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The Hoop Collective: The LeBron James-Danny Ainge connection and the NBA's race to the finish

Brian Windhorst and a team of ESPN's Insiders sort out life and the news from in and around the NBA world, including one of the most influential people in this year's playoff push, the must-see games of the league's final regular-season week and why the Chicago Bulls are peaking at the right time.

It takes something truly special for LeBron James to feel warmth for Danny Ainge.

James, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar, and Ainge, the Utah Jazz CEO of basketball operations, are 26 years apart in age and have never played against each other on the court.