As we enter day 6 of what may be a very long NBA lockout, we reflect on an interesting day 5 exchange between the New York Times, Forbes and the NBA.  Yesterday morning the NY Times called out the NBA for claims that it is losing money.  In the article they included a Forbes study depicting the last 22 years of the NBA’s estimated financial performance, showing the only losing season in the last 2 decades occurred during the strike-shortened season of 1998-99.

Last night, the NBA fired back in an email statement to the NY Times, blasting the Forbes report as “inaccurate” and saying the “estimates do not reflect reality.”  The statement added, “The league lost money every year of the just expiring CBA.”   The Times includes the full statement which runs completely counter to the Forbes report.

by Michael Naclerio

Amidst the whirlwind that is the Knicks front office right now, the CBA negotiation and an offseason that requires a number of holes to be filled we contemplate the upcoming draft. Although Donnie Walsh will not be signing back on as Knicks President of Basketball Operations, he will remain with the team as a consultant through the next season and will still contribute to selecting the Knicks upcoming 17th pick in the NBA draft this Thursday. Although Donnie’s involvement may slightly ease the minds of the Knicks fans (as long as the player the Knicks choose does not rhyme with Hordan Jill), many are still hungover about why Donnie was let go in the first place. (more…)

Via Bloomberg:

Team                     Championship
                             Odds
====================================
Los Angeles Lakers           5-2
Miami Heat                   3-1
Chicago Bulls                4-1
San Antonio Spurs            5-1
Boston Celtics               7-1
Oklahoma City Thunder       12-1
Orlando Magic               15-1
Dallas Mavericks            18-1
New York Knicks             40-1
Denver Nuggets              50-1
Portland Trail Blazers      60-1
Atlanta Hawks              100-1
New Orleans Hornets        100-1
Philadelphia 76ers         150-1
Memphis Grizzlies          150-1
Indiana Pacers             200-1
====================================

Via NY Post:

Carmelo Anthony will flex his funny bone on “Saturday Night Live” tomorrow. Sources told us he’ll appear in a segment on the show, which will feature Elton John as host and musical guest.

Live from New York…

Rather see Melo win a chip before appearing on SNL, but whatever.

Via CNBC:

If you want a replica Carmelo Anthony Knicks jersey, you might have some trouble finding it over the next couple days. That’s because supply, in most New York area stores, has been depleted.

Sources tell CNBC that Adidas shipped some 17,000 Carmelo Anthony jerseys to retailers in the 72 hours after Anthony was traded from the Denver Nuggets last week and that another 50,000 jerseys are scheduled to be on the shelves over the next 30 days.

Melo rumors swirl,
D’Antoni rips the fans.
Losses are mounting.

It is no secret that the NBA has a stronger brand when the bigger market teams, especially the Knicks, are championship contenders.  So it is no surprise that longtime NBA Commissioner David Stern would support anything or anyone that would bring the Knicks back to where they were in the 1990′s.  He was a big supporter of the Knicks hiring Donnie Walsh a few years back, and Stern has gone out of his way to persuade James Dolan to keep him in New York for at least another year.

It seems the only person who isn’t 100% convinced that Donnie Walsh is a far better front office man for this team that Isiah Thomas is James Dolan (and maybe Isiah Thomas).  For the sake of the Knicks’ future, maybe he’ll listen to reason from David  Stern.

We apologize for going off-topic, but we really liked this commercial (and would love to see an NBA version):

Over at ESPN Nation, they are asking the following question:

• Who will end up with a better career?
• DeMarcus Cousins or Landry Fields

Let the nation know what you think…

Via ESPN New York:

Amare Stoudemire sat out of the team’s five-on-five scrimmage during the portion of Tuesday’s practice open to the media to protect the “stinger” in his neck.

Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni said that Stoudemire’s absence was precautionary and he is expected to play on Wednesday against Oklahoma City.

“It should be just temporary. We’re just making sure it’s in the stage of getting well and it doesn’t get hit unnecessarily,” D’Antoni said. “He could get hit tomorrow night and it could be sore for a few more games. But it shouldn’t be something other than just being a nuisance to us.”