NBA Playoffs Blog – Page 91 – NBA Blog

Rajon Rondo hoping to avoid suspension

Rajon Rondo could be facing a suspension after making contact with official Marc Davis in the final minute of the Celtics’ 83-74 loss to the Atlanta Hawks Sunday night.

Rondo had been suspended for two games after being ejected for tossing the ball at official Sean Wright in a 96-81 loss at Detroit Feb. 19.

“I was upset with the [foul call on Brandon Bass] and I said something to [Davis],’’ Rondo said. “As I was walking, I thought he stopped and my momentum carried me into him. I think I might even tripped on his foot. I didn’t intentionally chest-bump him.’’

Asked about a possible suspension, Rondo replied, “We’ll see, it’s out of my control. Obviously, I want to be there for my teammates but, other than that, I have no control right now.’’

— Reported by Frank Dell’Apa of the Boston Globe

Stephen Curry should be ready for Warriors in 3-4 months

Arthroscopic surgery on Stephen Curry’s troublesome right ankle Wednesday ”revealed a stable ankle with no structural damage.” The Warriors said the operation performed by Dr. Richard Ferkel in Southern California ”consisted of cleaning out loose debris and scar tissue” and deemed the operation ”successful.”

Curry is expected to resume basketball activities in three to four months. Golden State hopes its franchise point guard can avoid another more serious surgery for the second straight summer and be ready for fall’s training camp.

”The surgery went about as well as we could have hoped for entering the procedure,” Ferkel said in a statement. ”We were pleased that the surgery was limited to simply a cleaning out procedure and I anticipate that he’ll be ready before for the start of training camp.”

— Reported by the Associated Press

Pat Riley says LeBron James does not need a go-to move

Does an NBA superstar need some sort of clearly-defined go-to move? A first-option offensive maneuver that the player almost always tries to execute before he allows the defense to force him to try something else?

Pat Riley says no. Not if a player’s entire game is one giant go-to entity of sheer awesomeness.

Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports:

As difficult as the ending was for the Miami Heat just over a week ago, coming up two victories short against the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals, the Heat’s president said Tuesday he does not envision the need for dramatic changes.That includes the need for LeBron James to reinvent himself, as some have suggested.

“He’s got a go-to game. He doesn’t have to have a go-to move,” Riley said during an informal season-ending media session at AmericanAirlines Arena. “I mean, I love reading all the people who’ve never coached in their life, that all of a sudden became experts about he needed a ‘go-to.’ He’s got a go-to game.

“He knows what he needs to do to get better as a player. He’s 26 years old and I think there’s another huge upside for him.”

LeBron is definitely capable of scoring at will when he actively and aggressively attacks the rim. But when he just stands outside like he did for stretches of the Finals? Not so much.

What’s your opinion? Read fan reaction and discuss it in this forum topic.

Caron Butler proud of his Mavericks

Two-time NBA All-Star forward Caron Butler may have been out injured during the Dallas Mavericks playoff run to the 2011 NBA championship, but he’s still proud to be a part of the team and is happily soaking it all in.

“I’m trying to take it all in stride. All your life you want to be a champion. You always carry yourself like that, and represent your family the right way. To reach this height is so rewarding,” said Butler. “So many great players always fall short of this goal. It is a very humbling experience.”

Butler, who went down halfway through the year with a season-ending torn patella injury, says he was in fact just days from being cleared for a return by the Mavericks. He had been playing 1-on-1 and 2-on-2 in practice, and was participating in shoot-around. The team even brought his uniform to Miami, just in case he was cleared.

“It took me nine years to get here. I was playing some of the best ball of my career, and life threw something at me. I kept moving forward, and that was our team’s identity. Coach said we’re going to continue to move forward because that’s what you did. I was less than a week out from being cleared. I was so close to coming back. This team inspired me, the same amount that I inspired them. It was more and more a breath of fresh air. And together we made beautiful music.”

Continued Butler, “Jason Kidd and Jason Terry saying they were going to dedicate the playoffs to me, that was really special. For Kidd, a future Hall of Famer, and Terry, whose jersey will probably hang in the rafters in Dallas one day, to say that, let me know that they respect me as basketball player, but more than that, they respect me as a person. In a sense, I felt like I was more a part of the win this way, than if I was out there myself.”

NBA Finals Game 6 earns its best TV rating in 11 years

The AP reports:

The Dallas Mavericks’ clinching victory in the NBA finals earned the highest preliminary television rating for a Game 6 in 11 years.

The Mavericks’ 105-95 win over the Miami Heat on Sunday on ABC drew a 15.0 overnight rating. That’s the best for a Game 6 since 2000, when the Lakers clinched a title over the Pacers. There had been five series since that went at least six games.

The rating was up 35 percent from Game 6 of the 2006 finals between the same teams, when the Heat clinched a championship. It was up 22 percent from last year’s Game 6, when the Lakers routed the Celtics to force Game 7.

Ad in Miami Herald sends congrats to Heat for winning championship they did not win

The AP reports:

A full-page ad that ran in Monday’s Miami Herald reads “Congratulations Miami” next to photos of Heat championship T-shirts and hats from Macy’s. One T-shirt reads “Heat 2011 NBA Finals Champions” and the ad shows the Heat’s logo on a hat with the words “NBA Champions.”

The ad ran under a story about the Heat’s loss.

The newspaper has issued a correction and apologized for any inconvenience.

Champion Mavericks arrive home in Dallas

The AP reports:

The Dallas Mavericks returned home in triumph on Monday, cheered by hundreds of fans celebrating the franchise’s first NBA title and the first professional championship of any kind in the area in more than a decade.

Owner Mark Cuban walked off the plane at Love Field carrying the championship trophy he was handed after Sunday’s Game 6 win over the Miami Heat.

Next came forward Dirk Nowitzki with hardware of his own: The NBA finals MVP trophy that was awarded after he overcame a finger injury, illness and smothering defense from the Heat to power fourth-quarter comeback wins…

The team charter passed under a water cannon salute after it landed. Cuban, a cigar in his mouth, walked off first, followed by Nowitzki, both holding the trophies high. They then went across the runway to a security fence, touching off a celebration that lasted about 30 minutes and allowing fans who spent hours waiting in 90-degree heat to get a taste of the title.

Cuban eventually handed off the championship trophy to members of the team, who walked along the fence as fans held cell phone high to take photos. As Nowitzki was driven away, he held the MVP trophy aloft through the sun roof of his sport utility vehicle.

Details have not been announced on a celebration parade. Cuban repeated Monday that he will personally pay for the event.

Mavs beat Heat 105-95 in Game 6 to win 2011 NBA championship

The AP reports:

For Dirk Nowitzki, the resume is complete. He’s an NBA champion.

For LeBron James, the agonizing wait continues for at least one more year.

A season that began with Miami celebrating the signings of James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh—along with the promise of championships—ended on the very same floor, with the Dallas Mavericks hoisting the title trophy for the first time in their franchise history after beating the Heat 105-95 on Sunday night. The Mavericks won four of the series’ last five games, a turnabout that could not have been sweeter.

“I really still can’t believe it,” said Nowitzki, who had 21 points and took home finals MVP honors.

He and Jason Terry, who led the Mavs with 27 points, were the two remaining players from the Dallas team that lost to Miami in the 2006 finals.

“Tonight,” Terry said, “we got vindication.”

James did not. Not even close, and a year unlike any other ended they way they all have so far—with him still waiting for an NBA title.

He scored 21 points for Miami, shook a few hands afterward, and departed before most of the Mavs tugged on their championship hats and T-shirts. Bosh had 19, Mario Chalmers 18 and Wade 17 for the Heat.

The AP reports:

LeBron James said losing the NBA finals to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday felt like a “personal failure,” but he refused to let it bother him that so many people were happy to see him falter.

James’ first finals with the Miami Heat ended Sunday with the Mavericks’ 105-95 victory in Game 6. James started strong and wilted at the finish, just the way the Heat did in the series.

The AP reports:

Mark Cuban zipped his lips and won a championship.

And when it was time for his old nemesis David Stern to hand him the shiny gold trophy, this was his big chance to say anything he wanted, with everyone watching.

So, what did he do?

He stood behind a 78-year-old man and let him take center stage, a reward for Donald Carter having founded the team 31 long years ago. He brought his wife and three kids on the podium to enjoy the moment. He even realized how corny he was being when he told his toddler son, “This could be yours.”

Then, out came the Mark Cuban most sports fans remember.

He swore in multiple TV interviews to emphasize how proud he was of his fans. He walked into a postgame news conference talking on the phone, hung up and hollered, “Did anybody inform you guys, we’re the world champions?!” On his way out, he took the trophy with him and declared it was spending the night in his room.

The AP reports:

The Mavericks took control in the second half of the game after some wild momentum shifts in the opening two quarters. Miami took its last lead of the game just 64 seconds into the second half, lost it 16 seconds later and chased the Mavericks the rest of the way.

Nowitzki sealed the win with 2:27 left, hitting a jumper near the Miami bench to put Dallas up 99-89. He then walked to the Mavs’ side slowly, right fist clenched above his head.

“This is a true team,” Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. “This is an old bunch. We don’t run fast or jump high. These guys had each other’s backs. We played the right way. We trusted the pass. This is a phenomenal thing for the city of Dallas.”

Carlisle joined a highly elite group with the win—those with NBA titles as both a player and a head coach. He was a part of the Boston Celtics team that won the championship over the Houston Rockets in 1986.

The AP reports:

Dirk Nowitzki has been named Most Valuable Player of the NBA finals for his huge role in leading the Dallas Mavericks to their first championship.

Although the German star struggled in the Mavericks’ Game 6 victory on Sunday, he certainly put them in position to win it all, overcoming injury and illness to power fourth-quarter comebacks from deficits of 12, nine and four points in Dallas’ previous wins.

The AP reports:

Nowitzki missed 11 of his first 12 shots and matched his series low with 21 points, yet with Jason Terry scoring 27 and every starter and reserve making some sort of significant contribution, the Mavericks beat the Miami Heat 105-95 Sunday night to wrap up the first title in franchise history.

The difference-makers were everywhere: from Ian Mahinmi with his step-back jumper and third quarter buzzer-beater to DeShawn Stevenson and his three 3-pointers in the first half; from Brian Cardinal making a 3 and drawing a charge to J.J. Barea improving to 3-0 as a starter.

Fake DeShawn Stevenson Facebook pages causes confrontation with Rick Carlisle

Tim MacMahon of ESPN reports:

DeShawn Stevenson does not have a Facebook page.

That’s newsworthy because somebody who claims to be Stevenson posted on Facebook: “I told em Lebron is Overrated but did they listen? swag.”

Coach Rick Carlisle caught wind of that and confronted Stevenson, telling him to stop talking trash about LeBron James. Stevenson, whose history of taking verbal jabs at King James goes back several years, was confused and told his coach that the latest comment didn’t come from him.

“There’s like 37 people that are acting like me on Facebook,” Stevenson said. “I mean, if you look at me and look at all these tattoos, do you think I’d be sitting on the Internet and typing? C’mon, man. Sometimes you’ve got to look at a person. I would not be in my house on a computer typing nothing about anybody.”

Dwyane Wade says hip will be fine for NBA Finals Game 6

Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports:

Two days after bruising his left hip in Thursday’s Game 5 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in these NBA Finals, Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade was back on the court at practice Saturday at AmericanAirlines Arena, moving without visible discomfort.

Wade shot 3-pointers with teammates during the portion of practice opened to the media, wearing no additional padding or bracing on the hip.

Coach Erik Spoelstra said Wade did not participate in contact work Saturday.

“He went through the walkthrough part of our practice,” he said.

Wade said it was a collective decision to hold him out of the contact portion of practice.

“Just another day to get in treatment and getting rest,” he said, “but I’ll be totally fine when it comes to tomorrow.”