SAN ANTONIO – After struggling to score through the first three games of the NBA Finals, LeBron James has made several bold promises to his skeptics – and his fans – heading into Game 4.

"I'll be better," James said before the Heat's practice Wednesday afternoon. "I'll be much better [Thursday] night."

LeBron James vows to be more aggressive in Game 4 of the NBA Finals. (AP)The Heat trail the San Antonio Spurs 2-1 in the Finals after a 113-77 blowout loss in Game 3 in which James missed 14 of 21 shots, including 11 of his 13 attempts. James said he takes "full responsibility for that" and is putting pressure on himself to improve.

James is drawing much of the blame for the Heat's struggles after averaging 16.7 points on 38.9 percent shooting in the series. He has also missed 10 of 13 3-pointer attempts and only taken six free throws. In comparison, James averaged 29 points in the Eastern Conference finals against the Indiana Pacers, 23.6 points in the second round against the Chicago Bulls and 24.5 points in the first round against the Milwaukee Bucks.

"I'm

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Former Phoenix Suns coach Alvin Gentry will interview for the Memphis Grizzlies’ head-coaching job on Friday, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.

Alvin Gentry went 158-144 for parts of five seasons as Suns coach. (USA Today Sports)Gentry was contacted by the Grizzlies on Wednesday and is expected to interview with owner Robert Pera and CEO Jason Levien in Washington, D.C. Other coaching candidates include Grizzlies assistant coach Dave Joerger, former Denver Nuggets coach George Karl and Chicago Bulls assistant coach Ed Pickney, a league source said. Memphis is expected to conduct interviews through next week.

Gentry owns a 335-370 record as a head coach with the Suns, Los Angeles Clippers, Detroit Pistons and Miami Heat over 12 seasons. He was fired as head coach of the Suns on Jan. 18 after going 158-144 from 2008-13. Gentry could give a jolt to the Grizzlies’ struggling offense, which was ranked 26th in the NBA scoring last season with 93.4 points per game. The Clippers also have expressed interest in interviewing Gentry for their head-coaching opening, but nothing has

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SAN ANTONIO – Tony Parker has a slight right hamstring strain, but hopes to play in Thursday's Game 4 of the NBA Finals.

Parker underwent an MRI on Wednesday morning that revealed the strain and, importantly, didn't show a tear or defect. Parker announced the results on his Twitter account.

"Hopefully, I will be good [Thursday]," Parker said in a text to Yahoo! Sports.

Parker suffered the injury during the Spurs' 113-77 rout over the Miami Heat in Game 3 of the Finals. After the game, he said he was uncertain about the seriousness of the new injury and whether he would be able to play in Game 4.

Tony Parker played 27 minutes in Game 3 before leaving with a hamstring injury. (Getty Images)While the Spurs own a 2-1 lead in the series, losing Parker would present a major hurdle to their hopes of winning a fifth title.

"I'm trying to stay positive," Parker said late Tuesday. "Hopefully … I think it was just tight, a little cramp, a little bit of everything and I'll be fine. I'll wake up tomorrow and I'll be fine, that's my hope. I'll just try to stay positive."

Spurs coach Gregg

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SAN ANTONIO – So much for all the Big Three star power in these NBA Finals. Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili? LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh?

All of them had to make room for the San Antonio Spurs' Dynamic Duo: Danny Green and Gary Neal.

With Green scoring 27 points and Neal adding 24, the Spurs blitzed the Miami Heat 113-77 in Game 3 to take a 2-1 lead in the Finals.

Danny Green, left, and Gary Neal combined for 51 points for the Spurs in Game 3. (AP)The Spurs buried the Heat with a staggering Finals-record 16 3-pointers.The previous record was 14.

"We got what we deserved," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said in a clear reference to his team's defense, or lack of one.

Game 3 was a complete reverse from Game 2. After the Heat erupted late in the third quarter and well into the fourth to rout the Spurs on Sunday, San Antonio responded with its own barrage. Leading the way? Neal, Green, Kawhi Leonard and Cory Joseph.

Neal, an undrafted role player who played overseas and has bounced in and out of the Spurs' rotation, made 6 of 10 3-pointers. Green, who had twice been

Read More »from Spurs crush Heat with NBA Finals-record 16 3-pointers, barrage from Danny Green, Gary Neal

MIAMI – Tony Parker was stumped and gave up on an answer after a pause of about 15 seconds. There have been nearly 1,000 regular-season and postseason games to choose from in the 10 seasons that the San Antonio Spurs' Big Three have been together. Even so, Parker couldn't think of another game when he, Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili played as poorly collectively on offense as they did Sunday night in Game 2 of the NBA Finals.

Parker, Duncan and Ginobili combined for 10-of-33 shooting from the field and made a combined eight free throws for 27 points during a 103-84 series-tying loss to the Miami Heat at AmericanAirlines Arena.

"It's been a long time. A long time," Parker said. "You know, that's basketball. It happens sometimes. I can't remember the last time all three of us were off. I cannot remember." 

[Related: Miami Heat T-shirts miss one key point]

Tim Duncan missed 10 of 13 shots in Sunday's blowout in Miami. (AP) There didn't appear to be reason for concern in the first half of Game 2 as the Spurs' trio combined for 21 points while the Heat held a

Read More »from Memorable flop from Spurs' Big Three one they want to forget heading into Game 3

MIAMI – It wasn't a triple-double, and for much of the first three quarters, LeBron James' performance in Game 2 of the NBA Finals wasn't pretty. Nevertheless, James showed why he's the reigning MVP with an awesome display of athleticism on both ends of the court in the fourth quarter in the Heat's rout of the San Antonio Spurs, 103-84, on Sunday, a beatdown that tied the Finals after two games at AmericanAirlines Arena.

James highlighted a 30-5 Heat run with a stunning block of a tomahawk dunk attempt from the Spurs' Tiago Splitter, followed by an assist on a Ray Allen 3-pointer and a breakaway dunk seconds after the triple.

James finished with 17 points on 7-of-17 shooting from the field; he entered the final quarter 3 of 13.

Before the run, Miami went up 54-46 following two James free throws with 9:05 left in the third quarter. The Spurs countered with a 16-7 run to take a 62-61 lead following a Danny Green finger roll lay-in with 3:50 left in third.

Miami got the last – and

Read More »from LeBron James, Heat blow out Spurs to even NBA Finals after Game 2

LeBron James and Dwyane Wade goof around at practice Saturday, but they expect to be serious Sunday. (AP)

MIAMI – "Must-win" talk is typically reserved for playoff games later in a series. But with a less than typical situation on hand for the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals' 2-3-2 home-court format, Dwyane Wade already views Game 2 as critical against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday night.

"It's very urgent," Wade said Saturday after the Heat's practice. "Obviously you don't want to go down 0 2 going to San Antonio for three straight games. Odds are not that good. They are not in our favor. We're not a team that really says too much [like], 'This is a must win game.' But this is a must win game."

[Y! Sports Fan Shop: Buy 2013 NBA Finals merchandise]

Before losing the Finals opener on Thursday night, Miami was 7-2 at home in this year's postseason. The Spurs are 6-1 in the playoffs at AT&T Center and 9-2 overall in Finals history in San Antonio. Dwyane Wade is pleased with himself after hitting a half-court shot at Friday's practice. (AP)

LeBron James took a different public tone Saturday than his sidekick, saying, "Every game is important. Game 1, Game 2, 3, 4, no matter 2-3-2 format

Read More »from Dwyane Wade sounds alarm for Heat, declares Game 2 a 'must-win'

MIAMI – Painful.

That was how it felt for coach Erik Spoelstra to watch film of the NBA Finals opener with LeBron James and the rest of the Miami Heat players.

"We already had a long film session. Whether they watch more, I don't know," Spoelstra said before practice Friday, less than 24 hours after Miami lost 92-88 to San Antonio. "That was probably enough. That was painful enough to go back and see all the opportunities when we're up to be able to finish possessions, close it out and close out the game both ends of the court in the last six minutes. "You have to give [the Spurs] credit, and we scored 16 points in the fourth quarter." LeBron James on Chris Bosh: "We need that paint attack from him." (USA Today Sports)

The media session, let alone the film study, had to be painful for Heat forward Chris Bosh as he was questioned for taking and missing three 3-pointers late in Game 1 rather than spending more time in the paint scoring and getting rebounds. Bosh had 13 points on 6-of-16 shooting and only five rebounds in 35 minutes. He also missed all four of his

Read More »from Heat's top concerns for Game 2: Chris Bosh's shooting, potential LeBron-Parker matchup