FanHouse AlexisAjinca

The Suns' Amare Stoudemire had yet to play in a preseason game due to sustaining a torn iris in his right eye near the beginning of training camp. But it appears to be all healed up now, and STAT made his preseason debut in a double overtime (!) win over the Charlotte Bobcats.

Amare played about 17 and a half minutes, and for the most part, I thought he had trouble getting up to the game's speed. He seemed a bit slow defensively, and at first a bit hesitant on the offensive end as well. That probably had more to do with Amare coming off the bench than it did him being rusty, because once he got a feel for what was going on, he was able to drive down the middle of the lane and throw down a vicious tomahawk jam over the Bobcats' Alexis Ajinca. (I'd love to show you the highlight, but apparently double overtime West coast preseason games are not the priority of people in charge of such things.)

After the game, Amare talked (literally, between bites of barbecued chicken and baked potato) about getting back out there for the first time in a game situation.

"It was good to get a win out there in double overtime. Personally, I felt pretty good, in my first day back. I played 17, 17 and a half minutes out there, it felt good. Rhythm wasn't quite where I wanted it to be, but other than that, played solid defense out there, was able to get involved offensively, you know, that's all I can ask for."

Amare ended up with 11 points and four rebounds on 3-9 shooting, again, just getting back into the groove. But he did have basically the highlight of the night, so when asked about his monster dunk on Ajinca, he responded in Boris Diaw's direction: "That's how I treat Frenchmans." He repeated the line louder, but of course, being French and all, Diaw predictably chose to avoid the confrontation.

We sensed the relationship had become troubled in recent months, but that didn't make the divorce any easier to take. ESPN.com's Chad Ford, the man who gave us Nikoloz Tskitishvili, Pavel Podkolzin, Darko Milicic, Mouhamed Saer Sene and Yi Jianlian, has broken up with Europe. The sad news came in the midst of the second annual Ford-Bill Simmons NBA draft face-off:

I call it the Angelina Jolie-Billy Bob Thornton era in my life. It was edgy, different and crazy to like Darko Milicic. From the years 2001 to 2003, the sight of a 7-foot international big man doing crossovers and shooting NBA 3s in an empty gym sent, to quote Chris Matthews, a shiver up my leg.

But it's over. I'm hanging out with the Chris Pauls of the world now. I realized that basketball skills outside of the context of the game just can't translate. I still think international players have a place in the draft, but not young, inexperienced 18-year-olds or soft big men that can't play defense.

Which is why I can't understand why the rest of the league hasn't caught on yet. When I see teams gushing over Alexis Ajinca, a 7-foot French guy who averaged 5 ppg in the French league, the Skita nightmares return.

So fellows, I hear Danilo Gallinari is now single and looking to party. Anyone?

(By the way, as in last year's edition, Ford is absolutely murdering Simmons. Bill has gotten some jokes off, but it's like Garnett vs. Gasol all over again. Just brutal.)

Crystal Ballin' takes a team-by-team look at what should, could, and probably will happen in the June 26th NBA Draft.

The Toronto Raptors, the only team where sniveling prospects can blame their lack of desire to attend another low-first workout on passport issues!

Picks: #17.

Needs: Bryan Colangelo and/or Sam Mitchell never seem(s) to be satisfied with the swing positions, though the qualifying offer extended to Carlos Delfino last week was a bit of a surprise. Center Centre should get a strong look, too. Rasho Nesterovic's contract with Satan is just about up for renegotiation, and I hear Mr. Nesterovic had the ol' snip-snip. (Mrs. Nesterovic couldn't take his chronic urination all over the house. Bad Rasho!)*

Best case scenario: At #17, there's a sincere possibility a great little prospect could remain on the board. Darrell Arthur's bangerball or Kosta Koufos' pick-and-pop machismo could fit in Smitch's offense just fine. Brandon Rush would also be a victory.

With the NBA Draft coming up on Thursday night, FanHouse's Tom Ziller took a friend's advice and unilaterally decided what teams ought to do in the first round. Think of it as a shorter version of our ongoing Crystal Ballin' series.

1. Chicago -- Michael Beasley, Kansas State. Fan consensus would have the point guard from Memphis here, and it looks like John Paxson will swing that way, too. It looks like a whole lot of Chris Paul-induced "pure point" fervor to me. Beasley, though, is the rare unassailable post presence who also boasts great perimeter skills and extraordinary tenacity on the court. With a team so desperate for points on something other than jump shots, Beasley fits right in.

2. Miami -- Derrick Rose, Memphis. The Heat, on the other hand, has some firepower in the paint, between Dwyane Wade's irrepressible slashing and the alternating efforts of Shawn Marion and Udonis Haslem. But Wade needs help running the show. Rose would provide the right engine to push Miami's offensive abilities while offering some backcourt defensive support.

3. Minnesota -- Brook Lopez, Stanford. Like any other basketball aesthete, I have cracked some Brook Lopez jokes. But behind the Cheetah Girls t-shirts, he's a good prospect. The biggest thing he can offer Minnesota in some interior anchorage on defense. Al Jefferson got abused routinely in the paint last season, with nary a partner to help stunt the opponent. Lopez immediately fortifies the effort, maybe not creating a good defense by himself, but at least helping out. Oh, and he can score too.

27 more picks of questionable logic after the jump.

Crystal Ballin' takes a team-by-team look at what should, could, and probably will happen in the June 26th NBA Draft.

You want to know the real reason Billy Knight quit his job as Atlanta's GM earlier this summer? Because the Hawks have no draft picks! Billy Knight without draft picks is like an orca without kelp or Eddy Curry with birthday cake. He'd be on suicide watch if he didn't quit.

Picks: ... None! This is the saddest day of my life.

Needs: The team most certainly needs at least another decent big body -- beyond Josh Smith and Al Horford, there's nothing. Unless the team a) wants to extend a 31-year-old Mike Bibby next summer, or b) still thinks Acie Law is an awesome prospect, another point guard would be desirable.

Best case scenario: Rival GM: "Why yes, I do think Mario West is worth my lottery pick!"