|  |  |  | | | | | Ball Don't Lie - NBA - Yahoo! Sports | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  With championship rings, especially in the NBA, getting more and more elaborate every year, the Lakers knew they had to do something to make their most recent Finals reward stand-out from all the others. Something bigger than the rings they took in last year, but perhaps a little more understated than, say, outfitting each of them with a personalized, talking hologram. So, with team owner Dr. Jerry Buss' blessing, the Lakers added a special twist to the rings they received in Los Angeles on Tuesday. Each of the 60 rings (handed out to players, coaches, and organization personnel) include leather bits made from cut up pieces of the ball that was used in last June's Game 7. (Even for Kobe Bryant, who did most of his work with bricks during Game 7, as opposed to leather. Hilarious.) The leather strips are included on the underside of the ring, and it seems like a nice little touch, especially as these rocks (that Phil Jackson called "unwearable" before Tuesday night's opener) get more and more ostentatious. Beyond the leather, there are over three karats worth of diamonds (including 16 oversized diamonds symbolic of the team's 16 championships), and to hear Dave McMenamin of ESPN Los Angeles tell it, "a 3-dimensional sculpture of his face, an upgrade from the laser-cut faces on the 2009 rings." The upgrade is courtesy Jason of Beverly Hills, if you're interested. Tuesday's ring ceremony offered another nice touch in the way it allowed each Laker to introduce their teammates, handing the mic over after offering a few reverent sentiments. Nothing really stood out -- a beaming Ron Artest didn't say anything outrageous -- though special assistant coach Rasheem Hazzard (son of NBA legend and former Laker executive Walt Hazzard) could not have been happy at being passed over by also-legendary Laker public address announcer Lawrence Tanter during the introductions of the assistant coaches. Look at how he awkwardly tries to get into the frame after Tanter calls Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's name out. If the Lakers win it again this year, I say they pass over Kareem next October. It's only fair. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 
In Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, and Jerry West's debut as teammates, their Los Angeles Lakers lost to the defending champion Philadelphia 76ers by a 114-96 score. In Michael Jordan, Dennis Rodman, and Scottie Pippen's debut with the Chicago Bulls, Pippen was forced to leave the game after 10 scoreless minutes with a back injury, but the Bulls still prevailed by a 105-91 score. In Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce's debut as teammates with the Boston Celtics, the eventual champs demolished the Washington Wizards, 103-83. So how did LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh fare in their debut with the Miami Heat? Well, to hear Miami coach Erik Spoelstra tell it, the Heat were "atrocious" in a 88-80 defeat to the Boston Celtics. He wouldn't be wrong in that description, at least to start the game. Miami scored just nine points in the first quarter, and 30 overall in the first half, fewer points than they scored in any quarter or half during all of 2009-10. And that team was filled with spare parts and expiring contracts. Dwyane Wade (who played only three minutes during Miami's preseason due to a hamstring injury) managed to miss 12 of 16 shots, along with six turnovers and several missed defensive cues. Bosh wasn't much better, shooting 3-11. James managed 31 points, and helped spark a second half comeback that made this a one-possession game with under a minute to go, but he coughed the ball up eight times himself. Boston wasn't much better, turning the ball over consistently and letting Miami back in the game during the fourth quarter, but the Heat had dug themselves too deep a hole, as the first game of the NBA season ended in defeat. Stay tuned tomorrow at BDL for full coverage of Miami's first night out. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 
Miami Heat at Boston Celtics Of course this is the game to watch. It could be the first spark in a stunning epoch that defines our generation and dominates our run as basketball fans. This is the most important game of the night, this will be the most entertaining game of the night, and we will learn more from this game than any of the other two. But please pay attention to this game. The one that has the Rockets playing in Los Angeles. Because, as we step away from the all-consuming mania that surrounds the current version of the Miami Heat, this game ticks all our boxes. Yao Ming. The triangle offense. Interesting rookies, and pickups about to spend their first full season in a new uniform. Pau Gasol passing the ball to Kobe Bryant, and vice versa. The Heat and the Celtics may run the best, most important game Tuesday night, but man are we looking forward to the Rockets playing the Lakers. There's also this, from Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register: With the players wearing special warmups with satin patches commemorating 16 championship banners on their backs, the Lakers will receive their new championship rings. It will be a unique ceremony, with a format meant to reflect the deeper bonds that go into being back-to-back NBA champions. After Lakers coach Phil Jackson receives his championship ring, he will take the Staples Center public-address microphone and do a brief, self-scripted introduction of the first Lakers player. Each player will come forward to receive his ring -- and then perform his own individual introduction for the next player.
Sounds like a ceremony that could be rife with drama, unintentional hilarity, and copious retellings full of basketball knowledge. Kind of like the season itself. We'll be sure to try to document it the entire way. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  A look around the league and the web that covers it. It's also important to note that the rotation order and starting nods aren't always listed in order of importance. That's for you, dear reader, to figure out.
C: Land O' Lakers. A look at how Kobe Bryant's approach to winning has changed over the years (and continues to evolve today).
PF: NBA. There are more international players on Opening Day rosters this year than at any other point in league history.
SF: Voice on the Floor. You will never look at Josh Smith the same way again. I promise.
SG: NBA FanHouse. Start the Summer of 2011 Oden Watch ... now.
PG: Ehrl the Pearl (via The Knicks Blog). "You won't get Brooklyn without a fight, Prokhorov," said Amar'e, probably.
6th. The Basketball Jones. The season's first full-length video, and Melas already has me crying.
7th. Green Street. Oddly mesmerizing video of a diesel Kendrick Perkins taking shots at Celtics practice.
8th. New Orleans Times-Picayune. Jerryd Bayless says he's a point guard. I say he's a copy editor's nightmare. We're both sort of right.
9th. CNN. Steve Kerr on the three L's: league economics, lockouts and LeBron.
10th. FreeDarko. The official 2010-11 FD Player Rankings. I love Serge Ibaka right where he is. Got a link or tip for Ball Don't Lie? Give me a shout at yourmandevine (at) yahoo.com, or follow me on Twitter. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 
It's a pretty simple recipe for success: Talk to Charles Barkley, present him with a topic, ask him to say the first thing that pops into his head, be tickled/astonished/upset/happy at whatever tumbles out of his mouth, season to taste. Pretty much every time someone sticks a microphone, camera or pen-and-pad in the face of America's favorite irascible so-and-so, he says something that's sure to evoke a reaction, so it makes sense that GQ would want to play word association with the Chuckster. (Even if you figure they were hoping his answers wouldn't be all that gentlemanly.)
Published in the November issue of the men's magazine, Devin Gordon's rapid-fire interview features Barkley's immediate reactions to an array of names and notions that have made news in the run-up to the NBA season. As literally everyone who knows anything about Charles Barkley could have predicted, he offered some sharp comments on topics ranging from LeBron James' move to the Miami Heat ("If they don't win, he is going to get crucified") to the looming specter of a 2011 lockout ("Any professional league that goes on strike right now — that's just suicide") to Gilbert Arenas bringing handguns into the Washington Wizards locker room ("I don't know what the hell that was"). But the most eye-popping comment — the signature pull quote that Barkley seems to drop in every interview, without fail — came in response to a one-word prompt that had nothing to do with the hardwood. Gambling. [In 2006, Barkley said his lifetime gambling losses were 'probably $10 million.'] Yeah, I like to gamble. And I'm going to keep gambling. And I just have to tell people, if they don't like it, they can kiss my ass. [Bleep] 'em. You know, I quit gambling for a while. But then I was like, 'Why am I quitting gambling? I don't have a problem.'
Sure, that collection of words will make readers take notice, but to be honest, the thing that's scraping hardest against the inside of my skull is the amount of trouble I'm having getting riled up over it at all. What about any of that is different from anything we've heard from Charles Barkley a million times over? We know he likes gambling. We know he likes saying "ass." We know he never really planned to stop gambling. (I'm guessing he's never planned to stop the other thing, either.) You might take issue with the "[Bleep] 'em" statement; I'm Brooklyn Irish Catholic, so that doesn't really offend my sensibilities. If anything about the comments is worth getting upset about, it might be the relative lack of progress laid bare in the lines, but be honest — are you really bothered by that? Think about how willingly you clicked "Read More." Think about how eager you are, every single time, to hear what Charles has to say about X, Y, or Z. (If you're not, you're a better man than I am — if I heard his voice in the middle of a test of the Emergency Broadcast System, I'd stop scanning channels and stay put until he was done.) We're that eager because we want this thing, exactly. That comment is Charles Barkley being the personality we've all spent years telling him that we want him to be — a self-destructive demigod who overindulges in nearly all things, positive and negative, and in doing so makes us laugh, even when he's walking on the razor's edge and telling us to screw off. This is the business we've chosen, the script we've written, and Charles continues to chew the scenery, persistently knocking the role he was born to play out of the park. For better or for worse. Really, for me, the only emotion the comments are evoking right now are concern and hope. I'm concerned that Barkley said he doesn't have a problem, because even when he was trying to weather the storm, even when he was sloughing off the unpaid debts, even when he was talking about how nobody ever seems to think gambling's so bad when they're winning, he'd at least cop to having some degree of a problem. (He's always been more reticent to use the term "addict," although during a halftime interview with TNT colleague Ernie Johnson after the 2006 ESPN interview broke, Barkley referred to golfer Jon Daly's struggles by saying, "And I wish him luck with our gambling addiction" [emphasis mine].) I'm also hopeful that he's right, that he knows what he's dealing with better than I do, that we've all always been blowing everything out of proportion, and that he stays viable, relevant, safe and present for as long as is humanly possible. Because even though I'm at least a little ashamed of whatever part I've played in writing Barkley's script, God help me, I love to watch him take the stage. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  You might remember this story from the summer; which comes to an unofficial end tonight for us NBAniks, as the season begins. Cleveland-area Cavaliers fans wanted nothing to do with their LeBron James apparel once the "self-proclaimed King" signed with the Miami Heat, so why not collect the unused gear and ship it down to Miami, for the less fortunate to wear? Of course, Miami-area politicians weren't exactly receptive to this sort of half-joke/half-gift. But that hasn't stopped Clevelanders from taking their Toyota down to South Beach and handing the stuff out themselves. In what is one of the more engaging reads of the year, Gus Garcia-Roberts and Vince Grzegorek detail the story on '64 and Counting: One forward-thinking local citizen stepped forward to collect your unwanted jerseys - and sneakers and T-shirts and everything else LeBron - and ship it to Miami for distribution to the homeless. In short order, Chris Jungjohann (pronounced "Young John") founded "Break Up With LeBron," a DIY collection using a website and boxes distributed at supermarkets and Yours Truly restaurants around Cleveland. Foolish, he figured, to burn perfectly good clothing that somebody somewhere would gladly wear. Within weeks, Jungjohann had amassed more than 400 jerseys and other items. The only remaining detail was delivery to those in need. It was simple brilliance, but it was doomed to meet the buzzsaw of south Florida bureaucracy. The Miami Coalition for the Homeless and several other agencies rejected Jungjohann's bounty. "It's on hold right now," policy director Rita Clark told us, adding that Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado was privately against the project, though his spokesperson denied it. "There's a lot of politics around this." "The general consensus was that it was an attempt to mock the homeless population," explained Ron Book, chairman of the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust. "The reaction was a tense but pleasant ‘No thanks.'"
Well, yeah. It was meant to mock the homeless, just after the mocking of LeBron James had finished. At the very least, if the minds behind the idea were in it for solely benevolent reasons, then they would have sent the jerseys to several cities, in amounts predicated on the amount of homeless in that particular urban setting. The fact that the bureaucracy has taken its typical hold within Miami's political scene does nothing to change that. The people stopping the shipment of LeBron James jerseys to Miami's homeless are sniveling, worrisome hand-wringers at this point, but this doesn't do anything to distract from the idea that this was a gimmick, plain and simple. The homeless need everything they can get, and a jersey (of any origin) would help. But this is still just a basketball jersey, a polyester brand of logo and mesh without any sleeves, and hardly the most comforting style one could bestow on someone who has to live outdoors most every night. If the minds behind this idea were honest about their intentions, they'd pool all this hateful LeBron imagery and sell it online, then take the proceeds and buy a series of shirts, sweaters, hoodies and pants; to then distribute to whatever charitable organization needed it most. But to send Cleveland Cavalier jerseys with LeBron James' name on the back to Miami is just a bad joke. It was a noble sentiment, until they were offered to Miami-only homeless. The good thing? The people behind the initial offer are trying to get past the "bad joke" part of it all. This is a redemption story nonpareil, told by fans that were hurt to a degree unseen in the annals of popular sport. I can't even look at a picture of a Cleveland-era LeBron James jersey without shaking my head, and I'm not even a Cavs fan. How these guys do it, and work with this apparel, is beyond me. There is still a lot to argue about, regarding their approach ("wino and gold," in reference to the Cavalier team colors? Not cool), but hopefully some minds can be changed here. This is truly a great read. Nothing heroic, and certainly nothing satisfying, but well worth your time. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 
Last year's record? 37-45, missed playoffs. Significant departures? Darren Collison, Morris Peterson, James Posey, Julian Wright, Darius Songaila. Significant arrivals? Trevor Ariza, Jerryd Bayless, Marco Belinelli, Willie Green, D.J. Mbenga. Whoa boy. Projected record, as predicted three months ago in time to publish in Yahoo! Sports' NBA Preview Magazine? 44-38 Why I think that sounds about right? Because, until we hear differently, the best point guard in the NBA will be playing a full season of basketball for the New Orleans Hornets. This could change in an instant. As it was last year, all it takes is an ankle turn to create a pear-shaped reality for the Hornets, but it does bear mentioning that Paul has enjoyed three healthy seasons to two gimpy seasons in his five-year run. He's had two bad breaks, which doesn't exactly remind us of Bill Walton at this point. And that's really all I have in New Orleans' favor right now. This team has a very good starting five, and with Paul on board in a seven game series anything can happen. I trust new GM Dell Demps based on his time spent with the San Antonio Spurs, but his initial offseason returns (as listed above) really leave a lot to be desired. At whatever cost, these aren't roster fillers to get excited about. Why I think I might be terribly, terribly wrong? The team has a new coach that appears to prefer the contributions of Marco Belinelli over the work of a player who might be one of the best young shooting guards this league has to offer. We should approach Monty Williams' first gig as head man with a glass half-full line of thinking, but we should also be wary of anyone who isn't completely smitten with the work that Marcus Thornton put in last season. On top of that, the team dumped one of this league's better young point guards for a middling player in Trevor Ariza that chucks like a superstar, the team's depth is nonexistent, and Paul reportedly wanted out of this mess even before the trade that swapped Darren Collison for Ariza. This is a team to root for, because Paul is so brilliant, and there are so many underrated parts (everyone really needs to watch Emeka Okafor, now that he's been needlessly humbled). But the ceiling is limited, even if Paul and David West are a two-man act for our time. Dan Devine's Corner Three  Mark Eaton rhymes ...
Made-up limericks about "going for it" in the NBA regular season and in life, from the 7-foot-4 former Utah Jazz center and current celebrity motivational speaker.
Okafor is an adequate center.
He rebounds and guards all who enter
The paint. Though he's not
A star at that spot,
He's better than Gray and Mbenga.
--
Let's take a closer look at Pops Mensah-Bonsu, who is having a rough day.
This has been a closer look at Pops Mensah-Bonsu, who is having a rough day.
--
We'll be missing you
Nos vem mes tart, James Posey. Your unique brand of defense (employed here against Stephen Jackson of the Charlotte Bobcats) makes you a pick to click with the Indiana Pacers. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  Looks like you've got your hands full, Crunch. Whenever Wayne Ellington sees Pillow Pets, he just loses it. If you want to get him one, that's fine, but he's already got plenty at home. Man, who knew it could be so hard being the Minnesota Timberwolves mascot/official Toys "R" Us chaperone?
Best caption wins a delighted adult's smile. Good luck. In our last adventure: Russell Westbrook thinks what you said was so funny. Like, "Two-Point-Five Mens" funny.
 Winner, The Football God: "Sunday is Halloween. Show me your jack-o-lantern face."
Runner-up, Roger Mason Jr = Hero: Westbrook gave a surprising reaction when asked about Coach K's ability to handle an NBA gig. Second runner-up, Space Coast Paul: In the second installment of our exciting new 226-part feature, "Players with their mouths wide open," Yahoo! Sports is pleased to present Russell Westbrook. On deck: Rajon Rondo. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 
Last year's record? 40-42, missed playoffs. Significant departures? None that are in any way significant. Significant arrivals? Tony Allen (whom Chris Sheridan predicted will win Defensive Player of the Year this season because, well, good god that's so incredibly ridiculous on several different levels), Xavier Henry, Greivis Vasquez, possibly Acie Law IV. Projected record, as predicted three months ago in time to publish in Yahoo! Sports' NBA Preview Magazine? 40-42 Why I think that sounds about right? Probably, though this wasn't much of a consideration when I tossed out that prediction, because the Grizzlies won 40 out of 82 games last year, and didn't really change their team in the slightest as it heads into 2010-11. While that shouldn't be a reason to predict 40-42, it does kind of make sense in retrospect. Just about every Grizzlies player will be a small step better in 2010-11, if they want to, as each of these youngsters makes a small move toward their respective primes. This should be enough to counter a Western conference that will be wise to the Memphis ways. Why I think I might be terribly, terribly wrong? Because it's hard to depend on Zach Randolph. The man made noise regarding a contract extension over the summer, which isn't the dumbest thing he's ever done, but it is a bit of a sliding scale with someone like Zach Randolph. The burly power forward put it all together last season, handing the Grizzlies the same sort of on-paper production that he's come through with in Portland, New York, and Los Angeles; but styled in a quick, efficient manner that actually won games. It may have been a fluke, though. He might come through with 20 and 10 this season, but at what cost? And does Rudy Gay, a guy that has pretty much been the same player since he entered the NBA in 2006, finally take a step beyond the realm of just getting by on talent? Does Marc Gasol get the ball more? Does Mike Conley realize that he's just Mike Conley? Does Lionel Hollins make it through December without calling Jack Ramsay up and agreeing to that contract extension? Does the implosion we incorrectly predicted for 2009-10 finally take place? I love Memphis. Any extra bit of scratch and weekend off that I have, I head down there. I absolutely love the city, love that there is an NBA team in that city, and I really (truly) enjoy watching the players that are on this team. I loved watching them last year, as they put it all together, and I'm rooting for them again this year. Just understand, though, that treading water is an accomplishment for this lot. Dan Devine's Corner Three Mark Eaton rhymes ...
Made-up limericks about "going for it" in the NBA regular season and in life, from the 7-foot-4 former Utah Jazz center and current celebrity motivational speaker.
Marc Gasol is this league's one true hope.
That beard, at the five, is so dope.
I'm proud as can be
Of that hirsute family.
Wait, do beards equal wins yet? "Nope." ... (Beards should equal wins.) -- Let's take a closer look at Greivis Vasquez, who just rang his neighbor's doorbell and is running away so fast. This has been a closer look at Greivis Vasquez, who just rang his neighbor's doorbell and is running away so fast.
--
We'll be missing you
Aloha 'oe, Ronnie Brewer. Because you partially tore your right hamstring during your first game with the Grizz after being coming over from the Utah Jazz in exchange for a first-round pick (solid value there), not enough people got the chance to appreciate your headband/wristband homage to well-regarded mid-'80s WWF tag team The Killer Bees. Pity. The NBA is an unforgiving mistress, Ron-Ron Brew-Brew. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  Kids can do some pretty stupid things in the face of someone famous. Adults can do the same, even. I once said to Adam Duritz, "hey, great set" after a show of his that I bartended. You just do it to be nice, no matter how much it betrays your deepest-held beliefs. Even if you're a Laker fan in the face of the longest tenured Boston Celtic. But when you cross that line and expect Paul Pierce (a Los Angeles native) to sign something for you, you better come correct. And not with a Laker flag. Geesh. Jackie MacMullan has put together a great (and somewhat gross, as you'll read) piece on Pierce as he enters his 13th season with Boston, including an anecdote that has Pierce trying to chow down on a beef burger at Johnny Rocket's in L.A., only to be interrupted by an autograph-seeking fan that he had previously seen run out of the restaurant minutes earlier. Paul takes it from here. "He came back with the biggest Lakers flag I've ever seen," Pierce said. "Asked me to sign it. I snatched that thing from him and threw it [across the room]."
Seriously, Laker fan? Such obsessive was my fandom that, even as a child, had I seen Isiah Thomas or Mark Aguirre walking around their native Chicago, I wouldn't have asked for an autograph. Much less on a Chicago Bulls flag. But I was, and am, a freak. The rules are different for me. Still, teenager trying to get an autograph of a Boston Celtic, you're really going to try and ask him to sign a Laker flag? Even a decade ago, it would have been pretty stupid, but to attempt it after these two teams have met in the Finals twice in the last three years? If I were Pierce, I would have thrown ketchup all over the damn thing. The column comes highly recommended, moving far beyond the ha-ha story as quoted above. Great work from the Hall of Famer on the soon-to-be Hall of Famer. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Working from home has its privileges, when the local ISP allows, and I will be eternally grateful for the opportunity to ply my trade in settings of my own design. Though there's nothing like pounding out a good 800 words in a sweaty post-game in a nervous and exhausted media room, and I'm sure there are joys untold behind tossing copy around under the unforgiving glare of the fluorescent-lit and asbestos-insulated newspaper offices, I will always treasure the fact that I am lucky enough to be able to work from home. Especially since I moved out of my parents' basement. I don't have an office, though. The funds just aren't there, yet. Until I do, the living room will have to suffice. And though I'm allowed to decorate my little corner of the living room in whatever fashion suits my leanings, I've only decided to decorate it with one thing. Well, two things. 
These are copes of James Naismith's original 13 rules for the game of basketball. I bought them, rather inexpensively, from Naismith's grandson Ian a few years ago, and while I still don't understand why Ian had to sign my copies, I'm grateful for the chance to talk and interact with the grandson of the man who changed my life. I met Ian in a mall in Lafayette, Indiana -- the heart of hoop country, to be sure, but let's get real; it was a mall in Lafayette, Indiana. Not the most stunning of locations. But Ian was on the road, trying to get the message out about a game that he thinks has been led astray; and as someone who is reminded on a daily basis as to why this game is as great as it has ever been, I didn't really want to hear more complaints about Latrell Sprewell. A full decade, during my meeting with Naismith, after Spre's final game with the Golden State Warriors. His earnestness, though, was coming from the right place. Ian's having some health problems of his own these days, and after years of obsessively tending to the care of his grandfather's monumental on-paper achievement, he's decided to put the original 13 up for auction. In an auction house that seems suitable for their presence - Sotheby's. Richard Sandomir of the New York Times has the story: Now, it is safeguarded at Sotheby's, which will auction it in Manhattan on Dec. 10. Sotheby's expects it to sell for at least $2 million. In a telephone interview from North Carolina last week, Ian Naismith said the family has previously had offers for the document, but had turned them down. Naismith said that he contacted Sotheby's to sell the rules to replenish the fund of the Naismith International Basketball Foundation, which he said had suffered because of his wife's death and his health problems. A few years ago, Hellen Carpenter, a cousin he said he had never met, sold some of his grandfather's effects at another auction.
Ian clearly cares a great deal about his grandfather's legacy, so I have implicit faith in the guy that he's making the right decision. It can't be easy for him -- the man walked around with the original rules locked in a metal suitcase that was seriously handcuffed to him for years -- but he of all people knows what's best in this situation. And hopefully the documents' newest home will afford them somewhat near the same care and love shown to them by Ian Naismith. The entire piece by Sandomir is really a fantastic read, even if you are already well versed in the story behind the rules. It's especially fun to go through if you're reading or about to read Free Darko's Undisputed Guide to Pro Basketball, which we'll have a review of later this week at BDL. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 
A look around the league and the web that covers it. It's also important to note that the rotation order and starting nods aren't always listed in order of importance. That's for you, dear reader, to figure out.
C: Y!. Sources tell Marc J. Spears and Adrian Wojnarowski that Allen Iverson has agreed in principle to a two-year contract with Besiktas of the Turkish professional league.
PF: Basketball-Reference. The B-R supercomputer's projected 2010-11 NBA standings.
SF: The No-Look Pass. "Ronny Turiaf Is Into Anime." Obviously.
SG: The Painted Area. Ten non-Heat vets that the estimable M. Haubs is psyched to see this year.
PG: TBJ. Holly MacKenzie profiles Toronto Raptors reserve Joey Dorsey. Fantastic read.
6th. Miami Herald. The story behind Udonis Haslem's return to Miami is pretty amazing.
7th. SLAM. Charles' definition of what would constitute success for the Heat is pretty heavy.
8th. NBA Playbook. What makes the Los Angeles Lakers' triangle offense work?
9th. ESPN Boston. Paul Pierce tells Jackie MacMullan about his "geyser" knee. Pretty gross.
10th. Washington Post. French Wiz rook Kevin Seraphin raps in Creole. Call it a 24-second violation. (BOOM.) Got a link or tip for Ball Don't Lie? Give me a shout at yourmandevine (at) yahoo.com, or follow me on Twitter. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 
Last year's record? 55-27, lost in the first round to the San Antonio Spurs. Significant departures? Eduardo Najera, Erick Dampier. Significant arrivals? Brian Cardinal, Tyson Chandler, Ian Mahinmi, Steve Novak. Really pushing it with that last one. And the first one. Possibly the third and second one. Projected record, as predicted three months ago in time to publish in Yahoo! Sports' NBA Preview Magazine? 52-30 Why I think that sounds about right? Because, as much as age sets in, and as much as a lack of depth will likely keep the Mavericks away from the ranks of the championship contender, Dallas will still field a sound rotation of basketball players that will give them a chance to beat every team -- every single one of them -- soundly on any given night. Even if Jason Kidd won't be able to pop jumpers all night as a threat off of a screen and roll, and if Dirk Nowitzki finally does decide to not act like an All-NBA player, the core is good enough to keep this team competitive, and in the race for that distant second spot behind the Los Angeles Lakers. Why I think I might be terribly, terribly wrong? Though drop-offs in production due to age are inevitable, and often predicted with good accuracy, those declines can often take fans, paid observers, players and organizations by surprise. And if Dirk takes a small step back, Kidd takes a small step back, Jason Terry takes a small step back, Tyson Chandler never finds his footing due to injury, and Brendan Haywood/Caron Butler stay about the same? This could be the first Mavericks team in Mark Cuban's full-season ownership run (he took over the Mavs midway through 1999-00) that fails to hit 50 wins. But I doubt it. Dirk might not rebound anymore, but he can still fill it up. Kidd's smarts alone have kept him more than treading water even as his legs fail him, and if Rick Carlisle can find the right balance in that backcourt (read: stop playing Jose Juan Barea, run more lobs for Roddy Beaubois), then it wouldn't be a surprise if the Mavs actually topped the record I have them pegged for. The Mavericks aren't really excellent at anything, but they are pretty good at just about everything. This pays off in regular season wins, if not postseason glory. Dan Devine's Corner Three Mark Eaton rhymes ...
Made-up limericks about "going for it" in the NBA regular season and in life, from the 7-foot-4 former Utah Jazz center and current celebrity motivational speaker.
Dirk has such a smooth three-point shot.
He's unstoppable when he gets hot.
But without more playoff help,
Fans will be left to yelp
As Dallas title hopes once again rot. --
Let's take a closer look at Brian Cardinal, who just saw "Paranormal Activity 2."
This has been a closer look at Brian Cardinal, who just saw "Paranormal Activity 2."
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We'll be missing you Hasta la vista, Eddy. I'm sure they'll enjoy both your feathery floater and your proclivity for unleashing knifehand strikes on unsuspecting defenders in Charlotte. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Like Tiger Woods, LeBron James is turning to Nike to help rehabilitate his image. Here's the latest Nike commercial, which was just released. And it's not bad.
And the thing that hits, before anything else, is that LeBron James probably needs to be listening to the executives and advisors and creative elements at Nike much more than he needs to be listening to his hangers on-turned-representatives at LRMR. Way more. If you're keeping count, there's a Decision reference in that ad, a nod to the time he left his local high school for a stronger program in Akron as a teen, a Charles Barkley ("hi Chuck!") reference, a Miami Vice redux with Don Johnson in tow (what, Nike could meet Philip Michael Thomas' demands?), and James also gets to dress up like a cowboy, a beatnik, and a construction worker. And then he tries to get us to feel sorry for him because we judged him by our own set of values this summer. LeBron? You still screwed up. You did the right thing going to the better team and taking less money to do it, but you completely and utterly blew the execution behind the whole move. You listened to your friends (because, as the ad states, "they're [your] friends"), and your friends led you astray. This is pretty much how it's always gone for every narcissist, in whatever forum, that surrounded themselves with yes-men. But if there truly are second acts in American life, then this is a good start. Nice shoes, too. | | | | | | | | | |  | |  | |  |
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