Eric Dampier - Professional Village Idiot

The NBA has commenced a review of Dallas Mavericks center Erick Dampier's postgame comments Monday in San Antonio that could result in an official penalty from the league office -- most likely in the form of a fine -- before Thursday's Game 3.

NBA spokesman Tim Frank confirmed Tuesday night that Dampier will be interviewed by league security officials about his statements after vowing to put San Antonio's Tony Parker "on his back" with his first foul in Game 3.

Parker shredded Dallas' defense for 38 points Monday night to spark San Antonio to a 105-84 triumph that evened the long-standing Texas rivals' first-round series at 1-1.
"Parker got into the teeth of our defense and caused problems," Dampier told The Dallas Morning News after the game. "Every time he drives the lane, we have to put him on his back. The first foul has to tell him he's in for a long night. My first foul Thursday night is going to put him on his back. I guarantee it."

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Celtics chomp LA Lakers 131-92

June 17, 2008. Boston, MA The Boston Celtics capped off one of their greatest season's ever, winning the NBA Championship for the 17th time... on the 17th of June with #17 (John Hondo Havlicek) in the house. Kevin McHale, Robert Parish and Larry Bird did not come walking through that door, but the 2007-8 edition of 'The Big 3' most certainly did. Beginning with preseason practices in Europe, these were men on a mission and everything they set out to do was accomplished by winning it all.

At times, they stumbled through the playoffs, having difficulties winning on the road in Atlanta, Cleveland and Detroit. They were able to win game 4 in Los Angeles and that set the stage for what was about to happen. Intensity and defense. That was what won this last game for them. The Big 3 combined for 73 points and 25 rebounds. Ray Allen tied the playoff record with seven 3 pt field goals.

Where's Kobe? Who is this Kobe dude? He scored 11 points in the first seven minutes of the game and pretty much disappeared after that as the tough Celtic defense smothered him completely. This is a 'team game'... it's not all about Kobe Bryant. Take a lesson from the Boston Celtics. Defense and team unity are two elements that these world champions possessed.

With Russell and Havlicek sitting courtside, and Red surely lighting up a victory cigar somewhere, the Celtics returned to glory like the great teams before them, dominating in a way the Finals have never seen. On a new parquet floor below aging championship banners hung in the rafters two decades back, the Celtics won their 17th NBA title and a first one -- at last -- for Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen -- their Big Three for a new generation.

"It means so much more because these are the guys, the Havliceks, the Bill Russells, the Cousys," Pierce said. "These guys started what's going on with those banners. They don't hang up any other banners but championship ones.
"And now I'm a part of it."

Rajon Rondo came up big, had 21 points, eight assists, seven rebounds and six steals as the Celtics, who built a 23-point halftime lead and obliterated the Lakers, who were trying to become the first team to overcome a 3-1 deficit in the Finals. They didn't stand a chance.
Boston's 39-point win surpassed the NBA record for the biggest margin of victory in a championship clincher; the Celtics beat the Lakers 129-96 in Game 5 of the 1965 NBA Finals.

It's was Boston's first title since the passing of Auerbach, whose presence was the only thing missing on this night. Even Auerbach, who died in 2006, got some satisfaction. Led by Rivers, Auerbach's beloved team denied Lakers coach Phil Jackson from overtaking him with a 10th championship. The Boston-Los Angeles rivalry, nothing more than black-and-white footage from the 60s and TV highlights of players wearing short shorts in the 80s to young hoops fans, remains tilted toward the Atlantic Ocean. The Celtics are 9-2 against the Lakers in the Finals.

The Saga of Tim Donaghy

Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy has pleaded guilty to federal felony conspiracy charges alleging that he passed along inside information on NBA games. Donaghy also alleges that referees helped alter the outcomes of games during the '02 and '05 postseasons.

First of all, Donaghy is heading for jail and is liable to concoct a number of stories. Take everything he says with a grain of salt. Believe what you may.

Was Game 3 of the 2008 NBA Finals held at the scene of a crime? Disgraced ex-referee Tim Donaghy alleged as much Tuesday in a filing made by his attorney in U.S. District Court in New York, saying the highly controversial Game 6 of the Lakers-Kings playoff series in 2002 was impacted by the actions of two of the three referees who worked the game.''

NBA commissioner David Stern vehemently denied the allegations, saying they are the desperate act of a convicted felon. He also disclosed that the league has already briefed members of the U.S. Congress on certain facets of the Donaghy investigation. "We welcome scrutiny here. This is something that should be scrutinized," said Stern, who called Donaghy a "singing, cooperating witness" and repeatedly referred to the former referee as a felon as he spoke with reporters for more than eight minutes near the loading dock of the Staples Center as he arrived for Game 3 of the Finals.

THE SITUATION:

"Referees A, F and G were officiating a playoff series between Teams 5 and 6 in May of 2002. It was the sixth game of a seven-game series, and a Team 5 victory that night would have ended the series. However, Tim learned from Referee A that Referees A and F wanted to extend the series to seven games. Tim knew referees A and F to be 'company men,' always acting in the interest of the NBA, and that night, it was in the NBA's interest to add another game to the series. Referees A and F heavily favored Team 6. Personal fouls [resulting in obviously injured players] were ignored even when they occurred in full view of the referees. Conversely, the referees called made-up fouls on Team 5 in order to give additional free throw opportunities for Team 6. Their foul-calling also led to the ejection of two Team 5 players. The referees' favoring of Team 6 led to that team's victory that night, and Team

The Lakers-Kings series was the only one that postseason that went seven games, and the officiating in Game 6 was so questionable that consumer advocate and former presidential candidate Ralph Nader called for a formal investigation. The Lakers attempted 40 free throws to the Kings' 25 in that game, and Los Angeles made 21 of 27 from the line while Sacramento converted 7 of 9 in the fourth quarter alone. in addition, a foul was called against Mike Bibby of the Kings after he was shoved and elbowed by Korbe Bryant, denying the Kings an opportunity to try for a tying basket. Also in that game, Kings centers Vlade Divac and Scot Pollard fouled out, and Kings coach Rick Adelman was highly critical of the officiating afterward.

"My first thought [upon hearing Donaghy's allegation] was: I knew it," Pollard said Tuesday night. "I'm not going to say there was a conspiracy. I just think something wasn't right. It was unfair. We didn't have a chance to win that game." The Lakers went on to win the 2002 NBA championship.

• Donaghy's 2006-'07 game log

• Donaghy's 2005-'06 game log

Pierce 2-14 in Celtics 87-81 loss

Paul Pierce cooled off from his great performance, shooting just 2-14 in the 3rd game of the NBA Finals. Kobe Bryant popped in 36 points and Sasha Vujacic added 20 points The Lakerw were in danger of going down 3-0 in the NBA Finals

Magic Johnson looked very nervous. Across the court, Jack Nicholson fidgeted with his sunglasses, Sylvester Stallone squirmed in his seat and nearly everyone else styling in shades of purple and gold was on edge.

Ray Allen scored 25 points -- 15 on 3-pointers -- for the Celtics, but only one-third of Boston's Big Three showed up. The other two, Garnet and Pierce scored a grand total of 19 points while the two of them went 8-35 shooting. "As bad as we played, we still had opportunities," Allen said. "That's the positive. We can look at it, but I don't think on either side of the floor we were good. We had so much more room for improvement."

Pierce grew up in Inglewood, Calif., where he learned to play in the shadow of the Fabulous Forum, the Lakers' former home where Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and "Showtime" had an extended run of championship seasons.

But Pierce's finals homecoming was homely. The Celtics' star forward, who came in averaging 25 points in the series, went just 2-for-14 and missed all four 3-pointers. Despite his struggles, the Celtics were only down six early in the third quarter when Rondo went down with a sprained left ankle. As he laid on the floor, his teammates rushed over to check on Rondo, who limped off the court without aid -- or a wheelchair -- like Pierce famously needed after hurting his knee in the opener. Boston.com boxscore

Curt Schilling at the Celts-Lakers game

'He'd yell at someone, make a point, or send a message, turn and walk away, and more than once the person on the other end would roll eyes or give a 'whatever dude' look' said Curt in his blog.

Read more about the Celtics, Lakers, THE game, etc. on Schilling's blog 38 pitches.

Celtics go up 2-0 over Lakers

The Boston Celtics won game 2 of the NBA Finals, eeking out a 108-102 victory after being up by 24 points in the 4th quarter. The Lakers caught the Celtics being content with their huge lead.

The Lakers trailed 95-71 with less than 8 minutes to go, but used a 31-9 run to pull to 104-102 on two free throws by Bryant with 38.4 seconds left. Pierce, though, made two free throws, then blocked a 3-pointer by Sasha Vujacic and James Posey made two free throws with 12.6 seconds left to ice it for Boston.

"We've got to play through the game for 48 minutes, and I didn't think we did that," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "I thought we got cute when we got the lead." As usual, Boston's Big Three -- Pierce, Ray Allen (17 points) and Kevin Garnet (17) -- were the ringleaders but Powe, a second-year reserve had the game of his career, adding his 21 points in 15 minutes that may make him a Celtics fan-favorite for life.

Powe, who played a total of 68 seconds during one stretch of 13 games during the season, scored six points to close a 15-2 run ending the third quarter that gave the Celtics a 22-point lead. The quick burst had the Lakers California dreaming. At one point in the fourth quarter, Boston fans discarded the familiar chants of "Beat L.A." for cries of "Le-on Powe!" Leon Powe came up big for the Celtics

Paul Pierce expects to play

Pierce said that he will be playing tonight and let's hope for the best. Celtics need to win this one, since the format calls for 3 games in Los Angeles. If we lose tonight, then we MUST win at least one in LA. Still, do not want to come back to Boston with 3 wins for LA under their belts.

Injured Celtics surprise Lakers 98-88

Sprawled near the edge of the famed parquet floor, Paul Pierce grabbed his throbbing right knee and wondered if his first NBA Finals -- the ones he had always dreamed of playing in -- were finished. "A lot was going though my head," Pierce said. "'It can't be over like this

Pierce's comeback drew immediate comparisons to Willis Reed, the former NY Knicks great who once hobbled onto the court of Madison Square Garden before Game 7 of the 1970 finals against the Lakers. Some of the savvy Celtics fans chanted Reed's name in tribute. "I wasn't trying to imitate him," Pierce said. "I'm just glad I was able to get back out there." KG scored 24 points, Pierce finished with 22 -- 11 after going down -- and Ray Allen the third member of Boston's Big Three, added 19 for the Celtics, who are chasing a 17th NBA championship. The trio was making its first finals appearance, and for a short time it appeared only two of them would finish their long-awaited debut.

With 6:49 left in the third quarter, Pierce was deep in the lane when teammate Kendrick Perkins crashed into him from behind, crumpling Boston's No. 34 to the court. The 10-year veteran, who last summer thought his days with Boston might be nearing an end, had to be carried from the court in extreme pain and was taken to Boston's locker room in a wheelchair.

Lakers coach Phil Jackson, who had front-row seats at both events, wasn't so impressed. "If I'm not mistaken," a cynic and sarcastic Jackson said Friday, "I think Willis Reed missed a whole half and three quarters almost of a game and literally had to have a shot, a horse shot, three or four of them in his thigh to come back out and play. Paul got carried off and was back on his feet in a minute."

Garnet led the way with 24 points and 13 boards. Pierce finished with 22 points. Ray Allen had 19.

NBA Playoff Updates

The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers are meeting again in the NBA finals after the Celtics ended the series against Pistons with an 89-81 victory Friday. It will be the 11th championship meeting between the franchises, with Boston winning eight of its 16 titles against the Lakers. Boston, which won both meetings during the regular season, will host Game 1 of the finals on Thursday night.

Guard Tony Allen was inactive Wednesday for the Celtics' playoff game against the Pistons after hurting his Achilles' tendon during practice. Forward Brian Scalabrine, who did not play in any of Boston's previous 18 playoff games, was activated in his place for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals. Allen played just 46 minutes in 12 playoff games this year, averaging one point per game.

Men in Green Close it Out 89-81

The Celtics are headed to the NBA finals for the first time since 1987. Pierce scored 27 points, Pie Ray Allen had 17 and KG added 16 to lift the Celtics to an 89-81 victory over the Pistons on Friday night in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals. Just when it seemed the Pistons might be in control with a 70-60 lead early in the fourth, the Celtics scored nine points in less than 2 minutes and went on a 19-4 run that put them ahead 79-74.

Billups' three-point play pulled Detroit to 83-79 with 2:24 left, then the Pistons wasted a chance to get closer. Tayshaun Prince grabbed a loose ball after a Boston miss and turned the ball over when Posey surprised him from behind and snatched it away.