Roundball Wrap-Up: Wednesday March 5th

Your favorite inconsistent NBA post is back from last year!  I never really had a full grasp on how to do this blog, but I think I have figured it out. There will be similar elements from Bucks Buzz, but in reality, it will be its own post on Wednesday (Or Thursday). I do not really have a time for when it will be up but there will be all sorts of random shit I happen to come across on the Internet plus some thoughts about the week that was.

Players of the Week 
LeBron James - What a massive statement for LeBron in the last 10 games. He is getting the extended player of the week as James is averaging nearly 33 points a game along with being 52 percent from three and shooting over 60 percent from the field. Do you think James was a little pissed off at the hype Kevin Durant was getting? I bet LeBron reads Sportandfashion-news and sick and tired of seeing 'This week in Kevin Durant' therefore we are adding LBJ to the mix. James' strong play has become the difference in propelling the Heat winning the last eight of 10. I am happy this is a friendly rivalry and LeBron is taking over becoming more selfish because he damn well can whenever he wants due to being the best in the world.

Kevin Love - We should have given Love this honor last week, and I did not so this is my apology. Love had a massive February and it did not stop in March. He put 33 points and 19 rebounds against Denver on Monday dominating the Nuggets as well as getting a win against Sacramento where Love flirted with a triple-double with 22 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. The last time Love did not have a double-double where he played in the game was January 27th against Chicago. If Minnesota finds themselves in the playoffs, Love deserves to get some MVP votes. I do not know expect him to win it, but he is more than deserving right now.

This week in Kevin Durant
After Oklahoma City lost three straight, they have won three straight beating the likes of Memphis, Charlotte and Philadelphia. Durant disposed of Philadelphia with 42 points and nine rebounds. He also added 37 points against the Grizzlies which is like scoring 50 on most defenses.

'I am not mad, I am disappointed' Owner of the Week
Mark Cuban -  Cubes thinks the D-League would be a better option than the NCAA. I disagree. What's broken is the fact guys only have to stay for a year. They honestly need to have a baseball system where either high school is the choice or two or three years in college. One-and-Done is broken. If you do not know believe it, look what's happening at Kentucky basketball.

Team of the Week
Chicago Bulls - Being a neighbor from the south, you typically do not root for Chicago. Honestly, I like the Bulls when they are not playing Milwaukee. It is hard not to like Tom Thibodeau and respect what he does with the little talent he has on the roster. What if he had a team full of stars, could he make them a 65 win team? I am dead serious about that question too. Bulls are fourth in the Eastern Conference and pushing towards the third spot. People do not want to face Chicago in the playoffs, and they are hot as of late winning their last 10 of 12 games.

Team of the Weak
Denver Nuggets - It is time Denver embraces the tank. Their entire team is injured and lost their last 14 of 17 games which is bailed out by a short two game winning streak against Los Angeles and Milwaukee in early February. Nuggets need to just shut it down and try to get as high of a draft pick as humanly possible. If the Nuggets could add a Marcus Smart to their team, they become instantly better with the wealth of good talent they are already have on this team whom all currently sitting on the bench or not playing right now. At least Ty Lawson blew up Corey Brewer's ankles. (h/t @cjzero)



Sportandfashion-news Medical Injury Report  
Kevin Garnett - Tonight will be the third straight game where Garnett is missing for back spasms. Should this concern you are a Brooklyn fan? Absolutely. Garnett always had some issues with his back in recent years, and it appears to be acting up on him again. This could be damaging news for Brooklyn and their playoff hopes if Garnett battles back injury for the rest of the year.

NBA's week in Images, GIFS, Instagram, Vine, Links, anything else. 


This young Knicks fan is the greatest.  



John Wall did a step over on Kyle Lowry, respect. (H/T @Truth_About_It)

Check out @StephensonLance's 'Sir Lance A Lent' @and1basketball Aqua Mid PEs for tonight: http://t.co/KgJ9UdOQw3 pic.twitter.com/MUBykuAbjr
— SLAM Magazine (@SLAMonline) March 4, 2014

Lance Stephenson's Mardi Gras shoes last night. First, they are great. Second, I did not know AND1 still made shoes for NBA players.

Charlie. 

Roundball Wrap-Up: Wednesday February 26th

Your favorite inconsistent NBA post is back from last year!  I never really had a full grasp on how to do this blog, but I think I have figured it out. There will be similar elements from Bucks Buzz, but in reality, it will be its own post on Wednesday (Or Thursday). I do not really have a time for when it will be up but there will be all sorts of random shit I happen to come across on the Internet plus some thoughts about the week that was.

Players of the Week 
James Harden - We had Houston take the Team of the Week before the All-Star game, but Harden is right now playing like a top five player in the NBA. Sure, he cannot play defense, but it is the perfect recipe for him as he can let guys go in the lane and see Dwight Howard whom has reverted back to 'Good Dwight.' Harden been impressive in the last couple games including his 43 point performance last night where 40 of his points came before the five minute mark in the third quarter. Since the All-Star Break, Harden is averaging 33.5 points per game and shooting 50.6 from the field. If Houston finds themselves to be the one seed in the Western Conference, Harden deserves some consideration for MVP. I do not think he deserves it, but man, he had quite the year with the Rockets. This is a dangerous team.

Carmelo Anthony - If you listen to The Solid Verbal, they had a thing going with Nick Foles when he played in college called 'Nick Foles in a losing effort.' I think it is time we need to create 'Carmelo Anthony in a losing effort.' The Knicks are putrid, but Melo is anything, but. In the last four games, Carmelo is averaging 41.5 points a game. FORTY POINTS A GAME. The man is out of his mind right now and also 53.1 percent from the field. In two of those games, Carmelo made six or more threes as well along with grabbing multiple rebounds. People are forgetting how good Melo has been this season because the Knicks are so goddamn bad. If New York was a three seed and Carmelo put up these numbers, I think there is a discussion for MVP.

This week in Kevin Durant
Not really much to report about KD as he only played two games since the All-Star Break and Oklahoma City lost both games. Durant had gaudy numbers against Los Angeles Clippers in a shootout going for 42 points and 10 assists, but that's about it. KD's assist numbers are definitely something to keep an eye on.

'I am not mad, I am disappointed' Player of the Week
Raymond Felton - New York is a complete mess as noted in the Melo graph, but Ray Felton made it worse with getting arrested for waving his gun around at his probable ex-wife. I guess despite New York City's tough gun laws, Felton will not be seriously charged like Plaxico Burress or Lil Wayne, but still this is yet another stain for New York. To make matters worse, Felton will start tonight for New York. I do not really think I am putting Felton in the lineup after catching a gun charge, might want to wait a couple days, see how things play out.

Team of the Week
Charlotte Bobcats - HERE COMES THE CATS. Charlotte has won five of their last six games and found themselves in the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference with four games under .500. They are only a half game out of the sixth seed. Bobcats beat Memphis in an impressive victory last night being led by Al Jefferson and Kemba Walker. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has become one of the better defenders in the league, and this team could at least frustrate a team in the first round. Although poor Charlotte as their next four games is a three-game road trip against San Antonio, Oklahoma City and Miami with coming home to face Indiana.

Team of the Weak
Atlanta Hawks - I do not think people are realizing how bad Atlanta has been for the month of February. They began the month with a win and a 25-21 record. Since then, they have won a single game and now four games under .500 being the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference right now. They are giving a ton of points right now. In five of their losses, Atlanta gave up 105 points or more which is not good whatsoever. In Atlanta's defense, they have played Indiana twice, Chicago twice and Toronto once which they lost all those games. It could be Atlanta just is not very good.

Sportandfashion-news Medical Injury Report  
Iman Shumpert - There was some talk that Shump would have been on the move to Oklahoma City but New York did not want to give him up for a first-round pick which is bizarre, but okay. Shumpert turned around and hurt his knee putting him out until early March. Somehow the Knicks found a way to dominate a Roundball Wrap-up with being 10 games under .500. I am sorry folks, not a ton of injuries, Felton being a dumbass and Melo playing well. I do not make the rules here.

NBA's week in Images, GIFS, Instagram, Vine, Links, anything else. 

Honestly, I do not like to encourage Heat fans, but I found this kid hilarious.



Thomas Robinson had the block of the year.



Brad Stevens get the most calm ejection of all-time. Honestly, I have no idea what he did wrong there.



DIRKUS CIRCUS STRIKES AGAIN.  

RT @HoustonRockets: @JHarden13 addresses media wearing the latest in a recent series of amazing shirts. #FlowerPower pic.twitter.com/BnAQJTTYdG
— Chris Herring (@HerringWSJ) February 24, 2014

It appears James Harden has stole my Grandma's couch.

Charlie. 

Sportandfashion-news Future NBA Power Rankings: 24.) - 20.)

by Adam Hatlak, edited by Charlie Tritschler.  

Late December/early January is generally when the NBA starts to heat up. For this NBA season, this is especially true. With all of the injuries to major stars and one of the most anticipated draft classes in recent memory coming up, the landscape of the NBA is in store for a major shakeup. Due to all the changes, now is a good time to look at what the NBA will look like for the next 3-5 years. These Power Rankings were made from a fan’s perspective including many different variables: probability of future success, likeability of organization, trust in front office, and ability to acquire/retain quality players. All of the criteria are applied for the next 3-5 years, as anything further into the future is increasingly more difficult to predict.  

24.) New York Knicks
Key Assets: Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, Iman Shumpert, Tim Hardaway Jr.

Reason for Hope: Despite questions about his leadership ability, and chances to ever win a title, Anthony is still a major player in the NBA. Along with a player of Anthony’s stature, comes the ability to get hot at the right time, and have a player take over at the end of games. Additionally, if the Knicks ever get salary cap flexibility, Anthony and the New York market, will be able to attract free agents. If Chandler can stay healthy, he still can be a defensive anchor and rebounding machine. Shumpert and Hardaway are nice young wing players, especially if the team is able to limit their roles.

Reason for Concern: Melo can be a free agent, and seems like the type of player who might be willing to jump ship to a new situation. Amar'e Stoudemire unfortunately never seems like he is going to get back to the player he once was. Chandler continues to get older, and as one of the players who came straight to the league out of high school, he has more miles on his legs than his age may indicate. Shumpert and Hardaway seem to be the only young players that have a future with the Knicks, and both seem likely to be traded for immediate help. To top it all off, the Knicks have given away so many of their draft picks; they will not be able to take advantage of their own potential lottery situations.

Key Decision Looming: Does Melo stay? There have been rumors that the Knicks are interested in trading Anthony, as well as reports that Anthony would be interested signing elsewhere as a free agent such as Chicago or Los Angeles Lakers. Anthony tried so hard to get sent to New York while he was in Denver, but it seems that the partnership is near its end. The Knicks need him to resign with the team even with questions about his ability to win a championship since he is their best chance at getting there with so few assets of value for the future. The Knicks would be wise to either trade him for a superstar or sign him to a max contract again.

23.) Los Angeles Lakers
Key Assets: Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Steve Nash.

Reason for Hope: While the end of his career is near, any team with Kobe Bryant is not out of the race; his sheer competitiveness and ability to take over a game needs to be respected until he retires. If Bryant is willing to be a sidekick to either a new superstar, or a young player developing, the Lakers could rise in the standings. Despite all the trades they made to put together a super team, Lakers have their draft pick this season therefore they will be able to get a stud if they place high in the lottery. If Gasol is able to improve his game slightly over the next few weeks, he could bring a decent haul of future assets, or prove capable of being a leader at a reduced cost in the future. Although the key free agents might not be available this year for the Lakers, the cap situation in L.A. is clean enough that they will be ready to get a few key free agents in the next couple of years to propel the next great Lakers team.

Reason for Concern: Bryant is old and injured, Gasol is old, and likely on his way out, and Nash is old and injured, but other than that, the veterans on the Lakers are in good shape. It is no surprise to anyone that follows the league that Los Angeles are in trouble moving forward. There are valid concerns Bryant will ever be able to get back to the player that was able to carry a team to the playoffs, much less go far in those playoffs, and Lakers have an uphill climb to find players to surround him enough to support him. Bryant’s salary is also huge, and he, Nash, and Robert Sacre are the few players that are signed long-term. Gasol has been unhappy the past few seasons in Los Angeles, and likely could find a contender that would utilize him in an offense he is happier with, a fact that could potentially cause Gasol to move on.

Key Decision Looming: When does Gasol leave? It has been years since the Lakers first tried to trade Gasol, and since then the team has been littered with rumors about him going to another team. This season has been no different, as he was rumored to potentially leave town for the right to waive Andrew Bynum’s contract. Gasol's performance slightly dwindled  as he has aged and played in a system he is not comfortable in. If the Lakers can move him at the deadline, they should, but he might not bring back any value. It is likely Gasol will leave town as a free agent, and we can only hope that he does not resign with the Lakers creating all sorts of new rumors for the rest of his career.

22.) Memphis Grizzlies
Key Assets: Marc Gasol, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph, Ed Davis.

Reason for Hope: Defense is one of the most predictable aspects of basketball, and the team has plus defensive players at two very important positions, center and point guard. Conley appeared to take a step forward in last year’s playoffs, and has assumed a bigger role since the departure of Rudy Gay. Gasol gets a lot of credit for his defensive prowess, but he also has an underrated offensive game, possessing great court vision for a big man. The team’s front office placed a greater emphasis on analytics within the last year, a decision that may be able to add a few wins above what their talent level suggests they’re at right now.

Reason for Concern: This team got old very quickly, as it seems like just a few years ago, they were an under the radar contender. Randolph is still a beast in the post, but he is losing some of his ability to carry a team, something that is necessary when players like Gasol are lost. It was a wise move to get rid of Gay and his inefficient offensive game, but they have struggled to replace the wing scoring with the likes of Mike Miller and Tayshaun Prince. Quincy Pondexter’s injury did nobody any favors, and the team seems very thin now. Potentially the biggest issue is that this team seems destined for dreaded NBA purgatory, not bad enough to win the lottery, not a big enough market to attract a star free agent, not enough cap space to over pay a star, and not enough talent to sneak into the conference finals. After a few fun years of playoff basketball, Memphis is in trouble.

Key Decision Looming: When is it time to let go? The Grizzlies rise to being a contender was fun to watch, they played good defense, they had a fun identity, but they were still underdogs. Unfortunately time and the salary cap has caught up with them. Rudy Gay was already traded from the team, and it seems that Randolph’s remaining time is limited. Do the Grizzlies continue trying to add to this season and next, hoping to recapture what they had or chose instead to invest in the future, hoping to make a run in a few years. It might be smarter to play for the future, as Gasol and Conley could conceivably be veteran leaders for a future Grizzlies team. 

21.) Utah Jazz 
Key Assets: Derrick Favors, Trey Burke, Gordon Hayward, Alec Burks, Enes Kanter, 2 first round picks in 2014.

Reason for Hope: Thankfully for the Jazz, they are no longer stuck in the middle of the Western Conference. With Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap, this was a team that was having issues getting a high lottery pick, as they would contend for the eighth seed in the playoffs. Luckily they will have a high pick this season. Favors appears to be a potential defensive anchor in the middle, and Hayward and Burks still have some potential if not the main option on offense. Burke has a lot of potential, and could be a very capable leading point guard in the future. There is still a lot of young potential in Utah, they need one star in order to fulfill it, and that player may be coming this draft.

Reason for Concern: Two years ago, this team would have been much higher on this list, and losing Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson is not what knocks them down, they were expected to leave. Millsap and Jefferson were allowed to leave so that Favors and Enes Kanter could finally get the opportunity to play more minutes, ideally developing into legit building blocks. Favors has fared better than Kanter, but both have failed to exceed expectations, as the team is off to a slow start. Burks and Hayward seem to be slow to develop as well, a troubling sign for such a young team. The team may look to move on from Ty Corbin soon, as he has underwhelmed as coach, and the team lacks development.

Key Decision Looming: Who do they draft in the 2014 NBA Draft? Utah currently projects to pick in the first three of the upcoming draft. Who they select will determine the future of this franchise. There are bound to be some busts in this draft, but selecting high should help the Jazz avoid that. Ideally, they would be able to select Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker, since they desperately need a star on the wing rather than help at point guard or center.

20.) Washington Wizards
Key Assets: John Wall, Bradley Beal, Nene.

Reason for Hope: The Wizards have played well this season, and that gives fans a lot of hope. They have one of the most promising young backcourts, with Wall and Beal providing a solid one-two punch. If both can continue to improve, and even rise to stardom, this team can go far in a weak Eastern Conference. Nene brought a toughness to the Wizards, and when he is on his game, he proves to be one of the better inside presences in the conference. Depending on the matchup, the Wizards might be able to make it to the second round of the playoffs, something that many fans would not have considered an option before the Martin Gortat trade.

Reason for Concern: Wall has been better this season, but still brings doubts as to whether he can be the face of a contending franchise, and is now being paid like he should be. Both he and Beal form a potentially dominant backcourt, but both have had some issues with injuries. Speaking of injuries, Nene is one of their best players, but injuries have troubled him throughout his career, making it tough to see him anchoring the post for this team long term. The Wizards gave up their next first round pick in order to get Marcin Gortat, who can leave after this season, if they are unable to resign him to a reasonable deal, the trade could end up a huge waste.

Key Decision Looming: How do they acquire one more sidekick for Wall? Nene, Beal, and Wall is not enough to truly contend, regardless if the young guys improve, but Washington is going to face some difficulties acquiring players necessary to take the next step. Free agency seems like the best option now that they are without their first round pick this year, since it was used to acquire Gortat. If they can upgrade at small forward, this team may take a leap, but finding someone is the true question.

To The NBA Schedule... Straight Flexin' Needed

Everyone who looks forward to Christmas Day basketball found a lump of coal in their stocking. The games were not very good despite on paper in October looking like five fantastic matchups. Brooklyn-Chicago was derailed by no Derrick Rose and a piss poor Brooklyn team. Oklahoma City-New York did not live up to its billing due to no Carmelo Anthony on an already pathetic New York Knicks team. Los Angeles Lakers are without Kobe Bryant, but thankfully, they had Swaggy P and LeBron James' dunks to keep people entertained in the third game. But people were still mad about the games.



ESPN's own staff, Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose, talked about how flexing games in lieu to the pathetic teams playing on Christmas. Reggie Miller had a tweet saying Portland, Phoenix and Indiana are teams that should have been playing on Christmas Day. I hate to break it to the pundits, but not playing on Christmas Day is a relief for some players as they get to spend a couple days away from basketball and with their family. They cannot just say in early December... PORTLAND!  INDIANA!  ABC CHRISTMAS DAY!!!!!!!  That just cannot happened, but we can change the NBA schedule for the month of January.

This needs to happen with where we are with the Eastern Conference as well as how bad Brooklyn and
New York are right now. As you will see with the schedule, there are two primetime games with Cleveland and Utah plus a bunch of horrific Nets and Knicks games. NBA commissioner David Stern can close out his career by creating a new-age flex system.  Couple things to think about here...

-If the game is at a different time, ESPN, TNT or ABC can probably move it with notice or play the game at that time. This is a real simple fix honestly.

- The NBA can make the call on flexing games on Sunday of the week before meaning they could chose a hot team or keep a game if there is a streak involved. Further if a team on their flex radar starts fading off, they can make a keep or chose another game.

- Unless the game is going to ABC, local broadcasts can still have the game as well. They can blackout ESPN or TNT in the local markets therefore ratings are not taken away.

- If a team is seven or more games under .500, they should not be featured... Period. New York and Brooklyn do not drive the meter for any NBA fan right now. Anthony is a great player, fine, but I will not rush to my television to see them. If I get more Portland or Indiana in primetime, I will be watching without question.

To indicate how bad it has been this season, here are days and games where they need a flex.

Friday January 10th 
Miami at Brooklyn 7:00 pm.
Potential Flex Games - Indiana at Washington, Dallas at New Orleans, Phoenix at Memphis

Wednesday January 14th
Utah at San Antonio 7:00 pm
Potential Flex Games - Toronto at Boston, Miami at Washington

Friday January 17th
LA Clippers at New York 6:00 pm
Potential Flex Games - Portland at San Antonio (No real reason why this happens honestly)

Monday January 19th
Brooklyn at New York 1:30 pm...
Potential Flex Games - LA Clippers at Detroit, Miami at Atlanta

LA Lakers at Chicago 7:00 pm...
Potential Flex Games - Portland at Houston

Wednesday January 21st
Chicago at Cleveland 6:00 pm
Potential Flex Games - Indiana at Phoenix -

Friday January 24th
LA Clippers at Chicago 7:00 pm.
Potential Flex Games - San Antonio at Atlanta, Oklahoma City at Boston

Sunday January 26th
LA Lakers at New York 2:30 pm....
Potential Flex Games - Portland at Golden State (C'mon ABC, pleeeeeeeassee)

Brooklyn at Boston 5:30 pm...
Potential Flex Games - Detroit at Dallas

Thursday January 30th
Cleveland at New York 7:00 pm.
Potential Flex Games - Phoenix at Indiana

Friday January 31st
Oklahoma City at Brooklyn 7:00 pm.
Potential Flex Games - Toronto at Denver

Golden State at Utah 9:30 pm
Potential Flex Games - Charlotte at LA Lakers (This is where it has gotten with the NBA. I would rather watch Bobcats instead of Utah).

NBA is a cruel world, and they still want New York on television. But this needs to end. I understand the league wants to diverse group of teams instead of a small few. But still this could open it up for more teams to get more primetime attention.

Charlie.

DOY: Reggie Jackson

We should all be very #blessed that amid the horrible basketball played for 80 percent on Christmas Day we still got a DOY.  This belonged to Reggie Jackson of the Oklahoma City Thunder. I could make some joke about his namesake and New York City, but I will chose to leave it alone.  I knew Jackson had some hops, but I did not he could do them like he did on Amar'e Stoudemire late in the Thunder's blowout win against the Knicks. I have to think the old STAT probably blocks Jackson's shot, but since right now, Amar'e plays and looks like the old man who should hang it up at the gym, it figured he would get dunked on by Jackson. The Boston College product had a nice game off the bench with 18 points.

Charlie.

Bucks Buzz: December 19 "Embrace the Tank"

Every week Mitch Pratt and Charlie Tritschler talk about the Milwaukee Bucks. Charlie handles the weekend games while Mitch handles the games during the week.  We are both members of the tank.

Quick Recap:

Wednesday vs. New York: Knicks 107 Bucks 101 (2OT) - Wednesday began with some great breaking news from Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski that the Bucks' were close to moving rookie Giannis Antetokounmpo into the starting lineup. He didn't really specify when or how soon but then when the Bucks' social media train got rolling with Giannis content, you knew it was pretty much a forgone conclusion that he would be in the lineup Wednesday night against the visiting Knicks. 

Sure enough, he was in the starting five along with several other of the young Bucks like John Henson, Brandon Knight and Khris Middleton. With all the injuries to the vets and the fact that the vets are just garbage, for the most part, the team has seemed to finally embrace the youth and thus, embracing the tank in the process. There seems to be a great debate among the die-hards that the Bucks might lose slip up in their draft position if they go younger. I don't think we have much to fear there. Giannis has a pretty decent impact in the game I suppose, but he's still quite young and makes plenty of mistakes. Sure, Brandon Knight had 36 points last night but it's becoming more and more clear to me by the day that he's not an NBA point guard. I needn't go further than pointing out his 3:8 assist to turnover ratio. He seems to like to put his head down and over-penetrate when he's got the ball. This team is just flat out missing a go-to scorer in the worst way. OJ Mayo leads the team in PPGZ at 13.9. That's pathetic. 

Giannis locking down Carmelo Anthony

Speaking of pathetic, can we talk about how bad the Knicks are? There's a lot of season left and they have enough talent in a weak East to get into the 4 or 5 seed discussion by March but they are just so mentally weak and full of head cases. A 19 year and 13 day old Giannis practically shows more poise and composure than 'Melo or Ron Artest, who somehow continues to avoid jail time. Giannis talked after the game about how Carmelo likes to bully players and that he "talks too much" which I thought was great. For the record, Giannis held his own while guarding Carmelo (see picture) and showed a lot of fire and grit in this one. His passion is what the Bucks have been missing for a long time, probably since Bogut was healthy and playing in prime form.

Appropriate YouTube video: "Green and Growing" - This is a song that was recorded back in the 1970s after the Bucks traded Lew Alcindor for several young players and marketed the youth. This was during a prior ownership, of course. This might be what we are finally seeing from Herb Kohl. He must have given the green light to start Giannis finally.

Links

The guys from SaveOurBucks.com are having a party at the Loaded Slate in downtown Milwaukee to commemorate their billboard going up. It's happening Monday night, December 23. Pro wrestler and Milwaukee native Austin Aries will be the "celebrity" in attendance. He's apparently a die hard Bucks fan and is on board SaveOurBucks. Very cool.

This is a link to a video of Andrea Bargnani's stupid decision to launch a three immediately after the Knicks got an offensive rebound with just seconds left in the game. All he had to do was hold on to the ball and take his free throws and Knicks get out of there with a win an hour earlier, but he doesn't know what else to do with the ball. Instead, they need two extra periods to stave off the worst team in the league. Well done.

I'd really like to link a video of the nifty alley-oop that Giannis threw to John Henson, but I can't find one. Should be seeing a lot of that some years to come.

What to watch

I've touched on this before but now that Giannis has started a game, it'll be interesting to see what they do with some of the vets or if Giannis gets another start. Khris Middleton has earned the right to be a mainstay in the starting five but so has Giannis. If there's one odd man out, in my opinion, it's OJ Mayo who conveniently had a funeral to attend so he wasn't at the game on Wednesday night. I don't think anyone noticed to be honest but you're paying this guy $8 million a year.

What's next?

The Bucks will head to Cleveland on Thursday afternoon for their game on Friday night at the Cavs. The Cavaliers have been playing much better over the past few weeks and should be a tough matchup for the Bucks. Then, Saturday night they return home to face the reeling Sixers. That game will be huge for the tank.

-Big Money

DOY: Jan Vesely

Every now and then, you get a DOY that you cannot believe it is possible, but yes, Jan Vesely has a Dunked On You under his belt. It is incredible and might deserve a lunch time drink because I am absolutely astonished he was able to make this dunk.  These were Vesely's only points of the night so he made it worth it. When we do a Vesely mixtape it will be this dunk, him fouling and making out with his girlfriend at the NBA Draft. I would be remiss if I did not mention the pass thrown by former Milwaukee Bucks guard Garrett Temple as he dropped a complete dime.  I cannot believe we live in a world where Vesely is dunking on people.

Charlie.