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• Tony Bizjak, Dale Kasler and Ryan Lillis of The Sacramento Bee: The uncertainty over the future of the Sacramento Kings will linger at least into next week. Just as Mayor Kevin Johnson announced on Tuesday that a local investor group was finally ready to present its formal bid to buy the team, league officials in New York revealed they have scrubbed plans to vote this week on a competing offer to move the team to Seattle. An NBA spokesman declined to offer a reason. League Commissioner David Stern two weeks ago said a postponement was possible due to what he called the complicated and unprecedented situation the league faces. The NBA has never before had to decide between two cities competing hard and well for the same team, Stern said. Both have well-financed groups eager to buy the team from the Maloof family, the team's current owner, and both cities assure the NBA they can build gleaming state-of-the art arenas in the next few years.
• Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times: Having Chauncey Billups back in the starting lineup for the Clippers on Tuesday night against the Portland Trail Blazers meant a lot to the team in many ways. Billups brings the Clippers championship experience. He won a title with the Detroit Pistons over the Lakers in 2004, when Billups was named the Finals most valuable player. "He's a little bit older now," Clippers Coach Vinny Del Negro said about the 36-year-old Billups. "He's missed most of last season and a lot of this season, so that's not as easy to do. We still expect a lot from him with his leadership. He can make shots, obviously. He's another guy that can make plays." Billups had missed the last eight games with a strained right groin. He has played in just 21 games this season and is expected to play in a back-to-back game Wednesday night in Sacramento. Del Negro said the plan is to play Billups about 20 minutes per game.
• Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald: The photo, like so many others from Monday’s explosions, had gone viral. A young woman, her body mostly obscured by a distraught man and an EMT, lay face down on the blood-splattered Boylston Street sidewalk. Avery Bradley spotted the photo online and immediately posted it to his Twitter account with a simple hashtag — #sad. “It just caught my eye,” the Celtics guard said before yesterday’s practice. “All I could think was that this is crazy, to think that people go to an event like this to run. That’s what they train for all year. And for people to lose arms and legs, that’s just crazy.” So Bradley did what so many others could only do. He asked for help from a greater power. “All you can do is pray for their families. I definitely did yesterday,” he said. “I feel bad, and if there’s any way I can help, I will want to help. . . . It could happen anywhere. But to see it happen there or anywhere at all is just crazy.” The Celtics took the practice floor in a relieved state yesterday, most glad last night’s game against Indiana was canceled.
• Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News: With a $100 million payroll, four future Hall of Famers and a storied championship history, it's come to this. The Lakers' season finale Wednesdaytonight against the Houston Rockets could decide whether they perhaps salvage an otherwise disastrous season or miss the playoffs for only the third time in the team's history. Few would have guessed this scenario. Plenty envisioned the Lakers waltzing into the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat. Many wondered if anyone could stop a star-studded lineup that featured Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Steve Nash and Pau Gasol. Never shy to boast, Lakers forward Metta World Peace predicted the team would surpass the NBA's regular-season record (72-10) set by the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls team. "I thought we'd be at a different point right now," World Peace said. "But that's all right." Instead, the Lakers (44-37) enter Wednesdaytonight's game against the Houston Rockets (45-36) at Staples Center with a possible must-win situation. The Lakers are a pure lock for the playoffs if they win, earning a seventh seed and playing the San Antonio Spurs in the first round. A Lakers' loss coupled with a Utah loss against Memphis would leave the Lakers in the eighth spot against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
• Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune: Wishing and hoping and thinking and — oh, right — playing. With apologies to Dusty Springfield, nothing else remains for the Utah Jazz. Their season may conclude with a loss to the Grizzlies here Wednesday, it may end with a Lakers win over the Houston Rockets in Los Angeles or it may be extended into a most unlikely postseason. If the Jazz can beat the Grizzlies at FedEx Forum, they will turn into Rockets fans, hoping Houston, trying to avoid falling into the eighth seed, can beat the Lakers in a game that fittingly, cruelly, doesn’t begin until after the Jazz and Grizzlies end on national TV. The Jazz, who won the season series against L.A., would be even with the Lakers and into the playoffs. "I guess I need to try to get in touch with Kevin McHale," Al Jefferson said of his former Minnesota coach, now with the Rockets, "and tell him to handle that for me. Give me a late birthday present."
• Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun: As another Toronto Raptors season crawls to its conclusion, a franchise teetering on irrelevance has a series of enormous decisions to make. There may not be any one right answer for Tom Anselmi and the board of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, but there is almost certainly a wrong one. The decisions, as they seemingly do at the end of every Raptors season, revolve around the general manager, Bryan Colangelo, and the coach, Dwane Casey. Colangelo has an option year remaining on his contract. Casey has one year left on his deal. And the team is forever paddling in circles, creating the occasional wave, but ending up nowhere in the end. The decision for Anselmi and the board isn’t in any way obvious, with the largest issue being the relationship between Colangelo and Casey. Colangelo did his best to distance himself from his coach early in the season and there has been all kind of internal speculation that the two can’t possibly work together again. That determination may wind up saving his job or costing him the position.
• Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: The Hawks had a chance to control their playoff seed. Not anymore. A poor effort against the Raptors, one in which the Hawks went to their bench early and often, resulted in a 113-96 loss Tuesday night in a nationally televised game at Philips Arena. The Hawks played without Al Horford and just a half with Josh Smith in a game they trailed by as many as 23 points. Smith played 13 minutes and received treatment on his knees at the intermission. He banged a knee in the first half and did not immediately come back to the bench after halftime but later returned with both knees wrapped in ice. Regulars Jeff Teague (19 minutes), Kyle Korver (18) and Devin Harris (17) played less than a half. … The Hawks can clinch the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference, and a first-round playoff against the Nets, with a victory at the Knicks and a Bulls loss at home against the Wizards Wednesday. The Bulls will claim the fifth spot with a victory or if both teams lose Wednesday. The Hawks would finish sixth and get a first-round matchup with the Pacers. The Hawks have split the season series with both the Nets and Pacers this season.
• John Rohde of The Oklahoman: Thunder three-time All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook has never missed a game in the NBA and has the league's longest active streak at 393 consecutive games played. OKC (60-21) closes out the regular season at 7 p.m. Wednesday against the Milwaukee Bucks (37-44) at Chesapeake Energy Arena, but Thunder coach Scott Brooks wouldn't share his starting lineup after Tuesday's practice. Westbrook playfully was asked if there would be a fist fight if Brooks asked him to sit out the finale. “No, no, no. There won't be a fist fight,” Westbrook said with a smile, “but he won't ask me (to do) that.”
• Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News: With all the twists and turns during the 2012-13 regular season, it was only fitting that the Spurs gave us one more on Tuesday, signing Tracy McGrady to fill to roster vacated after the unceremonious whacking of Stephen Jackson. It is the seventh NBA stop for the former franchise player, and eighth as a professional including his recent stint in the Chinese league. He dominated with Qingdao Double Star Eagles, averaging 25 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.1 assists — the type of numbers he put up as a seven-time All-Star before injuries sapped his athleticism. McGrady won’t find it nearly so easy back in the NBA, where he averaged 5.3 points last season with Atlanta. There’s some speculation that McGrady’s addition had been the end goal all along. But at this point, the most likely explanation is probably the simplest: The Spurs excised what they viewed to be a cancer, and they needed a warm body to help pick up the slack on a Spurs bench that suddenly isn’t so deep. That means chewing up whatever time is available behind starting small forward Kawhi Leonard. And from what Gregg Popovich has said recently, there won’t be much. Leonard, he said, could earn up to 40 minutes a night, leaving precious little for a floor-bound ex-star.
• K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune: Keeping Noah and Gibson healthy is critical during the postseason. The Bulls took Tuesday off, and both players continued treatment on their respective lingering injuries, plantar fasciitis for Noah and a sprained MCL for Gibson. Coach Tom Thibodeau said "it's a possibility" the players will be on minutes limits to start the playoffs, which affects his rotation. "You don't know what the minutes are going to be, so that's another huge factor," Thibodeau said. "We have to get that sorted out in a very short amount of time. "The question is: Are we going to be sharp? You're talking about playoff basketball, where the intensity level is very high and it's the same opponent over and over. Most of the time, games are decided by one or two possessions. So how you matchup with people is critical. A bad matchup for a minute in the playoffs, that's 10 points. We have to be right and ready."
• Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News: O.J. Mayo owes an apology to his teammates in general and Vince Carter in particular. In the least, Mayo owes them maximum effort in Wednesday’s season finale against New Orleans. Why Mayo, in coach Rick Carlisle’s opinion, “didn’t compete” during his 28 minutes on the court against Memphis on Monday, is the latest baffler in Mayo’s mystifying late-season swoon. In fact, Mayo’s lack of production and Carlisle’s now-obvious frustration level seemingly increase the likelihood that Wednesday’s game will be his last in a Mavericks uniform. Of course, this could be the finale for some or all of the nine Mavericks who are in the final year of their contract or, as in Mayo’s case, have optional deals for 2013-14. Mayo holds his option, meaning it’s up to him whether to stay at a $4.2 million salary or declare for free agency.
• Scott Bordow of The Arizona Republic: Luis Scola and Goran Dragic were asked whether they would recommend interim head coach Lindsey Hunter returning next season. Both players punted the topic. “That’s a tough question,” Dragic said. “ ... I’m here to play basketball. It’s not my decision to make.” Dragic did say he liked Hunter’s approach to practice. “Alvin (Gentry) was a great coach for the veteran players; he knows when to give them a day off, but for our team we have a young team and we really need to practice hard every day,” Dragic said. “When he (Hunter) took over the team I think we maybe had one or two days off. I think it should be like that.” Scola said he thought Hunter did “a great job. Circumstances were bad and he did as good as he could. But I don’t make those decisions. I’m just a player.” Would a third coach in less than a year be unsettling for the team? “I think it would be a sign of things being bad,” Scola said. “But things are bad.” Suns owner Robert Sarver declined comment when asked about Hunter’s future, and Hunter said no time has been set for a postseason meeting with either General Manager Lance Blanks or President of Basketball Operations Lon Babby.
• David Mayo of MLive.com: One day after Pistons owner Tom Gores bluntly said he wasn't satisfied with on-court performance -- Gores also praised basketball operations, which supports the notion that team president Joe Dumars' job is safe -- Frank said he and his coaching staff want another year to right the ship. Frank noted that the Pistons are ahead of schedule in terms of their financial flexibility this summer because of the Ben Gordon and Tayshaun Prince salary-purging trades within the last year, and said he wants to remain head coach of a franchise in "prime position" to make major moves. "Obviously, you want to be a part of it, because that's why you went through the bleeding," Frank said. "I know, without a doubt, we all want to be back. But at the same time, that's not our decision. "But do I want to be back? Of course, because this is what you signed up for. You want to be part of reshaping the franchise and getting it back to where it was.
• Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer: With a 20-61 record entering the season finale against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Bobcats might end up with the NBA’s worst record for a second straight season. Charlotte will have a high draft pick and as much as $21 million in room under the salary cap this summer. Owner Michael Jordan and the front office face some big decisions between now and the start of training camp in October. Do they bring back the coaching staff? Which of their free agents do they re-sign? Do they cut ties with power forward Tyrus Thomas? Even what should they call themselves going forward? Coach Mike Dunlap: Winning one out of every four games isn’t the ideal NBA coaching debut, but the Bobcats’ record is about what was predicted at the season’s outset. When Jordan was asked at a season-ticketholder event about Dunlap, the owner said all his major employees’ performances would be reviewed after the season. To Dunlap’s credit, he’s had an impact in player development, the priority he was given when hired. Kemba Walker, Gerald Henderson and Byron Mullens all improved. But Dunlap has had some rocky moments in his interaction with players, particularly veterans.
• Tery Pluto of The Plain Dealer: Kyrie Irving can be great. That's right, the Cavaliers point guard can be great. But he's not there. Not yet. Great players defend. Great players help their team win. Great players find a way to stay on the court for most games. It will be up to Byron Scott or whomever coaches the Cavs to deliver that message next season. At times, Scott has tried. He has pulled Irving from games for a lack of defense. He has talked about Irving's disdain for defense. He consistently compares Irving to Chris Paul, adding that Paul is superior defensively. It's no secret that Irving is a soft defender. That's true of many young players, who believe all that matters is the points next to their name in the box score. The fact the team has yet to come close to the playoffs with him should point out that Irving still has a lot of work to do. … There are times when rolls his eyes or shakes his head in disgust when a teammate makes a poor play. It's kid stuff, but he should know better. None of this is to say Irving is a bad guy or a lousy teammate. But he has some maturing to do, and the Cavs must demand that he do it.
• Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune: Timberwolves forward Chase Budinger wants to return to the team next season if an agreement can be reached this summer, but as with any contractual agreement, there’s a bit of fine print. That is, if Rick Adelman returns to coach. Adelman is the reason the Wolves traded the 18th overall pick in last summer’s draft to Houston, where Adelman coached Budinger for three seasons before the pair was reunited in Minnesota. He’s also the reason a California kid wants to remain on the frozen tundra when he becomes an unrestricted free agent free to sign with any team this summer. “I would like to come back,” he said. “I like the organization. I like the staff. I love Adelman.” He saved the most important part for last there. “That’s a big part of it,” he said about the coach who taught a second-round draft pick in 2009 the NBA game. “Our relationship, he knows how I play. I work well in his system. It’s [Adelman’s decision] going to weigh big.”

Teams typically like to use high picks on players with good size. But if you ignore that, things tend to work out beautifully.

 

We have had Marc Stein on the show. We have done rapid fire on the show.

But somehow this is the first time we have done rapid fire with Marc Stein. He got himself on rapid fire probation with one incredibly un-rapid answer, but all in all, of course he shone. Week 23 power rankings, Sacramento vs. Seattle, L.A.'s team, Knicks or Celtics, Derrick Rose, the Bobcats' rebuild ... thanks to all that speed, that's about a third of what we covered.

• Phil Collin of the Los Angeles Daily News: One teammate uttered the words "bionic nan." Kobe Bryant has taken to calling Metta World Peace "Logan," the character in "Wolverine." Whatever Metta Madness is flowing through his veins, it looks like World Peace will return to the Lakers lineup tonight, 12 days after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. A medical miracle? Not really, World Peace said. He was itching to play the moment he was asked by Dr. Steve Lombardo if he could put weight on the leg, and he hopped out of bed and did so only hours after the operation ."As long as he didn't have to stitch anything together, I couldn't do anything to (further damage) it," World Peace said Monday after going through 3-on-3 workouts. "I was in great shape. The doc said he was surprised my knee was in such great shape playing 14 years in the NBA and always in a defensive stance. "When I heard all that, it wasn't like I was trying to come back to be a Superman. I figured I've just got to play through pain and it will get better as time goes." … Guard Steve Nash, who was "super optimistic" about a return last Friday, remains doubtful with a hamstring strain.
• Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald: The last thing the Bulls need with six games left in the regular season is to roll back downhill with their health concerns, but that appears to have happened. Joakim Noah returned to the court Sunday against Detroit after missing eight games to rest chronic plantar fasciitis in his feet. Noah played well (13 points, 7 rebounds in 21 minutes), but his feet didn't react well Monday morning, according to coach Tom Thibodeau. "Jo had a little bit of a setback. We'll see. We'll see where he is," Thibodeau said after practice at the Berto Center. There's no telling if or when Noah might be back to normal this season. It seems unlikely he'll play Tuesday when the Bulls host Toronto. While most injuries slowly improve, plantar fasciitis patients often talk about how the ailment is so unpredictable. Thibodeau said Noah felt good after Sunday's game.
• Joseph Goodman of The Miami Herald: While the rest of the NBA community is busy speculating about the future of LeBron James and how the Heat plans to navigate the new salary cap, Pat Riley is thinking long-term about how special the run of this Heat team can become. Speaking with reporters at the Heat’s “Family Fest” on Sunday, Riley pointed to models of success the NBA considers some the best in its history as the ultimate goal for the Heat while also reminding the city to enjoy this “special time.” “I just want to keep helping them, keep bringing in more pieces that are going to complement them and hope we can have one of those 10-year rides, you know,” Riley said. “You think about every team, through the Celtics in the ’60s and the Lakers in the ’80s and the Bulls and then again the Spurs, those guys have been together eight, nine, 10 years and if we can keep this group together for eight, nine, 10 years, then we’re all going to have some fun.” And then a piece of advice. “So, don’t ever take it for granted,” he said. Already this season the Heat has won 27 games in a row, the most in franchise history and the second most in the history of the NBA. Now the team is on the verge of another milestone. A victory Tuesday against the Milwaukee Bucks would give the Heat 61 victories, which would tie the franchise’s record for a single season.
• Howard Beck of The New York Times: This streak brings its own questions: Is the new, efficient Smith here to stay, or will he revert to bad habits under postseason duress? Can Anthony keep scoring at this rate when defenses target him during the playoffs? Can the Knicks make the finals with a merely average defense? Does their defense have another gear? What happens to the chemistry if Amar’e Stoudemire, Rasheed Wallace and Kurt Thomas return? And most curious of all: After months of mediocrity, where did this Knicks team come from? “It’s April, I guess,” Anthony said. “It’s April. It’s time to go.”
• Ronald Tillery of The Commercial-Appeal: The one thing people would never accuse Mike Conley of is being flashy. He tends to appear conservative — on and off the court. But that is starting to change — at least on the floor — where Conley’s offensive game suddenly has a lot of bling-bling to it. The Griz have increasingly relied on Conley to carry a heavier offensive load, particularly late in games, and it’s allowed him to shine. It’s a dramatic transformation for a point guard who had been content with being a passive piece of the puzzle for most of his six-year career. Conley enters Tuesday night’s game against the Charlotte Bobcats having scored at least 20 points in each of the past four games. That’s the longest streak by any Grizzlies player this season. Relatively speaking, Conley is in the proverbial zone as a scorer. “I’m really comfortable right now,” Conley said. Coach Lionel Hollins seems impressed yet not surprised by Conley’s maturation. “He’s just a more confident player,” Hollins said.
• John Reid of The Times-Picayune: Although they got into an apparent shouting match during a timeout in last Friday’s game against the Utah Jazz, New Orleans Hornets Coach Monty Williams and guardEric Gordon both appear to have moved past the conflict. But Williams said he's not going to stop pushing Gordon to improve his overall play, especially during the final five games of the season. Against the Jazz, Williams did not put Gordon back into game after they apparently got into shouting match. Williams was visibly agitated, yelling in Gordon’s direction when he apparently didn’t think Gordon was hustling enough. Assistant coach Randy Ayers stepped in front of Williams to calm him, after Gordon hollered back at him. “He’s a dynamic guard, that’s why I push him,’’ said Williams, who plans to start Gordon for the second consecutive since the incident on Tuesday night when the Hornets play the Lakers at the Staples Center. “I’m not going to allow him to settle for where he is in his career right now. He’s got to get better. If he gets better, he should be an All-Star someday.’’ Gordon admitted the conflict was a heat of the moment situation that shouldn't be blown out of proportion. “It got very heated in the moment, but I’m not letting none of that get to me,” Gordon said. “I’m just out here, still trying to play.”
• Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon-Journal: As Kyrie Irving continues to shrink away from any public platform, Tristan Thompson is embracing his role as a spokesman — and he’s backing it up with his play on the court, too. “Just being myself, just being a natural leader and speaking up if I see something is wrong,” Thompson said after the victory Sunday against the Magic. “Just recently y’all have been coming to me, and I’ve been speaking, so I guess you can say I’ve been a leader.” Because of the position he plays and his immense talent, Irving remains the floor leader. But twice in the past week Irving has been given the opportunity to take a stand publicly and twice he declined.
• Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune: If there was any lingering doubt, Timberwolves forward Kevin Love’s season officially is over, but it’s not just because of that healing shooting hand. Love will have arthroscopic surgery to remove scar tissue in his left knee later this week. Love will consult with two surgeons on Wednesday at New York’s Hospital for Special Surgery: He’ll see his hand doctor for a checkup on that right hand he has broken twice this season and also will consult with knee surgeon Dr. David Altchek, who probably will perform the operation that same day. Love’s left knee has bothered him much of the season, but it has grown more painful in recent days as he ramped up workouts for a possible return yet this season. He told team doctors after games in December that his hip was hurting him, and Wolves doctors concluded that the problem was connected to his knee pain. David Kahn, Timberwolves president of basketball operations, called the arthroscopic surgery “minor” and said he expects Love to resume his normal summer workouts in Los Angeles by early June after a season in which he has played just 18 games.
• Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel: Larry Sanders has plenty of competition for the most improved player honor, and he's also in the conversation for the defensive player of the year award. New Orleans' Greivis Vasquez, Houston's Omer Asik, Philadelphia's Jrue Holiday, Orlando's Nikola Vucevic and Indiana's Paul George are garnering support for the most improved award, voted on by 122 journalists who cover the NBA. … Several detailed analytical studies support Boylan's view. And a mere glance at last season's statistics shows Sanders played in 52 games without any starts and a total of 643 minutes, while this season he has started 53 of 69 games and played 1,892 minutes, an average of 27.4 minutes. This is the second consecutive year the Bucks have put a player in contention for the award. Ersan Ilyasova finished second to Orlando's Ryan Anderson for the most improved honor in 2011-'12. … The Bucks designed a public relations campaign featuring a colorful set of blocks to promote Sanders' candidacy for the most improved player and defensive player of the year awards. Sanders led the league in blocks for much of the season until recently being passed by last year's rejections leader, Serge Ibaka of Oklahoma City. Ibaka is averaging 3.07 blocks to Sanders' 2.9.
• Michael Lee of The Washington Post: John Wall was unaccustomed to having a teammate challenge him, but in hindsight, he couldn’t disagree with anything that Okafor told him: Wittman had to go with someone else if he was ineffective and Wall has to trust that the coach is doing what was in the best interest of the team, which should always come first. … What followed after the encounter has been the best basketball of Wall’s young career. Beginning with the next game on March 1 against the New York Knicks – the Wizards’ opponent on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden – the third-year point guard has been on a statistical tear that has changed perceptions of his career and shown that his talents are no longer stagnating. In his past 21 games, Wall is averaging 22.7 points, 7.9 assists and 4.9 rebounds and has recorded 10 games with at least 20 points, three games of 35 or more, and seven double-doubles. In that time, only LeBron James and Kobe Bryant are averaging at least 22 points, seven assists and 4.9 rebounds. “I think I really had to grow. Get my teammates back behind me. Because that’s not the way you’re supposed to come out as a leader and as a franchise guy,” Wall said of his attitude the night of the argument with Okafor.
• John Rohde of The Oklahoman: With Sunday's 125-120 victory over the Thunder, New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony is now 11-1 all-time against Kevin Durant in NBA games where both have played. Durant's lone head-to-head victory against Anthony came in a 151-147 double-overtime contest at KeyArena on April 6, 2008, which means Durant has yet to defeat Anthony while with the Thunder. Anthony did not play in OKC's 95-94 victory at New York on March 7 this season. Against Durant, Anthony has averaged 30.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting 50.4 percent from the field, 40.0 percent from 3-point range and 84.8 percent from the free-throw line. Meanwhile, Durant has averaged 26.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.3 steals while shooting 42.2 percent from the floor, 38.3 percent from 3-point range and 89.1 percent from the free-throw line.
• Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News: Dirk Nowitzki doesn’t want it to end like this. Slugging it out for the eighth seed — or more likely missing the playoffs — is bad enough once. Or twice. In the autumn of his NBA career, he wants more. And while he has no problem putting pressure on ownership to find some high-quality warriors to play alongside him, Nowitzki also is OK taking on his share of the workload off the court. He’s ready to hit the recruiting trail. “I’ve said it all year long — this is a big summer for us,” Nowitzki said. “We have to get better. We have to get some guys in that can get us back to the top level. We want to be a top-four seed in the West. That was always our goal, to play for the top. So this is a big summer. If [owner Mark Cuban] needs me to recruit and do all that stuff, I’m more than happy to.” Will it be enough to woo a marquee free agent or finagle a sign-and-trade? Nobody knows for sure. But it can’t hurt.
• Doug Smith of the Toronto Star: What if? What if the Raptors hadn’t screwed up so many years ago when they had the chance to hire Hammond? What if they hadn’t blown it by going through a ridiculous process of whittling a large group to four only to say they were going to open up the process again only to come back to the same four and eventually picking Rob Babcock. The four — Babcock, Jeff Weltman, Mark Warkentien and Tony DiLeo (remember that Gang of Four?) —were basically underwhelming at that time and that the Raptors — and I am pointing a finger directly at Richard Peddie — didn’t even deign to interview Hammond, who was the No. 1 man to Joe Dumars in Deroit at the time, was a shocking blown opportunity. John wanted the job and deserved to have a shot at it; the short-sightedness of Peddie and his people set the franchise back years, so far that they might still be digging out almost a decade later.
• Dale Kasler, Ryan Lillis and Tony Bizjak of The Sacramento Bee: Beverly Hills billionaire Ron Burkle, a driving force for the past two years in trying to keep the Kings from leaving town, will not invest in the team or the proposed Downtown Plaza arena, Mayor Kevin Johnson announced Monday afternoon. Facing questions over a conflict of interest, Burkle instead will focus on redeveloping other portions of Downtown Plaza. "He's so committed to Sacramento," the mayor said, adding that he spoke with Burkle on Monday. "There's a host of ancillary development opportunities that Ron will participate in." … Johnson insisted that Burkle's new role would not deflate the effort to keep the Kings from going to Seattle, and said other investors would pick up the financial slack. He did not give specifics.
• Marcus Thompson II of The Oakland Tribune: The Warriors have a get-well game Tuesday against visiting Minnesota, which is 18 games under .500. A win coupled with a loss by Utah or the Los Angeles Lakers would clinch the Warriors' first postseason bid since 2007. But success against the Timberwolves won't answer an emerging concern. If you let Utah, a bad road team on the cusp of missing the playoffs, shut down Curry and the Warriors offense at the most critical of times, will Golden State be able to score in the postseason? Sunday night was less an anomaly and more like a trend. The Warriors have lost seven of their last 10 games against winning teams, including Sunday's home loss to Utah. In those 10 games, the Warriors averaged 22.4 fourth-quarter points. That includes a 17-point fourth quarter in a blowout of visiting New York, but finding offense against stiff defenses has been a major problem. … Jackson likes having Jack on the floor, so the three-guard lineup isn't going anywhere. That makes sense considering the way Jack has played this season. Jack is more secure with the ball than Curry, and defenses have aggressively double-teamed Curry late in games, something harder to do when he's playing off the ball. This quandary will continue into the postseason when the defenses step up a notch and coaching chess matches ensue. Because, no doubt, as goes Curry, so goes Golden State.
• Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune: Well, this ought to be a good story. Jazz forward DeMarre Carroll tweeted Monday afternoon that he broke the rim during a pickup game at Life Time Fitness, an athletic club in South Jordan. There have been plenty of classic backboard breaking moments [this is a solid compendium] but the whole library doesn't quite seem complete without footage of Carroll's. Does anybody have it? Carroll, 26, averages 16 minutes per game in 64 appearances this season. He is a pending free agent, but even if he ends up leaving it's unlikely it will be without recounting the story of the time he broke the backboard at Life Time Fitness. Stay tuned.

• John Canzano of The Oregonian: When that awful video footage went public, showing the Rutgers men's basketball coach throwing balls at his players in practice, verbally abusing them, shoving them and assaulting them with gay slurs, I did the oddest thing. When I read or heard people declare, "Mike Rice must go," I quietly added "Jr." to it. If you're like me you were eager this week to separate the son -- Mike Rice Jr. -- from his father -- Mike Rice Sr. One is a deranged coach who deserved to be immediately terminated for his actions. The other is the Trail Blazers' television analyst, a guy insanely proud of his son. I have only three words to say to Mike Sr.: Hang in there. I sent them to him via text. I sent them through his broadcasting partner, Mike Barrett. I'll tell them to Rice's face when I see him next. Because even as the father and son share a name, and both coached, I can't think of a less enviable position anywhere in this than the father who raised a child who is now humiliated and ruined by his own doing.
• Harvery Araton of The New York Times: History is beckoning the Knicks these days, but which will be the more powerful calling, the individual measure of lasting greatness or the consummate joy of collective achievement? … It is no secret that collective achievement outweighs individual exploits on the most important scorecards, but that does not mean the heights King reached in the 1980s, or what Anthony did Tuesday night in Miami and on many other a night this season is not worthy of a starred archiving in the Knicks’ history book. But when the defensive intensity increases in the playoffs, the challenge for the Knicks will be to avoid deferring too much to Anthony, in the interest of finding and sustaining a delicate chemistry that would allow Anthony’s future Hall of Fame candidacy to evoke 1973-like memories of sharing, sacrifice and ultimate celebration. As LeBron James routinely proved last spring — and Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan before him — it can and has been done. Just not for four decades in New York, Monroe, Meminger & Co. will remind everyone Friday night.
• Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News: When the playoffs roll around, Deron Williams says he won’t need the high dosage pain killers that helped salvage his season. The point guard plans to ride this out cortisone-free. Having braced himself for continued ankle pain and a fourth round of shots just before the playoffs started, Deron Williams told the Daily News on Wednesday that his treatments in February were so successful that injections aren’t necessary prior to the postseason in late April. It’s a welcome development for Williams, who is aware of the longterm dangers of injecting too much cortisone – a hormone steroid which, used liberally as an anti-inflammatory, can weaken cartilage in the joints, leaving it susceptible to damage or ruptured tendons. Doctors typically recommend athletes don’t take more than four injections per year, and Williams is happy he doesn’t have to test the limits with a fourth round. “That’s a good thing,” said Williams, who indicated in February that he “probably” will receive injections before the playoffs.
• Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic: Grant Hill has 27 appearances, a 3.2 scoring average, career-low 38 percent shooting and no regrets about joining the Los Angeles Clippers. Hill expected to return to Phoenix for a sixth Suns season when he stayed in the Valley to train last summer. The Suns made a one-year, minimum-salary offer of $1.35 million and the Clippers came with a two-year, $4 million one while Oklahoma City and Chicago also pursued him. Hill, 40, joined the Clippers, began the season on the inactive list after suffering a bone bruise to his right knee, the one which underwent two arthroscopies since 2011 in Phoenix, and did not play until Jan. 12. Hill likely will not make it to that second contract year and opt to retire this summer. “Strong chance,” Hill said. “I’m leaning toward it. I want to get to the end of the year and off-season and think about it but I’m pretty confident that’s where my mind is right now. I’ve enjoyed it.” Except for a brief 2008 experiment under then-Suns coach Terry Porter, Hill always had started in his career until this season, when he often is not in the 10-man rotation.
• Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post: Seven hours before tipoff, an arena quiet, George Karl envisioned nighttime at EnergySolutions Arena — an ear-popping crowd where "the whistle gets wild and crazy against you," he said. Oh, and Utah had won five consecutive games, fighting for a playoff spot. As such, the Nuggets' coach suggested that Wednesday's game would either be close in the fourth, or a blowout — in favor of the home team. So what happened? Well, let's put it this way — Timofey Mozgov played. The Nuggets blew out the Jazz in Utah, 113-96, thanks to stat sheet-stuffing games from numerous players. "It's not very often that this building is empty by the end of the game," Karl said. It was bananas. Danilo Gallinari scored a team-high 21 points, including a huge 3 in the fourth. Kenneth Faried had 19 points and eight rebounds. Kosta Koufos gobbled up 13 rebounds in 24 minutes. And even Evan Fournier, again, made major impacts as the backup point guard, and took advantage of garbage time, finishing with 18 points.
• Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News: Spurs guard Gary Neal could not recall the last time he played as many as 30 minutes, and no wonder. Until logging 31:28 against Orlando on Wednesday night at the AT&T Center, Neal hadn’t topped 30 minutes of court time since Dec. 15, in the 25th game of the season. “I can’t remember that far back,” Neal said, “but I think it must have been when Kawhi (Leonard) and Jack (Stephen Jackson) were injured.” Indeed, Leonard and Jackson were on the injured list when Neal scored 20 points in a win over Boston. A long run on the court Wednesday produced Neal’s highest point total since that Dec. 15 game. He scored 16 on 6-for-14 shooting, including 4 for 8 on 3-pointers. “I felt good on the court,” the third-year guard from Towson said. “It’s coming back. I’ve just got to keep grinding at it, keep working, keep getting shots up and fight to get the rhythm for the playoffs. “Our goal is the playoffs. That’s what we’re playing for and trying to prepare for. I’m trying to be sharp for the playoffs so I can do my job, which is space the floor and make shots.”
• Ronald Tillery of The Commercial-Appeal: Lionel Hollins made it clear Wednesday night before the Grizzles’ 94-76 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers that this end-of-season drive presents a different set of circumstances. The Griz began a three-game road trip trying to keep pace with the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers for the third seed in the Western Conference playoff standings. So when the subject of rest came up, Hollins said he’d play it by ear and limit minutes depending on the flow of the game. “I just want us to be playing well,” Hollins said. “Everybody is talking about the playoffs, but we still have (regular-season) games to play. We’re playing to win.” The Grizzlies’ starters certainly came out as if they wanted to dominate and then rest. Memphis (51-24) was never seriously challenged as the Grizzlies set a franchise record for wins in a season by earning their 51st victory. Memphis also guaranteed it would finish this season with the best overall winning percentage in franchise history, surpassing the .621 mark set in 2011-12. The Griz will finish this season with a winning percentage no worse than .622.
• Marcus Thompson II of The Oakland Tribune: The Warriors have made a pact that everyone will grow beards until they clinch a playoff spot. No shaving. No trimming. "The worse it looks, the better it is for the team," David Lee said. From the looks of it, though, Andris Biedrins isn't on board. He looked cleanly shaven Wednesday. And the patch on rookie Harrison Barnes' chin looked well groomed. Jackson is even in on it. His shadow was turning into some rough real estate at practice, highlighted by some gray strands. But he had his facial mane neatened. There was talk about extended the beard pact through the playoffs. But Curry wasn't a fan of that idea. "This thing," he said at Wednesday's shootaround, scratching his grizzled neck. "I've already got lint all in it."
• Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald: The easy part for Brandon Bass always has been the scoring, and the Celtics forward didn’t disappoint with last night’s performance against the Pistons in a 98-93 win, scoring 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting. But defensive signal-caller is a new look, and sound, for him. “Hell, maybe the blessing is without Kevin (Garnett) we’ve removed the security blanket,” coach Doc Rivers said of the sudden need for Bass to expand his role. “And Brandon, he has to be the talker on defense now. “It’s great. He was upset at someone early in the game because they were in the wrong position, and I was thinking, ‘Wow, that’s really new. And that’s really nice.’ That’s good, so maybe it’s a blessing.” Bass acknowledged that in the Celts’ current injury vacuum, he has indeed experienced a growth spurt. “I’d rather play with Kevin being out there,” Bass said. “He’s like a big brother to my little brother. But when your big brother isn’t around, it’s time to step up and grow, basically. It gives me the opportunity to grow up and play the big brother role.”
• Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune: Let the Adelman talk commence. Wednesday’s victory in Milwaukee gave the Wolves their first winning streak since Dec. 15 and gave coach Rick Adelman his 999th career NBA victory. Friday’s game with Toronto will be the first crack at 1,000, something many of the players in the locker room were talking about. “Everybody is thinking about it,” center Nikola Pekovic said. “And I know we’ll all be honored to be a part of that.” J.J. Barea said the prospects looked good for getting Adelman his 1,000th this season, something that couldn’t be said a few weeks ago. But the Wolves are starting to play very well. They won their third straight road game for the first time this season and have won five of their last eight overall.
• Richard Walker of the Gaston Gazette: The Charlotte Bobcats will be in the NBA draft lottery for the eighth time in nine years after this season. But after a fifth win in six home games has them within two victories of 20 on the season, there’s little doubt Charlotte will at least be taking more momentum into this offseason that last. Wednesday’s 88-83 victory over Philadelphia continued the Bobcats’ recent strong play while also diminishing the 76ers’ flickering playoff hopes. “We were able to prove again that we’re very interested in the outcome coming down the backstretch,” said Charlotte coach Mike Dunlap, whose 18-57 team has won five of its last nine games overall. “Our guys are playing together. It was particularly a good night for us in terms of the character of the group of guys playing. Even the guys that didn’t get a lot of minutes played great.” As has been the case lately though, guards Kemba Walker and Gerald Henderson led the way.
• Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun: There are fewer things on a basketball court that can put a bigger smile on a coach who values defence the way Dwane Casey does than a thoroughly dominant defensive quarter. Turn that into a dominant defensive half and it’s that much better. For the first time in weeks (although it felt like quite a bit longer) the Raps enjoyed one of those halves on Wednesday night as they held Washington to just 28 points while piling up 49 of their own to put themselves in charge of a game they would go on to win 88-78. Casey has been tormented by the Raptors defensive retreat this season and has made re-establishing that defensive identity that they valued so much a year ago a priority over this final stretch of games.
• Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle: After spending most of the last two seasons in the heart of the battle, from the near move to Anaheim through the handshake deal to remain in Sacramento and finally the Seattle-Sacramento tug of war to be decided by the Board of Governors meeting April 18 and 19, Garcia can’t begin to handicap how the competition will end. On Wednesday, the groups vying for the Kings — Steve Ballmer and Chris Hansen are seeking to buy them and move them to Seattle; Ron Burkle, Mark Mastrov and Vivek Ranadive are bidding to buy them and keep them in Sacramento — made the presentation to a Board of Governors sub-committee, which later will make its recommendation. Francisco Garcia could not help but feel empathy for the fans who supported the Kings so faithfully through much of his career. “I don’t know what’s going to happen,” he said. “One guy is saying this; another guy is saying that. I don’t know. I’d be sad (if the Kings leave Sacramento). It’s such a great city. They’re great fans. They’ve been supporting the team for a long time. “It’s great. It’s a great city. I have nothing but good things to say about Sacramento. I had a great eight years there.” He did return in time to get his first look at the infamous visitors’ locker room, having heard so much about it. “I was never in there,” Garcia said. “It’s pretty bad. I heard about it, but I was never in there.”

• Howard Beck of The New York Times: It will be at least another month, perhaps in a first-round playoff series, before declarations can be made, or conclusions drawn, or torches passed — or wrested away. After five years of pre-eminence, the Boston Celtics have at least earned a withholding of judgment until the games really matter. But the ground continued to shift beneath them Tuesday night, the balance of power tilting ever more sharply, unmistakably, southward. The Knicks cruised to a 100-85 victory at TD Garden and inched ever closer to taking the Atlantic Division crown that the Celtics have owned for the last five years. It was the Knicks’ fifth straight victory, the Celtics’ fifth straight loss, and it left a seven-and-a-half game gap between them, with 13 games to play. “We want to beat them, let’s just be quite frank about it,” Carmelo Anthony said, after scoring 29 points in the win. “We always want to beat Boston. New York in anything wants to beat Boston. And when we do, it’s a great feeling.” The Knicks (43-26) have a 2-1 edge in the season series, having won twice in Boston for the first time since 2003-4. They meet once more on Sunday at Madison Square Garden, with the Knicks poised to win the series for the first time in nine years.
• Marc Berman of the New York Post: The South Beach showdown is six days away, but Mike Woodson is hoping the Miami Dream Team enters with a 30-game win streak. “They’re playing at such a high level, nobody is coming close to beating them,’’ Woodson said before the Knicks’ 100-85 win over the Celtics last night. “It would be nice. Their streak could end. They’re playing two good teams [beforehand]. [But if] they’re undefeated and we go into Miami, hopefully we can be the team to break their streak.’’ The Heat have won 27 straight and have Chicago tonight, New Orleans Friday and San Antonio on Sunday. If the LeBron James juggernaut keeps winning and beats the Knicks Tuesday in Miami, it would be just two away from tying the Lakers’ 1971-72 magical run of 33 straight wins — the NBA record.
• Baxter Holmes of The Boston Globe: Tuesday night at TD Garden, the Celtics faced the Knicks without Kevin Garnett and Courtney Lee. And though the Celtics have masked the absence of key players before, winning without Rajon Rondo and Jared Sullinger and Leandro Barbosa and even Garnett, they could not do so against New York, which prevailed soundly, 100-85. For the first time since Rondo went down with a season-ending knee injury in January, it seemed as though the Celtics had finally – if not reluctantly — succumbed to the reality of their limited roster. A 15-point home loss to a shorthanded team will do that. “It’s been like that for us all season long, it just seems like it gets worse and worse,” captain Paul Pierce said of the injuries. “We can’t feel sorry for ourselves.” The Celtics have lost five consecutive games, and as Garnett is expected to miss up to two weeks with inflammation in his left ankle, a rather gloomy question looms: Is this what the Celtics can expect while their defensive anchor is out? “No,” a defiant coach Doc Rivers said. “Guys, I think you’ve been around me long enough. Kevin’s not playing. I don’t worry about it. I really don’t. “Somebody else has to play better. A lot of guys. It’s not going to be one guy. But overall, we were pretty bad [Tuesday]. Kevin had nothing to do with that.”
• Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald: Kenyon Martin, as plain-spoken as they come, left no doubt about the reason he’s not a Celtic today. The team decided it simply wasn’t interested in the veteran power forward, who signed with the Knicks for the rest of the season on March 15. Coach Doc Rivers said on Monday that the Celtics were more interested in finding a guard at the time Martin was available. “It’s their fault; they lost,” Martin said after helping the Knicks to last night’s 100-85 win with nine points and five rebounds, including four on the offensive glass. “There was talks, there was negotiations, they chose not to do it. It was out of my control. I’m a Knick now, so they lost. I’m just here to prove I never lost it. I guess I’m a better person than I am a basketball player. But the chip I’ve always played with hasn’t gotten bigger. I’m here to prove what I can do; that’s against everybody, every night. It doesn’t start with the Celtics. It’s whoever puts on that uniform opposite us.” Martin shot 4-for-7 last night, including three put-backs. He is 20-for-28 in his last three games.
• Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune: For nearly 10 minutes the Timberwolves poured it on in a slow, consistent, startling burn. From the starters to the bench, through timeouts and personnel changes, the Wolves played pesky defense, shared the ball and shot it. Boy, did they shoot it. On Tuesday at the Palace of Auburn Hills, against a Detroit team that is darned near 0-for-March, the Timberwolves did everything right in a 105-82 victory. Especially in the third quarter. Or, more specifically, over the final 9:48 of said quarter. “We said win the third quarter,” Wolves coach Rick Adelman said. “And we dominated.” It took less than 10 minutes for the Wolves, running and hitting from everywhere, to rain down three-pointers in a 32-9 run that turned a five-point game into a double-digit rout. And it didn’t stop there. By the time this was over, the Wolves (25-44) — the worst three-point shooting team in the league — had hit a season-high 14 treys, with seven players getting at least one.
• Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News: With Andre Drummond still out at least for one more game, it's perhaps one more opportunity for rookie Slava Kravtsov to get some playing time. The 25-year-old rookie has played only 20 games this season, averaging 3.3 points and 1.8 rebounds in 9.8 minutes. The Pistons have an option for his second year, which they'll have to decide on before July 1. "He's worked hard," said Frank, noting his 14-point, 10-rebound game against the Pacers on Feb 22. "He's had some good moments and some moments where (he's struggled), just the adjustment of the verbal commands and positioning and quick-twitch reacting."
• Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News: Lamar Odom came into Tuesday’s game with 4:15 left in the first quarter, and before he even had his sweatpants pulled off, the boos rained down from the sellout crowd at American Airlines Center. When he touched the ball for the first time, the boos got louder. Second time, more anger from the crowd. The last time there had been this much venom in the joint, the snake convention was in town. Either that or when the Miami Heat came through, which could be construed in these parts as the same thing. Odom had a modest impact in the first half, when he had four points and three rebounds in nine minutes. The Mavericks weren’t real concerned with Odom’s return. In pregame warm-ups, Odom gave a couple of winks toward the scorer’s table but had no interaction with any Mavericks to speak of. Odom had a dramatic divorce from the Mavericks last season when owner Mark Cuban questioned the 2010-11 sixth man of the year about his commitment to the franchise. Weeks later, he was told to leave, making it “addition by subtraction,” as Cuban said at the time. If there was any intention on Odom’s behalf to apologize or converse with Cuban on Tuesday, he never got the chance. Cuban was not at the game. He’s on vacation with his family for spring break.
• Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times: It was an interesting question that even Clippers Coach Vinny Del Negro thought came at an interesting time of the season. Del Negro was asked by a member of the media in front of the group about his coaching future with the Clippers. The Clippers picked up Del Negro's contract last year, but he wasn't given an extension. His deal expires when the season is over. "I enjoy the pressure," Del Negro said. "That's what it's about. I love the competition. Could things be a little bit better in certain areas? Of course. But all those things get answered at the end of the year. "Our focus is on tonight's game and on this season and all those things get answered at the end of the season, one way or the other," he said. The Clippers are playoff-bound for the second consecutive season under Del Negro. It will be only the third time in franchise history the Clippers have had consecutive playoff appearances. Del Negro was asked if his future was tied to how far the Clipper go in the playoffs this season. "No, my future is great," Del Negro responded. "I've got a great future, no matter what. I've been pretty fortunate, so I don't really worry about that stuff so much. Like I said, all those things take care of themselves when we finish."
• Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee: Here are a few other thoughts, quotes and observations from the meeting in the overheated, and overcrowded council chambers: Steve Hansen, who was thought to be vacillating about the arena issue, and who some thought would vote against the term sheet, instead gave a very impassioned explanation for his pro-arena vote. He cited the potential for jobs and economic growth, and added, "We have four billionaires who have said that Sacramento is worthy. It's been a long time since people have validated us in this way." Kevin Johnson, a former All-Star, said he intended to call David Stern despite the time difference and the fact the NBA Commissioner was not feeling well. Ron Burkle spokesman Darius Anderson, who addressed the council and took a swipe at Seattle for attempting to steal the Kings, said the four major investors will accompany Johnson to New York for his April 3 presentation to Stern and members of the league's finance and relocation committees. The ownership subset thereafter will evaluate both Seattle and Sacramento situations and make a recommendation to the entire Board of Governors. The owners will vote at the April 18-19 meetings, also in Manhattan.

• Joe Freeman of The Oregonian: It’s been four-and-a-half months since Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen unexpectedly showed up to the first day of training camp and revealed his secret wish to see his team play better defense. Four-and-a-half long months of head-scratching, mediocre and sometimes awful oh-lay performances that made you wonder if the young and defensively-challenged Blazers would ever show the heart and grit required to stifle an opposing offense. Well, the answer finally arrived in emphatic fashion Thursday night in Chicago, where the Blazers were — gasp! — rugged, determined and connected on defense en route to a 99-89 victory over the Chicago Bulls before 21,946 at the United Center. “Hands down,” All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge said, when asked if it was his team’s best defensive outing of the season. “I don’t think we’ve ever rotated like that in pick and roll (coverage), ever controlled the ball like that in a game.”
• Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times: It wasn’t supposed to look like that. Not with so much that had gone on for the Bulls lately. A high-energy week of practice, the return of both Kirk Hinrich and Taj Gibson from injuries, a group of players still angry about an overtime loss to Denver on Monday. No, Thursday was supposed to be the start of the playoff push, and Portland was expected to be the team that was just standing in the way of that progress. Following the 99-89 loss to the Trail Blazers, however, the fading Bulls had more questions than answers. “It’s really disappointing,’’ Joakim Noah said. “We’re not playing good right now. This is the final stretch and we’re not getting it done, so we got to find a way.’’ When asked what needed to change, however, Noah paused and replied, “I don’t know.’’ That was the running theme, as the Bulls (36-31) have now lost two straight on the three-game homestand, and dropped into a sixth-place tie with Boston in the Eastern Conference playoff picture.
• Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post: How? How?? It was unreal, surreal. This thing was over — the 76ers up eight points with less than two minutes left — but the Nuggets, resuscitated, climbed back into the game and won 101-100 on Thursday night at the Pepsi Center. Corey Brewer made three free throws with 2.1 seconds left to give Denver the lead for good, cemented by an Anthony Randolph block on Damien Wilkins at the buzzer. Brewer scored — poured? — a career-high 29 points, including a 3-pointer with 9.2 seconds left. "It was crazy. To be honest, I didn't think we had any chance of wining," Brewer said. "Even when (Evan Turner) missed those two free throws, it gave us life." After Turner missed both, Denver was able to get Brewer open for the 3-ball foul. "We ran it for Andre (Miller) to come off, and then (Danilo) Gallinari, to keep it," Brewer said, "and then I was going to come for the handoff, and I was able to get it — and I saw the defender coming, so I tried to get it off quick." That makes 14 consecutive wins for the fellows in yellow, a team NBA franchise record, while also tying the longest streak in coach George Karl's career, a streak that occurred in 1996, when his SuperSonics ultimately went to the NBA Finals. Denver is an incredible 31-3 at home and on a 16-game home winning streak.
• Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post: TRUST. That's what it said on the locker room's dry erase board, in letters as big as the Nuggets' win. It was Tuesday in Oklahoma City, where Denver would win an eye-popping, back-to-back finale against the mighty Thunder. Why do the Nuggets win games they should lose? I can give you a lot of fancy stats about fast-break scoring and improvements in all facets of defense, but the incalculable intangible is that they're among the league leaders in trust. "We talk a lot about the word trust," Nuggets coach George Karl said, "trusting each other, trusting the concepts, trusting the intensity. The word trust has been in our game plans a lot. And I have to trust them, they've earned that trust." … On the offensive end, Karl said the Nuggets are as good as any team at sharing the ball with the open player, regardless of the name on that player's back. That was the curse of the Iverson-Melo Nuggets. It's Spurs-esque. No, the Nuggets are not as good as the Spurs. But they trust each other like they do, and that could be something come mid-April.
• John Mitchell of The Philadelphia Inquirer: The ending was emblematic of just how things have gone for the 76ers. Leading by six points late in the game against the Denver Nuggets, the Sixers let it all slip away and lost a game they had won, falling to the Nuggets, 101-100, Thursday night at the Pepsi Center. With 7.1 seconds left and the Sixers leading, 100-98, Evan Turner missed a pair of free throws, allowing the Nuggets, who called a timeout, one last shot to win the game. Then Damien Wilkins fouled Denver's Corey Brewer as he attempted a three-pointer. Brewer stepped to the line and sank all three free throws to give the Nuggets the victory and extend their winning streak to 14 games. "I don't know; the referee said I fouled him, so I must have fouled him," Wilkins said. "I was just trying to challenge the shot aggressively and not let him get a clean look. I was a little bit too aggressive tonight and I cost my team a win tonight. I can't foul a guy shooting a thee-pointer when we're up two. "So we didn't deserve to win the game. Being overly aggressive cost us one, so you live and you learn."
• Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee: Tuesday's win over the Los Angeles Clippers might have been the Kings' best home victory of the season, considering the opponent. But it also was a game the NBA deemed to have had too much acting. Kings guard Tyreke Evans and Clippers guard Chris Paul both received warnings for flopping during the game. The league defines flopping "as any physical act that appears to have been intended to cause the referees to call a foul on another player." "The primary factor in determining whether a player committed a flop is whether his physical reaction to contact with another player is inconsistent with what would reasonably be expected given the force or direction of the contact."
• Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune: Timberwolves forward Chase Budinger returned Thursday night after four months away with a three-pointer made and a big smile in a 101-98 loss at Sacramento, but neither of those two things were quite enough. Budinger’s 17-plus minutes played and nine points scored on 3-for-7 shooting included one three-pointer — the only one in his team’s 1-for-19 night — as the Kings recovered from a 12-point, first-half deficit to win their third consecutive home game. The Kings had beaten the Bulls and the Clippers at Sleep Train Arena and on Thursday completed the trifecta, thanks to a game-changing 13-2 fourth-quarter run when Tyreke Evans attacked the basket at will. Evans scored 11 of his 21 points in a fourth quarter when the Wolves led by a point with 9:44 left, trailed by 10 with 5:32 left and still had a chance to tie the score at the final buzzer when Dante Cunningham’s desperation three-pointer went wide right. “We gave them too many spurts, too many easy opportunities, too many easy baskets,” Wolves coach Rick Adelman said.
• Dale Kasler, Tony Bizjak and Ryan Lillis of The Sacramento Bee: Sacramento's drive to keep the Kings took a dramatic detour Thursday as a new lead investor emerged for the team and the city missed its self-imposed deadline for wrapping up a deal for a new arena. The dual developments, announced within minutes of each other during a chaotic afternoon, suggested that Sacramento was still laboring to finalize its plan to keep the Kings from moving to Seattle. Although city officials said they're confident they'll get a deal done on a new arena, there isn't a lot of time: The plan must get OK'd first by the City Council, and Sacramento has to pitch its proposal to a group of key NBA owners in less than two weeks. Vivek Ranadive, an Indian-born software tycoon who lives in Silicon Valley, was unveiled as the man who will lead the bid for the team itself. Already a part owner of the Golden State Warriors, he takes the reins from East Bay health-club financier Mark Mastrov. A source familiar with the situation said Mastrov – whose initial bid was described as inadequate by the NBA – will remain a major partner in the bid. The third investor in the Sacramento effort, Beverly Hills billionaire Ron Burkle, was continuing to negotiate a deal with city officials on a new arena at Downtown Plaza. But in a somewhat unsettling development for the city, officials were unable Thursday to complete the so-called term sheet outlining the city's subsidy and other elements of the deal. The document was supposed to be released to the public in the afternoon.

The NBA began the season with a new rule against flopping, and the early indications were it made a difference.

Since 2013 began, however, the NBA has cited a mere four flops, out of close to 25,000 minutes of live ball play. Here they are, with video:

• Corey Brewer (March 9)
• C.J. Watson (Januar 25)
• Kevin Martin (January 23)
• J.J. Barea (January 22)

Considering that the league issued a total of 12 warnings and fines in the first two months of the season, that could be a sign the rule is doing its job, and players are flopping less.

But on the other hand, it's not that hard to find examples of flops that are going unpunished. A sampling:

• Chris Paul (March 19)
• Kyle Lowry (January 16)
• Blake Griffin (January 19)
• Chris Bosh (January 30)
• Gordon Hayward (March 13)
• Lance Stephenson (March 15)

Subjective observations suggests that the league, as a whole, on the season, has less flopping. But there's also evidence that the NBA is becoming increasingly lax in its policing.

The playoffs, when flopping rates are usually at their season-high, are just around the corner. Teams value every possession more in the playoffs, and therefore the incentive to flop will be high. And the league's flopping policy has always had the flaw that fines and sanctions are only handed down after the game, so a key flop still might win some team or another a playoff game.

Now seems like the right time to make clear the best game plans should not involve flops.

Also, the way the league has punished flopping has not helped to combat the perception that superstars are largely immune. The biggest name on the list of floppers this season is Tony Parker. Meanwhile the player with one of the greatest flopping reputations, Paul, has gotten off entirely, despite video evidence that he hasn't changed his style much. The league has an excellent opportunity right now to prove stars like Paul can get in flop trouble, too.

• Joseph Goodman of The Miami Herald: Once again, it was Shane Battier’s turn to speak. The Heat’s forward delivered a rousing postgame speech in Toronto on Feb. 3 after the first game of the Heat’s winning streak and — by the request of his teammates — Battier was back in front of the team 42 days later on Sunday. In that time span, the Heat hasn’t lost a game. Miami’s 108-91 victory over the Raptors at Air Canada Centre extended the Heat’s winning streak to 22 games. For Battier and the Heat, the day was doubly significant. The victory tied the Heat with the 2007-08 Houston Rockets for the second-longest winning streak in NBA history. Battier was on that team, too. Naturally, he needed to say a few words. On Monday, the Heat can reach 23 victories in a row. A win in Boston and Miami can take aim at 1971-72 Lakers, who won 33 consecutive games. “Someone said speech but I wasn’t prepared to speak,” Battier said. “But you always have something in your back pocket. I got filled with the spirit.” Battier talked about enjoying what the team has accomplished but, “with anything, we have to leave it in past.”
• Ethan J. Skolnick of the Palm Beach Post: Ray Allen was a Celtic the last time Boston had a shot to end a 22-game streak. He just didn’t play a part in it. That one was held by the Rockets, who welcomed the Celtics to Houston exactly five years ago Monday — when Miami will visit Boston. Allen was sidelined at the time, though, when asked Sunday, he couldn’t recall the circumstance. Boston won that game, 94-74. “We talked about it, but we weren’t in the shadow of it, because they were out West,” Allen said. “It was almost like you looked up at the schedule and they had won 22 in a row.” Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Rajon Rondo are the only three players from that team who remain — Rondo is out for the season with a knee injury and Garnett may be limited, if he plays at all, due to a sore hip. Still, Miami players spoke respectfully of a team they haven’t beaten in Boston, during the regular season, in five tries since LeBron James and Chris Bosh joined the Heat.
• Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News: Pau Gasol still remained in jovial spirits despite the news surrounding his return. The additional pain Gasol sensed in his right foot after playing a game of two-on-two Saturday will keep him sidelined when the Lakers play tonight in Phoenix, a benchmark the Lakers believed only days ago could happen. The Lakers then play Friday against Washington, leaving Gasol three more days to recover and possibly get in a practice. "I don't want to put any date," Gasol said, "so there are no disappointments or surprises." He hardly sounded upset about his delayed return after spending Sunday morning with foot specialist Kenneth Jung talking about his progress. "It was to be expected," said Gasol, who also has fought a cold circulating within the team in the past week. "As you raise the intensity in the amount of load you put on the foot, it's going to create a little soreness." Gasol, who has missed 19 games with his latest injury, will start in place of Earl Clark once his conditioning returns to normal. D'Antoni initially defended Gasol's bench role six games before his injury by arguing "we got to go small." What changed D'Antoni's sentiments? "Pau went up to another level with his play," D'Antoni said.
• Kevin Ding of The Orange County Register: Kobe Bryant's sprained left ankle didn't feel strong enough for Bryant even to test it on the court Sunday before skipping the Lakers' game against Sacramento. Bryant is considered doubtful to play Monday in Phoenix, according to a Lakers spokesman. If Bryant doesn't play against the Suns, he will have three more days of rest and treatment before the Lakers play their next game Friday night against Washington. Two days after that is the Lakers' only multigame trip left this regular season: at Golden State, Minnesota, Milwaukee and Sacramento. Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni had expected Bryant to test the ankle in the hours before the game vs. the Kings on Sunday night, but Bryant opted to save the effort given the minimal chance he would actually play vs. Sacramento, which was shorthanded without leading scorer DeMarcus Cousins (quadriceps). It was Bryant's first game of the season not playing. He played one quarter on the ankle in Indiana on Friday before telling Lakers coaches: "I can't go."
• Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman: This is the Thunder’s 50th win of the season. That might not mean much to most, but those are the people who likely weren’t paying attention when this team was barely a cut above trash. Oklahoma City has now won at least 50 games in three of the past four seasons. And last year’s .712 winning percentage in the lock0ut-shortended 66-game season equates to 58 wins when extrapolated over 82 games. It’s become easy to just expect a team with Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka to rack up 50-win campaigns for the next 10 years. Easy to neglect each passing season that topples that plateau. But those that have turned Oklahoma City into an NBA power haven’t forgotten where they came from. “We had 40 wins in two seasons, and now we have 50 wins almost every year,” Durant said, perfectly putting the achievement into its proper perspective even after claiming he couldn’t. “So that’s a blessing and shows how much we’ve grown as an organization. It’s great to be a part of. We really can’t take wins for granted because we went a few years without getting many.”
• Dan Woike of The Orange County Register: While college basketball teams around the country waited to find out where the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee has them seeded, the Clippers know every game can determine their postseason fate. Sunday's 93-80 victory over the injury-riddled New York Knicks put the Clippers in control of one of the most coveted seeds in the Western Conference – at least for now. With 15 games remaining, the Clippers are one game ahead of the Memphis Grizzlies and Denver Nuggets for the third spot in the Western Conference. In addition to having home-court advantage in the first round, the third seed will almost certainly avoid facing a top-tier team in the first round. Grant Hill called the difference between being the No. 3 seed in the West and the No. 5, "huge." "It could come down to the last week," he said. "It's pretty tight right there" If the playoffs began today, the Clippers would face Golden State, avoiding the Grizzlies and Nuggets in the first round.
• Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: The Hawks proved two things Sunday night. They are at their best in an up-tempo style – even if they can’t match the opposition’s size. Oh, and the Nets hold no mental edge over them. The Hawks used a 13-4 run to start the fourth quarter and break open a close game en route to a 105-93 victory over the Nets at Barclays Center. The Hawks would push the lead to as many as 15 in the final period in a back-and-forth game where neither team led by more than six points through three quarters. The victory evens the season series, 2-2, between the Eastern Conference and possible playoff opponents. The Hawks (37-29) have won three straight games and snapped a five-game road losing streak. They outscored the Nets 34-20 in the fourth quarter. The Hawks started Al Horford at center, giving up on the idea of trying to match the size of Nets’ seven-footer Brook Lopez. … The Hawks have 16 games remaining in the regular season. “For us, this is good because we are starting to build some momentum which we need,” Horford said.
• Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times: Current Bucks general manager John Hammond was so encouraged by Ilyasova’s talents that he rewarded him with a guaranteed four-year, $31.6 million contract with a team option for a fifth season at $8.4 million. After a sluggish start to this season, when former Bucks coach Scott Skiles shuffled him in and out of the starting lineup while reducing his minutes, Ilyasova is thriving for the 32-32 Bucks, who hold the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. While he is averaging 12.3 points and 6.7 rebounds for the season, Ilyasova has scored at least 19 points in eight of the last 13 games. That included a 29-point, 11-rebound outburst against Toronto and a 26-point, 17-rebound outing against the reigning NBA champion Miami Heat Friday night. Jim Boylan, who promptly inserted Ilyasova into the starting lineup when he assumed the head coaching reins, is delighted with his young starting power forward. “Ersan has been really, really consistent with his scoring, his effort, his rebounding,” Boylan said.
• Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune: For the first time in a month, both center Nikola Pekovic and forward Andrei Kirilenko were healthy enough to be back in the Timberwolves lineup Sunday against New Orleans at Target Center. And, for much of the first 47 minutes of the game, they struggled. They looked rusty, they looked a step slow. Quite often they looked tired. But then, of course, they won the game. In a 97-95, come-from-behind victory over a feisty bunch of Hornets, Pekovic’s offensive rebound and his two free throws gave the Wolves a one-point lead with 14.5 seconds left. And then Kirilenko sealed it with two blocks in the closing seconds. “I guess I was saving it for the final 14 seconds,” Kirilenko joked. It was, frankly, an improbable win, one that would have been impossible if not for Derrick Williams’ career-high 28 points. The Wolves were out-rebounded 41-27, with that total being their lowest of the season. The Hornets outscored the Wolves 58-46 in the paint and 20-10 on second-chance points. The Wolves struggled to slow Hornets center Robin Lopez (20 points, 11 rebounds) inside and Greivis Vasquez (24 points, five assists, seven rebounds) everywhere else. But all that mattered was the final minute.
• Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle: It would have been easy to have lost composure, gotten disheartened or even flat-out panicked. But with the opposing crowd of 18,219 buzzing and the Rockets charging in the teams' biggest game of the season, Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson appeared completely unaffected Sunday. "I might have been worried a year ago or maybe even a couple of months ago, but I've learned so much this season," Thompson said. "I've come to grips with not panicking." With things seemingly spiraling out of control for the Warriors, the steely second-year guard connected on two jumpers that were sandwiched around a Stephen Curry three-pointer to cool off the Rockets' run, and the Warriors went on to cruise to a 108-78 victory that kept them in sixth place.
• Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer: I’m a journalist, so I value transparency. We’re all predisposed to believe organizations should be as open and accountable as possible. So, naturally, I applauded in November when the NBA acknowledged after the fact that its referees blew an obvious call in a game between the Charlotte Bobcats and Toronto Raptors. A foul should have been called on Michael Kidd-Gilchrist that would have given Andrea Bargnani free throws. Those free throws might have won a game the Raptors lost. Since then the league has issued similar “Mea Culpas,” most recently when it announced Thursday that a foul should have been called on Atlanta’s Dahntay Jones for planting his foot where Kobe Bryant would land after a jump shot. That was another end-of-game situation, and the lack of a call might have cost the Lakers a victory. I ran all this past a friend who used to be a coach at the pro level. I heard a counter-argument to my “all transparency is positive” position. I must admit there was merit to what I heard. The short version of this coach’s argument is, “If it’s too late to undo a mistake, then why harp on it publicly?” The slightly longer version is this: You invalidate one team’s victory without really making the loser feel better. You add to the paranoia about referees in a social media-driven time overdosed on snark.

While MVP front-runner LeBron James has captured most of the Miami Heat’s headlines this season, Dwyane Wade quietly is having one of the most efficient stretches of his career.

In Tuesday’s win over the Atlanta Hawks, Wade scored 23 points on 9-of-18 shooting. He has scored at least 20 points and shot at least 50 percent from the field in a career-high 10 consecutive games. The streak is tied for the third longest in the NBA this season and is the longest among guards.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Wade is the first guard to score 20 points and shoot 50 percent in at least 10 straight games since Michael Jordan during the 1995-96 season (11 games).

During the Heat’s 19-game win streak, Wade has seen an overall increase in his scoring as well as his efficiency from the field. Wade, who was already shooting a career-high 50.8 percent from the field in his first 39 games of the season, is averaging 24.2 points on 55 percent shooting during Miami’s win streak. Five of his eight 30-point games this season have come during the win streak, including a season-high 39 points on Feb. 26 against the Sacramento Kings.

One of the primary reasons for Wade’s spike in his field goal percentage has been his aggressiveness in getting to the basket. Following offseason knee surgery, Wade lacked his usual explosiveness at the beginning of the season. But since the start of February, he is averaging 5.2 dunks and layups per game, including a season-high five dunks on March 4 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Wade continues to be one of the best slashers when it comes to attacking the paint, an area where he leads all guards in scoring for a fifth consecutive season. Since the start of February, Wade has been able to get even closer to the basket, averaging 11.5 points inside the restricted area (four-foot arc around the basket). He averaged just 8 points in that area in the first three months of the season.

On Wednesday, Miami starts a five-game road trip against the Philadelphia 76ers, a team the Heat have beaten 13 consecutive times during the regular season. With a win, Miami will be just the fourth team in NBA history to win 20 consecutive games in a single season, and set the mark for the longest win streak by a defending champion.

• Ethan J. Skolnick of the Palm Beach Post: Chris Bosh, occasional actor, has mastered the deadpan delivery — and he put those skills on display Tuesday night, shortly after the streaking Heat displayed their basketball skills on the court. Would 20 straight wins, a total that will be on the table Wednesday night in Philadelphia, be sufficient to excite him? “Ten is enough for me,” Bosh said. What about 20? “Twenty’s cool,” Bosh said. “I’ll take it. We’re going to have to earn it, I’m sure.” They will, even if as much of the challenge will come from the circumstances — a late-night flight followed by a 7 p.m. road tip — as from an opponent they’ve defeated 12 straight times. Yet what was apparent again Tuesday, in a 98-81 workmanlike hammering of the Hawks, is that there’s little that can fluster the Heat of late, including when they get little offensively from LeBron James.
• Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald: Friday’s meeting with Milwaukee — the Heat’s second game on a five-game road trip — could end up being a preview of a first-round playoff series. And at least one Bucks player believes that would be the preferable matchup for Milwaukee, which entered Tuesday in the No. 8 seed. “The two games that we played Miami so far, we matched up well against them,” guard Brandon Jennings told The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “If you ask me, that’s who I would want to play first round, Miami. “Right now we haven’t really played well against the Knicks. I just feel better if we play Miami first round, just the fact we have good games against them.” Chris Bosh said Jennings’ comment doesn’t bother him. “That’s great,” Bosh said. “I hope people want to see us. Milwaukee is a good team. It would be great games.” But Rashard Lewis said: “Be careful what you ask for.” The Heat beat Milwaukee in overtime in Miami in November but lost 104-85 Dec. 29 in Wisconsin.
• Kevin Ding of The Orange County Register: Dwight Howard killed 'em with paint dominance, half-decent free-throw shooting and his usual kindness. Howard rode the positive energy he often preaches through his return game in Orlando on Tuesday. With Howard making 25 of 39 shots from the free-throw line – tying the NBA record for attempts he set a year ago – the Lakers beat Howard's old Orlando Magic team, 106-97. He smiled from pregame warmups to the victorious end – even as Orlando fans wore his old jerseys with the "H" on the back changed into a "C," one fan interrupted the national anthem to insult him and Magic coach Jacque Vaughn deliberately probed time and again at Howard's free-throw weakness. Despite a cold-shooting night from Kobe Bryant, the Lakers won because Howard left Orlando center Nik Vucevic likening him to "the Dwight that dominated the league the past few seasons." Howard finished with 39 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks – and Bryant said the Lakers' 17-6 run has sprung from Howard "just buying in to what we need him to do – him excelling at it."
• Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel: There was plenty of Hack-A-Howard, even more Hate-A-Howard. The entire night was just another sad, bittersweet reminder of the Magic's legacy. For the city of Orlando. For the franchise and its fans. And for Dwight Howard, the guest of dishonor. The leather-lunged booing, caustic commentary and contentious Dwightmosphere turned Amway Center into a venting session first and a sporting event second. These engagements merely have become an embarrassing tradition for the Magic and the faithful, even if some circumstances are out of their control. They lead the NBA in this unfortunate ritual: Their once-beloved superstars return to the city of Orlando for the first time, only to be buried in boos and belligerence. Shaq, Penny, T-Mac, Grant Hill and now Dwight have all had similar toxic reunions here. … Howard put the Magic through the ringer – and the Magic tried to embarrass him as well. They sent his notorious free-throw form to the free-throw line by fouling intentionally – and it backfired.
• Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News: Even though the two went through a verbal back-and-forth in the media, Magic guard Jameer Nelson insists Dwight Howard "isn't a bad guy." But Nelson made it clear he's no longer close with the Lakers center. … The relationship strains stem partly from comments Howard made in an interview that aired last week on CBS2/KCAL9 in which he said, "My team in Orlando was a team full of people who nobody wanted. I was the leader and I led that team with a smile on my face." … Still, it appeared the two made some inroads in restoring their relationship. Howard and Nelson talked on the court following the Lakers' 106-97 win Tuesday over the Orlando Magic at Amway Arena. Nelson also prevented Howard from taking a nasty fall on a drive in the second quarter by holding him. "Jameer is my brother," Howard said. "I have no bad feelings toward him." But with Nelson expressing offense to Howard's interview, the Lakers center said he texted the Magic guard to clarify his comments. Did Howard apologize? "I guess publicly," Nelson said. "I'm not looking for an apology."
• Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News: Deron Williams has reached that comfort zone, the same one he enjoyed during the height of his days in Utah. It’s not just his rejuvenated body and rediscovered explosiveness. It’s also his approach. It’s his awareness. He has become the unquestioned leader of the Nets since the All-Star break, the point man calling out plays and taking control of a flowing offense. … For all of the 40 minutes he played Tuesday night at Barclays Center, he was the best player on the court in a 108-98 victory. He had 21 points and 13 assists, picking up the slack while Joe Johnson was inactive because of his sore left heel. It has been a similar story since the break for Williams, who has regained his All-Star form since dropping weight and undergoing another round of cortisone injections into his inflamed ankles. His leadership had been called into question the last two years, mostly because he sulked his way through losing seasons and was blamed for two coaches getting canned. But the last three weeks have undoubtedly represented Williams’ best stretch as a Net. It’s still a small sample size, but also an encouraging trend for the Nets.
• Ray Richardson of the Pioneer Press: In this season of aches and pains, short-handed lineups and overall misery, the Timberwolves were due for some type of feel-good moment. It finally happened with a blowout win over the San Antonio Spurs, the team with the NBA's best record (49-16), and Ricky Rubio's first NBA triple-double. There was even an inspiring second quarter in which the Wolves outscored San Antonio 29-10 to set up a 107-83 victory in front of an impressed crowd of 14,219. Some might want to put an asterisk in front of the victory, given that injured Spurs starters Tim Duncan (sore left knee), Tony Parker (ankle) and Kawhi Leonard (sore left knee) did not make the trip to the Twin Cities. The night, however, belonged to Rubio, who finished with 21 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists to cap the best performance in his comeback from a major knee injury last season.
• Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer: This is how Gerald Henderson describes what he hears from coach Mike Dunlap these days: “He wants me to shoot it every time. He wants me to think, ‘SCORE’ every time.” It doesn’t always work out that way. Henderson is a reluctant ball hog. But Tuesday he was on a preposterous roll that led to a preposterous score: Charlotte Bobcats 100, Boston Celtics 74. Suspend your disbelief; this really did happen for a Bobcats team on a 10-game losing streak and an NBA-worst 14-50 record. This was Charlotte’s widest margin of victory since January of 2010, when the Bobcats beat the Miami Heat 104-65. Many contributed, but none came close to shooting guard Henderson, who finished with a career-high 35 points.
• Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon-Journal: After the Cavaliers claimed Shaun Livingston off waivers from the Washington Wizards on Christmas Day, Livingston’s first game as a member of the Cavs was against the Wizards. Now that Livingston is the starting point guard for the foreseeable future given Kyrie Irving’s injury, it only makes sense that Livingston’s first start also came against the Wizards on Tuesday. … It’s clear Livingston didn’t enjoy his time in Washington. He had been there once before, but when the Rockets released him at the end of training camp, the Wizards again inquired early in the season. With few other options available, Livingston agreed to return to the Wizards. “Probably one of the worst spots I’ve been in my career,” Livingston said of his time in Washington. “At the same time, it’s been a godsend here.” Livingston said he’s a cerebral player who didn’t have the right pieces around him in Washington, and the lack of structure within the Wizards didn’t help him. It’s why he never thought his career was over after the Wizards released him in December.
• Ronald Tillery of The Commercial-Appeal: Tony Allen lunged for a steal and missed as momentum took him toward midcourt and out of the play. His Grizzlies teammates then began to scramble to cover the potential gaps in their defense. And they did just that until Allen recovered, flew toward the basket and recorded a block on a would-be layup. Whenever the Portland Trail Blazers thought there was daylight on offense Tuesday night, the Grizzlies pulled a shade before leaving the Rose Garden with a 102-97 victory. Hardly anything was rosy for the Blazers against a Grizzlies’ defense that didn’t seem to relax on many possessions. Just ask the Blazers and their incredibly shrinking shooting percentages from quarter to quarter. Portland began the night shooting 45 percent in the opening period. The Blazers made 39 percent of their shots in the second and only connected on 22 percent in the third.
• Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News: Center Chris Kaman started Tuesday night, but was pulled from the game after just 2:14 had elapsed off the clock. Coach Rick Carlisle took blame for putting Kaman in that situation, but it didn’t make it any easier for Kaman to understand. He was clearly not happy to get yanked that quickly. He never re-entered the game. … Carlisle said he realized quickly this game was not going to be one in which Kaman could prosper. … Carlisle said he had talked with Kaman about the situation immediately after the game. With a bigger set of centers and power forwards looming in San Antonio on Thursday, it would seem logical that Kaman would be back to his normal minutes against the Spurs.
• Marc Berman of the New York Post: The Melodrama continues. The most important d-word tonight wasn’t about Denver but drainage. Carmelo Anthony said he expects to play tomorrow in his first homecoming in Denver but admitted his sore right knee is not getting better and if this continues, he may have the fluid in his knee drained. Mike Woodson listed him as “probably probable’’ and Melo indicated he would play and then possibly reevaluate after the contest. So tomorrow’s showdown game vs. the Nuggets could conceivably be his last of the West Coast trip. “We’re talking about it,’’ Anthony said after practicing on the Nuggets practice court at Pepsi Center. “The doctors will sit down and talk about it and see my options. I think that’s the last option - to get the knee drained. I have to weigh all the options - how much time I’d have to take off.’’

• Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post: The Los Angeles Clippers fell apart in the second half at the Pepsi Center, losing 107-92 to the scorching Nuggets, winners of seven consecutive games. The Nuggets were airborne all evening. The game's first basket was a Gallo breakaway dunk. Kenneth Faried swatted Chris Paul's layup in the first quarter. Kosta Koufos, normally known for the lay-in, hammered home a dunk early. JaVale McGee stuffed Lamar Odom with the scorn of an angered Kardashian. … The Clippers played Wednesday on the West Coast and Thursday in Denver, which meant things probably wouldn't go well for them. Check out this info courtesy of the stat guys with Clippers TV — since 2007-08, teams that play a game on the West Coast and then come to Denver for a back-to-back are 3-41 in the Denver game. Unreal. And Nuggets PR calculated that the Nuggets are 44-10 since 2009-10 when facing an opponent at home in second game of back-to-back, no matter where that team is coming from.
• John Rohde of The Oklahoman: Thursday’s victory completes four straight games against quality teams, three of which are bound for the playoffs and another that should be. OKC finished with a 3-1 record against these teams, which is more than acceptable. The Thunder’s victories came on two of the biggest stages in the world – Staples Center and Madison Square Garden against the Los Angeles Clippers and New York Knicks, respectively. The other victory came at home against the underachieving, but undeniably talented, Los Angeles Lakers. The lone loss was at Pepsi Center, where the Denver Nuggets own a 27-3 record, tied with the world champion Miami Heat for the best home mark in the NBA. Had Denver’s Ty Lawson not drained a 20-footer with 0.2 seconds left, the Thunder might have been able to win in overtime and made it a clean four-game sweep. Had that transpired, OKC (45-16) would be riding a seven-game winning streak. Instead, winning six of its last seven will have to do.
• Tim Smith of the New York Daily News: If the Knicks were going to have any shot of beating OKC, they needed to put the clamps on Kevin Durant, who entered the night leading the NBA in scoring at 28.6 points per game, and Russell Westbrook, who had averaged 32 points in his last five games. Durant finished with 34 points and Westbrook had an erratic 21. And Woodson decided to put Kenyon Martin in the game to guard Durant. It seemed like a risky move, considering Durant is about as fluid a scorer as you will find in a 6-foot-9 body. … In the third quarter, when Durant went slashing through the lane, Martin went all Charles Oakley on the OKC forward, hitting him with a cross-bodycheck that sent Durant to the floor hard. At first officials called Martin for a flagrant foul, but they reversed it after a review. “I am not trying to hurt anyone,” Martin said. “It is a contact sport. I want to let them know it is not going to be easy. That’s always how I’ve approached the game.” Woodson called it “old school” and said that’s what Martin, Kurt Thomas and Rasheed Wallace bring to the Knicks. “They don’t believe in guys coming to the rim getting layups,” Woodson said. Without their star scorer and with only one player who caught fire, the Knicks needed to grind one out. They fell just short against one of the best teams in the NBA. There’s no shame in that. But they better hope Anthony gets back in a hurry so they don’t lose too much ground in the Eastern Conference standings.
• Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel: Congratulations, Dwight Howard. You have now done the impossible. You have pretty much alienated everybody you ever knew in Orlando. The fans who once poured their hearts, souls and disposable income into you are irate because you lied to them about your "love" and "loyalty" to the city. The kids who once idolized you can't stand you because you stiffed them by blowing off your own youth basketball camp before bailing out and high-tailing it to the West Coast. Your former coach Stan Van Gundy and former general manager Otis Smith -- two decent men who had your back at every turn – are surely disappointed in the way you threw them under the bus and cost them their seven-figure jobs. And, sadly and pathetically, you've even lost the respect of your former Magic teammates – a bunch of good guys who you once called your "family" but now have denigrated and minimized into a "a team full of people nobody wanted." … Do you notice anything missing from Dwight's extensive explanation of his "team full of people who nobody wanted" comments? Never once does he take responsibility for what he said.
• Bob Finnan of The News-Herald: After Wednesday's game at Quicken Loans Arena, Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving admitted his right knee is not 100 percent. "I'm trying not to let it bother me," Irving said. "It's still bruised. The only way it'll get better is to the sit out the rest of the season, and I'm not doing that." Irving played 38 minutes in the 104-101 victory over the Utah Jazz. It was a rough-and-tumble game, and the point guard took several hard falls. Cavs coach Byron Scott said he found out Irving's knee was bothering him by reading the daily media clips on Thursday morning. He said after practice, if Irving's knee gets any worse, he would have no hesitations about shutting him down. The news caused a furor on Twitter. A Cavs spokesman clarified the team has no plans to rest Irving. "If he said it was bothering him again to the point that he can't perform like I know he's capable of, yeah (I'd considering shutting him down)," Scott said.
• Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer: Charlotte Bobcats rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist says he’s not going to use a concussion as an excuse. Others who care about him say mentioning the concussion Kidd-Gilchrist suffered in early February isn’t an excuse, it’s an explanation. Until the last two games he hadn’t been the player worthy of the No. 2 overall pick; not the guy who occasionally totals 25 points or 10 rebounds or three steals. Simply put, not himself. “He’s always in the action – he’s a physical player who attacks – so for him to get a concussion, you’ve got to make sure it’s all the way out,” said Bobcats co-captain Gerald Henderson. “That’s nothing to play with.” Yet that’s precisely what Kidd-Gilchrist did; play with it. He collided with teammate Jeff Taylor Feb. 2 in Houston. First his head and neck made contact with Taylor’s leg, then his head bounced off the floor at the Toyota Center. The injury was serious enough that his neck was immobilized by medical staff and he spent the night in a Houston hospital. Kidd-Gilchrist missed the next two games before passing the NBA’s post-concussion protocol to play again. But there’s a difference between being well enough to play and effective. He struggled the past month, and appeared to hit a low point against the Los Angeles Clippers at the start of a four-game West Coast trip.
• Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald: Jeff Green has taken over leadership of the second unit, and is usually on the floor at the end of games. That perpetual pressure Green imposes on himself is paying its highest dividend yet. … Garnett has told him not to be so nice, in language that typically can’t be used here. They’ve all told him to be more selfish. But Green has the critiques covered. That never-ending gravity was apparent the night of Feb. 20 in a tweet by @unclejeffgreen: “Damn altitude killed me today, tough (loss) but got another one tomorrow.” Green came off the bench with 15 points that night during a loss to the Lakers in the Staples Center. He also had seven rebounds, four assists and a block. He may have been minus-11, but rare was the Celtic with something to crow about that night. So Green sent out a modern mea culpa. He tweeted. Some players, especially, need a new kind of release.
• Ray Richardson of the Pioneer Press: As Ricky Rubio approaches the one-year anniversary Saturday, March 9, of his devastating knee injury, the second-year guard is still rebuilding the skills that made him one of the NBA's most entertaining players as a rookie. The total package in Rubio's game might not be complete until next season, but the Barcelona native has made enough progress to show he's still an impact player. "I know what he did overseas, and he's not back to that level yet," San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovic said in February. "An injury that keeps you out that long, it takes a while to get your rhythm back, regain your confidence and really feel 100 percent. He'll get there because he's a hard worker. He's still going to be a heck of a player here in Minnesota." What Rubio lacks in elevation, he has made up in floor burns and bruises, diving for loose balls and making steals.
• Daniel Brown of the San Jose Mercury News: A little more than a year after the birth of "Linsanity," point guard Jeremy Lin returns to where it almost didn't begin. He was buried on the Warriors' bench for 29 forgettable games two seasons ago. It was during that stretch when an elderly man with a special place in basketball history sat down and wrote him a fan letter. "I figured he could use a little bit of encouragement," recalled Wat Misaka, now 89 and living in Salt Lake City. "So I sent him a note that said: 'Hang in there. It's sure to get better.' " Things got better all right. Lin, now with the Houston Rockets, returns to Oracle Arena on Friday as an internationally known sensation playing on a three-year, $25 million contract. A documentary that traces his unlikely rise to fame with the New York Knicks opened to rave reviews at the Sundance Film Festival in January. The 88-minute film, "Linsanity," makes its San Francisco debut next Thursday at the Center for Asian American Media Festival. Lin's global fame means the world to Misaka, who in 1947 became the first non-Caucasian to play professional basketball in the U.S. The Japanese-American was a 5-foot-7, 150-pound point guard for the Knicks, even if his career only lasted three games. To Misaka, the rise of another Asian-American wasn't "Linsanity." It was lineage. "It really made me feel good that he was getting all the attention that he deserved," he said.
• Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee: Mitch Richmond is buying back into the Kings. Emotionally, for sure. Financially, he hopes. And we knew that. The first legitimate star of the Sacramento era is among the investors who each have committed $1 million and are bidding on the seven percent share being auctioned in bankruptcy proceedings. But that's not the bottom line. Richmond wants back into basketball, too. After a meet-and-greet session with fans and reporters Thursday at a downtown restaurant, the six-time All-Star quietly revealed that, if the Mastrov/Burkle ownership bid for the Kings prevails, he will pursue a position in the basketball front office. "That's where my interest is, what I'd be looking at," said Richmond, a consultant with Golden State until 2009. "I left when (Chris Mullin) was let go." Because uncertainty intrudes into virtually every conversation about the Kings and their future, Richmond declined to elaborate. There is an exhausting list of issues to be addressed and resolved before one city celebrates and the other city slumps.
• Kerry Eggers of The Portland Tribune: Chris McGowan is in the preliminary stages of selling the Rose Garden’s naming rights. He hired a company called “Premier Partnership” to facilitate the process. They have a list of about 100 businesses — some local, some national — that have a likelihood of interest. Three or four presentations have already been scheduled. “We’re getting pretty good feedback,” he says. “It could be a local company, which would be great, or it could be a (national) blue-chip brand.” McGowan would like to have a contract in place before the 2013-14 NBA season. It’s not a done deal, though, that he’ll make a deal at all. “It’s good for our organization to have this revenue stream,” he says. “All of it would get reinvested into what we do on the court. There are only three NBA teams that don’t have (a naming rights deal). But I’m going to be very cautious about it. I’m not going to do a deal with the wrong brand. We’re the Portland Trail Blazers. The Rose Garden has a great name. It’s not something we have to do, which is a good position to be in. There are a lot of companies that have to get deals done. We’re not one of them.” … McGowan speaks almost daily with general manager Neil Olshey, who runs the basketball side of the operation, and often sits with him at games. … It’s way too early to predict how successful McGowan will be with his new mission. He is certainly bright and an ideas guy, and seems every bit a people person, which never hurts when you’re dealing with the public. He doesn’t carry himself as a big shot. He seems genuinely enchanted with Portland, too, where his boys can play soccer and lacrosse and his family can ski and enjoy the outdoors. When I ask if he envisions this job as being a steppingstone to something bigger — if this is just another line on his resume — he smiles.

• Andre C. Fernandez of The Miami Herald: The Heat continued to climb the ladder on the list of the NBA’s all-time best winning streaks with Wednesday’s victory. Miami tied seven other teams that have strung 16 victories together, including three that went on to win the championship (1964-65 Celtics, 1970-71 Bucks and 1999-2000 Lakers). But the Heat still has a long way to go to get even near the NBA record of 33 in a row set by the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers. “It’s not really in the back of my head or anything like what number we’d like to hit,” LeBron James said. “If it hit a league record, I mean that’s crazy if we did at some point. We don’t want to lose, but we’re going to play each and every game and not worry about it.” Among some of the notable teams the Heat could catch soon on the all-time list include the record-setting 1995-96 Bulls who won 18 in a row during a 72-10 regular season, and 1999-2000 Lakers who had a 19-game winning streak that season. The 2007-08 Rockets have the second-longest streak — 22 in a row.
• Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News: In a season in which they dug so much to climb back into playoff contention, it seemed appropriate the Lakers operated in the same fashion in a game that could largely dictate those fortunes. The Lakers' 108-102 victory Wednesday over the New Orleans Hornets didn't just mark a game in which they overcame a 25-point deficit against a sub.-500 opponent. This didn't just mark the first time the Lakers overcame such a large gap since overcoming a 30-point deficit against the Dallas Mavericks in 2002. The Lakers' latest win gave them renewed confidence they can overcome any obstacle. "Games like this really strengthen the bond between us players," Lakers guard Kobe Bryant said. "That's really what the playoffs are all about. You have adversity. It's about who's going to stick together and who's not going to break." It helps that the win improves the bottom line results, too. With the Utah Jazz losing Tuesday to Cleveland, the Lakers (31-32) trail Utah (32-28) by only 1 games for the eighth and final Western Conference playoff spot.
• Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: Basketball Hall of Fame forward Dennis Rodman took a lot of heat recently when he flew to North Korea and met with controversial North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. But Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban saw no problem with the two meeting. “Actually I think it’ll help,” Cuban said before Wednesday’s game against the Houston Rockets. “When you’ve got somebody talking about something other than global nuclear destruction, that’s a step in the right direction because you know there’s a topic you can have a conversation about that isn’t thinking about something else. Just like any argument, when you calm it down by switching subjects, that’s a good thing.” Cuban isn’t sure if anything of substance will come from the meeting between Rodman and Kim. But the fact that Kim is a huge basketball fan apparently says that he can at least relate to Rodman. “Who knows if it has any staying power, but it’s certainly not a negative,” Cuban said. “When I think of world peace I think of Rodman.” … In a recent interview with Charlie Rose for 60 Minutes, NBA commissioner David Stern characterized Rodman’s visit with Kim as “ridiculous.”
• Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe: On a play usually reserved for Paul Pierce or Kevin Garnett, Jeff Green attempted the final shot Wednesday night and he helped seal perhaps the Celtics’ biggest win of the season. Green has emerged as a primary offensive weapon in the past two months, but with the Celtics having possession with 23.6 seconds left and the game tied at 81 against the Pacers, the forward usually would have expected Pierce or Garnett to take the final shot. Instead, Garnett decoyed off the pick-and-roll and found Green with a high pass that he gathered in. Green scored with 0.5 seconds left for Boston’s 83-81 win. Not only did Green flourish in a critical time, but having his name called was a sign of confidence from coach Doc Rivers. “It builds confidence, especially with the playoffs right around the corner,” Green said. “Now at this point in time of the season, that confidence will be [useful]. You know all the attention is going to be focused on Kevin and Paul, but with the confidence that we’ll have going into the playoffs as far as the end of games, I think Doc trusts that we can make plays and help and take some of the pressure off Kevin and Paul.
• Brian Schmit of the Orlando Sentinel: Former Magic forward Rashard Lewis called Dwight Howard's recent comments about his former Magic teammates "disrespectful" and defended Jameer Nelson, once one of Howard's closest friends. Howard told KCAL-TV in L.A. that "my team in Orlando was a team full of people who nobody wanted, and I was the leader and I led that team with a smile on my face." Howard, Lewis and Nelson were on the Magic team that defied odds and reached the NBA Finals in 2009. "It's disrespectful more than anything. We helped Dwight become the player he was," said Lewis, now a member of the Miami Heat, who faced the Magic on Wednesday night. Lewis wasn't a nobody in the summer of 2007. He was the top free agent, and the Magic signed him to a six-year, $118-million contract to help Howard win. "We made a good run. Hell, look at those (conference and division) banners hanging in the stands. They don't say Dwight Howard on them... I think everybody should get a little piece of the credit. It's not just one guy who did everything." Nelson said after shootaround that he was disappointed in Howard's professionalism. "At some point, when are you [Dwight] gonna as a man, when are you going to take ownership and stay out of the media in a professional manner?" Nelson told the Sentinel.
• T.J. Simers of the Los Angeles Times: And here we have the Clippers, feeling really good about themselves, but what have they really accomplished? Do they belong in the same class as Oklahoma City and San Antonio after getting spanked at home by each recently? Could they beat the Lakers in a No. 3 seed versus No. 6 matchup, the best possible opponent for the Lakers, as Shaq suggested on TNT? "The Clippers are not legitimate" championship contenders, said Barkley, and so I wonder who Barkley would pick if the soft Clippers met the dead Lakers. With nothing else to do but watch the Clippers abuse Milwaukee on Wednesday night, why not put the brakes on this joy ride and agree or disagree with Barkley? Ralph Lawler, the team's long-time broadcaster, said there are things that must go the Clippers' way. "Chauncey Billups has to be Chauncey Billups," said Lawler, and lately Billups has struggled. "Eric Bledsoe has to be the Bledsoe who was so dynamic in the playoffs last year," said Lawler, and lately Bledsoe has been hobbled. Lawler said the Clippers will come on. "But if not, Charles could be just plain right," said Lawler, his sidekick Mike Smith saying nothing and no one seemingly disappointed.
• Al Iannazzone of Newsday: Mike Woodson said the MRI on Carmelo Anthony's injured right knee showed "some fluid buildup" in there. "That's what's causing the stiffness," Woodson said. "Rest will probably be the best thing for him." Anthony rested Wednesday night, sitting out against the Pistons. Woodson said Anthony would be evaluated again Thursday night and if he feels better, he could play against the Thunder at the Garden. Woodson said it will be Anthony's decision. "I'll do whatever he wants to do," Woodson said. "Trust me. Players know their own body. If he tells me he wants to play I'm going to play him. I'm not going to fight him on that . . . If he says, 'Coach, I need to sit down and rest a game or two,' I'm going to grant that, absolutely." The irony is Woodson said Anthony asked out of Monday's game in Cleveland before he aggravated his knee and the coach didn't listen to him. "He just kind of nodded that his knee wasn't right," Woodson said. "I kind of ignored it somewhat. Maybe I shouldn't have."
• Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle: Center Andrew Bogut on Wednesday was part of the Warriors' starting lineup in consecutive games for only the fifth time, and executive board member Jerry West thinks they might need more of the big man to hold on to their playoff spot. "We really need him in the lineup. Oh, my gosh, yeah, we need him in there," West said. "He's crucial for us to be able to close this season out the way we want to close it out." After beating the Kings 87-83 on Wednesday night, the Warriors remain in sixth place in the Western Conference - 5 games back of fifth-place Denver and six games ahead of 10th-place Portland. … "We're not seeing the real Andrew Bogut, with all the (injuries) he's been through," West said. "He just gives us something we do not have, OK? He's got a great mind to play the game. He's physical as heck. He takes up space. He doesn't even really want to shoot the ball. His knowledge of the game is off the charts, and this is the kind of player that makes other players better."
• Seth Walder of the New York Daily News: Kris Humphries' official divorce from Kim Kardashian is fast approaching, but his divorce from playing time will come much sooner. According to a league source, Humphries was informed by coach P.J. Carlesimo Wednesday morning that he will no longer be part of the Nets' shortened rotation. Carlesimo has said in recent days that he wants to limit the rotation to nine or 10 players as the Nets head into the stretch run before the postseason. The 6'9" forward is averaging 18.4 minutes per game this season, a number that has dwindled substantially since the beginning of the year. He has grabbed 5.9 rebounds per game while scoring 5.5 points per contest. The decision to bench Humphries is curious given how fervently the Nets have worked to keep him. In July, the Nets inked the forward to a two-year, $24 million contract. Two weeks ago, at the trade deadline, the Nets could have traded Humphries to their opponent Wednesday night, Charlotte, in a deal that would have brought back Ben Gordon. And yet, despite their commitment to Humphries financially and the value he could have returned in the trade market, his only spot on the team for the foreseeable future will be on the bench.
• Ronald Tillery of of The Commercial-Appeal: Darrell Arthur sat on the bench unavailable and trying to get comfortable with a sore neck and back. Zach Randolph, nursing a left ankle sprain, was nowhere in sight. And it appeared the home team missed a lot more than their starting power forward and his understudy most of Wednesday night. However, the Grizzlies finally located their dogged defense, and a late scoring run allowed them to catch and pass the Portland Trail Blazers for a 91-85 victory before 16,214 in FedExForum. The Griz, winners in 10 of their last 11 games, overcame a 17-point, second-half deficit to capture a sixth consecutive win at home. This was the second straight home game in which the Griz had to dig out of a major hole. … “We don’t like being down 17 or 25, but in those situations we find out who we are,” Griz point guard Mike Conley said. “It’s good for us to sometimes win in different ways.”
• Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News: Spurs center Tiago Splitter was excited by the news that the NBA has scheduled its first preseason game ever in his native Brazil. The Bulls and Washington Wizards will play Oct. 12 in Rio De Janeiro. “Oh, yes, this is a big step for us,” Splitter said. “We have all the World Cup and Olympic Games, and now we have an NBA game. It’s great for basketball in Brazil, and I’m very happy we’re going to have a game there.” Splitter said he would have been thrilled had the Spurs been selected to play, but understood the choice of the Wizards, who have 10-year Brazilian veteran center Nene. “I don’t know if the Spurs were considered for the choice, but I know that they want to bring Nene,” he said. “Of course, he is a veteran who has played a long time in the NBA.”
• Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News: Apparently not intimidated by Manu Ginobili’s previous treatment of its brethren, a bat dared to fly through the AT&T Center during the second half. Spurs trainer Will Sevening comically shook his index finger at Ginobili to prevent another impromptu extermination, but the Argentine needed no warning after his last encounter required a series of rabies shots. “One for one is a great percentage,” he said. “I’m going to retire.”
• Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: The Hawks took out a great deal of frustration against the 76ers. First, they ended a three-game losing streak. Second, and perhaps more important, they halted a six-game slide against the Sixers. The Hawks led by as many as 21 points en route to a 107-96 victory over the Sixers Wednesday night at Philips Arena. “I wanted to use that as motivation,” coach Larry Drew said of the recent failures against the Sixers. “That is why part of our pre-game talk was the fact that this team, for the last six games, has owned us. We need to step up to the challenge. We need to respond. After getting off to a slow start, we responded very well.” The Hawks (34-26) avoided matching a season-high four-game slide. They avenged a 19-point loss to the Sixers in Philadelphia on Dec. 21.
• Bob Finnan of The News-Herald: Cavaliers coach Byron Scott has devised a plan to keep the bug that has ravaged his team from being even more contagious. "We'll wear gloves and surgical masks," he joked. Cavs center Tyler Zeller returned to the starting lineup for the Utah game on Wednesday. Zeller and shooting guard Dion Waiters missed Monday's game and spent some time in the hospital over the weekend with flu-like symptoms. They were throwing up and had extreme pain in their stomachs. Guard Daniel Gibson was added to the list on Wednesday. Waiters and Gibson were told to stay home and didn't play vs. the Jazz. Scott said Waiters had a doctor's visit on Wednesday. The 7-foot, 250-pound Zeller returned to practice on Tuesday. "We didn't do a ton as far as practice-wise, but I was exhausted," he said. "I was trying to get my energy back up."
• Ray Richardson of the Star Tribune: Timberwolves forward Kevin Love has a meeting scheduled in New York on Wednesday, March 13, to meet with the doctor that performed the Jan. 15 surgery on his right hand. Love said the meeting with Dr. Michelle Carson could determine when he might be able to return to the lineup. "We'll pick a game or two that's right for me to come back," Love said before the Wolves' game Wednesday night, March 6, against the Washington Wizards at Target Center. "Until I see what the doctor says, I don't know." Love was projected to miss eight to 10 weeks after refracturing the third and fourth metacarpal bones in his right hand Jan. 3 at Denver. … Love said his recovery is on schedule and that he hopes to play again before the end of the month.
• Zach Buchanan of The Arizona Republic: The ink is barely dry on the trade that sent guard Sebastian Telfair to the Raptors two weeks ago, and Telfair already was back at US Airways Center facing his old team. Except this time, it felt different than other reunions he’s had. “Going back to Boston, Minnesota and Portland, there were more butterflies,” Telfair said. “I was a little more anxious and amped about it. I’m pumped for this game, but I don’t have the butterflies and I’m a little nervous about that, for whatever reason.” Late in his tenure with the Suns, Telfair had dropped out of the rotation as Phoenix sought to get extended looks at rookies Kendall Marshall and Diante Garrett. If Telfair thought the move to Toronto would open more playing time, it hasn’t happened in the six games since. Telfair has received just seven minutes of playing time in that span, recording four fouls and nothing else in a loss to Cleveland on Feb.27, although the 27-year-old said he expected to get extended minutes against his former squad.
• Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman: Ben Alamar once worked for the Thunder as a analytics consultant. Analytics is the discovery and communication of meaningful patterns of data. Simply put in sports, analytics is the deep study of statistics. Now Alamar is a professor of management at Menlo College in California, and he has written a book that soon will be available: Sports Analytics: A Guide for Coaches, Managers and Other Decision Makers. The book should be a fabulous peek behind the Thunder veil. Sam Presti’s secretive organization is wondrously successful but maddeningly frustrating for followers of the team who want to learn more about how and why decisions are made. Presti seldom speaks in detail, and his lieutenants never speak at all. But last week, Alamar spoke at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference in Boston, and he sat down for an interview with Grantland’s Zach Lowe, which you can view here. It’s a fascinating look at some inside Thunder decisions.