I’m telling you guys, whenever you need a laugh, scoop up some old YouTube videos (like I have) during the AND 1/streetball/Ja Rule/throwbacks/size 40 jeans period and thank me later. I still remember constantly downloading those old AND 1 tapes back on Kazaa, dribbling in front of mirrors, in racquetball courts, in school. Honestly, looking back on it now, that was one of the weirdest phenomenons I’ve ever seen. People who weren’t even basketball fans were obsessed with Hot Sauce. Read More »

Who do you want your offense to run through with the game on the line? Counting down from 30th to 1st (one per team), I’ve ranked the League’s go-to guys…

DERRICK ROSE, Chicago Bulls The end of the era was about four years ago. The funeral was held over the past week.

Once upon a time, “score-first” point guards ran the NBA. At a time when quickness became more coveted than size, and the influences of Michael Jordan (long-term) and the AND 1 Mix Tape style (short-term) took hold, men like Allen Iverson, Steve Francis, Stephon Marbury and Baron Davis thrived. Read More »

They say the mainstream playground fad is dead (Where have you gone, Hot Sauce?), but in the NBA — and really in this whole major pro sports thing — the essence of the park still thrives: It’s a constant proving ground.

Maybe it’s because today’s media is quicker than ever to judge, jury and execute; a few public missteps (or just one if it’s big enough) and we’ll gladly anchor you with a label that will take years to erase. Read More »

Good news for the Orlando Magic: Winning last night’s Game 3 puts you right back in the NBA Finals, and with two more home games in a row, in position to stretch this thing to six or seven games and pull off an upset. Bad news: You played about as flawless a game as possible (at least offensively) and still just barely got the W … Orlando came out scorching in the first quarter, hitting like 75 percent of their shots, but were still mostly playing from behind due to Kobe Bryant single-handedly destroying their defense. Read More »