|  | | The Community Assist award bears Robinson's name. |
It got a late start, partly due to the soon-to-be retiree's reluctance, but the David Robinson farewell tour is gaining steam as the Admiral's Hall of Fame career draws to a close, ESPN.com's Marc Stein writes.LeBron vs. Darko | Who'll be the MVP?
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| Najera |
If not quite cast as a savior, the Mavericks see Eduardo Najera as their playoff difference-maker, especially against Sacramento's Chris Webber. If Najera can stay healthy, that is. Of course, even if Najera does, it's still a big burden to place on a 6-foot-8 power forward who averages 7.0 points and 4.7 rebounds in his third NBA season. Yet there actually is some statistical justification for Dallas' faith. When Najera plays 20 minutes or more, the Mavericks are 21-3. They're 11-0 when he scores at least 10 points, 8-0 when he grabs at least eight rebounds, and 13-1 when Najera gets at least three offensive boards -- the first loss coming Thursday at home to San Antonio. Mavericks insiders are convinced they beat Sacramento in the teams' last meeting largely because Najera was playing against the Kings for the first time since getting hurt in warm-ups of Game 1 of the teams' playoff series last spring. Webber, pestered by the Mavs' grittiest defender, needed 26 shots for his 24 points. ... Click for more on the Timberwolves' intentional slow start, Pau Gasol's and Jerry West's championship team, Elgin Baylor's exclusive club and Philadelphia's great debate.
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Marc Stein is the senior NBA writer for ESPN.com. To e-mail him, click here. Also, send Stein a question for possible use on ESPNEWS.
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| STEIN SIDELINES |
MALE OF THE WEEK
 Tracy McGrady
McGrady is apparently determined to keep the MVP race as muddled as possible. He averaged 36.3 points, 6.3 boards and 5.7 assists in sparking a 3-0 week for Orlando, giving the Magic an unexpected view of sixth in the East, just a game behind Boston.
E-MAIL OF THE WEEK
 "Do you think legitimate MVP candidates (like Chris Webber and Dirk Nowitzki) who post numbers similar to the leading candidates are hurt because they have other talented players on the team? Is this the way it should be?"
Troy Willcox
Dallas, TexasSTEIN: Fair or not, Webber and Nowitzki are hurt in the MVP race because sharing the ball with all the talent around them makes it harder to run up big numbers. The problem with the MVP race is that there are no easily defined rules, so there's no way to nail down exactly what "should be."
Send Stein a question
SPEAK OF THE WEEK
 "I didn't do anything in the overtime. I was trying to find something to do."
— San Antonio's Tim Duncan, referring to the Spurs' OT win in Dallas on Thursday in which Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Stephen Jackson carried the offense.
STAT OF THE WEEK
0
That will be Ron Artest's point balance on flagrant fouls once the playoffs start. Slates are wiped clean after the regular season, but suspensions occur after three flagrant-foul points are accrued in the postseason.
STAT OF THE WEAK
12
That's how many games Artest has missed via suspension this season. He has played in only 16 games since Jan. 27, when he tangled with Pat Riley in Miami. |
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