Crossover World

  The Miami Heat came to Boston with all intentions of improving their chances of finishing with the first seed, and it ended up being one of those regular season games that felt like a playoff game. The first half saw the two teams battle hard, and even had Kyle Lowry taking shots like he was Steph Curry. and that's a deeep triple for Kyle wait what just happened However, the Celtics wouldn’t be outdone, and used defense to create offense to keep things competitive. coast to coast ➡️➡️➡️ The third quarter, in particular, was a back and forth battle that kept fans on the edge of their seats. After a first half that finished with the Heat holding a slim 53-52 lead, things opened up for both teams in the third quarter. The Heat struck early on, using great ball movement and shooting to push their advantage to 69-58 with 7:51 left in the quarter. Coming out on fire in the 2nd half 🔥 That's an 8-0 run capped off by Kyle Max's 3rd steal of the evening 🍪🍪🍪 However, the Celtic...

  Debating whether LeBron James or Michael Jordan is the greatest player in NBA history used to be fun. Now it's just tired. But the question is going to continue to be asked, and when credible people give an answer, we're all going to cover it.  Dallas Mavericks head coach and NBA Hall of Famer Jason Kidd is the latest to weigh in, and he's taking LeBron not just for what he's done on the court, but what he's done off it as well.  Jason Kidd on if MJ or LBJ is the greatest of all-time: "I think LeBron will go down as the greatest to do it. When you look at his numbers -- what he’s done on and off the floor -- no one’s done that. You got to put the whole package together. He’s the greatest of all-time." This is strange. I'm not sure how someone's off-court contributions have any bearing on determining who is the greatest player of all time. If we're talking about who's had the greatest impact, that's another story. But the greatest play...

  After falling to the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday, the Los Angeles Lakers are officially on the outside of the postseason picture after falling to the No. 11 seed, one spot below the play-in line, tied in the loss column with the San Antonio Spurs who own the tiebreaker.  With seven games remaining, the Lakers are desperate to get their stars back, and it appears there's good news on that front. Chris Haynes reported on the TNT broadcast of the Lakers-Mavericks game on Tuesday that Anthony Davis, who's been out for the past six weeks with a mid-foot sprain, is targeting his return for Friday's night when the Lakers host the Pelicans.  The bad news is Haynes also reported that LeBron James, who missed Tuesday night's 128-110 loss to Dallas with a sprained ankle, is not expected to play on Thursday vs. the Jazz.  My @NBAonTNT Report: Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis targeting a return Friday, star LeBron James anticipated to miss Thursday in SLC and Kendrick Nunn...

  The Los Angeles Lakers play the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night. Anthony Davis (foot) and LeBron James (ankle) are both likely out, and if the Lakers lose, they'll also find themselves out of the postseason picture. At No. 10 in the West, the final play-in spot, the Lakers lead the Spurs by one game in the loss column, but San Antonio has the tiebreaker via conference record.  We're going to be keeping close tabs on the playoff race with daily updates the rest of the way. Below is where things stand entering play on Tuesday, March 29. WESTERN CONFERENCE 1. Phoenix Suns Phoenix has clinched the No. 1 overall seed.  Current first-round matchup: TBD (play-in results)   2. Memphis Grizzlies  The Grizzlies have opened up an effective six-game lead over No. 3 Golden State with six to play, so they can't drop behind the Warriors. The only team that can mathematically catch the Grizzlies is the Mavericks, who trail by six in the loss column with the tiebreaker ...

  Six different Eastern Conference teams have held sole control of the No. 1 seed at some point this season. Four of them have since late January. One of the teams that is currently tied for the top spot has never held it for themselves… but the teams currently seeded No. 9 and No. 12 have both done so for meaningful stretches. Now, with mere weeks remaining in the regular season, the race for home-court advantage took its craziest turn yet. The Miami Heat lost four games in a row over the past week. Before last Monday's game against the Philadelphia 76ers, they were heavily favored to finish No. 1. By Sunday, their fourth straight loss gave them a total of 28, one behind Philadelphia and Milwaukee with 27. Then the Bucks lost on Saturday to the Grizzlies and the 76ers lost Sunday to the Suns. Suddenly, all three teams had 28 losses. So did the surging Boston Celtics, who themselves lost their 24th game on Jan. 21. They've lost only four times since. Now, the four Eastern Confe...

  Stephen Curry and Shaquille O'Neal can add another award to their respective trophy cases. On Sunday, Curry and O'Neal both won an Oscar as executive producers on the short subject documentary "The Queen of Basketball." "The Queen of Basketball" is about the life of Lusia Harris, who was the first woman to score a basket in Olympic women's basketball history. Harris went on to become the first woman to be drafted by an NBA franchise when she was selected by the New Orleans Jazz in 1977. In 1992, Harris became the first African American woman to be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. She helped lead Delta State University to three consecutive national championships in the 1970s and earned a silver medal for the United States in the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. Curry became very involved with the film and even wore sneakers earlier in March that had the phrase "Queen Lucy" on them to spread awareness. Harris died i...

  On Sunday the NBA announced that Minnesota Timberwolves forward Taurean Prince has been fined $15,000 for making an obscene gesture during the team's win over the Dallas Mavericks earlier this week. The incident occurred at the end of the third quarter.  With the clock winding down in the third, Prince was matched up with Luka Doncic, who broke out all sorts of moves to try and create some space. Prince, however, stuck with him the entire way and eventually forced Doncic to launch a step-back 3-pointer from the corner that did not go down.  As the two players walked back to their benches, tempers flared. They exchanged words in passing, which caused Prince to turn back and point at Doncic. It's not entirely clear what Prince did to earn his fine, but both players were assessed technical fouls during the game. It's worth noting that in the first quarter of the contest, Doncic embarrassed Prince by throwing a bounce pass right between his legs -- a play that could have co...

Life without Anthony Davis hasn’t been kind to the LA Lakers, and it certainly didn’t get any better as they faced his old team in a must-win game that had huge implications on playoff seeding. The Lakers, who were in the ninth spot with a 31-43 record, have now fallen to tenth place as the Pelicans (32-43) have overtaken them. The loss puts the Lakers’ record to 3-7 over their last ten games, and they’re now within striking distance of the San Antonio Spurs, who are only a game behind them with a 30-44 record. To make things worse, the Pelicans won the season series today, because even though they still have a game left against LA, they’ve already won two out of three total meetings. The Lakers crumbled in the second half against the Pelicans, after starting off promisingly. They even had a 23-point lead at one point, largely behind LeBron James and his 39 points, nine rebounds, five assists, and a block. However, his shooting line of 14-27 may look good at first, but he was 2 of 8 fr...

  LeBron James and Draymond Green were among the fiercest rivals in sports only a few years ago. The pair faced off four times in the NBA finals from 2015 through 2018. Green was suspended for Game 5 of the 2016 series for a hit on James' groin. That series turned out to be Golden State's lone loss to Cleveland and James in that span. They spent nearly half of a decade trying to beat one another. But over the years, they've gained a mutual respect. Green signed with James' longtime agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, in 2019. A year later, he went on ESPN's First Take and called James "arguably the greatest player of all time." James is doing everything in his power to back that claim up. He's won four championships and is well on his way to becoming the NBA's all-time leading scorer.  And when that day comes, Green says he plans to be in attendance… regardless of whether or not his Warriors have a game elsewhere. "Probably in fifty more games ...

  Well, you don't see this every night. On Saturday, the Raptors game against the Indiana Pacers at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto was delayed for a significant amount of time due to a speaker catching on fire. All of the fans in attendance were asked to evacuate the arena as a result. The evacuation was precautionary, as there was no immediate risk to fans in the arena, per Raptors public address announcer Herbie Kuhn.   The Pacers-Raptors game in Toronto has been suspended due to a small electrical fire in a speaker. All fans were asked to evacuate Scotiabank Arena. (via @TSN_Sports) The stoppage occurred in the second quarter of the contest with the Raptors leading the Pacers 66-38, and lasted for over an hour. Ultimately, the on-court action was resumed, but the fans weren't permitted to re-enter the arena. The Raptors released the following statement regarding the situation:  Scotiabank Arena has been given the all clear. The game against the Pacers will resume wit...

  The Brooklyn Nets are visiting Miami to take on a Heat team that is mired in a three-game losing streak. Will they pile on the pain? Catch this game live on March 27, at 8:00 AM, Manila time. Away: Brooklyn Nets (38-35, 22-16 Away) Projected Starting Five: PG: Kyrie Irving SG: Seth Curry SF: Bruce Brown PF: Kevin Durant C: Andre Drummond The Brooklyn Nets got good news this week when it was revealed that Kyrie Irving will now be able to participate on home games, but their latest game against the red-hot Memphis Grizzlies was a bit of a disappointment. Even with Ja Morant on the sidelines, they could do little to stop a fourth-quarter assault led by Desmond Bane as they watched a small lead turn into a 132-120 defeat. However, it’s worth noting that they were missing some pieces like Seth Curry and Goran Dragic. Both are listed as probable for the Miami game. Irving and Kevin Durant did their part, combining for 78 points, and they’re going to be relied on heavily again – and the...

  James Harden has been a member of the Philadelphia 76ers for less than two months, but that's been more than enough time for him to appreciate the brilliance of Joel Embiid. The duo is expected to help the Sixers compete for a championship, but Harden believes another trophy should be on its way to Philly this year.  In an interview with Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, Harden backed Embiid for MVP, saying "he deserves it, man." "I've only been here for a few weeks, but I already see his mindset," Harden said. "He wants to win. Some guys just want numbers, but he has both. He has the mentality of winning, and he scores the ball at a high level. I think he's prepared himself, especially coming off last year, for this year to be one of his best years." This has indeed been one of Embiid's best years. He's averaging a career-high 29.8 points, 11.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.4 blocks while shooting 48.8 percent from the field and 35.8 percent f...

  This season has not gone as planned for the Atlanta Hawks. After making a Cinderella run to the Eastern Conference Finals last year, they were expected to be in the mix for one of the higher seeds this season. Instead, they are 37-37 and 10th place in the East with eight games remaining in the regular season. The silver lining for them is that they have a 4.5 game lead over the 11th place Washington Wizards which practically guarantees their spot in the play-in tournament three weeks from now. If the Atlanta Hawks become a play-in team then Trae Young becomes the most dangerous man in basketball. He’s going to burn it all down. Mr. 30 & 10 #DressWarmer The order of the four teams involved in the play-in has yet to be decided as the Hawks, the Brooklyn Nets, and the Charlotte Hornets are only separated by 1.5 games. It will be interesting to see how things turn out among these teams in their scramble for the eighth seed which will give them two chances to secure one of the two...