Complaining about officiating is a tradition among NBA fans and coaches alike. After feeling like the Lakers got the short end of the whistles in Monday's Game 4 loss in Denver, Phil Jackson took to the podium after the game to vent his frustrations.
"Basketball is a game where the aggressor gets the advantage. And tonight we didn't know what a foul was and what wasn't a foul,'' Jackson noted. "Start of the game, we got guys knocked around going to the basket, they said, 'We're going to get those things go.' By the end of the ballgame little fouls were being called all over the place."
Objectively speaking, Jackson probably had a point -- the Nuggets shot 49 free throws in a 19-point blowout on Monday -- but the league didn't care, fining Jackson $25,000 for having the audacity to speak his mind and the Lakers organization another $25,000 for, well, employing a loudmouth, I suppose.
Three-point shots often play a critical role in an NBA playoff contest. But in Denver's win over the Lakers in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals, the threes that were made (and missed) by both teams came at such key moments, that they ended up defining this game.
Video: Billups Inbounds Off Kobe's Back RoundCast: Are the Lakers Now "Screwed?"
Were the Cavaliers rusty or simply overrated? Anyone who watched the Magic go into Cleveland and steal home court advantage by winning Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals is pondering that question today. The answer, as unsatisfying as it may be, is likely somewhere in the middle.
Coming into the game, most of the talk centered on whether the Magic would be fatigued after their grueling seven-game series with the Celtics that ended only after the Magic staved off elimination in back-to-back games. In hindsight, more attention should have been paid to the fact that the Cavs had played a grand total of four games in 24 days entering Wednesday evening, which didn't seem to affect them early but clearly messed with their conditioning late.
Cherry Picking recaps the previous day's NBA Playoff action.
After a grueling, physical seven-game series with the Rockets, there was some worry the Lakers might come out flat against the Nuggets (even if history suggested otherwise). And for the first 10 minutes, that's what happened as the Nuggets jumped out to a surprising 27-14 lead. All told, Carmelo Anthony finished with an impressive 16 points in the opening quarter.
Not to be shown up on their home floor, the Lakers spent the second quarter chipping away at Denver's lead, eventually going into halftime with a slim two-point lead of their own. Things continued to go back and forth in the second half until finally Kobe Bryant took over, scoring 18 of his 40 points in the fourth en route to a 105-103 victory.
The only lesson here, though, is that it's better to be a closer late than a front-runner early -- which we already knew. Nothing else should be taken from this game.
My colleague Matt Steinmetz made a compelling case over the weekend that the Lakers are at a crossroads. If this team falls short of reaching the NBA Finals, should Mitch Kupchak do everything in his power to bring back the current core? Will retaining free agents like Lamar Odom, Trevor Ariza and Shannon Brown result in a roster with a championship ceiling? It's too early to say, especially after the Lakers averted disaster with a Game 7 win over the Rockets.
But after watching the Celtics fall to the Magic in Game 7 at home, I can't help but think Boston's GM Danny Ainge now faces the same dilemma. Did the Celtics lose because they were unlucky victims of the injury bug, or did they lose because the roster is inherently flawed?
The Nuggets led the Mavericks by as many as 17 points late in the third quarter, but midway through the fourth the Mavs started to make a run, cutting the deficit all the way down to six. A would-be blowout was suddenly a two-possession game; was this where the Nuggets would fall apart?
Not quite. With the ball in his hands and just two seconds left on the shot clock, Carmelo Anthony nailed a 25-footer that left the Mavericks so disgusted that Antoine Wright drew a tech foul, putting Chauncey Billups on the free throw line to push Denver's lead safely back to double-digits once and for all. From there, Denver cruised to a 124-110 series-clinching victory.
"Yeah, that was a spark," Anthony said after the game. "If I told you I knew it was going in, I'd be lying to you. That was a lucky shot. It went in. I think that shot right there sparked the momentum for us."
Cherry Picking recaps the previous day's NBA playoff action.
Through five games of their second round playoff series with the Celtics, the Orlando Magic have appeared to be the better team. They've proven to be more athletic, deeper, and consistently better shooters all around. But thanks to continued clutch play from the defending champions, and because of a lack of focus or execution down the stretch in these tight games, being "better" might turn out to be not good enough to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Magic blew a 14-point lead with under nine minutes remaining in their Game 5 loss in Boston, and for the first time in his career, Dwight Howard came right out and questioned how his coach, Stan Van Gundy, is going about doing his job.
Cherry Picking recaps the previous day's NBA playoff action.
Progress looks like this. Atlanta, long a laughingstock of the NBA, made the playoffs last season. This year, the Hawks advanced to the second round. Progress, right?
Well, from my seat it doesn't look like a whole lot of progress. More than offering new hope for tomorrow, the struggle against Miami followed by obliteration at the hands of Cleveland has pointed out Atlanta's specific deficiencies. The shortcomings are intrinsic to this roster, the problems part-and-parcel with the strengths. I fail to see how the Hawks can get much better from here.
Cherry Picking recaps the previous day's NBA playoff action.
The Cavaliers are making a solid case for the NBA to institute a mercy rule. Not only have they won all six of their playoff games by double-digits, they've done so without allowing an opponent to score more than 85 points even once. They led the Hawks by 30 heading into the final quarter before finally taking their foot off the gas -- Cleveland's reserves gave back 10 points in the final quarter before the Cavs won by "only" 20.
Had Mike Brown allowed his starters to play the final quarter, it's possible the Cavs could have challenged Denver's 58-point margin in Game 4 of their first-round series with the Hornets, especially considering the Hawks lost Joe Johnson to a severely sprained ankle in the third quarter.
The Magic played much of Wednesday's game as if they were content going back to Orlando with a split. Unfortunately, not even returning to their home court might help their chances for Game 3 if Rafer Alston is suspended, which is a distinct possibility after his inexcusable slap to Eddie House's head late in the third quarter.
Cherry Picking recaps yesterday's NBA playoff action.
After a grueling, physical seven-game series with the Rockets, there was some worry the Lakers might come out flat against the Nuggets (even if 
Cherry Picking
