Rivers ‘leaning heavily toward coming back’

The hottest coaching commodity in the NBA isn’t even on the market.

The hottest coaching commodity has a job. The question is whether or not he wants to keep it.

Doc Rivers broke his silence on the matter last night.

“I’m leaning heavily toward coming back,’’ the Celtics coach said after his season ended with a 97-87 loss to the Heat in Game 5 last night. “I made up my mind the last couple of weeks. I’m a Celtic. I’m competitive, as well. I love our guys.

“Listen, there’s been a contract for basically three months there,’’ Rivers added. “Danny [Ainge] and Wyc [Grousbeck] have been on the other side of patience. It gave us a long time to talk about it as a family. I haven’t signed anything or done anything but it’s there and I probably will sign it.

“We only got one [child] left at the house and he basically told me he didn’t want me home. It will be easier and that’s one of the things for my family because it’s only Austin playing and Spencer. The other two are graduated from college. And it will be less travel in a lot of ways and they can come see me more because my wife only has one kid in the house. So that’s big for us. I told [Wyc] one of the games here, whatever you figure out with [my agent], I’ll probably do it.’’

Make no mistake. It’s a given in the minds of every NBA observer that Rivers would have his pick of jobs should he come to the conclusion that he has gone far enough with the one he has.

For the last four years it has been a good job. But you don’t need that proverbial PhD in Hoopology to know that it’s not going to be a plum job for much longer. The Big Three are getting up there in age, and Ainge will soon have a lot of rebuilding to do. Why should Doc put himself through that?

The man could not be in a better position. He won’t turn 50 until Oct. 13, which means he has a long shelf life as an NBA coach. The best part is that he is under absolutely no pressure to do anything. He can do whatever he likes.

Who among us hasn’t been speculating for a long time now that the 2011-12 season would be a perfect time for Rivers to kick back, take a year off, maybe grab a little broadcast gig if he likes — don’t forget that he was a top-of-the-line color man — and go see son Austin play for Duke? And when he’s not doing that, he could watch son Spencer play for his high school team. And when he’s not doing that, he could go watch daughter Callie play professional volleyball.

That’s all before we even discuss the impending lockout and the very real possibility that it may be well into 2012 before we see a real, live NBA game.

It’s not as if by taking a year off anyone in the NBA is going to forget just who Glenn “Doc’’ Rivers is. Every general manager has his cellphone number; you can count on that.

Rivers was always well thought of, but in the last year or so his reputation has grown exponentially. Coaching a championship team (2008) will enhance anyone’s résumé, and people likewise took notice when the Celtics extended the Magic to seven games without Kevin Garnett the following year.

Things really took a turn skyward last year, when the Celtics surprised the basketball world by coming within 94 seconds of beating the Lakers for what would have been championship No. 18. Doc’s stock soared.

He began his NBA career as a coaching prodigy, a 36-year-old player-turned-broadcaster-turned-coach who took an Orlando team picked to finish last and almost got it into the playoffs. For this he was named Coach of the Year in 2000.

The coaching business being among the more volatile ways of making a living in American society, he was introduced to the flip side three years later, when a team that was supposed to be built around Grant Hill didn’t have Grant Hill and got off to a brutal start (1-10). At that point, the Magic made Doc Rivers an ex-coach.

That bumpy ending in Orlando didn’t deter Ainge, who brought Rivers to Boston, a city where Rivers first attracted attention a little over two decades earlier by putting on the best guard show ever at one of the Boston Shootouts.

It has certainly been an interesting ride here. For one thing, Doc Rivers is the only coach in the history of the NBA who presided over an 18-game losing streak one year and was able to hoist the championship trophy the next. It was primarily about the players, of course. That’s always the case.

But it was also about recognizing what had to be done in order to make those marquee players into a unit. It was about having the prescience to take the Big Three on that Duck Boat ride to give them a teeny taste of what winning a championship in Boston would be like. It was about trotting out the “Ubuntu’’ theme. It was about classic personnel management, of knowing how to adjust to the whims and habits and aspirations of proud veterans. It was about recognizing the special talents of Rajon Rondo, talents that were accompanied by a very peculiar psyche that Doc is still trying to probe to this day.

It was about making it clear that any team success was going to start with defense, and then getting everyone involved to buy into what he was selling. Whatever he was selling, it must have been appealing, because no Celtics team ever played harder from the first exhibition to the final 131-92 Game 6 destruction of the Lakers than the 2007-08 edition. I can state that categorically. The 1985-86 team was better, but it took nights off. Doc’s 2007-08 team took no nights off.

It was about Doc maturing as a coach. He has to be 50 percent better at every aspect of coaching than he was in Orlando.

The word is out. There may be an NBA player or two who wouldn’t want to play for Doc Rivers, but I can’t imagine who it would be. His people skills and his sheer humanity separate him from the pack.

Why should he stay? The situation here is only going to deteriorate. He is at the perfect point in his professional life to take a year off and then see what new, challenging opportunities present themselves. He has given the Celtics great service. Then again, I’m sure he feels a sense of loyalty to his core group. But they’re all big boys. They would understand.

Doc Rivers is in an enviable position, but it’s only because he has earned it.

Thunder evens series against Grizzlies with triple overtime win

Kevin Durant scored six of his 35 points in the third overtime, and the Oklahoma City Thunder survived a thriller in holding off the Memphis Grizzlies, 133-123, in a game that ended Tuesday morning.

With the victory, the Thunder grabbed back home-court advantage and tied this Western Conference semifinal at 2-2.

Game 5 is on Wednesday night back in Oklahoma City. The winner of this series will play the Dallas Mavericks in the conference finals.

Russell Westbrook led the Thunder with 40 points. James Harden added 19, and Daequan Cook had 10.

The Grizzlies ran out of energy in the third overtime as they hit just one of nine from the floor.

Zach Randolph led Memphis with 34 points and 16 rebounds. Marc Gasol had 26 and 21 rebounds.

O.J. Mayo had 18 and Mike Conley 16 before both fouled out. Greivis Vasquez had 14.

Conley forced the first overtime with his lone 3 of the game. Vasquez, the rookie playing because Conley had fouled out late in the first overtime, hit a 3 to set up the second overtime. Gasol scored on a tip-in that set up the third OT.

The Thunder had their chances to win at the end of regulation and each overtime.

Westbrook's jumper hit the rim before the buzzer to end the first 48 minutes. Durant, the NBA's leading scorer, had a 3 fall short of the basket at the end of the first overtime, and Westbrook's long jumper grazed the front of the rim at the buzzer ending the second overtime.

In the third overtime, the Thunder finally took control.

Miami 98, at Boston 90 (OT): LeBron James scored 35 points, Dwyane Wade had 28 and Chris Bosh had 20 as the Big Three dominated the Celtics and gave the Heat 1 3-1 edge in series.

"Wednesday night will be our greatest challenge that we've had with this group so far," Miami Coach Erik Spoelstra said. "We'll get their best games on Wednesday. And we have to be better. If we're real about what we want to do, we have to beat the Boston Celtics at their best."

One game after their worst performance as a threesome, James, Wade and Bosh had 83 of Miami's 98 points and 35 of its 45 rebounds.

They scored all 12 of Miami's points in overtime; Bosh and Wade had five apiece after James' fallaway jumper on the Heat's first possession of the extra period gave them the lead for good.

"We're the guys. We're the ones who get all the attention. We're the ones that get all the praise," Wade said.

"This team is going to go as far as us three takes it."

Paul Pierce scored 27, Ray Allen had 17 and Kevin Garnett had seven points and 10 rebounds for Boston. Rajon Rondo, who dislocated his left elbow Saturday in Game 3, played 39 minutes with a padded sleeve covering what appeared to be a brace on his left arm, scoring 10 with five assists.

Boston would need to win the next three games, two in Miami, to have a chance to defend their Eastern Conference championship.

"These are those moments. I look forward to it," Allen said.

"Everybody on this team, we know what to do. We can't talk about it; we just have to put our best foot forward.

James is starting to own these playoffs

As LeBron James plotted and schemed to find his destination as an NBA free agent last summer, his execution couldn't have been worse. A decent, good-hearted man, he managed to alienate every sports fan who values the concepts of respect and humility.

Still, the man had a dream, and it was realized Monday night in Boston. Miami doesn't have its berth in the Eastern Conference finals, not yet, but Game 4 against the Celtics represented the essence of James' vision.

The fact that it happened in Boston - a 98-90 overtime win giving Miami a 3-1 series lead - was indescribably important. That's where LeBron's Cleveland Cavaliers came up empty, time after time, and there were those who questioned whether James could ever have an impact in that building.

He had more than impact Monday night. He owned the place. As much as Dwyane Wade was brilliant (28 points) and Chris Bosh was invaluable (20 points, 12 rebounds), LeBron had a 20-point first half that served as a formidable, ominous answer to the inspired play of Rajon Rondo.

Against most teams, with Rondo fighting off the pain of a dislocated elbow and contributing in every conceivable way, the Celtics would have taken a massive lead on the strength of pure emotion. It was James, methodically scoring both inside and out, who kept the first half close (53-50, Boston) and didn't let up, finishing with a game-high 35 points.

Let's take a moment to marvel at Rondo's performance. He wore such a stoic look, denying the Heat even a glimpse of his torment, you wondered if he'd somehow crafted a miraculous recovery. He brazenly dribbled with the left hand, used that shattered left arm to deflect a pass, picked himself off the floor after a couple of brutal spills, even threw a sweet lefty dish that set up a couple of Kevin Garnett free throws.

But the pain was killing Rondo. It had to be, and most the Celtics had admitted during the off-day workout that they'd stopped trying to figure him out. "If everybody's going to wear white, Rondo's going to wear green," said Ray Allen. "He's a ... I don't even know how to explain him."

Sometimes, no words are necessary. And here's one thing that isn't such a mystery (although the TNT television crew didn't mention it): Even at his best, Rondo virtually never shoots with his left hand. He'll go out of his way to use the right, and we saw a number of those occasions Monday night - including, regrettably, a wide-open layup that Rondo missed from the left side with 1:12 left in the game - a shot that, if made, might have prevented overtime.

In their own way, far more subtle, the Heat stirred up plenty of motivation. The old master, team President Pat Riley, spoke privately with his players after Sunday's shoot-around, all about history and respect for the game and what it's like to contest a huge game in Boston. "Pat's been through this," said LeBron, referring to Riley's fabulous coaching career with the Lakers. "He's seen everything there is to know about."

Then there was the first-half appearance of Udonis Haslem, a forgotten man on the Heat's roster after sitting out six months with a torn ligament in his left foot. Haslem was raised in Miami, a rough part of town, and as a member of the Heat's 2006 championship team, he truly understood what it meant to the city. When the Denver Nuggets and Dallas Mavericks came after Haslem on last summer's free-agent market, offering far more than the Heat could afford, the "Big Three" - James, Wade and Bosh - each cut millions off their salaries to make sure he stayed.

"They all said, 'I'm in' without hesitation," Haslem said. "No questions asked. They respected me as a player, trusted me as a leader and friend. I told them, 'Thank you. You didn't make a mistake. I won't let you down.' "

Haslem played only three minutes Monday night, leaving the floor in frustration after two quick fouls, but wait until his name is called in Miami during Wednesday night's Game 5. That will be a high-energy moment rivaling any we've seen during this remarkable set of playoff series.

The Celtics will have serious regrets about Game 4. They hated to place so much responsibility on Delonte West, especially with a badly injured shoulder. They watched Garnett virtually disappear on offense, going 1-for-10 from the floor. But Miami's defense was the hidden story of this game, a suffocating brand of team-wide desire that made the matadorish Lakers (against Dallas) look pathetic in comparison.

In the end, James headed toward the locker room wearing a look of immense satisfaction. This is what he meant, so many months ago, even if the proper words failed him. The true story gets told on the floor.

NBA playoffs: Thunder outlast Grizzlies in three overtimes; Heat go up 3-1 on Celtics. B2

Rondo set to give it a try for Celtics

After watching his sometimes mercurial point guard, Rajon Rondo, dismiss conventional wisdom and excruciating pain and return to the court Saturday night 20 minutes after dislocating his left elbow, Celtics coach Doc Rivers hesitated little yesterday in offering an injury report on Rondo.

Hours before Rondo’s MRI came back, Rivers told reporters at the Sports Authority Training Center that the guard would play in tonight’s Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Heat. Later yesterday, the MRI showed no fractures of the bone, meaning Rondo indeed is likely to play tonight.

The question Rivers won’t address until perhaps the first quarter tonight is whether Rondo can play effectively. He essentially used one arm in the fourth quarter of the Celtics’ 97-81 Game 3 victory at TD Garden, and the left arm could be an issue again.

“If he can’t help our team, [he won’t play],’’ Rivers said before the MRI results. “And if he can play, how well can he play and will he help or hurt our team?

“No. 1, we’re not going to hurt the player and we’re not going to do anything to hurt the team. It may not be until game time and the game until we find that out.’’

Guard Delonte West strained the back of his left shoulder Saturday night, but yesterday he said he felt better and he passed on an MRI.

“I’m optimistic about both, that they’re going to play,’’ Rivers said. “I don’t know why I am, but I am. I just don’t know how well either one can play . . . but if they’re on the floor, we’re healthy.’’

The Celtics have dealt with injuries all season and the postseason is proving no different. Center Shaquille O’Neal, who played eight minutes Saturday night, active for a game for just the second time since Feb. 1, experienced soreness in his right foot, but nothing more than anticipated.

The main concern is Rondo, who spent most of yesterday getting treatment after he reported to the training center. He was spotted eating breakfast in Waltham with no brace or restraint on his arm, and the MRI confirmed that the damage was not as severe as feared.

Rondo landed awkwardly in a scramble with Miami’s Dwyane Wade, and his left arm bent back grotesquely, causing the elbow to briefly pop out of its socket. Some saw it as Wade throwing Rondo to the floor.

“I don’t know if it was a hard foul,’’ Rivers said. “Let’s put it like this: He didn’t intend to hurt Rondo. I don’t honestly believe that 99 percent of cases in our league that the player ever intends to hurt anybody but he did. It just happens.’’

Rondo was helped to the locker room by trainer Ed Lacerte and team physician Brian McKeon, with team president Danny Ainge joining them. The group collaborated after Rondo’s elbow was popped back into place, with the point guard assuring McKeon that he could withstand the pain.

“The only [reluctance] was I told Eddie, if I see one thing, he’s out, and I mean team-wise,’’ Rivers said. “If I thought he was hurting the team, I would take him out. Listen, I played with one hand my entire career, so you can do it. Let me tell you. And he did it.’’

According to orthopedic surgeon David A. Alessandro of Excel Orthopedic Specialists in Woburn, Rondo could be limited tonight, but perhaps not as severely as expected.

“The elbow is an inherently stable joint, so once you get it back into place, people feel better, but I’m almost positive that [yesterday] and certainly over the next week or so, he’ll be pretty sore, especially when he tries to extend that elbow completely,’’ Alessandro said. “That last 10 to 20 degrees [of extending] is going to be very sore, and that’s how you can re-dislocate. I was very impressed he came back in because this is not a little thing. This is a legit injury.’’

Alessandro said dislocated elbows generally occur in wrestlers and perhaps the Celtics’ doctors would fit Rondo with a brace that would prevent full extension.

“I think if it is the routine 90 to 95 percent of normal plays in a game, I think he’s going to be fine, he’s going to be limited, but fine,’’ Alessandro said. “But it’s that 5 percent of the time . . . if he gets clipped going to the hoop, gets his legs taken out from under him, goes down breaking a fall. If that left arm is the first arm out there, that’s where the danger is going to come.

“It’s a little bit of a risk, but it’s not a 50-50 chance he’s going to dislocate his elbow.’’

O’Neal’s return makes big difference

Shaquille O’Neal was active for a Celtics game for just the second time since Feb. 1, giving Boston a huge post presence and perhaps altering this Eastern Conference semifinal series. He scored 2 points in 8 minutes 29 seconds in the Celtics’ 97-81 victory over the Heat in Game 3 last night at TD Garden.

“I thought Shaq had a big impact in the second half, just his presence,’’ coach Doc Rivers said. “He came out of the game healthy.’’

O’Neal had practiced the past two days and participated in the team’s shootaround yesterday morning in Waltham. He came off the bench last night.

O’Neal was still walking with a limp because of his sore right Achilles’ tendon and foot. After workouts, Rivers said the veteran center made great progress over the past few weeks.

O’Neal was expected to return during the first-round series with the Knicks, but his recovery has been slow.

“With him, it will just be the eye test and whatever you think he can handle,’’ Rivers said before Game 3. “He looked good this morning and [Friday] he had a good practice.

“Obviously Shaq can’t do things that he could do 15 years ago. But when he comes in and fills a role for this team, he’s been terrific for us.’’

O’Neal gave the Celtics a much-needed post presence, a much-needed rebounder, and another inside scorer. When he has been healthy with the Celtics, he has been stellar. But he had made one game appearance in more than three months, and that was a five-minute stint during which he injured his right calf.

“It’s more just the power and the force that he can bring that will help us,’’ Rivers said. “He can do that in some ways offensively. And defensively, it’s no fun to drive against Shaq. Our guys learned that in practice.’’

Jermaine O’Neal remained the starting center while Shaquille O’Neal replaced Nenad Krstic as the first center off the bench.

Winning attitude The Heat have not won at TD Garden since April 6, 2007, when Shaquille O’Neal (22 points, 13 rebounds) led a Dwyane Wade-less club to an 88-85 win. Ryan Gomes led the Paul Pierce-less Celtics with 24 points. Who knew a few months later, the course of the Celtics’ franchise would change, and the current Big Three would run off 10 straight home wins over Miami (including postseason)?

Wade, who wasn’t part of that last Miami victory because of a dislocated left shoulder, said he realized how difficult a venue the Garden has been for the past four years.

“We’ve lost a lot of close games in this building,’’ Wade said after his team’s shootaround. “We’ve got to get over the hump. It’s playoff basketball. Obviously we’re a different team. We’ve got to come out on the court and we have to do it. We have to take all the punches they throw at us for 48 minutes and still be there standing at the end.’’

The Heat have a 87-57 edge in attempts from the free throw line in the series. The Celtics acknowledged that getting to the line has been the main issue in the series, especially when Wade scored 7 points in that pivotal fourth quarter of Game 2, all from the free throw line. Chris Bosh attempted 11 free throws in Game 2, 11 more than Kevin Garnett.

“Our game is, we’re attackers,’’ Wade said. “Myself and LeBron are two of the most attack players in the league when it comes to getting points in the paint, putting pressure on the defense. We’re not necessarily going in there and looking for fouls. We’ve been able to go in hard and get put on the line. Whatever the game calls for, we have the team to be able to do it.’’

The Celtics were fully aware that Miami scored 26 percent of its points in the first two games from the line and of Wade’s 66 points in the series, 19 are from the line.

“It better be [a way to keep them off the line],’’ Rivers said. “If you split [James and Wade’s] shots in half so far, it’s 60 shots — 30 of their makes have been from their greatness, the other 30 have been from our ability not to follow our game plan. We have to limit those 30.’’

Hot Hill Celtics assistant Armond Hill makes sure to keep a low profile, but he showed another side when he learned that a reporter Tweeted a Celtics strategy he wrote on the grease board before the game.

Hill was informed of the Tweet and quieted the locker room with his voice, warning reporters not to Tweet or write down any of the Celtics’ plans during their interview sessions in the locker room. As the media surrounded Ray Allen for a pregame interview, a still-angry Hill stood in front of the grease board, and later continued writing the game plan.

Not yet Although he was draining jumper after jumper during shootaround, Udonis Haslem is not quite ready to return from a right foot injury that has cost him five months. Haslem, who tore a ligament in the foot in November, is close to returning, according to Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, but the team is being cautious . . . To make room for O’Neal on the active roster, the Celtics put Carlos Arroyo on the inactive list. He has yet to make an appearance in the postseason. The other inactives were Avery Bradley and Sasha Pavlovic.

Who wins, advances to NBA Finals?

The Lakers are still 12 wins from another Phil Jackson three-peat, but the Mavericks are just two wins from sending the Zen Master into an early retirement. Who saw that coming?

And the Dallas domination in L.A. is hardly the only major storyline -- not with the Heat blitzing the Celtics, the Bulls starting slowly and the Thunder and Grizzlies duking it out.

So where do things stand after eight wild games in the second round of the playoffs? We asked five writers to weigh in:

1. True or False: Game 2 foretold the rest of the Celtics-Heat series.

 Phillip Barnett, Forum Blue & Gold: True. The Celtics haven't shown any sign of being able to stop both Dwyane Wade and LeBron James or the ability to get points when they need them. Boston is shooting 51.4 percent from behind the arc, but still lost both games by at least three possessions. This suggests Miami's interior defense will carry them to the conference finals.

Zach Harper, Daily Dime Live: True. While I think the Celtics can still pull it together and make a series out of this, how do they stop LeBron and Wade? The Celtics haven't shown any game plan to get either out of his comfort zone, other than praying for missed jumpers. Not exactly championship ball.

John Krolik, Cavs: The Blog: True. The Celtics have too much experience, talent and pride to go down without a fight, but they don't appear to have an answer for the one-two punch of Dwyane Wade and LeBron James or Miami's swarming defense. If the Heat can continue to keep Rondo and Garnett under control and get contributions from Bosh and the supporting cast, they'll win at least one of two in Boston and control the series.

Michael Schwartz, Valley of the Suns: False. The Celtics have never gone away quietly in the Big Three era. With three days off to rest their creaky limbs and sharpen their game plan against LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, the Celtics will make this the hard-fought series we all expected in Boston.

Ethan Sherwood Strauss, HoopSpeak: True. The Celtics' offense is insipid in a way that speaks to an athleticism chasm -- not getting to the line, not converting close shots. And for all our precious analysis: Boston's problem is that they're much worse than Miami.

2. True or False: Game 2 foretold the rest of the Grizzlies-Thunder series.

 Phillip Barnett, Forum Blue & Gold: False. Oklahoma City came out fired up in Game 2 with the home crowd behind them. They concentrated their efforts on stopping Zach Randolph, and got a whopping 48 points from their bench. It's hard to imagine the Memphis bench being outplayed to that extent at home.

Zach Harper, Daily Dime Live: True. I don't expect Zach Randolph to miss every field goal in three out of four quarters again, but the Thunder figured out how to be physical against the bully in the yard. Now it's up to Memphis to figure out how to keep up with Durant and his immense scoring help.

John Krolik, Cavs: The Blog: False. Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph destroyed the Thunder in Game 1, then laid complete eggs in Game 2. The Thunder's offense should continue to roll, but Gasol and Randolph will give them much more trouble in the remaining games.

Michael Schwartz, Valley of the Suns: False. As good as Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol have been all postseason, I find it hard to believe they will shoot anywhere near as poorly in future games as they did in their 5-for-22 effort in Game 2. As Memphis' interior game returns, so will the Grizzlies' chances in this series.

Ethan Sherwood Strauss, HoopSpeak: True. I write that with a heavy heart, since Memphis is a lovable gate-crasher. But the blue bear just doesn't have the same size advantage as last series.

3. True or False: Game 2 foretold the rest of the Hawks-Bulls series.

Phillip Barnett, Forum Blue & Gold: True. Joe Johnson was fantastic in Game 1, shooting 5-for-5 from behind the arc. In Game 2, the Bulls increased their defensive intensity and completely dominated on the boards. I like the Bulls' defense to stay one step ahead of the Hawks' offense for the remainder of this series.

Zach Harper, Daily Dime Live: True. We saw what happens when the Hawks aren't hitting improbable shots against the Bulls; they get lost in a catacomb of apathetic effort. I don't think the Bulls will really have a hard time keeping Atlanta from getting a comfortable rhythm on offense. If they can figure out Rose's shooting slump, this should be over.

John Krolik, Cavs: The Blog: True. Even if the Hawks can continue to make Derrick Rose work for his points and assists, they'll have to figure out a way to score on Chicago's defense. Their only path to victory is to make enough tough long-range jumpers to overcome Chicago's underwhelming offense three more times, and I don't think they'll do it. Then again, people said the same thing after Game 2 of the Orlando series.

Michael Schwartz, Valley of the Suns: True. There's a reason Tom Thibodeau earned Coach of the Year honors: The man knows how to coach defense. The Hawks managed a mere 96.6 points per 100 possessions in their series win over the Magic, so it should not be a surprise when their offense continues to sputter against Thibs' Bulls the way it did in Game 2.

Ethan Sherwood Strauss, HoopSpeak: True. Though gravity eludes actual hawks, it sometimes drags their human avatars into the dirt. Atlanta's strategy of heaving contested moonballs just isn't sustainable.

4. True or False: Game 2 foretold the rest of the Mavs-Lakers series.

Phillip Barnett, Forum Blue & Gold: True. The Lakers haven't found a way to get their bigs going in either second-round game, leading to way more jumpers than they'd like. Dirk Nowitzki is unstoppable, and other Mavs are benefiting from Laker double-teams. There are lots of questions about the Lakers, and I'm not sure if they have the answers.

Zach Harper, Daily Dime Live: False. I'm not saying the Lakers will come back and win this series. But we're done seeing Kobe defer and not force up 25 or more shots each game. If the bench is going to be afraid to step up and Gasol continues to forget he's really tall, it will be on Kobe's shoulders.

John Krolik, Cavs: The Blog: False. While the Lakers probably won't win both games in Dallas to tie the series, I expect that their front line, particularly Pau Gasol, will look better in Games 3 and 4. And while the Lakers weren't built to shoot 3-pointers, they will shoot better than Wednesday's 2-for-20 from deep in the next couple of games.

Michael Schwartz, Valley of the Suns: False. Even after dropping a pair at home, it's hard to count the Lakers out the way they have run through the Western Conference the past three postseasons. After missing 18-of-20 3-pointers in Game 2, the Lakers will get back in this series once their long-range shooting regresses to the mean.

Ethan Sherwood Strauss, HoopSpeak: True. When Dirk takes one-legged shots, his foot is planted on L.A.'s collective throat. Phil's guys languish in the shadow of immensely bad odds. Down 2-0, with three of the five remaining games in Dallas, the Lakers are trapped with no way out.

5. Which two teams should be favored now to meet in the NBA Finals?

Phillip Barnett, Forum Blue & Gold: After tonight, I'm inclined to say we're going to see a Mavericks-Heat series. I can't say that I'd be shocked if either the Lakers or Celtics come out of their series and go on to the Finals, but the Thunder and Bulls are looking like better second options in their respective conferences.

Zach Harper, Daily Dime Live: I'd really like to pick the Mavs for one last hurrah in the West, but I think we're going to get to see a Thunder-Heat Finals. It will be the first time in NBA history we've had a non-pluralized NBA Finals matchup. Could be revolutionary.

John Krolik, Cavs: The Blog: It's wide open, but I like the Mavericks and the Heat. (I know, they're the only two teams with 2-0 leads. I'm bold like that.) They look like the only teams executing consistently on both ends of the court, and both teams have enough experience and star power to make it to the Finals.

Michael Schwartz, Valley of the Suns: Miami has the two best players in the conference (sorry, D-Rose) and a 2-0 series lead while the Bulls have looked shaky most of the playoffs. The Mavericks seem to possess a mental toughness they lacked during previous fruitless playoff runs and have the champs in a 0-2 hole. It's looking like a rematch of the 2006 Finals.

Ethan Sherwood Strauss, HoopSpeak: Thunder-Heat is my Finals pick. Oklahoma City claims the most complete roster, Miami boasts basketball's two best players. Look for pervasive "good vs. evil" narratives to garnish fantastic games.

James and Wade score 63 as Heat top Celtics 102-91

Exactly 365 days after losing Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals at home — his former home in Cleveland, anyway — against Boston, James was on the cusp of losing the upper hand to the Celtics again.

Not this time.

James scored 24 of his 35 points in the second half, Dwyane Wade added 28 and the Heat used a late 14-0 run to pull away and beat the aching Celtics 102-91 in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series on Tuesday night.

"Feel good about it," James said. "Series is far — far, far, far — away from over. It's really just beginning for us."

James shot 14 of 25 from the field, and logged 44 minutes with no turnovers. Chris Bosh finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds for Miami, which leads the best-of-seven 2-0.

Game 3 in Boston isn't until Saturday night, and the Celtics may be particularly thankful for the break.

Rajon Rondo played through a balky back to score 20 points and add 12 assists for Boston, which got 16 points from Kevin Garnett and 13 from Paul Pierce — who retreated to the locker room for treatment on his strained left Achilles' in the first half. Ray Allen was held to seven points, and left with what he said was a bruised chest cavity courtesy of an elbow from James in the third quarter.

"Being down 2-0 doesn't scare any of us, doesn't make us nervous," Allen said. "It's just an opportunity to come out shining."

Boston tied the game at 80 on a pair of free throws by Pierce with 7:10 left. The Celtics missed their next six shots and Miami pulled away, taking command of both the game and the series.

And for James, it was delicious irony.

May 1, 2010: Cleveland opened the East semis at home with a win over Boston.

May 1, 2011: Miami opened the East semis at home with a win over Boston.

May 3, 2010: Cleveland loses Game 2, the first stumble on the way to falling in the series.

May 3, 2011: James gets what might go down as a breakthrough win — for him and the Heat — over Boston.

"We finally wore them down," James said.

Jeff Green scored 11 and Delonte West added 10 for the Celtics.

Even for a franchise with such fabled history as the Celtics, an 0-2 deficit represents a colossal challenge.

This is now the ninth time Boston has dropped the first two games in a best-of-seven series. In the previous eight, the Celtics prevailed only against the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1969 NBA finals.

And it's something this group of Celtics has never faced before, either.

The last time Boston lost the first two games of a playoff matchup was in 2004, when it was swept by Indiana. The current core of Celtics had lost Game 1s four other times before this series, then bounced back to win Game 2 each time, against Chicago and Orlando in 2009, then Cleveland and the Lakers in 2010.

"Nothing we can do about it," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "We've got a third game and we've got to take care of that. Whatever the past is, it is. They've won two games at home. But we can't allow them to play like this, or it's going to be tough at our place."

To win this series, Boston will need to prevail four times in a five-game span — which it did in the first round against Miami last year, then again in the second round at the expense of James and the Cavaliers in the East semis. So it can be done, but neither James (7-0) nor Wade (5-0) has ever been part of a playoff series defeat after their clubs won the first two games.

"This is a great team we are going against right now," James said. "We're just trying to give ourselves a good chance to win, just try to keep on attacking them, playing as hard as we can defensively, just trying to wear them down throughout the game, but it's a great team."

That's one of the titles the Heat are trying to claim, too.

James won the MVP award in 2009 and 2010, his reign officially ending a couple hours before Tuesday's game when the NBA made the long-expected announcement that Chicago's Derrick Rose was this season's top player.

James' name did not appear on nine of the 121 ballots cast. Wade was entirely left off all but 10 of the ballots; voters were asked to rank the league's best five players.

They noticed.

"At the end of the day, we don't really play this game for individual awards," Wade said. "He has two MVP trophies, which is awesome. I have a finals MVP trophy. Our body of work speaks for itself. What we've done in this game speaks for itself."

James scored 12 points in the third quarter, one more than he managed in the first half, to help Miami take a 72-67 cushion into the final 12 minutes. James then added the first basket of the fourth, but Boston answered with a 13-6 run over the next 4 minutes to knot the game at 80.

The outcome was undecided — momentarily.

That's when Miami's big run began, including a three-point play where James dunked and got fouled after Joel Anthony kept an offensive rebound alive. Mario Chalmers started it all with a 3-pointer — his only points of the night — off a pass from Wade, and Miami was on its way.

"Now the mental discipline begins," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "This thing is just getting started."

NOTES: All-Star guard Chris Paul sat near the Heat bench, with longtime James confidant Maverick Carter. ... Shaquille O'Neal (calf) was out again for Boston, while the Heat said Udonis Haslem (foot) still "isn't ready" to return from November foot surgery. ... Pierce played 33 minutes, giving him 4,259 in his Celtics playoff career, passing Dennis Johnson (4,258) for seventh in franchise history. ... Heat guard Mike Bibby's steal with 41 seconds left in the first quarter was his 100th in 87 playoff games.

Time on Celtics’ side between series

The Celtics [team stats] took the first of two days off. They’ll begin practice tomorrow and watch the Miami Heat play Game 5 of their first-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers [team stats] tomorrow night.

Their viewing pleasure may even be extended, should the Sixers somehow win and force a Game 6 on Friday night in Philadelphia.

Game 7 in Miami on Sunday? That’s generally assumed to be the day and place where Game 1 of the Eastern Conference second-round series begins between the Celtics and Heat, but right now it seems a month removed.

The Celtics get to prepare, rest, go out to dinner, play with the kids and prepare some more.

Those horrid back-to-back swings of the regular season aren’t coming back.

The Celtics aren’t kidding when they say that this is their time of year. With at least a week between their Game 4 win Sunday against the Knicks and their next game, they can prepare as if it’s training camp all over again, minus the bus ride to Salve Regina.

“It’s going to get us more healthy, and it will give the Big Four a chance to get their rest,” Jeff Green said as he hurried out of the locker room Sunday in New York to meet some friends and family. “It just gives us an opportunity to get our chemistry going.”

That is the bit of unfinished business that has to be tended to during the next six days.

The bench finally played well in Game 4, and especially where the performances of Green (five points, seven rebounds) and Glen Davis (14 points, five rebounds, 6-for-8 shooting) were concerned. Overall, the bench scored 25 points, after averaging 12.3 points in the first three games.

Delonte West played better in Game 4, but he still hasn’t produced one of his classic energy games. Nenad Krstic no longer makes appearances after halftime.

If this is what constitutes depth for the Celtics, then they have a lot to work on.

And then there’s the ongoing mystery of Shaquille O’Neal to worry about. His possible return for the second round will require a reconfiguring as well.

“There’s a lot of work ahead of us — a lot of work,” said Jermaine O’Neal, whose own progress in the starting lineup has helped revive the C’s defensive soul. “We’re going to take the next day and a half off, some guys are coming in on Tuesday, but we’re not even halfway there yet. We have much bigger plans than just getting into the second round.”

Nor do they want to expire among the palm trees on South Beach. The 100-77 pounding they suffered April 10 in Miami aside, the Celtics still consider the Heat a good matchup, one they can improve on with the extra time for preparation.

The rest will help tremendously, because coach Doc Rivers won’t have to worry as much about extending minutes for Paul Pierce [stats], Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo.

“We make story lines either way,” Allen said. “You talk about going from one series to the next series without any rest. Or you can have so much time off. For us the rest is good.”

Dating back to 2008, when the Celtics [team stats] didn’t even win a playoff road game until the conference finals on their way to the NBA title, they never have had this kind of gap between rounds. It’s uncharted territory.

“I think we talk ourselves into either way something is going to be good for us,” Allen said of the rest vs. no rest debate. “We’ll talk ourselves into it, whether we have no rest or there’s plenty of it. It’s all mental. The guys that we’re bringing along, the seventh and eighth guys on the team — that’s where it helps us a lot.”

It sounds good in theory, anyway.

“With our team you never know,” Rivers said. “Honestly I think it’s great, but who knows? We know that we’ve played well when we’ve had rest.”

NBA roundup: Celtics bounce Knicks in 4; Sixers stay alive

NEW YORK -- The Boston Celtics made the New York Knicks' return to the postseason a brief one.

Now the Celtics have a long break before that expected trip to Miami.

Kevin Garnett scored 26 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, Rajon Rondo added 21 points and 12 assists, and the Celtics swept their way into the Eastern Conference semifinals, holding on for a 101-89 victory over the Knicks on Sunday.

Ray Allen and reserve Glen Davis each added 14 points for the Celtics, the first team into the second round after sweeping a series.

Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony scored 32 points with nine rebounds and ex-Piston Chauncey Billups (sprained knee) did not play.

New Orleans 93, L.A. Lakers 88: Chris Paul scored 27 points with 15 assists and 13 rebounds as the host Hornets evened their first-round playoff series at 2-2. Paul scored 14 of New Orleans' 24 points in the fourth quarter. The All-Star guard then capped his triple-double performance by running down the clock and setting up Jarrett Jack's short jumper, which made it 90-86 with 9.3 seconds left. Kobe Bryant scored 17 for the Lakers but did not score in the first half and finished 5 of 18 shooting.

Philadelphia 86, Miami 82: Lou Williams hit a three-pointer with 8.1 seconds left to help the host 76ers avoid a sweep. Miami was 95 seconds away from winning Game 4, holding an 82-76 lead. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and the rest of the Heat didn't score again. Jrue Holiday made a three with 46.6 seconds left that sliced the deficit to one. Williams followed with a three from the top of the arc for an 84-82 lead.

Atlanta 88, Orlando 85: Jamal Crawford scored 25 points and Joe Johnson made four big free throws in the final 20 seconds for the host Hawks. Dwight Howard led the Magic with 29 points and 17 rebounds.

Rose's woes: Chicago Bulls star Derrick Rose had a walking boot on his left foot Sunday and was scheduled for an MRI on his sprained ankle. Rose sprained his left ankle late in the first quarter Saturday; the Bulls hope to have him available for Tuesday's Game 5.

Garden crowd quieted by Celts

Doc Rivers didn't care much about whether Amar'e Stoudemire would play or not Friday night. The Celtics coach was more concerned about his team getting right.

They did, and in resounding fashion as the Celtics hushed a raucous Madison Square Garden crowd hungry for the Knicks' first home playoff game in seven years.

The Celtics showed the overall complete game that made them NBA finalists twice in the last three years, and now has the Knicks staring at elimination after a 113-96 loss Friday night.

If the Celtics play the same way Sunday in Game 4 of the best-of-seven first-round series, they could sweep the Knicks, giving Stoudemire plenty of time to rest his injured back.

The Knicks' All-Star big man clearly wasn't himself as he finished with seven points, but the Celtics looked like their old selves.

Paul Pierce scored 38 points on 14for19 shooting, including 6-of-8 from three-point land. Ray Allen hit eight threes and finished with 32 points, and Rajon Rondo had an eye-popping 15-point, 20-assist, 11-rebound triple-double.

"It was a conscious effort to run our offense," Rivers said. "Paul and Ray were the focus. I thought Rondo had one of those great catcher games, one of those [Jason] Varitek games. He called a terrific game. That's a great sign for us, because when he does that it allows us to run pretty much what we want to run."

In the first two games in Boston, the Celtics weren't that impressive, aside from their end-of-game execution. But with Rondo leading them in Game 3, the Celtics went through stretches where they did whatever they wanted.

It started in the first quarter as they came out primed to run the Knicks off their own court. Eight minutes in, Boston led 22-5. The cushion came from a combination of Knicks sloppiness and Celtics effectiveness.

The Knicks roared back to draw within five on five different occasions in the second quarter. But the Celtics took control in the third.

They outscored the Knicks 34-19, registering the highest-scoring quarter either team had in this series. The Celtics shot 14for23 in the period and built a 23-point lead.

"We put together four quarters," Rondo said. "In the second half we played our game and we opened the game up."

It allowed Rivers, who said before the game he was "worried about getting our rhythm," to exhale. The Celtics found it with Rondo as the catalyst.

"He got himself into a rhythm," Rivers said.

"He got us into a rhythm and allowed us to make calls. When he gets into a rhythm it allows all of us, even the coaches, to get into a rhythm."

BRIEFS: Rivers said he hopes Shaquille O'Neal (strained right calf) will play at some point in this series. "He's on the road, which means he's getting better and he's closer," Rivers said. "I don't know if he'll play Sunday or not. We'll probably find out a little bit more [today]."

The Celtics may not need him.

Heat 98, Hawks 90

LeBron James collected 34 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as the visiting Miami Heat maintained their grip on the No. 2 spot in the Eastern Conference with a 98-90 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.

Dwayne Wade added 21 points and Chris Bosh scored 15 for the Heat (57-24), who stayed one game ahead of the Boston Celtics with one left to play.

Miami started out red-hot, shooting 63 percent (26 of 41) in the first half to cruise into the break with a 62-46 advantage. James and Wade were a combined 15 of 21 for 36 points before halftime.

The Hawks stepped up on the defensive end after the break, holding the Heat to 17 points in the third and beginning the fourth with a 21-9 burst to pull even, 88-88, with 3:29 remaining.

But after entering the game James Jones converted a four-point play that put the Heat back on top, 92-88. Wade blocked two straight shots on the other end and Jones drained another from beyond the arc to seal it.

Josh Smith had 17 points and six rebounds for Atlanta (44-37).