Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
The Detroit Red Wings equaled an NHL record with their 20th straight win at home, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night on the strength of Johan Franzen's tiebreaking goal early in the third period.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Arc: Syracuse is among a solid group of No. 1 seeds in our latest tournament projections, but the middle of the pack is much more murky.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods greeted their Sunday pairing at Pebble Beach with optimism. But the day would end happily only for one.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
ReutersThorn said he first noticed it in December, an indirect reference to an incident in which Kidd sat out a game against the New York Knicks with a migraine, a move some considered a one-day walkout to force a trade.
“Over the course of time it became very evident that his heart wasn’t in it,” Thorn said. “The kind of player he is, if his heart’s not in it then he’s not the same player, and it became evident to me that his heart wasn’t in it anymore. It just wasn’t going to work.”
This is the third big trade involving a Western Conference power as the teams prepare for the stretch run. Before the All-Star break, Shaquille O’Neal was dealt from Miami to Phoenix and Pau Gasol went from Memphis to the Los Angeles Lakers.
“We understand the competition is fierce, but we’re not afraid of the competition,” Mavericks coach Avery Johnson said.
Kidd’s arrival should be a boon to reigning MVP Dirk Nowitzki, providing him with the easy baskets he used to get when teamed with Steve Nash. His presence also will open things up for Josh Howard, plus let Jason Terry spend more time at shooting guard.
Harris’ numbers have gone up in each of his four seasons, helping him earn a five-year contract worth roughly $42 million before this season. However, he’s nowhere near the distributor Kidd is, nor is he liable to get a triple-double. He may eventually have that well-rounded of a game, but the Mavericks decided they couldn’t wait.
|
“We feel (Kidd’s) skill set can help us finish stronger, finish games better,” Johnson said. “Obviously he’s not the guy we’re going to lean on for points, points, points, points. He’s going to help us because at the end of games, he just knows how to win.”
Losing Diop hurts Dallas’ front line, as he is the primary backup to starting center Erick Dampier. However, Diop — who is a free agent after this season — had fallen out of favor lately.
Allen was averaging 5.4 points in almost 16 minutes per game for the Nets.
Dallas also announced it waived forward Nick Fazekas, the 34th pick last year.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Paul Pierce has been around long enough to know what Rajon Rondo's performance can mean for the aging Boston Celtics.
 | Video |
 |
Eye on the Prize Feb. 19: Jason Kidd wasn't shy in admitting that he's got his focus on a championship in Dallas. |
ProBasketballTalk tweets |
|
Source: Twitter. For more, follow @basketballtalk. |
 | Video: NBA from NBC Sports |
 Knicks, Lin still streaking Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni and point guard Jeremy Lin discuss the team and Lin's recent success. |
 | Slideshow |
 |
more photos |
Ask the NBA expert: Ira Winderman |
Do you have a burning NBA question? Submit it now, and then check back for our reader mailbag. |  |
 | Special feature |
 |
Who will be MVP? Interactive: Rank each player on a scale of 0 to 10 (10 = best player, 0 = barely worthy of consideration). NBCSports.com |
| Slideshow |
 |
more photos |
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
