Whoa Nellie!!!
Lakers Blog — Keith_jackson_2 Granted, Don Nelson may simply be trying to light fires under his players' butts through means that don't involve a permanent green light and ole' D permission. Thus, this reverse-Knute Rockne about the playoffs already a wash could simply be reverse psychology. Mind you, he's probably right, as I didn't consider them a playoff team even before Monta Ellis got hurt, much less a 5-12 start. But even keeping that in mind... dude . There are 65 freakin' games left to make up the 4.5 separating the Warriors and the Spurs for the eight spot , were the playoffs to begin tomorrow (which really wouldn't be fair at all). Might it be a shade early to start ...

Sessions: Not starting, but leading
Brew Hoop — ... More good news: The Bucks have faced a preposterous early schedule; only Portland has played more road games. And don't look now, but Milwaukee is just one game out of the playoffs. ...

Bucks Bring Their Own Blizzard
The Bucky Channel - The World of Sports from Wisconsin's Perspective. — Just as Mother Nature nailed Wisconsin with snow as if she was furious with rage, the Milwaukee Bucks were busy making life uncomfortable for others well. On Friday, the Bucks had six guys score in double figures as they routed the Knicks in New York 105-81. Despite having just 29 games under their belt, it was the third time Milwaukee beat the Knicks this season. "This was definitely a critical win," Michael Redd told the Associated Press. "As crazy as it sounds, in the East we're both in the playoff hunt." Redd lead the team with 21 points, Jefferson and Mbah a Moute added 16, and even Tyronn Lue had 13 points. Andrew Bogut chipped in with 10 points and 13 ...

HTFU Detroit, the sinking Lakers and the charging Bucks
NBAMate — After spending two days trying to stay dry amidst the “drought-ending storm” at Meredith Musical Festival, and the next five days trying to stay on the fairways in Yarrawonga, I’m now back in Melbourne town and life is kind of back to normal again (although my liver will never be the same). After being away from the Internet for over a week I’ve come back to learn the following about the National Basketball Association: 1) The Pistons Still Suck. Sure there was the little glimmer of hope when Stuckey moved into the starting lineup, Dyess came back, and we won three straight. But then it became clear that the Pistons ...

The Bag Revolt: Reconciliation
Brew Hoop — ... Well, all is now forgiven.  The Bucks are a long way from contention, but the team finally has some semblance of direction and remains in the playoff hunt despite a rough early schedule. And so Sen. Kohl was understandably in a good mood last night at the Bucks' "Holiday Hoopla" dinner, making his rounds, chatting with fans and posing for pictures.  Kudos to him for that.  Among those requesting a picture?  Nowak, Keith, and Dan of bag revolt fame. Yep, those are the same Ruben Patterson jerseys. ...

Dallas Mavericks @ Utah Jazz - Game Thread
SLC Dunk — ... Have you looked at the standings lately?  The Jazz as it stands now are out of the playoffs, yet they're only 1 1/2 games back of the division lead and 2 1/2 games out of the second spot.  ...

Escape from Detroit
Rush The Court — You may have heard things haven’t been going too well in Detroit lately. The city that has been trashed by countless writers including RTC’s very own rtmsf. While the Wolverine basketball team has turned it around this year including a big win at Chrysler Arena, the Motor City has been hit by hard times. Their NFL team set a new benchmark for ...

Golden State Warriors @ Utah Jazz - Game Thread
SLC Dunk — ... I'll promise to make this the last statement about "if the playoffs started today" until at least the end of April.  Stating anything about the playoffs now is dumb because so much can and will change between now and then.  But one thing that we do know is that one qualified team will be left out of the WC playoffs.  On a side note, I thought that the EC had started evening back up this year.  But they still have just 6 contender teams and it looks like at least one, maybe two sub .500 teams will make the playoffs.  The 12-22 Bobcats are ...

King James Dethrones Celtics
Vent About Sports — The Cavalier's continued to role and the Celtics' slide continued as Cleveland defeated Boston 98-83 last night. The win extends Clevelands home record to 19-0 while the Celtics have lost 7 of their last 9 games and have fallen to third place in the Eastern Conference behind Cleveland and the ever improving Orlando Magic. ...

A Peek at the Standings
ESPN.com - TrueHoop — I know, we all look at the standings all the time. But are you noticing what's happening?  The West has developed into a strictly three-tier system. The first tier is the Lakers. The third tier is for dreamers and lottery teams: the Timberwolves (bucking for promotion after strong play lately), Warriors, Grizzlies, Clippers, Kings, and Thunder. And the second tier is where all the action is. Because the first half of this season has taught us that there are really nine good Western teams. There are eight playoff spots, so there is certainly something to fight for. The San Antonio Spurs are the second best team in the West. They ...

And there was much rejoicing
Lakers Blog — Lamar_odom_min Considering they were leaving the balmy environs of Los Angeles for a six game roadie starting in the great white north of Minneapolis, with its snow flurries and (as of 8:30 PST) temperature of one degree- cold enough to make Prince shrink down to about 4'10"- the Lakers were awfully happy Thursday afternoon. Good news was bountiful , from Andrew Bynum's non-suspension to Pau Gasol's All Star berth to Kobe getting perhaps the only endorsement that matters. For Gasol, it's an honor he hopes to enjoy more than his All Star appearance . For the Lakers, it was a chance to smile a little before the start of a tough trip and a second half schedule ...

Never Too Early To Play The Lotto [Jurassic Park]
We Eat Children — Previous Post: Return Of The Dinos? [Jurassic Park] Never Too Early To Play The Lotto [Jurassic Park] [image] By Jeremy Nolais Let’s face it, the terrain in Raptor land is not exactly smooth right now. As much as I hate to admit it, Bosh could be leaving (why would he want to stay?). Check out some crazy scenarios here (seriously if the Raps trade for David Lee and Stephon Marbury I am permanently boycotting the team and starting a campaign to bring the Grizz back to Van City). JO may also go . (Please, please send Jamario with him) Joey Graham is apparently becoming the team’s leader (dear God!). The team sits in the basement of the ...

Game Chat- Lakers vs. Jazz
Lakers Blog — What was supposed to be a marquee matchup of two Western Conference titans instead pits one elite squad (that would be your Lakers) against a Jazz squad so battered by injuries that they're battling for a playoff spot. Still, they're very good at home (20-6), and Deron Williams has been a bad, bad man over the last 10 days or so. Tonight, Utah is without AK47 and Carlos Boozer, more lack of continuity that has contributed to subpar-by-Jazz-standards defense this season. The Jazz still play fundamentally strong ball, move well, and pass the rock, so the Lakers will have to mind their p's and q's. If they do, LA's superior fire power combined with Utah's limited ...

Game Preview #55 - Chicago Bulls vs. Denver Nuggets (7:30PM)
Blog a Bull — ... The Nuggets (currently the 2 seed in the West) have only played once since the All-Star break, but won twice in a row before that - so they are riding a 3-game win streak.  They played pretty poorly in the 1st half of their last game against Philly, but made up for it with a strong second half to get the win. ...

Walking Wounded
All That Jazz — Let's be honest, this was supposed to be our season. Not our season to 100% win the championship, but a year where things were supposed to come together better than they had the previous seasons -- guys would be at the end of their contracts, and this would be a make or break season for the team as it is currently composed. Instead everything pretty much went absolutely nuts -- in a bad way. It could have been worse, you know -- it's not like we traded a player only for him to fail his medical examination (right Hornets?); or we haven't played our highest earning player a single second this year (right Knicks fans?). That said, it hasn't really ...

Weekend Recap: Wacky Tomacco
Amphibious Sports Duo — ... Wake Forest and conveniently forget all those things they said. Coach K's hip was hurting, so the game didn't count. Texas knocked off The Oklahoma Blake Griffins after Blake got a concussion from a stiff wind. Griffin will accept all of his Player of the Year awards in a bubble to ensure no recurrences. People are getting in a tizzy over combine numbers, but just remember Anquan Boldin ran a 4.7 and then caught 100 balls his rookie year. The Bobcats are done. Davidson needs to win the Southern Conference tournament or risk being left out. 1 ...

Game Preview #57: Chicago Bulls v. Orlando Magic
Blog a Bull — ... .  Considering the Magic have a "super" solid interior presence and shoot the 3 well, this is hardly surprising - Orlando's strengths have matched up exceptionally well with some of Chicago's weaknesses over the past few seasons.  The Magic are currently in 3rd place in the East, and looked to maintain that spot with its trade deadline deal for Raefer Alston to replace the injured Jameer Nelson.  Critics have suggested the Magic will regret this move next season when they have a healthy Nelson back, but Alston has proved a ...

Just What Detroit Needed: A Staggering Pistons Collapse
The Critical Fanatic — Just like the automobile industry, housing market and the Detroit Lions, the Pistons are following in their footsteps and plummeting towards rock bottom.  Detroit lost its eighth straight game last night to the Hornets, dropping the Pistons record to 27-29.  So, about that Allen Iverson trade… Adding injury to insult, Allen Iverson and Rasheed Wallace went down with injuries during the process. At this point, a sure fire bet to make postseason play is looking iffy. Winning just six of their last 24 games, Detroit has fallen to 7th in the Eastern Conference with Milwaukee, Chicago and New Jersey right on their heels.  Detroit Red Wings, ...

Is this Really Happening?
True Blue Jazz — If this shot was taken in the 4th Quarter, it went in. Guaranteed. Knowing our chances of losing last night were 99.99% if I watch the game live, I followed the game via my wireless device. All of us have done this, well, except for the large following of pre-teens we have at TBJ, that better not have cell phones yet. In fact, if I see one more 10 year old texting while skate boarding I am going to be sick. Seriously? Who are you texting bud? Anyhow, on to the game. So I'm following the game on my phone while battling three kids and notice "I Heart" Korver single handedly takes the game over. I figure if he is taking ...

Forward March!
All That Jazz — The Utah Jazz finished February with their best record in franchise history: 10-1. It was a spectacular month filled with victories over the likes of the LA Lakers, Boston Celtics, New Orleans ...

Sports Illustrated compares Dumars moving Billups to the Garnett, Gasol trades
Full-Court Press — ... , and this season the Nuggets are 52-27 with a +3.8 point differential . It's obvious that Denver has improved and that Billups really adds something to that team. Piston fans know full well what they are missing. But those moves can in no way be compared, they are not even in the same ballpark. Steve Aschburner also awards Allen Iverson with the 'First Man Award', a play off of the '6th Man Award' and Iverson's refusal to become a bench player in Detroit. Allen Iverson, Detroit Pistons The NBA created its Sixth Man Award to shine a spotlight on teamwork and to prove to its ...

You be the GM: Nate McMillan
Blazers Blog — ... , to a second-place finish in the Western Conference this season . A 13-game improvement and home-court advantage in the postseason earned McMillan consideration for ...