NBA Basketball...

Tuesday Night's Scores....

Heat 79, Hawks 81

Celtics 100, 76ers 98

Jazz 112, Lakers 125

Current Playoff Standings

East

1. Cleveland (66-15)
2. Boston (61-20)
3. Orlando (58-23)
4. Atlanta (47-34)
5. Miami (42-39)
6. Chicago (41-40)
7. Philly (40-41)
8. Detroit (39-42)

West

1. L.A. Lakers (65-17)
   
2. Denver (54-27)
3. Houston (53-28)
4. Portland (53-28)
5. San Antonio (53-28)
6. N.O. (49-32)
7. Dallas (49-32)
8. Utah (48-34)

L.A. and Utah are the only teams who know exactly what seed they will have and who their 1st round opponent will be. Every other matchup will be determined after tonight's games.

Other Hardwood News..

Flip Saunders To Coach Wizards...

Flip Saunders has reached an agreement to become the new coach of the Washington Wizards next season, according to multiple reports.

Wizards owner Abe Pollin has approved the hiring of Saunders, the choice of president of basketball operations Ernie Grunfeld to succeed interim coach Ed Tapscott, a league executive told The Associated Press.

The executive spoke on condition of anonymity because the season has not ended and the Wizards are not yet prepared to make a formal announcement. An announcement is expected next week.

The deal reportedly is worth close to $19 million over four years.

...Saunders, 54, has had success in both Minnesota and Detroit. He reached the playoffs eight times with the Timberwolves and three times with Detroit (where he lost in the NBA Eastern Conference finals each time).

He was fired last June after the Pistons lost to the eventual champion Celtics.

Monday, The Washington Post reported that Sam Cassell could be an assistant coach for Saunders.

A healthy Big Three (Gilbert, Caron, Antawn) + young talent (Nick Young, Andre Blatche, JaVale McGee) + Flip. Ok, I'm on the bandwagon.

Zeke Back In Business...

[Isiah] Thomas is back in coaching, accepting an offer from FIU to revive his career and their program.

Ending a whirlwind courtship, Thomas and FIU agreed on a five-year contract Tuesday -- an out-of-nowhere deal that gives the former Knicks coach and president a chance to restore the reputation he built as a Hall of Fame player and tarnished through a series of embarrassments in New York.

"I'm committed to growing something here, and strongly believe that over time, we'll put a team on the floor that everyone at FIU can be proud of," Thomas said.

Thomas helped the Detroit Pistons win two NBA championships as one of the all-time great point guards, then coached the Indiana Pacers before taking over in New York, where an array of problems marred his tenure.

And Get This:

Here's a sign of how badly Isiah Thomas wanted to return to coaching: He's working for free at Florida International.

At his introductory news conference at FIU on Wednesday, Thomas said his salary the first year from the Golden Panthers will be donated back to the school's athletic department.

Via: ESPN