Quickly, before that "other" basketball starts up ...There's No 'I' in Dallas Maver'cks. LeBron James scored the Cavaliers' first 11 points in the fourth quarter, had 17 of their 24 in the period, and finished with 31, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and three blocks, but ... it really didn't matter. Dallas 98, Cleveland 90. I mean, Sasha Pavlovic can only do so much, you know? (16 points.) For the Mavs, Dirk scored 23 points on a pretty rough shooting night (9-for-24), but he got plenty of help from his backcourt teammates, Jason Terry and Devin Harris, who chipped in 21 and 17 points respectively. The Mavs have won four straight.
Send in the Tanks. Celtics coach Doc Rivers kept his starters on the bench while Boston blew an 18-point lead in a 92-84 loss to Charlotte last night. Sounds a little fishy, no? Doc doesn't think so: "I was not throwing the game, or anything like that," he said following the game. "Honestly, I got to the point early in the fourth quarter and I turned to the coaches and said to them, 'We are either going to win or lose with this group."' That, and I really, really want Oden or Durant, guys. Regardless whether the tank job was called in or not, Bill Simmons sure must have an extra pep to his step on his way to Starbucks this morning.
Moving Pictures Are Worth About A Hundred Words. First off, in Seattle, watch Arenas bank home a right-handed runner at the buzzer to give the Wizards a 108-106 victory over the Sonics. Gil finished with a non-predicted 42 on the night. Second, in Milwaukee, watch Jason Hart get a kind, kind bounce to drop with three seconds left to save the Clips the embarrassment of dropping a 22-point third quarter lead to the Bucks. The 104-103 win moves LA into the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference. Cheers to my homeboy, Brett, for the vids.
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