STERN HITS QUARTER-CENTURY MARK AT NBA

It’s hard to believe that David Stern has been steering the league for 25 years. That’s a lot of alley-oop dunks, no-look passes and hesistation drives to oversee. Sports Illustrated’s Jack McCallum takes a look at Stern, who has had a history of leading with a vision, but who also has regrets too. McCallum also lists some of the controversial moments under Stern’s tenure. But no one has had a more successful run leading a major professional sports than Stern.

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KIDD-HARRIS TRADE LOOKING BETTER ALL THE TIME

With Devin Harris making the All-Star team as a reserve, and Jason Kidd getting left out, the disparity between the two point guards has grown. Do you think the Dallas Mavericks are kicking themselves for sending away a top-tier guard for an aging player past his prime? The New Jersey Nets are certainly smiling. The Nets felt Vince Carter was snubbed. Maybe if Carter developed some heart more people would complaining about the omission.

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RONDO’S LACK OF A JUMP SHOT

The Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo has no consistent jump shot and teams are daring him to shoot. Jeff Clark of CelticsBlog says that “Rondo shoots the ball better off the dribble than he does in a catch-and-shoot situation.” If Rondo ever develops a jump shot the Celtics would be nearly unstoppable while being anchored by three future Hall of Famers. Until then, leave Rondo open and let him try to make some buckets.

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KOBE HAS NUMBER ONE SELLING JERSEY

The market speaks for itself and there are clearly plenty of Kobe Bryant fans out there. Kobe Bryant has the number one selling jersey outpacing players like LeBron James and Kevin Garnett. For all the Kobe haters out there, there are an equal amount of Kobe lovers. There is no denying that Kobe is one the best players to ever play the game and his Los Angeles Lakers are one of the teams favored to win the championship this year.

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STORYLINES A PLENTY FOR CAVS-MAGIC GAME

The Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic are vying for the top spot in the East, and the two throw down tonight. There are a lot of storylines, including the obvious match-up between potential MVPSs in LeBron James and Dwight Howard. Cavs coach Mike Brown and Magic coach Stan Van Gundy are also vying for coaching honors at the All-Star game. But the Akron Beacon Journal says the Cavs have been less focused on defense, making them vulnerable in the game.

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ALL QUIET ON THE UTAH FRONT

Despite being on the outside looking in, the Utah Jazz are content to hold the line. That means a trade is unlikely as we butt up against the deadline on Feb. 19, says the Salt Lake Tribune. The team is willing to wait for Carlos Boozer to get healthy before making a late playoff push. Just for consideration, there are a number of attractive expiring contracts on that team.

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O.J. MAYO LACKS PASSION

Rookie Memphis Grizzlies guard O.J. Mayo isn’t as selfish as advertised, and his defense is actually pretty good, says Fox Sports’ Charley Rosen. His problem lies in the passive attitude that envelops his game. Maybe it’s playing for the lowly Grizzlies. Let’s face it, it’s hard to get motivated playing for that squad. Rosen says Mayo needs to show some pride.

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KNICKS IN PLAYOFF HUNT, SERIOUSLY

Before the start of the season, would you have pegged the New York Knicks to be in contention for the playoffs? I doubt you’d get any takers beyond the most rabid - and delusional - fans. Yet here they are tied with the Milwaukee Bucks for the final playoff spot. The Knicks edged into the position with a win over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night, aided by 20 fourth-quarter points from Nate Robinson. It’s the fifth win in six games for a suddenly hot team.

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HOW TO ORGANIZE A BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

A few weeks ago, we interviewed Brian Yang about running a basketball league. For basketball enthusiasts who want to give it a go themselves, that might be a daunting task. An easier compromise would be running a tournament, typically a one or two-day commitment that is simpler to run. Here are some tips: Read more

NBA HOLLYWOOD

Basketball has its hierarchy of players. You’ve got your legends, your superstars, stars, role players and scrubs. It’s like Hollywood, where you’ve got your A-listers, B-listers and barely registers. So if the NBA constellation were moved in line with the Hollywood stars, who would play which role? Here’s a few suggestions for the who’s who row of merged NBA-Hollywood superstars. Read more

MARBURY TALKS TO THE FANS

Exiled New York Knicks guard Stephon Marbury talks to fans on ESPN. There is so much controversy surrounding this guy regarding his situation, but at the end of the day he is a businessman and I applaud his decision to sell $15 Starbury sneakers that everyone can afford.

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BYNUM IS A BAD BOY

Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum threw a flagrant elbow against Charlotte Bobcats Gerald Wallace causing Wallace to go to the hospital to be tested for a possible collapsed lung and fractured rib. This is reminiscent of the old days of the 1990s Bad Boys Detroit Pistons who would have hard fouls like this all the time. The NBA has definitely gotten much softer over the years and made it a guard’s game.

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VINNY DEL NEGRO TO BE FIRED?

It’s been a disappointing season for the Chicago Bulls, currently with a 18-27 record, who are coached by first year head coach Vinny Del Negro. According to Bullsblogger, the underachieving Bulls need a fresh start. The Chicago Bulls have enormous talent on their team with players like Derrick Rose and Ben Gordon, but right now they are definitely unwatcha-bull.

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KEVIN DURANT IS UNDERRATED

Kevin Durant is a great player on a really bad team. Bill Simmons from ESPN makes a compelling argument on why Kevin Durant is underrated partly because he has more game winning shots than LeBron James and is currently breaking every scoring benchmark by age by “averaging 26 points, eight rebounds, 48% shooting, 85% from the line and 43% on threes since Thanksgiving.” What I want to see is if Durant can maintain his efficient prowess while being surrounded by quality players rather than his current supporting cast. We’ll just have to wait and see.

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SUNS SETTING AS WE KNEW THEM

It’s not a good time to be a Phoenix Suns fan right now. The once run-and-gun rapid-fire offense has chugged to a halt, most effectively illustrated by its latest three-game slide before rebounding and winning two in a row. “I think we were splintering,” Steve Nash tells Yahoo Sports. Adrian Wojnarowski wonders if this is the end of the Suns as we know it. Nash is getting older, as is Shaquille O’Neal. Although his resurgence may ultimately hurt the team, because of the lack of touches and slower developer for younger Amare Stoudamire.  He notes Stoudamire has been invisible on the floor at times.

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CELTICS STOCK RISING AGAIN

It seemed like eons ago that the Boston Celtics were in shambles after losing seven of nine games, but they seem to be back on track with eight straight victories with the last win against the Dallas Mavericks. The bottom line is they are the defending world champions and they have players that know what it takes to win. However, it’ll be interesting to see which Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde team shows up during the playoffs.

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OBAMA MIX TAPE

Move over And1 mixtape players, Barack Obama is here to show you some sick moves. Here’s a nice mix video of Mr. President Barack Obama playing ball then and now. We await to see what changes are to take place in the next couple of years.

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TODAY IS AUSTRALIA DAY

NBAmate.com has compiled the top 10 players from Australia for Australia day and Stephen Jackson of the Golden State Warriors is listed at number eight. What’s notable is one that he’s not even Australian and two that he didn’t even play many games in Australia. Nonetheless, a worthwhile tribute to Australian players and players that have graced the professional basketball league in Australia.

MARBURY SAYS BOSTON CELTICS INTEND TO SIGN HIM

There has been an awfully large amount of chatter regarding Stephon Marbury’s future destination. The New York Knicks point guard has essentially been banished from the team and there has been no progress in buyout talks. Marbury needs to stop fueling speculation about the Boston Celtics intentions to sign him and work out negotiations with the Knicks before he talks to the press.

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DEL NEGRO TAKES BULL-RIDING TO A NEW LEVEL

You have to give it to Chicago Bulls Coach Vinny Del Negro - he’s been perpetually upbeat even as the drama mounts. The team is in a five-game slide, and tempermental guard Ben Gorden recently flared up over a fine, but Del Negro insists he is still happy with the gig. “I enjoy it all, the good times, the bad times, the frustrations,” Del Negro tells the Chicago Tribune. “Are you going to give in to the adversity, or is your character going to show?” If this job doesn’t work out, maybe he can make a living on the motivational speech circuit.

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