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NBA Playoffs: LeBron James and Paul George locked in battle

The Eastern Conference finals between the plucky Indiana Pacers and top-seeded Miami Heat is giving NBA fans a battle with all the hallmarks of a classic series, including a fierce duel between two red-hot players.

Miami’s LeBron James, the top player in the league today, was always going to be the key figure in the 2013 playoffs but Indiana’s Paul George has emerged as the young pretender to his crown with the best-of-seven series tied at 1-1.

Toward the end of Indiana’s 97-93 road win on Friday in which James carried a strangely misfiring Heat team with a game-high 36 points, the 23-year-old George delivered game-winning defense against the Heat star to add to his 22 points.

There were moments where the play between the two truly took on the nature of a duel, none more so than a wild sequence in the closing seconds of the third quarter.

Moments after George beat James en route to powering home a highlight-reel dunk, the league’s reigning Most Valuable Player, facing George, responded with a three-pointer to close the quarter and cut Indiana’s lead to 76-74.

James, 28, then slapped hands with George and, according to the Pacers forward, said: “I got you back young fella.”

Reported by Simon Evans of Reuters

NBA Playoffs: Pacers take Game 2 from Heat, 97-93

David West punched two passes from LeBron James away in the final minute, then punched the air.

He had plenty of reason to celebrate.

The Eastern Conference finals are tied, and home-court advantage now belongs to West and the Indiana Pacers.

Roy Hibbert scored a postseason career-high 29 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, West broke up two passes by James for huge turnovers, and the Pacers evened the East title series at a game apiece with a 97-93 victory over the Miami Heat in Game 2 on Friday night.

”We haven’t done anything yet,” Hibbert said. ”We haven’t closed the series out. We won one game. A lot of us feel we should be up 2-0.”

Paul George scored 22 points, George Hill added 18 and West finished with 13 for the Pacers, who handed the Heat just their fourth loss in their last 50 games, closed the game on a 13-5 run – and denied one of the game’s best playmakers in James twice in the final moments to finish it off…

With Indiana up 95-93, West intercepted a pass that James was throwing to Ray Allen with 43 seconds left. Indiana didn’t cash in that mistake, instead turning the ball over with a shot-clock violation.

So on the next Miami trip, West denied James – who led all scorers with 36 points – again…

The Heat got 17 points from Chris Bosh and 14 from Dwyane Wade. The Heat led 88-84 in the fourth quarter, only to let the lead, the game and the home-court edge slip away, and James had almost an expressionless look afterward…

Hibbert was creating one problem after another for Miami, so James took it upon himself to challenge him in the fourth. And with about 8 minutes left, he swatted a putback attempt away from the 7-foot-2 Indiana center, starting a play that ended with Chalmers scoring at the other end to give Miami an 85-84 lead…

The Pacers were called for four technicals (one a defensive 3-second) in a 4-minute span of the second quarter.

Reported by Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press

According to ESPN.com, “James had two turnovers in the game’s final minute, which is extremely unusual for him. This was the first postseason game in his career in which he had two turnovers in the game’s final 60 seconds. In 125 previous playoff games, James had turned the ball over only seven times in the final minute of the fourth quarter or overtime. Roy Hibbert was on the court when James drove into the lane and turned the ball over with eight seconds remaining. James has one basket and four turnovers on drives to the basket in which Hibbert is on the floor in these two games. When Hibbert is off the court, James has four baskets (on five shots) and no turnovers on drives to the hoop. James finished with three assists and five turnovers. The last time he had more turnovers than assists in a game was March 27 against the Chicago Bulls, a 101-97 loss that snapped the Heat’s 27-game winning streak.”

2013 NBA Draft: Trey Burke to work out for Orlando Magic

For Trey Burke, the wait is officially on.

The NBA draft combine has ended, the lottery ping pong balls have been sorted and there’s more than a month between today and the 2013 draft (June 27).

And now, he’ll wait to see where the next chapter of his life will begin.

The former Michigan point guard has yet to formally work out for any NBA teams yet, and as of now, he says he’s only got one formal individual session scheduled — with the Orlando Magic, who hold the No. 2 pick in the draft.

Asked if he’ll go through any type of workout in front of the Detroit Pistons — who hold the No. 8 pick — Burke said he’s not sure.

Reported by Nick Baumgardner of Michigan Live

Mayors from San Antonio, Memphis bet BBQ on hoops

The mayor of San Antonio says everyone knows the best barbecue and basketball comes from Texas. The mayor of Memphis notes barbecue is prized in his city, where restaurant smoke stacks rise like steeples.

So the mayors have bet barbecue on the NBA Western Conference final.

Mayor Julian Castro will pay up with barbecue from The Granary ‘Cue & Brew if the Spurs lose, while Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. will put up the Rendezvous if the Grizzlies lose.

Reported by the Associated Press

Future looks bright for Suns guard Goran Dragic

In a Suns season that went very much wrong, Goran Dragic did a lot right.

He led the team in scoring (14.7), assists (7.4) and steals (1.6), setting career highs in each category. He also averaged a career-high 3.1 rebounds.

“I thought the first half of the season he probably was from about 15-20 in the rankings among point guards. I think he jumped probably close to top 10 in the last 41 games,” interim head coach Lindsey Hunter said following the season. “Hopefully that will catapult him to possibly being an All-Star.”

If Dragic can duplicate his second half numbers (16.1 points, 9.5 assists in 36 minutes per game) into the first half of next season, then yes, an NBA All-Star Game appearance may be in his future.

“Every player has his goals, including me,” said Dragic, who had 15 of his 20 double-digit assist games post All-Star break. “My goal is to someday hopefully play in an All-Star game. That’s my goal, so every season I try to get better and better.

Reported by Craig Grialou of Arizona Sports

Roy Hibbert calls out Shane Battier for cheapshot

Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert is calling out Miami Heat forward Shane Battier for his dirty play.

Hibbert took exception to Battier’s shot to his groin area in the first half of Miami’s Game 1 victory Wednesday night.

“U can knee or kick me every time u drive 2the rim. I’ll be there 2protect the rim. That wasn’t inadvertent. Battier knew what he was doing,” Hibbert wrote on Twitter on this evening.

Reported by Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star

Chris Andersen doing a lot to help Miami Heat

The Heat’s record since Anderson came on board is an astounding 48-5. In the playoffs, a span of 10 games in which the Heat have lost just once, Anderson is 29-for-35 (82 percent) from the floor and averaging nearly eight points a game.

His line in Wednesday’s Eastern Conference finals Game 1 victory for the Heat: a perfect 7-for-7 shooting for a season-high 16 points in 18 minutes, along with five rebounds and five blocked shots.

“He’s playing as well as any center in the league,” Pacers coach Frank Vogel said.

The performance wasn’t lost on the Miami fans, who’ve quickly developed an affection for the high-impact reserve. He’s become so beloved in just half a season that when he was subbed out in overtime of Game 1 for Shane Battier, boos echoed throughout American Airlines Arena.

Reported by Zak Keefer of the Indianapolis Star

Nets wanted to interview Doc Rivers

The next coach of the Nets won’t be Doc Rivers.

ESPNBoston.com reported Thursday night that the Nets reached out to Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge about potentially sitting down with Rivers to discuss the team’s head coaching opening, but that Ainge refused to grant them permission.

That Ainge would deny the Nets a chance to sit down with Rivers isn’t at all surprising, given that he still has three years and over $20 million remaining on the extension he signed with Boston back in 2011 – one that made him one of the game’s highest-paid coaches – and is widely to be considered among the league’s best coaches.

Reported by Tim Bontemps of the New York Post (Blog)

Pacers coach takes shot at Knicks coach

In the wake of Frank Vogel’s decision to bench center Roy Hibbert for the final two defensive possessions of the Heat’s 103-102 win over the Pacers on Wednesday in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals, the Pacers coach directed some criticism toward Knicks coach Mike Woodson following yesterday’s practice.

“They had a more intelligent plan against Roy Hibbert than New York did, and we’ve got to adjust,” Vogel said following his team’s practice in Miami ahead of tonight’s Game 2.

With Hibbert sitting on the bench for the final 2.2 seconds, LeBron James took the inbounds pass and, after Paul George closed out too quickly, blew by him for an uncontested layup at the buzzer to give the Heat a heart-stopping win and leave the Pacers wondering what might have been.

Reported by Tim Bontemps of the New York Post

Pacers, Heat bring playoffs to life with overtime thriller

The Indiana Pacers fell just short in the Eastern Conference finals opener but their gritty display pumped life into the NBA playoffs and let the defending champion Miami Heat know they have a battle on their hands.

The ease with which the top-seeded Heat have brushed aside opponents during the regular season and playoffs has given an air of inevitability to this year’s postseason, resulting in falling television ratings and plummeting interest.

But those hoping for tighter games with the chance of an upset would have been encouraged by the way the Pacers gave a timely warning to the Heat that they will need to draw on all their talent to reach a third straight final.

“It doesn’t matter if you win by one or if you win by 30 or whatever the case may be. You just want to win. We have to be better Friday if we want to win again,” LeBron James said after powering Miami to a 103-102 overtime victory on Wednesday.

Indiana have struggled on the road this year, losing 21 of 40 games in the regular season, but in a scrappy, foul-ridden game that came alive spectacularly in the closing stages, the Pacers showed their mettle.

Reported by Simon Evans of Reuters