A look around the league and the Web that covers it. It's also important to note that the rotation order and starting nods aren't always listed in order of importance. That's for you, dear reader, to figure out.
C: Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. After coming back to the Wells Fargo Center for his commemorative bobblehead night, former Philadelphia 76ers star Allen Iverson spoke with CSN's Dei Lynam about his career in Philly, his absence from the NBA and more, including the prospect for an NBA comeback: "I put it in God's hands. He has done so much for me and given me so much [...] The NBA has given me so much obviously, making me a household name, and I have accomplished a lot in the NBA. And if the road ends here, then it does and I am not bitter about it."
PF: Hardwood Paroxysm. After last Thursday's announcement that Indiana Pacers forward Danny Granger will miss the remainder of the season to undergo surgery on his left knee, friend of the program Noam Schiller thinks about not only what the definitive end of Granger's year means for the Pacers' chances, but also what it means for Granger's place in Indiana's future.
SF: St. Paul Pioneer Press. Tucked into this Charley Walters notes column is an item about Brandon Roy, who's been out since early November, having two weeks of hard workouts under his belt and planning to talk to Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Rick Adelman this week about returning. We've been here before, we refuse to get our hopes up too much and we'll believe it when we see it, but if nothing else, we continue to appreciate the former All-Star guard's raging against the dying of the light. (Even if it makes us kind of sad.)
SG: CelticsBlog. Jeff Green's been on a tear over his past 10 games, averaging more than 20 points, five rebounds and three assists per game on 52.5 percent shooting from the floor and 48.5 percent shooting from 3-point range, highlighted by his monstrous performance in the Celtics' last-possession loss to the Miami Heat. With his uptick in play coinciding with an increase in playing time since Kevin Garnett's ankle injury, Kevin O'Connor wondered: Is Green's productivity tied to the amount of minutes he gets? He looked into Green's stats stretching back to the 2008 season; an interesting study resulted.
PG: FOX Sports Florida. Ty Lawson might be hobbled by a plantar fascia tear, but he still thinks his Denver Nuggets could beat the Miami Heat in a playoff series. Quick, let's all jeer and hiss him for having self-confidence and believing in his teammates!
6th: Hickory High. Ian Levy and a slew of his pals are going to spend this week celebrating the James Harden, his skills and the unique and amazing season he has turned in for the Houston Rockets. I've dug each of the posts that have gone up so far, but this one by Kyle Soppe, which digs deep in the statistical crate to make the case for just how odd and crazy Harden's year has been, is my favorite thus far.
7th: 48 Minutes of Hell. Chris Bosh might have been the hero for the Heat on Sunday night, but as Andrew McNeill writes, the most devious villain the San Antonio Spurs faced was Miami's terrorizing trap of Tony Parker in the pick-and-roll game. (Rob Mahoney also went heavy on the traps over at The Point Forward.)
8th: RealGM. A good read from Jonathan Tjarks on how the developmental skill and strategic acumen of Spurs coach Gregg Popovich — and, really, the entire Spurs coaching staff and front office — has kept the franchise's championship window open far longer than just about anybody expected.
9th: The 700 Level. As the Philadelphia 76ers play out the string on a sub-.500, lottery-bound season, big man Spencer Hawes is quietly playing some phenomenal basketball ... and Sixers fan Andrew Unterberger, for one, is sick of it. (Sort of.)
10th: TrueHoop. The great Mark Haubner goes in-depth on something I wrote about a bit on Friday — the total transformation of the Sacramento Kings' offense since their Feb. 20 trade with the Houston Rockets, which has seen Keith Smart's team go from an also-ran unit to an uptempo, spread-you-out-and-bomb-from-3 outfit that's been the NBA's second-best since the deal.
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