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Hornets vs. Spurs

• John DeShazier of The Times-Picayune "On to Game 7, because the defending champs go down about as easy as a mouthful of rocks. Back to New Orleans Arena, because home has meant everything in this hold-serve series. One more game for history, because the Hornets are going to make it with a victory that would send them to the conference finals for the first time, or the Spurs are going to continue pursuing it as they attempt to win consecutive titles for the first time."
• Dan McCarney of The Times-Picayune: "Despite his defensive pedigree, Duncan typically doesn't draw such assignments. Instead, Popovich prefers to deploy him as more of an anchor, free to cheat off lesser threats and dispense help to teammates. On Thursday night, however, Duncan spent virtually the entire game focused solely West. It was simple, fundamental defense that did the job. When West tried to isolate, Duncan moved his feet and kept West from driving to the basket. When West pulled up for a mid-range jumper, Duncan got a hand in his face. No highlight-reel blocks, no flashy steals. In other words, typical Duncan. 'He played great,' Spurs guard Tony Parker said. 'We did a much better job guarding him, not giving him anything easy.'"
• Buck Harvey of the San Antonio Express-News: "They would say more in private, and Tyson Chandler summed up the mood of the locker room when asked if Horry's blow had been intended for someone already with a bad back. Chandler admitted to not seeing the play, but Horry's presence confirmed the worst. 'I wouldn't doubt it,' Chandler said. They were angrier when the crowd chanted Horry's name about that time, with West on the ground and in pain, and the Hornets had every reason to be angry. Horry deserved to have his name chanted at some point, considering Thursday could have been his last game in San Antonio. But not then. For Horry, all of it added to his reputation. But just as it's unlikely to think he knew he could persuade a few Suns to walk off the bench and into suspensions, isn't it as implausible to believe he targeted West at his medical weakness and tried to injure him? No one will give him this benefit of the doubt."
• Mike Finger of the San Antonio Express-News: "Maybe the Hornets will discover that they love pressure as much as the Spurs do. But there's one major difference. 'We know what we're facing,' Duncan said. The Hornets don't. Byron Scott said before Game 5 in New Orleans that his young team didn't fully understand the situation they were in, and Scott saw that as a good thing. But in a Game 7, wouldn't a little institutional knowledge be an advantage. The Spurs hope it is, even if the topic of experience makes some of them chuckle. 'So far,' Parker said, 'it hasn't helped us that much.'"
• Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News: "Udoka's ability to hold Stojakovic in check in the second half allowed Bowen to spent more time defending Hornets point guard Chris Paul. Indeed, Udoka's ability to handle bigger forwards was the biggest reason the Spurs signed him as a free agent last summer. What nobody expected was that Udoka would become the Spurs' most consistent scorer off the bench in this series after Spurs coach Gregg Popovich put Manu Ginobili back in the starting lineup after Game 2."

Lakers vs. Jazz

• Mark Heisler of the Los Angeles Times: "The bottom line is, this is where Lakers come to have their heads handed to them in spring, with eight losses in the nine playoff games they've played here."
• Jill Painter of the Los Angeles Daily News: "Trevor Ariza, who hasn't played since January because of a broken right foot, looked comfortable running up and down the floor at the end of the Lakers' practice Thursday. He's ready to play if Jackson is ready to insert him in the lineup. 'I definitely feel like I can play, but it's not really my decision,' Ariza said. 'It's a good feeling. I just want to come in and play if I get a chance and see what happens.' Ariza proclaimed himself healthy but said he wasn't sure where his conditioning was and wouldn't really know until he played in a game."
• Brad Rock of the Deseret News: "Admittedly, the man has a world class smirk. And the chest- pounding and and shirt-tugging can certainly be annoying. He demanded to be traded last year if the Lakers didn't surround him with better talent. He called Jazz fans classless when they booed Derek Fisher. Still, if you've been around Bryant at all this post-season, you have to ask: Why do so many people hate this man? He has excellent hygiene. Doesn't swear in public -- much. Reportedly he's quick to pick up the lunch tab for teammates. He's polite, articulate and, yes, even humble."
• Ross Siler of The Salt Lake Tribune: "To win Game 6, the Jazz will have to find a way to execute with the Lakers trapping Williams off the pick-and-roll and packing it in against Boozer inside. They will look to cut down on their 19 turnovers from Wednesday and slow Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom, who combined to score 43 points. As Williams noted, the Jazz have been two different teams at home and on the road this season. They have lost only two home games since Dec. 29 -- to the Lakers on March 20 and Houston in Game 3 of the first round. What's left unsaid is that the Jazz might be playing their last home game of the season tonight."
• Gordon Monson of The Salt Lake Tribune: "Please, somebody tell them to stop. OK, I'll tell them to stop, and take the beating for it. To all the Jazz fans who are crying ... and crying ... and crying about the refereeing in the Jazz-Lakers playoff series, how about this idea: Give it a rest. It's old and it's tired and it's predictable and it's embarrassing and it's unfounded. Drop the persecution complex. Nobody's out to get you. David Stern is not a grand puppet-master. He's not Vince McMahon. Since the end of Game 5 I've received complaints from at least a hundred fans about the Jazz getting jobbed in one form or another, or 30 anothers, by the refs."

Celtics vs. Cavaliers

• Marc J. Spears of The Boston Globe: "The Celtics aren't doing anything dramatic to combat their playoff woes on the road. All the Celtics are focused on is finding the performance needed to end their second-round series in Game 6 tonight. The Celtics aren't the only team with second-round road struggles; the Pistons had the only road victory as of yesterday. Home teams are 20-1 in the second round. 'Listen, everyone's struggling on the road right now,' Rivers said during a teleconference yesterday. 'I guess we could bring all the scorekeepers ... bring all the wives on the road. But we're not going to do that. We're going to show up and play basketball.'"
• Jeff Horrigan of the Boston Herald: "Through the first five games of the Eastern Conference semifinals, Ray Allen has found Cleveland counterpart Wally Szczerbiak more difficult to shake than a bad reputation. As the Celtics prepare to try to vanquish the Cleveland Cavaliers tonight at Quicken Loans Arena, the eight-time All-Star is still looking to find a way to regain his regular-season shooting touch, which has inconveniently abandoned him during the playoffs. ... Allen said the situation is not nearly as dire as the statistics indicate, and said his struggles are a result of the defensive play he has faced. Allen also said he has been passing up many shots in favor of teammates in better position to score."
• Bob Finnan of The News-Herald: "One misstep and the 2007-08 season could be history. That's the dilemma facing the Cavaliers, who are one loss away from elimination in their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Celtics. The Celtics protected their home court on Wednesday in Game 5, 96-89, and now have a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. Game 6 is 8 tonight at Quicken Loans Arena. 'It's like a heavyweight fight,' Cavs point guard Delonte West said. 'There are two rounds left, and we need to win both of them.'"

Leaguewide 

• Krista Jahnke of the Detroit Free Press: "So with time on his side, coach Flip Saunders utilized a training-camp mentality at Thursday's practice. He will do so again today. A practice heavy on scrimmaging can't fully simulate the rigors of an actual game, but it's the only way to keep sharp without the real deal, he said. 'That's why it's important you don't let up,' Saunders said. 'No matter how long you go, you have to go in with the idea to keep your legs, keep your timing, keep your endurance, and keep your ability to stay in shape.'"
• Dana Gauruder of The Oakland Press: "The hard lessons [Rodney] Stuckey learned in the regular season allowed the Pistons to survive two games without Billups, who strained his right hamstring in Game 3. Stuckey played with uncommon poise in Game 5, contributing 15 points, six assists and two steals. Even more impressive was his steady hand on offense. Stuckey had no turnovers, setting the tone for a record-breaking night. The Pistons had just three turnovers, none after the first quarter."
• Randy Galloway of the Star-Telegram: "By the way, is anybody watching the Hornets-Spurs series? Does that kind of explain what the Mavs were up against in the first round, and what the Western Conference has become?"
• William Bender of the Philadelphia Daily News: "Tim Donaghy and two accomplices in an illegal betting ring are scheduled to be sentenced within 3 days of one another this summer after the former NBA referee's sentencing date was postponed yesterday - for a fourth time. Donaghy, who has admitted to dishing inside NBA information to high school buddies James 'Baba' Battista and Thomas Martino in exchange for cash payments, was scheduled to be sentenced next week in New York on gambling and wire-fraud charges. Yesterday, that date was pushed back again, this time to July 14, according to Robert Nardoza, spokesman for the federal prosecutors' office in Brooklyn."
• Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune: "[Rudy] Fernandez - the MVP in all three major tournaments he played in this season - is arguably the hottest ticket in European basketball. He leads the Spanish League in scoring (21.2 points) while shooting 59 percent from the field, 41 percent from 3-point range and 91 percent from the foul line. But Fernandez can make only $873,200 his first season with the Blazers under the NBA's rookie pay scale. He could make four to five times that in Europe next season, but Portland execs are optimistic that Fernandez, 23, will pass up the big money to give the NBA a try."