NBA Insider with Ken Berger

So now Mike D'Antoni has to answer questions about a video that supposedly shows him cursing during the season opener last night -- either at fans who were chanting for Stephon Marbury to play, or at the officials who'd just called a foul on Mardy Collins.

If D'Antoni's apparent reaction -- "Are you ___ kidding me?" -- was directed at those chanting "We want Steph!" in the third and fourth quarters last night, I applaud him. I already made my opinion known about those fans.

In fact, the same words -- or what I imagine to be D'Antoni's exact words -- also came out of my mouth from my seat in the Gate 64 press ramp. Ask the scout who was sitting next to me. Neither one of us could believe it.

Matt B commented on Hahn's blog that it's a shame the vocal minority gets all the attention and becomes the story. It wasn't quite 100 people, but not more than 1,000 or so who were chanting for Marbury. They showed that they clearly don't understand what is going on.

You chant for two years that you want Isiah Thomas fired. He finally gets fired. The organization hires a respected, competent team president, Donnie Walsh, who also happens to be not just a good basketball man, but a good man. He hires the right coach, D'Antoni -- a coach with a plan, a coach with a defined system, a coach who knows how to prepare his team, a coach every star player in the NBA wants to play for.

More to the point, he hires a coach who has the toughness and gumption to do the right thing and put the statues of past failure -- Stephon Marbury and Eddy Curry -- on the bench and not let them off. And you chant for him to put Marbury in the game?

To paraphrase the coach, are you ___ kidding me?

I saw this coming.

I always -- always -- welcome your comments. Even if you don't agree with me. Really, especially if you don't agree with me. That's how we get some good give and take going here and shed light on issues that are important to the team you care about, the Knicks.

But some of you are piling on again and accusing me of being a Marbury hater and saying the coach was a coward for not playing him last night.

Let me try to explain this one more time. But first, let me show you that I'm not the only one who believes Marbury needs to be kept in the past, and is not part of the future.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, writes, "Marbury is done. New York is moving on, leaving Starbury, a make-believe franchise player, in its wake."

George Willis of the Post writes, "Nothing his team did on the court will impact their season as much as the message D'Antoni delivered a day earlier by announcing Eddy Curry was out of the rotation indefinitely. .... No longer will playing time be handed out based on contracts and perceived status. Not under D'Antoni's watch. By benching Marbury and Curry, the coach has made it clear the Knicks will have to earn their way into his lineup, which is welcome news to Garden fans who watched this team sleepwalk through the past two years under Isiah Thomas."

Harvey Araton of the Times writes, "By benching Stephon Marbury along with Eddy Curry in his Knicks coaching debut at Madison Square Garden, D’Antoni moved the Knicks beyond Isiah Thomas’s faux franchise players in the real-life equivalent of seven seconds or less.

"He made a decision that was cold, if not hard, and didn’t look back, or down at the end of the bench, where an emasculated Marbury sat. He didn’t waver when the New York crowd experienced amnesia and mustered sympathy for one its own, chanting “We Want Steph!” or when the Knicks nearly sabotaged their energetic performance before holding on Wednesday night to beat the Miami Heat, 120-115. ... Tiresome as it is, this story does not go away until Marbury finally does."

Mike Lupica of the Daily News writes, "On the night when the Knicks wanted to at least begin to move away from the past, from the worst basketball era in the history of Madison Square Garden, here was Marbury becoming a scrub. Here he was listening from the end of the bench as some people chanted "We Want Steph!" in the third quarter while others chanted, "No, We Don't." For this night, put the new coach down with the ones chanting for Marbury to stay right where he was."

Chris Sheridan of ESPN.com writes, "Even on an opening night when he shouldn't have been the story, he was still a big part of the story, a piece of the past that doesn't fit in with the new furniture but is still adorning the middle of the living room, distracting everyone from the other refurbishments.

"And until he leaves or blows up (the smart money is on the latter happening before the former), there will be a distraction surrounding this team that'll continue to take some of the glow off what hopefully, for long-suffering Knicks fans, will be a long, enduring parade of 120-point scoring nights."

So we've established that I'm not the only one, that this isn't some sort of vendetta or personal, sinister grudge. When I returned to covering the NBA after some years on football, I made a pact with myself to give Marbury and Isiah Thomas a fair shot. Let the past be the past and form my opinions of them based on the present.

I have been fair to Steph -- and more than fair to Isiah -- if you go back and research my columns. But this is about the here and now, about a new era for a new coach who is in a very difficult situation and doesn't need to be distracted by the stink bombs that have torpedoed every one of his predecessors.

The part about D'Antoni needing to move forward with his guys, and about how those guys will only respect him if he leaves Marbury behind, should be obvious to anyone who has been paying attention. But I can give you better, more tactical reasons why Marbury needs to sit. Despite the fact that everyone seems to think he fits D'Antoni's system, he doesn't. He didn't in Phoenix, which is why the Suns traded him to the Knicks before D'Antoni took his third breath as their coach. And he doesn't fit now.

If you read Alan Hahn's insightful piece breaking down how D'Antoni's offense works, it should be obvious why Marbury doesn't fit in it. The slightest hesitation in the flow of the set and movement of the ball causes the whole thing to break down. You have to think fast and play fast in D'Antoni's scheme. Dominating the ball, dribbling and dribbling, and looking for your own shot first simply doesn't work.

That is why Chris Duhon is D'Antoni's starting point guard, and why whatever minutes Marbury ekes out will be at the two, not the one. Marbury can still be useful in certain situations, but the message from D'Antoni is clear: This is about his system and the Knicks' future, not about Marbury's stats and the Knicks' past.

How anyone can say what D'Antoni did last night was cowardly is beyond me. It took courage and toughness to send the message he sent by benching Marbury and Eddy Curry. The important thing now is, D'Antoni has to be consistent. Even if things turn south, even if Duhon averages six turnovers a game, there is no turning back.

For this reason, Marbury never should have started the season in a Knicks uniform. There should have been a clean break with the past. But D'Antoni's desire to move on without him was scuttled by Marbury's minuscule trade value and James Dolan's refusal to write one more enormous buyout check. So Marbury is here. D'Antoni has to deal with him. The good thing is, the coach gets to decide who plays.

That's not cowardice. It's toughness and resolve, which have been in short supply around here for too long.

It was potentially another huge blow to the Portland Trail Blazers when 2007 No. 1 pick Greg Oden left Wednesday night's season opener against the Lakers with a sprained right foot. Final results of medical tests aren't back yet, but the Blazers believe the injury could've been a lot worse.

A person who spoke with Portland officials Thursday told Newsday that all signs point to a two-week injury. The team will wait for MRI results to come back, but the front office and coaching staff are said to be extremely relieved by the early diagnosis.

Oden left the Blazers' 96-76 season-opening loss to the Lakers Wednesday night after playing only 12 scoreless minutes. Oden missed his entire rookie season after injuring his right knee and undergoing microfracture surgery.

Opening night went pretty much the way you had to expect. Greg Oden got hurt in his very first game after missing his entire rookie season due to microfracture surgery. Paul Pierce cried. The Cavs still aren't good enough to muscle the Celtics out of the way.

The Lakers are good.

It's only the first night, so some surprising, unpredictable things are sure to happen. Who knows? Maybe it starts tonight at the Garden.

The building will be alive for the first time in a LOOOOOOOOOONG time with Mike D'Antoni's debut. It'll take the fans a couple of quarters to realize, "Hey, wait a minute. This is the same team that won 23 games last year."

But it WILL be different. If nothing else, it'll be more entertaining. In fact, don't be surprised if both teams on the Garden floor -- Knicks and Heat -- look a lot better than most people expected.

Oden has an MRI scheduled for today on his sprained right foot. Be afraid, Blazer fans. Be very afraid.

Will get you the update as soon as I have it.

Will check in from the Garden later.

The Knicks don't open until tomorrow night, but tonight is the real season opener. How much are you looking forward to the TNT doubleheaders -- Cavs-Celtics at 8 followed by Blazers-Lakers at 10:30?

The Berger boys will be getting hitting the rack early tonight. Well, the oldest loves LeBron and Kobe, but he'll get to see about as much of them as he does the World Series. Think about it, with all these late games, in about 20 years half the population will have grown up never having witnessed a sporting event. Sounds like a topic for Neil Best.

I'm looking forward to getting a glimpse of whether the Cavs with Mo Williams are enough of an improvement to allow LeBron to knock the Celtics off their Eastern Conference perch. I'm even more eager to see the late game -- Greg Oden vs. Kobe-Bynum-Gasol & Co. It will be nice to see some ball.

So for your opening night enjoyment, here's my list of must-see games between now and the All-Star break. (I've included only national televised games, in case your name is not Jimmy Goldstein.)

* Nov. 6: Houston at Portland. A chance to see if the Rockets and Blazers are as good as I think they're going to be.
* Nov. 14: Pistons-Lakers. Is Detroit really too old?
* Nov. 26: Magic-76ers: First national look at the new-look Sixers.
* Dec. 5: Blazers-Celtics: Oden & Co. can make a big statement against the Big Three.
* Dec. 12: Hornets-Celtics: Finals preview?
* Dec. 15: Knicks-Suns: OK, not a national game, but D'Antoni's first trip back to Phoenix should be fun to watch locally.
* Dec. 25: Celtics-Lakers. Finals rematch on Christmas Day.
* Jan. 9: Celtics-Cavs: When LeBron and KG are on the same floor, I watch.
* Jan. 14: Lakers-Spurs: Even if Pop doesn't grow his beard back, this is a chance for the Spurs to show they're not too long in the tooth.
* Jan. 16: Hornets-Cavs. The best PG on Earth (this side of Deron Williams) vs. the best player on Earth (this side of Kobe).
* Jan. 19: Cavs-Lakers. The season hasn't started until a) the calendar says 2009 and b) Kobe faces LeBron.
* Jan. 25: Rockets-Pistons. Ron Artest goes back to the Palace. The story line would be getting old, but for Artest's new team.
* Feb. 2: Lakers-Knicks. Again, not nationally televised. But whenever Kobe comes to the mecca, it should be.
* Feb. 5: Lakers-Celtics. Another chance for Kobe to show why things will be different this time.

Enjoy the hoops.

Many of us in the Newsday sports department have spent the past 30 hours trying to decipher the bizarre, sad, confusing story of Isiah Thomas. Good thing I finished the last item for our 12-page NBA preview section on Friday morning, a few hours before the story about the 911 call to Isiah's home broke.

Here's all the preview stuff you'll find in Sunday's paper -- my predictions, my column on LeBron's chances of playing for the Knicks, Alan's Knicks preview, his insightful story on Mike D'Antoni's offense. Enjoy.

You will see that my pick to win the NBA title is revealed: the Rockets. Hey, 7.7 percent of NBA general managers agree with me. If you don't, rip me. The comments section is always open. :)

The annual survey of NBA general managers is out, and 46 percent of them pick the Lakers to win the title. The defending champion Celtics got 19 percent of the vote, followed by the Hornets with 12 percent, and the Rockets and Spurs with 7.7 percent. It's the first time in eight years the majority of GMs didn't pick San Antonio to win it all.

Detroit and Orlando also got votes.

Some GMs agreed with my pick, which will be revealed in the NBA preview section coming out in Sunday's paper. I can't tell you who I picked, but it isn't the Lakers or Celtics.

The GMs also picked LeBron James for MVP and Michael Beasley for rookie of the year. For the first time, Orlando's Dwight Howard was selected as the best center (surpassing Yao Ming) and Chris Paul as the best point guard (over Steve Nash).

Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni was the choice for the coach who runs the best offense (53.8 percent), while the Knicks were picked as the fifth most exciting team to watch (7.7 percent).

Keep reading to see all the results.

There isn't going to be much blogging here today -- we're still slugging away at the preview section running in Sunday's paper -- but I do have important information to share.

The NBA is one of the most active sports for online coverage and blogging, and when there's a new blogger joining the fray, I like to point it out. So check out Breakin Down The Game -- a promising new NBA blog with some insightful breakdowns of the division races. Welcome to my world, D. Miz. Keep up the good bloggin.

One more item to note for now, since Neil Best has once again announced that he won't be blogging much today, either. Michelle Tafoya is stepping down from her role as NBA sideline reporter for ABC and ESPN to spend more time with her family. Nothin' wrong with that. (I found the news on Sports Business Daily's Morning Buzz.)

Kobe Bryant is being re-evaluated today after hyperextending his right knee Tuesday night in a 102-98 preseason victory over the Bobcats. Watch this video. The slow-motion replay of the injury is, to say the least, scary. Kobe's right knee bent backwards when he came down on teammate Josh Powell's knee after going up for a rebound.

Kobe walked off -- a good sign -- and the Lakers hope they've dodged a huge bullet.

Filling in for Alan at Knicks practice today. Here's what you need to know:

* Mike D'Antoni backed away from comments he made Friday about the D-League being an option for Danilo Gallinari, calling the notion "a little over the top." D'Antoni believes in the D-league as an important tool for developing young players -- unlike the previous regime -- but the Knicks prefer Gallinari to continue his back rehab in New York, where team doctors can closely monitor him, as opposed to Reno.

* David Lee missed practice after rolling his right ankle in the first quarter Friday night. He kept playing, but the ankle swelled up overnight and he's listed as day-to-day. Nothing serious, said Lee and D'Antoni.

* There was some good up-and-down in the five-on-five session open to the media -- partly because tomorrow's open practice for fans at Pace University will be short and light. The Knicks have three preseason games left --at New Jersey Monday night, home to Boston Tuesday, and home to the Nets on Friday night.

* Allan Houston (sore right quad), who has yet to dress for a preseason game, continued doing shooting drills but still isn't moving well at all. I would suspect that his latest comeback attempt will reach its inevitable conclusion by the end of the week.

* Stephon Marbury walked off the court after doing extra shooting and veered off course to grab me by the shoulders -- this time as a joke. It was our first encounter since the infamous hug that landed on Newsday's back page Sept. 30. Nice touch, I have to say. It's all good between your $21 million point guard and infinitely less-compensated columnist.

The dominoes are falling already and we've barely dipped our toes into the preseason pool. The Washington Wizards will be in the market for a center after learning that Brendan Haywood will miss 4-6 months after undergoing wrist surgery on Thursday.

Before you start wondering if Wizards G.M. Ernie Grunfeld would be willing to take a chance on resurrecting Eddy Curry's career, beware. It's difficult, if not impossible, to find a reasonable combination of players whose salaries would match Curry's $9.7 million figure for this season. Shooting guard Nick Young would be a nice grab for Donnie Walsh -- he'd give Mike D'Antoni another outside shooter -- but you still need to find another $7-$8 million. It's a long shot at best, but if there's any way to do a deal, it would benefit both teams. Curry might have a better chance of regaining his form from two years ago if removed from the crucible of New York. And while the Wizards run a little bit, they don't run like D'Antoni will run the Knicks.

Let me preface this post by explaining the lack of blogging going on here lately. I'm going to use the old Neil Best excuse that there is newspaper work to be done. In this case, there actually is newspaper work to be done: an 11-page NBA preview section, produced almost entirely by yours truly and Alan Hahn. So I hope you understand the blog has to take a back seat to the old fashioned paper product for the time being.

Having said that, I happened to notice this item on the Heat's James Jones being out three months with a wrist injury. In most cases, an injury to a marginal role player such as Jones, who has started only 58 games in his five-year career, wouldn't be worth the bandwidth it's printed on. But Dwyane Wade was genuinely excited about the addition of Jones this past summer because of his three-point shooting. D-Wade will now have to do without a long-distance gunner until after he attends Shaq's New Year's party.

Anyway, this may compel the Heat to look elsewhere for another shooter named Jones, such as Damon or Eddie.

The dismal economic outlook has not spared the sports world, and in my neighboring borough, it may kill the Nets' plans to play within the New York City limits by 2011 -- if at all.

The Star-Ledger reports today that team owner Bruce Ratner is blaming a recent court ruling for delaying groundbreaking at least another six months. But financial experts tell the paper what seems obvious to me -- this is more of an economic delay than a legal one.

The $4 billion Atlantic Yards project is heavily reliant on a pending federal court ruling on whether tax-exempt bonds can be used to finance the $950 million arena. Amid the current credit squeeze and upside-down bond market, it is difficult to imagine raising enough cash through bond sales to stick a shovel in the dirt -- much less build a balance that LeBron James would like to call home after he becomes a free agent.

Adding to Ratner's challenge is a November groundbreaking deadline that allows Barclays to pull out of its naming rights deal. Clearly, the deadline will not be met, so at the very least, Barclays will be looking to renegotiate its $400 million commitment.

Ratner continues to insist that the project will go forward, but things are looking bleak, to say the least. Newark probably never looked so good.

Earlier in the week, we brought you the news -- via Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register -- that the Lakers may bring Andrew Bynum off the bench because he is not clicking with Pau Gasol. Ding's latest piece includes this exchange between Bynum and a reporter who asked him he he liked coming off the bench.

[Bynum] slowly rolled his eyes and then said: “Not at all.”

(Photo courtesy of Canada-photos.com.)

So I am guessing that means AB is displeased.

Two Minneapolis radio talk show hosts have accused Magic Johnson of faking HIV. The story is on the AP wire and all over the basketball blogosphere.

Why is this a story? Who cares what these nobodies have to say?

Howard Eskin, a bombastic sports talker in Philly, has an apt description for jerks like this: "zeroes trying to be ones."

I like talk radio. I even participate in it from time to time. But if we kept track of all the ludicrous things uttered on that particular media format, we would have stories like this one every hour.

There. I feel better now.

Let me preface this by saying preseason games mean very, very little. For the Knicks, embarking on a vastly new style of play under Mike D'Antoni, they mean a little more -- but still not much.

Having said that, I have to admit I was expecting more from Chris Duhon in his debut as D'Antoni's starting point guard the other night in Toronto. I wasn't expecting him to be Steve Nash, but I wasn't expecting him to be Royal Ivey, either.

I'm not as alarmed by Duhon's seven turnovers and 1-for-7 shooting as I am by the situation brewing with Marbury coming off the bench behind him. Hahn had a fair and balanced assessment of Marbury's performance -- also below average, given his three assists and five turnovers. But let me ask you this: What happens if Duhon's self-proclaimed jitters continue and he keeps struggling through the preseason?

Answer: If Marbury improves and Duhon doesn't, then Coney Island, we have a problem.

Because it is abundantly clear that D'Antoni -- at the specific request of his players, as Newsday reported Sept. 30 -- doesn't want Marbury running his offense and doesn't even want him in his starting group as the 2 guard. The longer Duhon struggles, the more groundswell will increase for Marbury to replace him. That is potentially good for Donnie Walsh's pipedream efforts to trade Starbury, but not good for team chemistry and for the fresh start D'Antoni is seeking.

This problem could have been solved months, or even weeks ago with Marbury's release. Walsh and D'Antoni reluctantly decided to move forward with the hope of moving Marbury for something of value in return. There is a price to be paid for that, and if Duhon doesn't steady himself and D'Antoni's offense, keeping Marbury around will wind up costing a lot more than $21.9 million.

UPDATED 4:08 p.m. K4L makes a fair point in the comments. Personally, though, I do not see N8's best role as the starting PG. I much prefer what he can bring to the table off the bench, a la Leandro Barbosa. ESPN.com's stat guru, John Hollinger, seems to agree. Although he projects Robinson to be the most efficient option over Marbury and Duhon, he points out that N8 having more freedom in D'Antoni's system can be both good and bad. Hollinger's rankings are always worth a read, and the way he ranks the Knicks' potential starting PGs is interesting. He projects Robinson as the 13th most efficient PG in the league (16.90 PER, just ahead of Jordan Farmar and Devin Harris), followed by Marbury at 27th (13.22) and Duhon at 45th (11.80). For the unfamiliar, check out Hollinger's explanation for how he figures PER and how he projects from season to season.

If super-rich NBA players, who will be paying millions more in taxes under a new Democratic administration, are lining up behind Barack Obama the way Tyson Chandler is, then it's safe to say McCain is doomed.

(This photo brought to you courtesy of Chandler's blog at NBA.com. This post brought to you as a result of Neil Best vowing to produce no further political entries until after the election. Although it appears that Neil has violated his own rule with a new post about Sarah Palin. I hereby defend Neil under Newsday policy No. 101, section C, line 17, which clearly states, "Neil Best does not make the news. He merely reports it.")

The Pacers have hired Grant Hill's father, Calvin, as a consultant to help the team reshape its tattered image.

I can't think of a better man for the job. Calvin Hill, a former NFL running back, was instrumental in excavating the Dallas Cowboys from a similar public image ditch.

True story: I almost covered Calvin Hill as a part owner of the Cleveland Browns. But Hill's bid -- tied to banking and real estate magnate Howard Milstein -- was rejected by the NFL owners in 1998. League owners chose Alfred Lerner instead.

I'd like to nominate this entry for irrelevant trivia item of the day on Newsday.com.

Hornets owner George Shinn reaffirmed his commitment to New Orleans and vowed not to flee the city for a better market. Interesting detail in this story in the New Orleans Times-Picayune: Before the team moved back to post-Katrina New Orleans from Oklahoma City, players approached Shinn and told him they didn't want to go.

"Our own newspapers, our own media, writes garbage," Shinn said. "Our athletes did not want to come back. They did not want to come back to New Orleans because of everything they read: It's not safe, the educational system is bad. There's potholes. I'm mean, there's potholes everywhere!

"I had players coming to me and saying 'Mr. Shinn, I don't want to go back to New Orleans.'

"I said, 'Well, would you like to be traded?'"

Some stuff from around the league as the preseason schedule opened last night:

* The Lakers lost their preseason opener to Utah, 99-90. The story, though, is that despite Andrew Bynum's monstrous physique, Tex Winter says the big-man tandem of Bynum and Paul Gasol isn't working out -- which could mean a trip to the bench for Bynum.

* After 22 years and lots of futility, Elgin Baylor is out as the Clippers' G.M. Coach Mike Dunleavy will assume his duties. Mark Heisler of the L.A. Times says Baylor deserved a better sendoff. Nothing wrong with Dunleavy, who has been the de facto G.M. for four years. But I have two thoughts: 1) The coach-G.M. thing hardly ever works out (see Isiah Thomas), and 2) Dunleavy and Donnie Walsh are best of friends. Could Dunleavy's official ascent grease the skids for some dealing between the Knicks and the Clips? (This theory assumes that Donnie Basketball holds no grudges against Mike D for blindsiding him by acquiring Marcus Camby instead of closing the deal with the Knicks for Zach Randolph.)

* Wizards center Brendan Haywood is seeing a specialist in New York today and could need surgery on his wrist. The Wiz also lost Antawn Jamison to a sprained right knee in a 108-82 loss to the Mavericks.

* The new-look Cavs got thumped by the new-look Raptors, 104-84, in their preseason opener. But Brian Windhorst and Terry Pluto liked what they saw from the suddenly-faster-than-glacial Cleveland offense.

* Success all around for the Ron Artest-led Houston Rockets, who beat Memphis, 96-93, with 15 points from the Tru Warier.

* Greg Oden announced his arrival to the NBA in precisely the fashion you would expect: With a dunk. Oden had 13 points, five rebounds, two blocks, and two assists in 19:44 as the Blazers beat the Kings, 110-81. Spanish rookie Rudy Fernandez also impressed with five assists, inspiring chants of "Ru-dy! Ru-dy!" in the Rose Garden.

* The Bulls' Tyrus Thomas credits David Thorpe if IMG Academies for fitting him with an attitude adjustment this summer. Even TT admits it was much needed.

* Tune in to the Knix Fix for tonight's preseason debut in Toronto.

I love stuff like this. Alex Trebek asks the question on Jeopardy: The NBA's "Agent Zero," a.k.a. "Hibachi," a.k.a. "Black President." ... Watch the video. Nothing but dumbfounded stares.

Gil needs to blog more. Like Neil Best.

The Knicks broke camp after the morning practice today and headed home to New York -- without major incident or any further injuries.

Unless you count Jerome James tweaking his quad late in the practice.

"He almost got through camp," coach Mike D'Antoni said,. "Just the last five minutes he kind of strained his quad a little bit. But he looked good."

Everything looks good in training camp. Now the real work begins. D'Antoni's running style will debut Wednesday night at Toronto in the preseason opener. Donnie Walsh liked what he saw in Saratoga, but is bracing for a lengthy transition period.

“I did it in Denver with Doug Moe, and believe me, the first month-and-a-half can be ugly because guys are throwing the ball all over the place,” Walsh said.

I'm told that Mr. Fixer's son scored four goals today in his hockey game. Atta boy. Just wrapping up my duties for the day at a coffee shop and will be heading home with Ho-Beck of the Times riding shotgun. Wait till he finds out the fare.

Saratoga Springs -- Whenever the Knicks decide to part ways with Stephon Marbury, one potential landing spot was wiped off the map Friday: Miami.

The Heat signed point guard Shaun Livingston to a two-year deal, eliminating one of the likely landing spots for Starbury. Livingston has been playing 5-on-5 for several months in his bid to come back from a gruesome knee injury 19 months ago in which he tore three ligaments and dislocated his kneecap.

I've been busy with Mr. Fixer over at the practice gym, which explains the lack of posts. No further encounters with my friend, No. 3, in case you are wondering.

I have arrived in Saratoga Springs to re-join the Knicks festivities, only to be greeted this morning by the release of the 133-page Pedowitz Report.

In case you don't have a job or have very little to do, here it is. I'll be reading right along with you and will be back with the news and my impressions.