The Heat drew mostly guffaws when it retired the jersey of Michael Jordan, who never played one second for the franchise. Heat prez Pat Riley suggested it was a move to honor the game's greatest player, but most saw it as a silly bit of marketing showmanship.
MJ attended Thursday's Heat-Cavaliers game with Riley -- the TNT broadcast crew noted that Scottie Pippen also sat courtside, and suggested it might have been some subliminal "pair with Dwyane Wade!" messaging to LeBron James. MJ's presence made the game a bit more weird, and led to a rare political statement from LeBron: he thinks players should stop wearing No. 23 out of deference to His Airness, and he plans to lead the charge by switching to No. 6 next season.
Be honest: you didn't think that after eight games were played in this young NBA season that we'd be talking about the Phoenix Suns as one of the best teams in the league. But after Monday night's come-from-behind win in Philadelphia to finish a five-game road trip at 4-1, that's exactly where we find ourselves.
Behind 21 points and 20 assists from Steve Nash -- his seventh 20-assist game in his career and his second of this season -- the Suns came from eight points down in the fourth quarter to beat the Sixers in Philadelphia, and claimed a share of the league's top spot in the standings in the process.
The NBA suspended J.R. Smith for seven games, and Jason Richardson for two games, after both players recently pleaded guilty to separate driving offenses.
The timing of the suspensions seems rather random -- Smith's reckless driving incident (from 2007) was resolved by the courts this past July, while Richardson served one day in jail for his DUI conviction back in December. But you knew they were coming at some point, because, well, leagues tend to suspend players who get into trouble with the law.
I'm wondering, though, if the length of the suspensions doesn't seem almost as random as the timing of the announcements. When looking more closely at the details of the incidents, the punishments come across as being a bit disingenuous.
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.
For the past nine years the Harold Pump Foundation, created by David and Dana Pump (known as the gurus of high school and college basketball) has raised over $3.5 million dollars to fight cancer. The foundation's efforts have not gone unnoticed. Major stars such as Magic Johnson, Paul Pierce, Sugar Ray Leonard, Pete Sampras and Denzel Washington have all joined the Pump brothers. In this report we also hear from young NBA stars like Kevin Love, Brandon Jennings, and Blake Griffin.
As teams get eliminated from the 2009 NBA playoff picture, Fork 'Em figures out what went wrong.
"Love bravely, live bravely, be courageous, there's really nothing to lose." -Jewel
And really, what says "Charlotte Bobcats" like Jewel?
The Lottery is littered with teams that failed to meet expectations. Their hopes broken, their efforts for naught, they're left with nothing but frustration and depression. They limp towards the offseason with hope for nothing more than pina coladas and getting caught in the rain.
NBA Essentials provides the must-see links, quotes and videos of the day.
-- David Lee recently appeared on PBS's The Electric Company, apparently co-starring with the GEICO gecko's less successful brother. If this NBA thing doesn't pan out, maybe Lee fall back on acting? I'm dubious about that.
PHOENIX -- LeBron James, as he is most nights, was the story in the Cavs' 119-111 victory over the Suns. Besides grabbing a rebound on the final play of the game to notch his third consecutive triple-double, he also had a key block on a Jason Richardson breakaway, 360-dunk attempt in the fourth that was a game-changer and sealed the win for the Cavs. But was it a block or a foul? Check the video, then we'll discuss.
You can change all the pieces you want, but at some point you just have to reconcile with the fact: the Spurs own the Suns.
This statement stretches well beyond today's game. In fact, even if the Suns had managed to win today's game which they lost 103-98, it wouldn't alter that fact. It's a universal truth that springs from such a far ranging set of circumstances, through injuries, season, suspensions, and every conceivable manner of heartbreaking defeat.
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.
Alvin Gentry knows how to make a statement. The Suns again went over 100 possessions and again went for 140 points. With Amar'e Stoudemire felled by a detached retina, Leandro Barbosa helped destroy the Thunder. Barbosa had 41 points on 16-21 shooting, with seven rebounds, seven assists, six assists and one turnover. The Blur simply brutalized his defenders, getting to the rack and hitting from long-range.
Jason Richardson has only been in Phoenix for a few months (28 games to be exact), but it would be tough to blame him for taking part in the All-Star festivities in his new home this weekend.
However, it's tough to not get angry at him for driving 90 mph in a 35 mph zone while having an unrestrained three-year-old toddler in his car. Which is exactly what he was arrested for Sunday evening, bringing about a littany of charges including endangerment, two counts of excessive speed, reckless driving and failure to use a child seat.
The Heat drew mostly guffaws when it retired the jersey of Michael Jordan, who never played one second for the franchise. Heat prez Pat Riley suggested it was a move to honor the game's greatest player, but most saw it as a silly bit of marketing showmanship.
Be honest: you didn't think that after eight games were played in this young NBA season that we'd be talking about the 
The 
For the past nine years the Harold Pump Foundation, created by David and Dana Pump (known as the gurus of high school and college basketball) has raised over $3.5 million dollars to fight cancer. The foundation's efforts have not gone unnoticed. Major stars such as Magic Johnson, Paul Pierce, Sugar Ray Leonard, Pete Sampras and Denzel Washington have all joined the Pump brothers. In this report we also hear from young NBA stars like Kevin Love, Brandon Jennings, and Blake Griffin. 
As teams get eliminated from the 2009 NBA playoff picture, 
You can change all the pieces you want, but at some point you just have to reconcile with the fact: the Spurs own the Suns. 
Every night there are some stupendous, silly, stupid, or downright outlandish individual lines from around the "lig." 
