Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers are closer to a reunion.
A person with knowledge of the contract talks says the Sixers offered a one-year, non-guaranteed contract to Iverson on Tuesday. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the contract talks had not been made public.
Iverson, his agent and business manager met with team president Ed Stefanski, coach Eddie Jordan and two other members of the organization Monday during the first formal meeting between the Sixers and their former MVP.
Iverson announced his retirement last week after an ill-fated stint with the Memphis Grizzlies. The 10-time All-Star was NBA MVP in 2001 when he led the Sixers to the NBA Finals.
The Cleveland Cavaliers and the Phoenix Suns have come to an agreement on a huge trade that will send Shaquille O’Neal to Cleveland to team with LeBron James, according to sources.
The deal has been agreed to in principle and is expected to be finalized Thursday, according to sources.
Sources said the Suns will also receive the 46th pick in Thursday’s NBA draft and $500,000.
The Lakers earned their 15th title as Kobe Bryant scored 30 points and Pau Gasol added 14 and 15 rebounds in a 99-86 Game 5 win over the Orlando Magic.
It took longer than Bryant expected, but he has stepped out from behind Shaquille O’Neal’s shadow. His fourth championship strongly suggests that Kobe Bryant might be the league’s best player since Michael Jordan.
Bryant said of the constant Shaq comparisons:
“It was like Chinese water torture,” he said. “I would cringe every time. I was just like, it’s a challenge I’m just going to have to accept because there’s no way I’m going to argue it. You can say it until you’re blue in the face and rationalize it until you’re blue in the face, but it’s not going anywhere until you do something about it.
NBA betting odds have the LA Lakers -12 at home in NBA odds for Game 5 against the Rockets with a betting total of 198. Aaron Brooks scored a career-high 34 points in Game 4 while Shane Battier added 23 points to help the Rockets demolish the spread as 7.5 point NBA betting underdogs.
“I think everyone but us got the memo that we weren’t supposed to show up today without Yao,” Battier said.
The Rockets led by as many as 29 points and the Lakers looked nothing like a potential NBA champ. Pau Gasol scored 30 points and Kobe Bryant had 15 for a Lakers team that looked disinterested. Head coach Phil Jackson had warned his players but they didn’t listen.
“They didn’t anticipate the energy that they were going to come with,” Jackson said. “But you say as much as you can as a coach and then the players have to execute and do it on the floor.”
The Lakers could be facing more difficulty on Tuesday as forward Lamar Odom was injured in Game 4 and did not return. He missed practice on Monday but still may play on Tuesday. If you are looking to see who will win Game 5 you might only need to watch the first quarter. The team that has led at the end of the first quarter has won all 10 of Houston’s playoff games.
Top 5 Point Guards
1. Chris Paul
2. Deron Williams
3. Chauncey Billups
4. Gilbert Arenas
5. Steve Nash
Top 5 Shooting Guards
1. Kobe Bryant
2. Dwyane Wade
3. Tracy McGrady
4. Vince Carter
5. Manu Ginobli
Top 5 Small Forwards
1. LeBron James
2. Carmelo Anthony
3. Paul Pierce
4. Caron Butler
5. Andre Iguodala
Top 5 Power Forwards
1. Kevin Garnett
2. Chris Bosh
3. Dirk Nowitski
4. Carlos Boozer
5. Pau Gasol
Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers has announced that star forward Kevin Garnett might not be available to play for the entire playoffs.
The Boston Globe is reporting that Rivers stated in an interview this morning that “there’s no way he can play,” but did leave open the chance that he might return at some point in the postseason.
Unfortunately, that return is unlikely as Garnett was having trouble running in Wednesday morning’s practice due to his injured right knee. Rivers said that Garnett will continue to get treatment and if it goes well he might be able to return to play at a later date in the playoffs.
The All-Star had already missed a full month of action due to a posterior muscle strain of his right knee, but he returned on March 20 and played the next four games. However, after playing at Orlando on March 25, he has sat out Boston’s final nine games of the season.
Yao Ming throws up this incredible behind-the-back flip shot that bounces in. Game is against the Memphis Grizzlies on October 29, 2008. Watch the video.
The Denver Nuggets traded All-Star guard Allen Iverson to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess. Detroit Pistons center Cheick Samb also will go to Denver to make the salaries match in the trade. Iverson was traded to Denver in December 2006 but was not able to help Carmelo Anthony lift the Nuggets out of the first round of the playoffs in his two seasons there.
The trade gives the Pistons salary-cap flexibility at the end of the season. Iverson’s contract, which pays him $21.9 million this season, expires in July. Billups is owed $36.3 million over the next three seasons and has an additional $14.2 million team option for 2011-12. McDyess will make $6.8 million each of the next two seasons.
An autopsy by the state medical examiner’s office has confirmed that former Portland Trail Blazer Kevin Duckworth died last week of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with congestive heart failure. Cardiomyopathy is a primary disease of the heart that, along with Duckworth’s high blood pressure, resulted in enlargement of his heart, which had been failing for some time.
The former Blazers center and two-time NBA All-Star died last Monday night in Lincoln County.
The Depoe Bay Fire Department responded to a report about 10 p.m. that night of an unconscious man at Salishan Lodge. Paramedics worked on Duckworth for 30 minutes but he never regained consciousness. He appeared to have gone into cardiac arrest, officials said. He was pronounced dead at 10:23 p.m., said Lt. Dennis Knudson.
The City of Seattle and the Oklahoma City-based owners of the Seattle SuperSonics National Basketball Association franchise made the announcement that they have reached a settlement that will allow the team to break their lease and play their games in Oklahoma starting in November.
PBC will first pay $45 million to the City of Seattle and possibly another $30 million in five years. The contingency will not be paid if another NBA team settles in Seattle.
Another element of the settlement is that the franchise will not use the name Sonics or SuperSonics, the team logo or colors. A new name, logo and colors is to be announced soon.
