The Round Up - December 31st, 2012.

Stats Rundown

Happy 2013 everyone. LeBron James ended 2012 with a statement in the overtime victory against the Orlando Magic. He went for 36 points (10 of 22 shooting), 8 rebounds, 11 assists and if you are still questioning his ability to cope with pressure in late game situations, he scored 10 of the Heat's 13 points in overtime. You can stop now. Oh yea, the "King" is also on his 29th straight 20+ point game streak, which is the second longest to start the season.

Honorable Mention: To Carlos Delfino's 22 points on 10 shots, 6 made threes, 4 rebounds and 8 dimes in Houston 's quest to destroy every single Eastern Conference team. They are 11-2 against East teams including last night's victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

Boards: Despite the loss in Orlando, Nikola Vucevic had a career night. He grabbed a franchise high 29 boards (11 of them were Offensive rebounds), edging out Shaq's 38. The 20 points he had in this game, weren't too bad either.

Feed the Beast: Marc Gasol is a little bit hungry. (Via: @hpbasketball)

Ending on a Good Note: The Charlotte Bobcats snapped their 18 game losing streak with the win over the Chicago Bulls on New Years Eve. This is their first win in the month of December and they left us something to remember it by.

As for the Bulls, things didn't look too good in this game. Scoring only 81 points against the worst defense in the league. Where art thou, Derrick Rose?

99 Problems: The Brooklyn Nets scored only 5 points in the third, coincidentally tying for the third lowest scoring 3Q in NBA history. Just so you know, the San Antonio Spurs outscored them by 25 in that period.

Highlights

Nutmeg: Carlos Delfino gets creative with his pass. More importantly, please bring the yellow back into the Houston Rockets' jersey.

Walk the Dog: No one dared to accept LeBron James's challenge. Nice try, Josh McRoberts.

Sealed it: Dwyane Wade reads all your lazy passes.

Tony Parker didn't think he deserved the NBA flop warning.

I can't. If this wasn't a flop like Tony Paker said, there is only two other possible explanations for his "dive." Either the ghost of Antoine Tyler from the movie, the Sixth Man (I think a Wayan was in it) pushed him or Toney Douglas has a tiny finger cannon that no one knows about. And since both are fictional, Tony should have probably kept his opinion to himself to avoid further embarrassment.

This is what he actually said (Via: Jeff McDonald):

How can he sleep at night, after lying to himself and everyone else. Toney Douglas was laughing because that was a terrible flop. A good one gets your teammates off their bench and cry. Even Manu couldn't help you there. But in Parker's defense, this is not exactly his area of expertise. After all, the French man is a more renowned flopper on the offensive end.

The Round Up - December 30th, 2012.

Stats Rundown:

Not the greatest line up of games on (Football) Sunday nights. Here are some things of note.

Last Big Standing: As the only real offensively skilled center left in the NBA, Al Jefferson proves to us why it worked before. He had 30 points (13 of 22 shooting), 8 rebounds, 2 assists, and 4 blocks to fall as another victim of the best team in the west.

Wade 2.0: After the criticism that Monta Ellis received for putting himself into the same category as Dwyane Wade, he shut everyone up. However, his 30 points (12 of 22), 4 rebounds and 9 assists performance would be for nothing in the 2 point loss to the Detroit Pistons. Poor Monta couldn't have it all.

Career First: DeMarcus Cousins got his first NBA triple double with 12 points (4 of 12), 10 rebounds and 10 assists. He must be auditioning for the Boston Celtics, because he never passes.

Little Man: At 5'9" Isiah Thomas can do a lot of things, especially to a struggling Boston Celtics team. He went for 27 points on 15 shots, 4 rebounds and 5 assists in place of the injured Aaron Brooks, who usually takes the starting position.

Long distance: Caron Butler was a perfect 6 for 6 from behind the arc to add to his total 29 points in another Clippers victory. This extends the winning steak to 17 and makes his team undefeated in the month of December (16-0). Which has only been done by 3 other teams in the entire 67 years of NBA Basketball.

Suggestive: I don't know what they are doing, I just know that Richard Jefferson is too old for whatever this is. (Via: @JazzSMangat)

Highlights

Rejection x2: Thomas Robinson will not allow Jeff Green to have any points.

Lob City: We have seen this a million times. Please excuse me for making do with a highlight-less NBA night. At least DeAndre Jordan is having fun.

Monta Ellis believes he is as good as Dwyane Wade.

To be honest, Dwyane Wade is clearly better than you. He has more wins, 2 championships, All Star credentials, and is actually necessary for Miami's success. You on the other hand, is a cancer (see: Golden State Warriors' success after his trade). Your terrible shot selection and inability to make your teammates better (hindering the growth of a young team) was the reason you were moved.

If that is what you mean by being in the same category as Dwyane Wade, then Monta you really do have it all (wrong).

Buzy Sunday.

GoComics

The regular scheduled posts today will be delayed due to some personal problems, things should be up around 2pm (PST). I know I owe you guys some write ups from a few games, those should be up all on Monday. They will include coverage for all of the recent game up till Christmas.

Thanks for reading.

Kobe Bryant would force Shaq to present his NBA Jersey retirement.

Despite the 3 Championships (one questionable), we all know Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'neal were not the best of friends during their time as Lakers and that is why this was hilarious.

Even though, Shaq has repeatedly called Kobe, his "boy," I highly doubt their relationship is on good terms. But knowing Shaq, he will probably do it just for attention. If he does refuse, there is always Smush Parker, because you know Kobe has a long list of "friends" to choose from.

Jarrett Jack threw Dorell Wright's shoe into the 10th row during a NBA game.

The Golden State Warrior have been one of the biggest surprises of the 2012-13 season. Nobody expected them to be anywhere near where they are at right now. At least not with this roster. But they are currently 5th in the West and much of their success has come from an improved defense. Mark Jackson has instilled new defensive principles into this team and you can see Jarrett Jack using one of them here:

Who knew Jarrett Jack would close 2012 with arguably one of the greatest moment in the NBA history. This is what you would call a perfect play. First, Jack breaks the distance record of shoe thrown in an NBA game by an NBA player, and then knocks down a three on the other end to complete it. He even added an evil smug at the end to put the cherry on top. I bet that was not the way former Warrior, Dorell Wright thought he would be welcomed back in his old arena.

If you are wondering, there are other players that have thrown their opponent's shoes out of their reach and coincidentally the victims were all embarrassed in their former home.

Metta World Peace was of course involved in one these incidents. As a matter of fact, he might be the innovator of this movement. Trevor Ariza should be proud to be the first.

Dwyane Wade, who is slowly gaining a rep of being a dirty player after sending his leg directly into Ramon Sessions's reproductive organ, was part of the sneaker throwing history too.

The NBA is the best.

The Round Up - December 28th, 2012.

Stats Rundown

Ciao, my people of Italy or Denver Nuggets fans or Fantasy owners. You would be glad to hear that Danilo Gallinari has ended his cold shooting streak recently and just got a career high 39 points (14 of 23 shooting), 8 rebounds and 3 assists in the 34 minutes he played against the Dallas Mavericks.

Honorable Mention: To Tony Parker's 31 points (11 of 19), 5 rebounds, 10 assists and 2 steals against one of their Texas rivals, the Houston Rockets.

The Chosen One: Is there still any doubt that LeBron James is the best NBA player in world? This man had 35 points (15 of 22, 68 FG%), 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 6 steals and a block in a disappointing loss to the Detroit Pistons. With this line, he joins Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Charles Barkley to ever post those numbers in the past 25 years. Impressed yet? How about taking a look at his shot chart.

Via: @ESPNStatsInfo

Ridiculous.

Boards: Kenneth "The Manimal" Faried grabbed 19 rebounds (7 Offensive) and scored 11 points in the blowout win over the Dallas Mavericks.

Rookie Watch: Anthony "Fear The Brow" Davis shows us why he was picked first overall, 25 points (11 of 20), 9 rebounds and 3 blocks against the Toronto Raptors.

Time Machine User: Kobe Bryant was short 3 points to save his 10 game streak of 30 points+, but he got his points in an efficient manner, he shot 9 for 18 from the field and had 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals in the victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.

Block Party V.I.P.: Tim Duncan's 2 blocks in the win over the Houston Rockets, gets him the 8th spot on the NBA all-time block list with 2, 543. The old man also had 30 points (13 of 20), and 5 rebounds.

Wig-Out: Cleveland Cavaliers fans all donned a Anderson Varejao's Sideshow Bob wig, because apparently his hair has it's own day.

Missed Opportunity: Greivis Vasquez missed out on his first triple career by a single rebound. He finished with 20 points, 9 rebounds and 14 assists. Just so you know he had 9 rebounds in the third and did not get a single one even though they went into overtime against the Toronto Raptors, who surprisingly pulled out a victory in a close game.

Turning Tides: It was a werid day in the NBA, the Washington Wizards beat the Orlando Magic to snap the 8 game losing streak. The Detroit Pistons tooks down the reigning NBA Champions, Miami Heat. The Sacramento Kings defeated the New York Knicks with a game winning three and did I mention that the Raptors won a close game?

Don't Call it a Come Back: The Los Angeles Clippers came back from a 19 point deficit against the Utah Jazz in the second half to extend their winning streak to 16.

Highlights

Soarin': Thaddeus Young receives the greatest assist handed out by the great Kwame Brown. #NeverForget.

Embarrassed: Chris Copeland, a 6 foot 9 rookie gets his lay up attempt pinned against the back board by a 6 foot Aaron Brooks. Maybe dunk it next time?

Game Winner: This was James Johnson's first made three of the season, and it could not have come in a better time. Somewhere, Brad Miller is proud to have his number on JJ's chest.

Angry DeMarcus Cousins "talks" about his recent suspension from the Sacramento Kings.

DeMarcus Cousins of the Sacramento Kings haven't played a basketball game in a week, he was suspended for one game by the team on December 21st after a verbal altercation with the King's head coach, Keith Smart at halftime. But even though the suspension was lifted on Christmas Eve, Cousins did not travel with the team to Portland to play the Blazers and there are no reports that confirm that he would be playing against the New York Knicks tonight.

Great interview bro, you totally answered those questions. Just a thought, maybe top being a dick and respond to reporters in a professional manner.  This is why people think you are immature, you have hold your composure. There is only one person in the league allowed to that type of crap to reporters and his name is Greg Popovich. Is this a sign? They do need someone after Tim Duncan.

Kenny, Charles, Ernie and Shaq makes their 2013 New Year's Resolution on "Inside the NBA."

I can't even tell if Shaq is trying to make jokes or find every single opportunity to show off anymore.

Bonus: Probably the best Shaqtin' a Fool of 2012. I still hate Shaq in the studio, but this segments is almost good enough to keep him on air.

The Round Up - December 27th, 2012.

Stats Rundown

Kevin Durant is a certified Mavericks killer. 40 points (13 of 28 shooting), 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 3 blocks in the overtime victory. The dude must love seeing a sad Mark Cuban.

Honorable Mention: To Darren Collison's 32 points (13 of 22), 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals and 4 for 4 from the three, one of which were the game tying shot.

3 point Alley-Oop: So that is why they signed Derek Fisher, Darren Collison got the chance to learn how to make last second shots from the best.

Boards: Serge Ibaka grabbed 17 rebounds (8 Offensive) and scored 19 points (7 of 10) to aid in Kevin Durant's world conquest.

The Band of Struggle Faces: This is what happens when you lose by 29 points and only score 10 points in the 4th quarter.

All Screen Caps are provided by @jose3030

Zidane'd: Chris Paul doesn't like people touching his head, but he is not shy to use it to hurt other people. (Via: @cjzero)

Punished: Dwyane Wade got a one game suspension for the destruction of Ramon Sessions's child creating tool and Dwight Howard got a $35,000 fine for trying to block the entire body of Kenneth Faried.

Sager Suit: Rick "Jim Carrey" Carlise doesn't even want to look at Craig. (Via: @cjzero)

Whoops: Ronny Turiaf gave his free throw a little bit too much of arc. (Via: @cjzero)

Highlights

Posterized: Dominique Jones dropped "Thabeet" on Hasheem.

Hut: Russell Westbrook must be playing Madden in his off time.

Durantula: KD was everywhere in this game, and embarrassed Chris Kaman repeatedly.

Unrelated

No Swag: Days after his fur collared jacket, Kobe gets caught wearing his shorts over his pants. He is a walking Nike ad. (Via: @nikebasketball)

NBA Boxing Day involved some hard fouls.

A few players from the NBA took Boxing Day to a literal level, using various types of boxing during games from last night. To make it right for the victims, let's play a game of "Dirty or Not." The rules are simple, watch the video and determine whether it was "Dirty or Not."

First up from the docket, we have a sad Dwight Howard taking out his frustration on Kenneth Faried.

This was definitely intentional and unnecessary. Dwight is lucky he won't get a suspension because Faried's dreads softened the blow to his head. His Laker teammate, Jordan Hill however, took a full Dwight kick to his face and his hair ccould not help him in any way.

Verdict: Not. Just a hard foul that went the wrong way.

J.R. Smith picked up his own flagrant foul after a sneaky shoulder to the airborne Goran Dragic.

Dragic did not return to the game, thanks to the contusions he received to his wrist, hip and back.

Verdict: Dirty, he purposely ran into Dragic and kept his arms to his side to look like it was unintentional.

I saved the best (in this case, worst) for last, we have Dwyane Wade splitting Ramon Sessions's groin in half.

Ramon Session was a little too chill about this, making me believe the kick wasn't as powerful as shown on the video.

Verdict: Dirty, even though it didn't cause much damage to Ramon's future child-creating endeavors, a man should never lift their leg up to another man's party area.

The Round Up - December 26th, 2012.

Stats Rundown

From the Phoenix Suns, Jared Dudley dropped a career high 36 points against the New York Knicks. However, his 5 rebounds, 3 assists and scoring was not enough to get the win. Here's a little foreshadow to why:

Via: thenbaguru

Honorable Mention: To Dorell Wright of the Philadelphia 76ers, who took over for the injured Jason Richardson and dominated. He scored 28 points on 8 of 11 shooting, and grabbed 6 rebounds to go with the win over the Memphis Grzzlies.

Glove: Monta Ellis was productive for a change. 20 points (3 for 3 from three), 6 rebounds, 7 assists and 6 steals against the struggling Brooklyn Nets. If you are wondering how he got 7 assists, well this is an example of a "Monta" assist:

Duos: LeBron James and Dwyane Wade combined for a approximately 75 percent of the Heat's offense. LeBron had 27 points, 12 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks, while his sidekick got 29 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists in the victory over the Charlotte Bobcats. Who, by the way are on a 16 game losing streak. I guess they can only win 7 games per season.

Robin Lopez and Greivis Vasquez combined for 60 percent of the Hornets' points. Coincidentally they also had 56 in total. It is even weirder that one of them scored 29, while the other got 27 in their own victory. Totally not planned. This win over the Orlando Magic snaps their 11 game losing streak.

Rookie Watch: Just give Damian Lillard the ROY already, the award itself doesn't really mean anything but this man is putting on a show. 17 points (7 of 14), 8 rebounds and 11 assists against the DeMarcus Cousins-less Kings team.

Time Machine User: Kobe Bryant went for 40 points (13 of 24), 4 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks to continue his 10th consecutive 30+ point game. This loss to the Denver Nuggets snaps their 5 game winning streak. You knew it was too good to be true.

Treys: Corey Brewer came off the Denver Nuggets bench to score 27 points in Kobe's face. He shot 6 of 7 from three in the 24 minutes of play.

Troubled Reptiles: Not a single Toronto Raptor starter more than 8 points in the 20 point loss to the San Antonio Spurs.

One Man Comeback: The Detroit Pistons were down 22 points entering the 4th quarter, in what seemed to be another blow out. But then Will Bynum happened. He scored 20 of his total 31 points in the 4th quarter to force overtime, where his team would eventually fall to the Atlanta Hawks. Good Job, Good Effort.

Trick-Tricks: Stephen Curry watched some Jamal Crawford tape.

Posterized: How can you be Mo Harkless?

Clutch: J.R. Smith poops on Jared Dudley's party by himself.