Beast of the Night: Dwight Howard posted 25 points, 24 rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks last night, his sixth 20/20 game of the season. He shot 64 percent (9-14) from the field, 70 percent (7-10) from the free-throw line and had three turnovers. Howard’s averaging 25.4 points, 16.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 2.4 steals and 2.8 blocks in his five games so far this month. Read More »

Oklahoma City didn’t play Thursday, but try telling Thunder fans it wasn’t a victory. Guard Russell Westbrook went all Boomer Sooner by signing a five-year, $80-million extension. The deal brought praise for GM Sam Presti and hailed Westbrook, slammed for being a “shoots-lots” guard, for his unselfishness: “Instead, Westbrook delivered to his teammates, his organization and this city a blessed gift. Expansion of the Thunder’s window of opportunity to turn Oklahoma City into Titletown. … No promises beyond 2016, but until then, barring catastrophic injury, an oil-and-gas bust or general manager Sam Presti losing his senses, the Thunder is set for five years of excellent basketball,” the Oklahoman columnist Berry Tramel wrote. Read More »

Despite the fact that Yao Ming is gone from the NBA, the Houston Rockets will be virtually unchanged next season – assuming they can re-sign its only free agent (Chuck Hayes) when the NBA resumes. New head coach Kevin McHale shouldn’t really hinder the production of these players, who formed a surprisingly effective offensive machine in 2010-11. With a potent backcourt, a blossoming swingman and some intriguing fill-ins, the Rockets have more than their share of fantasy appeal for the next NBA season. Read More »

As I’ve said before, volleyball might be one of my favorites sports to watch. I’m dead serious. Some of these dudes can fly. They might not be as graceful as the best basketball players, but the process of jumping 40 inches in the air, and then smashing a ball down towards the faces of an opponent is pretty dope. And if you’ve never been to a women’s volleyball game, you seriously need to reevaluate your stance on life (instead of having stuff like lingerie basketball, why can’t we just have a solid professional women’s volleyball league with TV contracts and teams all across the country?). Read More »

If ever there was a story that was very Kobe-like, then the tale of how his game at the Drew League came to be is definitely it. If you aren’t up on your summer league scheduling, the Drew League finished recently with a championship. Kobe’s people called just before the title game was about to be played, saying he wanted in, or wanted the chance to play. Of course, no league is going to throw him in for the championship. That’s just wrong. So instead, they adopted the idea of a celebrity/All-Star/random game for Kobe. Read More »

Those of us who can remember the early ‘90s know how on-top-of-the-world Mariah Carey used to be. The Music Box version of Mariah was young, beautiful and supremely talented. Then somewhere along the way Tommy Mottola, Glitter, “MTV Cribs” and Nick Cannon happened. A more recent example of a fallen diva is, of course, Christina Aguilera, whose career arc can be summarized as “Genie in a Bottle,” “Dirrty,” Burlesque and “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Today, Mariah and Christina are replaced by the likes of Adele, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry and Ke$ha. Read More »

Every year in the NBA there are 16 teams that make the playoffs and 14 who are relegated to the NBA Lottery. Those 14 teams hope that their draft pick can be a building block for the future and help their team become one of the 16 in the playoffs the following season. This article evaluates how well this year’s lottery teams have drafted the past five years: Read More »

Beast of the Night: Kobe Bryant finished the season with a strong game to the tune of 36 points, nine rebounds, six assists, one steal, one block and one three-pointer. He shot 54 percent (13-24) from the field, 90 percent (9-10) from the foul line and had two turnovers. While he was taken in the first round of virtually all drafts, Bryant returned top-30 value, signaling the end of his time as a truly elite fantasy player. His name will cause many to take him too early in next season’s drafts – don’t be the one to make that mistake. Read More »

Somebody call Smush Parker and tell him to dust off his purple kicks. Because if Kobe Bryant is at all missing the time he played with Kwame Brown, a 10-day for Smush in L.A. could be in the cards … OK, so Kobe didn’t say he misses Kwame — he didn’t say anything at all — but during last night’s loss to the Bobcats, Kobe had to notice Kwame was outplaying his more talented opposition for key stretches simply because he went harder. Read More »

A three-team deal emerged Tuesday night that had the New Jersey Nets send Terrence Williams to the Houston Rockets and Joe Smith to the Los Angeles Lakers. In return, the Nets will receive Sasha Vujacic from the Lakers along with a 2011 first-round pick, and a Lottery-protected 2012 first-round pick from the Rockets. The Rockets also sent Jermaine Taylor to the Sacramento Kings for a future second-round pick in order to make room for Williams. While there aren’t any landscape-shifting moves here, it does open the door a bit wider for a move that could have much bigger implications. Here’s a quick rundown of the fantasy fallout: Read More »