NBA Insider with Ken Berger

Ron Artest isn't even a Houston Rocket officially and there's already trouble brewing. Check out this story by Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.

According to Feigen's story, Yao has some doubts about Artest fitting in. And in typical Ron Artest fashion, there was a response to that.

Oh boy.

Seriously, I've had my doubts about this working out when I first heard about it.

I really like Artest's game and he brings plenty to the arena each night. But this Rockets team doesn't really need him. Artest will take away minutes from Shane Battier, the team's best defender. Artest is also a solid defender, but he likes to score too. Does that mean Tracy McGrady will give up some of his shots each game? And Yao needs to score for the Rockets to be effective.

The Rockets added Brent Barry and they have Chuck Hayes and Carl Landry off the bench. Luther Head is a capable third guard. The Rockets didn't lose to the Jazz in the first round of the playoffs because they didn't have Artest. Houston lost because Yao was injured and the rest of the team was banged up. Plus, McGrady couldn't carry the scoring load for the whole series. Maybe that is impacting this decision to get Artest.

I think the Rockets shouldn't mess with the chemistry they have. The Rockets really pulled together when Yao went out for the season. They went on that incredible run.

A starting five of Alston, McGrady, Yao, Battier and Luis Scola is formidable. The bench is better than average.

Maybe Houston thinks they need to keep up with the L.A. Lakers and New Orleans. The Lakers will add Andrew Bynum to the starting lineup this season and the Hornets added veteran James Posey, a proven big-game player and winner. Plus, San Antonio hasn't really done much in the offseason and could be vulnerable. Maybe that's the thinking in Houston.

-- MIKE ROSE

Now that the Bulls have agreed in principle to a six-year, $71 million extension for Luol Deng, they can move onto other business. That business could include trading Andres Nocioni.

The Bulls and Nets were involved in talks last week about a sign-and-trade scenario involving Nenad Krstic and Andres Nocioni as the key pieces. One person familiar with the talks said the deal never gained any traction, and thus Krstic opted to sign with a Russian team.

Next, the Bulls could be looking to take advantage of the Kings' apparent desire to unload contracts by offering Nocioni to Sacramento for Brad Miller, a second person familiar with the situation said. Kings coach Reggie Theus is said to be none too pleased with the organization's decision to trade Ron Artest to Houston, because he knows that signals the end of trying to compete for a playoff spot and the beginning of another potentially ugly rebuilding period. Hey Reggie, now you know how Knicks fans feel ...

Tim Donaghy was sentenced to 15 months in prison, Ron Artest is headed to Houston, Luol Deng is staying in Chicago, and the Knicks just traded Renaldo Balkman to the Nuggets.

You have questions. Ken Berger has the answers today in a live chat at 1 p.m.

Here's something we didn't get to last night with all the Donaghy fallout and Ron Artest getting dealt to Houston: Luol Deng, who has been in a contract dispute with the Bulls for almost a year, is close to agreeing on a six-year, $71 million extension.

Marc Stein has chapter and verse here. I spoke with someone connected to the Deng impasse last week, and that person didn't seem optimistic at all that a deal would get done. Things change, things change.

UPDATED 2:18 p.m.: Spoke with someone familiar with the Deng negotiations and confirmed that the deal has been agreed to in principle -- six years, $71 million. The Bulls apparently responded to Deng's two-week deadline for completing an extension for two reasons: they didn't want to endure a season-long contract headache as they did with Deng and Ben Gordon last season, and they couldn't make any more deals until the Deng situation was resolved.

Ron Artest is getting his wish. He's headed out of Sacramento to Houston in a stunning deal that instantly makes the Rockets more interesting, controversial, and dangerous all at the same time.

We'll delve into this more tomorrow. But for now, the Houston Chronicle first reported that the Rockets are giving up guard Bobby Jackson, a first-round pick and another player for Artest. Here's the link to Jonathan Feigen's story.

The other player going to Sacramento who hasn't been reported yet is rookie forward Donte Greene, a league executive with knowledge of the deal told Newsday. There could be other pieces, but those are the essential ones.

No question Artest will thrive under Rick Adelman. And little doubt he will provide the kick in the ___ Tracy McGrady needs to be great, not just good. Artest does not tolerate a) losing, or b) lack of effort, with the emphasis on b. More on this tomorrow. Makes things A LOT more interesting in the West.

With word Tuesday that Lawrence Pedowitz, the former federal prosecutor who has authored a report on the NBA officiating scandal, isn't ready to release it yet, a simple question was raised: What is he waiting for?

Pedowitz, commissioned by the NBA to conduct the top-to-bottom review, said in a statement released after Tim Donaghy was sentenced this afternoon that he was "conducting additional interviews" and hopes to "obtain additional information from the government. My review is well-advanced but not complete. I have no final date at this time for the issuance of my report.”

The NBA and its commissioner, David Stern, have promised for months that the so-called Pedowitz Report would be released after Donaghy's legal case had run its course. That course has been run, and still, no report.

One possibility occurred to me even before Pedowitz released his statement today. Perhaps he was holding out hope that he could interview Donaghy before releasing his report.

As Donaghy's attorney, John Lauro, walked back into the Brooklyn federal courthouse after blistering Stern and the league in his post-sentencing news conference, I asked him if Donaghy had any obligation to speak with anyone from the NBA now that the case was over.

"None whatsoever," Lauro said.

Asked if Donaghy might be inclined to speak with Stern, Pedowitz, or anyone else from the NBA prior to beginning his prison sentence, Lauro said, "We don't have any intention to do that at this time."

One of the more sensational assertions by Tim Donaghy's attorney outside the Brooklyn courthouse Tuesday -- after his client escaped with a 15-month prison sentence -- came when he challenged NBA owners to call for further investigation of officiating improprieties.

Asked what happens next in the officiating scandal, attorney John Lauro said, "I think that it depends on, in large measure, what the fans demand and also what the owners demand. I think the owners of the NBA are going to take a hard look at this case. Some have suggested ways to change the NBA, but there's no question in my mind that the NBA needs to be looked at from top to bottom."

The first response from an NBA owner is in, and suffice it to say that his view differs from Lauro's.

"It's behind us," Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said in an email. "Commissioner Stern has done exactly what needed to be done, and it's over."

Cuban praising David Stern? If that's not a sign that something positive came out of the Donaghy mess, I don't know what is.

Federal prosecutors in Los Angeles have reviewed allegations by Tim Donaghy that a 2002 playoff game between the Kings and Lakers was manipulated by referees and decided not to pursue the case, a law enforcement source said Tuesday.

“The source [Donaghy] was not deemed to be very credible,” the person told Newsday, speaking on condition of anonymity. “The information was reviewed and it was determined that there was nothing to pursue.”

Newsday first reported on June 17 that the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office reviewed Donaghy’s allegation, but determined that the statute of limitations had expired. The report also stated that the information was turned over to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles for review.

In a letter submitted to the U.S. District Court last month, Donaghy’s attorney, John Lauro, alleged that two referees described as “company men” were engaged in a conspiracy to favor the Lakers over the Kings in Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals in Los Angeles. The reason, according to Lauro, was to extend the series to a seventh game to maximize ticket and broadcast revenue.

The allegation, one of the most sensational to emerge from the year-long probe of Donaghy’s gambling activities, gained credence because the Lakers enjoyed a 40-25 advantage in free-throw attempts in the game – including 27-9 in the fourth quarter – and won, 106-102. Donaghy was sentenced Tuesday to 15 months in federal prison for charges related to betting on NBA games he officiated and providing confidential information to gamblers.

Just got back from the Tim Donaghy sentencing. I have newspaper work to do, but here are a few quick thoughts before I start writing:

Judge Carol B. Amon seemed to be systematically burying Donaghy in her sentencing explanation, all but dismissing his attorney's claim that mental illness -- specifically, compulsive gambling disorder -- was grounds for lowering his sentence from the federal guidelines of 27-33 months.

She sniffed at attorney John Lauro's complaint that the co-conspirators -- James Battista and Thomas Martino -- faced lesser sentences than Donaghy, saying that it was clear Donaghy was the central figure in the scheme.

"Without Mr. Donaghy, there was no scheme," she said.

She made a point of saying that Donaghy had admitted betting on games for three seasons prior to any of the charged activities in the case. It seemed to be going quite badly for him, and then, voila! Amon announced that she was giving him a 15-month prison sentence -- about half what he was facing.

Donaghy's attorney then craftily tossed a few more hand grenades under David Stern's desk with vague, unsubstantiated assertions that the NBA has more bad apples in its referee ranks who have yet to be discovered.

"The story has not ended," Lauro said outside the Brooklyn courthouse. "... I think that the fans of this country will insist that the true story be told at some point. It's going to come out."

Stern put out a statement of his own, which is here in its entirety in case you haven't seen it:

NBA STATEMENT REGARDING THE SENTENCING OF FORMER NBA OFFICIAL TIM DONAGHY

NEW YORK, July 29, 2008 – The NBA has issued the following statement from
Commissioner David Stern regarding Federal Judge Carol Bagley Amon's
sentencing earlier today of former NBA official Tim Donaghy:

"We anticipate that the judge's sentencing decision, together with the
changes we have made to our referee operations staff, will enable us to
continue with the improvements we are making to our anti-gambling rules,
policies and procedures. With the conclusion of the government's
investigation into this matter, we also look forward to the timely issuance
of Larry Pedowitz's review of our officiating program. There is little
comfort to be gained from the mandatory prison sentence, especially as it
affects Mr. Donaghy's children and their mother, but hopefully the healing
process can begin in earnest for all."

So is it over? That's the question that remains unanswered, and the subject of my column for tomorrow's paper. Adios.

I've got to head over to the courthouse in Brooklyn for Tim Donaghy's sentencing, so we need to hit this quick:

* The Timberwolves and Ryan Gomes have agreed to a five-year extension.

* Former No. 1 overall pick Kwame Brown signed a two-year, $8 million deal with the Pistons. Low-risk gamble by Joe Dumars, who gave Brown an opt-out after '08-'09.

* The Bobcats and Emeka Okafor are close to agreeing on a six-year deal believed to be worth around $72 million -- similar to the Andrew Bogut deal with Milwaukee.

* Nenad Krstic has left the Nets for a two-year deal with a Triumph Moscow for 3 million Euros per year. Agent Marc Cornstein says that equates to $9 million a year when you factor in the exchange rate and the fact that it's net of taxes. There was simply no market for Krstic in a sign-and-trade.

* Ricky Davis signed with the Clippers.

* Josh Smith update: There have been some reports about sign-and-trade scenarios for Hawks restricted free agent Josh Smith. There's simply no market for him at the moment, according to a person familiar with the situation. Atlanta officials have received exactly one phone call about Smith, and those talks are old news and didn't last very long. (I checked, and the Knicks have not inquired about him, nor would they have any sane reason to given that they are in serious cost-cutting mode.)

The Hawks have a multi-year offer on the table for Smith that is pushing $60 million, according to a source. Smith's camp is hoping to find something better in a sign-and-trade and may very well drag out the impasse all the way through September, as the agents for Luol Deng and Ben Gordon did last season. Good luck!

A renowned compulsive gambling expert who will testify at Tim Donaghy's sentencing hearing Tuesday at U.S. District Court in Brooklyn has filed a brief on the disgraced ref's behalf, saying Donaghy suffers from compulsive gambling addiction.

The illness began when Donaghy started playing golf for $500 a hole. If that makes him an addict, what does that make Charles Barkley?

I saw it first on NBCSports.com, so they get the link.

The filing is part of Donaghy's effort to receive a reduced sentence and is standard procedure in any legal case. ESPN legal analyst Lester Munson already thinks Donaghy's cooperation with federal authorities has accomplished that goal, writing that Donaghy is likely to come away with less than a year in prison.

Alan Hahn has gotten word that the Renaldo Balkman trade reported here last night is official. Visit the Fix to get the latest and Hahn's take on it.

Hope Mr. Dolan is happy with the coverage.

Fred Kerber reports that Nets center Nenad Krstic has a two-year, $10 million offer from Triumph Moscow and that he will accept it if the Nets can't pull off a sign-and-trade by midnight tonight.

A trade is unlikely, so it appears that Nenad and Boki Nachbar will go from being teammates to rivals. No truth to the rumor that Triumph Moscow is adding Krstic as part of a grander plan to move to Brooklyn and sign LeBron in 2010.

UPDATED 3:50 p.m.: In this interview, thankfully translated from Russian to English or I would have no idea what it's about, Krstic explains why playing overseas is more appealing to him than staying in the NBA.

Aside from Renaldo Balkman-to-Denver, there are a few news items around the league to digest along with my coffee and Cookie Monster blueberry waffles this morning:

* First, more on the waffles. You buy your 4-year-old son Cookie Monster blueberry waffles, which are also organic and thus, presumably, healthier than running a marathon, and you think this is a home run to rival one of Big Papi's moon blasts. Think again. The kid wants plain old Eggos instead, so I'm stuck with the kiddie breakfast. At least the coffee is strong and hot.

* Despite entertaining several European offers, Warriors center Andris Biedrins is staying in Golden State with a reported six-year, $63 million deal. So much for the Euro trend.

* Having lost restricted freee agent Josh Childress to Greece, the Atlanta Hawks are nearing a multi-year deal with reserve swingman Maurice Evans. Atlanta GM Rick Sund also is reported to be discussing at least two blockbuster sign-and-trade proposals for restricted free agent Josh Smith. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, they involve a top team from the East and another from the West. The team from the East apparently is not the Pistons.

* Team USA has arrived in China. Thus far, not a single member has signed with a Euroleague team.

Renaldo Balkman's days with the Knicks appear to be numbered.

An NBA front office source familiar with the discussions told Newsday Sunday night that the Knicks are considering trading Balkman to the Denver Nuggets for point guard Taurean Green and small forward Bobby Jones.

The deal was proposed to the Knicks late last week, and both teams are discussing the deal internally.

As Renaldo would say, Aw man, crazy. More as details become available.

UPDATED 10:08 p.m.: Here's my take: Though he's athletic, it's become clear that Balkman doesn't fit Mike D'Antoni's system, which requires quick decision making and a lot of savvy. Green and Jones are just roster fodder, although Green is a ball-moving point guard who could compete for a spot in training camp.

As Alan Hahn has written several times, the Knicks were high on Green coming out of Florida, and would've taken him with Portland's second-round pick last year. But the pick never ended up being included in the Zach Randolph trade, and the Blazers ended up taking Green -- a player they didn't need -- and trading him to Denver.

The real significance here -- unless you're all torn up about Balkman being traded -- is the fact that the Knicks would have 17 players under contract. That's two over the limit and a clear sign that they're gearing up for one or more significant trades.

We know they'd love to move Randolph's three years and $48 million remaining, and having a ton of bodies and contracts would only facilitate what would be a complicated deal. Green joining Chris Duhon in the point guard competition certainly doesn't bode well for Stephon Marbury, but I've already been assuming he's gone anyway. This is just another move that confirms that belief.

The Knicks are involved in active trade discussions with several teams, so this could be an eventful summer. The way Donnie Walsh is amassing bodies suggests that he's positioning himself to do something big when the opportunity presents itself.

UPDATED 10:21 p.m. A person familiar with the situation said Green and Jones both expect to be waived by the Knicks, which would put a damper on parlaying this into a bigger deal. Both players have non-guaranteed contracts, which means it's simple accounting to waive them and get back to the 15-player limit. If the Knicks can shed another body, they wouldn't mind bringing Green to training camp to have a look-see. So it appears that this is simply a move designed to get rid of Balkman and save $1.32 million in cap space next season.

One more time: Aw man, crazy.

How many NBA players have to turn down European contracts before it becomes a trend?

Sasha Vujacic is staying with the Lakers on a three-year, $15 million deal. About a month ago, Michael Finley turned down an offer from Olympiakos, the same Greek team that siigned Josh Childress.

And just for clicking on my blog on a Saturday, I'll give you a preview of another news item that will be included in my story running tomorrow examining the Euro trend: James Posey, one of the most sought after free agents this summer, got the same three-year, $20 million offer from Olympiakos that Childress eventually accepted. Posey turned it down. Check out the story in tomorrow's paper and online to see why Europe is attractive to some NBA players but isn't all it's cracked up to be. (I'll stop by tomorrow morning and link it.)

Have a great Saturday ...

BY MIKE ROSE

The growing trend of NBA players taking more money to play in Europe is becoming a very big problem for David Stern.

The latest player who is threatening to take his game to Europe is Lakers reserve guard Sasha Vujacic. The L.A. Times has the story.

The Times says Vujacic is prepared to leave the Lakers and accept the offer from a European team.

INSTANT ANALYSIS: First, I think Vujacic is serious, but I think he really wants to stay in L.A. and is playing hardball so the Lakers will be forced to jack up their price. Second, I think Mitch Kupchak's initial offer -- a $2.6 million qualifying offer -- was ridiculously low. The Lakers need Vujacic to make a title run. His shooting is too valuable. Still, let's say the Lakers lose Vujacic, coupled with already losing Ronny Turiaf to the Warriors. L.A. can still go 9-10 deep next season -- Fisher, Kobe, Odom, Gasol and Bynum as the starting five; Ariza, Walton, Farmar, Radmanovic and Mihm off the bench. But, let's just say I don't think Kobe will be too happy if both Vujacic and Turiaf are allowed to leave.

European teams are also interested in Golden State's Andris Biedrins. Russian clubs are willing to offer $10 million per season. Biedrins won't be seeing that kind of money in the NBA.

Lastly, Lakers budding star center Andrew Bynum has been cleared for everything, according to his agent. Bynum, according to an L.A. Daily News report, is in Atlanta working out and the Lakers have a standing invitation to drop in and see him in action.

INSTANT ANALYSIS: Bynum's agent, David Lee, told the L.A. Daily News: "He's absolutely fine, he's going to come in as a beast," Lee said. "He's got no atrophy anywhere. The kid's in great shape. Maybe it comes with being 20 years of age." If that's the case, the Lakers need to lock this kid up with a new contract.

Monta Ellis isn't going to Europe. He's staying right where he is -- in Oakland.

The Warriors' up-and-coming guard on Thursday night finalized details on a six-year contract worth more than $66 million -- a huge pay day for the restricted free agent who was making only $770,000 last season.

“We are all very pleased that Monta’s determination and effort have resulted in this well-deserved contract," Ellis' agent, Jeff Fried, told Newsday.

The deal gives Ellis a player's option after five years, a crucial piece of leverage that allows Ellis to hit the unrestricted free-agent market in the summer of 2013 at age 26.

It's been reported that Monta Ellis has agreed in principle to a six-year deal to remain with the Golden State Warriors. Not so fast, a person with knowledge of the situation told Newsday on Thursday.

The two sides are close on parameters, and an agreement is imminent. But it is more likely to be a five-year deal, thus allowing Ellis -- a restricted free agent -- to hit the unrestricted free agent market sooner. Stay tuned on that one.

I hate guarantee stories. My days covering the Jets made me this way. Despite the fact that Joe Namath's famous Super Bowl guarantee happened before many Jets fans were born, some media member at some point during the week leading up to the next game invariably would attempt to get a player to guarantee something.

This tactic often led to some inane copy, such as Victor Green guaranteeing that Marcus Coleman would fall asleep in a team meeting that day.

But I digress. If you haven't heard yet, LeBron James has guaranteed that Team USA will win the gold medal in Beijing in a Time Magazine story hitting the newsstands Friday. I guarantee that I won't read it.

UPDATED 2:58 p.m. Here's video of the LeBron guarantee interview.

The agent for Rockets restricted free agent Carl Landry says he is exploring overseas offers for his client, which could make him the next in a rapid succession of NBA players to opt for deals overseas. Rockets general manager Daryl Morey doesn't seem amused.

"Carl and his agent are doing what they think is best for him and if that includes exploring Europe that is their right to do that," Morey said. "We continue to want Carl as a Rocket. We have a difference of opinion on the next steps to get him re-signed, but we have not changed our desire to see him return."

Tim Kawakami tells us that Marcus Williams, recently traded from the Nets to the Warriors, will wear No. 5 as a tribute to the hero he grew up idolizing -- Baron Davis. Somehow, I don't think that will make Golden State fans forget that the Baron has left.

I'm a little slow on the blog trigger today because I actually have some newspaper reporting and writing to do. Imagine that! So without delay, let's get to news item No. 1: Disgraced ref Tim Donaghy's co-conspirators were sentenced to more than a year each in prison today for their roles in the NBA gambling scandal.

James Battista was sentenced to 15 months for making bets based on inside tips from Donaghy. Thomas Martino got a one-year sentence for paying the referee thousands of dollars for the tips. Here's the AP breaking story. Newsday's intrepid sports crime expert Tony DeStefano is on the case.

Be back periodically with more updates on various stuff.

With the issue of NBA players heading overseas in the news again, what better time to bring back comments David Stern made on this topic during his state of the league address during the NBA Finals?

Not surprisingly, Stern dismissed the matter as a non-issue, calling Tiago Splitter "a rogue criminal." Uh, just kidding. But he did dismiss the issue and sidestep it pretty effectively. I'd be curious to hear what he has to say now, but for the time being, here are the applicable questions and answers from his news conference prior to Game 2 of the Finals:

Q. I wonder if you could talk about with the rookie salary cap and players coming from Europe, we're kind of hitting a new situation where players can actually make more in Europe than they can under the rookie salary cap in the States, and it seems to be preventing some teams from getting players that they've drafted over here. Is that a worry for the league?
COMMISSIONER DAVID STERN: No, I don't think so. In most cases that is not accurate.

Q. Well, we had a situation just with Tiago Splitter obviously, for example.
COMMISSIONER DAVID STERN: Sometimes it's hard to know with our team whether they're not just as happy to have a player complete his contract, develop until exactly the right time. I've seen Mr. Splitter play in the European Final Four. He's a heck of a player. I'm sure he currently ﷓﷓ he's under contract for another year, isn't he? He signed a new contract.
You know, there are plenty of players who have decided that it would be, Frederic Weis comes to mind, that it would be better to stay, play a shorter season and do what they're going to do. So I think your generalization of that is not exactly accurate. But we're not concerned about that. If players actually stay in Europe because they can earn more, that's fine. We think that European basketball, which we try to support, might be the better for it, and that's good.

Before heading off on vacation, Sam Amick of the Sactown Bee has an update on possible talks between the Pistons and Kings about Ron Artest.

Ron Artest playing at the Palace? Will they have to stop serving beer?

Ron-Ron and I are for the time being no longer email pals. It seems the Tru Warier has changed his email address. I'll find him, though. I've written too many columns about how he'd be a great fit for the Knicks for him to hide from me for too long.

A good post by a Berger blog reader, and some good discussion by his own readers, about the issue of NBA players going overseas and what it means.

"If LeBron signs with Belgrade instead of Brooklyn, call me," Glenn writes in his blog. "Otherwise, this is a complete non-story."

P.S. This is Glenn

LeBron James suffered what Team USA is calling a mild sprain of his right ankle during practice in Las Vegas.

Cavs general manager Danny Ferry has been in contact with team officials who are with the Cleveland superstar during the pre-Olympic training camp. Danny, you can breathe now.

Finally, something to spark interest in the WNBA -- a brawl!

A little Malice at the Palace. Not surprisingly, Rick Mahorn and Bill Laimbeer were on the court.

If you haven't seen it yet, the video.

Good thing Ron Artest wasn't in the building.

In a blow to restricted free agency and another sign that some NBA players are willing to go overseas to get more valuable contracts, the Hawks' Josh Childress is about to announce his decision to sign a three-year deal with Greek powerhouse Olympiakos.

Childress was frustrated with the Hawks' reluctance to move him in a sign-and-trade. Atlanta had matching rights for the restricted free agent, but those rights don't apply to international teams. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is placing the deal north of $20 million.

"It's official, I just signed," Childress told the AJC by phone from Athens.

Childress joins the Nets' Boki Nachbar, Tiago Splitter, and Goran Dragic among players who have opted for more money overseas this summer. The devalued dollar and lower/nonexistent taxes overseas made the international deals far more lucrative than what NBA teams could offer. Carlos Delfino, Jorge Garbajosa, Pops Mensah-Bonsu and Juan Carlos Navarro also have spurned NBA teams for more lucrative offers overseas.

"The NBA had better be careful," Nachbar told ESPN last week after signing a three-year, $14.3 million deal with Dynamo Moscow. "European teams are offering a lot of money. It's much more, considering there are no taxes, than what I could make signing for the mid-level exception."

In another sign of the Euro shift, Brandon Jennings relinquished his college eligibility after committing to play at Arizona and signed a three-year deal to play in the Italian League. That's a different situation, as Jennings had eligibility issues anyway. But it's nonetheless a sign that David Stern needs to make it a priority to hammer out a compromise with FIBA on rules governing the movement of players to Europe.

I can't imagine those discussions with NBA Players Association chief Billy Hunter will go well.

Here's an explanation of the issue, including a link to a Marc Stein item on the challenge Stern is facing.

I get a lot of emails to the Newsday address that is listed at the end of my columns and in my byline in news stories that appear in the paper and online.

I try to read my Newsday email as little as possible, because more often than not, this is what I find there:

1) Spam. Tons and tons of spam.
2) Invitations to join the staff for cake or pizza in the newsroom, which is an hour away from my office.
3) Memos explaining Tribune Co.'s long-term plan for conquering the media business. Such plans are quite impressive, but are largely irrelevant to me because I'm about to become an employee of the greatest, most magnificent owner in all of the sports and media world ... James Dolan.

Soooooo ... this is a round-a-bout way of extending an invitation to my readers, a lot of whom email me with perfectly salient and excellent points, even when they disagree with me. You can get your points across much faster if you post them in my blog. You can read my responses much faster -- without having to waste valuable time that could otherwise be spent playing miniature golf games in an Orbitz popup window -- by subscribing to my blog's RSS feed. For the technologically challenged, that means you'll get automatic updates in a live bookmark every time I post something.

So here is the link to my blog's main page. Here is where you go to subscribe to the feed. Post your thoughts, complaints, and questions in the blog, as opposed to emailing me. Also, look for live chats I've started doing in the