Celtics vs. Cavaliers

• Tony Massarotti of the Boston Herald: "Maybe we had this all wrong. Maybe the real question is how the Cleveland Cavaliers intend to stop Kevin Garnett. For the moment, what we know for sure is that the answer is not Joe Smith, the stoplight guarding Garnett when 'The Big Ticket' went right on red last night in the final seconds of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals between the Celtics [team stats] and Cavs. Garnett promptly flipped in a jump hook with 21.4 seconds to play, breaking a 72-72 tie and propelling the Celts to a 76-72 victory in a game that can only be described as one thing: A scrum."
• Brian Windhorst of The Akron Beacon-Journal: "If the Cavs play them this closely the rest of the series, they like their chances. If they lose all the close games, then they'll tip their cap. Regardless of whether the Cavs shoot 31 percent, which is an all-time low in the playoffs, or shoot 50 percent, they were ahead by a point with 1:30 to go and down two with 20 seconds to go with the ball in LeBron's hands. The Cavs' offense was terrible at times but their defense was excellent for much of the game, especially their rotations and backside protection. This is why Mike Brown preaches the style he does, the defense enabled them to stay in the game when they were awful."
• Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer: "When the Cavs arrived in town, there were no stories about LeBron James being overrated. No comments about rappers and basketball players being disrespected. Yes, Paul Pierce and James have a rivalry, but it's a respectful one, both stars complimenting each other. Boston won 66 games during the regular season -- 21 more than the Cavs -- but the Celtics seem more aware that the Cavs remain Eastern Conference champions than some Cavs fans do."
• Bob Finnan of The News-Herald: "A team like the Cavaliers, who had a legitimate Most Valuable Player candidate in LeBron James, goes about its business in a subtle way. James finished fourth in the MVP voting that was announced on Tuesday. 'It comes down to the information and the case that was made on the court,' Cavs vice president of communications Tad Carper said. 'Our role is to make sure we're informing people of what is transpiring on the court and why that player deserves (the award).' Some teams choose to send voters T-shirts, bumper stickers, trophies and even posters drawn by children with crayons on construction paper. Others send out mass mailings via e-mail. 'Some people send fancy gag gifts,' Carper said. 'We feel a lot of that stuff backfires.'"
• Brian Windhorst of The Akron Beacon-Journal: "Cavs reserve forward Lance Allred got news that he has been waiting to receive for years this week when he learned that HarperCollins is going to publish his memoirs. He is set to sign the contract for the untitled biography soon and the plan is for it to be out around Christmas or early next year. It will focus on his growing up in a polygamous sect and overcoming obsessive-compulsive disorder and legal deafness to reach the NBA. 'I tried to go back and objectively analyze my life and I try to do it sarcastically and sardonically,' Allred said. 'I wasn't really planning on putting it out there, and then my sports agent read it and encouraged me.'"

Magic vs. Pistons 

• Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel: "Believe me, the Magic will need every bit of help they can get tonight from the fans, refs, clock operators, media homers, etc. The Pistons, after all, have taken nine straight playoff games from the Magic. In Detroit, the Magic were beat up and beat down by the Pistons. They were harangued and harassed. They were taunted and trash-talked. Now, finally, they come home for Game 3. The only clock the Magic need to worry about now is the one that will tell them time's up on their season if they lose tonight."
• John Hollinger in the New York Sun: "... the losing side can't help but think about how the game might have been different had Billups's 3-pointer not counted. And if they end up losing the series in seven games, they'll undoubtedly point back to that one play as a major reason. Like I said, it didn't have to happen this way. Had the league been proactive instead of reactive when drafting its rules, it would have considered the possibility of clock malfunctions. Instead they'll wait until next year for that rule, and the Magic will be left to wonder, 'What if?'"
• Ken Hornack of the Daytona Beach News-Journal: "Care to retract that 'aging and increasingly complacent' comment about the Pistons before the series began? Let's see what happens tonight. Yes, they have now won five playoff games in a row, with Monday night's 100-93 victory over the Magic being the only close one in the bunch. But should the Pistons falter, they're back in the same situation they were through three games in the Eastern Conference finals a year ago against Cleveland. For now, however, age and complacency don't seem to be an issue."
• Chris McCosky of The Detroit News: "The Pistons are a rather pedestrian 6-9 in Game 3s dating to the 2004 championship run. 'Everyone always plays more emotional at home,' coach Flip Saunders said. 'They're going to play much more aggressive, more physical, and if they make seven 3-pointers at home, they're going to blow the roof right off that building. They're going to try to play with a lot of emotion. Our main thing is, we have to take that emotion out of the game.' The Pistons know the formula. Control the tempo, don't turn the ball over, take smart shots and try to keep the Magic from inciting the crowd with dunks and, like Saunders said, 3-pointers."
• Drew Sharp of the Detroit Free Press: "Tayshaun Prince is finding his upside. He's shooting more. He's asserting himself more on the floor and in the locker room. He's providing more offense without compromising his greatest strength -- perimeter defense. Prince can become a star -- not an easy task when you're remembered as the only Pistons starter who didn't make the All-Star Game two years ago. 'I told him that he's the one guy who has the most room for improvement,' Pistons coach Flip Saunders said. 'He's at a point right now that these playoffs could become his stepping stone for this eventually becoming his team. He can be that guy.'"

Spurs vs. Hornets 

• Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News: "When it comes to the postseason, the Spurs have seen it all and done it all. Headed into this year's Western Conference semifinals, that was supposed to be their big advantage over a neophyte New Orleans team ensconced in its first playoff foray as a group. Even Hornets coach Byron Scott saw the contrast. 'They've done it over and over again,' Scott said of the Spurs. 'They aren't fazed by anything.' That hypothesis will be put to the test as the series shifts to San Antonio for Game 3 on Thursday, with the Spurs staring up from a startling 2-0 hole that only feels deeper."
• Les East of The Advocate: "Amid all the Chris Paul crossovers, the Tyson Chandler dunks off lobs, the David West mid-range jumpers, and the Peja Stojakovic long-range jumpers, it's easy to overlook just how good the Hornets defense is. 'Everybody looks at us as a running team,' coach Byron Scott said after practice Tuesday, 'but we've said from Day 1 that one of our main goals was to be one of the top five defensive teams in the league. We were able to accomplish that and that's why we had the season that we had.'"

Lakers vs. Jazz 

• Ross Siler of The Salt Lake Tribune: "The importance of Carlos Boozer in the Jazz's Western Conference semifinals series against the Los Angeles Lakers was underscored on the first possession of Sunday's game, when Boozer drove for a layup against Pau Gasol only 15 seconds in. 'I think you could see that the first couple series,' Deron Williams said. 'We came down and got it inside to him. He attacked quick, didn't let the defense set up, really, and that's when he was effective. We've got to try to get him in some of those same situations and let him work.' The Jazz sense the opportunity to hammer the Lakers inside, with Boozer matched up against Gasol or Lamar Odom, but their All-Star forward has struggled so far in the playoffs. It has been 15 games and counting since Boozer last scored more than 21 points."
• Art Thompson III of The Orange County Register: "It helps to have an inside source, and guard Derek Fisher's one season spent last year with the Utah Jazz is providing the Lakers with key insights into Utah's operation in the Western Conference semifinal playoff series that continues tonight at Staples Center. Lakers coach Phil Jackson acknowledged that beyond scouting reports and hours of watching tape, any information provided by Fisher on Jazz tendencies is a bonus. ... A knowledge of Utah's system no doubt aided Fisher in the Lakers' Game 1 victory Sunday. Fisher nabbed six steals, tying Boston's Kevin Garnett for the most steals in a playoff game this year."

MVP Kobe Bryant

• Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times: "Bryant can make you shake your head in sadness, then shake your head in amazement. He can make you scream with frustration, then scream with excitement. He can make you wish he would disappear, then pray he never leaves, all in the same 11-month period, which is exactly what has happened during this most surreal of seasons. 'It's Hollywood,' Bryant said with unabashed glee. 'It's a movie script.' The award, officially announced Tuesday during a news conference, appropriately paints a season that serves as a metaphor for a career. MVP. Most Vexing Player. Most Valuable Player. It is impossible to separate one from the other, if only because one feeds off the other."
• Elliott Teaford of the Los Angeles Daily News: "A year ago, Kobe Bryant was ready to bolt. Now, he's prepared to stick with the Lakers for the rest of his NBA career. 'I would like to, absolutely,' Kobe Bryant said during a formal news conference Tuesday afternoon to announce his selection as the NBA's MVP. For the first time since his demand to be traded last May, there were no qualifiers when he was asked about remaining with the Lakers. There was no talk about the business of basketball. Only a direct response to a direct question followed by a megawatt smile that brightened a dingy LAX hotel ballroom."
• John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Daily News: "Few would disagree that Bryant had MVP-caliber talent. Still, there was so much baggage -- some he checked in himself and some heaped on him -- to honestly believe he would join the ranks of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Julius Erving and be honored as the greatest player in the game."
• Rob Peterson of NBA.com "This season, Kobe won MVP because of his bite, not his bark."
• Bruce Arthur of the National Post: "Kobe wasn't necessarily better this year, he just trusted his teammates because they were worth trusting. It's not unfair that he won the MVP, but the logic -- most valuable player with really useful teammates -- is a little off. Still, you can't argue that he's come a long way."
• Michael Grange of The Globe and Mail: "But even before Gasol arrived, the on-court Bryant had clearly grown. The dismissed rape charge, the Shaq feud, the surly off-season all seemed a long way past during a near-perfect performance in Toronto in February. His talent was finally speaking louder than anything else for once, Bryant's biggest win in a season full of them."
• Teddy Kider of The Times-Picayune: "Chris Paul's bid for this season's MVP award ended Tuesday, when the NBA announced Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant as the recipient of the honor. ... 'It's a great honor,' Paul said Tuesday about Bryant's win. 'He deserves it. He had an outstanding year.' ... 'It's all about winning,' Paul said. 'The reason I was being mentioned was because our team was doing well. So as long as our team is doing well year in and year out, I'm satisfied with that.'"
• Bob Finnan of The News-Herald: "LeBron James applauded Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, who was named the league's Most Valuable Player on Tuesday. 'I've always stated that Kobe Bryant was the best player in this league,' James said. 'He's been the best player for the last six or seven years. It's good that he won. He's part of the reason why they finished No. 1 in the West.'"
• Marc J. Spears of The Boston Globe: "Kevin Garnett finished with 670 points, getting 15 first-place votes. The 2004 NBA MVP averaged 18.8 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.25 blocks for the team with the best regular-season record. 'It's great. I'm happy for him,' said Garnett, who did win the Defensive Player of the Year award. 'Lord knows that he's worthy. This probably won't be his last. Congratulations to him and he's definitely worthy of it.'"
• Bernie Lincicome of the Rocky Mountain News: "From where Kobe Bryant was to where he is now must be an object lesson to Carmelo Anthony. None of Anthony's mishaps with the law or with society, nor any of Allen Iverson's come to that, can compare to Bryant, now the Most Valuable Player in basketball. From accused rapist and selfish pinhead to model citizen and all-around team inspiration, that is Bryant. And that could be Anthony, needing only to step over hurdles that Bryant needed to leap."

Leaguewide

• Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post: "Nuggets all-star forward Carmelo Anthony was ticketed for speeding last weekend, Denver Police spokesman Sonny Jackson confirmed Tuesday. Jackson said Anthony was driving 60 mph in a 45 mph zone Saturday at 4:13 p.m. in the 2400 block of South Santa Fe Drive."
• Barry Rozner of the Arlington Heights Daily Herald: "The Bulls need a sweeping change of pace and attitude. They need to risk change and get D'Antoni. The fact that Kerr doesn't want him is good sign, since he hasn't made a right call since he got there, but Kerr's problem is the Bulls' solution. Paxson can breathe life into a dying and dreadful Bulls team that has been miserable for the better part of two years. And some Mike D'Antoni excitement is just what the doctor ordered."
• Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post: "There should be little to discuss here. The Knicks have a coaching vacancy. By all accounts, Donnie Walsh loves D'Antoni. He has the Cablevision bank vault at his disposal. And D'Antoni sits in a place where few coaches ever get a chance to sit: as a free agent, his destiny ceded, for now, into his own fingers. There's only one problem. This job is hell right now. This team is hell. D'Antoni, accustomed to living in the NBA fast lane, used to being the guardian to the sport's most entertaining style, is smart enough to look at the Knicks, look at that roster, look at the next few years. And understand that it will take a gigantic leap of faith -- and a grand step back into the NBA netherworld -- to leap into the flames."
• Tim Cowlishaw of The Dallas Morning News: "I thought one of the good things about Mark Cuban as an owner would be that he would forever think outside the box. Carlisle is not an outside-the-box pick. He's a logical retread hire. My outside-the-box pick is Michael Cooper. The former member of the Los Angeles Lakers' 'Showtime' era won five championships as a player and was a five-time All-NBA first-team defense selection. He knows something about how to play at the end of the floor where the Mavericks are most challenged."
• Michael Cunningham of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "Erik Spoelstra, 37, is the youngest coach in the league, and he's taking over a team that tied the franchise record for fewest victories with 15. It seems a background playing in the NBA would benefit Spoelstra's transition. But some of the league's coaches who have succeeded without playing in the NBA say other factors are much more important. 'At the end of the day, when you step on the court, if you can help guys get better, it doesn't matter if you were a 10-time All-Star or never played the game at [the NBA] level,' New Jersey coach Lawrence Frank said. 'If you can help guys get better individually and as a team, then they will listen.'"
• Jeff Schultz of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "In the four years since taking ownership of the Hawks and Thrashers, the Atlanta Spirit too often has stumbled into implausible scenarios, like executive slapstick, only to work hard at convincing everybody that its days as a punch line were ending. Unfortunately, as these owners have found, it's difficult to make a convincing argument after you introduce yourself to the public as 'an all-star team of owners,' but then you can't stop suing each other. But there is good news. Or bad news. Well, either way, significant news. If ever an offseason was going to define an ownership group, this is it. Hunker down, Spirit boys, because this is when you either step up and convey some sense of stability within your franchises, or once again pull a Curly and confuse the blast powder with the pancake mix. (Boom.)