Mavs' Mbenga Move Culminates Two-Year Slide

One of these men is in Dallas Mavericks training camp. One is Kenyon Martin. (Danny Moloshok/Reuters)

D.J. Mbenga is a large man by NBA standards. Juxtaposed with anyone who doesn't play professional basketball, he is downright huge. But size does not translate directly into success, and Mbenga — with his muscular 7-foot stature tipping the scales around 245 pounds — does not have a place in the Association.

That is to say that the center does not have the skills necessary to excel in the NBA, not that he is unemployed. ESPN reported this morning that the Dallas Mavericks are adding Mbenga to the team's training camp roster. Depth is important, but after procuring the frontcourt services of Chris Kaman and Elton Brand in the offseason, and already having 15 guaranteed contracts on the books for 2012-13, this move exemplifies how far removed the Mavs really are from the championship-winning team that felled the Miami Heat just 15 months ago.

A two-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers, Mbenga is a player who is best known for being dunked on (notice there are four links — one of which leads to a compilation), and, in seven seasons, has failed to post even an average Win-Shares per 48 Minutes statistic. As a rookie, his WS/48 was actually -0.029. His closest approach to the league-average mark of .100 came in 2010-11 when he notched .076 with the New Orleans Hornets. In layman's terms, this means that Mbenga's offensive and defensive efforts add very little to team success and sometimes, in the occasion of negative win shares, hinders his team's chances of winning.

True, it is not easy to produce impressive numbers when playing reserve minutes, but plenty of people have made their living as bench-filling stopgaps. Mbenga might be that, barely.

The Mavs' current roster is not devoid of playmakers. There will be at least one as long as Dirk Nowitski is getting meaningful minutes. The ball-handling forward is entering the autumn of his career, though, and Jason Terry is no longer around to bring energy off the bench like he did during the championship run, when he spent more time on the court than any Maverick not named Dirk.

Gone, too, is Tyson Chandler, who cashed in with the Knicks before last season. DeShawn Stevenson, J.J. Barea and a host of other players left Dallas whether due to greener-pastures opportunities elsewhere or front office juggling on the Mavs' behalf. Sometimes both. Not every player jettisoned made major contributions, but those who did were allowed to leave in order to create salary cap space for big-name free agents who never arrived.

The loss that looks worst is Dallas-area native Deron Williams re-upping with the Brooklyn Nets, essentially choosing a franchise that hasn't been relevant for nearly a decade, over his hometown team. There was more money in New York, and the recent addition of oft-overlooked All-Star guard Joe Johnson, but even Nowitski's proven talents and Finals MVP Award from the summer of 2011 could not compensate for the rest of Dallas' shaky squad.

The roster is a shadow of what it once was. Last year saw drops in offensive rating (8th to 22nd) and points allowed per game (10th to 12th).

A 57-25 season that culminated in a Finals victory celebration made the Mavs look like world-beaters, dominating Miami's perceived Goliath triumvirate and showering David in confetti. The just-over-.500, 36-30 follow-up season revealed what Dallas let walk in its gamble to gain another superstar: a formidable cast whose chemistry was more vital to success than having three of the league's best players.

In that series, Miami relied on LeBron James and Dwyane Wade to make superstar plays, allowing Chris Bosh to get an occasional touch and letting role players sag on their responsibilities. Nowitski played his tried-and-true game and Terry embraced being a second-fiddle sixth-man, but this left enough room for others to contribute and play a team game.

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and his front office cohorts sacrificed that rotation with the hope of pairing Dirk with another star. So far, there isn't one. A chance remains that the Los Angeles experiment chafes Dwight Howard and motivates him to look for a headlining role and a max contract elsewhere. Dallas will be able to offer him both next offseason. But for now, Mbenga's coming to training camp.


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After Mike Leach, Texas Tech Has No Choice In Billy Gillispie Case

Billy Gillispie is in the hot seat after player misconduct allegations. (Sports Illustrated)

Texas Tech head basketball coach Billy Gillispie might not have much time left in Lubbock, and the university might not have a choice in the matter.

CBS Sports has been headlining reports for the last week about allegations that Gillispie mistreated players and broke NCAA rules. Gillispie has been accused of over-practicing players - and not adhering to the NCAA’s mandate that says teams cannot practice for more than four hours a day and 20 hours a week - as well as making injured athletes practice and taking back job promises to potential coaches.

The situation is not one-sided. Former players and fellow coaches have come to Gillispie’s defense, with players saying they would play for the coach again. Some have come down hard on the coach, while others are criticizing the players for being soft.

It’s tough to decide a coach’s fate when proof and facts are not yet clear, but because of recent history, Texas Tech will need to fire Gillispie. Just go back to 2009 when Red Raiders head football coach Mike Leach was accused of mistreating player Adam James. Texas Tech fired Leach after an investigation into the issue.

Texas Tech made a statement with the firing, showing that success on the field would not save a coach from alleged wrong-doings. The Red Raiders were 8-4 and played in the Alamo Bowl when Leach was fired. Gillispie’s Red Raiders were last in the Big 12 in his first season as head coach.

Leach was fired for his alleged actions against one player. Gillispie’s accused actions involve an entire team, and whether he is guilty of his accusations or not, 15 players have left the program since his arrival.

Texas Tech set a precedent that it would not allow player misconduct to even be a question, so can it afford to keep Gillispie around after this? The cost would be heavy. The university would be looked at as a hypocrite and has to be consistent with it’s handling of punishments. The situations aren't identical, but both fall under player misconduct.

The university ripped the winningest football coach in school history away from the team, so it can’t keep a basketball coach who went 8-23 last season after similar allegations. Regardless if Gillispie is guilty or not, his reputation has been tarnished, which could make his progress at Texas Tech more difficult.

The question now is if Texas Tech can change its chance to allow Gillispie's progress to continue after bringing Leach’s career to a halt. 


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Potential Mascots for New York's Newest Team

The Barclays Center opens in three weeks and will mark the beginning of a new era of basketball in New York City. There has been a long run-up to the New Jersey Nets crossing state lines and officially having a home in Brooklyn.

Unseating the Knicks from their position of power and shifting NYC's basketball paradigm to a new borough will be challenging, though. Do the Nets have what it takes, now that have multiple All-Stars on the roster, a Russian billionaire owner paying the bills and Beyonce's husband doing more than his ownership share requires?

We can all agree that they do not.

The key ingredient is having the right mascot. When you have a nickname like the "Nets" the mascot can really be anything. The Spurs have a coyote, the Rockets have Clutch the Bear and the Magic have a dragon.

It makes sense why Brooklyn doesn't go directly off the nickname and have a giant net running around. That would be as effective as the Lakers having a puddle hanging out court side. The current Nets mascot is Sly the Fox, but rumor has it that Marvel Comics is helping design a new Brooklyn Knight mascot.

 Thanks to BDD friend Kate Kearns, here's what the two options for Brooklyn to consider could look like:

Illustration by Kate Kearns

 The Brooklyn Knight idea seems like a good move. The team is moving into Knicks territory and is used to taking a back seat to the more famous New York team. The Nets need a powerful, intimidating mascot to fight for respect in the Big Apple. The Knight also lends itself well to fan interaction and is more marketable than a fox (the Barclays Center is its castle and he is protecting the Nets brand). Plus, who wouldn't want to see a mascot stab a basketball with a sword to fire up the crowd? Brooklyn needs to earn credibility in its new home and an upgrade at mascot is a good start.

Illustration by Kate Kearns

Sly is the current mascot for the Nets and is on the opposite end of the spectrum from Brooklyn Knight. Sly might better represent how the Nets are going to have to win over the city. The team isn't going to be like a knight and swoop in to take the allegiances and the city by force. Instead, the Nets will need to be clever with its plays on and off the court to earn respect. Having a knight as your mascot can pay off well, but it is also risky and looks corny if not pulled off correctly. When you stick with an animal mascot, you know what you're getting and they are always kid favorites.


Kyle Davis contributed to this article 


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Derrick Rose Becomes Partner in Well-Known Chicago Restaurant

Rose is the newest equity partner in Giordano's pizza. (believethehypenba.com)

Giordano's is one of the giants of the Chicago deep dish pizza industry and has just brought on one of the city's athletic giants as a partner.

ESPN's Darren Rovell announced Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose will be named an equity partner in the Giordano's franchise today. Giordano's wants to expand outside the state of Illinois — with only three of its 43 restaurants currently residing outside the state — and Rose's partnership could make the task easier.

This isn't just an endorsement deal. Rose paid an undisclosed amount to be a partner in the company, and will receive a share of the profits.

Giordano's can't use any Bulls trademarks in advertising or promotion as the team already has a deal with DiGiorno. However, Rose will be pictured on takeout boxes and the restaurant will promote his personal favorite pizza.

Rose already has been a major endorser of Adidas, but has not yet reached the elite level of national endorsements and recognition. However, his career is still young and he already is a recognizable figure nationwide. Plus, Chicago loves its athletes, so helping take a local restaurant national will make him more loveable to his city than if he would have become a partner elsewhere.

While paying for a piece of the restaurant company is more risky than just doing an endorsement, the payoff will be big for Rose if Giordano's successfully expands throughout the country.


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Are NCAA Precedents Applied Fairly for all Sports?

A Penn State football fan looks away from the Nittany Lions' loss to Ohio. (Getty Images/Patrick Smith)

The Penn State community is no longer used to winning. A series of horrendous actions compounded by inexcusable cover-ups; the tarnished legacy of a longstanding football coach who was more like a father figure to students at large; and, trivial in comparison, being on the wrong end of a 24-14 result on their home turf against the Ohio Bobcats during the first weekend of the college football season.

For the first time in decades, the emphasis of "Happy Valley" is on the latter word.

While the penalties levied against Penn State are harsh, the Nittany Lions dodged the death penalty. The University of Miami is also still competing in the NCAA football ranks despite some demand for a ban after a booster implicated dozens of players, coaches and former players in an illicit benefits scandal in August 2011.

But what if the allegations at Miami had fallen more on the basketball team than on the gridiron Hurricanes? Or if an assistant basketball coach at any university in the country committed the heinous acts of Jerry Sandusky?

The hypothetical situations, obviously, cannot even approach the seriousness of what really happened. However, it is imperative to note that football is the clear breadwinner of athletic departments across the nation. Of the top 50 most profitable college athletic programs in 2009-10 season, 38 were football programs. Twenty spots passed before the first basketball program appeared, and it made more than $50 million less than the list's premier program.

Incidentally, the Penn State football program came in third on that list, turning a $50.4 million profit. If a program of that magnitude were removed from competition all together, the university would not be the only institution taking a financial hit. The NCAA would not reap any rewards either, financial or otherwise. Other areas of the institution would suffer as well, as football money is used to support other teams and it is widely believed that some students choose a university because of athletic success.

Axing a school's basketball program would not have such a far-reaching ripple effect, though. Players fall in hot water because of accepting improper benefits, and sometimes multiple members of the same team face such inquiries simultaneously, but nothing of Miami-magnitude has occurred in college hoops. Removal of a college basketball program would affect fewer student-athletes than taking away football due to sheer roster size disparity. Couple that with the second-tier profitability of college hoops and, no matter the offense, it would be far easier to wipe basketball from a campus than it would be to knock football out of the practice facility.

The most infamous reference among NCAA death penalty cases — those in which participation bans were actually levied, not just rumored or threatened — is that of Southern Methodist University's Pony Express football team. But the precedent of all major penalties was set by the University of Kentucky's basketball team of 1952. Four Wildcats were found culpable for their involvement in a point-shaving scandal as Kentucky was in the midst of winning three national tournaments in four years, the last coming in 1951 after allegations were already public. Despite legendary coach Adolf Rupp defending his players in the media, the Wildcats' 1952-53 season was effectively cancelled by a postseason ban and other programs' refusal to play Kentucky because of NCAA pressure.

A scandal more comparable to that of Miami's left the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisana at Lafayette) basketball team banned from NCAA play for the 1973-74 and '74-75 seasons. The multi-season was implemented for 120-plus violations involving cash payments and various other infractions in the program.

The NCAA powers-that-be take necessary action to keep member institutions and their student-athletes clean, acting with the intention of setting examples that are supposed to inhibit future infractions. It is the opinion of each individual fan, player and coach as to whether the penalties are reasonable or applied appropriately in the spectrum of all sports rather than on a basis that would give preference to one sport over another.

Hypothetical questions rarely provide relevant answers, but they can act as primers for situations that may come up in the future. As long as every athletic program is trying to gain a competitive edge, NCAA investigations will persist. The territory entered with the Penn State sanctions ensures that programs now face the specter of ramifications for actions involving neither payments or play, but for other actions committed off the field.

Right now an argument about fair treatment between varying sports programs is the farthest thing from the collective mind of a football team in Happy Valley, though.


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NCAA Investigates UCLA Freshmen Trio

Shabazz Muhammad and two other UCLA freshmen are being investigated by the NCAA (espn.com)

Ben Howland is trying to bring UCLA basketball back to prominence.

The past few years were a whirlwind of scandal and lack of leadership — which came out in a Sports Illustrated piece — disgruntled players (Reeves Nelson) and more losing than the Bruin faithful like or are used to.

This year felt like it could be different. With Howland on the hot seat, he brought in high school phenom Shabazz Muhammad, the No. 1-rated player in his class according to Rivals.com, as well as highly recruited players Kyle Anderson and Tony Parker. UCLA received immediate buzz after the signings, and the new additions were pegged to bring the Bruins back to the top of the PAC 12.

Those dreams might be placed on hold. CBSSports.com is reporting that all three recruits are being investigated by the NCAA. Muhammad's eligibility has been questioned throughout his recruitment with inquiries about his connection to financial advisors, and he was not allowed to travel with the team to China last month for exhibition games.

Now Anderson is on the NCAA's radar for his supposed relationship with agent Thad Foucher and Parker is being investigated to see if his family received improper benefits.

The UCLA trio aren't the only freshmen who have the NCAA looking at them closely. Kentucky freshman Nerlens Noel's academic eligibility was initially questioned, but even after he was cleared to play, the investigation now turns to improper benefits.

Every team wants to recruit the best players. That's how it should be. But the hype players are given at such a young age makes them more vulnerable to the persuasion of agents. These recruits can turn your team around quickly, but it also seems like these top players are being investigated more often and eventually they will not all get cleared to play. Teams will still argue the players are worth it — just don't expect it to be a smooth ride.

UCLA was hoping their talented trio of freshmen would take it back to the NCAA Tournament, but they won't win any games if they are found ineligible and are forced to stay in street clothes. It would be yet another rough patch in Howland's up-and-down tenure in Southern California.


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Video: Kobe Bryant is Michael Jordan, Kind Of

This video contains exactly what one might expect:  lots of off-the-dribble shooting and turnaround jumpers, and even a little tongue-wagging.

The basketball community's chosen viral video of the week is a reel of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant highlights. What differentiates it from other clips of this nature is that the editor has tracked down film of Bryant's paint-by-numbers imitation of moves that Jordan executed to perfection in his heyday. Voiceovers provide context to the endless "Will Kobe Ever Be as Good as Michael?" argument, and, to a much lesser extent, the question of "Who is the best shooting guard of all-time?"

The music is dramatic, but the court presence of two of the most dominant basketball players ever seen is not something opponents ever took lightly. Neither player has either.

Bryant admittedly modeled his game after Jordan's, so the similarities should be no surprise, even if they are to-the-step.

In the basketball world, being compared to Jordan is never a bad thing. Fortunately for Lakers fans, Kobe's legacy will forever be intertwined with Michael's.


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