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Coming off a pair of 1st-Round sweeps, the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs are each on the front end of series against teams coming off a seven-game series.

The Thunder had eight days off prior to their 29-point demolition of the Los Angeles Lakers (one day of rest) on Monday. The Spurs, who will have had seven days off, open their series Tuesday against the Los Angeles Clippers (one day of rest).

Is it possible for a team to have too much time off between series? At what point does "rest" lend itself to "rust"? If recent history is any indication, "rust" is overrated.

Over the last 15 seasons, teams with at least seven days off are now a perfect 6-0 against teams with just a single day to recover. What's shocking might not be the perfect 6-0 record, but the fact that the games haven't even been close.

The average margin of victory in those six games is nearly 25 points per game. The only one of those six games to be decided by single digits was Game 1 of last year's Western Conference Finals in which the Dallas Mavericks beat the Thunder by nine after leading by as many as 16 in the fourth quarter.

Just how important is that extra day of rest for the team with the quick turnaround? Whereas teams with a week off are perfect when their opponents have just a single day to recover, they are just 5-7 when their opponents have two or more days of rest while averaging 23.5 fewer points per game.

The Elias Sports Bureau tells us that over the last 10 years, there were six series played between one team coming off a sweep and the other off a seven-game series. Five of those six series were won by the team coming off the sweep, with the lone exception being the Orlando Magic's elimination of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals.

Clippers-Spurs Key Notes

- The team that wins Game 1 of a seven-game series goes on to win 78.2 percent of the time (337-94, including the 1st Round this year).

- This is their first-ever meeting in the postseason.

- The Spurs are 26-2 at home against the Clippers since drafting Tim Duncan. The .929 win percentage is tied for their third-best at home against any team over that span (27-0 vs Golden State Warriors; 14-0 vs Atlanta Hawks).

- To say these teams have differing levels of success in the postseason would be a drastic understatement. Despite being in the NBA for six fewer seasons, the Spurs have more NBA titles (four) than the Clippers have series wins (three). The Spurs have more than four times as many series wins (34) as the Clippers have playoff appearances (eight).

- Much of the focus will be on the matchup between Chris Paul (third in MVP voting) and Tony Parker (fifth in MVP voting). The two have faced off seven times in the postseason, with Parker winning four times. Paul has enjoyed the statistical advantage, averaging 23.7 points per game and 10.7 assists per game (19.4 PPG, 5.7 APG for Parker).

Statistical support for this story given by NBA.com.

At some point in his career, likely in the latter stages of the 16 NBA seasons he’s now amassed in a Los Angeles Lakers uniform, Kobe Bryant stopped caring about the persona we expect a star athlete to have.

Maybe the turn came in midair, on one of the many flights he took in and out of Colorado in 2003 and 2004 while being chastised by the entire country. Perhaps it was after the dust had settled on very public falling outs with the coach and star player from his first three title runs, in which he received the brunt of the blame. Or most likely, it was those status-fortifying fourth and fifth rings, the ones he won. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly, but somewhere lost amidst all the awards and accolades and success, Bryant has accepted and embraced that, despite his immense popularity, he may not be the most well-received player in the public eye. At the very least, he has just stopped caring.

And boy, is it refreshing.

He swears in interviews, so much so that he made it his New Year’s resolution to stop doing so (which didn’t last very long). After winning his fifth title, his immediate response to a question about what it meant to him was, “I just got one more than Shaq.” And he admitted that he went into last year’s All-Star game in L.A. looking to break the scoring record and did everything could to follow up on it (he didn’t, but he came close).

Bryant has always been brash; he took Brandy to his high school prom and wore sunglasses atop his shaved dome as he announced that he’d be skipping college and taking "his talents" to the NBA long before LeBron, as SI's Lee Jenkins reminded us this week. But with a decade-plus of exploits now under his belt and one of the league’s only no-trade clause at his disposal, Bryant has become downright brazen. In the same way your parents are willing to say and maybe wear things that embarrass the heck out of you without any remorse, Kobe’s comfort in his place in the league allows him to do what he wants, which is often to shoot from the hip.

That attitude has both cultivated and hindered his game, as carte blanche is also what affords him all those seemingly unquestioned shot opportunities. But in a league so bogged down by talk of a players’ image and what can and cannot be said, so much so that it may be altering the way some behave and make their decisions, Bryant remains one of the few willing to occasionally step outside of the public- and media-crafted conventions (regardless of whether or not it’s in an attempt to convey or bolster a carefully constructed image of superiority). His feats and maniacal quest for even greater feats may make him seem inhuman or robotic, but the openness with which he lusts after them is both rare and welcome in a sports culture that offers precious few moments of honesty.

The latest example came on the eve of the final night of the 2011-12 regular season, as Bryant and the Lakers head to Sacramento with the year-end scoring title on the line. The 33-year-old Bryant is averaging 27.86 points per game. Kevin Durant is averaging an NBA-best 28.03 points. In order to finish ahead of Durant, Bryant will have to score 38 points or more.

With little to gain against the Kings, the Lakers have said that they will likely sit most of their starters … except, perhaps, Bryant. Kobe will make his final decision at shootaround, but the presumption, based on his declaration last week that he’s “not on vacation” and that Kobe is, well, Kobe, is that he’ll play.

The decision may not be a wise one, especially for a player who just missed seven games because of a shin injury and averages over 38 minutes a game, at age 33. But unlike most players, Kobe has made it clear that statistics and his place in league history matters. A scoring title is a relatively minor accomplishment on a resume like the one Bryant has assembled, but years from now when we’re debating his place in league, such things will be brought up and factored in, and an almost-scoring title, even if it is by a fraction of a point, won’t even register. As frivolous as they may be, those conversations matter to many, including Kobe. And despite quotes to the contrary, it’s naive to think that many, many other players don’t agree.

Kevin Durant has brushed aside any talk about the significance of a third straight scoring belt at the tender age of 23, only feeding into the humble persona that defines both him and this new generation of NBA stars. But a noted fierce competitor, it’s a little hard to believe that Durant is completely disinterested, even if it is an individual award. With his emotions often hidden better than his many tattoos, it’s hard to tell, really.

Besides, while Durant may not have made any blatant attempt to pad his scoring numbers in his final regular-season appearance, a 106-101 loss to the Nuggets in which he had 32 points, the Thunder still had home-court advantage in a potential Miami-Oklahoma City NBA Finals to play for.

The Lakers, however, have very little to gain in their 66^th and final game. Which may seem like an open invitation to shut it all down, but it’s also the perfect opportunity to give Kobe free rein for the night. The risk of injury is looming, but how is playing on this night any more dangerous than it was in the previous games this season, or the 1,000 or so before it?

Just let Kobe be Kobe.

He’s going to be either way.

LOS ANGELES -- When Ramon Sessions arrived in Los Angeles at the trade deadline, he seemed to heal a struggling Lakers team by injecting them with something you can’t find in some laboratory in Germany: fun.

In the wake of their second straight title, bodies began to age, injuries began to pile up -- particularly for their most dynamic player, Kobe Bryant, who was being held together by duct tape and gum toward the end of the season -- and the oversized frontcourt that powered them past the Celtics in the 2010 Finals was no longer just the team’s strength, it became their identity as well. Showtime became Slowtime. Even with the star like Kobe, the Lakers were pretty boring.

But ever since Sessions’ arrival here in Tinseltown, the fun factor has returned. The rather quiet 25-year-old point guard doesn’t have much of a presence in the locker room, but he commands attention on the court, his quick bursts and dishes set to a different speed than the rest of the team.

The competitiveness of the team never dipped much, but in the five games Sessions has played at Staples Center since the March 15 trade that sent Luke Walton and Jason Kapono to Cleveland, the crowd seems to have an extra shot of adrenaline, the stadium a little extra electricity. And Sessions, playing for a team located outside of middle America for the first time in his career, enjoyed all that came with it.

But in perhaps the Lakers’ biggest game since they acquired him, the team now housing the veteran leader they shipped out to clear space for the former Cavaliers 1 played the role of killjoy. Derek Fisher certainly had his moments, but more with his presence than his points (seven) off the Thunder bench. It was Russell Westbrook, the lone point guard between the two teams who hasn't experienced significant change since the post-deadline Fisher fallout, who was in charge of the No Fun Police. The hard-charging fourth-year player finished with 36 points on 13-for-27 shooting, six assists and only one turnover in Oklahoma City’s 102-93 win, one in which even the joy of free taco coupons was taken away from the crowd.

“I’m glad I played my career when I played because I couldn’t stop players like Russell,” Thunder coach Scott Brooks said.

The Lakers held Westbrook in check in the first half, holding him to just nine points on 3-for-10 shooting. But the Thunder point guard seemed to get whatever he wanted in the third quarter, scoring 17 points on 6-for-10 shooting while L.A. could muster only 19 as a team (none of which coming from Bryant, who was 0-for-6 in the game-swinging section).

“In the third quarter he just came out, put his head down and went one-on-four and either scored or got fouled every time he came down the floor,” Lakers coach Mike Brown said.

With three fouls, Paul Gasol played only 2:22 in the third, leaving a 7-foot hole in the paint. But Westbrook surprisingly did most of his damage from midrange, using the threat of his powerful drives to burn the Lakers for continually going under screens -- a usually sound strategy against the attack-focused guard, but one that's losing its effectiveness as Westbrook continues to improve his range.

After laying it in on a fast-break layup early in the third, Westbrook’s next five buckets that quarter came from 13 feet and out, including a buzzer-beating shot from three feet outside the 3-point arc in which the point guard celebrated by letting out a loud scream and holstering his hot hands, each holding up three fingers.

“Kevin (Durant) and I started a little slow and the game kind of got out of whack,” said Westbrook, who has been the game-high scorer in each of the Thunder's three wins against the Lakers over the past two seasons. “My job was to pick us up and do whatever we need to do to win.”

With the Thunder’s lead snowballing in the fourth, Bryant tired his hand at guarding Westbrook. But after keeping close outside the 3-point arc for the first few seconds of the shot clock in their first faceoff, Durant used a Nick Collison screen at the top of the key and found Westbrook all alone on a backcut for an easy bucket.

“I didn't really get much of a crack at him tonight. But, I'm looking forward to it,” Bryant said. “He's one of my favorites. He's developed his outside shot a great deal and tonight he went to the post a little bit as well. So, he's ... he's a problem."

Sessions' new problem isn't the good kind to have. After reaching double-digits in five of his first six games, the point guard scored seven points for the second consecutive game, this time on 3-for-6 shooting to go along with as many assists as turnovers (five). The Lakers seemed on the verge of turning a corner into West elite territory when he arrived, winning three of their first five with him in the lineup as showing signs of that lost spark, but they have since lost two of three, with the lone win an ugly one in Oakland against the Warriors on Tuesday.

Even though he finally found a place to live in L.A. and his dog “Sesh” has arrived safe and sound, Sessions admitted that he’s still trying to get comfortable in his new surroundings.

“[I’m] playing off the ball a little bit more than usual, a little less pick-and-rolls,” he said. “You just have to continue to get familiar with the guys. It’s only been about six or seven games for me. Just learning to get comfortable each night and playing off the ball more.”

After watching Westbrook have his way with the defense, Sessions certainly has some homework ahead of him before the playoffs. And that’s certainly no fun.

Justin Verrier is an NBA editor for ESPN.com. Follow him on Twitter.

The young, incredibly talented Oklahoma City Thunder is the model of how losing games can help you win games. But there's far more to turing around a franchise than luck in the lottery.

In the video above, Daily Thunder blogger Royce Young remembers covering Oklahoma City's rise from 20-win nightmare to title contender, and all the smart decisions and lucky breaks it took to get there.

Over in radioland, ESPN's Ryen Russillo thinks any struggling franchise that isn't actively tanking is just being foolish. We talk about the virtues of tanking on the NBA Today Podcast, and why having a bad record usually means you aren't getting better any time soon. Have a listen!

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• E-mail us at hoopidea@gmail.com

With the season set to tip-off on Christmas Day, here are four major statistical storylines to keep a close eye on:

Can the Mavericks repeat?
With the departure of Tyson Chandler, J.J. Barea and DeShawn Stevenson, the Dallas Mavericks will be the first defending champion since the 1998-99 Bulls to lose three of its top seven in minutes played from the previous season’s NBA Finals.

Added to the mix are Lamar Odom and Vince Carter. In Odom, the Mavericks added an incredibly efficient half-court scorer according to our video-tracking friends at Synergy Sports. Among all qualified forwards, he ranked third in the NBA in points per play in the half court, trailing only Paul Pierce and Dirk Nowitzki.

Carter is also a good fit. Last season, only five teams scored more points on spot-up shots. In 2010-11 Carter ranked in the Top 25 in the NBA in field goal attempts per game, field goal percentage and points per game on spot-up shots.


How does Chris Paul improve the Clippers?
As a pick-and-roll ball handler last season, Chris Paul ranked sixth in the NBA in points per play among the 103 players with at least 100 pick-and-roll plays. As a team the Los Angeles Clippers ranked 17th in pick-and-roll efficiency while Paul’s old team in New Orleans ranked seventh.
Look for Paul to help improve the Clippers jump-shooting woes as well. Last season the Clippers shot just 35.1 pct on jump shots which ranked dead last in the NBA. Paul ranked 20th in jump shot FG attempts, but did so with great efficiency, connecting on 44 percent. Of the 19 players which took more jumpers, only Dirk Nowitzki, Stephen Curry and Ray Allen shot a better percentage.

While the loss of Eric Gordon hurts, consider this: accounting for three-pointers, Gordon had a 48.5 adjusted FG pct on jump shots... worse than both Paul (49.8) and Chauncey Billups (52.7).


Will youth be served in Oklahoma City?
While James Harden and Serge Ibaka continue to improve, the main focus is on Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

Durant is looking to become the first player since Michael Jordan in 1997-98 to lead the league in scoring three straight seasons. Westbrook meanwhile is coming off a 2010-11 season in which he emerged as one of the league’s best finishers at the rim, ranking sixth in points scored within three feet.

Perhaps the biggest concern with the Thunder is the potential for an alpha-dog dispute. Durant was the unquestioned go-to guy down the stretch during the regular season, an assumption which was then challenged by Westbrook during the postseason (see chart).

Regardless of who takes the big shots, an improvement on their combined 3-26 effort would surely bring OKC closer to a title.

Bigger impact on the East: Richard Hamilton or Tyson Chandler?
While many presume we won’t know anything new about the Miami Heat until the playoffs, the same can’t be said for the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks who added major pieces in Richard Hamilton and Tyson Chandler.

The Bulls brought in Hamilton to take the place of Keith Bogans, who despite starting all 82 games, averaged just 4.4 PPG which was the fewest among all players with at least 50 starts. With Derrick Rose having the second-highest usage rate in the NBA last season, scoring without the ball is an essential skill for all other Bulls players. Among guards, Hamilton has the fifth-most assisted FG on shots beyond 15 feet over the last three seasons.

Chandler’s most significant responsibility will be to improve a Knicks interior defense which allowed opponents to shoot 45.3 percent on post ups last season (21st in the NBA). On post up plays in which he played single coverage, Chandler held opponents to 41.4 pct shooting. That is at least 5 points better than any of the players who saw minutes at center for the Knicks last season.

Hey there! I'm Beckley Mason, founder of HoopSpeak, a TrueHoop Network blog, and I'm filling in for Henry Abbott today. You can follow me on Twitter here!

A “gentleman’s sweep.” That's what they call it these days when one team knocks off another in five.

But I’m not sure the term applies in the recently deceased Western Conference finals. The Mavericks could have played just about as well, and been a bit less lucky, and found themselves down 3-2 and heading back to Oklahoma City for a must-win Game 6.

Consider the following:

• For the series, the Thunder spent eight more minutes in the lead than the Mavs did.
• The Mavericks won one game because Dirk Nowitzki had the game of his career.
• Dallas won another due to the fastest, most dramatic collapse in the last decade.

That first point may mean less when we consider that the Mavericks won handily on point differential, but it speaks to how much of the series was spent with Oklahoma City in the lead. So why couldn’t they win more games?

Let’s start with Dirk’s transcendent Game 1. While not spectacularly unlikely, Dirk’s incredible 12-15 shooting performance was still highly improbable.

After Game 1, I wrote that, unlike most "hot" shooters -- who cool themselves off quickly with heat checks -- Dirk didn't take a single bad shot. All his attempts came from below the free throw line extended, and though five different defenders took turns trying to slow him, they all used essentially the same technique: let him catch in his comfort zone, then try to contest the fadeaway. I surmised that under these conditions, Dirk’s performance was less than fluky and could possibly be repeated in the very same series.

Sandy Weil of Stats, Inc. authored a highly respected Hot Hand study, and was less sold that Dirk’s performance was replicable. Weil told me a shooter of Dirk’s career and season averages could be expected to make 12 out of 15 shots or better about 1.8 percent of the time, or about once or twice per season.

But Weil also allowed that the Thunder’s defense, coming off of a Game 7 and without much time to game plan for Nowitzki, could create more favorable conditions for Dirk’s hot night.

You ask if he can stay patient, not force shots, etc. to increase the chances of having such a night.

The answer is unequivocal: absolutely.

Remember that his shots in that game have at least these things in common:

• all came against a team playing on the road, two nights after a seventh game
• most came against the same defender
• most came from the same spot

Suppose that the tired opponents were good for just two percentage points better shooting, and that he matches up well against Serge Ibaka (another two percentage points) and that his favorite spot is good for another two percentage points. [I'm not saying that those are the correct factors for this adjustment; these are strictly for example's sake.]

What difference does that make? How often will a 56 percent shooter shoot 12-for-15 or better?

In about five percent of his games: about four times per season and about five or six times in 114 career playoff games. This is then a once-a-month kind of performance PROVIDED THAT one can replicate game features (i.e., tired opponent, same defender, opponent doesn’t make any adjustments to deny him his favorite spot).

So even under these perfect conditions, Dirk’s shooting would still probably be highly unlikely -- especially when we consider that Dirk’s 24-24 free throw night was both record-setting for most consecutive made free throws in a playoff game and that 24 free throw attempts is itself three more than Nowitzki had ever hoisted in his 12-year career.

Of course, the Thunder did make adjustments to how they denied Dirk, and how much time Collison spent on the floor. Over the five games, the Thunder did a better job of keeping Dirk off the line and figured out how to hold him under his season average of 51 percent shooting for the series, even after he shot 80 percent in Game 1.

Even with Dirk’s supernova, it’s easy to pin the Thunder’s demise on their lack of experience, especially because the Mavericks dominated down the stretch of three of their wins. But experienced teams give up leads in the fourth too -- just ask the Celtics.

Read a detailed recap of how the Thunder fell apart in Game 4, when they carried a 15-point lead with just under five minutes left in the game. What’s so remarkable is that not only did almost everything go wrong for the Thunder, things went perfectly wrong.

Everyone made bad decisions, sure, but if Oklahoma City got just one offensive rebound it almost certainly would have won. The Thunder had been collecting 47.5 percent of their misses before the last five minutes of the game, but recovered just one of their last eight misses.

Or what if Dirk had clanked just one of his improbable buckets in that stretch?

Then consider that the turning point of the overtime is a double-clutch 3-pointer by Jason Kidd on which he blatantly traveled.

As we know, the Thunder’s collapse was historic: 5,016 times a team had carried a 15-point plus lead into the final five minutes; Oklahoma City was the first to lose. Do we really attribute that incredible statistic to age? It’s impossible to argue that poor decision making, perhaps attributable to youth, didn’t play a huge role, but certainly it was also a bit lucky.

Lets talk about those bad decisions.

I don’t think it boils down to inexperience (both of Scott Brooks and his players) in and of itself. After all, the Thunder had one of the league’s top records in close games throughout the regular season.

What’s more important is that the Thunder, as a team, are still inchoate. Until the playoffs, who knew for sure that James Harden was a bearded blend of Brandon Roy and Manu Ginobili? Or that Serge Ibaka was in fact a relatively poor fit to guard the best power forwards in the league? Or that Kendrick Perkins would play just like the scowling old center at the Y who fouls too hard, has hands of stone and knees of stucco?

Quick: Aside from being young and talented, what is the essential trait of the Thunder?

The Mavs have laser-beam-bouncing-off-of-mirrors ball movement, the Bulls have that growling defense, but I can’t quite put my finger on the Thunder’s, and part of that is the fault of Scott Brooks and his coaching staff. But it’s also somewhat excusable because Thunder players are developing at such a rate that it’s a difficult task to fully implement a system that perfectly accounts for each player’s developing abilities.

In this series we witnessed a few smoldering stretches of Harden playing on the ball, operating the pick-and-roll, with Westbrook and Durant acting as finishers on the weakside. There were times when it seemed the Mavericks would never find an open 3. But these were only glimpses of a team whose tectonic plates are still drifting into position.

The Thunder have yet to establish a consistent identity, which is as much a consequence of the roster shake-ups and the shifting nature of player identities as it is of pure youth or inexperience.

But even with the bad decisions, the lack of playoff experience, and the magical Maverick finishes, it still took two fluky events to knock out the Thunder.

My bet is that by this time next year, we’ll be able to immediately list the defining qualities of the Thunder. One of them may well be Western Conference champions.

The Dallas Mavericks used a defensive effort to overcome an off night from their superstar, retaking home-court advantage with a 93-87 win on Saturday against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The effort by Dallas forced one of the worst three-point shooting performances in recent playoff history.

It was necessary considering Dirk Nowitzki finished with 18 points on an uncharacteristic 7-for-21 performance from the floor. Even worse, he finished with a playoff career-high seven turnovers.

It was just the fifth time in 116 playoff games that Dirk finished with as many turnovers as field goals.

Despite his off night, the Mavericks have won four straight playoff games on the road, tied for the longest such streak the past five seasons.

The Thunder finished 1-for-17 from the three-point line, tied for the second-worst performance from behind the three-point line in a playoff game the past 20 seasons.

The cold outside shooting helped offset the advantage Oklahoma City had at the free throw line, where they made 32 of 36 (compared to the 14-for-18 the Mavericks went from the charity stripe).

After not playing in the fourth quarter of Game 2, Russell Westbrook scored 14 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter Saturday to lead the Thunder, but did have seven turnovers.

He’s yet to play a game this series in which he has more assists than turnovers.

Kevin Durant finished with 24 points and 12 rebounds but missed all eight of his three-point attempts.

Missing shots from outside the paint was a recurring theme for Oklahoma City on Saturday.

After shooting 42.4 percent from five feet and beyond the first two games of the series, the Thunder made three field goals in the first half from that range and just nine for the game.

Durant didn't help the cause, making just 4 of 18 attempts from at least five feet.

Much of the Mavericks' success on defense in Game 3 can be attributed to how they defended the Thunder in isolation situations.

The Thunder averaged 1.13 points per play in isolation the first two games of the series, averaging 15.5 isolations plays.

Maybe sensing an advantage, the Thunder ran 27 isolation plays in Game 3. But credit the Dallas defense, which held Oklahoma City to just 0.70 points per play on 4 of 17 from the field on such plays.

Kevin Durant scored 39 points, 21 more than any other player, and Russell Westbrook registered a triple-double as the Oklahoma City Thunder advanced to the Western Conference Finals. Durant's 39 points were two shy of his postseason career high and, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, the most by a player in his first career Game 7 since Dominique Wilkins scored 47 in a losing effort against the Boston Celtics in the 1988 Eastern Confernce Semifinals.

Prior to Sunday, we hadn't seen a player score as many as 39 points in a Game 7 since since LeBron James scored 45 and Paul Pierce scored 41 when the Boston Celtics beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2008 Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Durant's performance is all the more impressive when you consider he was held to just 11 points in Game 6, the fewest he'd scored in any game in more than two years. Critics slammed Durant for settling for jumpshots in Game 6 after he finished with no field goal attempts inside 10 feet. On Sunday, Durant attacked the basket from start to finish, attempting 10 field goals from inside 10 feet.

Perhaps the only player to have a better day than Durant on Sunday was Russell Westbrook, who posted 14 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds. He became the sixth different player to reach those totals in a playoff game in the last 20 seasons, joining Jason Kidd (three times), Rajon Rondo (three times), Magic Johnson (twice), Chris Paul (twice) and Michael Jordan (once).

Westbrook's triple-double was just the fifth in a Game 7 in NBA history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, and the first since Scottie Pippen recorded 17 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds vs the New York Knicks in the 1992 Eastern Conference Semifinals. Players with a triple-double in a Game 7 are now 4-1 in those games, with their only loss coming when Jerry West's monster effort wasn't enough to get the Los Angeles Lakers by the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the 1969 NBA Finals.

The Thunder will face the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals after the Mavericks wrapped up a sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers one week ago. Elias tells us that a team coming off a four-game sweep has faced a team coming off of a seven-game series 12 times in NBA history. The more-rested team has won that series in nine of the previous 12 occasions.

The Denver Nuggets won their fourth straight game Wednesday night as Ty Lawson led six Nuggets in double figures with 20 points. The win bumped the Nuggets to 13-4 since trading Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups to the New York Knicks on February 22, the first day after the All-Star break. Denver, in seventh place in the Western Conference at the All-Star break, has quietly climbed to fifth and is arguably playing its best post-break basketball since 2005, when the Nuggets led all teams with a 25-4 record in the second half of the season.

One key to the Nuggets second-half surge has been their ability to protect their home court. Denver is 9-0 at the Pepsi Center after the All-Star break and is outscoring its opponents by 19.7 points per game over that span. Earlier this month, the Nuggets became the first team in NBA history to record three straight home wins by 30 more or points.

They have now topped the 100-point mark in each of their last seven games at home (all wins). The only other teams to win seven straight home games while reaching triple digits in each this season are the San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Hosting a 1st Round playoff series is not out of the question for the Nuggets, who trail the Oklahoma City Thunder by five games with eight games remaining in the race for the four-seed out West. Denver would need some help from Oklahoma City to catch the Thunder, but head-to-head matchups against Kevin Durant and crew on April 5 and April 8 could make things interesting.

Elsewhere in the NBA on Wednesday:

• The Atlanta Hawks knocked off the Orlando Magic by three in a meeting between teams likely to meet in the 1st Round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Hawks finish the season 3-1 vs the Magic, the first time they’ve won the season series vs Orlando since 2006-07.

• The Miami Heat beat the Washington Wizards 123-107 to stay two-and-a-half games behind the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference. The Heat are now 14-4 when playing on zero days’ rest this season. Only the Los Angeles Lakers (10-2) have a better record on no days’ rest.

• Carmelo Anthony scored 39 points to lead the Knicks past the New Jersey Nets. It was Anthony’s third straight game with at least 35 points. That’s tied with LaMarcus Aldridge and Monta Ellis for the longest streak of 35-point games in the NBA this season. It’s also tied for Anthony’s longest streak of 35-point games in his career.

The statistical analysis revolution has helped rational explanation replace vacant punditry. It’s no longer enough to just believe a proposition like "player X is better than player Y" because it seems true, you have to back it up with advanced statistics that reveal an irrefutable mathematical truth. But thank the Basketball Gods that there are still players like the Maverick’s Jason Terry who defy all logical understanding.

Last night, Terry turned around an abysmal one for nine shooting performance through three quarters to drop 11 points on five of eight shooting and two big assists in the fourth quarter, almost singlehandedly putting away the Thunder for the short handed Mavericks. This wasn’t a fluke. Just a week ago, Terry scored all 19 of his points in the fourth quarter to help the Mavericks ice the Heat’s twelve game win streak.

As though by some Pavlovian response, when the bell rings for the final round, Terry somehow transforms from above average bench player to all world closer.

Rob Mahoney‘s wrote the following eloquent description of Terry’s mysterious talent for stepping up in the clutch on The Two Man Game:

He emerges for the fourth of every game with his belly full of a magical elixir, some fluid or ether that turns clanks into swishes. These instances lie beyond explanation; JET goes through the same motions, from the hesitation on his dribble to the crispness of his pull-up jumper. Everything is absolutely the same except in the one way that truly matters, and any man who can deduce a logical reason as to why deserves a bronzed bust in some hall with all of the world’s other great thinkers.

How do you explain why his shots suddenly start falling in the fourth? It’s not a question of effort, or even intelligent execution. Terry is the same player throughout, but the first three frames are part of a process, and the final one is the consummation of his worldly — and otherworldly — duty. There is an amazement that comes with watching Kobe Bryant pivot his way into brilliance or Tim Duncan cover every second of a screen-and-roll. Those are amazing feats accomplished by champions of men. But during every phase of execution, they’re still fathomable. Terry’s clutch performances, juxtaposed against his struggles throughout the rest of certain games, aren’t even remotely fathomable.

Terry is something supernatural. A reaper, perhaps, come to collect lost souls at the very end. Any man’s death diminishes him, because he is involved in mankind. Never send to know for whom Terry’s bell tolls; it tolls for thee. Call him a ghost through the first three quarters if you will, but his very presence in the fourth marks death. He isn’t an assassin, just the natural order of life itself, a process which cannot be explained or denied other than the fact that it just is.

Yes he shoots more, yes the Mavericks are more keen to put him in optimal scoring positions in the fourth, but I concur with Mahoney’s testimony that, at some level, JET is simply a money player.

It helps that he’s a master of getting his favorite shot, which may be the deadliest midrange pull-up in the game (he’s shooting a blistering 47% from 16-23 feet this year). But because the Mavs aren’t “his team,” he also manages to slip out of the defense’s collective consciousness for open looks with the stealth of a catch and shoot ninja.

How teams consistently leave him late in games is beyond me. Doesn’t everyone know he’s been killing in the clutch for years?

Maybe that’s it. If a player becomes comfortable in a role, even the most uncomfortable situation--scoring under pressure--can become routine. I guess that’s one way to rationally explain why Terry seems to have an uncanny ability to ball hardest when it matters most.

The only thing less logical than Terry’s winning time wizardry is that his clutch profile remains so low in spite of all his heroism. Perhaps that’s how Terry wants it. As we continue talking about how Kobe, Pierce and Wade are such assassins, JET will continue to sneak up on victims who never see him coming until it’s far too late.

• Those of you who are sick of reading about how good LeBron James is, should definitely not read this fine Hoopspeak post. Although if it means anything to you, it's also about how Ron Artest didn't play so well on Saturday. I'm kidding, of course. Everybody should read it.
• Right now, all NBA journalism is threatening to devolve into the "did you see what Blake Griffin did yesterday?" show. On a totally different note, did you see what Blake Griffin did yesterday?
• John Wall is stunningly quick and he can do a wicked Dougie. But last night Tony Parker, like the good Spur that he is, was the one playing the extraordinarily efficient basketball. I'm sure he's also a great dancer.
• At the Heat Index, Kevin Arnovitz tells us--exactly and exhaustively--what the Heat's defense did to the Lakers on Saturday. As always, it seems, great defense comes down to trust and a "fundamental, almost religious, devotion by the entire team" to the group concept.
• I'm not what you might call a visual learner. Before I really understand a map or chart I usually have to go through a few rounds of staring, folding, unfolding, wearing it as pants. Nonetheless, the folks at Hoopism made a visual representation of every player on every team ever that is really pretty cool. As a Wolves' fan its hugely rewarding to see the names "Gundars Vetra," "Lance Blanks" and "Charles Shackleford" all in one place.
• Whenever the Timberwolves win, we at A Wolf Among Wolves have ourselves a party. That this party includes extreme expressions of exasperation at aimless defense and mind-blowing shot selection just comes with the territory. Do we care that two of the Wolves' seven wins have come against the Cavs? We do, sort of.
• Missing from my discussion of the new Suns was an assessment of the blockbuster trade that brought Marcin Gortat, Vince Carter and Mickael Pietrus into the fold. Michael Schwartz of Valley of the Suns gives us just that. Here's the short term and the long term.
• At Basketball Prospectus, Sebastian Pruiti tells us that although Derrick Rose has indeed added the three to his arsenal, his midrange shooting has actually gotten worse. Just another example of the disappointing fact that, although Rose does almost everything beautifully, he doesn't always do it effectively.
• Aggressively hedging screens is a great way to deter a dynamic ballhandler like Rose. But NBA Playbook tells us that if you do it too early, you could be cooked. Yes, I just made two separate Sebastian Pruiti links. It's because he's awfully smart.
• Brian Robb of CelticsHub talks to Celtics' radio play-by-play man Sean Grande. It will make you want to listen to Celtics' games on the radio. Most interesting, I thought, was their discussion of the effect of Rajon Rondo's absence on the C's offense.
• On the New York Times's Off the Dribble blog, Rob Mahoney describes the ebb and flow of the Thunder's fortunes as a "Spursian rhythm," which sounds awesome. He also provides a really nice chart that I had to stare at for a while. Regardless, says Mahoney, you should get ready for OKC to surge. You should also read Rob Mahoney whenever you can.
• Please watch Kurtis Blow rap about basketball. Hear him say that "basketball is my favorite sport/I like the way they dribble up and down the court." See the strange way he stares at the camera as he lip-syncs. Notice that the players in the video seem to be playing on a six-foot hoop. Then watch Master P's (slightly PG-13) "Make 'em Say Ugh." Notice that there is a gold tank on the floor and a gorilla playing for a team called "The Hustlers." Then wonder about our weird culture.
• Whenever someone tells me that Pau Gasol is "soft" I disagree, and reply that he's actually just "not strong." But now even Phil Jackson is getting in on it. What does it mean when your coach says that a player is "not shooting the ball with a base, he’s kind of just lollygagging, putting a soft kind of release on his shot."? That sounds like a bad thing.
• Apparently, LeBron James literally does not know the meaning of the word "contraction." Yet another example of why I'm really glad I'm not a famous person.
• Bethlehem Shoals gives us the final word on Kobe and LeBron (kidding again): "Not only will we never see the question of 'who's better' satisfactorily resolved," says Shoals, "what keeps it going is that, at bottom, the two represent two very different approaches to the game. It's the impossibility of one ever really surpassing the other that keeps this debate going."
• A sad looking, 33-year-old Steve Francis has been cut from his Chinese professional team. After four games. Think about that and then think about this (check the 1:50 mark).

Our video review team took a closer look at the Miami Heat's 96-80 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. Here's what they found to be the statistical keys to the game:

• The Heat had success running the pick and roll against the Lakers, scoring almost a third of their points off that play without committing a turnover. The player setting the screen was the key to that succcess. The screeners were a combined 6-for-9 from the field, headed by 3-for-4 from Chris Bosh.

• Bosh got a different sort of results in this contest. Typically, he'll make one basket per game from two feet and in. In this game, he made seven shots from that close, more than double his previous best (three) with the Heat. The key to that: five offensive rebounds on Saturday.


• Miami did an excellent job at limiting the Lakers in one-on-one situations. The Lakers entered averaging almost a point-per-play for each time they ran an isolation play. They ran 14 on Saturday, matching the number they typically run in a game, but scored just eight points.

• The Lakers could not make a shot from near the basket against the Heat defense. They entered the game shooting 63 percent from the field from inside five feet, but were just 19-for-39 (49 percent) from that range Saturday.

The keys to a few of the other Christmas wins ...

• With a two-point lead and under 45 seconds remaining, the Orlando Magic turned to J.J. Redick in an isolation situation. Redick responded by hitting a step back jumper, the biggest shot in a come-from-behind win over the Boston Celtics.


How rare was this for Redick?

Entering the Celtics game, the Magic had run just six isolation plays for Redick all season. He was 0-for-4 from the field, with his prior successes (three points scored) all coming at the free throw line.

• The New York Knicks utilized Mike D'Antoni's "seven seconds or less" style of offense style very effectively in their win over the Chicago Bulls. The Knicks shot 64 percent from the field and were 7-for-12 from 3-point range on possessions lasting seven seconds or less.

The Knicks also prevented Derrick Rose from having a difference-maker sort of game on the offensive end. The Knicks blocked four of his shots in the first quarter and blocked six of his shots for the game (21.5 percent of his shots overall). Rose entered the game only having 7.1 percent of his field goal attempts blocked. The extra blocks helped contribute to a bad shooting day from in-close for Rose. He was 5-for-18 from 10 feet or closer.

• The formula for the the Oklahoma City Thunder to beat the Denver Nuggets was a simple, tried-and-true one: Get the ball to Kevin Durant.

LeBron James may have had the better day, with a triple-double against the Lakers, but Durant caught him in one regard. Durant scored 21 points in the third quarter, tied for the second-most points by anyone in any quarter for either the Thunder or Supersonics in the last 20 seasons (Ray Allen had 22 points in the fourth quarter on January 23, 2007 vs the Nuggets).

Durant's 44 points gave him 13 career games of 40 or more. His nine in the last two seasons match James and Kobe Bryant for most in the NBA.

• More Coach Wooden, on his 99th birthday, as relayed by Esquire: "Coming off the floor after the NCAA semifinal win over Louisville in 1975, it just hit me: Time to go. It was an emotional thing. I can't explain it. I went to the dressing room, congratulated my players. I said, 'I don't know how we'll do against Kentucky, but regardless of the outcome, I never had a team give me more pleasure. It's been a great year, and I'm proud of you. This will be the last team I'll ever coach.'"
• Baron Davis' tactical advantage, in video.
• The Magic shoot the lights out.
• Joakim Noah made three hook shots in one game. He was also a monster getting blocks and rebounds.
• The suggestion Paul Pierce would re-work his contract to help the Celtics get more talent in the long run. (First discussed here.)
  
• Optimism, from a plus/minus expert, about Kevin Durant's future. Also, Wayne Winston's plus/minus case for Russell Westbrook. And, a smart look at how other Thunder players performed with and without Durant.
• Pistons fans are in love with Will Bynum. 
• It's in the realm of possibility that Jerry Sloan could end his career with more wins than any other NBA coach.
• Phil Jackson is a big believer that geography can play a big role in helping a team win.

• Bret LaGree of Hoopinion on Larry Brown's ejection via replacement referee: "Larry got his 2nd T from Kevin Scott, who never got within 35 feet of Brown before, during, or after the call. Brown tried to engage any of the refs on the occasion of his ejection but none would speak with or possibly even look at him. Rather than deal with the issue directly, Scott walked to the opposite end of the court and appeared to attempt to enlist a befuddled police officer in asking/making Brown leave the court."
• The Knicks and Nets have both claimed to have the most cap space of any team in 2010. Who's right?
  
• The Bulls like each other.
• Dean Oliver, the Denver Nuggets' statistical consultant, and the case for drafting Ty Lawson. Also, I think Oliver is in a very small club of team stats experts: He gets to inform the front office on personnel decisions, and the coaching staff on game strategy. Also, Lawson was part of a Nugget lineup that played very well in Beijing.
• Hope in Philadelphia, where a 3-0 preseason has people feeling good. Elton Brand tells Philadunkia: "All the major injuries are totally behind me and I feel great. Plus Thaddeus Young and Andre Iguodala have gotten better over the summer as well as I so we're going to have a good formidable team."
• The Blazers -- one of those teams that has had a messed up cable deal that makes it hard for some fans to watch games -- say that by January they hope to have video of every game streaming live on their website, which would be an NBA first.
• Jermaine Taylor and Chase Budinger didn't get a lot of attention on draft day, but they're looking pretty good in preseason.
• Rasual Butler makes the Clippers better.
• Gregg Popovich has inspired winemakers, and now vegetable growers.
• Kevin Durant's one-game plus/minus in last night's OT victory over the Suns: plus-24. That's what I'm talking about!
• An old video clip of Delonte West and Paul Pierce, pre-Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett trades, talking about how good the Celtics are going to be.
• In my review of SonicsGate yesterday, I listed four goals of the movie. Producer Adam Brown adds two more: To preserve the history of the Seattle SuperSonics. Since that history is now officially owned by Clay Bennett, we needed to document some of the good times as well as the team's demise. OKC didn't celebrate in June 1979, and they didn't cry in May 1994. We did, and we deserve this document to remind us of that. Also, to get the issue back in people's mouths here in Washington with the primary goal of getting an NBA team back. Ultimately we have to convince our politicians that a 50% privately funded arena deal will create jobs and boost the economy while allowing us to regain this cultural asset."
• Malcolm Gladwell on the ethics of a gladiator mentality.
  

• Howard Beck of The New York Times: "Coach Mike D'Antoni, ever the nonconformist, is eliminating the morning shootaround for all home games this season, starting with Tuesday's exhibition against the Philadelphia 76ers. The Knicks instead will gather for an afternoon meeting and walk-through at Madison Square Garden. The change saves everyone from having to commute twice in a day, first to the team's Westchester training center (for the shootaround), then to Midtown (for the game). It also gives players a little more time to shake off the cobwebs. So rather than roust themselves for a groggy gathering at 10 a.m., the Knicks will have the morning to themselves. They must report to the Garden by 3:30 p.m. ... The morning shootaround is a time-honored N.B.A. tradition. It serves a dual function: to prepare for the game and to give party-minded players an incentive to get to bed early. Whether it works is a matter of some debate. The routine can actually be draining. Many N.B.A. players take afternoon naps to recover from the shootaround."
• Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald: "Never let it be said Kevin Garnett doesn't take requests. A day after his coach noted an aspect of his game that's been missing, KG made like a DJ and spun the tune. 'I think he's getting stronger and stronger,' said Doc Rivers. 'The only thing left is today he caught a lob and dunked. An amazing dunk. Everybody was like, oh, we haven't seen that. I made the comment yesterday that the only part lacking is that he's not as explosive yet. When he did it, he yelled out, 'Oh, I can do it.' So that was good to see.' The rejuvenated Celtic was ready when asked about it later. 'I think Doc's been waiting for me to grow wings and fly,' he said. 'I'm telling him just be patient. The wings are coming. They're coming.' That Garnett's humor is back also is a good sign things are all right with his surgically repaired right knee."
• Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News: "A little more than two weeks into his first NBA training camp, rookie forward DeJuan Blair says his knees are feeling just fine, thank you. Blair arrived from the University of Pittsburgh devoid of an anterior cruciate ligament in either knee. Though the condition was never an issue for Blair in college, the Spurs' medical staff has been compulsive about monitoring him after practices and games. 'The training staff is doing an excellent job of keeping my knees in shape and strengthened,' Blair said. 'I just need to keep (being) me, and not worry about my knees. They're going to be as healthy as possible.' ... Ehen Blair takes the floor for his fourth preseason game Wednesday against the Clippers, he is likely to see time against the most ballyhooed rookie in the NBA. Blair says he is looking forward to the potential matchup with Blake Griffin, the former Oklahoma All-American. Not because Griffin was the top pick in the June draft in which Blair fell to 37th, but because it gives the two a chance to rekindle a friendship spawned during the draft process. 'I can't wait to see him,' Blair said. 'I haven't seen him since the draft. I talked to him in the summer and told him congratulations. He's a good person, and I hope everything works out for him.' "
• Ray Ratto of the San Francisco Chronicle:"The Stephen Jackson supernova is merely the latest example of what is now the only Warriors story in the world, namely: Something Goes Wrong - Is This the Final Straw That Convinces Chris Cohan to Sell the Team? And again, we say, "It ain't got nothin' to do with it." Cohan will sell when his price, already judged exorbitant by Larry Ellison, whose wallet could eat Cohan's entire house, is met. Or when the Internal Revenue Service decides to bring the noise to his ongoing tax issues. Are there people who would love to buy the team and move it, maybe to San Jose, maybe to San Francisco? Yes, and there have been - but Cohan isn't what real-estate people call a motivated seller, even with all the horrific embarrassments he has instigated and allowed instigated in his name. Apparently, the man simply cannot be shamed."
• Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times: "Not much new in Lamar Odom's life, other than a reality-TV star wife, a $33-million contract extension and daily games of hide-and-seek with the ever-present paparazzi. A year ago, Odom was angry when Coach Phil Jackson said the Lakers forward would be a backup instead of a starter. That's the least of his concerns now. He still has reserve status, but no longer single status after marrying Khloe Kardashian about two weeks ago, a move that shifted him from the inside pages of sports magazines to the covers of supermarket tabloids across the country. It also made nights on the town a little less, uh, private. Even if it's just Odom and his wife, it can feel like a table for eight with the phalanx of photographers zooming in on them in restaurants, clubs and the like. Because of Kardashian's popularity among gossip groupies, Odom is tracked pretty much everywhere he goes. 'It's part of what they do. It's part of the world,' he said of the paparazzi. 'Once I'm in the house and a comfortable place, they can't come on private property. If we're in a restaurant and they want to sit there and take pictures, it doesn't matter.' Doesn't matter?"
• Mike Jones of The Washington Times: "In their first three preseason games, the Washington Wizards have provided a glimpse of what can be expected in the coming season should they remain healthy. The team has scored plenty of points behind Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler, averaging 103 points in its three outings. Coach Flip Saunders also has several different lineups and rotations at his disposal with four different shooting guard candidates and a versatile bench. That doesn't mean, however, the Wizards are ready for the regular season. Gilbert Arenas has displayed flashes of greatness with explosive third quarters (24 points and eight assists) in back-to-back outings. But he also has shown rust (12 turnovers this preseason, a 1-for-5 shooting performance in the opener). Saunders has encouraged Arenas to play with his old aggression, but the guard appears to be feeling his way along as he learns a new offense. And his teammates -- outside of holdovers Jamison, Butler and center Brendan Haywood -- are working to adjust not only to the returning floor general but also to their roles on a revamped team."
• Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle: "Australia slept in. Being that showdowns are not what they used to be, this one did not stir the imagination of a nation the way meetings of the Rockets and Bucks did not very long ago. Then, Yao Ming played Yi Jianlian for the first time in an NBA game, and every network in China with the option, showed the game live. The audience was believed to be the largest ever for an NBA game. When Rockets rookie center David Andersen met Andrew Bogut at To
  yota Center on Monday, they figured the audience in Australia for the first NBA meeting of the Australian centers probably consisted of Andersen's three brothers, assuming they could find a website streaming the game. ... 'It won't be anything like that,' Bogut said. 'We only have three million people in our country. Probably one or two (are interested). Basketball is not huge in Australia, probably scraping in the top eight, top 10 sports. Maybe during the season, if we both have pretty decent records more people will take notice. At the moment, compared to China, maybe five percent will watch.' "
• Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman: "In the Thunder's 110-105 overtime win over Phoenix, the second-year point guard displayed to his home fans the continued development he's shown throughout this preseason. Russell Westbrook scored 10 points, pulled down 10 rebounds and dished nine assists in 26 minutes. He again played with confidence and control, showing complete command of the offense and newfound patience that he lacked last season. Westbrook made five of eight shots, turned the ball over just three times and came away with two steals. 'It is the preseason, but that's all we have to judge Russell Westbrook on right now,' said Thunder coach Scott Brooks. 'We still have some work to do, but with Russell, like I've said many times before, he's only 20 years old and for the next 10 years you're going to see a lot of improvement.' "
• Kate Fagan of The Philadelphia Inquirer: "After yesterday's practice, 76ers coach Eddie Jordan said he asked Thaddeus Young how he felt about New York City. Young responded that all cities are 'about the same to me.' 'Really? New York isn't more special?' 'Not really, they're all about the same to me,' Young repeated. Recounting the story, Jordan laughed. 'So, yeah ... he's low-maintenance,' Jordan said. 'I don't worry about Thad.' ... Young, in his third NBA season, is averaging 9.0 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. Last season, he averaged 15.3 points per game. Still, Young seems about as low-maintenance on the court as he is off of it: snagging offensive boards, scoring in transition, picking up buckets on broken-down plays. 'I'm pretty good right now,' said Young, the team's starting small forward. 'I'm just going out there and trying to do the things I've been doing - rebounding, playing defense, getting steals. Doing the little things. My offense is going to come; I'm not worried about that too much.' "
• Ray Richardson of the Pioneer Press: "Al Jefferson's Subway diet in the offseason -- which helped him lose 31 pounds -- has given him a quicker first step at the power forward position and turned him into a role model for people with weight-loss issues. Jefferson, 24, attracted interest from the local American Heart Association, which is partnering with the five-year veteran for a six-week program known as 'Get Healthy With Big Al.' Jefferson helps kick off the program, aimed at school kids in the Twin Cities, with an appearance today at Andersen Elementary School in South Minneapolis. The program stirs memories for Jefferson, who called himself a 'chubby kid' while growing up in Prentiss, Miss. 'You have to deal with people teasing you,' Jefferson said. 'Hopefully, I can inspire and motivate kids who might be overweight and let them know they can do what I did. It's hard for kids. You want to eat everything ... all the sweets you can eat and everything else.' Jefferson weighed 293 pounds when his season ended in February because of a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. A few days after surgery, he began his diet of ham or turkey sandwiches from Subway -- complete with lettuce, tomatoes and other vegetables. For dinner, he had salads and soups. Convinced he needed to lose weight to help rehabilitate his knee, Jefferson stuck with the diet after a 'tough first couple of weeks.' He reported to the Wolves' training camp weighing 262 pounds."
• Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel: "Memphis Grizzlies Coach Lionel Hollins intimated that the replacement referees favored Magic center Dwight Howard when the opening whistles blew. Rookie Grizzlies center Hasheem Thabeet, 7 feet 3, picked up two quick fouls in the first few minutes, wrapping his arms around Howard in an attempt to stop him on the first play. 'Dwight Howard's a great player and Thabeet didn't get a fair share of the calls right from the start of the game,' Hollins said. 'It's not Dwight Howard against Thabeet --- it's us against the Orlando Magic.' Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy didn't see it that way after the Magic improved their preseason record to 4-0 by beating the Grizzlies 102-83 Monday night at FedEx Forum. 'That's absurd. I thought from the first play, all Thabeet did was try to grab him. It was obvious. Of course, I'm going to see it differently than Lionel,' Van Gundy said. Howard, who usually doesn't think he ever gets a break from the officials, said incredulously, 'Are you kidding? Somebody said I was getting calls?' "
• Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee: "Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and a 'prestigious group of Sacramento business leaders' will announce today at Arco Arena a plan to sell out the first two Kings home games this season. Kings co-owners Joe and Gavin Maloof, Kings president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie, Westphal and members of the business group will be at the news conference. Attendance continued to decline at Arco last season as losses piled up. The Kings had only three sellouts last season."
• A. Sherrod Blakely of MLive.com: "Will Bynum was a freshman at Arizona when Gilbert Arenas, just a few months into his NBA career with the Golden State Warriors, returned to campus. Arenas talked of the challenges he faced as a second-round pick trying to crack the rotation as a rookie with the Warriors. 'I saw the frustration in his eyes when he was talking to me,' Bynum said. 'He was telling me how hard he was working and how (not playing) just fueled him. I had kind of a similar path.' The paths of these kindred spirits crossed again this summer during workouts in Chicago with basketball strength and conditioning guru Tim Grover. 'I learned so much from (Arenas),' Bynum said. 'We talked about the game and how we could challenge ourselves in workouts everyday, trying to get better at every aspect of the game.' "
• Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald: "Some teams look good on paper. The Bulls sound as though things are shaping up for a strong season. Since training camp began, players have been emphasizing how well they've gotten along. No doubt, the locker room is louder and livelier than it's been in the past. Excessive laughter could be heard in the hallways even after a mundane Monday practice at the Berto Center. 'The practices are fun,' Joakim Noah said. 'We're having a great time together.' Maybe that's a good sign. The Detroit Pistons, which played for the conference championship six straight years from 2003-08, are probably the best recent example of a team that got along well and carried a strong chemistry onto the court. Vetera
  n guard Lindsey Hunter played on championship teams with the Pistons and Lakers. He's seen what works and gave the current Bulls a strong review. 'It's like family and that's how you want it,' Hunter said. 'It's hard to get that, too, by the way. It's really hard to get.' "
• Bob Wolfley of the Journal Sentinel: "You could say Marvin Fishman helped shape the way Milwaukee defines itself as a city. His role in bringing the Bucks to Milwaukee and later donating art to museums in Wisconsin from his impressive collection were part of his legacy, part of the diverse ways Fishman influenced the culture of Milwaukee. Fishman died on Friday. He was 84. Anyone who encountered Fishman over the years and talked to him at any length knew him to be smart, tough and funny. But above all else, he really loved talking about the Milwaukee Bucks. He particularly loved talking about the Bucks in the early years. That made sense because Fishman was a major reason the National Basketball Association ended up in Milwaukee."