Daily Five: David Stern Still Upbeat About NBA Despite Gilbert Arenas Situation
Each day, we'll take a quick look at five of the most important stories going on in the NBA.
NBA.com: "Jackson, meanwhile, is averaging 21.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game for the Bobcats, who have gone 19-16 with him. The franchise has never had a winning season since coming into the league in 2004. "I'm getting a lot of satisfaction out of knowing that I'm helping this organization come close to getting into the playoffs," Jackson said."
Sports Radio Interviews: (Ben Gordon): “One of the main reasons I came here was Joe Dumars. He has a vision of getting the team back to where they were in the championship years and I know he’s going to do everything he can to put a team out there or build a team that over time will try to compete for a championship. That’s my main goal as a basketball player to win an NBA Championship. I know Joe always has that goal in mind and I will too so I can definitely see myself being here for the rest of my career.”
The Baseline: "Wednesday figured to be a dark day for the NBA, with the announcement of rest-of-the-season suspensions for the gun incident involving Wizards guards Gilbert Arenas (who won’t appeal) and Javaris Crittenton (who is keeping his options open). But commissioner David Stern was asked about the impact of the Arenas-Crittenton affair on the league, and quickly turned upbeat. “Actually, I don’t want to be Pollyannaish about it, but business is great in this difficult economy,” Stern said during a conference call. “Our fans are being treated to nightly buzzer-beaters, attendance is down but only by a couple of percent during the worst recession of our lifetime. … I think most of our fans will have the same reaction (to the suspensions) that I have, which is, we are going to have some bumps and we are going to move on.""
Full-Court Press: "Is he (Ben Wallace) willing to play with the Pistons for another year or two as they rebuild? God bless him if he is. I really hope that's the case. But it's probably a discussion Joe Dumars should have, because if he's not sure he can handle the losing sure to come, along with possible trades shipping out Hamilton and/or Prince, he might prefer to be in a situation where he can be on a contending team. His value — at this salary and this production rate — will never be higher than right now. If he's willing to stick around, then great. Keep him."
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