Sports Illustrated's Chris Ballard probably couldn't have happened into a worse time to release a book about the NBA. The economy is bad. ESPN's Bill Simmons released a tome on the league last month which reached the New York Times' non-fiction best-seller list. The fawning NBA fan has already possibly purchased the LeBron James quasi-autobiog, and the statheads have likely buried themselves in the Pro Basketball Prospectus 2009-10 or Wayne Winston's Mathletics. There are a lot of options, and typically little interest in basketball books.
But fans who whistled by Ballard's effort -- The Art of a Beautiful Game: The Thinking Fan's Tour of the NBA, published by Simon & Schuster -- are missing a great view into the league we love. With a certain mix of comfort and curiosity, Ballard has put together a wonderful collection of NBA insights straight from the horses' mouths.
There is a scene in Major League where the manager relates how ownership essentially has stacked everything she can against the team. They have no hope, because no matter what happens, they'll only be released as soon as it's convenient in pursuit of moving the team. Essentially, there is no reason for hope, no reason for effort, no reason for showing up to play. Tom Berenger's character looks up and says, " Well, I guess there's only one thing left to do ... win the whole (expletive) thing."
And that's pretty much where the Rockets are this season, barring the psychopathic sexbomb owner, threat of relocation, and the fact that they play a much more strenuous sport.
Tip-Off Timer counts down the days until the first game of the 2009-10 season. On Sunday, there are 44 days remaining -- the same number the Lakers retired in 1983 for Jerry West.
Sometimes the basketball gods smile upon you even if you're not really part of the game. That's what happened to me on Nov. 12, 2004.
OK, so maybe it wasn't any kind of hoops deity that hooked me up; it was Raymond Ridder, the Warriors' director of public relations. Still, I remember to this day my brick of a cellphone ringing that cold morning in Memphis with Ridder at the other end.
"You want to go to lunch with Jerry West?" he asked. Ridder had worked for the Lakers and knew West from his days in L.A., so they were going to catch up. And I was coming along.
Who doesn't like a list, especially on a Monday morning when that's about all you can handle?
If Ron Artest is a wild card when it comes to chemistry, and Allen Iverson is a tough guy to play alongside of, then who are the NBA's best teammates? Let's talk glue guys this a.m.
Here's one guy's Top 5 Teammates list -- players you want to play with.
After two putrid drafts, the NBA returned to form in 2001 -- but not right away. This draft will forever be known as the day Michael Jordan transformed from the greatest player on Earth to a below average general manager. With the No. 1 overall pick, Jordan held the fate of the Washington Wizards in the same hands that dunked on many of opponent, and he had a rich variety of players for which to don the savior of the franchise.
And he chose Kwame Brown. It really wasn't Kwame's fault. He was the victim of an amazing workout that impressed Jordan so much -- was this thing on video? -- that Air was convinced Brown would emerge as an All-Star. The brutal truth is that this prep player from Georgia faded into one of the biggest busts in draft history, hanging out in the same club as LaRue Martin, Joe Barry Carroll and Michael Olowokandi.
HOUSTON -- Unexpected achievement in the face of incredible adversity isn't quite how the Houston Rockets saw their playoff run unfolding.
But that was certainly the theme that carried the Rockets, minus injured stars Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady, to within one game of reaching the Western Conference finals this season. One amazing night by McGrady or just the presence of aging Dikembe Mutombo in the paint might have been all the Rockets needed to avoid a Game 7 Semifinals in Los Angeles and overcome the Lakers.
It wasn't meant to be, but still it was enough to re-energize a franchise that seemed in serious trouble a few weeks ago because of it's often-injured stars and nondescript supporting cast. The Rockets hadn't been out of the first round of the playoffs in 12 years prior to this season.
HOUSTON -- Let's be honest: This wasn't supposed to be this difficult for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Add up talent level, star power and experience and the Western Conference's top team should have taken the Houston Rockets out in five, maybe six games tops. But here we are staring at an upcoming winner-moves-on Game 7 after the Rockets put forth an astounding performance at home Thursday night to prevail 95-80 in Game 6 of their semifinal matchup with the Lakers.
The series unexpectedly moves back to Los Angeles tied 3-3 Sunday with the winner moving on to face the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference finals.
"For the last two days all I've heard is that we weren't going back to L.A. and guys in our locker room didn't believe that," said Rockets coach Rick Adelman.
It's time to give Rockets coach Rick Adelman some credit before it's too late. After all, who knows what's going to happen Sunday? But it must be noted that he's doing quite the job on the bench this postseason, like he's done time and time before.
The mere fact that Adelman has been able to guide the Rockets to two victories over the L.A. Lakers since Yao Ming went down makes Houston's coach the MVP of this series right now.
It was one thing to shock the Lakers in Game 4 on Sunday, the first game without Yao. It's quite another to handle the Lakers again in Game 6 on Thursday -- by a score of 95-80 -- to force an anything-can-happen Game 7 back in L.A.
Rockets 95, Lakers 80: Recap | Box Score Series Tied 3-3 | Next Game: Sunday @ Los Angeles, 3:30 PM ET
During the third quarter of the Rockets' Game 4 win over the Lakers, Shane Battier steps in front of a Lamar Odom drive, and Odom falls awkwardly to the floor on his back. He stayed down for a few minutes, and then left the game due to the injury, one that was still hurting after the flight home, and one that could keep him out of a pivotal Game 5 on Tuesday.
There's no question that this was a completely legal play by Battier, and the referee even believed he got to his spot in time to tag Odom with an offensive foul. But was it a reckless and dangerous play on Battier's part? I believe it was.
The Houston Rockets, playing a day after learning star center Yao Ming is lost for the remainder of the playoffs, stunned everyone but themselves with a convincing wire-to-wire 99-87 win over the Los Angeles Lakers during Game 4 of their Western Conference semifinal game Sunday at the Toyota Center.
Suddenly, a day after this series seemed all but over, the Rockets have again made things interesting with the series tied and Game 5 headed back to Los Angeles on Tuesday.
Sports Illustrated's Chris Ballard probably couldn't have happened into a worse time to release a book about the NBA. The economy is bad. ESPN's Bill Simmons released a tome on the league last month which reached the New York Times' non-fiction best-seller list. The fawning NBA fan has already possibly purchased the LeBron James quasi-autobiog, and the statheads have likely buried themselves in the Pro Basketball Prospectus 2009-10 or Wayne Winston's Mathletics. There are a lot of options, and typically little interest in basketball books.
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Who doesn't like a list, especially on a Monday morning when that's about all you can handle?
HOUSTON -- Unexpected achievement in the face of incredible adversity isn't quite how the Houston Rockets saw their playoff run unfolding.
HOUSTON -- Let's be honest: This wasn't supposed to be this difficult for the Los Angeles Lakers.
It's time to give Rockets coach 
HOUSTON -- No Yao? No problem.
