why pull a gun on your own teammate, and not shaq?

Arenas says that the story about Shaq and his fiancee is untrue.

Former Pistons forward Antonio McDyess slams last year's trade
BY VINCE ELLIS
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER

DALLAS -- It looks like things have worked out for Antonio McDyess.

The former Pistons crowd favorite who left this past off-season to join the Spurs as a free agent has found a role on a team that looks poised to at least give the Lakers some competition for Western Conference supremacy.

But the veteran power forward is still thinking about the events that led him to leave the Pistons last summer.

In comments to the San Antonio media Tuesday, McDyess openly questioned last season's infamous trade of Chauncey Billups (McDyess' best friend) to the Nuggets for Allen Iverson, which effectively ended the Pistons' era of Eastern Conference dominance. He also didn't express much sympathy for the organization that took a nine-game losing streak into Tuesday night's game against the Mavericks.

"I think ever since they traded Chauncey away, everything just kind of went downhill from there," said McDyess, who will face the Pistons tonight. "It's like they broke up all chemistry, and I really didn't understand the whole logic of that trade.

"I guess they really were in a rebuilding stage, and it's showing now."

Pistons president Joe Dumars made the deal for cap space and felt the run was over. But McDyess saw a team that still could have contended if it hadn't been completely dismantled.

The team's direction was a major reason he ended a five-year stint with the Pistons by signing a three-year, $15-million deal with the Spurs.

"Detroit was my home and I felt comfortable there, but after I seen all the things down spiraling and I felt it was going to be no good this year, it was pretty easy to me after that," McDyess said.

He even thought aloud about what would have happened if the trade hadn't happened.

"I thought we would still be pretty good if you kind of think about it," McDyess said. "Ever since (Billups) left, then Rasheed (Wallace) ... everything was all messed up. It was pretty much a no-brainer after that."

But he did express some sympathy for his former teammates.

"It's sad to see those guys go through that because nobody wants to be on that end of losing nine games in a row," McDyess said. "Even when you get out on the court it just seems like everything is meaningless -- like you ain't even got no effort to play for anything because you so far behind. Once you got nine losses under your belt, it's kind of like, 'Hey, man, what I'm going to step out on this court for?' You kind of lose confidence."

Contact VINCE ELLIS: 313-222-6479 or vellis@freepress.com

I bet Arenas gets suspended for the season. He doesn't get the seriousness of the gun incident and has been acting like a moron.

You may have called it. The Commissioner has suspended him indefinitely without pay pending completion of investigation.

"Although it is clear that the actions of Mr. Arenas will ultimately result in a substantial suspension, and perhaps worse, his ongoing conduct has led me to conclude that he is not currently fit to take the court in an NBA game," commissioner David Stern said in a statement Wednesday. "Accordingly, I am suspending Mr. Arenas indefinitely, without pay, effective immediately pending the completion of the investigation by the NBA."

What's bad about this is Arenas isn't really a bad guy. He just likes to be funny and entertain people. Yes he made a mistake, but the worst part about it is that the NBA has really turned things around in this area, so the casual observer will point to this and say "AH HA! The NBA still has problems, that's why I don't watch anymore", even though the thug attitude and selfish individual play has diminished. The level of team play has improved and players seem to really want to win now instead of just pad their personal stats and street image.

but, you still have those refs that make some shady calls and david stern really needs to leave...other wise the league is getting better...unless the team you root for sucks.

This columnist is calling for a lifetime ban for Arenas as well as a NBA ban on players owning weapons. I think that both stances are reactionary. Arenas is a goofball to be sure and he did something stupid and illegal. But I think the NBA should let whatever legal proceedings occur play themselves out before it considers a lifetime ban.

I'm not at all sure that such a thing would be upheld because it would surely go to arbitration-just as the Sprewell situation did. But even though I might disagree with a lifetime ban I would accept the NBA's right to impose it because it's about something that happened in the workplace. If Arenas is stupid enough to play with guns I would shed no tears for him losing his job.

I would not accept the NBA's right to prevent its players from owning guns. Gun ownership is legal and as long as players who own guns obey the law in whatever state or municipality they happen to be in, it's not the NBA's business. Not only are some players hunters (e.g former player Karl Malone) but many have a real concern about personal protection for themselves and their families. (e.g the incidents with Eddy Curry, Antoine Walker, Sean Taylor, Jerome McDougall, etc)
Lifetime Ban and Gun Ban

I think I may have mentioned it before but independent of the Arenas situation , which so far I think Stern has handled about right, I would like to see a different person as NBA commissioner. Stern has been in that job since 1984 and that's more than long enough. I would like to see commisioners elected to five or six year terms and have a limit of fifteen to eighteen years in the job. No one is indispensable.

According to this the other fellow is just as responsible.
Either way people should know not to bring guns to work.

Crittenton Chambered a Round??

I agree with you, Lilo, that a lifetime ban would be hasty and an overly passionate response. The indefinite suspension is better than a year long suspension because it compels Arenas to take some positive initiative to return to the league. He can't just hang out in a beach house and cross off dates on a calendar.

I thought the most telling phrase of Stern's statement was that Arenas was "not fit" to take the court in an NBA game. The NBA has done a remarkable job in elevating its image with outstanding personalities and incredible athletes. Probably more than any other major team sport, they conduct themselves admirably away from the sport.

I have mixed emotions about Arenas. While I think what he did was patently stupid, I really believe that he is just not a smart human being. By no means should that be an excuse for his inexcusable choice of bringing guns to the locker room and "fooling" around with his teammate with the guns. I just believe that he is almost completely devoid of any common sense. Why he made light of the incident, posted on Twitter, and posed with his hands like guns before a game is beyond me.



At the same time, he has not appeared to be a thug, like say a Ron Artest. I think the initial reaction by David Stern was correct and Arenas should have a long time away from the NBA to contemplate his lack of intelligence. My suggestion is to suspend him for one year: the rest of this season until January 1, 2011.

Detroit has lost 11 in a row. If the playoffs started now we wouldn't be in them. That's just as well. The problem is that I don't see how Dumars changes this team around anytime soon. I certainly hope there is some trade for a functional big man before the deadline. That probably means giving up Rip and (hopefully) Maxiell or Stuckey. But since Rip and Maxiell both recently signed contract extensions, who would want to give value for them?

is there even anybody rumored of being traded besides anybody on the bulls, anybody on the knicks, boozer, t-mac, and etc.

TJ Ford isn't happy in Indiana. Mo Peterson might be available from New Orleans. Brock Lopez and Yi Jianlian don't seem to be meshing too well.

I vaguely remember this player in Detroit from the late seventies but I mostly remember stories told about him. Anyway, when Bad News Barnes says you've gone too far, things are getting very weird.

Bad News Barnes: Arenas went too far

Darko Milicic says Pistons wasted their pick on him
The Detroit News

Every NBA observer would say that Darko Milicic was a wasted draft pick by the Pistons in 2003.

Milicic agrees.

The Pistons took Milicic second overall in 2003 -- after LeBron James -- and missed the opportunity to take Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh or Dwyane Wade, who went 3-4-5 to the Nuggets, Raptors and Heat, respectively. Anthony, Bosh and Wade are bona fide NBA stars, while Milicic has become a seldom-used NBA journeyman.

Milicic was asked by SLAM magazine if he gets upset when it is suggested the Pistons wasted their No. 2 pick on him.

"They did," Milicic told the magazine. "They did waste a pick. Why did they take me? Who knows if I really had a chance to play like these players that play like Dwyane Wade or Carmelo. Those guys are incredible players."

Milicic languished on the bench in Detroit for three seasons before Joe Dumars gave up on his failed pick and traded Milicic to Orlando. Milicic also has been with Memphis and the Knicks, and recently said this season would be his last in the NBA.

"For me, being a second pick, I don't get why they didn't play me at all," Milicic told SLAM. "Why did they take me? You should take someone that they really think was gonna play right away because just taking someone to sit on the bench, you waste a pick and you waste the guy's time.

"You wasted my time for three years not playing so you (mess) up a player and you (mess) up yourself, and I just didn't get it. I guess they thought they were gonna be champions forever."

wow thats sad...lol

Evidently Orlando, Memphis and New York all wasted his time too. Per NYdailynews the Knicks might be trying to buy him out.

not surprised...kwame brown seems to be on a team every season lol

By Marc Stein ESPN

We’ve reached that point in the season where chatter on the NBA grapevine inevitably spawns more chatter. Not that I imagine you’ll protest.
The following are a few more tidbits picked up from various executives, coaches, scouts and league insiders in follow-up discussions generated by this week’s Weekend Dime:

Denver’s desire to acquire an extra big man to throw at the defending champs from L.A. is no secret. What I didn’t realize until the weekend is the need to start describing the Nuggets’ affection for Pacer lifer Jeff Foster in stronger terms.

Love is the word used by two sources close to the situation.

The obstacles to a Foster-to-Denver deal, though, are considerable.

Obstacle No. 1: Foster has one more season left on his contract after this season at nearly $6.7 million and has a 15-percent trade kicker in his contract. As much as the Nuggets would be thrilled to have Foster – giving them one more mobile counter to all of the Lakers’ feared size – that’s a lot to take on for a team that’s already looking at a luxury-tax payment in July of more than $5 million.

Obstacle No. 2: My man Chad Ford noted in his latest chat that the Nuggets would almost certainly need to find a third team to facilitate a deal for Foster unless they were willing to surrender rookie guard Ty Lawson. And you obviously presume Denver won't be surrendering the speedy Lawson, who Chad says Indy nearly chose ahead Tyler Hansbrough and looks like an absolute steal as last June's No. 18 pick.

****
An assumption in circulation all season held that Detroit would try to move Rip Hamilton before any other Piston because there isn't enough room in one rotation for Rip, Ben Gordon and Rodney Stuckey.

The reality is that Tayshaun Prince would appear to be the most likely of Detroit's championship holdovers to be dealt first, since Prince possesses the more cap-friendly contract.

Only one season remains on Prince's deal after this season at $11.1 million. The Pistons, furthermore, also have a few young guys they like (Austin Daye, Jonas Jerebko and DaJuan Summers) who can play some 3.

Matters are complicated by the fact that injuries have limited both Piston mainstays to nine games each this season. But it's clear that the Pistons have to make a move for a true point guard or a dependable big man ... not necessarily to bust out of this 12-game losing streak but for their long-term future.

"I know there are a lot of conversations going on," one source said. "I'm sure Tay's in play."

How many people have seen the movie "American Me"? Remember the scene between Santana and J.D. in which J.D. expresses doubt about Santana's heart? With a 13 game losing streak in Detroit I wouldn't be surprised if the latest meeting between Dumars and Kuester went something like this..

Joe Dumars: I hear Tayshaun's name is on a piece of paper, ese.
John Kuester: I want you to cosign it.
Joe Dumars: I'm taking it off, ese.
John Kuester: That punk missed 20 games, set us all back. Now he’s running around talking loud s*** about how he wants out of Detroit. His number’s up, homes.
Joe Dumars: I said I’m taking it off, ese.
John Kuester: What’s gonna happen is gonna happen. Don’t try to stop it. You understand me? I’m asking you, carnal.
Joe Dumars: Is that where it's gotten to, ese?
John Kuester: Fans are talking about you.
Joe Dumars: What are they saying, ese?
John Kuester: They’re saying that you’re not showing them anything.

Pistons, Palace may be for sale
Chris McCosky / The Detroit News

Detroit -- The ownership of Detroit's pro sports teams -- for so long the stable domain of the Fords, Ilitches and Davidsons -- appears to be headed for a shake-up, one that would alter the sports landscape in the next few years.

Karen Davidson, who has inherited ownership of the Pistons and Palace Sports and Entertainment (the overseers of The Palace of Auburn Hills) from her late husband, William Davidson, is seriously considering selling both properties.

Sources close to the negotiations have told The Detroit News she has had a conversation with NBA Commissioner David Stern on the process and protocol for attracting potential buyers.

On top of that, the Red Wings have yet to renew their lease with Joe Louis Arena. Although Red Wings General Manager Ken Holland told reporters Sunday he fully expects the team to play at the arena next season, the Ilitch family has been seeking other options.

One of those options is The Palace of Auburn Hills.

Neither Davidson nor members of the Ilitch family could be reached for comment Sunday. The Wings and Palace Sports and Entertainment have been working on a lease agreement for more than a year.

What does that mean? Where is Auburn Hills? Sometimes I think the business end of sports is what ruins it. I'm sorry to bring up baseball in the NBA thread, but it's along the same line. The San Diego Padres owner has been going through a rough divorce which has resulted in a team on the rise to be completely decimated. The Los Angeles Dodgers seem to be going through the same exact thing this year. As much as I hate the Dodgers, I don't want to see them fail because of the owners failed marriage. I wish teams could be owned by the city itself, the tax payers, so that personal issues in ownership couldn't effect the fans.

Money can ruin sports.

It means that maybe Dumars might need to update his resume..

Seriously though, I don't know. Once there is actually a sale in the works perhaps Dumars will be told to dump salary?

The Detroit Pistons do not play in the City of Detroit proper but in Auburn Hills, a smaller city about 35 miles north of downtown Detroit. The Red Wings do play in the City of Detroit but their arena needs a lot of work done which ownership may not want to pay for and the City may not be able to afford. So the ownership hasn't resigned the lease as yet and is looking for other venues.

It's all about the money.

Estate fight for Piston's ownership

Eddie Johnson's top ten disappointing NBA players.
The Top Ten

Now that we are officially past the halfway point in the regular season, I will be interested to see if Mike Brown starts getting Shaq more involved in the offense. To date, he's only averaging 10, 6 and 1 block per game. In Tuesday's win against Toronto, the Diesel had 16 points. He might ratchet it up again tonight vs. the Lakers.

For Cleveland to be a force in the East, Shaq will have to be more involved offensively. That would give them 3 legitimate scoring threats: LBJ, Mo Williams and Shaq.

All of the contenders in the Eastern Conference have some issues, either with injuries or not yet jelling. It will be interesting to see if there are any major moves made by the trading deadline and if whether said moves have a significant impact.

I haven't been following Cleveland closely but is Shaq still capable of getting more involved consistently?

Not as much as he once was, but I think he can be more involved. I believe that the Cavs have been saving Shaq for the 2nd half of the season and the playoffs. If you saw the Christmas Day game against L.A., Shaq's mere presence in the middle gave a dynamic to the Cavs that has not been there. I think Shaq was brought here to give matchup problems for the Celtics, Magic, and Lakers. He will not be able to give 38 minutes, but his presence along with Hickson and Varaejo give Cleveland a much better interior defense.