Notes and Quotes

What were the odds at the start of the season that Marc Gasol would still be playing instead of his brother Pao? Gasol and the Memphis Grizzlies stretched their semifinal series to a Game 7 by beating the Oklahoma City Thunder last night in Memphis. The winner plays the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals.

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add Lakers: As Phil Jackson exited the Lakers' practice facility in El Segundo for the last time, he said the team overall was still good but it needed more speed. To most NBA observers "more speed" means younger players. The Lakers certainly have nothing close to the speed of Oklahoma City, who are led by their two playmakers Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant.

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last add Lakers: Although the front office has given Brian Shaw permission to talk to the Golden State Warriors and the Houston Rockets about their openings for a head coach, Shaw should still be considered as a strong candidate to replace Jackson. Another possibility is former Lakers' guard Byron Scott, who has been the head man at New Jersey, New Orleans and Cleveland.

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Tennis, anyone: While Andre Ethier grabbed the national attention of sports fans with his 30-game hitting streak, another player in another sport has been quietly putting together a streak of his own. That would be Novak Djokovic of Serbia, who is challenging John McEnroe's string of 42 matches in a row. McEnroe set the record in 1984 when he began the year with 42 straight wins.

Djokovic's streak is up to 37 after yesterday's straight-set win in the quarterfinals of the Italian Open in Rome. He has passed both Ivan Lendl and Bjorn Borg.

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Dodgers in the hunt: For all their problems this season, most of which have been off the field, Manager Don Mattingly has quietly guided the team into a respectable position in the National League West after the first six weeks of the season.

Despite the club's troubles with its bullpen and having just two legitimate bats in the lineup, the Dodgers are j2.5 games out of first place. The starting pitching has been the team's strength. With injuries to half the infield--Casey Blake and Rafael Furcal are both on the disabled list--Jamie Carroll and Juan Uribe have filled in nicely, and rookie Jerry Sands has been a nice surprise in left field.