Congratulations to Chris Paul, who led the Houston Rockets to the Western Conference Finals with a 112-102 win over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday. The Point God had 41 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds, and zero turnovers, and he was a game-best plus-20. So much for that old narrative about being unable to make it out of the second round.
Hurray, Rockets vs. Warriors is here! (Well, in 5 days.)
We have that and more in Wednesday’s NBA newsletter.
Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
(Paul is an abrasive on-court figure and hit a guy in the jewels 15 years ago, so a lot of people proudly dislike him. Not to be that guy, but I’ve always been a fan of CP3 because of his play style and his incredible charity work. He’s a hero.)
Meanwhile, the Warriors finished off the upstart Pelicans, 113-104, to end that series. Golden State’s fun little Hamptons Five lineup was a plus-23 in 19 minutes. It’s going to get a workout in the next series.
And that’s the series we’ve all been waiting for all season long: Rockets vs. Warriors. It’s finally here ... in five days, because the Western Conference Finals don’t begin until Monday, May 14. Rest up.
Tuesday’s Scores
Rockets 112, Jazz 102
Houston wins 4-1
Recaps: The Dream Shake | SLC Dunk
Warriors 113, Pelicans 104
Golden State wins 4-1
Recaps: Golden State Of Mind | The Bird Writes
Wednesday’s Schedule
Sixers at Celtics, 8 p.m. ET, TNT
Boston leads 3-1
Links on Links on Links
What a rookie season for Donovan Mitchell. This kid is a legitimate star in the making. Can’t wait to see what he accomplishes.
An argument that the Pelicans, who had a helluva season, should re-sign DeMarcus Cousins and run it back.
Paul Flannery on the moments when Celtics vs. Sixers finally turned scrappy. Tyler Tynes on T.J. McConnell. And uh, the Celtics are home underdogs despite being up 3-1? What?
James Borrego has been hired as the new head coach of the Charlotte Hornets. Good luck.
Check out our new video series THE REWINDER, which puts iconic moments in their context. This first episode looks at the most famous Jordan shot ever.
Good ol’ Draymond Green, sneaking into the Pelicans’ huddle.
This is a wonderful story from Tim Bontemps on the workout that convinced the Jazz they absolutely had to draft Donovan Mitchell.
A reporter asked Kyle Korver if he was surprised a No. 1 seed got swept out of the playoffs. Nope!
Zach Lowe on the Sixers’ extreme minutes staggering system.
Awesome Sarah Spain piece on how Kevin Garnett’s Area 21 segments on TNT really embrace women athletes.
The difference George Hill is making for Cleveland’s offense.
Yaron Weitzman on David Fizdale’s arrival in New York.
Bruce Arthur on the end of the Raptors.
Rick Brunson, a Timberwolves assistant coach, has resigned after allegations of improper conduct with multiple women. This comes four years after he faced charges for allegedly abusing a massage therapist. There’s one further complication here: Brunson’s son Jalen is a NBA Draft prospect out of Villanova.
In related news, Nike’s harassment scandal has now led to the exit of 11 executives.
There’s a rumor that Dwane Casey is going to be let go by the Raptors. Speaking of which, a Canadian musician recorded a song called “F--- the Raptors” at the Met Gala on Monday. Of course.
And finally: this is almost certainly the biggest televised Shaq and Chuck argument ever. It results in Shaq screaming “THREE FINALS MVPS! GOOGLE ME!” which is just a phenomenal line.
Be excellent to each other.
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