2010-11 NBA Season Preview - Boston Celtics

The new look 2010-11 Boston Celtics

Starter / Bench:
PG - Rajon Rondo / Nate Robinson
SG - Ray Allen / Von Wafer
SF - Paul Pierce / Marquis Daniels
PF - Kevin Garnett / Glen Davis
C - Jermaine O'Neal / Shaquille O'Neal / Kendrick Perkins

source:espn.com

2009-10 regular season: 50-32 (4th in East)
2009-10 playoffs: NBA Finals

Players out: Rasheed Wallace, Tony Allen and Shelden Williams
Players in: Jermaine O'Neal, Shaquille O'Neal and Von Wafer

(They have added 2 All-Star centers this offseason to give themselves 2 more shots at another NBA title ...)

My 2010-11 season prediction: 54-28 (3rd in East)

2010-11 NBA Season Preview - Game Schedule

The NBA has released the schedule for the coming season's nationally televised games played on the opening week, Christmas Day and Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The remainder of the schedule will be released on August 10 ...

Date	Time (EDT)	Matchup	Network
Oct. 26	7:30 pm	Heat at Celtics	TNT
Oct. 26	10:30 pm	Rockets at Lakers	TNT
Oct. 27	8:00 pm	Bulls at Thunder	ESPN
Oct. 27	10:30 pm	Blazers at Clippers	ESPN
Oct. 28	8:00 pm	Wizards at Magic	TNT
Oct. 28	10:30 pm	Suns at Jazz	TNT
Oct. 29	8:00 pm	Magic at Heat	ESPN
Oct. 29	10:30 pm	Lakers at Suns	ESPN
Oct. 30	8:30 pm	Nuggets at Rockets	NBATV
Oct. 31	7:00 pm	Jazz at Thunder	NBATV
Nov. 1	8:00 pm	Blazers at Bulls	NBATV
Dec. 25	Noon	Bulls at Knicks	ESPN
Dec. 25	2:30 pm	Celtics at Magic	ABC
Dec. 25	5:00 pm	Heat at Lakers	ABC
Dec. 25	8:00 pm	Nuggets at Thunder	ESPN
Dec. 25	10:30 pm	Blazers at Warriors	ESPN
Jan. 17	1:00 pm	Bulls at Grizzlies	ESPN
Jan. 17	4:00 pm	Kings at Hawks	NBATV
Jan. 17	8:00 pm	Magic at Celtics	TNT
Jan. 17	10:30 pm	Thunder at Lakers	TNT

source:nike.com

But NBA fans will not have to wait long before watching some NBA players in action. This year the inaugural World Basketball Festival will be held on August 12-15 in New York City. Do not miss the huge double-header on August 15 when the United States hosting France at 1:00 pm EDT and China playing Puerto Rico at 3:30 pm EDT ...

Another Bad Move For LeBron James and His Crew

It was really nice when ex-Cleveland Cavalier Zydrunas Ilgauskas took out a 1-page advertisement in Sunday's Plain Dealer in Cleveland thanking the city of Cleveland and Cavaliers fans for their 14 years of support ...

source:cleveland.com

Then a day later, copycat LeBron James placed a similar 1-page advertisement in Beacon-Journal in Akron thanking the city of Akron for their support through the years ...

---

To My Family, Friends and Fans in Akron:

For all my life, I have lived in Akron -- and for that, I am truly a lucky man.

It was here where I first learned how to play basketball, and where I met the people who would become my lifelong friends and mentors. Their guidance, encouragement and support will always be with me.

Akron is my home, and the central focus of my life. It's where I started, and it's where I will always come back to.

You can be sure that I will continue to do everything I can for this city, which is so important to my family and me. Thank you for your love and support. You mean everything to me.

---

Of course, LeBron James received a totally different reaction from the general public compared to Zydrunas Ilgauskas. If copying Big Z's idea wasn't bad enough, in his full-page advertisement, he did not mention anything about the city of Cleveland or the Cleveland Cavaliers ...

I'm not going to hit a man when he's already down. But why did he place a 1-page advertisement if it wasn't for the city of Cleveland? He left the Cleveland Cavaliers this summer, not the city of Akron. And why did he pick such a bad time (1 day after Big Z's ad) to do it? I really don't get it ...

Another Piece of LeBron James' Evidence Disappeared

“The story should have never been published," said ESPN ...

Apparently, LeBron James and his crew have the power to make videos and articles about him disappear. In case you haven't read it, enjoy ...

---

A Kid In King James' Court
- By Arash Markazi

LeBron James leans against a waist-high stone wall with a 16-foot-tall Buddha hovering over him.

He's at Tao, a bustling restaurant and nightclub inside the Venetian hotel in Las Vegas, and his arms are crossed as he listens to Lynn Meritt, senior director of Nike Basketball, and Charles Denson, president of Nike Brand. James is quiet, occasionally applying Chap Stick on his lips and nodding when he hears something he likes.

Five security guards are stationed around him, one at each corner of the table he's about to sit at and another roving around with him, watching his every move. Anyone who takes two steps toward James is stopped and must have James' approval to come closer.

The waiter bringing him his cup of green tea with a spoonful of honey and a dash of lemon juice makes the cut, as does the scantily clad brunette with a tattoo of a heart on her right shoulder.

She wants to take a picture with him. "I can't right now," says James. "Maybe later, upstairs, I'll remember you're the one with the tattoo."

James will host a party later in the upstairs nightclub at Tao, but he is currently hosting a dinner for his friends and family in the downstairs restaurant. Wearing a gray striped shirt and gold crucifix around his neck, he bobs his head to music played by an amped-up saxophonist who weaves his way around the table like a one-man mariachi band.

I have somehow found myself at this exclusive table, seated beside Eddie Jackson, who is introduced to me as James' father (though he actually began dating James' mother, Gloria, after LeBron was born and the two are no longer together). Jackson, wearing a muscle shirt accentuating his large biceps, looks like a member of James' four-man entourage, like one of his childhood friends.

James' circle includes Randy Mims, seated to his right at the center of the table, Maverick Carter, seated at the head of the table, and Richard Paul, seated in front of James. The quartet makes up the initials behind LRMR Marketing, the management firm James founded almost four years ago with his buddies. Their offices in downtown Cleveland gained notoriety this month as the location teams flocked to for their meetings with James.

Seated to the right of James is Chris Paul, whose brother, C.J., is seated across from him. The New Orleans Hornets point guard has seen how James has positioned himself to win a championship by signing with the Miami Heat and joining forces with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh and has reportedly considered a similar move himself.

The truth is, in James' dream world, the duo he would love to play with for the next decade would be Wade and Paul, his two closest friends in the NBA. Paul has been like a brother to James since the two were in Las Vegas four years ago for USA Basketball training camp, when as a rookie he carried James' and Wade's bags to and from the team bus.

James and Paul are fairly quiet at the center of the table as they take in the scene around them. As family style plates of miso-glazed Chilean sea bass and crispy lobster and shrimp dumplings are brought to the table, James effortlessly picks up the food with his chopsticks and occasionally raises his cup of green tea to passersby as they raise their martinis and mojitos in his direction before being helped along by security guards.

When trays of dessert plates are brought over, James gets up, preferring to start his party upstairs instead of indulging in the giant fortune cookies and chocolate cake. A security guard comes over and puts plastic wristbands on our wrists and escorts us through the back of the restaurant, up a flight of stairs in the bowels of the hotel and through a back entrance into the club. About a dozen security guards, moving their flash lights, direct us to a roped off section on the dance floor of Tao next to a couple of apparently nude women in a bathtub full of water and rose petals.

James, now wearing sunglasses in the dark club, immediately stands up on the couch and folds his arms high on his chest and nods his head. He smiles as he looks at the dozens of people crowded on the dance floor. Noticing him, they stop dancing and snap pictures as the DJ screams out, "LeBron James in the building!" and plays ****'s "I'm in Miami."

Carter, LeBron's childhood friend and manager, begins dancing around James like Puff Daddy in a Notorious B.I.G video. A giant red crown-shaped cake is brought over to James while go-go dancers dressed in skimpy red and black outfits raise four lettered placards that spell out, "KING." Carter grabs a bottle of Grey Goose and pours a quarter of it on the floor and raises it up before passing it off.

James' infamous one-hour special, "The Decision," was reportedly the brainchild of Carter, a 28-year-old who has never managed anyone outside of his friend James. This three-day party marathon in Vegas (which James is being paid six figures to host) is also Carter's idea.

Bottle after bottle of "Ace of Spades" champagne is delivered to the table by a waiter flying down from above the dance floor like some overgrown Peter Pan on a wire. One time he's dressed like a King, another time as Indiana Jones and another in a replica of James' No. 6 Miami Heat jersey.

James, who can hardly see the flying figure through his tinted glasses, almost gets kicked in the head on the waiter's last trip down. He looks at the girls around him and says, "I wish they'd have one of these girls with no panties do that instead of the guy."

Toward the end of the night, Boston Celtics forward Glen Davis walks past James' party and looks at the scene up and down several times like a painting in a museum, soaking in the images of the go-go dancers, the "King" sign and the costumed man delivering bottles of champagne.

Davis shakes his head and walks on.

James dances on the couch and sings along with the music blaring from speakers all around him.

The more you hang around James, the more you realize he's still a child wrapped in a 6-foot-8, 250-pound frame. The night after the party at Tao, he and his crew walk through the casino at the Wynn and Encore and he pretends to dribble a basketball as he walks past ringing slot machines and tourists who do double-takes. In a Nike T-shirt, jeans and sneakers, James' pantomime seems unconscious. He stops every few feet to shoot a jump shot, his right hand extended above his head on the follow through. He weaves through a pack of a dozen friends and pretends to connect on a layup as he walks past a gift shop. He passes overhead casino signs and jumps up and slaps them, pretending to dunk. Columns covered with advertisements for lounge acts become stationary defenders, chumps to fake out before connecting on imaginary mid-range jump shots.

James probably goes through a practice's worth of shots as we walk from the XS nightclub at Encore (James left his poolside table when he saw the club was practically empty), through Wynn and over the bridge to the Palazzo.

Soon after arriving at Lavo, a restaurant and nightclub at the Palazzo, a scene straight out of "West Side Story" breaks out when James and Lamar Odom, seated at a nearby table, engage in an impromptu dance-off to California Swag District's "Teach Me How To Dougie."

Odom, smoking a cigar, can't quite keep up. James celebrates by crossing himself and taking a shot of Patron. Moments later, a handful of girls dressed as cheerleaders walk toward his table with someone dressed in James' Heat uniform. Someone throws talcum powder in the air as James does before every game, while his new unofficial song, "I'm in Miami," plays.

Odom casts a glance James' way before looking in the opposite direction and raising his glass at a couple on the dance floor who point to their ring fingers and smile.

Back at his table, James and his crew sing every word to Rick Ross' "Free Mason." LeBron raps every line to former teammate Damon Jones (who played with him in Cleveland). Jones, puffing on a cigar, nods.

James rips out the lines:

"If I ever die, never let it be said I didn't win
Never, never say
Never say legend didn't go in
I just wanna die on top of the world."

While he looks at club-goers flashing the LA and Westside signs at him, James smiles and points to Jackson's T-shirt, which reads, "Another Enemy," and raises his glass of champagne.

Finally, Carter tells James it's time to leave the club and they do, LeBron pretending to cross-over tables and shoot over slot machines all the way back to his room.

---

The article was first published here at ESPN ...

2010-11 NBA Season Preview - Oklahoma City Thunder

The new look 2010-11 Oklahoma City Thunder

Starter / Bench:
PG - Russell Westbrook / Eric Maynor
SG - Thabo Sefolosha / James Harden
SF - Kevin Durant / Morris Peterson
PF - Jeff Green / Serge Ibaka
C - Cole Aldrich / Nenad Krstic

source:espn.com

2009-10 regular season: 50-32 (tied for 6th in West)
2009-10 playoffs: Western Conference Quarterfinals

Players out: - None -
Players in: Cole Aldrich, Morris Peterson, Daequan Cook and Royal Ivey

(They have added a true center and more outside shooting ...)

My 2010-11 season prediction: 54-28 (3rd in West)

2010 Team USA - World Championship Roster

The list of the 15 players who will be training in New York City from Aug 10-16 has been announced an hour ago ...

PG - Derrick Rose
PG - Rajon Rondo
PG - Russell Westbrook

SG - Eric Gordon
SG - Stephen Curry
SG - Chauncey Billups
SG - O.J. Mayo

SF - Andre Iguodala
SF - Rudy Gay
SF - Danny Granger
SF - Gerald Wallace

PF - Kevin Durant
PF - Kevin Love
PF - Jeff Green

C - Lamar Odom
C - Tyson Chandler
C - Brook Lopez
C - JaVale McGee

When they finish training there, 3 more players will be cut to finalize Team USA's 12-men roster for the 2010 FIBA World Championship. Based on performance thus far, Chauncey Billups, Danny Granger and Brook Lopez are the ones who should not make the final cut ...

However, if Brook Lopez fails to make the final cut, Team USA will be extremely thin at center as they are currently using Lamar Odom as a center. And, you can never have enough 3-point shooting and experience in international competition. Therefore, the 3 players who might not make the final could be Danny Granger, Jeff Green and ... ?

2010 NBA Free Agency - Winners And Losers

Kobe Bryant told Matt Barnes, "Anyone crazy enough to (bleeping) mess with me is crazy enough to play with me."

source:espn.com

There you have it. Matt Barnes is officially a Los Angeles Laker after signing a 2-year, $3.6 million contract last week. Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak is obviously the clear-cut winner here as he somehow managed to use their full $5.765 million mid-level exception to sign 2 NBA starters (Steve Blake with the Portland Trailblazers and Matt Barnes with the Orlando Magic) to further improve their chances for a 3-peat ...

While the best team from last season is going for a 3-peat, the worst team from last season is also going for their own repeat. The Minnesota Timberwolves drafted 2 more foreign big men, traded their best players Al Jefferson and Ryan Gomes away, failed to land any big name free agents, got fined by the NBA last week, and are still more than $20 million under the salary cap. Just when you think the Timberwolves had finally got rid of their bad GM Kevin McHale, they got themselves a worse one - David Kahn ...

Bonus - How many names on the Minnesota Timberwolves roster can you pronoun?
1 - Sasha Pavlovic?
2 - Oleksiy Pecherov?
3 - Darko Milicic?
4 - Greg Stiemsma?
5 - Nemanja Bjelica?
6 - Paulao Prestes?
7 - Kosta Koufos?
8 - Nikola Pekovic?

2010-12 Team USA - Training Camp Concluded

Team USA training camp concluded after the White Team's 114-96 victory over the Blue Team ...

Team USA - Blue

---

Player	Min	FG	3Pt	FT	Reb	Ast	TO	Stl	Blk	PF	Pts
Rajon Rondo	29	3-6	1-1	0-2	2	6	3	1	0	2	7
Chauncey Billups	22	2-10	2-6	0-0	3	1	0	1	1	1	6
Rudy Gay	33	7-11	3-4	6-7	5	1	7	2	2	5	23
Jeff Green	18	5-13	0-2	1-2	8	1	2	0	1	1	11
Brook Lopez	13	1-2	0-0	0-0	0	0	1	0	0	2	2
Russell Westbrook	31	4-10	0-1	6-8	4	3	4	3	0	2	14
O.J. Mayo	25	7-12	3-6	1-2	7	2	0	1	0	3	18
Kevin Love	20	2-5	1-2	3-4	7	0	1	0	0	3	8
JaVale McGee	9	3-6	0-0	1-2	3	0	0	0	1	0	7

---

Totals

200

34-75

10-22

18-27

39

14

18

8

5

19

96

Team USA - White

---

Player	Min	FG	3Pt	FT	Reb	Ast	TO	Stl	Blk	PF	Pts
Derrick Rose	31	7-13	1-1	0-0	3	8	0	5	0	1	15
Stephen Curry	21	4-9	3-7	3-4	6	1	3	0	0	3	14
Andre Iguodala	24	5-6	3-3	4-6	6	5	2	0	0	2	17
Kevin Durant	29	10-17	2-3	6-6	5	2	7	0	0	2	28
Lamar Odom	16	1-4	0-1	0-0	6	3	0	1	1	1	2
Eric Gordon	26	5-10	4-7	2-2	0	1	2	2	0	2	16
Danny Granger	21	2-5	1-3	0-0	2	1	1	0	1	5	5
Tyson Chandler	20	6-6	0-0	1-4	9	1	1	1	4	4	13
Gerald Wallace	12	2-6	0-4	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	1	4

---

Totals

200

42-76

14-29

16-22

37

22

16

9

6

21

114

source:usabasketball.com

2010-12 Team USA Men's Basketball Roster

2010-12 Team USA (Men's Basketball) Roster:

PG - Chauncey Billups (Denver Nuggets) [p]
PG - Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) [p]
PG - Rajon Rondo (Boston Celtics) [p]
PG - Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls) [p]
PG - Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder) [p]
PG - Chris Paul (New Orleans Hornets) [r]
PG - Deron Williams (Utah Jazz) [r]

SG - Andre Iguodala (Philadelphia 76ers) [p]
SG - Eric Gordon (Los Angeles Clippers) [p]
SG - O.J. Mayo (Memphis Grizzlies) [p]
SG - Tyreke Evans (Sacramento Kings) [p] [i]
SG - Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) [r] [s]
SG - Dwyane Wade (Miami Heat)

SF - Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder) [p]
SF - Danny Granger (Indiana Pacers) [p]
SF - Rudy Gay (Memphis Grizzlies) [p]
SF - Gerald Wallace (Charlotte Bobcats) [p]
SF - LeBron James (Miami Heat)
SF - Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets)
SF - Tayshaun Prince (Detroit Pistons)

PF - David Lee (Golden State Warriors) [p] [i]
PF - Lamar Odom (Los Angeles Lakers) [p]
PF - Kevin Love (Minnesota Timberwolves) [p]
PF - Jeff Green (Oklahoma City Thunder) [p]
PF - Chris Bosh (Miami Heat)
PF - Carlos Boozer (Chicago Bulls)
PF - LaMarcus Aldridge (Portland Trailblazers)

C - Brook Lopez (New Jersey Nets) [p]
C - Tyson Chandler (Dallas Mavericks) [p]
C - JaVale McGee (Washington Wizards) [p]
C - Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic)
C - Amare Stoudemire (New York Knicks) [c]
C - Al Jefferson (Utah Jazz)
C - Kendrick Perkins (Boston Celtics) [i] [s]
C - Robin Lopez (Phoenix Suns) [r]

Intern Assistant Coach:
PG - Jason Kidd (Dallas Mavericks)

Legend:
[p] = currently participating in the July 19-24 training camp in Las Vegas
[r] = recovering from injury
[i] = currently injured
[s] = waiting for / recovering from offseason surgery
[c] = not participating due to contract not covered by insurance

source:usabasketball.com

2010-11 NBA Season Preview - Chicago Bulls

The new look 2010-11 Chicago Bulls

Starter / Bench:
PG - Derrick Rose / C.J. Watson
SG - Ronnie Brewer / Kyle Korver
SF - Luol Deng / James Johnson
PF - Carlos Boozer / Taj Gibson
C - Joakim Noah / Kurt Thomas

source:espn.com

2009-10 regular season: 41-41 (8th in East)
2009-10 playoffs: Eastern Conference Quarterfinals

Players out: Kirk Hinrich, Hakim Warrick and Brad Miller
Players in: Carlos Boozer, Kyle Korver, Ronnie Brewer, C.J. Watson, Kurt Thomas

(They have added inside scoring, outside shooting, and a defensive-minded head coach to this young playoff team ...)

My 2010-11 season prediction: 50-32 (tied for 4th in East)

2010 NBA Summer League - Las Vegas

2010 NBA Summer League (Las Vegas) All-Star Selections:

PG - John Wall (Washington Wizards)
23.5 PPG  /  4.0 RPG  /  7.8 APG  /  2.5 SPG  /  0.5 BPG

DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento Kings)
14.5 PPG  /   9.8 RPG  /  1.8 APG  /  1.5 SPG  /  1.2 BPG

Sam Young (Memphis Grizzlies)
19.4 PPG  /  3.8 RPG  /  1.4 APG  /  1.2 SPG  /  0.8 BPG

JaVale McGee (Washington Wizards)
19.5 PPG  /  9.3 RPG  /  0.0 APG  /  0.5 SPG  /  0.8 BPG

Reggie Williams (Golden State Warriors)
22.6 PPG  /  4.4 RPG  /   2.8 APG  /  0.4 SPG  /  0.2 BPG

DeMar DeRozan (Toronto Raptors)
21.0 PPG  /  4.5 RPG  /  1.5 APG  /  0.5 SPG  /  0.3 BPG

J.J. Hickson (Cleveland Cavaliers)
19.3 PPG  /  6.3 RPG  /  1.0 APG  /  0.5 SPG  /  0.5 BPG

Ty Lawson (Denver Nuggets)
16.4 PPG  /   2.4 RPG  /  5.0 APG  /  1.6 SPG  /  0.0 BPG

Dominique Jones (Dallas Mavericks)
16.6 PPG  /  3.8 RPG  /  3.4 APG  /  0.8 SPG  /  0.6 BPG

Derrick Caracter (Los Angeles Lakers)
15.4 PPG  /  8.6 RPG  /  1.8 APG  /  0.4 SPG  /  1.4 BPG

Larry Sanders (Milwaukee Bucks)
14.0 PPG  /   8.4 RPG  /  0.8 APG  /  1.4 SPG  /  3.2 BPG

Gani Lawal (Phoenix Suns)
15.4 PPG  /  7.4 RPG  /  0.2 APG  /   0.6 SPG  /   1.0 BPG

Jermaine Taylor (Houston Rockets)
18.4 PPG  /  4.8 RPG  /   2.0 APG  /  0.4 SPG  /  0.0 BPG

Alonzo Gee (San Antonio Spurs)
14.2 PPG  /  5.2 RPG  /  1.8 APG  /  2.4 SPG  /   0.0 BPG

Some Honorable Mentions:

Gary Neal (San Antonio Spurs)
16.0 PPG  /  2.6 RPG  /  1.6 APG  /  1.4 SPG  /  0.0 BPG
The San Antonio Spurs have just signed him to a 3-year guaranteed contract today ...

John Lucas III (Chicago Bulls)
18.3 PPG  /  1.0 RPG  /  2.7 APG  /  2.0 SPG  /  0.0 BPG
His impressive play in the summer league has drawn interest from a number of teams ...

Jeremy Lin (Dallas Mavericks) (Golden State Warriors)
9.8 PPG  /  3.2 RPG  /  1.8 APG  /  1.2 SPG  /  0.2 BPG
How can I not mention Jeremy Lin here? The Golden State Warriors signed the crowd favorite to a 2-year partially guaranteed contract yesterday ...

source:contracostatimes.com

Mega Trio In Miami - NBA's CBA vs NHL's

In the past 30 hours, every single sports show has been talking about the NHL's decision to reject Ilya Kovalchuk's ridculously lengthy but perfectly legal 17-year, $102 million contract with the New Jersey Devils. The contract was constructed in a way that it would pay Kovalchuk $98.5 million in the first 11 years, but only $3.5 million in the final 6 years ...

2010-11: $6 million
2011-12: $6 million
2012-13: $11.5 million
2013-14: $11.5 million
2014-15: $11.5 million
2015-16: $11.5 million
2016-17: $11.5 million
2017-18: $10.5 million
2018-19: $8.5 million
2019-20: $6.5 million
2020-21: $3.5 Million
2021-22: $750,000
2022-23: $550,000
2023-24: $550,000
2024-25: $550,000
2025-26: $550,000
2026-27: $550,000

The NHL feels that both Kovalchuk and the New Jersey Devils have no intention to honor the entire length of the 17-year contract as the player will be 44 years old when the contract expires, and the contract was only constructed to take advantage of the obvious loop holes in the NHL's Collective Bargaining Agreement and salary cap rules ...

The NBA, on the other hand, has a much tighter CBA and an extremely complex salary cap structure that it is almost impossible to take advantage of. I have talked to NHL fans before and they really had no idea why it was such a big deal in the NBA that 4 Team USA members - LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Mike Miller - are now playing on the same team. They are so used to the NHL's loose salary cap structure and think that it was simply 4 superstars decided to join the same team ...

But you really can't blame them. I'll bet you more than 80% of the NBA fans around the world don't really understand why the Miami Heat gave up the 6 future draft picks to the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Toronto Raptors to get LeBron James and Chris Bosh when the Heat could have just signed both of them straight-up without doing sign-and trades ...

I have seen this question being asked over and over on the internet without someone knowledgeable enough to answer the question. Without going into NBA salary cap details, I will give the short answer to the question here - because the Heat wanted to preserve cap room to re-sign both Udonis Haslem and Joel Anthony to non-minimum contracts after signing the Miami Thrice ...

2010-11 NBA Season Preview - Dallas Mavericks

The new look 2010-11 Dallas Mavericks

Starter / Bench:
PG - Jason Kidd / Jose Juan Barea
SG - Rodrigue Beaubois / Jason Terry
SF - Caron Butler / Shawn Marion
PF - Dirk Nowitzki / Ian Mahinmi
C - Brendan Haywood / Tyson Chandler

source:pegasusnews.com

2009-10 regular season: 55-27 (2nd in West)
2009-10 playoffs: Western Conference Quarterfinals

Players out: Erick Dampier, Eduardo Najera and Matt Carroll
Players in: Ian Mahinmi, Tyson Chandler, Alexis Ajinca and Dominique Jones

(They once again will have 2 high-priced centers on their roster and a different player starting at shooting guard every 2 months or so ...)

My 2010-11 season prediction: 56-26 (2nd in West)

Mega Trio In Miami - Finalize Their Rosters

The Miami Heat now have 13 players under contract after, interestingly, bringing 7 players back from last year's squad ...

PG: Mario Chalmers / Carlos Arroyo
SG: Dwyane Wade / Mike Miller
SF: LeBron James / James Jones
PF: Chris Bosh / Udonis Haslem / Juwan Howard
C: Joel Anthony / Zydrunas Ilgauskas / Dexter Pittman / Jamaal Magloire

After losing out on both Raja Bell (officially signed a 3-year, $10 million contract with the Utah Jazz today) and Matt Barnes (will likely sign a 2-year, $9 million contract with the Toronto Raptors later this week), the Heat still have 2 available roster spots to be filled. Possible candidates are:

PG - Jason Williams
SG - Kenny Hasbrouck
SF - Jon Scheyer
PF - Jarvis Varnado

While the Miami Heat are bringing back their own players, the Chicago Bulls are doing the exact opposite. Their plan this summer, after failing to land LeBron "now the prince" James, is to sign all available Utah Jazz free agents. So far it has been successful as they have signed Carlos Boozer, Kyle Korver and Ronnie Brewer to multi-year contracts. The one they didn't get? Wesley Matthews! He signed a heavily front-loaded contract with the Portland Trailblazers last week ...

Las Vegas Odds On Teams Winning the 2010-11 NBA Championship:

1. Miami Heat - 7 to 5
2. Los Angeles Lakers - 7 to 2
3. Orlando Magic - 8 to 1
4. Boston Celtics - 10 to 1
5. Oklahoma City Thunder - 15 to 1
6. Denver Nuggets - 15 to 1

2010 NBA Summer League - Fantasy Sleepers

Maybe I'm wrong about the number 1 overall draft choice John Wall. He did turnover the ball at a ridiculous rate during the summer league games like I predicted. But I have to admit that he is a very, very good passer. Way better than I anticipated after watching him last night ...

John Wall (Washington Wizards)                   Games Played: 4                   Minutes: 32.3
FG%: 37.7% (26 of 69)                  FT%: 87.2% (41 of 47)                 3PT: 12.5% (1 of 8)
PTS: 23.5           AST: 7.8           REB: 4.0           STL: 2.5           BLK: 0.5           TO: 5.2

It was a major disappointment for the number 2 overall draft choice Evan Turner in this year's summer league. Not to mention that he will start at shooting guard for the Philadelphia 76ers on opening night ...

Evan Turner (Philadelphia 76ers)                   Games Played: 5                  Minutes: 27.4
FG%: 33.3% (13 of 39)                  FT%: 100% (19 of 19)                  3PT: 25.0% (2 of 8)
PTS: 9.4            REB: 5.6           AST: 2.8           STL: 1.6           BLK: 0.0           TO: 3.4

On the other hand, the Sacramento Kings took a risk on draft night and it has been working so far ...

DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento Kings)                    Games: 4                   Minutes: 30.0
FG%: 40.9% (27 of 66)                   FT%: 73.9% (17 of 23)                  3PT: 0.0% (0 of 0)
PTS: 17.8          REB: 11.5          AST: 2.8           STL: 1.8           BLK: 1.0           TO: 5.3

Honorable mention for some non-rookies:

J.J. Hickson (Cleveland Cavaliers)                  Games Played: 3                 Minutes: 35.0
FG%: 62.2% (28 of 45)                   FT%: 58.6% (17 of 29)                  3PT: 0.0% (0 of 0)
PTS: 24.3           REB: 7.3           AST: 1.0           STL: 0.7           BLK: 0.3           TO: 3.6

Reggie Williams (Golden State Warriors)                   Games: 5                   Minutes: 31.4
FG%: 41.1% (37 of 90)                FT%: 82.4% (28 of 34)               3PT: 42.3% (11 of 26)
PTS: 22.6           REB: 4.4           AST: 2.8           STL: 0.4           BLK: 0.2           TO: 1.6

JaVale McGee (Washington Wizards)                      Games: 4                     Minutes: 29.0
FG%: 68.8% (33 of 48)                   FT%: 54.5% (12 of 22)                  3PT: 0.0% (0 of 0)
PTS: 19.5           REB: 9.3           AST: 0.0           STL: 0.5           BLK: 0.8           TO: 3.0

Hasheem Thabeet (Memphis Grizzlies)                    Games: 3                    Minutes: 32.3
FG%: 63.2% (12 of 19)                   FT%: 69.0% (20 of 29)                  3PT: 0.0% (0 of 0)
PTS: 14.7          REB: 10.0          AST: 1.0           STL: 0.3           BLK: 3.7           TO: 2.7

NBA's Past And Present - Chris Washburn

Everyone should read this. A great article ...

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Washburn Traveled Long Road to Recovery
- By Marc J. Spears

He was a 6-foot-11 giant delivered from the basketball gods by way of Jim Valvano. Chris Washburn had it all. A feathery touch. A guard’s handle. The strength of a center. So much talent, so much promise.

Twenty-four NBA drafts have passed since the Golden State Warriors made Washburn the No. 3 pick in 1986, 24 opportunities for Washburn to remember what he once had and quickly lost. The most celebrated free-agent class in the league’s history also has served as a harsh reminder for Washburn this summer. Had Washburn lived up to his potential, he could have banked his own millions and retired as one of the game’s greats. Instead, he left only as a cautionary tale.

“I know I’m supposed to be a Hall of Famer,” Washburn said recently in a rare interview. “But I’ve come to realize that I’m in the Hall of Shame. …I see that I’m considered one of the worst draft choices. …I’m seeing that I’m part of being called a bust.”

Washburn can’t argue with the labels. In the nearly quarter-century since he left the NBA, Washburn has slept on the floors of crack houses and eaten from trash bins. He’s served time in the penitentiary and squandered the money he did make – all in search of his next high. His greatest victory never came on the court, but after a dozen stays in rehab centers. Somehow, Chris Washburn is alive and, he promises, clean.

Now 44, Washburn says he’s been drug-free for 10 years. He lives in Dallas and works for a home-mortgage company. His two sons, Julian and Chris Jr., have become college prospects in their own right, and if Washburn can give them anything, it’s the lessons he learned from his own mistakes.

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Washburn grew up in Hickory, N.C., as a self-proclaimed country boy. He was friendly, quick with a smile and even quicker to trust. A free spirit, teammates called him. He also was immensely talented on the basketball court, becoming a three-time All-American in high school.

“I look back at him and I think about the great big guys that were coming out,” said Portland Trail Blazers coach Nate McMillan, who played with Washburn at North Carolina State and whose wife attended high school with Washburn.

“Some of the things that Shaquille [O’Neal] was doing, Washburn was doing as a forward-center who could run and jump and shoot. He could do it all. He had the talent to certainly be an All-Star.”

Washburn quickly learned that such talent also came with a benefit: Whatever he wanted, he got. Rarely did someone tell him no. An only child, he was accustomed to being coddled and that didn’t stop once he arrived at college.

“Anything that I did that was wrong, someone would take care of it,” he said. “Not having brothers and sisters, everything I did, I had to learn on a first-hand basis. When I did something dumb, instead of me taking the fall for that, they would keep cleaning it up, allowing me to have more rope.”

The basketball program at N.C. State, Washburn said, was among his biggest enablers. He had poor grades in high school, but that didn’t worry him. Nor did having to take the SAT.

“The coaches over there told me, ‘You already signed, you’re already in school, you just have to take the test just to get into college,’ ” Washburn said. “When they told me it didn’t matter what score I was getting, I went in for about 22 minutes. I just marked down [answers] … mark, mark, mark.

“If the coach told me I needed 700, 800 on the test to get to school, I could’ve got that. But when they said I didn’t need it, I didn’t need it.”

Washburn scored a 470 out a possible 1,600, barely above the minimum. Subsequent news reports about his poor score helped spur the NCAA to raise the minimum standards for athletes to gain admittance to college.

Still, that didn’t stop N.C. State from welcoming Washburn as part of a tremendous recruiting class that also included McMillan and another future NBA guard, Vinny Del Negro.

Washburn averaged 17.6 points and 6.7 rebounds as a sophomore and had a memorable 26-point performance in a victory over rival top-ranked North Carolina. The Wolfpack advanced to the Elite Eight of the 1986 NCAA tournament before losing to Kansas.

“The sky was the limit with his talent, size,” said Del Negro, who now coaches the Los Angeles Clippers.

Washburn’s self-destructive behavior also had few boundaries. He began drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana in high school, and shortly after the Wolfpack’s loss to Kansas, he said a player from another school introduced him to cocaine.

“Instead of being like, ‘Nah, I don’t do that,’ I wanted to be a part of the crowd,” Washburn said. “If they were doing it, why don’t I try it? And after I tried it, I never went back to school again.”

Washburn declared for the draft, and NBA scouts marveled at the depth of his skills. He could play inside and out, bang in the post and shoot from deep. The Warriors selected him with the third pick behind Brad Daugherty and Len Bias. Less than two days after the draft, Bias died from a cocaine overdose. Washburn learned of the news while he was at a New York Police Athletic League function. He said he was high.

“I was down there doing something on athletes against crime,” Washburn said. “I had a whole box of tissues just wiping my nose, because at that point in time I was just snorting. Some dude asked me, ‘What you think about Len?’ I was like, ‘What you talking about?’ He then showed me a newspaper with an article.

“That shook me up for a minute. I couldn’t grasp it. I didn’t go to the funeral. It didn’t make no sense to me.”

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Washburn said he stopped using cocaine after Bias’ death, but not for long. When the Warriors drafted him, he didn’t know the location of “Golden State.” He learned soon enough. Oakland, Calif., was nicknamed “City of Dope.” It didn’t take long for the Warriors to figure out their prized rookie had a problem.

“It was a year of highs and lows,” said George Karl, who was then the Warriors coach. “I remember the first day of training camp he was by far the best player on the court, and then you could slowly see him disintegrate.

“How to fix a drug problem has never been easy for a head coach. It’s a frustrating give-and-take. We obviously didn’t get it done there. Chris is one of the guys that I think threw away a lot of good basketball because of drugs.”

The Warriors brought in veteran center Joe Barry Carroll to help mentor Washburn on the court, but the rookie had little support once he left practice. Long used to getting his way, Washburn quickly discovered the Warriors veterans weren’t going to go easy on him. He had to carry his teammates’ bags, a traditional form of rookie hazing in sports, and when he happened to win a post-practice shooting contest for cash, the vets sometimes refused to pay him. “I was 20 years old in the Bay Area being a grown man, but still a kid,” Washburn said. “…I showed back at them in so many ways by getting high.”

To this day, Washburn wonders if Julius Erving could have become the mentor he needed. When the Philadelphia 76ers played the Warriors early in Washburn’s rookie season, Erving approached Washburn before the game and asked if they could meet afterward at the Sixers’ hotel. At the time, Washburn was living at the hotel. When Erving showed up to meet him, he was high.

“Do you know I stood there and looked at Dr. J through a peep hole until he left my door,” Washburn said. “I never opened it up. Would that have been my savior right there? I will never know. He extended a hand. I just didn’t accept it.”

Erving wasn’t the only person who appeared to want to help. Washburn eventually purchased a luxurious home in Oakland Hills where Reggie Jackson and Rickey Henderson were among his neighbors. Henderson, Washburn said, once came by to introduce himself.

“I shook his hand, slammed the door and went back to getting high,” Washburn said.

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Washburn’s drug problem affected his work with the team. On some game nights, he’d arrive minutes before tipoff. He also stopped attending practices. The way Washburn looked at it, he stood to lose less money in fines if he skipped practice altogether ($10,000) than if he showed up and the team realized he was high (as much as $20,000).

“It was a progression,” said former Warriors guard Purvis Short, a teammate of Washburn’s. “After a couple weeks or couple months of that, you started to suspect there were some things going on. “There wasn’t a lot of information out there in terms of how to help somebody. There wasn’t a lot of information we had as his teammates on some of the things we could’ve perhaps done. We were out there more or less in uncharted waters.”

A little more than three months into his first season, Washburn checked into a drug rehabilitation clinic in Van Nuys, Calif. After returning to the Warriors in late March, he finished his disappointing rookie campaign averaging 3.8 points and 2.9 rebounds in 35 games.

Washburn’s stay in rehab didn’t help much. He continued to use, and his weekends often began with a trip to the bank. He’d withdraw as much as $20,000 to spend on drugs and prostitutes.

By Monday morning, he was back at the bank taking out more money. Of the $1.25 million he made during his brief NBA career, Washburn thinks he lost more than $1 million.

“If you look at the hookers I was buying back then, the hotels – paying for folks’ rent because I didn’t like sitting in folks’ houses and getting high with no lights on. I paid to have the lights on,” he said. “I was hanging with folks that didn’t have running water. We had to go in the bathroom and piss in buckets.

“I had a 6,000-square-foot house built on the side of a mountain, but I’m lying on the floor with no carpet, dirty, because I don’t want to leave the drugs.”

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Don Nelson took over as the Warriors’ general manager before the start of Washburn’s second season. By training camp, he’d seen enough and told Karl the team would be better off trading Washburn. On Dec. 15, 1987, they sent Washburn to the Atlanta Hawks for the draft rights to Ken Barlow. Barlow never played in the NBA.

“Everything negative,” Nelson recently said of Washburn. “Lazy. Bad attitude. With his skill level, you projected that if he did everything right, he could get better. He didn’t do anything right.”

Washburn said he would have been better off had the Warriors sent him to Utah or Portland. Atlanta, he figured, was no place for an addict, and he was right. His tenure with the Hawks covered just 29 games. By June of 1989, Washburn’s stay in the NBA was over; he’d failed his third drug test to earn a lifetime suspension from the league. His career had spanned a total of 72 games.

Washburn moved to Houston where he lived on the streets for a couple of years. “I was eating out of trash cans. I was sleeping in abandoned buildings, abandoned houses. I was doing whatever was needed to survive at that time,” he said. “I was staying in the same clothes for weeks, maybe months at a time to a point where the [drug dealers] I was buying my stuff from would even pay me to go and change clothes.”

Washburn eventually ended up in behind bars, serving 12- and 13-month sentences for drug-related offenses from 1991-94, the second coming after a parole violation. While in prison, he returned to the basketball court.

“A couple years prior to that I was on the NBA floor in front of thousands,” Washburn said. “Now I’m on the penitentiary floor playing against guys wearing flip-flops, Army boots. Instead of cheerleaders on the sidelines, we had guys with Kool-Aid on their lips and stuff painted on their face looking like girls. It was always like a movie for me. It was so surreal.”

Except it also was his life. When he wasn’t in jail, Washburn landed some jobs playing professionally in Greece, Switzerland, Puerto Rico, the Continental Basketball Association and United States Basketball League. Former NBA player and coach John Lucas, who has spent much of his career helping players fight substance abuse, helped shepherd Washburn into nearly a dozen rehab centers, none of which seemed to help.

Washburn says he finally went clean on June 17, 2000. A month ago, he said, he passed his decade-long run of sobriety. He claims food is now his biggest vice.

“I just got tired of reaching in my pockets and having no money,” Washburn said. “I got tired of asking my momma at 70-something years old for $20 or $30 being a grown man.”

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Washburn now speaks to addicts on Saturdays at the Dallas Life Foundation Center. In February, Short saw Washburn at All-Star weekend and invited him to speak at the National Basketball Players Association’s Top 100 Camp in Virginia for high school players.

“It had a tremendous impact on the kids because Chris spoke from the heart,” Short said. “He just told it like it was.”

Washburn’s message: Stay humble. Learn from him. He had a chance to become a star in the NBA and he wasted it.

“Once I did find out I wasn’t special, it was hard for me to overcome,” Washburn said. “I only used the NBA to get through certain doors.

“The NBA opens up some doors that shouldn’t be opened up.”

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This article is taken from here at Yahoo! Sports ...

2010-11 NBA Season Preview - New Jersey Nets

The new look 2010-11 New Jersey Nets

Starter / Bench:
PG - Devin Harris / Jordan Farmar
SG - Courtney Lee / Anthony Morrow
SF - Travis Outlaw / Terrence Williams
PF - Derrick Favors / Josh Boone
C - Brook Lopez / Johan Petro

source:draftexpress.com

2009-10 regular season: 12-70 (15th in East)

Player out: Chris Douglas-Roberts
Players in: Derrick Favors (3rd pick overall), Travis Outlaw, Anthony Morrow, Jordan Farmar and Johan Petro

(You really can't blame them for not being able to get something better after a 12-win season ...)

My 2010-11 season prediction: 28-54 (12th in East)

2010-11 NBA Season Preview - Phoenix Suns

The new look 2010-11 Phoenix Suns

Starter / Bench:
PG - Steve Nash / Goran Dragic
SG - Jason Richardson / Josh Childress
SF - Grant Hill / Jared Dudley
PF - Hedo Turkoglu / Hakim Warrick
C - Robin Lopez / Channing Frye

source:arizonarepublic

2009-10 regular season: 54-28 (3rd in West)
2009-10 playoffs: Western Conference Finals

Players out: Amare Stoudemire and Leandro Barbosa
Players in: Hakim Warrick, Hedo Turkoglu and Josh Childress

(They replaced their only inside scoring presence by adding more outside shootings ...)

My 2010-11 season prediction: 39-43 (10th in West)

Mega Trio In Miami - Makes L.A. Worry

Although the Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss said a few days ago that he hardly worries about the new look Miami Heat, the Lakers are now trying to sign all free agents that the Heat are targeting. After Derek Fisher's meeting with the Miami Heat, the Lakers re-signed Fisher to a 3-year, $10.5 million contract ...

And Kobe Bryant is doing his part, too. He has already made multiple phone calls to Raja Bell, who said 2 months ago that the Miami Heat is his first choice, and will meet Bell in person later this week to make sure he signs with the Lakers, and not the other title contenders ...

After more pondering, the Charlotte Bobcats' head of basketball operations Michael Jordan backed out from a trade that would have brought point guard Jose Calderon to Charlotte. Instead, he decided to trade Tyson Chandler and Alexis Ajinca to the Dallas Mavericks for Erick Dampier, Matt Carroll and Eduardo Najera ...

Speaking of the Dallas Mavericks, they are about to get totally shut out this summer. The Denver Nuggets have signed Al Harrington, who was number 1 on the Mavericks' list of free agents, to a 5-year, $34 million contract. The money was made available after both the Nuggets and the Mavericks failed to lure Udonis Haslem away from the Miami Heat ...

To make up for the loss of Carlos Boozer, the Utah Jazz have obtained Al Jefferson in a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves today ...

Mega Trio In Miami - And New York?

Since Udonis Haslem too has decided to give up money and re-signed with the Miami Heat, we are almost 90% sure of what the Heat will look like when the regular season starts ...

PG: Mario Chalmers / Jason Williams / Carlos Arroyo?
SG: Dwyane Wade / Mike Miller / Raja Bell / Jon Scheyer?
SF: LeBron James / James Jones / Matt Barnes?
PF: Chris Bosh / Udonis Haslem / Juwan Howard / Jarvis Varnado?
C: Joel Anthony / Zydrunas Ilgauskas / Jamaal Magloire

What strikes me the most here is that the Heat has never considered signing ex-San Antonio Spurs center Ian Mahinmi for the veteran's minimum. I mentioned his name in a couple of posts before because I knew he is one of those young talents who would take just a minimum offer. Naturally, the Dallas Mavericks signed him to a 2-year minimum contract earlier today ...

The biggest news over the weekend was that Chris Paul talked about forming his own "Big 3" with Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire in New York next year. In order for this to happen, Carmelo Anthony will need to turn down the 3-year, $65 million contract extension that the Denver Nuggets have already put on the table ...

In an attempt to save his job, the Toronto Raptors GM Brian Colangelo has decided to trade his entire team in hope to win some games next season. The Phoenix Suns have already agreed to trade Leandro Barbosa to the Raptors for disgruntled forward Hedo "nightclub" Turkoglu. He is now in discussion with the Charlotte Bobcats that will bring Boris Diaw and Tyson Chandler to Toronto in exchange for Jose Calderon and Reggie Evans ...

On a side note, the No. 1 overall draft choice in this year's draft John Wall had 18 points, 10 assists and 5 steals tonight after posting 24 and 8 in his first game ...