Boston Celtics

In one corner sat Magic Johnson. He talked. He laughed. He smiled. In another corner sat Larry Bird. He spoke only when prompted. He sounded stoic. He usually looked serious. Yes, the former Lakers and Celtics stars, and rivals, showcased once again how different their personalities are when they appeared Wednesday night on "Late Show with David Letterman" to promote "Magic/Bird," a Broadway show that debuted at Longacre Theatre in New York. Even if their personalities remain different, though, their mind-sets remain the same.

She has become every bit as much a fixture in the playoffs as Kobe Bryant, Marv Albert's signature "Yesss!" call and a first-round flameout by the Portland Trail Blazers. So what if she wears perfume and at times fixes her hair in a ponytail. Violet Palmer has made it in a man's game, and she's not going anywhere. The NBA's only female referee has worked the playoffs six years running, and though the league will not publicly divulge its assignments for the first-round series that start Saturday, there's no reason to think Palmer won't be blowing her whistle into next month.

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A test of Celtics pride It's enough to make Ray Allen wonder whether he's got any game left. The veteran Boston Celtics sharpshooter recently lost his starting spot to Avery Bradley and then had to deal with the public disclosure of a failed trade involving Memphis guard O.J. Mayo . Allen was nearly sent to the Grizzlies last month in exchange for Mayo and a draft pick, though Celtics Coach Doc Rivers refuted one...

I listen to Phil Jackson. That doesn't mean I don't tease him, make fun of him or wonder what Jeanie sees in him. But I listen, because he seems to know something about basketball. And every year around about the time the playoffs start, Phil makes mention of size and the considerable advantage it gives the Lakers. "It has brought us championships," he said again by telephone Tuesday night from Boston. That's why I argue Andrew Bynum is the single BIGGEST reason why the Lakers are favorites to win it all again.

AT BOSTON Time: 4:30 PDT. On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 710. Where: TD Banknorth Garden. Records: Clippers 17-53, Celtics 53-18. Record vs. Celtics: 1-0. Update: Not even a month ago did this score -- Clippers 93, Celtics 91 -- cause a double take around the league. The Clippers even hung on despite nearly squandering a big lead against the Celtics, who were playing without Kevin Garnett.

Harry Mangurian Jr., 82, a former owner of the Boston Celtics and renowned horse breeder, died Sunday at Holy Cross Hospital in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., after an eight-month battle with leukemia. Mangurian owned the Celtics from 1979-83, a tenure that included an NBA championship in 1981 and the signings of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, who became stars for the pro basketball team. A native of Rochester, N.Y., Mangurian was successful at numerous business ventures, including his start as owner of a family-run furniture store and as a breeder of champion thoroughbreds on the 1,100-acre Mockingbird Farm in Ocala, Fla.

The Boston Celtics, taking the view that 6-foot-10 Dino Radja was an amateur with his former Yugoslavian basketball club, have signed him to a one-year contract in the very professional National Basketball Assn. "I feel very nice now," said Radja after his first official NBA workout with the Celtics at Brandeis University on Tuesday, but he admitted that he felt bad that his Yugoslavian team, Jugoplastika, had been unsupportive and uncooperative in his pursuit of a basketball career in the NBA.

Colorado State forward Mike Mitchell, snubbed in the NBA draft Wednesday, will have a tryout with the Boston Celtics, according to his agent. The 6-foot-8 Mitchell was invited to the Celtics' July 21 camp, and his agent, Fred Slaughter of Santa Monica, began negotiations with the team Thursday. Mitchell, who played for Mater Dei High School, led Colorado State in scoring (19.5 points per game), rebounding (6.7) and steals (2.0) last season.

Los Angeles stockbroker Girish Nautiyal has approached the Lakers with a novel suggestion: If you can't beat the Boston Celtics, why not own them? Nautiyal, a broker for Smith Barney, Harris Upham & Co., recently stopped by the Forum and dropped off copies of the prospectus pertaining to the sale of stock in the Celtics. He asked Bob Steiner, director of public relations for California Sports, to distribute them to the Laker players.

In one corner sat Magic Johnson. He talked. He laughed. He smiled. In another corner sat Larry Bird. He spoke only when prompted. He sounded stoic. He usually looked serious. Yes, the former Lakers and Celtics stars, and rivals, showcased once again how different their personalities are when they appeared Wednesday night on "Late Show with David Letterman" to promote "Magic/Bird," a Broadway show that debuted at Longacre Theatre in New York. Even if their personalities remain different, though, their mind-sets remain the same.

NEW ORLEANS — Louisville Coach Rick Pitino , after Saturday's NCAA national semifinal defeat, had the courage to compare Kentucky freshman center Anthony Davis to Bill Russell . Sacrilege? "When you see this young man at the collegiate level, you realize why they're so good," Pitino said of Davis. "Not that their other players aren't, but he's so much of a factor. " Davis had 18 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots in Kentucky's 69-61 win against Louisville.

When: 7:30. Where: Staples Center. On the air: TV: Prime Ticket, ESPN; Radio: 980, 1330. Records: Clippers 23-15, Celtics 21-19. Update: The Celtics started their eight-game trip with a loss to the Lakers on Sunday, falling 97-94 after blowing a late lead. Boston has five players scoring in double figures, led by Paul Pierce (18.4 a game). Dynamic point guard Rajon Rondo ranks second in the NBA in assists (10.0 a game). Keep an eye on the glass: The Celtics rank last in the NBA in rebounds, averaging 38.9 a game, and the Clippers are tied for 11th, grabbing 42.9.

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Sixers All-Star forward Andre Iguodala reflected on the pressures of the pro game: "I think it weighs on any basketball player when they are not playing and they think they should be playing," he said. "Some guys, they go to a vice or they go to something that not only hinders their game but it hinders their health overall. Guys can drink; guys can go to drugs. That's the part of the league that people don't see. " After Philadelphia blew past Boston, 103-71, Celtics Coach Doc Rivers was asked about the 76ers' showboating: "If I was a player and I was in and I had a 40-point lead, and I could get a dunk, I'm getting a dunk.

The National Basketball Assn. appears poised to end its five-month lockout, and a new labor agreement can't come soon enough for the thousands of idled workers who don't have a seat at the negotiating table. Those include the employees and entrepreneurs who make a living inside and around the arenas, as well as the restaurants, hotels and souvenir shops that cater to the surge of fans on game days. For everyone else, the announcement of a tentative deal is a mixed blessing.

Michael Jordan hung in the conversation Tuesday as he does in the air during games after the Boston Celtics ended practice for Thursday's opening game of their National Basketball Assn. playoff series against the Chicago Bulls. "Everybody knows it's going to be a tough assignment, not only for the person guarding him but for the whole team," center Robert Parish said of defensing Jordan, the regular season scoring champion with a 37.1-point average. "What you try to do is contain him.

He's won more NBA games and titles than any coach. He entered the Basketball Hall of Fame 24 years ago. And, at age 75, he still has a hand in his life's work--building the Boston Celtics. Arnold Jacob Auerbach, born in Brooklyn during World War I and now president of basketball's most famous franchise, has come a long way. Does his place in history have a special place in his thoughts? "Nah, I don't think about that," he says. "I just do what I have to do."

He sounded like a coach. He sounded like a statesman. But more than anything, Derek Fisher sounded like he was dribbling the ball up the court against the Boston Celtics in the 2010 Finals, daring anybody to step in his path. "There have been moments when it's been draining," he said, his voice rising. "But it's not draining me of my overall energy and passion for playing this game I love to play. " Fisher may currently have the worst sports job in America, but it's exactly where he belongs, the Lakers' soul now serving as the locked-out NBA union's spine.

BASKETBALL GUARDS BOB COUSY (1950-63, '70) Defined the point guard position and helped shape the Boston Celtics' dynasty. His teams won six NBA titles and he was league MVP in 1957, one of only four point guards to earn that award. OSCAR ROBERTSON (1960-74) He was Magic Johnson before Magic Johnson, a tall and physical point guard who was also an exceptional scorer, defender and rebounder. JERRY WEST (1960-74) Was to Robertson what Larry Bird was to Magic Johnson.