You Know It’s NBA Preseason When … Lamar Odom is guest-commentating at the announcer’s table during the second quarter, and he’s still wearing his warm-ups. Assuming L.O. wasn’t going commando under the sweats, he could have conceivably moved directly from his seat next to Mark Jackson to the court … For the most part, though, intensity was the name of last night’s Lakers/Warriors game in Ontario, Calif., which was technically a “neutral” site but definitely housed a pro-Lakers crowd. Fill-in coach Brian Shaw even had Kobe Bryant (22 pts, 7 asts) and Pau Gasol in for most of the fourth quarter and some of overtime, while G-State ran Monta Ellis and David Lee almost all night … Read More »

When you’re not the ’92 Dream Team and penciled in to flog everybody by 30 or 50 points a night, you probably need some close games under your belt to test your clutch-ness and avoid complacency. For Team USA’s 2010 version, that game happened yesterday, as they barely hung on to beat Brazil in a tough contest that exposed a lot of U.S. weaknesses but also may have done them some good for later in the World Championship … Led by Leandro Barbosa, Tiago Splitter and J.J. Barea‘s long-lost cousin Marcelo Huertas, Brazil took the lead in the first quarter and didn’t give it up until late into the third, picking the U.S. apart with screen-and-rolls, timely threes, and Barbosa’s brand of South American Allen Iverson basketball, heavy on the jack … Read More »

At this stage in the game, if you’re still a free agent, you’re most likely looking for an NBA roster spot before you have to settle for an overseas gig (or perhaps even retire). But with that in mind, there are still some talented veterans – over the age of 35 – that are worth the minimal investment. I’m not saying sign them to a three-year, $10.5 million contract like the Lakers did with 35-year-old Derek Fisher, but you get the picture. Without further ado, here are the Top 5 NBA Free Agents Over 35 Years Old. Read More »

If Vince Carter is the 2010 Most Disappointing Player of the NBA playoffs, Rasheed Wallace took the crown during the regular season. But while Vince’s untimely no-show helped deny the Magic a return trip to the Finals, ‘Sheed is still in position to sneak out of his letdown of a season with a championship.

Vince and ‘Sheed share another legacy. They are two of the most talented players to ever come out of the University of North Carolina, and at the same time, could be Exhibit A and Exhibit B of a trend I’ve noticed: Over the last 20 years or so, the North Carolina NBA register looks more like a ballot for the Da Vinci Code All-Stars. Read More »

One of the great pains in the ass about working for Dime is that too many people are convinced we all think with the same brain.

We’ve got a whole team of talented and opinionated writers around here, so it’s annoying when I get e-mails and comments berating (or even praising) me for something that was written in someone else’s column. Usually I let it slide, though.

But then my man Aron Phillips got on this kick that Brandon Jennings should be NBA Rookie of the Year. Read More »

So it wasn’t exactly Willis Reed or Daniel LaRusso, but the scene in Portland when Brandon Roy stepped back onto the court yesterday was pretty amazing nonetheless. After the Blazers got bass-taped by Phoenix twice in a row, they activated their superstar at the last minute for Game 4, about a week following his knee surgery. Clearly far from 100 percent and all but dragging his leg around, Roy (10 pts, 4-10 FG) still gave the team and the crowd an emotional lift and managed to play a key role as Portland pulled even in the series … Read More »

He’s not even the most famous second-round draft pick on his own team, but Luc Richard Mbah a Moute is a classic example of the crapshoot reality of the NBA Draft.

While injured All-Star Michael Redd is the Milwaukee Bucks’ signature second-round success story, Mbah a Moute is the one who can help the team make some noise in the playoffs right now. And unlike Redd, the UCLA product wasn’t even a marquee star in college; it was something of a surprise that he was drafted at all when he was taken with the 37th pick in 2008. Read More »

For all the rumors you hear about Coach K getting NBA offers left and right, there’s one place that could make a lot of sense for him whenever their current coach steps down: San Antonio. When you think about it, the Spurs are already the Duke Blue Devils of the pro game. They’re the clean-cut guys, the smug elitists who seem to get every bounce and just win year after year, and everybody hates them. And if you ask the fans in Denver who saw last night’s Nuggets/Spurs game, Tim Duncan‘s squad, like Coach K’s, has the refs in their back pocket … It was close going into the fourth before the Spurs went on a 16-2 run, with nine of those points coming at the free throw line. Read More »

Monday night on his SIRIUS XM Mad Dog Radio show “Stack’s House,” Jerry Stackhouse talked about the recent play of the San Antonio Spurs. If you don’t remember, just a few weeks ago, the 15-year NBA veteran had been very critical of Richard Jefferson, basically saying that he was overrated. But apparently after our post on DimeMag.com, RJ’s play over the last few weeks has drastically changed. Read More »

To make it to the NBA, you have to have talent. But to play a whole career in the NBA, you have to have a whole lot more than just that. As a 15-year NBA veteran, Jerry Stackhouse knows a thing or two about both. And on his SIRIUS Satellite Radio show, “Stack’s House,” the Bucks swingman decided to drop some veteran knowledge on Richard Jefferson‘s performance in San Antonio. Too bad the Bucks and Spurs already played their two games this year before his arrival in Milwaukee, because I would fly out for this match-up after Stackhouse puts Jefferson on blast. Read More »