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Good morning. Adam Silver turned a lot of heads on Thursday when he declared that the NBA needs to look at sending the 16 best teams to the playoffs, not the top eight from each conference. He indicated -- though it's not completely clear -- that this offseason the competition committee of the Board of Governors may consider a proposal to give all six division winners a spot in the playoffs, then send the 10 teams with the best records regardless of division. I favor much more comprehensive schedule reform, for what it's worth, but the fact that Silver is seriously addressing this already is just huge.
It will be little consolation for the two West teams destined to miss the playoffs in 2015 despite having records far superior to the final two East playoff seeds, but you've got to start somewhere. Kudos to Silver for admitting the issue and being brave enough to fix it. This is a fight with Eastern franchisees he's willingly taking on. That's not nothing.
Alright, let's basketball.
THE SHOE HAS DROPPED: Jacque Vaughn is the second coach of the season to be handed walking papers. Reports suggest the Magic might hire a permanent replacement ASAP, with Scott Skiles being a frontrunner.
LAST NIGHT NOW: The Hornets upended the Wizards thanks to a masterful defensive effort late. The Cavs beat the Clippers to extend their streak to 12; Doc Rivers was so embarrassed by his team's effort that he apologized to an Ohioan Clippers fan. That game featured too many technical fouls (including four in one three-minute stretch). More on that momentarily. The Mavericks destroyed the Kings, and I don't want to talk about it. The Blazers outlasted the Suns despite a beautiful Goran Dragic nutmeg on Robin Lopez. Check out our NBA Scores hub for recaps for all of those games.
UNSENSITIVE ISN'T A WORD: After his game, Chris Paul called out Lauren Holtkamp and said that NBA officiating "might not be for her." My colleague Rodger Sherman thinks this is a problem given Holtkamp is only the third full-time female NBA ref in history, and it doesn't sound like something a player of Paul's stature would say about a male ref.
I think because of that CP3 probably regrets the phrasing of his statement and the sentiment behind it. But I also think Holtkamp is clearly a rookie, and not like an Andrew Wiggins rookie, and not quite an Anthony Bennett rookie, but let's say a Nik Stauskas rookie. And rookies in all fields are usually rough around the edges. I'm more optimistic than CP3 that she'll improve (like most other rookie officials) but I understand his frustration. She can make some odd calls. Like any rookie ref. Which is why it's not fair to question whether this is the right line of work for her.
One thing about CP3 and female empowerment in a male-dominated industry to keep in mind: he leads a union that hired a female executive director. Any assertion he has retrograde ideas on feminism needs more evidence.
FUTURE MVP: This 10-year-old beat Stephen Curry in a shootout. I don't see her name on DraftExpress ... yet.
SKILLS CHALLENGE BACK! The Taco Bell Skills Challenge got a makeover. There's now a bracket and the run ends with a three-pointer.
BEST SHOOTOUT CLASS SINCE THE '90S: The Splash Brothers, James Harden and Kyle Korver are all in for the Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout.
YES YES YES: Robert Pera, controlling partner of the Grizzlies, will play in the Celebrity Game. You may remember him from when he challenged Tony Allen to 1-on-1.
THE CHANGES IN ANT MAN: Kirk Goldsberry charts how Anthony Davis' game has improved.
HERE WE GO: Lee Jenkins profile on Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.
BEER RUN WITH KOBE: Jimmy Fallon shares a plausible story about accomplishing a beer run with a rookie Kobe Bryant in L.A. in 1996.
YIKESVILLE: Brian Shaw reportedly rapped a scouting report to a team that has reportedly stopped listening to him. Ryan Nanni attempts to write up the lyrics.
OKAY OKAY: I said I don't want to talk about it but seriously DeMarcus Cousins is seething.
ALSO, THERE IS NO SANTA: No one actually gets their ankles broken in the NBA.
Happy Friday. See you next time.
from SBNation.com - All Posts http://ift.tt/1C0z4QF
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