consecutive games. The Bulls also have an easier end to the season than Boston does, as their only remaining test will be against the Orlando Magic on April 10. But the greatest of teams are also the ones who fall down, face adversity, and come back stronger from it. The season so far has been a quiet fairytale story for Chicago, as they have a balanced squad, perfectly built around Derrick Rose, and seem to have a complete understanding of their identity. I fear that this young side have been too steady, and a tough test in the playoffs may rattle them. Meanwhile, Boston have the toughest road to the finish of the three. They are currently second in the East with a 50-20 record, just one game behind Chicago at 50-19. The Old Fox isn’t just an analogy for the judge standing at the finish line, but also for the fact that the Celtics’ can be counted on for veteran experience and clever, efficient play once the playoffs begin. They are the oldest team of the three, and although all three have suffered from injuries (Noah and Boozer for Chicago, Haslem, Miller, and Chalmers for Miami); it has been the struggles of Boston that seem to raise the most questions. There is no set timetable for the return of Shaq or Jermaine O’Neal, Rajon Rondo seems to be playing through pain, and there are still doubts over the team’s direction since Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson were traded away for Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic. In their final 12 games, the Celtics are poised to play six teams with a record of .500 or above, a stretch that will be highlighted by a game against the Spurs, and against their two other race competitors, the Bulls on April 7 and the Heat on April 10. Head to head, Celtics currently hold an advantage over both the sides, but these last two games, away from home, will be a test of their ‘fox-like’ savvy. As for Miami: they have had a stop-start season perfectly encapsulating the brilliance and the perils of being a confident Hare. With LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh, they have been one of the most inconsistent teams this season, going to unstoppable winning streaks at certain points but hovering around mediocrity for many others. They have struggled to defeat any of the league’s top teams, but they scored two big wins over the defending champions, the Lakers. At time of writing, Miami were two and a half games behind Chicago for the top spot, with a 49-22 record. But out of the three in the race, they have, on paper, the easiest road to the end of the season. In their last 12 games, the Heat will only play three teams above .500, and they are only expected to be really tested when they host the Celtics on April 7. Of course, the Orlando Magic have the talent and experience too to spring up a surprise over one of these teams, but in all likelihood, these three teams are the real powerhouses in the East. Once the playoffs begin, one of the them – Bulls, Celtics, or Heat – will finish as the leaders of the East and secure home-court advantage at least till the NBA Finals. The finish line for an 82 game marathon season is in view – who do you think will win – the Tortoise, the Hare, or the Fox? The Return of Roy By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani March 22, 2011  Kobe Bryant scored 10 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter on Monday morning, as the Lakers held off the tenacious Blazers. NBAE/Getty Images However, as Akshay Manwani recently noted, their luck seems to be changing: In Roy’s absence, LaMarcus Aldridge has developed as a near-All Star player; role players stepped up; and the Blazers brought in Gerald Wallace to bulk up their roster at the trade deadline. Most encouragingly, Roy returned to the team after a serious knee injuries threatened to end his career. He may not be the force he once was, but even a hobbled Roy is a force that can’t be ignored – just ask the Mavericks! Wednesday: Mavericks @ Trail Blazers If the playoffs were to start today, these two teams would face each other in the first round. If Wednesday morning’s game was any indication, the Mavericks (at third place in the West) may need to watch their back against the underdog Blazers (sixth) side. Opposing power forwards LaMarcus Aldridge and Dirk Nowitzki brought their ‘A’ games against each other, as Aldridge scored 30 and Nowitzki countered with 28 points. The Mavs started the game well, hitting their first 10 shots, and kept the league for most of the game. But the Blazers began to make a comeback, and behind 10 straight points by Roy, who is coming off the bench, they took the lead. Roy roused the home side with a total of 21 points off the bench and a crucial shot in the last minute of the game to help Portland win 104-101. Thursday: Mavericks @ Warriors It was Bollywood Night in Oakland, as the Warriors, whose Vice-Chairman is the Indian-born Vivek Ranadivé, put up an entertaining show of Indian dance, songs, and food for the audience. But for the Mavs, the game was all business, as they had to bounce back after a touch loss the previous night. Warriors who responded well to their excited home crowd, taking an early lead and letting their as Monta Ellis and David Lee led the way for the home squad. But the Mavs began to slowly chip away, and another big night for Dirk Nowitzki (34 points, 13 rebounds) ensured that it won’t be a perfect Bollywood ending for Golden State. Mavs won 112-106. Friday: Bulls @ Nets With seven and five game winning-streaks respectively, the Bulls and the Nets were the two hottest teams in the league before this game. Not a surprise anymore in Chicago, since they have been surging ahead behind Derrick Rose all season, but it was definitely a good week for the lowly New Jersey side. But the Nets’ streak was to end against the Bulls, who moved to the top of the Eastern Conference behind some good defense. Nets came close in the second half, but Rose had some clutch plays, outplaying opposing star point guard Deron Williams and helped the Bulls pulled away to a 84-73 win. Saturday: Celtics @ Rockets It was a bad day in the office for the Eastern Conference champions, as the Celtics came out completely flat footed against Houston. Celtics got scorched on both ends of the floor by an unfancied Rockets’ side, who were led by their excellent backcourt of Kevin Martin (25) and Kyle Lowry (20). Celtics got blown-out, 93-77 in an embarrassing defeat. Sunday: Nuggets @ Heat The Nuggets resurgence post the Carmelo Anthony trade has been one of the best stories after the trade deadline, as the team has regrouped to play well-balanced offense and good defense to stay strong in their 5th place playoff seeding. But Denver faced an uphill task against the motivated Miami duo of Wade and LeBron, who had their way for most of the game and helped Miami keep a consistent lead. The Nuggets made a brave comeback in the fourth behind a strong night by JR Smith (27), but Wade’s clutch play ensured that Miami survived to win 103-98. LeBron had 33 points and Wade added 32. Monday: Trail Blazers @ Lakers The Lakers, who have been going strong since the All-Star Break behind inspired play by Andrew Bynum, were without their Center for this game Bynum was given a two-game suspension. But Lamar Odom filled in well and Gasol moved up to the Center position when the Blazers came to town. Portland always save their best effort for the Lakers, and once again, held to a steady lead for most of the game behind Aldridge and French star Nicolas Batum (25). Brandon Roy once again showed signs of his returning explosiveness off the bench. But Kobe Bryant proved once again that he was amongst the best closers in the game, as he scored 10 of his 22 points in the final quarter, including a few key shots to give the Lakers the lead. The nail in the coffin was sealed by Derek Fisher’s jumper as Lakers survived a tough game, 84-80. … And the rest of the weekend The league’s two tough Texas teams, Spurs (1st in West) and Mavs (3rd), had an exciting showdown on Friday night, which the Spurs survived to win 97-91 after a 33 point game by Tony Parker. The big upset of the weekend took place on Sunday night, as the weak Raptor side ended a 14-game road losing streak to upset the Thunder in Oklahama City behind a game-winning layup by Amir Johnson. On your TV sets this week: Bulls @ Hawks (Wed), Spurs @ Nuggets (Thu), Hornets @ Jazz (Fri), Wizards @ Nuggets (Sat), Mavericks @ Jazz (Sun), Mavericks @ Suns (Mon). > Putting The 'W' In Loyalty By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani March 18, 2011  LeBron James' "Decision" this summer took him away from his hometown and to greener pastures in Miami. NBAE/Getty Images Fans were divided after The Decision, with reactions ranging from the good (“He is doing this because he wants to win”) to bad (“He isn’t good enough to lead a team alone”) to ugly (“He embarrassed the Cavs and quit on them”). Whatever camp you may be on, one thing was for sure: almost overnight, hundreds of thousands of Cleveland Cavalier fans, most of them not from Cleveland, became Miami Heat fans, sparking the greatest fan bandwagon congestion since David Beckham left Manchester United for Real Madrid. I’m not here to talk about LeBron alone, though: a common motivational phrase that budding young basketball players hear from their coaches and their mentors is “Play for the name on the front of your jersey, not the one on the back.” In other words: Play for the team, not for yourself. Yet, many of the same youngsters are likely to be bigger fans of the ‘James’ on the back of a jersey than the ‘Cleveland’ or the ‘Miami’ in front. Hey – I get it, business is business. And loyalty, especially in sports, is a tough thing to expect these days. Look at every trade deadline or every period of free agency: players swap teams like musical chairs. But for the fans of the game, unfortunately, this merry-go-round results in broken loyalties. When players move in and move out so regularly, how is an NBA fan, especially one not from an NBA city, supposed to support a team and stick with it? But there still are a small number of players left, who, through true loyalty or through sheer luck, have remained one-team guys for their whole careers. Amongst active players, Kobe Bryant leads the pack of having spent his entire career with a franchise. In his entire 15 year career, the Lakers are the only franchise that Kobe has played for. He has won five rings and numerous accolades with them, but that’s not to say that Kobe didn’t flirt with taking his talents elsewhere, either. Back in 2007, an unsatisfied Kobe made a trade request, and was nearly sent to Chicago to chase Michael Jordan’s shadow, or more bizarrely, to the Clippers to play with his LA neighbours. None of it happened, of course – Kobe remained in LA, and remained a Laker legend. Right after Kobe is Tim Duncan, who has given 14 years of service to the Spurs, and delivered four rings as the ultimate professional. The Spurs as a franchise have proven to be a model of loyalty, as apart from Duncan, their two other stars have also spent their entire career in San Antonio – Tony Parker (10 years) and Manu Ginobili (nine). The Celtics side might represent the NBA’s closest bond right now, but it is only Paul Pierce amongst the team’s stars who has seen the dark days of a team, going through various ups and downs in his 13 year career as a Celtic. Dallas have their own “organically-grown” 13-year veteran – Dirk Nowitzki – who, after a rough start to his career, has been a model of consistent excellence in the league. These players are the faces of their team. Historically, players like John Stockton (Jazz), Reggie Miller (Pacers), Bill Russell, Larry Bird, or Kevin McHale (Celtics), Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars (Pistons), and Magic Johnson (Lakers) can’t even be conceived in other uniforms. A similar story should’ve been about Allen Iverson, who was so deeply rooted with the 76ers and the city of Philadelphia that it was impossible to imagine him in the shades of any other side. But it happened, as Iverson went from Denver, to Detroit, to Memphis, back to Philadelphia, and then to Turkey. Iverson wasn’t the only one – Michael Jordan, the greatest ever, mildly blemished his perfect legacy when he awkwardly donned a Wizards uniform. Karl Malone looked wierd as a Laker, and so did Patrick Ewing as a Sonic or with the Magic and Hakeem Olajuwan wearing a Raptors jersey. LeBron and Carmelo Anthony, who recently left Denver for New York, may have missed their chance to emulate the likes of Kobe or Duncan, but there is a large crop of talented young players in the league who can still become an icon for their city and their team. LeBron’s teammate Dwyane Wade remained in Miami, a team that he has already led to the championship, and as a result, he strengthened his legacy with the team. Despite rumours of unsettlement, Dwight Howard (Orlando) and Chris Paul (New Orleans) are strong pillars holding up their relatively young franchises. Kevin Durant (Oklahama City) and Rajon Rondo (Boston) are two young stars who seem to be settled to become the future face of their teams. And rookie Blake Griffin has a chance to become a legend to save the Los Angeles Clippers from years of obscurity and disappointment. The ideal situation, of course, is of Derrick Rose, the south-Chicago-born kid, who grew up watching his Bulls become six time champions, and he became a star himself, until he was drafted first by his hometown Bulls, became a Rookie of the Year and All-Star with them, and now has them vying for the top spot in the East and making himself a strong MVP candidate. Organic growth in the NBA is rare, but crucial, and not only in a sentimental sense of loyalty. Teams that stay together longer tend to win more. Maybe that’s why the league’s best team and four-time champions, the Spurs, have three players who have spent a combined 33 years with the franchise. Maybe that’s why back-to-back reigning champions, the Lakers, have a player in Kobe who has spent 15 years with them, and another in Derek Fisher, who is now in his 12th year as a Laker. And the Celtics, the best team in the East, may have a loaded side, but it is the team’s 13-year-veteran Paul Pierce who is their heart and soul. Like Rose, LeBron James was drafted first in his ‘home’ team, the Cavs, and he led them to great heights. But as he and Bosh made their respective decisions to head down to Miami, it will take more than their talents to reach the Promised Land. It will take the philosophy imparted to them as young basketball players as they first learned the game: It is the name on the front of the jersey that matters, not the one on the back. NBA Eye: Golden State Of Mind By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani March 15, 2011 Featuring Stephen Curry, Monta Ellis, Dorrell Wright, David Lee and Andris Biedrins, the Golden State Warriors have always boasted a formidable line-up – on paper, at least. But injuries and inconsistent defensive play has kept this team outside of the playoff picture this season. This past week though, the Warriors seemed to be finally figuring things out, as they pulled away for two big wins live on TV for the audience in India. With Bollywood Night coming up for Golden State, the timing couldn’t have been better. The biggest game of the week, though, took place at the American Airlines Arena, where the struggling Miami Heat got their groove back after getting a morale-boosting win over the surging Lakers.  Dwyane Wade's increased defensive intensity was infectious for Miami, who took down the Lakers to get the Heat back on track. NBAE/Getty Images The Lakers had won seven straight coming into this game, and they showed no sign of slowing down against the Hawks. Kobe Bryant had a historic night, scoring 26 points to pass Moses Malone into sixth place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Meanwhile, the Lakers’ Andrew Bynum showed how crucial he is to the team’s success, putting up yet another impressive double-double of 16 points and 16 rebounds, as the Lakers cruised most to their eighth straight win, 101-87. Thursday: Orlando Magic @ Sacramento Kings In a game that was supposed to be dominated by Magic Center Dwight Howard, it was the Kings’ enthusiastic young rookie DeMarcus Cousins who got the better of the veteran. Cousins played bravely on both sides of the floor as Howard struggled with foul trouble and failed to stop the Kings’ big man. With the game on the line, it took another clutch performance by Magic point guard Jameer Nelson, who scored 12 of his 26 points in the 4th quarter, to help his team win the close game 106-102. Cousins had 29 points and seven rebounds in the loss. Friday: L.A. Lakers @ Miami Heat The two-time champion Lakers had won eight consecutive games, were oozing with confidence had all of their pieces ticking. Miami had lost five straight, their players were low on confidence and the Heat had struggled to find a way to win close games. Their only win against a big team this season had been against the same Laker team on Christmas night – and once again, the return of the Lakers proved to be Miami’s good-luck charm. Miami’s Big Three of Wade, LeBron and Bosh all stepped up to keep the Heat competitive, and as Kobe Bryant attempted to take over and win the game in the dying minutes, it was the outstanding defense of Wade that changed the course of the game. On the other side, Wade scored eight crucial points of his eventual 20 in the fourth quarter and the Heat got back to winning ways, edging LA 94-88, in an exciting, star-studded contest. Saturday: Orlando Magic @ Golden State Warriors It was an up-and-down game, where the Orlando Magic led most of the way, mostly due to their excellent three-point shooting. Magic were deadly from beyond the arc, led by Hedo Turkoglu and Jason Richardson, as they took a 21 point lead. But then, it was the Warriors’ turn to turn on their three point shot. Golden State’s excellent backcourt of Monta Ellis, Dorell Wright and Stephen Curry combined for 93 points (including 19 three-pointers) and 23 assists between them. Ellis had a game-high 39 and Warriors completed a wild comeback to win 123-120. The two teams connected on 36 3-pointers together, making it the highest number of combined threes in a game in NBA history. Sunday: LA Lakers @ Dallas Mavericks It was an important game as the third seed in the West (LA) tried to close the gap between them and the second seed (Dallas). But things didn’t start auspiciously for the champions, as Kobe Bryant hurt his ankle, left the game and then struggled after coming back. The Lakers’ savior came in the form of Andrew Bynum again, as the big man racked up 22 points and 15 rebounds, outshining Dallas’ high-scoring duo of Dirk Nowitzki and Shaun Marion (25 points each). In the end, the Lakers survived to win 96-91 on the road. Monday: Minnesota Timberwolves @ Golden State Warriors The Warriors showed their versatility, as they went from a wild offensive night against the Magic to a hard-nosed defensive game against the T-Wolves. Golden State held their opposition to 77 points, which was their season-best defensive effort. They got a big night from sharpshooter Stephen Curry, and the hero of the night was David Lee, who played tough post defense on double-double machine Kevin Love. After 53 consecutive double-doubles, Love’s streak finally came to an end, as he had a poor offensive night to only muster six points to go with his 12 rebounds; the Warriors won easily, 100-77. … And the rest of the weekend The Chicago Bulls continued to surge upwards with wins over Atlanta and Utah on consecutive nights. Meanwhile, after a few surprising losses, the Boston Celtics were back to their best against Milwaukee on Sunday night, holding their opponents to a franchise low 56 points in a defensive clinic. On your TV sets this week: Mavericks @ Trailblazers (Wed), Mavericks @ Warriors (Thu), Bulls @ Nets (Fri), Celtics @ Rockets (Sat), Nuggets @ Heat (Sun), Trailblazers @ Lakers (Mon). What Would Moses Do? By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani March 11, 2011  Malone, seen here after the 76ers' championship in 1982-83, was so much more than a superstar -- in many ways, he was a pioneer. NBAE/Getty Images He set records like Kobe, won MVP awards like Bird and Magic, made history to pave the way for Garnett and LeBron, dominated two different leagues, and worked harder than anyone else on the court. This is the blueprint set by Moses Malone, the man who has helped guide the game of basketball into the promised land. A tale of two records Apart from the fact that they both played for the West in the 2011 All Star Game, there is little in common between Kobe Bryant and Kevin Love. While Kobe, a perimeter threat, is one of the league’s best scorers for the Lakers, Kevin Love is a dominating post presence, one who has been logging double-doubles with his eyes closed this season for the Timberwolves. But this past week, Kobe and K-Love – two players with completely different games – were united as they both crossed milestones set by a single man: Moses Malone. Until Wednesday night, before Kobe leapfrogged him, Moses Malone was the sixth-highest scorer in league history. Now, he’s seventh, behind only the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe. But the Moses nostalgia wasn’t done yet – on Thursday night against the Pacers, Kevin Love bagged his 52st consecutive double-double, breaking a 32-year-old streak set by Moses in 1979. Before his record was broken, Moses held the longest double-double streak since the ABA-NBA merger in 1976. Prep to pros Before the age restriction, barring high-school players from bypassing college to enter the NBA directly, a host of NBA all-stars made their name going directly from prep to pros. A list of these players alone would scare any other line-up in the world: Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Kevin Garnett, Dwight Howard, Amar'e Stoudemire, Tracy McGrady, Jermaine O’Neal and Rashard Lewis. But before Kobe, LeBron, and Dwight did it, there was Moses. In 1974, right after graduating from Petersburg High School, Moses became one of the first players to jump straight from high school into a professional league, when he signed with the ABA’s Utah Stars. With averages of 18.8 points and 14.6 rebounds per game, the 19-year-old paved the way for all the boys dominating in a league of men. A tale of two leagues The ABA merged with the NBA in 1976, and players like Julius Erving, George Gervin, David Thompson, Artis Gilmore, Rick Barry, and then, Moses Malone. One by one, as the ABA and its red, white, and blue basketball, it’s afros and its style slowly left the league, as one by one, all of its legends retired. But Moses stayed strong. When he finally retired from the San Antonio Spurs in 1995, Moses had completed 21 years as a professional, and was the last man standing in the NBA from the ABA. No bounds to the Rebounds There have been few more tenacious rebounders in the league than Moses. For the first half of the 80s, Moses Malone and the basketball had a magnetic attraction to each other. For the five-year stretch from 1980-84, Moses led the league in rebounding five consecutive times, and he was the first one to do so. He finished his career with a total of 16,212 rebounds, good enough for fifth-best all-time. In 1979, he had a career-high 37 rebounds in a single game. It took some more years before Dennis Rodman channeled his inner Moses, and then some more, and recorded an incredible seven consecutive rebounding titles from 1992-98. A tale of two MVP awards, two consecutive years, and two teams In 1979, Moses Malone won his first NBA MVP award as a member of the Houston Rockets. Three years later, in 82, he did it again. The 76ers traded for Moses in the off-season, and then he won his third award, his second in consecutive seasons, in two different teams. He is the first and only player to have won consecutive MVP awards in two different teams. After his move from the Cavs to the Heat, back to back MVP LeBron James is once again in MVP contention: could he do what only Moses has managed before? Moses won as many MVP awards as Larry Bird and Magic Johnson – his three only trail Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, Bill Russell, and Wilt Chamberlain. The Promised Land “Fo, fo, fo.” The now-famous words have become Moses’ most recognisable quote. After being traded to the 76ers, Moses boasted that the 76ers will have an easy ride in the playoffs – winning each of the three best-of-seven series in four-game sweeps: 4-0, 4-0, 4-0. The reality was not much further from the prediction. The 76ers side, led by Malone but powered by former ABA star Dr. J, aka Julius Erving, as well as the likes of Andrew Toney and Maurice Cheeks, lost only one game on their way to the championship. The high-point for the 76ers came against the Lakers in the Final, where he dominated Abdul-Jabbar on the way to a sweep, a championship, and a Finals MVP award to bolster his MVP season. Philadelphia finished with an amazing 12-1 playoffs record. Years later, when a fourth series was added to the playoffs, their record was broken. It was Lakers vs 76ers in the Finals again in 2001, but this time, it was LA who clinched the championship, going 15-1 in the playoffs in the process. What would Moses do? Things might have changed a lot now, but NBA players are still reminded of a certain great that has left his indelible mark on the game. Whether it is youngsters going from preps to pros, those dominating different leagues around the world, or different teams in the NBA, or those looking to score, rebound, and win with relentless energy: they should all turn to the pages of history to emulate someone who has done it all before: Moses Malone. NBA Eye From An Indian Guy: London Calling By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani March 8, 2011  Before heading to London, Deron Williams had never won a game in a Nets jersey. He came back from the UK with two wins in two days. NBAE/Getty Images This was also the first full week since the flurry of trades that took place at the Trade Deadline, so it was interesting to watch a collection of old faces in new places. Wednesday: NY Knicks @ Orlando Magic The Knicks had been up-and-down since their big trade that brought in Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups to New York. Despite their rollercoaster season, the Magic seemed to be pretty settled since their own mid-season trades a few months ago. From the start, Magic looked to prove that they are still a team that the Knicks will have to battle tough with in the East. Dwight Howard dominated a weak Knicks frontline, scoring an easy 30 points with 16 rebounds. The Knicks had no answer for him defensively, so they looked at their own big three to counter with offense, and they delivered, as Billups (30), Stoudemire (30), and Anthony (25) helped to keep New York in the game. But the night belonged to Magic PG Jameer Nelson, who caught fire in the second half, scoring 23 of his 26 points after the break, including nine straight in the last few minutes of the game, to help seal a 116-110 Magic win. Thursday: Phoenix Suns @ Boston Celtics Last time we saw these two teams play, the Suns shut down the Celtics offense and cruised to an easy victory. Boston, the best team in the East, surely had that loss in mind as they started off on fire, notching a high-scoring, sharp-shooting first half to cap a 115-103 victory. New addition Nenad Krstic, who got the start in place of the traded Kendrick Perkins, showed how easily he fit into the Boston system, finishing the game as one of six Celtics with at least 13 points. The Suns’ own newcomer Aaron Brooks led an inspired comeback in the fourth quarter, but it wouldn’t be enough to stop the Celtics. Friday: Orlando Magic @ Miami Heat The Magic looked to be completely overwhelmed by Heat’s dynamic duo of Wade and LeBron early in this game. In the first half, the two scored 24 and 23 points respectively, missing only three shots between them and outscoring the entire Magic team. At one point in the third quarter, Magic trailed by 24, watching helplessly as Wade and LeBron tore them apart. But with a little restructuring of their offensive set-up, and a little more focus defensively on shutting down the two Heat superstars, the Magic were able to change everything. Behind some unbelievably good three-point shooting, Magic went on a 40-9 run behind hot shooting by Jason Richardson, Jameer Nelson, Ryan Anderson, and Gilbert Arenas. Richardson had a game-high 24 points. A missed three-pointer in the dying seconds by Chris Bosh sealed a historic 99-96 comeback win for Orlando -- the second-biggest comeback in team history. Saturday: NJ Nets vs. Toronto Raptors in London – 1 They may not be among the league’s most successful or glamorous teams this year, but the Nets and the Raptors were involved in history as they played the NBA’s first ever regular season game in London. Nets featured star PG Deron Williams, who was bought to New Jersey at the trade deadline. Once the fanfare died down, the basketball on the court heated up. Nets Center Brook Lopez led the way 25 points as the Nets scored a 116-103 victory over the Raptors. Saturday: Miami Heat @ San Antonio Spurs Unlike the two bottom-seeded clubs, Saturday morning’s second game featured two of the best in the business. Miami had an immediate chance to atone for their embarrassing loss from a day ago, but against the Spurs, who had the best record in the league and hadn’t lost a home game since November, it was always going to be a tough challenge. The Spurs gave Miami two lessons: 1) how to play like a team and not a group of individuals – eight Spur players scored in double digits to eclipse Miami’s Big 3. ... and 2) how to take a big lead and keep it – the Spurs had a hot start, going up by 24 points in the first quarter alone, and they sustained it to embarrass the Heat by 30, 125-95. Sunday: NJ Nets vs. Toronto Raptors in London – 2 It was the NBA’s dream scenario: although the team’s participating didn’t have the best records, the two competed in playing out one of the most exciting games of the season. In a night that seemed to never end, the action in London went on beyond the regulation 48 minutes, on to first, second, and then to a third overtime! After 63 minutes of action where none of the teams could take command over the other, the Nets got a heroic finish at the hands of Travis Outlaw, who scored the team’s last eight points to help them notch a 137-136 victory. Brook Lopez again flexed his talents to put up 34 points and 14 rebounds. For Toronto, former number one pick Andrea Bargnani had 35, but he missed several potential game winners in the first and third OT periods. Sunday: Sacramento Kings @ Utah Jazz An action-packed week full of live games in India concluded with the Kings visiting the new-look Jazz. Having lost their inspirational coach Jerry Sloan and point guard Deron Williams in a matter of a few weeks, Utah have tried to find a new identity behind their slew of talented big men, Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap, as well as trying to incorporate the new faces of Devin Harris and rookie Derrick Favors in their line-up. Sacramento played without their team leader, Tyreke Evans, but rookie Center DeMarcus Cousins and newly-acquired Marcus Thornton made sure that the struggling side keep the game into a close contest. In the end, it took some clutch plays by Utah’s sharp-shooter Raja Bell, and Jazz survived win 109-102. Al Jefferson led Utah with 27 points. ... And the rest of the weekend For a country regularly fed with Laker games, last week was barren for fans of the two-time champions in India. It would've been a good one to watch, too, as the Lakers stretched their winning streak to 7-0, including a mammoth blowout victory over the Spurs on Sunday night. Conversely, the Heat continued their free-fall, losing once again to Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls Sunday night by just one point, 87-86. It was Miami's fourth straight loss and Chicago eighth win in the last 10. Bulls leapfrogged Heat to second place in the East. On your TV sets this week: Lakers @ Hawks (Wed), Magic @ Kings (Thu), Lakers @ Heat (Fri), Magic @ Warriors (Sat), Lakers @ Mavericks (Sun), Timberwolves @ Warriors (Mon). The Other Guys By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani March 3, 2011  This is Jodie Meeks. And we're not surprised if you don't know his name -- that anonymity, to this year's Philadelphia 76ers, is a great thing. NBAE/Getty Images But in him, and in the nine other guys standing beside him, the 76ers have found their 'Answers'. This season, Meeks is only the sith leading scorer for the 76ers. The other top five are Elton Brand (15.2), Andre Iguodala (14.1), Jrue Holiday (13.8), Lou Williams (13.5), and Thaddeus Young (12.4). None of them are all stars this season. Not one. Brand, a once-promising big man who is four years removed from his last good season, and Iguodala, who has solid-if-not-spectacular career averages of 15.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.7 assists a game are the team's biggest names. And they're not exactly household names...in Philadelphia. But what makes this squad special is that, at 30-30, the 76ers are primed for a surprise trip to the NBA playoffs, as they currently sit at 7th place in the East. No other playoff-bound team is even close to having such a low scoring top scorer (Brand’s 15.2). While the NBA’s top players might be moving in together (Big Three in Boston, Big Three in Miami, Melo and Amare in New York, Kobe and Gasol in LA, etc), the likes of the 76ers have shown that, with a small, tight unit, a team can still be what it is supposed to be - A team - and still be successful. In the 60 games played by the 76ers this season, an incredible 10 players in their rotation have averaged 11 or more minutes per game: Iguodala, Holiday, Brand, Meeks, Young, Evan Turner, Williams, Spencer Hawes, Andres Nocioni, and Marreese Speights. All 10 average roughly between 5-15 points a game. The 76ers had a tough start to the season, going 3-13 in their first 16 games. And then, suddenly, everything fell into place for coach Doug Collins - the 76ers began to play like a true team unit, with each member of their rotation contributing and each one having a big night when neccessary. Ever since that start, the 76ers have improved to 27-17. They won 9 of their 12 games in February and Collins was named Coach of the Month. His roster may not strike fear in the heart of opponents used to playing against big-name stars, but they have truly embodied the spirit of Philly's "Brotherly Love" when it comes to fitting in together. In Brand, the 76ers have a legitimite big man to run a successful pick-and-roll offense. In Iguodala, they have one of the best all-around athletic players and defensive specialists. Jrue Holiday is one of the league's most improved point guards, and Spencer Hawes is a serviceable Center. Lou Williams is a great offensive spark off the bench, in contention for the Sixth Man of the Year award. Thaddeus Young is a long, athletic, and versatile forward. And of course, there's rookie Evan Turner, the 2nd pick of the 2010 draft, who is another versatile, unselfish, sharpshooting option, capable of playing many positions. Jodie Meeks, like the others, is an important piece to the puzzle, as his outside shooting ability has allowed the starting line-up to spread the floor better and improve their offensive efficiency. While the rest of the league scampered and re-adjusted themselves throughout the course of the season, making trades, signings, and other transactions, the 76ers have been involved in only one "move" since the start of the regular season: letting iconic guard Allen Iverson leave for Turkish team Besiktas. 10 years ago, Iverson brought success to the franchise as an extraordinary talented singular superstar, carrying a subpar squad on his tiny, yet tough shoulders. Ten years later, the team has found a new, Iverson-less identity, and in the process, become a close knit group that has stayed together and improved together. Which brings us back to Jodie Meeks. Meeks, like every other individual in the team, is a low-profile young player in a low-profile young team, getting low-profile statistics. The Philadelphia 76ers are the NBA's 'Other Guys'. No individual in the 76ers rotation is even close to being in the same breath as the marquee superstars that us fans get exposed to on a daily basis. He isn't LeBron, Kobe, Wade, Durant, Dwight, Rose, Dirk, Pau, Amar'e, or Carmelo. Neither are his teammates. Alone, none of them might be able to accomplish what the all-stars mentioned above 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. And at the end of the day, that is what the game of basketball is all about, isn't it? Deadline Day Buzzerbeaters By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 24, 2011  Boston swapped a chunk of its roster on Deadline Day, including big man Kendrick Perkins, who's off to Oklahoma City. NBAE/Getty Images Some feel that the last minute pressure and stress actually produces their best work. But this may not be neccessarily true all the time: just because something is completed at the deadline doesn't mean that it has been completed well. In the NBA, as the Trade Deadline fell at 3 PM Eastern Standard Time on Thursday, a flurry of trades took place in the last few days, just like they do every year. Let's take an alphabetic look at some of the good, bad, and ugly of some of the teams involved in this year's Deadline Day Buzzerbeaters! Atlanta Hawks: The Hawks brought in Kirk Hinrich and Hilton Armstrong from the Wizards in exchange for Mike Bibby, Jordan Crawford, and Maurice Evans. This move makes them younger at the point guard position, but I feel they gave up too much. Boston Celtics: Now here's a trade that came right at the buzzer. Desperate for another perimeter presence, the Celtics reportedly acquired Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic from the Thunder, but lost their talented defensive big man Kendrick Perkins along with Nate Robinson to OKC. This is a risky move for Boston, who have relied on Perkins' post defense in several tense playoff situations. Without Perk's toughness, there will be more pressure on Garnett, Glen Davis, and Shaq against the likes of Dwight Howard or the Lakers bigs. Then again, Perkins' value may have never been higher. On the other hand, Green is a talented player, a versatile inside-outside presence and a good defender who will strengthen the Celtics' bench and allow rest for the likes of Paul Pierce. Cleveland Cavaliers: The Cavs brought in Baron Davis and a first round pick from the Clippers in exchange for Mo Williams and Jamario Moon. In a team without a leader, is Baron Davis really the solution? I don't think so, but the first round pick may be able to provide some redemption in the future. Denver Nuggets: Acquired Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov, Kosta Koufous in exchange for Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Balkman, Shelden Williams, and Anthony Carter. The Nuggets may feel hard-pressed to have lost their franchise superstar in Anthony, but they have to be grateful that they weren't left empty-handed like the Cleveland Cavaliers last season. Unlike LeBron James, who left for free at the off-season, Anthony was traded mid-season, meaning that the Nuggets got back several young pieces to fill up their already deep squad. In Chandler, Felton, and Gallinari, they will be able to recover from the loss of Anthony and should steal sneak into the Western Conference Playoffs. New Jersey Nets: The Nets couldn't get any of their targets in the offseason (LeBron, wade, Bosh, Boozer, Amare), and couldn't get their primary target this season (Anthony), so what was their move? They slyly target unsettled but talented point guard Deron Williams and away him away from Utah, in exchange for rookie forward Derrick Favors, Devin Harris, and two first round picks. Although Williams is a brilliant player, the Nets still don't have a good enough squad to get any short-term success, and since they have given away their draft picks, they will struggle to bring in young players through the draft either to support him. What remains to be seen now is how they will perform in the free-agency period in the off-season. New York Knicks: Knicks acquired Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Corey Brewer, Renaldo Balkman, Shelden Williams, and Anthony Carter, sending Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Timofey Mozgov, and future draft picks to Denver, and sending Eddy Curry and Anthony Randolph to Minnesota. What can I say? This is a massive deal for New York. I have heard complaints that the Knicks may have given away too much for 'Melo, but to get one of the league's elite players, this type of a move had to be made, especially since 'Melo was non-committal about his off-season plans. In the process, they picked up important pieces in Chauncey Billups, a natural leader, and defensive backup help in Brewer and Balkman. Also, the Knicks finally got rid of the albatross that Eddy Curry had become. This may not yet be a team challenging for a championship, but considering how down and lowly they were over the past decade, the Knicks look to have ressurected themselves well beyond the 2010-11 season. Oklahama City Thunder: The Thunder made a bold move, giving away their third option in Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic in return for defensive presence Kendrick Perkins and back-up spark, Nate Robinson. I feel this is a significant move for the Thunder, who have good perimeter scoring options in Durant and Westbrook, have realised the importance of post presence in their bid for a deep playoff push. Portland Trailblazers: The Blazers, a team which has lost Greg Oden to a serious injury and seen Brandon Roy slowed down by several injuries himself, brought in a new star to help revive their squad: Gerald Wallace from Charlotte. Wallace is one of the league's most versatile players and best defenders in return for Joel Przybilla and draft picks. Utah Jazz: Utah lost Jerry Sloan, and soon after, traded away the player who was blamed for his departure, Deron Williams, to New Jersey. This was a smart trade, since Utah were unlikely to hold on to Williams past next offseason anyways. They received Devin Harris and rookie Derrick Favors in return, plus several draft picks. This is a deep team which may not do much this year but look to have a bright future. Washington Wizards: Loaded with John Wall and Nick Young in their backcourt, the Wizards gave up their back-up point guard option Hinrich to the Hawks in return for an experienced head in Mike Bibby. This is a good move as Bibby will be a good senior player for this young team. The City of Angels, Hollywood and the Black Mamba By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 21, 2011  LeBron James (who registered the second triple-double in All-Star Game history) joined the best players in the world for a spectacle unlike any other in L.A. NBAE/Getty Images Following non-stop excitement all weekend in LA, which featured the best young players, dunkers, shooters, and entertainers, the zenith point culminated on Sunday night at the Staples Centre with the All Star Game. Leading up to the event, the entire Downtown Los Angeles area became into a carnival of basketball. There was an electricty in the air on Sunday: 3D game viewings at the cinemas, five star hotels becoming into shrines of hoops, NBA players strolling by, signing autographs and posing for pictures, and fans from all over the country in their favourite basketball apparel. I saw fans in jerseys of the Knicks, Heat, Suns, Blazers, Thunder, Kings, Warriors, Celtics, Nuggets, 76ers, Bulls, Timberwolves, Mavericks, Grizzlies... And of course of the two home teams, the Lakers and the Clippers. From the popcorn vendor at the Staples Center who spoke about how lucky he was to have his second all star game in LA to the head executive of entertainment intrastructure company AEG, who talked about the process of creating the perfect arena at the Staples to feature a big event like this, the life of every local in the area was effected by the occasion on All Star Weekend. Before Sunday night, no player had raised his profile to the mainstream like Clippers' rookie forward Blake Griffin. With good performances in the Rookie Challenge and the Slam Dunk competition, Griffin was the rising star of the weekend. But LA is Kobe's town. About 80 percent of the jerseys in LA were either Bryant 24 or Bryant 8 - from the youngest to the oldest fans, from bandwagon jumpers to die-hards, nobody commanded more attention than the Black Mamba. There might have been other big stars on court (LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Kevin Durant, Dwight Howard, Derrick Rose, Carmelo Anthony, Amar'e Stoudemire, and Chris Paul), NBA legends watching the game from the sidelines (Bill Russell, Julius Erwing, James Worthy, Clyde Drexler, Darryl Dawkins, Charles Barkley, Dominique Wilkins, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and David Robinson), and the biggest celebrities in the entertainment industry (P. Diddy, Jay-Z, Beyonce, Spike Lee, Rihanna, Kanye West, Drake, Justin Bieber, and Snoop Dogg), but straight from the tip off of the All Star Game, Kobe made it clear that no one else was going to take his crown as the King of LA. Kobe attacked the basket from the inside and outside early in the game, and began to hound the opposition defensively too. The tone he set quickly spread to the other players around him, who immediately began to take the game more seriously and play tough. Amar'e Stoudemire and Chris Bosh, two big men on the East, had a good start, but it was Kobe as well as Kevin Durant who began to do the damage for the West and helped them take the lead. Perhaps it was the hostile LA crowd, but the Boston Big 4 grossely underwhelmed and were unable to make much of a difference in their cameo of the bench. The West led by 10 points in the first quarter, and by the end of the first half, had amassed a 76-64 lead. Kobe continued his assault in the third quarter, surprising fans by showing a youthful athletic ability, even at his older age, as he dunked, rebounded, and dominated at will. The highlight of the night came when Kobe was on a fastbreak heading down the court, chased be LeBron James, before slamming down am emphatic dunk on LeBron. That seemed to have given extra motivation to LeBron, who began to valiantly lead his side back with brilliant all-round play, once again proving that when he gets going, there are few defenders in the world that can stop him. LeBron finished the night with only the second ever triple-double in All Star Game history since Michael Jordan, as he had 29 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists, and with the help of Amar'e Stoudemire, the East cut down the West's lead to just 4 points in the game's last minutes. Now, this is the part of the game I liked! See, when any coach is given the choice of the best players at his disposal, who does he choose for the clutch moments, when the most is at stake. The East sent out a lineup of Derrick Rose, LeBron James, Amar'e Stoudemire, Chris Bosh, and in the absence of a Dwyane Wade who hurt his heel mid-game, Joe Johnson. The West put out Kobe, Durant, Chris Paul, Pau Gasol, and Carmelo Anthony. And with the game on the line, it was Kevin Durant who came closest to upstaging Kobe's night: Durant hit the biggest shots of the game in the end and the West survived to win 148-143. Durant finished with 34 points, Gasol added 17 and 7 for the West, while in the East, Amar'e had 29 points to go with 6 rebounds. But the MVP was never in doubt. With game highs 37 points and 14 rebounds, Kobe emerged to win his record-tying fourth All Star MVP award, once again proving that he is far from ready to hand over the mantle to some of the game's younger player. It was a historic night for a historic player, Kobe Bryant, the King of Los Angeles. The All Star Game, unlike the ones in the past, might have been low on flash, but was definitely pretty high on competition. It was a pleasure to get a chance to watch it live at the Staples Centre, an experience that I will definitely never forget. With rivalries between the stars renewed, let's hope that the rest of the NBA season continues to bring us more breathtaking excitement. Can the Stars Come Out and Play? By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 20, 2011  Saturday night proved, yet again, just what kind of magic can happen when the best athletes in the worlds get together. NBAE/Getty Images But the players deserve a break, too, don't they? They deserve a break to celebrate their achievements, and for once, play incredible basketball because they can, not because they have to. And this brings us to the All Star Weekend in Los Angeles: providing a breather from a grueling season schedule, the league's best players, it's best shooters, dunkers, and dribblers take some time off to take away a dash of seriousness from basketball. It is as if, imagine Frankestein created the perfect basketball beast - a well-built, athletic, superfast and supersmart joint, formed to bring destruction upon the rest of the hoop world, and then, the beast was installed with the enthusiasm and the frivolity of a child. That, my friends, is what the All Star Weekend is all about! On Saturday, I continued my adventures across Los Angeles, soaking in as much as I could of this amazing experience and watching some incredible athletes do some incredibly fun things. All Stars Practice The day started with a practice session for all of the Eastern and Western Conference All Stars at the Los Angeles Convention Centre. Considering that the players practicing included the likes of Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Kevin Durant and about 20 more of basketball's biggest names, it was no surprise that even the practice was conducted to a packed, cheering audience. After each side conducted several drills handed by their respective coaches (Doc Rivers in East, Gregg Popovich in West), the players decided to flip on the fun switch. Watched over by a representative from the Guinness Book of World Records, Celtics' Paul Pierce and Ray Allen took the floor to set the record for most three-pointers in a minute (sequentially) by a tandem. Allen and Pierce finished with 13. But their record was short-lived, as minutes later, their Western Conference rivals send their own shooting tandem: Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Durant. Nowitzki and Durant bettered the Celtics' duo and scored 15 threes, setting a new Guinness World record! Afterwards, I got a chance to speak to several players like Dwyane Wade, Kevin Durant, Ray Allen, and Dirk Nowitzki on their predictions for the All Star Game on Sunday and their opinion on the growing status of basketball worldwide. Dwyane Wade, who won the All Star Game's MVP in Dallas last year, said that this time around, he wasn't looking to go for the individual prize again. "We have a lot of good players in the East who can win it - I'm going to be biased and say that my teammate Chris Bosh will be the MVP!" One of his East teammates and the league's newly crowned all time three-point leader Ray Allen spoke about his work ethic as a shooter, and said that his favourite shooter growing up was Dell Curry. Kevin Durant, who led Team USA to the FIBA World Championship gold in Turkey last summer, and in the progress, won the tournament's MVP, was optimistic about the growth of basketball worldwide. "It's great to see the talent developing around the world. I hope that one day basketball can become the most popular game in the world." Finally, it was former NBA MVP Dirk Nowitzki, the German superstar who has been an icon for the growth of the international game. "I think they have a huge market there in india. Basketball is becoming more popular globally and hopefully we can help it grow in India as well." David Stern On Saturday afternoon, the NBA's Commissioner David Stern met the press, where he talked about the influence of the NBA's collective bargaining meeting, the growth of the game globally, and the influence of NBA players in social service amongst the community. Answering a question about the parity of talent between some of the big market NBA teams as compared to the rest, Stern said: "Our goal in the negotiations is to come up with a system where all 30 teams over a period of time have the ability to compete... this agreement that we are trying to get, on having small markets with the capacity to compete in this league, and succeed in this league." On the question of contraction of the league, Stern replied: "I would say it's not currently on the table. There's been no proposal about contraction." All Star Saturday And finally, all of the lights were on Staples Centre again on Saturday night, for a showcase event of basketball activities. Anyone who has ever been on a basketball playground has taken time off for little challenges: shooting, dribbling, half-court shots, etc. Now imagine the same little challenges played by the best players in the world! The first event of the night was the Shooting Stars competition, where four teams each consisting of three players (one current NBA player, one former NBA player, and one WNBA player) compete in a timed shooting contest from around different parts of the court. Featuring Hawks Center Al Horford, former player Steve Smith, and Coco Miller of the WNBA's Atlanta Dream, Team Atlanta defeated teams from Texas, Los Angeles, and Chicago to win the event. The Skills Challenge, featuring some of the fastest and most precise ball-handlers in the league, took place next. A competition that featured explosive young stars like Derrick Rose, John Wall, and Russell Westbrook was instead dominated by Golden State Warriors' sharp-shooter Stephen Curry who emerged as champion. One of my favourite events of the day historically has been the Three Point Competition. I had spent hours as a child playing computer game versions, usually leading Reggie Miller to my fantasy title! This year, Miller's three-point record was broken by Ray Allen, who showed up at the Three-Point Competition looking to become the next king of threes. Of course, he would have had to get through his own teammate and last year's champion Paul Pierce, as well as the league's leading scorer, Kevin Durant. Playing for the rival Boston squad, Paul Pierce was 'welcomed' by a chorus of boos by the Los Angeles' faithful, and Pierce seemed to enjoy the reception, donning the villain's hat at the occasion. He sneaked into the final of the tournament by a whisker, but it was Allen and the unassumed Miami Heat sharp-shooter James Jones who impressed. In the Final, Jones continued his hot streak, Allen grew cold, and Pierce missed out his chance to win a repeat title. When the dust settled, the underdog Jones had defeated the two Celtics to become the new shooting champion. "Shooting against some of the best competition in the league kind of brought the best out of me," James said afterwards. Let's go back a day now, back to the all star player interviews. When asked about their favourite all star memory when growing up, most of the young players in the world spoke about two occasions: one being Michael Jordan's comeback All Star Game when he was in the Wizards and hit the game-tying shot in Overtime for the East. The second moment, which is my favourite all star moment too, was the Vince Carter show at the Slam Dunk Competition over 10 years ago. With a series of gravity-defying dunks, Vince essentially killed the Dunk Contest: he was so good that the contest was never going to be good enough ever again. Well, finally, the most-hyped event of the night was here on Saturday! People had been waiting in great anticipation for what was being called the 'Blake Show' - Blake Griffin, the star of the hometown Los Angeles Clippers had been on a dunk-fest all year long and was expected to provide the audience with the experience of their lives at the Slam Dunk Competition. Expect that it wasn't all about Griffin: his competitors, DeMar DeRozan, Serge Ibaka, and JaVale McGee brought out the big guns, both in terms of ability and showmanship. It turned out to be my favourite Slam Dunk Contest ever since the Vince one, a perfect blend of close competition amognst the four dunkers, ability, and gimmicks! While DeRozan did an incredible self-alley-oop and windmill, Congo's Serge Ibaka brought out the theatrics, entering to waving African flags and throwing down the easiest looking dunk from the free throw line. In the second round, Ibaka placed a soft toy on the rim which he pulled down with his mouth while dunking the basketball. McGee, a seven-footer in a contest where smaller players get more favoured, decided to bring out his creative side. His dunks included setting up two rims and dunking two balls at the same time. And then he followed up by dunking three basketballs into the same rim (and inviting his mother, a former WNBA player, who bring out a WNBA ball for the event!). I'm sure that the triple dunk must've been some type of Guinness Book Record! The Blake Show was impressive as expected. If his first dunk, a 450 degree throwdown got the crowd of his feet, he followed up with an ode to Vince Carter with the 'elbow in the basket dunk'. But Griffin saved his best for last. Teammate Baron Davis drove out a car and parked below the basket. Griffin emerged from amongst a chorus of church singers, encouraging Griffin with their rendition of R. Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly", as Griffin flew over the car to catch an alley-oop and slam it down. The show and the night were over. It didn't matter what happened after. Blake Griffin, Slam Dunk Champion. And I left the arena still rubbing my eyes in amazement. I feel lucky to be part of history, such a memorable night in basketball. The energy of the crowd and the pop acts added to the atmosphere. Can entertainment really get bigger and better than this? Well, let's wait and see. The All Star Game was just one more night away... Los Angeles, the home to a Basketball pilgrim on ASW By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 18, 2011  Blake Griffin of the Rookie Team dunks against Stephen Curry of the Sophomore Team. NBAE/Getty Images Los Angeles, the host of the NBA All Star Weekend, has become a shrine to basketball, featuring the game's most revered Gods going head to head with each other. But it is much more than a set of competitions: much more than some basketball games or shooting competitions, it is a carnival of basketball. Every corner in downtown LA has posters of Kobe, LeBron, Wade, Derrick Rose, Dwight Howard, Blake Griffin, or another one of the game's brighest stars. Everything, from burgers to T-shirts to parking spaces and hotels are basketball themed. If like me, you are one in need of a basketball pilgrimage, then Los Angeles for this weekend is your Mecca, your Vatican, and your Varanasi. So here's your little snapshot of my experiences from the All Star Weekend Rookies and Sophomores The first event on Friday, the 18th, was the practice session for the Rookie-Sophomore game, pitting the game's best first year players against the second years'. This being the home of the league's most exciting new firecracker, Blake Griffin, there was a lot of hype about him. Griffin is set to have a busy weekend: taking part in the Rookie Challenge on Friday, the Slam Dunk competition on Saturday, and the All Star Game on Sunday. Griffin wasn't there for the practice session, but a lot of the other young stars were, from last year's Rookie of the Year Tyreke Evans, Brandon Jennings, Stephen Curry, James Harden, Landry Fields, DeMarcus Cousins, John Wall, slam dunk participant DeMar DeRozan, and Taj Gibson. Brandon Jennings, who spent one year playing in Italy before entering the NBA, knows a thing or two about the growth of basketball internationally. "The game can only continue to grow around the world," Jennings said, "I hope to see the day that the All Star Game is held in countries like China, and of course, India is the next country for the NBA to keep growing in." Another player who turned out to be a fan of Indian culture was Raptors' forward DeRozan: "I'd love to come to India because I love Indian food," he said (and he wasn't the last one to talk about Indian food that day, "I don't know what I had - but it was good!" Taj Gibson, Bulls forward who visited the Basketball Without Borders Asia camp in Singapore a year ago, fondly remembered his experiences with Indian youngsters. "They showed a lot of heart and passion," Gibson said, "I think those kids have a bright future ahead of them." Tyreke Evans wasn't playing due to an injury, but he did comment on how the NBA players are now morphing into global superstars. And the likes of John Wall, James Harden, and Landry Fields showed quiet confidence on their game Friday night. Once the game tipped off in Staples Center, it was clear that the aforementioned players, along with Kings' Center DeMarcus Cousins and DeJuan Blair of the Spurs were going to grab this opportunity to star in the showcase game. The Rookie Challenge is a chance for the game's youngest to enjoy their experience of being at the big stage, and enjoy they did: The game was a marathon of non-stop dunks, with players trying to outdo each other at each sequence. Blair, DeRozan, Ibaka, and the rest tried out their hand, but it was Blake Griffin who snatched everyone's attention to give a taste of what the dunk contest was going to be like on Saturday. Blake finished several alley-oops, mostly from John Wall, to keep the crowd on the edge of their seats. Speaking of John Wall, it was the Wizards #1 pick who orchestrated the entire offense for the Rookies, as he led them with 12 points, 22 assists, several fancy dunks and passes, and even a dance break, as the Rookies won 148-140. All Star Interviews The best players in the world descended upon to LA, to meet and greet the press and give a preview of the massive game on Sunday night. It was clear who the star of the nights were going to be: LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony (facing several trade rumours), Blake Griffin (LA's new beloved son), and Kobe Bryant. Speaking of Kobe: his influence on the city of Los Angeles is unbelievable. Every second child wears a Bryant 24 jersey, Kobe is the favourite player here, his face on all the billboards and his voice on every radio station. As a matter of fact, the biggest cheer on the Rookie-Sophomore Challenge was reserved for a three-second video clip of Kobe, who wasn't even there in person! At the Media meet, Kobe's table had over 50 people huddled closely around it, even before he showed up! By the time The Black Mamba strolled into the room, all hell broke loose, as hundreds gathered around to hear his version of the All Star Game ahead. The only surprise was Kevin Durant, who perhaps of his more humble, quiet demeanour, was easier to get to, and while it may easy to be fooled by his low-key appereances, it would be dangerous to judge on on it: The league's most dangerous scorer shines loudly on court! The most amazing thing about the All Star Weekend is that even the 'smaller' stars are unstoppable superstars. Derrick Rose, Chris Paul, Pau Gasol, Dwight Howard, Kevin Garnett, Amar'e Stoudemire, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo, Russell Westbrook, Manu Ginobili, Dirk Nowitzki, Tim Duncan, and the rest. Another interesting point was that a lot of these players have connections to India. Pau Gasol, who came to India this offseason, remembered his experience fondly, "It was a great experience. I had a chance to get to know India a little bit, but at the same time I was very busy. Hopefully I can visit again and get some downtime to do more. I'm hoping basketball continues to grow there: The NBA has done a good job in promoting the sport in India. They have gotten the kids excited about it and showed how great basketball is." Two weeks before Gasol, it was the NBA's most dominant player, Dwight Howard, that made his journey towards the East. "I had a lot of fun in India. It's one of the best places I've been - I had always wanted to go to India for my whole life, and yes, I even saw tigers! I was three feet away from a big jungle cat and I realised that - wow! - I'm actually in India!" Only a week before the All Star Game, Indian fans had an opportunity to ask questions to Chris Paul for a live Q and A on NBA.com/India. Paul remembered the event and spoke about the future growth of the league worldwide. "It's unbelievable how the game has grown," said Chris Paul, "Just a year ago, I went to London, Paris, and over in China. At one point in the late 90s you could say that basketball is America's game, but now it's a world's game. Everyone has caught up." A few people may remember this, but the Celtics' Kevin Garnett, who is one of the most popular players back home, came to India four years ago while still a part of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Garnett was the second person to talk about his fondness for Indian food. "I'm a curry guy - so I loved it there!" he said, but then, on a serious note, added how impressed he was by the schoolkids he worked with back in India. "The best thing about my tour was how the kids in India embraced basketball straight away," said Garnett, "My advice would be that they should know that they can improve in multiple areas. I spoke to kids there and told them that whatever your focus on life may be, be it football or basketball or their studies - they should do it with passion. Show love for whatever you're doing and do it with your heart first." Jam Session For about an hour on Friday, I wanted to be 10 years old again, clutch on to my father's hand, and have him bring me into the NBA Jam Session. For if most children from around the world come to California for Mickey Mouse and Disneyland, the Jam Session in LA became Disneyland for the hoops fans. From tiny basketball games, little rims to dunk on, full court 3 on 3s, shootaround sessions, basketball and technology together, big screens with player interviews, and then, some real players too, like Andrew Bogut who showed up for a fan Q and A: it was really a dream come true for the 10-year-old inside me. Hey, what am I saying? Even the 26-year-old today couldn't help but smile excitedly as I passed through! Other thoughts from the day - The weekend could really belong to the OKC Thunder, who have players in the Rookie-Sophomore Challenge (Serge Ibaka, James Harden), the Three-Point Competition (Kevin Durant), the Slam Dunk Competition (Ibaka), the Skills Challenge (Russell Westbrook), and the All Star Game (Durant and Westbrook). - All Star gear is everywhere in LA, and not shockingly, Kobe Bryant is the most popular jersey! - It is strange to see so many Clippers fans, and it's stranger to hear the Staples Center be announced as 'home' for anyone but the Lakers! Saturday: I will be heading out to see the All Stars practice, before a press meet with NBA Commissioner David Stern in the afternoon, and the All Star Saturday events (3 point, Slam Dunk, Skills Challenge) etc on Saturday night. Stay tuned! When Legends Collide By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 17, 2011  Tim Duncan was selected by coach Gregg Popovich to start in place of the injured Yao Ming. NBAE/Getty Images And as a five-year-old TV watcher, there were few things that caught my imagination on Doordarshan like The Mahabharat - a televised retelling of one of India's greatest ever epics. There were countless things memorable about The Mahabharat, a story of a mythical war between a family, a war pitting one set of brothers (The Pandavs) against their cousins (The Kauravs). But perhaps the most awesome part of this story was how each individual champion in the story, be it Arjun or Karan or Bheem or Duryodhan, came into war as a great warrior in their own right. And then they were all let loose one an each other, piting legend against legend to crown the champion amongst the champions. Fast-forward today, and thanks to the unlimited options for entertainment we now have, from hundreds of cable channels to global cinema and the internet, collective consciousness in entertainment has become a rare thing. Well, let me take this opportunity to urge the basketball lovers to direct their attentions towards one of the biggest events in the NBA's annual calender, a time when every NBA-affluent tranfixes themselves on one thing and one thing alone: The NBA All Star Weekend, from Friday 18th - Sunday 20th of February. The Weekend will conclude on Sunday with the 60th NBA All Star Game, which, very much like The Mahabharat, is set to pit champion against champion, legends against legends. It is the ultimate clash of the titans of basketball's best, which like every year, is set to result in a memorable battle one more time. And just like the epic, there is no shortage of drama in the upcoming event, whether it is between the opposing teams or even within the team itself. The East will have perhaps one of the strongest and most balanced starting line-ups ever: The 'Paanch Pandvas' of the Eastern Conference are Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Amar'e Stoudemire, and Dwight Howard. If these champions sound too much to handle for the West, than the East bench should send even further shudders down their body: armed with four Celtics, two Hawks, and Chris Bosh, the East seem to have the perfect blend of superstar ability and team-play, offensive razzmatazz and defensive hard-nosedness. But the West are no pushovers, either. A starting line-up that features there of the league's deadliest pure scorers - Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony, and Kevin Durant - is going to be difficult for any defense to cope with. Add that fact that point-guard maestro Chris Paul will be orchestrating the show and San Antonio's Tim Duncan will be manning the inside, the West look like a tough nut to crack. The West's deep bench talent which blends players in their youth (Blake Griffin, Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook), their prime (Deron Williams, Dirk Nowitzki) and veteran leadership (Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili). The weekend is not going to be about the All Star Game alone. Other Festivities will include the Rookie-Sophomore Challenge, the Celebrity Game, the Three-Point Competition, the Slam Dunk Competition, The Skills Challenge, and much more. It is perhaps fitting then that the biggest event of the year is being hosted by the home court (The Staples Centre in LA) of the team that has not only won the last two NBA titles but are also one of the most popular franchises in the world - the Los Angeles Lakers. And to bring the magic of the All Star Weekend and Los Angeles closer to you, I will be attending the Weekend's various events and keeping a daily blog on NBA.com/India, bringing to you my first-hand experiences and keeping the fans updated with the atmosphere of the NBA's biggest nights, the Mahabharat of Basketball. It's time to fixate our collective consciousness together again. The All Star Weekend is here! NBA Eye From An Indian Guy, Vol. 6 By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 15, 2011  In a battle of two of the game's top point guards, Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls rose above Chris Paul and his New Orleans Hornets. NBAE/Getty Images Wednesday: Memphis Grizzlies @ OKC Thunder They may not be a team that we get to see too often, but the Memphis Grizzlies have been slowly creeping up the Western Conference standings. Behind a quietly impressive season, Memphis has won eight of its last 10 games and stand just one game behind Portland for the eighth spot in the West. The Grizzlies visited Kevin Durant and the impressive Thunder team without their two post potent perimeter scorers: Rudy Gay (out to injury) and OJ Mayo (serving a 10-game suspension). But the game belonged to a replacement, Tony Allen, who came in and saved the game for the visitors. Allen scored 27 points, stole the ball five times, hit the three-point play to tie the game in regulation, and then played lock-down defense on the league’s top scorer, Kevin Durant, in overtime, to help the Grizzlies pull a surprise 105-101 victory. Durant still finished with impressive numbers, 31 points and 10 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough. The Grizzlies featured balanced scoring from all their starters, including a 31-point outburst by Zach Randolph. Thursday: Denver Nuggets @ Golden State Warriors Trying to keep a balance in their team chemistry despite the Carmelo Anthony trade rumours, the Nuggets travelled to play against the Warriors. Anthony has been on a scoring tear recently, and again scored a team-high 29 points in this game. But with the game on the line and his team down by two, the Nuggets failed to execute the right play and get the ball in his hands. The improving Warriors held on for a 116-114 win behind their big three of Monta Ellis (37 points), Stephen Curry, and David Lee. Friday: LA Lakers @ Boston Celtics The most anticipated match-up of the week got even greater attention when the Celtics' sharp-shooter Ray Allen stood just one three-pointer away from equaling the all-time three-pointers record of Reggie Miller. As a twist of fate, Miller happened to be at this game, too, commentating courtside as the league’s two most stories franchises faced off again in a rematch of last year's Finals. The first quarter of the game belonged to Allen and Allen alone. Ray shot a three to equal Miller’s record (2,560), and minutes later, hit the one to get to work on a new record (2,561). It was a particularly touching moment when Ray and Miller embraced after this historical moment, and even Allen’s long-time rival Kobe Bryant couldn’t help but congratulate him. But once the celebrations died and the second half began, Kobe turned the spotlight on himself and took over the game. Bryant scored 20 of his 23 points in the second half, including hitting some crucial shots in the final moments of the game, to steal the game from Boston. Pau Gasol had another gritty performance with a 20 point, 10 rebound night. Center Andrew Bynum, who has been the center of trade rumours, showed his team why they need his length, as he continued to make a difference in the post for the Lakers. Lakers beat Celtics 92-86. Saturday: Miami Heat @ Detroit Pistons Detroit Pistons fans have been going through a tough time recently, as their once-dominant team has struggled to bring in new players who shared the tenacity of those that helped them Eastern Conference’s best squad half dozen years ago. The Miami Heat, on the other hand, had won seven straight, and put on another show in Detroit. Detroit had no answer for Miami’s duo of Wade and LeBron. Wade finished with 24, 8, and 7, LeBron with 16, 10, and 8, and the Heat cruised to a 106-91 win. Sunday: Bulls @ Hornets I was excited to watch this match-up of two very similar teams. How similar, you ask? 1) Both the teams feature the league’s best point guards in the form of Derrick Rose (Bulls) and Chris Paul (Hornets), both of whom will be facing each other as starting guards from the Eastern and Western Conferences respectively at the All Star Game. 2) The teams are both tenacious on the defensive end, with the Hornets ranking first in points allowed, the Bulls ranking second. 3) Both teams have been surprise success stories in their respective conferences. Straight away in this game, it became clear that the crucial point guard match-up would be the one to watch, as Rose and Paul exchanged shots and passes between each other. But it came down to what the Bulls did best – defense – that helped them take control in the fourth quarter. A game after dominating another star point guard, Deron Williams, and helping his team beat the Jazz, Rose stepped up again on both ends of the floor, covered his counterpart Paul well, and the Bulls capitalised on the Hornets’ poor shooting to win 97-88. The rest of the weekend… Sunday night/Monday morning was highlighted by a crucial double-header in the NBA, as the Celtics hosted Miami and the Magic hosted the Lakers. The Celtics showed that they’re still the team to beat in the East, beating the Heat for the third time this season behind a Rajon Rondo triple double. Dwight Howard dominated the Lakers to hand Orlando the win. On TV this week: It’s a big week for the NBA - Bobcats @ Bulls (Wed), Nuggets @ Bucks (Thu), and Spurs @ Bulls (Fri). Plus it’s the ALL STAR WEEKEND Saturday, Sunday, and Monday on Ten Sports! A Love Letter From A Fan By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 10, 2011  We thought we'd seen the end of MJ after he left the NBA to pursue a basketball career following the 1993 Finals. Turns out he had much, much more to give. NBAE/Getty Images
Dear Mike,
It's been 13 years since the 1998 NBA Finals, that "last" shot against the Jazz in the Delta Center, that sixth championship, that sixth Finals MVP and that unforgettable image of perfection -- and nothing in our lives has been able to fill that void again. We as basketball fans have turned to many others since your time, only to be frustrated when they weren’t like you. Hell, we were blasphemous enough to actually ponder about who would replace you, even before you were ready to be replaced. We should've known better. We know now that we can't expect too much from those that followed you. It is impossible for them to scale the peaks which you climbed, so we should be happy with what we have, right? It all started in 1993, when you had your first break-up with basketball and instead absconded away with that other sport, baseball. We immediately tried to move on from you like you did from us. We Grant Hill joined the league a year later, we tried to make him into the next you. He was a high-flying rookie and he made us believe that he could possibly be the finest perimeter player since you. He was unstoppable at times and had a great start to his career. But there was something missing. That fire which you brought, that passion. Years later, we lost him to a series of injuries, and when he returned, he was a mere shadow of his former self. Then there was Penny Hardaway. He, who was supposed to turn the league upside-down as an oversized point guard. He even went to the NBA Finals in your absence, but you returned a year later and reminded us that he too, unlike you, was a mere mortal. Penny’s story ended tragically too, in a series of injuries and surgeries, and he was never the next-Mike even before he could become the next-Mike. Nearly two years after you left us, you came back! It was obvious that, as much as basketball loved you, it seemed you love it even more. You punished us for straying towards others, and you were back as the best, winning three more titles. But we knew that, sooner or later, the love-affair would end. You would leave the game one day and this time, we had to find your successor. We just couldn’t go on in a basketball world without you. After you left, the league was left in the hands of three youngsters whom we felt it would be more than a handful: Allen Iverson, Vince Carter, and Kobe Bryant. Iverson scored with the same passion as you, and like you, he was the people’s champion. Vince went to your college, and he quickly stole our hearts with a high-flying game that reminded us of you. If you were ‘His Airness’ than he was ‘Air Carter’. But Iverson and Carter were never enough: one found it hard to strike a balance between individual and team success and the other found it hard to find a balance between his talent and his motivation. And then there was Kobe: although he had a slightly inauspicious start to his career, he quickly became a winner at a very young age. And the more we watched him, the more obvious it became that he was directly chasing your legacy and your place in our hearts. His jumpshots, his game-winners, and his legendary competitiveness were all offspring of the seeds you had sown. Like you, he was also coached by Phil Jackson and played in a triangle offense. Like you, he had a three-peat of championships, and is currently a contender for a second three-peat. Like you, he hit big shots and stepped up his game when required. But alas, he isn’t you. We know that now. When we look back now, we realise that his best playoff performances were like your worst. We realise that once on top, you rarely failed, whereas he has had to fall down and spring back up and fall down again. Even in his prime people debated if he was the best, with you, there was never any other option. We know that he’s a close imitation, but he just isn’t you. Oh, and how can I forget that you came back to us one last time! You played for the Wizards from 2001-2003. But that wasn’t really you, was it? That was a slightly heavier and slower evil twin brother pretending to be you. That was like meeting an old flame after the thrill was gone, still having some romantic moments together, but never being able to recapture what we first fell in love with. Ya, the Wizards Jordan was good. But he wasn’t you. But you know what we got the year you finally left? We got another number 23. We got another player receiving unimaginable hype in high-school. We a player drafted into a failing franchise (Cleveland) like you were, and we had him turn the franchise around, like you did. We had LeBron James. We wanted him to be you even though he seemed less inclined. We learnt in time that, even though his game was evolutionary and he had a great influence on world basketball culture, he was never going to match you. Not in success. Not in domination. And certainly not in the love of the game. And then there was Dwyane Wade. Drafted the same year as LeBron, this young Chicago boy grew up idolising you, watching you play, copying your every move. If we thought that Carter and Kobe were MJ clones, then Wade was about to blow the comparisons out of the water! Wade played the inside-outside game just like you, he rose over people and finished difficult lay-ups like you, he shot the game-winners like you and took over fourth-quarters like you did. He won a championship and a Finals MVP in the process too, and we believed that our wishes had been granted. We finally had what we had been waiting for. We finally had our next Jordan. But this was before Wade too, fell just shy of what we'd hoped. Jordan, but not Jordan enough. We've realised that none of them would be enough. Hill, Penny, Iverson, Carter, Kobe, LeBron, and Wade would just be your poorer clones. At best, they would be Diet Jordans. And this is when we opened our eyes and realised our faults. Why have we been striving so hard to replace you? We know now that we never can. We know now that there will only be one Michael Jordan. Just one person who came into basketball at the right time, made the sport into the global phenomenon it is today, and dominated the sport so completely that we’re still flabbergasted to how you did it. Basketball is perhaps the only sport in the world where there is never any argument about the best. What we are left with are contenders for the Number 2 Spot. So this Valentine’s Day, I dedicate to you, His Airness. There will never be another Michael Jordan. NBA Eye From An Indian Guy, Vol. 5 By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 8, 2011 It was a week full of entertaining games, but the spotlight was brazenly robbed by a legendary LeBron James performance. Against the Orlando Magic, LeBron had the best individual game so far this NBA season, putting up a 51-point showcase that we were lucky to witness live in India. It was also a week that saw the drama return to Hollywood, as the Lakers once again played through external unrest and trade rumours to put up some improved performances.  Kobe Bryant, who scored 41 points without an assist against the Celtics, has had trouble finding an offensive balance of late. NBAE/Getty Images Just days after an embarrassing home loss to their eternal rivals, the Celtics, the Lakers were back in action to face the undermanned Houston Rockets. Fresh out of a 41-point, 0-assist night in a loss to the Celtics, Kobe Bryant looked to get his teammates involved in the game early and improve his all-around performance. The Lakers held the lead, but the Rockets played tough, and thanks to the heroics of Luis Scola and sharp-shooting Kevin Martin, stayed in the game to force overtime. The Lakers finally awoke in OT, as their Big Two of Kobe and Gasol scored 10 points together and helped their team clinch a 114-106 victory. It took gritty performance from both the stars, as Kobe had 32 points, 11 assists, and 6 rebounds, while Gasol had 26 points and 16 rebounds in the game. But the Lakers’ X-Factor of the night was the excellent Lamar Odom, who had a great game too, finishing with an eye-catching 20 points and 20 rebounds. Thursday: Chicago Bulls @ LA Clippers Wait, the Hollywood Story wasn’t done, as the very next day, we were back at the Staples to watch the visiting Chicago Bulls take on Blake Griffin and the high-rising Clippers. Missing Eric Gordon, the Clippers had a difficult time containing Chicago’s Derrick Rose, who even managed to hear ‘M-V-P’ chants in another team’s arena. Griffin, who had a fast start to the game, struggled in the second half. There was little depth in the Clippers squad beyond him, and the balanced Bulls eased to a 106-88 victory behind Rose’s 32 points and 11 assists. Friday: Miami Heat @ Orlando Magic “I thought he was, I guess, more of a competitor.” These were the words of Orlando Magic president Otis Smith, in criticism to LeBron James joining Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and the Miami Heat last season. Before the match-up, James acknowledged that the things said from the Magic camp about his off-season added a little bit to the fire of the growing rivalry between the two teams. Besides, both the squads are in the same division, the same state, and both have been jostling amongst each other to become Florida’s best. So how did LeBron James respond? Playing on the Magic's home-court, James hits his first 11 shots for 23 points in the first quarter, and kept going for the rest of the game, to finish with an NBA’s season-high for 2010/11, 51 points, along with an incredible 11 rebounds and 8 assists. What was perhaps most impressive about this performance was that LeBron scored in 17 of his 25 shots, shooting at 68% for the night. It was only the fourth ever 50-11-8 game in NBA history, behind Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron’s Heat teammate, Dwyane Wade. The Heat cruised for most of the way in the game, stuffing the efforts of Dwight Howard and the Magic. But it wasn’t an easy end to the ride, as the Magic shooters finally woke up in the fourth quarter to go on a 19-4 run behind a flurry of three-pointers. Unfortunately, it was all too little too late for Orlando, who lost the game 104-100. Saturday: San Antonio Spurs @ Sacramento Kings It was my first chance to watch the young Kings play this season, and I was genuinely excited. That was, until about a minute into the game, when I remembered that a) The Spurs are the best team in the league and b) The Kings are in the bottom three. Yes, Sacramento had improved in January behind burgeoning rookie DeMarcus Cousins and last year’s Rookie of the Year Tyreke Evans, but they looked a step too slow and unorganised for the Spurs. San Antonio took an early lead and the game was effectively over in the first quarter. Tony Parker was too speedy for the Kings, finishing with 25 points in a 113-100 victory, which was much more lopsided than the final score suggested. Sunday: Lakers @ Hornets After beating the Rockets, the Lakers had a heart-breaking, last-second loss to the Spurs. They were in no mood to repeat their errors as they visited a tricky Hornets side, led by inspirational point guard Chris Paul. Hornets were playing without starting Center Emeka Okafor, and straight away, Lakers’ Pau Gasol took advantage, putting up a master-class in post offense and helping the Lakers maintain a first half lead. The Hornets made a key comeback in the third quarter behind some great play by Paul (21 points, 15 assists) and his supporting pieces. But the suddenly rejuvenated pairing of Gasol and Kobe was too much for the Hornets. Gasol had a season high 34 points and 10 rebounds, whereas Kobe saved his best for last, finishing with 32 and hitting important shots in the game’s last minutes to make sure the Lakers preserve their lead to win 101-95. The rest of the weekend…. It was a weekend for dubious honours, some rectified, some continued. The Raptors, losers of 13 straight, finally got a win against the Timberwolves. The Cavs had no such luck, as they lost their 23rd and 24th straight games to the Grizzlies and the Blazers to end the weekend making the wrong kind of history with the most consecutive losses ever in the NBA. While LeBron made the most noise in mid-week, the weekend belonged to Wade, who had 22-12-10 against the Bobcats and 28-8-8 against the Clippers as the Heat extended their winning streak to six. Games on TV in India this week: Grizzlies @ Thunder (Wed), Nuggets @ Warriors (Thu), Lakers @ Celtics (Fri), Heat @ Pistons (Sat), and Bulls @ Hornets (Sun). Second to None By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 3, 2011 Photo Gallery: Pau's Trip To India || Pau's Live Chat Transcript It’s been almost six months since the NBA sent two behemoth All-Stars to India. The first one, Dwight Howard, came in with great fanfare, meeting large, cheering crowds in malls at Bangalore and New Delhi/Gurgaon, entertaining audiences of all ages with his dunks and his dances, working with some of the players of the Indian Senior Men’s team, and even finding time to spot a tiger or two. Two weeks later, when the fanfare died away a little and the noises hushed down, came the second giant, Pau Gasol. Gasol’s trip was a relatively low-key event, as he took part in a couple of press conferences, chatted with fans on NBA.com/India, and did NBA-Cares events in Mumbai and Delhi.  Gasol's trip to India this past summer marked the first-ever time that the NBA Championship Trophy came to the country. NBAE/Getty Images February 1st was the three-year anniversary of the legendary trade that brought Gasol to Los Angeles. Some of you might already be too young to remember (!), but since Big Shaq’s departure in 2004, the Lakers were a below-average team for the next three years. They failed to make the playoffs in 2005 and couldn't go past the first round over the next two years. All alone now, Kobe morphed into the best player in the world, scoring 50 point games at will, hitting the legendary 81-point mark, and averaging a mind-boggling 35.4 ppg in 2006. But without another consistent teammate, the greatest player’s prime years threatened to leave us unfulfilled forever. Enter Gasol. The 7-footer had already made a name for himself around the league, winning rookie of the year in 2001 (and becoming a beacon of hope in the newly relocated Memphis Grizzlies side). He went on to have many consistent years the Grizzlies, a below-average team which he dragged into the uber-competitive Western Conference playoffs for three straight years between 2004-2006. Outside the NBA, Gasol was becoming an even bigger star, as he became one of the best international basketball players in the world. Gasol sparked the dominance of Spain on the world basketball stage as his national side won the 2006 FIBA World Championship and Gasol was named the MVP of the tournament. When Gasol joined the Lakers before the trade deadline in February 2008, a whole host of things changed. The Lakers were already under pressure from their large fan base since their long-time rivals, the Celtics, had revived their own franchise by bringing in Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to make a formidable Big Three with Paul Pierce. Now rejuvanated, the Lakers became the best team in the best, finishing the season 57-25, and going all the way to the NBA Finals, only to be stopped by – oh who else? – but the Celtics! It was Gasol’s initiation to the NBA world’s biggest stage, the Finals, that also exposed his flaws, as Kevin Garnett thoroughly dominated the Spaniard. But as the years passed, Gasol became more and more comfortable in leading Phil Jackson’s triangle offense, and became more and more devastating. As a matter of fact, for all the legendary players that have played in Phil Jackson teams, no one is better suited than Gasol for the Triangle, because of his combination of size, footwork, passing and finishing skills around the post. With the Kobe-Gasol two-some solidified, the Lakers were back in the NBA Finals in 2009, and this time, cruised to victory over – whom this time? – none other than fellow India-visitor Dwight Howard, and the Magic. And a year later, they were back in the Final for the third straight year, and this time, Gasol got his revenge against Garnett, finally quashing his reputation as a ‘soft’ player to help the Lakers hoist another NBA trophy. Until late last year, the Lakers hadn’t lost more than two games in a row since bringing in Gasol. They had been to three straight Finals and won two Championships, and despite some turbulence this season, look poised to challenge for the ultimate prize once more. Gasol has averaged nearly 19 points and nine rebounds throughout his career, and his numbers peak when it matters most, in the playoffs. He also plays the most minutes of any Laker. He is also perhaps one of the NBA’s most successful European players, racking up wins, NBA rings, and international awards and accolades on the way. The same summer Gasol was in India was the summer that Spain attempted to defend the FIBA World Championship without him. The result? A sixth place finish in Turkey. Don’t believe the (lack of) hype. Pau Gasol may be the less entertaining visitor to India, he may be the second-best player in Los Angeles, and he may not get the all-star starting votes, but he has become one of the NBA’s most reliable winners. Dwight Howard may have come to India with the gaudy highlights and the dance moves, but Pau Gasol came with the NBA trophy. NBA Eye From An Indian Guy, Vol. 4 By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani February 1, 2011 By definition, a maverick is someone who’s a risk taker, a non-conformist that does things his (or her) own way. In the NBA, it was a good week for the risk-takers, as the Dallas Mavericks got back to winning ways and the Knicks and the Suns dared to strike down their giant opponents. There were six games on TV in India this week:  With 19 points and 17 rebounds against the Celtics, Saturday gave Marcin Gortat some rare time in the spotlight. NBAE/Getty Images Usually a footnote in NBA history, and at worst, the butt of the league’s jokes, the Clippers have had a great turn-around season so far in 2010-11, both in terms of improved performances as well as fanfare. Behind the play of exciting young rookie Blake Griffin, the Clippers’ games are slowly becoming one of the hottest tickets around the NBA. But the Clippers strolled into Dallas without their other star, and top scorer, Eric Gordon, who has been confirmed to miss several weeks due to injury. Their hosts themselves had been facing injury troubles, and had a miserable 4-8 January record behind them, especially since the injury/slow return of high scorer Dirk Nowitzki. Starting fast, the Clippers took a 15-point lead over the hosts with some hot shooting from Griffin and the rest of the squad. But the Mavericks turned on their lethal defense in the third quarter to turn the game around. Four players – Jason Terry, Jose Juan Barea, Tyson Chandler, and Nowitzi – all scored over 20 points as Mavericks showed their experience over a young Clipper side who lost their energy in the second half. Mavericks won 112-105. Thursday: San Antonio Spurs @ Utah Jazz Over in Utah, the Jazz couldn’t have found a worse possible time to host the Spurs, who have been the league’s best team so far this year. Having lost five in a row already, the Jazz once again faced a great deficit against the balanced Spurs, as their guard-play of Tony Parker and Gary Neal was unstoppable. F/C Al Jefferson kept the Jazz afloat for a while, but it was superstar point guard Deron Williams who awoke in the fourth quarter, scoring 17 of his season-high 39 points to make the game competitive again. While Williams was unstoppable on one side, Manu Ginobili stepped up for the Spurs, who in the end were too much for the Jazz to overcome. Spurs won their 10th game out of 11, beating the Jazz 112-105. Friday: Miami Heat @ New York Knicks When the league’s most hyped team-mates (LeBron James and Dwyane Wade) entered the league’s most famous arena (Madison Square Garden), it was the perfect cue for fireworks. Without the ailing Chris Bosh, the Heat faced the Knicks in a memorable game. While LeBron found it difficult to score, the Knicks didn’t have an answer for Wade, who shot near-perfect in the first three quarters on the game, when he made 14 out of 15 shots. The Knicks managed to stay in the game behind Amar’e Stoudemire (24 points). In the fourth quarter, Wade ’s (34 points, 16 rebounds) hot streak finally ended, and the Knicks got major contributions from Danilo Gallinari (20) and Landry Fields (19) to survive and beat the Heat 93-88 in front of an electrifying home crowd. Saturday: Orlando Magic @ Chicago Bulls The Bulls continued to raise the bar for their performance, as they got a statement win over Conference rivals, Magic. Despite suffering from two stomach ulcers, Derrick scored 22 points and had the help of 26 from teammate Luol Deng as the Bulls beat the Magic 99-90. The Bulls eclipsed a massive game by Dwight Howard, whose 40 points and 15 rebounds went to no avail. Saturday: Boston Celtics @ Phoenix Suns The Celtics brought a lethargic team into Phoenix, and the Suns took full advantage. Behind a career night by back-up Centre Marcin Gortat (19 points, 17 rebounds), the struggling Suns surprised the Celtics with a low-scoring 88-71 victory. The story of the game, though, were the two controversial ejections faced by the Boston team: first, coach Doc Rivers exited the game early, ejected for arguing with the referees. The Suns took a big lead into the fourth quarter, but behind Kevin Garnett, the Celtics finally began to show some signs of recovery. All hope was to be abandoned though when Garnett and the Suns’ Channing Frye got into an altercation after Garnett was spotted inadvertently jabbing Frye after a jump-shot. When the dust settled, it was Garnett who had to exit early, leaving smooth sailing for the Suns to notch up a big win. Sunday: Atlanta Hawks @ Dallas Mavericks The Mavericks continued to find their winning ways again, and once again used a balanced attack to get past the Hawks, 102-91. After a six-game losing streak, the Mavericks won their fifth in a row, and eight players for Dallas scored in double digits, led by Jason Terry’s 18 points and 11 assists. The Hawks led by a point at the end of the third quarter, but again, the Mavericks picked up the slack when it counted, stepped up defensively, and stopped Joe Johnson and Josh Smith to cruise to victory. The rest of the weekend… The biggest games of the weekend, indubitably, were the two major games on Sunday night/Monday morning: Heat @ Thunder and Celtics @ Lakers. Miami had a big night by LeBron and Wade to eclipse Durant and the Thunder, 108-103. In a possible finals preview over in LA, the Celtics had a statement victory over the Lakers. Kobe’s 41 points were not enough to stop the Celtics’ Big 4 of Pierce, Rondo, Garnett, and Allen. The New Orleans Hornets, who had won 10 in a row, lost two straight to the Kings and the Suns over the weekend. There are some big games live on TV this week: Rockets @ Lakers (Wed), Bulls @ Clippers (Thu), Heat @ Magic (Fri), Spurs @ Kings (Sat), and Lakers @ Hornets (Sun). The NBA's Jedi Knights By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani January 27 2011  The Force is strong in Kevin Durant. NBAE/Getty Images Back to that scene on Dagobah: After days of strenuous physical and mental exercise, meditation, and mind-control, Luke is finally able to pick up and re-arrange a few rocks. Yoda, on the other hand, picks up and re-arranges an entire spacecraft. Smell something familiar? The concept of ‘The Force’ has been seen before, and after. It could be the Brahma of Hindu Philosophy, binding everything together, a sense of which can be gained by the mastery of Yoga. It could be ‘The Secret’ that Rhonda Byrne sold several millions copies of, describe the ‘Law of Attraction’ in her book. But you don’t need to be a Yoga Master or Master Yoda to feel The Force. Sometimes being an NBA Fan is enough to give one an occasional taste of that ‘invisible energy that binds us all.’ Last Sunday morning, as I sat watching the Knicks play the Thunder, MVP candidate Kevin Durant felt 'The Force'. With the game tied at 98 all, a Thunder inbound with a shade over six seconds left the game got the ball into Durant’s hands. Hounded defensively by Danilo Gallinari, Durant took a few steps down the perimeter of the three-point line, jumped up, faded away slightly, and took the shot. He knew what was going to happen. And it was as if, back home comfortably on my sofa, thousands of miles away from the Oklahoma City Arena, I knew it too. The moment the ball left Durant’s hands, I knew the result. The game’s finishing buzzer sounded in the milliseconds the ball spent mid-air. And a swish followed before the buzzer could finish. 101-98. Game. The truth is, this wasn’t the first time I had felt that invisible energy. Fans can sometime sense the outcome before it takes place too, just like some of the game’s best players, the Basketball Jedis who have mastered the force, can sense it. One of basketball’s most revered Jedi Knights is Kobe Bryant (otherwise known around the galaxy as Kobe-Wan Kenobi), who has mastered the art of the clutch shot. Nearly five years ago, I watched Kobe’s Lakers face the Phoenix Suns in Game 4 of the First Round in the Western Conference playoffs. Down by two in regulation, a Smush Parker steal and Kobe lay-up helped to tie and take the game into overtime. With six seconds left in OT and the Lakers down by 1, Kobe received the ball at mid-court off a jump-ball, dribbled up to the opposition’s free throw line and got up over Boris Diaw and Raja Bell for the shot as the buzzer sounded. Kobe knew what was going to happen. Diaw, Bell, and the rest of the Suns knew what was going to happen. The thousands of screaming fan at Staples Center knew it. And back home, the moment the ball got into his hands, I knew what was going to happen. Swish. Lakers win. After Kobe, perhaps no other player in the past decade mastered the art of feeling the ‘basketball force’ than Gilbert Arenas. In his prime, Arenas was the game’s most feared closer of basketball games, and he showed it twice in a matter of a few days four years ago. On January 7, 2007, with Arenas’ Wizards tied against the Milwaukee Bucks 105 all, Arenas dribbled the ball up to the three-point line and let a shot go at the buzzer. He was so sure of success that if you watch the clip properly, you’ll see that he turned his back and celebrated before the shot even went in. 11 days later, against the Utah Jazz, Arenas did it again. Game tied at 111. Arenas, on 48, dribbled the ball up to the three point line and let go of the shot. Points number 49, 50, and 51. Back turned, celebration, swish. In both the cases, the man otherwise known as ‘Hibachi’ didn’t need to wait for confirmation; he felt the force, the connection to the basket. The pre-celebration wasn’t just a Jedi Mind Trick. There are many others in basketball history who have felt the same mystical powers. Robert Horry, the seven-time NBA champion, has made a career out of game-winning three-pointers. Derek Fisher had the famous “0.4” shot against the Spurs. And no conversation of basketball’s finest miracle-workers will make sense without mentioning Michael Jordan, who hit shot after shot with the extraordinary force flowing freely through him, whether it was the famous game-winner against the Cavaliers in the 1989 playoffs, or Jordan’s last shot ever as a Chicago Bull. Back in the 1998 NBA Finals, when MJ stole the ball from Karl Malone, and with less than 10 seconds to go on the clock, let go what was to be his final shot, winning the NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz. Despite the disbelief in the faces of the Utah home fans, the moment ‘His Airness’ crossed over Byron Russell and ascended for the jump-shot, the result was a foregone conclusion. If other players sensed the force, then Michael Jordan owned it. (Of course, his inconceivable return to play for the Wizards two years later was an aberration that even the greatest Galactic minds would have trouble explaining). Trust me, the Basketball Force is real, and the more you watch the game, the more you’ll feel it too. And for those who don’t believe in this ability of the Kobes, the Durants, Jordans, and Arenas’ of the world? Well, all they need is another piece of advice from Master Yoda himself. Luke Skywalker (after seeing Yoda move the spacecraft with his mind): “I don’t believe it.” Yoda: “That is why you fail.” NBA Eye From An Indian Guy: Vol. 3 By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani January 25 2011 The name of every NBA-interested tongue for the past few months has been Carmelo Anthony. Carmelo’s Trade ‘Melo’-Drama has overshadowed most things from the Northwest Division, including the fact that the Nuggets stand at a respectable 25-18 for 7th place in the deep Western Conference. With uncertainty on everyone’s minds, two Nuggets games were broadcasted in India this past week. Nuggets won one and lost the other; Anthony participated in both the games, and for now, his deep team continues to look like a rising threat.  Dwyane Wade had a lot of thinking to do after the Heat's loss to the Hawks. NBAE/Getty Images Coming off three straight defeats, the Miami Heat finally saw LeBron James return to the line-up following a knee injury, but power forward Chris Bosh sat out with a sprained left ankle. In a low-scoring, defensive game, it was Dwyane Wade who took the initiative by leading the way in the scoring department for Miami. The Hawks stayed close, and in the dying minutes of the game, LeBron James came alive with his own scoring spurt. His takeover failed as he missed a potentially game-winning three that sent the game into overtime. Jamal Crawford and Joe Johnson dominated OT for the Hawks, and despite LeBron’s aggressiveness (who scored most of the Heat points in the end of regulation and OT), the Heat fell to their fourth straight defeat, 93-89. It was a sluggish and choppy effort from the Heat, and the Hawks capitalised with an impressive win on the road. Thursday: OKC Thunder @ Denver Nuggets The Nuggets hosted their immediate division rivals and the young OKC Thunder, who have been getting a lot of primetime television love recently for their exciting play. It was also a great one-on-one face off between Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant, two high-scoring small forwards with similar styles of play. Showing no signs of distraction from the trade rumours, Anthony had an impressive game with 34 points and 7 rebounds, outshining Durant (22 points) and helping the Nuggets win, 112-107. Friday: Mavericks @ Bulls Like the Thunder, the Bulls are another team who are on the rise – both in terms of results as well as their increasing popularity. MVP candidate Derrick Rose led Chicago, who had to go without their excellent post presence in Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer. Rose had an ugly shooting night, but made the big shots when they counted, scoring 26 points as the Bulls won 82-77. From the Mavericks' end, Dirk Nowitzki continued to return to full form after a long injury, leading his team with 19 points. Saturday: Lakers @ Nuggets The trade rumours continued for Anthony, and so did the boos, which he heard from his home crowd! Once again, Anthony faced another one of the league’s premier perimeter players in Kobe Bryant, but neither of the two impressed much in the first half. Nuggets held on to a four point lead at halftime, with Kobe only chipping in four points for LA. But in a brief, yet mesmerising stretch in the third period, Kobe reminded everyone why he is the reigning two-times finals MVP. Coming alive, Kobe scored 14 points in the third off 6-8 shooting, and the Lakers suddenly saw themselves back in the driving seat. Kobe didn’t need to score any more as Gasol, Andrew Bynum, Ron Artest, and Lamar Odom protected the lead, and the Lakers won 107-97. Sunday: Knicks @ Thunder The Knicks were coming off a five-game losing streak - and their marquee off-season signings (Amar'e Stoudemire and Raymond Felton), were struggling. New York stayed competitive and held on to a close lead thanks to Italian sharp-shooter Danilo Gallinari. For the Thunder, the awesome-twosome of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant held much of the scoring load as usual. But it was the more overseen effort of Serge Ibaka (11 points, 15 rebounds) on the offensive board that kept Oklahama City in the game. Thunder capitalised on a number of second-chance opportunities behind a combined 21 offensive boards by Westbrook, Krstic, Jeff Green, Ibaka, and Nick Collison, and despite New York’s sharp-shooting, kept the game close. With the game tied at 98 all with just over 6 seconds on the clock, it came down to one final play for the Thunder. The ball came into the hands of Kevin Durant, who, despite being guarded fiercely by Gallinari, found just enough space to bury a three-pointer at the buzzer to win the game for OKC, 101-98. A big-time shot by a big-time player. “That’s one of the all-time best feelings that I’ve had so far in this league,” Durant said afterwards as he continued to cement himself as an NBA elite. The rest of the weekend… It was a day of other clutch performances around the NBA: Rookie John Wall proved his worth by hitting the game-winning shot and the unfancied Wizards defeated Eastern Conference leaders Celtics in a major upset. Dirk Nowitzki found his swagger again by burying a game-winning three against the Nets. League leaders, the Spurs, were also halted in their march ahead, as the Hornets played some tough defense to end San Antonio’s winning streak. And back in Los Angeles, the other LA team – the Clippers – continued their rise with an entertaining 113-109 win over the Warriors. Clippers’ young stud Blake Griffin had one of the biggest statistical games of his young career with 30 points, 18 rebounds, and 8 assists. The action won’t stop with five games scheduled for Indian TV this week: Clippers @ Mavericks (Wed), Spurs @ Jazz (Thu), Heat @ Knicks (Fri), Celtics @ Suns (Sat), and Hawks @ Mavericks (Sun). What Is Valuable? By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani January 20, 2011  Can LeBron show he means enough to the Heat's success to win his third MVP? NBAE/Getty Images Is your jewellery, which is worth a large monetary value, the most valuable? Is it your flashy new car, which not only gets you places but makes you more popular, the most valuable? Is your most treasured possession – your computer, your TV, or your Air Conditioner – the one that gives you the most output, the most valuable item? On a more deeper level, is your time, and thus, your efficiency, the most valuable thing for you? Or are you not one for superficial distractions and believe that it the relationships you build that hold the most value in your life? In the NBA too, the definition and explanation of ‘value’ has almost as many answers as the number of people you question. Is the most expensive player, like jewellery, the most valuable? Kobe Bryant, Rashard Lewis, and Kevin Garnett would top this list. Is the player who gets you the most attention, like that Mercedes-Benz Maybach the most valuable? Players like Kobe, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Dwight Howard are the most sought after, the NBA’s most popular merchandise. In terms of output, are players like Chris Paul, Amar’e Stoudemire, and LeBron, who get the gaudiest statistics, the most valuable? What about time and efficiency? The players who do the most with the least: Kevin Love, LeBron, and Amar’e are statistically the league’s most efficient players. But then there is the un-stat-ifiable stat – the chemistry guy, the team relationship builder. The intangible value. Teams like the Celtics, Spurs, and Jazz are stacked with valuable players. Every year, the league’s Most Valuable Players (MVP) are discussed, argued, and the meaning of 'valuable' itself faces heated debates from across the basketball-speaking world. Is the best statistical player the most valuable? Is the best team player the most valuable? What about the best player on the best team? Or the one player whose absence in the team would make the biggest difference on the team's success? My own definition of "valuable", in this sense, is the one player whose absence would make the biggest difference in the entire standing of the league. That said, this season faces the most open MVP race in recent memory. With two-time MVP LeBron James joining forces with Dwyane Wade (and thus, hurting both of their individual MVP chances), other candidates have jumped up and gone down, with a different player leading the MVP race every week. We have now arrived right around mid-season in the MVP, and thus, it is a good time to look at the crowd of players vouching to get their hands on the coveted MVP award. In alphabetical order, here are the top 11, enough to make a cricket team of MVPs: 1. Amar’e Stoudemire gets the nomination for being the league’s second leading scorer (26.4 ppg, and 9 rebounds) and turning around the laughable Knicks into a serious threat. 2. Chris Paul is in this argument, too, for almost single-handedly keeping a poor Hornets squad in the playoff race, averaging 16.3 ppg and 9.7 apg. 3. Derrick Rose has helped the Bulls improve and become a top three team in the East; Rose has put up big numbers (24.7 ppg, 8 apg, 4.7 rpg) and has big-time clutch performances all season. 4. Dirk Nowitzki: The Mavs, who were one of the league’s best team behind Nowitzki’s (23.5 ppg, 7.3 rpg) scintillating play, fell to a six-game losing streak without him. If that isn’t value, I don’t know what is. 5. Dwyane Wade, as one half of Miami’s ‘Super-Twin’ perimeter force, is having another incredible season statistically (25, 5 and 4), and is one of the most talented players in the league. Heat are playing well too, but at most, he can only take half the MVP-credit. 6. Dwight Howard: Dwight (21 and 13) is the defensive key (with improving offense) to a dominating Magic squad. 7. Kevin Durant is the league’s leading scorer (above 28 points and 6 rebounds a game), and the Thunder are much better than last year. Yet, there are questions about his defensive inconsistencies that are a thorn on his MVP claim. 8. Kobe Bryant is still working wonders, averaging over 25 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists in just above 33 minutes a game. Unlike some of the other candidates here, Kobe has the luxury of being in a team stacked with many other great players. 9. LeBron James is statistically almost as good as he always was (25.6-7-7), and his team his performing about as well as it did the last two seasons. Except that this time, the team is Heat, not Cavs, and his backcourt running mate his Dwyane Wade, not Mo Williams. Will having a great teammate = less individual recognition? 10. Manu Ginobili has returned to the starting role for the Spurs this season, and voila, the un-fancied, older side, are the NBA’s best team this year, holding an incredible 36-6 record. There has been no Mercedes Mayback in San Antonio, just a bunch of reliable Maruti that run extremely well. Ginobili (averaging 19, 4, and 5) is the best of the bunch. 11. Rajon Rondo holds to the same argument that Ginobili does for the Spurs. The Celtics a team full of stars that play their role perfectly. Rondo is their orchestrator, leading the league in assists (13.2 assists a game, along with 10.4 ppg and 4.6 rpg). He has assisted the Celtics in holding on to the league’s second best record. And the question remains. What do you consider “most valuable”? Which player’s absence would make the biggest difference in the NBA this season? Who’s your MVP? The Rediscovery of the Clippers By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani January 13, 2011  "Why didn't anybody tell me that these guys were this good?" NBAE/Getty Images Los Angeles, California: BREAKING NEWS! - Local authorities in the City of Los Angeles have announced that another basketball team has been playing regular NBA basketball at the Staples Center. Masked by the success of the Lakers, LA’s dominant hoops squad, the city’s other NBA team, the Los Angeles Clippers, have been recently unearthed by archeologists and NBA League pass subscribers. “This was certainly a surprise for us,” said LeBron James, small forward for the Miami Heat, who was in town on Wednesday night, “I thought I was going to play against Kobe Bryant again. But then this other team strolled out of the same locker rooms, wearing a white jersey. It took all of us by shock.” It was a shock so intense that, the Miami Heat, which rode into LA with the best record in the Eastern Conference and a 13-game road winning streak, trailed the entire way to the Clippers and lost only their second game in two and a half months. Upon further research, it has been discovered that the mysterious Clippers have actually won 8 of their last 11 games, and despite being the second-worst team in the Western Conference, are actually not that bad, after all. “The Clippers!” mused Kobe Bryant,” Los Angeles' biggest basketball star/demi-god “I thought that was the name of my neighbourhood barbershop. And then I see this tall man jumping over in white jumping over everyone and dunking a basketball like the rim had done him wrong. Who was he? He was so mean.” The tall man that Bryant refers to is none other than Blake Griffin, the Los Angeles Clippers rookie power forward, and, as some experts predict, a shoo-in for the Rookie of the Year award this season. It is also rumoured that Griffin will continue to be really, really mean to the rim during the All-Star Weekend, where he is headlining the Slam Dunk competition. “Really?” was the reaction of Dwight Howard, former Slam Dunk champ. “A Clipper is going to win the Dunk Competition? This must be the 19th century or something.” There is valid reason for NBA fans and players to doubt any and everything from the White and Red side of the LA. The Clippers are perhaps the NBA’s least successful team in history. Since their inception in 1970 as the Buffalo Braves, they are the longest-running team in NBA history to not appear in the Finals. They are also amongst three teams (which include the Memphis Grizzlies, formed in 1995) and the Charlotte Bobcats (formed in 2004) to have never won an NBA, Conference, or Division championship. In their 40-year history, where they went from the Braves (1970-78), San Diego Clippers (1978-84), to the Los Angeles Clippers (1984-present), they have made the playoffs just seven times. Since they came to Los Angeles, they have gone past the first round of the playoffs only one time (back in 2006). No wonder then, that through our news archives, we discovered that Sports Illustrated magazine named the Clippers as the worst ever franchise in any of the major American sports. Former Clippers, who have remained reserved about their rather Clippery past, have finally come out to identify themselves. Despite their lack of success, and thus, their claim at high picks every year at the NBA Draft, the Clippers have been struck with the most terrible of curses. In the last 15 years, their top-10 draft picks have included the very-average Lorenzen Wright; No. 1 pick and subsequent bust Michael Olowokandi; Lamar Odom, who had his best years with the team that the Clippers’ share their arena with; Darius Miles, whose career lasted nine unsuccessful years; Tyson Chandler, who only played well after he left Clipperland; Chris Wilcox, who never averaged over 8.6 ppg in his time in LA; Chris Kaman, who is talented but rarely healthy; and Shaun Livingston, who lost most of his prodigious talent to the most gruesome of knee injuries in 2007. Whenever they found someone, they lost someone else. The Clippers' only visit to the post-season the past decade came thanks to a team led by their most successful recent star, Elton Brand, and Sam Cassell. And then they proceeded to lost Cassell to age, lose Brand to the 76ers, and lose their replacement star, Baron Davis, to a large appetite. So imagine the horror when, after finally striking lucky in two straight draft years with guard Eric Gordon and forward Blake Griffin, the Clippers lost Griffin to a knee injury that kept him out all season before he even played an NBA game. This was a curse, onlookers said. The Clippers were lost. A year later, and Griffin is back, averaging an incredible 21.8 ppg with 12.7 rebounds. And Gordon is scoring 23.6 points a game. Even Baron Davis seems to have regained a few steps. League Pass Nerds have told sources that the Clippers have become the best kept secret in the league, an exciting, fast-paced dunk-fest, led by Griffin, night in and night out. And as the Heat, Nuggets, Suns, Warriors, and Bulls, all teams with better records, have recently discovered, these young Clippers have learnt how to win games too. The rest of the league is now in preparation to deal with this new phenomenon. NBA history books have been scratched out, replaced with tactical charts and plans to stop this incoming threat. The stage is set for Los Angeles’ ‘other’ team to deliver. NBA Eye from an Indian Guy: Vol. 1 By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani January 11, 2011  Before the season began, Derrick Rose asked, half-jokingly, why he couldn't be MVP. Through two and a half months, he's given us fewer and fewer reasons why not -- including his 36-point performance against the Celtics on Sunday. NBAE/Getty Images CLICK HERE for the full list of games available live on Indian television or right here on NBA.com/India. Thursday: Los Angeles Lakers @ Phoenix Suns Any other time that the Conference Finalists face each other, the match-up is sure to generate considerable hype and fireworks. Unfortunately, the Suns’ rapid downfall and the Lakers annual dip in form and rise of Hollywood drama made the anticipation for this match-up a little less enticing. No fear, because the action was court was far from irrelevant. The Suns have been struggling to find form all season, clearly missing the loss of Amar’e Stoudemire, who left for the bright lights of New York in the off-season. Then, they made another major trade weeks before this game, sending Jason Richardson and Hedo Turkoglu to the Orlando Magic and getting Vince Carter plus change in return. This was our first look at the man once known as Vinsanity in a Suns jersey. Speaking of the Conference Finals, the ghosts of Ron Artest’s put-back game-winner in Game 5 last season may still be haunting Steve Nash and the rest of the Suns. On Thursday, in a game where neither team played exceptionally well or exceptionally badly, it was Ron Ron once again who hit the dagger jump-shot in the dying seconds of the game, dooming the Suns to a 99-95 loss. Friday: OKC Thunder @ Dallas Mavericks Once the toast of the league with the second-best record in the NBA, the Mavericks have been sliding after an unfortunate season-ending injury to Caron Butler and the temporary absence of MVP candidate Dirk Nowitzki. The Thunder, seemingly the entire basketball world’s favourite ‘feel-good’ team, took advantage of Nowitzki’s absence to spring up a surprise road win. What makes the Thunder especially interesting is that most of the league and its fans still don’t know that much about them! Yes, they have the league’s leading scorer in Kevin Durant and an explosive young guard in Russell Westbrook; they still seem to be overachieving this season with their 25-13 record; they are currently leading the Northwest Division; and have a better record that the Jazz, Hornets, and Nuggets in a deep Western Conference race -- yet, the Thunder, like they showed on Friday morning, can credit their success to excellent team defense (well, that and the Durant scoring machine). Durant scored a smooth 28 game-high points against the Mavericks, hitting a few crucial jump-shots just when it counted most and the Thunder won 99-95. Saturday: Houston Rockets @ Orlando Magic Very quietly, the Magic have won nine straight games. Their 110-95 victory over the struggling Rockets was one of the cruising victories in this streak. Magic could even afford to get sub-par games from dominating Center Dwight Howard (sidelined with foul trouble) and Gilbert Arenas (sidelined with a serious shooting slump) to win easily. Acquired from the Suns, Jason Richardson and Hedo seem to be fitting in perfectly; Richardson was on fire from the field, missing one shot all game, and Hedo had another great all-round performance. The Magic proved their great depth as players like Brandon Bass and Ryan Anderson even stepped up. With the likes of Nelson, Redick, Duhon, and Quentin Richardson, this team is starting to look deeper a deeper in an ever-toughening East. Saturday: Hornets @ Lakers Surprise, surprise, the Lakers were back, and once again, found a way to grind out a victory. The Hornets had had a good start to the season, but had been sliding in recent weeks. Pau Gasol discovered his early season form, going for an efficient 21, 13, and 7. But the night belonged to Kobe, who scored 25 points surpassed ‘The Big O’ Oscar Robertson to become the 9th leading scorer in NBA history. The Lakers found another way to win a close game, taking this one 101-97. The sidebar story of this game was the continuing development of Andrew Bynum. With him getting comfortable in the paint, the Lakers’ length started to look formidable again. Sunday: Celtics @ Bulls Easily the biggest game of the week. Bulls vs. Celtics was about stamping a dominance in the East. It about first-time head coach Tom Thibodeau going against Doc Rivers, the man under whom he served as an assistant. It was about two point guards with similar maverick games both vying for MVP contention – Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo. Playing without an injured Garnett, his filler Glen Davis was exposed by the sultry offensive post skills of Bulls’ new man Carlos Boozer. With the game staying close till the start of the fourth quarter, it was Thibodeau, the Padawan-in-training who got the best of his Rivers, his Jedi Master. Bulls played the kind of defense that their opponents are known for, holding the Celtics to just 15 points in the fourth and, in the end, cruising towards a 90-79 victory. And the Rose-Rondo battle? Not even a contest. A match-up that recalled classic playoff nights between the Celtics and Bulls from two years ago, this time, Derrick Rose made sure to protect his home court. Rose scored 36 points to Rondo’s 13, showing all the weapons of his offensive arsenal, and sowing the seeds of a budding rivalry. And this week? There are four more exciting games on – Lakers vs Warriors on Thursday, Magic vs Thunder on Friday, Hornets vs Rockets on Friday, and finally, Heat vs Bulls, another enticing East coast bonanza on Sunday morning. Sounds like another week of early morning hoops excess! The League of Extraordinary Point Guards By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani January 7, 2011  Steve Nash and Rajon Rondo, one 36, the other just 23 -- both core members of The League. NBAE/Getty Images “Speak,” Magic demanded. Without hesitation, it was Kidd who started first. “My Lords, the league is going well for our kind now. Point guards have become more dominant than ever before. And the good news is that there is enough young talent to keep the PGs royal bloodline flowing for many more years. This the golden age for us.” From their side, a booming voice scowled at them, “Yes we know this already,” It was Gary Payton, the first minister, “Then what brings you here?” “Let them speak, Gary,” Stockton diplomatically objected. “My Lords,” it was Billups’ turn to speak, “We still have a problem though. The PGs are good, too damn good. So good that we can’t decide which won to crown the best. They have come forth with their arguments, and we see it fit for us all to judge which won of them is the finest.” “Bring them through, then,” demanded Oscar. The first one in was Chris Paul. “My Lords, this shouldn’t even be a debate. I’ve more talented any of my compatriots. I’ve averaged nearly a 20 and 10 for my career, and have dominated this position for the last five years. What more can I do to prove this?” “Bah!” interjected the man behind him, Deron Williams, “Humbug. You have never defeated me, Chris. I, my Lords, am the league’s best PG. No one has been as consistent as I have, and while Chris has gone down to injuries over and over again, I have stayed sturdy and stayed strong. The point guard position is the most dependable job in the league, and no one handles it better than I do.” At this, Stockton beamed a wide smile and clapped. “Go Jazz,” he muttered. “This is ridiculous,” a chorus of two voices entered the room together. The louder of them, Derrick Rose, was the first to speak. “I’m the best PG in the league right now. No one has had bigger performances this season than me.” The other voice was of Russell Westbrook, who pushed Rose away to come into sight. “He lies, my Lord. It is I who have been the stalwart of your royal position this year.” “That is all good and well,” interjected the second minister, Isiah Thomas, “But are any of you young’uns winning anything? Anything?” The next voice broke the ensuing silence. “I’ve been to the Finals twice already in my young career. And won a ring once. And I’m the league’s leader in assists. Lord Stockton,” Rondo looked up and smiled cockily, “I’m coming for your records.” “Just one ring?” questioned Tony Parker. “How about three? And how about a Finals MVP, too? Matter of fact, how about showing respect to the man that is the PG for the league’s best team this year?” All through this debate, Steve Nash had remained silent, silently bouncing a basketball between his hands, dribbling a football between his feet. “If I may, my Lords,” Nash finally said, “I don’t believe any of them should have followed me in. At 36, I’m still one of the league’s best, and I’ve improved the basketball of more average players than any of my competitors here.” A ruckus broke out. Parker, Rondo, Nash, Rose, Paul, Williams, and Westbrook, all shouting, one voice trying to outshout the other. It was only when they heard further disturbance outside the Hall that their attention turned. John Wall, Tyreke Evans, Brandon Jennings, and Jrue Holiday all stood outside, demanding to be let in. “We will use extreme force if we have to,” warned Evans. “And speed,” Wall added. “Silence, silence,” Magic boomed, “This is a debate that will not be settled this easily. Being a Laker, I’m so appalled that the only other one amongst us to win five rings isn’t present here. Somebody give Derek Fisher a call.” Another ruckus, more noises, more drama. “We shall settle this in court!” Paul screamed. “Yes,” added Williams, “The basketball court.” With great hassle, they were all ushered out by Bob Cousy, the third minister. But before things could settle down, Allen Iverson busted in, carrying in his hand a little memo. "You?" Oscar demanded, "You were sent on exile, Iverson! You're not a real point guard. What are you doing here?" "Real or fake, I was definitely the best," Iverson boasted. "By the way," he said, waving the memo, "I've brought this for you, all the way from Europe," It was a red letter, claiming another warning, written in Spanish to the League of Extraordinary Point Guards in the scrawny handwriting of a youngster. La corona es mia. Google Translate did the work for the dignitaries. The crown is mine. Saludos, Ricky Rubio. La Vie en Rose By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani December 31, 2010  In just his third season, Derrick Rose is an MVP candidate playing for his hometown team. NBAE/Getty Images The world’s best-known basketball team. A franchise, for many years, more popular than the game of basketball itself. The red, black and white colours. The ‘bull’ symbol. The number 23. Michael Jordan. From Chicago to Chitrakoot, everyone, including Jordan fans in Illinois, streetball players in New York, fashion-conscious youngsters in London, billionaire businessmen in the Middle East, coolies in Mussoorie, and back-up dancers at a Bollywood film studio in Mumbai have all, somehow, someway, heard about the Chicago Bulls. Whether it is discarded old caps with a red bull, a Jordan T-shirt, the movie Space Jam, or the Air Jordan shoes, the Bulls reveled in a mythical aura for the better part of the last three decades thanks to their eternal number 23, Michael Jordan. The Lakers, Celtics, Heat, and even the Spurs might be bigger franchises amongst basketball fans today, but basketball grew when Jordan and the Bulls did, which is why the team still remains relevant today, 12 years after its last championship. Knowing all this, now imagine that its 1995. You are a six-year old basketball fan born in Chicago. Imagine watching the world’s idol, and your city’s own hero, Michael Jordan, make his triumphant return to the Bulls after a one-and-a-half year hiatus from the sport. Imagine cheering for him in every single game, as he leads your hometown favourite team to another three championships. Imagine him making the Bulls into the biggest basketball team in the world. Imagine spending every day on the basketball court copying Jordan’s moves: the wagging tongue, the fade-away jumper, the shrug, the imaginary game-winners. Now imagine Jordan retiring and your team falling from soaring heights into the depths of basketball nothingness. Players like Elton Brand, Ron Artest, Jamal Crawford, Tyson Chandler, Eddy Curry, Jalen Rose, Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng, Ben Gordon, and Joakim Noah have come, and most of them have gone, and your team has never risen beyond the first round of the playoffs. Meanwhile, imagine yourself becoming a young basketball star, becoming one of the best high-school basketball players in the state of Illinois, and then continuing that streak into college, taking your Memphis team to the NCAA championship game. Now imagine its 2008, and your college exploits have made you into one of the most wanted players coming into the NBA Draft. Imagine a stroke of luck so lucky that it would make Leprechauns blush – your home team, the Chicago Bulls, captures the NBA’s top pick, despite owning just a 1.7 percent chance to do so. And then imagine your wildest fantasies coming true as the Bulls pick you as the top pick over fellow favourite Michael Beasley. You are a 20 year old young superstar point guard. And you are the number one pick of the rookie class, destined to becoming the starting guard for your favourite hometown team. You are Derrick Rose. Imagine becoming the best Bulls’ rookie since Michael Jordan. Imagine averaging 16.8 ppg and 6.3 assists in your rookie season. Imagine winning the Rookie of the Year award. Imagine you became the first all star from the Chicago Bulls since Michael Jordan left, only in your second season. Imagine having two years of epic playoff performances, and raising the level of your game in each season, getting even better in the post-season, just like Jordan did. Its 2010. For the first time since Michael Jordan, the Bulls jersey is selling hot in the market again. But this time, not everyone is wearing the number 23. The back of the jersey now says ‘Rose 1’. Imagine having the fourth best selling jersey of the year, trailing behind only Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Dwight Howard. 2010 arrives, and brings with it the wildest free agent coup in the history of the league. LeBron James, Chicago’s own Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Amar’e Stoudemire, Joe Johnson, and many others are free agents, and Chicago has a lot of money. Your Bulls fail to sign any of the marquee names, but do bring in solid post presence in Carlos Boozer. Your bench gets stacked with reliable shooters. But the team is yours and yours alone. You are the leader, the general, the point guard, the biggest fan. And you start getting even better. You soon become one of the league’s leading scorers. You start putting up legendary performances, and for the first time in over a decade, your favourite team, the team that you are the starting point guard for, becomes a serious threat in the league. Imagine having a 20-10 record at the end of December and being on top of the Central Division. Imagine being the man who brought back the Bulls to the NBA’s elite. Imagine becoming the first Bulls players since Jordan to be an MVP candidate. Imagine being one of the league’s best players in only your third season. The Bulls have been long separated from the promised land since the six championships in the 90s, but finally, they are in contention again. Imagine now a six-year-old child, somewhere in Chitrakoot, watching an NBA game in his Bulls’ hat, cheering wildly for you, copying your moves, your tear-drop jumper, your blindingly fast crossover dribble. Imagine being Derrick Rose. 'Tis The Season To Be Shaq and Kobe By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani December 23, 2010  On Christmas, Kobe leads his Lakers against the Miami Heat in one of the year's most anticipated matchups. NBAE/Getty Images In my home though, Santa doesn’t drop anything through the chimney, or the water pipes, or show up at the balcony. My gifts are delivered the day after Christmas, early in the morning, when I switch on my TV and unwrap my present. NBA Christmas specials! In the NBA, Santa Claus isn’t a fat, bearded man in a red suit; he is two different people, both of whom have been delivering gifts to NBA fans with the same consistency that our dear ol’ St. Nicholas has.These two Santa Clauses are Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant. The two teammates-turned-foes-turned-friends-turned-foes-turned-rivals-turned-friends-turned-competitors (phew!) have been featured on the NBA’s marquee Christmas day games for every years since 1999. In 1999, Lakers, featuring a Shaq and Kobe tandem, faced the reigning NBA champs, the Spurs. 2000, Lakers, now champions, faced Western Conference powerhouses, the Blazers. 2001 saw the repeat of the Finals in June, where Lakers faced Allen Iverson and the 76ers. In 2002, after a three-peat of NBA championships, Lakers faced their fiercest rivals of the time, the Sacramento Kings. In 2003, Lakers faced Yao Ming and the Rockets, as the league’s two best big men, Shaq and Yao Ming, collided in a battle of the giants. Shaq was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004, but his tryst with Christmas continued. Kobe and the Lakers faced Shaq, Wade, and the Heat on Christmas day on December 25th, 2004. This match-up became the NBA’s Christmas tradition, as both teams faced each other on the same day in 2005 and 2006. Things changed in 2007, and for the first time, Kobe and Shaq weren’t in the same game on Christmas. Shaq’s Heat, now dominated by Dwayne Wade, faced LeBron James and the Cavs, but Kobe got his Christmas shine too, when the Lakers played against the Suns the same night. Shaq moved again in 2008, this time joining the Suns, and guess what, once again, he was there on Christmas, facing the Spurs. That same day, the league’s two most stories franchises, the Lakers and the Celtics, gave us a repeat of the 2008 finals, and Kobe remained in the Christmas spotlight. Last season, Christmas 2009, Shaq and Kobe were back, facing each other in opposite teams: Shaq was now LeBron James’ sidekick with the Cavs, and Kobe was celebrating his fourth ring with the Lakers. We’re now in 2010, and it seems that the basketball Santa Clauses are back in action on Christmas Day. Kobe Bryant and the Lakers will be hosting the league’s most hyped-up team ever, the LeBron-Wade-Bosh powered Miami Heat. Over in Orlando, Shaq will be back to his first team, now as a minimal contributor to the strong Boston squad, as the Celtics will play the Magic. The Lakers-Heat match-up is perhaps the most anticipated NBA game of the year. Lakers are a stacked squad from top to bottom, are the back-to-back NBA champions, and are perhaps the favourites to win it all again this season. They are led by Kobe Bryant, who, for good or bad, is arguably the most popular basketball player in the world right now (I said right now, basketball ignorants. Michael Jordan retired, like a decade ago). But if the Lakers have been the league’s best team the last two years, the best individual player has been LeBron James, who, over the same period of time, has stacked back-to-back MVP awards. LeBron is now part of the league’s most dangerous two-headed dragon along with Dwyane Wade, and the two are supported by a devastating third-option in Chris Bosh. There are match-ups galore to look forward to here: Kobe vs. LeBron, Kobe vs. Wade, LeBron and Kobe vs. Ron Artest, Gasol and Bynum vs. Bosh… It’s the basketball version of the Clash of the Titans and could well be a foreshadowing of the NBA Finals next year. Over in Orlando, Dwight Howard, the self-proclaimed new ‘Superman’ of the league, will be paid a visit by Orlando’s (and the NBA’s) original Superman, Shaq. He may be far from the force he used to be, but Shaq has become an integral piece in the complicated Celtic puzzle, and his one-on-one battle with Howard will surely be a treat to watch. Add to this enticing recipe other ingredients such as the resurrection of new Magic star Gilbert Arenas and the rest of the Celtics’ ten-headed monster, and you are in for a huge game. So this Christmas season, I’m thankful for Kobe and Shaq, for all their success and their failures and their friendship and their animosity and their own unique ways of keeping me entertained. And I’m thankful for the NBA for my Christmas presents this year: a couple more classic basketball games the size of Biblical proportions! The Resurrection of Ron Artest By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani December 16, 2010  The aftermath of the 'Malice at the Palace,' when Artest jumped into the stands and assaulted fans in Detroit -- earning a suspension that spanned 86 games. NBAE/Getty Images April 14, 1991: Death on a Basketball Court Raised around a tough neighbourhood in Queensbridge, New York, Artest, when less than 12 years old, witnessed a death on the basketball court. A fight broke out during the championship game of a Y.M.C.A.-sponsored tournament at the Niagara Falls Boys and Girls Club, during which 19-year-old Llyod Newton was stabbed in the back with the leg of the scorer's table. Newton died on court. Years later, when a part of the Houston Rockets, Artest finally spoke about the incident, adding, “I'm accustomed playing basketball really rough. When I came into the league, I was used to fighting on the court. That's how I grew up playing basketball. It took me a lot of years to back off and understand, that's not what the league is about.” November 19, 2004: The Malice at the Palace Artest was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 1999 and traded to the Indiana Pacers in 2002. He already had a notorious reputation for some of his antics, but there was never any doubt of his ability, especially on the defensive end. During the 2003-2004 season, he played the best basketball of his career, making the All-Star team and named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year. The Pacers, too, became one of the most dangerous teams in the league. Just nine games into the 2004-2005, the Pacers faced Detroit, the reigning NBA champions -- and their Eastern Conference rivals -- at the Pistons home-court, The Palace at Auburn Hills. With 45.9 seconds left in the game, Artest got into an altercation with Pistons’ hard-man Ben Wallace. The players soon calmed down, but when a Pistons fan threw a cup at Artest, the forward responded by rushing up the stands and punching the spectators. The violence spilled on-court between several more players of both teams and Artest got into another fight with a different set of fans. A total of 10 players from both teams faced consequences, with Artest receiving the harshest punishment: a suspension for the remainder of the season. He missed 73 regular season and 13 playoff games. His already-troublesome reputation was left shattered. His basketball career was considered all but over. June 17, 2010: “I wanna thank my psychiatrist” This year, the Lakers have a secret weapon, though. In 2009, the Lakers let go of Trevor Ariza, and used that money to sign Ron Artest from the Rockets. After his Pacers misadventure, Artest resurrected his career with the Sacramento Kings and later, with the Rockets. Lakers coach Phil Jackson always knew that his squad had to get tougher to compete for the title again. Of course, he had done this all before, back with the Chicago Bulls in the mid 90s. If Kobe Bryant was the 2010 version of Michael Jordan and Pau Gasol playing the complimentary role of Scottie Pippen, then there could be no other Dennis Rodman than Ron Artest. Artest brought to the Lakers what Dennis ‘The Menace’ brought to the Bulls: grit, determination, a never-say-die attitude, and the good kind of craziness. Back to Staples Centre, Game 7. Kobe Bryant lost his shooting touch at the worst time imaginable, as he shot 6-24 from the field and missed all of the six three-pointers he took. It took Pau Gasol until the second half to finally become effective against the Boston defense. The Lakers had to fight their way back from a 13-point deficit in the third quarter. That night, it was Ron Artest who perhaps played the game of his life, battling through a game-high 46 minutes, scoring 20 points, grabbing five rebounds, and being a strong defensive presence throughout the game, as the Lakers survived to win the game, 83-79. Afterwards, drenched in championship champagne, Phil Jackson called Artest the ‘MVP of the game’. But it was the hero of the hour himself who made the most memorable of quotes, thanking his psychiatrist for helping him relax before games and get focused. He admitted that he let down his teammates six years ago in Indiana, and felt blessed to have had a shot at redemption. Admitting that he consulted a psychiatrist (whom he later admitted was actually a psychologist) was a big step by Artest: this season, he has actually become a crucial supporter for children with mental health problems, even offering to auction his Lakers championship ring to donate the money for charity. The tough childhood, the harsh neighbourhood, the prodigal talent, the defensive intensity, the suspensions, and confrontations, the brawl in Detroit, the rap album, the problems at home, the multiple number changes (15 to 23 to to 91 to 93 to 96 to 37 and then 15 again), the ill-advised three-pointers, the charity: each of the experiences made Ron Artest the man and the basketball player he is, the player who was the last hero standing on basketball’s biggest stage. For Ron Artest, it took the worst of times to help him learn, redefine himself, and be able to shine at the best of times. Madhok: The 10-Headed Green Monster By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani December 9, 2010  The 'Big 3' brought the Celtics a title in 2008. In 2010, it's a total team effort. NBAE/Getty Images But what if the Celtics had won that game? There is no rule that says that the Finals MVP must be from the winning team, although there has been only one person of a losing team to have won it. That honour goes to Jerry West, the first-ever recipient of the award, back in 1969, when his 38 points per game couldn't help the Lakers from losing in seven games to -- who else? -- the Celtics! If the Celtics hadn't blown their 13-point half-time lead in Game 7 of the 2010 Finals and ended up as champions, who would've received the MVP award? In 2008, when the Celtics won their last championship, the MVP went to Paul Pierce, but even that was a debatable choice over Garnett and Ray Allen. In 2010, Rondo would’ve been a top nominee right alongside the 'Big Three'. Now, this isn't to say that the Celtics are a team full of MVPs - my point is, the Celtics are a TEAM. Period. As their playoff performances showed, the Celtics were capable of producing a different MVP on any given day. The Cavs relied on LeBron as their saviour, the Magic on Dwight, the Lakers on Kobe, the Thunder on Durant, and the Heat on Wade. But the Celtics, for whom seven or eight different players had nearly equal contribution, were able to rise above the individual superstar concept and reached within four points of another NBA championship. Like it or not, the NBA has become at times a league of individual stars. The average NBA fan, especially one not living in an NBA city, finds it much easier to support a string of players more than a particular team: when a player changes teams, the fan changes teams, too. The most popular teams in the league the last few years have been the Lakers (mostly because of Kobe's worldwide fame, but also because Gasol commands a huge following in Europe), the Celtics, the Magic (thanks to Dwight Howard), and the Cavaliers (LeBron James). The Cavs had been a fan favourite for the last seven years, up until they lost one player, James, to Miami, and suddenly, a number of their fans jumped ship, too. It is a strange paradox: basketball, at its core, is a sport where five men or women work as one unit, but it has gained worldwide popularity because of the individuals who have risen themselves above the team concept and dominated the other nine individuals on the court around them. Except, perhaps, the Celtics. The current Boston style of play and the squad itself most reminds of the Detroit Pistons team from the mid-2000s, a team that followed no-name all-stars to the Promised Land. Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace, and Ben Wallace initially never struck fear in their opponents’ hearts, up until they won a championship and were the strongest team in the Eastern Conference for years to come, mainly because of their blue-collar work ethic, teamwork, and defense. The current Celtics seem to be an upgraded version of those Pistons, as they play with a similar ethic, but feature all-star level players who have willingly limited their individual aspirations to the aspirations of the team. Collectively, they have recorded 51 all-star appearances! Like the ten-headed rakshas (loosely translated: demon) Raavan of Indian mythology, the Celtics form an unstoppable monster, pacing up and down the court in its classic green uni, formed by a bunch of perfectly fitting, sometimes demonic parts. And in their case, I mean demonic in a good way! It would be unfair to separate the ‘Big Three’ from the rest of the squad now: they have a roster powered by Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Garnett, Shaq, Glen Davis, Nate Robinson and Marquis Daniels, and later in the season, they will be joined by Kendrick Perkins and Jermaine O’Neal, who are currently sidelined with injury. This team has already had a quick start, going 17-4 a quarter of the way into the season to lead the Eastern Conference standings. Dishing out 14.1 assists a game so far this season, Rajon Rondo is getting the best numbers since John Stockton, and entering him into the conversation of the greatest point guards. Ray Allen continues to be one of the deadliest shooters in the league, and along with Paul Pierce, form a tough, clutch tandem that provides the team with grit and heart just when needed. No one in the league has more heart than power forward Kevin Garnett, who is not only the team’s emotional leader but has also been one of the best defenders in the league so far this season. Garnett has been the glue behind the team’s ‘ubuntu' philosophy that has given the Celtics their trademark swagger. Shaq seems to have found his groove again with solid numbers and a high shooting percentage, and will be one the toughest players to stop during several stretches in the playoffs. With a hard-nosed, defensive minded bench, and the return of bad-to-the-bone starting Centre Perkins, the Celtics will once again be the toughest team to beat in the NBA. Their only limitation seems to be themselves: with age, fatigue, and injuries always ailing them, the Celtics run the risk of running out of gas to go the whole way in the playoffs. But until that happens, every other team in the league will have to figure out another way of defeating the 10-headed Green Monster. The Case of the Cursed Number Ones By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani December 2, 2010  Kwame Brown, the top pick in the 2001 draft, has become a prime example of the Curse of the No. 1 Pick. NBAE/Getty Images Sherlock Hoops Diary Excerpt – November 29, 2010. The Invisible Giant. I woke up early in the morning today and couldn’t go back to sleep. I was still having nightmares from the game last night. The Atlanta Hawks handed the Toronto Raptors a 96-78 loss. The Raptors have been better than expected, actually, but I couldn’t keep my eyes off their seven-foot Italian giant. Andrea Bargnani – he was supposed to be their star when Chris Bosh left town, wasn’t he? After all, he was picked No. 1 in the 2006 NBA Draft, but his career seemed to have faded into relative obscurity since. I sprang out of bed and looked through my files. Yes, he’s averaging over 20 points a game – well, who else is going to score in Toronto? – but only around five rebounds. That’s it? Five? For a seven footer? Who was the first pick? What's going on here? Bargnani came into the league with high expectations – well, which No. 1 pick doesn’t have high expectations? And he hasn’t seemed to live up to those expectations so far. So far… Sherlock Hoops Diary Excerpt – November 30, 2010. A Disturbing Trend I must thank my trusty assistant, Dr. Shot-Son, for bringing out some important archives for me, and I have discovered a trend that has left me much disturbed. I looked up all the No. 1 picks from NBA drafts over the last 20 years – from 1990 to 2009 – and the findings were worrisome indeed. Only three top picks in the last 20 years have gone on to win a championship: Shaquille O’Neal (4 times), Tim Duncan (4 times), and Glenn Robinson, who only won his ring at the twilight of his career as a limited role-player. And since Duncan in 1997, there has been no new top pick to win a championship. None. Before this season’s draft, I took a full look at a list of the last decade’s picks: Kenyon Martin, Kwame Brown, Yao Ming, LeBron James, Dwight Howard, Andrew Bogut, Andrea Bargnani, Greg Oden, Derrick Rose, and Blake Griffin. Out of this group, Martin, Ming, James, Howard, and Rose reached to the all star level. Martin, James, and Howard were part of a team that reached the NBA Finals. Only two – James (2003) and Rose (2008) were named Rookie of the Year in their first year in the league. Of course, last year’s top pick, Blake Griffin, has the potential to change that – since he missed all of last season, he is in running for the ROY award this year. This was curious… Most curious… Must get to the bottom of this… Sherlock Hoops Diary Excerpt – December 1, 2010. Expert advice? I spent the day in reflection, sitting in the office alone. Even Dr. Shot-Son was asked to keep his interruptions and his opinions away. I started to think: the NBA draft lottery is one of the most curious events on the sporting calendar. It only takes the pick of a numbered ping-pong to potentially change the face of an NBA franchise. Struggling teams, if handed a high pick, win the chance to select the brightest young talents into their squads, or even use these picks for valuable trades. NBA franchises crave and yearn for that No. 1 pick, a license to bring in any of the eligible amateur players from colleges and internationally into their team. When the player picked first is supposed to be the undisputed best player in his class, why is it that so many of them don’t live up to the top billing? The men and women behind the NBA know basketball better than you and me. The scouts, coaches, trainers, general managers, assistants, and countless others work behind the scenes to build for you and me their attempt at the perfect franchise. These people know the ins and outs of the system, know the players with potential, and simply, know what works. And yet, why is it so that so few of them succeed in performing consistently over the course of their careers? Sherlock Hoops Diary Excerpt – December 2, 2010. Bigger isn’t always better. Aha – now we’re getting somewhere! I took another look at some of names on that list. Kenyon Martin (2000): 6 foot 9, made it to two NBA Finals losses, suffered a knee injury, had surgery, and hasn’t been an explosive player since. Kwame Brown (2001): 6 foot 11, suffered flop years after flop years; he averages an ugly 6.7 points and 5.4 rebounds for his career. Yao Ming (2002): 7 foot 6, the giant's career has been up and down since the beginning, great seasons followed by injuries followed by great seasons followed by injuries. Andrew Bogut (2005): 7 foot, started slow, but has been better recently; He too suffered an awful hand injury last season. Andrea Bargnani (2006): 7 foot, still a disappointment. Greg Oden (2007): 7 foot, has had a tragic young career, maligned with injuries. Blake Griffin (2009): 6 foot 10, missed his first season to a knee injury, but has been the most explosive player in the league this year. Dwight Howard has been the only big player picked first in the last decade who has been consistently elite. In so many years, NBA teams had been picking big over small. Martin over Michael Redd. Kwame Brown over Joe Johnson, Tony Parker, and Gilbert Arenas. Bogut over Deron Williams and Chris Paul. Bargnani over Brandon Roy and Rajon Rondo. Oden over Durant. And year after year, these big players let them down. It’s elementary, Shot-Son! I have finally cracked the mystery: Bigger players seem to have been more prone to injury, and so many of these players have been prone to folding under the pressure of their expectations. Why go for size every time when there are more talented smaller players available? I smiled smugly and rested my eyes. Another case closed. Sherlock Hoops Diary Excerpt – December 3, 2010. Not another brick in the John Wall. Dr. Shot-Son brought me a video today. The NBA Draft 2010. The Washington Wizards, with the first pick, select John Wall, the 6 foot 4 point guard from Kentucky. I braced myself as that video turned into a highlight reel. He flashed by my screen, moving faster than anything I had ever seen before. What was the secret behind this? Dunk after dunk, swish after swish, until my old head started to suffer a migraine keeping up with up. “Looks like we got ourselves another case, Shot-Son,” I said, “This one will be hard to catch.” Batman & Batman By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani November 26, 2010  Often, with great success comes great sacrifice. The Miami Heat may have to take note. NBAE/Getty Images Apart from the usual death-defying, high-flying, butt-kicking, and spandex-stretching adventures of my favourite super-heroes, I leant one other crucial lesson from the caped-crusaders: the importance of a sidekick. For every Batman there needs to be a Robin; and in the case of Indian comic-book fans, for every Chacha Chaudhary, we need a Sabu. In basketball, too, many of the game’s most successful alpha dogs (‘Batmen’) have been supported by accomplished ‘Robins.' Michael Jordan had Scottie Pippen. Shaquille O’Neal had Kobe Bryant, and later, Kobe became Batman himself, turning Pau Gasol into a brilliant Robin. In the current league, each team’s best player needs the support of a trusty sidekick (or in ‘Superman’ Dwight Howard’s case, a trusty band of sidekicks) to be successful. Which brings us to the Miami Heat, a team of Batman and Batman: two alpha dogs – Dwyane Wade and LeBron James, both involved in a silent power struggle to be the team’s leader, while their ‘Robin’ role is played by third option Chris Bosh. The results, although not completely disastrous, have been greatly disappointing. Through the first 15 games of the season, Miami is only 8-7, are currently on a three-game losing streak, and have lost to teams such as the Memphis Grizzlies and Indiana Pacers on the way. They have struggled to get into any kind of rhythm. Miami’s victories have been more due to the stars’ individual talents than effective team-play. With two superstars, who are two of the best players in the league at controlling an offensive game of basketball, Heat coach Erik Spoelestra faces a unique 'problem': How to make Batman and Batman work together? Other dynamic duos in the game’s history (Jordan-Pippen, Magic-Kareem, Shaq-Kobe etc) were all players who offered differing skill sets to their squads. In the case of Wade and LeBron, the players are so eerily similar in the way that they score, create and defend that it has been difficult so far for the coach to consistently get the best out of both of them at the same time. We all know what happens when you get two alpha dogs together. Superman and Batman had to violently settle their differences in Frank Miller's Dark Knight graphic novels. Closer to the basketball world, 'Superman' Shaq was eventually ousted out of the Lakers when Kobe struggled to remain a sidekick. Someone needs to bite the bullet, step down and exchange hit Bat Suit for Robin’s red-and-yellow tunic, because currently, the Heat are suffering a clash for the leadership role. Which one will it be? Should it be LeBron James, who is a more talented playmaker and can run the floor better? He would have to don the role of a point guard and transform into neo-Magic Johnson while Wade becomes the first option on offense. Or should it be Wade who accepts the lesser role of a mere jump-shooter while LeBron becomes the team's primary scoring threat? The Heat were assembled with great fanfare and gaudy predictions, including Jeff Van Gundy’s bold proclamation that the Heat will win more games than the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls, go after the 1971-72 Lakers’ 33 game winning streak and not lose two games in a row all season. Sorry, Jeff, but the two-game losing streak has already been topped, and for Miami to win 73 games this season to top the Bulls’ 72-10 record, the Heat have to go 65-2 for the rest of the year. This is where a Batman quote does come in handy – as the classic 1960s ‘Batman’ TV-series ‘Boom’-ed and ‘Kapow’-ed its way through our imaginations, Adam West’s Batman dropped this classic bit of advice to his skeptical sidekick. Robin: "That's an impossible shot, Batman." Batman: "That's a negative attitude, Robin." Granted, the Heat have many other troubles plaguing them, and many more questions still left to answer: Is their unproven coach Erik Spoelstra good enough to lead this group of Super-Friends into the promised land? Can they recover from the long-term injuries to key role players Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller? Will they be able to address their biggest issue - the lack of a strong post presence - before things get out of hand? Sure Chris Bosh is talented, but so far, he hasn't been tough enough to hand with the league's biggest and baddest. Luckily, the Heat have enough time to sort out their issues and find a perfect fit for all pieces of their puzzle. They suffer an enviable quagmire; no coach in the league would refuse the opportunity to lead a team starring Wade, LeBron and Bosh. How they figure out a solution could make the difference for the Heat to step up from being a good team to a great one. "Experience teaches slowly, Robin," Batman once instructed his trusted sidekick, "And at a cost of many mistakes." Return of the Prodigal Wizard By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani November 19, 2010  John Wall recently sidelined due to injury, Gilbert Arenas has shined for the Wizards. NBAE/Getty Images Wall. With the first pick of the 2010 NBA Draft, the Washington Wizards picked John Wall from the University of Kentucky. Suddenly, a city that had gone through a year of barren hopes in basketball was reignited with hope. In 2009, Wizards lost fan favourite Gilbert Arenas to a season-long suspension and lost all-stars Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison to trades. The team was in need of a break, and in Wall, they got one: the rookie has already won the heart of the city with some breathtaking performances, including becoming one of the youngest players ever to score a triple-double. Lost in the noise and hoopla of Wall's dynamic start this season was the quiet return of Washington's prodigal son, Gilbert Arenas. Arenas led the Wizards through their glory years in the mid 2000s, as he became one of the league's best performing and most outspoken superstars. Returning from last season's suspension, the player known as 'Hibachi' (after a Japanese heating device) had become an afterthought in his own team. He was down the pecking order in the starting slots behind Wall and new acquisition Kirk Hinrich, and was hesitating to show the mentality that won him three NBA all-star berths. But duty called, and Arenas had no option but to step up: on Saturday's matchup against the Bulls, with Wall struggling to find his feet after an injury, Arenas does what a Hibachi does best: heat up. He scored 30 points, including seven three-pointers, and even though it wasn't enough to deliver a victory to his team, there were signs that he was finding his groove again. On Tuesday night, I was at the Verizon Center, the Wizards' home court, to watch the home team play against the Toronto Raptors. The Wizards were dealt with a blow when they discovered that John Wall would be missing the game with a sprained left foot. With Wall missing, the keys to the Wizards' offense were handed back to Arenas, who made his first start of the season. And it was apparent from the jump that Arenas was ready to prove himself. He was the only player on the Wizards' team consistently able to create his own shot. Arenas was playing with a focus in his eyes that had been lost for years. The kind of focus that helped him average over 29 points per game five years ago. The kind of cold-blooded focus that provided him with his most epic performance, back in the 2006-07 season, when he led the Wizards to an overtime victory against the Lakers, scoring 60 points with eight rebounds and eight assists against Kobe Bryant. There would be no 60-point outburst on Tuesday, but Arenas did what he needed to help his team win. He played well within coach Flip Saunders' system in a close game, and then took off in a third-quarter outburst that stole the game away from the Raptors. The Wizards won comfortably, 109-94, and although Arenas got help from Andray Blatche and Nick Young, it was his crucial performance that made the difference when it counted. He finished with 20 points, seven rebounds and 6 assists, and for the first time after a long time, a big wide smile on his face. Wall is set to return to lead the Wizards in their next game, but with Arenas' resurgence, things could start getting interesting in Washington. The names on the jerseys and the billboards may have changed, but if Arenas continues to perform the way he has over the last two games, he will surely scribble his name back in the hearts of the Wizard fans. The Garden Of Dreams By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani November 11, 2010  David Lee's return to Madison Square Garden was riveting from beginning to end. NBAE/Getty Images In my dream, I was a player for the Knicks, stepping out on the famous wooden floor of the 'World's Most Famous Arena', the Knick's home court, Madison Square Garden (MSG). It felt completely real. The sounds of the cheering fans booming around me. The feel of the hardwood as my sneakers stepped over it. The electricity in the air at the arena gracing the Mecca of basketball, New York City. The game was in its last few seconds, and as a teammate took a potential game-winning shot as time expired, I was awake, back to reality, away from the Garden of my dreams. I hoped that one day, I will be at the MSG, watching the home team, soaking in that electricity for real. Seven years later, and it seems like the Di Caprio Inception character may truly have extracted that dream from my memories. Here I was, game night at the Madison Square Garden. New York Knicks vs. the visiting Golden State Warriors. The hardwood floor, the smell of fresh buttered MSG popcorn, the fans in blue, white, and orange, dancing and singing for their home team, the cheerleaders, the banners on the rafters, and of course, the athletes on the floor, the best basketball players in the world. On Wednesday, November 10th, 2010, I went to my first ever NBA game, and it was an experience so fantastic that I couldn't even have dreamt it! It was a special night for the Knicks, as former All-Star David Lee, who was traded to the Warriors in the off-season, made his return to the Garden. He was essentially replaced with Amar'e Stoudemire by the Knicks, and as the two big men faced off for the opening tip, the crowd held their breath in anticipation. It was New York's old fan favourite facing off against the city's new basketball idol. The referee threw up the jump-ball, and then NBA action took over. I couldn't have chosen a better game for my first NBA experience. It was a fast-paced, end to end affair, featuring two teams who both like to run the floor, shoot and score a lot. It goes without saying that live NBA action feels much faster than on TV -- the players are much bigger and a lot more athletic. With each run up and down the court, the alley-oops, the crossovers, the difficult step-back jump-shots, or the thunderous one-handed dunks, the players seems to perform the near-impossible with ease. Knicks' center Amar're Stoudemire was the center of attention, as he was by far the most athletic player on court. On the Golden State team, the short backcourt of the league's leading scorer Monta Ellis and second year guard Stephen Curry were the quickest players on the floor, running and gunning frivolously and quickly filling up the stat sheets. But the night belonged to the MSG's prodigal son, David Lee. Lee controlled the paint on the offensive and the defensive end, bringing his strongest game back to his former fans. Lee ended with an efficient 28 points and 10 rebounds, and the highlight of his game actually took place during a time-out when the New York fans paid a touching tribute to Lee, thanking him for the years of hustle and hard work with a long standing ovation. Another interesting feature of the game was the international flavour to the events. Apart from all the American players, the roster list on both teams included a player from Italy (Danilo Gallinari), Russia (Timofey Mozgov), France (Ronny Turiaf, who didn't play because of a sprained left knee), England (Kelena Azubuike, injured) Latvia (Andris Biedrins), Serbia (Vladmir Radmanovic), and the Netherlands (Dan Gadzuric). At half-time, Warriors led by 60-56, and then soon started to stretch their lead further, until at one point they led by 19 and it seemed like the game was going to end in a blow-out. It was then that the Knicks began to make a comeback, slowly chipping away at the Warriors' lead with efforts by Stoudemire, Wilson Chanlder, and Gallinari. A four-point play by Raymond Felton cut the gap to just four points, and it was suddenly an exciting game again. The Knicks continued their exciting comeback, and finally tying the game with only 3:49 left in the fourth quarter. In the end though, Lee, Ellis, and Curry remained focused amidst the deafingly loud noise to win the game 122-117. Curry and Ellis added 25 and 22 points to the Warriors' cause. For the Knicks, Stoudemire had a big game (33 points, 10 rebounds), Wilson Chandler had 27 points, and Felton added 20. Postgame, I got the opportunity to head across the Garden floor and follow the New York Knicks into the locker-room area. It was a fascinating walk though the team's history, as the locker-room walls were adorned with photographs of current Knicks and former legends. The ghosts of Walt Fraizer, Willis Reed, Patrick Ewing, and Bernard King whispered out to me. It was a sullen locker-room for the losing team, but the Knicks still remained upbeat and optimistic about the rest of the season. Amar'e Stoudemire, Knicks superstar center, admitted that the team just didn't bring their complete effort and energy into the game. "We can't get used to losing - our aim is now to watch the game-tape and try to improve." I caught Knicks' Italian superstar Danilo Gallinari post-game, too, and we talked about his role as an ambassador for the game internationally. During the pre-season, Gallinari and the Knicks had traveled his hometown of Milan for a few games. "It is a great responsibility to be representing NBA globally," Gallinari said, "My goal now is to keep improving my game and keep improving as a team so that we can make the playoffs." A surprise starter for the Knicks so far this season has been shooting guard rookie Landry Fields. An unknown name until recently, Fields has worked hard to earn his spot and his efforts have started to pay dividends. About his experience in being in the NBA, Fields said, "It is a lot different here than playing in college last year. I can feel myself growing with each game, and learning to make adjustments." The Knicks have an India connection, too, in French forward Ronny Turiaf. Turiaf was part of a contingent of players who came to India for an unprecented Basketball Without Borders event in 2007. "India was a fantastic country," said Turiaf, "I had a great time and I really wish I could visit again!" And after that the interviews were over. The fans exited the arena, taking their giant foam fingers, noisy balloons, and Knick memorabilia. The players walked out of the lockers too, now preparing to head to Minnesota for the game on Friday night against the Timberwolves. And I walked out of the Garden of Dreams, taking with me a night of unbelievable stories and memories. But there was no waking up form this. But this was no dream. This time, it was for real. Hustler's Ambition By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani November 4, 2010  The bruising presence of Ron Artest added a degree of toughness that had been missing from the Lakers lineup. NBAE/Getty Images Around the same time, I also spent an unhealthy amount of my waking hours watching and analysing NBA games, highlights, recaps, box-scores and YouTube mixtapes… nothing could satisfy the NBA fix. One day, while watching a New York Knicks game, my friend and I noticed a certain player who was two steps ahead of everyone – not in talent, but in hustle. That player was David Lee, who outrebounded, out-defended, and out-hustled everyone else on court. And just like that, 50 Cent’s “Hustler’s Ambition” became the theme tune for my David Lee experience. The words “So I hustle… hustle… ” rang in my ears every time I saw Lee step out on court, get double digit rebound numbers, and generally, give his heart, soul, mind, and body into the game. Back then, Lee was a bench player for the Knicks, and a darn good one too, as he averaged a double-double (10.7 ppg, 10.4 rpg) in just under 30 minutes of action per game. His “hustle” was rewarded, as he was soon granted the starting position, kept improving, kept working hard, until he was chosen to this first All Star Game next season. He became a favourite and so valuable to the team that even Amar’e Stoudemire’s presence in New York couldn’t cushion the blow for fans when Lee was shipped off to the Golden State Warriors. But this article isn't about David Lee alone. It is about all those unappreciated NBA players who don’t make the magazine covers or sign lucrative sneaker contracts. It is about the players who make the most out of the least. Who do things beyond their skill or physical level simply because they are tougher and they try harder. It’s for all those other players with a “Hustler’s Ambition”. No NBA team can think about winning a ring without the “hustler”. Ask the great Jordan-Pippen Chicago Bulls teams, and they will tell you the importance of Dennis Rodman, an undersized power-forward without a jump-shot, dribbling skills, or much speed. Rodman just worked harder than the rest, and retired as perhaps the league’s greatest ever rebounder and one of its best ever defenders. The Kobes, Lebrons, Wades, and Durants might be the most spectacular players in the league, but their teams understand now more than ever the importance of keeping hustle players who do the “dirty work” in the squad. Ron Artest and Matt Barnes are two players adding toughness and heart to the Lakers team which was deemed ‘too soft’ to beat the Celtics two years ago. Miami Heat’s “Big Three” will need the sweat, blood, and tears of long-tenured forward Udonis Haslem. The Bulls loved their new hustle player Joakim Noah so much that they even pulled out of a potential Carmelo Anthony deal because it involved the hard-working Frenchman. The Celtics are full of the hustle players, especially in the likes of Kendrick Perkins and Glen Davis. The successful Spurs teams, too, were known for players who always did that little bit extra to win a ball-game, from Manu Ginobili to Bruce Bowen and Robert Horry. Kevin Durant has Thebo Sefolosha watching his back over in Oklahama City. Reggie Evans of the Raptors may not be a household name but he’s currently leading the league in rebounds this season. Shane Battier in the Rockets has mastered the art of using his brain over his brawn; attackers still shudder when they see him place himself in front of them, ready to take a charge. And if you look back over the past few years, the names of such players keep cropping up in Championship teams, year after year: Ron Artest for the Lakers in 2010, Trevor Ariza in 2009, James Posey for the Celtics before that. The Detroit Pistons won the NBA Championship in 2004 and were the top team in the Central Division for the next four years (going to the Finals again in 2005). But they were the ultimate “no superstar team”, built on nothing but hard-working, hustle players Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace, and Ben Wallace. So the next time you see a Joakim Noah, or Kevin Love, or Anderson Varejao, or the countless others go on giving their all on the court and not getting much love back, stop for a moment and you’re your appreciation. Spectacular stars can win games, but they need the hustlers to win championships. Written In The Sky By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani October 28, 2010  Derrick Rose came close to superstardom in 2009-10. Get ready to hear his name a lot in 2010-11. NBAE/Getty Images The sounds of fireworks begin reverberating across most Indian neighbourhoods in the weeks leading up to the festival of Lights. The fireworks are getting louder now; Diwali is little more than a week away. But wait. There is some interference. My ears are catching another sound. Fireworks faintly coming in from somewhere else, now getting louder, even louder… And then with a blast, Oct. 26th arrived (well, actually, Oct. 27 in Indian Standard Time), and I knew exactly what that sound was. The talents of Dwayne Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh, the league’s new Miami Big Three, clashed against The Fantastic Five of Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Shaq, and the rest of the Celtics. There was an explosion of fireworks, and bright lights arrived early, beaming squarely on the first night of the 2010-11 NBA season. Leading up to one of the most anticipated seasons in recent history, the noise was understandable. The two-time champions Lakers were four months removed from an emotional seven-game win against the Celtics, and were determined to make it a three-peat. The Heat recorded the biggest coup in NBA history, keeping Wade and signing on James, Bosh, and a host of other players to support them. Celtics signed on two O’Neals (Shaq and Jermaine), making their dangerous front line even stronger. Despite being quieter, the Orlando Magic came back with one of the deepest teams in the league and one of the game's most talented young centers, in Dwight Howard. International NBA audiences are usually overloaded with two names: Kobe and LeBron, LeBron and Kobe. But this could be the year that a third forces his way into the spectrum: Kevin Durant. Coming off a season in which he became the youngest player to ever lead the NBA in scoring, he soon followed the feat by leading the USA to a win at the FIBA World Championships as the tournament’s MVP. Durant will make the Thunder into an exciting young team and evolve into an unstoppable force individually. Teams like the Bulls, Knicks, Jazz, and Mavericks added important pieces to their puzzles. Youngsters like John Wall, Tyreke Evans, and OJ Mayo will make sure to provide excitement night in-night out, even in unsuccessful teams. With all the pieces locked, loaded, and ready to go, here are my predictions for how the season will pan out… Derrick Rose will be the next big thing There is always that one player every season, usually in the post-season, who improves his reputation by going from good to great. Last year the player was Rajon Rondo, who had several classic playoff performances. This year will belong to Rose: the former rookie of the year now has an able big man to work with in Carlos Boozer, and has help from the likes of Joakim Noah and Luol Deng to support him in the Bulls. One of the fastest players in the league, Rose is ready to pace ahead of the competition this year. Rookie of the Year: John Wall He has been handed the keys to the Wizards offense and he won't be giving them up anytime soon. The former Kentucky star is set to amaze the league with some spectacular play in his first season. Defensive Player of the Year: Kevin Garnett Whenever Garnett plays on a good team, the team goes far. Repeat this mantra in your head a few times. KG had only one great squad with the Timberwolves, back when Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell had joined him in 2003-04. That team reached to the Western Conference Finals. He has been in a star-studded Celtics team for the past three years now, but was injured for most of the time (including the playoffs) in Year 2. The other two years? Celtics won a championship in 2008 and came within one game to wining it in 2010. This year, Garnett has come back as healthy as he has been in years, and he will be preaching his infectious defense to the rest of the squad, making them once again one of the toughest teams in the league to score on. MVP: Kevin Durant: With LeBron and Wade sharing the load over in Miami, Kobe passing over more responsibility to Pau Gasol, and Dwight not being consistent enough, there will be no stopping Durant from claiming his first Most Valuable Player award. Expect Durant to become one of the league’s brightest shining lights for years to come. NBA Champions: Lakers make it a Three-Peat: The Lakers won’t be perfect, but they will be more perfect than others, especially when it counts. They will have an easier trip to the Finals out West than any Eastern Conference team, and once there, expect their depth, experience, coaching, and the clutch play of Kobe to get them to the promised land one more time. It is poised to be another great NBA season. And yes, the next time you hear that bang, know that there is a whole lot more than Diwali that is causing the fireworks… The Importance of Being Pre-Seasoned By Karan Madhok / @hoopistani October 22, 2010  This is Amar'e Stoudemire. He's wearing a Knicks jersey now. But don't worry: he'll still be scoring a lot of points this year, Karan writes. NBAE/Getty Images How much reaction is enough reaction, so that it is not over-reaction? Let me explain, for a lot of strange things can go down in the month of October. At the time of writing, team No. 3 in the Eastern Conference standings is the Cleveland Cavaliers (5-2). Now, unless you're someone that chooses to hibernate over the non-NBA months of the year (mid-June to October end), you may have heard about a little shake-up over in Cleveland. A certain someone (known to some as The King) left town, taking his talents to South Beach to play with the Miami Heat. And yet this motley bunch from Cleveland, without their talented (former) leader, find themselves doing just fine under the guidance of Antawn Jamison, Daniel Gibson, J.J. Hickson and co. And it's funny, because thus far this preseason, the Cavs are thoroughly outperforming Lebron James' new team, the Miami Heat, which stands at 3-3. Out West, there are even bigger surprises. The best team, and still undefeated, is the Memphis Grizzlies, who are 7-0 (tied with Utah Jazz at the top). Now I'm a believer of the burgeoning talents they have down in Memphis, but best in the West sounds a bit shady, right? The usual 'Bests of the West,' the two-time reigning champion LA Lakers, stand at 2-4. That puts them below perennial juggernauts like the Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings and Minnesota Timberwolves. All this may be perplexing to some, but it really shouldn't be. The preseason brings us similar trends every year: We see over-enthusiasm from the poorer teams to come out strong. We see great players (like Dwyane Wade, who's been out since Game 1 with a hamstring pull) not rushing back to the court, or other players (like Kobe) not playing enough minutes for fear of aggravating their injuries. And we see coaches handing the crunch-time minutes to youngsters and the bench-warmers to help their confidence. So, is there a point to the whole exercise, since, you know, the games don't count anyways? How much should fans react when Wade misses a few games, or Lakers lose to the Timberwolves, or the Cavaliers start off strong? Despite such difficult questions, I'm of the belief that there is a certain importance of being 'pre-seasoned'. The preseason serves as a stage for teams to get their chemistry right, for coaches to experiment with different line-ups, and for young players to gain some important experience. More than anything though, it is an early look at the trends that could potentially develop for the remainder of the real season. So, without further ado, here are five things that I have learnt from the preseason: 1. Amar'e Stoudemire will score a lot of points: After what seemed to be a decade of barrenness, the Knicks have finally picked the perfect player for coach Mike D'Antoni's system, and he happens to be D'Antoni's former muse from the coach's days in Phoenix. There will not be much defense played in New York, but Stoudemire and his 26 ppg average (a high for the preseason) are proof that the man known as STAT is happy to be back in the run-n-gun offense. 2. Pau Gasol will be the first option for the Lakers (for a while): With Kobe still recovering from his injury, it'll be time for Gasol to take charge early in the season and lead the Lakers. He will get more touches and be more aggressive, until the goings gets tougher and Kobe Bryant takes over again. 3. Al Jefferson will be an All Star: Like every year, Jerry Sloan and the Utah Jazz will do what they have always done: win a lot of games and get ignored by a lot more people. Talented point guard Deron Williams has lost Carlos Boozer to the Bulls, but he picked up Al Jefferson as a new running mate. Williams has promised to make Jefferson into an all-star. Count me as someone who believes him. 4. Gilbert Arenas will be the boy who cried 'Wolf'... Or 'injury': Arenas, once the face of the Wizards franchise, has been on a journey toward a succesful return on court after last year's troubles. Unfortunately, his fake knee injury (and subsequent fine), and then his real groin injury a game later has only frustrated his impatient fans. Will the league trust Hibachi again? 5. The Heat will be really good: Take a step back and look at this roster again. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade on the same team. Say it again. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, on the same team. And the third option is Chris Bosh? This team is destined for success from day one. But there is a difference in being successful and being legendary, and for the Heat to achieve NBA immortality, they will have to show hunger and toughness, especially on the defensive end. The new Big Three needs to do what the old Big Three (of the Celtics) did a few years ago in terms of defensive team chemistry. The NBA season 2010-11 tips off on Oct. 26th, or early morning Oct. 27th if you're following in India. The results will begin to matter - and you can be assured that the NBA teams, well prepared and pre-seasoned, will be making us react the right way! |
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