It certainly doesn't suck to be Sasha Vujacic. After hitching his star to Kobe Bryant, he and the rest of his teammates became the envy of the NBA, helping the Lakers win their 15th championship in franchise history. And now? After reportedly hooking up with Maria Sharapova, he's become the envy of men, period.
Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, I should note that Sharapova has yet to be seen at a Staples Center courtside seat wearing a Vujacic jersey (they sell those, right?), but the two were seen "cuddling up" in public at a recent U2 concert, as reported by CNBC's Darren Rovell. Clearly, that's enough to go on, right? OK, maybe not, but whatever is going on, Vujacic is in no hurry to set the record straight.
Garnett has been one of the league's best players this decade. Part of what makes him so great is his intensity. Early in his career, KG was capable of harnessing that intensity in a positive way. In his later years? Not so much.
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.
It was about a year a go when Sasha Vujacic ("The Machine") signed a three-year contact with the Lakers. One of the lines in the contract read that Sasha was not required to cut his hair. After a long season of being in a hairy situation, "The Machine" showed up at training camp with a new look.
We caught up with Sasha during a recent charity event hosted by Kobe alongside Clippers players Chris Kaman and Eric Gordon.
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.
Kobe Bryant is the national spokesperson for After School All Stars, a nation-wide, one-of-a-kind, after-school activity for students living in rough areas. From sports to music to arts, After School All Stars is free. In this FanHouse Exclusive we visit the Lakers' practice facility in El Segundo, where we catch up with Kobe, his teammates Sasha Vujacic and Derek Fisher, and two of Kobe's friends from the Clippers -- Eric Gordon and Chris Kaman. The stars were there as 2K Sports handed ASAS a check for $25,000 and set up video games for the students and basketball stars.
Training camps by themselves provide a fresh start for every NBA team, but sometimes, players feel the need to take things to a more personal level to cleanse themselves of the previous season.
This was certainly the case for Allen Iverson, who has gone back to his trademark braids after a year where he was traded to the Pistons, and was unceremoniously used as one of the scapegoats for his new (now old) team's horrific downward spiral.
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.
Shannon Brown, a member of the World Champion Los Angeles Lakers, is one of the most popular players on the team. Besides his basketball skills, Shannon gets a lot of attention, especially from his teammates, because of his resemblance to singer Chris Brown. In this FanHouse exclusive we hear from Shannon, Josh Powell, Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic as they all tell us about the Shannon Brown - Chris Brown saga.
ORLANDO -- Phil Jackson might not be around to see this through – how about Pat Riley for his replacement? – but it looks like the Lakers are well positioned to become the first team to successfully defend an NBA title since they made it three in a row earlier this decade.
All the key guys will be back next season. Mark it down. Winning will make it happen.
Whenever the Lakers win this 2009 title – Game 5, 6 or 7, take your choice -- they will go into the summer prepared to start talking about a repeat.
Free agency doesn't scare them. Not when you're one of the richest franchises in the league, determined to keep this title run going. Not when they saw what happened to the Celtics, who let role-playing James Posey leave in free agency after they won a championship, only to regret his absence all season.
The Larry O'Brien itself is plenty of motivation for the participants in the 2009 Finals. But there will also be a few individual goals driving those involved.
Kobe Bryant: The commercial failure of Kobe Doin' Work made it apparent No. 24 needs much more face time. Can he get an ad campaign, maybe something with a puppet? It's evident Kobe can only get the media and popular culture attention he deserves by winning a championship. (Let's be honest, though: after that 2002 championship jacket, Kobe doesn't deserve to touch the trophy ever again.)
Andrew Bynum: Drew really needs Kareem to get off his back. Oh, did I say Kareem? I meant Nicole Narain. It's hard to show on the pick-and-roll with a playmate on your shoulders!
The clock is ticking on the Denver Nuggets. They seem like they're good enough to beat the L.A. Lakers in a seven-game series, but if they're going to get it done, it would probably behoove them to get a win tonight.
Will the Lakers prove to be resilient once again on their home floor? Or will the Nuggets make the right plays, close out a game and push the Lakers to the brink? Oh, and here are five more questions about tonight ...
Maybe, before the Western Conference finals began, you really didn't know if the Nuggets could knock off the Lakers. After two games, it's seems apparent they can.
Not that they will, mind you. Just that they can.
The series is even one game apiece and Game 3 is tonight in Denver. Here are five questions heading in:
With the start of the 2009-10 season looming, 
It was about a year a go when 
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos. 
Training camps by themselves provide a fresh start for every 
ORLANDO -- 
The Larry O'Brien itself is plenty of motivation for the participants in the 2009 Finals. But there will also be a few individual goals driving those involved.
The clock is ticking on the Denver Nuggets. They seem like they're good enough to beat the L.A. Lakers in a seven-game series, but if they're going to get it done, it would probably behoove them to get a win tonight.
Maybe, before the Western Conference finals began, you really didn't know if the Nuggets could knock off the Lakers. After two games, it's seems apparent they can.
