Gary Washburn of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer: "Drug use in the NBA is like the elephant in the room. Many around the league know it exists; the key is to avoid getting caught the first time, which automatically enters the offender in the league's program."
David Moore of The Dallas Morning News: "Dirk Nowitzki wasn't on the court Thursday night. The people who made that decision -- well, they have never been on the court in an NBA game. Nowitzki made sure to point that out when discussing his suspension before the Mavericks' game against Houston. 'To me, the guys at the NBA who make the decisions, they never played the sport in their lives,' Nowitzki said. 'They don't know what it feels like to be out there and get caught in the air.' The Mavericks forward made his comments Thursday morning after the team's shootaround."
Mike Wise of The Washington Post: "DeShawn Stevenson has the league's third-longest current ironman streak -- having played in 228 consecutive games -- behind Bruce Bowen and Tayshaun Prince. With 106 three-pointers this season, he's on pace to eclipse his career total of 127 made during the prior seven seasons. More than that, he's been indispensable as a tough-as-nails defender on the perimeter. Among Ernie Grunfeld's great finds and series of accomplishments as an NBA executive, the acquisition of Stevenson for a paltry $900,000 last year could be among the Wizards president's most important. 'He's a glue guy, a real warrior,' Grunfeld said. 'He did have to find a niche in the league. He learned a lot from John Stockton [in Utah]. He's definitely matured. Bottom line, you can't teach competitiveness, you can't teach toughness and you can't teach pride. And those are great qualities that he has.'"
William C. Rhoden of The New York Times: "Kevin Johnson spent 12 seasons in the N.B.A. as one of the best point guards of his era. Before this week, Johnson, like most players who have played for a championship, thought that the ultimate high was reaching the N.B.A. finals. On Wednesday, Johnson retuned to the Oak Park section of Sacramento, where he grew up, and announced that he was running for mayor. The atmosphere was electric in the old Guild Theater -- the once run-down movie house of his youth. When Johnson walked out to make his announcement, he was met with thunderous applause. 'It was an overwhelming experience,' Johnson said."
Doug Haller of The Arizona Republic: "If the season ended tonight, Williams, Nash, Chris Paul of the New Orleans Hornets and Jason Kidd of the Dallas Mavericks all would finish with assists averages of 10 or more. Four players haven't averaged that many assists in a season since 1991, when Utah's John Stockton, the Los Angeles Lakers' Magic Johnson, Denver's Michael Adams and Phoenix's Kevin Johnson averaged 10.1 or better."
Kerry Eggers of The Portland Tribune: "[Portland Assistant Coach] Bill Bayno, 45, didn't know if he would get such an opportunity in the NBA. In December 2000, after 5 1/2 seasons as coach at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, Bayno was fired -- in part due to improprieties administered to recruit Lamar Odom, in part to a problem with alcohol. Slowly, though, Bayno has earned his reputation back. 'If you get yourself right, you're going to have opportunities,' he says. 'I knew it would take some time. But what I cared more about was getting myself right.' ... 'I come from a family of alcoholics, and I was one, too, he says.'"
Tom Sorensen of The Charlotte Observer: "The Charlotte Bobcats, who have won three straight games, play the Atlanta Hawks tonight at Charlotte Bobcats Arena. If they win, they match the longest victory streak in franchise history. And you don't care. The Bobcats don't have a fan base. They have a cult. Partly it's the fault of the market. When the Charlotte Hornets skipped town, there wasn't anger, there was apathy. If there were anger, fans would have bought tickets out of spite. But the lack of interest is mostly the fault of the Bobcats. And it's unfortunate because the pro sports fans I know would like a reason to go to the gym."
Greg Stoda of The Palm Beach Post: "Pat Riley ... should go to Dwyane Wade and say two words: 'You're done.' He should then squash the predictable Wade objection by appealing to his star's common sense, and say, 'We'll need you more next season than we need you now.' There's absolutely no reason -- none, whatsover -- for Wade to play these miserable NBA days and nights in a Heat season long ago wasted. Miami carries an abominable 11-47 record into the game against the Warriors, a mark almost as incomprehensible as the notion of Wade playing at a debilitating rate of nearly 38 minutes per outing."
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