Nuggets Vs. Nets Preview: Melo Bowl

 By now everyone should know about the purported flirtations between theDenver Nuggets and New Jersey Nets surrounding Carmelo Anthony. And everyone should also know about the way comments Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov made announcing that there would be no more trade talks between the two clubs. So the fact that Melo is in New Jersey tonight makes this NBA Must See TV.

The biggest question on everyone’s mind will be how Melo performs in front of a crowd he essentially dissed, privately saying that he didn’t want to be traded to NJ and suggesting to everyone he wouldn’t sing an extension if dealt to the land of Snooki, J-Wow and The Situation.

In their only other meeting this season, Melo torched the Nets for 28 points while grabbing eight boards and dishing out five assists. So New Jersey knows firsthand what they could be getting if they landed the eighth year man out of Syracuse. But apparently they no longer want that kind of production, so expect Melo to heed the challenge and again show them what they’re missing.

The last of a Nuggets five-game road trip ends tonight at 5:00 p.m. MT and the game can be seen on Altitude.

Kobe Bryant leads voting for 2011 NBA All-Star Game

The half way point of the NBA regular season is right around the corner and before the second half of the season gets underway, the 2011 NBA All-Star game will be played at the Staples Center on February 20th 8pm EST. 

As of right now, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar guard Kobe Bryant is leading the way in the All-Star voting with 1,757,216 votes which is about 200,000 ahead of the Orlando Magic's Dwight Howard (1,537,619). There is still plenty of time to vote as the starters for the 2011 NBA All-Star game will be announced on TNT on Thursday, January 27th at 4pm PST.

If you want to get your votes in for this All-Star game, go to NBA.com (Vote Now button on left side of the page) and let your voice be heard! Voting ends on Sunday, January 23rd.

Check out current voting totals here: All-Star balloting update

Along with Kobe Bryant, the two-time defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers could have two or three more players in the mix on All-Star weekend as forward Pau Gasol is third in the voting for Western Conference forwards (851,456) behind the Oklahoma City Thunder's scoring machine Kevin Durant (1,270,729) and Carmelo Anthony (945,720) of the Denver Nuggets (or the New Jersey Nets if a trade goes down). Andrew Bynum is second among centers in the West with only the Houston Rockets Yao Ming (out for the season, 928,928) ahead of him. I think Yao would get voted to the Western Conference All-Star team even if he were retired, which will probably happen sooner rather than later, a lot of voters love this big man in China.

So at this point in time, Kobe Bryant looks like he will be the starting shooting guard with Andrew Bynum getting the start at center due to the fact that Yao Ming is done for the year. Pau Gasol will need to keep getting votes over the next week though as the Los Angeles Clippers superstar forward Blake Griffin is quickly moving up the ranks as he isn't far behind Pau with 702,784. Even if Pau does get voted onto his fourth All-Star team, he will be coming off the bench.

Lakers forward Lamar Odom (364,950) has been getting a lot of consideration for being on this All-Star team with his impressive play off the bench as of late, but with Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks (6th place; 615,243) and Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs (5th place; 663,487) ahead of him, I don't think its goning to happen.

Not only does LO have perennial All-Stars Nowitzki and Duncan ahead of him, but Griffin, Gasol, Melo and Durant are also ahead of them. Anything can happen between now and February 20th, in terms of injuries or players holding out, so there is a possibility that four Los Angeles Lakers could be sporting Western Conference All-Star jerseys on their home floor next month!

Houston Rockets - N.O Hornets 1 (1.7)
Indiana Pacers - Chicago Bulls - 2(1.85)
N.Y Knicks - Sacramento Kings 1H (-6.5) (1.7)

Todays Tips!

Phoenix Suns - N.J. Nets - 1H(-5)(1.8)
Detroit Pistons - Memphis Grizzlies- 2(1.85)
Houston Rockets -Oklahoma City Thunder - 1H(+6.5)(1.6)
Jackson-Rose- Over 44.5(1.85)

Denver Nuggets - Phoenix Suns - Over 215.5(1.75)
Granger (Indiana Pacers) Over 19.5(1.75)

Today's Picks!

Portland Trailblazers - Miami Heat - 1H(+6.5)(1.8)
Denver Nuggets - N.Orleans Hornets- 1H (-4.5) (1.9)
L.A.Lakers - N.Y. Knicks - Over 208.5(1.65)

Mark Cuban Calls Phil Jackson 'Boy Toy'

After Dallas Mavericks forward Caron Butler hadseason-ending knee surgery, Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson said that it will betough for the team to overcome the loss.

When asked about Jackson's comment on Tuesday, Cuban fired back and jabbed the legendary coach's romantic relationship with Jeanie Buss, daughter of Lakers owner Jerry Buss.

"I love that Jeanie Buss' boy-toy had something to say about us," Cuban told ESPN Dallas. "I don't know if it was his thought or Jeanie's thought, but it's nice to know that she lets him speak in public about other teams."

When Jackson was asked about the Cuban's comment, he said it was "terrific" to hear that he was considered a "boy toy."

Buss suggested that "maybe Mark just did it to make me giggle."

Detroit Pistons - Philadelphia 76ers - 1(1.85)
Houston Rockets -Utah Jazz - Over 203.5(1.6)

Tip Of The Day!

Milwaukee Bucks - Miami Heat 1H (+7.5) (1.9)

Today's Picks!

Tip Of The Day
Houston Rockets - Portland TrailBlazers - 1H(-3.5)(1.7)

Philadelphia 76ers - Washington Wizards- 2H(+8.5)(1.8)
L.A. Clippers -Denver Nuggets- 2(1.7)
Minnesota T Wolves - Charlotte Bobcats - Over 201.5(1.93)

Single Of The Day!

Dallas Mavs - Portland Trailblazers - Dallas -Under 95(1.9)


  Derbi natprevar na Zapadot,megu dva tima koi imaat golem problem so povredni igraci. Dallas se ocekuva na denesniot natprevar da bide bez svojat glaven igrac Dirk Nowitzki(24.1ppg) koj bi trebalo da se vrati vo timot vo tekot na nedelava i bez tretiot strelec Caron Butler(15ppg) koj ke bide otsuten od terenite minimum do april.
Portland isto taka e bez Brandon Roy,Greg Oden,J.Przybilla megutoa i bez ovie bitni otsustva seuste e na pozitiven score od 16-14 pred se kako rezultat na izvonrednata odbrana uspevajki da gi zadrzi protivnicite pod 95poeni vo 4natprevari po red,dodeka Dallas bez Nowitzki vo prosek postignuva po 87.7poeni,statistika koja zemajki ja vo predvid jasno kazuva deka vo eden tvrd natprevar Dallas tesko ke ja nadmina granicata od 95poeni...

Chicago Bulls - Toronto Raptors - Over 199.5(1.93)
N.York Knicks -S.A. Spurs- 1H(+8.5)(1.6)
P.Gasol - Over 16.5(1.85)

Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson Reconcile After Spat

After exchanging some words following a Sunday night loss, Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant and coach Phil Jackson reached a middle ground.  

It sounds like the fallout from the Los Angeles Lakers' blowout loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday night is starting to lose some of its radioactivity.  

On Monday, we noted some back-and-forth comments made on Sunday night by Lakers All-Star guard Kobe Bryant and coach Phil Jackson. Jackson said Bryant "has to screw up the game" while Bryant said "I'm not buying any of that Zen (B.S.)." 

Later Monday, after the loss had some time to sink in, both Jackson and Bryant appeared to make conciliatory comments. 

Jackson, according to the Orange County Register, clarified what he meant by "screw up," claiming he didn't mean Bryant wasn't messing up the Lakers' gameplan.  

 ”When the game starts getting out of hand, Kobe will crank it up, not screw it up — I used the term screw it up, not in terms of being in error or a mistake, but crank it up another notch to try and get us back in ballgames,” Jackson said. “That’s our fourth-quarter action. That’s how we win ballgames. When they have to crank it up in the third quarter, there’s not much left in the gas tank after that.”

Bryant, for his part, acknowledged the truth of Jackson's words, saying that he did go outside Los Angeles's normal offensive system in an attempt to single-handedly pull the Lakers back into the game.

“He was right,” Bryant said. “I totally broke the offense, but I did it intentionally because I felt like we needed to get something started because what we were doing just wasn’t working. I tried to kick-start it, and sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t.

“But Phil doesn’t really care how many shots I take, he just wants me to take them inside of the offense.  That was one of those days where I was like, ‘(expletive) the triangle, I need to get myself going and try to save this damn game,’ and it just didn’t work out.”

Sounds like cooler heads have prevailed. Maybe?

Today's Picks!

Boston Celtics - Minnesota T-Wolves - 2H(+12.5)(1.6)
Charlotte Bobcats - Miami Heat - 1H(+12)(1.7)
N.Orleans Hornets - Philadelphia 76ers - 1H(-4.5)(1.8)

NBA Tade Rumour: Omri Casspi To Chicago Or New York

Despite all the “young talent” in Sacramento, the Kings are headed back to the Lottery this June. So what do you do as a franchise when you’re sitting at 7-24 a third of the way through the season? You start to plan for the future. And apparently part of that plan may involve moving Omri Casspi to either Chicago or New York.

From ESPN.com’s Marc Stein:

The Bulls, in particular, like Casspi not only for his ability to shoot but also his experience in pressure situations after playing at the highest levels of the Euroleague with Maccabi Tel-Aviv as well as his defensive potential, believing that the energetic swingman would develop nicely on D under the guidance of Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau. The bonus: Casspi is shooting 40 percent from 3-point range this season – up from 36.9 percent as a rookie – to further squelch his pre-draft rep as a non-shooter.

Yet there are obstacles for interested parties. Casspi is also a favorite of Kings co-owners Joe and Gavin Maloof. Sources say Sacramento, furthermore, would likely insist on attaching a long-term contract from the Kings’ roster (such as Francisco Garcia’s) for the right to acquire Casspi, who’s earning a bargain $1.25 million this season. That could dissuade both the Bulls and the Knicks, with New York especially mindful of preserving salary-cap space for the summer.

       Interestingly enough, if the season were to end today, the Bulls (22-10)                  and Knicks (19-14) would face each other in the first round of the playoffs. With that said, both teams are trying to assemble squads to battle the likes of Boston, Miami and Orlando. If a deal for Casspi were to fall through, other shooting guards that are most likely available for the right price (and have been previously linked with Chicago) include Courtney Lee, J.R. Smith, Stephen Jackson and O.J. Mayo.

If you’re a Kings fan though, you should brace for change before the NBA Trade Deadline comes in February. If not Casspi, Stein notes that Carl Landry (with an expiring $3 million contract and unlikely to re-sign with Sacramento this summer) is “the most likely King to be moved before the deadline.”

Today's Tips!

N.Y. Knicks - Indiana Pacers - Over 207.5 (1.75)

Sacramento Kings - Phoenix Suns - Over 205.5 (1.93)
Cleveland Cavaliers - Dallas Mavericks - 1 (2.6)

The NBA Playoff Field — For Now!

With the 2010 portion of the 2010-11 season now behind us, here is what we’ve seen so far from our playoff candidates:

→1. Boston Celtics: Got older, but also got better. Five players are out with injuries. Watch out when this team is completely healthy.

→2. San Antonio Spurs: Old and young, efficient and wise, will beat you with their brains as much as their talent. Thus, the best record.

→3. Miami Heat: Started 9-8 and rumors spread Pat Riley might become coach and hold three-hour practices. Heat has gone 17-1 since.

→4. Los Angeles Lakers: Good when they want to be, play when they want to play, care when they want to care. Three-peat still possible.

→5. Dallas Mavericks: A salty group, but they seem to crumble without Dirk Nowitzki — unless they’re playing in Oklahoma City.

→6. Orlando Magic: Had the "balls" to work a major trade when things didn’t look quite right. Could it become a championship move?

→7. Chicago Bulls: Were on a seven-game winning streak when they got Carlos Boozer back, but then lost Joakim Noah. A good team.

→8. Thunder: This team isn’t as good as its record, but it’s nice to work on what needs to improve and still win games in the process.

→9. Utah Jazz: Also has struggled with injuries, but they keep on trucking with the league’s best point guard and a hall-of-fame coach.

→10. Denver Nuggets: They rarely have been at full strength and all the Carmelo Anthony uncertainty still lingers. The clock is ticking.

→11. Atlanta Hawks: Talented, physical, athletic and tough, but streaky. They need to rebound, force turnovers and keep their composure.

→12. New York Knicks: Have either been very good (winning eight straight; 13 of 14) or pretty bad (losing six straight; four losing streaks).

→13. New Orleans Hornets: Started out 8-0, got the record to 11-1, is one of only two teams to win at Boston, yet they’re 19-14 and wilting.

→14. Portland Trail Blazers: Have lost Greg Oden for the season, lost Brandon Roy indefinitely and could blow up their roster at any moment.

→15. Indiana Pacers: Have a budding all-star in center Roy Hibbert and Danny Granger is solid, but they don’t have enough pieces to contend.

→16. Milwaukee Bucks: Lost point guard Brandon Jennings when things were beginning to click. Somehow stunned the Lakers by 19 in LA.