Bryant leads Lakers past Spurs and into NBA finals Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers dispatched the defending champions, and now they're headed to the NBA finals for the first time in four years. Pierce scores 41 to lead Celtics to Eastern finals Paul Pierce returned home and made sure the Celtics would play there again. Boston's captain scored 41 points -- and still lost a shootout with LeBron James with 45 -- but led the team with the NBA's best regular season record to a 97-92 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Big debut for Big Three; James has 45 The Big Three made a big statement, and King James conjured up memories of past NBA royalty. Kevin Garnett had 22 points, 20 rebounds and five assists in a dazzling debut with Boston, and the Celtics rolled to a 103-83 victory over the Washington Wizards on Friday night.
Kobe, Lakers face 0-2 hole as finals move to L.A. LOS ANGELES - Phil Jackson called it "ridiculous" and "unbelievable." Los Angeles' boss was referring to the huge imbalance in free-throw attempts between his club and the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the NBA finals. He could have been talking about the Lakers.
Struggling Bobcats appoint Brown as coach The Charlotte Bobcats appointed Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown on Tuesday, replacing Sam Vincent who was sacked on Saturday after just one season in charge.