Paola Boivin of The Arizona Republic: “The most entertaining part of the new reality show, ‘Shaq Vs.’? The credits. Tuesday’s debut, which featured Shaquille O’Neal taking on Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger in football, was a tad long and a bit contrived. It became decidedly more interesting, though, when the credits rolled and this name popped up as one of the executive producers: Steve Nash. There’s an interesting back story here, one that explains in part some of the fractured relationships that defined the Suns’ struggles last season. O’Neal stole Nash’s idea. Shortly after O’Neal was traded to the Suns in February 2008, Nash mentioned to his new teammate a reality show he was pursuing. It would feature the Suns point guard taking on professional athletes in their own sport. The topic didn’t come up again until early in the 2008-09 season, when O’Neal boarded the Suns bus and told the team he would be starring in a new reality show in which he would be taking on, you got it, professional athletes in their own sport. ‘You mean the idea you stole from me?’ one Suns representative said he heard Nash say.”
Tim Povtak of FanHouse: “The Orlando Magic sent Rafer Alston to New Jersey earlier this summer because they didn’t want a point guard controversy brewing this season. They are going to have one now. It’s only a matter of time. By signing veteran point guard Jason Williams – a starter for the 2006 NBA champion Miami Heat – the Magic have opened the door to a world of late-game second guessing, especially if starter Jameer Nelson can’t deliver consistently and keep the Magic atop the Eastern Conference standings. And that’s a real possibility. ‘He (Williams) is a veteran point guard who know what it takes to help us reach our ultimate goal,” said general manager Otis Smith. ‘He provides depth and leadership.’ Although the Magic have made it clear that Nelson is their leader and starter, the fact is that Alston was the point guard last season who took the team to the NBA Finals after Nelson left at mid-season with a shoulder injury.”
Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel: “Signing Jason Williams doesn’t assure a point guard controversy. The only thing that’s going to create a point guard controversy is if Nelson struggles. And if that happens a point guard controversy is inevitable no matter what backup point guard the Magic signed this offseason. Let’s face it, many Magic fans blame Nelson’s failed comeback in the Finals for the loss to the Lakers. Whether you think that’s fair or unfair, it’s a fact. And if Nelson doesn’t perform at an All-Star level this season and the Magic aren’t contending for Eastern Conference dominance then naturally fans are going to blame him and call for the backup point guard. That’s just part of sports. Jason Williams nor any other backup point guard will create a controversy for the Magic. The only person capable of that is Jameer Nelson himself.”
Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer: “Larry Brown said he’d enjoy coaching Allen Iverson again. But there are issues in the way of the Charlotte Bobcats signing former All-Star guard Iverson and those issues are ‘major,’ Brown said. ‘One is the money; we wouldn’t want to make him an offer that would insult him,’ Brown said Tuesday. ‘And with three small guards (Raja Bell, D.J. Augustin and restricted free agent Raymond Felton) already on the roster, he wouldn’t get to play the minutes he deserves. ‘Until one or both of those things changes, I don’t see it.’ Iverson, an unrestricted free agent, typically is among the NBA’s top scorers, and the Bobcats finished last season at the bottom in the NBA in scoring. Iverson sent out several Twitter messages of late, suggesting the Bobcats are on his short list of preferred landing spots and that he anticipates signing with some team soon. As Brown indicated, the Bobcats have salary-cap issues; they’re inching toward the luxury-tax threshold, which general manager Rod Higgins has said they will not reach. ”
Jeff Clark of CetlicsBlog: “Ray Allen is a model of consistency, …except when he’s not. It boggles my mind how a guy can be so solid and steady and yet be so hit and miss. His routine and work ethic are borderline legendary. Day in, day out, he’s refining his craft. For 9 straight years he averaged over 20 points per game. When he quietly took a half step back into a supporting-star role behind KG and Pierce he still chipped in 17.4 and 18.2 over the last two years. He’s the one guy that Doc can’t seem to bring himself to take out of games – even when he’s trying to limit minutes. In the perfect storm of egos in that locker room, he’s the steady lighthouse shining through the chaos, pointing the way home. When he talks he sounds like a polished politician, with a pleasant blend of wit and intelligent comment. There’s nothing inconsistent or unreliable about the man. So why is it that we never know what we’re going to get from him, especially when the playoffs roll around?”
Marc Berman of the New York Post: “Aaron Goodwin, Nate Robinson’s powerful agent, was taken aback by the tone of some stories related to his client’s arrest for driving with an invalid license in The Bronx and found it preposterous this could effect the 5-7 ½ guard’s Knick future. He’s right. Contrary to what another blog wrote, the Knicks CAN NOT pull their $2.9M qualifying offer off the table. That ship sailed after July 23rd. They would now need Robinson’s written consent and it’s doubtful they’d get it since he doesn’t appear to have any other strong long-term offers. I asked Aaron if he was confident Robinson will re-sign with the Knicks. ‘It’s a negotiation, so you’re not confident until it’s signed,’ Goodwin said. ‘But whether he remains a Knick will not be effected by a traffic incident.’ Robinson, whose license had been suspended five times in 14 months, acted belligerent with the police officer, according to a Post story in today’s editions. ‘In this day and age, reporters rely too much on anonymous sources,” Goodwin said. ‘If you have something to say put your name to it, otherwise it’s not worthy of a response.’”
Casey Holdahl of Blazers.com: “As difficult as Portland’s early season schedule was last year, there were some positives, mainly when it came to back-to-back games. In ’08-’09, we played a league-high 27 games in which the opponent was on the second night of a back to back. Let that sink in for a second. That’s 33 percent of the regular season played against teams that played the night before. And we dominated those teams, winning 23 of those contests. So to recap: 27 games against teams playing on the second night of a back-to-back, with a 23-4 record in those contests. Factor in the fact that we’re located in the northwest, now the hinterlands of the NBA, and you start to realize that maybe last season’s schedule wasn’t so bad after all. This season’s schedule doesn’t have the same advantage when it comes to back-to-backs. Not even close. This season we only play 14 games against teams on the second night of a back-to-back (in case you care, 24 is the most games any team plays against teams on the second night of a back-to-back this season).”
Luke Byrnes of HOOPSWORLD: “While Manu Ginobili’s injury didn’t start the debate (nor will it end it), it may have served as the impetus for Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, a long time opponent of NBA players participating in international competitions, and Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki coming to an agreement on the former NBA Most Valuable Player sitting out when the German National Team competes in the 2009 European Basketball Championship held by FIBA Europe. This summer, for the first time, FIBA (the organization which governs international basketball competition) disallowed players under contract with its teams to participate in Summer League play without permission from their club. Nick Calathes, whose NBA contractual rights belong to Cuban’s Mavericks, was not granted permission by his Greek Club Panathinaikos, the 2009 Euroleague champions. FIBA and the NBA have an agreement which states that neither the NBA nor its teams will prevent its players from participating in international competition as long as said competition doesn’t interfere with an NBA regular season or playoff game and so long as the player is covered by insurance provided for the NBA team by the player’s foreign federation.”
