ROUNDBALL

It was a very cold night in Western, NY last night and with snow on tap for the next couple days, it makes for a great weekend for staying inside and watching some good basketball games. Today features a ton of great college matchups, including a Syracuse/Villanova matchup and a showdown with Texas and Kansas. I am obviously biased and will be closely watching the KU crew in action.

There were ten games last night. Several of these games ended in blowouts, as the Magic, Celtics, and Hornets won by an average of 35 points last night. Dwight Howard had a big night in limited minutes (31 and 19 in 30 minutes), while Ryan Anderson continued to help me catch up in three pointers and rebounds in my fantasy league. Keep playing him, Ron. Sorry to keep hating on Utah, but I really think the Jazz are one of the most mediocre top tier teams the league has ever seen. They lost their third in a row to the Celtics last night as Deron Williams had one of the worst games of his career. Shaquille O'neal cotinues to show his age, this time hurting his hip. He said it was related to his fall near his home last week. Get a cane, already. The Celtics are likely to ease him back into the lineup. The Hornets simply humiliated the Hawks on their home court, using a 31-5 run in the second and third quarter, in going to beat them 100-59. Justin Bieber didn't really seem all that impressed.


New Jersey, Phoenix, and Milwaukee all had easy victories last night as well. The Nets won their second consecutive game of the supposed "post Carmelo" era, handing the Pistons a 15 point road loss. I was watching the Knicks game so I didn't really tune in, but this had to be one of the most boring game of the season. Tracy McGrady did get into it for a second though, but it was laughable. The Nets now have as many wins as they did all of last season. The Suns used seven three pointers from Channing Frye and a double double from the Polish Hammer in defeating the Wizards by fifteen points. Curiously, John Wall and Steve Nash each had 14 assists and 5 turnovers. I could see Steve Nash and Grant Hill playing basketball well into their fifties. The Bucks were lucky enough to run into Dan Gilbert's D League circus last night. I am starting to wonder if that curse that they tried putting on Lebron is starting to negatively impact the Cavaliers. At least they are going to reduce ticket prices next season.

The Knicks had trouble getting it going against the Spurs last night, losing their fifth in a row. This Spurs team continues to coast right along. Tony Parker, Dejuan Blair, and Tim Duncan all had great games last night. Tim Duncan's was one of those classic efficient stat lines: 21 points (8/15 fg, 5/6 ft), 16 rebounds, 8 assists, and five blocks. Him and Blair were a nightmare for Amar'e Stoudemire all night, forcing an 8/25 shooting night from the big man.

The Rockets lost a tough one to the Grizzlies last night. One of those games that you want to walk away with, but you just can't find someone to close the game out for you (Carmelo??). Kevin Martin is great, but the Rockets need a superstar to decoy so Martin can find more open shots late in games like this. Aaron Brooks fucked up big time at the end of this game and I won't be forgetting about it until the Rockets get back to .500.

The Lakers and Warriors won the two late games last night. Kobe Bryant didn't quite have 81 points, instead scoring 18. The Lakers had four other players score between 17 and 19 points, in handing Carmelo Anthony and the Nuggets defeat. Carmelo Anthony continues to play well. I sent a tweet to Barack Obama yesterday asking him if he could possibly mediate a deal to get Carmelo to the Rockets. While I realize Obama is a Bulls fan, I hope he can do his part to help me. The Warriors were able to defeat the Kings in overtime last night. At the end of the overtime, Monta Ellis sprained his ankle and had to be helped off the court. He is having a great season, so you have to hope he gets back on the court quickly. In the meantime, I am sure Stephen Curry will no doubt fill the void that Ellis will leave.



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@94FTG

Happy 48th birthday to HAKEEM OLAJUWON!!!!!

Arguably, the most dominant big man of all time and easily my favorite all time baller, The Dream provided years of entertainment for Houston Rockets Fans. I have not seen many of my teams win championships, but I can say I was able to see both of these title runs by a couple great Rockets teams. It's too bad Charles Barkley couldn't have come on board a tad bit sooner.

LET THE MELO TO THE ROCKETS TALKS BEGIN!!!!!

As reported by the geinuses over at Slam, the Rockets are in the hunt. Obviously, to make this work Houston is taking a rather large gamble on Carmelo signing an extension with them. This all sounds all too eerily similar to me. I still think the Knicks and the Bulls are the favorites to land Carmelo Anthony, but I wouldn't be all that suprised to see a wild card team sneak in there and snatch him up for the rest of the season or longer. Stay tuned, there will be a lot more rumors that I will more than likely immerse myself in over the next three weeks or so.

CAN'T WAIT FOR THIS WEEKEND!!!

I honestly don't care very much about football. I get my weekly jabs in at the Bills during the regular reason and then I take the playoffs off to chill. Well I have taken the last elven or so playoffs off to chill, just like the Bills!



This video however will never get old. Not only does it appear as though Bart Scott is doing as much stand up comedy as trash talk in this, but this is easily the most quotable sports video of the young year. One of the things I love most about watching sports is human moments like this where athletes prove they are just as human as you and I. I think this will be quotable for at least as long as...



I would like to see the Jets and the Packers face off in the Superbowl so I am picking the Bears and the Steelers to win this weekend.

I LOVE THE BEASTIE BOYS

Are all the Arsenio shows archived somewhere to be put on DVD? If not, they should be. So many good hip-hop performances. Adrock...

Happy Birthday Jam Master Jay!

Today would be Jam Master Jay's 46th birthday, INCREASE THE PEACE!!!!!!!

ROUNDBALL/ ALEXIS AJINCA ANNONUCES HE'S TAKING HIS TALENTS TO TDOT

At some point this weekend, the Dallas Mavericks are going to acquire Peja Stojakovic. Time will tell how well this will work out for the Mavericks. Personally, I thought they could have done better with Gerald Wallace or Tayshaun Prince. Maybe those players weren't as readily available as reports would lead you to believe. Plus they are getting Stojakovic on the cheap if I am not mistaken. We'll see how those knees hold up in the playoffs.

It was a slow night for NBA games last night.

The Charlotte Bobcats used a career night from DJ Augustin to help them narrowly defeat the Philadelphia 76ers. This was a hard fought battle from start to finish between two Eastern Conference teams that will likely be fighting for a couple final playoff seeds in a couple months. The 76ers were able to close the deficit late, but Gerald Henderson helped seal this victory with a few clutch shots. They might need to turn to him more now, with the team finding out yesterday that forward Tyrus Thomas will miss extended time with a torn meniscus. Nazr Mohammed and Kwame Brown (!) may or may not see some extended minutes in the months Thomas is to miss as well. If someone would have told me I would be pushing thirty and those two would still be getting burn in the league...



Derrick Rose carried the Bulls to victory once again last night, this time against the hot and cold Dallas Mavericks.Someone had to win this game, I guess. It wasn't pretty though. Both teams shot around 36% for the game. Derrick Rose scored 26 and the Mavericks had Dirk with 19 (6-16 shooting) and three with 12 each. Most of the players left their shots back at the hotel apparently. I would wager a guess that Rose has put himself at the head of the pack for MVP consideration currently. The Bulls will need to rely on him pretty heavily while Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah get healthy. I just hope he has enough in him for the playoffs, too. The Eastern Conference is going to be looking pretty loaded come playoff time.

Blake Griffin got his double double streak going again. This time, in a losing effort to the Blazers. All of the highlights on Sportscenter and playing in the same building as the Lake show has only helped build Griffin's fanfare. Quietly however, the Portland Trail Blazers have been holding down the eight playoff spot in the west. They have done this with a starting five that most recently has been Andre Miller, Wes Matthews, Nicolas Batum, Dante Cunningham, and Lamarcus Aldridge. No offense to Matthews, Batum, and Cunningham, but I don't think most people would be expecting them to be starting on a playoff team. Obviously, Lamarcus Aldridge's transformation from rotational player to star has helped keep this team in the hunt. You have to wonder if the Blazers can maintain this pace for an entire season, with all of their injuries piling up. All of these extra minutes they are shelling out will lead to fatigue which could in turn lead to more injuries.

While the Carmelo Anthony saga continued in New York, Chicago, Denver, Houston, and several cities, the Nets got back to business yesterday. Now that the TMAC and Yao era is over in Houston, I am hoping for Carmelo Anthony to come to town asap!