I heard Michael Jackson died at approximately 5:30 PM ET. Hours later, I still don't think it's fully hit me. This was the man I idolized growing up as a kid ... I watched Moonwalker about 80 times on VHS (Joe Pesci was the villain). I once furiously outbid someone $159 for a replica Beat It jacket with 13 zippers. I actually have an 8x10 glossy of Billie Jean Michael taped next to my bedroom door.
Everyone -- from celebrities to sports stars to ordinary people -- had their way of trying to feel connected to the King of Pop. In his mere presence, fans have fainted and needed medical attention. So when news broke that Jackson had passed away, the reverberations on social media sites like Twitter were immense. Outspoken wide receiver Chad Ochocinco even went on to tweet "this is just as sad as 9/11" and then tried to play damage control after his offensive comment.
After the jump, read the emotional reactions from current and former athletes.
When Eddie Jordan got canned from the Wizards, primarily because he mishandled his roster after his starting All-Star point guard missed two years due to injury followed by his starting center going down before the start of this season, most people said the same thing.
Five Things takes a look at five things to watch out for in marquee games with playoff implications.
We've got a trifecta of Game 3's on Friday. We've got an Eastern Powerhouse trying to prolong its relevance, and the new Eastern Order trying to showcase how dominant it really is. We have a scrappy underdog showing you that to overlook them leads to your own peril. And we have a physically and emotionally wounded star-crossed titan battling the basketball equivalent of a populist movement.
So what should you be paying attention to this evening? 5 Things has you covered. Let's talk about Cleveland-Detroit, Orlando-Philadelphia, and Portland-Houston.
Andre Iguodala's game-winner to seal Philly's upset will be the highlight everyone sees the most from Game 1 in Orlando, but the most impressive (if not relevant) actually came from the other side. After the jump, peep 34-year-old Anthony Johnson going coast-to-coast to posterize 36-year-old Theo Ratliff in a YouTube clip 70 years in the making.
Every night there are some stupendous, silly, stupid, or downright outlandish individual lines from around the "lig." Doing Lines lets you know which one tops the list.
Toronto is still alive in the Eastern Conference. Fifteen games under .500, hanging on a thread for the past week, 14th place in the conference ... and alive. And so long as the Raptors keep beating the opponents in their way, they will remain alive.
Andrea Bargnani did some heavy lifting Saturday against the Knicks, racking up 23 points and seven rebounds. Chris Bosh helped with 17/13, Shawn Marion handled business with 12/13 and Quincy Douby had a True Shooting percentage of 100%!
Every night there are some stupendous, silly, stupid, or downright outlandish individual lines from around the "lig." Doing Lines lets you know which one tops the list.
Everyone knows that Flip Murray exists only in flashes. Everyone talks about "streak shooters," but Flip is actually a "streak human." He'll go a good 10, 12 days not even in existence. And then poof! he's the leading scorer for a playoff team for a week.
Flip's alive right now, y'all, racking up 30 points and five assists in a romp over Minnesota Monday night. He's averaging 24 points over his last three games. The three games before that? 23 points ... total.
Every night there are some stupendous, silly, stupid, or downright outlandish individual lines from around the "lig." Doing Lines lets you know which one tops the list.
The Rockets have the (gulp) No. 2 seed in the West right now, thanks to Luis Scola. The monster outplayed Tim Duncan (!) on Sunday, turning out 19 points, 17 rebounds, four assists and three steals. Scola's defense (with help from the overall outstanding Houston barricade) limited Big Fundamental to 8-of-22 shooting and just six rebounds.
The 76ers got off to a nice start on their Pacific road trip. On Tuesday they beat the best team in the West, thanks to some sauce from Andre Iguodala at the buzzer.
New Jersey's Devin Harris hit one of the most amazing shots I've ever seen on Monday night. With 1.8 seconds on the clock, Harris was streaking down the left side of the court, got tangled up with Philly's Andre Igoudala, lost the ball, managed to catch it again and nail a shot from halfcourt, giving the Nets a 98-96 win over the Sixers. Seriously, it's ridiculous. Enjoy.
FanHouse's NBA Guide gives you a daily look at all the games that matter ... and some that don't.
HEADLINER Phoenix at Philadelphia, 7PM ET
The Sixers have two wins in two games since Elton Brand retired for the season, a tight victory over Indiana before a solid 10-point win against Miami. One interesting narrative in each match was the ability of Philadelphia to limit its turnovers. That's nothing special against the Pacers, a middle-of-the-pack team in turnover creation. But against the Heat -- No. 1 in the league in forcing turnovers -- that's a big deal.
When 
Every night there are some stupendous, silly, stupid, or downright outlandish individual lines from around the "lig." 
Every night there are some stupendous, silly, stupid, or downright outlandish individual lines from around the "lig." 
Every night there are some stupendous, silly, stupid, or downright outlandish individual lines from around the "lig." 
FanHouse's 
