Feb

16

Slam Dunk Central Presents:ESPN’s First Half Top Ten Plays Of The NBA

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Feb

16

Bryant Forced By Rules To Play In All-Star Game

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Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant has a complete tear of the radial collateral ligament, an avulsion fracture, and a volar plate injury at the MCP joint of the small finger of this right hand. He dislocated the finger in a game against the New Jersey Nets back on February 5. On February 13, playing against the Minnesota Timberwolves Bryant aggravated the injury when he was hit on the hand during the game. He was advised by doctors to immediately have surgery which would cause him to miss six weeks. Bryant said he wanted to try to play through the pain to get through the season and the Summer Olympics before succumbing to the surgery. Many NBA observers, including this reporter have called Kobe Bryant a selfish player in the past, this however is a totally selfless act. He is putting his team’s needs first, I for one commend him for it.

Bryant was named by the fans as a starter for the Western Conference in Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans. Because of the pain he is in, and the fear of further injury Kobe does not want to play. It is understandable, although an honor when it comes down to it is a meaningless exhibition game. It is not even like in Baseball where the game has a determination on the Post Season. It should be a reward, however, because players in the past have not wanted to give up the time off during the All-Star break, there is a rule in place in the Association. If you play in the last game prior to, and the next game following the All-Star Game, and don’t play in the exhibition, you will be suspended.

I comprehend why the rule is in place, as I wrote above. But there has to be some leeway here, Bryant will play in the game Sunday so he can play when Los Angeles resumes the campaign after the break. It should not be a punishment to make the All-Star team. If NBA Commissioner David Stern can change the rules after the fact that would have found countless of the Association’s referees guilty of infractions, then he can change this rule. But afraid of losing one possible viewer the man whose middle name should be Marketing will let Bryant risk getting hurt. As the old song sang by the late Edwin Starr went “Lord knows there’s got to be a better way.”

? Copyright 2008 thesackattack.com


Feb

16

Slam Dunk Central Presents: ESPN Reports Kobe Will Play Despite Injured Digit

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Feb

16

Hawks & Kings Have Blockbuster In The Works

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The “Sacramento Bee” reported Saturday that the Sacramento Kings and? the Atlanta Hawks have agreed on a trade sending veteran point guard Mike Bibby to the Hawks in exchange for four players. The report says the deal would send Atlanta guards Tyrone Lue, Anthony Johnson, center Lorenzen Wright and rookie Shelden Williams to the Kings. Sacramento would also receive Atlanta’s second round pick in the the 2008 NBA Draft. The report says that Atlanta owner Michael Gearon Jr. expects the deal to be completed on Saturday. Bibby who has been the subject of trade rumors since the preseason told the paper he was not surprised on being traded, but he did not expect to end up with the Hawks. Bibby is in his tenth season in the Association, he was drafted the then, Vancouver Grizzlies in the 1998 NBA Draft. After spending his first three seasons North of the border he has been a member of the Kings since the 2001-2002 campaign. Atlanta goes into the All-Star break with a record of 21-28, they are percentage points behind New Jersey and Philadelphia for the eighth playoff slot in the Eastern Conference.

? Copyright 2008 thesackattack.com??

Feb

16

Magic Could Make Trade Before Deadline

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Even though they have exceeded most NBA observers preseason expectations, the “Orlando Sentinel” reported Friday that Orlando Magic General Manager Otis Smith may want to do some final tweaking before the NBA deadline. according to the report the area that Smith would like too strengthen would be the team’s defense. Magic coach Stan Van Gundy called out center Dwight Howard Monday for his lack of defense, Smith said the coach could have easily named several other players. The paper says that if Orlando does make a deal, the two players most likely to be moved would be point guard Carlos Arroyo and shooting guard J.J. Redick. The NBA trade deadline is February 21.

? Copyright 2008 thesackattack.com??

Feb

16

Grunfeld Says Wizards Are Good To Go

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The “Washington Times” Friday reported that Washington Wizards General Manager Ernie Grunfeld is pleased with the makeup of his team, and does not anticipate making a trade before the NBA deadline. The Wizards are at 25-27, in second place in the NBA Southeast Division, but if were the season were to end now, they would have the sixth playoff seed in the Eastern Conference. Grunfeld expects a far stronger second portion of the campaign as the team should get a healthy Caron Butler and Gilbert Arenas back within a few weeks. Grunfeld pointed to Washington’s wins over Boston and Dallas back to back earlier this season, as an example of what his team can do when fully loaded.

? Copyright 2008 thesackattack.com??

Feb

16

Shaq’s Flexibility “Vastly Improved”

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The “Arizona Republic” Friday quoted Phoenix Suns trainer Aaron Nelson as saying that new Suns center Shaquille O’Neal’s flexibility had “vastly improved” since Phoenix acquired him from the Miami Heat. Shaq has shocked the team’s medical staff with the strides he has taken since he came to Phoenix for Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks, earlier this month. The team’s orthopedic surgeon Dr. Thomas Banks said that the veteran has no traces of arthritis in his hip, that it was just soft tissue damage that was causing him the pain. Banks said the medical staff has done an amazing job with him.

Was this a case of a more proactive approach by the Phoenix medical staff, than what Miami’s team doctors did? Or was this just about the time that the injury took to heal. Having interviewed O’Neal countless times over the years, I refuse to believe that he was faking any thing. The man is far too much of a competitor, for him to watch his teammates suffer when he could help. So again, the?question remains, was this just part of the natural healing process, or was someone at fault?

? Copyright 2008 thesackattack.com?

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