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Game 4: With bench power, Suns beat Lakers

The AP reports:

Channing Frye broke out of a horrendous shooting slump by making four 3-pointers for 14 points, and the Suns pulled away in the fourth quarter for the second game in a row to beat the Los Angeles Lakers 115-106 on Tuesday night and tie the Western Conference finals at two games apiece…

The Suns reserves, considered an advantage entering the series but largely ineffective through three games, outscored their Laker counterparts 54-20. Leandro Barbosa scored 14 on 6-of-8 shooting and Jared Dudley added 11 points. Goran Dragic ran the show at point and had eight points and eight assists in 18 minutes…

Game 4: With bench power, Suns beat Lakers

Amare Stoudemire led Phoenix with 21 points. Steve Nash, playing with a broken nose, had 15 points and eight assists.

Bryant had 38 points and 10 assists as the reigning NBA champions fought back to lead briefly early in the fourth before the Suns backups stole the show…

After slugging out a 23-23 first quarter, the Suns erupted for a series-high 41-point second quarter, shooting 74 percent (17 for 23), 7 of 10 on 3-pointers to go up 64-55 at the half—and the backups led the way.

2010 NBA Finals schedule

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.

Game 4: Magic beat Celtics in OT

The AP reports:

Put away the brooms. Hold off on those “Beat L.A!” chants. The Boston Celtics still have some work to do before they can play for their second NBA title in three years.

Dwight Howard had 32 points and 16 rebounds, and Jameer Nelson made back-to-back 3-pointers in overtime to lead the Orlando Magic to a 96-92 victory over Boston on Monday night to avoid a four-game sweep in the Eastern Conference finals…

Paul Pierce had 32 points and 11 rebounds, and Kevin Garnett had 14 points and 12 boards for Boston. Ray Allen hit consecutive 3-pointers in overtime, but Pierce missed two tries in the final minute as the Celtics failed to complete the sweep…

Nelson finished with 23 points and nine assists for the defending Eastern Conference champions, who led by 10 in the second quarter and were up 85-78 with 2:24 left in regulation before Boston scored eight of the next nine points to force overtime at 86-all.

The Boston Globe reports:

Doc Rivers: “We didn’t execute it at all, I can tell you that. It was supposed to be Paul at the top with a pick‑and‑roll with Ray [Allen], and then the floor was supposed to be flat and spaced. When you look at it, half our team was standing next to Paul. The execution was so bad ‑‑ I thought we executed poorly throughout the game. We didn’t make the next rotations, we didn’t make the next pass. It was amazing how bad we were execution‑wise and still had a chance to win that game. That was amazing to me.”

Dwight Howard: “We didn’t win this game just to win a game to say we were in this series. You know, we want to make this a series and win this series. We all have to believe that. I told the guys before the game put out all disbelief, anxiety and fear. We just got to keep playing. We can’t think about losing or think about being swept. We have to think about winning and staying together.”

The Orlando Sentinel reports:

Orlando did build a 10-point lead, its largest of the series, midway in the second period. Howard, using his quickness to elude Kendrick Perkins, keyed the run with two baskets, but the Celtics quickly recovered, Pierce answering with two buckets and Garnett with another.

But the Magic didn’t allow the Celtics to gain momentum, and led 51-47 at halftime.

DeShawn Stevenson staying with Mavericks

Kate Hairopoulos of the Dallas Morning News reports (via blog):

Guard DeShawn Stevenson will return to the Mavericks next season after exercising his player option to do so last week, his agent Mark Bartelstein said Monday.

Bartelstein said it was the right move for Stevenson after considering the free agent market this summer and after playing limited minutes for Dallas last season.

Steve Nash has broken nose, will keep playing

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.

Not a shocker: Celtics green is all across Boston

In the least shocking blog entry I’ve posted in a long time, Boston is currently flooded with Celtics green. Walk any busy section of the city and every 10 or 20 seconds, someone passing by has Celtics gear on, or at least some green.

The Celtics tonight have a chance to do what no one expected and sweep the Orlando Magic. Coming into the series, most of the NBA world was still surprised how Boston managed to handle the Cleveland Cavaliers.

I still think LeBron James’ elbow was a huge factor, even if many others refuse to factor it in. He was using his off-hand far more than usual, especially as the series progressed, and I doubt it was for the fun of it. Still, credit Boston for the series win.

And now, the Celtics are playing on a truly championship level, more or less on par with their title-winning 2008 team. And the Magic are getting wrecked.

Will the real Orlando team show up tonight for Game 4? I think we’ll see more fight than they’ve displayed in the first three games, but that isn’t saying much.

While it’s possible the Magic win tonight, there’s simply no reason to expect it.

A.J. Price injures knee in charity game

Indiana Pacers guard A.J. Price injured his left knee in a charity basketball game Saturday night in New York.

The extent of the injury has not been determined and Price will be examined by Pacers team doctors Monday afternoon in Indianapolis.

The Pacers finished the 2009-10 regular season with a 32-50 record, which was 10th best in the Eastern conference.

For the season, Price played 15.4 minutes per game, averaging 7.3 points and 1.9 assists.

Inability to push Cavs to title costs Brown

Marla Ridenour of the Akron Beacon Journal reports:

Mike Brown’s firing Monday after compiling a record of 272-138 and leading the Cavs to the league’s best regular-season record each of the past two seasons left many wondering what simmered underneath the surface between James and Brown.

It left me wondering how Brown would answer that ”Isn’t it tough to coach a superstar?” question today.

Before the playoffs, the only public rift this season appeared to come after Brown did not use Zydrunas Ilgauskas on Nov. 28 when the center could have set the team’s franchise record with 724 games played. James spoke out in the aftermath. It had to sting the ever-loyal James that Ilgauskas invited friends and family to Quicken Loans Arena for the occasion that Brown apparently forgot to celebrate.

But Brown helped James elevate his game. Buying into Brown’s defense-first mantra, James was selected to the NBA’s all-defensive first team the past two seasons. Brown convinced James that a chase-down block was just as awe-inspiring as a monster slam.

But many — including President Barack Obama — questioned how much James respected Brown. The coach was tuned out by the media because of his lack of meaty sound bites. Was that the case for the players, too?

Cavaliers fire coach Mike Brown

The Cleveland Cavaliers have announced that Mike Brown has been relieved of his duties as head coach, Cavaliers General Manager Danny Ferry announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

“I have truly enjoyed working with Mike Brown. Mike has played a huge role in turning around the Cavs organization,” Ferry said. “Over the past five years, Mike established a work ethic, defensive identity and culture of winning that was not here previously.”

Brown was hired as the 17th coach in franchise history on June 2, 2005. In five seasons with the Cavs, he compiled a record of 272-138 (.663). Brown was named the 2009 NBA Coach of the Year by members of the media.

“Mike Brown is a class act. On behalf of the entire Cavaliers organization, there is only gratitude and appreciation for Mike’s accomplishments over the past five years,” stated Cavaliers Majority Owner Dan Gilbert. “I think it is clear that Mike Brown has been instrumental in contributing to the growth and progress we have experienced in recent years. We wish Mike and his family the best of luck in any future challenges that Mike chooses to accept going forward.”

“After a long and deep analysis of all of the factors that led to the disappointing early ends to our playoff runs over the past two seasons, we concluded that it was time for the Cavaliers to move in a different direction,” Gilbert added. “The expectations of this organization are very high and, although change always carries an element of risk, there are times when that risk must be taken in an attempt to break through to new, higher levels of accomplishment. This is one of those times.”

Brown compiled a postseason record with the Cavs of 42-29 (.592). He led the team to at least the second round of the postseason in each of his five seasons, including Cleveland’s first trip to the NBA Finals in 2007.

Game 3: Stoudemire scores 42, Suns beat Lakers

The AP reports:

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.