Nice Saturday night of good stats. Not great stats, but good, solid numbers across the board. Here’s who we’re looking at today.

Andrei Kirilenko – Uh oh. The surgery was worse than first reported and Kirilenko could be looking at well over a month. If that’s the case, which we don’t know for sure yet, he may be cutable. You may need that roster spot. We should know more by the All Star break so hold onto him for now. We also get an extra week of healing time built in with the break that you don’t have to worry about a wasted roster spot. Don’t cut him yet. Wait it out a little bit.

Mike Dunleavy – 30 points, 6 boards, 5 dimes. Welcome back Mr. Dunleavy.

Raja Bell – 27 more points and 3 more threes. Not mention great percentages. I’m putting this one up there with my Diaw shout-out. Evidently I’m great with new Bobcats. Read More »

Once upon a time — like, two months ago — Celtics/Pistons would have been a no-brainer national TV must-see matchup. Now? Not so much. It’s not like the Pistons stink or anything; they’re still in very good position to snatch a top-four seed and home court in the playoffs, but from everything that’s happened post-Allen Iverson trade (and post-Michael Curry hire), it’s clear Boston is in another class. Last night the C’s went into The Palace and won their 10th in a row, leading wire-to-wire in a game that was close at times, but was never truly in doubt … For all the criticism being heaped upon Iverson and Rip Hamilton, both of them played pretty well. When A.I. (19 pts), Rip (14 pts, 5 asts) and Rodney Stuckey (19 pts) were on the court together, that’s when Detroit looked their best and made a run to cut Boston’s lead to three in the fourth quarter. All three were playing tough: One time Iverson trucked Rajon Rondo on his way to a baseline pull-up J; Rip dove on the floor to battle KG for a loose ball; and then Stuckey got the ball on the break once and went up with two hands looking to make a poster out of anybody who got in his way. Garnett (22 pts, 9 rebs) was the closest to him — and Stuckey knew it — but KG decided to stay on the ground … Read More »

Eleven games on Friday’s NBA schedule, with some worthwhile story lines. Which ones will you be watching? Come back here throughout the night and let us know what’s catching your eye…

Celtics @ Pistons — Remember when this was a big deal? The C’s have won nine straight, mostly in blowout fashion, and the Pistons are the most talented team in the League that hasn’t figured itself out yet. Rasheed probably has to go for at least 20 points and really stretch the defense for Detroit to have a chance, and a lot will also hinge on Tayshaun Prince‘s defense. Michael Curry can stick him on Paul Pierce exclusively, or move him around to disrupt Boston’s offensive flow.

Heat @ Pacers — I can’t wait for Troy Murphy to rain wide-open threes as Jamaal Magloire and Joel Anthony keep forgetting to step out on him. Oh yeah, then there’s that shootout between Dwyane Wade (28.5 ppg) and Danny Granger (25.8 ppg), the #1 and #4 scorers in the League. Read More »

Sneakerfiles has pics of the Air Jordan 2009 metallic colorway set to release tomorrow. These limited edition Air Jordan 2009s will hit for $230.00, and dont fret, like past Jordan Brand limited releases they will come with that hot wooden shoe horn. Read More »

I’ve come to gloat. After the events that transpired last night — Tony Parker being selected to another All-Star team, then raining hot-buttered misery on Steve Nash and the Suns in the nightcap of TNT’s doubleheader — I have to revisit the argument that I started last summer and will continue into the forseeable future if need be. And if you missed THIS, THIS or THIS, you know the drill:

Tony Parker is (still) better than Deron Williams. Read More »

When you see a trade go through on the bottom line of ESPN, after all of the principle names in the deal scroll by, there’s usually some conditional pick two to three years away that changes hands. At the time, nobody really cares that somebody’s 2013 first-rounder is on the move. But it turns out that those picks end up being kind of important.

ESPN’s Chris Sheridan did an absurd amount of research to produce a fantastic list of the League’s best trade assets, many of which are those seemingly negligible pieces that scroll by at the tail end of a trade announcement.

Here’s his list: 1. The Knicks’ future first-round pick (unprotected in 2010). Currently owned by Utah Jazz. Read More »

Because it’s Friday and there’s nothing better to do, how about a random question/list? Today’s topic:

What is your favorite All-Star memory?

I have two:

1992: After Magic Johnson had retired a few months earlier, the fans still voted him in for the All-Star Game in Orlando — one of the few times an undeserving All-Star pick wasn’t bashed by everyone. Coming back for (what we figured was) one more game, Magic put on a show. Running the break and distributing like he’d been running “Showtime” next to guys like Clyde Drexler, David Robinson and Chris Mullin his entire career, Magic racked up 25 points, five boards and nine assists in an MVP performance. (The West won by 40.) When Magic capped it off with a deep fadeaway three over Isiah Thomas in the final minute, the crowd exploded and I was headed for the driveway to try that same shot. Read More »

Is the Philly team that we’ve seen win nine of their last eleven games the same team that took the Pistons to task in the playoffs last year?

If the answer to that question is yes, then GM Ed Stefanski might be on the right track if he says that Elton Brand is available for suitors.

ESPN’s Chad Ford recently mentioned that Brand is up for the taking in one of those chat-sessions. Ford followed that up with this question:

“The question is, given how poorly he’s played this year and his huge contract, does anybody want him?” Ford asked.

Read More »

When we got up with Shaq in the Knicks’ locker room last week, he said that the reason behind his improved free throw shooting was that he stopped listening to what so-called ‘free throw experts’ had to say.

Gregg Popovich doesn’t count as one of those ‘experts.’ And he knows that the Diesel listened to what he had to say earlier this season.

“Well, I would like to take full credit for Shaq’s improvement,” Popovich said with a smile. “Because I think that I’ve helped him to focus. Read More »

Mo Williams‘ name definitely belongs on the All-Star snub list. But was he so deserving of a spot that his teammates are justified in going berserk over it?

* Ben Wallace:

It’s a tragedy. I think it’s an injustice. It’s a fraud. We’ve got the best record in the league, and we’ve only got one guy going. Read More »