NBA playoffs: Paul George’s shooting keeps the Pacers alive

Lance Stephenson’s antics continue to bother almost everyone, and the NBA is no exception. The league has fined the Pacers shooting guard $10,000 for his second flop violation of the postseason, both of which happened in the conference finals.

The play occurred in the fourth quarter, when Lance went down in a heap after running into LeBron James in transition. No foul was called on the play, which eventually ended in a wild Stephenson three-point attempt that missed.

Doyel, on the altruism of LeBron and its potential outcomes:

Translated from Doyelese to English:

But the coup de grâce was when Stephenson leaned over close to James and blew in his ear:

James, in the middle of arguably the worst playoff game of his career, could only laugh it off. After the game, CNN’s Rachel Nichols asked James if he had ever tried to blow in somebody’s ear as a “defensive tactic.” James gave quite the cheeky response, according to Jeff Zillgitt of USA TODAY:

With the Pacers’ season on the line, Paul George stepped up. The Pacers’ star poured in 21 fourth-quarter points, allowing Indiana to hold off Miami, 93-90, and fight to a Game 6.

We don’t really need to say much more about the first half. Miami scored 16 points in the first quarter, and the Pacers scored 11 in the second.

Indiana held a four-point lead with the final shot of the third quarter when the inbounds pass came to George.

The Pacers will die soon enough, but Lance Stephenson won’t let them go down without a whole lot of trolling. He’s out here unabashedly creeping into the Miami huddles:

(via @cjzero)

You can’t do that, Roy Hibbert. Bad Roy Hibbert. Miami leads 42-33 at halftime, but as long as Indiana hits the rulebook hard at halftime, maybe their season won’t end just yet.

There is a basketball player called Birdman. There is a rapper called Birdman. One can’t help doing the rapper’s “BRRRRR” when one hears Chris Andersen mentioned. One DOES NOT expect 62-year-old Doug Collins to pick up that reference and run with it:

Birdman ft. Clipse ft. Doug Collins, y’all.

Roy Hibbert was particularly embarrassing, going scoreless for the fourth time in this postseason. Indiana’s starting center registered just five rebounds, one assist and a block in 22 minutes of play. Hibbert told reporters that it was part of coach Frank Vogel’s gameplan not to have him score much.

The Heat are just 48 minutes away from their fourth Finals appearance in as many years. Indiana doesn’t look prepared to stop them, but if they can, it will have to start on the offensive side of the ball. For all the talk, it’s been Miami that’s said the most with their play in this series.