Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka has been fined $25,000 by the league for punching Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin this past Sunday.

Ibaka and Griffin got tangled up in the paint battling for a rebound late in the fourth quarter on Sunday and Ibaka took out his frustration by swinging violently at Griffin and ended up landing the blow beneath the belt.

Ibaka said he did not intend to hurt Griffin and by the looks of it he didn’t. The officials in the game gave Ibaka just a flagrant one foul and he was allowed to remain in the game and came through with a big basket on the very next possession that helped the Thunder win the game.

The result was worse than what the intent was and Ibaka will pay the price. It looks like the league pretty much saw it the same way. It was a dumb move on Ibaka’s part but there’s really not a lot to say this was that dirty of a play.

The league also upgraded the foul to a flagrant two which would have resulted in an ejection had that been the call during the game.

Fortunately for the Thunder Ibaka isn’t getting a suspension and will be available tonight for a very important game as the Thunder host the Los Angeles Lakers at 9:30 p.m. EST on TNT.

Mar 3, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant (24) reacts after defeating the Atlanta Hawks at the Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant was asked what he thought of the incident between Serge Ibaka and Blake Griffin last Sunday afternoon.

“I probably would have smacked [Ibaka] in the mouth,” Bryant said after the Los Angeles Lakers practiced Monday. “I would have dealt with the pain after.”

Via ESPNLA

Ibaka and Griffin were physically jostling for position late in the fourth quarter when the Oklahoma City Thunder traveled to play the Los Angeles Clippers two days ago.

Griffin seemed to have good position and a hold of Ibaka and it led Ibaka to swing his arm down in a chopping motion toward Griffin’s midsection. The blow connected below the belt and was called a flagrant one in the game after officials reviewed the play.

The league will also review the play and could potentially suspend Ibaka for a game – possibly tonight – for his act.

A lot of people think the move by Ibaka was intentional, including Kobe apparently. While it was certainly intentional by Ibaka to throw his arm in that way, the result and where he struck Griffin was not.

It was not a smart move by Ibaka though who should have had better awareness of what he was doing in that situation.

There has been no word from the league yet on a possible Ibaka suspension, if anything we may hear something later today.

Late in the Oklahoma City Thunder-Los Angeles Clippers game yesterday afternoon, Serge Ibaka and Blake Griffin got tangled up in the paint while battling for a rebound.

Griffin had good position on Ibaka and a frustrated Ibaka swung his arm down in a chopping motion toward Griffin.

The result was Ibaka connecting near Griffin’s groin and a flagrant-one foul called on Ibaka.

The Clippers capitalized by scoring seven points on that possession thanks to the call and captured their first lead of the game with 90 seconds to play.

Ibaka responded on the other end for OKC with an and-one layup that put the Thunder back on top and OKC would go on to win the game 108-104.

The foul by Ibaka will be reviewed by the league and many think there is a good chance he will get a suspension for the act.

You can make the case that it was an intentional low-blow but Ibaka is saying he did not intend to hurt Griffin.

If you watch Ibaka’s eyes on the play, they are focused on the rim the entire time and the physical jostling between he and Griffin make it easy to understand that Ibaka was not intending to strike Griffin in that area.

It looks more like a frustration move by Ibaka who had his arm being held by Griffin and wanted to chop it free. He missed Griffin’s arm and instead got him below the belt.

Ibaka has had an edginess to him this season and has shown some of that in the past as well. But there’s never been anything to point to Ibaka being a dirty player.

This was simply a case of Ibaka forgetting where he was at and making a dumb move that ended up looking worse than it really was.

It wasn’t intentional but if you want to suspend Ibaka because he should have known better than to swing that violently in that way then that would be totally understandable.

The Thunder will really need Ibaka in their next game as they take on the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night at Chesapeake Energy Arena.

Mar 3, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers point guard Chris Paul (3) falls during the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

The Oklahoma City Thunder survived a late rally by the Los Angeles Clippers Sunday afternoon to beat them 108-104 and improve to 43-16 on the year.

The Thunder led by as many as 19 points in the third quarter before the Clippers cut that lead to nine entering the fourth quarter.

The Clippers actually took the lead with 90 seconds left thanks to a 7-point possession capped off by a Jamal Crawford three-pointer.

The Thunder came through late though with a couple of timely buckets by Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka.

The Thunder are off today and will host the Los Angeles Lakers tomorrow night for their next game.

Here are the Game Grades:

Kevin Durant – 45 minutes, 35 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists – A

Durant had a big scoring night but wasn’t as present late for the Thunder as you would expect. The Clippers went to a zone late in the game and Durant admitted that it took him out of his rhythm a little bit. KD was still great shooting 10-for-25 from the field and 12-for-15 from the free throw line.

Russell Westbrook – 40 minutes, 29 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds – A+

Westbrook played the role of closer last night and outplayed Chris Paul for nearly all of the game. Westbrook made his last four shots including some really big baskets in the final minutes. He was great in the pick-and-roll scoring at the rim as well as finding his teammates. This was definitely one of Westbrook’s best games of the year, something he doesn’t have too often when playing on national television.

Serge Ibaka – 30 minutes, 16 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks – B

Ibaka was very crucial to the win emerging as the Thunder’s third scorer. He went 7-for-9 from the field and had a huge and-one layup in the final minutes. He was very aggressive but did not rebound well. He actually had no defensive rebounds which could have been a bigger problem for the Thunder than it ended up being.

Kevin Martin – 24 minutes, 10 points, 1 assist, 3 steals – C+

Martin went just 3-for-12 from the field as he was really trying to find his shot early on. He missed a lot of easy shots and overall did not play too well. The aggression was still good to see from him.

Kendrick Perkins – 27 minutes, 2 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists – B

This was actually a pretty nice game from Perkins. He rebounded and his four dimes are a very good number. He found Ibaka a few times after receiving passes in the paint. The big-to-big passing can sometimes be a big strength for the Thunder and last night was a great example of that.

Thabo Sefolosha – 39 minutes, 9 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals – B+

Sefolosha played a lot of minutes as Scott Brooks did not play Derek Fisher or Ronnie Brewer at all. He scored some which was needed with Martin not giving OKC much. He didn’t guard Paul as much as was expected but when he was on him did a really good job.

Nick Collison – 19 minutes, 2 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist – B

Collison’s lineups were not as successful yesterday and that had a lot to do with Martin being unable to score much. Collison still ended up with two offensive boards but committed four fouls as well.

Reggie Jackson – 8 minutes, 4 points, 1 assist, 1 rebound – B

Jackson had a nice driving layup in the first half but would not play much in this one. Westbrook really had it going and when the Clippers went zone in the second half, it negated what Jackson could bring to the floor.

Hasheem Thabeet – 9 minutes, 1 point, 1 rebound, 3 blocks – B

Thabeet did his job in limited minutes. Blocking three shots is always nice to see from Thabeet. He was a presence.

Mar 3, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook (0) handles the ball against Los Angeles Clippers point guard Chris Paul (3) at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

Russell Westbrook made the final four field goals he took as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Los Angeles Clippers 108-104 Sunday afternoon at Staples Center.

Westbrook led the Thunder with 29 points, 10 assists and six rebounds. He went 11-for-20 from the field and helped the Thunder to an early lead after scoring 14 points in the first quarter.

The Clippers trailed by nine entering the fourth quarter then stormed back thanks to a 7-point possession capped off by a three-pointer by Jamal Crawford that gave the Clippers a 100-99 lead with 1:30 left in the game.

The Thunder responded though with the next five points of the game then hung on to get the win in the final minutes.

Kevin Durant scored a game-high 35 points to go with nine rebounds and four assists.

The Thunder also got a big game from Serge Ibaka who scored 16 points to go with three rebounds and two blocks.

The Clippers were led by Chris Paul who had 26 points and eight assists. Blake Griffin scored 20 points to go with nine rebounds and five assists before fouling out with 59 seconds left.

The Thunder improve to 43-16 with the win and are now a game and a half ahead of the Clippers for the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference.

The Thunder will play next at home Tuesday night vs. the Los Angeles Lakers.

Jan 22, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers point guard Eric Bledsoe (12) drives against Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook (0) during the game at the Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

The No. 2 spot in the Western Conference standings will be on the line this afternoon as the Los Angeles Clippers host the Oklahoma City Thunder at 3:30 p.m. EST.

This will be the third time this season that the Thunder and Clippers play. The Thunder won each of the first two meetings, once in OKC and once in LA.

The Thunder needed overtime to beat the Clippers 117-111 back on Nov. 21 in OKC. Kevin Durant had 35 points, six rebounds, five assists and five steals to lead the Thunder. KD went 7-for-19 from the field but also 19-for-21 from the free throw line.

Russell Westbrook had 23 in the game and Kevin Martin had 20 off the bench. The Thunder got a big lift from Hasheem Thabeet in that game who had 10 points on 4-of-4 shooting in 12 minutes.

The Thunder then won 109-97 on Jan. 22 in LA. Chris Paul did not play in that game so the Thunder had no problem winning.

Durant had 32 and Westbrook had 26. Serge Ibaka and Martin combined for 30.

The Clippers will be at full strength this afternoon and have won eight of their last nine games since Paul returned from injury with an average margin of victory of 15.5 points.

The Thunder had a three-game winning streak snapped two nights ago when they lost 105-103 in Denver on a last-second shot by Ty Lawson.

The Thunder have been going through an interesting stretch lately where all of their wins have been blowouts and they have been losing most of their close games.

The Thunder have been shaky on the road this season, especially lately. They often end up turning into a two-man show with Durant and Westbrook doing all the scoring while the role players shy away.

Martin only had three points Friday night vs. Denver and will definitely need to give the Thunder more today if they expect to beat the Clippers.

Thabo Sefolosha will also be very important in this game as he will likely have the assignment of checking Paul for most of the game. This will leave Westbrook to play the passing lanes off the ball quite a bit which he has been great at this season.

Beating the Clippers all starts with shutting down or at least slowing down Paul. The Thunder have been able to do this in the past but they have also been dominated by Paul as well.

OKC is really in need of a statement win at this point in the season and beating the Clippers on national television would certainly qualify as that.

Feb 25, 2012; Orlando, FL, USA; Western Conference forward Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder (left) Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers (right) chat during the 2012 NBA All-Star team practice session at the Orange County Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Today at 3:30 p.m. EST, the Oklahoma City Thunder will travel to Los Angeles to take on the Clippers.

It’s not only a meeting between two of the top teams in the NBA today, but two of the best individual closers as well.

Kevin Durant and Chris Paul have each made a strong case to be considered the best closer in the NBA.

Paul looked like the definite best closer in the NBA for much of last season. In his first year with the Clippers, a predictable offense often left Paul going one-on-one late in games and rarely did he not come through.

Once the playoffs came around, it was Durant who really started to stand out late in games. In the Thunder’s first playoff game, he hit a game-winner at the buzzer to sink the defending champs.

In the next series vs. the Lakers, Durant had a number of clutch shots including one in which he walked up and drilled a three in the face of Metta World Peace.

Durant would prove impossible for the Spurs to stop in the Western Conference Finals as the Thunder rolled to four straight wins against San Antonio after losing the first two in the series.

It looked like Durant might be able to lead the Thunder to a title when OKC beat the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the NBA Finals while Durant dropped 17 in the final quarter.

Durant and Paul go about their business in different ways but when the game is on the line, they are more similar.

Durant is the most elite scorer in the NBA right now and can score in such a variety of ways. He is the game’s best shooter making it nearly impossible to decide which way to defend him, especially late in games.

Paul is always a threat to find any open teammate and he then has the luxury of knowing he won’t be doubled. He’s as crafty a player in this league and can get to whatever spot he wants as well as anyone.

We might get an answer, at least for now, as to who the best closer in the NBA is when the Thunder and Clippers meet up this afternoon. It’s the kind of game that you’d be surprised if it wasn’t close.

So who you got? With the game on the line are you rolling with KD or CP3?

November 20, 2012; New Orleans, LA, USA; New York Knicks shooting guard James White (4) dunks against the New Orleans Hornets during the fourth quarter of a game at the New Orleans Arena. The Knicks defeated the Hornets 102-80. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

It’s NBA All-Star Weekend and the 2013 Slam Dunk Contest will be held tonight. The Saturday night festivities will begin at 8:30 p.m. EST. The dunk contest will be the final event and likely to start between 9:30-10:00 p.m. EST.

There won’t be any superstars participating in this year’s contest but there is more hope than usual that the contest will return to glory this year.

There is a new format this year where the six contestants will be divided into their respective conferences. There are two rounds where the best scores from each conference will then meet in a final round.

Here’s a look at each contestant and their dunking highlights:

Eastern Conference

James White, New York Knicks
Stats: 6.7 MPG, 1.8 PPG, 0.8 RPG

White is 30 years old and only in his third season in the NBA. He was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers back in 2006 and has never really found a home in the league playing in just 44 career games so far. White’s claim to fame has always been his dunking. He finished second in the McDonald’s All-American Slam Dunk Contest and has become a YouTube sensation with some of his dunks in dunk contests around the world. This is the first time White has been on an NBA team at the time of All-Star Weekend so it is fitting that he will be competing in the contest as one of the favorites to win it. White loves getting running starts for his dunks and jumping off one foot. He will use his great speed to his advantage with at least a few attempts from the free throw line tonight.

Gerald Green, Indiana Pacers
Stats: 19.8 MPG, 6.6 PPG, 2.5 RPG

Green has a history with the NBA Slam Dunk Contest already having won it back in 2007. Like White, Green was also out of the league for a little while but has come back strong the past few seasons with the Brooklyn Nets and now Indiana Pacers. Green and White have met before in a dunk contest in Russia a few years back which is known as one of the best ever. Green is a two-footed dunker and gets up extremely high with his face nearly level with the rim often times.

Terrence Ross, Toronto Raptors
Stats: 16.9 MPG, 6.4 PPG, 2.1 RPG

Ross was drafted 8th overall by the Toronto Raptors in this past NBA Draft. He came in as a solid outside shooter and great athlete which he has lived up to with his invite to this contest. Ross will join a long list of participants from Toronto in the history of the dunk contest which includes Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady. Ross has been especially good with windmill dunks this season.

Feb 13, 2013; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics forward/center Kevin Garnett (5) drives against Chicago Bulls small forward Luol Deng (9) during the fourth quarter at TD Banknorth Garden. The Boston Celtics won 71-69. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Clippers are reportedly discussing a trade involving All-Star Kevin Garnett, according to Yahoo! Sports.

The potential trade would involve the Clippers sending Eric Bledsoe and DeAndre Jordan to Boston for Garnett. Garnett would have to waive his no-trade clause for the deal to go through as well.

Garnett has a home in Malibu and is a close friend to Chauncey Billups, which is believed to make his approval a distinct possibility should a deal be reached.

The Clippers are increasingly confident that they will sign Chris Paul in the offseason, which has increased the odds of dealing Bledsoe.

ESPN reports that Vinny Del Negro is pushing for the trade, but that the Clippers’ front office is against moving Bledsoe and Jordan for Garnett.

Via Yahoo! Sports

There was a rumored trade for Garnett and the Clippers a few weeks ago that would have sent Bledsoe and Caron Butler to Boston for KG. That rumor was shot down shortly after coming out.

This would be a better haul for the Celtics if they can get Jordan instead of Butler in the deal.

The real question is whether the Celtics really want to part ways with Garnett right now. He is in his 18th season in the NBA and will be starting in the NBA All-Star Game tomorrow night.

The Celtics are 28-24 entering the All-Star Break which is good for the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. They’ve won eight of their last nine games which have all come since Rajon Rondo was injured and lost for the year.

Garnett said earlier this week that this All-Star Game would be his last. That might mean that he plans to retire after this season and if that is the case, then why would the Clippers consider dealing two of their most promising young players just to rent him?

Adding KG wouldn’t necessarily make the Clippers an immediate NBA title favorite either. They have something good going right now that involves Jordan and Bledsoe quite a bit.

Throw in the fact that Chris Paul is going to be a free agent after this season and if you deal two young players to rent Garnett and it doesn’t work out, maybe Paul will decide to jump ship.

The trade deadline is next Thursday, Feb. 21.

Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Clippers are reportedly interested in Boston Celtics All-Star forward Kevin Garnett, according to Sporting News.

The Clippers have been in contact with the Celtics about a potential trade. The Clippers put together a package featuring Eric Bledsoe and Caron Butler for Garnett.

If the Clippers want to make this move then it means they think they can win a championship this season. Right now they are third in the Western Conference with a 34-12 record.

Bledsoe has had a breakout year for the Clippers this season averaging 9.3 points per game off the bench. He has been a lockdown defender as well and someone that can totally change a game when he comes in.

Bledsoe is just in his third NBA season and the Clippers know they would have to pay him soon if they want to keep him. He won’t demand a max contract by any means but with the Clippers’ plans to lock up Paul along with Blake Griffin, they may want to just capitalize on a high trade value of Bledsoe now.

The Celtics may be looking to blow up their roster to some degree following the torn ACL of Rajon Rondo. The Celtics are currently in the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference and have won their last four games without Rondo.

Garnett signed a 3-year, $36 million deal with Boston at the start of this season. He is now 36 years old and in his 18th season in the NBA.

If the Clippers could somehow acquire Garnett this way, they would immediately look like they have a better chance to challenge the San Antonio Spurs or Oklahoma City Thunder.

Garnett is still one of the premiere post and pick-and-roll defenders in the league and he would improve the Clippers’ defense, which has been great this season anyway.

Having more size in Garnett and being able to contest the likes of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook better would make it very difficult for the Thunder in a potential playoff matchup. The Thunder already have trouble with the Clippers because of the Paul-Westbrook matchup and this would make it that much more difficult.

This trade is far from happening right now and if the Celtics keep winning, it’s hard to imagine they would trade Garnett even if they could acquire a young stud in Bledsoe for him.

Jan 22, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers point guard Eric Bledsoe (12) drives against Oklahoma City Thunder power forward Serge Ibaka (9) during the game at the Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Los Angeles Clippers 109-97 on Monday night, in a competition that ended much more excitingly than was expected.

Kevin Durant continues storming through the West with his incredibly hot, incredibly dominant performances: he had 32 points and 7 rebounds on the night, but the show he put on in the second half was a sight to behold. Russell Westbrook played another strong game and finished with 26 points, while Serge Ibaka added 17 more.

For Los Angeles, Blake Griffin had double-double figures with 31 points and 11 rebounds, but it was not enough to overcome the assault of Oklahoma City nor the absence of Chris Paul.

In winning, the Thunder now have a game-and-a-half lead on the Clippers, as well as the best record in both the West and the entire NBA.

The Clippers in the first half looked to make the game as exciting as was anticipated, even leading for much of the first quarter. At the end of the first quarter Oklahoma City and Los Angeles were tied at 22, and going into the half they only trailed by four, 49-45.

After the half though, the Clip Show without Chris Paul proved to be a no-show, and the Thunder–who shot 51-percent in the first half–would go on a dominant rampage.

OKC made 12 of their 16 shots in the third quarter and knocked down six of seven shots from beyond the arc. As a team, they drained 15 three-pointers, a new team record.

Durant was absolutely unstoppable, seemingly taking whatever shot he pleased, nailing it, and making it look easy. His most jaw-dropping moment came in the fourth quarter when he drove down the lane, cocked back, and slammed down a monster dunk over Lamar Odom.

To their credit, the Clippers–despite trailing by 16 at one point in the fourth quarter–refused to go away so easily. They crawled back in it to cut the lead to eight, thanks to a few big-time three pointers of their own, and points made off of back-to-back offensive fouls by Ibaka. Oklahoma City outscored them by 33 points beyond the arc, yet the Clippers managed to lose by a much narrower margin of 12.

Without Paul, the Clippers looked listless and without direction at times, particularly in the third quarter. Expect this match-up to have a lot more life in it when these teams meet again with Paul back in the rotation.

Oklahoma City had previously loss for straight games to the Clippers in Los Angeles, so this win was yet another huge road victory for this squad.

The Thunder advance to 33-9 on the season, and face the Golden State Warriors next on Wed., Jan. 23.

Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

The Oklahoma City Thunder will look to rebound from a loss in their last game on the road vs. the Denver Nuggets on the road again tonight against the Los Angeles Clippers.

It’s the second time this season that the Thunder and Clippers will meet up. The Thunder won the first meeting 117-111 in overtime on Nov. 21 in Oklahoma City.

Kevin Durant had 35 points in that game and Russell Westbrook had 23 points. Kevin Martin was big off the bench going for 20 and Hasheem Thabeet also added 10 points.

Chris Paul had just nine points and nine assists for the Clippers on 2-of-14 shooting. Blake Griffin led the way with 23 and Jamal Crawford had 20 off the bench.

The Thunder and Clippers are both top five offenses and defenses in the league this season. In this particular matchup against each other, it is very even as well.

The Clippers generate most of their offense from the pick-and-roll but the Thunder have the top defense in the league against the pick-and-roll.

The Clippers have turned up the tempo this season and are 9th in the NBA scoring in transition but would still probably be better off in a slowed down game against the Thunder.

The Thunder have the best offense in the league and their stars, Durant and Westbrook, have been playing at a very high level lately. Durant has been named the Western Conference Player of the Week in each of the last two weeks and the Clippers don’t really have anyone who can match up with him.

Durant has shot 21 free throws in each of the last two games and made all but one of them. Durant also attempted 21 free throws in the first meeting against the Clippers this season so expect to see a lot of his shoulder shimmy charity trips tonight.

Westbrook traditionally plays poor when matched up against Paul and on the road tonight will be one of the biggest challenges all year for him. The Thunder played Thabo Sefolosha on Paul for much of the first meeting and it obviously worked well. We will see if Paul can figure Sefolosha out at home tonight.

The real strength of the Clippers this season has been their depth. They have a number of players that can step up on any given night and at home, that chance is always greater.

Great teams always win at home and the challenge for the Thunder tonight is making the Clippers not look so great.

The Thunder have lost two games in a row just once this season. They are coming off overtime games in each of their last two games which have also been on the road.

The odds are usually in the favor of the Thunder but tonight they may not be.

Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

The teams with the two best records in the NBA will play tonight in Los Angeles as the Clippers host the Oklahoma City Thunder at 10:30 p.m. EST.

The Western Conference is more up for grabs this year since the trading of James Harden by the Thunder before the start of the season. Despite having the best record in the league, the Thunder seem more vulnerable this season that last in some respects.

The San Antonio Spurs were the toughest matchup for the Thunder a year ago. Their ball movement and offensive efficiency was as tough as anything to keep up with but the Thunder did so winning four straight games against them in the Western Conference Finals.

The Los Angeles Lakers were supposed to be the biggest challenge to the Thunder’s western throne this year but are now looking like they won’t even make the playoffs.

Meanwhile, the other LA team is thriving. Behind depth, great defense and the best point guard in the league, the Clippers may very well be OKC’s biggest competition this season.

The Clippers have a few things going for them that make them a tough out for OKC.

You have to start with Paul. Paul is one of the toughest matchups for Russell Westbrook. Westbrook isn’t able to overpower Paul athletically like he does other point guards in the league and Paul is much more heady than Westbrook is. Paul is able to get anywhere he wants on the court vs. Westbrook and can manipulate him as well as anyone.

The Thunder are always at their best when Westbrook is playing well. The Clippers definitely have the advantage at the point guard position in this matchup and that is a very tough thing for the Thunder to overcome.

Next, the Clippers can match the Thunder’s athleticism in a way. The Clippers have the most athletic starting four and five in the league with Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. So when Westbrook and Kevin Durant attack the rim, they are met by equals in the athletic department. This is rarely the case for the Thunder who can often rely on superior athleticism to overpower opponents.

The bench is the third factor that makes the Clippers tougher for the Thunder this year than last. The Clippers have one of the best benches in the league this season while the Thunder took a step back with their second unit from last year. The Thunder used to always enjoy a big advantage when their second unit was on the floor because Harden would be the best player on the floor. Now, the Clippers get that honor led by Jamal Crawford, the leading candidate to win the Sixth Man of the Year Award this season.

The Clippers’ bench has been so good that the minutes for their starters has gone way down. They are more than 10 deep on most nights and have the luxury of riding the hot hand. This always works because Paul is so great at the helm and can make any 5-man unit mesh down the stretch.

Finally, the Clippers are the only team that can match the Thunder in terms of having a great closer. Paul was the best closer in the league a year ago while Durant is hot on his heels this year. OKC always knows they will close out games the best because they have Durant but against the Clippers, Paul is able to match that Durant’s ability.

We will see the two best teams in the NBA square off tonight. It might be a preview of the Western Conference Finals in a few months too.

Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Christmas Day has come and passed and the NBA season is no officially underway. Most teams have played about a third of their games so far and we’re starting to see some teams break away from the pack.

The Eastern Conference has been decided for some time now as the Miami Heat have established themselves as the clear class of that conference. The New York Knicks are making it interesting playing so well this year and against the Heat in particular, but after those two teams there’s not a lot of competition.

The Western Conference is much stronger. Right now, it’s tough to say who will make it to the NBA Finals in June.

For now, here’s a look at Power Rankings for the Western Conference:

1. Los Angeles Clippers (22-6)

The Clippers hold the best record in the league right now thanks to a winning streak that has reached 14 games. They have really improved their depth this season and the maturation of Blake Griffin has also helped a ton. Chris Paul at the helm will always keep them in contention and their proven success against the Heat and Thunder in the past makes them deserving of this spot.

2. Oklahoma City Thunder (21-6)

Losers of their last two puts a bad taste in your mouth when ranking the Thunder. They had their big winning streak snapped in Minnesota then disappointingly lost in Miami on Christmas Day in the same fashion they did in the NBA Finals. Still, they have been one of the most consistent teams in the league and the best offensively despite still having room for improvement, which is scary.

3. San Antonio Spurs (22-8)

The Spurs have been quiet this season and to no one’s surprise. They have some impressive wins like opening night against the Thunder but have also been beaten a few times by top teams in the conference. They still are the best in the league at getting open shots and if Manu Ginobili can return to his old form by the playoffs, they will have as good a chance as anyone to reach the Finals.

4. Memphis Grizzlies (18-8)

They had a great start to the year and have since cooled down. They can stack up against the elite in the NBA and throw something at them that is very hard to match up with in terms of their size. But there are still questions surrounding this team while the other three above have less.

5. Golden State Warriors (19-10)

One of the biggest surprises of the year has to be the Warriors. Their defense has vastly improved despite Andrew Bogut still being sidelines with an injury. Stephen Curry has stayed healthy and is having a solid year while David Lee is playing some of the best basketball of his career.

6. Los Angeles Lakers (14-15)

You still can’t totally give up on the Lakers who have just recently gotten Steve Nash back from injury. They beat the Knicks on Christmas Day and look to maybe be on the right track now. If Dwight Howard can’t start looking healthier, they really won’t be able to make much noise this season.

7. Denver Nuggets (16-14)

The Nuggets like the Lakers have been disappointing this year. They also have some new pieces that are slowly starting to get better playing together. They have the talent to make a run and finish the year with a good record if that’s the case.

8. Minnesota Timberwolves (13-13)

Minnesota has recently gotten Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio back from injury and that will make a world of difference. Love is still getting his legs back and Rubio’s minutes are still limited. Once they are 100 percent, the rest of the West needs to be on notice.

9. Houston Rockets (16-12)

The Rockets have been up and down this season but have won their last five games. James Harden and Jeremy Lin are playing better together now. If they can figure that out, they will have a real shot at the playoffs.

10. Utah Jazz (15-15)

The Jazz don’t exactly know who they are and there are some trade rumors surrounding them this year. They are a deep team with more depth on the frontline than just about anyone else. That makes them difficult to handle on a night-to-night basis and major players as the trade deadline approaches.

Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

We are a little more than a quarter of the way finished with the NBA season now. The Oklahoma City Thunder are currently the hottest team in the league with the best record and on an 11-game win streak.

The New York Knicks still hold the top spot in the Eastern Conference just a game and a half ahead of the Miami Heat. The Los Angeles Clippers and San Antonio Spurs are two games back each of the Thunder.

A few disappointments so far have been the Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets who each would barely make the playoffs if they started today. But no team has been more disappointing than the Los Angeles Lakers so far.

Team success has a lot to do with MVP candidacy. Now let’s look at the players who are in the running for the award so far this year.

1. Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder

Durant still deserves the top spot here with the Thunder rolling the way that they are. Durant is putting up career numbers in terms of PER and true shooting percentage as he has a shot at joining the 50-40-90 club. His improvement from last season will be a big reason why he is considered the MVP so far this season especially with James Harden’s departure.

2. Carmelo Anthony, New York Knicks

The Knicks just keep winning while Anthony is playing the best basketball of his career. He really seems to have carried over his Olympic play to the NBA season and it has been perfect for this Knicks team. The veterans surrounding Anthony are only helping to lift him to another level this season too.

3. LeBron James, Miami Heat

You can’t drop LeBron too far down the MVP ladder. He’s still leading the league in PER and putting up better all-around numbers than anyone. The Heat just haven’t been winning quite as much as you’d expect. All it’s going to take is a big month or two from LeBron and the Heat for him to get back in poll position of this race.

4. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers

What Kobe is doing at this age and leading the league in scoring as efficiently as he’s ever been is remarkable. The issue is the Lakers aren’t winning, at all. Once they do and most people still believe they will eventually get their act together, Kobe will be right up there in the MVP discussion.

5. Chris Paul, Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers are quietly on a winning streak just as impressive as the Thunder’s. Paul is 5th in the NBA in PER behind only the four players ahead of him in these Power Rankings. The Clippers look much better than a season ago, more prepared to make a deep run in the playoffs. Their depth has been a big reason for their success though so it’s not all Paul which is why he ranks only 5th.

6. Zach Randolph, Memphis Grizzlies

The Grizzlies have gotten off to a great start this season thanks mostly to Randolph. Randolph isn’t near the top of the league in PER but his averages of 17.2 points and 12.7 rebounds per game will not go unnoticed by MVP voters. Memphis has shown that they are as tough as anyone in the league to match up with and Randolph being their power forward is the biggest reason why.

7. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors

Curry has led the Warriors to the fifth best record in the Western Conference so far this season. The key has simply been his health. He’s averaging 19.7 points, 6.5 assists and 4.1 rebounds per game. His shooting numbers have not been their best either so expect those to rise as the season goes on. The Warriors have been one of the biggest surprises of the year playing this well so early. If they can keep it up, Curry will deserve some MVP attention.

8. Josh Smith, Atlanta Hawks

Smith and the Hawks have also surprised the NBA in their first season after Joe Johnson currently holding the third best record in the Eastern Conference. They have many impressive wins including against the Thunder in OKC. Smith is averaging 16.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game to lead the Hawks.

9. Rajon Rondo, Boston Celtics

Rondo is still leading the league in assists by far and if the Celtics can get their act together and move up the standings in the Eastern Confernce, he will keep moving up in the MVP Power Rankings. He’s averaging 12.9 points, 12.7 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game this year as he looks to be playing the best ball of his career.

10. Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder

Westbrook will never win the NBA because he is on the same team as Kevin Durant but he still deserves to be ahead of others in the MVP Power Rankings. Like Durant, Westbrook is also having a career year passing the ball better than ever and playing defense at the highest level we’ve ever seen from him. The Thunder needed Durant and Westbrook to step up and fill the Harden void this year and both have done exactly that.

Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder got their most impressive win of the season last night beating the Los Angeles Clippers 117-111 in overtime.

The Thunder got out to a good start and led for most of the game before being outscored 33-26 in the fourth quarter.

Kevin Durant made a jumper to put the Thunder ahead 100-95 with 1:44 left in the game. The Clippers would answer that with a big three.

Serge Ibaka scored the final bucket for the Thunder in regulation making a jumper from the baseline off a Russell Westbrook assist to put OKC ahead 102-98 with 1:14 remaining.

Two Chris Paul free throws would bring the Clips within two and then following a stop, Paul found a cutting Matt Barnes for a layup to tie the game at 102 with 36 seconds left.

Westbrook missed a jumper to take the lead with 21 seconds left then defended Paul very well on the final possession to force him into a missed jumper and extra period.

Westbrook and Durant each hit big threes to begin the overtime period and get the Thunder into the lead. The two stars would score all of OKC’s 15 points in overtime including the final seven points coming from the free throw line.

Here are the Game Grades:

Kevin Durant – 47 minutes, 35 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists – A

Durant struggled in this one despite finishing with 35. He went just 7-of-19 from the field but was 19-for-21 from the free throw line. The six turnovers were in issue especially in the second half but Durant made up for it being very aggressive down the stretch. He seemed to demand the ball more than usual in the fourth and took a bunch of good shots.

Russell Westbrook – 42 minutes, 23 points, 9 assists, 3 rebounds – B

Westbrook had an overall pretty quiet night. He went 8-of-20 from the field but it didn’t really feel like he struggled that much. He hit a few big shots and went 3-of-5 from 3-point land. The nine assists were again nice and with just three turnovers. It was a tough head-to-head matchup vs. Paul and Westbrook held his own more than usual.

Serge Ibaka – 36 minutes, 15 points, 12 rebounds, 3 blocks – B+

Ibaka was a big time presence in this game especially with his work on the defensive glass. With Durant not getting a ton of boards it was Ibaka who needed to and he came through. The offense was again there as well as he went 5-of-9 from the field including a 3-point bank shot at the buzzer to end the first half. He did foul out in overtime but the overall effort was a great one from Ibaka last night.

Kevin Martin – 35 minutes, 20 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals – B+

We were waiting for Martin to have a big game against a good team and last night he did just that. He was efficient going 6-of-10 from the field and 3-of-5 from three. Most of his points came in the first half but he did hit a big three in the fourth quarter. He found other ways to get points too getting to the line five times and hitting a driving layup and-1 as well.

Kendrick Perkins – 33 minutes, 0 points, 4 rebounds, 2 blocks – B-

This was a tough matchup for Perkins trying to guard the super-athletic DeAndre Jordan. He wasn’t terrible and the Thunder even outscored the Clippers with Perkins on the floor. But scoring no points and getting very few rebounds again screams that a replacement for Perkins is always a good idea.

Thabo Sefolosha – 30 minutes, 6 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals – B+

Sefolosha again got off to a quick start making two early threes. He was assigned the task of guarding Paul for most of the game and did a very good job. This probably helped take some pressure of Westbrook which was key for OKC as well.

Nick Collison – 19 minutes, 8 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists – A+

Collison played a great game finally producing some points and boards while his presence was impossible not to notice. The Thunder needed to match a very good second unit that the Clips had and Collison was a big part in making sure OKC did.

Eric Maynor – 11 minutes, 0 points, 2 assists, 2 rebounds – C

Maynor had a tough matchup last night going against mini-LeBron Eric Bledsoe. It made things tough for Maynor to initiate much on offense and he was pretty quiet overall.

Hasheem Thabeet – 12 minutes, 10 points, 4 rebounds – A+

Thabeet gave OKC everything they could have hoped for and then some. He made all four of his field goals in the game, two of which were and-1’s. Thabeet continues to be impressive this season and in a matchup like vs. the Clippers, he will be very valuable.

Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

Los Angeles Clippers Team Overview

The Clippers went from a laughing stock of a franchise to a serious contender last season and acquiring Chris Paul at the start of the season had everything to do with it.

Paul was fantastic last season leading the Clippers to a 40-26 record and 5-seed in the Western Conference. The Clips upset the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the playoffs but then were swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the second round.

The Clippers are looking to build on their success from last season now. They have acquired Lamar Odom, Jamal Crawford and Grant Hill this summer as well as Ryan Hollins, Willie Green and Ronny Turiaf. The Clippers are parting ways with Randy Foye, Mo Williams, Nick Young and Ryan Gomes.

The biggest news though was extending Blake Griffin for five years, $95 million. Paul is set to become a free agent after next season and having Griffin on the books for five years will only help in keeping Paul as well.

Last year

The Oklahoma City Thunder played the Clippers four times last season and lost to them three times.

In the first meeting, the Clippers won 112-100 in L.A. on Jan. 30 in a game that was highlighted by Griffin’s dunk on Kendrick Perkins. Griffin had 22 points in the game while Paul had 26 points and 14 assists.

The Clippers shot 56.3 percent from the field and made 13-of-25 threes.

Kevin Durant led the Thunder with 36 points and 13 rebounds. Russell Westbrook had 31 points. James Harden started in place of Thabo Sefolosha, played 42 minutes and scored just seven points on 2-of-10 shooting.

The Thunder beat the Clippers 114-91 in OKC in their next meeting. Durant had 32, Westbrook had 19 and Harden struggled again with just 10.

The Thunder shot 53.8 percent from the field while the Clippers shot just 36.7 percent.

Paul made a layup over Serge Ibaka in the final seconds of their third meeting to lift the Clippers past OKC 100-98. Paul finished with 31 in the game. Durant had 22, Westbrook 20 and Harden 17.

The Clippers won again five days later in L.A. 92-77. It was one of the worst games of the year for the Thunder who shot 37.5 percent from the field, made 5-of-22 threes and 18-of-29 free throws.

Durant had 24, Westbrook had just nine and Harden 12. Griffin led the Clippers with 17 points, 11 rebounds and six assists.

Durant averaged 28.5 points and 9.0 rebounds per game in the season series vs. the Clippers. He shot .475 percent from the field, .333 percent from three and .857 percent from the line.

Westbrook averaged 19.8 points and 4.5 assists per game. He shot .368 percent from the field and .176 percent from three while attempting 4.3 threes per game.

Harden averaged 11.5 points per game and shot .361 percent from the field, .391 percent from three and .733 percent from the line while attempting only 3.8 free throws per game.

Paul averaged 20.5 points and 9.5 assists per game. He shot .517 percent from the field and .929 percent from the line.

The matchup

The Clippers had the 7th best offense in the league in terms of points per possession. They were 8th best on spot-up plays and 4th best on pick-and-roll plays, two areas that Paul really influenced for them.

The Thunder were just 11th best against the pick-and-roll last year and that’s where the Clippers and Paul picked them apart. Paul works the pick-and-roll as well as any point guard in the league and did so especially against the aggressive Westbrook in this matchup.

The Clippers also had the best isolation PPP in the league which was also led by Paul.

The Clippers’ defense was only 17th best overall. The Thunder still struggled against them in many of the games but it could have been a sort of fluke. In a playoff series, the Thunder should have been able to figure them out and start scoring more efficiently.

They were 19th best vs. isolation plays and 18th best vs. pick-and-roll plays.

Next year

The Thunder and Clippers will play three times next year. The first meeting will come early on in the season in Oklahoma City on Nov. 21, then in L.A. Jan. 22 and finally in L.A. again on March 3.

The Chris Paul-era for the Clippers has rejuvenated this franchise. They will be a much deeper team next year and in the second season with Paul, should see an improvement all-around.

The Clippers obviously matched up with the Thunder pretty well last season and should play them very tough again next year. Westbrook really needs to play more disciplined and under control vs. Paul to give the Thunder a better chance of winning.

Harden also needs to give OKC more in this matchup. The athletic bigs on the inside make it hard for Harden to attack the paint and he will have to pick and choose his spots better in future meetings.

The Clippers are in the small group along with the Thunder of teams that can legitimately compete for a title next season. With Paul at the helm, this will always be the case, despite Vinny Del Negro.

Gary A. Vasquez-US PRESSWIRE

The Los Angeles Lakers are looking to meet with Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic to work on a trade for the All-Star center, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.

The Lakers would like to receive a commitment from Howard that he will extend with the team beyond next season if they trade for him. Howard said previously that the only team he would extend with was the Brooklyn Nets.

There have been plenty of rumors involving Howard being traded to the Lakers. Most likely a third team would have to be involved for Orlando to get the best deal back from Howard involving either young prospects or a bunch of future draft picks.

The only team not interested in hearing Howard commit beyond next season with them is the Houston Rockets who are still “all-in” in attempting to acquire Howard. GM Daryl Morey has set up his roster with a slew of young assets and picks to throw Orlando’s way and they currently look like the team with the most to offer the Magic.

Howard sent direct messages on Twitter this week indicating that Orlando has not been totally up front about his health. Howard missed the end of last season and had back surgery and basically said he could barely walk in the direct messages.

There is a chance Howard would not be healthy to play by the start of next season and there is even a rumor out there (although unlikely) that Howard would choose to sit out the entire 2012-13 season if he remained with the Magic.

The team hoping for Howard to stay put until next summer is the Dallas Mavericks. Dallas tried to clear up cap to attract Deron Williams this summer but that did not work out and now they will do the same for Howard next summer.

Meanwhile Dallas looked as if it would end up with a very depleted roster losing Jason Terry and Jason Kidd but a couple of recent signings have salvaged a decent roster for them. Unrestricted free agent O.J. Mayo announced on Twitter that he will be signing with the Mavericks this season. Earlier in the week, Dallas grabbed Chris Kaman, Elton Brand and stole Darren Collison from Indiana.

The 2011 NBA champions are a far different team now and with an aging Dirk Nowitzki will not be back competing for a title any time soon unless they are able to sign a player like Howard.

Dallas beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in conference finals in 2011 and then got swept by them this past season in the first round.

With all of the recent movement around the league and the Western Conference in particular, OKC will still be considered the heavy favorite to make it to the NBA Finals again. Their biggest competition perhaps will be the Lakers since they have acquired Steve Nash, although the Thunder beat L.A. in five games in the second round this past postseason.

The other L.A. team, the Clippers are also up and coming in the West and have made a few nice moves to improve their roster starting with extending Blake Griffin for the next five years. Griffin suffered a knee injury during the Team USA training however and will have surgery Monday.

The Clippers have also signed Jamal Crawford and re-signed Chauncey Billups. They have also reportedly agreed to a 2-year deal with Grant Hill who was also considering the Lakers, Heat and Knicks. The Clippers were missing out on wing players on their roster this past season but adding Hill and Crawford will help them in that department.

The West has certainly gotten stronger from last season and we haven’t even mentioned the San Antonio Spurs who will have the same roster next season.

The Thunder don’t have to make moves to improve though. The experience they gained making it to the NBA Finals was enough.

Camby will sign a 3-year, $13.2 million deal. The Rockets will receive Toney Douglas, Josh Harrelson and Jerome Jordan along with second round picks in 2014 and 2015.

Camby was deciding between a few teams including the Miami Heat but would have had to take much less money to go play in South Beach.

The Knicks have also come to terms with their two shooters from last season, Steve Novak and J.R. Smith.

Novak has agreed to a 4-year, $15 million deal with New York and Smith a 2-year, $2.8 million deal.

New York is putting together what feels like a better roster than last season’s. Not getting Steve Nash was devastating but they are still making progress.

Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert is a restricted free agent this summer and agreed to a 4-year, $58 million offer sheet with Portland. Indiana expectedly plans to match that offer.

Free agents cannot officially sign until July 11 and at that point, teams will have three days to match any offer sheets that are signed.

The Orlando Magic are still working on getting a deal done to trade Dwight Howard. Yesterday, a third team (the Cleveland Cavaliers) was brought into the mix with Orlando and Brooklyn. Now the Nets are looking to involve the Los Angeles Clippers as well.

Brooklyn wants to trade MarShon Brooks to the Clippers for another first rounder to use in the package they will send Orlando in exchange for Howard.

The deal still looks like highway robbery for the Nets and it is unclear if the deal is really close enough for the Magic to say yes.

The Clippers would make out great if they can swap a first round pick for Brooks who had a very nice rookie campaign.

Lin will be able to sign it officially on July 11 then the Knicks will have three days to match. The deal is worth $10.2 million over the first two seasons and $9.3 million in the third and fourth year with the final year being a team option.

The Knicks can offer Lin a 4-year, $24.5 million deal.

Jason Kidd surprisingly chose the Knicks over the Dallas Mavericks. Kidd was rumored to be close to re-signing with Dallas and was earlier rumored to plan to follow Deron Williams wherever he signed.

Kidd’s deal with New York will be a 3-year, $9 million deal.

Every indication is that the Knicks will match the offer sheet for Lin and team up the two point guards. A lack of a point guard was a glaring hole in the Knicks’ roster during the playoffs. Carmelo Anthony turned into an isolation machine playing right into the hands of the Miami Heat defense.

Kidd and Lin should be able to help with that, especially Kidd who has the right personality to control things on offense even next to a superstar like Anthony.

The Minnesota Timberwolves made a few big signings last night.

Brandon Roy has come out of retirement and agreed to a 2-year, $10.4 million deal with the T-Wolves. Minnesota also signed another former Blazer in Nicolas Batum to a 4-year, $45 million offer sheet although Portland reportedly plans to match any offer for Batum.

The Timberwolves clearly are looking to strengthen their wing positions to surround Ricky Rubio and Kevin Love with better guys. Minnesota also traded for Chase Budinger before the NBA Draft.

Trade talks between the Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic for Dwight Howard have lessened. The Lakers after trading for Steve Nash now intend to keep their core of Nash, Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum.

Bynum was involved in trade rumors that would send him to Orlando in a deal for Howard but the Magic have not shown a lot of interest in any deal presented to them this offseason.

The Brooklyn Nets are still trying to work on a deal to get Howard although they’re chances of landing them seem increasingly less.

Ray Allen has narrowed down his decision of where he wants to play to the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics. The Los Angeles Clippers were thought to be int he running yesterday before signing Jamal Crawford and Chauncey Billups.

The Heat appear to be the frontrunner although only able to offer Allen $3.09 per year while Boston has offered Allen a 2-year, $12 million deal.

Thomas Campbell-US PRESSWIRE

The Houston Rockets have agreed to trade point guard Kyle Lowry to the Toronto Raptors for a future first round pick and Gary Forbes.

Lowry and Rockets head coach Kevin McHale had a falling out and Lowry has been looking to get out ever since.

The Rockets have made an offer sheet to restricted free agent Jeremy Lin for four years, $30 million. The New York Knicks are expected to match the offer for Lin especially after failing to acquire Steve Nash who became a Laker last night.

The earliest Lin can sign it is July 11 then the Knicks will have three days to match it. The Knicks have also emerged as the favorite to sign Raymond Felton.

The Raptors were also hopeful to land Nash so much that they agreed to an offer sheet of three years, $20 million with Landry Fields. The Raptors won’t totally lose out as they settle for Lowry as a decent consolation prize.

The Los Angeles Clippers have effectively taken themselves out of the running for Ray Allen by signing Jamal Crawford to a 3-year, $15.7 million deal. Allen was set to meet with the Clippers on Friday.

The Clippers have also agreed on a 1-year deal for Chauncey Billups.

The Clippers were a tough team last season that gave the Oklahoma City Thunder some trouble in the regular season. They were obviously in the market for a two guard after being forced to start Randy Foye there in the playoffs.

Lob City was swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the second round but have made some nice moves to prepare for next season including trading for Lamar Odom.

As we always forget about the Spurs during this time of the year, the top of the West is looking like OKC, LA, LA right now.

Meanwhile, Allen is meeting with the Heat today and is now expected to sign there even though Boston is offering Allen nearly double in salary that Miami can.

Allen is most likely to choose between the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Clippers despite the Boston Celtics being able to offer him the most money, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.

Allen has been recruited by both teams led by their best players, LeBron James and Chris Paul. Allen is meeting with the Heat Thursday and will meet with the Clippers Friday. Miami will only be able to offer Allen $3.09 million per year while the Clippers can offer Allen the full mid-level exception of $5 million.

LeBron and Dwyane Wade have been open about their desire to bring Allen to South Beach with their recent activity on Twitter.

Allen would make a good fit for either team. The double teams Wade and especially LeBron demand leave tons of opportunities for 3-point shooters like Allen. Playing alongside one of the best point guards in the NBA wouldn’t be a bad fit either.

The fact that Allen is leaning towards leaving Boston makes it appear that money is not the most important factor for him. Allen has been willing to accept less money to chase a title in the past when he came to Boston back in 2007.

In Miami, Allen would most certainly come off the bench. Allen was coming off the bench by the end of the season last year for Boston too.

In Los Angeles, Allen could potentially have a starting role. The Clippers were starting Randy Foye alongside Paul in the backcourt during the playoffs after Chauncey Billups got injured. Even if the Clippers re-sign Billups, Allen might make a better starting two for the team than anyone.

The Heat are coming off winning a title and in the Eastern Conference are the clear-cut favorites to make it back to the NBA Finals.

The Clippers were swept in the second round of the playoffs by the San Antonio Spurs but it was their first season with Paul and things look brighter on the horizon for them. Blake Griffin is likely to improve going into his third season and the free agent signing of Lamar Odom will also improve their roster.

If it comes down to the best chance of winning a title then Miami should be the choice for Allen. The Western Conference is simply too strong to look at the Clippers as a team with a great chance of getting to the Finals next season.

But for a little more money and a little more playing time, Chris Paul might be able to sell Allen on coming to Lob City. We will probably know more Friday night.

Ray Allen has been rumored to be signing with the Heat ever since the season ended and the two Heat stars would be happy to have him in South Beach.

2morrow is a big day for #HeatNation..

— Dwyane Wade (@DwyaneWade) July 5, 2012

Allen is set to visit with the Heat today. Allen is scheduled to meet with the Los Angeles Clippers Friday which means we probably won’t find out Allen’s decision until after then.

The Heat can only offer Allen $3.09 million per year. The Clippers can offer Allen the full mid-level exception of $5 million and the Boston Celtics have offered Allen a 2-year, $12 million deal.

Allen would be taking less money to play in Miami but at this point in his career, chasing a championship with LeBron and Wade may be more important to him.

The Celtics have re-signed Kevin Garnett already and also just signed Jason Terry. They’re not rolling over and dying and still believe they have one last run left in them. It’s just a matter of if they can convince Allen of that too.

Taking less money to chase a championship isn’t always something that makes sense to players too. At this point in Allen’s life, it is his last chance to make this kind of money. Signing with Miami doesn’t guarantee him a championship either and he already took less money in his last contract with Boston to do the same thing.

Miami does appear to be the frontrunner however and we will probably know more later today.

LeBron retweeted one of his followers yesterday who tweeted a Photoshopped picture of Ray Allen in a Miami Heat jersey.

RT @abake6: #Heat fans, do yall want to see something really cool? (Cc: @FakePatRiley) twitter.com/abake6/status/…(looks damn good to me)

— LeBron James (@KingJames) July 4, 2012

LeBron also posted the picture on Facebook with a tagline reading: “This looks damn good to me.”

This isn’t the first time LeBron has made his feeling known on Twitter about Allen possibly signing with the Heat.

While watching the Draft my son Bryce ask “Is Ray Allen gonna play for the Heat”. I said “I don’t know, I hope so”.

— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 29, 2012

The Heat can offer Allen just $3.09 million per year to sign with them. The Boston Celtics have already offered Allen a 2-year, $12 million deal.

Allen plans to meet with the Heat Thursday and then with the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday. The Clippers can offer Allen the full mid-level exception of $5 million.

Allen would have to sacrifice money to go chase a championship with LeBron in South Beach but that’s something he did before when he first signed with Boston back in 2007.

Allen had conference calls yesterday with the Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves, according to David Aldridge of NBA.com. Allen will visit with the Heat and Clippers later this week.

The Boston Celtics have made Allen a 2-year, $12 million offer which is more money than the Heat or Clippers could offer Allen. Miami can only give Allen $3.09 million next year while the Clippers can offer Allen the full mid-level exception of $5 million.

The Heat seemed like the frontrunner last week to get Allen. Now he could make double staying in Boston and the Clippers are looking more and more like title contenders themselves.

The Clippers recently traded for Lamar Odom which gives them another piece they were missing from last season. Playing with Chris Paul also has to be a huge draw for any shooter especially Allen.

The Celtics have also made moves re-signing Kevin Garnett for three years making it clear they want to try and make another run with this core. The draft picks of Jared Sullinger and Fab Melo should also help one of Boston’s problems from this past season by getting bigger.

At the end of the day, going to play for the defending champs in South Beach has to be the place where Allen would feel like he has the best chance to win another title before his career is over.

The Heat showed this season just how much they can featured shooters like Allen too with the performances of Shane Battier and Mike Miller in the NBA Finals. Allen would be a perfect fit next to LeBron and Wade.

It’s going to come down to how much Allen values the potential more money he could make somewhere besides Miami.

Odom will return to where he started playing in the NBA for next season as he was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers Friday.

Mo Williams went to the Utah Jazz in the 4-team deal. Dallas did it essentially to just get rid of Odom’s salary.

Odom loves playing in cities with good weather. This is not a secret about him. He only wants to play for teams in L.A. or Miami.

Odom had a very tough year last year but may be revitalized on the Clippers with Chris Paul and Blake Griffin.

Odom is always a piece that any team could use and the Clippers for sure. If he can bounce back next season and return to his old self the Clippers could make a lot of noise in the Western Conference.

Dallas also received the draft rights to Tadija Dragicevic and the Clippers sent their recent draft choice Furkan Aldemir to Houston as part of the deal.

Here are draft grades for every team:

New Orleans Hornets
No. 1 overall – Anthony Davis, PF, Kentucky
No. 10 overall – Austin Rivers, G, Duke
No. 46 overall – Darius Miller, G/F, Kentucky

The Hornets really couldn’t go wrong possessing the first overall pick in the draft and chance to take Anthony Davis. Davis has a chance to be a franchise changer and playing alongside Eric Gordon in New Orleans is a good start. The Hornets took Rivers 10th overall which is what they wanted to do. The Hornets believe Rivers can play some point for them although he is a scoring guard at heart. Gordon is a good playmaker himself though so the two may be able to share ball handling duties a la Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry. The Darius Miller pick is nice too. He is an athlete that could make it in the NBA and was a teammate of Davis’ at Kentucky.

Grade: A+

Oklahoma City Thunder
No. 28 overall – Perry Jones, III, F, Baylor

To win a championship, sometimes it takes a little luck. The Thunder got the steal of the 2012 NBA Draft with the No. 28 pick. Perry Jones III we knew was going to fall because of concerns mainly surrounding his knee but sliding this far to a franchise that is perfect for him just seems unfair to the rest of the league. It was a Spurs-like snag for OKC and they know it already. Jones III has lottery talent and top-5 pick potential. One knock on him is that he never really stepped up and dominated and was more of a supporting role type of mindset and player. Well, come on down to OKC that sounds just fine!

Grade: A+

Charlotte Bobcats
No. 2 overall – Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, SF, Kentucky
No. 31 overall – Jeffrey Taylor, G/F, Vanderbilt

The Bobcats were supposed to either trade the No. 2 pick or take Thomas Robinson if they couldn’t. Instead, they shocked everyone selecting Michael Kidd-Gilchrist second overall. MKG is a player that will shine no matter where he plays, even in Charlotte. He has the potential to be the second best player in this draft class and it was a wise choice to make here by Michael Jordan. Jeffrey Taylor is a good pick too in the second round. Taylor was projected to go a little earlier in the draft and is a nice value find at 31.

Grade: A

Washington Wizards
No. 3 overall – Bradley Beal, SG, Florida
No. 32 overall – Tomas Satoransky, G, Czech Republic

The Wizards got the man they wanted at No. 3 but had to hold their breath and pray before doing so. As the Bobcats were shopping the No. 2 pick, any team that may have gotten it was probably going to take Bradley Beal second overall. The Wizards desperately wanted an elite shooter and wing to place alongside John Wall and they believe Beal is that guy. Beal measured just under 6-foot-5 so he’s not huge but he is physical and can do a lot of things on a basketball court. Tomas Satoranksy in the second round apparently is friends with Jan Vesely which makes that pick awesome too.

Grade: A

Sacramento Kings
No. 5 overall – Thomas Robinson, PF, Kansas

It was impossible not to fall in love with Thomas Robinson watching him break down after being selected fifth overall by the Kings. He won over a lot of fans with that reaction. Robinson is touted as one of the surest things at the top of this draft. The Kings wanted him bad too at No. 5, more than anybody else. Sacramento was going to pull off a trade with this pick with Houston if Robinson was off the board but obviously that didn’t happen. Robinson and DeMarcus Cousins are going to be able to get a lot of rebounds playing together.

Grade: A

Detroit Pistons
No. 9 overall – Andre Drummond, PF/C, Connecticut
No. 39 overall – Khris Middleton, SF, Texas A&M

The Pistons are extremely happy that Andre Drummond fell to them. Before the draft, they were hoping for this but planning to settle on John Henson. Drummond has as much upside as anyone in this draft. There are questions surrounding him but he is very young. It was the right pick here for Detroit without question. Khris Middleton isn’t someone that jumps out as a great pick here but at No. 39, there’s not a lot to expect.

Grade: A

Milwaukee Bucks
No. 14 overall – John Henson, PF, North Carolina
No. 42 overall – Doron Lamb, SG, Kentucky

The Bucks were pretty happy to see John Henson at No. 14 especially after trading down from 12 with Houston. Henson is the kind of guy Milwaukee wanted and someone who will block a lot of shots and grab some rebounds but really needs to put on some weight first. Doron Lamb is another player they were happy to see at No. 42. He could have gone in the first round and is an irrational confidence guy who can shoot and play some D too.

Grade: B+

Cleveland Cavaliers
No. 4 overall – Dion Waiters, SG, Syracuse
No. 17 overall – Tyler Zeller, C, North Carolina

It wasn’t a huge shocker that Cleveland took Dion Waiters No. 4. They were planning on possibly doing so and after being unable to trade up to No. 2 and take Beal, Waiters was the next guy on their list, probably just ahead of Harrison Barnes. It wasn’t an overly popular pick but Waiters has an NBA-ready body and next to Kyrie Irving should do well. With Tyler Zeller sliding in the draft, the Cavaliers pulled the trigger on a trade with Dallas to get to No. 17 and take the North Carolina center. They gave up three picks for Zeller so they must really like him. Now with a core of Irving, Waiters, Thompson and Zeller, Cleveland’s future looks kind of alright.

Grade: B

Portland Trailblazers
No. 6 overall – Damian Lillard, PG, Weber State
No. 11 overall – Meyers Leonard, C, Illinois
No. 40 overall – Will Barton, SG, Memphis

Before the Draft, Portland was intent on keeping their 6th and 11th picks and they also loved Damian Lillard. Six may sound high for Lillard but Portland did something smart: picking their favorite guy and not caring where they did it. They then filled a need at 11 with Meyers Leonard, the center from Illinois. Portland was projected in some mocks to take Andre Drummond and either Austin Rivers or Jeremy Lamb. That sounds a little better than what they ended up with. They get Will Barton at No. 40 which is another solid value pick as he was projected late-first by many.

Grade: B

Golden State Warriors
No. 7 overall – Harrison Barnes, G/F, North Carolina
No. 30 overall – Festus Ezeli, C, Vanderbilt
No. 35 overall – Draymond Green, F, Michigan State
No. 52 overall – Ognjen Kuzmic, C, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Despite his overall disappointing feeling, many still feel Harrison Barnes can be an All-Star in the NBA. Getting him at No. 7 was a pretty solid pick for the Warriors, who are starting new next year post-Monta Ellis and with Andrew Bogut. Festus Ezeli with the last pick of the first round is understandable too and he is a high-character guy who will work hard for them. Draymond Green is another good pick to get in the second round. The Warriors didn’t have a flashy draft but they made some value picks and that’s always a good strategy.

Grade: B

Houston Rockets
No. 12 overall – Jeremy Lamb, SG, Connecticut
No. 16 overall – Royce White, F, Iowa State
No. 18 overall – Terrence Jones, F, Kentucky

The Rockets were stockpiling draft picks with one thing on their mind: Dwight Howard. That hasn’t happened yet and now feels like it won’t. They were hoping to move up to No. 5 to take Andre Drummond but since Thomas Robinson fell to the Kings there, they weren’t trading that pick. The Rockets will settle for three pretty solid players starting with Jeremy Lamb at No. 12 who has a lot of pro potential as a scorer. When they took Royce White at No. 16, you knew they weren’t trading their picks anymore. White has gotten a lot of buzz this draft as a more athletic Boris Diaw who plays a little like Charles Barkley too. Terrence Jones two picks later is another talented forward that can do a variety of things. You always feel players Daryl Morey drafts are guys who can find a spot in the NBA. The Rockets just had bigger sights for this draft than this.

Grade: B

Phoenix Suns
No. 13 overall – Kendall Marshall, PG, North Carolina

It’s just about official now that Steve Nash is on his way out in Phoenix. Kendall Marshall is their point guard of the future. Marshall was one of the best assists men in college the past two seasons and has drawn comparisons to Mark Jackson and Andre Miller so yeah, he’s not quick. He’s fun to play with and will make the players around him better. They like that in Phoenix.

Grade: B

Chicago Bulls
No. 29 overall – Marquis Teague, PG, Kentucky

The Bulls were either going backup point here or combo-guard shooter. Marquis Teague is a talented player with this pick and someone who may be able to play alongside Derrick Rose some. It’s nothing special for the Bulls but a good pick nonetheless. Bulls fans were dying for Perry Jones III to slip one more pick into their laps.

Grade: B

Toronto Raptors
No. 8 overall – Terrence Ross, SG, Washington
No. 37 overall – Quincy Acy, PF, Baylor
No. 56 overall – Tomislav Zubcic, PF, Croatia

The Raptors would have loved to see Harrison Barnes fall one more pick into their laps. They would have loved even more to move up and snag Dion Waiters. They settle for Terrence Ross who can do things that will make him have a solid NBA career: shoot threes and defend. Quincy Acy in Round 2 could be a Reggie Evans type which is something this franchise has experience with. Tomislav Zubcic will not come over right away. If Toronto gets Steve Nash, a lot of their problems will appear solved.

Grade: C+

Orlando Magic
No. 19 overall – Andrew Nicholson, PF, St. Bonaventure
No. 49 overall – Kyle O’Quinn, C, Norfolk State

The Magic are in a weird situation and have been ever since Dwight Howard started pouting. Howard ran their head coach and GM out of town and still wants out himself. He hasn’t gotten it yet but it’s really only a matter of time. Orlando’s picks of Andrew Nicholson and Kyle O’Quinn may have been logical, but they won’t make their fans feel better yet

Grade: C+

Boston Celtics
No. 21 overall – Jared Sullinger, PF, Ohio State
No. 22 overall – Fab Melo, C, Syracuse
No. 51 overall – Kris Joseph, SF, Syracuse

We knew Jared Sullinger would drop, we just didn’t know how far. The Celtics are in a rebuilding stage now and looking to bulk up their front court with Sullinger and Fab Melo. The Celtics were hoping for Royce White here or to trade up and take Doc Rivers’ son Austin Rivers in the lottery. The best case scenario for Kris Joseph (taken No. 51 overall) is Gary Forbes, according to DraftExpress.

Grade: C+

Philadelphia 76ers
No. 15 overall – Maurice Harkless, SF, St. John’s
No. 27 overall – Arnett Moultrie, PF/C, Mississippi State

Philadelphia fans are not happy with the decision to take Maurice “don’t call me Moe” Harkless 15th overall. When you draft a guy who plays the same position as your best player at No. 15, it never feels like it makes sense. Harkless came out after just one year at St. John’s and is said to have some pro potential but he’s nothing special. The 76ers traded up with Miami to get Arnett Moultrie at No. 27. It’s just another lateral move here for Philly. Their fans want more than that.

Grade: C

Denver Nuggets
No. 20 overall – Evan Fournier, SG, France
No. 38 overall – Quincy Miller, G/F, Baylor
No. 50 overall – Izzet Turkyilmaz, PF, Turkey

The Nuggets surprisingly went with Evan Fournier at No. 20 despite some talent sitting on the board. Fournier will not come over to the NBA next season but was the highest rated international prospect of the draft. The Nuggets clearly weren’t looking to try and strike gold with late first round picks this year. They’ve already accomplished that with Ty Lawson and Kenneth Faried. Their pick at No. 38 felt a little better. Some fans wanted Quincy Miller with the 20th pick so getting him this late is a win in that sense. Miller is young with a ton of potential but has the usual question marks. Denver went with another international product late in the second round that we won’t see in the NBA right away.

Grade: C

Atlanta Hawks
No. 23 overall – John Jenkins, SG, Vanderbilt
No. 43 overall – Mike Scott, F, Virginia

Nothing special here for Atlanta. John Jenkins could be decent but he won’t turn any heads. He can really shoot it though and might get some run for the Hawks where Josh Smith is on the way out. It would have been great if Atlanta had decided to draft Marquis Teague here and run an all-Teague backcourt with his brother Jeff. Love the Mike Scott pick.

Grade: C

Dallas Mavericks
No. 24 overall – Jared Cunningham, G, Oregon State
No. 33 overall – Bernard James, C, Florida State
No. 34 overall – Jae Crowder, F, Marquette

It doesn’t seem like Dallas was trying to do a ton in this draft. They dealt their 17th overall pick to Cleveland probably because there was no one they were in love with. They got three picks back for it and didn’t do anything crazy with them. One of the cooler moments in the draft though was Bernard James having his name called and walking to the podium. The crowd started chanting “U-S-A” because James served three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Dallas’ main priority this offseason is wooing Deron Williams and/or Dwight Howard.

Grade: C

Memphis Grizzlies
No. 25 overall – Tony Wroten, Jr., PG, Washington

The Grizzlies wanted a point guard and a lot of mocks had them going with Marquis Teague but they choose Tony Wroten, Jr. instead. Jay Bilas calls Wroten, Jr. a taller Rajon Rondo. That means he’s a good passer and can’t shoot a lick. Maybe it’s what Memphis needs and there is some upside there.

Grade: C

Utah Jazz
No. 47 overall – Kevin Murphy, SG, Tennessee Tech

Utah has enough young players from the last few drafts that they didn’t care too much about this year. Kevin Murphy is the only player from this draft to score 50 or more points in game last year in college. Why not?

Grade: C

Miami Heat
No. 45 overall – Justin Hamilton, C, LSU

Miami could have had Perry Jones III at No. 27 and it would have been just as scary as OKC getting him if not more so. They just didn’t want to have to pay a first rounder this year. Their cap space will be tight the next few seasons. They trade down here and get a 7-footer which they need. Something tells me we won’t see a ton of Justin Hamilton playing for the defending champs.

Grade: C

San Antonio Spurs
No. 59 overall – Marcus Denmon, G, Missouri

The Spurs drafted him so he’ll be an All-Star in four years. Marcus Denmon feels a little Patty Mills/James Anderson. The Spurs probably aren’t expecting too much from Denmon though.

Grade: C

New York Knicks
No. 48 overall – Kostas Papanikolaou, F, Greece

Not doing anything here. The home crowd really loved this pick at least.

Grade: C-

Los Angeles Clippers
No. 53 overall – Furkan Aldemir, PF, Turkey

Love this pick. He may never play in the NBA but he is a great rebounder and can only score on putbacks, according to Fran Fraschilla. What’s not to love?

Grade: C-

Los Angeles Lakers
No. 55 overall – Darius Johnson-Odom, SG, Marquette
No. 60 overall – Robert Sacre, C, Gonzaga

Darius Johnson-Odom plays the wrong sport. He’d be an awesome football player and used that to his advantage in college for Marquette. He will look a lot smaller in the NBA. If Robert Sacre is playing for the Lakers next season, it won’t be a good thing.

Grade: C-

Brooklyn Nets
No. 41 overall – Tyshawn Taylor, PG, Kansas
No. 54 overall – Tornike Shengelia, PF, Georgia
No. 57 overall – Ilkan Karaman, PF, Turkey

Brooklyn not trying to go crazy here. They are just praying for Deron Williams and Dwight Howard to hookup in their new city. Tyshawn Taylor might make it as a backup point in this league but nothing more. Tornike Shengelia goes by “Toko” and is a 6-foot-9 scorer who is good at attacking and can score around the rim well but has no jumper. Ilkan Karamen has a ton of tattoos and may “never play in the NBA” according to Fran Fraschilla.

Grade: C-

Minnesota Timberwolves
No. 58 overall – Robbie Hummel, SF, Purdue

Kevin Love, Chase Budinger and now Robbie Hummel. Good luck rest of league.

Grade: C-

Indiana Pacers
No. 26 overall – Miles Plumlee, PF, Duke
No. 36 overall – Orlando Johnson, SG, UCSB

This may have been the worst draft pick ever, worse than Sam Bowie. With names like Perry Jones III, Draymond Green and Festus Ezeli on the board, Indiana elects to take the worst Plumlee brother, Miles. If they weren’t Indiana and known for their white hoopsters, this would be an even worse pick. It’s still so horrible though words can’t describe it. There’s nothing that could make this pick ever make sense. They get Orlando Johnson from UCSB in the second round who was a 20-point scorer last year and might do something for them.

Grade: F

Kevin Durant, Derrick Rose and Blake Griffin are clearly the “clues” we can take from the cover that 2K has given us so far.

We see a tarantula representing Kevin Durant for his nickname of “Durantula.” Then we see roses clearly hinting at Derrick Rose and then the gryffin which points to Blake Griffin.

Last year, NBA 2K12 focused more on the past and the legends with Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird being on their covers.

This year it’s about the future of the NBA with Durant, Rose and Griffin.

NBA 2K13 will be released October 2, 2012.

Tim Duncan scored 21 points to go with nine rebounds, four assists and three blocks in another throwback Duncan game.

Duncan had a great series against the Clippers averaging 21.0 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists while shooting .594 percent from the field.

Chris Paul finally had a decent game for Los Angeles scoring 23 points to go with 11 assists but it wasn’t enough.

The Spurs were by far the superior team in this series and are frankly by far the best team in the NBA right now. The Spurs haven’t lost yet in the playoffs as they also swept the Utah Jazz in the first round and haven’t lost at all since April 11.

The Spurs will await the winner of Oklahoma City and the Lakers. The Thunder currently lead the series 3-1 with Game 5 tipping off tonight at 9:30 p.m. EST.

The Spurs trailed the Clippers 33-11 after the first quarter and it looked as if they would finally lose in these playoffs.

The Spurs went on a 24-0 run in the third quarter and outscored Los Angeles 26-8 in the third quarter to get back in the game, take the lead and eventually win the game.

San Antonio is now up 3-0 in their series with the Clippers and still yet to lose in the playoffs.

Tony Parker led the Spurs with 23 points and 10 assists while Tim Duncan also had a double-double with 19 points and 13 rebounds.

Chris Paul was very quiet again scoring just 12 points with 11 assists and was 5-for-17 from the field. Paul is averaging 9.3 points, 8.7 assists and shooting .308 percent from the field in the series.

The Spurs haven’t lost a game since April 11 and continue to look and play like the best team in the NBA.

Up 3-0 in this series they are almost certainly advancing to the Western Conference Finals where they will play either Oklahoma City or the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Thunder and Lakers will play Game 4 tonight at 10:30 p.m. EST with the Thunder up 2-1 in that series.

You can also download the podcast here.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

The Indiana Pacers have surprised a lot of people this season. Last night, they beat Miami at home 78-75 to even the series at a game apiece.

The Miami Heat were without Chris Bosh for the game and may not get him back for the rest of the series. They did seem to miss him as Bosh was someone who was going to be a tough matchup for the Pacers.

LeBron James scored 28 points to go with nine rebounds, five assists and six steals in the game but was not the one head coach Erik Spoelstra was designing the plays down the stretch for.

Dwyane Wade was that guy and finished the game with 24 points on 8-of-22 shooting. Wade had a chance to tie the game with 16 seconds to play and missed a driving layup with George Hill covering him.

Neither team played exceptionally well again with the low scoring but you have to credit Indiana for pulling this one out and playing great defense.

The Pacers outrebounded the Heat 50-40 in the game and took advantage running the floor to with 13 fast break points.

Indiana is closer to even with the Heat now that Bosh is out but the Heat could still win this series. It just got a lot tougher and if they don’t improve from Game 2, the Pacers could easily pull off the upset.

Soobum-Im-US PRESSWIRE

The San Antonio Spurs once again looked like the best team in basketball last night beating the Los Angeles Clippers 108-92 in Game 1 of their series.

Tim Duncan had another throwback game scoring 26 points to go with 10 rebounds and two blocks.

The Spurs play the best basketball in the NBA and have the personnel to pull it off with fantastic ball movement, perimeter shooting and decision-making in general.

The matchup between Chris Paul and Tony Parker was highly anticipated but didn’t live up to much in Game 1 with Paul scoring six points with 10 assists and Parker seven points with 11 assists.

The Spurs shot 48.8 percent from the field in the game and made 13-of-25 3-pointers. Kawhi Leonard, Danny Green and Manu Ginobili each connected on three treys.

Offense seemed easier to come by for the Clippers early on compared to their series vs. Memphis but they couldn’t stop the Spurs on the other end and it just became too much to handle.

There were a few upsets in the first round with the Philadelphia 76ers beating the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Clippers beating the Memphis Grizzlies on the road in Game 7.

The real playoffs are about to begin now so here are my power rankings of the teams that are left.

1. San Antonio Spurs

They haven’t played in awhile but looked better than anyone in the first round. Now they have a better matchup in the second round getting the Clippers instead of Memphis. They could cruise into the West Finals pretty easily.

2. Miami Heat

The Chris Bosh injury is cause for concern but their two best players are playing great and there’s not much in the East that is going to stop them from getting to the Finals.

3. Oklahoma City Thunder

They will begin their next test tonight in Game 1 against the Los Angeles Lakers. It was nice with the way they swept Dallas in the first round but this will be a tougher test for them and is the next step for them to take toward becoming a championship team.

4. Los Angeles Lakers

They were up and down in Round 1 but if they can get their act together they have an outside chance of beating the Thunder. It will all come down to how Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum play. They were inconsistent against Denver but if they look like All-Stars against the Thunder they have a chance.

5. Boston Celtics

They feel like the only team in the East with any chance of challenging Miami. They did a nice job avoiding the upset in Game 1 against the 76ers. It will be huge for them to beat the 76ers as quickly as possible to gain rest for banged up Paul Pierce and Ray Allen.

6. Los Angeles Clippers

They have Chris Paul and nobody else can say that. If the game is close then my money is on Paul. But the Spurs are going to be so tough for them. Not to mention it’s going to be Gregg Popovich vs. Vinny Del Negro.

7. Indiana Pacers

They are a very solid team but just isn’t on the same level as Miami right now. It’s going to be a very frustrating series for Indiana fans to watch but if they can take the Heat to six games it will be a good thing for the future of this team.

8. Philadelphia 76ers

They’re just happy to be here now and the Celtics are on a mission. They match up better than most people think against the aging Celtics but it is very unlikely they pull off any kind of upset here.

Spruce Derden-US PRESSWIRE

The Los Angeles Clippers and the Memphis Grizzlies promised us a great series before it even started. They came through with the series going seven games with a physical playoff style of play in each.

Chris Paul and the Clippers came through on the road in a Game 7 shocking the home crowd in Memphis. The Clippers won Game 7, 82-72 as Paul led the team with 19 points, nine rebounds and four assists.

The Clippers won this game in a way that no one expected too. Their bench rose to the occasion in the fourth quarter scoring 25 of the team’s 27 points in the final period.

The Clippers entered the fourth quarter trailing by one and outscored the home team 27-16 in the final 12 minutes.

Vinny Del Negro gets a lot of heat but credit him for sticking with the right personnel down the stretch. He sat Blake Griffin for most of the fourth quarter and played guys like Reggie Evans and Kenyon Martin instead, two guys the Clippers needed to close out the Grizzlies.

Both teams were shooting poorly in the game but Memphis was the worst shooting 32.5 percent from the field and going 0-for-13 on threes.

Marc Gasol and Rudy Gay led the Grizzlies with 19 points each but Zach Randolph again did not look like the Randolph from last year as he was held to just nine points on 3-of-12 shooting.

The Clippers now move on to play the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Semifinals. The Spurs swept the Utah Jazz in the first round and have been waiting awhile to play their next game.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

The Miami Heat beat the Indiana Pacers 95-86 Sunday to take a 1-0 lead in their series.

LeBron James led the Heat with 32 points, 15 rebounds and five assists in 43 minutes on the day he was presented with the MVP trophy before the game.

Dwyane Wade scored 29 points in 40 minutes and the duo of LeBron and Wade combined to go 21-of-24 at the free throw line.

LeBron and Wade had to step up not only because the Pacers came out strong but Chris Bosh went down with an injury late in the first half and did not return in the game.

Indiana played better than most people thought they would but did not come through in the areas they needed to pull off the upset. They gave up 15 offensive rebounds to Miami and Danny Granger went 1-for-10 from the field with only seven points.

The Pacers looked young and inexperienced and the Heat looked like they knew they were going to win the game no matter what. This series will be frustrating for Pacers fans but they could have a window of opportunity if the Bosh injury proves to be more serious.

You can also download the podcast here.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

LeBron James and the Miami Heat beat the New York Knicks 106-94 Wednesday night to win the series 4-1.

LeBron led the Heat with 29 points, seven assists and eight rebounds. LeBron set the tone early getting to the line eight times in the first quarter and also dishing out five assists in the opening quarter.

LeBron covered Carmelo Anthony for most of the game but Anthony had it going and scored 35 points but needed 31 shots to get those points. LeBron was criticized much for not covering Anthony down the stretch of Game 4 in New York.

Anthony got little to no help though from his teammates. The entire Knicks team looked like quite a mess in Game 5 as it seemed every time down the floor it was nothing but isolation offense.

The Heat will move on to play the Indiana Pacers in Round 2 who beat the Orlando Magic in five games in the first round.

Miami took three out of four from the Pacers in the regular season and while Indiana seems like they could be a tough matchup for the Heat, Miami and LeBron just seem to have their number.

LeBron averaged 26.8 points, 6.5 assists, 8.5 rebounds and 10.0 free throw attempts per game against the Pacers in the regular season.

Spruce Derden-US PRESSWIRE

The Memphis Grizzlies staved off elimination beating the Los Angeles Clippers 92-80 Wednesday night.

The Grizzlies got out to a great start and big lead in the first half with the game feeling a lot like Game 1 when the Clippers came back from a 27-point deficit to win.

Memphis did not give up their lead this time however and relied on Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol to lead the way for them.

Randolph scored 19 points to go with 10 rebounds in the game and had 15 points and five rebounds in the first quarter.

Gasol scored 23 points to go with four rebounds and seven rebounds.

Chris Paul’s impact in the game was not its normal noticeable self. He scored just 19 points and dished out four assists.

Mo Williams led Los Angeles with 20 points in the game.

The Clippers still lead the series 3-2 and will host Game 6 Friday night.

You can also download it on iTunes here.

Derrick Rose tore his ACL, Amar’e Stoudemie punched a fire extinguisher and the defending champions got swept.

Without further ado let’s get right into my current Playoff Power Rankings.

1. San Antonio Spurs

They haven’t lost yet and haven’t shown any signs of weakness yet. So there’s no reason to take them out of the number one spot yet.

2. Miami Heat

Going up 3-0 was a great sign for the Heat but the Knicks have really looked terrible other than Game 4. The Heat’s path to the NBA Finals has become as easy as possible now.

3. Oklahoma City Thunder

You can’t ask for much more than sweeping the Mavericks. The Thunder are playing their best basketball right now and that’s a scary thing.

4. Los Angeles Lakers

They’re doing what they’re supposed to do now up 3-1 on Denver. They might be the last real contender other than the top three.

5. Los Angeles Clippers

They’re up 2-1 with a chance to go up 3-1 at home tonight. This series is very close though so things could change soon. You have to give the Clippers credit though.

6. Boston Celtics

All looked lost when they went down 1-0 and Rajon Rondo was suspended for Game 2. But Paul Pierce saved the day and the Celtics are looking pretty good now.

7. Memphis Grizzlies

They are down 2-1 but if they can win tonight they’ll win home court back. If they can get by the Clippers we all know what they did to San Antonio last year.

8. Indiana Pacers

They’ve rebounded nicely from the Game 1 loss and it will look really good if they close out the Magic at home in five. The only problem is they have to play Miami in the next round.

9. Philadelphia 76ers

They’ve really taken advantage of the Derrick Rose injury winning the last three games of this series. This team was playing really well at the beginning of the season and they’re looking like that again now.

10. Atlanta Hawks

They’ve been a mess lately. When they lost Game 2 without Rondo they probably lost the series.

11. Chicago Bulls

If they can look strong again and win Game 5 they have a chance to come back in this series. People were still talking about them making the conference finals without Rose right after the injury.

12. New York Knicks

They finally won a game when it looked like they were going to get swept. Now we’re hearing Linsanity may return for Game 5. You never know.

13. Denver Nuggets

They blew a great opportunity last night to even the series. Now it looks like they may lose in five.

14. Orlando Magic

It was a valiant effort but when you have to go to Big Baby for a fadeaway 15-footer in the clutch, you know you’re in trouble.

15. Utah Jazz

I mean you’re not that bad, it’s just that you’re playing the Spurs.

You can also download the podcast here.

You can also download the podcast here.

I look back at the games from the weekend and give my thoughts on all the series. I look at the Miami Heat and their now easier path to the NBA Finals and I explain why the Spurs should be the favorites to win the NBA title and how the Thunder could beat them.

You can also download the podcast here.

Dale Zanine-US PRESSWIRE

The Atlanta Hawks shocked a lot of people beating the Boston Celtics 83-74 on Sunday to win Game 1 of the series.

The Celtics were without Ray Allen for the game and got off to a very slow start while Atlanta looked fresh.

The Hawks were led by Josh Smith who scored 22 points to go with 18 rebounds and four assists and completely outplayed Kevin Garnett.

In the fourth quarter with frustrations high, Boston’s Rajon Rondo was ejected from the game after arguing a call and then bumping referee Marc Davis.

It is expected now that Rondo will be suspended for Game 2 and possible Game 3 because of the incident.

Rondo had 20 points and 11 assists in the game and surely the Celtics will have a much tougher time beating the Hawks in this series without him.

If the suspension is just one game and Rondo and Allen return for a Game 3 at home, the series shouldn’t be viewed as completely over but it will be tougher than most thought for the Celtics to advance to the second round.

Spruce Derden-US PRESSWIRE

The Los Angeles Clippers pulled off one of the most improbable comebacks in NBA history late Sunday night. The Clippers ended their Game 1 with the Memphis Grizzlies on a 28-3 run to stun a Memphis crowd and win 99-98.

Chris Paul had 14 points and 11 assists and scored the final two points of the game at the free throw line with 24 seconds left.

Nick Young made three consecutive three-pointers for the Clippers during the run and led the team with 19 points.

The Clippers came into the game with not a lot of playoff experience and it showed as the Grizzlies immediately jumped out to a big lead.

Memphis of course had the great run last year in the playoffs and were looking as good as any team thus far in the playoffs this year.

The Grizzlies may have had a little fool’s gold though with their percentage from beyond the arc making 11-of-16 threes before going cold in the final minutes of the game.

This series promised to be one of the best first round matchups and with the Clippers stealing Game 1 on the road it probably will live up to that.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder will play Game 2 tonight against the Dallas Mavericks. It will be the second game in a TNT double-header with the Miami Heat and New York Knicks playing first. Orland and Indiana will also tip Game 2 tonight on NBA TV.

The Thunder looked great in the final quarter against Dallas coming back to win thanks to Kevin Durant’s game-winner but they will have to play with the same intensity they showed in the fourth quarter for 48 minutes to ensure another victory.

Miami blew out New York badly in Game 1 but all the Knicks have to do is steal Game 2 and they’ve done their job of getting homecourt. After the Clippers-Grizzlies game, a complete flip-flop of fortunes in the Miami-New York series doesn’t seem as farfetched.

Indiana – like Memphis – blew what should have been an easy Game 1, home win to Orlando. The Magic scored the final 11 points of Game 1 to win.

The Pacers showed a sizable inside advantage with no Dwight Howard and Roy Hibbert blocking nine shots in the game but he also only scored eight points. The Pacers will need to find more reliable offense to get by the Magic tonight.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-US PRESSWIRE

The San Antonio Spurs beat the Portland Trailblazers 124-89 last night locking up the top seed in the Western Conference.

The Oklahoma City Thunder will now be the two-seed in the West. With just two games left in the regular season they will not be able to catch the Spurs.

This may actually be a blessing for the Thunder, who had the best record in the conference for most of the season. As the two-seed, the Thunder would avoid Memphis and the Clippers until the conference finals.

Instead Oklahoma City would likely see the Lakers in the second round, a team they match up much better with than the Grizzlies and Clippers.

The biggest detriment to dropping to the two-seed is if the Thunder meet the Spurs in the conference finals. Playing those first two games in San Antonio makes that series sound a lot tougher.

Also, the Thunder might be matched up with the defending champion Dallas Mavericks in the first round who knocked Oklahoma City out of the playoffs last season. Dallas isn’t the same team this year without Tyson Chandler but they still pose a tough matchup for the Thunder.

James Harden is likely to miss the final two games of the regular season and maybe more. If Harden is not entirely healthy against Dallas, that series will suddenly not be so easy.

It would have been great for the Thunder to lock up the top seed but it may work out better the way it is unfolding now. The Spurs are by far the greatest threat in the conference to the Thunder and they will have an extremely tough test in the second round whether it’s Memphis or the Clippers.

Whatever the seedings are the Thunder need to start playing better basketball if they’re serious about getting to the NBA Finals this season.

In the East, there are only two teams that pose any real threat. In stark contrast, the West boasts at least five teams that can win the conference title, and a handful of others that can make life miserable for those five teams. Navigating this maze of threats won’t be easy for OKC and much of their success will be predicated upon the who, when, and where of the bracket. With that in mind, I have taken the other nine teams currently realistically vying for the post season and ranked them in descending order of the threat they pose to the Thunder’s pursuits.

9. Suns (Threat Level: Green): Their post all-star break run has been very impressive, and I absolutely marvel at Steve Nash and how he has been able to get this hodge-podge of a roster to gel down the stretch. Having said that, they pose no threat whatsoever to Oklahoma City. As you will see farther down the list, teams that are athletic on the wing and/or bruising in the paint give the Thunder the most trouble; Phoenix does not fit that description at all. The Suns would not be able to keep pace or change pace enough for the series to go beyond five games… and I’d suspect the games played in OKC could get ugly.

8. Rockets (Threat Level: Green): Credit Houston for splitting the season series this year with OKC, but this is not a match up that should keep Thunder fans awake at night. Luis Scola poses some match up issues for Ibaka and Perkins, but OKC can counter with Nick Collison, who makes a living forcing guys like Scola out of their comfort zone. The Rockets aren’t a particularly good defensive team and over the span of a seven game series, the dynamic scoring threats from the Thunder would wear them down. Houston could make individual games interesting (more so than Phoenix) but in terms of the series as a whole, I do not see it going six.

7. Jazz (Threat Level: Green): Ranking them as slightly more dangerous than the Suns or Rockets might raise a few eyebrows, but Al Jefferson is the type of big that can wear the Thunder down, as he did several week ago in a game in Salt Lake City. The Jazz are also a tad deeper than the other two teams mentioned. But in the end, Utah poses the same threat as Phoenix and Houston do…none. The goal for OKC should be to get one of these three teams in the first round.

6. Nuggets (Threat Level: Blue): Everyone talks about the tough series OKC waged against Denver in the first round last year, but few seem to remember that it still only went five games and that the Thunder held a commanding 3-0 series lead at one point. The Nuggets are about as deep and athletic in the open floor as any team in the league, and George Karl fits so nicely with this particular group. However, they do not have a go-to scorer and it reared its’ head many times in the series last year as KD took over down the stretch (most notably in the clinching game five). The Nuggets are pesky, annoying, and they will make OKC work for however many games the series might go. But ultimately, the pose a very low level threat to actually win a series.

5. Clippers (Threat Level: Blue): I’m sticking to my guns on the Clippers despite the fact that they’ve made the Thunder look pretty bad twice in the past week now. I do not believe the Clips are a team built for success in the post-season and I will be surprised if they survive the first round. They thrive on an open floor game, and in the playoffs, the floor shrinks and it shrinks fast. Blake Griffin will have less space to maneuver and teams will force him to beat them from outside the paint. They are also short on experience and many of their role players are guys with a history of regular season success not necessarily carrying over into the post season (Mo Williams tops that list). I believe that if push comes to shove and these two teams meet in the playoffs, the Thunder will have a surprisingly easy time getting stops and I would be surprised if it went the full seven games and absolutely shocked if the Clippers won. I’ve been on record as saying that I believe both Chris Paul and Blake Griffin are slightly overrated. My theory would be put to the test should they face OKC sometime in May.

4. Mavericks (Threat Level: Yellow): Perhaps I am giving them too much credit based on last season, but I just don’t see Dallas bowing out quietly this year despite the fact that their regular season has been an unmitigated disaster. They desperately miss Tyson Chandler and JJ Barea, but I still fear Dirk catching fire at opportune (or inopportune as it were) moments. I will never forget that sickening feeling walking out of the arena last year after the game four collapse in the WCF. I am still reeling from that night and it may very well be coloring my perception of a Dallas team that doesn’t really resemble their championship squad at all.

3. Grizzlies (Threat Level: Yellow): Match up nightmare for Durant. No one in the league plays KD better than Tony Allen- and it’s not even close. For whatever reason, he is able to frustrate KD to the point where he is routinely posting up beyond the three point line and taking forced jumpers. In addition to their athleticism on the wing, Memphis has some major beef inside. Marc Gasol isn’t intimidated by Perk and Zach Randolph completely flummoxes Serge…keeps him away from the paint where Ibaka is most effective. The Grizzlies Achilles heel is that they can’t shoot; however OKC brings out the best in their guards and wing players and shots seem to fall more readily. Another scary thought is that Memphis is still a bit of wild card because we’ve seen so little of them with a healthy Randolph and Rudy Gay together. The only reason I don’t raise the Grizz to the next threat level is because unlike Dallas, the Lakers, and Spurs, Memphis does not have a proven go-to scorer they can count on in crunch time. Still, this would have all the markings of another epic series.

2. Lakers (Threat Level: Orange): In many ways, the Lakers might be the one team the Thunder WANT to face in the second round or WCF. They are old, slow, un-athletic and have absolutely no answers for KD or more importantly, Westbrook. OKC has played them twice and ran them off the floor in the second half both times. But playoff basketball is different. The game will slow down and the court will get smaller. Kobe will know when to pounce. Bynum and Gasol are a formidable combo that can wreak havoc on the offensive glass. If the games stay close (which they inevitably would) the Lakers boast the best closer in the league and one of the best of all-time. The best bet for the Thunder would be to run and get Westbrook out in the open as much as possible. If the game breaks down, the advantage is decidedly titled towards to OKC. But if the game is played against the shot clock as it so often is in the playoffs, then the Thunder may find themselves in an uncomfortable spot against a team that has been there, done that.

1. Spurs (Threat Level: Red): The Spurs are just straight salty. Greatly improved on the wings from last year when Memphis completely caught them off-guard with their size and athleticism. You have a PG playing at an MVP level; a dynamic scorer on the outside who when healthy is as dangerous as anyone in the league; one of the best centers of all time who still knows when to pick his spots; an array of veterans and youngsters filling various roles quite nicely; arguably the greatest coach in the history of the game. That is a mouthful. And unless things shift dramatically over the next week, OKC would have to beat this team without the benefit of homecourt advantage due to the Thunder’s recent malaise. As the Thunder coast and swoon heading into late April, the Spurs appear to be honing and sharpening. The best bet for the Thunder is for someone else to take the Spurs out prior to the WCF ala the Grizzlies last year. But I just have a feeling that Pop and his crew will be ready this time around. Any way you slice it, the Spurs are beyond a major threat to keep the Thunder from the NBA Finals.

You can visit Full Clips to get more Clippers coverage from Dave Daniels.

You can also download the podcast here.

Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder lost to the Los Angeles Clippers 92-77 Monday night, dropping them out of first place in the Western Conference standings.

The Thunder lose the season series to the Clippers 3-1. Los Angeles has given Oklahoma City their last two losses.

Oklahoma City played their worst half of the season tonight in the third and fourth quarters scoring just 25 points. Remember Kevin Durant scored 20 points in the fourth quarter alone two nights ago.

Tonight, Durant scores 24 but is 0-for-7 from three-point land. He and Russell Westbrook each turned the ball over five times.

Westbrook is held to just nine points breaking a streak of 50-straight games in which the duo has scored in double-digits. Westbrook was 4-for-16 from the floor and had just three assists.

Serge Ibaka was the lone bright spot for Oklahoma City especially in the third quarter keeping their hopes alive for the night with his work on the offensive glass. Ibaka scored 12 points in the game to go with eight boards (five offensive).

The game would again belong to Chris Paul who had his fingerprints all over everything good for the Clippers. Paul had 12 points and 10 assists but seemed to do much more getting Westbrook out of rhythm and getting Nick Young involved, who scored 19 off the bench.

Blake Griffin had another great game against the Thunder again passing well with six assists to go with 17 points and 11 rebounds.

The Thunder played poorly but missed a lot of shots they normally will hit. Those shots were jump shots though and that is the issue with this team, their reliance on making jump shots.

Tonight was a physical battle and Oklahoma City needed to match that efficiently scoring inside and couldn’t. It’s not the end of the world but a matchup in the playoffs against the Clippers might not be ideal for this Thunder team.

James Harden is going to need to wake up soon. He scored just 12 points and has been averaging about that over the last 10 games. An Oklahoma City NBA Finals appearance would require something closer to 17-5-5 from Harden.

The Thunder (44-17) are on to their third game in this five-game road streak on Wednesday when they will take on Phoenix (32-29).

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Thunder (2-game winning streak)
107.4 Offensive Efficiency (1st)
99.6 Defensive Efficiency (9th)
95.7 Pace (6th)
56.9 True Shooting % (1st)
51.6 Rebound Rate (3rd)

Clippers (3-game winning streak)
104.9 Offensive Efficiency (5th)
102.8 Defensive Efficiency (17th)
91.8 Pace (26th)
53.1 True Shooting % (11th)
51.2 Rebound Rate (6th)

The Thunder will look to even the season series in Los Angeles tonight against the Clippers. The teams played just a few nights ago with the Clippers beating Oklahoma City 100-98 thanks to some late-game heroics from Chris Paul.

The Clippers have won two of three meetings with the Thunder this season and 11 of their last 13 games and are now just a game and a half back of the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Thunder have won their last two but both were against tanking teams in Sacramento and Minnesota. Oklahoma City has looked better in those games especially Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

The two combined for 78 points in Minnesota with Durant leading the way with 43 and 20 in the fourth.

Against the Clippers this season, Durant is averaging a cool 30 and 10. Westbrook is struggled somewhat averaging 23 and five but shooting 40 percent from the field.

Paul has been the best closer in the NBA this season and played some of his best basketball against the Thunder. He’s averaged 23 and nine against Oklahoma City this year.

Containing Paul will definitely be key tonight and that will really only matter once the fourth quarter starts and he turns it on like he always does. The focus early needs to be taking away everyone else and building a solid lead.

James Harden is usually good at providing this for the Thunder but has been struggling of late. Harden is only averaging 12.4 points per game over his last 10 and just 11.3 against the Clippers this season. Harden is also coming off his worst game of the season in which he shot 1-for-11 from the field.

This is the second game in a five-game road trip for the Thunder who are only one game ahead of San Antonio for the top seed in the West.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Kevin Durant missed a three-pointer as time expired that would have won the game for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Chris Paul made the go-ahead basket on a driving layup with 8.8 seconds left to put the Los Angeles Clippers ahead 100-98.

The Thunder executed for the look they wanted on the last shot but it wasn’t in the cards for Durant to out-clutch Paul.

Paul proved his status as the best closer in the NBA scoring 24 of his 31 points in the second half and scoring nine of the final 11 Clippers points.

Durant played the entire fourth quarter and struggled overall in the quarter but did make the game-tying three-pointer with 32 seconds left. Durant made the trey after helping the Thunder get a stop on the previous possession blocking a Kenyon Martin jump shot.

Durant finished with 22 points but on 7-of-21 shooting.

The Thunder did not play their best game and were in it mostly because of great three-point shooting as they hit 12-of-26 from distance on the night.

Russell Westbrook also struggled from the field at 3-for-14 but scored 20 points thanks to 13-of-15 free throws.

James Harden was efficient with 17 points on eight shots but only had two assists and the Thunder needed more than that from him tonight.

Paul added just four assists to his 31 points and it was actually Blake Griffin who did the distributing with seven dimes on the night to go with his 16 points and 12 rebounds and one monster throwdown on Serge Ibaka.

The game had very little flow and that’s how the Clippers like it sometimes, especially Paul. He was in control of everything late and a one-man show.

Oklahoma City falls to 42-16 on the year and will play next at home against Sacramento before going on the road for the next five games. They remain first in the West with San Antonio also losing tonight.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Thunder (2-game winning streak)
107.3 Offensive Efficiency (1st)
99.6 Defensive Efficiency (9th)
95.6 Pace (6th)
57.0 True Shooting % (1st)
51.4 Rebound Rate (5th)

Clippers (1-game losing streak)
104.6 Offensive Efficiency (6th)
102.8 Defensive Efficiency (18th)
91.8 Pace (26th)
53.0 True Shooting % (12th)
51.2 Rebound Rate (6th)

The Thunder have officially gotten their act together after the three-game losing streak now heading into tonight’s game against the Clippers looking for their third straight win.

Two nights ago Oklahoma City beat the Bucks 109-89 behind 26 points from Russell Westbrook.

The Clippers and Thunder have met twice already this season with the first one belonging to Los Angeles and Blake Griffin with his dunk over Kendrick Perkins. The Thunder won the last meeting though 114-91 as Kevin Durant led the way with 32 points.

Griffin had a career-low seven points in that meeting as the Thunder did a much better job of containing him and controlling the paint in general.

This is a fun matchup because of the athletes on both sides and because they generally play different positions. The Clippers’ best athletes are in the paint catching lobs from Chris Paul and the Thunder’s are on the perimeter handling the ball. It makes for entertaining hoops.

The Clippers have lost two of their last four but won six in a row before that. They are currently fourth in the West a half game ahead of Memphis and one and a half games behind the Lakers.

The Thunder regained the top-seeding over the Spurs with their win two nights ago and are now a game ahead of San Antonio.

Both of these teams will be playing hard for home court the rest of the season and this game is as important as any and it will be a good test for the Clippers to see how serious they are in terms of competing with Oklahoma City.

The Grizzlies played great defense on Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, dominated the glass and didn’t turn the ball over. It was a formula for how to beat the team with the best record in the Western Conference.

It scared Thunder fans. The potential matchup with the Grizzlies if they are playing this way wouldn’t be a cake walk for Oklahoma City. The Thunder needed seven games last year in the playoffs to beat Memphis and it might be a similar story this year.

So who are the toughest potential playoff matchups for the Thunder right now?

Oklahoma City has been the clear-cut number one seed for some time now but there are some teams who have given them trouble and are looking better now with the playoffs right around the corner.

1. San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs are currently sitting at the second seed in the West and likely will end the regular season as that seed. San Antonio has beaten the Thunder the last two times the teams have played. They are deep and full of veterans and their discipline is their greatest advantage over the Thunder. Oklahoma City has superior talent but the Spurs have shown an ability to exploit the weaknesses of the Thunder. This series could go either way.

2. Dallas Mavericks

The defending champs are the ones who knocked out the Thunder last year in the playoffs. They did it with ease too. Dallas isn’t the same team they were last year but still are surprisingly one of the better defensive teams in the league. If any team is ready to go to another level once the playoffs begin it’s probably Dallas. The Mavericks also kind of have the Thunder’s number and aren’t concerned with playing in front of a hostile home crowd.

3. Memphis Grizzlies

The Grizzlies have size, play great defense and don’t turn the ball over. They showed how to beat the Thunder last night but can they do it four times in a series? San Antonio and Dallas are definitely tier one in terms of the fear factor for the Thunder but Memphis is a tough matchup. Memphis makes it so Oklahoma City just doesn’t look comfortable when they play and that counts for something. If the Grizzlies can take Oklahoma City out of their game and have them revert to their old bad habit they’d have a chance of pulling off the upset.

4. Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers have been hot lately and beat the Thunder once already this season. Oklahoma City got the best of them in their last meeting but the Clippers are still a tough matchup in some ways. With Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan they have athletes down low who can protect the rim against Durant and Westbrook. Chris Paul is the best pure point guard in the NBA and showed last year in the playoffs that he can take his game to another level.

5. Los Angeles Lakers

The Thunder made the Lakers look real bad last week beating them but there were moments early on when the Lakers exploited the Thunder defense. Los Angeles obviously has two of the best big men in the league in Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum. They can dominate together at times and did so in the first quarter last time these teams played. Oklahoma City plays better on offense when they go small but they may not be able to so much against the Lakers giving the Lakers a little bit of an edge at times.

No matter who the Thunder have to play they will be the favorites and should win the West. It’s not going to be easy though and they will have some tough matchups. As the standings read today, Oklahoma City would have to play Houston in the first round who split the season series with them, then take on the Clippers or Grizzlies, and finish off in the West Finals versus San Antonio, the Lakers or Dallas. And not to mention they’ll probably have the Miami Heat or Chicago Bulls waiting for them in the NBA Finals.