LINEUP
FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT
38 STEROIDS: TEN YEARS LATER
To cheat or not to cheat? A decade after SI shined a light on the national pastime's dirty secret, players still struggle with how they and their teammates answered that one question
BY TOM VERDUCCI
STANLEY CUP FINALS
52 THE KINGS' LONG QUEST
The franchise that rarely rises above second-banana status in Los Angeles is closing in on its first championship—and a chance to rewrite its hapless history
BY MICHAEL FARBER
SI'S FINALS PREDICTION
NBA PLAYOFFS
58 BOSTON'S BIG THREE
The injured, aging Celtics reached another conference finals. Whether or not the series is the talented trio's last stand will depend on the play of a kid they molded
BY IAN THOMSEN
BONUS
64 THE ART OF BOXING
The savagery and spectacle of prizefighting, in the work of George Bellows
BY ALEXANDER WOLFF
DEPARTMENTS
4 SI Digital
6 Leading Off
12 The Mail
15 Scorecard
Can horse racing be saved?
24 Just My Type
Carson Palmer's timeout
BY DAN PATRICK
26 Faces in the Crowd
30 Inside ...
Motor Sports
MLB
NBA
72 Point After
Fighting cancer as a team
BY PHIL TAYLOR
ON THE COVER: PHOTOGRAPH BY ROGERS PHOTO ARCHIVE/GETTY IMAGES; INSET BY JAMES PORTO
Please Recycle This Magazine Remove Inserts or Samples Before Recycling
PHOTO
MICHAEL J. CLARKE (CELTICS)
BIG GREEN MEN Paul Pierce (center) and the Celtics try to stave off the end of an era.
PHOTO