Joey Crawford (right) also officiated Game 2 of the NBA Finals. (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

Joey Crawford will officiate Game 6 of the NBA Finals along with Mike Callahan and Ken Mauer, the NBA announced Tuesday morning. Crawford, who has a controversial history with Spurs star Tim Duncan, also worked Game 2 of the Finals, which the Heat won 103-84 in an easy blowout.

Crawford, an NBA referee since 1977, is one of the league’s most experienced and recognizable referees. His name is often a trending topic on Twitter when he works games and he made headlines in November for high-stepping from the baseline to the three-point line to make a call during a game between the Lakers and Pacers.

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New Nuggets GM Tim Connelly (right) puts a Russian player through a workout. (Catherine Steenkeste/Getty Images)

The Nuggets announced Monday the hiring of Pelicans assistant GM Tim Connelly as their new executive vice president of basketball operations.

“We are extremely excited to have Tim join the Denver Nuggets organization,” Nuggets CEO Josh Kroenke said in a statement. “He comes from a great basketball background, possesses an incredibly strong work ethic and is a wonderful person. His passion and energy for the game of basketball are contagious and I am confident that he will be a great fit with us in Denver.”

For the past three seasons, Connelly worked under GM Dell Demps in New Orleans. His NBA career dates back to 1996, when he joined the Wizards as a basketball operations intern.

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Could Doc Rivers (left) and Kevin Garnett be Los Angeles-bound? (Steve Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)

UPDATE (12:05 p.m. ET): According to multiple reports, the Celtics and Clippers are revisiting negotiations Tuesday after talks hit an impasse Monday evening.

Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski reports that a deal now hinges on the Clippers’ willingness to surrender two first-round draft picks in addition to DeAndre Jordan. According to Woj, the Celtics have relented on their demand that the Clippers take back long-term contracts (either Courtney Lee or Jason Terry), but want two first-rounders in addition to Jordan in a deal that would include Kevin Garnett and, separately, Doc Rivers.

ESPN.com’s Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne note a deal still has legs after “substantive discussions” Monday. One element of negotiations, Stein and Shelburne say, is negotiations between Rivers and the Clippers on a contract. Rivers currently makes around $7M a season and is reportedly looking to earn a similar amount if he moves from Boston to Los Angeles. “Numerous sources connected to talks continued to express optimism Monday that the Celtics and Clippers will eventually agree to terms this week,” the report notes.

An NBA team can’t formally trade away its coach, but the Celtics are nearing the functional equivalent during their extended trade talks with the Clippers. The discussions began in two distinct threads:

• L.A. has an established interest in acquiring Kevin Garnett, dating back to the February trade deadline. Given the way that both the Clippers and Celtics exited the playoffs prematurely, it’s only natural that they might revisit their trade talks.

• Last week, it was reported that Doc Rivers and the Clippers would have a mutual interest should Rivers be released from his contract with the Celtics — an event that seems increasingly likely as Boston changes directions and aims to rebuild.

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Danny Green needed just fives game to break the Finals record for most three-pointers made. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

The stakes run high for the Heat, but even the dwindling prospect of a repeat title apparently isn’t enough to compel the defending champs to pay attention to Danny Green. One would think that a record-25 made threes in these NBA Finals would be enough, but while fixated on Tony Parker and Tim Duncan, Miami’s defenders have seemed largely unconcerned with the threat that Green poses. As a result, Green is influencing the ultimate outcome of the postseason in a way that few shooters could, and remains San Antonio’s highest per-game scorer in the Finals.

Green has made his own way by sliding around the arc in tandem with the Spurs’ pick-and-rolls, but this level of success wouldn’t be possible without a strangely unresponsive Heat defense. “I can’t believe he’s still open at this moment in the series,” Spurs point guard Tony Parker said after Game 5, per The Point Forward’s Ben Golliver. “They are still trapping me and doubling [Duncan], and Danny is wide open. He’s shooting the ball well. If you are going to leave Danny wide open, he’s going to make threes.”

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A knee injury is expected to sideline Nerlens Noel until at least Christmas. (James Crisp/AP)

Will Cleveland stay in the No. 1 spot? If they do, should they take Nerlens Noel? If they deal the pick, who is the target for the acquiring team? Toss Up examines the state of flux regarding the No. 1 pick.

Is Noel the best prospect in the draft?

Noel’s shot-blocking ability may be one of the most refined individual skills in the draft, but he’s not the most complete player available. That said, he’s a legit 7-footer who played hard amid the growing wreckage of Kentucky’s wayward season. Further, he doesn’t foul a ton for such an active shot-blocker, he swats shots at an absurd rate and, for a big man, he can really get out and run.

Assuming his knee heels properly and he can get onto a fitness regiment that will add some muscle to his very thin frame, he should at the very least be a rim-protecting presence as a pro with upside that will be determined by how well he can defend NBA bigs on the block and how much his currently limited offensive game develops.

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