Photo: S.I. Vault

Playing in a generation housing players like Magic, Bird and Jordan, how great of a player Charles Barkley actually was often gets swept under the rug. It’s not right, but it’s how history chooses to paint the picture.* Read the rest of this entry »

A few days ago, “Big Baby” Davis had his daughter steal the postgame press conference. Yesterday, Chris Paul’s young son got a few laughs by doing “The Blake Face” on cue. Read the rest of this entry »

After the Knicks got thrashed again by the Heat 104-94 last night, Amar’e Stoudemire’s temper boiled over in the locker room, resulting in his attempt to box a fire extinguisher. By now, we all know the device won, the Knick forward injured his hand and may miss Thursday’s Game 3. Early Tuesday morning, Stoudemire offered up an apology via Twitter and called his act “bad timing.” Read the rest of this entry »

While a handful of teams still tied to the 2012 season, non-playoff teams are working towards the next year. Positioning themselves for the future, the Brooklyn Nets unveiled their new logo and colors at a news conference held on Monday. Read the rest of this entry »

When Derrick Rose went down on Saturday, hearts of basketball fans fell as well. Watching Rose lay motionless for what seemed like an eternity was agonizing and heartbreaking for the casual observer or hardcore hoops fanatic, the Bulls fans and foes. Given the unpredictable nature of how injuries affect athletes long term, the widespread aftershocks can’t always be determined but many will feel its reverberations. Read the rest of this entry »

A wise man once said: “The NBA Playoffs are a clusterf*ck of storylines.” This year’s first round is no exception. Even if Derrick Rose’s ACL captures the majority of the casual fan’s attention, the injury is only the tip of the iceberg. Since it’s hard to keep track of every little in-and-out of the league’s 16 playoff teams, so we did our best to recap some of the weekend’s events in a condensed fashion. Read the rest of this entry »

Today may mark the most bittersweet victory the Chicago Bulls have experienced in franchise history. The regular season Eastern Conference champs opened the 2012 Playoffs with a 103-91 win over 76ers, but lost Derrick Rose, who tore his ACL and is out for the remainder of the season. Read the rest of this entry »

To get everyone in the playoff spirit (as if we need the prodding), check out this cool video find the homie O. sent me. As much as the media tries to paint Rondo as a disgruntled type, he’s seems pretty colorful and jolly at the beginning of games. Read the rest of this entry »

Now, the Charlotte Bobcats are in the wrong chapter of the history books. Their 84-104 loss to the Knicks last night set them at 7-59 and that’s only the beginning. Paul Silas’s bunch ended the season on a 23 game losing streak with an NBA all-time worst .106 winning percentage. Read the rest of this entry »

Well, we sure made the most of the shortened season. The pros went from out of shape to scraping for playoff contention as soon as the second half of the year kicked off. Now the spring classic’s about to tip-off and we’re ready to get to the “real” season. Read the rest of this entry »

Blake Griffin hasn’t seen a poster opportunity he didn’t like. However, opposing big men aren’t taking too lightly to his self-aggrandizing aerial feats. Blake’s been getting rocked these days and he’s taken heat for absorbing everything from legit, hard fouls and straight up disrespectful swipes. Read the rest of this entry »

A shortened NBA season didn’t stop jerseys from flying off the racks. Final sales tallies are in and Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls secured the top spots as the NBA’s “Most Popular Jersey” and “Team Merchandise” sales, respectively, based on sales at the temporary NBA Store in NYC and on NBAStore.com from April 2011 to present. Rose led from April 2011 through April 2012, but it’s the second place finisher who may (or may not) provide the biggest surprise.

Knicks guard Jeremy Lin was number one for the regular season, dating from December 25, 2011 to to the present. The former undrafted D-Leaguer bested perennial best sellers like Kobe, LeBron and Wade. What’s even more amazing is the pace at which his jerseys sold, considering they weren’t available at retail until mid-February. Imagine if Linsanity hit at the beginning of normal season schedule.

Top 15 Most Popular NBA Jerseys

1. Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls
2. Jeremy Lin, New York Knicks
3. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
4. LeBron James, Miami Heat
5. Carmelo Anthony, New York Knicks
6. Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
7. Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks
8. Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder
9. Blake Griffin, Los Angeles Clippers
10. Rajon Rondo, Boston Celtics
11. Amar’e Stoudemire, New York Knicks
12. Ray Allen, Boston Celtics
13. Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics
14. Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
15. Chris Paul, Los Angeles Clippers

Top 10 Most Popular Team Merchandise:

1. Chicago Bulls
2. New York Knicks
3. Los Angeles Lakers
4. Miami Heat
5. Dallas Mavericks*
6. Boston Celtics
7. Oklahoma City Thunder
8. Los Angeles Clippers*
9. Denver Nuggets
10. Orlando Magic

Seems like it’s one step forward, two steps back for Metta World Peace bka Ron Artest. Ron’s latest transgression, a fierce elbow laying out James Harden, sent Ron off early and sidelined Harden for the rest of Sunday’s game between The Lakers and the Thunder. Read the rest of this entry »

Blake Griffin went to the rack late in last night’s game against the Suns, only to be met by a cross-body block from Robin Lopez. As a result of the play, Griffin suffered a strained neck, Lopez was ejected but the Suns still won, 93-90. With the W, Phoenix extended their home dominance over L.A., who’ve lost 10 straight road games to the Suns dating back to April 2007.

The best way the Clippers can stymy the hard fouls against Griffin? Look no further than the :08 mark when his teammates run up on Lopez and whisper sweet nothings in his direction. Instead, they – and Blake – would be better served clocking the next assailant. Oakley would’ve mashed on whoever laid a lick like that on Mike. Rick Mahorn and Bill Laimbeer would’ve been waiting in the parking lot for whatever opponent clotheslined Zeke or Joey D. One Clipper needs to co-opt hockey’s enforcer role and man up. Serve up a knuckle sandwich, accept the suspension and everybody pony up to help pay the fine. No Gregg Williams, just a one-shot deal to send a message back.

They need to show that if other players mess with Blake on the break, there’s gonna be consequences and repercussions © Rayford Gibson.

[SLAM]

In news that should surprise no one, every member of the University of Kentucky’s starting five will look to join the NBA ranks next season. Read the rest of this entry »