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Who’s the Best Team in the NBA’s Western Conference?

Over the course of their mega winning streak, the NBA’s New Orleans Hornets has crushed their opponents by an average of more than 20 points. They killed the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday 102-78. Chris Paul is garnering a lot of attention right now, and rightfully so. He’s averaging 20.6 points per game and 10.5 assists per game. He’s only 22-years old, but he seems destined for greatness. In 2003, he was a McDonald’s All-American, and was named North Carolina’s Mr. Basketball for the year by the Charlotte Observer. Keep your eyes out for this Wake Forest grad—he left the university with records at the top of nearly every offensive category!

Dallas Mavericks’ Devin Harris Out 2-3 Weeks

The NBA Dallas Mavericks’ Devin Harris injured his leg midway through the 2005-06 NBA season and missed most of the regular season. He did come back strong, however, averaging 10.2 points per game in the 2006-07 season, and earning the nickname “The Blur” for his lightening fast speed up the court. 3 weeks off at this point in the season means Harris would return after the All-Star break, with 29 games to get back into top form before the playoffs. Harris says he was not injured when he hit the floor after his drive, but when he hit a few cameramen and some chairs on the baseline. It’s a hazard of the game for fast players like Harris whose livelihood depends on their getting to the rim.

Uppity Sonics Fan Ejected

Sam Kidder may just be one of the most vociferous Seattle Supersonics fan in recent history. After going off on Clay Bennett for trying to take the Supersonics to Oklahoma City (as Bennett did with the New Orleans Hornets for two years), Kidder was approached during the third quarter by two off-duty Seattle police officers. They told him to show more respect to Bennett, so when Kidder bellowed “Clay Bennett Sucks!” during a free throw shortly after, Kidder and his girlfriend were escorted from the building. Bennett claims he didn’t have anyone removed from the game, but we don’t know whom to believe. Bennett seems like a jerk. Just saying.

Will Webber Become Nelson’s Warrior Today?

Chris Webber has most recently played with the Philadelphia 76ers, and the Detroit Pistons. He averaged 11.2 points per game, 7.5 rebounds, and 3.1 assists last season with both teams. And the reason he left the Warriors 14 years ago? Well, it was indeed due to Nelson’s desire to make him a post player. But Nelson was fired soon after Webber’s 1993 trade to Washington, and sources think the veteran coach has gotten soft in his old age. Perhaps the two might make a good pair after all. We’ll see what happens this afternoon.

Jason Kidd Acting Childish?

Jason Kidd has been waffling about his desire to leave the New Jersey Nets for a while now. In the beginning, he signed his 6-year, $99 million contract happily; his wife, Joumana, liked where they lived, his son was doing well with a local golf instructor. On January 9, 2007, however, Kidd filed for divorce against his wife, with whom he had 3 kids. 19 days ago, it was announced that Kidd and his current girlfriend, model Hope Dworaczyk, are expecting a child together. Perhaps New Jersey holds negative feelings for the NBA star? Kidd’s fate is currently in the hands of Nets president, Rod Thorn. If he can’t find an equal trade for Jason Kidd, Kidd’s stuck playing out his contract. And hopefully, Kidd will be a man and play to the best of his ability at every game, instead of being a big baby and holding one-man strikes. Save the childish antics for Britney Spears.

Mavericks Want Kidd

Maybe Jason Kidd has a heart after all. After last night’s game against the Bucks, during which Kidd hit a 3-point shot in the last 1:40 to help break the Nets’ 9-game loosing streak, Kidd wouldn’t talk about his desire to move. At the press conference, he was all about the game. He even gave reporters who tried to steer the conference toward that topic the cold shoulder. He’s basically bailing on his teammates, but the crowd at last night’s game either didn’t think about Kidd’s antics that way, or they just didn’t care; he got a huge ovation during his introduction. So will Kidd be going to Dallas? We’ll see.

NBA Suspends Knicks’ Balkman for Elbowing

Renaldo Balkman isn’t looking so hot. Banished from the Knicks’ Wednesday game at Utah for committing a flagrant foul during Tuesday’s game against the Lakers, Balkman has only averaged 2.9 points and 2.8 rebounds per game after 34 games playing for the Knicks this season. His team currently has the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference.

Balkman wasn’t a star player in high school, like so many young NBA picks. In fact, the University of South Carolina’s assistant coach found him by accident one day and signed him, after Renaldo Balkman had received no interest from any other major basketball teams. Perhaps he was an unknown for a reason? At this point, we haven’t seen anything too remarkable about the guy, besides some good defense last season.

Bobcats Sign 5-Foot-5 Boykins

Earl Boykins may be short (he’s 5-foot-5), but he’s got enough speed and scoring ability to draw a crowd. He opted out of his contract with the Bucks last season, forfeiting about $3 million in salary. That’s why Boykins was available to the Bobcats this year. And the Bobcats have been sucking it up with their rebounding and foul shooting. While Boykins may not be the greatest rebounder in the NBA, he is a career 88-percent foul shooter. That puts him among the top 10% in the league. Looks like Earl Boykins won’t have any shortcomings as the Bobcats’ latest addition.

Shaq’s Hip Injury Reevaluated

Miami Heat center, Shaquille O’Neal, was reevaluated last night by his team’s medical staff to see if he could take the next step in recovering from a hip and thigh inflammation. O’Neal has missed 6 games in a row and 14 of the Heat’s last 18 games because of the injury. He’s been focusing on doing upper body work while he lets the leg rest, and “should have a 10-pack by now. He's been doing enough sit-ups,” according to Riley. Today’s the big day to test that leg out. We hope Shaq is feeling better so he can go back to being Superman.

Phoenix Suns Take Shaquille O’Neal

Shaquille O’Neal is excited to see what he can bring to the Suns—besides looking good in a purple jersey. It seems he has the magic play-off touch, bringing the LA Lakers to 3 consecutive titles in his 8 years with them, and taking the Heat to a title just 2 years after joining their team in 2004. Despite Shaq’s upbeat, ready-to-rumble attitude, the trade has drawn several skeptics. Critics have been attacking Shaq’s age, recent injuries, as well as the fact that O’Neal has 2 years left on his contract at $20 million per season, and isn’t nearly as fast as the rest of his new team.

So what does Shaq have to say to all of that? "Start selling the T-shirts now, all the marketing people…The Sun will rise in Phoenix.'” Play on, Shaq! Let’s see you take the Suns all the way to a championship win.

Will Jason Kidd Get a Trade?

Time is running out for Jason Kidd to get the trade he’s wanted for what seems like forever. Dallas Mavericks owner, Mark Cuban, shot down a potential deal with the Nets superstar last night. He noted that the primary Mavericks player the Nets want in a Kidd trade, Josh Howard, wouldn’t really be a viable option for the team. “The salary cap numbers don’t add up,” says Cuban. Jason Kidd’s $20 million price tag may just keep him living out his contract with the Nets. And is that so bad?

Pietrus Wants a Trade; Randolph and Curry Going…Going…

The Knicks want to drop Randolph, who makes $13 million this season and still has 3 more seasons left, worth more than $48 million. Curry makes $9 million this season, with 3 years to go as well, worth $32 million. It’s not clear exactly what Isiah Thomas wants in return for these two players, but it doesn’t seem like Jason Kidd is a possibility. Zach Randolph won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award in 2004 while playing for the Trail Blazers. Curry was traded to the Knicks after he refused to submit to a DNA test for congenital heart disease while playing for the Bulls.

NBA All-Star Game Going Big

The NBA is a global phenomenon—or at least the higher-ups of the NBA hope to make it one when they broadcast this year’s All-Star Game to 215 countries. And to make it interesting, the game is going interactive. Worldwide fans will have the opportunity to choose which of the 2 players in the final round of the Sprite Slam Dunk Competition will become the champion by casting a vote on NBA.com—and fans in the US, China, and Canada can cast their votes by text message as well. This undertaking is mindblowingly massive: 285 members of the media from 33 countries will be in New Orleans to send the action back to fans at home.

Jason Kidd Gets Traded to Mavericks

Jason Kidd is getting his wish—he’ll be traded to the Dallas Mavericks, after helping turn the Nets from a sleeper team to a NBA finals team. And for all that work, he’s worth a pretty penny. Jason Kidd, who turns 35 in March, is still going strong. Besides getting 4 players for Kidd, the Nets will also get two first-round draft picks, Maurice Ager, and $3 million in cash. It sounds like some kind of medieval slave-trade deal: 1 guy for 5 others, some cash, and a few promises. The trade makes Kidd come full circle, as he started out on the Dallas team in 1994.

NBA Goes to Europe

American basketball is going global. The world can’t get enough NBA, so the NBA is branching out. Five European teams will be created, and they will compete for the NBA Championship. Sports Illustrated’s website says NBA commissioner, David Stern, will reveal the deal at the All-Star Game in New Orleans this weekend. The plans seem to be to create a European division with 5 new teams. The teams would play the regular 82-game schedule, and compete for the NBA Championship.

Stern has brought up this idea in the past, noting in 2003 that he’d look into European expansion within a 10-year time frame. The NBA is particularly popular in Spain, France, Italy, Greece, and the Balkans. We’ll see who gets a team!

Stackhouse Could Ruin Kidd’s Trade

If the allegations are true that the Mavericks’ Jerry Stackhouse never intended to play for the New Jersey Nets in a trade for Jason Kidd, the trade may be off. The NBA won’t approve the trade if it’s true there was a slimy side deal going on. And it doesn’t look hopeful for Jason Kidd now, as suspicions of a side deal were compounded by the fact that Jason Kidd and Jerry Stackhouse share the same agent, Jeff Schwartz.

Has Stackhouse ruined the deal? The trade deadline is next Thursday. It’s shaping up to be an interesting week!

Shaq Ridiculed by Old Coach

Perhaps LA Lakers’ Phil Jackson was trying to use mental warfare tactics in an effort to keep the Suns from crushing the LA Lakers tonight, when Shaq makes his debut with Phoenix. Making petty comments about Shaq’s size and probable inability to keep up with the fast-paced Suns, Phil Jackson seemed ready for a fight with his former player. Shaq’s response? “He's a jokester, and that's funny, very funny. Ha-ha. Very funny." Shaq didn’t smile.

One thing’s certain, Steve Nash is more than excited to play tonight with his new teammate. We look forward to a most interesting game!

Cavaliers, Supersonics, and Bulls Pull 11-Player Deal

The 11-player blockbuster deal between the Seattle Supersonics and the Chicago Bulls is done. For the 5 players the Cavaliers got, the Bulls got Cleveland’s forward, Drew Gooden, Larry Hughes, Cedric Simmons, and Shannon Brown. The Sonics nabbed Cavalier forwards Ira Newble and Donyell Marshall, and the Bulls’ Adrian Griffin. The deal is supposed to strengthen the Cavaliers both offensively and defensively. We can’t wait to see what the new teams accomplish.

Aging Point Guards Need Love Too

Veteran point guard Sam Cassell really doesn’t want to play for the Los Angeles Clippers anymore. Can’t say we blame him. In an age where team loyalty has gone the way of the underhand free throw, veteran players can feel the clock ticking on their chances to get one last title. Cassell himself has admitted to having only two good years left. Those could become two very bad years if he remains on the Clippers. Time is even more of an issue for Cassell because if the Clippers don’t buy out his contract and release him by this Saturday, he will not be able to play in the playoffs.

A number of potential playoff teams could benefit from Sam’s veteran leadership and trash-talking skills. Boston, Phoenix, Denver and Dallas all have excellent starting point guards, but lack depth at the position.

And speaking of old point guards… In his first home game as a Dallas Maverick since 1996, Jason Kidd did not let down the fans down. From tip-off to the final horn, the Mavs new-old point guard filled the stat sheet, falling just short of his 100th triple-double and leading Dallas to a 102-94 victory over the Chicago Bulls. After a less-than-stellar start with the Mavericks last week, Kidd’s performance since has been nothing less than spectacular – just what owner Mark Cuban was hoping for when he initiated the rollercoaster trade that brought Kidd over from the New Jersey Nets.

Gordon Leaving Indiana for NBA

Gordon’s decision comes after a tumultuous season at Indiana in which the Hoosiers’ 25-8 record was overshadowed by Kelvin Sampson’s midseason resignation, the promotion of Dan Dakich to interim coach, three player suspensions and a first-round loss to Arkansas in the NCAA tournament.

NBA's Dwyane Wade Prime Time Player

Dwyane Wade's success, and Dallas’ inability to stop him, is the main reason the New Orleans Hornets will take a 2-0 lead into Game 3 Friday night.

LA Lakers what Next?

Odom, who hit just 3-of-8 from the foul line, wasn’t alone in his struggles in the 103-84 loss. Fisher scored just two points on 1-of-4 shooting and Gasol fared somewhat better, going 7-of-18 for 15 points.

The Lakers hold a 2-1 advantage in the Western Conference finals. Game 4 of the best-of-seven series is Tuesday in San Antonio.