• Vote for the biggest OKC Thunder fan out there, Zorgon, in their Ultimate Fan competition. He really wants it, c'mon, just look at that face. All you have to do is go here, enter your details (or some you invented) and select "Zebulun Benbrook (Zorgon)" from the drop down list. He's a great guy and runs this equally spiffin' OKC Thunder blog, BlueBlitz.net. Anyone who is willing to publicly admit that they support the Thunder deserves some recognition.
• JR, On Fire has a great piece on Selection Sunday and how each of the schools can be tied back to Aussie basketball.
• Do you like watching former NBA greats letting it all hang out with returns to the hardwood? Well, Ball in Europe has news for you -- Dennis Rodman is leading a team of former ballers in a European tour. Others on the tour include AC Green, Shawn "ReignMan" Kemp, Kenny Anderson, Stacey "Plastic Man" Augmon, Moses Malone, Dee Brown, John Starks and Spud Webb among many others. Worth noting is that this list includes some guys who struggled to get up and down the floor towards the end of their careers, how are they going to do now? Kemp, Oliver Miller, Moses and Stanley Roberts, I'm looking at you. 
• Apparently the Toronto Raptors did not like wearing green on St Patrick's Day, according to That NBA Lottery Pick.
• If you haven't seen links to this in one of a billion places (including my Twitter feed), make sure you check out this great creative piece by BustaBucket on the 10 Most Hated Players in the game.
• Smush Parker is dissing Kobe. As Don at With Malice said, get a team first, then talk.
• Ballerblogger always has a great collection of NBA links.
• Talkhoops with a fantastic recap on last night's games.

The Internet is 20 years old today. And how it has changed our lives -- for better and worse.

March 13, 1989 a man by the name of Tim Berners-Lee forged the idea to make pornog... information available to every man, woman and child across the "world wide web." Surely there was no way he could have imagined the full extent of what he had created -- as we still do not know what lies ahead on the medium.

It is a verified fact through numerous scientific studies that it is virtually impossible to prevent a basketball writer from linking a news item to basketball in some way. Imagine what the NBA would have been like had the internet existed back in the day, as it does today. Follow the narrative, if you will.

March 13, 1989

CHICAGO, IL -- The Chicago Bulls have trounced the Indiana Pacers, 122-90 to the delight of their home fans.

Michael Jordan sits, legs splayed in the lockerroom, basking in the post-match haze of another victory for this emerging giant of a squad. He calls across the room to Sam Vincent, who is discussing the latest edition of Wii game, Rock Band with Scottie Pippen, "hey, Sam -- why don't we throw some tweets at those Pacers?"

He pulls his iphone out of his left sock and surfs to twitter.

airjordan23: @therifleman yo chuck, was your rifle all jammed up tonight? 7 points!! LOL

Within seconds a reply...

therifleman: @airjordan23 yeah, wateva. a shooter is always a shooter. you obviously forgot @DunkingDutchman putting 25 & 8 on your boy @BillC

Jordan calls out to Bill Cartwright, who is showering, "Bill, Person is laying smack on you on twitter!"

Cartwright responds. "I still haven't logged into that thing. What is it, Twit Book?" He then elbows the wall.

airjordan23: @therifleman Bill just elbowed a hole through to your lockerroom - I see your rifle is more of a revolver. ROFL. Catch you on Facebook later.

pippen33: I've got a migraine.

The next day Jack Haley blogged about the whole incident and how the victory was so big that he even was afforded a six minute appearance on the court.

*****

BOSTON, MA -- The Boston Celtics have just crushed the New Jersey Nets 114-91 behind 23 points from rising star Reggie Lewis.

The mood in the Nets' lockerroom is a sombre one as they quietly board the team bus to head toward Philadelphia for their next match. Most of the players pull out their ipods and laptops to pass the time without conversation. Their moods are stretched too much.

Buck Williams surfs TMZ.com on his laptop, trying to take his mind off the Nets with other trivialities. But he can't help himself and logs into Twitter.

UncleBuck: @PDXBlazersFTW Yo, you think there is any chance of me headed your direction? I can't take this losing. 23-40 man...

TheGlide: @UncleBuck How sweet it is!! Get your double-double butt over to Portland! We're not winning games with Damn Bowie here inside.

the_real_shackleford: @UncleBuck what's your deal man? Show some team spirit!!

jeskeets: RT @UncleBuck @PDXBlazersFTW Yo, you think there is any chance of me headed your direction? I can't take this losing. 23-40 man...

The Internets were alive for the rest of that night.

Meanwhile amongst the Boston players, the mood was much more jubilant and playful.

Reggie Lewis visited Joe Kleine's Facebook page and posted the following on his wall.

"Joe, I always knew you played small -- but this just proves it!! Check this link. http://translate.google.com/translate_t#de|en|kleine  (I promise I ain't Rick Rollin' you)." 

And, as had become customary after every Celtics victory, Ed Pinckney celebrated by posting links to photos from the 1985 NCAA Title Game in the comments section on Patrick Ewing's blog (always under different usernames of course).

*****

SALT LAKE CITY, UT -- The Utah Jazz upset the Cleveland Cavaliers 98-83.

As had become a post-game ritual, the Utah Jazz rushed to their iphones after the match to tee up some training for their Court Rivals team (John Stockton insisted on this). They then sat down for a de-briefing from new coach Jerry Sloan.

Sloan, Stockton and Karl Malone later emerged to spend some time with the media.

Sloan: We're happy with the win tonight. I think we saw the hustle that we need -- particularly from John and Karl. Mark Eaton was a rock inside for us, as always. I'll pass over to John and Karl now, as I can't say any more, I'm saving all of my stories from this season for an exclusive blog column on The National's site.

A reporter then asked Stockton, "John, you must be happy with the 14 assists and 5 steals tonight?"

Stockton: It's not about numbers. It's about winning games as a team. Without Karl, those assists would be nothing.

Malone: That's right!! It's Stockton to Malone, baby!! Actually, you should check out our new YouTube channel -- we've got some great instructional videos on how to run the pick and roll. The Mailman delivers, every time!

Reporter #2: Karl, you did seem to have trouble stopping Larry Nance tonight. Was allowing him 19 points within your game plan?

Malone: www.youtube.com/mailman -- check it out!! I've got some great trucking videos on there too. Also check out my new site -- I've used GPS to map out some great trucking routes. Woo!

Reporter #2: Yes, yes Karl. But what about Nance? And Rpn Harper getting to the line 15 times?

Malone: Statistics - whatever. Go plug 'em into basketball-reference.com and see if they care. Oh, oh... and Darrell Griffith has got a great new video, "Jim Farmer cuts down Tree Rollins!!"

Okay, I promise that I will not spend all day linking to YouTube videos, but this one is too good to pass up.

A two-handed round of applause (yep, put down your drinks ladies and gents) for pearlmax for creating this fine little piece involving Phil Jackson, Trevor Ariza and Rudy Fernandez in the lost Karate Kid chronicles. I believe that this comes in the deleted scenes in the Karate Kid Limited Edition Boxset.

Headband not included. Get parent or guardian's permission before calling. And remember, it's wax ON first.

The game is on the line. 6.6 seconds left and you're down by two.

Would a Zach Randolph three from the carpark be your chosen shot?

No, mine neither.

(click the HQ button)

Randolph has increased his three-point attempts per game each season to the point where he is now shooting over two per game. Last time I looked, Z-Bo was a great interior player with a nice mid-range jumpshot. Since when did he think that it was a good idea to become a jacker from the outside?

I could understand if he was shooting a Kerr-like percentage, but he is shooting at 28.9% on his career. He has improved that to 36.8% this season, but just take a look at Mike Dunleavy's face in the clip above and I think you'll agree that this is a development in Zach's game that not many are liking.

If you haven't already, get your sweet little behind over to Pete Marasmitch and vote for the A Stern Warning entry to the LolRaps competition (LolBargz).

Not familiar with the concept of Lolcats? Check out I Can Has Cheez Burger to get a feel for it.

The humble art of the assist. Teams across the league this season are averaging approximately 20.95 assists per 48 (give-or-take) minute game.

Last night the Chicago Bulls only managed to amass 13 assists in a double overtime game with the Miami Heat. That's right -- an anemic 13 assists in 58 minutes of selfless basketball action at AmericanAirlines Arena.

Let's put this in perspective ... hold on, let me just wipe John Stockton's vomit off the keyboard ... there we are. The Bulls only had 11 assists at the end of regulation -- on 104 points. How is that even possible?

Are the Miami Heat some remarkable assist-stopping team? No, the Heat's opponents this season average 20.05 apg. That's average where I come from.

Did it have something to do with Ben Gordon lining up at the three point line for 8/11 from downtown? Perhaps.

If anyone has some insight into how the Bulls managed to average just one assist per every seven-plus field goals, I would love to know.

On the other hand, how they managed an assist-to-turnover ratio of 13:22 on the game? That their coach would like to know...

• Quite obviously, fail to make assists, make a lot of turnovers, you lose the game.
• Chicago (twice) and Sacramento (thrice) seem quite adept at this type of performance. Perhaps Derrick Rose and Beno Udrih need some point guard classes?
• It is worth noting that Chicago's other AST:TO epic failure occured in an OT game as well!
• None of the other games in question saw the offending team score anywhere in the region of the Bulls' 127 points. 

*******

This was a remarkable statistical game on so many levels. Take a look at the boxscore and read along with me. Let's put the Bulls' assist/turnover situation to one side for a moment and consider:

• The Bulls only played seven active players in the 58 minutes of action.
• Dwyane Wade's statistical line was one of a man calling out for MVP consideration. 48 points, 12 assists, 6 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 blocks and phenom-like shooting percentages from the field and deep (let's ignore his 13/18 at the charity stripe).
• How close were these two teams? It took double overtime to separate them. Both teams shot 93 field goal attempts. Both teams made 43 field goal attempts. Both teams shot 37 three throws, Miami managed to make 32 to Chicago's 30 and they also managed one more trey than the Bulls. That was the game right there.

Blazers defeat Lakers 111-94 -- Rudy Fernandez badly injured in flagrant foul by Trevor Ariza

The Portland Trail Blazers took care of business at home last night against the Los Angeles Lakers, winning a major Western Conference battle 111-94. However this victory paled when tempered with the events of the third quarter which saw Rudy Fernandez stretchered off the court by medical staff.

Let me start by emphasising that I don't think Trevor Ariza intended to harm Fernandez when he committed the foul. It was a fast-paced incident and Ariza seemed to make a play at swatting the ball. Fernandez is a speedy, high-flying player and you don't have much time to react to that type of opponent.

Despite the lack of intent to harm Rudy, the aftermath of the play was one of the most sickening I've witnessed in a while. Watching him appear to shake involunarily, left alone whilst the remainder of both teams were involved in a squabble in the corner of the court, sent shivvers down my spine.

On the play itself, you will see that Ariza (aka "Son of McClary") appears to swat at the ball, collecting instead the Spaniard's head and then following through to take out his arm. The result is that the Blazer's body is twisted and he lands very heavily (despite his wiry frame) on his hip. What made matters worse on this play was that Fernandez was still on the upward flight of his approach on the basket, meaning he had momentum in a different direction to that which Ariza knocked him. Had he already reached the basket, the result may not have been so spectacularly awful.

Video of the incident -- including scuffle between players afterwards 

Things worth noting:

• Lamar Odom did indeed appear to enter the area of the court, despite being on the bench. It will be interesting to see if he is dealt with by the league in a similar way to the Suns players of Phoenix v San Antonio playoff lore.
• The team spirit of the Blazers was undeniable after the hard foul -- watch the way captain Brandon Roy sticks up for his teammate.
• A "Flagrant two" was called against Ariza on the play -- meaning an automatic ejection. Brett Pollakoff of Fanhouse argues fairly justifiably that the league will probably vary it down to a "Flagrant one". "But is this really a flagrant two foul that should warrant an automatic ejection? No, no it's not. And if the league is going to change something like Glen Davis' obvious head-hunting attempt down to a flagrant one, we can probably expect the same thing regarding this unfortunate (but unintentional) play from Ariza."
• Notice the way Ariza jaws off at Roy after they are separated? Hardly appropriate of a player that should be admitting he made a mistake and potentially horribly injured an opponent unnecessarily. Show a little more class and man up to your mistake boy.

The good news is that the injury to Fernandez likely will not be too severe. The latest updates on his condition are:

• Blazers Edge -- UPDATE (10:45PM): From the team: Rudy suffered soft tissue injury to his right upper chest/side area. The CT scan was negative. Will be kept overnight at the hospital for observation. He is questionable for Wednesday. -- Ben

• OregonLive.com -- [as above] Fernandez is listed as questionable for Wednesday night's game against the Dallas Mavericks.

Other reactions:

• via Yahoo! Sports -- “Just the way it played out—it’s hard to watch your teammate over there laying down and they’re bringing out stretchers. That was a tough moment for all of us,” said Brandon Roy, who led the Blazers with 27 points.
• Bustabucket -- "The real backbone came through with the game in hand late in the third quarter, when Trevor Ariza commited a dangerously hard foul from behind on Rudy Fernandez as he elevated on a fast break , a foul that left him writhing on the ground in pain and ultimately carted off on a stretcher. In a flash B-Roy was in Ariza's face. An instant later, with Lakers swarming Roy, there was Outlaw and LA wading into the fray and covering his back. Make no mistake, we keep a tight locker room and when you mess with one of us, you mess with all of us."
• via OregonLive.com -- Words from Ariza after the game:

  "First off, I want to say I hope Rudy's all right. I was just trying to make a hard play to the ball. I hope he's fine and my best wishes go out to him and his family."

  From your perspective, what happened on the play?
  "I was just trying to go for the ball, trying to make a good play on the ball and unfortunately somebody got hurt."

  Surprised they called a Flagrant 2?
  "A little. But that's the referees' decision. I'm just trying to play the game the right way, not give up anything easy."

  What did you think about the reaction from the Blazers?
  "It's expected. That's one of their teammates. If it was one of my teammates, I would probably do the same thing, too. No hard feelings. It was just protecting a teammate."

  Put yourself in his position. You're going down on a fast break and someone comes up behind and fouls you like that. How would you react?
  "It happens. It's basketball. Nobody's trying to hurt anybody out here but things happen."

  Any concern that you're going to get suspended?
  "Honestly, there's nothing I can do about that. I hope it doesn't happen. I was just trying to go for the ball. I wasn't trying to hurt anybody or do anything like that."

  What went on in the altercation by the team bench?
  "Honestly, I don't even remember. It was a heat-of-the-moment thing. I don't remember what happened."

  Surprised the Blazers surrounded you like that?
  "Like I said, that was one of their teammates. They're a good, close team so that's not surprising at all."

  Looking back, would you still have handled the play the same way?
  "Yeah. Because it wasn't anything I was trying to do. I wasn't trying to hurt him. I was just trying to make a play for the ball. It wasn't anything; I wasn't trying to hurt him. I was just trying to make a play for the ball for my team."

• via Yahoo! Sports -- On the suggestion that Odom entered the court and on Ariza v Roy: "In the confusion there were some who said that Odom left the bench, although he denied it.

  “I stood up, but I stood right there—I didn’t go nowhere,” he said.

  Roy balked at Ariza’s reaction to the foul. “I tried to be cool-headed about it,” Roy said. “I was just going to go over there, but then he started bucking (over the foul) like, ‘What?’ I was just upset because my guy is laying there on the ground and he’s talking trash still. I was pretty upset about it.” 

It wasn't exactly Magic Johnson, but still impressive.

"Stan Van Gundy reminds me of a broke navigational system. He knows everything about everything but ain't never been nowhere. Think about that. If I'm right here and I type in the address of where you're going, I know where it's at but I'm not going there."  -- Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal

I didn't see this one coming.

Obviously there was some bad blood between Stan Van Gundy and Shaq back in their Miami Heat days and there may be some truth to the murmurs that he pushed SVG out the door in favour of Pat Riley.

Van Gundy started this round of the squabble with post-game quotes after his Orlando Magic defeated the Phoenix Suns. He referred to a spin move by Dwight Howard on which O'Neal attempted to take a charge -- resulting in the "first flop of his career."

Zach Harper at Talk Hoops has a great take on the potential reasons for the fight. All I can say is, I don't think this is the end of this battle; let's regard this as Round One.

Watch as ESPN brings "the panic" with this footage:

By the way, pardon my ignorance, but can anyone tell me what a "front-runner" is?

It appears that we have no more certainty surrounding the plans to make the New Jersey Nets the Brooklyn Nets. An outfit which includes some dude who happens to be Beyoncé's husband, has been pushing to move the other New York area NBA team to Brooklyn, but a range of obstacles continue to block the move.

This from New Jersey's Star Ledger:

The Nets will open their preseason next fall in Newark. The team, which plays at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, will meet the Celtics on Oct. 13 and the Knicks on Oct. 21, in two preseason games at the Prudential Center, bringing NBA basketball for the first time to the state's largest city.

However the Nets' CEO, Brett Yormark is quick to mention the continued plans to move to Brooklyn:

"We are looking forward to playing two games against two of our biggest rivals, the Celtics and the Knicks, at the Prudential Center. We are also excited to be playing a game at St. John's in Queens, a borough where we expect great support for the Nets when we move to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn in 2011."

<snip>

There are mounting questions over whether construction on the long-delayed Brooklyn arena will ever get underway, in the face of continuing community opposition and a worsening recession that is killing major development projects across the country.

But while the disclosure of initial talks of a preseason series in Newark led to speculation that the Nets were exploring the viability of a permanent move to Newark, team officials say their future is still in Brooklyn.

It sounds like it is still a game of wait-and-see.