With 14 minutes left, Game 6 felt just like the two in Los Angeles before it. The Rockets were close at the half, trailing by just two, but found themselves again blitzed in the third quarter, with the Clippers pushing the 64-62 edge to 89-70.

In the prior two games, the Rockets folded and lost by 25+ points. This time? They answered with a stunning 49-18 counter-punch to close the game and tie the series, sending it back to Houston for a decisive Game 7.

The wildest part? MVP runner-up James Harden wasn't even playing, making it one of the more improbable and remarkable in-game turnarounds in NBA playoff history.

Our Ben DuBose is joined by Josh Reese of CBS Radio in Houston (Sports Radio 610) and the Red & Orange Report podcast to dissect just how it went down.

Topics explored:

The brilliance of Kevin McHale's in-game adjustmentsWhy inserting Josh Smith for Terrence Jones as a starter helped both playersThe importance of Dwight Howard dominating DeAndre Jordan on the glassThe sudden disappearance of the Clippers' benchShould Houston fans be concerned about Harden's p

Lots of speculation on who will take over for Monty Williams after he was fired as coach of the New Orleans Pelicans -- a subject I discussed here on WWL Radio in New Orleans.

For those who beliueve Tom Thibodeau might take the job ... hold on a second.

First, Thibodeau was very close to Monty Williams after the two served as assistant coaches to Mike Krzyzewski on Team USA two of the past three summers. Thibodeau does not want to go to a dysfunctional organization that values organizational charts above loyalty, and even if he had the chance to call Monty Williams and ask him about the job, how do you think that conversation would go?

The Pelicans job was one of many topics I discussed today on the Bobby K show in Louisville, Kentucky. And the interview turned to an interesting subject -- the amount of power being wielded by the likes of Anthony Davis, Kevijn Durant and LeBron James.

The bad news for Monty Williams was good news for the rest of the NBA.

There is now a strong chance that Anthony Davis leaves New Orleans and becomes an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2017.

That is the ultimate fallout from Tuesday's shocking news that the Pelicans had fired Williams after he led them to the Western Conference playoffs, where they were swept by the Golden State Warriors. The firing came a mere two weeks after owner Tom Benson wrote a public letter to Williams, general manager Dell Demps and the rest of the organization congratulating them on their achievement.

So what the heck happened in the interim?

Clear, concise answers were not forthcoming from front office executive Mickey Loomis, whose fingerprints are all over this move. Loomis, who also is the front-office overseer for Benson's other team, the NFL New Orleans Saints, is a guy who believes in organizational charts. In his mind, the coach should report to the general manager, and the GM should report to the owner. That was the the case in New Orleans, where Williams and Demps were on equal footing on the organizational chart.

And in the twisted mind of Loomis, if you don't have a functional organizational chart, you don't have a fully functional organization.

So he fired Williams.

Idiotic.

It is a fascinating story, and it will remain a fascinating story for the next several years because Davis is not going to forget how this hatchet job went down. Last time a player of his caliber had this type of beef with management/ownership, he got himself shipped out of town. You may have heard of the guy: Chris Paul.

And in my crystal ball, I foresee Anthony Davis becoming the next Chris Paul.

More in this interview with Kristian Garic and T-Bob Hebert on WWL Radio in New Orleans, the Pelicans' flagship station.

The Rockets haven't lost three straight games all year. But if they're going to keep that streak alive in Tuesday's Game 5 -- and with it, their season -- they're going to have to overcome a tidal wave of momentum in favor of the Clippers.

It's not just that the Clippers lead the series, 3-1. It's that they're doing it in dominating fashion. In their weekend romps, the Clippers became the first team since the 2001 Lakers to win back-to-back games in a playoff series by at least 25 points.

Our Ben DuBose is joined by Josh Reeseof CBS Radio in Houston (Sports Radio 610) on the Red & Orange Report podcast to break down how the Clippers have done it, starting with an MVP performance from Blake Griffin. They also examine where things have gone wrong for the Rockets, like being torched by an opposing power forward for a second consecutive postseason. Is Terrence Jones on the hot seat, and might things be different if Donatas Motiejunas were healthy?

Other topics explored:

Was Chris Paul's absence a blessing in disguise for the Clippers, given the added minutes and confidence it gave to Austin Rivers?With James Harden only taking 12 shots in Game 4 despite shooting well on the series (45 percent on FGs, 44 percent on three-point attempts), should he be more aggressive and shoot more?Is Hack-a-DeAndre Jordan a worthwhile strategy for the Rockets, considering that it negates transition?Does poor play in this series by Corey Brewer and Josh Smith impact Houston's likelihood of re-signing them this summer?

Take a listen.

Last summer, we ran a post on SheridanHoops.com detailing which players received the biggest raises in salary from the previous year. The list was made up of three types of players.

A. Players who received maximum salary deals as their second contracts, such as DeMarcus Cousins.

B. Former first-round picks who received sizable contract extensions, although not necessarily max deals, such as Larry Sanders.

C. Second-round picks who had been making near league minimum and signed new deals, such as Lance Stephenson.

The latter category has some candidates this year as well. Among them are forwards Draymond Green of Golden State, Jae Crowder of Boston and Khris Middleton of Milwaukee.

We've already explained how Middleton's improvement over the last two years and the stratospheric leap made by the Bucks from the worst team in the league to a playoff team could land the restricted free agent a contract averaging eight figures.

But given that Middleton doesn't turn 24 until August, appears to have a ways to go before reaching his ceiling and the huge increase in the salary cap coming in 2016, is it possible that he receives a maximum contract offer this summer, either from the Bucks or another team?

And can the Bucks - who have a dicey new arena issue on their hands - go the max on Middleton, with extensions due down the road for Giannis Antetokounmpo, Michael Carter-Williams and Jabari Parker?

Chris Bernucca of SheridanHoops.com answered those questions and others about an important offseason for the Bucks with Greg Matzek of WTMJ-AM in Milwaukee.

Blake Griffin has taken his game to a new level in the playoffs. Griffin is averaging 25.4 points, 13.4 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. Griffin has recorded a double-double in all nine playoff games, including three triple-doubles. With Chris Paul out for the first two games of the series against the Houston Rockets, Griffin has also become more of a vocal leader in the huddle.

With that in mind, columnist Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops.com joined Yahoo! Sports Radio host Geoff Kethcum to discuss the rise of Griffin, Paul’s injury and the rest of the playoffs.

He just coached the Chicago Bulls to a very impressive Game 1 win in Cleveland. He finished off the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 6 of the first round with a 54-point victory. He has had a surprising level of success the past two seasons despite being without Derrick Rose. He is widely regarded as one of the best tacticians in basketball.

Yet Tom Thibodeau appears to be on the way out in Chicago.

Even if he wins a championship.

How can this be? Is there any precedent?

To answer to second question first ... you might just remember that Phil Jackson left the Bulls -- and they broke up their dynasty -- in 1998 after winning the NBA title for the sixth time in eight years. At that time, the disconnect between the head coach and the front office was so immense, there was no turning back the dynamiting of one of the greatest teams ever. It made no sense then, and it still makes no sense today ... unless you compare it to a divorce.

And that is how we answer the first question posed above, in this podcast with WGN Radio in Chicago.

He just coached the Chicago Bulls to a very impressive Game 1 win in Cleveland. He finished off the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 6 of the first round with a 54-point victory. He has had a surprising level of success the past two seasons despite being without Derrick Rose. He is widely regarded as one of the best tacticians in basketball.

Yet Tom Thibodeau appears to be on the way out in Chicago.

Even if he wins a championship.

How can this be? Is there any precedent?

To answer to second question first ... you might just remember that Phil Jackson left the Bulls -- and they broke up their dynasty -- in 1998 after winning the NBA title for the sixth time in eight years. At that time, the disconnect between the head coach and the front office was so immense, there was no turning back the dynamiting of one of the greatest teams ever. It made no sense then, and it still makes no sense today ... unless you compare it to a divorce.

And that is how we answer the first question posed above, in this podcast with WGN Radio in Chicago.

Game 5 of the Clippers-Spurs series was a great one, going down to the final minute. But it lasted nearly three hours, ending just before 2 a.m. EDT on the East Coast.

This, folks, is a problem.

And the NBA needs to solve it.

You simply CANNOT have the best basketball of the postseason being played when two-thirds of the country is asleep.

What if there was a magic formula that could shave an hour off the game time?

Would the NBA even consider looking at it?

In this interview with Sid Rosenberg on 640-AM Sports in Miami, I proposed a number of radical -- even revolutionary -- changes to NBA rules that would speed up the flow of the game, make it more interesting and get rid off all those God-awful TV timeouts which have reduced the NBA game to a series of three-minute spurts. I'm also in favor of adopting the FIBA rule that makes the ball live once it hits the rim, a rule change that would have made DeAndre Jordan's late tip-in count rather than be waved off for basket interference. 

Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected] with your comments.

The playoffs have been defined by lopsided first-round series and calls to abolish the Hack-a-Shaq strategy.

Meanwhile, the Oklahoma City Thunder – who failed to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2009 – made news recently by firing head coach Scott Brooks. The move was made with a long-term view to hopefully retain franchise cornerstones Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

Both players were selected high in the NBA draft, which is only two months away. The lottery is less than a month away, with the winner likely choosing between Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor at the top of the draft.

With that in mind, Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops.com joined NBC Sports Radio host Keith Irizarry to discuss the playoffs, Hack-a-Shaq, Thunder coaching search and the draft.