Basketball

How the Pacers Can Win Though the Miami praise is running rampant through the sports media world, in part because Bill Simmons happened to attend Game 6 of the Boston-Miami Eastern Conference Finals last year and in part because the Miami Heat absolutely dominated the regular season, and in part because LeBron James had a historically, almost comically-good season, Miami was essentially handed the NBA Finals trophy sometime in early April. Though I understand the chorus of “27-game winning streak!” “LeBron is the greatest athlete in inter-planetary history!” “66 wins!” I’m exhausted by it, and as a Celtics fan, I cringe when I hear it. So…here’s my best-case scenario for this upcoming Pacers-Heat series: 1. Paul George hast to take care of the ball against perhaps the best perimeter defense in the NBA. George needs help from the other George, Mr. Hill. When the Pacers lose, George’s turnover totals are 4, 5, 4 and 7. George Hill needs to stay on the court and provide some ball-handling relief from the intense pressure of Miami. When the Pacers turn it over, Miami’s fast break will annihilate them. For Indiana to have a shot, they have to keep the pace down. (Fans of entertainment may be saddened by this, but fans of basketball will have fun watching Hibbert operate). 2. Roy Hibbert does not get called for fouls at the rim, because he raises his gargantuan arms straight up in the air, keeping dunks from happening on the majority of those LeBron/Wade drives. 3. Roy Hibbert continues to amass an insane amount of offensive rebounds (32 in 6 games vs. NYK, 23 in 6 games vs. ATL) 4. George Hill feels better and hits his three-pointers. In the three games Indiana has lost with Hill this post-season, he has shot 2 of 14 from distance. In the eight wins, he’s connected on 19 of 54. You might say, “19 of 54! That’s only 35%!” You’d be right, but Indiana needs balanced shot distribution to keep from Spoelstra tilting his defense completely onto Paul George and Hibbert. Also, of those 35 missed three-pointers, I bet Roy Hibbert grabbed 8 offensive rebounds. 5. Lance Stephenson gives Indiana a jolt of adrenaline at all the right moments. If there is a weakness to Miami, its still their bench and how they play with Chris Bosh off the court. ThoughChris Anderson has been solid through the first two rounds, the penetration of George and Stephenson have to get Bosh into foul trouble, in order for Indiana to control these games. 6. We can’t forget David West. The consummate professional, West has a consistent 18-foot jumper and rugged, physical play that will wear down his opponent. If the Pacers can get West some open looks, he will be a factor in this series. David West lets the game come to him, which means he is the perfect role player on this very balanced Pacers team. Don’t nap on West. 7. Dwyane Wade’s knee is not right. I don’t mean his left knee, or his right knee. I’m not sure which knee. One of them is wrong, and that may put an insane amount of pressure on LeBron. 8. LeBron has already dealt with the semi-abusive defense of the Chicago Bulls for the last two weeks. I don’t think LeBron wants to have to put the whole team on his shoulders against Indiana’s excellent defense. And I know LeBron doesn’t want to meet Roy Hibbert at the rim. 9. Norris Cole must miss more than 20% of his shots from distance. Against Chicago, Cole shot 9 of 11, that’s right 9 of 11, from long-range. This cannot happen if the Pacers are going to win 4 times in 7 games. In two pivotal games (Game 2 and Game 3) Cole combined to shoot 13 of 16 from the field, scoring 18 points in each game. 36 points on 16 shots in two games? That was one of the biggest reasons Miami survived Games 2 and 3. Meanwhile, the ghost of Ray Allen went 4 of 17 from distance against Chicago. -- To

Amare Stoudemire will go into next season with $45 million left on his contract and no guarantee of a starting job.

New York Knicks head coach Mike Woodson and General Manager/VP of Basketball Operations Glen Grunwald remind fans to keep the faith for the future after what was in their opinion a very successful season despite their elimination in the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals against the Indiana Pacers. Videojournalist: Patrick McCarthy (May 21, 2013))

I woke up Thursday morning probably like any other Oracle ticket holder, juiced with anticipation for the game that night. All I could think about was "Roaracle". Specifically, that moment when the Golden State Warriors rally with a three-pointer from Stephen Curry and San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich has to charge onto the floor to obstruct the referee's march up the court just to call timeout -- because it's too loud and the raucous crowd's frenzied and the ref's brain suddenly realizes one of his six senses has become impaired. I wouldn't be surprised if Jarrett Jack woke up that morning and thought the same thing. NOTE: This is a “Monster” recap to close out the season -- you will get this NOWHERE else (Poor Man’s Commish doin’ work)!! -- and as a tip of my hat to DubNation. If you want the condensed version, just read the pre-amble and the finale and skip the four sections of the game recap. But if you skip the recap, you won’t know that the Warriors -- as they always fight, whether flat or not -- actually could’ve stole this one... Pre-amble -- Juiced! Q1 -- Out of the gate: not pretty, but definitely in it Q2 -- HB, please get up...please Q3 -- Steph Rules at work: take advantage of the big man Q4 -- It came down to one Steph jumper over an iso vs Parker Finale -- Jack’s tears speaks volumes Pre-game: Juiced! Cue the Dance Cam on the jumbotron. Flo Rida's "Wild Ones" track starts with the piano intro and Sia Furler wails, "Hey I heard you are a wild one, oooohhhhooohhhh..." Imagine 19,500 people now standing and cheering in euphoria, most of those fans wearing their yellow playoff t-shirt, most of those fans nodding to that increasing "Wild Ones" beat, most of those fans dancing in their seats, and the best of those fans being captured on the giant LCD screens atop the middle of Roaracle. By the second verse, more and more people are getting into the groove, happiness spreads as the jumbotron shows a kid making up moves on the fly, some patrons start pointing to the video as it transitions to a normally calm adult bespectacled professional, who gets it on with his own jerky movements, the sleeves on his dress shirt now rolled up, waving the yellow t-shirt as if it were a rally towel, the top button of his dress shirt now unbottoned to reveal the white t-shirt underneath -- the abandonment of ensemble that used to represent his cool, calm, collected 9-to-5 self. Plus, backs against the wall. I mean, Game 6 against the Denver Nuggets was a so-called “must-win”, but this one: truly win or go home. Instead of the usual nervousness that has plagued this franchise since ‘74-75, there was a feeling of ”I can’t wait to get this started” to see how Golden State would respond to a one-and-done. Alas, that “Wild” moment never happened Thursday night. The Warriors came out flat, with the Spurs poised. Out of the gate: not pretty, but definitely in it The game started out ugly for the Warriors as they displayed simple ineptness down low, coughing up not one, not two, but three (possibly four, my memory escapes me!) interior possessions. To make matters worse, When Steph hit his first trey in Danny Green’s grill, it was clear he had much more confidence on this night than in Game 5, when he had passed up a few shots. Pop called a timeout almost before the ball splashed through, but it was way too early to bust out Flo Rida. Again, a masterful use of the timeout as defense by the Spurs’ sage. David Lee made an early cameo and, lo and behold, the Warriors had their starting five that should’ve been had Lee’s injury against the Nuggets not occurred: Steph, Klay Thompson, Harrison Barnes, Lee, and Andrew Bogut. A nice little “keep-away” game of pickle with Bogut soon ensued, but as the Spurs had done so often in this series, it was matched by an equally stellar play on the other side

The NBA lottery is totally fixed, but in the interest of appeasing the NBA, we’re going to share the odds the league says each team has of receiving each pick. We will add that it’s been a long time since there was this little buzz around the NBA about the lottery — because nobody really…

The important details for tonight: Time: 7:30 CST - ESPN coverage of the event begins. I don't expect the lottery itself will start until 8:30 or so, though I'm sure whatever programming ESPN has planned will include a bit on the Hornets' win last year. The Order: Here's the seeding order. If you missed any of Nico's posts explaining what it all means, I'd highly recommend going back through those. 1. Orlando Magic2. Charlotte Bobcats3. Cleveland Cavaliers4. Phoenix Suns5. New Orleans Pelicans6. Sacramento Kings7. Detroit Pistons8. Washington Wizards9. Minnesota Timberwolves10. Portland Trailblazers11. Philadelphia 76ers12. Toronto Raptors13. Dallas Mavericks14. Utah Jazz Feel free to hang out here throughout the day, and, of course, when the lottery starts tonight.

First up, we have the Bobcats' news conference scheduled at 6 p.m. EST, per Rick Bonnell. They are expected to announce the team's decision to change the franchise's name to the Hornets. Shortly after that, the NBA will have the draft lottery on ESPN at 8:30 p.m. Godspeed, ping-pong balls. The following are the Bobcats' odds for each draft pick: First - 19.9 percent Second - 18.8 percent Third - 17.1 percent Fourth - 31.9 percent Fifth - 12.3 percent

ESPN's Ryen Russillo and Chris Broussard weigh in on whether it's inevitable that the Heat will win another NBA title, the criticism of Carmelo Anthon...

Skip Bayless and Chris Broussard debate Jordan vs. Lebron, Dwight vs. D'Antoni, the NBA draft lottery and much more.

Kevin Durant has played in Oklahoma City for five years. (Layne Murdoch/Getty Images) The Thunder announced Tuesday that All-Star forward Kevin Durant has donated $1 million to the American Red Cross through his family foundation to assist with disaster relief efforts in the wake of a tornado that swept through Oklahoma on Monday, killing at least 24 people and injuring hundreds of others. “The Red Cross relies on its donors to perform its mission in relieving human suffering following disasters,” Janienne Bella, Red Cross’s regional CEO said in a statement. “Mr. Durant’s gift and support to Oklahoma comes at a time of great need and we’re forever thankful for his generosity.” Durant tweeted a message of support on Monday. “Praying for the victims of the Tornadoes in OKC these last few days,” he wrote. “Everybody stay safe!” Thunder center Kendrick Perkins sent Durant a message of thanks for the donation on Tuesday. “Love it bro,” he wrote. “That’s how you keep it real. That’s a good thing bro. One million dollars is a blessing for the community.” A number of other Thunder players — including Serge Ibaka and Thabo Sefolosha — offered their thoughts and prayers to the disaster victims. CNN.com reports that the EF4 tornado’s wind speeds were estimated at up to 200 miles per hour. Hardest hit was Moore, OK., a town that sits just 10 miles south of Oklahoma City, where homes and businesses were flattened. President Barack Obama declared the storm a major disaster on Monday, freeing up federal aid, and pledged his support to the region on Tuesday. “The people of Moore should know that their country will remain on the ground, there for them, beside them, as long as it takes,” he said. “There are empty spaces where there used to be living rooms and bedrooms and classrooms and in time we’re going to need to refill those spaces with love and laughter and community.” The Associated Press reported Monday that Chesapeake Energy Corporation, which owns naming rights on the Thunder’s home arena in Oklahoma City, also donated $1 million to the Red Cross. Durant, the runner-up to LeBron James for the 2013 MVP award, earned $16.7 million this season and recently placed No. 12 on SI.com’s “Fortunate 50″ list of highest-paid professional athletes, with an estimated annual income of $27.7 million. The Kevin Durant Family Foundation has raised money to support after-school, summer, single-parent, and education programs since it was founded in 2012. Durant and his mother, Wanda Pratt, set the foundation’s “Playing it forward” vision, with an emphasis on helping children and families. “It’s an honor to play in the NBA, and I hope that I can use some of the attention given to me because of my work on the court to raise awareness and resources for the things that I know personally can make a difference in the lives of kids,” Durant said in a 2012 statement. “My mom believed in me, faced the many challenges of being a single parent, and she made sure that I had good grades and was involved in activities that helped make me become the person I am today. I’m excited to launch my foundation and look forward to making a difference.” Durant, 24, has spent the past five seasons in Oklahoma City. The Thunder were eliminated by the Grizzlies in the Western Conference semifinals last week.