Grizzlies Surprised Spurs, Hornets Nip Lakers in NBA Playoffs

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (AFP) – The New Orleans Hornets shocked the two-time defending NBA champion Lakers and upstart Memphis edged top-seeded San Antonio, Sunday in a pair of Western Conference playoff opener upsets.

Seventh-seeded New Orleans beat the Lakers 109-100 and Memphis defeated the Spurs 101-98.

Chris Paul had 33 points, 14 assists and seven rebounds for the Hornets as they seized the initiative over the Lakers in the first game of their best-of-seven series.

"Our defence was late. We were late on everything," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "They were aggressive and beat us to balls."

Memphis posted their first-ever NBA post-season win by stunning the top-seeded Spurs at the AT&T Center arena.

Zach Randolph scored nine of his 25 points in the fourth quarter for the eighth-seeded Grizzlies, who were making their first playoff appearance since the 2005-06 NBA season.

Marc Gasol finished with 24 points and Mike Conley had 15 points and 10 assists for Memphis, which finished with a 46-36 record in the regular season.

The Grizzlies earned their first playoff win since coming into the league as an expansion team in Vancouver, Canada, 16 years ago.

"It's nice from an annoyance perspective to have it out of the way, because I don't have to answer questions about being 0 and 13," Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins said.

They were swept by San Antonio in four games in the 2004 playoffs.

Memphis was behind in the final minute of the game when Shane Battier nailed three-pointer with 23 seconds left, giving Memphis a slim 99-98 lead.

San Antonio tried to force overtime, but Richard Jefferson missed a long range shot as the clock ticked down.

Memphis players raced onto the court as the buzzer sounded to celebrated their first playoff win in 13 attempts.

Battier was with Memphis when they were swept by San Antonio seven years ago.

"It was awesome. I'm really happy for the city," Battier said. "Beale Street will be a fun place tonight. Most of these guys don't know the history or the heartache that the city has gone through. I'm happy for the city."

France's Tony Parker led San Antonio with 20 points. Tim Duncan had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Spurs, who lost their sixth straight playoff series opener.

But the Spurs were forced to play without all-star guard Manu Ginobili who sat out with a sprained right elbow. Ginobili was injured during the final game of the regular season against Phoenix.

He will be re-evaluated by doctors to see if he can play in Wednesday's game two of the best-of-seven series.

George Hill started in Ginobili's place but shot just two-of-seven and finished with 15 points.

The Spurs were six-of-15 from the three-point line. Matt Bonner drained two from long range in the final two minutes as his second one gave the Spurs a 96-94 lead with 88 seconds left.

LeBron James posts All-Star Game's first triple-double since Michael Jordan

LOS ANGELES -- As LeBron James fielded questions from the press corps at Staples Center on Sunday night, he was asked about his favorite moments from All-Star weekend.

The Miami star answered by talking about charity, describing how richly he was rewarded for taking part in a number of good-will efforts in the days leading up to the game itself. Yet after the West had won 148-143, it was the MVP voters who had been in the giving spirit. At James' expense.

Despite his triple-double (29 points on 10-of-18 shooting, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists), James lost out to the Lakers' hometown hero, Kobe Bryant (37 points on 14-of-26 shooting, 14 rebounds and three assists) for the game's top award. The voting is done with media members accounting for nine votes and the fan votes accounting for three more. The triple-double was only the second in All-Star game history -- and the first since Michael Jordan turned the trick in 1997.

"I just tried to showcase my talent on both ends of the floor -- defending, rebounding, scoring," James said. "We came up short. And you know for me, I'm all about winning, so (I'm) just a little disappointed in our game. Disappointed that we didn't win."

James hasn't been disappointing in the games that count, though, and he is in prime position to capture a third straight MVP honor with the way the Heat have turned their season around. After the 9-8 start that sparked so many doom and gloom predictions from South Beach and beyond, Miami has won 32 of 39 games and is currently tied with Boston for the Eastern Conference lead.

Yet James, whose Heat play at Sacramento on Tuesday, isn't content because of a recent stretch in which the Heat have gone 11-6 leading into the break.

"For the last third of the season, we have to understand that we cannot afford to take a step backwards and we have to keep moving forward," James said. "We have to continue to get better, because there are teams out there that's better than us right now."

All-Star MVP voting aside, however, no one was better than him on this Staples Center stage.

Cav’s Take Vengeance 55-point Defeat Against Lakers

Cleveland - The Lakers hit the All-Star break broken.

Looking nothing like the NBA champions on two occasions, which have dropped their third straight game, the loss of a magnificent 104-99 Wednesday night to the Cleveland Cavaliers - the worst team in the league, who avenged an embarrassing 55 points against Los Angeles last month.

Ramon Sessions came off the bench and scored 32 points for the Cavaliers, who were beaten by the Lakers 112-57 on Jan. 11. This loss was No. 11 in a series record in the league that eventually reached 26 before Cleveland ended last week with an overtime win against the package unless announced in Los Angeles, the Clippers.

Pau Gasol had 30 points and 20 rebounds for the Lakers.

Play the end of a tour of seven games, the Lakers spent much of the night seemed as if they were on vacation. Launched errant passes, forced shots and were unable to reach the Cavs down the stretch, despite a frantic return.

"It's back to the drawing board," said Lamar Odom, who asked what is the best team to do list. "Defense. Cohesion. Our chemistry on offense. I'm not worried. I think that's what we can fix it."
Kobe Bryant finished with 17 points on 8 of 25 shooting. Derek Fisher scored 19 for the Lakers, who committed 19 turnovers and furious Phil Jackson, coach of the normally quiet, he shouted at them during the idle time after inexcusable defensive deficiencies.

Eliminated in Orlando on Sunday is hardly cause for great concern. But a decline of 20 points at Charlotte on Monday, left both Jackson and Bryant silent. They expect more from the Lakers, and they do not see it.

But too bad they played, the Lakers had cut a 10-point lead to two in the last minute. But Anthony Parker and sessions in two free throws each in the last 17.9 seconds.

After the final horn Lakers slowly toward their locker room and returned home not knowing what might happen. With the trade deadline just a week, rumors involving Denver star Carmelo Anthony might heat up.

One thing is clear: Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak has to do something to wake your computer.

The Cavs, however, less than half of the official season on a high note.

This was their best season. They played with energy coach Byron Scott wants every night, and have given fans a taste of what might be ahead.

Bryant 3-pointer helped the Lakers cut a 12-point deficit late in the third three, but the Cavs rookie forward Christian Eyenga followed embed Cleveland fans who had just texting "OMG" to friends and one of the best in the league this season.

Eyenga Bryant blew past the basics, reared back his right hand and smashed the ball through the block Gasol made a lazy society. Cleveland's bench erupted scene not to be included here because LeBron James has given them an almost every night.

Jackson seems to have lost patience with his team full of stars, which seemed tired of the way to win.

In the second half, called the Zen Master on Gasol in two separate dead and the coach's 11-time champion has been busy and also show the Lakers what they have erred on its erasable notepad.
Parker's jumper to end the first half capped by the jet 8-0 Cavs.

As his players back on the floor, Jackson sat in his high chair, orthopedic stunned by the shocking ineptitude of his team.

Bryant did not take a loss to Charlotte well, and he was still in a sour mood after the morning shootaround Lakers'. Perhaps it helps that he had to spend two days in the cold in Cleveland, but Bryant was not clearly beyond the performance of Los Angeles on Wednesday.

"Next game," he said dryly.

Bryant, who has been bothered by flu-like symptoms earlier this week refused to discuss what happened against the Bobcats, or if he and his teammates have worked on something in particular.

Things did not start well for the champions. Bryant made his second mistake with 5:37 left in the first quarter en route to the bank, he said something to the referee Kane Fitzgerald and was beaten by a technique. With Bryant, the Cavs have participated in the filming 11-2 and opened a lead of 10 points.

The Lakers were out of sync, and bungled their game was perhaps better in a possession of the second quarter when Gasol has turned and fired a passage where he waited for a teammate to be. There was nobody and the ball jumped into the feet of the coaches in Los Angeles.

Top 10 Highest Paid Athletes in the World

Whenever I see how much athletes are getting paid every year, it makes me want to start my life over again and devote myself to sports. I’m sure a lot of us feel this way but since we can’t get a redo, we can at least gape at the numbers and tell each other what we would do with the cash. Now let’s take a look at the top paid athletes in the world.

1. Tiger Woods ($110 million)

Woods has earned almost $900 million in prize money, endorsements and appearance fees during his 13-year professional golf career and next year is poised to become the first athlete to earn $1 billion during a career. Woods racked up more than twice the earnings of any other athlete over the past 12 months despite being sidelined for eight months after knee surgery thanks to lucrative endorsement deals with Accenture, Gillette and Nike as well as a thriving golf course design business.

2. Kobe Bryant ($45 million)

Bryant secured his place among the NBA’s all-time greats when he won his fourth NBA title with the Los Angeles Lakers in June. The Black Mamba’s popularity is at its zenith as his No. 24 jersey is the top seller in the U.S., Europe and China. Bryant pads his $21 million Lakers salary through endorsement deals with Nike, Upper Deck, Activision and VitaminWater.

3. Micheal Jordan ($45 million)

MJ retired as a player for the third and presumably final time six years ago, but he is still the most famous athlete in the United States. The Jordan Brand is approaching $1 billion in sales for Nike which turned Jordan into a marketing phenomenon. Jordan is on the short list of potential buyers for the Charlotte Bobcats where he is head of basketball operations and a minority owner.

4. Kimi Raikkonen ($45 million)

Formula One’s highest-paid driver finished a disappointing third in the World Championship standings last year after winning the title in 2007. This year has been even worse for the Iceman who sits in 10th place in the current standings. Ferrari resigned Raikkonen in September to a one-year contract extension keeping the Finn behind the wheel for Ferrari through 2010.

5. David Beckham ($42 million)

Becks is far from the best player on the pitch, but he is still the most famous which is why companies like Adidas, Giorgio Armani and Motorola pay him millions for his endorsement. Beckham spent five months on loan this year playing for AC Milan before his planned return to play for the Los Angeles Galaxy in July when the MLS season is half over.

6. LeBron James ($40 million)

The NBA’s MVP led the Cleveland Cavaliers to the league’s best record and had a playoff performance for the ages this year, but his team was bounced from the playoffs by the Orlando Magic in the Conference Finals. His free agency next summer has teams maneuvering to get under the salary cap in hopes of signing King James. The Cavs can offer the biggest contract under NBA salary rules, but James might go in search of a bigger market.

7. Phil Mickelson ($40 million)

Playing second fiddle to Tiger Woods has proven very lucrative for the world’s second-ranked player. His most lucrative deal is with Callaway, which signed Mickelson to a five-year extension this year. Other sponsors include Barclay’s, Exxon, KPMG and Rolex. Mickelson has won $54 million in prize money during his career, third all-time behind Woods and Vijay Singh

8. Manny Pacquiao ($40 million)

Pac-Man hogged the boxing spotlight over the past year with victories in two blockbuster fights against Oscar De La Hoya in December and Ricky Hatton in March that combined generated more than $100 million in pay-per-view revenue in the U.S. A member of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, Pacquiao plans to run for political office when his days in the ring are over.

9. Valentino Rossi ($35 million)

The Doctor won his eighth World Championship in 2008 after two straight years of falling short of the title. The biggest star in motorcycle racing earns $16 million annually from his contract to ride for Yamaha and his earnings more than double when you count licensing income, bonuses and endorsement deals with the likes of energy drink Monster.

10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. ($34 million)

Earnhardt was chosen as Nascar’s most popular driver for a sixth straight year in 2008 despite winning only one race during the past two seasons. His merchandise sales were twice the total of any other driver. Earnhardt’s biggest personal sponsorship deals are with Adidas, Chevrolet, Polaris, Wrangler and Nationwide Insurance, which he added this year.

Who’s Next?

NEW YORK (AP)—The Lakers’ Kobe Bryant will earn another ring and Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant will snatch the MVP award away from LeBron James.

Those are among the opinions of NBA general managers who voted in the ninth annual NBA.com GM survey, which was released Wednesday. Los Angeles was decided on by 63 percent of the respondents to repeat as champions, with 33 percent of the vote going to James and the new-look Miami Heat.

Durant, the MVP of the U.S. victory in the world basketball championship, received 67 percent of the MVP vote. James, the two-time MVP, was picked by only 4 percent.

Top pick John Wall was the overwhelming favorite for Rookie of the Year, claiming 68 percent.
The GMs picked Boston—a unanimous choice in the Atlantic—Chicago, Miami, the Lakers, Dallas and Oklahoma City as division champions.

Why Shaquille O’Neal Play for the Enemy?

Just after the Los Angeles Lakers won last season's title, Kobe Bryant(notes) let slip a little comment ("I just got one more than Shaq. You can take that to the bank. You know how I am, I don't forget anything.") That proved what a lot of people had suspected for years — the Kobe/Shaq feud isn't over. As much as they'll be buddy-buddy at All-Star games or before their teams play each other, these two want nothing more than to destroy each other and prove that they are the best player of their generation. No matter what they say or how they act, that's always going to be the case.

In fact, the fact that that enmity will never die is the very reason the Boston Celtics took a chance on Shaquille O'Neal(notes). No, really, it is. Just because Kobe Bryant mentioned Shaq at his postgame press conference, the Celtics inked the well-traveled big man. Seriously. The Boston Globe's Gary Washburn has the proof.

Of course, this could be all a part of Kobe's master plan. It probably went something like beat the Celtics, rile up Shaquille O'Neal, have him convince Boston he'll help because he wants to beat Kobe one last time, then Boston signs Shaq and realizes he's not quite as good as he used to be and his presence in the locker room destroys the fragile chemistry that the Celtics have built. Just like that, there's one less contender for the Lakers' third straight title. It's a genius move, and it's one that only Kobe Bryant could conceive. And while it's totally far-fetched, it's kind of not that far-fetched. Only moderate distance-fetched, I'd say.

That being said, if Shaquille O'Neal is as dedicated to besting Kobe Bryant as the Celtics' brass thinks he is, Boston's getting a great deal. Less than $1.5 million for a motivated Shaq is totally worth it, even if he only plays 20 minutes a game. Sure he might struggle mightily against hyperathletic teams like the Heat and Magic in the Eastern Conference playoffs before Boston even meets the Lakers in the finals, but those are just minor details.

Eclipsing Suns Hope to Shine Again in Phoenix

The Phoenix Suns were left damaged and baffled after losing their second successive game to the rolling Los Angeles Lakers in the best-of-seven Western Conference finals series on Wednesday.

Regardless of delivering more than 100 points in each of the first two encounters in Los Angeles, the Phoenix Suns have been powerless to cope with the versatility of their bigger opponents.

"We are just having a hard time," as Phoenix coach Alvin Gentry told to the reporters after his boys were beaten 124-112 at the Staples Center in game 2. "We can't slow them down, he added.

In Monday's series opening, Lakers All-Star guard Kobe Bryant mocked the Suns as he piled up 40 points in a sensational master class to help the NBA champions to a devastating 128-107 victory.

On Wednesday, Kobe Bryant become the catalyst, recording a playoff-high 13 assists as Spain’s pride forward Pau Gasol merged and drove his way through the Suns defense for a personal total of 29 points.

Gentry said “You do an enormous job on Kobe, and I thought we did it tonight, and then they go to Pau,". "As we double-team Pau and there's Lamar on the other side of the pocket. And we get it out of Lamar's hand; Jordan Farmar exists and makes shots.

Lakers Squash Suns In Game 1

Yet on a troubled knee, Kobe Bryant had NP giving the Los Angeles Lakers an early opening in the Western Conference showdown.

Bryant makes 40 points, Lamar Odom added 19 points and 19 boards, and the Lakers opened the series with merciless offensive competence in a 128-107 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Monday night.

Spain cager Pau Gasol made 21 points for the top-seeded Lakers, who won their seventh straight playoff game and shattered the Suns' six-game streak with a phenomenal second half highlighted by Bryant's 21-point third quarter.

The defending NBA champions bang the third-seeded Suns at their own uptempo game when necessary, gracefully running the court to set up baskets for Bryant in his sixth straight 30-point game. Kobe Bryant then rested his tender knee for most of the fourth quarter in the 11th 40-point game of his playoff career.

Moreover, Amare Stoudemire scored 23 points and Steve Nash contributes 13 points and 13 assists for the Suns, who hadn't lost since April 24. Robin Lopez started at center and makes 14 points in his playoff debut, but Phoenix Suns couldn't keep up with the champs in its first conference finals appearance since 2006.