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The 10-man rotation, starring the Rockets' reserves and the potential folly of not using them

A look around the league and the Web that covers it. It's also important to note that the rotation order and starting nods aren't always listed in order of importance. That's for you, dear reader, to figure out.

C: Red94. As the Houston Rockets look to even up their best-of-seven series with the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 2 on Wednesday, Richard Li has a suggestion: run, run, run, and go deep, and force one of the shallowest competitors in this postseason to match up with you or get gassed and then gashed.

PF: Triangle Offense. A really fun read from Nick Schonberger on a new exhibit at the New York Historical Society celebrating the story and legacy of the "Black Fives," the pioneering pre-1950 teams comprised entirely of African American players who helped shape and change the culture of the sport prior to its integration.

SF: USA TODAY Sports. Good stuff from Sam Amick on the offseason work that helped Blake Griffin continue the development of his all-around game to the point where can now serve as the offensive focal point of the Los Angeles Clippers' attack, with or without Chris Paul on the court.

SG: Basketball Insiders. A good read from Jessica Camerato on Mike Conley, whose development curve sped up when he learned to slow down, and whose growth into one of the league's most underrated playmakers has helped propel the Memphis Grizzlies to the upper echelon of the Western Conference, and into a 1-1 tie with the favored Oklahoma City Thunder.

PG: The Point Forward. Rob Mahoney on the masterful work Nene has turned in to help stake the Washington Wizards to a commanding 2-0 series lead over the Chicago Bulls.

6th: 8 Points, 9 Seconds. It's something that basketball obsessive/professional gambler Haralabos Voulgaris brought up a couple of weeks ago, and that I found myself wondering on Tuesday: Amid their persistent offensive struggles, is anybody on the Indiana Pacers actually setting screens to create room for ball-handlers, shooters and cutters these days? Jon Washburn narrowed his gaze to just focusing on how often and how effectively Indy and the Atlanta Hawks set their on- and off-ball screens in Game 2, and while the charting might not be conclusive or predictive — it's just one game, after all — he found an interesting spike in Pacers screens as Indy began their big third-quarter run.

7th: The Triangle. Speaking of that run, Zach Lowe takes a look at how the Pacers tweaked their lineups and approach to get back on the good foot in Game 2 and even the series before it heads back to Atlanta.

8th: Mavs Outsider Report. After a strong performance in Sunday's Game 1 loss, Bryan Gutierrez wonders if Jae Crowder will see more floor time for the Dallas Mavericks as they look to steal home-court advantage by beating the San Antonio Spurs in Game 2 on Wednesday.

9th: The Brooklyn Game. After the Toronto Raptors hammered the Brooklyn Nets on the glass in a Game 2 win that evened up their first-round series, Devin Kharpertian wonders if Nets head coach Jason Kidd needs to consider upping Kevin Garnett's minutes limit to ramp up Brooklyn's ability to clear the defensive boards once the series shifts back to Barclays Center.

10th: Austin Clemens. For the statistically inclined, an interesting attempt to advance our understanding of the defensive impact that a player has when he's on the court, "adjusting for all other defensive players and the offensive player who is actually shooting," pretty neatly visualized. The sample used here features defensive shot charts for players on the Pacers, Grizzlies and Bulls; as the author freely admits, it might not be predictive or particularly revelatory at this stage of the game, I'm of the opinion that any work on trying to help us better grasp defensive value is a pretty good thing, so big up yourself, Mr. Clemens.

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Dan Devine

is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!

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