The NBA Playoffs’ Grittiest Players

TNT's slogan for years has been "We Know Drama." As Wednesday night proved, even when the games themselves don't provide dramatic finishes (both the Lakers and Celtics evened the series with double-digit wins), there is still plenty of drama in the NBA playoffs.

Each game was "highlighted" by an incident involving a starting point guard. First, Rafer Alston slapped Eddie House in the back of the head. Strangely enough, that sentence doesn't read as shockingly as it should.

Then, in the late game, Derek Fisher leveled Louis Scola as he was trying to set a screen, drawing a flagrant foul and an ejection from the game.

Stu Jackson is going to have a busy morning, but by lunchtime, I fully expect both Alston and Fisher to be suspended for their respective Game 3s.

Though each player's infraction was different, Alston reacted out of frustration while Fisher looked like he was trying to send a message, both players were out of line and both deserve the punishment that they are sure to receive.

There is a fine line in the NBA playoffs between gritty and dirty. Both players crossed that line Wednesday night.

A gritty player in that situation would have found a way to stick it to his opponent with a dagger three or by hustling down a loose ball and giving his team an extra possession in the fourth quarter. A gritty player would have sent the same message that Fisher and Alston sent Wednesday night, but he would have done so without facing the possibility of a one game suspension.

It got me thinking: of the playoff teams remaining, who are the grittiest players left. Without further ado, it's the 2009 NBA Playoffs All-Grit Team.

PG Chauncey Billups, Denver Nuggets

Usually the grittiest player on the team doesn't double as the team's best player, but that's exactly the case with Chauncey. He just has a sixth sense for making big plays this time of year. Whether he's shooting a clutch three-pointer or hustling down a loose ball to spark his team as he did late in Tuesday's game two victory over the Mavs, Billups is always in the right place at the right time.

And while toughness is sometimes synonymous with dirty, that couldn't be further from the truth with Billups. The winner of the 2009 Joe Dumars Award for sportsmanship, Chauncey has proven that the one of grittiest players in the league can also be one of its classiest.

SG Courtney Lee, Orlando Magic

One of the key ingredients to being a gritty NBA player is the ability to play through injuries. After Lee suffered a fractured sinus (read: broken face) in Game 5 of the Magic's first round series against the Sixers, no one could have blamed him if he sat out the rest of the postseason. Instead, the rookie was fitted for a protective mask and intends to play in Game 3 of this series less than a week after suffering the injury.

Lee was one of the few consistent players for the Magic in their first round series, and if Alston is suspended for game three, Orlando will need his toughness more than ever on Friday night. The fact that Lee is even playing should be enough to give the Magic an emotional lift in the game. If he can continue to play his hard-nosed (no pun intended) brand of defense for the rest of this series, he can be instrumental in helping the Magic upset the defending champs.

SF Shane Battier, Houston Rockets

Any time you leave the floor a bloody mess, only to return to the floor minutes later all stitched up to continue the challenge of being the primary defender on Kobe Bryant, that takes grit. That's exactly what Battier did in game one, and his D on Kobe (32 points on 31 shots) was part of the reason the Rockets stole game one from the Lakers.

And even though Kobe got off in Game 2, it wasn't for a lack of effort on Battier's part. A lesser defender would have been rattled by Kobe's constant, "He can't guard me!" taunts after seemingly every bucket Wednesday night, but Battier continued to make Bryant work hard offensively.

Containing Kobe over a seven-game series is a near impossible task, and though he failed at it in game two, expect Battier to take the same rugged approach to slowing down the Black Mamba once the series shifts back to Houston. There may be some truth to Kobe's "he can't guard me" mantra, but I guarantee that Shane Battier doesn't think so. That's then mentality a gritty player must have.

PF Lamar Odom, Los Angeles Lakers

L.O. doesn't necessarily fit the mold of a gritty player; usually that title is reserved for the most fiery guys on the floor. But don't let Odom's laid back personality and finesse game fool you; he's as tough as they come.

Playing for a Laker team that's constantly taking heat for not being tough enough, all Odom has done this postseason is rank in the top five in rebounding and points in the paint. You don't rank in the top five in those categories without a lot of grit and determination inside.

And then there's this. After Phil Jackson told Odom that he'd be starting game two during the team's morning shoot-around, L.O. decided to forego driving his Rolls-Royce to the Staples Center for the game, opting instead to make the two-mile trek from his downtown Los Angeles loft on foot in order to achieve a higher level of focus before the game.

Was it necessary to walk to the arena? Probably not. Was it surprisingly cool? You bet. And was it gritty? Absolutely.

Anyone who leaves a $250,000 car parked in the garage, opting to walk to work instead, will earn the title of gritty in my book any day of the week.

C Chris Anderson, Denver Nuggets

Birdman is more than a faux-hawk and colorful tattoos; he's a force around the rim. Making high energy plays on defense is the calling card for a gritty player, and Anderson makes them in bunches. He is averaging over 2 blocks per game off the bench this postseason despite only playing 24 minutes per game.

As I've said before, it looks like it's about impossible to beat the Nuggets at home right now. Anderson is one of the main reasons for that. Every blocked shot or breakaway dunk that the Birdman has whips the Denver crowd into a frenzy, and you can bet on the fact that if Anderson has a block that leads to two points the other way it's going to be the start of a long run for the Nuggets.

Like most players on the All-Grit Team, Anderson's contributions may not always be reflected in the box score, but during this postseason, it's hard to find tape of the Birdman coming into the game and not being an immediate difference-maker. If that's not gritty, I don't know what is.