The NBA season is a mere two days old, but the dunk I'm about to show you that Carmelo Anthony threw down over Paul Millsap on Wednesday is in fact, the dunk of the year.
'Melo said after the game, "Once I got the steal, I knew it was just me and him,'' Anthony said. "I wasn't going to lay the ball up. I was going to try to dunk it. If he'd have blocked it, he'd have blocked it. It went the opposite way."
But don't take my word for it: after watching the video, you can read what Dwight Howard and Quentin Richardson had to say about it, via updates they made to their respective Twitter pages after seeing the sensational highlight.
Heading into the season, Boozer's status is the biggest issue surrounding the team. He said during radio interviews during the summer that he wouldn't mind ending up in Chicago or Miami, and that Jazz officials told him they were looking to trade him.
The forward, though, didn't get moved. And now he's saying that, if the Jazz keep him throughout the season, impressive things can happen in Utah.
"If they keep us together, we can be very good,'' he said.
The remaining dominoes in the notable NBA free agency set are starting to fall.
Thursday night the Utah Jazz matched Portland's front-heavy $32 million offer to restricted free agent forward Paul Millsap. The move accomplishes the Jazz's goal of keeping Millsap, who's younger, more reliable, and has more upside and oomph than his counterpart, Carlos Boozer. The move also means that just as Boozer has indicated to the press recently, his bags are packed, he just needs a destination.
The question is, what are the next pieces to fall?
LAS VEGAS -- Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak was sitting courtside watching the Clippers' future franchise player, Blake Griffin, drop 17 first-half points on his Lakers. And the person who may defend Griffin in the paint during the regular season doesn't look any more closer to returning to the Lakers than last week.
Lamar Odom remains an unrestricted free agent and Kupchak said progress has come to a halt, despite Trevor Ariza leaving L.A. for the Houston Rockets last week. Odom is free to sign with any team and may be the league's most attractive free agent on the market. Still, Kupchak appeared bleak when asked about the prospects of bringing Odom back, which could be critical to the Lakers' chances of defending their NBA title.
"The word I used last week was 'hopeful' so let's take it from there," he said Monday at the Thomas & Mack Center. "I am really not sure where we are right now. We have made no plans to talk [with his representatives]."
Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune has a great summation of Jazz thinking with regard to the power forward position. As expected, Carlos Boozer seems to be on his way out while that seemingly daunting Portland offer sheet for Paul Millsap isn't actually terribly daunting.
Siler reports Jazz boss Greg Miller told Boozer the All-Star isn't in the team's long-term plans, and agreed to try to trade him. I would not expect Utah to have trouble; even at $12 million, Boozer is too good to languish without suitors. But more interesting is Millsap's position in all of this.
As has been rumored for the better part of a week, Portland has thrown its cap space at Jazz restricted free agent Paul Millsap, a burly forward who has come off Utah's bench behind Carlos Boozer much of his career. Millsap's rep has grown over the last few years, and a big platform created by Boozer's injuries this season have made a substantial payday -- four years, $32-34 million -- possible.
The question now is whether Portland's offer sheet (signed by Millsap Friday) is big enough to keep Utah from matching. I don't think it is.
OK, sure. They traded their franchise player a year and a half ago for Kwame Brown and some Skittles. And yes, with the No. 2 pick they managed to select the only basketball player available who's biggest weakness is his ability to put the little ball in the big circle with the net attached (which I hear is kind of important). But hey, they needed to rebuild, and they rebuilt. But they have tons of cap space now, so much in fact, that they're actually under the CBA limit and have to spend some.
So they've stopped torturing their fans with one terrible decision after another right? Right? Guys? Anybody?
Oh, hi Zach Randolph. What are you ... doing ... here ...?
Could it be any other way with Carlos Boozer and the Jazz? Everything is so complicated, from late owner Larry Miller's combative stance on Boozer's injuries to Boozer's renewed sense of self-worth to the constant conflict between stardom and also-ran status. Boozer surprisingly picked up his 2009-10 team option Tuesday, putting Utah on the hook for $12.3 million.
Boozer is well worth the cash, so this development should be a clear win for Utah, right? Well, it's complicated. Boozer's commitment puts the status of back-up power forward Paul Millsap and starting center Mehmet Okur into question. By casting his lot with Utah for one more year, Boozer may very well have cast his buddies out.
The market for restricted free agent Paul Millsap was expected to be robust in theory, if not in actuality. This is to say Millsap is a highly desired fellow, given his proclivity to rebound like a champ, score efficiently, and defend his tail off at the power forward position. However, as always, a limited pool of clubs will head into July with cap space for next season.
The Thunder is one team with space to sign a free agent like Millsap. The team currently falls about $15 million under the cap, and Millsap has been pegged to pull a starting salary around $7-8 million. Oklahoma City can certainly afford to get into that ballpark, should Sam Presti desire to. Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune seems to believe OKC, in fact, desires Millsap.
Utah forward Carlos Boozer has been back a month now, but apparently Jerry Sloan still isn't comfortable depending on the burly bruiser as he has in past years. The Salt Lake Tribune notes that despite Boozer's 14 points and 10 rebounds, Sloan relied on Paul Millsap for the entirety of Saturday's overtime period against Phoenix.
Boozer has been completely supportive of Millsap on the court and in the media. But in this latest stretch -- and especially after Saturday's game -- Boozer wants to make sure we all know he'd prefer to be on the court in the most important minutes.
The NBA season is a mere two days old, but the dunk I'm about to show you that Carmelo Anthony threw down over Paul Millsap on Wednesday is in fact, the dunk of the year. 
FanHouse 
The remaining dominoes in the notable NBA free agency set are starting to fall. 
LAS VEGAS -- Lakers general manager 
Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune has 
As has been rumored for the better part of a week, Portland has thrown its cap space at Jazz restricted free agent 
OK, sure. They traded their franchise player a year and a half ago for 
Could it be any other way with 
The market for restricted free agent 
Utah forward 
