Does Lebron James deserve or not deserve respect?

CHICAGO -- The Chicago Bulls didn't just end the Miami Heat's 27-game winning streak Wednesday. They also left LeBron James frustrated as a result of some hard fouls.

James took exception to two fouls during the Heat's 101-97 loss. The first came four minutes into the game when Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich broke up a fast break by grabbing James with both arms and holding on as the players fell to the court. James also was upset with a hard foul in the fourth quarter by Bulls forward Taj Gibson, who swiped across James' neck and shoulder to defend a layup.

“

First of all, Kirk Hinrich in the first quarter basically grabbed me with two hands and brought me to the ground. The last one, Taj Gibson was able to collar me around my shoulder and bring me to the ground. Those are not defensive ... those are not basketball plays.

”-- LeBron James on Chicago's hard fouls

"Let me calculate my thoughts real fast before I say (what I want to say)," James said. "I believe and I know that a lot of my fouls are not basketball plays. First of all, Kirk Hinrich in the first quarter basically grabbed me with two hands and brought me to the ground. The last one, Taj Gibson was able to collar me around my shoulder and bring me to the ground. Those are not defensive ... those are not basketball plays."

James' frustration boiled over with 3:52 left in the game, when he was called for his first flagrant foul of the season after driving his shoulder and arm into the chest of Bulls forwardCarlos Boozer, who was attempting to set a screen.

Hinrich tried to take a charge on James in the first quarter and said he was just trying to hold on to the 6-foot-8, 265-pound Miami star to brace himself for impact on the floor.

"The play before, there was a play earlier in the game where he was barreling down on me," Hinrich said. "I got the foul but he almost made it so I kind of ... you don't realize how strong that guy is and you forget sometimes, but with his speed and strength, you can't take anything for granted, so I still feel like I got the worst of it, obviously. But it was just one of those plays. I knew I was going to try to take a foul and then I just started going backwards and pulled him with me."

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James said he's been on the receiving end of hard fouls throughout the season and has mostly managed to keep his cool. Earlier this season, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra sent tapes to the league office that showed a series of hard fouls on both James and Dwyane Wade, including several instances when his players were repeatedly hit in the face.

James said he often resists the urge to retaliate, but admitted Wednesday that some of the hits have started to bother him. James and Wade rank sixth and eighth, respectively, in free throw attempts per game this season.

"It's been happening all year, and I've been able to keep my cool and try to tell Spo, 'Let's not worry about it too much.' But it is getting to me a little bit because every time I try to defend myself, I got to face the consequences of a flagrant for me or a technical foul, whatever the case may be," James said. "It's tough. It's tough. It's very tough, and I'm not sitting here crying about anything because I play the game at a high level. I play with a lot of aggression, and I understand that some of the plays are on the borderline of a basketball play or not, but sometimes you just got to ... I don't know. It's frustrating."

James attempted 11 free throws and finished with 32 points, seven rebounds, four blocks and three assists in the Heat's first loss since a Feb. 1 setback to the Indiana Pacers.

Spoelstra warned his team to expect a rough game against the short-handed Bulls, who were without All-Star center and defensive anchorJoakim Noah, Derrick Rose, Richard Hamilton andMarco Belinelli because of injuries.

Asked after the game about the hard fouls, Spoelstra simply said, "Welcome to Chicago and Miami basketball."

(NBA 2013)

Melo expected to play against magic

Carmelo Anthony expects to return to the New York Knicks' lineup Wednesday night against the Orlando Magic.

Anthony has missed three straight and six of the last eight games because of problems with his right knee. He had fluid drained from the back of the knee after struggling through the two games he played during that stretch, and said after the Knicks' morning shootaround he feels much better.
"I know how important this stretch run is for us, for me, for our whole organization," Anthony said. "I went out there and tried to play hurt, banged up, it didn't work. I was only hurting my teammates by going out there and trying to play, so I'm not rushing back. But tonight I feel good, I felt good the last couple of days, so I'm going to see what happens."
Anthony said he first felt pain in the fourth quarter of a March 3 loss to Miami, then said something didn't feel right when he woke up the next morning for a game in Cleveland. He fell to the court without contact while trying to catch a pass in the first half of that game and sat out the next three with what was called a stiff and sore knee.
He came back for the opener of the Knicks' trip at Golden State on March 11 and was dismal in his return to Denver two nights later. He left early in the second half and returned to New York the next day to have the procedure.
The Knicks' frontcourt has been decimated by injuries, with All-Star center Tyson Chandler expected to miss a week with a bulging disk. He joins reserves Amare Stoudemire, Rasheed Wallace and Kurt Thomas, who all will be sidelined for weeks.
Coach Mike Woodson said he expects Anthony to join Kenyon Martin, Iman Shumpert, Raymond Felton and Pablo Prigioni in the starting lineup Wednesday. The Knicks' Atlantic Division lead is down to just one game over Brooklyn after they went 1-4 on the trip.
"We've got to get healthy. The guys that need to get healthy, need to get healthy, take their time and the guys that's playing just need to step up," Anthony said. "That's all I've got to say about that." (NBA 2013)

 

HERE'S THE BREAKDOWN ON HOW THE SEASON IS GOING. 

Still on the Western Conference there is no sight of the Lakers, however they do have the same record as the Utah Jazz as of today

In the Eastern Conference the Miami Heat clinch the playoffs, can they remain at the #1 seed? 

Rankings 3.4.13

As weeks past, NY Knicks got their 1st seed taken away by the Miami  Heat. Also, past the Knicks are the underdogs, Indiana Pacers. In the west, San Antonio, the old school is high above on top with a record of 47-14, followed by OKC Thunder. Lakers 3 game breaks away from the Rockets with about 20-22games remaining in the season. Can they obtain the 8th seed to make it to the playoffs to challenge the strong Spurs and Thunder?

Laker's coming back!

Los Angeles Lakers defeat the Atlanta Hawks with a tight victory of 99-98
Bryant scored 11 of his 34 pts. in the 4th qtr to get the Lakers the W.
This win gets them 1 step closer to obtaining the 8th spot (currently Houston Rockets) of the Western conference.