Empty the Bench

(ETB Hat Tip to Detroit Bad Boys)

- Hoops Addict – Darius Miles reveals what kept him motivated during 2 years of rehab.
- 3 Shades of Blue – Part I of an interview with Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace.
- Depressed Fan – Which team would rule the NBA if there was no draft?
- Basketball.org – You’ll never guess who the brothers Gasol bear a striking resemblence to.
- The No-Look Pass – I wonder if Acie Earl remembers dominating me in high school.
- New York Times – Maybe big-name stars won’t be changing teams in 2010 after all.
- Inside the Warriors – Jamal Crawford and Corey Maggette, new BFFs.
- Zoner Sports – Ten guys killing their teams from behind the arc so far this season.
- Points in the Paint – A few tips on dealing with injuries to your fantasy b-ball team.
- JSOnline – One such injury: the Bucks’ Andrew Bogut, who might be donezo this year.
- Bright Side of the Sun – Good times in Phoenix these days, eh?
- Slam Dunk Central – The Pistons’ streak of 259 straight sellouts has come to an end.
- The Good Point – Jake Voskuhl has set himself for a long career at the end of the bench.
- Ball Don’t Lie – With Jameer Nelson down, Orlando should take a look at the D-League.
- Fox Sports – Pleased to see Nene make this midseason fantasy hoops All-Star team.
- Black Sports Online – Probably best to keep the mic away from The Birdman.

Kevin Durant Photo Credit: Icon SMI

See Also: Rookie Snubs

Since the inception of the then-called “Rookie Game” in 1994 NBA All-Star Weekend has featured one of the best showcases of young basketball talent on the planet. After being canceled due to the lockout of 1999 the event was reborn in 2000 as the Rookie Challenge and has pitted the NBA’s best rookies against the league’s best sophomores for the last seven years. The young kids get to play against their peers, giving casual fans a glimpse of future stars from mostly lottery teams that don’t regularly make national television broadcast. It’s my favorite event of the All-Star festivities.

These are the youngest, most explosive, most promising players our league has to offer. Or that’s the idea, anyway. But with the team being selected by a vote from NBA assistant coaches there are always politics, oversights and notable omissions. This year is no different.

Participants in the 2009 Rookie Challenge were announced last week, and there’s no arguing with some of these 2008 and 2009 draftees – but there are some clear (and some not-so-clear) gaffes in the assistant’s decision making. So which super sophomores got snubbed? And who should they replace?

Read the rest of this article »

- NY Daily News – Deja vu: early reports have Bynum missing six-plus weeks.
- The Boston Globe – UPDATE: Bynum will be out 8-12 weeks, likely ending his season.
- Toronto Star – The Toronto Raptors have hit bottom; the players have quit.
- Raptors Republic – And Chris Bosh “pulls a Vince Carter,” tells Colangelo he wants out?
- The Hoop Doctors – The ‘Nextology’ of Michael Jordan: Part I – Jerry Stackhouse.
- Star Tribune – “… discussing who’s a better post player than Al, we had zero names”
- Arizona Republic – Is it time for the Suns to part ways with Amare or rebuild around him?
- Hoops Addict – Our boys over at HA go one-on-one with super rookie Eric Gordon.
– Rocky Mountain News – The Nugs, only 11-15 against winners, aren’t there yet.
- New York Post – Left for dead at this point last year, the Knicks are just getting started.
- Basketball Statistics – Hoops stats and the APBRmetrics community are not going away.
- Akron Beacon Journal – It might be time to scoop Delonte back up, fantasy heads.
- Hoops Head North – Dwight Howard has Stan Van Gundy’s number…