Just do yourself a favor and save the retirement home jokes for the NBA’s elite older players.

Before 35-year-old Chauncey Billups tore his left Achilles tendon on Feb. 6, he was one of a handful of guys proving NBA effectiveness isn’t tied to an age range. Even calling Phoenix’s Steve Nash (38) and Grant Hill (39) “effective” misses out that the pair are the lifeblood of an otherwise nondescript Suns season. You already know about the Celtics’ Big Three, highlighted by Ray Allen (36), who’d be my No. 1 pick to be voted most likely to play past 45. Read More »

We’re now a month and a half into the season, and it’s been more unpredictable than a Lil’ Wayne album. Sure, we have our juggernauts (Miami, Chicago, I guess OKC) and our basement-dwellers (Charlotte gets their own spot). But in the middle, it’s a wreck. Portland looks like the best team in the West at home, but then goes on the road and can’t do anything. Denver started off 14-5. Then lost seven of eight. Even old reliables like the Celtics have continuously sputtered and stopped. Already this season, they’ve had winning streaks of four, four again and five, and losing streaks of three and five. Read More »

Beast of the Night: LeBron James finished with 35 points, eight boards, three assists and a steal last night. He shot 76 percent (16-21) from the floor, 100 percent (3-3) from the free-throw line and had two turnovers. James has improved his scoring, rebounding, blocking and accuracy from the floor from his marks last season and is the king of fantasy basketball this season. Read More »

Buy Low: Derrick Rose has produced just 10 points, five rebounds, six assists and one steal in his last two games. His back is aching him, which is part of the reason why he only played a total of about 33 minutes in those two games. Clearly, Rose’s fantasy value has taken a hit with this latest setback, just as we were forgetting about his bum toe. He could be playing at less than 100 percent for the foreseeable future, but with All-Star weekend about two weeks away, recovered health shouldn’t be too far away. Read More »

We all know Blake Griffin is a rising star, but today it was announced the All-Star starter is one of 18 chosen for the 2012 BBVA Rising Stars Challenge during All-Star weekend in Orlando.

The Rising Stars Challenge is a switch on the former Rookie/Sophomore game, though it was still voted on by assistant coaches. Now, they’ll be mixed together with Charles Barkley and Shaq choosing and coaching the teams. Each squad gets nine guys.

Here are the players on the list: Read More »

Ranking the NBA from worst to first…

30. Charlotte Bobcats (3-19) Last Week: 29, -1 The worst team in the league. Bar none. Nine straight losses. Their only bright spot in all of this is Kemba Walker. In his last five games, he’s averaging 15.2 points, seven rebounds and five assists a game and had the first triple-double in his rookie class. Your turn, Ricky and Kyrie. Read More »

Weekend Wonder: Kobe Bryant averaged 31.0 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists, a steal, 1 block and 3.0 threes in two games over the weekend. He’s shooting less lately, but that’s done nothing to diminish his strong fantasy appeal. It’s not a guarantee that Kobe will keep his top 10 value for the rest of the season, but he’s been one of the surprises of the fantasy season so far. 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 »

There’s something purely Americana about the hometown kid making good in front of the hometown crowd.

Whether it’s David Freese blasting home runs to lead his St. Louis Cardinals to a World Series title, or Chauncey Billups going from prep legend to college superstar to NBA bust back to NBA superstar in Denver, or even Jerome Bettis winning a Super Bowl in Detroit in his final NFL game while playing for another team, we like these stories. In a sports culture where free agency and stressed-out GMs eager to trade make it increasingly tougher for fans to claim one group of players as “our guys” for any length of time, hometown ties remain nearly impossible to break. Read More »

Beast of the Night: Andrea Bargnani posted 36 points, six boards, two assists, two steals, a block and four three-pointers in his mighty comeback from a calf injury. He shot 48 percent (10-21) from the floor, 100 percent (12-12) from the free-throw line and had two turnovers. Bargnani is having himself a solid all-around season with no real signs of a letdown in sight. Read More »