NBA Playoffs 2013: Grizzlies, Thunder, Knicks, Pacers advance

”Our whole focus was Kevin Durant, he said following the game. “We know what he’s capable of.”

Without Westbrook, the offense has to flow through Durant and he has the responsibility to carry the team in his absence. On Tuesday, he fell just short at home but wasn’t worried about his ability to do so moving forward and have it translate to wins.

Duncan was sent home from Saturday’s practice more to prevent others on the team from getting sick than because they were concerned about his health. Coach Gregg Popovich told Jeff MacDonald of Spurs Nation that Duncan is ‘fine.’

• Flannery: In praise of the Knicks

Deng, who was suffering from flu-like systems, underwent a spinal tap to rule out meningitis. He didn’t have meningitis, it turns out, but the spinal tap itself caused new complications. He had to have a blood patch to prevent spinal fluid leakage. Although he was released from the hospital Saturday, his status for the Bulls in the second round is still unknown.

“According to two people who spoke to Deng, he was alarmed by the side effects from the spinal tap, including headaches, disorientation and an unsteady gait after fluid was drained from his lower back,” reported K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune.

“Johnson had just two back-to-back awful possessions (in the fourth), as it got to the point where you had to wonder whether he was best served on the bench,” wrote Tom Lorenzo of NetsDaily. “At the nine-minute mark in the fourth, Johnson was 2-of-10 for six points with three turnovers.”

• Flannery: In praise of the Knicks

Unlike Thursday’s two-game lineup, Friday was packed with playoff basketball, to the point of painful indecision. The two Eastern Conference games led the night with the two Western Conference games capping it.

The Celtics went on a 20-0 run in about four minutes to cut the deficit to six points, but Boston wouldn’t get any closer than four points.

Knicks 88, Celtics 80

The Knicks jumped out to a 24-10 lead in the first quarter and appeared on their way to rolling into the second round, but the game turned into a grind as the Celtics tried to find their footing. The second half played much more to the Knicks’ preferred pace until they went cold for a five-minute stretch in the fourth quarter.

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The Pacers held a comfortable lead throughout much of the game, taking a 15-point advantage into the fourth quarter. Atlanta finally got from the field midway through the fourth, though, cutting the deficit to five with 4:30 left to play.

Indiana got the job done in Game 6 the way they have all season long: defense, defense and more defense. They held the Hawks to just 34 percent shooting from the field, including a 3-of-19 mark from behind the arc. The Pacers also did a terrific job in transition, holding Atlanta to just four fast break points.

Griffin was limited in Game 5, scoring just four points and bringing down five rebounds while playing 20 minutes. He did not appear in the fourth quarter as Memphis went on to win, 103-93.

Griffin, who originally hurt himself during Monday’s practice, went through warmups earlier Friday morning and was seen walking gingerly around FedEx Forum. He did not speak with the media or give any kind of indication whether he not he was going to play earlier in the day.

Here’s our review of the keys to Game 6:

Anthony was just 5-of-12 from the field in the half, for 14 points, and took just two threes, missing both; four of his nine shots inside the arc were midrange jumpers, and just two went down. Anthony did add two assists and five rebounds in the half, but his recent shooting slump seemed to still be ongoing until the final minute, when he hit the Knicks’ last shot of the half despite contact.

EFFING MADE FIELD GOALS, HOW DO THEY WORK?

Can the Clippers Stun Memphis Fans Again?

The thought of the Game 7 Clippers win in Memphis from last year still stings for most Grizzlies faithful. It’s part of the reason why Memphis fans were so nervous about another matchup against L.A. in the 2013 NBA Playoffs. Steve Perrin of Clips Nation has noticed the parallels between the situation last year and this scenario, and he thinks a Game 6 win could lead to a similar result for L.A. in the end:

The Rockets have been keying in on Durant defensively and could struggle without another forward and six fouls to use against the Thunder’s leading man.

• Stephen Curry’s 10 best shots of the playoffs