Basketball

"Oklahoma has seen its fair share of horrible weather related events in the past and the past two days are no exception. People have lost homes, and in some cases, loved ones. As I'm writing this, I'm glued to the TV as the current storm is being compared to May 3 of 1999. If that turns out to be true, many people will need as much help as they can get. For those of you in Moore and south Oklahoma City, please be safe and know that we're thinking of you. The situation is ongoing, so, again, please be safe. Sorry for brevity, but this is a "if you're not below ground you will not survive" storm and I've got my get-the-hell-out bag packed just in case." By Bill Champion http://www.welcometoloudcity.com/2013/5/20/4349380/storms-are-decimating-oklahoma-city-you-can-help "Oklahoma has seen its fair share of horrible weather related events in the past and the past two days are no exception. People have lost homes, and in some cases, loved ones. As I'm writing this, I'm glued to the TV as the current storm is being compared to May 3 of 1999. If that turns out to be true, many people will need as much help as they can get. For those of you in Moore and south Oklahoma City, please be safe and know that we're thinking of you. The situation is ongoing, so, again, please be safe. Sorry for brevity, but this is a "if you're not below ground you will not survive" storm and I've got my get-the-hell-out bag packed just in case." By Bill Champion http://www.welcometoloudcity.com/2013/5/20/4349380/storms-are-decimating-oklahoma-city-you-can-help

Memphis Grizzlies @ San Antonio Spurs San Antonio, Tx May 21, 2013, 8:00 PM Spurs Time TV: ESPN - RADIO: 1200 AM WOAI #preview-wrapper { background-image: url('http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/836193/spurs-background.jpg'); background-position: center -40px; height: 300px; -moz-border-radius: 15px; border-radius: 15px;} #preview-ptr-logo { position: relative; top: 30px; margin: 0px auto; width: 308px; height: 39px; } #preview-game-preview { position: relative; top: 36px; margin: 0px auto; width: 448px; height: 47px; } #preview-vs { font-size: 20px; padding-top: 50px; padding-bottom: 45px; width: 100%; color: white; text-align: center; } So did everyone else enjoy Game 1 as much as I did? Yes? Awesome. I'm happy everyone had a good time. The San Antonio Spurs played about as flawlessly as possible, steamrolling the Memphis Grizzlies on the way to a 105-83 win. The Spurs were on fire, shooting 49% on 14-29 from beyond the arc, including 4-6 from the Red Mamba himself. But, unfortunately, this won't be the norm for this series. The Spurs will regress back to the mean, and the Grizzlies will grit and grind their way back to normal. Meaning, of course, that people like Matt Bonner probably (emphasize "probably") won't be on fire from deep again, and there will be no more blowouts of this nature again in this series. Both Lionel Hollins and Mike Conley suggested that their defense was over-rotating throughout the game. Their poor defensive effort led to Parker penetrating the lane seemingly at will, and once he was there it was only a matter of time before he found an open shooter for a three-point attempt. For a smart defensive team like the Grizzlies, it's fairly certain that they will work on not making that same mistake again. When Memphis goes back to the drawing board, they will also see that Zach Randolph had a terrible Game 1 scoring-wise. Z-Bo finished with 1-8 shooting, and was getting more and more frustrated as the game went on. The reason for his struggles is a pretty simple: The Spurs bullied him down low. Which, is ironic because bullying post tactics are how Memphis won the 2011 series between these two teams. Continuing this tactic may not work in Game 2, because there's no telling how the referees will call the rest of the series, and bullying a bully can only last for so long. However, it was nice to see the Duncan-Splitter defensive post tandem working well. Even though they won't be able to be as rough in Game 2, that success should continue. Both players are very good defensively, and are more than capable of continuing to play Gasol and Randolph pretty well. The Spurs will have to keep their ball movement going, as they assisted on 28 of the 40 shots made in Game 1. That movement is based on the penetration of Parker and Ginobili, and while I expect Memphis to ratchet up their perimeter defense a bit, Parker and Ginobili are wily enough to continue to get in the lane. From there, it comes down to making shots, which is something the Spurs are generally quite good at, but luck is involved, so we'll see if the ball bounces in San Antonio's favor. One thing I would like the Spurs to do better is guarding Jerryd Bayless and Quincy Pondexter. In the third quarter, those two made a 10 point run on their own that cut the Spurs lead to six. While the Spurs were able to stop the run, but they can't afford to let these guys get going, no matter the score. They are the Grizzlies main options off the bench, and are responsible for a lot of the team's three point field goals. The Spurs will have to play better pick and roll defense on the slippery Bayless so he can't get any midrange shots off the dribble, or a look at the rim. They'll also have to manage to not leave Pondexter open in the corner for open threes, where he has shot at an otstanding rate of 45%. All in all, Game 1 was fun, but it's not really indicative of how this series will go. So buckle up, it's going to be a bumpy ride.

The truth hurts, and it was delivered yesterday not by Carmelo Anthony but by the Knicks’ youngest player, 22-year-old Iman Shumpert. Shumpert branded the Knicks season a failure after Saturday’s heartbreaking, second-round KO in Indiana. The Knicks’ young swingman could almost taste South Beach and a matchup against the...

The first part of today's Blazer's Edge Mailbag deals with the lottery drawing. The festivities will commence at 5:30 Pacific this evening. Here are the answers to your lottery-based questions. Dave, Can you give us the lottery odds for the Blazers finishing with each pick, 1st through 14th? Bryan That's easier than you think. The Blazers have 11 combinations out of the 1000 possible combos distributed to the 14 lottery teams. NBA officials will draw three combinations total. Teams in possession of those three combinations will move to the 1, 2, and 3 spots in the order. Everyone else will line up behind them by record, worst record towards the front of the line and best at the back. Only three teams are determined randomly. Everyone else will stay in the same order relative to each other. Starting from the 10th spot by record before the drawing, the Blazers can only finish in spots 1-3 (if one of their combinations is drawn) or in spots 10-13 (if none of their combinations hit). You either go right near the head of the class with a lucky hit or you stay where you are. The Blazers could move down as far as 13 because teams currently behind them in line could get the lucky draw and leap ahead, pushing Portland back. If that last part is confusing, just line up 14 pennies and turn all but the 10th to tails. The 10th one (heads) represents Portland. Pick any three pennies besides Portland to shift to the 1, 2, and 3 spots (in that order). If all the pennies you picked were already ahead of the "heads" penny then that penny will remain 10th in line. For each penny you moved up from behind the heads penny it will move back one spot. Now you see the possible range of motion. 1-3 or 10-13. 4th-9th and 14th just aren't possible. During the lottery reveal you'll want to watch the 13th-10th envelopes. If the Blazers are revealed in one of those slots then you know Portland's pick. If not, they're guaranteed a Top 3 position. Here are the percentage chances of the Blazers ending up with each pick: 1st--1.1% 2nd--1.3% 3rd--1.5% 10th--87% 11th--8.8% 12th--0.2% 13th 0.1% Dave, Since the beginning people have accused the NBA of rigging the lottery. Patrick Ewing went to the Knicks. LeBron went to his home state with Cleveland. New Orleans won last year just after they were purchased. Who's that team this year? Is it time to rig again? Brendan It's got to be Sacramento, right? So if the Kings get the lucky draw you know the league is rigged. If they don't then you know the NBA is trying to throw us off the trail by not doing the obvious thing this year, which is further proof that it's rigged. Dave, We keep hearing that this is a weak draft. I've also heard people say that nobody should want the #1 overall pick this year. Two part question. Do the Blazers even want a top 3 pick and if they got it what would they do? Heather You always want to secure the most options possible. If I told you that you had to travel to Topeka as quickly as you could by commercial bus, would you feel more able to complete your task if I gave you the phone number for one bus company or the whole phone book? Would you be more successful if I handed you $50 to purchase your ticket or $500? More options equal more power. In the draft, options are defined by pick order. The team at #1 can pick anyone they want. Each team after loses one possible candidate for each space they're behind in line. 9 players will be off the board by the time Pick #10 comes along. Fewer options equals less value. The Blazers would be foolish to prefer #10 to a Top 3 pick. But that doesn't mean they'd use that Top 3 pick to draft a player. In common parlance "weak draft" translates to "no immediately evident superstars". That's probably true of this draft. Several draftees could be good, though. When the playing field levels out like that, the players selected 6th or 9th might turn out just as good as the guys going

It doesn’t settle easily, not for you, not for them. On a day when the Knicks wanted to be shooting around at their training headquarters in Westchester County, preparing for Game 7 against the Pacers — and beyond — they were having exit interviews instead, saying goodbye, shutting the door on...

Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim went on a verbal tirade against Carmelo Anthony’s Knicks teammates, shocked his former player is receiving blame for the team’s second-round flameout to Indiana.In the Syracuse Post-Standard, Boeheim ripped Tyson Chandler, whom he coached on the U.S. Olympic Team, point guards Raymond...

It wasn’t until he was 28 years old that Chris Copeland made the NBA, and this summer he will hit free agency as a 29-year-old. So attaining maximum financial security would seem to be a very important priority for the Knicks forward. Yesterday, though, Copeland said he never has...

Carmelo Anthony, as the face of the Knicks franchise, clearly sees his obligation to make sure to portray a happy public face to New York, orange-and-blue-colored glasses covering his eyes. It’s a delusional face. “We’re right there,” Melo says. Right where? Nowhere near Miami, nowhere near the Heat...

Next season could conceivably be the last as a Knick for Carmelo Anthony — who has a player opt-out clause in his contract he can use after the 2013-14 season.If he does opt out next summer, he sounded as if he intended to re-sign a long-term deal with the Knicks...

From the start, there was one thing most likely to keep Mike D’Antoni from returning as Lakers coach — free agent Dwight Howard. It may not have been that direct — and it may not change who is the Lakers coach next season — but apparently Howard let Lakers management know exactly how he feels…