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The Boston Celtics visit the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday night (ESPN, 8 ET) for Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Boston leads the series 3-2 after its Game 5 win on Monday, but the 76ers are 4-0 this postseason in games immediately following a loss.

In NBA history, teams that have held a 3-2 lead in a best-of-seven series have gone on to win the series 85.9 percent of the time (213-35). Teams with 3-2 series leads went 4-0 in the first round this postseason.

Since the new "Big 3" era began in the 2007-08 season, the Celtics are 2-10 in road games with a chance to close out a series. The rest of the NBA is 28-28 in such games.

Key Players
Kevin Garnett has increased his offensive production this postseason. He’s averaging a double-double with 19.3 PPG and 10.5 RPG, up from his regular season numbers of 15.8 PPG and 8.2 RPG. In addition, he’s shooting 52.1 percent from the floor in the playoffs, compared to 50.3 percent in the regular season.

The Celtics have outscored opponents by 136 points in the 403 minutes Garnett has been on the floor this postseason. Boston has been outscored by 85 points in the 130 minutes he’s been off the court.

Andre Iguodala is shooting 52.6 percent (10-for-19) from 3-point range but is shooting only 45.5 percent (10-for-22) from the free throw line in this series.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, since the NBA instituted the 3-point shot in 1979-80, only two players have shot for a higher percentage from 3-point range than from the free throw line in a single playoff series (min. 15 attempts in each category). Tony Parker in the first round in 2004 (68.8 3-point pct; 68.2 free throw pct) and Rasheed Wallace in the first round in 2006 (54.2 3-point pct; 43.8 free throw pct).

Stats to Know
Boston has yet to allow 100 points this postseason. The Celtics are one of three teams that haven’t allowed 100 points in a single game this postseason, joining the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs.

Since scoring 109 points against the Chicago Bulls in Game 2 of the first round, Philadelphia hasn’t scored more than 92 points in any of the nine games since. That is the longest single postseason streak of scoring fewer than 93 points since the Detroit Pistons (11 games) in 2006.

Neither Pau Gasol nor Rasheed Wallace will admit that their mano a mano matchup is anything special. But witness the high theater.

Wallace's attack on Gasol has been multifaceted from the series' start. Hard fouls are only the beginning of a war that's playing out with bold psychological elements:

• When Kevin Garnett guards Gasol, he hunkers down in an athletic position, to better prevent Gasol from dislodging him and getting good position. Wallace doesn't do Gasol the courtesy. He stands up straight and casual, as if to say he needn't crouch. He can keep Gasol out of the paint any old way.
• The two are constantly grabbing each other. Early in the fourth quarter of Game 4, on offense, Wallace encountered Gasol near the free throw line, away from the play. The first thing he did? Just laid a hand on Gasol's arm and shoved. No advantage. No particular reason. Just hello.
• It can not be overstated the extent to which Wallace's mouth is in action as he works at crushing Gasol's spirit. Yelling, talking, laughing, jabbing ... it's constant.
• The NBA has all kinds rules about what kind of contact is and is not allowed in the post. These two ignore those as a matter of course.

Gasol was excellent for most of the first two games in L.A., but for stretches of Game 3, it seemed as if Wallace's approach was working. A Celtics fan who sits courtside tells me that he and his seatmates watched that matchup all game long. Smart move. Tune in to Gasol vs. Wallace, and you'll see a constant and hypnotic display of two-war crafty aggression. It's a little like an after-school special, where Wallace is the bully, and Gasol is the new kid mustering the courage not to hand over his lunch money.

"I do like that matchup," says Wallace's coach, Doc Rivers, who left his starters on the bench for almost all of Game 4's fourth quarter, leaving Wallace to hound Gasol. "It's rare that [Gasol] has to shoot over length. ... And Rasheed is physical."

Gasol won't acknowledge that Wallace has any special tools in play. "I don't treat it any different when one or another player is guarding me," he says. "I try to attack and be aggressive and go by him. If I see the opportunity to shoot it, if I see it, I seize it."

Nevertheless, Gasol is human, and Wallace is relentless. At times it has looked like Gasol had been made meek, for a long stretch part of Game 3, for instance, he had a hard time getting a shot off against Wallace, and was hardly his normal All-Star self. But nothing lasts forever, and in Thursday's Game 4, while Wallace's Celtics got the win to tie the Finals at two games apiece, Gasol was extremely assertive in getting into the paint and doing some damage.

The battle is on.

"Listen," says Doc Rivers, asked about how Gasol fared in that matchup, "he's not going to back down. He's a champion. They're not going to back down from us. We're not going to back down from them. And that's how this series is going to be, and that's how it's been. That's good, though. That's good for all of us."

When asked about his defensive strategies against Carmelo Anthony or the Lakers' big men during Utah's postseason run, Jerry Sloan routinely pointed out that it's impossible for a defense to focus disproportionate attention to a specific player or area of the court without leaving itself vulnerable somewhere else. When you're facing an elite team with weapons all over the floor, choosing where to allocate defensive resources is especially tough.

Against a dominant Orlando team, Boston had to decide: Would they send double-teams down low to disrupt Dwight Howard or would they stay at home on the Magic's lethal perimeter shooters and let Kendrick Perkins, Rasheed Wallace and Glen Davis fend for themselves one-on-one against Howard? Boston chose the latter.

In today's episode of Superstar Underachievement, Dwight Howard is stifled by the Celtics' defense, despite confronting Perkins and Co. one-on-one. What held him back? We explore what happened at Orlando with David Thorpe:

CHICAGO -- Prior to their game Saturday night against the Boston Celtics, the Chicago Bulls downplayed any invocation of last spring’s epic first round series between the two teams.

Asked what he remembered about the series, Bulls forward Luol Deng shrugged.

“Personally? Not much. I was on the bench,” Deng, who was inactive for the series due to injury, said.

Bulls head coach Vinny Del Negro was front and center on the sidelines last spring, but prior to the game, he dismissed any suggestion that the series bore any relevance on Saturday night’s game.

“No,” he said emphatically, clearly tired of fielding the question over the past 24 hours. For a Bulls team that came into the game losers of nine of their last 11, any parallel between Saturday night’s rematch and what transpired in the grueling playoff matchup seemed remote.

Saturday night’s 106-80 Celtics’ victory proved them right.

The arsenal Chicago deployed against Boston in that 7-game series was nowhere to be find. Last spring, a quick, agile Bulls team had the Celtics on their heels trying to defend Chicago’s lethal dribble-penetration. Saturday night, Bulls point guard Derrick Rose got loose on a few occasions, but the lack of an outside threat allowed the Celtics’ defense to smother him most of the night. Most of the evening, you could find the painted area encircled by five green jerseys.

"We sack the paint every night anyway," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "We try to force contested jump shots. They have a great point guard. If you allow [Derrick Rose] in the paint, you're going to lose. We knew that going into the game, and that's what we tried to take away."

Without Ben Gordon commanding attention along the arc and with little depth in the frontcourt, the Bulls couldn’t recreate their postseason magic. No nifty high ball screens with Rose and his big men, few transition buckets, and nothing resembling the ball movement the Bulls generated from good floor spacing. Like most of the Bulls’ recent opponents, the Celtics clogged the paint and forced the Bulls into a barrage of contested, off-balanced jumpers. Not one Bull shot over 50 percent from the field and Chicago finished the night only 32.6 percent and scored only 80 points in 101 possessions.

"If you don't move the ball, [the Celtics] use their length and physicality to take you out of stuff," Del Negro said after the loss. "They execute so well and make you pay with all the weapons that they have."

While Chicago resorted to one stagnant isolation matchup after another, the Celtics were running beautiful offensive sets with multiple options. They displayed their full array of tricks. Rasheed Wallace converted three buckets in the second quarter on easy step-outs against Joakim Noah. Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins teased Derrick Rose and Noah with screen-and-roll sets.

And, of course, there was the re-introduction of Kevin Garnett to whatever is left of this rivalry.

"Everything is predicated off Kevin," Del Negro said. "He gets everybody going. He brings great energy. He's a future Hall-of-Famer. You add one of those guys to your lineup, you're going to be better."

Garnett spent the evening rolling off picks to find open space for easy buckets from both the wing and in the basket area. He finished 6-for-8 from the field in 26 minutes.

Things really got ugly toward the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth when Boston ran off a 21-4 run. By the time Rose made him most assertive drive of the night with 9:01 left in the fourth quarter – drawing rare contact – the Bulls trailed 88-65 and most of the Celtics' veteran starters had retired for the evening.

The only thing that evoked the playoff series from seven months ago was Brad Miller’s flagrant foul against Rajon Rondo. In the first quarter, Rondo drove down the gut of the lane and was elevating to the rim when Miller clotheslined him with his right arm. The two teams remained relatively calm as the United Center crowd reached its highest crescendo of the night.

Although Boston eked out the 7-game series over Chicago last spring, the Bulls' gutsy performance was heralded as a moral victory for a team ascending, while doubts began to surface that an aging Celtics core wouldn't be able to re-establish itself as a championship-caliber squad.

"It's totally different now," Del Negro said. "Last year was last year. This is this year."

Is Carlos Boozer the best thing that never happened to the Bulls? Is Brandon Bass redundant in Orlando? And will DeJuan Blair catch on in San Antonio? 

Matt McHale of By the Horns: "It's a bad sign when fans start longing for the halcyon days of the Michael Sweetney Era. And it's especially frustrating for Bulls fans, who had to deal with the loss of Ben Gordon while the league's rich got even richer: Boston got Rasheed Wallace, Cleveland got Shaq, L.A. got Ron Artest and San Antonio got Richard Jefferson ... It makes sense that the fans wanted to see a move. Something big, something juicy. But sometimes, staying the course might be the best plan of action. Or inaction, as the case may be. As things stand right now, the Bulls have a solid core of players -- a budding All-Star-in-the-making, a few savvy vets, some developing youngsters -- and enough expiring contracts to make a major move next summer or at the trade deadline. And Chicago will certainly be a much more attractive free agent destination if the Bulls can match last season's success than if they fell apart because [Carlos] Boozer took his usual 30-40 game vacation and our backcourt players broke down from playing too many minutes. Now, if the Jazz wanted to trade Boozer for some loose parts off the Bulls' scrap pile -- Tim Thomas, Jerome James, Anthony Roberson -- then let's get it done. And while we're dreaming, maybe they'll trade us Deron Williams for Brad Miller's expiring contract. But barring some mass hysteria and insanity in Utah, I guess Bulls fans will have to be satisfied with some incremental progress and hope for the future."

Zach McCann of Orlando Magic Daily: "The only real issue with signing Brandon Bass is that -- at least technically -- he plays the position where the Magic were the deepest before his arrival. Rashard Lewis and Ryan Anderson gave the Magic talent and depth at power forward, making it the only position with a legitimate starter and legitimate reserve (I'd count point guard as well, but that's arguable). When a team has eight players under contract, as the Magic did last week, an all-star and a promising rookie at one position feels like an overabundance of wealth. So, at the surface, bringing in another power forward doesn't make a whole lot of sense (especially a 6-foot-7 power forward who's seemingly too small to fill in as the team's primary backup center, even if the statistics say otherwise). But that doesn't mean it was a bad signing. I love the move - like most Magic fans do - especially for the relatively inexpensive price tag. For a 23-year-old who seeps potential and has already played meaningful minutes on an upper-echelon team, $18 million over four years is a great deal. Anytime you can attain a quality player for that kind of value, you do it."

Graydon Gordian of 48 Minutes of Hell: "I love watching [DeJuan] Blair work under the boards. He has a mature sense of spacing and soft, accurate hands. His rebounding was particularly notable on the offensive end, where he consistently turned misses by his teammates into open layups and trips to the line (where he went 5-6). As will be the case with during the regular season, Blair was by no means the tallest player on the floor. But he was the only player on either team whose rebounding count reached double digits. Blair's offensive contributions weren't limited to put-backs; he showed promising signs that a well-rounded offensive game may be in his future. On the first play we ran specifically to him, Blair turned and hit a smooth 12-footer. On the next play, he received the ball at almost the exact same spot and used his defenders over-adjustment to take him off the dribble and draw the foul. Blair's mechanics are a little loose, but the origins of a reliable offensive arsenal are there."

THE FINAL WORD
Raptors Republic: Jarrett Jack, stop-gap?
Cowbell Kingdom: The cap and the Kings.
Valley of the Suns: What to expect from the Suns this week in Las Vegas. 

(Photos by Andrew D. Bernstein, Doug Pensinger, Noah Graham, Bill Baptist/NBAE via Getty Images)

Rasheed in green. Ron-Ron in purple and gold. Trevor as LeBron's wingmate. Baby Davis as Duncan's understudy. The NBA offseason plunges down the free agency rabbit hole.

Zach Lowe of Celtics Hub: "[Rasheed Wallace] does everything Glen Davis does, but better (except for grabbing offensive boards) and he does a lot of things Glen Davis simply cannot do ... Glen Davis became a valuable offensive player last season because his jump shot helped the C's space the floor and gave defenses an extra threat to think about. Rasheed Wallace can do the same thing, except he can stretch the floor even further ... He will be able to spell both Kevin Garnett and Kendrick Perkins for more extended stretches than any back-up big the Celtics have had since KG got here. That has enormous benefits. We still don't know how well KG's knee is going to hold up in, say, Game 52 of next season. He will also likely replace Kendrick Perkins in the team's crunch time line-up on a semi-regular basis. Truly, I believe signing Rasheed Wallace could have just as big an impact on the Eastern Conference hierarchy as Cleveland's deal for Shaq and Orlando's decision to trade for Vince Carter instead of signing Hedo Turkoglu."

Kurt Helin of Forum Blue & Gold: "... the loss of [Trevor] Ariza saddens me. It has been amazing to see on this and other boards people dismissing Ariza -- those people must have a foggy memory of the playoffs and finals. The Lakers would not be champions without Ariza, who hit timely threes and did things on defense like frustrate Hedo Turkoglu that nobody else had done to Orlando before. And he was a player that had really grown on the court in the past year, we (or at least I) have a very fond spot for players we watch mature and develop in our team's uniforms. While I intellectually understand what happened, there is a bit of a mourning process. But we have to move on as fans. Ultimately, it will come down to me accepting [Ron] Artest, someone I had preached against the Lakers getting. While I don't like to be wrong, this is one of those moments for he as a fan when my heart must overrule my head. I have to root for Artest now, and that is an adjustment mentally. Don't get me wrong, I understand on paper just what a great fit Artest is in the triangle -- he adds another very versatile weapon to a team and system predicated on versatility ... But I don't think you can follow his history and just dismiss it as the meaningless past. I don't see how you can watch how he played in Houston ... or Sacramento or Indiana or Chicago and say with certainty be different this time. Change happens but it is almost always a tumultuous process. Like all of us, Artest is the sum of his past experiences, and at this point I think Artest largely is who he is."

John Krolik of Cavs the Blog: "Right now, all indications point to LeBron [James] staying, as they have for some time with his public statements. For Cavs fans, I don't think anyone's ever really fully wrapped their head around a scenario where LeBron would actually leave, so the status quo feels pretty much the same for me. But an alleged promise isn't a contract. A contract is a contract. I don't know LeBron personally. I don't know [Trevor] Ariza personally. I don't know this alleged 'source.' I'm not a mind reader. When he decides, he'll decide. Until the ink is dry, let's chill on this. Meanwhile, we were ready to throw core money at Ariza? He's kind of a taller Delonte clone with more size and less playmaking and shooting, isn't he? He's either a show starter at 2 and pushes Delonte to the bench or becomes an uber-Wally off the bench himself. 55 million dollars is not uber-Wally money. I'm confused by the logic on that one. This worries me that we're going to spend money just to spend it this off-season. Shaq's expiring, so he's harmless, but we've got one big signing left for the foreseeable future. Let's make sure it's the right guy."

THE FINAL WORD
Cowbell Kingdom: How would Carlos Boozer look in purple?
48 Minutes of Hell: Don't make room for Baby.
Warriors World: The case for Brandon Wright. 

(Photos by Ronald Martinez, Noah Graham, Harry How/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Magic bask in the warm glow of their ECF upset, while Cleveland is forced to do some serious soul-searching. The Sixers opt for a tried-and-true choice to propel them forward. And what should the Knicks do about their fan favorites -- both free agents?

Zach McCann of Orlando Magic Daily: "The NBA Finals never seemed possible. Too much went wrong this season. But this team grew up in the playoffs and evolved into an elite team that won't quit, that won't go down without a fight under any circumstance. Not all championship teams are that way at the beginning of the season. It takes some tough times (struggling against Philadelphia in round one). It takes adversity (Jameer Nelson's injury). It takes inner-conflict (Dwight Howard's touches). It takes growth (Courtney Lee's emergence). It takes seemingly insurmountable odds (down 3-2 to Boston). It takes adjustments (Rafer Alston). It takes unity. It takes teamwork. Now, the Magic are right there. The ultimate dream is no longer a dream. It's now a goal."

John Krolik of Cavs the Blog: "This was one of ours. And we lost. It still hasn't sunk in for me yet, but it's just so painful. The Cavs won't get many more chances like this. So, what happened? Nobody thought we would lose this series. Nobody ... This was a tough matchup for this team. All the talk will be about what else the Cavs could've done offensively, with LeBron [James] accounting for nearly half the offense and all, but the problem was the Cavs' defense getting cracked. The Cavs had nobody to defend Dwight Howard, and that opened up this insane perimeter game. Everyone was ready to make the extra pass and the open shot, and that's just ridiculously hard to defend when you have one guy who demands two defenders ... There's at least one more go-round with LeBron and Co., and all signs point to many more. But you get so few years. So few. I don't know what else to say. I want answers. I want vindication. I want validation. I want a smoke. I even want to see my ex again. I'm going to get none of those things. There will be lots of things said about this team. The trick is to not listen to them. This is a great player. This was a great team. They did great things. They brought so much joy. The memories they made will last forever."

Matt Moore of Hardwood Paroxysm: "Mike Brown's gotta be saying to himself, 'I worked a roster to defend Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo. I can battle Pau Gasol and Kendrick Perkins. My team can dominate Rasheed Wallace and neutralize Josh Smith. We've got Kevin Garnett in a series of uncomfortable situations. And what do I get? Rashard freaking Lewis' ... While Mike Brown was pretty abused on both ends of the floor in this series, tonight wasn't on him. What was he going to do? Double Howard? He kicked it out for the rotation three. Don't double? Howard killed whoever was on him. Foul him? He hit free throws. There wasn't much Brown could do tonight. The Magic weren't hot, they were just playing to their fullest potential. Which is kind of what you want to do in the Conference Finals in a home elimination game."

THE FINAL WORD
Philadunkia: The Sixers play it safe with Eddie Jordan. 
Knickerblogger: Truth-squadding Will Leitch's platform for the Knicks. 
48 Minutes of Hell: How borderline prospects view the D-League.

(Photos by Phelan M. Ebenhack, Elsa, Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Mavs look like they'll avoid the dreaded 8-hole in the West, but the Pistons succumb to the Bulls and will have a weekend date in Cleveland. Meanwhile, the Sixers and Hornets have tough decisions to make about a couple of struggling shooters.  

Rob Mahoney of Two Man Game: "What a game, what a game, what a game. In recent weeks, we've seen the 'Race for 8′ transform into a 'Race to Avoid 8′, and, by definition, a race to avoid the Lakers. The Utah Jazz, who sit just one full game behind the Mavs, were nursing a huge lead against the Clippers, and with two minutes and thirty seconds remaining, the Mavs were down five points to the Timberwolves. Heavy stuff. But from that point on, the Mavs committed few mistakes. They got exactly the offensive looks they wanted, and capitalized on most of them. They locked down defensively, and ceded a single basket due to unfortunate circumstance alone. Two and a half minutes, a 9-2 run, and nearly flawless execution.  In the biggest moments of this game and possibly of the season, the Mavs did not disappoint. Shot after shot, stop after stop, all culminating in a defensive stop by Dirk [Nowitzki]/Erick Dampier and a huge go-ahead bucket by Jason Terry with 0.2 seconds remaining."

Ryan Schwan of Hornets247: "There is much made about the idea that Peja [Stojakovic] isn't having plays run for him, that he's being mis-used, that he should be sent in motion. So I kept track of plays where Peja was moving his feet, clearly having had a play called for him. There were twelve in the game.  One, [Chris] Paul saw an opening and short-circuited the play, diving to the basket and scoring.  Twice Peja got free off a single pick as [Shane] Battier got momentarily lost, and got two nice open shots. Three times, Peja ran off a set of three staggered picks, resulting in a nice open shot, a hurried deep three, and Paul being unable to get the pass to him because he was covered too well. Six times, he ran off a pair of picks and couldn't get open at all.  For those of you keeping score, that's 12 plays for three open shots and an opening for Paul. If that's the return, I'm not sure it's worth the investment. And if the investment continues to be made, he needs to do better than 0-4 shooting (1-7 for the game, including shots off plays that weren't designed for him as a primary option)." 

Dan Feldman of Piston Powered: "With a 91-88 loss to Chicago, Detroit will have the eighth seed and a first-round matchup with Cleveland ... [I]t's a shame that's Detroit's fate. In their biggest game of the season, the Pistons played the best they have in a while. Detroit and Chicago were evenly matched. They fought from start to finish, dove all over the court, played physical - and most importantly, played well. The game looked like a four-five matchup in the first round.
The Bulls are playing their best basketball of the season. They've won five in a row, nine of 11 and 12 of 15. And the Pistons are still 8-5 when Richard Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace both play and Allen Iverson doesn't. That clip would give the Pistons 50 wins over the course of a full season and put them comfortably in fourth place in the East. To make matters more impressive, eight of those games were against playoff teams (including two wins over Orlando and one over Boston). And most of those games were on the road."

THE FINAL WORD
Roundball Mining Company: J.R. Smith explodes.
Philadunkia: Falling out of love with Willie Green.
Two Man Game: Deep thoughts on the Mavs' bench.

(Photos by Glenn James, Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)

ESPN.com's Royce Webb writes:

With the game tied 71-71, Wallace gave up an offensive rebound to Hornets reserve forward Sean Marks, allowing New Orleans to score the basket that put them ahead to stay in a game they would win by just three points. After the Marks play, Wallace complained demonstratively to get a technical foul, and shortly thereafter angrily knocked a towel from a Hornets ball boy's hand into the crowd for a second technical foul and automatic ejection. He followed that by throwing a towel in the direction of his coach, Michael Curry, who had just seconds before removed him from the game.

All of this appeared to raise the possibility that Wallace would face what could have been the NBA's first-ever triple suspension -- the automatic suspension for his 16th technical foul of the season, a league suspension for knocking a towel into the crowd and a team suspension for his actions toward his coach. However, it was revealed on Thursday that the NBA had rescinded two of Wallace's previous technical fouls, giving him only 14 for the season.

But instead of suspending him, might the Pistons just release him now, with only 26 games remaining on his contract? In any case, Sheed's tenure in Detroit, which began in spectacular fashion in 2004 with an NBA title (remember his championship belt?), is reaching an ignominious end.

Dan Feldman of PistonPowered compares video of this meltdown to another Wallace tirade that may have cost the team a game. He's nervous that a free agent Wallace could land with a major rival.

But after last night, Feldman is firmly of the opinion that the Pistons should let Wallace walk when his contract ends this summer.

• There are two schools of thought here. One is that all this somehow proves the Pistons were on borrowed time from the moment they got Wallace, who has a history of wearing out his welcome.
• Another is that to win championships, which they have done with Wallace playing a major role, you have to find ways to get many different personalities to work together for a time.

There is also a third school of thought: Maybe Chauncey Billups was an even better leader than everyone realized.

In any case, with all these losses, bickering, and expiring contracts for Allen Iverson and Rasheed Wallace, it's starting to feel like the Pistons will look very different a year from now.

I got a zillion e-mails. People are wanting to know: How could I list all kinds of candidates for All-Star Weekend's new H-O-R-S-E event, and not include Rasheed Wallace?

Easy.

I have seen Rasheed Wallace at several all-star weekends. And the obvious truth -- he'll tell anyone who asks -- is that he doesn't want to be there. That is not his brand of hoopla. He's all about his teammates, his family, and resting. He doesn't want to be singled out for praise, and he sure doesn't want to trapse from event to event smiling for the camera and kissing babies like a politician. (Trust me, you can't just go to the HORSE event. If you're a player participating in the All-Star festivities, the NBA will give you media and schmoozing obligations.) 

Yes, he can make half-court shots with both hands. UPDATE: And a whole bunch of other stuff.

But that H-O-R-S-E event is, to me, a rare opportunity to put real youthful creativity and pizzazz on parade. 

'Sheed, at All-Star, is the anti-pizzazz. He is not going to care who wins. He is not going to whoop up the crowd for an exhibition.

I'm from the school of thought that if Rasheed Wallace wants to use that weekend for napping -- let the man take a nap already.

Posted by Kevin Arnovitz

• Brew Hoop wants to get excited about the improved Milwaukee Bucks, but is having horrible flashbacks of the optimism of seasons past: "As of last night the Bucks were clinging to the 8th and final playoff spot in the East despite a road-heavy schedule and their fair share of injuries.  Not bad.  But you're probably also a bit wary, because the Bucks always seem to offer some early-season hope...and then the New Year hits and the wheels come off.  And the wheels explode into fireballs." Brew Hoop is hopeful that Scott Skiles could be the difference-maker this time around.
• Celticsblog offers very gracious words for Pau Gasol: "Pau Gasol has received a lot of grief over the last couple of seasons regarding his perceived softness on both ends of the floor and an inferred tendency to shrink in big spots. Whether that reputation is entirely fair overall, I'm not sure.  What I am certain about is that if we are going to call Pau's toughness and play in the clutch into question, it would be disingenuous not to recognize him when he does step up in crunch time.  That is exactly what he did in yesterday's Christmas Day circus with the Celtics."
• The league has upheld Rasheed Wallace's two most recent techincal fouls, which means the current count is at 10.  When and if Wallace hits 16, he'll be suspended one game. Each subsequent T will cost him another game.  [Hat tip: Detroit Bad Boys]
• Blazers Edge wishes it could be Jason Terry...at the bank?: "Speaking of shooters, this isn't news or anything but Jason Terry can get any freaking shot he wants at any time.  Something about those Seattle boys.  That is one skill I wish I had.  Just walking around during life pulling up and dropping buckets at any random moment.  In line at the ATM, swish.  There goes the teller. She doesn't faze me.  I'm wet."
• Former NBA center Todd MacColloch is a pinball wizard, and is a real comer on the professional pinball circuit: "MacCulloch bought pinball machines. So many, in fact, that they spill from the basement of his sprawling, 6,000-square-foot house on this island a half-hour ferry ride from Seattle, taking over a guest room, an eight-car garage and all of the lower storage room beneath the garage as well as half of the family room upstairs."  
• Clippers rookie DeAndre Jordan has had just about enough of the team's strength and conditioning coach: "Rich Williams, our strength and conditioning coach, always gets so mad at me when he knows that I'm eating sweets. Let me tell you something about Rich. Okay look, I'm not the biggest guy in the world at all, but Rich seems to think that I'm going to be overweight when I finish playing basketball. If I'm drinking a Gatorade, he'll take the Gatorade out of my hands and give me water. If we get Krispy Kreme donuts, he'll take the donut out of my hand and give me a protein bar. Before games, I'll get a little thing of popcorn and hide so I can eat it in peace. Then he'll come out of nowhere, take the popcorn and give me a plate of fruit. He always tells me, "DeAndre, you're going to be 400 pounds when you're finished playing if you eat like this." No way! It's not in my DNA. I don't like Rich."
• FreeDarko was struck by comments in Ric Bucher's recent column about Anthony Randolph, namely that "some believe [Randolph] has the talent to one day be among the league's top 10 players." (FD has been bullish on and devoted to Randolph for some time): "I might be treading on the old 'potentially potential' territory, but at this point, I think the real drama is seeing what kind of prospect Randolph develops into, not projecting what he might do as a refined NBA player. I'm especially attached to the kind of athlete who forces this kind of thinking. The charm, and the irony, of it is that you've got the fantastic doubling as the height of scouting acumen, the whimsical and the shrewd forced to pull in the same direction. But there's a big difference between venturing there selectively (less so if you're a half-serious blog) and applying it as a matter of course, as front offices once did; it's also bizarre to see it show up at all now, seeing how the climate has changed, the age limit has sobered everyone up, and there are so many embarrassing quotes on the record about past duds."   
• The Kings' lackluster season has inspired Tom Ziller to consider the nuances of team-building. Ziller concludes that, whether the Kings turn to Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto or try to replicate the San Antonio Spurs' "three-star model," all the evidence points to one unequivocal truth: "Sacramento needs a megastar."
• Down goes Paul Millsap: "Jazz forward Paul Millsap will be sidelined 7-to-10 days after suffering a sprained posterior cruciate knee ligament on Tuesday night at Milwaukee. Millsap attended the Jazz's shootaround on Friday morning, when the Jazz announced the results of an MRI exam done on Wednesday. Millsap's PCL is not torn and surgery will not be required, but he will likely wear a knee brace when he returns."
• It's safe to say that NBA ref Joe DeRosa has a boatload of Starwood points: "On Christmas Eve, the Ohio native and North Canton resident checked out of a Detroit hotel after working a Chicago Bulls-Detroit Pistons game and was told it was the 173rd night he'd spent in a Marriott Hotel this year."  The good news for DeRosa was that he got to spend Christmas at home in Ohio...working the Wiz-Cavs game. 
  
• Who's the league's best alley-oop combo?
  

ESPN's Marc Stein broke the news: Starting next season, the NBA will be enforcing a ban against flopping.

While many are cheered by the news of video replays being scoured, and fines being handed out, no one knows if it will actually reduce the amount of theater. (There are already thoughtful cases being made that fines will not stop players from doing everything they can to give their teams advantages with the referees.)

So, about half a day into its public life, I'm ready to revise the NBA's anti-flopping policy.

My wrinkle? Put Rasheed Wallace in charge.

Make Rasheed the NBA's Vice-Commissioner of Anti-Flopping.

You know his heart's in it. From Stein's article:

Detroit's Rasheed Wallace, a player who has 15 technicals this season and has been suspended in the past for being over the limit for technicals, gave his opinion of floppers to ESPN after the Pistons' 106-102 loss to the Boston Celtics in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals on Wednesday.

"All that bull(bleep)-ass calls they had out there. With Mike [Callahan] and Kenny [Mauer] -- you've all seen that (bleep)," Wallace said. "You saw them calls. The cats are flopping all over the floor and they're calling that (bleep). That (bleep) ain't basketball out there. It's all (bleeping) entertainment. You all should know that (bleep). It's all (bleeping) entertainment."

Just give Rasheed Wallace the video of the worst flops every few days, and then let him decide the punishment at his leisure.

In most cases, I'm thinking a good conversation might do the trick. If that's not enough, he can give them the singing and dancing treatment. A third offense would bring "the jersey" when you least expected it. After that, he can just use his creativity to humiliate people as he sees fit.

It would work. I can just feel it.

UPDATE: Brian Windhorst of the Akron Beacon-Journal on how Rasheed Wallace has handled flopping in the past:

There are a lot of people who I know that hate, hate, hate flopping. One of them is the Plain Dealer's Branson Wright, who fancies himself a bit of a purist. We've sat next to each other for hundreds of games over the years and each time he sees one he'll let out a prolonged moan. I am not in this camp, I think it is part of the game just like other gamesmanship plays are. But the league is obviously trying to reign some things in.

In the 2006-07 season there was a play when Anderson Varejao -- king of the timed response to defensive contact, oh, OK, the flop -- hit the deck on a jump ball. And he was doing the jumping! And he got the call! I felt this was one of the greatest moments of the season, a signature move by a maestro. Branson literally got up from the table and walked away.

Actually, Andy's great play from that season was taking a charge from Rasheed Wallace in the fourth quarter of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Sheed had just been called for a bad loose ball foul at the other end and was steaming. He pushed and shoved Varejao up the court, he must've hit him five times before he got the ball. Then setting up in the post he hit him twice more. Andy took them all. Then, at just the correct moment when Sheed was making his move, Andy went to the deck. Sheed was hit with the charge and then he freaked out, tackled LeBron and was ejected. To me, that was sheer mastery. And, as Andy's often criticized yet not incorrect agent Dan Fegan once said to me: "A charge is just as good as a block." Actually, it's better because you get the ball and a foul on the other guy.

I think the key phrase in Stein's story is fines will only come on the "most egregious type of flops." Or as some in the NBA would call them: Ginobilis. I certainly recognize that this will change the way the game is played and there's no doubt Andy is a target and will probably feel this rule at some point next season. More than likely, the league will pass out a bunch early on and announce them all with the hope that it will stem the tide, then will let it go in the late season and playoffs.

(Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Four decent teams are a combined 0-4 in Portland, after Detroit lost there last night.

Blazer fans are acting in ways they have not acted for a long time.

Nothing to have a party about, way early, but that's pretty cool, for the youngest team in the league whose most valuable asset is out for the season. 

Chris McCosky of the Detroit News writes about the matchup between LaMarcus Aldridge and the player he most resembles, Rasheed Wallace:

It was the first time [Rasheed] Wallace had lost in Portland since coming to the Pistons.

"I ain't sweating that," he said. "I couldn't care less about coming back here and winning. I got a bigger picture. My picture isn't just to come back here and beat them. My picture is getting more hardware. They are worried about making the playoffs and beating me. They can do that. I am worried about the hardware."

Wallace must have thought for a minute that he was in some kind of weird Nike commercial where he was playing one-on-one against his younger self. Aldridge is the spitting image of Wallace circa 1996 -- same 6-11 frame, same high release and dead-eye shooting touch. Same fearlessness.

Aldridge made nine of 16 shots, had 10 rebounds and outscored Wallace 15-2 in the second half.

"He killed us," Saunders said.

Early in the fourth quarter, Wallace posted Aldridge, spun and scored. On the ensuing possession, Aldridge made the same exact move and scored over Wallace.

Eerie.

I'm a big believer that you need mentally tough players. Players who will rip the victory straight from the hands of the opponent. It has been a worry, frankly, whether or not this Portland team has those kinds of scrappers. (That's part of the reason Taurean Green excites me a little -- he's nasty on the court, in a good way.)

Last, night, however, Jarrett Jack was that guy, for sure. Dave from BlazersEdge reports:

Jack got an early call because of Blake's foul trouble and boy did he respond! All of that tentative play we talked about happened before he came in. When he hit the floor it's like he was taking guff from NOBODY. He was bumping and grinding, driving and using his strength to draw fouls and finish. He was a scoring machine in there and his energy and grit broke the old "Wow...these are the Pistons" spell. His 20 points on 7-10 shooting don't measure his contributions. If he hadn't given us that shot in the arm we maybe never would have woken up. Also don't miss what a weapon his great foul shooting makes him. The defense has to be careful with him because he could score any number of ways and you can't stop him by hacking. 

As reported by Krista Jahnke in the Detroit Free Press, Flip Saunders is bullish on the Blazers.

The Blazers are 4-0 at home after Tuesday's 102-94 victory over the Pistons in which Roy scored 20. Sunday, they ended a 13-game losing streak to the Dallas Mavericks, and Roy has much to do with that. "For a young guy, he likes to get the ball in late-game, late-clock situations and make plays," Saunders said. "He's impressive."

Saunders said he was disappointed to hear about Oden's injury as he had anticipated seeing him play at the NBA level. "But the way they're playing right now, they're playing unbelievable at home," Saunders said. "He'd be another guy who'd be a mix into their group. There's no question that the future here is a pretty bright future."

In the pre-season's first three games, he has had three technicals, and one ejection.

Last night, however, Wallace managed to play 24 technical-free minutes. 

A. Sherrod Blakely reported last week on MLive.com:

Wallace having three technical fouls in as many preseason games played -- in limited minutes, mind you -- is something that should not be taken lightly.

"We're definitely going to need him (Wallace)," said Detroit point guard Chauncey Billups. "But Sheed is going to be Sheed, man. He's going to be emotional at all times. If he don't feel like he's getting a fair whistle, he's going to be vocal about it. That's just what you get when you dealing with Sheed."

In the past, the Pistons have been able to counter Wallace's emotional outbursts by bringing Antonio McDyess off the bench for more minutes.

Now that McDyess is a starter, it'll be Jason Maxiell whose role will increase whenever Wallace looses his cool.

"I have to be more mentally ready for that," said Maxiell, Detroit's top rebounder in the preseason.

However, there was more to Detroit's rebounding woes than the absence of Wallace, forward Amir Johnson (left ankle) and center Nazr Mohammed, who sat out Friday's game with a calf injury suffered in Thursday night's 96-90 overtime loss at Cleveland.

(Thanks, Erin, for the heads up.) 

Rasheed Wallace is a killer shooter who guards Tim Duncan extremely well. He is a champion. He saves Phoenix money.

But can the Phoenix locker room handle his bad days? Would you worry about his influence on Amare Stoudemire? Would it get ugly?

I'll say this: it's hard to imagine you'll get a better basketball player than Rasheed Wallace, especially if you are intent on saving money and improving your chances of beating the Spurs.

And imagine how many open three-pointers Steve Nash will get him. Wallace ought to have games when he scores 40. He'd be like a kid in a candy store.

Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic tries it on for size:

Wallace's skills are a good fit, but his on-court behavior contrasts with the club's emphasis on character.

Wallace, 32, is an ideal basketball piece, because he shoots and runs well at 6 feet 11 and keeps the floor spread (as Tim Thomas did with the Suns in 2006), is a top post defender (which would help Amaré Stoudemire), has been a popular teammate at each stop and played for Portland when D'Antoni was an assistant coach there in 2000-01.

But even if the Suns were ready to make that deal, would the Pistons be willing? Marion is a small forward, the same position played by Detroit's Tayshaun Prince, but could be asked to play power forward to make the Pistons more athletic.

Wallace will make about $3.65 million less that Marion in 2007-08 and has a deal that expires in 2009.

That's a good point about Detroit already having a small forward, though. As much as I want Tayshaun Prince to be on the move so that he might, somehow, become a Blazer, I don't see the Pistons moving Prince and his reasonable contract. 

UPDATE: Sure, Marion could play power forward. Could happen. Or ... Blazer fan, and TrueHoop reader, Jesse has dreamed up a solution that Kevin Pritchard would surely love.