The Starting Five

TNT is in Phoenix for NBA All-Star 2009 February 12-15

(AP Photo/David Banks)

Coverage of the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge and Youth Jam tips off Friday, February 13 at 9 p.m. ET. Beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, February 14, TNT will televise coverage of NBA All-Star Saturday Night presented by State Farm, which includes the Haier Shooting Stars competition, the Playstation Skills Challenge, the Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout, and the Sprite Slam Dunk. TNT’s coverage of the 2009 NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, February 15 begins at 8 p.m. ET.

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Look, Dwil, Modi, Dave Zirin, Temple3 and I have been some of Jason Whitlock’s biggest critics on the web and talk radio. The readers of SOMM and TSF collectively have been just as critical. I felt personally betrayed after my interview with him because I thought his dissent of Lupica and the rest of the cast on Sports Reporters was groundbreaking and a sign of a sorely needed revolution in journalism. We all know what happened after that (Black KKK, his foul moniker attached to C. Vivian Stringer which I will not repeat here). It truly pains me what I’m about to say. I don’t agree with a lot of what Jason writes but he deserves props for a recent piece about the real reason for the steroid witch hunt. I had hope (besides the Kev Dog Jemele interview, the Friday Fire thread is one of the best of all time on TSF) for him and some of you disagreed.

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(AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

You see that dude right there? He means business. He’s tired of playing with ya’ll. He’s tired of being disrespected by younger cats with no shine, hardware or scoring titles on their byline. He doesn’t want to do it alone, but if he has to? Murder. He is the only player (Paul Pierce and Dwyane Wade are junior, junior junior distant) in the NBA I personally want taking my last shot…the big shot with zeros on the shot clock, game clock or June clock. The only one I want whose finger tips are pointing to the ground after the quack quack wrist snaps Black.

But…

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1. Los Angeles Lakers 42-9, 5-0 week

(AP Photo/Gus Ruelas)

This is a crazy year. It’s hard to guage who is gonna step up and take control of the L. Kev Dog gets his wish because right now the Lakers are number 1 and it’s almost convincingly.

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An interview with Skip Bayless will be posted when he gets back from vacation. I didn’t want to post it while he wasn’t on First Take. Any thoughts? Trust me, it’s sicker than ya average (Skip’s int.).

I wanted to save this piece in case these teams face each other in June, but since the NBA has been full of surprises this season, I thought I’d give it to you now. This runs because the Los Angeles Lakers swept both Boston and Cleveland recently and look to be the best in the NBA. As you well know, they didn’t win on this day.

I told KG I was going to be there, so here is my account of what went down before Game 1 of the 2007-2008 NBA Finals. Interviews with Julius Dr. J. Erving and Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe.

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Today in an exclusive interview with Peter Gammons of ESPN, Alex Rodriguez admitted using a banned substance somewhere between 2001-2003. Some of his words:

“And I did take a banned substance and, you know, for that I’m very sorry and deeply regretful. And although it was the culture back then and Major League Baseball overall was very … I just feel that … You know, I’m just sorry. I’m sorry for that time. I’m sorry to fans. I’m sorry for my fans in Texas. It wasn’t until then that I ever thought about substance of any kind, and since then I’ve proved to myself and to everyone that I don’t need any of that.”

I want to see the entire interview before fully commenting but I have a big problem with the 104 other names not being disclosed and once again an individual taking all the heat.

Bud Selig needs to make himself accountable for presiding over an era that will NOT be blamed on a couple of men. Are we really that stupid and insecure? Is Griffey the only name that would shock left?

Michael Phelps is happier than hell this story broke huh?

“Caught a glimpse of myself in the Barney’s shop window…kinda see my father’s features creepin’ in a little…”

Nas – War

There is a debate within the NBA and various media outlets that asks the question of who is the better, or best NBA player, Kobe Bryant, or LeBron James. Most recently with Bryant netting 61 points, and 3 assists last Monday in Madison Square Garden, and James following that up with 52 points, and a near triple-double in the same building…the discussion has escalated to a fever pitch. Last week LeBron was on the cover of GQ, and Sports Illustrated, and Gentlemen’s Quarterly outright claimed King James as the best while SI alluded to the fact that both he and Kobe are the best.

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Greg Paulus, look at the faces of the fans as you get banged on yet again. Your fans. I just don’t get it why you continue to “sacrifice” your body again and again to be immortalized in another poster. Dude you are all over walls. Walls across the world! Stop man. Just stop. Out of maybe 2 charges you get to “swing” like 206 times. I’m embarrassed for you. You used to be a quarterback mang, have some respect for yourself. Please?This is not cool.

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(AP Photo/Steve Yeater)

It’s crazy sometimes how some athletes win championships and some don’t. Chris Webber was one of the more gifted superstars of his era, but just couldn’t seem to get that last game confetti shine. Though he never won the big one, that doesn’t make him a loser because he’s winning at life and is a great soul model for all children.

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Does this really surprise you?  I mean what’s next, coaches and managers are gonna test positive? I think if anything, this exonerates Bonds as being the face of the steroid era.

The question is, how many people did MLB and the media turn against Barry and is the affect irreparable? It’s ironic how most fans turned a blind eye to ARod’s performance as Bonds approval rating fell off the likes of Bush’s.

If you recall, pundits were drooling all over themselves to proclaim Alex the next king. Full disclosure: I’m a Yankee fan who has never been crazy about ARod. He is immensely talented, but comes up small when the kiddies in the stands are cheering the most.

I’m not hatin’ on the brotha but since the Yankees traded Alfonso Soriano for Rodriguez, they haven’t won jack. Does anyone but me remember the clutch bombs Soriano hit when he was still a kid? Ok, ok, this wasn’t intended to be a rant, but c’mon man. Put up or shut up. I’m not madatcha for steroids because everyone probably juiced because of ridiculous pressure to perform, but use this as inspiration to have that Bonds like season everyone has proclaimed you capable of or be peace…

(Andrew D. Bernstein/Getty Images)

TNT’s NBA Thursday coverage continues Thursday, Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. ET live from Phoenix, AZ with an exclusive doubleheader featuring the Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls followed by the Boston Celtics @ Dallas Mavericks. TNT will have exclusive coverage of NBA All-Star 2009 from February 12-15.

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I don’t know when exactly in my preteen years I read the Autobiography of Malcolm X initially, but it flipped my wig the second time I read it in my late teens. The world began to make sense. To be honest, I hated White people early on because of omnipresent imagery documenting the sadistic treatment of so many Fathers of Fathers before this nation was truly civilized. Remember, Roots affected Blacks like all get out in a way only Rosewood would hit me later. Malcolm gave my conscience a gun with a full clip. A defiant gun shouting down anyone patronizing the thoughts of my people with dismissive words just to appease their own solemn inferiority complex. When I read the epilogue a third time, his conversion to Orthodox Islam soothed my rage just enough to make sense of what the hell was going on around me as I entered my twenties. The relationships I built in high school with Whites gave me a new perspective more rounded in the genuine minds of others. This quote from Malcolm is how I would best describe where I am today: “We have to keep in mind at all times that we are not fighting for integration, nor are we fighting for separation. We are fighting for recognition as free humans in this society”.

Paul Robeson was the other.

What is your Favorite Book?

I use Facebook to network and also to catch up with folk I have seen since Good Humor and field trips to the Smithsonian, but there is cause for concern and a serious threat of identity theft. Someone hacked into our own Ron Glover’s email account and sent out a similar mass email blast. Be careful people. Do not give out your password to anyone asking unless it is authentic. Ask questions because in this economy, 1200 dollars is big dough. Thanks to Matthew Fudge for sending this.

TNT NBA Thursday continues on Thurs., February 5th with an exclusive doubleheader featuring a rematch of the 2008 NBA Finals. At 8 p.m. ET, Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers visit Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics. The second game will feature Deron Williams and the Utah Jazz hosting Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks at 10:30 p.m. ET. The night will conclude with the Emmy® award-winning studio show Inside the NBA presented by Hyundai with Ernie Johnson (host), Kenny Smith (analyst) and two-time NBA MVP and 14-time All-Star Karl Malone (guest analyst).

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(Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)

Didn’t they just play the Super Bowl? Yo, what is going on? What seems like seconds after Kobe went off for 61, LeBron James follows Mike’s son and goes Oscar Jr. These cats are looking like cartoons right now. Modi and Poet’s Knicks must have pissed somebody off because the world champion Boston Celtics are up next Friday.

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