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The 2010 NBA Finals schedule is now official.
Of course, we don’t actually know which teams are playing in it. The Celtics currently lead the Magic 3 games to 1, while the Lakers and Suns are tied at 2 games apiece.I think we’ll see a Lakers-Celtics championship round.
But, the actual times and dates of the finals are confirmed.
See the schedule here.
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Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash this morning was seen by Suns general otolaryngology doctor (ear, nose and throat), Dr. Ryan Rehl. Nash was diagnosed with a minimally displaced nasal fracture with displaced cartilage. He will undergo a minor reduction, putting the nose back in place, later today.
Nash will practice with the team today and will not miss any time.
Nash suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of the Suns’ win over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals Sunday at US Airways Center.
Tickets for the Phoenix Suns’ next home game of the 2010 Western Conference Finals on Tue., May 25, have sold out.
The AP reports:
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Amar’e Stoudemire matched his career playoff high with 42 points, 29 in the second half, and grabbed 11 rebounds to power the Phoenix Suns to a 118-109 victory Sunday night that cut the Los Angeles Lakers’ lead in the series to 2-1…
Robin Lopez, whose 7-foot presence gave the Suns some much-needed toughness inside, scored 20 on 8-of-10 shooting in 31 minutes, by far his most playing time since returning from a back injury at the start of the series. Phoenix made 37-of-42 free throws, 14 of 18 by Stoudemire. The Lakers were 16 of 20 at the line…
Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register reports (via blog):
The Lakers’ primary area of dominance — the paint — was muted by Phoenix’s zone. The points in the paint were 44 for the Lakers and 40 for the Suns. The Lakers took 32 3-point shots — a franchise playoff record — and made just nine (28 percent).
The Lakers tied the franchise playoff record by taking 31 3-point shots in their April 22 loss at Oklahoma City. They made 10 3-pointers that game (32 percent). The Lakers are 0-3 in the three playoff games in which they took 31 3-point shots, and now they’ve lost shooting 32 also.
Also hurting the Lakers’ cause inside was early foul trouble first for Andrew Bynum and then for Lamar Odom. Neither one wound up sustaining an effort, with Odom fouling out after making a series of poor decisions in the fourth quarter. He appeared bothered by a sore right side after driving into traffic in the first half and not getting a foul call.
InsideHoops.com notes:
Both teams shot a similar field goal percentage, and both were off from three-point range, though the Lakers tossed up way more from outside. The shooting stat that matters most is the free throw category: Suns 37-of-42, Lakers 16-of-20. Isn’t homecourt fun sometimes? Also, the Lakers committed 17 turnovers; the Suns just seven.
Steve Nash had 17 points and 15 assists. He brought it.
Ron Artest and Lamar Odom tossed up bricks, including lots of bad misses from three-point range.
Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times reports:
The Lakers’ minor league affiliate, the Los Angeles D-Fenders, will take a one-year hiatus and will no longer use Staples Center as its home base, The Times has learned.
Lakers owner Jerry Buss will retain ownership of the D-Fenders, who are expected to reemerge at a different Southern California venue for the 2011-12 season.
Buss bought the team in July 2006 to try to create a legitimate feeder team for the Lakers, but the D-Fenders generated no revenue from ticket sales because the only people allowed to attend their home games were those who bought tickets to Lakers home games.
D-Fenders games at Staples Center typically started four hours before a Lakers game, often in front of crowds of fewer than 100 people, though Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak often was among the spectators.
Lisa Dillman of the Los Angeles Times reports:
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Ron Artest managed to hit three three-point attempts in Game 2 and was six for nine from the field in scoring 18 points, a slight uptick from his Game 1 performance of 14 points.
There is, apparently, no explanation for his enhanced shooting.
“I’m not sure. I have no clue. I really don’t. I really don’t,” Artest said. “. . . All I do is shoot it. . . . I don’t know what it’s doing.”
More shooting practice in the gym?
“I don’t know,” he said. “I shoot a lot every day. When I was going 0 for 10 or whenever that was, I was in here shooting.”
Back to his comfort level with the triangle offense: Artest managed to get off a good line about his teammates.
“There are still guys that don’t know the triangle and they’ve been here longer than me,” he said, looking amused.
The Arizona Republic reports:
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The pep talk came on the flight back from Los Angeles, and it set Channing Frye straight.
“I got an earful on the plane from my wife, man, but it was all positive,” the Suns’ center said Friday. “She’s like, ‘Just think about how far you’ve come and have some fun. . . . This is not you. This is not who you are. You’re supposed to be this and that. You’re showing everybody else wrong. Imagine if our kid was here now. How would you want him to act?’ “
That made Frye, whose wife is expecting their first child in October, realize he’s making mountains out of molehills. Through two games of the Western Conference finals, this has not been his series. A consistent long-rang shooter throughout the regular season, Frye has made just 1 of 13 against the Lakers. He played only 8 minutes, 39 seconds in Game 2, a season low.
The San Antonio Silver Stars today announced the signing of veteran forward Chamique Holdsclaw. Per team policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.
In order to make room on the 11-woman roster for Holdsclaw, the Silver Stars waived guard Belinda Snell.
Holdsclaw signed with the Dream in April 2009 after the team acquired her rights from the Los Angeles Sparks. The 10-year WNBA veteran requested a trade from the Atlanta Dream prior to the start of 2010 training camp and did not report to the team; she was released from Atlanta on May 19, 2010.
“We are thrilled to have Chamique join the Silver Stars family,” said Silver Stars General Manager Dan Hughes. “Chamique and our staff felt it was such a great fit. We are excited to get to work with Chamique in a Silver Stars uniform.”
Holdsclaw originally was selected first overall by the Washington Mystics in the 1999 WNBA Draft. In her 10 seasons in the WNBA, Holdsclaw has tallied career averages of 17.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game.
The 6-foot-2 forward was recognized as the 1999 WNBA Rookie of the Year in addition to being named a starter in the league’s inaugural All-Star Game. She spent six seasons in Washington and earned four All-Star Game selections (1999-2002) during her time with the Mystics. Her most productive season came in 2003 as she averaged a career-high 20.5 points, 10.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.
Prior to the start of the 2005 season, Holdsclaw was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks in exchange for DeLisha Milton-Jones and the 13th overall pick in the 2005 WNBA Draft. Holdsclaw’s tally of 17.0 points per game in 2005 ranked her third in the league. She was voted into the WNBA All-Star game for the sixth time in her career and reached two career milestones: 6,000 minutes and 3,000 career points. In 2006, Holdsclaw was named a WNBA All-Decade Honorable.
After playing in five games with the Sparks in 2007, Holdsclaw announced her retirement from the league but continued to play overseas for TS Wisla Can-Pak Krakow (Poland).
On Dec. 17, 2008, the Dream acquired the rights to Holdsclaw from the Sparks in exchange for the no. 13 pick in the 2009 WNBA Draft. She tallied averages of 13.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game with the Dream last season before missing the last nine games of regular season play and Atlanta’s first playoffs appearance after undergoing successful arthroscopic knee surgery.
Prior to being drafted into the WNBA, Holdsclaw completed an illustrious collegiate career at Tennessee that included being named a four-time Kodak All-American. She collected 3,025 career points and 1,295 career rebounds which made her the all-time leading scorer and rebounder in Tennessee history among both men and women. Additionally, her points and rebounds tallies ranked her first all-time in SEC women’s history and also first in the history of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. She won the Naismith Player of the Year trophy twice (1998, 1999) and was named the Naismith Player of the Century for the 1990s as she helped lead the Lady Vols to a 134-17 record during her time at Tennessee.
Snell has tallied career averages of 4.2 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game in 112 games played. She signed with the Silver Stars as a free agent on March 30, 2009 and recorded a career-high 6.2 points per game and a career-high 2.3 rebounds per game in her first season in San Antonio. Snell re-signed with San Antonio on April 28, 2010, after reaching the FIBA Euroleague Women finals and winning the F.E.B. title with Ros Casares (Valencia, Spain).
“Belinda was a wonderful member of the Silver Stars and we want to thank her and wish her the best in the future,” said Hughes.
The AP reports:
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Pau Gasol scored 14 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter, Kobe Bryant had 21 points and 13 assists, and the Lakers roared away in the final minutes for a 124-112 victory Wednesday night to claim a series lead that seems much more daunting than 2-0…
Bryant’s streak of six straight 30-point games ended, yet he capped his night as a creator by setting up Gasol for two tough baskets in the final minutes, with Gasol scoring with a flourish and drawing a foul each time…
Ron Artest scored 18 points for the Lakers, who won their eighth straight playoff game and moved within striking distance of a tantalizing NBA finals showdown with the Boston Celtics, who lead Orlando 2-0 in the East…
“It’s really tough because we have so many guys on this team that can hurt you offensively,” said Lamar Odom, who had 17 points and 11 rebounds…
“We still scored enough points tonight, but when they can score 120-something, that’s asking the offense to score too much,” said Phoenix’s Steve Nash, who had 11 points and 15 assists…
Grant Hill scored 14 of his 23 points in the third quarter while Phoenix erased a 14-point deficit, playing with more efficiency and aggression than in Game 1.
Jason Richardson scored 27 points for Phoenix, and Jared Dudley hit five 3-pointers.
The AP reports:
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Even with a balky knee and a litany of additional woes, Kobe Bryant still is among the most dangerous postseason scorers in NBA history—and he had no problem giving Los Angeles an early leg up in the Western Conference finals.
Bryant scored 40 points, Lamar Odom added 19 points and 19 rebounds, and the Lakers opened the series with ruthless offensive efficiency in a 128-107 victory on Monday night…
Pau Gasol had 21 points for the top-seeded Lakers, who won their seventh straight playoff game and snapped the Suns’ six-game streak with a phenomenal second half, highlighted by Bryant’s 21-point third quarter. He barely stepped on the Lakers’ practice court during the past week to rest his ailing knee, ankle, finger and back—all minor impediments to a major talent…
Amare Stoudemire scored 23 points and Steve Nash had 13 points and 13 assists for the Suns, who hadn’t lost since April 24. Robin Lopez started at center and scored 14 points in his playoff debut, but Phoenix couldn’t keep up with the champs’ height and 58-percent shooting in the Suns’ first conference finals appearance since 2006…
Bryant and Grant Hill got technical fouls for arguing with officials 57 seconds apart in the third quarter.
InsideHoops.com notes:
This was not a defensive game. The Laker shot 58%, the Suns 49.4%. The Lakers hit 8-of-17 three-pointers, the Suns just 5-of-22.
Gasol shot 10-of-13. Bryant hit 13-of-23. Odom hit 9-of-15.
Several Suns bench players tossed bricks: Channing Frye shot 1-of-8, Jared Dudley 1-of-5, Louis Amundson 1-of-4.
Kirkland Crawford of the Detroit Free Press reports:
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The Lakers coach has made a name for himself in two ways: winning 10 NBA championships and complaining to officials via the media with stealth-like effectiveness.
And his latest target is Suns All-Star guard Steve Nash.
A couple of days ago, Jackson was asked if it was tough to prepare for Nash and Jackson quipped, “yeah, because you can’t carry the ball like he does in practice.”
So, Nash, what’s your response?
“I’ve never heard anyone accuse me of carrying it,” Nash said. “I mean, the best coach in the league Gregg Popovich (of San Antonio) didn’t have a problem with it last week.”