Hang in there, big guy

Greg Oden will likely be out for the rest of the season after fracturing his left knee cap in a collision with Rockets guard Aaron Brooks in the first quarter of a 90-89 Blazers win. After an MRI, the Blazers have reported he will need surgery and they have given no timetable for his return. The injury is yet another dent to Portland's roster, which has been plagued by injuries. Starting small forward Nicholas Batum needed shoulder surgery before the season began and forward Travis Outlaw fractured his right foot in November and will also undergo surgery. Guard Rudy Fernandez is also out with sciatic pain and is scheduled for an MRI.

You can't help but feel sorry for Oden after missing his entire rookie season and twenty some games last season. He seems like such a nice dude, who's worked hard to stay healthy. I've really wanted to see him succeed after all of the whispers that he's just another Sam Bowie. Sure, in hindsight the Blazers probably should have picked Kevin Durant instead of Oden, much like they should have picked Jordan instead of Bowie in '84, but you can't blame them for using their number one pick on a big man. Quality centers are so hard to come by these days and if Oden could stay healthy, I'm sure he would eventually develop into one of the best big men in the league. Oden was averaging 11.7 points and 8.8 rebounds as a starter this season, which aren't overwhelming numbers, but solid nonetheless. Plus, he affects games in ways that don't show up in the box score. For instance, his presence alone in the paint is enough to make players think twice about driving to the hoop. Coach Nate McMillain has even said that he was Portland's most consistent player so far this season, which is quite the compliment for such a deep team that features an All Star guard in Brandon Roy.

I hope that this setback will just motivate him to come back even stronger and more focused, but you can't help but wonder if Oden will ever be able to stay healthy for an entire season. At least he has an adorable dog to hang out with.

I'm ready to leave L.A. now

As some of you know, I'm in L.A. right now. After watching this game at a lame sports bar by

myself, I'm ready to come back to Ohio. God damn it, that was heartbreaking. Kobe even said it

was his luckiest shot.

LeBron James: The Making of an MVP

An excerpt from the new book LeBron James: The Making of an MVP by sportswriters Terry Pluto and Brian Windhorst of the Cleveland Plain Dealer has been featured on the ESPN blog Truehoop. The excerpt is from the 18th chapter of the book called "I Have to be 10 Times Better" and it describes LeBron's reaction to the Spurs sweeping the Cavs in the 2007 NBA Finals. It was an eye-opening moment for LeBron in which he realized the Cavs simply weren't good enough at the time to win it all. His response was to keep improving himself both on and off the court... some true motivational shit, if you will.

Cavs Suns

Lebron's game against the Suns on Wednesday was a typical bad game for James. He only took 15 shots for the game, making 6. He never really looked comfortable from the floor until that sick fall away shot he hit right before he came out. No other player affects the game like Lebron when having a bad game. He wasn't a scorer, but he didn't need to be. He had 8 rebounds and 10 assists on 3 turnovers. Now 8 rebounds might not seem like much for some teams, but the Cavs are such a great rebounding team 8 is no slouch for real. I mean look at the rest of the team: Shaq with 9, Hickson and Varejao with 8 as well. There are only so many opportunities for boards on a team like this, you can't take 'em from you own team... unless you're Zach Randolph. Seriously, you put Lebron on a team like Golden State and, I swear, he'd get at least 10 a game. Lebron's assist numbers are a career high and it's no wonder with the depth on this team: Anthony Parker can hit the open three, Shaq on the block, plus everyone from last year. I mean, sure Shaq is old (he kinda looks like George Foreman now, right?), but they only gave up Ben Wallace and Sascha Pavlovic to get him—that's a steal. Color me excited about the Lebronaliers! Look at that D! Held the best offensive team in the league, according to them John Holligner stats on espn.com, to only ninety points, ah ah ah, ah yeah.

It's official: Ron Artest is crazier than Ochocinco

Finally, we have a winner. I'm sure the battle will still go on, but with the latest news about Ron Artest, you can now rest assured that Ron Ron is crazier than Ochocinco. In an interview with Sporting News Magazine, Artest said that he used to drink Hennessy at halftime while playing for the Bulls. Seriously. Now, I know Chad Ochocinco is pretty crazy, but with this news, he now just seems eccentric relative to Artest. Ochocinco is going to have to go to great lengths to catch up to Ron on this one. I'm talking crystal meth or PCP during halftime.

In the interview, Ron discussed other crazy shit he did in his past, like being a "single" pimp as a 19-year-old attending St. John's. I don't know why he specifies that he was a single pimp (hence the quotes), as I thought all pimps were single, unless you count their bottom bitch as a significant other.

The ball's back in your court, Mustache. I'll be astounded if you find a way to rebound from this one. By the way, what's up in the NFL?

Can't spell Philadelphia without A.I.

In an unlikely reunion, Allen Iverson has officially signed with the Philadelphia 76ers. After playing for the Sixers for 10 years, his tenure ended in 2006 with him feuding with former head coach Maurice Cheeks and refusing to play the fourth quarter of his final game against the Bulls. And now, he's back after a brief "retirement" following a three game stint with the Memphis Grizzlies.

With guard Lou Williams out with a broken jaw and rookie Jrue Holiday the only other capable point guard, Iverson has been guaranteed a starting spot. Apparently, when coach Eddie Jordan told Iverson he would like for him to start, Iverson was "like a kid on Christmas." I'm sure if he had been told he wasn't starting he would have acted like a kid on X-Mas who didn't get a PSP, or whatever it is the kids want these days.

So, is this really a basketball move or a business move? Team president Ed Stefanski insists that it's not simply to improve Philly's poor tickets sales this season, but I think it's pretty obvious that it is a move to get the city excited for the team again. The Sixers have lost seven straight games and look to be on their way to a loss to 'Stache's OKC Thunder as I write this. Apparently it has the city buzzing, as people have been calling into radio stations to talk about the signing. Whatever the motivation is for this move, I can't say I blame the Sixers for giving it a try. It's not a huge risk financially, and I'm guessing that the transition will be easy for Iverson due to the nostalgia. And let's face it, the Sixers aren't contending for shit this year, so they might as well have done it in hopes of getting a return from ticket and jersey sales. And if it actually does help the team, great.

The last remaining question is whether Iverson's isolation style of play will fit in with coach Eddie Jordan's Princeton offense, which puts an emphasis on ball movement. The Sixers' marquee player Andre Iguodala has even brought up this very issue when questioned about Iverson prior to the signing. Will Eddie Jordan move forward with his offense or try to adapt to Iverson's style? Despite his reputation to dominate the ball, Iverson does have a career average of 6.2 assists per game, so maybe he can find a way to fit in. But you also have to take into account that he has averaged 41.4 minutes per game over his career, which inflates his stats. It will be interesting to see how it plays out. I just hope that this can lead to Iverson ending his career on a respectable note, because it has definitely been rough for him since arriving in Detroit, even if it is largely his own stubbornness that got him there.

In4mation & Vans team up for some fly shit

I'm in L.A. right now, so you can be sure I've seen my fair share of Vans around. In fact, I copped me a pair of navy suede Eras in the LBC. While I'm definitely still feeling my new kicks, this pair of Chukka Lows has got me craving another pair of Vans. Teaming up with the skateboarding company In4mation, Vans has delivered one fresh looking pair of sneakers right here. I'm really feeling the blue canvas with red accents and brown gum sole. The houndstooth interior is a nice touch as well. These will release December 12 at the In4mation retail store and their online store.

Check out Nice Kicks for more photos, as usual.