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How do you contain a scoring threat like Stephen Curry? If you're the Denver Nuggets, maybe you impede him a little bit -- after all, Curry's not exactly the largest guy on the court. Good physical play is an effective part of many game plans, but Warriors coach Mark Jackson thinks the Nuggets were going a little too far, claiming that they targeted Curry's left ankle, which he sprained in Game 2. Whatever the Nuggets did, it worked -- they've given themselves new life in this closely fought series.

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Warriors or Nuggets?

Despite the Nuggets' early lead, the Warriors were able to mount a comeback of sorts, which may bode well for them in Game 6.

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Which team will win the Nuggets-Warriors first-round playoff series? (Warriors lead 3-2)

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We wouldn't bet against Phil Jackson in anything -- he seems like one of those infuriating people who's good at whatever he tries -- but the Raptors seem to be casting against type in their reported pursuit of Jackson as their team president. Jackson's strengths as a coach are well-known, but as a president, he's something of an untested quantity. Pat Riley has found success with the Miami Heat in a similar role, but we'd imagine that Jackson would be far more amenable to simply coaching -- if there's a coaching job for him to take, that is.

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Openings for Jackson?

Jackson was passed over for the Lakers' head-coaching position early in this season, and he's said that no teams have expressed interest in him coaching so far.

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Will Phil Jackson coach again in the NBA?

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It's the one stat that's remained constant throughout the history of the NBA: No team has ever won a playoff series after trailing 3-0. Then again, the same was true in Major League Baseball up until 2004, when the Red Sox became the first team to pull off the feat, winning four straight against the Yankees to advance to the World Series. So with Boston and New York facing off again, do the Celtics have what it takes to make NBA history? Or was Sunday's Game 4 overtime win by the Celtics just a blip on the radar?

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Michael Jordan

As a player, Michael Jordan was the consummate winner. Regarded as the greatest NBA player ever, Jordan could just about do it all on the court. As an executive, well ... let's just say things haven't gone quite as well. Jordan's ownership of the Bobcats hit another bump in the road Tuesday as the team fired head coach Mike Dunlap after just one season. It's the second time Jordan has hired a coach from the college ranks only to dump him after 82 games (he did it with Leonard Hamilton in Washington). So will the coaching change help turn around the dreadful Bobcats? Or is the real problem in Charlotte at the top?


Not the man for the job?

MJ and Mike Dunlap were all smiles before the 2012 draft, but a 21-61 season soured the mood.

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Did the Bobcats make the right move in firing head coach Mike Dunlap?

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Started from the bottom and they're there

The Bobcats haven't exactly been loaded with household names as they've won just 62 games over the last three seasons combined.

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Who do you blame most for the Bobcats' struggles (62-168 since making lone playoff appearance in 2010)?

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You could have been excused for thinking that the Nets would sweep the Bulls after Game 1 of their playoff series. The 106-89 final score was an embarrassment to Chicago, made worse by being one of those blowouts that isn't even as close as the final score indicated. A superior effort from Joakim Noah & Co., however, evened up the series at a game apiece and dramatically altered the narrative. We're not totally sold on the concept of momentum, but if it does exist, the Bulls may very well have it.

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Kobe Bryant's always been wired differently from ... just about everyone else, but putting him on Twitter has been kind of like a public scan of his brain. There are few other players, for instance, who play Beethoven on the piano while wearing winter gear after particularly frustrating losses. During the Lakers' Game 1 loss to the Spurs, Bryant took to Twitter to share his observations of the game, exhorting his teammates to play better and suggesting strategies. He might have been a bit over-enthusiastic, but really, it's not as if Kobe keeps his opinions to himself while he's playing, either.





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D'Antoni's take?

Mike D'Antoni appeared to be joking when he was asked about Kobe's tweets in his postgame news conference, but did he disrespect his best player?

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What do you make of Mike D'Antoni calling Kobe Bryant "a fan" in regards to his tweets about the Lakers in Game 1?

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#sorrynotsorry?

Kobe doesn't have a whole lot to do during the remaining Lakers games this season -- more tweets may be incoming.

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Should Kobe Bryant keep tweeting during Lakers playoff games?

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The 2013 NBA playoffs are here. How do the league's 16 playoff teams stack up entering the postseason? Are the Heat your favorite to win it all again, or does that nod go to one of the top teams out of the Western Conference? Now that the Lakers are in, do they stand a chance? Click on the images to set your rankings!

NBA playoff teams

Bulls

Bucks

Celtics

Clippers

Grizzlies

Hawks

Heat

Knicks

Lakers

Nets

Nuggets

Pacers

Rockets

Spurs

Thunder

Warriors

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Warriors guard Stephen Curry needs only two 3-pointers in the Warriors' final game against the Trail Blazers to break Ray Allen's all-time record of made threes in a season. He's likely to get it, too, as he's averaging about three-and-a-half per game. Is Curry the best pure shooter in the NBA? Mouse over the images to see each player's shooting stats from this season, and click on the images to rank them.

Stats through April 17, 2013.

Best pure shooters in NBA

Ray Allen

Ray Allen

Miami Heat

41.4% jump shot FG pct
41.9% 3-pt FG pct
88.6% FT pct

Ryan Anderson

Ryan Anderson

New Orleans Hornets

37.9% jump shot FG pct
38.3% 3-pt FG pct
84.6% FT pct

Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bryant

Los Angeles Lakers

39.4% jump shot FG pct
32.4% 3-pt FG pct
83.9% FT pct

Jose Calderon

Jose Calderon

Detroit Pistons

46.6% jump shot FG pct
46.1% 3-pt FG pct
90.0% FT pct

Stephen Curry

Stephen Curry

Golden State Warriors

43.7% jump shot FG pct
45.5% 3-pt FG pct
90.0% FT pct

Kevin Durant

Kevin Durant

Oklahoma City Thunder

44.6% jump shot FG pct
41.6% 3-pt FG pct
90.5% FT pct

Kyrie Irving

Kyrie Irving

Cleveland Cavaliers

41.6% jump shot FG pct
39.6% 3-pt FG pct
85.3% FT pct

Kyle Korver

Kyle Korver

Atlanta Hawks

45.7% jump shot FG pct
45.7% 3-pt FG pct
85.9% FT pct

Kevin Martin

Kevin Martin

Oklahoma City Thunder

40.8% jump shot FG pct
42.6% 3-pt FG pct
89.0% FT pct

Steve Nash

Steve Nash

Los Angeles Lakers

46.6% jump shot FG pct
43.2% 3-pt FG pct
92.2% FT pct

Steve Novak

Steve Novak

New York Knicks

41.9% jump shot FG pct
42.9% 3-pt FG pct
90.9% FT pct

Dirk Nowitzki

Dirk Nowitzki

Dallas Mavericks

45.9% jump shot FG pct
42.2% 3-pt FG pct
85.9% FT pct

Chris Paul

Chris Paul

Los Angeles Clippers

44.3% jump shot FG pct
33.2% 3-pt FG pct
89.0% FT pct

J.J. Redick

J.J. Redick

Milwaukee Bucks

39.6% jump shot FG pct
36.8% 3-pt FG pct
91.4% FT pct

Your Rankings

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The Lakers' magic number is one: Either one win by Los Angeles or one loss by the Utah Jazz will lock up a playoff spot for them. That'd be great for them if there were, say, five games remaining, but both teams have only one game left. The Jazz are doing their part to make this an exciting race, declining to lose Monday night against the Timberwolves. They have one advantage in this whole mess -- they own a playoff tiebreaker against the Lakers -- but they'll face a serious challenge in their final game, taking on the Grizzlies on the road.

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Thunder challengers?

The Thunder have locked up the top seed in the playoffs -- if either the Lakers or Jazz end up with the Western Conference's eighth seed, they'd face them in the first round.

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Which team would be a tougher matchup for the Thunder in the first round of the playoffs?

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Nerlens Noel's season may have ended when he tore his ACL, but that's not stopping him from entering the NBA draft as a potential No. 1 pick. Noel's a force on the court when healthy, but an ACL injury can have devastating consequences for a player's career, as Kobe Bryant is now finding out. Noel could take another year at Kentucky to make sure his game is still intact, but the allure of making the jump to the NBA so early must be strong.

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Noel's potential?

Teams would be right to be wary about drafting a player who's suffered an ACL injury, but if Noel is healthy, he might be the best player in this draft.

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What is Nerlens Noel's future in the NBA?

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