Beast of the Night: Dirk Nowitzki was an absolute animal last night, putting up 40 points on 55 percent (12-22) shooting from the field and 94 percent (15-16) from the line, chipping in a three-pointer along with 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 5 blocks and no turnovers. He scored 29 of his 40 points in the fourth quarter, playing like Mehmet Okur bad-mouthed David Hasselhoff. You can’t get much better than this in fantasy ball and Diggler is in for a great year. Read More »

In lieu of making yet another LeBron/Jay-Z analogy, let’s put it this way: The Cavs are treating the Wizards like LL Cool J did Canibus. They’ll take some time out to address the beef, but always with a swagger that says “Who is this little pest?” It’s even trickled down to the announcers. When Washington came out blasting last night (”Second Round Knockout”) and put the Cavs down by as much as 18 in the first half, Austin Carr admitted the game didn’t mean as much to LeBron and Co. as it did to Gilbert Arenas‘ squad. Read More »

For a franchise that supposedly doesn’t have any money, the Grizzlies went all-out for their home opener. After introducing the Pistons to the theme from Beverly Hills Cop (cute), the Jumbotron showed a dramatic over-the-top video where Allen Iverson and Rudy Gay talked about “Grizz Nation” and defending homecourt. Then the DJ put on a Michael Myers/Halloween-inspired track, and the Jabbawockeez appeared at midcourt to dance. THEN they brought out Three Six Mafia, wearing Memphis jerseys and performing “Stay Fly” to bleed into the player intros, complete with smoke machines and everything else. Read More »

You know the only way a preseason game between the Knicks and a team that isn’t even in the NBA would crack the sports highlights shows on an NFL and baseball playoffs Sunday is if something crazy happened. And in the third quarter of New York’s game against Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel), things got appropriately insane. After Maccabi head coach Pini Gershon got himself ejected thanks to a couple of techs, he refused to leave the court — if you saw the Season 2 premier of “Tool Academy,” he pretty much acted like the dude who got kicked off that first week. The refs wouldn’t re-start the game until Gershon left, so it turned into a standoff. Read More »

Last year we debuted the “Highs and Lows” system — previewing the NBA season by predicting the respective ceiling and basement for each team. Same theme, different season…

Added: Ben Gordon, Charlie Villanueva, Austin Daye, Chris Wilcox, Ben Wallace, DaJuan Summers, Jonas Jerebko Read More »

In Smack this morning, we talked about Austin Daye catching D-Wade from behind on a breakaway sending Flash’s layup out of bounds. Drawing all sorts of comparisons to Tayshaun’s infamous swat, what would you say is the best come from behind block you’ve ever seen?

Of the four teams that played in last night’s NBA preseason games, three were of the “new-look” variety: Orlando, Dallas and Detroit. Most relevant to the 2010 championship race, the Magic debuted Vince Carter in their win over the Mavs. Starting at two-guard next to Mickael Pietrus at the three and Rashard Lewis at the four, Vince scored 21 points on 7-of-18 shooting, 3-of-12 beyond the arc. Dwight Howard had 17 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks, and Rashard scored 18 with four threes … Dirk Nowitzki — looking like an awkward Thor with the long-hair/headband combo — scored 23 points (17-19 FT) for the Mavs, who were without Shawn Marion (rest) and Josh Howard (ankle) … Read More »

Detroit is hurting.

With the automobile industry virtually collapsing, the Motor City has seen its unemployment rate fluctuate close to 20% in any given month. Thousands of homes and businesses are left abandoned, and there is little light at the end of the tunnel for many families.

To make matters worse Detroit’s sports franchises, which have always been a source of hope and enthusiasm for the city, have struggled mightily. The Lions failed to win a single game in 2008, the Red Wings heartbreakingly lost in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2009, and the Tigers have consistently disappointed. Needless to say, a once glorious city is in the midst of destruction and despair. Read More »

If not more talented, the NBA’s 2010 free agent class is at least deeper and could change the direction of the League more than any class since 2000, a group led by Tim Duncan, Grant Hill, Jason Kidd, Reggie Miller and Tracy McGrady.

With so much attention being paid to LeBron (the best player and biggest media star), D-Wade (#2 on both fronts) and Chris Bosh (the superstar who seems most likely to change uniforms) looking ahead to next summer, many have overlooked the rest of the crop: Read More »

One of the great misconceptions about the Detroit Pistons of the post-Grant Hill to pre-Allen Iverson era was that they were a team without a “star.”

While it was true that Ben Wallace, Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace and Tayshaun Prince weren’t making cash registers dance in the heads of marketing executives, nor would any of them be able to carry a team of otherwise above-average talent to the playoffs (i.e. Dwyane Wade and the ‘09 Heat), those Pistons did have one player — Billups — who stood ahead the rest on the court, even if it was just a half-step in some cases. Read More »