NBA Playoffs Blog – Page 113 – NBA Blog

Kobe says little about early LeBron elimination

The AP reports:

If Kobe Bryant was even slightly disappointed to learn that LeBron James won’t be showing up for a possible career-defining showdown, the Los Angeles Lakers star isn’t letting on.

Bryant had almost nothing to say Friday about the Cleveland Cavaliers’ playoff elimination, which ruined the best chance yet for a finals meeting with James.

“I don’t know,” Bryant said when asked what he thought of Boston’s Game 6 victory, before an awkward silence with the phalanx of television cameras and digital recorders pointed at him in a back corner of the Lakers’ training complex.

Surely Bryant realizes the anticipation was extra-high this spring, after the superstars’ teams finished atop their respective conferences with two of the NBA’s top three records. Nike certainly spent many months hoping for the showcase of two top clients, building that unusual advertising campaign around their puppet replicas.

But while James begins his offseason, Bryant is still standing — albeit on a gimpy ankle — after persevering through an injury-riddled year. The veteran star won’t slow down for the Western Conference finals just because King James isn’t waiting on the other side.

InsideHoops.com Says: I hope reporters ask Bryant about this until he gives a real response. I assume he’ll eventually say that he thought the Cavs would go further, but the Celtics are a very good team. That’s the boring, politically correct response, at least. But hopefully he gives something more interesting than that.

Robin Lopez expected to play Monday

Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic reports:

Robin Lopez has two milestones coming in his expected return to the starting lineup Monday.

He will play a game for the first time since March 26 and will be making his career playoff debut.

“I don’t think it’s hit me yet,” Lopez said. “I think it’ll hit me on the floor. I feel like I’ve been out there with the guys when I’ve been watching them the previous series.”

Lopez said his conditioning and right-leg strength, an issue because of his bulging disk pinching a nerve, have improved and he feels his instincts returning. The 7-footer is a welcome addition against the Lakers’ frontline size.

“I’m going to have to crash the boards and deter easy layups,” Lopez said.

Hawks part ways with Mike Woodson

Executive VP/General Manager Rick Sund met with Coach Mike Woodson this morning and informed him that he will not be offered a new contract.

“After careful consideration, we have made a difficult decision regarding Coach Woodson’s contractual status,” said Sund. “We’re grateful for Mike’s contributions over the last six years and we want to wish him the very best.”

Named the 10th head coach in Atlanta Hawks’ history on July 8, 2004, Woodson produced a 206-286 (.419) record in six seasons at the helm of the Hawks, and a 53-29 (.646) mark this past season. He coached Atlanta to three straight postseason appearances, finishing with an 11-18 (.379) record.

Game 6: Celtics eliminate LeBron, Cavs

The AP reports:

Kevin Garnett scored 22 points and added 12 rebounds, and Rajon Rondo had 21 points and 12 assists to beat Cleveland 94-85 in Game 6 on Thursday night and advance to the Eastern Conference finals. Boston will play the Orlando Magic, who are undefeated in the playoffs…

Despite his sixth career playoff triple-double, James is headed for another early offseason after winning a second MVP award and leading the Cavs to an NBA-best 61 wins and a home-court advantage they never got to use…

James scored 27 points with 10 assists, and his 19 rebounds matched a career-high and were the most he’s ever had in a playoff game. But he also had nine turnovers, and he may have been hobbled by an elbow injury that limited him to dunks and short jumpers, going 8 for 21 from the floor overall…

Mo Williams scored 20 of his 22 points in the first half for the Cavaliers.

Boston’s Paul Pierce scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half after playing just nine minutes—and shooting 1-for-5—in the first with foul trouble…

Antawn Jamison, acquired at the trade deadline from Washington, had just five points…

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports:

The Cavs go into an off-season full of fear and loathing. At the final buzzer, James’ three-year, $42 million contract officially ended.

Attempting to shake off a wave of national criticism about his spiritless play two nights before, James ran a backdoor cut and threw down a two-handed dunk on the Cavs’ first offensive possession to attempt to set a tone. He played with that sort of vigor for the rest of the game, legs pumping, eyes darting and a desire for the ball…

When it wasn’t Garnett in the half court, it was guard Rajon Rondo in the open court. The Cavs tried half a dozen defenders on him, including James, in the series, too. None of them really worked.

It got to the point where the crowd at TD Garden would rise to its feet whenever Rondo got the ball on a fast break, just knowing he was going to do something special. He got plenty of chances in Game 6 — the Cavs turned the ball over a miserable 24 times, costing them 27 points.

The Celtics had 19 fast-break points and Rondo was in charge of them all, scoring 21 points with 12 assists to finish as the best player in the series.

To add insult to the situation, the Celtics’ bench dominated the Cavs’ bench as Tony Allen and Rasheed Wallace combined for 23 points.

The Boston Herald reports:

The Celtics’ physical approach continued to work. The Cavs, stripped of their flow, shot 38.4 percent overall from the field, 29.4 percent from 3-point range and just 70.6 percent from the line.

The Celtics were even worse from the stripe (63.6 percent), but their best work came at the other end.

“We just never got into a rhythm against this team, and they had something to do with it,” Cleveland coach Mike Brown said. “We were trying to get on the floor for loose balls and rebounds, but we just never had a rhythm for the game.

“We made runs, and we even took the lead a couple of times. But it was hard to find the rhythm. They’ve always been a great defensive team. The regular season is a lot different from the postseason. We knew they would be a different team.”

LeBron James playing passively in playoff losses to Celtics

LeBron James playing passively in Cavs playoff losses to Celtics

The basketball world has noticed that LeBron James isn’t playing with his usual fire in the second round NBA playoffs series between the Cavaliers and Celtics.

Especially in the Cavs losses.

LeBron’s squad is now down 3 games to 2 in the best-of-7 series.

Is his right elbow more of an issue than previously thought? Or:

Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, writing at LeBron James, reports:

How can you allow your team to lose 120-88 on your home court as you did to Boston in Tuesday’s Game 5? Certainly, you couldn’t win it yourself. But early in the game, you seemed resigned to the worst, taking only 14 shots and being outplayed and outhustled by Paul Pierce.

In the Cavs’ three losses, you have attempted only 18, 15 and 14 shots.

Where is the LeBron James who went down firing in the Eastern Conference Finals last season, averaging 38 points in this six games against Orlando?

Or the LeBron James who fired up 20-25-23-24 shots in the last four games of the 2008 series against the Celtics. Or the LeBron James who scored 45 in that Game 7 loss in Boston?

Or how about the LeBron James who had a miserable ordeal in the four-game sweep by San Antonio in 2007, but still put up 16-21-23-30 shots? In 2006 when the Cavs were eliminated 79-61 in a Game 7 at Detroit, you were 11-of-24 from the field for 27 points.

LeBron, you have always gone out with fire in your eyes, your finger on the trigger. You have been willing to take the criticism, even when you know that the Cavs had not supplied you with much support.

The world will tune in Thursday night for Game 6 in Boston.

Game 5: Celtics shock Cavs with 32-point win

The AP reports:

Ray Allen scored 25 points, Rajon Rondo scored all of his 16 in the second half and the Celtics, once thought too old to challenge for another title, beat James and the Cavs 120-88 in Game 5 on Tuesday night to move within one win of knocking the league’s top team from the playoffs.

Paul Pierce added 21 and Kevin Garnett 18 for the Celtics, who handed the Cavs their worst home playoff loss in history and can end Cleveland’s season with a win in Game 6 on Thursday night…

LeBron James, on the verge of an expected trip into free agency on July 1, had an atrocious game. He scored 15 points on 3-of-14 shooting, a startling outing for the 25-year-old who has been playing with a sprained elbow. He refused to use his injury as an excuse…

Rondo, coming off a 29-point, 18-rebound, 13-assist performance in Game 4, was held without a point in the first half as the Cavs concentrated their defense on stopping the point guard from penetrating into the paint. He finally got loose in the third, scoring 12 as the Celtics opened a 21-point lead…

James missed his first seven shots before he got loose on a leak-out dunk with 6:15 left in the third.

The Cavs led 29-21 when, with Rondo on the bench, Boston’s Big Three of Allen, Garnett and Pierce did all the scoring in a 16-0 run that put the Celtics ahead by eight.

George M. Thomas of the Akron Beacon Journal reports:

The Cavs trailed just 50-44 at halftime, but that changed at the onset of the third quarter. Allen came out and made two consecutive 3-point shots to quickly double the lead to 12 points.

With Allen heating up, Brown sent guard Anthony Parker out on him and put Mo Williams back on Rondo. Rondo went directly at Williams to the tune of eight quick points before Brown called a timeout. After the timeout, Williams disappeared for the remainder of the third quarter, along with the Cavs’ hopes for winning the game.

”We have to do a better job with our team defense,” Brown said. ”Mo had gotten beaten a couple times, but there were a couple of times when we didn’t play the right defense behind him.”

The blame is not solely on Williams; there’s plenty to go around. After Tuesday’s game, there has to be a question about James’ health. After enduring a miserable Game 4, if he were true to form, he would return to inflict damage on the Celtics in Game 5. That wasn’t the case.

Has Carlos Boozer played last game for Jazz?

Jody Genessy of the Deseret News reports:

Nobody knows where Carlos Boozer will end up after he becomes an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

That’s not the only unsettled — and unsettling — question regarding the Utah Jazz power forward.

Many had to wonder where he was Monday for most of Game 4, too.

Miami? Chicago? New Jersey? Detroit?

Boozer — especially his offensive game the Jazz rely on — was missing in action for much of the night during Utah’s season-ending 111-96 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers at EnergySolutions Arena.

“I thought I was terrible,” Boozer admitted.

Struggling again to cope with the Los Angeles Lakers’ length, Boozer didn’t seem to save his best for what could have been his last performance in a Jazz uniform. Though he grabbed 14 rebounds, Boozer’s shot was way off again… He missed seven of 11 field goals and finished with only 10 points.

Game 4: Lakers eliminate Jazz

The AP reports:

The Lakers stormed out to a 22-point lead in the first half, then withstood a brief surge by Utah in the third quarter before regaining control in the fourth and winning 111-96 on Monday night, sweeping the second-round series and advancing to the Western Conference finals for the third straight year.

“With close-out games, you have a tendency to lose focus,” said Kobe Bryant, who scored 32 for the Lakers. “We kept our concentration and paid attention to detail.”

Pau Gasol added 33 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers, who are off until hosting the Phoenix Suns next Monday in Game 1 of the West finals…

“We’re a playoff team and they’re a championship team. They’re just better than we are,” said Deron Williams, who had 21 points and nine assists for the Jazz…

Carlos Boozer had 10 points and 14 rebounds, and Kyrylo Fesenko added 12 rebounds for Utah, which was swept for the first time in 21 years.

Game 4: Magic eliminate Hawks

The AP reports:

Vince Carter scored 22 points to lead another dominating performance by the Magic, which finished off its second straight playoff sweep with a 98-84 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday night.

Orlando won the four games by an average of 25.3 points—a total blowout that no one could have expected in a matchup between the teams that finished second and third in the Eastern Conference. It was the most lopsided four-game sweep in NBA playoff history, according to STATS LLC…

“We would have to be playing at our absolute, absolute best—like, mistake free—to beat that team,” said Jamal Crawford, who led Atlanta with 18 points…

Atlanta held Dwight Howard to 13 points and eight rebounds, but the Magic had plenty of other options…

Jameer Nelson was unstoppable, baffling the Hawks with his now-you-see-him, now-you-don’t quickness. He finished with 16 points and nine assists. Rashard Lewis scored 17 points, knocking down four 3-pointers. Mickael Pietrus scored 12 points—all of them from beyond the arc.

As a team, Orlando was 16 of 37 from 3-point range, taking more long-range shots than two-pointers (28). Overall, the Magic shot 55 percent from the field and never trailed during either game in Atlanta…

Hawks star Joe Johnson finished off a miserable series by scoring only 14 points on 5-for-15 shooting.

Joe Johnson probably costing himself money with play vs Magic

Chris Sheridan of ESPN reports:

“Joe, do you think you are costing yourself money?”

That was the question posed to Joe Johnson after one of the more lackluster playoff performances a supposed max-salary player had played since the term “max-salary player” was added to the NBA lexicon in 1999.

And even more unbelievable than his performance and that of his teammates was Johnson’s answer: “No.”

Huh?

Let me try to get this straight: In one of the final games this highly talented player will perform in before becoming an unrestricted free agent July 1, Johnson attempted 15 shots, missed 12 of them, was booed repeatedly and loudly and had about as much impact on the outcome as teammate Mario West, who was inactive.

Memo to Johnson: Go back and take a look at what the Dow Jones did last Thursday. Go look at the value of Accenture stock, which went from $35 a share to mere pennies in an eyeblink. (OK, so that was caused by a glitch.) Read up on what’s happening with the economic crisis in Greece, where the word “plummet” is being redefined downward with each passing day.

Because a stinker like the one Johnson played Saturday in the Atlanta Hawks’ 105-75 shellacking at the hands of the Orlando Magic is bound to have a profound, multimillion-dollar impact on the value of the contract(s) Johnson will be offered when he hits the open market.