Mark Cuban gave live updates on his kidney stone removal on Twitter.

Kirby Lee - US Presswire

Want to read about a billionaire that owns the Dallas Mavericks passing out his kidney stone? Well, neither do I but it was a lot funnier and grosser than you would think. It is too late to click away now.

The man knows how to use those hash tags. Did he actually wanted to get them trending? One would hope not. Let's all imagine him tweeting on his phone while bent over trying to pass a kidney stone and making that scrunchy "what the hell, ref" face. Oh, Mark Cuban, you are an ass.

Via: SB Nation

The James Harden and Jeremy Lin combo + Knicks Defense.

Scott Halleran - Getty Images

Houston Rockets 109 - New York Knicks 96

The Good

Rockets: For one night, in the place where "Linsanity" started, Jeremy Lin and his new back court partner, James Harden were able to co-exist. These two are at their best when the ball is in their hands. They thrive off the pick and roll and only one of them can find other ways to be effective away from the ball. The problem is that the better player, the one you would rather have on the ball is James Harden and you would not want him to work off the ball for Lin's benefit.

This forms a weird dynamic between the two. Jeremy Lin is not a pass first guy, he looks to score as soon as the ball gets to him. He has a bad habit of stopping his dribble once he gets covered by defense. And trying to pass out of a tough situation, in turn results in a lot of turnovers. On the other hand, James Harden likes to use the pick and roll, and go over his options before taking his shot. If you were the Rockets, based on the above descriptions of their play, who would you pick. The answer, if it was not too obvious, is Harden. He can create for his teammates and put himself in a better scoring position (See free throw attempts).

Frankly, it is too early to call this a failure. They didn't even have training camp together. They are still figuring things out on the fly, learning each others tendencies. Kevin McHale has done a better job managing minutes they share on the floor, and there are slight improvements. The key is to make Lin a better spot up shooter, which he could fix with time.

I like Houston's playoff chances in the future, they have a good group of young players. Omer Asik has looked infinity times better on offense. In his Chicago Bull days, he would shit himself if he gets the ball on offense. Either botching a lay up or kick out to a teammate without looking at the basket. Chandler Parsons is emerging as one of the better Sophomores of last year's draft. His numbers have dramatically increased and makes the Rockets look like a promising team. (In terms of Rookie development).

Knicks: There wasn't much going for the New York Knicks, except for Chris Copeland. This 28 year old rookie knows how to score and has 29 points to prove it. He is a perfect fit in this system, a stretch 4 that can hit threes will provide Knicks plenty of space. If he can remain consistent, he can be huge off the bench once Carmelo Anthony returns.

The Bad

Rockets: The defense didn't sustain for long periods, most of it was gone by the first half. Both teams turned the ball over at least 17 times and scored 20 points off the mistakes.

Knicks: Well, when your offense relies on threes and a Superstar to create opportunities, you can't really hope to win without either of them. The highly praised ball movement of the Knicks was replaced by Raymond Felton's over dribbling. Felton definitely seemed like he was trying to prove that he is better than Jeremy Lin, which ultimately led to terrible possessions. He took the first shot after every single screen, and rarely looked for his teammates. I don't even know why Steve Novak was on the floor, considering that no one ran screens for him.

On the defensive side, it was the worst performance since the last Houston loss. The Knicks are 0-2 against the Rockets (Both were blowouts). The perimeter defense is letting people go in and out at will. Felton and Kidd could not keep up and gave all of the responsibility to Tyson Chandler. Who naturally, can not do everything. The Rockets scored 52 points in the paint, just look at Jeremy Lin's shot chart. (Via: @ESPNStatsInfo)

Things weren't any better in transition, they allowed 25 fast break points. Guys were leaking out and the Knicks didn't slow anybody down. This won't entirely become a problem, the real issue was effort, they didn't seem like they wanted to win.

Tim Duncan Opens a Car Customization Shop in San Antonio.

Photos by Andrew Link

If you were to rank Tim Duncan amongst the Greatest NBA power forwards, he would be near or at the top of that list. Now rank them according to how entertaining they are, Tim Duncan would probably be at the bottom of this list. It is an universal fact that Tim Duncan, is while one of NBA's best is also the most boring player ever. His face is always emotion-less during games, there is nothing flashy about his style of play and their isn't anything interesting about him off court. Well, besides this Halloween photo of him and Tony Parker holding fake guns up to a fake Joey Crawford.

Tim knows he can't play basketball forever, so during last year's lockout, he decided to pursue his other interests. He recently opened up Black Jack Speed Shop, a new car customization shop in San Antonio. This is quite a surprise. A guy like Tim Duncan who likes to keep things plain and simple has a car shop that pimp out people's rides. I don't know if this is sign of how little we really know about Tim, but I have a feeling that once he retires, he will become a TV personality, get his own reality show on MTV and it might have a little something to do with cars. Or I can be totally wrong, which tends to be the case.

The only thing missing to make him look like a real owner is arm tattoos.

Source: SLAM

NBA Christmas Carols - Los Angeles Lakers Edition.

Of course Dwight Howard acts like a fool in this video. Of course Kobe Bryant didn't sing. And of course Steve Blake's forced smile completely crushed your holiday spirit. This is exactly what you would expect from the Lakers from the second you clicked this video and it is also exactly why it slides to the bottom of my NBA Christmas Carol Power Rankings.

If you are still keeping count, the Dallas Mavericks stays in the number 1 spot, followed by the Houston Rockets, Minnesota Timberwolves and finally the Los Angeles Lakers.

James Harden talks about his Majestic Beard.

So, it is pretty clear that we will never see James Harden beardless again. What ever happened to the innocent one.

SB Nation Arizona

He once walked the streets with a bare face,
Then puberty came to end those days.
He let his beard grow and grow,
Now he has no neck to show.

Best of NBA Bloopers from Last Night.

Here we have Raymond Felton paying tribute to Brian Okam of App State, who currently holds the record for the worst free throw attempt since the creation of the internet.

And rightfully so.

Then we have Metta World Peace trying to walk back to LA from Cleveland during a game.

The NBA is the best.

Frustrated Kobe Bryant don't know why the Lakers are losing.

Defense?

If you are wondering, this is what he said that got censored:

It is still only December, but if they want to get anywhere near .500 (LAL is 9-13 right now), they have a lot of work to do, until then let the Lakers struggle jokes continue.

Michael Jordan goes one on one with the Bobcats.

His defense has lost a step, but his footwork is still mean. It has to be right? Who else teaches the jab step for like the entire practice.

Carmelo Anthony destroys a bunch of 8 years olds.

NBA players playing basketball against kids is always entertaining. But in Melo's case, his recent success maybe because he is using the ol' picturing your opponent in/as something else technique and this commercial has more meaning than intended. All I took from it was that Melo never passed to any of his teammates.

NBA Officials secretly works for the Miami Heat.

Okay that is probably not true, but the ref can blame those damn natural body reflexes for giving Mario Chalmers an assist, LeBron James a lay up and receiving two Atlanta Hawks frowns.

Javale McGee presents: The Most Javale McGee minute of NBA Basketball.

When Javale McGee was shipped out to Denver, a little part of us died inside. While we are glad that he is developing into a solid NBA player under Coach Karl, we missed the Washington Knucklehead moments. He offered comic relief in those retina torturing games with his volleyball spike blocks that ends up into the cheap seats, the countless unforced turnovers and the most ridiculous dunk attempts during games. But as much as he is trying to shed his image with a healthy amount of consistent play, he is always good for some classic Javale McGee plays and we love him for that.

Notes: New York Knicks vs. Miami Heat [12/06/12]

New York Knicks 112 - Miami Heat 92

The Good

Knicks: A few months ago, when the New York Knicks gave up on Jeremy Lin and signed a few older pieces, just about everyone wrote them off. There were a ridiculous, but acceptable amount of old man jokes made by basketball bloggers, including myself and none of us would have thought they will be sitting at the top of the East. Sure, the internet was much better back in the summer, but the reality is that this Knicks team has figured out their identity and are holding each other to it.

In the second meeting with the Miami Heat, they have managed to blow out the reigning champions again and this time without Carmelo Anthony. The veterans in this team completely changed the culture, the guys are always looking for the extra pass and never slow to move the ball. The spacing in this 1 in, 4 out offense opens up the floor for Raymond Felton to get into the teeth of the defense. He doesn't do anything phenomenal but he does get guys open and has a nice two man game with Tyson Chandler.

For those who doubt the Knicks ability to continue this high percentage shooting from the three can not be more wrong. Of course there will be nights where they won't hit anything regardless of defense, it happens to everyone. The fact is that NBA players will hit majority of their shots when wide open, and you can count on this to happen in this offense. Melo's return will just make this team all the more terrifying. His demand of defensive attention just creates more opportunities for his teammates.

I am still not convinced that Amare Stoudemire could co-exist with Carmelo and Tyson. The offense they are running is similar to the familiar days in Phoenix, however he was the Center back in the day. Look, the obvious answer would be putting him in the bench role, but it doesn't solve the 4th quarter problem, they have to learn to play together and it means that Amare will have to accept a reduced role, stay out of the paint and become a stretch big. Whether you are confident of his shooting abilities, that is up to you to decide.

Heat: On the night LeBron James goes nuts, 31 points, 10 boards and 9 assists. His teammates disappeared. James alone was responsible 50 percent and more of Miami's offense. In the few minutes he was off the floor, his team allowed runs and repeatedly failed to find a bucket. They only kept themselves into the game with free throws, because what else can the other two All Stars do when they combine for 6 of 25 from the field.

The Bad

Knicks: Their defense was not particularly great. The game was close up to 4th quarter because they allowed Miami to get inside via cuts. It got worst with Tyson Chandler on the bench, the Heat either got an easy layup or a pair of free throws.

Heat: Before I go through this disaster of a defense, I acknowledge that the NBA regular season play is far different than the playoffs. The Heat proved that last year, but as of right now, they look nothing like the team that won the Championship in June. The Heat relies on constant pressure and interior help to make up for their size deficit. They trap ball handlers off the screen hard and make their life miserable. A wrong move results in a turnover and pave way for the Heat's transition game. If somehow, the ball handler can pass out, one of the Miami players rotate right away and the offense will once return to a stand still.

None of what I mentioned above happened, Raymond Felton got in the paint whenever he wanted. He threw passes right into the middle of the paint to Tyson Chandler that normally would turn into a fast break for the Heat. These half ass rotations allowed threes after threes uncontested and the switches from the pick and roll that left Miami bigs out in the perimeter did not do them any favors. You can put the blame on the new additions that are struggling to adapt and Shane Battier's injury but the problem is the lack of effort. Until they decide to give it their all, this defense will continue to suffer.

Notes: Los Angeles Clippers vs. Utah Jazz [12/03/12]

Los Angeles Clippers 105 - Utah Jazz 104

The Good

Clippers: Blake Griffin shredded every piece of evidence that is Paul Millsap's defense. He got inside at will. His post game has looked a lot better this season, and the footwork was there. Even his jumpers went in that night. Besides his solo effort, the bench came up big, combining for 44 points. I thought Eric Bledsoe should have been given more minutes, he score 10 points in 11 minutes and was playing crazy defense.

Jazz: Utah is a team that is full of upside, they have a good group of veteran players and mix of talented young guys. They execute well in the half court and are patient enough to get a good shot off before time expires. Gordon Hayward need some love, this kid is a perfect fit in this Utah team that boasts height. At 6 foot 8, he plays the shooting guard position to his advantage. He can easily shoot over most guards, and use his length to bother his opponent on defense.

Jazz was hitting everything in the beginning, threes were falling and they held a 10 point lead all the way to the third quarter, where things returned to normal. Al Jefferson should have been used more down the stretch. He was having it easy in the low block in the first half, but he didn't get it back there in the second. That is probably in part to DeAndre Jordan's ball denial, his length deterred the Jazz guards from passing it to Big Al.

The Bad

This game turned into a basket trading contest after halftime, there was absolutely no defense on either end. Both teams got their way inside, 50 points for Jazz and 56 for the Clips.
 

Clippers: They allowed interior passes. I am talking about Jazz players passing to each other within 8 feet of the rim and the Clippers did nothing about it. In the other end, there were way too many isos early in the first half, taking multiple tough shots that allowed Utah to go on fast breaks.

I would like to see Chris Paul be more ball dominant. Run the plays through him, so he can create different opportunities for this team. He should not be standing around watching Jamal Crawford shoot his ill-advised shots, when he can easily get something closer to the hoop. If he had exploited the pick and roll more, the slow-footed Jazz big men would have been in trouble. Just that game deciding possession where he came off the screen, and took Al Jefferson on the switch for the easy layup served as the only necessary example to prove my point.

Oh, and the Chauncey Billups flop completely ruined this game for everyone (except Clippers fans).

Jazz: The defense crumbled in the second half, there was zero effort to contest shots and they were just scrambling to get a stop. An injury-free Derrick Favors would have been a huge help on defense. He might actually be quick enough to bother Chris Paul and help out on Blake Griffin.  Things didn't get better on offense either, they were just throwing the ball away (17 turnovers compared to their opponent's 10) to fuel the LA comeback.

Roy Hibbert pulled his shorts up to hide blood on his jersey to stay in the game.

Normally, when a player has blood on himself or jersey, the officials will stop the game to get you cleaned up. If you don't get done in the 30 seconds they issue, the coach can call a 20 second timeout, at worst, they will bring in a substitute.

It was a critical situation, the Pacers, who once led by 18 points were pushed back in the corner by the Blazer's 21-9 run. Roy Hibbert did not want sit because it would mean Ian Mahinmi coming back in and that is not happening. So when no one was watching, he pulled up his shorts to tug in the part of his jersey that was stained by Damian Lillard's blood. Everything worked out and the Pacers got the win.

He didn't go full Urkel, but it sure was weird look for a 7 footer. The plan didn't actually work, well it did in that sequence, but the refs caught him in the next possession and he had to get cleaned up anyways.

 Source: BDL

Charles Barkley and Reggie Miller boxes with Manny Pacquiao.

Chuck, hopefully you are going to learn something to bring the back to the studio, maybe something on the lines of shutting Shaq's mouth? Please, I am begging you, actually the entire world is begging you. Whoop his ass and put an end to the suffering we have to put up with during national TV broadcasts.

Minnesota Timberwolves sings Christmas Carols.

Remember when I had this great idea that the Timberwolves would somehow be a great boy band, well it turns out it might not be the greatest idea after all. Kevin Love doesn't want to sing, and those who did butchered those joyful carols.

Jokes aside, why did the only person that could speak fluent English didn't have to sing? This brutal mistreatment to the foreign players is discrimination and resulted in the most awkward caroling. Worst of all, Ricky Rubio, who I thought was the perfect boy band member, did not sound any better than Andrei Kirilenko. And here I thought I had a management opportunity in my future, thanks for ruining my dreams.

Via: TBJ

The New Orleans Hornets are changing their names to Pelicans.

 The New Orleans Hornets have confirmed that they will be switching their name to Pelicans for the next season. Have no fear my fellow mortals, I know your knees are trembling right now at the thought of a large water bird swooping you into it's mouth. At least it is as bad as it sounds, I mean being kept into a throat pouch, separated from your loved ones until you become mentally insane and slowly wait for the day the Pelican chews you up into pieces can't be that bad. No wait, it would be the worst. Not sure if you can get any respect in the afterlife, telling people you got killed by a Pelican.

Seriously though, a Pelican could turn out way better than you can imagine. Think about the mascot opportunities, remember when that blow up Raptor swallowed a cheerleader, a Pelican version will take it to a whole new level (ALL THE CHEERLEADERS). If you are not into that, maybe the incredible amount of Anthony Davis's unibrow X pelican .gif opportunities may change your mind. Whether you like it or not, this will go down as one of the most joked about NBA news, and history will be made on Twitter.

Source: Yahoo Sports

November NBA Bloopers.

Benny the Bull is the best. Missed layups, ball diving (near death experiences), and fans dancing, what else would you rather wake up to. (Completely rhetorical).

Defending Pau Gasol and why the D'Antoni System will never work. (+ Notes from the Orlando Magic game)

Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

Orlando Magic 113 - Los Angeles Lakers 103



The Good

Magic: They exacted revenge on their former All Star teammate that put them through hell for the entire summer. The Magic is a well coached team that works hard to make up for their lack of talent. Jacque Vaughn knows how to use his arsenal of unlimited (streaky) mid range shooters that is at his disposal. His team executes and constantly moves with or without the ball.

On defense, they actually play with effort and can get a stop, unlike their opponent.

Lakers: There is not much to be said, except let's just wait for Steve Nash to come back.

The Bad

Magic: They beat a far superior team at home, the only thing that sucked was that they put us through a whole hour of Hack-A-Dwight. Thank God, for the fast forward button on League Pass.
 
Lakers: Enough with the Pau Gasol bashing, especially from the Laker fans. You guys are already the most spoiled basketball fan base in the NBA. How can you disrespect a guy that won you two consecutive championships, when he is just trying to find his way in a new system. It is still too early in the season to give up on Pau Gasol. He is way too good to trade away and there no determining his impact after Steve Nash's return.

Imagine yourself as Pau for a second. After you worked hard to bring two trophies to Los Angeles, a slight dip in numbers places you on the trading block. He has been mentioned in trade rumors so many times, you wonder how he managed to stay focused. I applaud him and his ability to cope with the situation. He played the past 2 seasons not knowing where he would end up and remained efficient, it is not impossible to believe he is dealing with trust issues.

Yes, I know he can sometimes be a defensive liability, and soft in the post, but I also know that he is only 32 years old, dealing with knee tendinitis and still incredibly talented. The Lakers have to show that they trust him. Which can start by getting him more involved. The offense must go through Pau and Kobe. Give the ball to Gasol in the post, make the stationary Lakers cut and he will get you a good shot or make a nice post move for an easy finish. Kobe has been a willing passer this season and is shooting out of his mind. Averaging career highs in both field percentage and three point shooting. He alone, can make his teammates better.

Dwight Howard came to the Lakers to do two things, defend and rebound. Stop trying to run the offense through him. He is not a good passer, his post moves are limited and his back is not healthy. I went through this game twice, and there was only one possession where he actually used his body to get himself close for the dunk. The rest of them, he bumped his defender to get the basketball and will spin into free space for a flat hook. Make your opponent eat your shoulders, and jump over them. As for the defense? Well, the Magic scored 31 points in the last 6 minutes of the 4th quarter, which pretty much summed up this end of the game.

With all that said I am going to contrast all the previous points I made, because the fact is that Mike D'Antoni's system will not work with this team. Despite the believe Steve Nash will make everything work. They don't have the youth to run, the floor stretching bigs or enough shooters (Pringles played Jodie Meek for 9 minutes, I guess going 7 for 8 from the three point lime against Denver doesn't earn any playing time. Jordan Hill didn't get to play too). Having two centers and one with a inconsistent jumper goes against everything his system stands for. There is absolutely no space for Nash to do his pick and roll. And the shooters lined up outside aren't particularly good either. Add on the defense he sacrifices, they might not even be able to get stops to for an early shot.

There is no doubt Pringles will get the boot and the Lakers will regret not giving into Phil Jackson's demands.

Kevin Love and the Minnesota Timberwolves seduces the ladies with the Saxophone.

Did your underwear drop yet? Or have you decided to pause the overflow of sexuality that is playing on your computer screen to read the words I type, as my mind continuous replays Nikola Pekovic's hynoptic nods. I am not too sure that this is an actual effective advertisement for charity because you would be lying to yourself if you did not zone out by the time the music stops. On the other hand, I could be totally wrong, maybe the pure saturation of testosterone in the video, combined with sounds of the saxophone facilitates coat removals.

One question still bothers me though, how and why is Ricky Rubio not in the video? A Spanish basketball player with handsome boy band looks is all the rage right now. Scratch that, the Timberwolves should totally form a boy band, they already have the right people. Did you know Kevin Love is actually the nephew of the Beach Boys? His Dad is the older brother of Mike Love and the cousin of Wilsons.

This is perfect, for purposes unknown, I am going to compare them to 'N Sync. Kevin Love would obviously be Justin Timberlake, they are just best of the group. Ricky Rubio is JC Chasez since he is the second most talented. Nikola Pekovic will take on Joey Fatone for bodily reasons. Andrei Kirilenko and Lance Bass is similar only due to the fact the latter wanted to space travel (wikipedia) and AK's face is on the moon in that video. JJ Barea is Chris Kirkpatrick because they were both on successful teams (Barea won a championship with the Mavs in 2011) and will probably never be remembered.

If you have better comparisons, please enlighten me.