?QuestionMark?

Conversely, the same is true for the owners. They'll start losing money and taking a 53-47 split is better than losing a season. I think the players are more militant about things this time around. And they recognize they might have some options overseas.

Derek Fisher can't make layups

There won't be any season until the union decertifies and puts pressure on Stern, or the owners take responsibility for poorly running a franchise and that's the biggest reason they can't turn a profit. BTW for those of you still in school, how much better will your grades be now that the NBA won't distract you? Probably can get straight A's. Try to look at the silver lining.

Two that stick out for me: 2001 Playoffs Mavs vs Spurs. Derek Anderson for a dunk and Juwan Howard and his vertical leap of an elephant tries to block the shot but sort of clotheslines Anderson instead. Landed hard and seperated his shoulder. Also, Karl Malone DESTROYING Isiah Thomas was epic. Thomas drives the lane and is met by Malone's elbow busting Isiah's head wide open. There are probably harder fouls that, but those just stick in my mind for some reason. One more weird one, but not really a foul: Shaq dunking on Esteban Bautista, goes through Esteban, both fall, and Shaq's 400 pound ass squashing Bautista. I think there was a foul called but on Esteban who got the worst of it. That's like rubbing salt in an open wound.

My guess is Wade will lead the league in travels next season.

Sheridan also said there would be no lockout. The truth is though, even if some owners are losing money running a team, they would lose even more money not having a season.

Yawn. Same old negotiating ploy. I think the threat of player agents getting involved and calling for decertification is starting to scare some owners. They've almost completely changed their original proposal moving towards a more player friendly proposal.

1. Bob McAdoo He only stayed 4 1/2 seasons, but he led the league in scoring 3 times during that span. He's the best player ever to be associated with the franchise, even getting to the playoffs 3 times. Granted, this was with the Buffalo Braves, before the Clippers and Donald Sterling, but still he's atop of the list. 2. Elton Brand He's their all-time leader in rebounds, second in blocks, and third in scoring. He won't make the HOF but he was a two-time all-star and even got the Clippers into the playoffs with a better record than the Lakers. The man should be anointed as a saint by the Clippers. 3. Randy Smith He's the team's all-time leader in games played, points, assists, and steals. He made an all-star appearance for the Braves, winning AS Game MVP. Also went 7 seasons without missing a game for the Braves. 4. Danny Manning One of their successful top picks. He made two AS Games with the Clippers and led the Clippers to two playoff appearances. He beat the Sterling odds. Still ranks in the top 10 in games, points, steals, and blocks. 5. Corey Maggette He spent 8 years with the Clips, which is pretty much an accomplishment in itself. He ranks 4th in points and games played, 10th in rebounds and assists, and 7th in steals.

1. Isiah Thomas He's their all-time leader in points and assists, and flat out their best player. Say what you want about him as a GM, but he was a two-time champion, gritty, clutch, and one of the greatest players ever. 2. Dave Bing He was Detroit's first superstar. He ranks in the top 5 in both points and assists. He is a HOFer and was named one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players. 3. Bob Lanier A HOFer and one of the best big men ever. He ranks in the Pistons' Top 10 in games, points, rebounds, blocks, and steals and holds Detroit's highest career scoring average. 4. Joe Dumars You could make a case for Dumars being number two on the list and I wouldn't argue. He was one of the best defensive players of all-time, and, even by Jordan's own admission, did the best job defending MJ out of anyone. He was a key part of the Pistons' back-to-back titles, winning Finals MVP in 89. 5. Grant Hill Could have gone with Laimbeer or Rodman or Billups, but Grant Hill in his time with Detroit was one of the best and most dominant players in the league. He was a superstar whose career was plagued by injuries that make you wonder, "what if". Still ranks in the top 10 on the Pistons in points, assists, and steals.

I never ask a question I really don't want to know the answer to. I try not to focus on the past. I actually get more worried when we have sex and she does something new. Makes me wonder where she learned it from?

1. Dwyane Wade He's their all-time leading scorer, leader in assists, and steals. He's been one of the dominant players in the league since he entered the league. He's also responsible for bringing Miami their first and only title. 2. Alonzo Mourning He's Miami's leader in games played, rebounds, and blocks, while ranking second in points. He was one of the best defensive players in NBA history and one of it's most intimidating players. He helped make Miami one of the top teams during the late 90s and early 2000s. 3. Tim Hardaway Ranks second on Miami's all-time assist list, and was one of the best PGs in the NBA during his time with the Heat. He along with Zo formed one of the better duos in the NBA. 4. Glen Rice He ranks third on Miami's all-time list in scoring and steals, is fifth in games played, and still ranks high in several other categories. He was Miami's first star and still holds the Heat record for points in a game with 56. And he did this after he was nailin' Palin so he gets points for his brief entry into politics. 5, Shaquille O'Neal He wasn't there long, but he helped get them a ring. That gives him the edge over other players like Jamal Mashburn and PJ Brown.

1. Michael Jordan No explanation needed. 2. Scottie Pippen Yep. 3a. Phil Jackson I know he didn't play, but he is an iconic Bulls figure. 3b. Jerry Sloan Two time all-star and 6 time all-defensive team member. 4 Bob Love Three time all-star and third on Chicago's all-time scoring list. 5. Artis Gilmore This could go to several other players: Chet Walker, Norm Van Lier, Horace Grant, Toni Kukoc, Dennis Rodman. But Gilmore gets the nod because he had more individual accomplishments, including 4 all-star appearances and is at the top of Chicago all-time FG% and block shots.

1. Gerald Wallace Franchise leader is points, steals, and games played, and is the franchise's only all-star. 2. Emeka Okafor Franchise leader in blocks and rebounds, and was productive for them....when he was healthy. 3. Raymond Felton He's the team all-time leader in assists and three-pointers made and ranks highly in several other categories. 4. Stephen Jackson 5. Boris Diaw Honestly, you could make a case for Michael Jordan as #1. He's still probably better than any player the Bobcats have had.

1. Larry Bird He was the best player the Celtics ever had. Pretty much did it all on the court, and even his defense was under appreciated. Could have had more rings if he didn't run into Magic's Lakers. 2. Bill Russell Greatest winner of all time. He was what seperated the Celtics from the rest of the league. 3. John Havlicek He's their all-time leader scorer, played both ends of the floor as evident by his 8 all-defensive teams, won 8 rings, and pretty much created the value of the 6th man. 4. Bob Cousy He has Steve Nash and John Stockton before Steve Nash and John Stockton, probably with more flair in his game. He's Boston's all-time assist leader and won 6 rings and an MVP. 5. Kevin McHale Was one of the top 6th men for Boston, then became one of the leagues best players and formed one of the greatest front lines along with Larry Bird and Robert Parish. Plus, he helped get KG to Boston which led to banner 17.

No, a drug-free zone is where you get your drugs for free.

5. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar One of the most accomplished Lakers of all-time. Won 5 Titles and three MVP awards with LA. Was also the face of the Lakers after West and until the arrival of Magic. 4. Jerry West Can't leave out the Logo. Was one of the best two-way players of his era. Could lock you up and drop 30 on you. Was versatile and could play both guard spots effectively. Only managed one ring thanks to the Celtics but is an all-time great. His tenure with LA extended beyond just the court. He was a player, coach, and one of the best GMs with LA who helped build the 80s team and the three-peat team of the 2000s. 3. Kobe Bryant Is the longest tenured player in Lakers history having played in more games than anyone else. Has become the face of the franchise since Shaq left and is one of the greatest players ever. Has helped bring LA 5 rings and still has a chance to add more hardware. The only reason he's second to Magic, IMO, is Magic 3 MVPs to Kobe 1. But if Kobe can add another title, he'll move past Erving in Laker lore. 2. Magic Johnson The greatest PG of all time and, IMO, the second best player after Jordan (and gap between them isn't as wide as you may believe). He made the Lakers into Showtime where you had Jack, Lakers girls, up-tempo games, and 5 titles to show for it. Plus he beat Bird and the hated Celtics twice so he gets the nod as the greatest Lakers player ever. 1. Chick Hearn You said top 5 Lakers, not top 5 Lakers players. It may be different for fans who grew up outside LA, but for those who grew up here, Chick Hearn was the Lakers. He was the one constant from Jerry West to Kobe Bryant, from Fred Shaus to Phil Jackson, from Jack Kent Cooke to Jerry Buss. Chick was always there. He called 3,338 consecutive games, thats over 36 years without missing a game. People grew up listening to him, he became family to all the fans. I used to fall asleep listening to him on the radio when the Lakers had their pre-season openers in Hawaii. His voice was comforting. Owners, coaches, and players changed but you always knew Chick would be there. Besides just longevity, he was great at what he did. He's the greatest play-by-play guy EVER. Period. Marv Albert is great and yet he can't sniff what Chick did. Chick Hearn created the basketball lingo that every other announcer uses. Mike Breen's "It'll count if it goes..." was created by Chick. Slam Dunk Air Ball Give and Go Finger Roll And one Charity Stripe Didn't Draw Iron Ticky Tack No Harm, No Foul Yo-Yoing up and down Boo Birds Triple Double He created these terms and more that EVERYONE uses now. He was awesome. I hate listening to radio now, but when Chick called games, I could picture what was happening on the court because he was so good. There was no dead air with him. The slightest things he would comment on so you can picture it. He was so good that even when games were on national tv, a lot of people would mute their TVs to listen to him on the radio. And even though he was the Lakers guy, he wasn't a homer. He was brutal when the Lakers played bad, and always gave props to opposing teams and players. To me, he's the greatest Laker ever by far.

Chris Webber Michigan vs UNC: The Timeout. Pretty much summed up his career.

This is mostly coming fron the new owners: Cavs, Bobcats, Suns, Hawks, etc. Which I find interesting because if NBA teams are losing so much money, according to team, why purchase a team and at far higher than market value? The CBA had mechanisms to allow small-market teams to compete. If they really want to add a new provision, just get rid of Sign-and-Trades. It gives teams the ability to keep their stars by ensuring they can offer the most money and teams like LA and NY can't add huge contract after huge contract as easily. RD is right in that small-market teams struggle not because they're small market, but because they're poorly run. Even a team like Memphis who has some success, they didn't take advantage of restricted FA. Rather than giving Conley and Gay extentions, they could have let another team sign them to an offer sheet and Memphis could have matched and kept both for much cheaper. Admittedly, big name FA's aren't really going to flock to the Bucks and Cavs and Utah unless they overpay. But having bad teams almost ensures FAs won't want to go there. The problem teams run into is they think they can get a superstar in their prime via FA. LeBron and Bosh are the only two players since 1999 when the NBA put in these restriction on FAs that have walked away from more money to go to another team. It just doesn't happen. I'd say they're an exception and not the rule. Reality is, you don't get franchise players or superstars via FA. You get them through the draft and smart trades. Small market teams that struggle, are just poorly run. They don't draft well and don't make meaningful trades. How many times have you seen a team with a lot of talent and when they do make a trade it's usually a lateral trade? Rather than package for a star, they make a acquire a player who'll have a similar impact than the guy they just traded? Putting a hard cap isn't going to make them more competative. A HC won't prevent them from drafting poorly or making bad trades or bad signings.

I don't know much about football, but is Tony Romo the biggest choker in the NFL? It just seems every time I watch a Cowboys game (granted it's not often), but he always seems to screw something up when they need him the most.

Canada should hire Bruce Pearl. Coaching Canada has to be better than a job in marketing. Canada may not be able to compete with Argentina and Spain, but they have enough of a talent pool that they shouldn't lose to teams like Venezuela and Panama. They should be the third or fourth best team in the Americas.

LOL Clippers fans are funny. Here's what likely to happen: Paul and Howard scoff at the idea of going to the Clippers because having to play for the JV team sucks. The Clippers then overpay for a mediocre player because they're desperate to pair them with Griffin and Gordon. Gordon signs an extention, but Griffin bolts the first chance he gets because he wants to be a big fish in a big pond. And the Clippers still the Clippers.

Huh, didn't know he was the main issue. It did strike me as odd as how Canada didn't get many of it's players to play in the FIBA tournament. Especially with the looming lockout, it would have been a t least a good way to stay sharp.

Howard without question. Championships are built inside out. Get a guy like Howard and now they have a legit anchor to make up for Amare and Melo's defensive lapses. I don't know a championship team that has won without a defensive stud as a big man. But I have seen teams win with mediocre PGs: Fisher, Harper, Johnson, Williams, Smith, etc. Plus, a two-way center is the most rare commodity in the NBA. If you're one of the few lucky teams that can get one, you do it.

Kobe. Some coaches still believed one guy couldn't beat a team, they often said that they'll play a star straight up and as long as the rest of the team was shut down they would be fine. That theory was proved wrong. (Actually that was probably proven wrong when he outscored Dallas 62-61 in three quarters the month before) LA was down 20+ even mid-way through the 3rd and was still a somewhat close game for part of the 4th quarter. What makes it impressive to me is that he brought them back when the Lakers had Chris Mihm, Smuth Parker, and Kwame Brown starting. Lamar Odom was their 2nd option but playing like a 5th option and only had 8 points. Their key bench players were Devean George, Luke Walton, and Sasha Vujacic. Yeah it was that bad. I'd argue that the 81 point game was more impressive than Wilt's 100.

Coming into the league, they said he needed to become a better shooter. Still sucks at it I see. What a tool. Way to waste your life away, jackass. The next news we hear about him will be that he got traded for a pack of cigarettes.