A crush of rumors about the future of the Toronto point guard position has been months in the making, first spurred by Jose Calderon's masterful work during T.J. Ford's unfortunate injury absence, then stoked by Ford's (quiet) bristling at coming off the bench behind Calderon. Some Bryan Colangelo comments captured by the Toronto Sun's Frank Zicarelli offer the strongest evidence Ford will be on the market this summer.

Colangelo understands and applauds Ford's desire to be No. 1, but at the same time Colangelo is going to do what's best for the Raptors. "At the end of the day it's how can he and Jose co-exist,'' Colangelo said. "If, in fact, that's a possibility."

Colangelo then added some very telling words. "It's a very safe assumption that Jose will be back in a Raptor uniform."

Calderon's a restricted free agent, and (unless Shawn Marion or Elton Brand opt out) no team will head into July with both cap space and a pressing need at point guard. If that's the case, the only thing that would stop the Raptors from keeping Calderon is Calderon demanding too much money (something that, for some reason, seems unlikely).

Ford's the guy to go, and plenty of towns would invite the upgrade ... for the right price. Injury concerns related to his tricky spine will never disappear; still, he's a fantastic point guard -- one of the fastest guys in the league and an always improving shooter, distributor and passing-lane disruptor. The Knicks, Heat, Clippers (depending on Shaun Livingston), and Kings (depending on Beno Udrih) make sense, on first glance. (Whether Colangelo chases Mike D'Antoni could affect this whole scenario, as well.)

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded NBA Correspondent, brings his exclusive NBA reporting to FanHouse. Check back here regularly for more videos.

In this video, Lakers star Derek Fisher shares with FanHouse something few people know about his pregame routine. Around 2:05 into the video a veteran NBA Pastor tells us how faith saved his life.


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We had two ties among the lottery ranks as of Thursday morning, but the league settled those late Friday. Minnesota and Memphis had been tied with the third worst record, and New York and the Clippers had shared 5th place in Bizarro World. The coin picked the Wolves and Knicks as victors in their flippin' wars.

It means little in a practical sense going into the lottery. For instance, Minnesota will have 138 combinations out of 1,000; Memphis will have 137. The difference is 0.1%. Where the real impact comes, though, is at the June draft. If the lottery holds everyone to form, Minnesota picks third, Memphis picks fourth, New York picks fifth, and L.A. picks sixth. The lowest Minnesota can pick is sixth; Memphis could drop to seventh. It's a bit of difference.

And while this is less serious than dropping out of the Top 3 on draft day, or losing LeBron James to a blind man, Memphis continues to be snake-bitten in these draft proceedings. Remember, the Grizz finished with the worst record in the league last year, but got lotto-leaped by Portland, Seattle, and Atlanta. In 2004, the Grizzlies owed Detroit its lotto pick unless it was the #1 pick. The Grizzlies won the #2 pick, which became Carmelo Anthony Dwyane Wade Chris Bosh ... nevermind.

Previously at FanHouse:
Kings Sending Lucky (Hopefully) Fan to Lottery

The Sonics decided to win out (two-game win streak! woo!), while Memphis and the Knicks stoked the Derby fire with nothin' but losses to finish out the year. All the developments of the past few days have been tallied, and here's your Ping Pong Derby: Final Report.



Miami ends up with a 25% shot at Pick #1, and a 64% probability of getting a Top 3 pick. They cannot fall further than 4th. Seattle's got a 20% chance at #1, and a 56% probability of sticking in the Top 3.

The two ties make things ... interesting. The league will flip a coin in each case later this week. The result will have no real bearing on the lottery proceedings on May 20 -- Minnesota and Memphis, for example, will split the balls available for the #3 and #4 teams. If it's an odd number, the coin flip winner will take the extra one. But the coin flip does have serious import with regards to draft order. A Minnesota coin flip win means Minnesota picks ahead of Memphis, unless Memphis vaults into the Top 3 by way of lottery win. It also means the lowest Minnesota could pick would be #6, while Memphis could fall as low as #7.

The same goes for New York and the Clippers. Last season, there was a three-way tie between New York, Charlotte, and Sacramento for #8. The coin flip results ended with Charlotte picking #8, New York giving Chicago its #9 pick, and Sacramento picking #10. That's a pretty big difference. The gulf between #3 and #4 (or #5 and #6) doesn't seem to be as large, but if some prospect comes out and wows everyone next month, this coin flip could end being huge.

Previously on FanHouse:
Ping Pong Derby Update: The Knicks Falter
Miami Wins Ping Pong Derby
Miami Takes Lead in Ping Pong Derby

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded NBA Correspondent, brings his exclusive NBA reporting to FanHouse. Check back here regularly for more videos.

In this video we learn something about Kobe Bryant that even his own Lakers teammates don't know about. Also in this report watch as our camera goes on the beat with LAPD's Southwest Gang Unit officers. While around 3:44 into the video, Allen Iverson gives his take on street gangs.


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As we head into the final four days of the regular season, all the proverbial marbles are at stake for the six teams battling at the bottom of the standings. Your updated Ping Pong Derby scoreboard:



Minnesota wrested sole possession of third place from Memphis, sending the Grizz careening toward the Knicks and ... the insurgent Clippers! The Knicks, of course, could be in the 4th slot and battling for #3 (and its 50% shot for a top-3 pick). Instead, we might see the Knicks end up with only the sixth worst record in the league. Bummer.

We should note that last year's #4, 5 and 6 teams in the derby ended up with the top 3 picks ... in reverse order. (#6 Portland got #1 overall, #5 Seattle earned the second pick, and #4 Atlanta got the third pick.) Of course, the Grizz, Knicks, and Clips would be counting on lightning striking in the same spot twice.

Previously on FanHouse:
Miami Wins Ping Pong Derby
Miami Takes Lead in Ping Pong Derby

After being courtside for last night's game between the Nuggets and Clippers, I headed to the locker room to get some post-game comments form the winning team. Seeing as how Carmelo Anthony completely dominated in carrying his team to victory, it's no surprise that he was in a great mood and was more than happy to offer up some great quotes.

It took a while for Melo to get around to speaking to the media, or even showering for that matter. He seemed content to sit at his locker and ice down, just basking in the glow of his great performance. This did not sit well with Allen Iverson, who, in a big brotherly way, repeatedly told Melo to get in the shower so they could go. Melo told A.I. not to talk to him like that, and Iverson said he didn't like to talk to him like that, but that "you don't listen unless I talk crazy." Melo sat there during Iverson's interviews and (in between singing a few bars of Pretty Woman) cheered him on by chiming in, "tell 'em, son!" more than a couple of times.

Melo was the last to be interviewed, and here's some of what he had to say.

The Los Angeles Clippers are not the Dallas Mavericks. While this may not be great news for their fans, it is great news for bloggers. Unlike a certain owner of a team in Dallas, the Clippers welcome my kind, and thanks to them I'm here courtside to report on tonight's game. I'll be bringing you updates at halftime and after the game, so stay tuned for all the action.

Pre-game: This is an important game for Denver, because as of right now they find themselves tied with the Warriors for the eighth and final playoff spot. After two unexpected losses, the team really can't afford to lose to a Clippers team that isn't playing at full strength. Especially with a monumental game against the Warriors looming on Thursday.

George Karl seemed as exasperated as any fan of the Nuggets during his pre-game comments. He put a positive spin on the pressure his team's facing by saying that "pressure is a privilege," and that a lot of teams would welcome the chance to be in their position. He also felt that his team didn't play all that badly, especially against Seattle where he mentioned that "they beat us with a couple of lucky shots."

On the Nuggets chalkboard, defense was what was being stressed, for obvious reasons. The goal Karl set for his team was to hold the opposition to 20-point quarters, and to be active and aggressive for 48 minutes.

Chucky Atkins, when asked why he wasn't getting in some shooting before the game, said that there was no need because "his [stuff] was hot" tonight. We'll see if he starts out that way. On the Clippers' side, Quinton Ross seemed a bit tired in the locker room, which might be bad news since he's likely to be matched up against Allen Iverson.

With just nine days left in the regular season, it's time to start figuring out who's going to be taking home the end of the year awards. Your FanHouse crew has started to do exactly that, and in today's first installment, we take a look at who might be crowned the league's Most Improved Player.

Five of us named our top three choices, and the consensus results came out like this:

1. Hedo Turkoglu
2. Andrew Bynum
3. Rudy Gay, Chris Kaman (tie)

Hedo received three first place votes, while Andrew Bynum and Rudy Gay received one apiece. The other players that we had in the conversation were Rajon Rondo, Mike Dunleavy, Jose Calderon, Manu Ginobili, and even Monta Ellis as a possible repeat offender.

Like many awards, there is always a debate on what defines "Most Improved." Some would say that it has to be a player that comes out of nowhere to be recognized as a top performer, while others would contest that a star that rises to superstar status (like Ginobili or Chris Paul) should be eligible. I think Hedo Turkoglu this year is a nice combination of those two schools of thought.

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded NBA Correspondent, brings his exclusive NBA reporting to FanHouse. Check back here regularly for more videos.

In this video Marcus Williams tells about the origin of the Martin Luther King quote tattooed across this chest, but the interview really gets interesting around 1:50, when Smush overhears him downplaying the talent coming out of New York.


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