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Lakers hero
Derek Fisher:
Miracle shot ends greatest literally-last-second flurry in NBA playoff history. Fish's lifetime rep is secure; ".04" goes down in hoop legend.
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The Lead Item
Two Words For You:
EPIC. ENDING.
Can a fraction of a second be "epic?"
Hollywood's summer blockbuster "Troy" has nothing on
Thursday night's split-second finish -- the most
spectacular in NBA playoff history -- made
untouchably memorable by:
Who: Lakers over rival Spurs
What: Series-defining Game 5
Where: Hostile San Antonio
When: Climax of TV prime time
How: Where to start?!?!
Alone, Duncan's "winning" shot was ridiculous,
inspiring thousands of couch analysts to instantly
cry: "And he's not the NBA's MVP?!"
But then "The Point-Four Shot"
(as it will always be known), following those endless,
drama-ratcheting timeouts, by the most unlikely
player on the floor.
Stop calling it "lucky." Troy's Homer --
in the deus et machina attribution style of his
day -- would have used the word "fate."
Think the Lakers believe? The rest of us do.
Conspiracy Theory
Want a great conspiracy theory? The
Spurs filed a protest over the clock management for
that final shot; watch the NBA rule in favor of the
Spurs ... if the Lakers win Game 6, forcing the Game 7
you just know the NBA would like to see. (Maybe
not, but would you really put it past them? To wit:
watch that Game 6 officiating.)
More Playoffs
Nets/Pistons: The Pistons better right
the ship at home in Game 5 on Friday, or it could be a
humiliating Game 6 over-and-out Sunday in
Jersey.
Kings/T'wolves: Given both teams have won at
the other guys' house, Game 5 tonight in Minny is no
gimme for KG and Co; neither is Game 6 on Sunday in
Sacto for the Kings. Watch each team snag a win, but
not necessarily at home.
Heat/Pacers: Really, we're going to get to
Monday morning and still only be through five games of
this series? Maybe this is what David Stern was
referencing when he said next year the playoff
schedule would be "tighter."
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CHECK OUT THE QUICKIE EVERY WEEKDAY MORNING! |
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| WHO'S GOT THE MOMENTUM ... |
Carlos Zambrano: No Wood? No problem; 1 ER in last 24 IP
Martina Navratilova: Making singles return at French Open
'Survivor' Rupert: Freakish-looking guy wins fan-vote mil
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| ... AND WHO'S GOT NO MO' |
NHL home-ice adv.: Matching Calgary, San Jose ignores it
NHL coaches feud: TB's Tortorella, Phi's Hitchcock ease up
Luke Walton: Britney likes you ... and you just sit there?! |
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Bonds Gone?
"Losing ain't positive": Between his
batting slump (.091 in May) and his team's shoddy performance, how
frustrated will Barry Bonds get?
Frustrated enough to leave San Francisco in the
offseason for a team he knows can be a winner? (West
Coast: Dodgers, Angels; East Coast: (ugh)
Yankees) ...
... Or will things get so depressing that he'll demand
a trade-deadline exit this summer?
Help on the way? Pirates manager Lloyd
McClendon says his team will pitch to Bonds. If so, by
Monday, it'll be What slump?
Paterno's New Deal
What was Penn State thinking ... giving
Joe Paterno a four-year contract extension
Thursday, off that fabulous 3-9 '03 season?
(a) Wins don't matter anyway
(b) New slogan: 80 is great-y!
(c) Steve Spurrier said "No"
(d) Alumni money talks
NASCAR Growth
There's something about the word
"realignment" in auto racing. Always intrigued by
threat of core-fan backlash to NASCAR's rapid
growth.
For example: I would be concerned about
NASCAR
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eliminating races from Rockingham and
Darlington -- cities where just saying their names
makes you think racin' ... except those places are old and small; on the flip side, the
replacement locations (Texas, Arizona) draw sellout
crowds at bigger, newer tracks.
Jones-Tarver Fight
Want to witness arguably the greatest
boxer ever? Watch Roy Jones dismantle
rival-in-his-own-mind Antonio Tarver on Saturday
night.
Then, buckle up: Jones' next fight will be his
biggest (literally) -- current heavyweight champ Vitali Klitschko?
Un-retired Lennox Lewis? Mike Tyson?
Preakness Pick
And remember who told ya "Smarty Jones
will win the Derby!"
Place: Rock Hard Ten
Show: Imperialism
Win: Smarty Jones
Because Triple Crown hype is good for
business!
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NBA end-of-game
timing policy:
Not Laker-hating, but there's NO humanly way that a ref can start the clock at the precise nanosecond the ball touched Fisher's hand.
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Today on ESPN.com
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| Page 2: Greatest NBA buzzer-beaters |
| Maisel: NCAA plans assault on gambling |
| IN: NBA Draft updates |
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| Ranking NBA contenders-of-moment |  Lakers
| We said Spurs-Lakers winner
|  Nets
| Better than Pistons right now
|  Pistons
| D good enough to give West fits
|  T'wolves/Kings
| Neither has close-out instinct
|  Spurs
| | Great bandwagon seats available! |
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Re: BCS rankings, let me be *really* clear: Every
single coach and media ballot should be made public;
process sketchy enough *without* secrecy ...
Colorado coaches now under fire for expensing beer on
recruiting trips; unless they were for the kids
themselves, this ain't a biggie ...
Question: How many college-athlete
gamblers/game-throwers *didn't* respond to the NCAA's
gambling study? Why would they? ...
Considering T-Mac hasn't won squat, does any team
really need star wattage so badly that they will trade
the farm for him? ...
WNBA expanding Finals to best-of-5 in '05; either they
see improving ratings -- or realized fans think
current best-of-3 is l-a-m-e ...
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