Around The Association
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MVP: Rick Carlisle. Armed with a roster that many expected was scant removed from cannon fodder, Carlisle prepared his soldiers well. He rolled out a positively masterful rotation of ever-changing pieces that disoriented and disturbed the L.A. defense. Once Howard tired in the third, the floodgates opened.
Defining Moment: With 7:11 left in the third, Dwight swung his arms into Elton Brand's neck and picked up a frustration flagrant foul. No present motive, no real point. Didn't really matter. The foul invigorated the upstart Mavericks, who went on a run immediately thereafter and maintained a 7-to 15-point lead against a tired Laker squad for the rest of the night.
X Factor: Hard to win a game with free throws like that. Howard's Magic have been last in the league for two straight seasons, so this isn't an unknown problem. But it usually isn't bad enough to swing a game. Howard only made 3 of 14 free throws, wasting Pau Gasol's excellent night and making "Hack-A-Howard" a viable endgame strategy to quell a Laker run.
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MVP: The MVP. LeBron was the best point guard, power forward, and swingman on the floor in this game. Those hoping he'd maybe stop trying after his first ring were disappointed.
LVP: Jeff Green. In his first real game in 16 months after undergoing major heart surgery, Boston's most expensive offseason signing scored three points with zero field goals and zero answers for LeBron.
That was ... awkward: Ray Allen approached the Celtics bench for pregame handshakes, but Kevin Garnett didn't even look his way. Ray responded by putting up 19 points, more than he scored in any game of Boston's entire playoff run.
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Most Valuable Player: Kyrie Irving (29 points) hit superstar shots, as he is wont to do, but Andy Varejao was the MVP. The Brazilian took it to Emeka Okafor (and other Wizards) early, late, and during all times in between. He set a new career high with 23 rebounds (12 offensive) and almost notched an opening night triple-double with nine assists and nine points to boot.
X Factor: Earl Barron didn't play at all in the first half. Heck, he barely made the Wizards roster and likely only did so over 2011 draft pick Shelvin Mack because big Nene and Kevin Seraphin are injured. But Barron was key in helping the Wizards scrap back from a 50-39 halftime deficit with eight points and eight rebounds in 16 second-half minutes.
That was ... an NBA opener between two hopeful, rebuilding teams: Don't hate, embrace professional basketball. Cleveland set the tone by outscoring Washington 16-2 in the paint early, but Randy Wittman's Wizards scrapped back to make the game interesting (this year's version of the Wiz has significantly less quit in them). But the fully healthy Cavaliers eventually prevailed, thanks to a back-breaking play featuring an Irving dribble spin move, a bounce pass to Varejao, and a flip pass to Tristan Thompson for the dunk that put Cleveland up six with 90 seconds left.
LeBron Sets Sights On Future, Not Past
ESPN.com
MIAMI -- If LeBron James gets emotional during Tuesday night's ring ceremony, it'll probably be a surprise to him. If you see him wearing it anytime soon, that'll be a surprise, too.
This is the third time in the past five years opening night has been a ring night for James. In 2008, he waited in the cramped visitors' locker room at TD Garden in Boston as Paul Pierce wept on the floor where the Celtics ended James' season five months earlier.
Last Christmas, as Dirk Nowitzki got a little misty-eyed as the Mavericks' championship banner headed toward the ceiling in Dallas, James paced in a nearby hallway waiting to face another team that ended his season on the way to its celebration.
After everything James has been through -- getting swept in his first Finals in 2007, failing to get back after being the No. 1 overall seed two years in a row in Cleveland in 2009 and 2010, blowing a Finals lead in 2011, hiding from two ring ceremonies along the way - it would seem logical that James would anticipate the Heat's jewelry presentation as a cathartic release. It is a time when showing emotion is expected and even encouraged.
With Window Short, Is Lakers' Time Now?
ESPNLosAngeles.com
LOS ANGELES -- A little less than three months ago, the Los Angeles Lakers sent out a media advisory inviting whomever was around on a Friday afternoon and available on four hours' notice to come down to their training facility to meet Dwight Howard.
After a long, sometimes tortuous courtship between the Lakers and their next great franchise center, the wedding reception was a rather low-key affair. No disco lights, no dancers and absolutely no proclamations about how many titles he might win in Los Angeles with Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Steve Nash.
Not one, not two ... ah, you know that LeBron James quote by now. None of that. Howard simply said he was "just happy to be here" and "going to make the best out of it."
West Side: Harden Trade Impact
ESPN.com
For a guy who isn't considered a franchise player, James Harden's departure sure did alter the perception of the Oklahoma City Thunder franchise.
The continuity is gone and, like a throw-in included to make the salaries match, so is the innocent charm that permeated this team.
Continuity was a key advantage the Thunder had over the Los Angeles Lakers (the other advantage is youth). I place a premium on experience in the NBA, particularly shared experience, which is why I had the Thunder beating the Lakers in the Western Conference finals, then beating the Miami Heat to win it all in an NBA Finals rematch.
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East Side: Harden Trade Impact
ESPN.com
Let's start with this, because apparently James Harden has a massive following with a bit of a mean streak now that he's been deemed replaceable on a championship-level roster:
Harden is a very good, All-Star level player who's young enough to improve.
He's not elite in the athleticism department, but he makes up for it with craftiness -- his old-man game matches his older-man beard -- and an ability to play the pick-and-roll to near perfection.
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