Kenyon Martin isn’t the only one in search of a team. The average NBA season always finds a few old veterans who make their way onto rosters during the stretch run, and this year with the shortened season, we figured it’d be even more hectic. People are out of shape, tired, hurt and some just plain can’t take the schedule. Because of the lockout, there’s even more top-level talent spread across the globe. But that’s not who we’re talking about. Read More »

If you’re a fan of Penny Hardaway, it’s impossible not to consider what could have been. Penny was All-NBA First Team twice by the time he was 25. Who knows what heights he could have reached if only his body had held up?

That said, there’s no point to focusing on what didn’t happen at the expense of celebrating what actually did. Penny’s all too brief period atop the basketball world brought him a well-deserved enduring legacy, and his eternally cool Nike signature line and 1 Cent logo continues to resonate with sneakerheads of all ages. Read More »

Nothing hurts more than losing your spot at the gym because you lost to a bunch of random dudes. That’s what happened to the Lakers last night in Milwaukee. With Stephen Jackson corporate thuggin’ it off-court (suspended for verbal abuse of an official), Andrew Bogut out with his yearly injury and Brandon Jennings playing more passively than at any point over the past month, the Lakers took body blows from Drew Gooden, Mike Dunleavy and Ersan Ilyasova before finally falling 100-89. Read More »

You had to know this was coming sooner or later. Flip Saunders is now officially out as the Wizards head coach, according to Michael Lee of The Washington Post. He will be replaced by lead assistant Randy Wittman. When you have some of the most immature talent in the league leading you through a 2-15 disaster of a season, with an offense that is dead last in the entire NBA (and a defense that’s not much better), what do you expect? Washington started slow, and the progress has been so minimal that the front office had no other choice. Read More »

“I can stand in a room full of dead people and make it exciting.”

Gilbert Arenas told us this once back in Dime #29, when he was plastered on the cover with the headline “Who’s Better Than Me?”

It’s a tired cliché but yet it’s true. Gilbert Arenas isn’t what he once was. Neither are Stephon Marbury, Steve Francis, Allen Iverson and all the rest of the once 30-point scoring, magazine-covering, teammate-aggravating, crossover-dropping stars the league put through the gauntlet and then filtered back out. Read More »

We thought we’d mix it up a bit this morning. Instead of your regular dose of SMACK, we decided to bring you our Top 10 New Year’s Resolutions for the NBA in 2012.

These are just 10 of ours – add yours in the comments section below and we’ll post the best. Happy New Year to all of our Dime readers … Read More »

The fact that Gilbert Arenas is still a free agent says a lot about the direction the NBA is headed. No longer does talent alone guarantee you a spot amongst the NBA’s elite – just ask Allen Iverson. So after clearing waivers, Arenas waits in limbo until a team brave enough takes a chance on the 29-year-old guard. And Santa‘s already received a letter with Gil’s preferred destinations. Read More »

It wasn’t too long ago that Orlando/Miami was a big Eastern Conference tilt. Now, it’s simply a mismatch. With Dwight Howard (2-for-9, five points, six rebounds) going through the motions somewhat – let’s hope this doesn’t become a habit this season – the Heat toyed with Orlando for a while and then blew them away in the second half, winning their opening preseason game 118-85. Miami has a better, and healthier, supporting cast this year, but it’s still going to come down to the Big Three. And that’s bad news considering they look healthy, confident and comfortable, combining for 47 easy points. Read More »

The Clippers better hope David Stern likes their team because if it comes down to it, he’ll have a huge say in whether or not they get the best point guard in the game to possibly ignite the next Gary Payton/Shawn Kemp oop combo. ESPN is reporting Chris Paul likes the Clippers if he can’t ever get to the Knicks or Lakers, and luckily for L.A. they have a ton of assets that should please Stern, Dan Gilbert and anyone else who wants to complain. They have expiring contracts (Chris Kaman), draft picks (a possibly top three-five pick in a loaded June draft) and talent. Read More »

Of all five teams that the New Orleans fiasco sort of screwed over this week (Los Angeles, New Orleans, Houston, the Knicks and Boston), it’s the Lakers who are probably hurting the most to get these talks kick-started and moving again. Lamar Odom isn’t feeling the love right now, and showed up for just a few moments during practice yesterday. So there’s no doubt in our minds that they’re working feverishly right now. The teams were given the green light to start talking again so all three are back to the negotiating table, attempting to tweak what they thought was a sure thing just a few days ago. Read More »