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• Greg Stoda of the Palm Beach Post: LeBron James can't keep doing this. It's too much to ask of even of him. Much too much. James has an incredible engine, but it's going to give out running at the rpm it's generating. James won't admit to fatigue - so, never mind admitting to exhaustion - and he'll give all he has to give to the Heat ... but he'll risk overheating in the process. And that will cook Miami. Indiana tied the second-round playoff series at a win apiece with a 78-75 victory Tuesday night in AmericanAirlines Arena, and in no manner was the Heat loss James' fault. He led Miami in points (28), rebounds (nine) and assists (five). He was a monster. But he played almost 43 minutes after having played a bit more than 43 minutes in a Game 1 victory - when he also led the Heat in points, rebounds and assists - and that won't work in the long term. The cumulative burden will get to be too much. And don't forget the mental strain and pressure under which James operates as a superstar without an NBA title nine years into his professional career. Know what Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told James late in the series' opening game, a 95-86 win? Here's what: "You can't get tired!" That's too harsh a demand.
• Mike Wells of The Indianapolis Star: Dwyane Wade had to be kidding. No, really, tell me Wade was joking when he made a comment about the Pacers’ supposed celebration at the end of Game 2? “I heard they wanted to be like the Dallas Mavericks,” Wade said. “I saw their little celebration at the end of the game.” Celebration? I didn’t see a celebration. What I saw was a group of players congratulating each other on the court, then David West telling them to get off the court and head to the locker room because he knows they’ve still got some unfinished business. “We can’t get too excited because we won one game,” West said. “That is not our goal in this series. We can’t overreact because we were able to get one game down here.” Wade has no room to talk about anybody celebrating. Wade and LeBron are no doubt two of the best players in the world, but the Heat are at the top of the list of celebrating. They had a ceremony with smoke and everything else during a ceremony before the Big Three even played a game together in 2010. LeBron predicted the Heat would win numerous championships.
• Tim Griffin of the San Antonio Express-News: Kawhi Leonard went for 16 points and six rebounds in 28 productive minutes in the Spurs’ 108-92 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, flashing his all-around skills that have been present throughout the season. “Yeah, I’m just having fun,” Leonard said. “It’s competitive basketball and I love the game and play hard every possession. I’m having fun with it.” For Leonard, Tuesday’s game was just an extension of the regular season. He hit shots from the perimeter, was a disruptive force on defense with three steals and even drew several turns defending Chris Paul as Gregg Popovich looked to confuse the Clippers’ best offensive player. “He seems to have a pretty good knack for the ball,” Popovich said. “He makes a steal here and there. He’ll get an offensive rebound here and there. He’ll get a block now and then.” Those are the kind of talents that could make for a long NBA career. Bruce Bowen flashed those skills well enough to have his jersey hoisted into the rafters of the AT&T Center. Leonard isn’t there yet, but Tuesday’s big game is why he’s made a good start in his first season. "Obviously, he’s a rookie and he’s still figuring out what his game is,” Popovich said. “But he does things that help win basketball games.”
• T.J. Simers of the Los Angeles Times: Here we are in the NBA playoffs, the second round ever played by Blake Griffin, and how often do the Clippers ever advance to the second round? Our kid Griffin deserves some credit for that. But the columnist in San Antonio, whose first name is Buck and of course it is, ripped into Griffin before Game 1 as if Griffin had spat on the Alamo. "Griffin, healthy or not," concluded Bucko, "isn't ready for this yet." Griffin just turned 23. When Bucko was 23, and I checked with him, he was a ski bum lost somewhere in Europe. Bucko is now one of the best negative columnists in the country, but it took him only 40 years or so to nail it. Is there no patience when it comes to a young guy playing in only his 156th game? "Nobody is giving me time to develop," Griffin said without complaint while both knees were wrapped in ice after the Clippers' 108-92 Game 1 loss to the Spurs. "I have years to improve, but for some reason everyone talks now about what I can't do." Look across the living room and imagine your own uncoordinated blob of a kid getting pounded for not developing fast enough or read this about him as he travels to a far-off city. ... And here's where the negative and positive columnists separate themselves. How much fun have we already had in Lob City with the kid learning on the job, knowing some day he will be the one schooling everyone else? Or as he put it, Bucko: "Don't underestimate the power of someone who works hard."
• Bob Ford of The Philadelphia Inquirer: "Everybody always focuses on the last play of the game, but that's not really what games come down to. It's everything else that happens before, too," Doug Collins said. Coaches are sensitive to that point, because the final moments of games are where second-guesses live. It's easy to pick apart a decision about when to foul or when to try a three-pointer. What's hard is figuring out a 48-minute scheme that gets your team to those final seconds with a chance to win. Collins and Boston's Doc Rivers are more than capable of that task, and they have teams that can be either manipulated (Sixers) and massaged (Celtics) toward the finish line. After that, it's up to the bounce of the basketball or the capricious sound of the whistle. That's how narrow this series appears to be. Whether the Celtics are descending to meet the Sixers or whether the Sixers are ascending to reach the level of the Celtics hardly matters. It is probably some combination of those, as Boston ages before our eyes like Dorian Gray's portrait, and the Sixers seem to be leaving behind their awkward teenage years. The only factor that could really change the close nature of the series would be if Boston regains its normal shooting touch. The Sixers are playing pretty much the way they usually play at both ends of the court, but the Celtics are way off on their shooting percentages, particularly from behind the three-point line.
• Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald: It is taken as an article of faith that the Celtics are a team of wise veterans. They are regularly celebrated for their “basketball IQ,” and if maybe they can’t run all night with the youngsters like they used to, well, history tells us the tortoise is above .500 against the hare. Or so the story line goes. But then there are times like Game 5 in Atlanta and Monday night’s Game 2 loss to Philadelphia when you’d swear the Celts need to be watered twice a day. Times when they are not smarter than a fifth-grader. ... The Sixers are deriving great benefit from the fact that there are times the Celtics take the court and leave their brains back in the huddle. In what has been a recurring theme for this crew over the last few years, they go away from their strengths. They stop running their stuff. Whether through ignorance or arrogance, they feel it unnecessary to do what they know works. Or maybe you have another explanation for why Kevin Garnett was largely ignored for three quarters Monday? And the effect is more than just a loss. It is what said loss requires the Celtics to do: play more basketball. A team with age and injury issues should know better, just like it should have when it gave away Game 5 to the Hawks in Atlanta in the previous series and gave away some therapeutic off time.
• John Rohde of The Oklahoman: Thunder center Kendrick Perkins, who aggravated a right hip muscle strain early in the third quarter of Game 1 on Monday night, once again will be a game-time decision as to whether he will start against the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 2 at 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Perkins initially was injured in Game 4 in a series-clinching victory at Dallas on May 5. Perkins rested for eight days awaiting this second-round series and reinjured the hip at the 10:18 mark of the third quarter in Monday's 119-90 romp over the Lakers at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Thunder coach Scott Brooks said Perkins did not participate in Tuesday's practice because of soreness. Perkins received treatment in the afternoon and will again on Wednesday. He will be re-evaluated before the game. A final decision must come at least one hour before tipoff.
• Elliott Teaford of the Los Angeles Daily News: The Lakers said all the right things Tuesday after getting picked-and-rolled to pieces during their 29-point loss Monday to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series. Game 2 is tonight, and the Lakers said they must play with a greater understanding of the oldest play in the game if they hope to steal a victory and send the series to Staples Center with momentum on their side. Games 3 and 4 are Friday and Saturday in Los Angeles. The Lakers haven't rebounded from a 2-0 deficit to win a best-of-7 series since storming back to defeat the San Antonio Spurs 4-2 in the 2004 conference semifinals. The last time they were down 2-0, the Dallas Mavericks swept them last May. "We're all pretty edgy, but still pretty loose at the same time," Kobe Bryant said after Tuesday's film session and workout. "We're just looking forward to our next opportunity. We're a team that doesn't get down when we get blown out. We've been blown out a bunch of times." In fact, the Denver Nuggets smoked them by 17 points in Game 6 of the conference quarterfinals last week only to see them regroup to win Game 7 and advance to the next round. The Thunder should not be confused with the Nuggets, however.
• Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News: Just got off the phone with Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle, who earlier today agreed to terms on a new four-year contract. Mavericks president of basketball operations used the words "proud and relieved" to get the deal done, so what were Carlisle's emotions? "I'm very grateful," Carlisle said. "My biggest emotion is gratitude. To have the opportunity to do another contract, in this city with this franchise, this owner and GM, is a big deal to me. I don't take the responsibility lightly." Much was made this season about the fact that Carlisle, coming off an NBA championship with the Mavericks in 2010-2011, was in effect a free-agent-coach-to-be. It's customary, and deserved, to lock in coaches to new contracts immediately after championships. But 2011-2012 was no ordinary season. I believe throughout the year that the reason Carlisle and Cuban had not come to terms on a new deal was that about three-fourths of the players on the roster were either in the final year of their contracts or on one-year deals. What kind of message would it have sent to, for instance, Jason Terry, if the head coach was given longterm security when the player who scored 27 points in Game 6 of the 2011 Finals was not extended. Carlisle today seemed to confirm my suspicion.

The Clippers are winning a reputation as some of the league's most consistent and spectacular floppers, which might lead you to suspect they're gaining some kind of unfair referee advantage over their first-round opponents, the Memphis Grizzlies.

But if that's so, there are other factors in play, too.

Take a look at which teams are shooting the most free throws -- per possession -- in the playoffs as of today:

1. Memphis Grizzlies
2. Miami Heat
3. Los Angeles Clippers
4. Philadelphia 76ers
5. Dallas Mavericks
6. Utah Jazz
7. Oklahoma City Thunder
8. New York Knicks
9. San Antonio Spurs
10. Denver Nuggets
11. Indiana Pacers
12. Los Angeles Lakers
13. Boston Celtics
14. Orlando Magic
15. Chicago Bulls
16. Atlanta Hawks

In other words, yes the Clippers are high on the list, but the Grizzlies lead the league in getting to the line so far.

Meanwhile, the other team that has been accused of getting all the calls -- at least by Danilo Gallinari -- is the other L.A. team. In fact, the Lakers trail all but four playoff teams, including Gallinari's Nuggets, when it comes to shooting freebies.

Statistical support provided by NBA.com.

• Pop quiz: Which NBA team had the best offense in the NBA this season, by a healthy margin? Answer. John Hollinger is a little salty (Insider) about how the Spurs have been ignored: "Don't let San Antonio's 27-3 mark in its past 30 games with the Big Three and near-certain home-court advantage for every remaining series distract you. And by all means, feel free to ignore the fact the Spurs are 19-1 on the road in their past 20 games the Big Three have played. After three methodical beatdowns of Utah, including one of the sweetest last-second plays you'll ever see to get a Matt Bonner 3 at the end of the first half of Game 3, the scary thought is that San Antonio's defense is catching up to its offense. The thought entering this series was that Utah's bruising post game was the perfect attack to face San Antonio, especially after Zach Randolph beat them up in the playoffs last spring. Instead, a spry-looking Tim Duncan has completely bottled up Al Jefferson, Boris Diaw has provided a much-needed post defender at the 4 and the Spurs are fourth in playoff defensive efficiency -- a mark that would be even better were it not for the copious amounts of garbage time in the first three games. So keep ignoring them. They'll just be quietly chuckling while they await their next overmatched opponent, standing 13 wins from one of the greatest closing kicks in league annals."
• People are all upset that Al Jefferson said the Spurs are fantastic, and better than the Jazz. I don't think people should ever get in trouble for telling the truth.
• It was suggested that Utah's "big" lineup, which features Derrick Favors, Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson, might give San Antonio trouble. But the Silver and Black Machine has sliced and diced every combination of Jazz players they've faced. Just like in the regular season, they've spread the floor, attacked the weakest link in the defense and drilled open 3s.
• Let's give some credit to Scott Brooks for this: he knows how to let James Harden do his thing.
• Why are ACLs so vulnerable? Turns out even NBA superstars can't overcome genetics.
• NBA tickets for one dollar. From a Bobcats press release: "Under the promotion, season tickets could be priced as low as $43 for an upper-level seat, with the cost per game equaling the draft pick the team receives in the lottery. For example, if the Bobcats get the No. 1 pick, the price would be $1 per game, or $43 for the season (41 regular season games and two preseason games). Even if the Bobcats receive the No. 4 pick, the $4-per-game cost would amount to $172 for the season. This is a price point that has not been available in the past, inviting customers who may not have been able to become Bobcats season ticket holders previously." NOTE: This promotion is over ... those super cheap seats are sold out.
• Don't look now, but Jrue Holiday is starting to cash in on his star potential.
• Nick Flynt with a two part breakdown of the Clippers defense that rarely broke down in Game 3.
• Among the many things the NBA should take pride in: Very few games interrupted by chickens. Although there was that Hawk incident.
• Carmelo Anthony hung most of his 41 points on the Heat when matched up against Shane Battier. Brian Windhorst wonders why Spoelstra didn't put LeBron James on Anthony down the stretch, and I'm wondering whether it's time to officially retire Battier's "Stopper" label.
• Not enough rebounds. Too many turnovers and long jump shots. The problems facing the Bulls are the same ones they usually pose to their opponents.
• The Celtics are banged up, especially on the wings.
• Nets Are Scorching blogger Devin Kharpertian got a familiar feeling watching James Harden slice through the Mavericks defense.
• It's almost certain that they won't come back and win the series, but that shouldn't stop New York fans from feeling good about the Knicks' thrilling Game 4 win.
• A lot of what happens on the court is a competition for some kind of swagger. All that working out, and running around, though ... and just eating some yogurt might have done the same thing.
• Be careful using something you see in one playoff game as insight into what will happen in the next playoff game. They're all different.
• Reggie Evans knows how to stop Marreese Speights from setting a good pick.
• A frame-by-frame look at Miami's airtight defense.
• The Pacers have had some odd lapses against the Magic. Jared Wade has some critical feedback, "Stan Van Gundy has been drawing up excellent out of bounds plays all series. This was one of them. But it really only worked because it was a quick-hitter to be executed against a defense that forgot the basic fundamentals of guarding a player you learn in second grade. Fortunately for Van Gundy, Paul George complied."

• The Thunder are doing a great job of locking up Jason Terry.
• I'm not sure it's possible to look tough when you're in Mickey Mouse ears, but the Pacers make a good effort.
• Tom Sunnergren of Philadunkia has some important advice for Jrue Holiday and the Sixers: "In an admittedly small sample, [Jrue's] shooting 70 percent in this series when Rose isn’t on the floor. In a larger one, he’s scoring 21 ppg in five games against the Bulls this season. Get to the basket, Jrue. Challenge Watson defensively: Derrick Rose only averaged 1.8 personal fouls per 48 minutes in the regular season, his backup committed 4.3. Use that. Most of all, though, the Sixers can’t relax for a minute. The Bulls are wounded, but don’t take them lightly, guys. You’re liable to get your hand bitten."
• Things I didn't know before reading this Mark Murphy feature on two of the unique talents in the NBA: Rajon Rondo introduced Josh Smith to Smith's future wife, and that the two crashed a prom together as high school seniors.
• What happened to Devin Harris? The picture at the top of this post says it all.
• The NBA playoffs are showcasing the guile of the Gasols.
• SI's Zach Lowe looks for ways the Nuggets can turn things around against the Lakers. Solving this issue is going to be a doozy: "The Nuggets have struggled to defend the Bryant/Sessions pick-and-roll, a play that has really flummoxed the league since Sessions arrived as the true dribble-drive threat Blake and Derek Fisher -- also occasional partners on this play -- could never be. They switched a ton in Game 1, leaving poor Lawson to try to defend Bryant. They tried to avoid switching in Game 2, in part by having wing players (Gallinari and Brewer) defend both Sessions and Bryant. Denver was better, but still inconsistent; perimeter defense and over-switching have been an issue for much of the season in Denver, and finding a workable solution to this simple play -- one that doesn’t involve defense-breaking rotations elsewhere -- is going to be hard."
• Is Lamar Odom really ready for a comeback?
• Chris Paul said this about Marc Gasol to the Clipper bench: "I'm going to knock him out." I'm sure the 2011-12 Pacific Division Sportsmanship Award winner was talking about knocking him out of the playoffs.
• A look back at some players who should have been in the All-Star Game.
• Some who hoped Oklahoma City would develop a "system" on offense have voiced frustration. But heed this, from Rob Mahoney: "The Thunder are so tremendously good at utilizing the secondary break -- a stage of semi-transition that has long been good to the Mavericks as well. The only difference: Westbrook, Durant, and Harden all put so much pressure on opposing defenses in the initial transition stage that shooters are subsequently open almost as a default."
• Vince Carter says he can still do a 360 windmill dunk. Dallas would make due with more scoring of any kind.
• One of my favorite things during the postseason: David Thorpe's postseason MVP rankings (Insider). According to Thorpe, the guy at No. 5 "may be the most dangerous offensive force in basketball today." This list always contains a few surprises, including ... Nick Young?!
• Congratulations to Ryan Anderson, the 2012 Most Improved Player. This award may represent an improved public profile more than actually improved play, because a look at the numbers shows there are some far more deserving candidates. Ryan Anderson was really good last year; he just didn't play nearly as much.
• Kevin Durant had a shooting night that was reminiscent of what Dirk Nowitzki did to the Thunder last year.
• The Pistons want Kyle Singler to come back to the Detroit. But it sounds like he's having a jolly time living and playing in Spain. Can't say I blame him.
• Tacking on a couple Kobe-related points to Henry Abbott's post on why the Lakers should give Andrew Bynum more late-game touches.

HoopIdea wants to #StopTheFlop. To spotlight the biggest fakers, we present Flop of the Night. You can help us separate the pretenders from the defenders -- details below.

The Mavericks, the oldest team in the league, pulled all the old man maneuvers out of their bag of tricks to keep up with the young and talented Oklahoma City Thunder Thunder on Thursday.

With the season slipping away, Jason Terry had to try something. So as he dribbled the ball across the court, James Harden on his hip, Terry laid down a flop that contains all the classic elements you would expect from such a seasoned veteran.

Note the subtle headwhip, the way he flings out his left arm as though Harden just stuck him with a cattle prod, how he suddenly loses control of his left foot, dragging it behind him as he tumbles to the hardwood.

Was there a trip wire on the court? Did James Harden's beard exerts mystical gravitational forces that caused Terry to lose his balance?

In technique, this actually looks a lot like an egregious soccer flop, or "dive." But there are no yellow cards for simulating a foul in the NBA.

On the contrary, even though watching Harden reveals he couldn't have possibly fouled Terry, the veteran got the call -- even if the Thunder got the game.

When you see an egregious flop that deserves proper recognition, send us a link to the video so we can consider it for Flop of the Night. Here's how to make your submission:

• Alert HoopIdea to super flops with the Twitter hashtag #FlopOfTheNight (follow us on Twitter here).
• Use the #FlopOfTheNight hashtag in Daily Dime Live.
• E-mail us at hoopidea@gmail.com

• Ethan J. Skolnick of the Palm Beach Post: On a night like this, you simply want to sully yourself less than your opponent, and the Heat managed that much, taking Game 3 by an 87-70 count to grab a 3-0 lead in the first-round Eastern Conference series. That extended the Knicks' playoff losing streak to a record 13, which wiped the Memphis teams of Shane Battier and Mike Miller out of the record books. Sunday, Miami figures to tack on a 14th, end New York's misery and advance to the second round. Simply, the Knicks don't have enough to seriously compete right now, not with Amare Stoudemire in a sling, Jeremy Lin in a suit, Iman Shumpert sidelined for several months, and the Heat's talent gap significant even before all those absences. And so, the Heat, at less than its best, is still sufficient. "Coaches like those kind of wins, where you're not necessarily playing well," Erik Spoelstra said.
• Roderick Boone of Newsday: Carmelo Anthony didn't need great hearing to decipher the chatter among a few Heat players, not since he was essentially already in tune with their rock-'em, sock-'em game plan. Still, Anthony knew he was in for it when some guys on Miami's bench basically paraphrased 50 Cent's new single "I Beat It Up" and kept imploring the Heat to pound on him all game long. "I heard the bench yelling, 'Keep beating him up, keep beating him up,' '' Anthony said after the Knicks ' 87-70 loss to Miami in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series last night at the Garden. "They throw everything at you. Shane Battier , LeBron . "When you drive, they make it harder for you. But when you can't score the basketball, that makes the game extremely hard regardless of how much defense we go down there and play." If this keeps up, Anthony may start taking a beating from Knicks fans, too.
• Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman: The Thunder routed Dallas 95-79 Thursday night – it was 95-69 when Scotty Brooks grounded his fleet – and took a 3-0 lead in this Western Conference playoff series. Many are the reasons the Thunder won with ease. Kevin Durant opened the game hot. Russell Westbrook opened the second half hot. The Boomers took care of the ball. But reason No. 1 is because Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins claimed the two most precious pieces of real estate on the court. The rim and the paint. The Thunder big men contested every close shot, grabbed every grabbable rebound and didn't let Dirk Nowitzki and friends have anything easy. Ibaka blocked four shots and it seemed like 40. “He's a presence in there,” Mav coach Rick Carlisle said. “They have a presence at the rim that's effective.” Said Nowitzki, “Serge Ibaka took a step forward. He's the best shot blocker in the league.” Perkins bullied any Mav who dared enter the lane; Dallas center Brendan Haywood had four shots in the first six minutes, all from dunk range, and made just one. Carlisle was so exasperated, he took Haywood out of the game and never put him back. ... The Mavericks shot just 34.2 percent from the field. Nowitzki, alternately guarded by Perk, Ibaka or their partner, Nick Collison, made just six of 15 shots. Shawn Marion, who had several shots in the paint, went 1-for-8.
• Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News: If this is all they've got, the Mavericks should do everybody a favor and fall on their sword Saturday night in Game 4. Don't bother with the show of resolve. Too late for that now, because it's just a matter of time until the Mavericks are dethroned and vacation begins. Getting humiliated on their home court while trying to fall back on a steady diet of jump shots against a team of better jump-shooters than they have, the Mavericks were pitchforked, 95-79, Thursday night by the Oklahoma City Thunder that showed they are the new beasts in the Western Conference. At least on this end of Interstate 35. The Mavericks built their playoff slogan around the catchy phrase: "All In.'' The irony in that is thick, since management didn't exactly go all-in when it came to retaining (or replacing) a championship team. And now, they are one game from being all-out.
• Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald: Rajon Rondo was asked about the appreciation he showed to his teammates — he ran down the tunnel at Philips Arena and hugged Kevin Garnett — and whether he felt he let his teammates down by missing the game. “I didn’t feel like I needed to say thank you for getting this win,” Rondo replied. “We’re trying to get as many wins as possible. You know, they’ve won without me before, so it’s not the first game I’ve missed. I’ve missed (for) injuries and suspensions. It’s just a big win because this is the playoffs. You know, every win counts.” And about the letting them down thing? “No,” he told the TV reporter. “Do you feel like I let them down?” There followed an exchange of “I’m just asking you” before the conversation moved on. And you know what? It just doesn’t matter if he wants to be that way with us — if Rondo wants to act as if it’s no big whoop that he wasn’t there for his teammates in a playoff game. There would, however, be an issue if he were taking the same attitude with his teammates. And while there are reports that was the case after his two-game suspension for throwing a ball at an official in February, Rivers said Rondo was a different hand grenade this time. Hence the thanking of mates.
• Michael Cunningham of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: The Hawks may have to score in Game 3 without forward Josh Smith, who leads the team with a total of 38 points in the series. He suffered a sprained left knee and strained his patella tendon late in Game 2 and is doubtful to play Friday. Smith said he planned to test the knee at the team’s light practice Friday morning. He said the knee had improved and he has a “high threshold for pain,” but doesn’t want to push it too far. ... The injuries have chipped away at the Hawks’ depth, and their reserves have not filled the void, especially on offense. Hawks scoring droughts have generally coincided with the times Drew uses a lineup that doesn’t include Johnson, Smith or point guard Jeff Teague. The Hawks have been outscored 19-7 during the 17 possessions those three players have been on the bench at the same time, according to basketballvalue.com. Boston’s bench scoring hasn’t been much better, but coach Doc Rivers has compensated by always having either Paul Pierce or Kevin Garnett on the court. Before Rajon Rondo was ejected near the end of Game 1 and suspended for Game 2, Rivers always had two of Pierce, Garnett and Rondo on the floor.
• Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post: In Game 2, Danilo Gallinari got to the paint but couldn't get the shots to drop — and couldn't get to the line. The result was a subpar shooting performance for Denver's potent forward — 13 points on 5-for-18 shooting in the loss. He actually missed seven of his nine attempts from inside the paint and attempted only two foul shots, making both. Heading into Game 3 tonight, Gallinari said after Thursday's practice: "You have to find the right balance and right emotions for you, so you don't come out too emotional or too energized. We all need to find the right energy, and I know we're going to find it tomorrow." This balance will be important for Gallinari, who has struggled for much of the season against the Lakers. He did, however, have a pretty good Game 1, scoring 19 points on 7-for-14 shooting. "As long as we bring energy and play more aggressive on the defensive end," he said of Game 3, "I like our chance to win."
• Janis Carr of The Orange County Register: After holding off Denver to take a 2-0 series lead, Kobe Bryant said having time off helped him tremendously. The eight-game layoff not only allowed his sore shin to heal, but it gave the Lakers star a chance to rest his body from the pounding and wear-and-tear of games. Yet, two days later, Bryant discounted the unexpected rest at the end of the season. He said Thursday that outside of the shin injury, his 34-year-old body was in fine shape, despite logging 2,232 minutes in 58 games. “I was feeling fine,” he said. “Outside of the injury, I was OK.” It’s just like Bryant to shake off any talk of fallibility. He has played through broken fingers, sprained ankles, broken noses, torn wrist ligaments and sore necks, so it’s no wonder he refused to say he was tired from the heavy minutes Coach Mike Brown laid on him. But Brown will say it. “I thought the break was good for him,” Brown said. “Obviously, he knows his body better than anyone else does, but I thought the break was good for him because I had been playing him a lot of minutes."
• Tom Moore of phillyBurbs.com: With Spencer Hawes (seven points, seven rebounds, six fouls) struggling in the first two games, Lavoy Allen has been the team’s most effective center. “He can definitely play,” said Elton Brand. “We knew he’d be a big help, but he really surprised some people at that game (Tuesday).” One of the 6-foot-9, 255-pound Allen’s most impressive attributes is he’s effective as a starter or reserve. He started Game 1, then Collins switched him to the second unit for Game 2 so he’d provide frontcourt rebounding with backup Thaddeus Young. ... Allen’s role has been ever-changing. He didn’t play in 25 regular-season games, yet started 15. When he’s on the court, he gives quality low-post defense, hits the boards and can knock down mid-range jumpers. Collins said Allen has the potential to be like Pacers power forward David West, a two-time all-star when he was with the Hornets. But even Allen admitted Thursday that he wondered how much of a first-year impact he’d have after joining a team with nearly its entire roster returning in a lockout-shortened season — and with first-round pick Nikola Vucevic, who hasn’t played in the first two games, also a power forward/center. “There weren’t really a lot of minutes to go around,” Allen said. “I didn’t really expect to be playing big-time minutes in the playoffs. It’s a great experience.”
• K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune: As their latest test shifts to Philadelphia for Friday's Game 3 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinals series against the 76ers, the Bulls also know their top overall seed will mean nothing for the second straight year unless they rally. The prospect of falling behind 2-1 in a playoff series, especially without Derrick Rose, has them in an uncomfortable spot. "We've been through tougher things than this," Luol Deng said following a 90-minute practice. "I know how everyone feels. We've got a lot of guys who are fighters. We're going to fight our way out of this." The blueprint to do this has been espoused by coach Tom Thibodeau all season: Defend. Rebound. Limit turnovers. Play inside-out offensively. Share the ball. Better transition defense and more scoring from starters would help as well. The 76ers scored 25 fast-break points off just eight Bulls turnovers in Game 2, which suggests poor shot selection and floor balance offensively.

It was a bad night for the home teams in the NBA playoffs, as the Dallas Mavericks and New York Knicks combined to score just 149 points and moved within one loss of elimination on Thursday.

On a day where New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera suffered a torn ACL, the Knicks set an NBA record by losing their 13th straight playoff game. The last time the Knicks won a playoff game was April 29, 2001. Rivera earned career save number 171 on the same day, and has recorded 437 regular-season games since then.

The Knicks led by four points at halftime before being outscored 51-30 in the second half by the Miami Heat. In the fourth period, they were outscored 17-14 … by LeBron James. The 17 points tied a playoff career high for James in the fourth quarter, matching his output against the Orlando Magic in the 2009 Conference Finals.

According to Elias, the Knicks tied the NBA shot-clock era record of 38 consecutive games without scoring 100 points. The last time New York reached a century was on June 9, 1999, a 101-94 win over the Indiana Pacers. The other team to have 38 games between scoring 100 points was the Heat, from 1997 to 2004.

How hard was it for the Knicks to score? They were just 22-for-69 from the field and made only eight field goals in the second half. They shot 32 percent from the field, breaking the franchise record for worst field goal percentage in a playoff game. Their previous low was 33 percent in the 1999 NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs.

The home crowd in Dallas wasn’t treated to much more offense. The Mavericks scored 79 points against the Oklahoma City Thunder, their lowest playoff point total since losing 98-74 to the Heat in Game 4 of the 2006 NBA Finals. The Thunder never trailed in the game, and the only time the game was tied was 0-0. In Game 2, there were 16 lead changes and 16 ties.

Kevin Durant had the best shooting night of his playoff career, making 11 of 15 shots. After making on 15 of 44 shots in the first two games (34 percent), he shot a playoff career-high 73 percent from the field on Thursday. His previous playoff high was 59 percent (13-for-22) against the Denver Nuggets last season.

Durant was even better from mid- and long-range. After making only 6 of 21 shots from 15 feet or further in the first two games, he was 8-for-10 in Game 3.

The Mavericks are the second defending champion in NBA history to lose their first three playoff games. The only other defending champ to do so was the Miami Heat, who were swept out of the playoffs in 2007 by the Chicago Bulls.

• LeBron James says he has not imagined himself as a Knick.
• A staggering percentage of the nation's young seven-foot men are in the NBA.
• A lot of how the NBA deals with misbehavior is along the lines of how schools do the same thing. Suspensions, for instance, are the main tool of both. Here's a case, from a school in Washington, suggesting suspensions don't work well at all, and a much better approach is heavy with patience and compassion.
• Kind of related: Our intelligence is not fixed, but changes, and believing that evidently makes it more so.
• Zach Lowe of SI.com: "Through two games, it’s clear Miami is reinvigorated on offense. Good news for the league: It has only been two games against an overmatched Knicks team whose best defender suffered a poorly timed case of the flu and whose second-best defender is out for the season with a torn ACL. Still, the early results are encouraging: Miami is leaning on some basic actions in which its star players work together on and off the ball, rather than having everyone stand around while James or Wade runs a high pick-and-roll."
• The video suggests Nick Collison can guard Dirk Nowitzki far better than Kendrick Perkins, but that's not how Scott Brooks sees it, evidently.
• You think the game is dangerous? Check out the timeouts.
• The last time the Knicks won a playoff game gas was $1.70 a gallon.
• Front-row Grizzlies fan vs. common decency and Marc Gasol.
• John Hollinger (Insider): "Here's an amazing stat: Derrick Favors has played 47 minutes in this series and is a plus-6. The other 49 minutes the Jazz are minus-52."
• Rajon Rondo is teasing an R&B album in which he's performing with an unnamed "female Drake."
• No Pacers have been hurt punching fire extinguishers, and that's not coincidence.
• Accepting the award for Defensive Player of the Year, Tyson Chandler thanks his teammates for making him look like a great defender. He also says that he thinks Tony Allen is the best on-ball defender in the league, with a nod to LeBron James.
• Former Sonics employee Jeremy Ripanich, on Deadspin, with an inside view of the Sonics' departure from Seattle: "Either [Clay] Bennett is an idiot who married into his fortune and lucked into the team, or he's a canny businessman who played the game shrewdly and won. I have to think he's the latter. I need only look at the organization he's put together to know he's running the club better than Schultz -- the media-ordained genius -- ever did. It was Bennett who brought in the architect of the club, Sam Presti, based on their mutual connections with the San Antonio Spurs. It was Bennett who allowed Presti to build slowly around Durant instead of demanding wins immediately. Sure, there was plenty of bad faith on Bennett's part during the sale, but at this point it's silly to expect anything else from a sports owner. Caveat emptor applies to us as much as it does to owners. They are running revenue-maximizing operations, and a fanbase is of use to them only to the extent that it makes them money. All we can hope for is that an owner cares enough about his product to give us something worth watching every year. By all evidence Clay Bennett cares about his product. Howard Schultz never did. Maybe that's the ultimate deception in the Sonics' story: A lot of us had the wrong villain all along."
• Ricky Rubio, from a chair, practicing his shooting touch.

• Geoff Calkins of The Commercial-Appeal: Sometimes, life — and basketball — imitates Saturday morning wrestling. The Memphis Grizzlies did a little pile driving of their own Wednesday night, coming off the ropes to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers, 105-98, and even their playoff series 1-1. And, no, I promise I’m not going to subject you to a whole column of wrestling puns. But the Clippers might as well have emerged from the locker room wearing a neck brace. That’s how physical this one was. That’s how brilliantly hard-fought. Three nights after blowing a 27-point lead in the face of Clippers pressure, the Grizzlies responded in the way you would have hoped. “We got punched in the mouth in the first game,” said coach Lionel Hollins, “but we came back tonight and withstood some blows.” Ever since Sunday, Hollins has been downplaying the significance of the fourth-quarter debacle. But it’s been eating at the players, just the same. “I heard about it everywhere,” said Mike Conley. “Restaurants, the gas station, the dry cleaner ... ” O.J. Mayo said he hasn’t slept since Sunday. Rudy Gay tried his best to avoid TVs. “To lose in the fashion we did and then to sit there and listen to ESPN,” he said, “there’s no denying, it was hard.”
• Jill Painter of the Los Angeles Daily News: The Chris Paul trade was made for moments like these. The Clippers hadn't been in the playoffs in six years, and Paul was willing them through Wednesday's Game 2 of the Western Conference playoffs. He was driving, dealing, advising and showing no signs of a groin injury that had Clipper Nation so concerned. Paul was everything he needed to be, scoring a game-high 29 points, but the Clippers needed more than an outstanding performance from him. Paul's 3-pointer with eight seconds left was errant, and it wouldn't have been enough anyway. The Grizzlies avenged one of the worst collapses in NBA playoff history and held off the Clippers 105-98 at sold out FedEx Forum. The series is tied at 1 as it heads back to Staples Center for Game 3 on Saturday. The Clippers had 20 turnovers - and Paul was the worst culprit with five - and were outrebounded 37-28. The Grizzlies inexplicably had 16 offensive rebounds. No night from Paul can overcome those kinds of numbers. ... During the game, Eric Bledsoe, Nick Young and Mo Williams all suffered injuries - the extent of which are unknown. Paul can't do this by himself. "That gets kind of scary, seeing guys at the end of the bench getting worked on," Paul said. "Bledsoe was hit in the arm and then Mo and hopefully everybody's going to be OK or nobody's going to be left."
• Mike Wells of The Indianapolis Star: I was expecting the Orlando Magic to make a run at some point on Wednesday and possibly briefly take the lead Game 3. They had to. They were playing at home for the first time in the playoffs and looking to avenge what happened in the second half of Game 2. The Magic had recovered from early double-digit deficits in each of the first two games. The Pacers had something else in the mind. The blue and gold had one of their best performances against a team with a winning record in quite some time. Not at one point did it seem like the Pacers were going to relinquish the lead. Not when the Magic got to within two late in the first half. The Pacers were on a mission to make sure they regained home court in the series. They led for all 48 minutes and were never really challenged in the second half when they led by as many as 29 minutes. “I thought we were aggressive from the beginning,” forward David West said. “They made some adjustments and we were able to deal with them on the move. I thought we took their air space and made them uncomfortable.”
• Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel: The question was whether Ryan Anderson finally would show up against the Pacers, preferably on Wednesday night. The answer: Still missing. In mysterious disappearances, Ryan is now listed with Ameila Earhart, D.B. Cooper, Jimmy Hoffa and Charlie Sheen's career. Here's all you need to know about the Magic's Game 3 scoring plight: Their second-leading scorer — the league's 3-point champ — had zero points, one rebound and four fouls heading into the final period. He finished with seven points, all meaningless as the Pacers led by fill-in-the-blank. But Anderson did get to guard 7-foot-2 Roy Hibbert, as if he wasn't feeling small enough. He's gone from a regular season break-out to a postseason black-out. Anderson could win the league's Most Improved Player award, and they might ask for it to be returned. "I'll take some of the blame," Coach Stan Van Gundy said. "We haven't got him involved in the series." After averaging 16 points over 61 games and leading the NBA in 3-pointers made and taken, Anderson is scoring at a chilly 7.9 clip. His production from the 3-point line in the playoffs: 5-of-15. Worse, it's not only Anderson's frigid average; it's the frightening lack of attempts. His misery mirrors the team's.
• Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News: Spurs coach Gregg Popovich intentionally has increased the pace of his team’s offense because he contends it can no longer play the stingy defense that characterized his four championship teams. The first half of Wednesday night’s Game 2 against the Utah Jazz was a throwback to the glory days of defense. A 114-83 victory included some noteworthy benchmarks. Not since the Western Conference finals in the first title season of 1999, when they held the Portland Trail Blazers to 25 points in the second half of an 85-63 victory, had the Spurs held a team to fewer points in a half than the 28 the Jazz scored in a the first half Wednesday. Utah made just 23.4 percent of its shots. The Spurs had not held a playoff opponent to fewer points than the 83 the Jazz scored in Game 2 since Game 6 of their Western Conference semifinals series against the New Orleans Hornets in 2008. “They shot bad,” Spurs guard Danny Green said of the Jazz, who missed 36 of 47 first-half shots, “but we did play some good defense.” Included in Utah’s first-half ineptitude was a stretch in the second period when the Jazz missed 10 straight shots during a 20-0 Spurs run to close the half. “We expected them to come out and really be aggressive and physical on both ends and really attack the glass,” Spurs captain Tim Duncan said. “We came out real focused and kind of did the same."
• Jody Genessy of the Deseret News: One word crossed Al Jefferson's lips in a muted tone when he was asked to describe what had just happened to him and the Utah Jazz on the AT&T center court. "Embarrassing." The night was inexplicable for Paul Millsap — the worst he'd ever been part of during his NBA career. "Tough" was the description Gordon Hayward uttered a few times. Devin Harris admitted it was "a little demoralizing." Game 2 was SOOOOO BAD for the Jazz, even Spurs coach Gregg Popovich kind of came to their defense. The Jazz were hounded, hammered and humiliated by San Antonio — and that was just the first half. When the final buzzer finally blared its merciful sound, the Jazz were on the extremely short end of a 114-83 rout Wednesday night. The Spurs — after beating the Jazz by an average of 23 points in their first two playoff games — will take a 2-0 series lead into Utah for Game 3 on Saturday night. "We had a good night. They had a poor night," Popovich, the 2012 NBA coach of the year, said. "This was just a matter of them having a bad, bad night. ... It happens to all of us." Almost amazingly, this wasn't a historically bad playoff showing by the Jazz. They've shot worse and put up fewer points than in this one.
• Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman: Kevin Durant is just like most of you. He knows his shot's not falling. He figures it's bound to come around. Like you, the three-time scoring champ sees his shooting percentages in this opening round series with Dallas and believes he's due. “I do,” Durant said, “because I come in and I put in the work. It's not like I'm just sitting around and waiting for it to come to me. I try to force it a little bit with my work. So if it comes to me, I'll know that's because I worked hard. If it doesn't, then I know I got to keep working hard. It's just a matter of being mentally tough. I want to make shots. I want to be efficient. But I'm not right now. But I've got faith in myself and I'm positive that it'll turn around.” Durant has made just 15-of-44 shots entering Thursday's Game 3 inside American Airlines Center. He's made only 3-of-12 3-pointers and has looked totally mystified thanks to the Mavs. While Durant has struggled, it's been Russell Westbrook who has carried the Thunder to a 2-0 series lead. But if the Thunder has any plans of making quick work of the defending champs, Durant seemingly will have to find his stroke in Dallas. Thunder coach Scott Brooks said he will continue to run the offense through Durant.
• Randy Galloway of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: OK, I am a betting man, but mainly four-legged as opposed to two-legged, although the temptation about Mavs minus-3 points on the Vegas line for this Game 3 could easily get the best of my bad habits. After the two losses to open the series in OKC, and the way those two losses went down, the gut is begging for a wager. The gut is saying the Mavericks blow 'em off the floor tonight. But my gut has also been foul since consuming some bad barbeque last weekend in Oklahoma City. Regardless, the Mavs are dead without a W in Game 3. In other non-breaking news, the timing element for the Mavs needs a complete one-eighty. These OKC people are new to the NBA playoff process, but it doesn't take a basketball doctorate to figure out what we've seen forever, one way or the other, around here. If you can't win consistently in crunch time then the necessary four wins aren't going to happen in a series.
• Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald: LeBron James on Wednesday declined to fire back after Reggie Miller questioned him for reaching out to Hall of Fame players last summer, including Hakeem Olajuwon (who helped James with his post game), Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas. “This is one of the most physically gifted guys in our league,” Miller said on TNT. “He left Cleveland, and he had every right to join one of the top five players in the league in Dwyane Wade along with Chris Bosh. “Now he’s reaching out to Hall of Famers to see what it takes to win? Enough is enough. Go out and actually do it on your own. What do you need more help for?” James said he wasn’t aware of Miller’s comment, but that “it’s good to have perspective from someone else’s point of view” about the playoffs, “their championship runs, their playing days in general.” Asked if he’s “good” with Miller — who will be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in September — James said, “I’m good with my family and teammates. That’s all that matters to me.”
• Bill Pennington of The New York Times: With his left hand wrapped in a thick, soft bandage, Stoudemire seemed neither embarrassed nor distraught. He addressed reporters in a matter-of-fact tone that was a mix of unsupported hopefulness — he said he had a great chance to play in Sunday’s Game 4 — and detached bewilderment. It all happened, Stoudemire said, so fast. “I was walking down the corridor frustrated that we were down, 0-2, and I swung my arm at the wall,” Stoudemire said, describing the episode. “The fire extinguisher door was 85 percent metal and 2 percent glass, or whatever. I didn’t see the glass. I swung my arm backward. It wasn’t like I had a closed fist and punched the glass. I was letting off a little frustration — trying to make some noise, not injure myself. “When I saw that I my hand was cut, I was like, what? I was very upset and upset with myself. But never in a million years did I think I would cut my hand.” Stoudemire was disappointed that he would not be able to help his teammates Thursday — he said he had let them down — but added that he believed he could play in Sunday’s game. The Knicks list him as doubtful for Game 4. “I’m expecting to heal up fast,” Stoudemire said. “I think there’s a great chance I can play Sunday.” Knicks Coach Mike Woodson, however, was not planning on Stoudemire’s return.

• Tyson Chandler is your 2012 Defensive Player of the Year. Check out the rest of the results. For my money, Joakim Noah, who anchors the second-best defense in the NBA, is a way better defender than Serge Ibaka and too far down on this list.
• John Hollinger takes aim (Insider) at the assumption that a compressed regular season schedule is responsible for all these playoff injuries: "We say this every year in the first round of the playoffs, how we've never seen anything like all these injuries. Um, anyone remember a year ago? New York lost Chauncey Billups after Game 1 and had a skeleton crew by the end of Game 2. The Lakers' Steve Blake missed Game 1 with the chicken pox. Atlanta lost Kirk Hinrich for the playoffs in Game 6. Miami lost Mike Miller for the first round after Game 2; he played a total of six minutes in that series. The Hornets lost Aaron Gray to an ankle sprain in Game 1, although he managed to gimp through. These players weren't as famous as the ones hurt this week, perhaps, but injuries make no distinction based on Q-rating."
• Valley of the Suns blogger Michael Schwartz with a smart, sympathetic look at everything that's happened to Amare Stoudemire, and the Suns, since he left the desert.
• What is the Bulls offense without Derrick Rose? A lot of pin-down screens and snappy ball movement. In the regular season, that was reasonably effective. But the 76ers absolutely demolished these sets in the second half of last night's blowout victory. Zach Lowe has the video evidence.
• R.R. Magellan of Forum Blue and Gold was pleased with Jordan Hill's effort and output last night. Hill's brightest moments as a pro are coming just as things are taking a turn for the complicated off the court.
• Watch Kyle Weidie's brief movie about JaVale McGee titled, "Can't Say I Do"
• Along with everyone else on the Bulls, Derrick Rose looked like he was having a terrible time last night. In a related story, Jrue Holiday went nuts.
• HoopSpeak's Brett Koremenos with some praise for Big Baby Davis in his keys to tonight's games: "Hibbert, who relies on deep positioning for much of his success, has found himself unable to get that prime real estate near the paint when Davis defends him. It has seemed as if moving Davis is like moving a tree stump, if that tree stump also was chained to four sedan-sized boulders. Without getting to a more favorable operating area, Hibbert has shot just 31.3 percent from the field so far this series, a far cry from his 49.7 percent during the regular season."
• The Spurs have been running this play, called "Weak," for about a decade. It still gets them easy buckets.
• Before the Magic face the Pacers tonight, they need to find an answer to a simple question.
• Keith Smart is taking suggestions on how to become a better coach.
• Milwaukee plans to re-sign coach Scott Skiles. To Jeremy Schmidt, that's a sign that the Bucks won't be looking to rebuild any time soon.
• The NBA: where large feet happen.
• Jeremy Lin has inspired myriad puns and nicknames. The Communicated Stereotype takes a look at a few that reference his ethnicity, and analyzes whether they are endearing, or "problematic."
• Lots of good points in this post, but this is what Zach Harper has to say about Andre Miller's posterior: "It’s a big man’s rear-end on a point guard’s frame. It allows him to no longer have to worry about being slow. He can move mountains to the side by shifting from hip to hip. Sometimes it looks like he has one of those flatbed carts at Home Depot and he’s going up and down the aisles with piles of 2x4s and concrete slabs on it. And the weight is just too much to handle on the turns. It’s veering right when he’s trying to stay to the left, like an out of control semi-truck. He’s bumping into shopping carts and coming close to sideswiping people in the doorbell aisle. Take your eyes off him for a second and you’ll find yourself going from hearing melodious chimes at the push of a button to shin bruises a plenty."
• An invitation to Avery Bradley's Block Party. (Side note: Bradley and Jeff Teague both made a number of thrillingly athletic plays last night, which made it a perfect game for Kevin Calabro, the voice of the Payton-Kemp era Seattle Sonics, to call on NBA TV. For the uninitiated, here's three minutes of Calabro's classic calls from the Sonics' 1996 run to the NBA Finals.)
• Down 0-2, Mavericks' coach Rick Carlisle is voicing his displeasure with the officiating. Daily Thunder's Royce Young just calls it whining.

• A few thoughts about the future of televised basketball. High quality cameras are getting tiny, and people are already wearing them while playing hoops. Wouldn't mind seeing the Kevin Durant-view of some of the playoffs' best plays. Also ... I'm willing to bet there will be cameras on remote control helicopters in NBA arenas before too long. They already fly blimps around in arenas, and they already fly little helicopters with cameras over and around snowboarders and the like. This will happen.
• Boris Diaw will once again start, in the playoffs, for one of the best teams in the game. About six weeks ago that same Diaw was let go by the Bobcats, the worst team in the history of the game. Either the Spurs are doomed, or somewhere in there is a lesson about the value of corporate culture.
• Rob Mahoney, on The Two Man Game, with props for Shawn Marion. "Marion has led the Mavericks in rebounding in both games thus far, scored 32 total points on just 23 shots, and also happens to be providing a master class on how to defend Kevin Durant."
• John Hollinger's not a doctor, but he has some smart thoughts about Ray Allen's health (Insider): "Allen is listed as day-to-day, but those bone spurs aren't going to magically go away until he gets surgery to remove them. I'm not a doctor, but I don't know what's going to change by Friday or Sunday or next week, or next month, to make his condition any different. I suspect there's a decent chance he's already played his last game this year."
• On HoopSpeak, Brett Koremenos accuses the Nuggets of stage fright in Game 1: "Kenneth Faried and JaVale McGee are experiencing the NBA’s second season for the first time while Danilo Gallinari and Corey Brewer are only on their second go-rounds. Even Ty Lawson and Arron Afflalo, while not new to the atmosphere, are experiencing it in new and bigger roles." The Nuggets can score in the paint. Also, a memo to Ty Lawson from Roundball Mining Company's Kalen: "The minute Lawson resigns as an active threat, the Lakers have won."
• The Celtics are in a pickle. On the road, missing Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen, after having been outrebounded and outplayed. There seems to be something keeping Kevin Garnett from playing anything like his best. Is this the end of an era we're sniffing? At CelticsHub, they certainly aren't sounding the alarm yet. They're still upbeat, talking about how Paul Pierce will get to the line more without Rondo. That means something.
• David West shall lead them. What a great signing that has been for Indiana.
• If Amare Stoudemire left the arena wearing a sling ... is it really a cut we're worried about? And, it wasn't that long ago Stoudemire was joking on Twitter about punching stuff.
• Chandler Parsons. Not sure what he's doing exactly. But he's doing it hard.
• LeBron's teeth know the score.
• Some very colorful new-breed boxscores show James Harden, Serge Ibaka, Tim Duncan, Reggie Evans and Nick Young have all been even more spectacular than you thought. Also, with Caron Butler injured, Young will need to keep it up.
• Are people still saying Rajon Rondo did nothing but trip? Show them this.
• Where's this HoopIdea thing headed? Hopefully not here.
• Suns fans, how optimistic are you this offseason will restore the glory, or anything like it?
• European buzzer beaters.
• A legal mind weighs in on those Jordan Hill charges.
• Some players are looking younger and fitter, now that the playoffs are here.

HoopIdea wants to #StopTheFlop. To spotlight the biggest fakers, we present Flop of the Night. You can help us separate the pretenders from the defenders -- details below:

Poor Derek Fisher.

Flopping in the playoffs is supposed to be his thing! But Monday night, Dirk Nowitzki showed Fisher a thing or two by convincing officials that the 6-foot guard actually chucked Dirk out of bounds in pursuit of a fourth quarter rebound.

Here he is pulling the same trick in last year's Finals.

Nowitzki is a master at drawing contact when looking to score and a master of conjuring the appearance of contact when he's going for a rebound.

With just three minutes remaining in Monday night's game, Fisher's foul put Nowitzki on the line for two shots to bring Dallas within one point of the Thunder. Of course, the Thunder went on to prevail thanks to eight straight free throws of their own, but moments like these show how flopping threatens the outcome of important games.

There's very little downside for Dirk to flop in that situation, no negative recourse other than that it might take him out of the play for a moment or two. But if he gets the call and can make the free throws, his team is two points closer to stealing home court advantage. As much as we respect the gamesmanship and skill of a player like Nowitzki, do we really want the most important games of the season decided this way?

When you see an egregious flop that deserves proper recognition, send us a link to the video so we can consider it for Flop of the Night. Here's how to make your submission:

• Alert HoopIdea to super flops with the Twitter hashtag #FlopOfTheNight (follow us on Twitter here).
• Use the #FlopOfTheNight hashtag in Daily Dime Live.
• E-mail us at hoopidea@gmail.com

Jason Terry missed two 3s that would have tied the game at the end of the fourth quarter of Game 2. They were both decent looks, and Terry has a track record of above average performance with the ball in his hands and the game on the line.

But it sure is too bad wide-open Dirk Nowitzki didn't get a crack at that second 3. And ... why didn't he get that opportunity again?

The video shows Nowitzki has nobody but himself to blame. His crime? Simply wandering toward the hoop when he was wide open and his team needed a quick 3.

When Terry launched his first 3, the Thunder's Serge Ibaka smelled a rebounding opportunity and headed off for his more comfortable environment in the paint.

In doing so, Ibaka made a mistake that could have been fatal: He abandoned Nowitzki on the perimeter. Nowitzki would play the final six seconds of the game unguarded. Forget the fact that he had missed a couple of shots just before. That's still Dirk. Leaving him all alone is still like releasing your grip on a deadly snake. Once you lose track of it, all you can do is pray it doesn't bite.

But watch what Dirk does: He wanders inside the 3-point line a few steps. Players are drawn to the ball like moths to flames. He would have looked like a genius had the rebound come to him. But that's not what happened.

Three young Oklahoma players crashed the boards, but somehow an aging Vince Carter was first to the ball, getting hands on leather with four seconds on the clock. As he landed, knowing the Mavericks needed a 3 -- and fast -- he looked to the perimeter.

Jason Kidd was wide open behind the 3-point line. He made 35 percent of his shots from 3 this year, and a blistering 43 percent a couple of years ago, and he wanted the ball. (After not getting it, stayed rooted in place, arms in full hang-dog pout, absorbing the loss.)

Terry, meanwhile, is a 38 percent 3-point shooter -- this season, and over his career. Carter fired Terry the pass, even though two Thunder defenders Thabo Sefolosha and Russell Westbrook, were in range.

Meanwhile, Nowitzki shoots as well as Terry and was the most open of the bunch, especially when you consider that as a seven-footer, he has a shot that's not likely to be bothered by any of the smallish Thunder players (Westbrook, most likely) with a hope of reaching him.

But there was an excellent reason why Carter didn't look at Nowitzki: He was in no position to shoot a quick 3. By the time Nowitzki scrambled back behind the line and called for the ball, Terry was in his shooting motion and the clock was the enemy. Terry shot from a full step behind the line, over two defenders, with the predictable result.

Like a lot of things for the Mavericks this season ... just a few little things here or there, and the outcome could have been completely different.

• Linda Robertson of The Miami Herald: Miami’s Big 3 proved that it adds up to more than the sum of its parts. As for New York’s Big 3, it simply does not add up. The difference? Synergy, which is the way a group functioning together creates a result not attainable by any of its individual members. The constant doubt that Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh could not complement each other on the court is being dispelled in this, their second season together. Each made a significant contribution on Monday in a 104-94 defeat of the Knicks, who played fractured basketball and fell to 0-2 in the first-round playoff series. The postseason has just begun, but it seems the Heat is applying critical lessons learned in last year’s NBA Finals against Dallas, when the better team won. The Mavericks had synergy, the Heat had stars. This time around, the Heat is playing in harmony. The Knicks are mired in cacophony. Heat players, part of a big, happy family, gave credit to each other. New York’s Amare Stoudemire, acting like a petulant child, lost his cool, punched a fire extinguisher and cut his left hand. Makes you wonder what Stoudemire and suspended hotheads like Rajon Rondo and Metta World Peace are thinking when they hurt themselves and their teams.
• Frank Isola of the New York Daily News: It wasn’t just the Heat, it was the stupidity. Amar’e Stoudemire may have literally punched the Miami Heat’s ticket to the second round after the Knicks’ power forward, in a show of frustration and selfishness, suffered a lacerated left hand during a postgame tirade immediately following the Heat’s 104-94 Game 2 victory Monday night. A Knicks official confirmed that Stoudemire had cut his non-shooting hand when he punched a small glass door that protects a fire extinguisher just outside the Knicks’ locker room. Stoudemire’s hand shattered the pane and he needed an undetermined number of stitches to close the wound. Stoudemire later offered an apology via Twitter, apparently in a one-handed tweet. He did not comment as he exited the arena with his girlfriend and one of his children. Tyson Chandler said that Stoudemire was “out” for Game 3, and it is unlikely he will play for the rest of the series. Stoudemire’s hand was heavily bandaged and his arm was placed in a sling. The Knicks will host the Heat in Game 3 Thursday at the Garden. “It’s far from over,” Carmelo Anthony said after the Knicks matched an NBA record with their 12th straight playoff loss. “We believe that and I believe that.”
• Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman: Two games. Two Thunder wins. Both decided by a combined four points. Tells you exactly how even this matchup is. No surprise that a light skirmish broke out midway through the first quarter. The Thunder has been playing Dirk Nowitzki extremely physically and, more importantly, extremely effectively. The Mavs aren’t used to either of those things. And tonight, Dirk had enough. After taking a shot to the head by Serge Ibaka, Nowitzki decided to take matters into his own hands. First, he gave Ibaka a little shove along with a few words as they ran back on D. And then Kendrick Perkins delivered an elbow while trying to back down Dirk in the post. At the end of that possession, Dirk and Perk got tangled up going for a rebound and that’s when all hell damn near broke loose. Perk walked up on Dirk. Then Dirk shoved Perk. And Perk “shoved” back. The two had to be separated as they proceeded to call each other everything but a child of God. Mavs coach Rick Carlisle got in the middle of it all, exchanging words with Perk and eventually having to be separated from Perk, too. Both Nowitzki and Perkins were hit with double technical fouls before we finally got back to basketball. The last thing we needed tonight was Carlisle dangling from Perk’s leg a la Jeff Van Gundy. I actually thought Perk got off light. That “shove” he delivered looked a lot like a punch to me. He’s lucky it wasn’t ruled as such, which would have resulted in an automatic ejection and a suspension.
• Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News: Dirk Nowitzki is representative of the collective emotions of the Mavericks. And after two games and two hard-luck losses in Oklahoma, he's not going to try to mask the fact that this is a team that has been staggered by the Thunder so far. "It's tough,'' Nowitzki said in his postgame news conference. "Really, all four games we had here, two in the regular season and two in playoffs, we're right there. We're really just a couple bounces away from being up 2-0. So it's tough. It's frustrating.'' But it is not so depressing that the Mavericks are throwing up their hands and feeling like winning this best-of-seven series just isn't meant to be. "We're going to keep coming,'' he said. "We're not going to lay down. We're going to make them beat us. We're going to make them earn it. We got enough warriors over there that will come back Thursday and respond the way they did tonight. When we were down 16, we kept battling and kept making plays We're not going to give it to them. They're going to have to take it.'' Nowitzki had 31 points and six rebounds in Game 2. But he will forever lament a couple of shots that he took in the final two minutes. One, a wide-open 3-pointer, rimmed out and the other, a baseline fadeaway in the final 30 seconds, bounced all around the rim but would not fall into the net. "That 3-ball I had in the corner, that's game time if we go up four,'' Nowitzki said. "The game's over. I had a good look. The other one, the fadeaway, I've made it a hundred times. It bounced, hit every part of the rim and bounced off. That's kind of the way our season's been going."
• Bob Kravitz of The Indianapolis Star: It took a game and a half of this first-round Eastern Conference series against the Magic, but after a halftime in which we're guessing paint was peeled from the Pacers' locker room walls, the team that won 42 games remembered what got it the No. 3 seed in the first place. Playing with passion. Pushing the pace. Sharing the basketball. Rebounding like their hair was on fire. "Everybody was pissed (at halftime)," Tyler Hansbrough said as he dug into a postgame bowl of Froot Loops. "Nobody liked the way we were playing. I didn't think we were playing with energy or aggressive enough. All of us were kind of talking here. We knew what we had to do, and we did it in the second half." ... Why did it take a game and a half for the real Pacers to show up? Turns out, this series is not as simple as dumping the ball into Roy Hibbert, who has thus far been outplayed by Davis. Pacers coach Frank Vogel has gone out of his way to say this is not about the perceived mismatch in the post. The Pacers have to guard the pick-and-roll to perfection. They have to challenge long-range shots. They have to corral the long rebounds that come off the deep shots. And when playing half-court offense, they have to -- repeat, have to -- move the ball to the weak side. They started to do those things in the second half Monday. They must do all those things, all the time, if they're going to get this thing done.
• Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel: We have now officially entered an alternative Orlando Magic universe. A universe where up is down. And black is white. And hot is cold. And— are you ready for this? -- Glen "Big Baby" Davis is a team leader. What a wild, whacked-out season it has been. The Magic, after the 93-78 Game 2 playoff loss to the Indiana Pacers Monday night, come back home to the Amway Center for Game 3 tied 1-1. But at least there is some hope now, and it is emanating from the unlikeliest of all beacons: The erratic, enigmatic Big Baby. ... Maybe just maybe the Big Baby is growing up before our very eyes. With apologies to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, who will be playing the Amway Center Thursday night, perhaps they should slightly alter the lyrics of their hit "Mary Jane's Last Dance" to reflect the maturation of Davis during the first two games of this series. "He grew up tall and he grew up right With them Indiana boys on them Indiana nights." Can you believe it? ... Welcome to the Magic's alternative universe. A universe where Davis has not only taken Dwight Howard's place of prominence on the basketball court, but in the locker room as well. Captain Davis, anyone? And here's another frightening thought: With the possibility of Dwight being gone next season, could the Magic actually evolve into Big Baby's team? It truly has been a long, strange season.
• Mark Bradley of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: If they grab a 2-0 lead, it will be difficult for an opponent of advanced age to claim the series by winning the requisite four of five. And the Celtics will be without their best player, Rajon Rondo, who has been suspended for bumping ref Marc Davis at the shank of Game 1. (Wait a second. Isn’t it the Hawks who were supposed to lose their cool?) Without Rondo, you’d have to like the Hawks’ chances. You’d like them until you recall that January loss to depleted Miami, or the home loss this month against a Toronto team that included three men working on 10-day contracts. The simple reason the Hawks aren’t taken more seriously is that, over time, they’ve contrived to lose in ways that suggest they aren’t as good as their record. Here’s their chance to win a big game they’re supposed to win. Here’s their chance to shut some yaps.
• Amalie Benjamin of The Boston Globe: When Hawks forward Josh Smith played with roommate Rajon Rondo at Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, there weren’t many situations that could compare with what took place at the end of Sunday night’s game, when Rondo bumped referee Marc Davis. “We used to beat everybody by 20 or so. We didn’t have to worry about losing,’’ Smith said. Still, Smith knows the spirit the Celtics point guard brings to the game. He witnessed it firsthand. “When we played with Oak Hill, we always played with a competitive edge,’’ said Smith, who hasn’t talked to Rondo since the incident. “He was always competitive, no matter what we did - flag football games, food fights, playing video games against each other. It always intensifies, especially when you’re playing for something, you know the importance of each and every possession.’’ With Rondo suspended for Game 2 Tuesday, the Hawks acknowledged it might give them a break.
• Neil Hayes of the Chicago Sun-Times: ‘‘Thibs was adamant that no one’s role needs to change,’’ Kyle Korver said. ‘‘Nobody needs to do more than before. We need to play better team basketball. When shots are there, we definitely need to take them. You can’t have guys passing up shots. We also don’t need guys trying to be Derrick Rose.’’ Based on what we’ve seen from the Bulls, who posted the best record in the league this season despite losing 98 games to injury or illness, the only way they’ll exit the postseason is scratching and clawing. That’s why the first quarter of Game 2 might set the tone for what we see for the rest of the playoffs. Players are saying all the right things when talking about how they still can win without Rose, but a letdown wouldn’t be a failure so much as human nature. Throughout the regular season, the Bulls said they would need Rose to play at his highest level for them to win a championship. Now they’re saying they can win without him. Then again, what are they supposed to say?
• Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News: The question was posed to Sixers coach Doug Collins from a person with a TNT microphone, the station that used to employ Collins. But the coach didn't hide his disdain for the question. The questioner asked Collins if he had to address his team about their mindsets now that Rose is sidelined with a torn ACL. After a long pause and icy stare, Collins said: "You're kidding, right? You're kidding, right? Are we favored to win this series now?" No doubt schematically things will change for the Sixers. In Rose's place will be C.J. Watson, who started 25 games for the Bulls this season as Rose missed time with a plethora of injuries. ... Asked if Watson was his assignment to guard, Holiday said, "No, that's Evan. I'm on Rip (Hamilton) tomorrow." That little sentence was telling. Earlier when asked who would be starting tomorrow, Collins laughed, telling reporters that he wasn't going to answer that, which was his same response on Sunday. With Jodie Meeks so ineffective in Game One and a good performance by Evan Turner, the assumption is that Turner will get the starting nod. Holiday's comment seemed to cement that."
• Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post: At times, it plays like the Three Stooges vs. the Lakers. Even when you're already 7 feet tall, growing up is hard to do in the NBA playoffs. Ask Denver centers Kosta Koufos, JaVale McGee and Timofey Mozgov, who are enduring painful lessons. "They're going to get smacked in the nose," Nuggets general manager Masai Ujiri told me Monday. "But this is one of the reasons why we wanted to get in the playoffs." Who is Denver's center of the future? Nobody knows. The three centers don't know. Ujiri doesn't know. All we know: Nene is gone, and he's not coming back. ... Nobody told us this would be pretty. Rather than diplomas, the school of hard knocks hands out dented egos. When Denver got blown out in Game 1 against the the Lakers, Koufos, McGee and Mozgov got put down. They took 12 shots. They missed 10. They were mere props in highlight after highlight by Bynum, with a little help from Gasol. Talk about your classic mismatch. Gasol and Bynum own four NBA championship rings between them. Koufos, McGee and Mozgov have combined to start one NBA playoff game. While Denver could still make the Lakers sweat in this series, what's more likely is the Nuggets will discover which center stands tallest in the face of adversity.
• Elliott Teaford of the Los Angeles Daily News: So, exactly how did the Lakers muzzle the Denver Nuggets in Game 1 and limit them to only 88 points on 35.6 percent shooting Sunday at Staples Center? The Lakers said it was a good defense; the Nuggets said it was cheating. Denver coach George Karl said Lakers center Andrew Bynum was guilty of playing an illegal zone defense on "about 30" possessions, which helped to account for his NBA record-tying 10 blocked shots. "If people cut through the lane, you can touch them and you can stand there the whole time," a smiling Bynum said when told of Karl's accusation after the Lakers' practice Monday. "That's part of the game." ... Now retired Lakers coach Phil Jackson was notorious for planting seeds of doubt into the minds of referees during the playoffs and for trying to get opposing players off their games. He did it frequently and often to excellent results. ... Mike Brown, the current Lakers coach, said he applauded Karl for trying to gain an advantage for Game 2 by complaining about illegal defenses in Game 1 by adding, "Maybe George is doing the right thing, following Phil's lead. "I know I've said stuff before. Does it change things for the next game? I don't know. If Phil's done it, Phil's got 11 of them (NBA championships as a coach), the most. It's got to work to a certain degree."