Leading Off: Pictures of the Week

Leading Off: Pictures of the Week

Marvin Gentry/US PRESSWIRE

NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Mike Wallace crashes the No. 1 G&K Services car in his quest to win the Aaron's 312 at Talladega Superspeedway.

David Ebener/dpa/Corbis

Motorcycle acrobats light up the night sky during a charity rally in Kulmbach, Germany on April 16.

Bob Rosato/SI

Eager to show he can fill the shoes of departed wide receiver Julio Jones, sophomore wide receiver Kevin Norwood (83) goes vertical for a pass during the Alabama spring game.

Fred Vuich/SI

Sports Illustrated photographer Fred Vuich snaps a fisheye view of Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik (right) checking Lightning forward Steve Downie during Game 1 of their Stanley Cup quarterfinal match.

Greg Nelson/SI

Dirk Nowitzki (top left) goes over the back of center Tyson Chandler for a layup during Game 1 of the Trail Blazers-Mavericks game in the first round of the NBA playoffs. Nowitzki would score 28 points during the Mavericks' 89-81 victory.

Chuck Solomon/SI

New York Mets second baseman Daniel Murphy and Colorado Rockies third baseman Ian Stewart race to the bag during the Mets' 6-5 loss to the Rockies in the first game of a doubleheader. The Mets would lose the second game of the doubleheader as well.

Dmitry Kostyukov/AFP/Getty Images

One hundred and five kilograms proved to be too much for Ukraine's Oleksiy Torohtiy, as he falls over attempting to lift said weight during the men's 105 kg weightlifting finals at the European senior weightlifting championships.

Fred Vuich/SI

Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury (29) goes on all fours to defend a shot from Tampa Bay Lightning center Steven Stamkos (91) during the Lightning's 5-1 victory over the Penguins.

Glenn James/NBAE/Getty Images

Dallas Mavericks center Brendan Haywood dunks with gusto during the Mavericks' 89-81 win over the Trail Blazers in Game 1 of the Western Conference quarterfinals. The dunk was Haywood's only basket of the game.

John G. Mabanglo/EPA

Oakland Athletics center fielder Coco Crisp, who normally wears his hair in braids, can't hide his enthusiasm over his new hairdo during an Athletics-Tigers game on April 14.

John Gress/Reuters

Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose plays some overzealous defense on Indiana Pacers point guard Darren Collison during the Bulls' 104-99 come-from-behind win over the Pacers in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinals match.

Kathy Willens

New York Yankees reliever Joba Chamberlain finally finds a use for his gargantuan girth, using it to block Baltimore Orioles outfielder Felix Pie from scoring on a wild pitch during the Yankees' 6-5 victory over the Orioles.

John W. McDonough/SI

Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant slips by New Orleans Hornets forward Carl Landry during their Western Conference quarterfinals match, but Bryant and his 34 points were not enough to overcome the Hornets, who defeated the Lakers 109-100.

Don Wright

No one took it easy during Pittsburgh's spring game, a fact Blue wide receiver Mike Shanahan (center) later regretted.

Golovanov Kivrin/AFP/Getty Images

Italian Roberta Vinci serves to Russian Vera Zvonareva during their Federation Cup semifinal match in Moscow. Zvonareva won 6-4, 6-2 to give Russia a 3-0 lead over Italy.

Toby Melville/Reuters

Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure (left) scores the game-winning goal during Manchester City's 1-0 FA Cup semifinals match victory over Manchester United on April 16.

Rainer Jensen/dpa/Corbis

A bird's-eye view captures the start of the Hoppegarten Fliegerpreis in Berlin, Germany on April 17.

Heinz Kluetmeier/SI

Dwyane Wade against the 76ers on Wednesday.