nba-playoffs Page 64 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

23 Percent Of All <em>SportsCenter</em> Programming Last Week Was Devoted To The Miami Heat
This is a regular feature breaking down, minute-by-minute, the content that appears on ESPN's 11 p.m. edition of SportsCenter throughout the week. Graphic by Jim Cooke....

The Unappreciated Playground Genius Of The San Antonio Spurs
Last night in San Antonio, the Oklahoma City Thunder were the sum of their parts. It was a pretty good sum, even. The Thunder were solid on the glass against the Spurs; they lit it up from three-point range; they earned plenty of points at the free-throw line. Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and...

Here's The Only Way The Spurs Can Be Beat
The list of memorable halftime acts can be easily recited by any basketball fan: Quick Change, unicycle bowl lady, Frisbee Dog, and my personal favorite: Zooperstars! Last night's Western Conference Finals matchup in San Antonio appeared to feature the guy who plays outside the arena for cash as yo...

Chris Bosh Spent Last Night In His Own Little Place Of Bliss
Injured Heat forward Chris Bosh spent last night's Eastern Conference Finals Game One on the bench, though he certainly didn't seem to be missing much about playing the game. Indeed, most opportunities viewers were given to look in on Bosh showed a man at ease with the lofty predictions for his tea...

Tonight LeBron Needs To Eat Some Old Irish Hearts
Bumblederping around the Web today it's surprising to see how many people expect the Celtics to curl up and die quiet in their series against the Heat, which begins tonight. David Steele over at the Sporting News is among the rare authors who believe three future Hall of Famers plus a tripler of dou...

The Flaming Lips, Oklahoma City's Only Other Reason For Being, Rewrite 1999 Track to Celebrate Thunder
While the Thunder ponder what might have been in San Antonio last night if they hadn't committed four offensive fouls in the fourth quarter, or if they'd defended Manu Ginobili with something sturdier than hard glares, they can regroup to the flattering sounds of OKC's favorite local psychedelic roc...

Miami TV Anchor: "The Heat Will Play Either The Celtics Or The 69ers"
Here's a clip from today's Local 10 News Saturday Morning on Miami ABC affiliate WPLG previewing the Eastern Conference finals before tonight's Game Seven between Boston and Philadelphia....

This Is The Face Of Pacers Fan Denial
Oh, sure, this is supposedly an image of Ryan Briscoe, the Aussie driver who will sit the pole for Sunday's Indy 500, but then a bespectacled Roger Sterling in a "Gold Swagger" t-shirt (which the real Roger Sterling would totally wear) decided he needed to be in on the fun. He also appears to have ...

KG: "Philly Fans Are Fair-Weather." <i>Inquirer</i> Writer: "Oh Yeah? Boston's Racist!"
A few days back, Kevin Garnett said — or at least implied — that 76ers fans are fair-weather. It stung a bit, considering the Sixers have been terrible for the better part of a decade, and basketball is a distant fourth in Philly hearts. (That's not a knock; some sport has to be fourth.) Mostly it w...

Today In Unfortunate Newspaper Typos: "Series Shits To Boston"
Most of our favorite newspaper errors are due to dummy text, the practice of typing in a bunch of gibberish to see how it'll look in the space allotted. They're funny, but they also require a complex series of missteps. That's why this unfortunate mistake, from Saturday's Register Citizen in Northwe...

The Best Shooters In The NBA, And Why Field Goal Percentage Can't Identify Them
What does field goal percentage actually tell us?...

TNT's Slow Zoom On Mitch Kupchak's Face In The Final Minutes Of The Lakers' Season Was Sadistic
Only true Lakers believers (or the truly blind) couldn't see the Lakers' season was nearing an end long before the horn sounded on last night's 106-90 series-seizing Thunder victory. Yet it seems the moment of truth for Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak came at a time that TNT producers jumped upon for max...

If Beast Mode Exists In Basketball, Russell Westbrook Entered It
The action in Oklahoma City has been hot tonight, with Thunder fans matching the intensity of the players (from both OKC and L.A.) on the court. Russell Westbrook's been especially full of flair this evening, but his steal-and-circus-shot is the kind of highlight that deserves several looks; Kevi...

LeBron's Choice Of Pre-Game Reading Material? <em>The Hunger Games</em>
ABC showed a brief clip of LeBron James in the locker room before today's Heat-Pacers Game Four in Indianapolis, and surprise of surprises, he was reading Suzanne Collins's young adult novel The Hunger Games. We won't shame anybody for their choice of reading material—indeed, we'd love for more ro...

It's All Going According To (Pat Riley's) Plan
1. "Jay, it's Pat. Pat Riley? Yes, I remember when I cursed you out and told you to never, ever call me 'Pat,' and then hit you pretty good with my briefcase. How many stitches did you need? That's a lot of stitches. But we're friends, right? You can call me Pat anytime. How's Michelle?...

TNT Should Not Have Allowed This Morbidly Obese Sixers Fan To Participate In The Shirt-Off
The Utah State Aggies have a superfan named Wild Bill who distracts free throw shooters by wearing bizarre, Disney-inspired outfits that often reveal his generous girth....

Boston's Game Two Loss Left This Celtics Fan Looking For Something To Lick
The Sixers downed the Celtics 82-81 last night to even their Eastern Conference semifinal series at one-all, a result that got this Bostonian so hot and bothered he was reduced to panting....

JaVale McGee Gave Us The Going-Away Present Of Trying To Dunk His Own Missed Free Throw
This season JaVale McGee did crazy things, lazy things, stupid things, and even awesome things. Last night in the final moments of the Nuggets' Game Seven loss to the Lakers, he gave us all a nice parting gift when he tried to dunk his own missed free throw....

If The Lakers Lose Tonight Mike Brown Will Be Out Of A Job, Says Lakers Vice President (Magic Johnson)
Last night, Magic Johnson had some relatively strong (hypothetical) words for the Lakers coach and key big men....

Kenneth Faried Appeared To Be Broken After Being Flagrantly Fouled By Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant earned a flagrant foul call for this hit on the Nuggets' Kenneth Faried, a shot that—for a moment, at least—made some wonder if Faried would be able to return to the game....