“Alas! How dreary would be the world if there was no Santa Claus!” Francis P. Church wrote those words in the New York Sun way back in 1897, responding to the inquiry of a young girl by the name of Virginia. Today, with the holidays in full swing and the (lockout shortened) NBA season set to begin, we wanted to take a look at the league’s most charitable on-court players – the ones you would much rather be playing with as opposed to against. Whether they are passing up shots in favor of assists, grabbing tough boards, playing tight defense, diving on the floor for loose balls, forfeiting minutes to youngsters and touches to superstars, or simply reveling in unselfishness and team leadership, these are the guys that will sacrifice and give of themselves for the betterment and happiness of their teammates and franchises. Read More »

It’s not like flopping is a cultural phenomenon solely owned by the NBA. It’s a disease that’s infiltrating every corner of professional sports. Take last weekend for example. Jerome Simpson, a 25-year-old wide receiver for Cincinnati, drew a 15-yard penalty against the Browns last Sunday by flopping harder than Rollerball. One little shove and boom, he was up, up and away, launching himself five feet off the ground, the largest jack rabbit anyone had ever seen. What made it even worse was the ref didn’t see it and yet still drew the flag. Read More »

The Oklahoma City Thunder are not like a box of chocolates. You know they’ve got four fantasy studs that can feasibly be drafted in succession in the first four rounds of standard-sized drafts. Truth be told, no one else on this roster really matters. It will be interesting to monitor how the team’s mercurial point guard adjusts to having a more prominent mate in the backcourt. Read More »

What are we really fighting about?

For the scarred veterans of countless throw-downs with significant others, it is the grand question that hovers over each petty incident—the subtitles that clarify the curse words. And every now and then, the more mature versions of ourselves can diffuse a hostile situation by asking that question.

But sometimes it only makes things worse. Read More »

Way back when, Macedonian generals returned home from battle to a heap of lavish praise and gifts. As long as their aggression brought back the fruitful spoils of devastation, all was forgiven. That is Russell Westbrook. If he were an historical figure, I’d assume he’d be Alexander The Great (If you take anything away from this, remember that Alexander was Macedonian, not Greek). Capable of conquering in a flash, but ultimately renounced and rebuked by future schoolteachers everywhere. “Be humble,” they would say. “Live within your means. Don’t overextend yourself.” But we are the masses, and we don’t listen to the wise words of a few. When we hit the street courts to emulate our favorite players, we don’t take a charge and scream “Big Baby!” Instead we chuck a fadeaway from the elbow, clinging to ephemeral hope while teetering on the precipice of utter disappointment. But then the shot goes in, and calamity turns to jubilation. Poor shot selection turns into greatness. Read More »

We used to think the best part of James Harden was his beard. Not anymore. Not with the way he helped spearhead a huge 106-100 Game 2 win for the Thunder by scoring 10 points in the fourth quarter. After a first game that saw Dallas’ bench chew up the Thunder reserves, it looks like someone took it upon himself to make things right. Actually they all took it personal. Nick Collison (six points, seven rebounds), Eric Maynor (13 points), Daequan Cook (eight points) and most importantly Harden (23 points, seven rebounds, four treys) all contributed. Read More »

He’s not flashy. He doesn’t run the floor like Russell Westbrook, drop buckets like Kevin Durant or swat shots into the rich seats like Serge Ibaka, but Nick Collison has become far from just another sub on OKC’s Western Conference Finals squad. And after watching the seventh year pro from Kansas battle it out in both of the Thunder’s two playoff series thus far, it’s clear that OKC needs a healthy dose of more Collison if they want to take their show any further. Read More »

On Twitter a couple weeks ago, WFAN Radio’s (New York) Evan Roberts tweeted a suggestion that as part of the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement, each team should be allowed to void one bad contract. I thought that was an interesting idea, and did some research, and here is one contract each NBA team would probably like to void: Read More »

After an outstanding three-year career at Kansas, which included a 2008 NCAA Championship and three Big 12 titles during his tenure, Cole Aldrich was a Lottery pick this June. First selected by the Hornets before being trading to the Thunder on Draft Night, the Bloomington, Minn. native gladly returned to the Midwest. So with everyone’s expectations for the Thunder going through the roof this season, we decided there was no one better to turn to for the inside scoop on life in OKC. In his initial entry, Cole talks about rookie hazing, facing his childhood idol and the best spot to get spicy California rolls in town. Read More »

As the NBA regular season approaches, we preview the upcoming campaign with the “Highs and Lows” system — predicting the respective ceiling and basement for each team.

Added: Cole Aldrich, Daequan Cook, Morris Peterson

Lost: Etan Thomas, Kyle Weaver, Kevin Ollie Read More »