Starter starting back up.

Welcome back, Starter jacket!

Bogut's back, and turning the West upside down.

Why isn't it t-shirt time?

Why do players who wear t-shirts under their jerseys drop the look before entering the NBA?

Is it against the league's dress code for some reason?  Do players get made fun of if they wear something with sleeves?  I just don't get it.

Daye's arms look are twigs with or without something cover them.

Personally, I think it's a good look.

Rondo has a torn ACL.

Word was just given by Doris Burke that Rajon Rondo, one of my top three favorite players to watch, tore his ACL.  This is truly a tragedy.  He's as big a dick as you can find in the league, but he is a wizard with the ball and really loves to get his teammates involved, something that many of today's point guards couldn't care less about (looking at you, Westbrook).

My other two favorites are healthy D-Wade and Derrick Rose.  All of these guys have had big injury issues, and two have now torn their ACLs.  I guess there's a correlation between excitement and injury.

Get well, soon, Rondo.  The league isn't as fun without you.

Update: ESPN article about the injury.

Ranking the shooters from "Gunnin' for That #1 Spot": 8 through 6

Gunnin' for That #1 Spot is a 2008 documentary made by the Beastie Boys' Oscilloscope Laboratories.  Directed by Adam "MCA" Yauch (R.I.P.), the film focuses on eight promising young ball players, following them in their preparation for the Boost Mobile Elite 24 Hoops Classic at Rucker Park.  Now that all of these players have been in the NBA at some point, let's take a look at them, and rank 'em from least to most successful.

8. Donte Greene.

Greene gets the bottom spot because he is the only player of this bunch who isn't currently in the NBA.  He played for the Sacramento Kings last season, and was moderately productive in sporadic minutes--his per 36 averages of 13.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks are respectable, but his career 40% shooting leaves something to be desired.  He started just 7 games in the lockout-shortened season (21 the season before, and 50 before that), so it's apparent the Kings gave up on him, believing he would never pan out and wasn't worth their time.  Judging by his current unemployment, the rest of the NBA agrees.  He would come cheap though, and he's only 24 (25 in February), so I wouldn't be surprised to see him back in the league sometime soon.  Until then, he's stuck at the bottom of this list.

7. Lance Stephenson

Lance has yet to do anything spectacular, but he's helped by the fact that he's only 22 and is starting consistently this season.  His 47% shooting is impressive, but the rest of his numbers aren't.  He's scoring 7.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.2 turnovers in almost 28 minutes per game this season, which means his per 36 numbers aren't much better.  Add in his off-court issues (he allegedly pushed his girlfriend down a flight of stairs), and he's not the most likable player or person.  He's young enough that he could certainly improve, but right now this seems like a fair ranking.

6. Jerryd Bayless.

The Arizona-native comes in at #6.  He's on his fourth team in five year, and he's hoping he can now call Memphis home, but his job there is far from guaranteed.  He plays on a great Grizzlies team and backs up a very talented Mike Conley, Jr., which is cool for him, but his numbers aren't astonishing.  He plays 18 minutes per game and averages 3.2 assists, 1.5 turnovers, 2 fouls, and 5.3 points on 39% shooting.  With all of the scoring options on his Grizzlies team--Rudy Gay, Zach Randolph, and Marc Gasol down low--his assists could certainly be better if he were a true floor general, and his 2:1 assist/turnover ratio is underwhelming.  He's showed glimpses of promise, but he's nothing to write home about.  For now.

Saturday Showdown: Sager vs. Frazier, Round 1

The weekend is here, and that means it's time for some fun.  The last, and best, day of the week is now home to the internet's soon-to-be biggest event: the Saturday Showdown!

Each weekend we'll pit two opponents against each other and let them duke it out for supremacy.  What they'll be battling over will be random, and there are no prizes, except for more virtual street cred than anyone can handle.  Let's get it started.

Today's match-up puts two of the most stylish NBA personalities in opposite corners of the ring, the wonderful Craig Sager in one and ol' Clyde Frazier in the other.  A battle of suits!  These men are known for their vibrant threads, so this will surely be a fierce fight, and one that will undoubtedly be revisited in future weeks.  But for now, let's settle on these:

1. Craig's powerful purple-ish paisley:

2. Clyde's chaotic cheetah-spotted cloth:

There you have it--two great options, but only one of these gladiators can come out on top.  So take it away, judges, which one of these suits suits you?

NBA Flashback!

Here's a small and a way-too-big Fleer basketball card ad from the early 90s that I came across while looking through a stack of old comic books.

This particular comic was Spider-Man 2099 Vol. 1, No. 1, from November of 1992.  A little fun fact for you all, this book featured the very first Latin American Spider-Man--this is a little piece of history, folks!  Now we just need to ask Robin and Brook if it's a good one, they'll know for sure.