The year 2011 has seen lots of ups and downs for NBA fans, and after it was announced that the National Basketball League would be returning near the end of this month with the first games of the season to go down on Christmas Day (Sun. Dec 25) … fans were excited!

NBA fans — especially Lakers fans — were even more enthused this week when the league announced that the Los Angeles Lakers would be trading Lamar Odom to the New Orleans Hornets in exchange for Chris Paul.

However, that excitement quickly turned into disappointment once another announcement was made yesterday (Thu. Dec 8) that NBA commissioner David Stern had blocked the trade after receiving complaints from several owners of other NBA teams.

Citing anonymous sources, Yahoo Sports reported yesterday that Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was very vocal about being upset about the deal, which was done on the same day as the end of the lockout, which was supposed to restore competitive balance in the league.

The proposed deal would have sent Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol from the Los Angeles Lakers to the New Orleans Hornets and the Houston Rockets, respectively.

Someone close to the situation told the Associated Press that Chris Paul reported to practice with the Hornets on Friday (Dec. 9), and Gasol and Odom are expected to attend the Lakers’ first day of training camp under new coach Mike Brown.

For now, it looks like Chris Paul for remain a Hornet, and Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol will remain Lakers.

Players association President Derek Fisher, center, takes questions after the players announce their plans to dissolve the union and file an antitrust lawsuit against the league. (Photo: Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)

NBA players rejected the latest proposal from the league’s owners Monday and are ready to now turn to the courts to settle the stand-off between the two parties … which means that the “Lock-Out” is still on, and NBA fans are slowly starting to realize that there may not be a 2011 – 2012 NBA season.

After meeting for nearly four hours, the National Basketball Players Association announced its plans to disband in preparation for filing an antitrust lawsuit against the league. The move touched off an exchange of forceful and ominous rhetoric in a conflict that began in July and likely will continue through at least the end of the calendar year.

NBA Commissioner David Stern quickly discredited the players’ attempt to take legal action as a “charade” in an interview with ESPN, calling the move a tragedy that could lead the league into “the nuclear winter.” He was highly critical of the “badly misled” union that he said is bent on self-destruction.

“There will ultimately be a new collective bargaining agreement,” Stern said in a statement issued by the league, “but the 2011-12 season is now in jeopardy.”

Billy Hunter, who was the union’s executive director but will now head the players’ trade association, said Stern’s ultimatum to accept the league’s most recent proposal or receive a worse offer later was “extremely unfair.” Hunter said the union was forced to take this next step after Stern told the players last week that the owners were done negotiating them.

“We’ve arrived at the conclusion that the collective bargaining process has completely broken down,” Hunter said.

Although Stern did not announce the cancellation of any more games, Washington Wizards free agent and union vice president Maurice Evans said the players were aware of the risks of taking this path. Players were scheduled to miss their first paycheck Tuesday.

“We understand the consequences of potentially missing the season; we understand the consequences that players could potentially face if things don’t go our way, but it’s a risk worth taking,” Evans said. “It’s the right move to do.”

By taking their interests to the courts rather than the negotiating table, the NBA players would be employing a strategy similar to that used earlier this year by the NFL players, who filed to disband their union shortly before the owners locked them out in March. That led to a series of court battles over the next several months — with the players challenging the legality of the lockout and the league objecting to the legitimacy of the union’s dissolution.

Those issues ended up not amounting to much, as a new labor agreement was reached in August while legal appeals were still pending.

The significant difference in the NBA’s case is one of timing. While the NFL was forced to cancel only one exhibition game, the NBA already has canceled the first four weeks of its regular season, and Stern has said the league will need 30 days from the time an agreement is reached before games can begin. If that’s the case, the league’s popular Christmas Day schedule appears to be threatened — and if the courts are to provide the resolution, the entire season is in question.

[The Washington Post]

Can you imagine that? A whole year without new basketball games? And what about the Playoffs next summer?

The NBA officials AND the players need to get it together … ASAP!!!

The Los Angeles Lakers’ star player Kobe Bryant has a net-worth of over $100 million dollars … which means that he is FILTHY rich and has lots of money to share. And that’s exactly what he’s doing. Sharing.

Because of the ongoing (and very stupid) NBA lockout, lots of players — mainly the “non-celebrity” ones — are facing serious financial hardship.

But the good news is that some of the superstar players like Kobe Bryant have big hearts, and are said to be loaning money to their fellow players who are struggling financially due to the lockout.

Read this excerpt from a recent L.A. Times interview with Billy Hunter, head of the National Basketball Players Association:

What role will NBA superstars like Kobe Bryant and LeBron James play as this moves forward?

“They’ve been deeply involved in the meetings we’ve had. I know Kobe is intimately involved in interfacing with colleagues and sharing in a pool of revenue to help the others get through this. Kobe has volunteered to do that in the event others need, he and others are prepared to loan money if necessary.”

Sharing is caring, right?

All jokes aside … that’s a pretty nice gesture from Kobe! And to think. Some people actually call this guy … “selfish.”

[Yahoo Sports via L.A. Times]

An former referee from the NBA recently shot and killed himself … on the same exact day his wife’s body was discovered strangled to death at their home. (WTF?)

Read more below:

Troy Raymond, a former NBA referee who last season officiated college basketball games, committed suicide in a New Orleans hotel room hours after police found his wife’s body at their home in the Houston area last week.

Police say Raymond, 46, is considered a “person of interest” in his wife’s death, which has been ruled a homicide due to manual strangulation, according to CBSSports.com.

Constable Tim Holifield of Montgomery County Precinct Three also told the web site that during the course of the investigation while at the residence on Friday, investigators were notified that Troy Raymond had been found dead due to a single gunshot to the head.

Raymond, reports cbssports.com, spent a year as an NBA ref before being forced out in 2004 for lying on his resume that he had played on the University of Colorado’s national champion football team.

Last season, Raymond officiated games for the Southland and Sun Belt conferences.

SOURCE

Wow … this is so tragic. Their families are in our prayers!

Memphis Grizzlies basketball player O.J. Mayo has been suspended for 10 games without pay for violating the NBA‘s anti-drug program after the guard failed a drug test. The league announced that Mayo tested positive for dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and his suspension will start tonight when the Grizzlies take on the 76ers in Philadelphia.

According to ESPN, Mayo will be forced to forfeit over $400,000 of his annual salary due to his violation. The 23-year-old West Virginia native said in a statement released by the team that he is extremely disappointed that he will miss 10 games as the Grizzlies are on their way to the playoffs, and says that he made an “honest mistake,” however he takes “full responsibility” for his actions.

“It was an honest mistake, but I take full responsibility for my actions,” Mayo said in the statement released by the team. “I apologize to my fans, teammates and the Grizzlies organization for regrettably not doing the necessary research about what supplements I can put in my body.”

DHEA is a legal, mild steroid “precursor,” which means that it isn’t EXACTLY a steroid, however, once you take it, it converts into one as it passes through your system. Though the over-the-counter drug is banned by most sports leagues, including the NBA, anyone can buy it because it’s not controlled as a substance by the Drug Enforcement Agency.

Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley said that Mayo will continue to practice with the team throughout his 10-game suspension.

“O.J. had a lack of judgment but has shown complete accountability,” Heisley said in a statement. “We will continue to support O.J. during this time as we have from the moment he joined the team in 2008. He has unselfishly done everything we have asked of him, and we expect him to grow as a player and a person from this experience.”

O.J. Mayo will be allowed to return on February 15th when the Grizzlies play against the Philadelphia 76ers on their home court in Memphis.

Your thoughts?

Miami Heat basketball star Dwyane Wade announced via Twitter and YouTube yesterday (Wed. Jul 7) that he has made up his mind about his contract for the upcoming NBA basketball season. Wade directed his Twitter followers to a YouTube video confirming news that he has re-signed with the Heat and explaining his decision to his fans. In the video, he also also confirmed news that NBA free agent Chris Bosh (formerly of the Toronto Raptors) would join him in the MIA.

Peep the video below…

Now all we’re waiting on is for LeBron to make his mind up so everyone can breathe easy. He’s set to make his announcement tonight at 9 PM. Stay tuned!

What do you think about Dwyane Wade re-signing with the Miami Heat?

The Boston Celtics outplayed the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 Sunday night (Jun 13) on their home court in the TD Bank North Garden. Kobe Bryant was just not enough to win the last game in Boston alone and led them to a loss by 6 (92-86) and the series now stand in Boston’s favor (3-2). Bryant managed to score 90% of the points in the 3rd quarter and totaled 38 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Kobe talked briefly about the performance from his teammates after the game:

“Just man up and play. What the hell is the big deal?” he said. “If I have to say something to them, then we don’t deserve to be champions. We’re down 3-2: Go home, win one game, go into the next one. Simple as that.”

The Celtics did just that. Paul Pierce obtained 27 points, Kevin Garnett scored 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Rajon Rondo had 18 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds. With only one game closer to the championship Pierce explains his excitement to the media:

“It was our biggest game of the year,” Pierce said. “We’re in a good spot. We have two games in L.A.; now we have to get one.”

Games 6 and 7 will be played in Los Angeles at the Staples Center. Game 6 airs Tuesday, June 15th on ABC 9:00PM/ET. Check out the video recap of Game 5 below.

Now, we know that it is illegal to bribe players in college basketball, but obviously the NBA is a totally different ball game. According to Scores, New York’s premiere strip club, if NBA superstar Lebron James moves to the New York Knicks after this season ends, he will receive:

1. A free lifetime of lap dances
2. A “LeBron James Day” when all the strippers will wear his jersey
3. And free food for life at the strip club’s very own steakhouse

Well if Lebron makes that move to the Knicks, we know EXACTLY where he will be partying after every game!!

Basketball player Allen Iverson‘s wife Tawanna filed for divorce against the Philadelphia 76ers star to end their 8 and a half year marriage this past Tuesday (Mar 2), not too long after the 34-year-old NBA champ announced he would be taking a leave from the game of basketball to tend to his sick daughter.

In the petition, Tawanna asks for temporary and permanent custody of their five children, aged 17 months to 15-years-old, as well as child support and alimony, though she did not ask for a specific dollar amount. AI and his family have lived in north Atlanta since last August, according to papers in the court filing, which also noted that the family of 7 claimed homes in Rochester, MI; Englewood (Denver), CO; and Villanova, PA.

A little over a week prior to the day the divorce petition was filed, Allen and the 76ers announced that he would be leaving the team indefinitely for “personal matters.” He later confirmed via his Twitter that he wanted to stay at home in Atlanta to be with his 4-year-old daughter Messiah, who had an undisclosed illness.

“I need to be there to hold my little girl’s hand and encourage her to get better. I wanted her to wake up every morning and see her Daddy’s face, at least until she got better. Through God’s Strength, She Will Keep Getting Better!”

Before the announcement was made, Iverson had already missed five games with the Sixers, along the big 2010 All-Star Game in Texas, so that he could be with his family. And shortly after the papers for the divorce were filed, Iverson’s team said that he would not be returning at all this season:

“After discussing the situation with Allen, we have come to the conclusion that he will not return to the Sixers for the remainder of the season, as he no longer wishes to be a distraction to the organization and teammates that he loves very deeply,” 76ers general manager Ed Stefanski said. “It has been very difficult for Allen and the team to maintain any consistency as he tries to balance his career with his personal life.”

Miami Heat basketball star Dwyane Wade is featured on the cover of the latest issue of Rolling Out Magazine. Here’s but Rolling Out had to say about Dweezy in their February 4th issue, on stands now:

In this week’s edition of Rolling Out Magazine, Dwayne Wade divulges on how his competitive nature led to success and gave him the opportunity to help others. The six-time NBA All-Star also shares his thoughts on the escalation of teen violence in his hometown Chicago and provides insight on becoming an endorser for brand Jordan.

Dwyane Wade is the most improbable superstar in the NBA. Unlike Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony, Wade was not a nationally recognized phenom during his high school basketball career. In fact, it took Wade two years to earn a spot on his high school’s varsity basketball team. He was not drafted out of high school like Bryant, James and Howard, and his college team did not win a NCAA national championship like Anthony’s. But Wade has essentially worked the hardest to position himself among the NBA’s most elite players. For more information and behind-the-scenes on the Dwayne Wade story, log onto www.rollingout.com.

We recently posted some rather unpleasant photos of NBA Star Greg Oden posing nude in some personal camera phone pictures privately sent to a women that he was dating at the time. Since the photos surfaced online and have spread all over the net, Greg decided to hold a press conference at the Portland TrailBlazers’ practice facility:

“I would like to apologize to everybody: Portland, fans, the organization,” said Oden, during a hastily arranged press conference Tuesday evening at the team’s practice facility. “It was very embarrassing. It was something that happened over a year and a half ago. … I’m very sorry, and I’m definitely embarrassed for my family and everybody around me.”

It’s a cold game. You really have to be careful who send those nude photos to. Now that everyone has camera phones, it seems to be a way of life in relationships to send nude photos to your twirk. As you can see, people are getting burned left and right. To see the video of the entire press conference, click the link below…

Monday (Jan 25), the Los Angeles Lakersspent some time at The White House to meet President Obama. Mr. Obama invited the team to the capital (Washington, D.C.) to commemorate their NBA title run last season. What interesting is that you will notice that the players brought along their families, which included Kobe Bryant‘s sexy wife Vanessa Bryant and Lamar Odom‘s wife Khloe Kardashian! Yup, a Kardashian has finally made their way into The White House. Who woulda thunk it? (LOL)

Check out some of the photos below…

PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES / NBA

What in the world is going on with these celebrities and athletes sending pics on their phones to jumpoffs that they hardly know? NBA Star Greg Olden is the latest celeb to have to deal with photos being leaked of him in the NUDE! We don’t think that we need to say much more. If you are interested in seeing the photos, click below……

Following in the footsteps of R&B singer Mario, troubled NBA player Gilbert Arenas posed for PETA’s “Ink Not Mink” anti-fur campaign.

Gilbert is a three-time NBA All-Star and a three-time member of the All-NBA Team. His sizzling moves have earned him nicknames such as “Agent Zero” and “Hibachi,” a Japanese word that means “bowl of fire.” Gilbert’s a fierce competitor on the court, but it’s his compassion toward animals off the court that makes him a true all-star. Join Gilbert in refusing to contribute to animal suffering by not buying or wearing fur or fur trim!

This was obviously done way before Gilbert was suspended indefinitely from the Washington Wizards. Other athletes who support the PETA movement and have posed for the animal rights activist group include Amar’e Stoudemire, Tony Gonzalez, Michael Strahan, “Sugar” Shane Mosley and more.

Wow. Just last week Allen Iverson released a statement announcing his retirement and a few days later Sixers Coach Eddie Jordan denied rumors of Iverson making a comeback to the Philadelphia franchise. But now things have changed.

In a surprising turn of events, Allen Iverson has re-signed as an official player of the Philadelphia 76ers. The NBA star signed a 1 year deal with $1.3 million dollars earlier this week. In a press conference Thursday afternoon (Dec 3), the teary eyed and noticeably emotional 34-year-old guard talked about the progression of his career and how happy he is to be back in Philly as a 76er. His first game is Monday and they’ll be playing against the Denver Nuggets.

“I have a love for them and they love me and it’s evident,” Iverson said. “When I had the opportunity to come back here [voice cracking]. I couldn’t turn it down.” Iverson remained emotional for much of his 35-minute press conference in which he was joined by Sixers president and general manager Ed Stefanski.

Stefanski said that Iverson is expected to make his debut in Monday’s game at the Wachovia Center against one of Iverson’s former teams, the Denver Nuggets. According to Stefanski, Iverson wasn’t guaranteed any minutes or a starting spot, but . . . “We brought him here to play basketball,” Stefanski said after the press conference.

Iverson, who complained about coming off the bench in his last two stops in Detroit and Memphis, insinuated that he would be content with any role with the Sixers. “All I told him [Stefanski] was give me an assignment and I will help you win basketball games,” Iverson said.

SOURCE

Continue reading for the video (waterworks show up about halfway through – 2:05)

Dwight Howard thinks his baby mama Royce Lyndsay Reed is out to get him and “become a celebrity” just because she’s the mother of his child. Word on the sidewalk is that she’s supposed to be trying to get on some new VH1 reality show called “NBA Wives,” and Dwight ain’t having it!

The Orlando Magic basketball star filed legal documents in Florida that say that Reed, the mother of Dwight’s 2-year-old son, is banned from “using or publishing (orally, in writing, or otherwise), directly, indirectly or by innuendo, [Dwight's] name, nicknames, image, brand photographs and/or likenes.”

According to documents filed in Florida, the Orlando Magic superstar went to war in October with Royce Lyndsay Reed — the mother of his 2-year-old son — after she allegedly called him a deadbeat dad on her blog, Twitter and even during an ESPN interview. That finely manicured line of lawyerspeak makes it damn near impossible for Royce to appear on “Wives” … unless she calls herself the baby mama of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

SOURCE

Wow! Looks like he rained on her parade lmao!

The star players of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Lebron James and Shaquille O’Neal, were spotted by the paparazzi on Wednesday (Oct 28) as they left their hotel to go to the Air Canada Center in Toronto, Canada to play against the Toronto Raptors.