Playoff Truths: Duncan abuses Thomas, Suns D

1. Well, Kurt Thomas guarding Tim Duncan one-on-one was fun while it lasted. Every basketball fan out there should have the utmost respect for Thomas. He led the nation in scoring and rebounding one season in college and was still an afterthought come draft time. Through hard work, he reinvented himself into a productive offensive player who just happened to be one of the top post defenders of his era. Suns coach Mike D'Antoni's move to put Thomas on Duncan was the right one.

Tim Duncan does what he wants vs. the Suns in a Game 3 win. (Getty Images)

At the same time, this should give you a brand-new perspective on why Duncan is the best power forward of his era. He made his adjustments. He took the Spurs' Game 2 loss personally. He came up with 33 points and 19 rebounds. He made sure his team didn't drop two straight.

2. The post-Magic Johnson/John Stockton era of point guardom will be hereby decreed the Steve Nash/Jason Kidd era.

Nash won two MVPs to become the first point to have that honor since Magic. Nash has had more consecutive assist crowns than anyone since Stockton. Kidd has had more playoff triple-doubles than anyone but Johnson. He has been among the greatest at his position from the moment he came into the league, and like a fine wine, has only gotten better with age.

I know that in going this route, we're dwarfing Allen Iverson, but few see him as a distributor. He's a special type of player. Gary Payton was, too. However, in the spirit of Johnson/Stockton, who better to carry the torch than Nash/Kidd? It might seem weird to write this on an off night from Nash, but you still felt his presence. He has turned into a magical player right before our eyes.

3. At face value, it's not a big deal that LeBron James' streak of 20-point scoring games in the postseason ended. It was bound to end at some point. What does make it disappointing is the connotation involved. Even though the Nets' constant doubling turned him into a passer, he still shot poorly. I know the 12 assists are impressive, but James needed to have a killer instinct in this game. It was his job to ensure that the veteran Nets not get back in this series. He failed. Know when this scoring streak should've ended? In Monday's Game 4, with the series already at hand at 3-0. Then, I could buy James relaxing a bit, or the Nets' sense of urgency producing a result that surpasses Cleveland's. It shouldn't have happened Saturday night. Now the Nets are back in the series.

4. Manu Ginobili joined the series. That was nice of him. His 24 points and peskiness on the defensive end made a huge difference, and his timely baskets late in the third quarter allowed San Antonio to surge ahead for good.

5. Cleveland's rebounding advantage going into Game 3 was 100-69. That shouldn't have been considered a surprise. The Cavaliers frontline is larger and more active, and so the Nets are forced to make up the difference through their smaller guys. Kidd, Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson grabbed 24 rebounds, equal to the number grabbed by James, Drew Gooden and Zydrunas Ilgauskas. That should never happen.

6. I deliberately held my tongue on the Amare Stoudemire situation because I wanted to see how his accusations would affect play out on the floor. I'm not going to call Bruce Bowen a saint, and I certainly don't have an explanation for his Elaine Benes "little kicks" routine as it relates to Stoudemire's Achilles, but you can't make a living for as long as he has in this league if you have bad intentions. Bowen's defensive approach has drawn a lot of criticism over the years, and I'm a firm believer that where there's smoke, there's fire. At the same time, I've met and talked to Bowen. He not only seems like a good guy, but he's smart. I'm not saying that competitiveness can't get the best of a good person, but to accuse him of trying to jeopardize someone's career, especially with everyone watching, is unlikely.

Stoudemire had five fouls on Saturday. Bowen was called for one. The NBA's officiating crews have gotten a lot of heat of late, but even they can't be that far off. Bowen didn't take it easy, either. He did what he does, and did it without drawing whistles. It's why he's survived numerous "dirty player" accusations before. He's the best at what he does, and he never seems to cross the line substantially enough to get burned.

7. New Jersey also edged Cleveland 20-10 in fast-break points. As Mike Brown so eloquently put it, "You can't afford to do that because that's how they want to play." Bad shots were one culprit, but another more ominous interpretation might be something to keep an eye on. If Cleveland doesn't dominate the boards the way it did at home, do the Nets naturally turn more rebounding opportunities into easy points?

8. Leaving Bowen all by himself doesn't seem to be working out for the Suns. By not guarding him, they are allowing him to be a factor at both ends, and he's making them pay for it. You can't leave a professional basketball player by himself for open shots. He responded to Stoudemire's "dirty player" criticisms with one of his best performances of the season. He was his usual self on defense, but grabbed nine rebounds, his highest total since April 2006. He also added 10 points, knocking down timely 3-pointers.

9. The way Carter was acting late in the third, I thought he broke his wrist. Actually, I'm lying. I didn't.

I thought it looked like he was trying to win an Emmy for Best Dramatic Male Actor. The wincing, the holding, the agony! Did you see his interaction with the Nets trainer? Vince got to the bench and acted like me at 5 years old, fretting the rubbing alcohol and merthiolate treatment for a sprained knee.

"It burns, Mom."

I mean, Nash didn't even flinch when his nose got split open last weekend. Of course, in the sake of good taste, before I started writing this I made sure Carter didn't have a broken wrist. He could've broken his wrist. I had a severely sprained wrist in January, so I could even sympathize with that.

But a sprained finger? C'mon, baby. These are the playoffs. You can't be acting like you've dislocated your shoulder when it's just a finger. I know that sounds callous, and some might even say ignorant, but I stand by it. You can't be on a national stage acting like you've just been stabbed when all you've done is sprained a finger. Last time I checked, sprained fingers don't require heading back to the locker room. Tape it up and play.

10. In Cleveland, Sasha Pavlovic was a factor. In New Jersey, he wasn't. Tasked with keeping Carter busy, Pavlovic has become an integral part of the Cavaliers attack, but just couldn't get it going on Saturday, finishing with eight points and one rebound. As a result, the Nets' All-Star backcourt of Kidd and Carter combined for huge edges in points, boards and assists. Blame Pavlovic for not showing up, but don't lose sight of the fact that Larry Hughes, despite scoring 20, was soundly outplayed by Kidd for the first time in the series.