BDL’s completely pointless, albeit oddly
entertaining, Bedlam Tournament continues. Thanks to your help,
we’ve compiled a list of 32 things that you may or may not love about
the NBA and seeded them into four regions. We’ll unveil the
remaining four first round match-ups on Monday.

Our
final match-up in the Mountain Region: No. 1 seed Dikembe Mutombo vs. No. 8 seed Craig Sager’s wardrobe. A closer look at the nominees:

No. 1 Dikembe Mutombo: You can vote for Deke because of the 18 strong years. You can vote for Deke because of the finger wag and multiple Defensive Player of the Year awards. You can even vote for Deke because his voice makes you laugh or because that "Who Wants To Sex Mutombo?" tale is still comedy gold. Me? I’m voting for Deke because he’s trying to make a difference.

No. 8 Sager’s suits: Craig Sager works as a sideline reporter for TNT. He wears hideous suits (it’s his shtick, you see!), is a surprising 6′4", and lays claim to fame for re-naming Yager-bomb shooters Sager-bombs. He has no chance of winning this.

So, who/what makes it through to the next round? What do you love more? Vote today.

Click and scroll to vote on all of the Bedlam first round match-ups. Voting remains open ’til Sunday.

Read full article…

A look around the league and the web that covers it. It’s also
important to note that the rotation order and starting nods aren’t
always listed in order of importance. That’s for you, dear reader, to
figure out.

C: Hoop Heads North. Personally, I’m a big fan of the Clippers’ royal blue threads.
PF: The X’s and O’s. "What makes Wade so unique is that he gets to the rim in the least amount of strides and dribbles possible."
SF: The Sporting Blog. Shoals lists a few dark-horse rivalries worth keeping an eye on.
SG: Basketball Prospectus. Kevin Pelton evaluates the state of statistical analysis in basketball today.
PG: Thunder Rumblings. How Earl Watson has turned an obstacle into an opportunity.
6th: Ridiculous Upside. Gilbert Arenas retired from blogging; should our very own Rod Benson? (No!)
7th: NJNets.com. Marv Albert discusses the Nets’ season in an exclusive interview with Ben Couch.
8th: Court Surfing. Wednesday night, Mike Taylor became the first rookie since Iverson in ‘96 to drop 35 points on the Knicks at MSG. Friday morning, Holly MacKenzie caught up with the LAC high-flyer.
9th: Hoops Addict. Does Clippers guard Eric Gordon have any shot at winning Rookie of the Year?
10th: Sports Radio Interviews. Ron Artest on the way he records his music: "Yeah, yeah, got a studio in the car. Sometimes you get multi-idea in the car, you get multi-ideas in the shower. That’s the next step, put a studio in the shower."

Read full article…

BDL’s completely pointless, albeit oddly
entertaining, Bedlam Tournament continues. Thanks to your help,
we’ve compiled a list of 32 things that you may or may not love about
the NBA and seeded them into four regions. We’ll unveil all of the
first round match-ups over the course of this week. Voting is open ’til
Sunday.

Th next match-up in the Mountain Region pits brother vs. brother: No. 4 seed Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy vs. No. 5 seed ABC/ESPN color commentator Jeff Van Gundy. Oh, who will Mama Van Gundy vote for? A closer look (though not too close) at the nominees:

No. 4 Stan Van Gundy: Stan Van Gundy is a blogger’s dream. Chris Alvino of Knicks Blog: "He calls out Shaq. He calls out the ‘home cooking’ for the Cavs on their home floor. He calls out Dwight Howard when he isn’t playing hard enough. He calls out the Knicks organization …" And now he calls out the Celtics. All that, and SVG’s the best-dressed coach in the league.

No. 5 Jeff Van Gundy: For exchanges like this …

JVG: "If I was Phil Jackson I would inject a dose of upper respiratory viral infection into my whole team tomorrow at practice. That would be practice."

Mike Breen: "In case you’re just tuning in and you don’t know what this sick man is talking about … Bryant was not feeling well, before the game, and that’s what he has. But it certainly hasn’t affected him … 37 points 7 assist 5 rebounds."

JVG: "Can you do that? Can you inject somebody with a serum of upper respiratory viral infection?"

Breen: "I believe that’s illegal."

JVG: "Isn’t that what Clemens said he did?"

Breen: "You’re going down a dangerous path. I’ll ask you to reconsider during this timeout."

JVG: (Maniacal laughing)

So, who/what makes it through to the next round? What do you love more? Vote today.

Click and scroll to vote on all of the Bedlam first round match-ups. Voting remains open ’til Sunday.

Read full article…

I’m kidding, I’m kidding. Injured 76ers forward Elton Brand reads to some children in honor of March’s Reading Month at the Philadelphia Public Library. Best caption and/or Dr. Seuss rhyme wins one red fish. Best of luck.

After the jump, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra plays Paper-Rock-Scissors with himself.

Winner, Hambone:
Eric Spoelstra and his assistant coach, Tyler Durden, argue over whether to leave Michael Beasley in for the fourth quarter.

Runner-up, Roger Mason Jr. = Hero:
The season came unraveled when it became clear that coach Spoelstra’s only coaching move consisted of "rolling the dice."

Read full article…

BDL’s completely pointless, albeit oddly
entertaining, Bedlam Tournament continues. Thanks to your help,
we’ve compiled a list of 32 things that you may or may not love about
the NBA and seeded them into four regions. We’ll unveil all of the
first round match-ups over the course of this week. Voting is open ’til
Sunday.

Up next in the Mountain Region: No. 2 seed Dwight Howard’s dunk props vs. No. 7 seed Kevin Durant’s ridiculous February. As always, a closer look at the nominees:

No. 2 Dwight Howard’s dunk props: Before transforming into Nate Robinson’s own personal prop, Dwight dusted off the Superman cape, unveiled a Clark Kent-like phone booth and rolled out a 12-foot high hoop. No, he didn’t end up defending his Sprite Slam Dunk crown, but he sure put on one hell of a show.

No. 7 Kevin Durant’s February: The year’s shortest month was quite kind to the league’s longest "guard." In the month of February, Durantula averaged 30.6 points per game (on 53% shooting), dropped a cool 46 in the Rookie/Sophomore game (shattering the previous scoring record of 36) and won a tacky toy trophy after defeating Joe Johnson and O.J. Mayo in the NBA’s return of H-O-R-S-E. Not a bad little month.

So, who/what makes it through to the next round? What do you love more? Vote today.

Click and scroll to vote on all of the Bedlam first round match-ups. Voting remains open ’til Sunday.

Read full article…