NBA News Blog – Page 1266 – NBA Blog

Heat eliminate Celtics in five games

The AP reports:

Vanquishing the team they couldn’t beat for so long with a 16-0 run to end the game, Dwyane Wade scored 34 points, LeBron James put the Heat up for good with a 3-pointer with 2:10 left on the way to a 33-point effort, and Miami topped Boston 97-87 to win their East semifinal series Wednesday night in five games.

James added a game-sealing—more aptly, a series-sealing—3-pointer with 40.4 seconds left, then turned and posed for some fans who screamed in delight.

A steal and two-handed slam 6 seconds later for good measure, followed by a Celtics turnover, got the party started. It was over, the Heat and Celtics knew it, and Boston coach Doc Rivers stood silently near the bench, his arms folded across his chest as James ran down the clock on Miami’s final offensive possession of the series…

Chris Bosh finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds, including head-faking his way past Kevin Garnett for a game-tying dunk with 2:57 left…

Ray Allen led Boston with 18 points. Garnett had 15 points and 11 rebounds, Paul Pierce scored 12 and Delonte West added 10.

Rajon Rondo finished with six points in 31 minutes for Boston, playing with what appeared to be a slimmer brace over the still-painful left elbow that he dislocated during Game 3…

Miami shot 5 for 19 in the game’s opening 14 minutes, plus made six turnovers in that span to help Boston take a 26-16 lead by the early portion of the second quarter. Garnett started particularly strongly, going 5 for 7 from the field for 12 points in the opening quarter, punching his chest at times after makes.

Robert `Tractor` Traylor dies in Puerto Rico

The AP reports:

Former NBA and University of Michigan player Robert “Tractor” Traylor has died. He was 34.

Police in San Juan, Puerto Rico, said in a statement he was found dead Wednesday on the bedroom floor of his oceanfront apartment. Police and the Bayamon Cowboys basketball team said he had been missing for a few days and apparently died from a heart attack.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports:

The 6-foot-8 Traylor, a former University of Michigan star, played for the Milwaukee Bucks from 1998-2000. He had been playing in a Puerto Rican professional league.

On draft night in 1998, the Bucks traded the rights to Dirk Nowitzki and Pat Garrity to the Dallas Mavericks for the rights to Traylor.

Statement from Milwaukee Bucks on the death of Robert Traylor: “The entire Milwaukee Bucks organization is saddened by the news of Robert Traylor’s death. Robert was a fierce competitor on the court who helped the Bucks reach the playoffs in each of his two seasons in Milwaukee (1998-2000). Off the court he was a gentle giant, displaying his smile and care, especially toward young people through his involvement in school visits and his work with the Special Olympics clinic. Our deepest sympathies go out to his family and friends.”

The following statement was released today on behalf of the New Orleans Hornets Organization upon learning of the passing of Robert Traylor: “The entire New Orleans Hornets organization is deeply saddened by the news of Robert Traylor’s death. “Tractor” was a great teammate and loved by the community and our fans in both Charlotte and New Orleans during his three seasons with us. He was a compassionate human being who always had an upbeat attitude and a winning smile. Our deepest prayers and sympathies are with the Traylor family and he will be missed dearly.”

Derek Fisher not retiring yet

Los Angeles Lakers point guard Derek Fisher should probably be a reserve at this point, but he’s still definitely useful as a defender, flopper, leader, positive influence around young players, and occasional shot-maker. And he’s reportedly not looking to retire just yet. Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register reports:

Derek Fisher will be 37 before he plays another NBA game — 38 if he, as NBA players’ union president can’t help prevent last season from being lost to work stoppage — but he is not considering retirement at all.

“That’s not even a thought,” Fisher said Tuesday.

Fisher said the Lakers didn’t get better this season, saying: “Sometimes you think you have it figured out.”

He expressed confidence the team, as constructed, would succeed next season.

“I’d take the same exact group of guys and line ‘em up and lace ‘em up and we’d get the job done,” Fisher said. “That’s what I believe can and will happen.”

It’ll be very interesting to see what changes the Lakers make this offseason.

Read fan reaction and discuss your own opinion in this forum topic.

Rose leads Bulls past Hawks 95-83 in Game 5

The AP reports:

Derrick Rose scored 33 points, Taj Gibson scored all of his 11 in the fourth quarter, and the Bulls beat the Atlanta Hawks 95-83 in Game 5 on Tuesday night to take a 3-2 lead.

Luol Deng added 23 points and Chicago let out a big sigh of relief…

Rose showed why he is the league’s youngest MVP, hitting 11 of 24 shots and finishing with nine assists. It was a big improvement over Game 4 when he needed 32 shots to score 34 points, and he was particularly effective down the stretch, attacking the rim.

“He made unbelievable plays. He exploded off the pick and roll,” Atlanta’s Josh Smith said.

Jeff Teague was big again for the Hawks in place of the injured Kirk Hinrich, scoring 21 for the third time in this series, but Atlanta came up short in the end.

Smith contributed 16 points. Joe Johnson scored 15, Zaza Pachulia finished with 13 points and Al Horford added 12 points and 10 rebounds. But Jamal Crawford scored just two points on 1-of-9 shooting…

Things got particularly tense after a two-handed dunk by Smith cut Chicago’s lead to 61-60 with just over 4 minutes left in the period. He hung on the rim and Carlos Boozer gave him a forearm to the face, leading to a retaliatory shove from Smith and technical fouls for both players.

Live fan discussion of the game took place in this forum topic.

Larry Bird and David Morway stay in Pacers front office

Indiana Pacers owner Herb Simon and President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird met Tuesday in Los Angeles and have announced that Bird will remain in his position.

“I’m quite pleased with the success we experienced this past season and pleased with the direction our team is going,” said Simon. “I’m glad Larry is staying to help us continue in the positive direction we are going.”

“The past few months have been the most enjoyable since I took over as President of Basketball Operations,” said Bird. “To see our young players develop, to see us make the playoffs and then to see us compete in a hard-fought series with Chicago are indications we are headed in the right direction and it has made me even more determined to help this team improve further and go to the next level.

“I hope we can keep our core basketball group together and one of my first priorities will be to address the coaching situation.”

Simon and Bird also announced that David Morway will stay as general manager.

LeBron James apologizes for using the word `retarded` in a press conference

We live in an increasingly politically-correct public world, where celebrities, sports stars and other famous people have to be careful about what they say, for fear of pissing off at least some major group somewhere. And in this case, as the AP reports:

The Miami Heat star muttered the word after Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals as he and Dwyane Wade listened to a question about Wade’s takedown of Boston guard Rajon Rondo.

James had his hand covering his mouth when he said “that’s retarded” as a reporter asked Wade whether the play that dislocated Rondo’s elbow was dirty.

I’m glad that’s resolved.

Thunder tie series with Memphis with 3 OT thriller

The AP reports:

Kevin Durant scored six of his 35 points in the third overtime, and the Thunder scored the final 10 points to beat the Memphis Grizzlies 133-123 in a thriller that started Monday night and ended early Tuesday morning.

It was the second straight overtime game in the series and the NBA’s first triple-overtime playoff game since Chicago downed Boston 128-127 on April 30, 2009…

The Thunder blew a 16-point lead in losing Game 3 101-93 in overtime. This time, Memphis was up 18, lost that and fell behind 10 in the fourth quarter only to rally.

Memphis’ Mike Conley hit a 3 over a couple defenders to set up the first overtime. Grizzlies rookie Greivis Vasquez hit an off-balance, one-handed 3 setting up the second overtime, and it was Marc Gasol’s scoring to help extend this game five more minutes…

Russell Westbrook led the Thunder with 40 points and only three turnovers in more than 51 minutes of play. James Harden added 19, and Daequan Cook had 10. Durant, Westbrook and Harden played the most minutes in a single game in their pro careers. For Memphis, Zach Randolph and Gasol posted career highs in minutes…

Randolph led Memphis with 34 points and 16 rebounds. Gasol had 26 and 21 rebounds. O.J. Mayo had 18 points and Conley 16 before both fouled out. Vasquez had 14.

Live fan discussion of the game took place in this forum topic.

James, Wade lead Heat past Celtics 98-90 in OT of Game 4

The AP reports:

LeBron James scored 35 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead Miami to a 98-90 overtime victory over the Boston Celtics on Monday night and give the Heat a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Dwyane Wade scored 28 with nine rebounds and Chris Bosh had 20 points and 12 rebounds for Miami, which could eliminate the defending conference champions and advance to the East finals with a victory in Game 5 in Miami on Wednesday night…

James, Wade and Bosh scored 83 of Miami’s 98 points and had 35 of its 45 rebounds.

Paul Pierce scored 27, Ray Allen had 17 and Kevin Garnett had seven points and 10 rebounds for Boston…

In the overtime period, Garnett threw the ball away and then James made a fallaway jumper as the shot clock expired to give Miami an 88-86 lead. Allen missed, Bosh dunked at the other end, West missed a 3-pointer and then James drew a charging foul on Pierce. After another Boston turnover, Wade made a 2-pointer with his foot on the 3-point arc to give Miami a 92-86 lead with 2 minutes left in overtime.

Fans discussed the game live as it happened in this forum topic.

Thoughts from InsideHoops.com coming Tuesday.

Smith, Teague lead Hawks past Bulls 100-88 in Game 4

The AP reports:

Josh Smith is frequently criticized by Atlanta fans for his inconsistent play. He heard nothing but cheers Sunday night, coming up with a huge game that helped the Hawks even the Eastern Conference semifinal against top-seeded Chicago at two games apiece.

Largely ignoring the long jumpers that aren’t his forte, Smith had 23 points, 16 rebounds, eight assists, two blocks and a steal in Atlanta’s 100-88 win over the Bulls…

Jeff Teague also played a big role in stopping the skid.

Filling in for injured Kirk Hinrich, the second-year guard again directed the team with the poise of a veteran instead of someone who played infrequently during the regular season and hardly at all in the first round of the playoffs. He scored 12 points and doled out four assists, putting the capper on a late 10-0 run that broke open a game that had been tight and intense all the way…

The actual MVP scored 34 points. But Derrick Rose needed 32 shots to do it, and he wasn’t nearly as effective as he was in scoring a career-best 44 points in Game 3, leading the Bulls to a 99-82 rout that restored Chicago’s home-court advantage…

Seven-footer Jason Collins started at center between Al Horford and Smith, putting Marvin Williams in a reserve role. Collins had a couple of early dunks, but he wound up playing less than 12 minutes…

Carlos Boozer had 18 points for Chicago, and Luol Deng added 13. Korver had an especially rough night, going 1 for 8 from the field. He missed all five of his 3-point attempts.

Mavs eliminate Lakers, sweep Phil Jackson to retirement

The AP reports:

Jason Terry and the Dallas Mavericks ended Phil Jackson’s tenure, and the Lakers’ reign as two-time champions, with a 122-86 victory Sunday. After two tight finishes and another game that was relatively close, the Mavs turned this one into a rout in the second quarter.

With Terry leading the way, Dallas hit a barrage of 3-pointers to go ahead by 24 points at halftime. When he made 3s on consecutive possessions early in the third quarter, Los Angeles knew it wasn’t going to come back in this game or the series.

Things got ugly early in the fourth quarter, with vicious, frustration-fueled cheap shots by Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum getting them ejected 45 seconds apart. But at game’s end, Dallas coaches, players and team owner Mark Cuban lined up to bid farewell to the Zen Master…

Terry tied a playoff record with nine 3-pointers, and the club matched NBA postseason marks with 11 3s in the first half and 20 for the game. Dallas made 63 percent of its shots from behind the arc (20 of 32) and 60 percent of its field goals (44 of 73)…

Terry made 11 of 14 shots for 32 points. J.J. Barea set a career playoff-best with 22 points and Peja Stojakovic added 21 points. All three of those guys come off the bench…

Bryant finished 7 of 18 for 17 points. Shannon Brown was Los Angeles’ next-best scorer with 15. Pau Gasol’s lost postseason continued, too; he had 10 points and eight rebounds.