Who's Superman? Shaq or Howard?

    On Thursday night there was a clash of the titans between Shaq and Howard. However Shaq wasn't only going to settle for an on court performance to use as his statement to the media but also added a personal statement that has sent Howard reeling for respect from the big man in Cleveland. After Thursday nights win Shaq did an interview with reporters and issued a personal attack on Orlando's star center. Shaq is quoted saying; “You tell me who the real Superman is? Don’t compare me to nobody. I’d rather not be mentioned. I’m offended.” Howard finally turned on his serious switch and threw a statement back at the big man showing that he wasn't about to sit back and playfully take the hits and laugh then off. This is not the first time that Shaq has taken personal attacks on Dwight or any other player. Contradictory to popular belief Shaq was the first one to obtain the superman name but no one ever really called him Superman. When Dwight came into the league with all the power he had in his game everyone adored him and rechristened him as superman which has since stuck with him since. Shaq needs to be a little more respectful of these younger players, he's only getting older with time and he cant always keep up with young stars like Dwight Howard or Andrew Bynum.

3 peat for little Nate

    Saturday night was a night of history in the making. Saturday night was the opening night for the NBA dunk contest which showcased high flying acrobatics from a host of stars ranging form Russel Westbrook to Shannon Brown. Of course the highlight of the night was the dunk contest which little Nate Robinson of the New York Knicks was to defend his 2 time champion title in a contest that no-one believed he should be in or let alone even win. Nate shocked the world once again by capturing his 3rd title in the dunk contest and promptly said that there would be no 4th time he would enter. The contest wasn't that spectacular which one could admit this one should be well forgotten compared to last years contest or the previous one. Overall this contest still came down to the wire where Nate barely squeaked out a win over DeRozan of the Toronto Raptors. This is one night were it came down to consistency rather then flashy style points, not one of the most entertaining shows of the night at all. Well there's always next year right?

Trade Complete

    The Dallas Mavericks and the Washington Wizards have both been wheeling and dealing this season trying to upgrade their teams. The Mavericks upgraded their bench to include the two Wizards stars Brenden Haywood and Caron Butler in a 7 player deal this weekend. The Wizards obtained Josh Howard and Drew Gooden along with 2 other players in order to complete the deal. The Mavericks did consider not trading their 6th man Josh Howard but couldn't pass up the idea of bringing Caron Butler home to the Dallas area. Look for the Mavericks to be a much more aggressive team with the aid of both Haywood and Butler out on the floor with Kidd and the gang. This is a fairly good trade seeing as the Wizards need a solid consistent big man which can be found in Gooden, and a sharp shooter from behind the arch which can be found in Howard. Butler fits in to the roll player mold of the Mavericks pretty well so look for him to rack up blocks and assists if Kidds taking a seat, though the draw back is that he wont get much shooting in because if he makes the starting line up there just might be too much star power on the floor for him to get shots off that he would normally have taken if he was still with the Wizards.

Net's not getting K

    Coach K of the Duke University has finally broken the silence, as of today Coach K has made it official that he will not leave Duke University to coach the struggling New Jersey Nets in the NBA. It has always been known that Mike would not be enticed into signing on to an NBA team while he was working under the wings of Duke University. The Nets have been tossing around ideas of signing a new Coach and rumors spread that they might sign the revered Coach K from Duke University. The dismal Nets are 4-48 for the season this year and are not looking any better with injuries nagging the starters and the bench. There have also been rumors that Devin Harris might be relocated to a new team in exchange for higher picks in the up coming draft or for more "capable players". These are all just rumors coming from a team that is struggling in a league full of talent and depth, don't be surprised if you actually hear any of these rumors turn out to be true reports.

Iverson Leaving again?

    This year of the NBA has been a turbulent one for resigned Guard Allen Iverson, the year started off with Iverson being shipped from the Pistons to the Grizzles where he was suddenly shipped back to the 76'ers. However rumor around Philly is that Allen might just hang up the sneakers again and this time for good. His daughter is sick and isn't getting any better so he wants to stay closer to home. This may prove to be true seeing as Iverson has yet to put up the numbers he used to back in his glory days but don't count on the Answer to leave the game until he's ready to.

Kobe and Iverson out Kidd and Lee in

    This weekend is the start of the all star weekend but it doesn't really seem to be that jam packed weekend full of stars when the 2 best guards are both out due to injuries. I'm talking about Kobe Bryant of the Lakers and Allen Iverson of the 76ers. Kobe has been out for the past week or so tending to a sore ankle but the Lakers have done well in his absence and are 3-0 since he's been on the bench, Iverson mean while has been at home tending to his sick daughter and will be replaced by Knicks Forward David Lee. Bryant will be replaced by Jason Kidd of the Mavericks, though it is yet to be determined who will actually take their spots in the starting lineup.

Hornet hand Celtics another loss

The month of February proves to be a distraction for the Celtics, they now have lost a total of 11 games now, this time they lost to the young New Orleans Hornets club. The Hornets reel in a 93-85 win against the crumbling Celtics who hit a cold streak at the start of the 3rd quarter, New Orleans then took advantage by hitting a stunning 6 consecutive 3 pointers 3 of which were thanks to Stojakovic. But the stories of the night came from rookie point guard Darren Collison from UCLA who scored a team best 25 points 13 of which came late in the 4th quarter surging the Hornets past the Celtics and to hold on to the lead. Celtics Guard/Forward Marquise Daniels started in the place of Ray Allen who sat on the bench due to back spasms. This is Boston's 2nd loss in a week, previously losing to the Orlando Magic. The overall game was sloppy with a total of 47 or so turn overs with a shocking franchise high of 10 thanks to the Hornets leading scorer of the night Darren Collison. The Hornets who are missing Chris Paul are now at 3-4 for wins to losses and are proving to be a steady team which has a glimmer of hope of making the playoffs.

Three Way Trade?

With the February trade deadline coming soon the NBA has been buzzing with rumors of trades and speculations of who might be going where and why, but the only trade that has been for sure verified by the league and by the media is the one involving 3 teams, the Rockets, Wizards and the Knicks. The New York Knicks are interested in the Rockets on again off again guard forward Tracy McGrady while the Rockets are looking to acquire Caron Butler and Brenden Haywood from the Wizards while in return they are looking to shop for Al Harrington from the Knicks. The deal isn't exactly a dream work, the Wizards need to surrender some money and a draft pick plus 1 more player to make this trade work out, the way things go this might actually be the best trade for the Rockets because they would get rid of McGrady who has been plagued with injuries all year and because of his high salary cap space. It is not certain if this trade will happen but the frame work is all set up its just that a few more pieces need to come together in order for the deal to click.

Jazz slip on home floor

Sorry to say Utah fans but the Jazz slipped on their own home floor tonight, Derron Willams and the crew hosted a battered lakers team dealing with injuries to two of their stars, coming into the game the Jazz were riding a hot 9 game win streak and the Lakers chugging along with their 2 wins with out shooting guard Kobe Bryant. The Lakers looked towards their two bigs Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom to do the heavy lifting on this night. The tandem duo did an effective job shutting down the lanes and plugging up the inside paint forcing the Jazz to low percentage shots on the perimeter. The Lakers get a nice 5 days of rest this week and then match up against the Golden State Warriors, Utah gets to rest for 5 days as well and matches up against the Huston Rockets on the 16th. LA goes to 3-0 with out their superstar and their center Andrew Bynum again, Kobes start in the All Star game has yet to be decided. Lakers go on to win this one 96-81.

Celtics loose the baby?

It seems that the February trade deadline has sent teams scurrying to pick up necessary depth to their teams roster in order to make a strong run at the playoffs, two teams that have much to gain from this February's crazy movement of players are the Boston Celtics and the Charlotte Bobcats. Rumors are swirling about that not only are the Celtics looking to shop off star shooting guard Ray Allen, but Center Glen Davis as well and this time they are looking to the Bobcats to do so. Early this week the Bobcats were contacted by the Celtics concerning this idea of trading Glen Davis for Texas's once star point guard D.J. Augustine. The deal seems very lopsided seeing as that the Celtics loose a big man and the Bobcats get away with a unfair trade giving the Celtics D.J. who hasn't performed up to his expectations yet. This deal would also require a few Celtics players to be shifted over to the Bobcats but that doesn't seem likely to happen seeing as they don't want to loose any more players. Don't be surprised if you hear Ray Allen thrown into the discussion of sending the two of them to Charlotte for Augustine...though what are the chances of that?

Celtics loose sharpshooter?

Wed Feb 10th.

Rumor has it that the Celtics are looking to upgrade their line up this February, around the Celtics general managers office the phone has been ringing constantly for the past week or so with questions regarding the shooting guard Ray Allen. Allen who's contract expires this year is a likely piece that will be moved from the Celtics team in order to ease up space for the up coming NBA draft. With Allen comes a hefty price of 19.7 million dollars of salary but the Celtics are looking to shop Allen off for a younger more potent guard specifically Kevin Martin of the Kings. This move is highly unlikely because Martin has 3 years left on contract and has been a great leader in the Kings locker room. If Martin does go to the Celtics then its likely that the Kings will force Boston to take Andres Nocioni who has 2 years left with the Kings. This move would shock the league seeing as that the Celtics are trying to ease up cap space and most likely wont take Nocioni and his large salary.

Melo back in line up

Tuesday Feb. 9th

Melo is finally back in Denver's line up and it couldn't be at a better time. Anthony missed 8 games previous of this last one due to a sprained left ankle and returned Tuesday night against the struggling Dallas Mavericks. The all star scored 19 points in the span of 3 quarters proving to the league that he is rapidly getting healthier. His 19 points aided the Nuggest in their onslaught of the Mavericks who lost to Denver by 36 points. With Melo back the line up will start to see a shift in the game pace, though not as agile as the young guard Arron Afflalo whom is averaging a respectable 9 points a game, the team will soon see a more dominant force to be reckoned with inside the paint. It will be a slow process but Melo should be healthy either the week of the NBA all star game or after the all star game all in all Fantasy owners should be celebrating the return of the superstar.

Ellis Questionable

Feb 9th 2010:

The Golden State Warriors may be down a star, Monta Ellis sprained his left knee during the late 4th quarter of their game against Dallas on Monday night and might be a game time decision on Wednesday's game against the rolling Los-Angeles Clippers. The guard took an MRI on Tuesday he is at best a game time decision. with out him the Warriors are down a great shooting guard who is averaging 26.6 points a game but as it is they already have lost nine games in a row so the loss of their leading scorer might not even change the out come of the game.

USA National Team Roster Out

With the new year comes a new roster and new faces, the NBA has finally announced the latest roster for the USA national team for the 2010-2012 year. The team brings back 9 gold medalists from the Summer Games overseas in china and 12 new faces to bolster this new all star line up. The main attractions to this new team are the 9 gold medalists, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Carmello Anthony, Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer. They all return to the roster after having won the US their 1st gold medal since the dream team back in the Jordan era. How ever not returning to the team this year is Jason Kidd, Tayshaun Prince and Micheal Redd, though they will be missed their counterparts are just as good, the new blood on the team are, Kevin Durrant, Derick Rose, Chauncey Billups, Lamar Odom, Al Jefferson, Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook, Rudy Gay, Andre Iguodala, O.J. Mayo, Eric Gorden, Kendrick Perkins, LaMarcus Aldridge, Danny Granger, David Lee, Brook Lopez, and Gerald Wallace.

From what I can see in this line up there is a good distribution of speed and length as well as strength, speculating on who the coach might be I can see various opportunities to utilize the young talent waiting to prove themselves on this roster. There is a nice mix of veterans and rookies to this team that will definitely make an entertaining game to watch. These players are known for their explosiveness on offense and for their individual set skills, look to Kobe Bryant and the returning gold medalists to be the leaders of the team and to be taking a bulk load of the playing time. Overall I think that we should applaud David Stern with the selection of the roster, all we need now is a coach to lead this team...rumors do suggest that coach K will be back but we have yet to hear a confirmation from him.

Fast triangle Leaves San Antonio looking for answers!

Feb. 08 2010, the headline news is that Lakers Star Kobe Bryant will be sitting out a 2nd consecutive game this season due to a left ankle injury, this news doesn't sit well with fans, but it does have a a news of hope for the aging but re-emerging San Antonio Spurs. To them they see this as an opportunity to snatch an easy win from the 2009 defending champs, little did they know that there was a storm brewing at the heart of the Staples Center in L.A. this didn't put a dapper the spirits of the Lakers none the least, at the stadium things proceeded as any normal day of work.

Kobe pulls up to the parking lot, hops out of the car and proceeds to the locker room as if it were just another day at the office. He was a game time decision but obviously he was in no shape to play. This season has had the Lakers star riddled with injuries ranging from a torn ligament in his shooting hand to his sprained ankle. The Lakers have dealt with injuries of other players as well, Artest sat out after a concussion, Gasol sat out due to a strained hamstring, and Luke Walton was sitting out because of back spasms it seemed like it would be a long journey for the defending champions.

San Antonio themselves have been dealing with injuries, specifically with point guard Emmanuel Ginobili (Manu) and Tony Parker. The team however took it all in stride and managed to do well with their 2 stars sitting down on the beach. But as the years go on you need to realize that the Spurs aren't getting any younger. Duncan's slowing down, Jefferson isn't exactly what they thought he was when they brought him over in a trade and its taken a while for the rookies to get settled into their rolls. Lets face it the spurs don't look like contenders to the next playoff run. To add insult to injury they lost to a Laker team that didn't start their 2 highest paid players. Andrew Bynum and Kobe Bryant both sat out on Sundays game due to various injuries.

Though they both sat out it was still a fight to the end of the 4th quarter. Lacking the games best closer and arguably one of the best skilled bigs the Lakers still managed to win through pure speed and sheer power in the post. the team finally utilized its preached triangle offense to the best of its abilities. The Lakers have won 2 consecutive games with their best players sitting, it is amazing to think that they managed to beat 2 very good teams with the best closer sitting on the bench, this run with out Kobe is a true testament to the game.

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"Kobe is the real deal" claims Lakers Forward Ron Atest, "he came into the locker room as if it was just another day at work and went through his pre game routine as if he was going to play, that shows leadership to me." Kobe could have easily stayed at home and relaxed his ankle but he choose to come into the locker room with his team and prepare for the game at hand all the while staying mum about his injury. He was the first one in there at half time and the last one to leave after the game like he normally is so its no surprise that he is the team captain of this star studded LA team.

If the Spurs cant beat an LA team with two huge forces on defense and offense sitting on the bench then they have lost their claim to being a power house team. They have lost their contender ship to the title for the year, this is a loss that ou cant just recover from by playing another game this is a loss that peculates in your mind and stays with you for the rest of the season and well on into the next one. I think its a safe bet to say at this point that we will not be seeing the San Antonio spurs in the playoffs unless they start to pick up the pace on their offense; and such will happen when all their players settle down into their assigned rolls. For now lets keep an eye on the Lakers and see if that they can make it through this run with out Kobe.