Marc Stein of ESPN.com: “Asked if he thinks his team has discouraged Howard, Lakers center Andrew Bynum was unable to hold back a ‘Yeah. But it’s tough,’ Bynum said sympathetically, ‘when we’re sending two and three people at him every time.’ Howard’s Game 2 line actually looks rather thorough: 17 points, 16 boards, four blocks, four steals and four assists. But he didn’t even touch the ball on Orlando’s final eight possessions of the extra period, spanning more than three minutes, which helped make sure that the Lakers didn’t waste the gift of Courtney Lee — 14 years to the day after the fatal free throws Nick Anderson clanked in the 1995 Finals against Houston — way-harder-than-it-looked layup on an alley-oop pass at the regulation buzzer that could have made this a 1-1 series. ‘I don’t know if he’s frustrated, but I know he’s mad,’ said Magic teammate Hedo Turkoglu. ‘He doesn’t have a lot of space right now to be dominant.’ It’s both, actually. He’s flummoxed and angry that the ‘crazy things’ L.A.’s bigs can do, as Dwight described them, are working so well in Howard’s first visit to the Finals, restricting Howard to a mere six baskets so far.”
Kevin Ding of The Orange County Register: “The Lakers became the first team in league history to snap two other teams’ streaks of at least 12 consecutive home victories in the same season by winning regular-season games in Cleveland (23-gamer ended in February) and Houston (12-gamer ended in March). The Lakers added to that in the postseason by winning in Denver, brushing aside the Nuggets’ 16-game home winning streak that dated to the regular season. So it would be fitting for the Lakers to be crowned away from their home court. It’s understandable that fans back home would prefer to be a part of it, but anyone who has seen these celebrations first-hand a few times can appreciate how meaningful it is for a small group of guys to win a championship on the road. The community feeling of being one team together all season and then ascending to the championship alone on the road is particularly connective and powerful. If you ask why the Lakers are so good on the road, it’s not just as simple as Kobe Bryant being clutch in the fourth quarter in any arena. If you’re going to boil it down, it’s more about a lot of guys who share the quality of staying positive.”
Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel: “The Orlando Magic are back at the only place they finally might find order and comfort, playing the first NBA Finals at Amway Arena since 1995, roughly the time 16-year-old Kobe Bryant permanently applied his game face. The Magic know this is surely a special occasion for revelers, but unfortunately, survival trumps sentiment tonight. They’ve no doubt been followed to Orlando from Los Angeles by the Lakers, who are here to provide all the discomforts of home. Watching the Lakers celebrate a 15th title this week, rolling around on Orlando’s parquet, certainly would be the most awkward moment in a series of awkward moments for the Magic. The Lakers haven’t allowed the Magic to be the Magic much at all in taking a 2-0 lead. They’ve had them on the run since this whole thing started, creating chaos. The Magic have been scrambling to find other ways to play, and with other players playing different positions, causing realignment of X’s as well as O’s. Hard to play the NBA Finals on the fly, but it’s reality.”
Ken Berger of CBSSports.com: “Kobe Bryant is the closer for the Lakers. Ariza is the one who starts the fire. As for the part about Ariza not being a good enough shooter to fit into the Magic’s plans … well, sometimes things happen for a reason. For one, the Lakers didn’t have a $118-million small forward, Lewis, standing in Ariza’s way. For another, if Ariza hadn’t been traded to the Lakers, he never would’ve met Craig Hodges. Hodges is the Lakers’ shooting coach, which is fitting because he made his name resonate in NBA history by joining Larry Bird as the only three-time winners of the All-Star 3-point shootout. (Both did it in consecutive years.) Ariza, 24, isn’t old enough to remember actually watching Hodges win those shootouts from 1990-92, and Hodges isn’t one to tell him about it. ‘I know he won a bunch of them,’ Ariza said. ‘I don’t remember watching them, but I know about them.’ When Hodges first started working with Ariza, he saw something he liked (strong legs, the foundation of any good jump shooter) and something he didn’t (inconsistent technique). Ariza had a tendency to roll the ball off without enough wrist action, resulting in a flat, line-drive shot.”
Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal: “If Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio indeed comes to the America and visits NBA teams before the draft, the Grizzlies expect to be part of the tour. The 18-year-old’s plans are still foreign to Griz general manager Chris Wallace, but several media outlets say Rubio and his family are scheduled to board a flight June 13 bound for the United States. There are Internet and Spanish reports that contend Rubio would skip Memphis and visit only Los Angeles, Oklahoma City and Sacramento — teams that own the first, third and fourth picks. Wallace, though, said Monday afternoon that no one from Rubio’s camp has indicated the Spaniard would bypass Memphis — owners of the No. 2 overall selection. ‘I don’t have anything set up. But it’s open-ended. If he’s in the country, we definitely want him here,’ said Wallace, who is seriously considering selecting Rubio with the Grizzlies’ lottery pick in the June 25 draft.”
Sam Amick of the Sacramento Bee: “If only the Kings’ coaching search were this transparent. While Kenny Natt’s successor hasn’t been named, the Kings’ predraft workouts continued Monday before a quaint media audience and with Geoff Petrie undeniably in charge. The team’s basketball president directed the six players on hand, looking spry and more than mobile enough to navigate the moving prospects while evaluating their talents. After visiting seven teams before coming to Sacramento, the session’s uniqueness wasn’t lost on Louisville swingman Terrence Williams. ‘It’s very unique (to have an executive running a workout), because the GM is running it like he’s an assistant coach or an intern,’ Williams said. ‘(Usually), you see the GMs in a pretty $10,000 suit … twirling their wedding band around and watching us and having conversation on the side. This is the first time I’d seen something like that.’ Added North Carolina shooting guard Wayne Ellington, who also took part in the workout: ‘I think it’s definitely unique. Usually you have one of the assistant coaches running the workout and everybody else is watching, so it was good. It was hands-on.’”
Michael Lee of the Washington Post: “Gilbert Arenas informed me that he is in Orlando working out this week and has tickets to attend all three NBA Finals games at Amway Arena — that is, if three games are needed. Arenas has spent a lot of time in Florida this offseason. From what I hear, Arenas has been working hard to get in shape for the upcoming season, with a workout plan that he was designing the last week of the regular season. I heard that Arenas is in excellent shape and has already lost 20 pounds in the past month or so. If I run into him at any of the games, I’ll check on that. Two days after the Wizards hired Flip Saunders as coach, Arenas held an individual workout with him. The workout was part bonding exercise and part showing the new coach what he’s got. And, I’ve heard that Arenas has worked out with Saunders a couple of times since the season ended.”
Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune: “I sent him a text message tonight and asked if he was passing behind the moon for a prolonged period of radio silence and if a decision might come this week. His response simply was: ‘Shhh.’ This third meeting came this afternoon and wasn’t over dinner. Here’s my take on the situation, and it’s only my opinion based on my instincts and nothing else: I considered the first two meetings a courtesy call by Kahn. I presumed Kahn doesn’t want to be seen as the guy who summarily dismissed a Minnesota basketball playing legend and the guy who led the Wolves basketball operations for 14 years. When it went to today’s third meeting, I started to have my doubts and thought McHale will return — and he still certainly might — but I’ll stick to my initial instincts: I just can’t see a guy hired to lead the franchise anew with fresh eyes taking on a fellow who casts such a long shadow in the organization, who is used to picking up the telephone and calling owner Glen Taylor anytime he wants something done.”
John DeShazier of The Times-Picayune: “While the six draft-eligible backcourt players worked up a sweat for the Hornets on Monday, an exercise that included a full-court, three-on-three game and an old-school suicide run (three of them, to be completed in two minutes or less), the guard the Hornets really want and need sat in the bleachers and watched in a white T-shirt and jeans. The feeling is mutual. Now, Jannero Pargo didn’t directly say those words. He’s a free agent and, really, it wouldn’t be all that smart for him publicly to declare a preference before he officially can be courted and signed. It’d be a good way for him to erase whatever market there might be for his skills and no good businessman — or his agent — is going to do that. And the Hornets can’t say anything for fear of being accused of tampering, and they probably wouldn’t admit their interest anyway because to do so possibly would increase a player’s asking price. But the eyes don’t lie on this one. The summation here is Pargo wants back with New Orleans as much as New Orleans wants him back.”
Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: “Pat Williams still remembers what it was like three years ago, when the Heat owned Florida and had Orlando in a state of despair. ‘No,’ the Magic senior vice president said, ‘there was no one up here rooting for Miami. There was none of that. We were sitting here going, ‘Dallas, what are you doing? How in the world did you screw this up? You had this thing won.’‘ Instead, the Heat rallied from an 0-2 deficit in the 2006 NBA Finals against the Mavericks to win the race for the state’s first NBA championship. Now, the Magic finds itself in a similar position, down 0-2 to the Lakers in the 2009 NBA Finals, as the best-of-seven series shifts tonight to Central Florida and Amway Arena. ‘I’m sure there are not more than three Heat fans in Orlando, and we’re still trying to get them to leave,’ Williams cracked. ‘You think we were rooting for Miami? Do you think Florida State fans are rejoicing that the Gators got to the football championship game?’ Point taken. The question now is whether Orlando has seized control of the state’s NBA fortunes and future.”
Dave McMenamin of NBA.com: “It’s not Dwight Howard’s time quite yet. And he knows it. At just 23, Howard, the Orlando Magic’s man-child of a center, stands at the precipice of greatness. He’s just four wins away from winning the first championship in Orlando franchise history. But there’s a major roadblock ahead. His name is Kobe Bryant. ‘There’s a long way for me to go,’ said Howard, who guesses he’s only 20 percent of the player he is capable of becoming. ‘I don’t think I’ve reached my prime or even begun to really be myself on the floor. There’s a lot of things that I do well and some things that I’m not as confident as I should be with on the floor. Once I’m more confident in the other areas of my game, that’s when I think my game will get better.’ Meanwhile, Bryant, the Lakers’ superstar, is the player in full. Asked before The Finals if he had done everything he possibly could have over the course of his 13-year career to prepare himself for a championship against the Magic — the Lakers lead 2-0 in the best-of-seven going into Game 3 Tuesday night — the 30-year-old Bryant responded simply. ‘I have.’”
