Category: In the News

Artest suspended for Game 3 against Dallas

As expected, Los Angeles Lakers forward Ron Artest was suspended for Friday’s Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals after he was ejected for clotheslining Dallas guard J.J. Barea in the final seconds in Game 2.

The official NBA release indicates that Artest was suspended for swinging his arm and striking the face of  Barea. Artest’s contact also has been classified by the NBA as a Flagrant Foul Two.

The incident occurred with 24.4 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of the Mavericks’ 93-81 victory over the Lakers at Staples Center Wednesday night.

The visual evidencethat the punishment was just for Artest, who was awarded the league’s citizenship award last week.

And his absence will rob the Lakers of their best on-the-ball defender in a crucial Game 3 in Dallas. The two-time defending champion Lakers are down 2-0 in the best-of-seven series.

Lamar Odom will likely take his position in the Lakers’ starting lineup.

Spurs vs. Grizzlies: Game 6 chat

The Spurs play on the road tonight at 8 p.m. against the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 6 of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs.

The game will be televised in San Antonio on Fox Sports Net Southwest and nationally on ESPN.

Join Jeff McDonald and Tim Griffin for a live game chat (BELOW) beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Yahoo ranks Spurs’ ‘Big Three’ among top NBA trios in history

Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker have combined to help San Antonio win three of the franchise’s four titles in NBA history.

Yahoo Sports writer Victor Chi considered that past history when he ranked the San Antonio trio among the seven greatest threesomes in NBA history.

Chi’s dividing point was that each group must have been involved in at least two NBA championships.

Here is what he had to say about Duncan, Ginobili and Parker and :

The Spurs were never the sexiest team in the league, but they were brutally efficient while parlaying sound fundamentals into three championships. Duncan had a previous title, tag-teaming with David Robinson.”

The other six trios that are included with the Spurs’ “Big Three” include the following:

  • Boston’s Bob Cousy, Tom Heinsohn and Bill Russell
  • New York’s Walt Frazier, Dave DeBusschere and Willis Reed
  • Los Angeles Lakers’ Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and James Worthy
  • Chicago’s Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman
  • Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal and Derek Fisher
  • Boston’s Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish 

When considered in terms of the others on the list, the Spurs’ grouping ranks in the middle of the pack at the worst. Duncan and Ginobili are certain Hall of Fame members and Parker has a good shot if he finishes his career strongly.

Obviously, if LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade stick together for several years and can win a couple of championships with Miami they will qualify on a future list. And others fail to make the cut because they weren’t around to win two titles together.