Nash sucker-elbowed by Dallas PG and resident bitch Jason Terry…

Draft Trade Rumour: Raptors trade the No. 1 overall pick to Portland for their number 4 and draft UConn PG Marcus Williams...allowing Portland to draft local boy Gonzaga SFAdam Morrison.

Regular Trade Rumour: Pacers send PF Jermaine O’Neal to the Warriors for PFTroy Murphy and either SG/SF Michael Pietrus or PF Ike Diogu.

The Mavericks defeated Phoenix 95-88 last night to take a 2-1 lead in the series…the Diggler was fantastic with 28 points, 17 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks while SF Josh Howard added 22 points and 12 rebounds….the Suns were flat nad had no depth without Raja Bell…in fact, the bench was atrocious with Eddie House and James Jones combining for just 6 points on 1-of-8 shooting including 0-3 from downtown…Leandro Barbosa, who had 17 points filling in for the injured Bellwas a spark along with PG Steve Nash, who had 21 points and 7 assists and SF/PF/C Boris Diaw who had 20 points…

Meanwhile, the Miami Heat easily on Game 3 at home Saturday 98-83, and went up 2-1 in the Eastern Conference finals...how? Well. They shot 35 of 58 from the floor (64%!!!) outscoring Detroit 50-16 in the paint…Dwyane Wade was bananas scoring 35 points while Shaq-fu added 27 points and 12 rebounds…together the dynamic duo combined to shoot 24-for-32 from the floor for the Heat…As for the Pistons, the main culprits were Tayshaun Prince who went 1-for-7 for 3 points, Rasheed Wallace who only had 11 points and Ben Wallace who was 0-1 from the floor and 2-10 from the line for 2 points…these horrible performances wasted great efforts from Chauncey Billups, who was 11 of 17 from the floor for 31 points and Richard Hamilton who had 20 points before fouling out and …by the way, the Heat outrebounded the Pistons 40-27…

Ricky Williams an Argo? Wow…there must be considerable joy in places like the Friendly Stranger and other local TO hemp stores…

Did you know this? At a Blues practice, apparently Jamie McLennan, the St. Louis blue’s backup goalie a few years ago took an Al MacInnis slap shot squarely in the groin, shattering his goalie cup and rupturing not one, but BOTH of his testicles…oh my God…

1) Chad Ford with his draft workout update:

Now that the lottery is over and the draft process is in full swing, I'll be on the road for the next month at draft camps and gyms across the U.S. (and Italy) to watch some of the most interesting prospects. I spent the weekend in Chicago watching prospects work out at Tim Grover's A.T.T.A.C.K. Athletics. Here's who I saw:

Rajon Rondo: Rondo's a conundrum for NBA talent evaluators. Some NBA guys love him. Some hate him. But few have seen him in the right environment to make a fully informed decision. Rondo has earned positive reviews for his workouts in Phoenix, Houston and Boston. The word is that his shot has improved and his athleticism ranks near the top of the draft. One big question remains, however: Is he a point guard? It's almost impossible to determine that in an individual workout. And it was difficult to discern the answer at Kentucky this year. Kentucky coach Tubby Smith played a slow-paced, half-court offense, while Rondo is a rev-it-up, super-quick guard who thrives in the open court. I asked Grover and Rondo's agent Kevin Bradbury to give me a better feel for Rondo's point guard skills by arranging a five-on-five game on Saturday morning in Chicago. Also partcipating were Mustafa Shakur of Arizona, Denham Brown of Connecticut, and one of the draft's mystery men, Brad Newley of Australia.
Rondo has put on 10 pounds of muscle since we saw him last at Kentucky, and his shoulders and arms are noticeably thicker. His hands are freakish as advertised -- the guys in the gym jokingly call him "E.T." because of his long fingers. At 6-2 (in shoes), Rondo can palm a basketball off the dribble. Very few players his size can do that. Guarded by Shakur for the whole game, Rondo was stellar. He pushed the ball up the floor at a breakneck pace, made a number of pinpoint, dropjaw passes and got to the basket at will against Shakur. Rondo showed off his nuclear athleticism and uber-quickness in the open court. He changes directions in a split second, explodes to the basket and pushes the ball relentlessly in the open floor. His ball-handling is one of his best attributes. His huge hands give him maximum control over the ball. He never bobbles or loses it, no matter how heavy the traffic. On three occasions, he drew oohs from the spectators after delivering a beautiful pass. Defensively he was also rock solid, causing frequent problems for Shakur and picking off a number of passes for fast breaks on the other end. Rondo showed a style that scouts haven't seen from him since he played for Team USA's junior squad in Argentina last summer. He came out of that camp rated as the top point guard in the draft and a potential top five pick. In Chicago, he showed why. What about his jump shot? He didn't take a jumper in the game. Afterwards I watched him in drills for about 45 minutes. His form does look a lot better than what we saw in Kentucky. He hit more shots than he missed, especially from the NBA 3-point line. But more than likely Rondo's never going to be a great shooter. Hitting shots without a defender on you is one thing. Hitting them in the course of a game is another. His free throw shooting is also going to need a lot of work. He actually missed more free throws than 3s in the workout I saw. That's going to be a problem for a guy who's going to draw a lot of fouls in the NBA with his penetration. Teams don't draft a player like Rondo because he can stroke the ball. Rather, they'll look at his athleticism, quickness, defense and point guard skills. Put him on the right team and let him run and he's going to be a great point guard in the pros. Put him in a conservative, slow-down offense and it's going to get ugly. Based on what I saw on Saturday, I think he's the best point guard prospect in the draft. Along with everyone else, I have been calling UConn's Marcus Williams the best pure point guard. The implication has been that Rondo is more of an athlete than a pure point. From what I saw, I no longer believe that. I think Williams is craftier and a better scorer, but Rondo's court vision is excellent and he is a much better athlete and defender than Williams. Given what we've been hearing about Williams' weight (up to 220 according to the Celtics) and his obvious off-court baggage, Rondo might end up ahead of Williams at the end of the draft. I sat down with Rondo after the workout to get his take on his critics and the draft process. Rondo said he realized by midseason that the style of play at Kentucky was hurting his draft chances, and so making the decision to jump to the NBA was relatively easy. "Coach agreed that the style we were playing probably wasn't the best fit for me," Rondo said. "I knew after this summer that I could play with everyone, but I'd do best in a Phoenix Suns style where the point guard is really allowed to push the ball and create." Rondo said that his early feedback in the draft process gave him a better idea of what he had to work on. "I've been working real hard with Tim to put on some strength, work on my NBA moves and of course my shooting," he said. "From the feedback I got in the workouts, I think it's going pretty good." Rondo said that he thinks his game most resembles that of Tony Parker, another super-quick point guard who has also struggled with a suspect jump shot. Rondo's main frustration in the draft process is that he hasn't had a chance to go up against Williams. "I want to work out against the best so that I can prove that it's me," Rondo said. "I think teams would want to see us against each other." They do. I talked to three GMs who said a Rondo-Williams workout would be ideal. They think the problem is that Rondo's and Williams' agents -- both affiliated with BDA Sports -- won't allow it. Not so, according to Rondo's agent. "No teams have asked, so it hasn't happened," Kevin Bradbury, Rondo's agent, said. "We tell all of our guys when we sign them that if teams want them to work out together or compete against each other, they need to do it. If a team wants to see them against each other, we'll try to make it happen."

Other prospects in Chicago:

Brad Newley: Newley, a 6-5, 21-year-old shooting guard from Adelade, Australia, has been the best young player in Australia the last two seasons. He won an NBL All-Star MVP award his rookie year and dominated the Commonwealth Games last fall. A former teammate of Andrew Bogut, Newley is known as a tough player and big-time scorer who attacks the basket and sticks the J. He averaged 19 points per game, five rebounds and four assists in the NBL last season. I watched him in workouts on Thursday and Friday and saw him play in the five-on-five game on Saturday, matched up against Denham Brown, one of the better defenders in college basketball last season. When I first saw him in workouts, I assumed he was a jump shooter like many European two guards. But in the scrimmage, Newley showed he is very aggressive putting the ball on the floor and taking it to the basket. His game resembles Manu Ginobili's more than it does that of most Euros. He doesn't have the quickness or creativity of Ginobili, but he's a good athlete, and he actually likes contact. He held up well against a very physical Brown. Those who remember how Danny Ainge used to play would recognize some of the same feistiness in Newley. "He's one tough S.O.B." one of the players scrimmaging said after the game. International scouts say Newley isn't known for his jump shooting over there, but his shot was falling in the game. He hit several NBA-distance 3s and a couple of midrange shots. That confirmed what I saw in workouts. I wouldn't call him a pure shooter, but he can get it in the basket. His jump shot form needs a little work (he has a slow, low release), but it isn't really broken either. Newley also is a good passer and with a feel for setting up his teammates. Defensively he was pretty good. He moved his feet very well and showed he is stronger than he looks. He told me his coach always put him on the Americans playing in Australia, so he has some experience defending against quicker players. On the down side, he hasn't totally adjusted to the speed of the game. He had a number of turnovers because of bad crosscourt passes. Rondo picked him off several times, and Newley admitted afterward that he's going to have to get used to how quick and long the players are here. He's going to play in the Orlando pre-draft camp, and it will be very interesting to see what he does there. Given his great feel for the game and his aggression on the offensive end, he could be an Orlando pre-draft camp sleeper, just as Beno Udrih was a couple of years ago. Only three NBA teams -- the Clippers, Pistons and Rockets -- have gone to see him play in Australia, so he's a bit of unknown.

Mustafa Shakur: Shakur was up and down in the scrimmage. Against Rondo he was pretty shaky at both ends of the floor. He couldn't stay in front of Rondo on the defensive end, and Rondo forced him into a number of wild shots. He also became so engrossed in his individual matchup that he missed several opportunites to find open men in the workout. After Rondo was moved off him, Shakur's game opened up. He had a number of good drives to the basket and showed the ability to finish around the rim. He also got more comfortable running his team and made a number of excellent passes, setting up Newley for some easy scores. Shakur's biggest weakness right now is his jump shot. His form is pretty ugly. He releases the ball in a sort of heave motion from his chest. It's going to take a while for him to work out what looks like a fairly serious kink.

Denham Brown: We've seen enough of Brown at Connecticut to know what he does and doesn't do well. He's an excellent scorer who can get it done with the jumper or by driving to the basket. Defensively he's great on the ball. He's physical and committed to shutting his guy down. He has a good NBA body and always plays hard. Athleticism is his biggest issue. He's not a terrible athlete, but on the NBA level, he's going to struggle in that area. He just doesn't move as quickly, up or down or laterally, as most NBA athletes. He's been working on his explosiveness with Grover, but it isn't there yet.

While some NBA general managers are conducting workouts for draft prospects, other GMs are traveling the globe gathering information. Here's a look at what's happening around the league. The Celtics had UConn's Marcus Williams, Michigan State's Shannon Brown, Rutgers' Quincy Douby and Northeastern's Juan Jose Barea in on Thursday. Once again, Brown shined. He shot the ball well, showed his excellent athleticism and strength and was solid on the defensive end. The biggest question with Brown remains his handle. His struggles dribbling the ball could be a problem at the next level. Williams was a disappointment for the second straight workout (including his previous workout with the Raptors). His shot wasn't falling, he wasn't in the same league athletically with the other guys in the workout and there was a concern that he might be out of shape. I was told he weighed in at 220 -- that's about 15 pounds heavier than Williams needs to be. Despite all the negatives, Williams still displayed his excellent court sense and ability to run a team. Douby shot the lights out, but struggled with the more physical Brown and Williams defensively. Barea was impressive, showing grittiness and scoring ability. I overheard one Eastern Conference scout call Patrick O'Bryant the top prospect in the draft. While that may be one lonely opinion, it does appear that O'Bryant's stock is on the rise. He's long, athletic and the only legit center in the draft. He might have a big draft drive in his near future. Spanish point guard Sergio Rodriguez has been fantastic in the Spanish playoffs, generating significant interest from NBA teams. Rodriguez is a Jason Williams-type point guard with lots of flash and just so-so substance. After a slow start to the season, Rodriguez has looked brilliant of late, and some of the international scouts are sold. He'll be here as early as next week and has workouts scheduled with the Suns, Bulls, Celtics, Grizzlies and Rockets. Rodriguez's agent, Herb Rudoy, told me that Rodriguez will stay in the draft as long as he has a guarantee to be drafted in the first round. Another international man of interest is Senegal's Mouhamed Saer Sene. Scouts and NBA executives say that his stock has risen into the late lottery to mid-first round. Why? Because they've been going to Belgium the last few weeks to see him play and come away impressed. Gonzaga's Adam Morrison will likely schedule only four workouts before the draft, his agent, Mark Bartelstein, told me today. The Blazers, Bulls, Bobcats and the Raptors look like the lucky four. Most people who have read my column over the past few years know that I'm not a fan of mock drafts, especially this early in the process. A mock draft is just really our best guess at what a team will do with the pick. Considering there's still five weeks to go in the draft process, that means we're trying to figure out what a team will do even before it knows. Only the other hand, one of the benefits of doing a mock draft is that my cell phone starts going crazy. I got calls from half the teams in the league offering and seeking info. But it's very dangerous for the next five weeks to take teams at face value. Teams have a lot of incentive to put out half-truths this time of year. As I sifted through what I heard the past 24 hours or so, I found a few notes I think are worth passing on:

Toronto Raptors: It seems as though everyone is predicting LaMarcus Aldridge as the Raptors' pick at No. 1. The thinking I hear almost every time is that Aldridge fits a need at center, so they have to take him. I think that's wrong. GM Bryan Colangelo will likely fill his needs via trade, with the $13 to $15 million he has in cap room this summer as an important part of the bargaining. And he'll likely use his draft pick to get the player he wants. All of the evidence points to Andrea Bargnani. For those who wonder why Colangelo would take Bargnani when he plays the same position as Charlie Villanueva, here's a thought. Colangelo could package Villanueva and a player like Alvin Williams for a center. Two decent prospects look as though they'll be on the block this year -- Jamaal Magloire and Samuel Dalembert. Magloire would be a local favorite. He is from Toronto and would give the Raptors a physical big man to put beside Bosh. But Dalembert is a better prospect. He's younger, more athletic and a better shot blocker. Neither guy has a great contract. Magloire is looking for a big extension this summer and Dalembert has five years, $55 million left on his contract. Would the Sixers or Bucks pull the trigger on that deal? I think so. Villanueva's stock is very high around the league right now and both teams could use the move as a bit of a salary dump, as Williams' contract is only partially guaranteed, starting this summer. The question is whether Colangelo is willing to spend that amount of cash to solve the Raptors problem in the middle? I think getting the No. 1 solves some of that. The team can draft Bargnani to play the three, put Dalembert at the five and still have a boatload of cap room to either pay a free agent point guard (Jason Terry and Speedy Claxton will be available) or find a team willing to trade one (Marko Jaric or Jamaal Tinsley, perhaps) for cap space or another prospect. And don't count out the Raptors' 2005 second-round pick, Roko Ukic. Colangelo is a fan and could try to bring him over from Europe this year.

Portland Trail Blazers: It appears there's going to be a fire sale in Portland this summer. Multiple league executives say that just about everyone, with the exception of Martell Webster, will be available this summer as Nate McMillan and company try to clean house. Zach Randolph, Darius Miles, Theo Ratliff and even Sebastian Telfair can be had. The 30th and 31st picks in the draft are also for sale. The price? The Blazers want another top-10 draft pick to go along with No. 4. The targets? They'd like to get a scorer like LaMarcus Aldridge or Adam Morrison with one pick and Brandon Roy with the other one. The Timberwolves at No. 6, the Celtics at No. 7, the Rockets at No. 8 and the Warriors at No. 9 could all be potential trade partners. All four teams are looking for more immediate help than the draft can provide. Speaking of the Blazers, check out the studs in this big-time workout scheduled to go down in Portland on June 15: Morrison, Rudy Gay, Roy and Randy Foye. Will be interesting to see, with the Blazers falling to No. 4, whether they can still get all four of those guys in.

Atlanta Hawks: The Hawks could also be in the Samuel Dalembert running this summer. They seriously considered making him an offer last summer but were fearful the Sixers would match. Sixers GM Billy King told me on Tuesday it was unlikely he'd be willing to trade Allen Iverson to Atlanta, but Dalembert might be another story. Al Harrington, via sign and trade, could be the bait.

2) Chris Eckstand of SI.com with an opdate on the Eros:

The old world is new again - Bargnani, Splitter have NBA eyes focused on Europe

Andrea Bargnani and Tiago Splitter have some important things in common. They are tall, athletic and immensely promising basketball players who play key roles for two of the best teams in Europe. Both reportedly are under contract to their respective teams through the 2007-08 season. Both have been heavily scouted by NBA teams. And both will eventually have to make the transition from European prodigy to high NBA draft pick, with all the inherent pressures that status represents. The good news for Bargnani, the 6-foot-10 Italian forward from Benetton Treviso of Italy, and Splitter, the 6-foot-11 Brazilian-born center from Tau Ceramica of Spain, is that when they come into the NBA, they will be joining a league that has evolved dramatically over the past two decades thanks to David Stern's vision of becoming a global sports brand. NBA teams today are better equipped than ever to guide international players through the gauntlet of cultural, linguistic and lifestyle adjustments that await them. In places like San Antonio and Phoenix, players with international backgrounds have flourished in systems that are similar to the brand of basketball they grew up with in Europe. Those teams demand that players big and small be able to pass the ball, shoot the ball with range and put team goals first. And that involves more than just feeling comfortable in a drive-and-kick offense as opposed to one relying on the pick-and-roll as the main course. It's about embracing a basketball philosophy that celebrates group achievement rather than individual expression. And it's about integrating the fundamentally sound games of well-schooled Europeans with the explosive, flamboyant style favored by most American players.
Longtime NBA people chafe at the idea that these are "European basketball values." They would argue, correctly, that five-man basketball at its highest level was taught and practiced by American coaches such as John Wooden, Red Auerbach, Red Holzman, Pete Newell and Clair Bee for decades before any European player found his way to the NBA. San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich told USA Today just this week, "The Euros and foreign players and coaches are doing things in some ways we have forgotten about and used to do." It's amazing how quickly the NBA landscape has changed. A scant decade ago, a basketball scout describing a player as "European" would most likely be criticizing him as lacking in athleticism and being soft defensively. Today, if a scout says a player plays "like a European," he's more likely complimenting his perimeter shooting or overall fundamental play. What has been the catalyst for this change? It's simple, really. The achievements of two generations of European stars have pulled NBA scouts, coaches and general managers in the direction of the new-old approach to the game. The success of early 1990s pioneers such as Sarunas Marciulionis, Vlade Divac and Drazen Petrovic paved the way for the second wave of European superstars to gravitate to the NBA in the mid-'90s: Toni Kukoc, Dino Radja and Arvydas Sabonis. When those stars, who were already established European veterans in their mid-20s, met with similar success in the NBA, the next logical step in the continuum was achieved: NBA teams started drafting unproven teenage European prodigies with the same breathless (and in some cases mindless) anticipation as they did young Americans. By 2001, a 20-year-old Spaniard with one good season in the ACB (Spain's top league and the best in Europe) was deemed good enough to be chosen with the third pick in the draft. In five seasons, NBA All-Star Pau Gasol has been everything the Memphis Grizzlies could have wished for. And no one needs to be reminded that Dirk Nowitzki of Germany, already a five-time NBA All-Star, is a perennial NBA Most Valuable Player candidate. But not every player born outside the United States has been a success in the NBA. If current Hawks GM Billy Knight is to be commended for wisely trading for the rights to Gasol when he was running things in Memphis, Denver GM Kiki Vandeweghe has to take his lumps for selecting Nikoloz Tskitishvili with the fifth overall pick in '02. And though Hedo Turkoglu, Vladimir Radmanovic and Nenê (a Brazilian player whose draft rights Vandeweghe slickly acquired from New York on draft night) have already validated their high selections in the draft, Bostjan Nachbar and Jiri Welsch have yet to do so. And then there's Darko Milicic, who had to endure hearing what a bust he was in Detroit while never being given any playing opportunity. As his late-season performance after a trade to Orlando suggested, Milicic just might turn out to be a top-flight NBA player after all. He doesn't even turn 21 until June. This track record proves only that there are hits and misses when choosing European players in the draft, just as there are hits and misses when drafting players from the United States. And for all the hopes attached to Bargnani and Splitter, it's not certain that either will keep his name eligible for the '06 draft or, even if they are drafted this year, that they would join their NBA teams right away. Once drafted, both players will have to negotiate buyouts of their contracts from their clubs. While NBA teams can now contribute up to $500,000 to an international player's buyout from his team (the maximum before this year was $350,000), the player must pay the rest from his own pocket. To that end, it behooves Bargnani and Splitter to make sure they will be drafted high enough that it won't be prohibitively expensive to leave comfortable situations in Europe for the NBA. Just a year ago, the Orlando Magic spent the 11th overall pick on promising center Fran Vazquez of Unicaja Malaga in Spain. Vazquez didn't feel he was ready for the NBA limelight, however, and left the Magic at the altar by signing a lucrative contract with another Spanish team, Akasvayu Girona. Orlando retained his NBA draft rights, and the Magic rebounded nicely with the acquisition of Milicic, who might benefit from Vazquez's decision to remain in Spain. Bargnani and Splitter both have attributes that would make them attractive to any NBA team. Bargnani, who has earned increased playing time as his season has progressed, has the skills of a small forward despite his height and length. He is quick off the dribble and loves to take the ball to the basket. In addition, he's a high-percentage shooter facing the basket and has improved his three-point shooting to a respectable 37 percent. On a team blessed with scorers such as former college stars Drew Nicholas (Maryland) and Marcus Goree (West Virginia) and respected Lithuanian Ramunas Siskauskas, Bargnani has carved out a role providing instant offense off the bench. He is a big reason that Benetton (23-7) is tied for first place in Lega A with four games to go in the regular season. Splitter is a completely different type of player, but his list of attributes is just as long. Tau Ceramica (21-9) is a powerful team that for the second straight season has reached this weekend's Euroleague Final Four, the pinnacle of European basketball. It's the culmination of a season of play among the top teams in all the major basketball-playing countries in Europe, played outside of the teams' national league competitions. Despite his youth, the 21-year-old Splitter has already made his bones by playing well in many important European competitions, and he'll add two more highly scrutinized games to his portfolio this weekend in Prague. Splitter starts alongside Luis Scola, an '02 draft pick of the San Antonio Spurs and arguably the best power forward in Europe. While Scola gets most of the post-up opportunities and shots, Splitter is an opportunistic offensive player who can score by beating opponents to offensive boards and with an improving hook shot. He is averaging a solid 10.4 points in ACB play and 10 points per game in just 22 minutes against Euroleague teams. But it's on defense where Splitter really excels. He gets great position in close and uses his length to block and bother shots. He also plays exceptional help defense, with enough athleticism to switch out and challenge a perimeter shot. Bargnani and Splitter aren't the only international players that NBA teams will be looking at leading up to the draft in New York on June 28, just the ones with the best chance to be chosen early in the first round. In a change from recent years, a number of interesting international guards are in the mix this year. Rudy Fernandez, an athletic scorer from DKV Joventut in Spain, Thabo Sefolosha, a Swiss guard playing for Biella in Italy, and Yotam Halperin, an Israeli point guard playing for Union Olimpija Ljubljana in Slovenia, all are being carefully evaluated by NBA teams. For each of these players, receiving serious consideration from NBA teams is expected, given their attributes and potential. If NBA talent evaluators should describe them as "typical" European players, they can hold their heads high and smile. They are on the receiving end of a compliment from the architects who are reshaping the new-old NBA.

3) Marty Burns of SI.com reports on the sudden star that is Boris Diaw:

The Sun also rises - Diaw develops into a star on NBA's playoff stage

You might say Suns center Boris Diaw, the hero of Phoenix's Game 1 victory at Dallas, was born to make big leaps in basketball. His mother, Elizabeth Riffiod, is considered the best center in women's basketball history in France. His father, Issa Diaw, is a former Senegalese high jump champ. But even longtime NBA observers are amazed at the 6-foot-8 Frenchman's meteoric rise from obscure part-time player in Atlanta for the past two seasons to key starter on a team making a serious bid for the NBA Finals. "It is remarkable. I don't know how often you see a player in his third year come out of the shadows quite to the extent Boris has, particularly on this kind of stage," says Celtics GM Chris Wallace, who has been in the NBA 15 years. "It's like that Bill Parcells line: 'After awhile you are who you are.' But in this case who Boris Diaw is is a lot more than he was a short time ago." Diaw, who won this year's Most Improved Player award, basically has accomplished the NBA equivalent of jumping over the Grand Canyon. In two enigmatic seasons in Atlanta he averaged 4.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists. He was so lackluster that the Hawks agreed to package him along with two first-round draft picks into last summer's sign-and-trade for Joe Johnson. Given the chance to play with Steve Nash, however, Diaw has blossomed. Despite often playing out of position at center, he averaged 13.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists during the regular season. Only two other players averaged at least six boards and six dimes this season: LeBron James and Jason Kidd. A gifted passer who can handle the ball and make plays, Diaw often initiates the Suns' offense. Playing center, he can pull his man out and drive right around him. Or he can beat him down the floor for easy layups and lobs off Nash feeds. His versatility is so impressive that Lakers coach Phil Jackson earlier this season cited Diaw as the player who most reminded him of Scottie Pippen. In the playoffs Diaw has emerged as a legit star, joining Shawn Marion as one of Nash's main supporting weapons. He is averaging 17 points, six boards and six assists while shooting 53 percent. He had 25 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in Phoenix's Game 5 win over the Lakers, and 21-7-8 against the Clippers in Game 4. But that was only the warmup for his heroics Wednesday night in Dallas. On the road against the favored Mavs, Diaw scored 23 of his career-high 34 points in the second half to lead the Suns to victory. He even hit the game-winning shot, a 10-footer over Jerry Stackhouse, with 1.5 seconds left.
"Boris was amazing," Nash said afterward. "I'm very, very proud of him. He's just getting better and better. And he's doing it on a big stage now."
Diaw, who was drafted by the Hawks in the first round in 2003 (No. 21), showed signs of being a good player in his first two seasons. He was a solid defender with size and quickness who could rebound, handle the ball and create off the dribble. But he was a reluctant shooter, almost too unselfish, and his jumper wasn't very accurate. Of course, Diaw might have been stunted as well by Atlanta's famous organizational instability. After playing for Terry Stotts his first season, Diaw found himself under a new coach in Mike Woodson the following season. As Mavs guard Jason Terry, a former Hawk himself, recently told the Dallas Morning News, "It's all about the system. There was none [for Diaw] in Atlanta. Now he gets to Phoenix and plays freely, handles the ball and uses all his God-given talents." Diaw, 24, grew up in France, where he became close friends with Spurs point guard Tony Parker. He spent five years playing professionally in his native country before coming over to the NBA. Diaw says the chance to play for a coach like D'Antoni, who has vast international experience, has helped him come out of his shell as much as playing alongside Nash. "I think maybe the fact that the coach has been playing and coaching in Europe [and] kind of knew the way I was playing and what I was looking [for] on the basketball court," Diaw said after Game 1, "[he] just gave me his trust and his confidence and also ... my teammates. And just the way we play. I like the way we play. [We're No. 1] in assists in the NBA. [We're] a very unselfish team." In some ways, Phoenix's unselfish team approach fits Diaw's personality. In addition to being a talented player, he is known as a genuinely nice person off the court. It is possible that he simply deferred too much to teammates in Atlanta. "You know, at one point there was a label on him that he was a soft, non-competitive player," D'Antoni said after Game 1 of the Western finals. "That's who we got from Atlanta. And I'm telling you what, he's just the opposite. "It's easy to put labels on people, and a lot of times it's definitely not even close to the truth. He's one of the best competitive guys we have, and just an intelligent basketball player that knows how to play. And it couldn't happen to a nicer guy, that's for sure."

Tim Duncan on ice...where he belongs…

"This is the best series I've ever played," Duncan said. "Both teams gave it their all." Well, that about says it all…in the end, it was too much Dirk who finished with 37 points on 11-of-20 from the field and 15-of-16 from the line, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, and 0 turnovers in 50 minutes…Time Duncan was special as well with 41 points on 12-24 shooting including 17-23 from the line, 15 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 blocks and 1 steal…In fact, on his bad foot, Duncan has had a terrific playoffs averaging 25.9 points on 57 percent shooting, 10.5 boards, 3.3 assists, and 3 blocks in the postseason for Tim, playing 37.8 minutes per game…However, the Mavs won because they were too tough…to wit:

Physically tough…DaSagana Diop holding Tim Duncan to 1-of-7 shooting in overtime…Nowitzki slashing to the basket for the game-tying layup and free throw in the final seconds of regulation going around and through the Ginobili and Bowen, the twin bitches of the apocalypse…Nowitzki making a game-saving block at the other end over the back of Duncan as time expired in regulation…

AND

Mentally tough…the Spurs hit 33 of 39 free throws in the game…Duncan was 17-of-23 and still crying for more on every possession…the Mavs hit 28-31 for 90% as a team (!!) and did not whine at all…

In Phoenix, it was a blowout…The MVP was spectacular with 29 points on 11-16 from the field including 4-5 from three, 11 assists, 2 rebounds and as the Suns routed the Clippers 127-107…Nash was his usual self, with his passing leading to seven suns players in double figures… Shawn Marion had 30 points -- including 5-of-9 3s…Leandro Barbosa added 18 points, Tim Thomas 16 and Boris Diaw 14. Raja Bell and James Jones scored 10 apiece…However, the Suns won because they stayed true to themselves and set tempo…to wit:

The Suns shot 48-80 or 60% from the field overall and made 15 of 27 3-pointers… Phoenix made 15 3-pointers to the Clippers' zero

The Suns gave up post points to Elton Brand who had 36 points and 9 rebounds…in fact Brand was unbelievable in the seven-game series, averaging 31 points on 59 percent shooting, 10 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 4 assists per game…

The Suns can pass and the Clippers cannot…The Clippers had 11 assists on 48 made field goals, while the Suns had 32 assists on 48 made field goals…

By running and “rebounding to run”, the Suns held Los Angeles to just seven second-chance points…

Fun and Games before the draft…http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/lottery2006/mockdraft

All your pre-draft workout news here: http://draftexpress.com/workout.php?


Coaching Rumour: TNT mouthpiece Doug Collins to coach Sacramento…

Here’s the list of odds for winning the Draft Lottery:
Team Record Lottery Balls %Winning
Portland 21-61 250 (25%)
Chicago 23-59 199 (19.9%)
Charlotte 26-56 138 (13.8%)
Atlanta 26-56 137 (13.7%)
Toronto 27-55 88 (8.8%)
Minnesota 33-49 53 (5.3%)
Boston 33-49 53 (5.3%)
Houston 34-48 23 (2.3%)
Golden State 34-48 22 (2.2%)
Seattle 35-47 11 (1.1%)
Orlando 36-46 8 (0.8%)
New Orleans 38-44 7 (0.7%)
Philadelphia 38-44 6 (0.6%)
Utah 41-41 5 (0.5%)

1) Mike Kahn of FOXSports.com with a game report from the Suns drubbing of the Clippers and some other tidbits:

Nash, Suns ran all over Clippers in Game 7

A well-rested Steve Nash returned to his MVP self with 29 points and 11 assists as the Suns beat the Clippers 127-107 in Game 7. Hear from Nash, Suns' coach Mike D'Antoni and Clips' Elton Brand. Doing it without knee-challenged Amare Stoudamire and Kurt Thomas due to a broken foot, the 32-year-old Nash earned a second consecutive Most Valuable Player Award because he proved again Monday night that he is an inexorable leader. Looking much stronger after three days off, Nash overcame his aching bones to score 29 points on 11-of-16 shooting and doled out 11 assists — many of which were pivotal in the 30 points of Shawn Marion — on the way to a 127-107 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. The Game 7 victory advanced the Suns to the conference finals for the second consecutive season, but this time against his former teammates — the Dallas Mavericks, also a Game 7 winner following an overtime knockout of defending champion San Antonio. The Mavericks have never been to the NBA Finals before; the Suns have been there twice without coming away with a championship. The Suns set a franchise record with 15 conversions of 27 attempts from 3-point range — outscoring the Clippers (0-of-4) 45-0. Six different players scored in double-figures for Phoenix, which shot 60 percent from the field. The upstart Clippers, who have played so well the majority of the playoffs, failed to reach the conference finals — something so close for a maiden journey — but were well within striking distance. Elton Brand completed his magnificent series with the Clippers, with 30 points, nine rebounds and a block, and Corey Maggette added 18 points and nine rebounds off the bench. But this was all about RPMs, and Nash had the Suns red-lining throughout the game. It's why the Suns shot so well from 3-point range. Not only do they have superb shooters, but pushing the ball provided them with confidence and rhythm. Nash, in particular was different. He had been 2-of-19 from beyond the arc prior to Game 7 and he responded with 4-of-5 and dishing out at least a half dozen more to his constituency. Nonethless, the Clippers made it to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since they were the Buffalo Braves and Jack Ramsay was their coach some 30 years ago.
But Sam Cassell, so instrumental in their wins, never got it going Monday night. He had 11 points and six assists in nearly 40 minutes. If the Clippers were going to win, they had to have a consistent plan of attack on the floor, and Cassell's penchant to just keep firing away instead of setting up his teammates couldn't possibly work in Game 7 partially because nobody else thought about the others' success. And the cardinal sin is conceding to the Talladega Tempo the Suns like to play. It often becomes an insurmountable urge, but in this case it was nothing of the sort. After taking a 4-0 lead, the Suns began their 3-point rampage and never looked back. So now we look forward to Dallas playing host to the Suns in what figures to be just another example of high-powered offense. And that's not to mention the fact that neither the Mavericks nor the Suns have ever won an NBA title and hope to do so over the next month.

The stud - Dallas Mavericks All-NBA forward Dirk Nowitzki not only had 37 points and 15 rebounds, but converted a 3-point play with 21.6 seconds left to force overtime to lead the Mavs to a 119-111 win over the defending champion Spurs in San Antonio. He averaged 33.3 points and 15.3 rebounds in the final three games of the series.

The dud - Clippers free agent forward Vladimir Radmanovic, so spectacular with five 3-pointers in Game 3 when the Clippers nearly pulled out a come-from-behind win, was scoreless in 10:26 in Game 7 with listless body language. In fact, Radmanovic had just two points in Game 6. Having already turned down a six-year, $42 million deal from the Sonics last season, it's hard to fathom he'll get anywhere near that this summer.

The quote - "Unfortunately we knew they were capable of putting a game like this together at some point in time," Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy said. "That it happened tonight wasn't the best. In a one-game series, they can be unbeatable."

This and that - The Mavericks moved into the conference finals for only the third time in club history with their stunning 119-111 Game 7 win at San Antonio to eliminate the defending champs. It was surprising after the way the Spurs bounced back from a 3-1 deficit to force a Game 7 in Dallas, but Dirk Nowitzki had 37 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Mavericks, and they got spirited play at center against Spurs star Tim Duncan from Erick Dampier, Keith Van Horn (who also added a trio of treys), and young DeSagana Diop was huge in overtime against Duncan. Mavs point guard Jason Terry, suspended in Game 6 for punching Michael Finley in the final seconds of Game 5, bounced back strong with 17 of his 27 points coming in the first half. The Mavs were an amazing 25-of-36 (.694) from the field in the first half and were 17-of-45 (.378) the rest of the game. The Spurs, who set a club record with 63 wins this season, got nothing from their bench, well, two points, but you get the picture. Duncan was spectacular with a career-best 41 points and all 15 of his rebounds after intermission. Tony Parker chipped in with 24 and Manu Ginobili added 23. But there was little else the Spurs could muster beyond their three All-Stars as coach Gregg Popovich and the staff will undoubtedly reconsider the concept of their aging bench heading into next season. You want interesting perspective of a close comparison, consider the first playoff experiences of LeBron James and Michael Jordan. James averaged 30.8 points, 8.1 rebounds and 5.8 assists, while Jordan averaged 29.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 8.5 assists. James is 21 and Jordan was 22. However, Jordan's average spanned just four games in his rookie year and James played 13 games, but this was his third season. Magic Johnson, just 19, averaged 18.3 points, 10.5 rebounds and 9.4 assists in 16 games as rookie for the NBA champion Lakers. The draft lottery is scheduled for Tuesday to see which team earns the first pick in the 2006 NBA Draft. The Portland Trail Blazers had the worst record during the regular season, followed by the New York Knicks, Atlanta, Charlotte and Toronto. The top picks are expected to be among the group of Texas forward LaMarcus Aldridge, Italian post player Andrea Bargnani, Gonzaga super-scorer Adam Morrison, Washington guard Brandon Roy and LSU's athletic forward Tyrus Thomas. The 6-foot-6 Roy has the most mature, complete game at shooting guard, but the potential of the bigger players is always more intriguing for teams in the draft. The first major step toward rebuilding the NBA mindset in post-Katrina New Orleans was the official announcement of the 2008 NBA All-Star game. The Hornets will play a limited schedule of games there next year with the bulk of the games to be play in Oklahoma City as they were this season. Still at issue is a local New Orleans commitment for a new practice facility for the Hornets.

The statbook - The most disappointing player in the Cavs-Pistons series was easily Zydrunas Ilgauskas. The only member of the Cavs still on the club from the 1998 playoff team, his scoring average was down 5.2 from the regular season to 10.4 per game and his rebounding dipped to 6.3 from 7.6, his shooting percentage was down from the field and the line. But even more, he was incredibly weak in the clutch, forcing Cavs coach Mike Brown was forced to play aggressive Anderson Varejao instead. ... Monday night was the eighth Game 7 for Spurs forward Robert Horry, and he was 6-1 coming in — the active leader ahead of Clippers guard Sam Cassell, who was 5-1. The all-time leader is former Celtics center Bill Russell at 10-0. And in the wake of Monday's losses, Horry now is 6-2, Cassell 5-2 and Russell is, well, still 10-0. ... After hitting 10-of-17 from 3-point range in the first two games against Cleveland, Pistons forward Rasheed Wallace was 5-of-18 in the final five games of their series. ... Spurs center Tim Duncan didn't get his first rebound until four minutes into the second half of Game 7 against the Mavs, but finished with 15 and a career playoff-high 41 points. He finished the series averaging 32.3 points, 11.8 rebounds and 2.7 blocks. ... The Spurs-Mavs game marked the NBA postseason record ninth overtime contest, with a third round of the playoffs still to play. ... The Spurs bench, outscored 29-2 in Game 7, was outscored by an average of 25.8-17.8 during the series.

2) Jack MacCallum with some history:

Seven Game 7s to Remember: Basketball

NBA Finals, April 13, 1957, Boston Celtics vs. St. Louis Hawks, Boston Garden - During the second OT, long-legged Celtics rookie Bill Russell disentangled himself from the basket support after missing a layup, ran upcourt and blocked a shot by the Hawks' Jack Coleman. "Greatest play I ever saw," said Tom Heinsohn. Established stars Bob Cousy and Bill Sharman made only five of 40 shots, but the kids (Russell had 19 points and 32 rebounds, Heinsohn 37 and 23 rebounds) led the way to a 125-123 victory.

NBA Finals, May 5, 1969, Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers, the Forum - Before the game the Celtics' John Havlicek got his hands on a script that described plans for a postgame Lakers celebration, including a rendition of Happy Days Are Here Again to be played by the USC band. When the Celtics walked out, they saw 5,000 balloons suspended in nets from the ceiling. Talk about the best-laid plans. Don Nelson's jump shot, which bounded off the back rim straight up into the air and down into the basket, was a key shot in a 108-106 Celtics' win.

Eastern Division Finals, April 15, 1965, Boston Celtics vs. Philadelphia 76ers, Boston Garden - With the Celtics clinging to a 110-109 lead -- coach Red Auerbach had lit his traditional victory cigar when it was 110-103 -- the Sixers' Hal Greer tried to inbound the ball to Chet Walker under his own basket. But John Havlicek anticipated the play and was immortalized with Johnny Most's gravelly voiced call: "Havlicek stole the ball! Havlicek stole the ball! It's all over! It's all over!"

NBA Finals, May 8, 1970, New York Knicks vs. Los Angeles Lakers, Madison Square Garden - True, the game wasn't really close, with the Knicks dominating 113-99 behind Walt Frazier, who scored 36 points and handed out 19 assists. But there's probably not a basketball fan alive who hasn't seen the film of Willis Reed hobbling out on an injured right thigh just before tip-off. Once he made his first two jump shots, he really wasn't that effective, but the morale boost jump-started the Knicks.

Western Conference Semifinals, May 19, 1990, Portland Trail Blazers vs. San Antonio Spurs, Memorial Coliseum, Portland - Call it Willis Reed Redux. Though the hoops world in general doesn't remember Blazers center Kevin Duckworth emerging from the locker room to start the game after missing the previous six with a broken hand, it's remembered in Portland. The Duck provided the emotional lift, but the Blazers, who had trailed 97-90 with 2:32 left in regulation, needed five free throws from Clyde Drexler in the final 26.2 seconds of OT to prevail 108-105.

Eastern Conference Semifinals, May 22, 1988, Boston Celtics vs. Atlanta Hawks, Boston Garden - The game turned into such a two-man shootout that it's known as "the Bird and Dominique Game." The Human Highlight Film, Dominique Wilkins, was never better, pulling out an endless variety of dunks, spin shots and jumpers banked high off the board to finish with 47 points. But Larry Bird scored 20 of his 34 in the fourth period as the Celtics won 118-116.

Eastern Conference Semifinals, May 11, 1986, Milwaukee Bucks vs. Philadelphia 76ers, Mecca, Milwaukee - The Sixers owned the Bucks until this day, having beaten Milwaukee in the playoffs in four of the previous five seasons. But Julius Erving missed an open 15-foot jumper with two seconds left and Milwaukee held on for a 113-112 victory.

3) Marc Stein of ESPN.com with a Mavs-Spurs piece:

Mavs love that Dirk-y water

SAN ANTONIO -- It's not ugly or muddied water to Dirk Nowitzki. It's not Mark Cuban's favorite tourist destination, obviously, but Dirk loves that Riverwalk. It's in the shadow of San Antonio's renowned landmark, after all, where America discovered him. It's also where, nearly a decade later, Nowitzki announced himself to the NBA louder than he ever has. San Antonio, remember, was where this league got its first glimpse of Nowitzki, who made the likes of Larry Bird drool with his 1998 domination of the nation's best high schoolers. Monday night more than ever, San Antonio was left wishing Nowitzki never made that trip. The big German stunned the city and its Spurs with the steeliest performance of his career, leading to the victory his Dallas Mavericks have been chasing since they got him. Nowitzki did have help here, in the finale of a series so taut that Game 7 simply had to go to overtime, but he also had the clutchest touch on the floor in Dallas' 119-111 overtime triumph. The same floor where Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili stood. It was Nowitzki, most of all, who made sure Dallas didn't add a 20-point blown lead at the AT&T Center to the 3-1 series lead it couldn't hold. Duncan and Ginobili hauled the hosts back from 58-38 down, preserving the Spurs' dream of finally following a championship with another championship, but then Nowitzki earned his Mavs five more minutes and Duncan promptly disintegrated. Duncan's legs began to cramp and his shots started missing short, only one of his seven shots dropping in OT. Dirk? His drive, layup and free throw in the closing seconds -- followed by a game-saving block of Duncan's follow shot at the regulation buzzer -- were merely the highlights. You saw lots of Nowitzki's new You Can't Guard Me sneer in this one, as well as a tongue wag or two, as he rang up 20 of his 37 points in the third and fourth quarters. It was priceless offense in the face of a Spurs second-half siege and it kept the Mavs in the lead for all but 108 seconds. They were too weary to celebrate wildly at the OT buzzer, skipping the court-rushing scenes witnessed after their first-round upset at Utah in 2001 in Nowitzki's first trip to the playoffs, but the Mavs' joy was unmistakable as they clinched a berth in the conference finals opposite Phoenix and Nowitzki's old friend Steve Nash. "That monkey that's been on our back for so long, it's gone," Cuban said. Coach Avery Johnson admitted that he wasn't sure if he was asking too much for his Mavs "to get over this particular hurdle" in his first full season. Second-year guard Devin Harris suggested that the Spurs shouldn't be referred to as a hurdle. "They're more like a wall," Harris said. Yet Nowitzki and his starless supporting cast managed to scale it, with the Spurs fading in OT and Dallas, which fell three wins shy of San Antonio's 63 in the regular season, claiming a whopping 29-2 edge in bench points in the decider. "It seems like everybody did something special tonight," said Mavs swingman Jerry Stackhouse, "and it started with Dirk." The Mavs did have everybody ready, quickly dispelling fears of a Game 6 hangover after failing to finish off the champs at home. Dallas made its first seven shots, checked in at 15-for-18 after a quarter and was still shooting a stunning 77 percent from the floor with two minutes left in the first half. The Mavs were doing it with pure shot-making, too, as opposed to fast-breaking, unlikely as that seemed given the stakes and the venue. Terry returned from his one-game suspension for punching Michael Finley with a redemptive 27 points. Stackhouse and Keith Van Horn both threw in some big shots. Even DeSagana Diop, suddenly demoted to third-string center after starting the first six games, outproduced San Antonio's empty bench by himself with two buckets and two huge offensive boards in a late third-quarter flurry. Johnson used 10 players on a night his mentor Gregg Popovich relied mostly on only five, defying the playoff maxim that says regular-season depth doesn't mean much in the playoffs. Nowitzki did the rest. He had 15 boards. He only had three assists but was much more of a playmaker than that stat suggests, passing quickly out of double-teams to get the Spurs scrambling. He was aggressive throughout, as well, driving his way to 16 free-throw attempts, 15 of them makes. The new Nowitzki, asked by Johnson to play more of a Duncan style, showed just how much progress he's made operating inside the 3-point arc by playing Duncan (41 points and 15 boards) to a virtual draw statistically when it mattered most. Better yet, Nowitzki's crunch-time successes to finally KO Duncan's team might have finally hushed the skeptics who've questioned his and the Mavericks' toughness. "They used to say all the same [negative] stuff about the Spurs," San Antonio's Robert Horry said. Fitting that this is where they had to stop saying so about Dirk and his Mavs. "I guess San Antonio has been pretty good to me," Nowitzki said with a smile.

4) Marty Burns of SI.com thinks Big Ben could be out in Detroit:

Big change for Big Ben? - Free-agency market could be brisk for Ben Wallace

For most of the season it has been assumed that Ben Wallace, a free agent this summer, will re-sign with Detroit. The Pistons have said all along that they want to keep their 6-foot-9 center, and Big Ben has said he is happy in Motown. Given that the Pistons can offer Wallace more money than any other team, it seems like a no-brainer. But money often complicates simple matters. And the Big Ben situation is going to involve a lot of money. Perhaps as much as $100 million over six years. Are the Pistons really willing to shell out that much for a soon-to-be 32-year-old whose game is so dependent on athleticism and energy? Won't GM Joe Dumars at least have to wonder if an aging Wallace can play at such a high level three or four years down the road? Keep in mind, any new deal for Big Ben might push Detroit over the luxury tax next season, and almost certainly will in 2008 or '09. Throw in a possible early Pistons' flameout in this year's playoffs, and it could get even more interesting. "Detroit will re-sign him because they're not going to have to pay him [the max]," says one veteran agent. "You don't see many max deals anymore. And the only teams with [significant] cap room, like Chicago and Atlanta, probably aren't going to make him that kind of offer." Of course, that's what many said about Steve Nash a few years ago, before he bolted the Mavs for the Suns. The Bulls, with some $12 million to $15 million in cap space, might be tempted to make a pitch for Wallace. Chicago could reap double rewards by strengthening its own frontcourt while dealing a blow to its division rival. If nothing else, Bulls GM John Paxson could make an offer to drive the price tag up and force the Pistons to take a bigger financial hit. But even if the Pistons are truly in the driver's seat, there is no guarantee that negotiations with Wallace will go as smoothly as many think. For one, Big Ben just doesn't seem to be enjoying himself on the court as much as usual. His refusal to re-enter a game late in the season might have been just a one-time occurrence, but it raises questions. Then there's the fact that Wallace recently hired Arn Tellem as his agent. Why hire a hardball agent like Tellem if you don't intend to at least test the market? By league rules, the Pistons can offer Wallace more money than anybody else. They surely will do so to keep him. But what if Big Ben feels insulted by a less-than-maximum offer and decides he'd rather take less somewhere else or try to force a sign-and-trade? Again, nobody is saying Detroit won't get a deal done. It just might not be the slam dunk many think. Especially if the Pistons bow out early in these playoffs.

Zebras under fire again - It happens every year. Some team gets the short end of the stick from the refs in a playoff game, and everybody starts talking conspiracy theory. At the very least they talk about the substandard quality of officiating. This year's playoffs have provided plenty of grist for the mill. Just consider some of the controversial calls seen so far:

- Nenad Krstic's touch foul on Pacers guard Anthony Johnson as the latter dribbled around him at the end of Game 1 of the New Jersey-Indiana series. Johnson hit both free throws, the difference in the game.

- LeBron James' game-winning layup against the Wizards with five seconds left in Game 3. The Cavs' forward appeared to take an extra step as he made his move into the lane, and then maybe another as he landed. No call.

- Anderson Varejao's apparent goaltending of a potential go-ahead layup late by Gilbert Arenas in Game 6. Varejao stuck his hand in the net as the ball was in the air, but the refs didn't call it. The Wizards wound up losing in OT.

- Bruce Bowen's questionable foul on Dirk Nowitzki as he defended the 7-foot Mavs forward on a final potential game-tying effort at the end of Game 4. Nowitzki wound up hitting both foul shots to tie the game and send it into OT, where the Mavs won.

- Shaun Livingston's drive to the baseline against the Suns late in the second OT of Game 5. He was called for stepping on the baseline (no visual evidence on the replay), basically icing the game for the Suns.

There are plenty more examples from this year's postseason, including the situation with Shaq, who seems to be facing a completely new set of rules all of a sudden. But has the officiating really been any worse this year? Or is it just that there have been so many close games, hence more scrutiny of those calls that have been missed? "The more close games, the more chances to be exposed," said an Eastern Conference executive. "That's just the way it's been this year. It seems like there's been something to chew on every night." "When you've got games being decided by a couple points, it lends itself to every call being questioned and reviewed," agreed a Western Conference assistant GM who has been in the league for more than 20 years. "[The officiating is] no worse this season. It's just the type of games we're seeing." Referees are human, and they're going to make mistakes. The important thing is that the NBA does all it can to make sure the most qualified people work the games and that they are trained and reviewed adequately to limit those errors so that the players on the court can decide the outcome. But clearly the officiating in the NBA could be better.

Next up for the Kings? - The Kings' search for a coach to replace the fired Rick Adelman continues. Among the names mentioned are Don Nelson, Larry Brown, Stan Van Gundy, P.J. Carlesimo, Terry Porter and Paul Silas. Kings GM Geoff Petrie isn't talking specifics, but the Maloof brothers have already said they would prefer a defensive-minded coach. Nelson has been the highest-profile candidate rumored to be in consideration, but he's known for offense. Brown, providing he's no longer with the Knicks, is a defense-first guy who can create a buzz, but some wonder if he'd clash with Petrie over personnel. Then there's John Whisenant, coach of the WNBA's Sacramento Monarchs. He is defense-minded and said to be a favorite of the Maloofs. But his name doesn't exactly light up the Vegas marquee, does it? With the Brown situation in limbo, look for the Kings to ride this one out a little longer. They want to get the right guy, even if it means waiting a while. In the meantime, Petrie's staff is forging ahead with draft preparations and awaiting word like everybody else.

Diamonds in the rough - So your favorite team doesn't have a lottery pick in next month's draft? That doesn't mean it can't find a player who can make a difference. In fact, this year's playoff field is proof that good values can be found long after the lottery. Of the eight teams that reached this year's semifinals, seven featured at least two players in its regular rotation who were either undrafted or second-round selections. The list includes Bowen, Varejao, Wallace, Raja Bell, Marquis Daniels, Udonis Haslem, Manu Ginobili, Cuttino Mobley, Flip Murray, Eric Snow and Quinton Ross.
In terms of team totals, the Cavs led the way with four such overlooked players (Murray, Snow, Varejao and Damon Jones). The Spurs were next with three (Bowen, Ginobili, Nick Van Exel), followed by the Clippers (Mobley, Ross), Heat (Haslem, Shandon Anderson), Mavs (Daniels, Adrian Griffin), Pistons (Wallace, Maurice Evans), Suns (Bell, James Jones) and Nets (Cliff Robinson).

5) Bill Walton of ESPN.com makes some, but not all sense in this unique comparison:

Steve Nash and Bill Russell are one and the same

The similarities between Steve Nash (my favorite current player) and Bill Russell (my all-time favorite player) are astounding. Both were born in remote outposts of civilization that were wracked by unconscionable racial hatred and segregation. Both of their families spirited them off to more favorable environs at a very early age. Both came to basketball comparatively late in life. Neither one was a highly regarded high school player.
Each received only one college scholarship offer -- to different, but similarly small, Jesuit schools in the San Francisco Bay Area. Neither one was expected or predicted to excel in the NBA. Both were traded early in their careers. Both were told at early stages in their careers that they would have little to no chance of being successful in basketball. Both are the most unlikely multiple-MVP award winners in the NBA's illustrious history.
Both play a totally unique game -- completely focused on the successes of their teammates. Both are wrongly considered one-dimensional players, supposedly with serious deficiencies in at least half of what the game is about. Both are relatively undersized and ungifted physical specimens who would never be considered winners of the genetic lottery. Both are very quiet, soft-spoken personalities who always let their game do their talking for them. Both are driven and guided by an extremely strong moral and social compass. Neither one has ever been remotely interested in individual recognition or credit. Neither ever tries to draw attention to himself. In their respective careers there was not a single other player in the entire league remotely like them in terms of style and/or substance. Both do endless amounts of charitable work that they never reveal to the world. Even though their games could not be more different from each other's, they both lead or led teams that defined their era's brilliance and popularity. Both have stood tall in the face of outrageous adversity and have spoken out strongly about the world's maddening injustices. Neither one ever blames other people or forces for their own failures, shortcomings or mistakes. Both Nash and Russell won MVP awards while generally acknowledged as not being the best player in the NBA. Both shared one clear attribute … their biggest impact was that they made the other four guys on the court better players. Neither one of these guys ever "coasted" in a game … they only knew how to play with total focus.

Ummm…OK…apparently Dirk Nowitzki sings David Hasselhoff's song "Looking For Freedom," when he’s at the foul line to relax…

Clippers beat the Suns 118-106 last night to even the Western Conference semifinal series at three games each…so how did they do it? Well. Like this:

- Elton Brand scored 30 points on 14 of 21 shooting, blocked 5 shots and had 12 rebounds…Bradn is the kley, in fact he’s played 96 out of the 106 available minutes in games 5 aqnd 6…
- Corey Maggette had 25 points on only 7-8 shots with 1 three and 9 free throws with 8 rebounds and 4 assists in only 27 minutes off the bench…
- Quinton Ross (who?!!) had 18 points as the starter, posting up Nash at will in the 1st half…
- The Clippers out-rebounded the Suns 48-26…
- And out-blocked the Suns 8-2…
- And shot 61.5% from the field to 43.7% for Phoenix…

So, even though Shawn Marion continued his tremendous play with 34 points, 9 rebounds and 6 steals to lead the Suns, Leonardo Barbosa added 25 points, Nash had 17 points and 11 assists, Boris Diaw had 14 points, nine rebounds and seven assists and Raja Bell scored 13, the Suns still could not get close…Game 7 on Monday night will be a thriller…

I missed the video but apparently Dallas point guard Jason Terry is suspended for Game 6 for punching former teammate Michael Finley in the balls while chasing a loose ball in the closing seconds of Game 5…there wasn’t even a foul on the play, but NBA VP Stu Jackson reviewed the tape and made the call on the suspension…wow…

This is just wrong…and a little right…http://badjocks.com/archive/2006/northwestern-womens-soccer-hazing.htm

Choke note: This year marks the fifth time in the past six seasons that the Nets have lost their final four games….

The Celtics are going to offer Golden State centre and Dwight Howard tutor Clifford Ray a job as an assistant coach to work with young Celtics bigs like Al Jefferson, Dwayne Jones and Kendrick Perkins…a great hire, Ray has really been crucial to the development of Howard from high school phenom to genuine NBA star…he’s also credited with helping Jermaine O’Neal and Erick Dampier…

1) Eric Neel of ESPN.com thinks game 7 Clips-Suns will be a classic:

Anticipating a magical seventh

Six or seven minutes after the horn, the Clippers' faithful lingered in the Staples Center, looking out on the floor, soaking up the moment -- some dancing, some shouting, some banging the ThunderStix one more time just to hear the happy echo. The Clippers had never had a game like this, with their backs against the wall and all the chips on the table, and when it came upon them, they were ready. That's right, that's the new Clippers reality: They come up big when it counts, taking the Western Conference semifinal Game 6, 118-106. They did it Tuesday night in Game 5 in Phoenix -- when they rallied from being down 19 in the third before falling in OT -- and they did it Thursday, taking care of business on their home floor and forcing this series to the limit. They had it all working. The Staples crowd, 19,985 strong, was rocking from the tip. The horse, Elton Brand, was doing his equine thing to the tune of 30 points, 12 boards and five blocks. The stopper, Quinton Ross, was a Nash killer on one end and an opportunistic shooter on the other, racking up a surprising 18 points. The enigma, Corey Maggette, came to play, driving his way through traffic for 25 (on 7-of-8 shooting), five and four. Even Chris Kaman (15 points) was effective. The Suns tried to match them -- Phoenix got another stellar night from Shawn Marion (34 points, 9 rebounds) and a jolt off the bench from Leandro Barbosa -- but they were in over their heads from the get-go, never able to match the Clippers' energy. And so we go to Game 7, like it ought to be, like we were hoping it would be after we saw the classic these two teams cooked up in Game 5. And so, for the seventh game, we pose Seven Questions:

1. Will the three days off be enough for Steve Nash and Sam Cassell? - Nash came out Thursday night with a burst, and Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said afterward he thought there was "some pop in him" in the late stages of the game, but for much of the night the league MVP looked like he was running through the shallow end of a swimming pool, barely able to lift his knees and move ahead. It's reasonable, the Suns have played 13 games in 25 days. "I felt fine," Nash said after the game. "But it just didn't seem like we had a lot of pop tonight." Ditto the Clips' PG, who followed his yeoman Game 5 effort with a pedestrian 15 points in this one. "He's 58 years old," Los Angeles coach Mike Dunleavy joked afterward. "His legs are tired." If either guy gets his mojo back come Monday night, the advantage goes to his club. If they both find the spring in their steps, the advantage goes to those of us watching.

2. Can the Clippers handle the pressure? - Just last week the Suns dispatched a Los Angeles team in a seventh game, and they did it handily. They have a playoff-savvy club, from point guard to shooting guard to, well, whatever it is you call the Matrix. The Clippers, meanwhile, are on foreign soil and in alien territory (Game 7? Chance to go to the Conference Finals? That's some crazy new stuff for the Clips, my friends). "Everything's new for me," Brand said afterward. "I'm going to treat it like we've treated every other game in the playoffs so far." But the thing is, Game 7s are a different beast. And the crowd in Phoenix is one of the loudest in the league. And the Suns, with three days rest and the adrenaline of playing for the home fans, are a high-octane monster. The Clips showed in Game 5 they have it in them to absorb the Suns' best and come back swinging. And they showed in Game 6 that they can attack when their opponent is vulnerable. "We feel we can play with anybody," Dunleavy said. "We can play fast, we can play slow. This team was built for the playoffs." If they can believe that, and draw on that confidence in Game 7, we could see something special.

3. Can the Suns handle Brand? - When the Clippers find their stalwart anywhere near the blocks, good things happen. Tim Thomas can't handle him. Boris Diaw has no shot. When they double, Brand finds his guys on the perimeter. "I have full faith in them," he said Thursday. "I know they're there, waiting to knock down shots." And when they don't double, he takes his time, finds his spots, and launches his feathery jumper. Steve Nash is the MVP of the season, but Brand owns this series right now. "He's been a terrific shot-maker, and he's probably led them in assists," Nash said. "He's been so efficient. He puts a lot of pressure on the defense. He's just a very valuable player." The defense, yes, and the Suns' coaching staff, too; they need to find some combination, some rhythm-jamming, physicality and scheming to get him out of his comfort zone. And with his willingness to pass out of the double (he had 3 assists tonight and is averaging 5.2 in the series), they better hope the Clippers shooters aren't hitting the way they did in Game 6 (the team shot 62 percent from the floor).

4. Will the Clippers go "small"? - Mike Dunleavy started Chris Kaman again Thursday night, and began the second half with him as well, but Los Angeles seems to present the most difficulty for Phoenix when they go with either Maggette or Livingston in the mix instead of the big man. Not to discount the magic of the flowing mane, of course, but when the Clippers can move the ball and their feet quickly on offense, and can exploit gaps in the Suns' D with slashing and dishing, they are at their best. And when they can count on quick, shuffling, sacrificing defenders at every spot on the floor, jamming the Suns in transition, they match up with Phoenix most effectively. Will Dunleavy break his mold and show the Suns the little Clips from the get? It could be the difference between a ticket to the Conference Finals and a ticket home.

5. Will the real Boris Diaw please stand up? - On a night when the Suns needed major contributions from their role players, Leandro Barbosa (25 points and 11 assists) was ginormous. Diaw, on the other hand, came up short. He posted 14 points and seven assists in Game 6, but much of that work came after the game had gotten away from the Suns. He appeared out of synch all night, just missing guys who were open, short-arming shots he normally hits, and hesitating to drive the lane and find his spots to score and dish. At his best, Diaw is Matrix 2.0, an impossible to classify player with handle, vision, and a nose for the ball. At his best, he is the perfect complement to Nash and Marion. If he is at his best in Game 7, all the Brand and Cassell in the world may not be enough to stop the Suns. If he wanders lost in the desert as he did in Game 6, the Clips will give Marion his points and clamp down on Nash and challenge him to find more fuel in the tank.

6. Will Ross be able to do it again? - We knew the man could D-up. We knew he was going to lay a body on the MVP early and often. We had no idea he'd be good for 18 game-changing points in the process. Ross was the most valuable Clipper in Game 6, and it wasn't even close. On defense, he was trained on Nash like a drug-sniffing dog tracking smuggled hash, and on offense, he was passing up open jumpers just to back the tired Nash down and bump him a bit before rising up for a turnaround jump shot. "We felt like we had a good post match-up against Steve," Dunleavy said, underselling the abuse the young, wiry Ross was doling out on the Suns' heart and soul. When Barbosa came off the Phoenix bench he gave Ross fits, at one point scoring 12 straight Suns points, but when D'Antoni put the ball in Nash's hands, Ross was in command. So, how will it play in Game 7? Will D'Antoni go with Nash and Barbosa on the floor together more often? Will the Suns try to knock him silly with Tim Thomas picks up high? And maybe most importantly, will Ross take this game for what it was, his coming out party, and enter the clincher with the swagger he's going to need to withstand the Suns approach to him?

7. How will the basketball gods be able to pick a winner? - If it's the Suns, we get Nash vs. Nowitzki and D'Antoni vs. Johnson, some of the most likeable, most entertaining guys in the league going head-to-head. If it's the Clippers, we get nothing less than a revolution, we get a chance to see how the world works when it spins the opposite direction, we get rain falling up and snowfall in the nether regions. Give the Suns the edge for home court. Give the Clips the edge for hunger. Brand says Los Angeles just might have some momentum after the way it handled Game 6. Nash says the rest for both teams is an equalizer: "I think it's just who rises to the occasion, who does the best, who has the most left in the tank," he said. "I hope they play their best and I hope we play our best." That's what we're all hoping. And if it all goes that way, I give the edge to the Suns on their own floor. But then again, I'm not one of the basketball gods.

2) Chad Ford of ESPN.com with some pre-draft workout news:

Michigan State guard Shannon Brown worked out for roughly 15 NBA teams in Chicago on Thursday and lit up the gym according to NBA sources inside the gym. One NBA GM and two NBA scouts told Insider that Brown was "phenomenal." "His athleticism is off the charts," one scout told Insider. "He has that rare combination of athleticism and power that's usually only reserved for power forwards like Amare Stoudemire. He was amazing." The NBA people Insider spoke with said Brown, who worked out along with Arizona's Mustafa Shakur, Illinois' James Augustine and Wyoming's Justin Williams also shot the ball extremely well. One scout said he was impressed with another physical feature of Brown. When he shook hands with Brown after the workout, he was stunned with how big his hands were. "They were like catcher's mitts," the scout said. "I'm not sure I've ever seen bigger hands on a guard his size. That will help him tremendously in the league." Scouts also said Brown impressed with his energy on both ends of the floor. "Every drill he ran had a zip to it," the GM said. "As a team evaluating a player for the draft, that's exactly the type of effort you want to see from a kid. He laid it all out there. There's no question about what type of worker he is." Everyone agreed that the workout should significantly help Brown's draft stock with one scout and GM saying that the late lottery is not out of the question. The other scout said he'd rank him in the mid first round. Brown is still keeping his options open for returning to school by not hiring an agent, but word from Chicago is that Brown may enter officially soon based on the positive feedback he's hearing from teams. Brown wasn't the only one who was impressive. Scouts like what they saw from Augustine. He's long, athletic and showed a nice mid-range jumper in the workout. While they all complained that he didn't spend enough time in the post against Williams, all of them walked away with a positive impression and said he'd definitely get a team workout from them. There were three other workouts that went down in Chicago with less heralded prospects. In the first, scouts had some positive words for Maryland's Nik Caner-Medley. "He's a little more athletic than I thought," one scout said. "It looks like he's trimmed down a bit which has helped with his quickness. I think he's definitely a guy who could make a roster." In the third session UConn's Denham Brown, Bradley's Marcellus Sommerville, Louisville's Taquan Dean and Iowa State's Will Blalock went at it. Scouts said that surprisingly, it was Sommerville who stood out the most. The 6-foot-7, 230-pound forward was a power forward in college and is making the transition to the small forward in the pros. Scouts loved his body and defense in the workout. Scouts also thought that Denham Brown had good size and showed his ability to score and Blaylock was explosive. In the final workout UConn's Josh Boone and Robert Morris' Reggie George squared off. According to the three NBA people we spoke with, all were unimpressed. While Boone shot the ball OK, the workout was mostly a series of scripted jumpers. There was very little one-on-one action and one scout said that Boone "sleepwalked" through the workout. Boone has been contemplating leaving UConn for good, however the lackluster feedback he got from scouts may make him reconsider. He may be better off returning to UConn for his senior season and showing scouts that he still has the desire to be a dominant player. No one questions his talent or athleticism, but his lack of drive and consistency have been troubling. The Utah Jazz barely missed the playoffs this season. With a healthy Andrei Kirilenko and Carlos Boozer, combined with a more experienced Deron Williams running the point, the Jazz should be able take the next step into the playoffs next year. It's no secret that the Jazz need to add a two-guard to the mix, and they did little to hide it in their first series of draft workouts on Tuesday. Michigan State's Maurice Ager, Temple's Mardy Collins, Arizona's Hassan Adams and Cincinnati's James White were in Salt Lake City auditioning for the Jazz's open two spot. A spy inside the gym breaks down how they did:

Ager: He showed that he had deep range on his jumper -- "he shoots it easy from NBA range." He also showed excellent speed in the open court and good athleticism. Most importantly, he showed great intensity, and the team thought he was a great kid. However, that's where the praise ends. The source said Ager was a little stiff, struggled handling the ball, had short arms and wasn't as quick as they thought.

Collins: The spy thought that Collins, more than any of the other players in the gym, showed a great feel for the game -- "he understands angles and knows how to get to the basket." Collins measured even bigger and longer than the team thought. The knock on Collins is no real surprise. He struggled shooting and isn't nearly the athlete that Ager, Adams and White are.

Adams: He showed his trademark athletic explosiveness and toughness in the workout. But the spy said that they were fairly disappointed with his overall feel for the game. Adams also struggled shooting the ball ... something he struggled with all year.

White: He might be one of the real sleepers in the draft. White has knockout athleticism and has developed a great feel for the game on the defensive end. He also improved his shot, which showed in his workout with Utah. Though he doesn't have the stroke of Ager, he knocked down more jumpers than he missed. White's ability to slash to the basket and play defense could be an attractive fit for the Jazz -- in the second round.

Of course, this was just the first series of workouts to be conducted by the Jazz. In late May, two of the best two guards in the draft, J.J. Redick and Randy Foye, will work out for the Jazz. The Jazz are hoping one of the two falls to them at No. 14. Foye is a better fit because of his athleticism and his ability to slash to the basket. However, the word is that he'll measure a bit shorter than 6-4 (his listed height at Villanova). I've been hearing he'll be a little under or a little over 6-3 in shoes. That said, Minnesota and Golden State have a lot of interest in Foye and could grab him before the Jazz pick. Redick is more likely to be there when the Jazz pick, though Orlando is showing significant interest in him. The problem is that Redick isn't the ideal pick for the Jazz. The Jazz need a two-guard who can penetrate and defend. Redick's specialty is shooting. Still, we hear that owner Larry Miller is a big fan. The other top two-guard in the draft, Brandon Roy, won't work out for the Jazz, we've been told, assuming the Jazz don't move up in the lottery. At the moment it appears that Roy is planning on limiting his workouts to the top five teams in the draft. If Foye, Redick and Roy are off the board, the Jazz might decide between Ager, Collins, Michigan State's Shannon Brown or Rutgers' Quincy Douby. Both may actually have more upside than Ager or Collins. Or they could choose to go big. With Greg Ostertag retiring, they need a defense-minded big man who can rebound and back up Mehmet Okur. Two big guys have caught their eye -- Patrick O'Bryant and Hilton Armstrong. Both will be in Salt Lake City to work out this month.

3) Ian Thomsen of Si.com reports on the Drama that is Larry, Jim and Isaih in New York:

Fly in the Knicks' ointment - Brown's barbs toward trade assets raises team's ire

Wasn't it just one year ago that we were speculating the premature end of Larry Brown's reign in Detroit? Now the Knicks are planning to fire Brown after one remarkably pathetic 23-59 season in which the most expensive team in NBA history ($190 million in payroll and luxury taxes for their 15-man roster! No other team in any sport in any country has ever spent an average of $12.7 million per player as the Knicks did this season) finished with the second-worst record in the league. I'm told that owner James Dolan has turned against Brown for two reasons. First, it is Dolan's conviction that Brown pushed for the midseason trades of expiring contracts to Toronto and Orlando in exchange for Jalen Rose and Steve Francis, respectively, moves that cost the Knicks an additional $63.7 million in payroll and luxury taxes through next season. Yet when Rose and Francis showed up in New York, Brown quickly lost interest in them. Of course, it's hard to feel sympathy for Dolan on this score. He can't blame Brown for the financial disaster the Knicks have created. But it's not the money that upsets Dolan. My understanding is that he's far more worried about the future of the team so long as Brown is in charge. The Knicks' plan -- dismissed as farfetched by rival executives, but it's their plan nonetheless -- is to ultimately lure one or more superstars of the stature of Kevin Garnett or Jermaine O'Neal. The word coming out of Madison Square Garden is that Brown has sabotaged those plans by publicly criticizing his players and diminishing their trade value. Dolan doesn't much care whether Stephon Marbury's feelings have been hurt by Brown's denigrations in the New York papers. But the owner apparently believes that Brown's presence will make it harder than ever to recruit the big star that the Knicks desperately covet. Brown's reputation among NBA stars has turned negative in recent years: Many of the players from the 2004 Olympic team felt mistreated by him, and more than a few of his former Pistons don't have great things to say about him, either. Sure, they take the high road in their public comments about Brown, but in private -- especially among peers -- they complain about his public criticisms and his ambitions to further his own reputation at their expense. On this point I'm sympathetic to Brown, because the question of whether or not he should criticize his players speaks to the larger issue of how fans feel about the NBA. As a general rule, fans want the coach to be the boss. That's one reason why they love the NFL, because there's no doubt that the Big Bills -- Belichick, Parcells and Cowher -- are in charge of their teams. But coaches have far less authority in pro basketball, and the abiding impression that the players are running the league hurts the NBA with fans. A lot of Knicks' followers identified with Brown's frustrations this season.
But the reality is that the Knicks didn't hire Brown to teach a course in philosophy. For $10 million per year they expected him to produce results, and he failed miserably. He lost control of his team. The Pistons paid Brown $7 million to not coach this season and the Knicks may pay him up to $40 million to not coach the next four years. That's a five-year stretch worth $47 million, which would be the most lucrative coaching payout in NBA history. And Brown would be receiving it to not coach. Two organizations have decided independently that they would rather pay him that kind of money to stay home rather than let him near their teams. That is a horrible indictment of Larry Brown.

LeBron ahead of schedule - Here's the big mistake I made about LeBron James: I compared him to Michael Jordan. The assumption was that it took Jordan years to work his way through the playoffs, so James was going to struggle in his postseason debut. But it is with great pleasure that I admit I couldn't have been more wrong. At 21 years of age, James has played with more poise than any of the elders opposing him, from Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison to Richard Hamilton and Chauncey Billups. The Cavs have followed suit. Cleveland was unimpressive defensively all season, but during these playoffs the Cavaliers have turned into the No. 2 team in field-goal defense while holding opponents to just 43.6 percent from the floor (1.9 percent stingier than during the regular season). The Pistons, on the other hand, have failed to raise their defensive level, permitting teams to shoot 45.2 percent in the playoffs -- the exact same rate as the 82-game season. The only question I had about the Pistons this year was their field-goal defense. They ranked a mediocre 13th in that category this season, a big drop-off from previous years when they were always among the league's stingiest defenses. Everyone I asked this season -- including Gregg Popovich, Larry Bird and Joe Dumars himself -- maintained that the stat wasn't indicative of their defense, and that the Pistons would always be able to generate stops when needed. But LeBron is ruining that premise. Though they're down 3-2 heading into Friday's game at Cleveland, I would still be surprised if the Pistons fail to win the series. I just can't imagine them surrendering so easily. But then it's shocking that they're in this position at all: Instead of exuding the passion and anger of previous seasons, they seemed both arrogant (as if trying to behave like All-Stars) and insecure (as if knowing deep down they were behaving out of character). It's like they've forgotten many of the blue-collar qualities that made them special. They haven't shot better than 43 percent since Game 1. Maybe it's true that they can't win without Larry Brown. In fact, this entire series is turning into the curse of Larry Brown. While coaching the Pistons to the NBA Finals a year ago, he was also surreptitiously assembling the current management team of the Cavaliers. At that time he was aiming to become Cleveland's team president for this season, with Danny Ferry to join him as GM and Mike Brown as coach. Though Larry Brown ultimately bailed on the Cavs, Ferry and Mike Brown have done a terrific job this season. So even as Detroit was paying Brown his $5 million salary last season, he was sabotaging the Pistons by laying down the foundation of the opponent that now stands one game away from eliminating them. He's an evil genius, that Larry Brown.

Mavs PG Jason Terry had a team-high 32 points as host Dallas beat the Spurs 123-118 in OT thriller to take a commanding 3-1 series lead. Terry hit 12-of-25 shots with 5 assists over 51 minutes. The Diggler had 28 points and Jerry “Annoying knee bend routine at the line” Stackhouse had 26…my favourite part of the game was with Dallas trailing 111-109 with 15.4 seconds left, Nowitzki draws a questionable foul call on Bruce Bowen on a drive into the lane…a furious Bowen actually walks over to NBA commissioner David Stern seated courtside and yells at him saying: "This is terrible!" Hillarious…

As for the other game, it was ugly…like Knicks-Pistons 1994 ugly…The Cavs beat the Pistons 74-72 to even the series at 2-2….OK, LeBron did have 22 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds, but he was 8-of-23 from the field…not pretty and I’m not even going to mention the 3-point airball with 80 seconds left and the 50% (5-of-10) he shot from the fee throw line…it’s worth noting that for the third straight game, James led his team, outright, in points, rebounds and assists, becoming only the second player to do that in three straight games during an NBA playoff year….the other player was Chris Webber in the second, third and fourth games of Sacramento's first-round playoff series loss to the Lakers in 2000….the difference in the Cavs wins are defence…especially on Pistons win-guaranteeing PF Rasheed Wallace, who’s averaged 19.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, sank 14-of-25 from the field, including 7-of-10 from 3-point range with one turnover, in the Pistons wins and averaged 9.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, sank 6-of-25 from the field and is 1-of-7 from beyond the arc with five turnovers in the losses…And he;s not the only one, PG Chauncey Billups averaged 22.2 and shot .462 from the field in the five-game win over Milwaukee in the first round, but he’s averaging 15.0 points and shooting .372 against the Cavaliers, including 13-of-38 the past the past three games….Pistons sixth man Antonio McDyess, who averaged 11.5 points and eight rebounds in the first six games of the playoffs, has averaged 2.75 points and 4.3 rebounds the past three...

Oh oh, maybe he should claim it belongs to Nate Newton…The attorney for University of Texas running back Ramonce Taylor, the all-purpose yardage leader for the national champion Longhorns in 2005, said roughly five pounds of marijuana found in Taylor's car early Sunday didn't belong to Taylor…sure it didn’t…and 5 pounds? Wow, maybe he’s just holding it for Ricky Williams…

Speaking of UT, if PF Mike Williams transfers, and SF P.J. Tucker, PF LaMarcus Aldrige and PG Daniel Gibson leave via the draft, Texas coach Rick Barnes could possibly have five freshmen in the starting lineup in 2006-07. He has signed six high school seniors, including McDonald's All-Americans Kevin Durant and D.J. Augustin, a forward and point guard, respectively. Texas is trying to add Damion James, a 6-8 forward who signed with Oklahoma, but recently received a release from the Sooners. The Longhorns are said to be competing with Texas A&M for James, ranked among the top 20 high school seniors in the country…

Check this link…I would have had Payton ranked higher, but it is interesting…http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/dailydime?page=dailydime-GreatestPointGuards

And check this link..umm, for obvious reasons…holy cow…http://msn.foxsports.com/other/pgStory?contentId=5609578

Sleeper alert: Best shooter in the draft? Not Duke’s JJ Redick, Not Gonzaga’s Adam Morrison, Not Marquette’s Steve Novak…it’s actually Rutgers SG Quincy Douby…seriously, he’s like Redick, but with natural athletic ability…

And this story is crazy…Pretending to be stupid generally has minimal benefits, but the Spanish Paralympic Committee saw otherwise. They produced fake documents for 10 of the 12 members on their 2000 Paralympics basketball team, falsely claiming that they had IQs below 85. With an amazing performance, their intellectually able team captured the gold medal in a tournament for the intellectually disabled. It was soon discovered that the majority of their team members had no mental deficiencies to speak of and their medals were stripped. What makes it stranger: The story was brought to light by a Spanish journalist who joined the basketball team to uncover the scandal. To make the roster, it was not required of him to complete any medical or psychological tests; all he had to do was complete six sit-ups and a blood pressure test.

1) Brian Windhorst of the Akron Beacon-Journal with a Cavs report:

Cavs money in 'Guaran-Sheed' game

CLEVELAND -- Turns out a "Gilbert-tee" trumps a "Guaran-Sheed. " Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert quietly promised his team would win hours before Game 4 with the Detroit Pistons Monday, an indirect response to one of Rasheed Wallace's loud promises of Pistons' victory. Gilbert's family nicknamed the proclamations after the first four came true during the regular season. He remained perfect as the Cavs yet again beat the Pistons at their own game, 74-72. Now the series that once looked like a formality has been quickly evened 2-2 as the Cavs successfully protected their home court. Gilbert is no soothsayer and at this juncture really has no effect on outcomes, but he does know his team. Like the Washington Wizards before them, the Pistons are learning about them, too. For various and constantly changing reasons, the primary being LeBron James, the Cavs just win close games. Against the Wizards they won three one-point games by playing great offense. They've outlasted the Pistons in the last two games by playing great defense. They've now won 17 of their last 19 games decided by four points or less. Most of them have come at home, where the Cavs went 31-10 in the regular season and have taken 14 of the last 15 overall. Usually the Pistons kill such streaks, their rugged style and togetherness overcoming all. That hasn't been the case in this series for quite some time now, dating back to Game 2 at the Palace of Auburn Hills when the Cavs tightened their defense in the second half to turn a blowout into close game. James scored 22 points and broke the tie by twice splitting free throws in the final minute. He also had eight rebounds, nine assists, and eight turnovers on ordinary 8-of-23 shooting. But those are offensive stats; his efforts within in the Cavs' defensive scheme were just as vital. The Pistons shot just 33 percent in Game 4 and made just 4-of-18 shots in the fourth quarter when the Cavs erased a six-point deficit. Over the last three games the Cavs have outscored the Pistons 85-53 in the fourth quarters and held them to 30 percent shooting. That is supposed to be the Pistons' winning time not the Cinderella Cavs'. It has come from being physical and getting in position, be it getting a hand in a face or taking a charge. As Anderson Varejao, who led the NBA in charges per 48 minutes, did with 30 seconds to play in a crucial moment when he slipped and absorbed Chauncey Billups with the Cavs ahead by a single point. It was Ben Wallace-like as the Cavs continued to be Pistons-like. "The last two games we lost in our style games," said Richard Hamilton, who led all scorers with 30 points. "We had the game right where we wanted it." Indeed this has been uncharacteristic of the Pistons. On offense they have really tried to take advantage of the Cavs' decision to switch on pick-and-rolls to create matchup problems and the absence of Cleveland's best perimeter defender, Larry Hughes. So Tayshaun Prince and Rasheed Wallace, who sprained his right ankle in the game, have gotten great position against smaller players in the post and Hamilton has repeatedly burned Damon Jones and Flip Murray. Yet they missed chances when the Cavs have yielded them down the stretch and suffered self-inflicted wounds, turning the ball over five times in the fourth quarter of Game 3 and seven times in the fourth of Game 4. Still with the homecourt edge and all the experience, the Pistons remain the favorites. But it is the Cavs to seemed to have jettisoned the pressure and, for the moment, have stolen another valuable Piston weapon: confidence. "If we continue to focus," Cavs coach Mike Brown said. "Who knows what will happen."

2) Chris Sheriden of ESPN.com thinks he’s got em pegged

My 20 greatest playoff moments posted:

The NBA asked me to take part in balloting for the Top 20 greatest playoff moments ever, and this was my ballot.

1: Magic Johnson, a 20-year-old rookie starts at center in Game 6 of the 1980 Finals and has 42 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists at the Spectrum as Lakers win first of five titles in the '80s.

2. Celtics-Suns Game 5, 1976 Finals. Gar Heard's turnaround tied it at the end of double OT, and the Celtics won in 3OTs. I was 10 when I watched it on TV with my dad, and still remember the bedlam.

3. Game 7, 1957 Finals. Celtics beat Hawks 125-123 in double OT after St. Louis nearly tied it with a 90-foot ricochet pass off the opposite backboard to Bob Pettit.

4. Michael Jordan over Bryon Russell in Game 6 of the 1998 Finals. I know he pushed off, but he won his sixth ring. Watched it from the second row of the Delta Center.

5. Game 7, 1970 Finals. Willis Reed limps out of the tunnel, and Clyde Frazier has 36 points and 19 assists as the Knicks win their first title.

6. Game 7, 1962 Finals. Bill Russell has 30 points and 40 rebounds, and Bob Cousy frantically dribbles out the clock.

7. Game 6, 1985 Finals. The Lakers finally win a title at Boston Garden behind 29 points from 38-year-old Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

8. Elgin Baylor scores 61 points and grabs 22 rebounds for the Lakers at Boston Garden in Game 5 of the 1962 Finals.

9. Behind 34 points from Andrew Toney, the 76ers win Game 7 of the 1982 Eastern Conference Finals. Celtics fans send them off with a "Beat LA" chant.

10. Reggie Miller scored eight points in 8.9 seconds to stun the Knicks in the 1995 Eastern Conference Semifinals.

11. Game 5, 1972 Finals. After winning an NBA record 33 consecutive games, the Lakers wrap up the title behind 24 points and 29 rebounds from Wilt Chamberlain.

12. Game 6, 1986 Finals. Larry Bird cements the Finals MVP award with a triple-double at the Boston Garden, where the Celts were 50-1.

13. Bill Russell's 22 points and 35 rebounds give Boston the Game 7 victory over St. Louis in the 1960 Finals.

14. Jerry West wins the Finals MVP award with 42 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in Game 7 against Boston, but the Lakers lose.

15. Jordan scores 63 points at Boston Garden in a first-round game against the Celtics in 1986. Still stands as the record.

16. Wills Reed is injured in the first quarter, but the Knicks beat the Lakers in Game 5 of the 1970 Finals anyway with Dave DeBusschere and Dave Stallworth guarding Chamberlain.

17. Jordan scores 55 points in Game 3 of the 1993 Finals against Phoenix, and the Bulls go on to their third title.

18. Game 3, 1967 Finals. Another 55-point performance, this one by Rick Barry of the San Francisco Warriors, who scores 55 points against the Sixers.

19. Jordan makes six 3-pointers and scores 35 points in the "shrug game" against Portland in Game 1 of the 1992 Finals.

20. Dominique Wilkins scored 47 points, but Bird drops 20 in the fourth quarter as the Celtics win Game 7 of the 1988 Eastern Conference Finals.

3) Peter Vescey of the New York Post reports that Larry might be out:

DOLAN SET TO SIGN CHECK, BOUNCE COACH

May 16, 2006 -- WHAT we have here is a failure to excommunicate. All this time, I had it wrong. I figured Isiah Thomas hired someone who would end up sabotaging him and taking his job. Not the other way around. Much to the delight of no one in particular, Thomas is staying and Larry Brown is an agreed contract buyout away from being drum-rolled out of his dream job. "The number is $25 million," reveals the same snitch who leaked Sunday's story regarding the Knicks' plot to create coach space for Thomas by bustin' Brown to an unrestricted private. That's the magic number echoing throughout the dead brain chamber of Cablevision (biz)czar James Dolan. It's roughly $19 million lower than what's owed over the next four years in salary and perks to the 66-year-old. Ten months ago, Brown pocketed $7 million when Pistons owner Bill Davidson dumped him after Detroit came within minutes of winning a second straight NBA championship. My source is unsure whether that number, or any number, has been presented to Joe Glass, Brown's longstanding agent, who does all the dirty work that doesn't show up in Larry's stained stat sheet. But apparently that's what Dolan is prepared to pay to liberate the Knicks of a contrary coach who has been fed up for months with both his employers and employees. "They're making things so uncomfortable for him, they're hoping he walks," said someone monitoring both sides of the epicenter. "But we all know that ain't happenin' in our lifetime. Not unless Larry's already halfway to his next multi-million job, which is positively conceivable."
According to an assistant coach, Thomas has been subverting Brown's authority with the players almost from the moment his coach began to undermine (read: devalue) his roster to the media. We're talking very early in the season. From then on, there was hostility among the troops. "It's like two competing militias in Lebanon," underlined an extremist view of the scene. Late in the season, I'm told Brown notified Thomas, "If you want me back you've got to get rid of five players." My informant declined to name names, maintaining a source isn't necessary to figure it out. So, we're talking Stephon Marbury, Steve Francis, Jalen Rose and Jerome James for sure. Nate Robinson or Maurice Taylor has to be the fifth. Immediately after the Knicks' 23-59 sorry season expired, Thomas convened the usual exit meeting that all teams do. Both the GM/president and the coach separately get together with each individual player. Brown asked Thomas not to hold his encounter sessions, but he refused. "Larry knew Isiah would undermine him further with the players and he was correct," disclosed a member of Brown's camp. Subsequently, Thomas divulged to a Knicks beat writer that eight players had told him they don't want to play for Brown. Shortly thereafter, Thomas alerted Brown the five players weren't going anywhere. In at least one case, that's completely opposite than what Thomas told Brown when he consented to lie about endorsing the acquisition of Rose. Thomas promised he'd only keep him for the remainder of the season, but recently he told Brown he intends to keep him the coming season as well. I've got to believe the same scenario played out when Brown pretended to like Thomas' unfathomable procurement of the maximum compensated Francis (three years and $57M left). Thomas' plan (who says he doesn't have one?) is to make Larry's life as unpleasant as possible in hopes he goes away on his volition, or is so unhappy he accepts far less than the $25M number. Part II is for Thomas to leave his customary spot, skulking in the MSG tunnel, for a seat on the bench. That's tantamount to the arsonist who sets the fire, then tries to put it out so he can become the hero. And you wonder why I call it Fablevision? I'm guessing a letter of recommendation for Next Town's next six jobs is out of the question.

4) Paola Boivin of the The Arizona Republic with a great article on Sam-I-Am:

Vocal Cassell gives Clippers attitude

In the statistics-driven world of the NBA, Sam Cassell leads the league in syllables per minute. He'll challenge an official, chat up an opposing coach, needle a defender and invite a scorekeeper to lunch . . . all in the first five minutes. "I think he'd talk to himself even if he had no one else to talk to," Suns point guard Steve Nash said Monday. If Elton Brand is the heart of the Los Angeles Clippers, Cassell is the larynx. His motor knows only one speed: overdrive. "Sam says some off-the-wall (expletive)," Shawn Marion said. If you're a basketball fan, you can't take your eyes off him. If he's not lying on the ground in disbelief over a foul, he's hitting the biggest shot of the game. That's what happened late in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals Sunday night, when the Clippers' 13-point lead slipped to three. Cassell came off a screen by Brand and sank a three-point basket over Marion. His team held on to win 114-107, evening a series that moves to US Airways Center tonight. During much of this series, guard Cassell and Suns forward Tim Thomas - former teammates in Milwaukee - have traded words, not to mention friendly annoyances.
Before Sunday's game, Cassell came up to Thomas as he was stretching and smacked him on the head. At halftime, Thomas spotted Cassell lying down with a heat pack on his back, so he approached him and started poking the pack. "He knows if I've got him on the block, I'm going to take advantage of him, and if he has me on the wing, he's going to take advantage of me," Thomas said. "It's still all-out war, but at the same time, we're still having fun. We're good friends." This is how many NBA relationships are with Cassell: a lot of give-and-take, but ultimately, he has many friends among his peers because at 36, he works hard and is still a viable force. During Game 1, after Cassell was called for a foul, he gave the official a look of disbelief and charged over to Suns coach Mike D'Antoni. "What did you think of that foul, Coach?" Cassell asked. "Hell, you flagranted him!" D'Antoni said. D'Antoni was smiling when he said it. He thinks Cassell's flamboyant style is good for the game. He's right. "He'll take the big shots, he'll play, he'll laugh, he'll fall down," D'Antoni said. "If I'm a fan, he's fun to watch." If you're the opposing coach, however, that's not always the case. His swagger has been a big boost for a Clippers team that is trying to shake off decades of ridicule. Young talent is one thing. A veteran with the confidence of an infantry is another. "It's a big difference, bringing that swagger to us," Brand said Sunday. "We just have to keep it and do it every game." The Clippers didn't have it in Game 3, when coach Mike Dunleavy sat Cassell for all but 35 seconds of the fourth quarter. Fans and the media questioned the decision and later, Dunleavy acknowledged privately to Cassell that he should have put him in earlier.
What Cassell is doing in this series is exactly why Clippers General Manager Elgin Baylor brought him in during the off-season. The Clippers were prone to losing close games and needed a player whose style of play screamed moxie. He hasn't disappointed in this series and is averaging 21.3 points and 42.9 percent shooting from three-point range. After struggling in Game 3 with Marion covering him, he played more aggressively Sunday and finished with 28 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists. If there's a game-winning shot to be taken, Cassell wants it in his hands. "You don't want it to come down to that," said Nash, who still is called "rook" by Cassell from their playing days together with the Suns during Nash's rookie season, 1996-97. No, you most definitely don't.