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Behind The Scoreboard
By Claude Vinson NBA action There is a good reason if some of us NBA followers are getting a bit edgy at this point in the playoffs. What
looked like easy wraps in some corners appear to have taken a down
turn. A great for instance is in the Eastern Conference journey. The
Boston Celtics, who had practically dominated the Magic in the first
three games, found themselves staring down the proverbial double barrel
after Wednesday night (of last week) at home. The Magic worked a bit of
it and pulled within one game with their performance in game five. Boston
players were a bit uneasy after the way Orlando matched up against them
in game five. Some of the occurrences during the game could be declared
a little odd or something. One was when a Celtic player (Perkins) had
to be benched after being tagged with a technical foul. OK, that is
pretty normal but what happened next wasn’t. The Celtics’ player was
hit with a second technical, which brought a furor from the Boston
bench. Also pretty normal, one might say, yeah but hold on. There is a
rule which says that seven techs during the playoffs draw an automatic
one-game suspension. The game officials got
together and after some close quarters consultations, rescinded the
second tech. I don’t know if this has ever happened in a playoff game
before but if it has, it escapes my recollection (as Grandma used to
say). Anyhow, the player was allowed to return to the game and the
floor. That was a good thing because the Celtics were pretty beat up.
One lost a tooth, another developed back spasms and two had
concussions. And one expert researcher related early Friday morning
that in Boston’s winning history, the team has never had to play a game
six in any series after leading 3-0. Just goes to show there can be a
first time for everything. And that, dear fans,
means that the series happen to be at the same point in both
conferences. Boston is leading 3-2 in the East (at the time of this
writing due to early Memorial Day deadlines) and the Lakers lead
Phoenix 3-2 in the West. The game there had fireworks of a different
sort. The Lakers were determined that Phoenix didn’t need to take a 3-2
edge in their series. So, along with their modern day Robin Hood, they
got some help from a couple of merry men from yesteryear. There is
something about the playoffs which brings out the best in Derek Fisher.
He had 22 points in what is being called the miracle victory on
Thursday night of last week. But he wasn’t the ultimate hero – that
would have to be Ron Artest, who hit the winning shot (103-101) with
less than four seconds left. Stopping short of
any sports predictions, let me just say that I hope each and every one
had a happy and memorable Memorial Day and remembered those who have
gone before to make this possible.
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