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| Can Rajon Rondo find his way to the rim?
June 4, 2010 at 5:10 PM
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|  If the Los Angeles Lakers presented any new offensive challenges for Boston point guard Rajon Rondo(notes) in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, the 2010 All-Star wasn't admitting to any.
While pointing out that "Kobe [Bryant] did a great job" guarding him, Rondo didn't think that Bryant was working any new or previously unseen mojo in defending him, and pointed out that he "missed a couple of easy layups last night that I usually make." Easy? Because by the looks of Rondo's misses from inside the paint Thursday night, only one miss could have been qualified as e! asy. The rest of the shots — two makes, four misses, one earned trip to the line — looked incredibly hard. Rondo had no business scoring the five points that he did on those seven possessions. And five points in seven possessions is a terrible rate. Which is probably why Celtic assistant coach Clifford Ray was discussing the finer points of interior finishing with Rondo after practice Friday, as Rondo (away from the podium, and the requisite stiff upper lip) looked absolutely flustered reflecting back on what, exactly, the Lakers were doing to put him in such a perilous position. Most of these misses were reverses, sent up in a hurried and harried fashion unseen even in the Orlando series, when Rondo had to do his paint damage against Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard(notes). Rajon didn't exactly tear it up against the Magic — he! shot 42 percent on the series and his work around the rim in this postseason (excluding last night's performance) is down a bit from his shooting mark near the rim in the regular season — but the manner in which he missed those shots, so frantically, tends to stick out. Because, to get right to it, the Laker bigs had Rondo freaked out. They let him self-inflict these wounds, refusing to open up passing angles as he loped into the paint, forcing Rondo into shots he didn't want to take. WEEI's Paul Flannery pointed this out to Rondo on Friday during media availability, asking if he thought the Lakers bigs had made a point not to over-commit to Rondo before he had decided to pass or shoot, but Rondo wouldn't have any of it. "I drew the bigs a couple of times and got Perk to the free-throw l! ine. A couple of times he converted on a couple of buckets." This isn't completely true. Rondo did send Perkins to the line with a good pass on two different occasions, but the first instance took place after Rondo cut to the paint to grab a dish, nothing to do with his own penetration, and the second occurred after the Lakers miscommunicated defensively and Rondo threw a pass from the 3-point line to a wide-open Perkins. Kendrick's other basket was on a drive of his own making. Beyond those hiccups, though, it looks like a typical Phil Jackson defensive strategy. And Rondo should be honored to be in the company he's in. Because the modus operandi for Jackson, in the Finals especially, has been to force hot-shot point guards to the baseline, and push them into making decisions in the air. And those in-air choices, as the bigs cover the guard slightly and then relent as the point man nears his decision, usually end up with a shot. It doesn't mean the! point guard — we're talking about Gary Payton(notes), John Stockton and Jason Kidd(notes) here — is acting selfishly. With all the angles covered and the rim tantalizingly close to the point guard, the best option usually seems to be to toss up a shot.  Except it's a bad decision. Or, more accurately, bad execution and a bad outcome. Because Rondo, as it was with the Hall of Fame-types, could have taken advantage of Los Angeles' purposeful hesitation maneuvers. He had the space, and he certainly had another second-and-a-half of time to work with. Rondo was just unaware. He'll have to become aware, quite quick! ly.
"It's all on me," Rondo said before practice on Friday, before working on those spinning shots around the baseline. "On my judgment, knowing how to play the game." Nobody doubts Rondo's judgment after Game 1. It's a near-impossible situation to try and spin in a banked-in reverse shot with two 7-footers seemingly able to smell your breath. But the execution — an extra dribble, a pump-fake, taking off of his strong foot as opposed to the quickest foot available at the time — needs to improve. Point guards can score on Phil Jackson-led teams, because even if Russell Westbrook(notes) faded, Deron Williams(notes) disappointed and Steve Nash(notes) ultimately fell short against Los Angeles, the opportunities are there. He could create the easy looks that he was imagining from Thursday night. And Rondo's chances will return. Jackson's had the same philosophy for decades, and he's able to execute it expertly in 2010 with those 7-footers hanging around, to say nothing of the brilliant defensive decision-making from Kobe Bryant(notes) in Game 1. The burden falls to Rondo. And with Kevin Garnett(notes) fading, Ray Allen(notes) struggling to get shots off, and Ron Artest(notes) making Paul Pierce's(notes) life more difficult by the day, he might be Boston's best chance at making this a competitive series. He'll have to start by giving himself a chance to make shots. | | |
| News flash: America likes watching the Celtics and Lakers play
June 4, 2010 at 4:30 PM
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You might be wondering why Kobe Bryant(notes) and Derek Fisher(notes) are so excited that they can't even decide whether to give one another a high-five or a pound. (Ron Artest(notes) is clearly concerned about it.) Well, wonder no longer: They're psyched because the overnight ratings are in, and according to the fine people at Nielsen, the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics are huge. We're talking "bigger than CBS' comedy lineup but not as big as 'American Idol'" huge. From the Associated Press: The opener of the Celtics-Lakers NBA finals matched the teams' meeting two years ago for the highest preliminary rating for a Game 1 since 2004. Los Angeles' 102-89 win Thursday night on ABC earned a 10.4 overnight rating, up 17 percent from the 8.9 for last year's Magic-Lakers series.
A 10.4 mark is a far cry from the heady Jordan-fueled heydays of 1998 — that year's Chicago Bulls/Utah Jazz matchup earned an 18.7 household rating, according to TVbytheNumbers.com's handy 35-year breakdown of NBA Finals Nielsen ratings — but it gets the league back into double digits, which is nice. Obviously, it's completely unsurprising that Game 1 stomped both last year's model and the 2007 Finals opener between the San Antonio Spurs and Cleveland Cavaliers (which netted an 8.0) — though some may complain about how unoriginal it is to see green and gold slam together in the finals for the 12th time, familiarity with the squads and their stars breeds contempt (both on the sidelines and in the teams' fan bases) and increased viewership. The whining is fine, but whether or not folks were going to tune in was never in doubt. Also of note: It's pretty Eerie, Indiana that Game 1 of the 2010 NBA Finals earned the exact same overnight rating as Game 1 of the 2008 NBA Finals, which (as you may have heard) also pitted the C's and L's, Almost enough to make you think that there's some dark, mysterious force behind the scenes with his hand on the scales, pushing toward the most lucrative possible outcome. If you were inclined to believe in that sort of conspiracy theory, I mean. Which we're not. (Please spare us from your wrath, O Great One.) | | |
| The 10-man rotation, starring the other side of Nate Rob's neck
June 4, 2010 at 4:00 PM
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A look around the league and the web that covers it. It's also important to note that the rotation order and starting nods aren't always listed in order of importance. That's for you, dear reader, to figure out. C: SPORTSbyBROOKS. Nate Robinson(notes) has another Seattle tattoo in a painful location.
PF: MOUTHPIECE Sports. It was a bad night for Chris Rock's sideline comedy career.
SF: FirstCuts. Terrify everybody on your block with this "The Shining"-inspired Ron Artest(notes) t-shirt.
SG: TrueHoop. Just watch how good Pau Gasol(notes) was last night.
PG: FanHouse. "Dear LeBron James(notes), I take it all back."
6th: Hooped Up. Tony Allen's(notes) dunk was good, but his dismount was phenomenal.
7th: NBA Offseason. Clearly the Celtics need more headbands.
8th: Hoopsnotes. Brian Scalabrine(notes) should celebrate every good thing that ever happens.
9th: Sports Nic! kel. Miss you, giant NBA trophy at center court.
10th: Complex. A bunch of your favorite NBA bloggers chime in on the Finals. Yes, I'm there talking about eggs, as usual. Got a link or tip for Ball Don't Lie? Holler at me at trey.kerby (at) yahoo.com, or follow me on Twitter. | | |
| Recruiting LeBron James via video is fun for everyone
June 4, 2010 at 3:15 PM
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| You guys are not going to believe this — people living in New York City want LeBron James(notes) to play for the New York Knicks. I was surprised too. Shocked, even. They want him so much that the city — the actual city, you guys — put up a website hoping to lure him to the Big Apple. And then they got their mayor — the actual mayor of the biggest city in the United States — to make a video telling LeBron how much they need him. They, like, totally want him to play there. That's big-time. Having the mayor personally request your presence on a local basketball team is pretty cool, I'd imagine. It's the kind of thing Jay-Z raps about in the song "Hate" featuring Kanye West, I know that. Beats the pants off of a delicious home-cooked meal or a bunch of no-name Clevelanders singing your praises, that's for sure. (I am kidding, Cleveland. Your recruitment has been top shelf thus far, and I think your city is pretty fun. Do not have sadness about my jokes.) While I think the "Come on, LeBron" logo is extremely dope with its combination of a crown and various NYC landmarks, I also agree wi! th this one Twitter fellow named Steve who said, "the idea that the greatest city in the world needs a recruitment video is nuts." Well put, Steve. And while NYC's video is very well done, it feels like they really held back. If you must make a recruitment video for this offseason, at least go all out, like these Chicago fans did. There's really no way to argue against a man in face paint in front of a Jason Caffey jersey telling Jerry Reinsdorf and Gar Forman to "load the spaceship with the rocket fuel." It's a bulletproof pitch, really. Time is ticking. (h/t Frank) | | |
| Looking at legends: Kobe breaks down the best
June 4, 2010 at 2:30 PM
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| During halftime of Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers, ABC aired a segment that featured Kobe Bryant(notes) watching clips of some of the great players who came before him, then explaining to longtime Boston Globe hoops scribe (and recent recipient of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame's annual Curt Gowdy Media Award) Jackie MacMullan how growing up studying their excellence helped influence his game. "I've seriously - I've stolen all these moves from these great players," Bryant says with a laugh. The four-and-a-half-minute feature is an all-time great's paean to his antecedents, and it's a must-watch for folks that dig the finer points of the game. It's packed with insights into the kind of minutiae that separate the good from the great, like when Bryant gushes about Oscar Robertson "using his body" — including "that big ol' booty" — in the service of "freezing the defender and creating space." (As he watches the Big O drain a fadeaway jumper on the baseline, Bryant says, "I actually won the game with that one against Toronto.") Over the course of the film session, Bryant waxes poetic about Jerry West's "absolutely vicious" pull-up jumper, the beautiful footwork that enabled Elgin Baylor to make "an uncomfortable move" look "absolutely natural," Magic Johnson's preternatural knack for "seeing things before they ever happen" and more. He also reveals that, in his view, watching the way that opponents tried to guard the greats can be just as instructive: "I'm actually watching the defender a lot, trying to figure out what he's seeing in the offensive player to make him do what he's doing, or why that made sense ... What is he thinking in that moment? Why did that move work?" Bryant is a little more circumspect when talking about Michael Jordan - he doesn't single out a particular element of his game for praise — and even makes the somewhat-difficult-to-believe claim that he "wasn't a fan of" Jordan's as a kid: I was a big Magic fan, and so when Michael was coming along, it was kind of like a territorial kind of thing where, you know, I wanted to see Magic win. But then, once I realized I wasn't going to be 6-foot-9 like my dad, that I was pretty much stuck at this height, that I started seeing a lot of similarities in terms of physique and things like that, things that I could learn from him, at that size and how he worked.
Whether or not you buy the tone of Bryant's statement — "I mean, I don't really like the most iconic and magnetizing figure in this sport I love to play and am excellent at, but since our bodies kind of look the same, I guess I'll start paying attention to what's up with him" — it's not necessarily a slight. Plus, as you might have heard, Kobe's got the same kind of "ruthless" competitive nature as MJ, so you don't really expect him to be as forthcoming with "Michael's the best" as some other players. There's just one downside to Kobe's comments: He joined in on the now-tired meme of comparing basketball players to superheroes: For some, [their skill is] passing. Me, I'm the best - I'm a scorer. I mean, that's what I do. I look at it like superheroes. Some have webs, some can fly, some can ... you know what I mean? Everyone has their own thing that they do well or do better than the others.
All right, guys, fine. Shaquille O'Neal(notes), Dwight Howard(notes), Dwyane Wade(notes) and now, via Kobe, everybody else in the NBA are all superheroes. I'll only accept this if it means that D-Leaguers are like characters from independent and creator-owned comics. I think we'd all like to live in a world where Rob Kurz(notes) is Evil Ernie and Latavious Williams is Bone. | | |
| Danny Ferry is leaving the Cavaliers
June 4, 2010 at 1:45 PM
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|  The team he put together had won more games than any NBA team over the last two seasons.
To hear his best player (LeBron James(notes) is still under contract, mind you, for the rest of the month) tell it, his team had an "edge" to re-sign the biggest free agent since Michael Jordan's 1996 fake-flirtation with the Knicks. He's been trusted by the ownership, for years, to steer the course of James' NBA future, and owner Dan Gilbert's massive NBA investment. And Danny Ferry, apparently, wants nothing to do with it. Johnny Ludden is reporting that Ferry, the Cavaliers general manager since 2005, is leaving the team. Ferry's contract is up this summer, along with James', and the former NBA reserve and son of longtime NBA executive Bob Ferry apparently lost heart once former Cavalier coach Mike Brown was let go last month. Ferry came to the Cavs with plenty of promise. Not only did his father do fine work as the personnel boss behind the then-Washington Bullets, but Ferry played his last years in the NBA with the San Antonio Spurs, before moving on to a front office position with the team. Observing the inner-workings of the Gregg Popovich/Sam Presti-led squad allowed Ferry to move quickly up the league ranks, enough so that Gilbert (in his fifth month as Cavalier owner) hired the NBA vet just two years removed from his playing career. It was a loaded gig, from the beginning. Ferry was taking over a Cavalier team that had missed the playoffs in James' first two seasons, but he was also taking over an outfit with cap space enough to max out two free agents, along with the luxury of getting to steer the next few years of James' time in the NBA. Former Spurs assistant Mike Brown, who had coached Ferry from 2000 to 2003, had already been hired by the time Gilbert inked Ferry (along with assistant GM Chris Grant, who will be taking over the reins of the Cavaliers with Ferry's departure) to a five-year deal. Though James was just 20 at the time of Ferry's hiring, it was clear that a solid core around the burgeoning superstar could result in extended playoff trips, even if James was nearly a decade away from his prime. With this in mind, Ferry listened to James' pleas and re-signed Cavalier mainstay Zydrunas Ilgauskas(notes) to a massive contract extension that summer, one that Big Z more or less earned, despite nothing having the flashiest stats toward the end of the contract. Ilgauskas' abilities on the glass, his penchant for winning jump balls (don't laugh, this was a key), and perimeter touch were a perfect fit with James. Three other Ferry-signees were assumed to work just as well, on paper, but in the end the free agent acquisitions of Larry Hughes(notes), Damon Jones(notes), and Donyell Marshall(notes) doomed Ferry's legacy in Cleveland. All three should have worked. Marshall and Jones had just come off of incredibly efficient seasons spreading the floor in Toronto and Miami, respectively, and Hughes (at age 26) was expected to be entering his prime, while coming off an All-Star season. Hughes, especially, was the linchpin. A do-it-all guard that could handle the ball, score for stretches, get to the line, and create havoc defensively; he was expected to be the Scottie Pippen to LeBron's Michael Jordan, if only for the years leading up to LeBron's prime. The problem that Ferry and the rest of the Cavaliers eventually figured out was that James was more like Scottie Pippen than he was Michael Jordan. That's not a criticism. James is a ball-handler more than a scorer, like Pippen, and he needed people to pass to. Hughes was not and is not a catch-and-shoot player, and with James dominating the ball, Hughes developed bad habits, such as an over-reliance on low percentage perimeter tries. In reality, Hughes was sort of a mini-LeBron James at the time, and with regular-LeBron James running things, Hughes' game fell apart. Marshall and Jones' shooting also dropped off significantly, for whatever reason. Despite scads of open looks over the next few years. And with the cap filled up and the team winning games (keeping it from high lottery picks), the Cavaliers were set. For better or worse. Set well enough to go seven games into the second round in 2006 (James signed a contract extension the following offseason), and great enough (relying almost solely on James' all-around gifts) to make a Finals appearance the next season, but never potent enough to be accurately called a championship contender. As the Cavaliers tailed off, and the James' 2010 free agency dateline looming, Ferry scrambled to do something with the capped-out supporting mess he'd assembled. Hughes was sent to Chicago in a massive deal for Ben Wallace(notes), one of the league's worst contracts for another, but the Cavaliers were out in the second round again in 2008. A masterful deal to realize Mo Williams'(notes) underrated play brought the former Buck guard in over that offseason (almost immediately making Williams overrated), and the Cavaliers (with James continuing to improve by leads and bounds) secured the NBA's best record in 2008-09. The team's rotation was still limited, beyond James. Wallace could not keep up with Rashard Lewis(notes) in the Conference finals that season, and the Cavs were out in the third round. With 2010 growing closer and closer, Ferry did what he could with no salary cap room, and turned Wallace's expiring contract into Shaquille O'Neal(notes), in a last-ditch effort to match up with Orlando's Dwight Howard(notes), and make one last grab at the ring before LeBron's free agency hit. Around the same time, Gilbert had more or less made his decision on Mike Brown's usefulness as coach, and only Ferry's voice kept the 2008-09 Coach of the Year, it should be emphasized, around past the 2008-09 season. 
After a slow start, the O'Neal acquisition worked a charm, though it was LeBron's astonishing contributions that made it so the Cavaliers again owned the NBA's best record for most of the season. During trade deadline season, rumors abounded that Phoenix big man Amar'e Stoudemire(notes) would be available in a deal, and though the Cavaliers likely pressed (offering Ilgauskas' expiring contract as bait), the Suns relented, and hung onto their free agent forward. Looking to cash in on Big Z's expiring deal, the Cavs sent him to Washington for a stretch power forward in Antawn Jamison(notes). Not only did the Cavaliers not have to give up solid backup J.J. Hickson(notes) in the process, they were also more or less assured that the Wizards would immediately waive Ilgauskas, allowing for Cleveland to re-sign their longtime center a month after his release. It was an absolute sweetheart deal. And it didn't matter. James' curious play and the matchup advantages of the Boston Celtics knocked the Cavaliers out of the playoffs in the second round, and with James' non-commitment to his coach looming large, the Cavs dumped Brown a few weeks after their season ended. This was likely the last straw for Ferry. Though James had played the biggest role in every move of his tenure, it was Gilbert's growing influence that made it so he didn't want to run the team that he used to play for, working with the staff he'd put together and the roster he'd acquired. And Ferry's time in Cleveland is a cautionary tale. Sure, he'd been given the game's best talent, cap space, and five years to work with; but his entire time running the Cavaliers was shaped by one two-month span in the summer of 2005. Every move Ferry has made since was a reaction to the re-signing of Ilgauskas, and the acquisition of Hughes, Marshall, and Jones. Sound moves at the time, the worst case scenario came through in spades with Hughes, Marshall, and Jones, and despite a Finals trip and the best record in the league over the last two seasons, Ferry's Cavaliers just couldn't recover. What does this mean for the Cavaliers? As it's been since 2003, it's up to James. If he sticks, then the team moves forward, tinkering and working around his brilliance. If he splits, it's all over. That permanence, with James gone, wasn't what drove Ferry away from re-signing with the Cavaliers. Make no mistake, it was Gilbert's growing influence. And the owner, as it was when he took over the team in 2005, has what he wants. A cleared slate, in order to win James back. We'll see how that works for him. | | |
| Jason Bateman and Dustin Hoffman are kiss cam All-Stars
June 4, 2010 at 1:00 PM
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| The kiss cam is an American institution, basically. You know the deal — camera scans the crowd, finds two people sitting near each other and focuses on them until they smooch. Sometimes, as a jokey joke, they put two guys on there just to see what they'll do. It's like a happy version of one of those "Saw" movies. And then sometimes, the people in charge get even more daring and put a couple of celebrities on the kiss cam to test their mettle. Thursday night in Los Angeles during Game 1, Dustin Hoffman and Jason Bateman stepped to the metaphorical plate and hit a metaphorical home run of hilarity. 
Suuuuuuuup, guys. You win the night. Well, the Lakers win, obviously, but this makes me laugh a lot. Just two really famous guys having a kiss at a basketball game, ! no big deal. As for who was responsible for the snog — well, Bateman played one of the greatest straight men ever in "Arrested Development," and Hoffman has pulled this exact same stunt in the past. Dustin's always been a big fan of sequels. (h/t TMZ) | | |
| Create-a-caption: That's gross, Kobe
June 4, 2010 at 12:15 PM
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| We all know about Kobe Bryant's jaw and how he loves to jut it out after he makes a good play. What we didn't know is that he has a similar celebration with his tongue, only he uses this when Derek Fisher(notes) asks him about his favorite pilgrim hats. Best caption wins a tongue scraper. Good luck. 
Previously, Celtics ass! istant coach Tom Thibodeau pits out.  Winner, Mad Bladder: "KB: Looks like you've been working out hard.
TT: No, that's just from Doc's crying on my shoulder. He doesn't want me to leave this team.
KB: Then why is your armpit wet too?
TT: Nate Rob was also there."
Runner-up, Kayz: "Hey Kobe, have you seen my glasses?" Second runner-up, RMJ = Hero: "Tom finally conceded the title of most downward-sloping forehead. | | |
| Behind the Box Score, where the Lakers are locked in
June 4, 2010 at 11:25 AM
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Los Angeles Lakers 102, Boston 89; Los Angeles Lakers lead series, 1-0
It's hard to call it a startling regression, because we've seen some pretty bad worst case scenarios come to life in this postseason. Still, the Boston Celtics did briefly remind us of the step-slow and impatient team we saw from January to early April in Game 1. They didn't lose to the Wizards, at home, but they did fritter away a pretty good chance at turning the Finals on its ear. With that in place, the bigger story has to be the way the Lakers took it to the Celtics. Absolutely brought it, with intensity and trust and deliberate execution. The Lakers are so focused, so inspired, that it's only the "it's hard to beat a really good team four times in a row" ethos that is stopping me from dropping my "Lakers in six" prediction and expecting the sweep. Because Kobe Bryant(notes) is acting like the Celtics stole a smooch from his prom date, on prom night, which can't possibly be the case because Brandy was his prom date, and I probably can pretty accurately vouch for the location of each and every Celtic on May 17th, 1996. And as Adrian Wojnarowski brought up last night, Pau Gasol(notes) isn't far behind. Toss in Ron Artest's(notes) steely gaze, Derek Fisher's(notes) unrelenting play, and a sound enough night from the supporting cast, and it's a wonder the defending champs didn't win by 20. Well, maybe not "a wonder," because the Celtics can play. They wanted this, I have no doubt, but I also got the feeling they were a little unsure about how to go about getting it. A little unsure as to how the Lakers would come out, and how to get to that Laker defense. It was an ugly game marred by a lot of whistles, but it seemed as if the Celtics kept insisting on trying to get to the line and work the refs more than they wanted to make the extra pass. Or the smart pass. Making the extra pass was a problem. Kevin Garnett(notes) took a series of ill-advised jumpers, Paul Pierce(notes) wasn't far off, and Rajon Rondo(notes) missed four reverse attempts when he could have dumped the rock off. Each player was forcing it. But there were also bum moves, instances that saw the team declining to make the smart pass, executed in the hope of getting to the line. Like Rondo's reverses, Ray Allen(notes) throwing his body into Derek Fisher (you have a height advantage, and you hit 40 percent from 25 feet, Ray; just pull up over him from eight feet, instead of worming awkwardly to four feet from the hoop), and KG dumping the ball off to Rondo three times so his 6-foot point guard to try and finish in the paint that KG seemed incapable of finishing in. Garnett had a terrible game. He hit a couple of turnaround jumpers, had a nice lob from Rondo that led to a dunk, but otherwise he was completely outplayed by Pau Gasol. Dominated, in fact. It was startling to see him miss two chippies around the rim in the middle of the fourth quarter, blowing two paint shots that could have dropped the Laker lead to a "this could happen"-ish 11 points. Credit Gasol, though. 23 points, 14 rebounds (eight offensive), and three blocks. Yes, he was definitely enthused to take it to KG, but the fact remains that Pau is just this good, now. On most nights, he's just as good as Kobe, and on quite a few nights, he's clearly better. This is the best power forward in the NBA, you must remember. Be glad his teammates, every so often, do. After the game, Doc Rivers pointed out that his Celtics "didn't shrink the floor at all," which is a pretty big statement. He went on to discuss the ways that the Celtics failed to control dribble penetration which was big, but you have to appreciate the floor-shrinking aspect, and what it means to this series. Because the Lakers, with that offense of theirs, thrive on good spacing. They're not some white hot three-point shooting team like the Suns or Magic, but when the offense is working right, they spread the floor and leave themselves myriad options. Tex Winter points to penetration as the biggest key, beyond spacing, behind his triangle offense; and he always maintains that a shot can be considered part of penetrating the D just as much as a drive, or pass. Because a missed shot, if the spacing is down, can lead to an offensive rebound. All those extra passes tossed around well-spaced Lakers can leave a defense reeling, and an offensive rebound there for the taking. And the Lakers just took, took, took in Game 1. Midway through the third quarter, 42 percent of Los Angeles' missed shots resulted in an offensive rebound for the Lakers. That's an astonishing rate, against any team, and especially against the Celtics. To score as the Lakers did, but also get chance after extra chance following the misses? Nearly every other miss? It's almost unfair. And the Lakers, with their spacing and determination, made this game unfair. Pau Gasol, mostly. Eight offensive rebounds. Kobe dropped 30, Kobe was awesome, but Pau made that stuff WORK. 
Media kept trying to move the Lakers into trumpeting Ron Artest's contributions following the game, but his coaches and teammates kept giving him a "just OK" or "pretty good" declaration when discussing his overall play. Ron worked his tail off, but Paul Pierce still got to the line 13 times (24 points); and though Ron hit some "real shot-in-the-arm kind of shots" (as Phil Jackson put it) for the Lakers down the stretch, he still was a little excitable defensively. And if the C's flatten the floor and Pierce works that hard-dribble pull-up more in Game 2, we could see a Celtic win. But the assumption, following the team's determined play in Game 1, would be that the Celtics would take that win in spite of Los Angeles' best effort. Because the Lakers looked absolutely bound and determined not to let the typical "we're playing a team that can defend, now" shock and panic get to them. They set the terms of conflict, and made the Celtics bystanders. Made it so the Lakers were determining what role each and every Celtic would play, instead of letting the Celtics steer their own course. It was an impressive showing, not quite surprising, but possibly overdue. Once again, the Lakers showed that they want to be great, and the Celtics allowed for the defending champs to write their own story. Quite a lot has to change, if the Celtics want this story to end with the team's second championship in three years. | | |
| 'Net reaction - 2010 NBA Finals Game 1
June 4, 2010 at 10:30 AM
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|  Big ups to the Lakers for casting the first stone in this series with a commanding Game 1 win. Looks like we're in for a good series. What up with that, Internet?
John Krolik, ProBasketballTalk: "On Thursday night, the Celtics got a taste of their own medicine. The Lakers played a high-energy, low-risk, mistake-free game, and they forced Rondo and the rest of the Celtics out of their comfort zone. Without a supply of mistakes to feed off of, Rondo was thrown to the Lakers' half-court defense and left to starve. Rondo loves to grab long rebounds and start the break; the Lakers only missed six three-pointers all game, a! nd 72 of their 102 points came on points in the paint or free throws. When the Celtics did get the ball in a possible transition situation, the Laker bigs sprinted back to seal off the paint. Thanks to all of those factors, the Celtics only managed five fast-break points in game one. With the Lakers failing to give Rondo any opportunities to run, he was forced to try and score points against the Lakers' half-court defense. Things did not work out well for him. Rondo went 6-14 from the field, which isn't good news for Celtics fans. The worse news is that Rondo went 6-14 while making three of his five shots from outside the paint. When Rondo tried to drive, the Lakers were waiting for him. His behind-the-back fakes drew no reaction. His reverses didn't stop his layups from getting turned away. When he looked to drive and dish, the Lakers anticipated the pass. When he looked to go all the way to the basket, a Laker defender was there to draw the charge. Everyone knows Rondo ha! s some very significant weaknesses; the Lakers were finally ab! le to ex ploit them." Darius, Forum Blue and Gold: "Especially impressive to these eyes was Ron Artest(notes) - especially on defense. Sure, Paul Pierce(notes) ended the night with 24 points on only 13 shots (making 12 of 13 from the FT line). But he never found a rhythm on offense and never really threatened to change the tenor of the game with his ability to score the ball. Ron just did an excellent job of deny Pierce his sweet spots and making him work to even catch the ball. But Ron was also solid on offense, going 5-10 from the field for 15 points and making 3 of his 5 three pointers." Jeff Clark, Celtics Blog: "Here's a theory, and you can discredit it if you like. As much as I love having him on my team, Garnett is a bit of a bully. Sure, he's got tremendous skill and he outworks most players in the league, but when push comes to shove, he's usually the one shoving and yapping. It drives him and intimidates opponents. See Gasol in 2008. Now, what happens when you punch a bully in the mouth? If after-school specials and Disney movies have taught us anything, it is that bullies tend to recoil and stand there in a daze, unable to believe what just happened. Well, Gasol threw the first punch last night. He took the ball to the hoop and when it didn't go in the first time he didn't give up on the play the way a Dwight Howard(notes) or Antawn Jamison(notes) might have in the previous couple rounds. He kept right after the ball and put it back in on the second effort. As painful as it is to say, the effort was McHale-like in quality. So I guess my theory is that Garnett was just a little dazed and confused to see "Soft" Gasol beating him to the loose balls and out-working him on the boards. Of course that doesn't explain the lack of lift and inability to hit point blank bunny baskets, but I'm much less concerned about Garnett's offense than I am about his defense and rebounding. So hopefully this loss angers Garnett in a good way. I want him fired up for the next game (but not so much that he does something stupid). I want him hyper-focused on stopping Gasol and making the right defensive rotations. I want him boxing out when the ball goes up. I want the Garnett that makes opponents look bad because they ca! n't get anything going offensively. in short, I want the bully back." Sean Deveny, The Baseline: "The numbers reveal just how thoroughly the Lakers controlled the guts of the game. The Lakers simply crushed the Celtics on the boards, outscrapping a Boston team that came in with a rebounding advantage over playoff opponents of 39.6-38.6. In Game 1, the Lakers outrebounded the Celtics, 42-31. Points in the paint went much the same way. The Celtics had trouble getting inside, and once there, they had even more trouble navigating the wave of long-armed Laker defenders. The Celtics shot 15-for-32 from inside the paint, for 30 points, while the Lakers scored 48 points in the paint. There was more ugly math for the Celtics. The Lakers outscored the Celtics 16-0 on second-chance points, and held Boston to a measly five fast-break point! s. The Celtics shot just 43.3 percent from the field, and took! only 67 shots, to 76 for the Lakers." Brian Robb, Celtics Hub: "Not a blowout, just the Lakers remaining in complete control throughout, imposing their will on the C's for the majority of the 48 minutes tonight. Altogether, it was a thoroughly impressive effort by the defending champs, dominating the C's on the board, in the paint and on the defensive end. A line has been drawn in the sand and as of tonight, it was the Lakers that looked like the tougher team. They were the ones making the hustle plays and playing the tough physical D needed to be Champions. The good news is there are still plenty of games to be played, the C's just need to answer the call. The Lakers won't make that easy." 
Don Landrigan, With Malice: "For all the talk of the Celtics much-vaunted physicality, it was the Lakers who out-muscled their opponents in game 1 of the NBA Finals, winning in a trot - 102-89. Really, the end result flattered the Celtics. That it wasn't 2008 became abundantly apparent with Gasol taking the game right to KG, finishing with 23 points, 14 boards, and 3 blocks. Kobe continued where he left off against Phoenix, well... to a degree - 30 points, 7 boards, 6 assists (shooting in the high 40s %-wise) - a pretty damn good effort in a climate far more defensively intense than that which LA faced vs PHX. No denying that Kobe - and the Lakers - were not the wide-eyed neophytes in this game." Bre tt Pollakoff, FanHouse: "The Celtics need Ray Allen's(notes) offense if they're going to have any chance at all in this series. Not to overreact too much to what we saw in Game 1, but with the Lakers holding huge advantages in points in the paint (48-30), rebounding (42-31), and second-chance points (16-0), it's clear that for Boston to win, they're going to need all of their offensive weapons on the floor for as many minutes as possible -- and productive minutes, at that. Ray Allen needs to stay on the floor for more than the 27 minutes he managed in Game 1 -- he averaged 39.5 minutes per game against Cleveland and Orlando over the last two rounds of the playoffs -- and he needs to be more involved offensively, especially from three-point range. The Celtics were just 1 for 10 from three in Game 1, and Allen by himself was 13 for ! 31 from beyond the arc in the Eastern Conference finals against the Magic. They'll need that type of offensive infusion in this series, because Boston is likely to slow the Lakers' offense only so much -- at some point, the Celtics are going to need to get to a minimum threshold of points scored to have any chance at winning. And whatever that magic number is, they simply cannot get there without any help from Ray Allen." John Karalis, Red's Army: "Everyone on the Celtics was pretty much terrible. I have no earthly idea how Paul Pierce ended with 24 and 9. Those numbers look good, but he book-ended a decent start and decent finish around a big hole where he disappeared. Rajon Rondo(notes) didn't seem to have his normal energy. Ray was t! aken out of it with foul trouble. Perk barely mattered. And K! G ... oh ... KG. He missed 2 point blank bunnies that summed up his night perfectly. He was just awful. He looked bad out there. There's something about long layoffs. The C's have come out like total crap after long layoffs in these playoffs. The good thing is, the Celtics have responded well this postseason after being blown out... and they've won a series against a great team after losing game 1. So it sucks losing game 1, but the Celtics didn't play their game at all tonight. Credit the Lakers for some fo that... but fault the Celtics for a lot of it." DexterFishmore, Silver Screen and Roll: "The Lakers sparkled tonight on both ends of the floor. Facing a Celtics D that had allowed playoff opponents to score only 1.02 points per possession (PPP), the Lakers ripped off a sterling 1.16 PPP. They earned (in a few cases, "earned") 31 ! free-throw attempts, a great total in a game that had merely 88 possessions per team. Fifteen of those FTAs came in the third quarter, when the Lakers scored 34 points to blow the game open. Their offensive approach was, except for a brief stretch at the beginning of the fourth, intelligent and disciplined. Eschewing the quick outside shot, they combined zippy inside passing with decisive dribble-drive penetration. As a result, their looks at the hoop were solid, and when those looks didn't fall, players were in good position to recover the caroms. The Lakers tonight rebounded an awesome 36% of their own misses, leading to 16 second-chance points. Boston looked almost nothing like the defensive menace that throttled both the Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic." Mark Travis, But the Game is On: "! The Lake rs were the aggressor in this game. They were more physical, they were bigger, they were longer and it was clear that they wanted it more than the Celtics did. Kobe Bryant(notes) skying for rebounds, Pau Gasol(notes) was going after loose balls, Ron Artest was straight up shutting down Paul Pierce, Shannon Brown(notes) and Jordan Farmar(notes) were attacking the basket relentlessly, Derek Fisher(notes) was just being a man all together, doing whatever it took to win as always, and the Celtics were the ones who didn't know how to respond." Rey-Rey, The No-Look Pass: "The Laker defense was simply better today and outmuscled them on the boards (42-31). Plus they actually stayed on the inside. The Lakers only took 10 shots behind the arc, which is far fewer than the 30-something threes we saw in games against the Thunder and the Suns. It felt like they were in total control of this ballgame, save for one Boston run early in the fourth. Kobe Bryant was brilliant with 30 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists (including a three-pointer filled with douchebaggery with seconds left in the game to give the Staples Center fans tacos and every Laker fan not at Staples some virtual tacos). Pau toughened up for ! this game and had a 23-14 night. He and Bynum absolutely diced! the Cel tics frontline inside. But it's just one game. As I've said before, one game can easily change the complexion of the series. If Boston wins Game 2, everyone will overreact and say that the Lakers are in trouble. Lakers have to take care of business in Game 2 or else they might have that cloud of doubt hovering over their heads when they go back to TD Banknorth Gah-den." | | |
| What They're Wearing: Sheed debuts some fly green shoes
June 4, 2010 at 9:30 AM
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| What They're Wearing takes a look at NBA players' feet, but not in a creepy way. We're in it for the shoes. Got a question? Send an email. 
Two weeks ago, Rasheed Wallace(notes) broke away from his slavish devotion to Nike Air Force 1s with a pair of Nike Zoom Sharkalaids. Last night, in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Sheed broke out the best pair of shoes that I can remember him wearing — an AF1 made entirely of green patent leather. Aside from Kobe Bryant(notes), Wallace was the only other guy to debut a new pair of shoes last night. And wh! ile the white and gold "Big Stage" Zoom Kobe V is, as my grandma would say, sharp, Sheed's green AF1s are amazing. I think it's the all-green sole that really makes the shoe. Well done, Sheed. 10 out of 10 on these, for sure. Nice basketballing, too. Oh, and per usual, Wallace's ankle straps stayed dangling off the back. I don't know how he's never tripped on those or got one of them caught on another player. Not being able to jump probably helps. Another shot of Wallace's custom AF1s, plus Kobe's new shoe, after the jump. 
Wassup, shirtless Kevin James? 
"Sharp." — Grandma Kerby | | |
| Doc Rivers hides $2600 in the Staples Center ceiling
June 4, 2010 at 9:00 AM
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|  It seems strange enough to be made up, but the story is completely true. An NBA coach managed to stash and hide $2600 dollars in cash in a Staples Center ceiling tile for nearly four months without anyone finding out.
Following a win over the Lakers last February, Celtics coach Doc Rivers demanded $100 each from Boston's players, coaching staff, and even team managers. He stuffed the dough in an envelope, and tells his team -- his entire traveling organization, really - that they can have the money back the next time they play the Lakers inside the Staples Center. The kicker there? This was after the team's only game inside the Staples Center during the regular season. They weren't going to make it back inside that locker room unless the team made it back to the NBA Finals, some three and a half months later. This was the only scenario that would see Rivers being able to take his team's cash back, and at the time of the stashing, it seemed a long shot for the Celtics to even make it back to Staples within the year. The Celtics, at the time, were a clear number three in their own Conference at that point, and may have even dropped a notch in most NBA followers' minds between that February contest and the end of the regular season. Rivers had faith, though. And at some point when the C's returned to Los Angeles, on Tuesday, his team got its money back. Save for Eddie House(notes), who was traded from the team a few days following Rivers' show of faith. Doc's take is after the jump. The money was apparently stashed underneath a ceiling tile, unaware to Staples Center officials ("we don't usually check the ceiling tiles after games," one jokingly told me after Game 1, "maybe if the President were coming, we would, but not usually."), and apparently any extended member of the Celtics family. To have 26 people - younger players, coaching staff, even Celtics PR head Jeff Twiss (who gave Rivers the envelope) - keep the news about a secret envelope full of booty quiet for almost four months? Pretty impressive. Pretty strange motivation technique, but pretty impressive never the less. One has to wonder, though, if it might be the worth it to check out the ceiling tiles in the visitors' locker room down in Phoenix, San Antonio, and Dallas. | | |
| SL: Pau balls out as Lakers take lead; Stern says no to summit
June 4, 2010 at 8:15 AM
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Each weekday morning, BDL serves up a handful of NBA-related stories to digest with your sausages. Jeff Miller, Orange County Register: "Physically, he isn't really any bigger. Literally, he couldn't have been much bigger. The label Ga-soft? It's Ga-gone! The Laker who wasn't enough two years ago vs. Boston was plenty against the Celtics on Thursday, Pau Gasol(notes) shedding Kevin Garnett(notes), Kendrick Perkins(notes) and Glen Davis(no! tes). And, ultimately, something even larger and more imposing - the idea he wasn't up to doing things like he just did. At least not in The Finals. Not against the Celtics. Especially not after 2008. 'I thought,' Boston Coach Doc Rivers said, 'he was the best player on the floor.' Remember now, the Lakers also employ Kobe Bryant(notes), and he only had 30 points, seven rebounds and six assists in his team's 102-89 Game 1 victory. So what things did Gasol do to overshadow Bryant's steady brilliance? Well, things like grabbing 14 rebounds on a night when Garnett, Perkins and Davis combined for only 10. Like being a constant presence inside as the Lakers built a 48-20 edge in points in the paint and a 16-0 advantage in second-chance points. Like blocking shots by Ray Allen(notes)! , Garnett and Rajon Rondo(notes) - that's three-quarters of Boston's 'Big Four' - all in the span of two minutes of the second quarter. The label Ga-soft? Don't be Ga-goofy! 'He attacked us,' Rivers said, and that's a phrase no one would have uttered about Gasol as he was being shoved around in the '08 series between these teams." Jonathan Abrams, New York Times: "This was the type of game Lakers Coach Phil Jackson relishes, in which Kobe Bryant is not employed as an escape valve with the ball in his hands and the outcome on his shoulders. Kobe Bryant, who had a game-high 30 points, scoring in the third quarter as the Lakers increased a 9-point halftime lead to 20. Bryant picked his spots - a free throw here, a! layup there, 3-pointers everywhere and even a couple of dunks from his 31-year-old legs - as if he were leisurely leafing through a magazine while his teammates steadily bludgeoned the Boston Celtics, 102-89, in Game 1 of the N.B.A. finals Thursday at Staples Center. In the span of two years and on the heels of one game, the more aggressive team in this matchup was decked in gold, not green, thanks to the addition of Ron Artest(notes), the inclusion of Andrew Bynum(notes) and two years of Pau Gasol's bad memories. Bryant finished with 30 points and emptied 14 of them in the third quarter, as the Lakers outscored the Celtics, 34-23, in that quarter to break the game op! en. Entering the fourth, the Lakers enjoyed an 84-64 lead and ! four of their starters had scored in double digits. Derek Fisher(notes), the other starter, had 9 points. 'We got it from different places,' Jackson said. 'Guys chipped in at different times, helped us out.' Redemption weighed heavily on both teams before momentum swayed strongly in the Lakers' favor. Even the Hollywood fans got up out of their seats whenever Bryant finished off an alley-oop or Gasol topped off a fast break. 'Just being aggressive and tonight I got the benefit of the whistle,' said Bryant, who also had seven rebounds and six assists, while making 9 of 10 free throws." Dan Duggan, Boston Herald: "Ray Allen is a rhythm player. He found out last night that it's difficult to get much of a rhythm while stuck on the bench. Allen played just 27 minutes of the Celtics' 102-89 loss to the Lakers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals at the Staples Center. Plagued by foul trouble, he never was able to get into the flow. 'I watched the game from the sidelines tonight,' said Allen, who was called for five fouls. 'It was frustrating. I got a bad whistle night. What can you do?' Allen must figure out the answer to that question by Sunday's Game 2. His assignment on Kobe Bryant won't change, so he must figure out how to alter his defensive approach to avoid those quick whistles. 'I just got to follow the game plan, keep him in front of me, don't do too much gambling,' said Allen, who finished with 12 points. 'I know where I need to be and what I need to do, and just don't give him anything! easy and make him take tough shots.' Allen connected on a few! jumpers early, which typically leads to big nights for the veteran. But when he was called for his third foul late in the second quarter, he was sent to the bench and never got back on track. 'Ray didn't have a chance to play tonight,' C's coach Doc Rivers said. 'He was in foul trouble for the entire game and took his rhythm off. He actually started out the game like he was going to have a big game, but then he picked up the fouls. We have to make an adjustment there, that's for sure.'" Kevin Ding, Orange County Register: "This was the season when the duo's dynamic was questioned for the first time. Validated with a championship stamp, Pau Gasol felt empowered enough to send up passive-aggressive flares about Kobe Bryant when he wasn't following the inside-out gameplan. There was even a time or two, privately, when Gasol couldn't resist an eye roll at the tidy smiley-face ! storyline that Bryant had evolved into the consummate teammate. If Bryant was ever threatened by his new little brother's sentiments, he never lashed back publicly. He kept on professing his usual appreciation for Gasol's 2008 arrival. He kept on delivering his even-more-usual heavy-handed encouragement that Gasol was great but could be even better. And now we are seeing definitively just how good they are: good at what they do and good with each other. It's healthy to communicate with people we care about, even at the risk of a little confrontation or awkwardness, yet it's one of the hardest things to get through our heads. The best way to sum up Bryant and Gasol? They have a healthy respect for each other. Their teamwork in the Lakers' opening victory of the NBA Finals on Thursday night was all about that. Delve deeper, and you realize that they are only here is because they have each other." Monique Walter, Boston Globe: "Any haunting memories of the 2008 Finals may begin to fade for Pau Gasol. Two years after a 'soft' tag was attached to Gasol's play during the series loss to the Celtics, Gasol showed up to the Staples Center last night and pushed for rebounds, worked for shots, and boosted the Lakers to a 102-89 victory in Game 1 of this year's Finals. Gasol scored 11 of his 23 points in the first half, helping the Lakers move out to a 50-41 lead at the break. He grabbed 14 rebounds, but eight of those were on the offensive end - matching the Celtics' total by himself. 'He was more aggressive,' Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. 'He attacked us. I thought he was the best player on the floor. I thought he made terrific plays, terrific passes, shot when he should shoot ... If you heard for two years what you couldn't do, you're probably going to come in and try to prove that, and I thought Gasol proved a lot [last night].'"  Jimmy Smith, New Orleans Times-Picayune: "The NBA's intrepid leader, Commissioner David Stern, was a man smiling broadly before Game 1 of the NBA Finals commenced here Thursday night at Staples Center. With good reason, of course. The league's two most decorated franchises with 32 championships between them, were about to square off for the second time in three years -- and 12th time overall -- to determined yet another title, yet someone wanted to know whether such dominance by two clubs was good or bad for the league and what the NBA could do about such one-sidedness. 'Yeah, we could have taken ! Bill Russell and Red Auerbach away from the Celtics and depriv! ed Dr. ( Jerry) Buss of his ownership of the Lakers, ' Stern said. 'He's been an owner for 30 years and the team has been in the Finals 15 times. You know you give credit where credit is due, to Russ, to Jerry, to Red. That's what our sport is about. Hats off to the Lakers and the Celtics for being persistent and consistent winners in this league.'" Gary Washburn, Boston Globe: "Celtics president Danny Ainge expects associate head coach Tom Thibodeau to land a head coaching gig for next season. The question is, where? Thibodeau's situation has become a news nugget at the Finals as the veteran assistant weighs where to interview and what job to choose. Here is the latest, according to Ainge. Four teams have approached the Celtics about interviewing Thibodeau: the Hornets, Nets, Bulls, and Clipp! ers. Thibodeau interviewed with the first three and has an offer from the Hornets. He apparently wants to wait until the Finals are over to make a decision, but the Hornets want one soon or will offer the job to Portland assistant Monty Williams. Thibodeau has assured the Celtics that the process will not be a distraction during the Finals, and Ainge is not bothered by Thibodeau's popularity. 'I think he would be a good choice and I don't know where the negotiations stand,' Ainge said. 'I do not think it's a distraction at all. I think the players are focused and Tibs is focused. He wants to win a championship, and it obviously gives him a lot of credibility to whatever job he goes to next year with another championship ring.' Ainge said Thibodeau is likely in his final days as a Celtics coach. 'I think he's gone,' Ainge said. 'I guess he'll be somewhere next year because he will get his chance. It's that time where people are looking to hire coaches, and Tibs is doing a gr! eat job here and he's earned a chance to be in that conversati! on. He's done a lot for us and our team and he deserves an opportunity and a chance. When he came here, his objective was to become a head coach.'" Chris Broussard, ESPN: "The Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors have had discussions about a trade that would send forward Anthony Randolph(notes) to the Timberwolves, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the talks. No trade is imminent, but the Timberwolves have strong interest in acquiring the 20-year-old Randolph. The Warriors, who own the sixth pick in this year's NBA draft, would like to move up to get a higher selection. Minnesota has the ! fourth pick. The 6-10 Randolph, who left LSU after one season, played only 33 games last season, averaging 11.6 points and 6.5 rebounds before suffering a season-ending ankle injury. In December, ESPN.com reported that the Warriors had interest in dealing Randolph and that the team and representatives of Randolph had met to discuss concerns over Randolph's playing time. The team reportedly was unhappy with his maturity. 'If Golden State wants to trade Anthony, we're not opposed to that,' his agent, Bill Duffy, said in December. 'He hasn't asked for or demanded a trade, but if the Warriors feel it would be beneficial to them to trade him, we wouldn't be opposed to that at all.'" M! itch Law rence, New York Daily News: "LeBron James, Dwyane Wade(notes) and the rest of the NBA's top pending free agents can talk about where they'll be playing next season, but they're not getting together in a summit meeting to plan their futures. Commissioner David Stern said Thursday night that, at the request of several teams who have big-name players expected to become free agents July 1, league lawyers in the last few days called agents for the players to find out about a potential meeting. 'There's not going to be a summit,' said Stern, without revealing the names of the teams that complained. Stern said he would have allowed a meeting, but would have objected to it on the grounds that it could have resulted in a violation of the league's tampering rules. The complaints were in response to Wade telling the Chicago Tribune that he, ! James and Atlanta's Joe Johnson(notes) would meet. James has also made reference to a meeting, saying the players would discuss their futures and 'how we can make the league better.' Toronto's Chris Bosh(notes), another top free agent, also said that he planned on attending. But Henry Thomas, the agent for Wade, later said that there would be no summit. 'They can have it,' Stern said. 'I was wondering whether they would get together, eight players, and look at D-Wade's ring.'" Jonathan Feigen, Houston Chronicle:! "W ithout quite confirming the Rockets will play preseason games in China in October, NBA commissioner David Stern said there have not been any issues with the plan, indicating the official announcement was upcoming. 'I don't think I'm supposed to (confirm the China games),' Stern said. 'We need to be respectful of our colleagues in China and get the appropriate sign-offs, and we're awaiting that. No problems, but they're not fully confirmed yet.' The schedule expected would have the Rockets beginning the preseason in the Rio Grande Valley before Yao Ming's(notes) comeback moves to China." | | | | 
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