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| Lakers: 'Good luck' not doubling Kobe |
NBA Basketball |
06/04/2008 |
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BOSTON (AP) - The Celtics practiced and met with the media first Wednesday. So not long after the Los Angeles Lakers took the floor, they became aware of what could be the key defensive strategy in the NBA finals. The Celtics don't plan to double-team Kobe Bryant. Good luck with that, Lakers players responded. ``Well, that's their problem if they don't want to double-team Kobe,'' forward Vladimir Radmanovic said. ``I think Kobe's going to have more space to operate.'' The Celtics held Bryant to 32.6 pe |
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| Big Three playing as 1 |
NBA Basketball |
06/04/2008 |
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| nals. ``We've all been on that side of the fence, where everybody pats you on your back and tells you they love you because you hit the last-second shot,'' Allen said this week as the Celtics prepared for Thursday night's series opener against the Los Angeles Lakers. ``Now, it's about winning, and being able to say that you won, and being to that certain promised land that everybody talks about trying to get to. We know we need each other to get there. Sometimes doing less is more.'' With 25 All-Star appear |
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| Garnett provides big challenge to Lakers defense |
NBA Basketball |
06/04/2008 |
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BOSTON (AP) - While Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers used an explosive offense to reach the NBA finals, their defensive adjustments were critical as well. Now, after getting past the likes of Utah's Carlos Boozer and San Antonio's Tim Duncan in the Western Conference playoffs, they face perhaps their most daunting challenge in Boston's Kevin Garnett, a versatile 7-footer who can do damage from the inside as well as the perimeter. ``My favorite word in this series is going to be `help,''' Lakers forwa |
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| Expect big ratings for Lakers-Celtics finals |
NBA Basketball |
06/04/2008 |
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NEW YORK (AP) -The NBA finals' television ratings for the last eight years fall into two unmistakable categories: series with the Los Angeles Lakers, and series without them. The four times that the Lakers - with their large market, big stars and storied tradition - reached the sport's grandest stage, the finals' average rating was never lower than a 10.2. The four times they weren't involved, the number was never above an 8.5. But none of the Lakers' opponents during that span had the fan base, history an |
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| Pistons fire Saunders in first of many big changes |
NBA Basketball |
06/04/2008 |
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| the round before the NBA finals three years in a row, joining the Celtics from 1953-55, according to STATS. Saunders extended Detroit's Eastern Conference finals appearance streak to six years, the first franchise to accomplish that feat since the Los Angeles Lakers of the 1980s, after Rick Carlisle started it in his two seasons as coach. Three starters - Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince - played for all three coaches, Rasheed Wallace was acquired in 2004 and Antonio McDyess signed in 2005. |
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| Person gets second interview with Bulls |
NBA Basketball |
06/03/2008 |
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| , who coached a young Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen in the late 1980s before the dynasty took off, acknowledged last week having discussions and said there would be more talks once Collins' broadcast duties with TNT ended. That happened when the Los Angeles Lakers eliminated the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference finals on Thursday. The Chicago Sun-Times, citing an unidentified source, reported this week that an announcement could come as soon as Tuesday, with the Chicago Tribune saying Collins was |
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| Bryant the greatest of his generation |
NBA Basketball |
06/03/2008 |
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| t said. ``Kobe is the ultimate closer in the game. In all sports you seem to have people who play at a high level when it's important. You don't see anyone do it like him today, you really don't.'' Bryant was the ultimate closer last week when the Los Angeles Lakers beat San Antonio 100-92 to advance to their first NBA finals berth since 2004. The Spurs scored five straight points to draw within two, prompting a Los Angeles timeout. Bryant then scored 10 of his 39 points in the final 3:32. ``I haven't seen |
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| Saunders deserved better |
NBA Basketball |
06/03/2008 |
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| s coach under the bus, maybe Dumars needed to look in the mirror to see if he could have done some things better. After all, isn't it Dumars who puts the roster together for his head coach? The fact is that Detroit - the first team since the 1984-89 Los Angeles Lakers to reach the conference finals six years in a row - has had a great run. But, after last year's loss to LeBron James and the Cavaliers, it was evident that the roster needed to be a little more than tweaked. When Boston put the "big three" of Ray Al |
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| Tony Allen back at practice for Celtics |
NBA Basketball |
06/03/2008 |
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WALTHAM, Mass. (AP) - Boston backup guard Tony Allen is back on the practice court as the Celtics prepare for the NBA finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. Coach Doc Rivers said Allen was only supposed to go through the first part of practice on Tuesday, but he was jumping and dunking. Allen had some success guarding Lakers star Kobe Bryant in the regular season, holding the NBA MVP to 22 points on 6-for-25 shooting. Allen missed the last two games of the Eastern Conference finals against Detroit after |
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| Pistons fire Saunders; Dumars open to more changes |
NBA Basketball |
06/03/2008 |
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| three seasons, the Pistons were 176-70 in the regular season and 30-21 in the postseason, but they lost in the Eastern Conference finals each year. The Pistons have appeared in six straight conference finals, the first franchise to do so since the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1980s. But they also are the second team in league history to lose in the round before the NBA finals three years in a row, joining the Celtics from 1953-55. Dumars decided a year ago to bring back key players who have been together since t |
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