The superstars are stepping up as expected, but the Houston Rockets are establishing another force that could give them the edge needed to win it all.
The Houston Rockets are creating a new GreenHouse effect in the bubble — nyob.news
Is Fred VanVleet even capable of surprising us anymore? After what he did against Milwaukee and Golden State last year the answer is probably not. However, VanVleet still turned some heads with an awesome outing in a close win over Miami on Monday.
Raptors blog: VanVleet does it all; Lowry chasing greats; Powell finding way — Toronto Sun
ORLANDO, Fla. — It wasn’t easy and it wasn’t pretty, but the Los Angeles Lakers clinched the top seed in the Western Conference. They did it with a 116-108 victory over the Utah Jazz on Monday night, 4 1/2 months later than they expected to achieve the feat. As the Lakers await their first-round opponent, […]
Anthony Davis, Lakers top Jazz to secure top seed in Western Conference — Daily Republic
Heats’ Jimmy Butler Out; Virus Hint – Jimmy Butler was not with the Miami Heat for practice Sunday, and one of his teammates suggested that he was quarantining away from the team. The Heat said only that Butler, who scored 22 points in Miami’s restart-opening win over Denver on Saturday, had “an excused absence.” But Heat teammate Jae […]
NBA News — INSANE SPORTSHeats’ Jimmy Butler Out; Virus Hint – Jimmy Butler was not with the Miami Heat for practice Sunday, and one of his teammates suggested that he was quarantining away from the team. The Heat said only that Butler, who scored 22 points in Miami’s restart-opening win over Denver on Saturday, had “an excused absence.” But Heat teammate Jae Crowder indicated that it wasn’t just a day off for Butler. “We want to talk to him as soon as he gets out of quarantine or whatever he’s in,” Crowder said. “It’s just a next-man-up mentality from a standpoint of staying locked in and engaged, because we know he’s locked in and engaged once he’s able to get back with us. “It’s definitely a curveball for all of us to hear stuff like what’s going on with him,” Crowder added. “You never know what to expect.” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said he didn’t know whether Butler would be available to play Monday when Miami faces the Toronto Raptors. The Heat play the Boston Celtics on Tuesday. Crowder’s reference to “quarantine,” especially in these times, suggests that there is a concern about the coronavirus. Everyone inside the NBA’s so-called bubble, players included, is tested daily for the coronavirus. Those tests results are often back within 24 hours, sometimes much less. Read more at: https://www.foxnews.com/sports/butler-misses-heat-practice-teammate-hints-hes-isolating (Associated Press)
The Celtics’ first win inside the NBA’s Orlando bubble didn’t come without a little controversy. Boston was tabbed with a questionable backcourt violation call late in its seeding game Sunday afternoon against the Portland Trail Blazers. Up three with less than 30 seconds to play, the Celtics were issued the infraction as Jayson Tatum tried…
NBA Ref Addresses Controversial Backcourt Violation Call In Celtics-Blazers — NESN.com
After enjoying a comfortable 20-point lead through most of their game against the Portland Trail Blazers, the fourth quarter of the Boston Celtics’ 128-124 win was quite uncomfortable. Jursuf Nurkic (30 points, nine rebounds) and Damian Lillard (30 points, 16 assists) ate away at the Celtics advantage slowly in the third, and took the lead…
Celtics Wrap: Jaylen Brown’s Heroics Help Hold On Vs. Trail Blazers — NESN.com
Welcome back. Basketball’s pretty good, isn’t it? Not all of Raptors-Lakers was crisp stuff, but that second half sure was a lot of fun. Read More
WORDZ OF WOZDOM: Fear the Raptors — esp. if this is the real OG — Toronto Sun
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — With a number one seed in their grasp, the Lakers got a chance to look ahead — but maybe not the one they wanted. For two meetings now, the Toronto Raptors have flummoxed the West’s No. 1 team. On Saturday night, they swarmed LeBron James and Anthony Davis with length…
Cold-shooting Lakers can’t keep up with Raptors — Press Telegram
Brad Stevens is encouraged by Kemba Walker’s recovery. The Boston Celtics head coach told reporters Saturday, following the team’s 119-112 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night, the veteran point guard has “responded well.” Walker, who has been nursing a knee injury throughout much of the season, played 19 minutes on what Stevens explained…
Brad Stevens Explains How Kemba Walker’s Knee Has Fared After Friday’s Loss — NESN.com
Montrezl Harrell is hurting. The Clippers forward has shared some of those feelings publicly the past the few days on Instagram, including Saturday, when he posted a tribute to his grandmother, whom he’d left the team and the bubble to be with before she died. “I LOVE U GRANDMA,” wrote Harrell, the 27-year-old from North…
Montrezl Harrell will return to Clippers ‘when he’s ready,’ Doc Rivers says — Press Telegram
Not once, but twice Giannis Antetokounmpo narrowly dodged fouling out Friday night. The Milwaukee Bucks star had a pair of calls that would have marked his sixth foul of the night overturned, and it allowed him to stay in and ultimately sink the Celtics in Boston’s 119-112 loss to the Bucks in the first seeding…
Marcus Smart Shades Refs For Overturned Giannis Antetokounmpo Foul Call — NESN.com
How he feels in the morning obviously is more important, but for now Kemba Walker is feeling pretty good. Out of an abundance of caution, the Boston Celtics kept the star point guard on a minutes restriction in Friday night’s loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, and he’ll likely be limited throughout the seeding round. It’s…
Kemba Walker’s Knee Felt Good In Minutes-Restricted Game Vs. Bucks — NESN.com
The view from left field 