Parent trapped — and zapped
The Boston Celtics stunned even some of their most passionate fans by going on the road and taking the first two games of the Eastern Conference finals in Orlando.
One fan in particular left Amway Arena on Tuesday night, well, shocked.
Police used a Taser on Willie Lorenzo Buie, the stepfather of Celtics reserve guard Marquis Daniels, and took him into custody for resisting arrest with violence.
WESH-TV in Orlando, Fla., first reported the incident.
The Orlando Sentinel added more details from the arrest report, which stated Buie was forcibly removed from his seat after he refused to exit the arena when instructed by officers responding to a "disturbance."
Buie was taken to the security office and taken to the ground, where he kept his hands beneath his body to avoid being handcuffed. The maneuver prompted an officer to use the Taser for five seconds on Buie, who then was handcuffed.
Buie probably should have been more familiar with the process. His lengthy criminal history includes an 11-year prison sentence for second-degree murder.
Stories involving parents have been following the Celtics throughout the playoffs. First the rumors of an affair between Gloria James, the mother of Cavaliers star LeBron James, and Cleveland teammate Delonte West, and now this?
The Lakers could be up next, so don't be surprised if the parents of some of their players wind up in the news.
Just imagine if it came out that Bill Walton smoked marijuana in his younger days.
■ NAME GAME -- Much has been made of Mikhail Prokhorov's purchase of the New Jersey Nets and the effect the Russian billionaire might have on his team and the league.
He might be putting his stamp on things almost immediately.
Howard Beck of the New York Times reported Wednesday on Twitter that Prokhorov would be allowing the contract of general manager Kiki Vandeweghe to expire, which hardly is groundbreaking.
The other tidbit from Beck on the same posting, that Prokhorov is considering changing the name of the team, is more surprising.
We at Leftovers will avoid jokes about the potential new names for New Jersey's basketball franchise that could play off the stereotypes perpetuated by "The Sopranos" or the state being nothing more than a New York garbage dump.
Instead, we will remind Prokhorov that if he has any hope of landing potential free agent James in the offseason, he might want to avoid the names "Delontes" and "Wests."
■ A MATTER OF TIME -- Los Angeles Clippers general manager Neil Olshey told ESPNLosAngeles.com that forward Blake Griffin is participating in basketball activities with "no restrictions, at full speed."
It's great news for Clippers fans that this is happening in May. If Griffin tears his ACL by the end of the month, he should be able to work his way into the lineup in time to contribute for the final month of the 2010-11 season.
COMPILED BY ADAM HILL
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
