SBNation.com: All Posts by Andrew Sharphttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/46737/sbn-fave.png2015-02-08T11:00:00-05:00https://www.sbnation.com/authors/andrew-sharp/rss2015-02-08T11:00:00-05:002015-02-08T11:00:00-05:00The USC 'scandal' timeline
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<figcaption>Jamie Squire/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>NCAA sanctions cost the 2004 Trojans their national championship trophies, Reggie Bush his Heisman, and running backs coach Todd McNair much of his career, in addition to hurting four years of USC football. But the story's not over.</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/2010/1/10/1244082/usc-football-ncaa-investigationKevin TrahanPeter BerkesMark SandritterAdam StitesJason KirkChris FuhrmeisterNam LeSpencer HallErnie PominBrandon Larrabee (cocknfire)Holly AndersonBrian FloydKim McCauley2013-05-08T12:16:05-04:002013-05-08T12:16:05-04:00Kendrick Perkins is a Rorschach Test
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<figcaption>Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>What do you see? </p> <p>Should the Thunder be playing Kendrick Perkins less? Does Scott Brooks pay attention to plus-minus? Are Kendrick Perkins' hands made of actual stone?</p>
<p>Doesn't matter. We're not here to discuss basketball today. We're taking a break.</p>
<p>Instead, let's take a second to appreciate Kendrick Perkins the human, because no matter what his plus-minus is, he will always be the greatest. One of the hidden bonuses of having the Thunder in the playoffs is getting lots and lots of time with Perk in HD on national television. This gives us all plenty of time to enjoy the magic of Perk in the midst of his grumpy glory days. Who does Grumpy Kendrick Perkins look like?</p>
<p>The Internet has some ideas.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Why Kendrick Perkins look like the green monster from Space Jam</p>
— Kevion Blaylock (@Kevionblaylock) <a href="https://twitter.com/Kevionblaylock/status/331987112213770240">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins look like he eat people</p>
— Black Jesus(@_ShawonnFields) <a href="https://twitter.com/_ShawonnFields/status/331986948581367808">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins looks like a black Ivan Ooze from the Power Rangers movie.</p>
— TJ Willis (@atTJWillis) <a href="https://twitter.com/atTJWillis/status/331986779404132352">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Note: That one's particularly popular.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Kendrick Perkins look like Ivan Ooze from The Power Rangers Movie</p>
— WHO IS CHIS? (@CHISelEmDown) <a href="https://twitter.com/CHISelEmDown/status/331988977458487296">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>i still think kendrick perkins looks like ivan ooze from the power rangers lol</p>
— David Aguilar (@La_Lengua) <a href="https://twitter.com/La_Lengua/status/331978322881953792">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins do look like Ivan Ooze</p>
— ㏂ Roddy PipeHer ㏘ (@I_BeRandom) <a href="https://twitter.com/I_BeRandom/status/331952233568686080">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>What do we think?</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Ivan ooze vs. Kendrick Perkins <a title="http://twitter.com/dgaston1/status/330508115625779200/photo/1" href="http://t.co/YxhNQQqifu">twitter.com/dgaston1/statu…</a></p>
— Darren Gaston (@dgaston1) <a href="https://twitter.com/dgaston1/status/330508115625779200">May 4, 2013</a>
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<p>Other suggestions:</p>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins looks like <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23voltron">#voltron</a> running up and down the floor <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23notsmooth">#notsmooth</a></p>
— Camaro Dat (@whodatyadig) <a href="https://twitter.com/whodatyadig/status/331972241095012354">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>#Notsmooth, that's pretty mean. This is meaner.</p>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins looks like Koopa Troopa, and he sucks</p>
— WHR (@NoSleeves4Me) <a href="https://twitter.com/NoSleeves4Me/status/331987063257849856">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Meanest:</p>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins looks like an overgrown milkdud.</p>
— Kameron Alana (@kma2014) <a href="https://twitter.com/kma2014/status/331967688895258626">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins' face <a title="http://0.tqn.com/d/geology/1/0/0/7/1/gibraltar4.jpg" href="http://t.co/fq57jZS6rv">0.tqn.com/d/geology/1/0/…</a></p>
— Jason Kirk (@JasonKirkSBN) <a href="https://twitter.com/JasonKirkSBN/status/331963789832515584">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>There's also the olfactory division of things:</p>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins always looks like he just sniffed a big jug of vinegar.</p>
— Danny Treinen (@DTreinetyX) <a href="https://twitter.com/DTreinetyX/status/331963460713861120">May 8, 2013</a>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Kendrick Perkins looks like he's always smelling a fart</p>
— Nate Johnson (@TheMindOfNate) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheMindOfNate/status/331949841544511489">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>And so much more:</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Why does Kendrick Perkins always look like a little kid that didn't get what he wanted for Christmas?</p>
— Slim (@TheRealArgjentG) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheRealArgjentG/status/331983237394096128">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins didn't listen to his mom and his face really did stick that way.</p>
— Grizzly Bear Blues (@sbnGrizzlies) <a href="https://twitter.com/sbnGrizzlies/status/331974093735862273">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins look like the Iron Giant..</p>
— Evan Galanis (@EvanMichael___) <a href="https://twitter.com/EvanMichael___/status/331975435288199168">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins always looks like someone kicked his dog</p>
— RandEye Coordination (@Randle_el) <a href="https://twitter.com/Randle_el/status/331963499670560769">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins look like one of dem niggas dat b in da background mean muggin in all black in Gucci Mane/Young Jeezys videos</p>
— MIAMI HEATh BAR (@HeafyAitchDee) <a href="https://twitter.com/HeafyAitchDee/status/331964227034177536">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>This dude Kendrick Perkins look like eeyore from Winnie the Pooh on everything.</p>
— Horace Freeman (@horacefreeman) <a href="https://twitter.com/horacefreeman/status/331963698375700481">May 8, 2013</a>
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The "?????" division.</p>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins look like ah angry cue cumber ctfu</p>
— IG:DreadHead_Dre (@Kush_Crazy_Dre) <a href="https://twitter.com/Kush_Crazy_Dre/status/331963470629199873">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins looks like a black leprechaun</p>
— Trey Gonzales (@trey_gonzales) <a href="https://twitter.com/trey_gonzales/status/331950276082806785">May 8, 2013</a>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Why does Kendrick Perkins look like a vulture</p>
— Franznatoc (@FranzNatoc) <a href="https://twitter.com/FranzNatoc/status/331986779060203521">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>Kendrick Perkins look like a dried up turtle</p>
— PrinceAndretti(@AllexAndretti) <a href="https://twitter.com/AllexAndretti/status/331986902058147841">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>That last one is probably my favorite. But, before this exercise gave way to a journey down the internet wormhole of Kendrick Perkins jokes, this all began with three observations we loved last night.</p>
<p>Here are the contenders for Most Accurate Perk Doppleganger:</p>
<p>1. Yes.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>KENDRICK PERKINS LOOK LIKE THE NIGGA YOU GIVE $20 TO AT THE CLUB AND STILL STAND IN LINE LIKE A DICK</p>
— The Kid Mero (@THEKIDMERO) <a href="https://twitter.com/THEKIDMERO/status/331950949562200064">May 8, 2013</a>
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<p>2. Yes.</p>
<p><a target="_blank" href="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2596133/767681112.jpg"><img src="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2596133/767681112.jpg" class="photo" alt="767681112_medium" width="100%"></a> <br><i>via <a href="http://twitpic.com/cp22jc" target="_blank">@TheNoLookPass</a></i></p>
<p>3. YES.</p>
<p><a target="_blank" href="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2596149/767679790.jpg"><img src="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2596149/767679790.jpg" class="photo" alt="767679790_medium" width="100%"></a> <br><i>via</i> <a href="http://twitpic.com/cp21im" target="_blank"><i>@Steve_OS</i></a></p>
<p>So there you go.</p>
<p>Now you might be looking for a definitive answer here. Does Perk look like Thomas the Train? Ivan Ooze? The Iron Giant? A dried-up cucumber?</p>
<p>No, no, no. No. Those things<i> look like Perk</i>. He is the stone from which the rest of our universe has been chiseled. And he's also just a lovable, hulking curmudgeon who's out here asking the right questions.</p>
<p><img src="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/1595663/Screen_Shot_2012-12-20_at_12.41.35_PM.png" class="photo" alt="Screen_shot_2012-12-20_at_12" width="100%"></p>
<p>Kendrick Perkins is everything. God bless Kendrick Perkins.</p>
<h4>More from SB Nation:</h4>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307620/nba-playoffs-2013-kevin-durant-stephen-curry-joakim-noah?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Flannery: NBA playoffs are the stuff of dreams</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307134/bulls-vs-heat-2013-nba-playoffs-crunch-time-tom-thibodeau?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Prada: Bulls buck hero ball</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307540/stephen-curry-wants-a-big-mac?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Video: Give Steph a Big Mac</a> | <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/lookit?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">#Lookit</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2013/5/7/4307502/manu-ginobili-game-winner-jarrett-jack-harrison-barnes?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Spurs win in double-OT: How Manu got open</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/6/4304434/lebron-james-mvp-vote-carmelo-anthony-unanimous?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Ziller: MVP voting and the perils of anonymity</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2013/5/7/4305164/paul-george-profile-indiana-pacers-nba-playoffs-2013?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Herbert: How Paul George evolved into a star</a></p>
https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/8/4311960/kendrick-perkins-is-a-rorschach-testAndrew Sharp2013-05-07T15:30:30-04:002013-05-07T15:30:30-04:00Some notes on playoff perfection
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<figcaption>Ronald Martinez</figcaption>
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<p>The Spurs and Warriors delivered an instant classic Monday in San Antonio, so let's relive it. Some scattered notes on what went down in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals.</p> <p>Warriors-Spurs Game 1 turned the playoffs inside out Monday night, and for about an hour between the fourth quarter and the end of the second overtime, nothing made sense. Shaking off a basketball hangover this morning, there were two inescapable thoughts:</p>
<ol>
<li>"Wow the Warriors really found a way to blow that game, huh? That's incredible."</li>
<li>"Thank God Manu Ginobili made that second three, because otherwise Gregg Popovich would've disemboweled him in the locker room after the game. In front of reporters and everything. It would've been horrible." </li>
</ol>
<p>But there's a lot left to unpack after the Spurs double-OT win last night, and since I'm still sitting here unpeeling my brain, we're going to keep things nice and disorganized. With that in mind, here are some notes on the insanity from San Antonio Monday.</p>
<p></p>
<div class="read-more">
<b>MORE</b>: <a target="new" href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/2013/5/7/4307624/nba-playoffs-breakdown-manu-ginobili-game-winner-spurs-warriors">Breaking down Manu's three</a> <a target="new" href="http://www.goldenstateofmind.com/2013/5/7/4307520/golden-state-warriors-at-san-antonio-spurs-double-overtime-nba-playoffs-2013">Late-night losing reflections</a>
</div>
<p>-- Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes. Everyone fears Stephen Curry (and with good reason, we'll get to that), but Klay and Barnes are pretty much perfect as his sidekicks, especially since they both have the length and athleticism to guard three positions on the other end. Curry did plenty of damage in the first half, but Barnes and Thompson were just as valuable and left the Spurs just as confused on D.</p>
<p>-- That's what's so unfair about the Warriors. Beyond Curry, they have the personnel to create mismatches all over the floor, then have guys like Draymond Green, Carl Landry, and Andrew Bogut hitting the boards. Altogether, it's hard to imagine a supporting cast that would fit Curry's talent better. So when they blitzed the Spurs in the first half Monday <i>without </i>Curry going nuts, you couldn't help but wonder where this all goes over the next few years.</p>
<p>-- Question for the Warriors future: Are they better for the long term without David Lee? Or, maybe Lee comes off the bench going forward? I don't know. It seems like they've accidentally discovered a lineup that's twice as deadly as the one they'd been working with all year, <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/6/4304906/nba-playoffs-2013-heat-pacers-talking-points" target="_blank">kind of like the Heat in last year's playoffs</a>. Lee is great, and I like him, but the Warriors the past 10 days have looked more terrifying than what we saw all year. Right?</p>
<p>-- Question for the Spurs future: Does it matter that Tony Parker can't guard anyone on earth? This seems like it should matter, right? Especially against Mike Conley if they get that far.</p>
<p>-- Question for TNT's future: I have always loved Dick Stockton and always will, but it might be time for him to retire. This isn't actually a question.</p>
<p>-- Steph Curry in the third quarter. HE DID IT AGAIN.</p>
<p><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ecnuVj3WtSI" frameborder="0" height="360" width="640"></iframe></p>
<p>Curry in the third quarter is Michael Jordan in 1996<a target="_blank" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307540/stephen-curry-wants-a-big-mac">, </a><a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307540/stephen-curry-wants-a-big-mac" target="_blank">Larry Bird in that McDonald's commercial</a><a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307540/stephen-curry-wants-a-big-mac">,</a> Allen Iverson in Game 1 of the 2001 Finals and Jeremy Lin in Feb. 2012. It's out of control.</p>
<p>[<i>deep breath</i>]</p>
<p>-- Lin is actually my favorite comparison for contextualizing Curry's performance. It's fun to watch any player dominate an NBA game all by himself, but it becomes 10 times as fun when it's someone who should <i>never</i> be able to dominate like that. This isn't to take away from Curry -- the more he does this, the less surprising it becomes. But for now, it's different than watching someone like LeBron James, Kevin Durant or even Dirk Nowitzki dominate. Those guys are aliens. They are so much more gifted than anyone else that it makes sense they'd render everyone else helpless. Meanwhile, Curry looks about as ordinary as an NBA player can possibly look ... and he still just goes scorched earth on people and turns games upside down to the point where everyone's out of breath from screaming and/or laughing. Last night was proof that the Denver series wasn't some kind of matchup-induced fluke and one more reminder that there's nothing more fun than <i>that</i> Stephen Curry. The spectacle of watching someone that small dominate entire NBA teams has been the best thing about the playoffs so far. It's just a never-ending parade of "Holy shit!" moments from a player who looks 15 years old.</p>
<p><b>-- </b>Seriously, <a href="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2589321/omgcurry.gif" target="_blank">look at his teammates freaking out</a>.<b> </b>It was a fun third quarter.</p>
<p>And then ...</p>
<p>-- WHO IS THIS FRIENDLY OLD MAN AND WHERE IS GREGG POPOVICH?</p>
<p><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7nMk4dZrqp8" frameborder="0" height="360" width="640"></iframe></p>
<p>-- Friendly Pop might actually be scarier than grumpy Pop.</p>
<p>-- With the latter you keep your guard up and defend yourself. With friendly Pop, you might make the mistake of thinking this is all a fun game, right before friendly Pop literally bites your head off, grabs the microphone and<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGx6K90TmCI#t=0m10s" target="_blank"> turns into DMX here</a>.</p>
<p>-- (Sometimes it's important to imagine Gregg Popovich turning into DMX during an in-game interview).</p>
<p>You should really read the Jack McCallum story in SI (it's not online, but <a href="http://www.jackmccallum.net/2013/04/23/behind-the-interviews-the-elusive-pop/#.UYlQ7St9Bh8">here's McCallum explaining it</a>). It's great, in addition to being an oenophile, a former spy, and the best coach alive, Pop also just seems like a pretty wonderful dude.</p>
<p>-- Meanwhile ........ <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2013/5/3/4296018/mark-jackson-nothing-but-god-video-warriors-nuggets">God's favorite basketball coach </a>was up 12 points at the end of the quarter. Curry had (somehow) played every minute of the game at that point, which was probably not smart. Given the lead, this would have been a good time to rest Curry for a few minutes. Mark Jackson decided against it.</p>
<p>-- The Warriors took a 16-point lead with nine minutes left. Another good opportunity to rest Curry for a few minutes. Mark Jackson decided against it.</p>
<p>-- Would we be talking about this if the Warriors had won? Of course not! This wouldn't even be a notes column in that case; it'd just be one long tribute to Curry's absurdity. But the decision to play Curry 48 minutes (and eventually 58) would still be dumb.</p>
<p>-- On the bright side, Jackson running his point guard into the ground (and the Warriors offense falling apart) left the door open for a Spurs comeback. So instead of settling for an all-time classic performance from Curry, we stumbled into the best playoff game of the year.</p>
<p>-- The Spurs went on a 26-10 run over the final 10 minutes, including a 15-0 stretch at one point, and the Warriors gave away a 16-point lead with four minutes left. None of it makes sense. It all ended with <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307452/danny-green-three-jarrett-jack-spurs-warriors">Danny Green's three</a> to send things to overtime.</p>
<p>-- This was right about when we started hearing the psychotic lady Spurs fan screeching into the TNT crowd microphone (screeching video <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6f9wo08Um2w&feature=player_embedded" target="_blank">here</a>). It was ALSO right about the time everyone on Twitter noticed that the AT&T Center ran through every volume of Jock Jams between timeouts.</p>
<p>-- STRIKE IT UP, SAN ANTONIO.</p>
<p><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/vnZqpthCG7g" frameborder="0" height="360" width="480"></iframe></p>
<p>-- Someone needs to find the exact playlist from San Antonio last night, because it was truly some inspired stuff. Like stadium music directed by my mom.</p>
<p>-- "What's cool these days?" [finds 18-year-old CD of pump-up jamz] "PERFECT."</p>
<p>-- People on Twitter were complaining about all this, but the tacky music coupled with the psychotic lady is everything I've ever imagined from Spurs games. It'd be much weirder if they were bumping H.A.M. between timeouts in San Antonio.</p>
<p>-- Anyway, the game. The ending. When San Antonio sent it to overtime, pretty much everyone figured the Warriors were doomed. The offense had sputtered away the final minutes, and you know, giving up a 16-point lead in four minutes can be pretty deflating. But no. Even with Curry running on fumes, the Warriors got enough help from Jarrett Jack and Barnes to get a lead, and both teams traded huuuuuge shots, including Boris Diaw's three. Finally, there was Jack's kamikaze drive-and-layup to tie it.</p>
<p>-- The second overtime only upped the ante on insanity. And when Curry threw a supernatural cross-court pass to Barnes for a three, the Spurs answered by going on an 8-2 run, and then we got the following sequence:</p>
<ul>
<li>Green buries another three that feels like a dagger with a minute left. </li>
<li>Curry makes two free throws to cut it to three. </li>
<li>Ginobili inexplicably takes a deep three with plenty of time on the shot clock that misses badly, gives the Warriors a fast break, and suddenly it's a one-point game. </li>
<li>Parker misses a jumper, Warriors hit a fast break with no timeout, and two seconds later Kent Bazemore hits a reverse lay-up with three seconds left. </li>
<li>San Antonio full timeout to set up a last-second play.</li>
<li>San Antonio 20-second timeout to reset. </li>
<li>Warriors<a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2013/5/7/4307502/manu-ginobili-game-winner-jarrett-jack-harrison-barnes"> lose track of Manu Ginobili</a>, he buries the game-winner.<br>
</li>
</ul>
<p>God. Even re-reading all that makes me exhausted. What a game.</p>
<p>-- For the record,<b> </b>I'm super bummed that Golden State blew that game and wasted such an incredible night from Curry. This is so true, and so depressing:</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>This series went from "Golden State could win this series" to "Spurs could sweep" because of an eight minute stretch of basketball.</p>
— Brett Koremenos (@BKoremenos) <a href="https://twitter.com/BKoremenos/status/331636693994196994">May 7, 2013</a>
</blockquote>
<p>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></p>
<p>It was classic Spurs, and (sadly) classic Warriors.</p>
<p>-- Also: MANU LIVES:</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Pop on Manu's last two 3-point attempts: "I went from trading him on the spot to wanting to cook him breakfast tomorrow. That's the truth."</p>
— James Herbert (@outsidethenba) <a href="https://twitter.com/outsidethenba/status/331638224206311424">May 7, 2013</a>
</blockquote>
<p>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></p>
<p>-- God bless Manu.</p>
<p><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ESxqIhpxPwc" frameborder="0" height="360" width="640"></iframe></p>
<p>-- Follow <a href="https://twitter.com/DragonflyJonez" target="_blank">Dragonflyjonez</a>.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>"Now if you'll excuse me. I have to go be one of those cartoon characters in those Red Bull commercials."- Manu Ginobli</p>
— D'Brickashaw (@DragonflyJonez) <a href="https://twitter.com/DragonflyJonez/status/331637444254523392">May 7, 2013</a>
</blockquote>
<p>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></p>
<p>-- And now we're getting extra disorganized, so it's time to wrap things up. Let's just say this. The NBA Playoffs are always good if you love the NBA, but<b> </b>more and more the past few years, they've gone above and beyond, where "Good" becomes "completely perfect."<b> </b></p>
<p>Monday was one of those games. Between Curry's third quarter, the Spurs comeback and everyone trading huge shots for the final 10 minutes in overtime, it had the outrageousness of an NCAA tournament game coupled with the best players on the planet. You couldn't watch Spurs-Warriors and not fall in love with basketball, at least for a few hours. When everything falls into place with NBA playoffs, it becomes basketball crack. Even casual users will get addicted.</p>
<p>Everything that happened in San Antonio on Monday was just one more reminder: the NBA has more talent in more places than ever right now, and we're going above and beyond every other night these days. It's all pretty perfect.</p>
<p>And we're not even halfway done.</p>
<h4>More from SB Nation:</h4>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307620/nba-playoffs-2013-kevin-durant-stephen-curry-joakim-noah?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Flannery: NBA playoffs are the stuff of dreams</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307134/bulls-vs-heat-2013-nba-playoffs-crunch-time-tom-thibodeau?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Prada: Bulls buck hero ball</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4307540/stephen-curry-wants-a-big-mac?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Video: Give Steph a Big Mac</a> | <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/lookit?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">#Lookit</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2013/5/7/4307502/manu-ginobili-game-winner-jarrett-jack-harrison-barnes?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Spurs win in double-OT: How Manu got open</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/6/4304434/lebron-james-mvp-vote-carmelo-anthony-unanimous?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Ziller: MVP voting and the perils of anonymity</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2013/5/7/4305164/paul-george-profile-indiana-pacers-nba-playoffs-2013?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Herbert: How Paul George evolved into a star</a></p>
<iframe src="https://www.sbnation.com/videos/iframe?id=23321" frameborder="0" seamless="true" marginwidth="0" mozallowfullscreen="true" webkitallowfullscreen="true" name="23321-chorus-video-iframe"></iframe>
https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/7/4308016/warriors-spurs-nba-playoffs-2013Andrew Sharp2013-05-06T14:47:18-04:002013-05-06T14:47:18-04:00'Mouse in the house'
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/teoYKm8cepLGVAq-Vw4ArsHLt2Y=/0x65:4000x2732/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/12765451/20130503_mje_bw1_286.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Heat started a trend last year, and with other contenders copying the blueprint, there's a new kind of chess match happening all over the NBA Playoffs. </p> <p>OK hold on a second: Did we all know that in years past, when NBA forwards had a mismatch against a smaller player down low, they would yell out "There's a mouse in the house!" to call for the ball?</p>
<p>Because Charles Barkley said this exact phrase last week on TNT to describe Serge Ibaka battling smaller players on Houston, and Jeff Van Gundy said the same thing during the Knicks game Sunday. And if it's true that past Hall of Famers were screaming about mice on the basketball, this seems like something we should all be celebrating. It makes me want to go post up a fifth grader right this very second just so I can yell out "WE GOT A MOUSE IN THE HOUSE!" and feel like Charles Barkley in 1993. But we digress.</p>
<p>Why is this relevant in 2013, you ask?</p>
<p> </p>
<div class="pullquote">There are mice all over the place in the NBA Playoffs.</div>
<p>Because this is what the NBA Playoffs are going to look like for a long time. There's a reason two announcers have mentioned "Mouse in the House" in the past seven days. There are mice all over the place in the NBA Playoffs.</p>
<p>The rise of small ball in the NBA has created a landscape where certain teams refuse to go small, others thrive that way, and when they collide, the interplay of the two styles and all the mismatches goes a long way toward deciding things. The most famous example would be the NBA Finals last year, when the Thunder refused to bench Kendrick Perkins and go small, and it ended up killing them as they lost four straight games to Miami. Since then, Miami's perfected the blueprint while some other contenders have embraced it elsewhere.</p>
<p>What's amazing is that, at least on some level, the small ball revolution caught on by accident. When Chris Bosh went down with an abdominal strain during the last year's playoffs, it left Miami scrambling for a Plan B, and for a minute there, it looked like the Heat were doomed.</p>
<p>They were down 2-1 against the Pacers this time last year, with Game 4 looming in Indianapolis and 100,000 different sportswriters were wondering if this was the end of the Miami Heat experiment. Then, Game 4 happened. Dwyane Wade had 30, nine, and six, and LeBron James scored 40 points and grabbed 18 rebounds -- <i>eighteen -- </i>for a win that basically saved their season. This gave the Heat a lifeline in the short term, but as they perfected playing small and LeBron got more comfortable playing the hybrid power forward position, a newer, better offense basically came out nowhere, annnnnnd ... we know how that ended.</p>
<p>Now, half the teams left in the playoffs are playing this way. The Knicks, Warriors, Heat and even the Thunder, who bounce back and forth between big and small.</p>
<p>This is just the beginning. The hybrid wing/forward superstars are only going to be more ubiquitous as we go, and as the NBA gets faster and more wide open, we'll have more and more teams trying to beat people with speed. And then others countering with power.</p>
<p> </p>
<div class="sidebar">
<a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2013/5/6/4303814/roy-hibbert-pacers-knicks-nba-playoffs-2013">
<h2>How Hibbert thwarted the Knicks</h2>
<img src="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/12754823/20130505_kkt_aa9_205.0_standard_730.0.jpg"></a> <span>Mike Prada breaks down the Pacers' defense in Game 1.</span>
</div>
<p>That's what makes it fun. Countering with power didn't work for the Pacers against the Heat last year, but it worked for the same Pacers team against the small-ball Knicks on Sunday. Roy Hibbert patrolled the paint, was able to stay out of foul trouble and the Pacers D frustrated the Knicks all day. Then, on the other end, the Knicks had no answer for David West, Hibbert and Paul George. Likewise, the Grizzlies just won four straight games against the Clippers by beating the crap out of a smaller, faster L.A. lineup.</p>
<p>Sometimes, power still beats speed. Yeah, you could point to the past two champions (Heat, Mavs) to highlight smallball's stranglehold on everything, but the two champions before that (Lakers, Celtics) were the exact opposite. The game hasn't changed as much as it seems; the Heat distort everything because LeBron James is just that unstoppable.</p>
<p>For all the talk of the Heat blueprint revolutionizing basketball, that's only half the story. The real "revolution" is this new battle between styles that we're going to see over and over again. Grantland's Zach Lowe has already <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/ZachLowe_NBA/status/331045864204292096">highlighted this trend</a> in these playoffs. It's a new kind of chess match between teams with different personnel strengths, where officiating and lineup management become twice as important, and we all have twice as much to overanalyze between every game of every playoff series.</p>
<p>When you think about it like that, the "Mouse in the House" NBA is pretty much perfect for 2013. We have 10,000 different people on the internet scrutinizing adjustments and coaching and lineups every day during the playoffs, and suddenly this stuff matters more than ever.</p>
<p>And really, as more teams catch on, it's only going to get more insane over the next few years. There's gonna be mice EVERYWHERE.</p>
<p><img src="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/images/blog/star-divide.v5e9d7f1.jpg" alt="Star-divide"></p>
<p>Now, a few other thoughts on the NBA Playoffs from the past few days.</p>
<p> </p>
<div class="pullquote">God, that was a big win on Sunday.</div>
<p><b>The Thunder Are Alive. </b>God, that was a big win on Sunday. Obviously, Game 1 is huge in any series, but for OKC, Sunday's win was as much about proving to themselves that they can hang with Memphis as it was about holding court at home. We've come a long way from Game 5 against Houston. As the second half unfolded in that one, nothing was working, everyone was frustrated, and watching them getting ground up by the Rockets, you couldn't help dread the disaster that was waiting in a potential Memphis series.</p>
<p>Then... Kevin Martin went off in Game 6 and again in Game 1, Kevin Durant hit another level in the second half Sunday, and it ended with <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/5/4302964/kevin-durant-clutch-jumper-thunder-grizzlies" target="_blank">this game-winning shot</a>. (IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL.)</p>
<p>It sounds cliche and sportswriter-y to say this changes OKC's mindset somehow, but for a team that badly needed something to go right, that comeback Sunday could go a long way toward restoring some of the confidence they lost with the Westbrook injury. Memphis is still the favorite to win this series, but who knows? Betting against the Thunder felt much safer a few days ago.</p>
<p><b>All Hail Joakim Noah. </b>For his performance in the Nets series, for<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ub66nXzaG0U" target="_blank"> this interview at the Final Four in 2007</a>, for supporting Derrick Rose while the rest of the world goes insane and for generally being the greatest at all times. Noah used to be the one of the more hateable superstars in basketball -- both at Florida and early in the NBA -- but given all the evidence and <a href="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/937034/NoahFingaGunz.gif" target="_blank">spectacular finger gun gifs like this</a>, I don't know how anyone on earth can not love him.</p>
<p><b>Don't Forget Paul And Lance. </b>For all the praise Roy Hibbert's defense has gotten in the past 24 hours, both these stats are also incredible:</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Paul George held Carmelo Anthony to 5-for-18 shooting and J.R. Smith to 0-for-7 shooting in the Pacers Game 1 win</p>
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/status/331180996907106304">May 5, 2013</a>
</blockquote>
<p>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>The Knicks shot 69% with Lance Stephenson OFF the court, but only 38% in the 39 minutes he was ON the floor</p>
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/status/331189971081900033">May 5, 2013</a>
</blockquote>
<p>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></p>
<p>Also, great to see <a href="https://twitter.com/Hoya2aPacer/status/330869127801602050" target="_blank">Roy Hibbert enjoying the sights and sounds of New York City</a>.</p>
<p><b>The JR Smith Experience Will Never Get Old.</b></p>
<p>Saturday night:</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Cam Newton, JR Smith, CC Sabathia, CJ Watson, Andre Blatche and Joe Johnson in the building!The lineup is serious tonight NY!</p>
— The 40/40 Club (@The4040) <a href="https://twitter.com/The4040/status/330896224989364224">May 5, 2013</a>
</blockquote>
<p>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></p>
<p>Sunday night:</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>The man, the Smith, the legend. RT@<a href="https://twitter.com/therealjrsmith">therealjrsmith</a>: First an for most I wasn't clubbing before the game so y'all can kill that.</p>
— Frank Isola (@FisolaNYDN) <a href="https://twitter.com/FisolaNYDN/status/331241112863924226">May 6, 2013</a>
</blockquote>
<p>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></p>
<p>I hope JR Smith remains a Knick for the next 50 years.</p>
<p><b>The Kendrick Perkins Experience is getting old. </b>It's not that he's terrible, and he's probably most valuable to OKC against Gasol and Randolph in this Memphis series. But particularly given the PTSD Thunder fans still have from last year's Finals -- when<a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--okc-s-kendrick-perkins-played-with-injury-throughout-playoffs.html" target="_blank"> Perkins was apparently playing with a torn groin</a> and Scott Brooks<i> still</i> wouldn't bench him -- Brooks' refusal to go with Nick Collison for extended stretches may actually cause a riot in Oklahoma City over the next week or two. Sometimes it seems like Perk would have to stab Kevin Durant before Scott Brooks ever agreed to cut his minutes in half.</p>
<p>The offense is more dangerous with Collison on the floor, Collison's a smart and capable defender, and at a time when OKC's offense needs all the help it can get, now seems like as a good a time as any for Brooks to shake things up. So far, the results have been mixed. He apparently forgot Collison existed in the middle of the Houston series, but since then he's played Collison extended minutes for the last two games. But, of course, he's still sticking with Perk throughout crunch time. And ... we'll see.</p>
<p><b>EVERYONE STOP YELLING. </b>LeBron got 120 of 121 MVP votes, and he's won 4 of the past 5 MVPs. LeBron is properly appreciated, unanimous MVP or not.</p>
<p><b>Goodnight Celtics. </b>It was time. If this is the end of an era in Boston ... I will miss watching Paul Pierce and the Ubuntu Celtics, but I will not miss watching half-dead Paul Pierce and the rest of the Ubuntu Celtics taint all my memories of their better days and turn basketball into the saddest game on earth.</p>
<p><b>Goodnight Clippers.</b> At the very least, if Chris Paul stays in LA, they'd better get one extra big man and Stan Van Gundy. If he leaves LA? Well now, THEN things get fun.</p>
<p>And of course:</p>
<p><b>Z-Bo. </b>In basketball heaven, every single game ends with Z-Bo throwing his headband into the crowd and then dancing his way into the tunnel. <a target="_blank" href="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2574571/zboexits.gif">God bless the Playoffs</a>.</p>
<h4>More from SB Nation:</h4>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/6/4304434/lebron-james-mvp-vote-carmelo-anthony-unanimous?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Ziller: MVP voting and the perils of anonymity</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/6/4304432/knicks-vs-pacers-mike-woodson-kenyon-martin-tyson-chandler?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Mike Woodson's big gamble</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/4/4299182/boston-celtics-future-paul-pierce-kevin-garnett-doc-rivers?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Celtics head off into great unknown</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2013/5/3/4296658/stephen-curry-video-warriors-nuggets-nba-playoffs-2013?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Stephen Curry's 10 best shots of the playoffs</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2013/5/1/4286412/nba-daps-choreographed-pregame-rituals?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Longform: The secret world of NBA daps</a></p>
https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/6/4304906/nba-playoffs-2013-heat-pacers-talking-pointsAndrew Sharp2013-05-02T14:27:25-04:002013-05-02T14:27:25-04:00AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW SNAP
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/qE9AEMmtGyITsJATQc7CzppaOUI=/0x75:612x483/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/12585071/lala.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>via Instagram/LaLa</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>"Try again," LaLa says to <a href="http://instagram.com/p/Y0QM3-xjT5/#" target="_blank">Jordan Crawford on Instagram</a>. "You on the bench for a reason."</p>
<p>1. Good for LaLa addressing this ridiculousness head on.</p>
<p>2. This is gonna be the best episode of <i>LaLa's Full Court Life </i>ever.</p>
<p>3. Elsewhere, <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/jcraw55">Jordan Crawford took to Twitter</a> to tell the world he <i>didn't</i> <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/2/4293144/jordan-crawford-carmelo-anthony-trash-talk">say anything horrible about Carmelo Anthony's wife</a>.</p>
<p>4. The NBA is where amazing happens.</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/2/4294122/awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww-snapAndrew Sharp2013-05-02T10:53:26-04:002013-05-02T10:53:26-04:00Of course Jordan Crawford said something horrible
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/C_pIxEifJE0XYJ_gtPsW__CAuOg=/0x185:2800x2052/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/12572911/20130324_kkt_an4_915.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Knicks-Celtics series got more fun when Boston stunned New York Wednesday night, and then Jordan Crawford went and took things to another level. </p> <p>Jordan Crawford didn't play a second in Game 5 of the Knicks-Celtics series Wednesday, all of which made it even more glorious when he found a way to inject himself into the postgame action. We don't know exactly what he said to Carmelo Anthony, but after a close reading of this Vine, <a target="_blank" href="https://vine.co/v/bQq7zdjqpBw">it sure looks like he said</a>, "Dat motherf***** f****d your wife."</p>
<p>Afterward, Jordan Crawford played innocent. From the Boston Globe:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>When asked if he said anything to Anthony, Crawford told the Globe, <b> “Nah, they was talking to me, baby. They was talking to me.</b> Yeah, they like me. I think it’s that smile I keep carrying. I think we’re playing freely, not thinking as much.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Well now, that's just a bold-faced lie.</p>
<p><iframe class="vine-embed" src="https://vine.co/v/bQq7zdjqpBw/embed/simple" frameborder="0" height="600" width="600"></iframe>
<script src="//platform.vine.co/static/scripts/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>For Carmelo's part, he's downplaying everything.</p>
<p>"I’m not thinking about no Jordan Crawford,”<a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/HowardBeckNYT/status/329804065401880578"> he told reporters afterward</a>. "I don’t even think he even deserves for you to be typing right now.”</p>
<p>When J.R. Smith was asked about Crawford and the scuffle, he described it as, "Just bickering. Acting like a bunch of schoolgirls."</p>
<p>When J.R. Smith is the voice of reason, you know we've lost control.</p>
<p>And what Crawford said is horrible, sure, but as someone who lived through Jordan Crawford on the Wizards, it's great because this is the QUINTESSENTIAL Jordan Crawford story. If he was going to be relevant in these NBA Playoffs, this was always how it was meant to happen.</p>
<p>Jordan Crawford is not very good at actual basketball, but he is a volcano of irrational confidence and neverending trash talk and questionable judgment. We are not expert lip readers, but the internet's interpretation of what Crawford said postgame makes sense because yeah, <i>of course</i> Jordan Crawford would be the one to bring up Carmelo's wife.</p>
<p>(Point of fact: KG never seriously alleged that he slept with Carmelo's wife, right? He was talking trash, allegedly, about his wife. But it's hard to believe either KG or Carmelo ever thought the taunts were literal. Jordan Crawford, though? There's a decent chance <strike>Jamal</strike> Jordan Crawford is the only person outside of the Worldstar comment section who thinks KG actually slept with Carmelo's wife.) (PS: WORLDSTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR)</p>
<p>The fire in this series was already going strong after <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/4/27/4276942/jr-smith-elbow-suspension-knicks-vs-celtics">the J.R. Smith elbow</a>, the Knicks <a target="_blank" href="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2562933/funeralknicks.gif">showing up in all black for a Celtics funeral</a>, and then the Celtics embarrassing them at home Wednesday. Then, from the end of the bench, here comes Jordan Crawford with a bottle of kerosene...</p>
<p>“They gotta be upset," he said after Game 5. "Their [expletives] tightening up. Of course they upset.”</p>
<p>Asses, right? He said asses?</p>
<p>Anyway, yes: Lipreading Vines, guessing newspaper expletives, quietly waiting for Celtics-Knicks to boil over into a brawl on Friday night. Jordan Crawford, everyone!</p>
<p>It's so great to see the Wizards making an impact in the NBA Playoffs.</p>
<p><b>UPDATE: </b><a target="_blank" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/2/4294122/awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww-snap">Carmelo's wife responds</a>.</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/2/4293144/jordan-crawford-carmelo-anthony-trash-talkAndrew Sharp2013-05-02T09:10:16-04:002013-05-02T09:10:16-04:00Finally, we have found a use for Vine
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/g5LIiImV3FFV_Rc9jnASSGK0z3U=/3x0:3996x2662/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/12567509/20130418_kkt_su8_786.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Thank you, Jordan Crawford. I could watch <a target="_blank" href="https://vine.co/v/bQq7zdjqpBw">this</a> all day.</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2013/5/2/4292986/we-could-never-really-explain-why-vine-exists-until-nowAndrew Sharp2013-05-02T08:27:22-04:002013-05-02T08:27:22-04:00Royce White, this is a horrible idea
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/VJfJDu1COjbqYHvcL4vBc3AV8kM=/5x0:844x559/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/12565529/screen_shot_2013-05-02_at_8.25.05_am.0.png" />
<figcaption>Twitter</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Royce White, why do you make it so hard to love you?</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/2013/5/2/4292888/royce-white-this-is-a-horrible-ideaAndrew Sharp2013-05-01T15:11:03-04:002013-05-01T15:11:03-04:00The Grizzlies are back from the dead
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<figcaption>Twitter/Ronald Tillery</figcaption>
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<p>Zach Randolph and the Memphis Grizzlies were counted out a week ago. Three wins later, they're back and looking better than ever. </p> <p>A week ago, we were talking about the Los Angeles Clippers as Western Conference contenders, L.A. was up 2-0 on the Memphis Grizzlies, and in a dead-even series, Memphis had to win four out of five games to secure things. A week later, the Grizz have won three straight and <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/4/23/4255448/clippers-grizzlies-nba-playoffs-2013">everything we said a week ago</a> looks ridiculous.</p>
<p>Were the Grizzlies ever really "dead"? No, definitely not. But the comeback is still insane.</p>
<p>There's already been plenty of criticism of how the Clippers have played through all this -- including <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/1/4289276/clippers-vs-grizzlies-vinny-del-negro-chris-paul" target="_blank">Tom Ziller's piece earlier today</a> -- and after stupidly counting out the Grizzlies last week, we're not about to declare the Clips D.O.A. today. But still, while everyone's poking holes in the Clippers, we need to talk about just how impressive the Grizzlies have been. Especially in Games 4 and 5, the Clippers didn't lose so much as the Grizzlies overpowered them and won.</p>
<p>It starts with Zach Randolph. Another Zach called this weeks ago -- as Grantland's Zach Lowe wrote at the beginning of April, <a href="http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/57980/the-z-bo-issue-the-grizzlies-are-a-threat-to-emerge-from-the-west-but-only-if-zach-randolph-gets-right" target="_blank">the Grizzlies are only a serious contender if Z-Bo is hitting on all cylinders</a>. It makes sense. For a team whose offense has always been their biggest question mark, their best offensive player was a question mark for most of the season. This was potentially problematic.</p>
<p>When Z-Bo started the Clippers series playing 28 minutes a game and averaging 13 points and six rebounds, it looked like this was the Z-Bo Memphis was stuck with. The aging, watered-down version of what he was two years ago. Maybe one or two steps away from becoming Zach Randolph's Expiring Contract somewhere down the line. It was depressing and a big reason it looked like Memphis was doomed after the first two games.</p>
<p>Since then? Z-Bo has played almost 40 minutes a night in three wins, averaging 25 and 10 and beating the crap out of anyone the Clippers throw at him. In other words...</p>
<p>Z-Bo is BACK.</p>
<p><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/88wWzA9WxFg" frameborder="0" height="360" width="480"></iframe></p>
<p>I don't know why we embedded an Eightball and MJG song there. It just felt right.</p>
<p>But yes: The Grizzlies really are a different team when Z-Bo is hitting like this. The combination of him battering people down low for easy layups and then mixing in just enough stepback jumpers to look completely unstoppable ... that's what the Grizzlies offense needs to be taken seriously in the West.</p>
<p>On the other side of the ball, the Grizzlies have been flawless the past few nights in grinding the Clippers offense to a halt. Everything that clicked for L.A. in the first two games has turned into a mess of contested threes and bobbled entry passes, and the only option the Clippers have is to give the ball to Chris Paul and ask him to do something crazy. (Not a bad option. But still.)</p>
<p> </p>
<div class="sidebar">
<a href="http://www.grizzlybearblues.com/2013/5/1/4289018/game-5-recap-you-can-have-your-hero-ball-grizzlies-103-clippers-93">
<h2>You can have your hero ball, Clippers</h2>
<img src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/12510675/20130430_jel_ag9_499.0_standard_730.0.jpg"></a> <span>Grizzly Bear Blues recaps Memphis' Game 5 win.</span>
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<p>The Grizzlies bench has come up huge across the board, with guys like Jerryd Bayless, Quincy Pondexter and Darrell Arthur contributing meaningful minutes. Tayshaun Prince is providing exactly the sort of perimeter shooting were hoping for when they took a chance on him in the Rudy Gay deal. Meanwhile, Tony Allen continues to do Tony Allen things, harassing L.A.'s perimeter guys and coming up with more loose balls than seems possible. Marc Gasol has abused the Clippers front line with his passing and scoring and continues to anchor the defense.</p>
<p>And then there's Mike Conley. Next to Z-Bo, Conley has always been the other giant question mark with Memphis. What we've seen throughout the final two months of the season and then this Clippers series should make the rest of the West pretty terrified. Conley's scoring, running the team, making plays on defense and has quietly blossomed into a weapon that's as dangerous as anyone else on the roster.</p>
<p>It's kind of like how Rajon Rondo was considered the weak link for the Celtics his first few years, and then one day we looked up and said, "Oh s***! When did Rondo get this good?"</p>
<p>That's Mike Conley right now.</p>
<p>He's not Rondo, but he's better than anyone realized. With Rudy Gay in Toronto, he's given Memphis everything they needed and more.</p>
<p>For the record: Most of this was also true for the first two games. Memphis was getting solid help from the role players, playing good D, Gasol was playing well, and Conley was exceeding expectations. But the Clippers were better. The biggest change is Zach Randolph, aka Z-BO, aka <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/2225/you-can-learn-a-lot-about-athletes-from-cribs" target="_blank">Everyone's Favorite MTV Cribs episode</a>, aka <a href="https://twitter.com/netw3rk/status/329460891416408065" target="_blank">Unstoppable Gummy Bear power forward</a>.</p>
<p>Z-Bo's the linchpin that puts everything else over the top. And this is typically where we would look ahead and start wondering whether the Grizzlies could take down the wounded Thunder and then the Spurs and wind up winning the West and maybe even scaring Miami, but ... We won't make the same mistake as last week and jinx any of this.</p>
<p>For now, it's just great to have Z-Bo back to his old self, making defenses look ridiculous and living out all the spiritual principles of the Grit And Grind movement.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/1584433/zachmf.gif"><img src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/1584433/zachmf_medium.gif" class="photo" alt="Zachmf_medium"></a></p>
<p>We'll wait to see if they finish off L.A. before we wonder about the next few weeks.</p>
<p>In the meantime, let's just say this: I was pretty shameless about jumping on the Clippers bandwagon last week, but if Playoff Chris Paul and the Clippers have to die so that Z-Bo and the Grizzlies can live and prosper and slowly turn the NBA Playoffs into a real-life Mario Kart Battle Royale, I'm definitely OK with that. Aren't we all?</p>
<h4>More from SB Nation:</h4>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2013/5/1/4286412/nba-daps-choreographed-pregame-rituals?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Longform: The secret world of NBA daps</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/1/4289276/clippers-vs-grizzlies-vinny-del-negro-chris-paul?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">If Clips lose, Vinny can't stay and CP3 might leave</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/4/30/4288368/nuggets-vs-warriors-stephen-curry-mark-jackson?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Mark Jackson: Nuggets "tried to send hit men on Steph"</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2013/5/1/4288556/denver-nuggets-dirty-stephen-curry-mark-jackson?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Film review: Were the Nuggets dirty?</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/4/30/4288384/stephen-curry-fight-fan-nuggets-warriors?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">Steph Curry's verbal altercation with fan</a></p>
<p>• <a href="http://www.outsports.com/2013/4/30/4285134/jason-collins-gay-nba-meaning?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=nextclicks&utm_campaign=articlebottom">The meaning of Jason Collins' coming out</a></p>
https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/5/1/4289542/memphis-grizzlies-la-clippers-nba-playoffs-2013Andrew Sharp2013-05-01T13:10:04-04:002013-05-01T13:10:04-04:00President Roger Griffin III regrets playing hurt
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<figcaption>Paul Frederiksen-US PRESSWIRE</figcaption>
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<p>The Redskins' starting quarterback and Barack Obama: What's the difference? </p> <p>It's the offseason, so sure, it's tough to find a compelling hook for a 5,000-word cover story about Robert Griffin III. In April. One amazing solution to this problem?</p>
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<p>ESPN the Magazine’s 5,000-word cover story about RGIII is written as a 5,000-word letter to Barack Obama, “on behalf of a young man who recently moved to your district,” and arguing that “in many ways Mr. Griffin is you, and you are him.”</p>
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<p>WHOA, okay then.</p>
<p>Are you paying attention, Barack? More, via <a target="_blank" href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/wp/2013/05/01/rgiii-sees-the-mistake-in-staying-in-the-seahawks-game/">DC Sports Bog</a>:</p>
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<p>Author J.R. Moehringer writes that “the comparison between [Obama] and Griffin stems from things other than politics, things such as your origins, and the galvanizing effect you have on others, and the manner in which you both burst on the scene.”</p>
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<p>Okay, J.R. Moehringer is a great writer and everything he's written for <i>ESPN The Magazine</i> has been pretty excellent. But this might be a bridge too far.</p>
<p>He's not serious, right?</p>
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<p>“He’s not a normal person,” RGIII says of the President. “I’m not a normal person. It’s fun when two abnormal people can be normal.”</p>
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<p>It sure sounds like everyone is serious!</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>In a land of freedom we are held hostage by the tyranny of political correctness</p>
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) <a href="https://twitter.com/RGIII/status/329334674402967552">April 30, 2013</a>
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<p>Robert Griffin III does sound like a politician sometimes, so there's that, I guess. And he's already got plenty of endorsements. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/reliable-source/wp/2013/04/28/rg3-is-surprise-star-of-vanity-fairbloomberg-correspondents-after-party/">Just this weekend</a>, Kevin Spacey from <i>House of Cards </i>was asked about meeting RGIII and said: "He’s, like, heroic."</p>
<p>But, like, President of the United States heroic?</p>
<p>Doesn't matter. You're missing the bigger picture. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000080718/article/robert-griffin-iii-dubbed-black-jesus-by-fred-davis">Black Jesus</a>/<a target="_blank" href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/wp/2012/10/22/peter-king-calls-rgiii-the-nfls-bono/">Bono</a>/Barack Obama/RGIII also talked to about the Seahawks playoff game at the end of last season:</p>
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<p>“With what happened and how everything was running — you take me out. If that happened again next year, I’d come out of the game and sit until I was 100% healthy.”</p>
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<p>Now I know what you're thinking.</p>
<p>"DOES THIS MEAN MIKE SHANAHAN WAS TRYING TO KILL ROBERT GRIFFIN AKA BARACK OBAMA IN THAT SEAHAWKS GAME?"</p>
<p>...</p>
<p>...</p>
<p>...</p>
<p>That's the buried implication here, isn't it?</p>
<p>We can't be certain. That's for you and Barack Obama to decide, I guess.</p>
<p>But remember:</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>In a land of freedom we are held hostage by the tyranny of political correctness</p>
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) <a href="https://twitter.com/RGIII/status/329334674402967552">April 30, 2013</a>
</blockquote>
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<p>Don't get held hostage, America.</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2013/5/1/4289854/robert-griffin-iii-regrets-playing-hurtAndrew Sharp