Category: NBA (Page 436 of 595)

      Worst athlete bobbleheads

      August 4, 2008 /

      EPIC CARNIVAL compiled a small group of the worst athlete bobbleheads (i.e. bobbleheads that don’t actually resemble the athlete).

      Take a look at the Dirk Nowitzki bobblehead:

      What the hell is that on his face? I’m sure The Diggler was absolutely thrilled to see a bobblehead that depicted him as a rent-for-kids-birthdays circus clown. If it wasn’t for the #41 on his jersey, I would truly have to guess “Shawn Bradley” before I’d say Dirk’s name.

      Oh…that’s right. The knee-high shoes should have been the dead giveaway. And again with the lipstick. What’s with that?

      Jesus, that’s one freaky bobblehead.

      General Sports, Humor, MLB, NBA, NFL

      Worst sports trades of all time

      August 2, 2008 /

      Lang Whitaker of SI.com compiled the five worst sports trades of all time.

      1. Cowboys trade Herschel Walker and 4 draft picks to Vikings for 5 players and 8 draft picks — Seriously, this really happened, back in 1989. You can read about the particulars here.

      2. Falcons trade Brett Favre to Packers for a first round pick — Of course, the Falcons had no need for Favre, what with Chris Miller dominating the NFL at the time. With the first round pick they received as compensation, Atlanta selected RB Tony Smith, who didn’t do much at all. Meanwhile, who’d have thought 15 years later that Favre would still arguably be worth a first-round draft pick in a trade?

      3. Mavericks trade Robert “Tractor” Traylor to Milwaukee for Dirk Nowitzki — This was actually a swap of several draft picks, so the two teams selected for each other. But still, must be haunting for Bucks fans to know that for a few brief moments, they actually had the future MVP instead of a guy called “Tractor.”

      Favre was doomed in Atlanta no matter what. Favre spent most of his free time partying and didn’t take the game seriously then. And even if he did, Jerry Glanville wasn’t going to allow Favre to see the field anyway because he never wanted to draft him the first place. (It was Falcons’ GM Ken Herock’s decision to take Favre.)

      And both the Walker and Nowitzki trades were flat out brutal.

      General Sports, MLB, NBA, NFL

      Bulls re-sign Luol Deng for six years, $71 million

      July 31, 2008 /

      It was a long, arduous negotiation, but the Bulls finally locked up Luol Deng. I estimated Deng’s value to be $11-$12 million per season, and he ultimately signed for $11.83 million per season.

      Given his modest background growing up in the Sudan and Egypt before moving to London, Deng stressed to the Bulls that he was not bluffing when he vowed to play next season on a one-year qualifying offer worth about $4.5 million for the right to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2009.

      The Bulls then gradually raised their offer to a higher annual average that Deng turned down in October, when Chicago was limited to offering him a five-year extension and presented the 6-foot-9 forward with a five-year package worth $57.5 million. As ESPN.com reported earlier this month, Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf chose to personally handle the bulk of the negotiations with Deng’s camp as opposed to the standard practice of Paxson serving as lead negotiator.

      This negotiation seemed like it had been going on forever, so it’s good to see the Bulls lock up their star. Now they just have to figure out what to do with Ben Gordon.

      NBA

      Ron Artest headed to Houston

      July 30, 2008 /

      First, he decided not to opt out.

      Then he regretted not opting out.

      Now Ron Artest is heading to Houston.

      NBA front-office sources confirmed to ESPN.com that Artest will be dealt to the Rockets in exchange for Houston’s first-round draft pick in 2009, ex-King Bobby Jackson (who arrives with a $6.1 million expiring contract) and the draft rights to Donte Greene. The Kings will also receive more than $1 million in cash, according to The Houston Chronicle, but the deal can’t be announced before Aug. 14 because Greene is not eligible to be traded before then.

      If Artest had opted out, the Kings wouldn’t have received anything for him, so his mistake was their good fortune. Now they’ll get a nice prospect in Greene along with a 2009 first round draft pick as compensation. That’s the way to rebuild.

      On the flip side, Houston seems like an odd fit for Artest. Two of their best players – Tracy McGrady and Shane Battier – are really small forwards, and now the team is adding a third. The Rockets can play McGrady at off guard, Artest at small forward and Battier at power forward. Defensively, Artest and Battier will provide a formidable 1-2 punch at forward.

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, NBA Draft, Rumors & Gossip

      Bobcats sign Okafor for $72 million

      July 29, 2008 /

      I estimated Emeka Okafor’s value to be $12-$12.5 million per season, and apparently the Bobcats agree.

      The Charlotte Bobcats have agreed in principle on a six-year contract worth at least $72 million with restricted free agent Emeka Okafor.

      The agreement with Okafor by far represents Charlotte’s biggest expenditure on one player as the club readies for its fifth season. Okafor turned down a five-year deal with a similar $12 million annual average before last season, preferring to wait for restricted free agency.

      Okafor averaged 13.7 points, 10.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks last season in 33.2 minutes per game but never clicked with coach Sam Vincent, who was fired by team president and former teammate Michael Jordan after just one season. Okafor has already played for Brown on the 2004 U.S. Olympic team and has generated plenty of praise from the bench veteran lately.

      An annual salary of $12 million would be in line with the contract extension 2005’s No. 1 overall pick Andrew Bogut received from the Milwaukee Bucks earlier this month. Bogut signed a five-year deal for $60 million with hard-to-reach incentives that, if realized, could take the overall worth of the contract past $70 million.

      Bogut and Okafor have very similar PERs, but Bogut is a true center while Okafor is more of a defensive-minded power forward type. I’d rather have Bogut because he’s a legitimate threat in the post and a terrific passer. Both players averaged 1.7 blocks per game.

      The Bobcats didn’t overpay for Okafor, so it looks like a good deal for both sides.

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA

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