This is one of those rules that Shouldn’t Have to Be Made. But when you’ve got self-important athletes unwilling to recognize common-sense boundaries … it’s amazing what you have to get down in black and white. The NBA has banned the use of Twitter and other “social media” during a period that extends from 45 […]

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Jiminy Christmas. It wasn’t enough for the Lakers to be about Kobe and Vanessa Bryant, Phil Jackson and Jeanie Buss, and Ron Artest and whomever/whatever … Now they have Lamar Odom and Mrs.  Lamar Odom — reality show “star” Khloe Kardashian. Odom and Kardashian got married today, apparently one month after they met. And a […]

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A curious wire story out of San Diego pertaining to Ron Artest. Which probably shouldn’t surprise anyone, because “curious” and “Ron Artest” are terms that generate 17,200 hits when paired in a google search. It’s almost “dog bites man” in terms of routine. Artest was in San Diego to help promote the Lakers’ exhibition game […]

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Lamar Odom’s timing is bad. And not for the first time in his career. It now seems likely that a guy who was a vital cog in the Lakers’ championship run this spring not only will not get a raise … not only will not get some five- or six-year contract … he may be […]

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It works out as a sort of trade. The Lakers sign Ron Artest as a free agent, for three seasons and about $18 million, away from Houston. The Rockets sign Trevor Ariza as a free agent, for five seasons and about $30 million, away from the Lakers. And I like what the Lakers have done, […]

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I have confessed to my weakness for bobblehead dolls. I will drive distances, see games I don’t care about and pay for tickets I can’t afford if there is a bobblehead involved. I plan to go to the Manny Ramirez bobblehead game on July 22, even though Manny is a fraud and a cheat. So, […]

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You’ve heard about the trade. Shaquille O’Neal from Phoenix to Cleveland for Ben Wallace and Sasha Pavlovic. And now the NBA is supposed to be quaking in fear of a LeBron-Shaq pairing. Having trouble seeing that.

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Watching Phil Jackson move around is painful. He appears to have significant issues with arthritis, if his extraordinary stiffness is any indication. He has had both hips replaced, but you wouldn’t know it from following him down the hall. If he has to travel any distance inside Staples Center, a golf cart is used. And […]

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Lamar Odom? Or Trevor Ariza? Which free agent do the Lakers keep? Which do they let go away? The answer? Neither. Lakers owner Jerry Buss can solve this. Just pay both of them and raise prime-seat ticket prices to cover the additional outlay.

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I was mulling the whole idea of fandom, and team affinity, and how fairly random it is — most of it being based on geography or heredity. How we can love a guy when he wears our team’s uniform and hate him when he doesn’t, meaning we ultimately are rooting for or against, as Jerry […]

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