Then & Now: Your Weekly NBA Digest, 5/10

Welcome to Then & Now, where Shoals sums up the week in NBA hoops and tells you what to look for. Find it here every Sunday evening.
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Too Good to Be True: What happened on Sunday was the kind of win that isn’t supposed to happen, that will live on in memory long after this series is gone. Already without Tracy McGrady, the Rockets were now without Yao Ming for the rest of the playoffs. Already, they were the underdogs in their battle with the Lakers, albeit exactly the kind of team that could give Los Angeles problems. But now, with L.A. up 2-1 after taking one at the Toyota Center on Friday, all appeared to be lost.
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↵But hark! Instead of losing their bearings without their All-Star big man, the Rockets—like the Magic before them, when Dwight Howard got suspended—went into absolute overdrive. The final margin told nothing of how badly this depleted Houston squad beat on the Lakers; it would’ve taken one of the biggest comebacks in postseason history for L.A. to swing the game. It was magical, a command performance from players like Aaron Brooks and Carl Landry. And that’s just it: It was so unlikely an outcome, we really haven’t learned a thing about how the Rockets now match up with the Lakers.
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The Once and Future King: You’ve got to give kudos to Joe Johnson, Al Horford, and Marvin Williams, injured starters who found it within themselves to take the floor against Cleveland in a series that has looked like a lost cause for Atlanta. And despite my having told multiple people that this game would be the biggest blowout yet, the perfect excuse to spend the afternoon enjoying the weather, it was a one-point game at the half.
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↵Then again, I also told these people that the Atlanta series was not the best chance to witness some hot LeBron action, since His Bron-ness has been getting ample rests. I am sure I will be down a few friends come Monday. This was one of those LeBron James performances not for the faint of heart. Almost incidentally, the Hawks were left in the dust. Bron finished with 47 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists—50 percent of the team’s points and assists, and a quarter of its boards. James is averaging a point a minute for these playoffs. Maybe the East is still the weaker conference, but it’s pretty clear to me who is winning the Vitamin Water commercial.
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↵They Was Robbed: It looked as though the Mavs were finally about to pull off a win in a series that, so far, has seen them overwhelmed late and made them look like the far inferior team. All they had to do was keep the Nuggets from nailing a 3 on the final possession. And that’s exactly what Antonie Wright, an emerging defensive specialist, should have been able to do by fouling Camelo before he got a shot off. Except a funny thing happened: No whistle sounded, and as everyone waited for one, Melo dribbled right and hit an off-balance trey as the buzzer sounded.
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↵After what had already been a foul-filled game (61, to be exact), emotions were high, and it took a while to get the Mavs off the court. Josh Howard had to be restrained. A case for more replay, maybe? Me, I feel bad for Melo. And the Nuggets. Anthony had to know his game-winner was a fraud, and the mea culpa later issued by the league only further tarnished it. What’s more, this bizarre situation now hangs over a series that should be telling us just how good Denver is. It would’ve been nice to see them have to overcome a little adversity; instead, they’re well on their way to a sweep.
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↵FILM CRITIC:
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↵See this? For those who missed Game 4 of Rockets/Lakers, this play pretty much sums it up. As did Aaron Brooks’ 34 points. Look, Brooks is very good. He’s not a novelty act a la Earl Boykins, but he uses his slight stature and hyperspeed to similar effect. And he’s significantly more shrewd, and constructive, than even post-light bulb Nate Robinson. But Brooks is not a pure point who’s on the small side; he’s a tiny scorer who can hurt a team inside and outside and knows how to move the ball well. And while he may be the most important player on Houston right now (even before Yao went down, Brooks made up for some of the firepower that disappeared when McGrady shut it down), these things are relative. Brooks will not score 34 a game, carry the Rockets to a championship, and perform small miracles. Let’s keep him, and this win, in perspective.
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↵LOOKING AHEAD:
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* A sweep by the Cavs appears even more inevitable, if that’s possible. That’s would be two in a row, (most likely) all double-digit wins. Shades of the 2000-01 Lakers, anybody? I spent a lot of last week wondering if the Nuggets might not belong in the conversation with the Lakers and Cavs. Now, I’m thinking Cleveland might be, hands-down, the dominant team of these playoffs. We’ll probably have to wait until the Finals to really make that judgment.
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↵* Second-round sweeps? Well, they certainly keep viewers from burning out. And there’s no doubt that the better teams are advancing. It’s not just a matter of who can win the series that week (if that even applies in the NBA postseason). But does anyone remember Bulls/Celtics? Has anything else approached nearly that level of excitement? No, and while last year’s endless parade of seven-game series was truly grueling, it left me feeling like I’d actually learned something beyond which was the better team.
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↵* The Celtics, the little defending champs that could, won tonight on a Big Baby buzzer-beater. This might be the series that goes seven and really builds some suspense. But could it ever, really? There’s a cloud of doom hanging over these games, like, sure, one team will eventually triumph, but neither one has a prayer of matching Cleveland. It’s lambs to slaughter, and this foreboding makes it almost too painful to watch. Even if it goes seven games.↵