A look around the league and the Web that covers it. It's also important to note that the rotation order and starting nods aren't always listed in order of importance. That's for you, dear reader, to figure out.
C: The Point Forward, 8 Points, 9 Seconds and SB Nation. Rob Mahoney, Brett Koremenos and Mike Prada all come to the defense of Indiana Pacers coach Frank Vogel — or, at least, explain the reasoning for his decision-making for removing Roy Hibbert for the Miami Heat's last two offensive possessions of Game 1, including LeBron James' game-winner.
PF: TrueHoop. Kevin Arnovitz considers several other options Vogel had that would have kept Hibbert on the floor for those fateful final 2.2 seconds.
SF: Miami Herald and SB Nation. Amid all the parsing, picking and probing of the Pacers coach and his choice, Dan LeBatard and Paul Flannery would like us to stop second-guessing for a second and just appreciate how remarkable and ridiculous LeBron's game-winning finish really was.
SG: The Oklahoman. After donating $1 million to tornado relief and recovery efforts, Kevin Durant also donated his time, visiting with storm victims in Moore, Okla. Darnell Mayberry went with him. The result is stirring.
PG: The Brooklyn Game. Four-and-a-half minutes of Deron Williams crossing dudes up this season? Don't mind if I do. (Also, the clip's split into pre- and post-platelet-rich-plasma therapy on the Brooklyn Nets point guard's balky ankles. He seems to have more fluidity and bounce in the latter half to me, but that might just be my mind playing tricks on me — what do you think?)
6th: Truth About It. On one hand, the Washington Wizards scored a big win when they moved up to the No. 3 pick in Tuesday's 2013 NBA draft lottery, seemingly improving their chances of getting another difference-maker to add to the extremely exciting backcourt of John Wall and Bradley Beal. On the other hand, they're the Wizards, which means they're a pretty good bet to make a draft pick that is #SoWizards. Kyle Weidie identifies the five most #SoWizards choices possible, giving Wizards fans outcomes to begin dreading well in advance of next month's draft.
7th: Red94. Patrick Beverley went from being about as anonymous as an NBA player gets to a household name in the time it took for the test results on Russell Westbrook's meniscus to come back. But strip away that lone play and all the drama that surrounded it, and what kind of season did the Houston Rockets' 24-year-old rookie guard have, and has Daryl Morey unearthed another hidden-value gem for the future? Michael Pina grades Beverley's maiden NBA voyage.
8th: New York Post. Not only did Carmelo Anthony reportedly play with a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder during the playoffs, but running buddy J.R. Smith had some weird fluid buildup in his left knee. Now we just need to find out that Jason Kidd was legally deceased for the entire postseason, and we'll have a complete array of "yeah, but ..." postscripts!
9th: The Steven Lebron Podcast. Alex Wong chops it up with former NBA center Todd MacCulloch for about an hour, discussing stuff ranging from growing up in Winnipeg to Rip Hamilton nightmares, the perfection of NBA socks, playing against Shaq and with Iverson, that amazing SLAM cover and much more. Todd seems like a very chill bro.
10th: Salt City Hoops. I dug this nitty-gritty look by Andy Larsen at how DeMarre Carroll — a player whose basic statistical profile won't wow you, who rarely leaps off the screen at you while watching film, and who doesn't seem to have a particularly elite NBA skill — has developed into a demonstrably valuable piece for the Utah Jazz by valuing existing possessions and creating new ones.
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