Denver Nuggets general manager Masai Ujiri will win the NBA's Executive of the Year, making a coaching and general manager sweep for the organization after George Karl took home the Coach of the Year Award earlier this week.

For the Nuggets, it is a just regular season award for finishing third in the Western Conference and for being perhaps the best team in the league this year without a "superstar." Andre Iguodala was the team's only All Star this year, yet the Nuggets were one of the tougher teams to beat in the league -- particularly at home.

Both Karl and Ujiri put together a team that was difficult to defend because so many guys could beat you. Ty Lawson, Andre iguodala, Danilo Gallinari and others took turns leading the team in scoring and filling their roles.

That of course was in the regular season. The award is a regular season award voted on by the executive's peers, but the shortcomings from this roster became apparent in a six-game loss to the Warriors.

Golden State, despite playing without David Lee pretty much the entire series, outphysicaled Denver and easily knifed through the team's defense with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. Denver struggled to get consistent offense after a Game One win that needed an Andre Miller layup in the dying seconds. Perhaps Danilo Gallinari's injury was a big loss for this team in the end.

Ujiri though has been working to build this team for several years. This was not an award based just on this year's success.

Chicago Bulls/Miami Heat: Game 2

-       It will be interesting to see if Miami decides to get serious and play a full 48 minutes tonight. For the first five games of the Heat's postseason, they have seemed to go at half speed for the first three quarters and then decided to turn it on down the stretch. That did not work out well in Game One. Let’s see if they jump out early in Game Two.

-       Right off the bat this is looking like the game could get chippy and physical. Dwyane Wade with a technical foul less than a minute in.

-       Jimmy Butler has been logging A LOT of minutes for the Bulls. He has made good use of them too. Tonight he has already hit two three-pointers in the first quarter.

-       Oh, there is definitely going to be an ejection in this game. The technical fouls are starting to pile up.

-       I would really like to see LeBron James in the same situation as Kevin Durant where he had to be the guy and did not have weapons around him. I guess that would be the LeBron we saw in Cleveland, but it would be a little different if he was used to having a teammate that helped carry the load and that guy got hurt. Basically what I am saying is that I would like to see a LeBron that had to score a lot.

-       The Heat finish the half on an 11-3 run to open up a nice 14-point lead. You have to wonder if short-handedness of the Bulls has finally caught up to them.

-       The Bulls seem to have forgotten how to put the ball in the basket in the third quarter. The Heat are now up 27.

-       I am going to recommend we not play the fourth quarter. Someone is going to get hurt, tossed or both.

-       There are some ejections, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson gone. The Heat are up 40. This has now become a circus.

-       A lot of extracurricular words in this game, some of them not so friendly.

-       Hard to believe this series is 1-1, but it is. To Chicago we go! I heard Derrick Rose is coming back. Just kidding, of course, but hey, people are still going to talk about it.

-       You know the crowd in Chicago is going to be nuts.

For Kyle's thoughts on the Warriors win over the Spurs, click after the jump.

The top overall pick in the NBA Draft has been traded only once on Draft night in the Lottery era. the Magic, a year after selecting Shaquille O'Neal with the top overall pick and lucking into the top pick after a 41-41 season that saw them tied for the final Playoff spot in the East, shipped Chris Webber to Golden State for a point guard named Anfernee Hardaway (and three first round picks).

There have been other trades -- Philadelphia traded the top overall pick before the draft to Cleveland in 1986, allowing the Cavaliers to select Brad Daugherty -- however, trading the top pick in the Draft is extremely rare. This is supposed to be the ultimate prize. A reward for losing and a booster shot for franchises that need the most help.

These are where your franchise players are supposed to come from.

What to do in a weak draft then?

With hardly anyone showing any excitement for top Draft prospects like Nerlens Noel, Ben McLemore and Victor Oladipo as a franchise game-changer, it should be no surprise that talk of trading the No. 1 overall pick would emerge. Even if it is two weeks before the actual NBA Draft Lottery will take place and the order for the 2013 NBA Draft will become set.

Joe Kotoch of Sheridan Hoops reports the Magic and the Pelicans are seriously considering trading the top overall pick if they were to get it to whoever can offer the most for Nerlens Noel, the current presumptive number one pick.

Less than a week after being knocked out of the playoffs by the Golden State Warriors, Denver Nuggets head coach George Karl has been named the NBA Coach of the Year.

Karl led the Nuggets to their best season record in franchise history at 57-25, including an astounding 38-3 at home.

Karl received 62 first place votes and 404 total points to beat out Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra (24/190), New York Knicks head coach Mike Woodson (6/127) and San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich (11/120). This is Karl’s first time to win the award in his 25 years as a head coach and he was very flattered to be selected.

Honored to receive coach of the year award. Tribute to great players and assistants. Many others equally deserving.

— George Karl (@CoachKarl22) May 8, 2013

Obviously this is a regular season award, so the Nuggets’ upset at the hands of the Warriors had no effect on the voting. Keeping that in mind, I think Karl was an excellent choice for coach of the year. He led a Nuggets team with no real superstar to the third-seed in a very competitive Western Conference. If you take away the injuries to Danilo Gallinari and Kenneth Faried, the outcome of the playoffs could have been totally different for Denver.

Karl has the respect of his players, the fans and the Denver organization. That first round loss is going to sting for a while, but I am sure the Nuggets are happy to have George Karl steering their ship.

Like CC on Facebook

Follow CC on Twitter

Although he did a solid job in the regular season after taking over for Avery Johnson (going 35-19), Carlesimo knew that he wasn't likely to lose the interim tag, a fact which was entrenched with Brooklyn's embarrassing 1st-round playoff defeat

The Nets-Bulls opening round series of the Eastern Conference Playoffs was filled with crazy runs, comebacks, shots, performances and finishes.

One thing it did not have, however, was a Brooklyn Nets series win, as the Bulls were able to take Game Seven at the Barclays Center, taking the entire series as well. Clearly, that result did not go over well in Brooklyn's front office, as interim coach P.J. Carlesimo -- who assumed the job in late December after the team fired Avery Johnson -- was canned just hours after the loss, leaving the Nets without a permanent head coach and the veteran Carlesimo without a job.

Ever since the firing was announced, and even earlier in the season when Carlesimo's departure seemed more imminent, tons of free-agent coaches and even some under contract were and have been through around in rumors regarding the desirable Nets job.

Former head-man of the Lakers, the stoic and incredibly-successful Phil Jackson was one of the bigger names to be thought of as a realistic candidate for the position. Brooklyn even reportedly contacted the 67-year-old gauging his interest in coming to New York, but later developments revealed that he's basically just looking for a front-office post at this time in his life, and turned down the offer.

Then other well-known coaches that Brooklyn may hold interest in quickly came out of the woodwork, with current Pacers assistant Brian Shaw looking like the No. 1 so far. Shaw, who played in the NBA for more than 10 years in his own right, was an assistant with the Lakers from 2004-11, and was groomed as Phil Jackson's eventual replacement before he was surprisingly passed over for the job when LA hired Mike Brown. Since then, Shaw has been in Indiana and tends to be viewed as one of the top assistants currently in the league, and seems to be thrown into the mix whenever a coaching vacancy opens up.

Also, current Celtics coach Doc Rivers and former Jazz coach Jerry Sloan -- who drafted Deron Williams, now on Brooklyn -- have each been cited as possible targets of the Nets front office. It is highly unlikely that Rivers would return to Boston if the current roster in stripped of veterans like Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett this summer, as Doc has made it clear that he does not want to deal with another rebuilding project. If Boston follows that path, Brooklyn would be a logical and interesting spot for the 51-year-old Rivers if he should choose to continue his coaching career against a division rival of the team he recently won a championship with.

As for Sloan, the clear connection and chemistry -- pre-falling-out -- with Deron Williams would make him an easier choice for the position. The only concern there is that it is unknown publicly how well Sloan and Deron's relationship is with each other right now after it was reportedly Williams' urging that led Sloan to resign from Utah and led the Jazz to trade him to the Nets in the first place.

Brooklyn is still very early in the coaching-search process and there are tons of interviews, sit-downs, and phone-calls to go before anything is close to official regarding the team's new head coach. But it appears that there are a bunch of qualified candidates willing to take the job that will be a part of this process.

And that fact has got to make Billy King feel a little easier and less stressed right now.

Like CC on Facebook

Follow CC on Twitter

Wow! Just wow!

Knicks' Iman Shumpert got the crowd in MSG for Game 2 of their series versus the Pacers off their seats with an insane put-back dunk off a missed three-pointer in the second quarter.

To make matters worse for Indiana, they had three people under the basket and not one boxed out Iman. Not one! All that led to one amazing dunk which has to be ranked high in this postseason's top-dunks.

Check out Shumpert banging one on three Pacers and he just has to particiapte in next season's All-Star dunk contest.

Like CC on Facebook

Follow CC on Twitter

Indiana Pacers/New York Knick: Game 2

-       Knicks under some real pressure tonight. They cannot leave New York down 0-2. They especially need to focus on playing more physical and not letting the Pacers muscle them around.

-       Knicks getting the offense going early and taking advantage of quite a few Pacer turnovers.

-       I cannot believe the Pacers are even in this game with how much they are turning the ball over.

-       Iman Shumpert better be careful, if his head gets any closer to the rim on his dunks, he is going to shave a few inches off that awesome high top fade.

{youtube}uirM5sljfO8{/youtube]

-       47-42 at halftime. If the Pacers could just cut down on their turnovers, they would be on cruise control in this game.

-       Anthony being much more aggressive in the third quarter. He is attacking the basket instead of settling for jump shots and allowing him to really get it going.

-       Knicks looked like they were going for another collapse but they battled right back and end up outscoring the Pacers by one in that quarter for a six-point lead heading to the fourth.

-       Knicks pouring it on in the fourth, starting the quarter on a 10-0 run. Pacers look totally different from the team we saw in Game One. Cannot seem to get anything going.

-       Leave it up to Tyson Chandler to get a technical foul when his team is up 20 points.

-       Knicks up 24 with six minutes to go. Shut it down. Let’s call it early.

-       Embarrassing showing from the Pacers in the fourth quarter. Luckily for them they have a plane ride and a couple extra days rest (next game isn’t until Saturday) to forget about this game and move on.

For Kyle's thoughts on the Grizzlies win over the Thunder, click after the jump.

After Chris Paul was ejected from Game Six in the Los Angeles Clippers’ first round series against the Memphis Grizzlies, some wondered if that was going to be the last image of Paul in a Clipper uniform.

Paul has the option of signing a five-year, $107 million extension with the team this summer or he can test out free agency and see where he ends up. If he decides to explore the open market, you can bet he is going to be one of the most highly coveted players this offseason.

The Clippers, meanwhile, are going to do whatever they can to make sure Paul stays in L.A. Gary Sacks, the Clippers’ vice president of basketball operations, met with CP3 on Saturday.

"The No. 1 priority for us right now has to be re-signing our star player, Chris Paul," Sacks said. "That's our goal, that's what we want to do. We want to put ourselves in a position to do that. We feel this organization is in a position to move forward with that goal in mind. It's always difficult, it's never easy, but we feel confident we can be successful."

Sacks is a lot more confident than I would be after another disappointing finish to their season.

For the last couple of years, the Clippers have looked like they have something special, only to fizzle out in the playoffs. Whether that’s the fault of their coach, Vinny Del Negro (my vote), or chemistry between players, there is something that the organization needs to fix before they can be truly great. Chris Paul probably knows that and it is what might keep him from sticking around.

However, Paul might have some ideas for what the franchise needs to be successful, and if the Clippers are going to listen to him, they may give him whatever he wants to get him to sign his extension.

It is a very tough situation to predict. It would be a lot of money for the 28-year-old to turn down and there is no guarantee that anywhere else he goes would be a better chance to win a championship. Chris Paul has a lot to think about this summer.

Like CC on Facebook

Follow CC on Twitter

Last night's Spurs-Warriors Semifinal Game 1 was nothing short of exhilarating.

The Spurs came back from an 18-point deficit to win in double-overtime 129-27 and provided NBA fans with what can only be described as an instant classic which will be long remembered for Manu Ginobili's clutch game-winning shot, Stephen Curry's monster third quarter scoring barrage, and a Spurs fan's piercing scream during the crucial fourth quarter for San Antonio.

During the TNT broadcast, the camera picked up a fan screaming her head off making viewing the game almost unbearable to watch. Needless to say, if Game 2 is anything like Game 1, it is a great thing TVs have the mute option.

Like CC on Facebook

Follow CC on Twitter

Last week, Michael Jordan married his longtime girlfriend in a large gathering at his home in Jupiter, Florida.

Normally, we would not care about the personal lives of players, but this IS Michael Jordan. And Michael is Michael.

So what was his wedding like? Let Saturday Night Live take a guess:

As Dan Patrick said on his radio show today, somewhere Alonzo Mourning, Karl Malone, Patrick Ewing and Charles Barkley all sit in a room discussing the titles Jordan kept them from winning.

Like CC on Facebook

Follow CC on Twitter