The second round of the playoffs is underway and with only eight teams remaining, it means another eight have been eliminated from title contention. The offseason is the time for these teams to retool to prepare for deeper runs next season. The Atlanta Hawks have been one of the most consistent teams in the NBA the past six seasons, but not in a good way. The Hawks are always the fourth or fifth seed in the playoffs and have lost in the first round three out of the last six years. Read More »

When Danny Ainge first acquired Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen back in 2007, the new Big Three, in theory, was providing the Celtics with a three-year championship window. After going one for two in their title appearances in their first three years, Ainge decided to keep the window cracked open for another three years after not biting on potential deals. Read More »

We fell asleep at some point in the third quarter, and when we woke to see the Lakers were back in it, we thought it was an entirely different game. In a way, it was. L.A. overcame a 25-point deficit in New Orleans last night to beat the Hornets, 108-102. They scored the game’s last 20 points, and held the hosts scoreless for the final 6:47. It felt more like a month. Read More »

This weekend was Oscar Sunday, and some of the biggest names in all of Hollywood found out just how good their acting and directing are (at least according to “critics”). This year, names like Bradley Cooper (“Silver Linings Playbook”), Jennifer Lawrence (“Silver Linings Playbook”), Denzel Washington (“Flight”), Daniel Day-Lewis (“Lincoln”), Hugh Jackman (“Les Misérables”), and Jessica Chastain (“Zero Dark Thirty”) were the top names in the best actor and actress categories. Read More »

Say what you will about the Heat’s rebounding problems against bigger teams such as Indiana this season, but the Heat’s turnovers are reliably the larger indicator for its wins or losses. That’s why its 102-89 loss to Indiana was a little worrisome even if LeBron (28 points) and Dwyane Wade (17 points) sounded afterward as if they’d just lost a charity game, insisting it’s no big deal at all. Read More »

In April, the Mavs might look back and admit this was the night their season died. Up 21, they blew the lead and then lost after a flurry of insanity doomed them. First, Nic Batum made a completely ridiculous three-pointer to tie it up (dude hadn’t made anything all night). Read More »

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How often do you see it happen: a visiting team takes control in the fourth quarter before squandering a late chance to grab a W, and then end up getting pounded into submission in the extra session? Dallas is feeling the pain now after letting the Heat off the hook in Miami’s 119-109 overtime win. There’s not much to explain from overtime: Miami just ran Dallas over. The real fun was in the fourth quarter. In the final minutes, LeBron (32 points, 12 rebounds, nine assists) found Shane Battier for one of the biggest shots of the night, a corner three. Read More »

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