Shawn Marion has lost his mind over the last three games…here are his numbers:

In a 103-94 win over Boston he had 44 points on 15-22 from the floor (68%) – 10-10 from the line and 4-7 from three (57%), 15 rebounds, including 7 offensive, 4 steals and 3 blocks…In a 136-121 win over Charlotte he had 31 points on 11-19 from the floor (58%) - 7-9 from the line (78%) and 2-+4 from three (50%), 24 rebounds including 5 offensive, 3 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocks…In a 111-94 win over Houston he had 30 points on 12-19 from the floor (63%) – 4-4 from the line and 2-6 from three (33%), 18 rebounds including 3 offensive, 3 assists and 3 steals…His averages per game over the three games are 35 points on 63% from the floor – 91% from the line and 47% from three, 19 rebounds including 5 offensive, 2 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks…ridiculous numbers…

Pau Gasol went for a career-high 39 points last night in the Grizzlies 108-98 win over the Wizards…Gasol was two points short of the franchise-high 41 set by Bryant “Big Country” Reeves in 1998….

Dirk “Diggler” Nowitzki limped to the locker room after spraining his ankle in the first minute of the third quarter but still returned to score 11 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter and the Mavericks beat the Philadelphia 76ers 104-92 on Monday night for their 19th victory in their last 20 games. Jason Terry added 24 points and went 6-for-7 from 3-point range for the Mavericks who extended their home winning streak to 15 games with Monday's victory against the 76ers. Dallas is only the third team in the last three years to win 15 consecutive home games within a single season. The Heat (18 in a row) and Spurs (16) both did so in 2004-05.

Jeez…I know I’ve said it before, but imagine how good the Atlanta Hawks are if they draft Chris Paul instead of Marvin Williams…

Don’t look know, but Charlotte Bobcats’ rookie PG Raymond Felton is averaging 16.8 PPG and 6.9 APG over his last 10…

When Rasheed Wallace made his 1,000th career block against Indiana on Thursday, he joined Shaquille O'Neal, Cliff Robinson, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan and Chris Webber as the only active players with 12,000 points, 5,000 rebounds and 1,000 blocks. Wallace doesn’t lack for jokes though as after pregame introductions, he realized he hadn't put on his game shorts. He was wearing only the North Carolina practice shorts he always wears underneath his uniform. Trainer Mike Abdenour , who had to scramble to get him some game shorts, said: "I have seen it all now."

Vince Carter is going for an MRI because he felt a CRAMP in his hamstring…a freakin cramp…what a baby…like the time he had his knee scoped and they found inflammation…no ligaments torn or frayed, no cartilage needing to be shaved or trimmed, no joint defects of any kind, just inflammation…he has got to be the biggest sucky baby in all of sports…

Coaching Rumour: the next coach of the Charlotte Bobcats will be the University of Kentucky’s Tubby Smith…book it…

1) Marc Berman of the New York Post rags on the Knicks:

NOW, LARRY ONE OF THE STOOGES

Larry Brown is no different than his players now. Overpaid, underachieving — stealing Knicks owner James Dolan's money. Isiah Thomas has assembled some mismatched pieces during his catastrophic reign. But the biggest mismatched piece Thomas added is the head coach.
Mismatched and overmatched. As the Knicks disgrace the franchise night after night, the blame goes well beyond the personnel Thomas acquired. The Knicks moved at half-speed in surrendering 71 points in the first half against the Wizards Saturday when it was so obvious the players had stopped putting out for Brown. When the players give up on their coach, it's hard to get them back. Which is why, with 27 games left, including tonight's potential massacre in Alamo City vs. the Spurs, the Knicks are headed to their worst record in franchise history (21-59). They will give Charlotte a legit run for the league's worst record. (Go ahead, Chicago, throw another parade). It's been nearly eight years since Brown found himself in a losing environment. That was his first season in Philadelphia, when the Sixers were 31-51. Brown, 65, is older now, the players are younger, different, with less college experience and less love for the game. You wonder if Brown will even want to finish the season. The concern in late July that Brown would be out of his element in a rebuilding program after his years winning in Philly and Detroit was a bull's-eye. I once scoffed at that theory because of his reputation as basketball's greatest teacher. Given two weeks, Brown could turn the last place team in the East Hampton P.A.L 10-year-old division into a winner. Brown has practiced his players too hard, demeaned them too often and changed their roles too often. Those are not traits of a great coach. Ultimately, that is why he has lost the locker room, why the young players have regressed instead of gotten better, why they are 15-40, the joke of the NBA, the shame of the city. "We have too many young players right now," the $40 million defensive genius said as recently as Friday night. Brown should stop his whine about the Knicks being too young and start doing what he was brought in to do — get the most out of them, make them a team. The Knicks' core group now isn't as green as Brown wants you to believe. The starting perimeter is Stephon Marbury, 29, Steve Francis, 29, and Quentin Richardson, 26. The two perimeter players off the bench are Jalen Rose and Jamal Crawford. The starting center, Eddy Curry, has been in the league five years. Brown now starts rookie Channing Frye at power forward, but he's worthy. Last time we proofed them, Malik Rose and Maurice Taylor weren't teenagers. The veterans have shown no leadership and Brown has been incapable of motivating this group. The players want to run. Brown wants to run set plays. The players don't seem to care about winning anymore. Two Knicks — without mentioning names — munched down on Chicken McNuggets and McDonald's fries an hour before tip-off Saturday night in Washington. During the Wizards' rout, a heckler yelled at new Knick Steve Francis, "Hey Stevie, Where are you going next?" Francis turned to the fan and quipped, "To the bank." It took only three days for Francis to feel the emptiness of a lost season. The Knicks get the defending champions in San Antonio tonight. Last time Brown coached a real game here, it was Game 7 of the NBA Finals, his last as the Pistons coach. After the loss, Brown wondered if he could coach again because of his bladder issue and he underwent surgery at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. Then Brown followed the money to New York. Like Francis, Brown's next stop is the bank. Or perhaps the hospital.

2) Greg Anthony of ESPN.com thinks the Mavs are the favourites in the West:

Mavericks know the score

Some hope to win the championship. Some hope to win enough just to make the playoffs. And others hope to win the lottery (hello Sonics, Blazers). Looking at the West, the way the best players are shining now speaks to the sense of urgency that's rising as we head down the stretch.
Here's how I see the West's teams finishing.

1. Dallas Mavericks (45-11) -- The Spurs are a great team, but I think Dallas is a team more suited for winning over the long haul of the regular season. Dallas has more guys offensively that can carry them. Josh Howard, Jerry Stackhouse, Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry are all capable of being No. 1 options. Then you throw in Keith Van Horn and Marquis Daniels, even Devin Harris. They don't rely on a smaller core of guys like San Antonio. The Mavs won won 18 of 19. And they've beaten a lot of good teams. March is going to be more difficult for them, with a stretch of 6 of 7 on road. When they get through that, they've got a good April. Still two games left with the Spurs.

2. Phoenix Suns (38-17) -- Shawn Marion has been equally as good as Steve Nash. When Amare Stoudemire's back, how quickly they can integrate him into the flow will be key. The Pacific Division (and No. 2 seed) is theirs, even with the injury to Kurt Thomas; I don't think the Clippers or Lakers can overcome their lead.

3. Denver Nuggets (30-27) -- Carmelo Anthony has become a legit leader, and a better basketball player overall. They've had significant injuries, with Kenyon Martin and Marcus Camby in and out. Any challengers for the Northwest champ and No. 3 seed? Utah doesn't have the leadership and Minnesota's been stale.

4. San Antonio Spurs (44-12) -- It's hard to look at a team that will win 60 games as a four seed. And defending champs. The NBA needs to do what the NFL does and avoid the possibility of a team with a better record having home-court disadvantage against a team with an inferior record.

5. Los Angeles Clippers (31-23) -- Being No. 5 is like a punishment, drawing the defending champ Spurs, compared to the No. 6 team, which gets the Nuggets. The Clippers have not really played that well down the stretch. They've had a tough stretch of 7 of 11 on the road in March.

6. New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets (31-25) -- David West's improvement has made an impression. Not overly athletic as some of the other small forwards, but he's a great mid-range shooter and a solid rebounder. The team's playing very good basketball at home. Getting young guys to believe -- great job by coach Byron Scott.

7. Los Angeles Lakers (28-28) -- Their frontline has been extremely inconsistent, led by Kwame Brown. But Kobe and Phil are too good not to get there. At the very least, they'll go .500 the rest of the way. Barring injury, that gets them in.

8. Memphis Grizzlies (31-26) -- Losing Damon Stoudamire was big; he really figured out how to play winning basketball. Chucky Atkins will be serviceable and Bobby Jackson must stay healthy. Whether they make it or not is going to come down to their guard play.

ON THE OUTSIDE - Houston Rockets (25-32) -- Playing great now. They're kind of like a team that has been down 20 in a game, and is making a strong comeback. But they dug a hole too big for Yao and T-Mac to get them out of. Sacramento Kings (26-30) -- Has gotten better D with Ron Artest, who gave them some toughness, one thing they lacked. They're going to make a good push, but they are a horrible, horrible road team. At 7-19, only Portland is worse in the West. Utah Jazz (27-29) -- In a lot of ways, they remind me of Chicago. The Jazz have everything you want, but not that go-to guy in crunch time. Andrei Kirilenko is a great player, Mehmet Okur is a perimeter-oriented big player. You need to have that guy who you can go to inside and score. If you look at the teams that are battling for a playoff spot, they feature a guy who can carry you offensively. Minnesota Timberwolves (24-31) -- Kevin Garnett is at his best when he's got a big-time scorer helping him. Ricky Davis is the key. KG did his best when Sam Cassell was making big shots. So, is Ricky this year's Cassell? That's the question we'll get the answer to in the coming weeks. Golden State Warriors (24-32) -- Too many guys who do the same things, and its toughest players are guards. A jump-shooting team like Sacramento, and that makes it hard to win on the road.

3) Marty Burns of SI.com thinks Garnett might need his checkbook:

Acting up - Garnett could feel wrath of errant pass; Marion on fire

The Academy Awards aren't until March 5, but Kevin Garnett, no doubt, has his own nominee for best actor. Given the reaction of the fan who got hit by a ball Garnett tossed into the stands (after KG had been whistled for an offensive foul) in Sunday's game, Joaquin Phoenix might not want to clear space on his mantle for that Oscar trophy just yet. The fan, a middle-aged man, reacted as if he'd been, well, kicked in the groin by Dennis Rodman. He sat there stunned for a long time. He didn't seem to acknowledge Garnett, who came over immediately to apologize. After a few minutes, the fan's pain seemed to get worse. Never mind that Garnett didn't really throw the ball that hard, and that it appeared to strike the guy in the side of the face. For some reason, the fan suddenly couldn't walk under his own power. He had to be wheeled off in a gurney. Some T'wolves fans even began to boo as the fan was being led off the court. One fan, who was seated behind the man who was hit, said the ball didn't appear to have much velocity on it. "It wasn't real hard," Kevin Zenk told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Asked about the man's reaction, Zenk said, "Overreacted.... You know, I kind of figured the Oscars were next week, but I don't know if the nominations are all in. He played it up." NBA rules stipulate that any player who throws a ball into the crowd and strikes a fan be ejected immediately. KG also was fined $5,000 on Monday but received no suspension from the league office. Oddly, this is the second time a player-fan incident at the Target Center has led to questions of dramatic license. As a member of the Bulls in 1997, Rodman fell out-of-bounds while battling for a loose ball, stumbling over some photographers positioned there. As Rodman got up, he kicked with his right foot, nailing cameraman Eugene Amos in the upper thigh/groin area. After a momentary delay, Amos suddenly doubled over in pain and had to be carried off in a stretcher. Bulls coach Phil Jackson said he thought Rodman's kick had landed in Amos' knee area, not the groin, and implied the shutterbug was hamming it up. "The guy suddenly turned into a falsetto," Jackson said. Whatever the case, it cost Rodman a pretty penny. The NBA suspended him for 11 games. He also had to pay Amos $200,000 in an out-of-court settlement. It remains to be seen whether this fan will go the same litigious route. Garnett (unlike Rodman) was never really out of control. He was just a little upset, and he flung the ball. He clearly had no intention of hitting the fan, and he immediately apologized. Apparently the NBA took the circumstances -- and KG's rather clean record - into account when they issued the light penalty.

WHO'S UP - Shawn Marion, Suns…Even by his usual All-Star standards, it was an exceptional week for the Matrix. He followed Wednesday's 15 rebounds and career-high 44 points against the Celtics by torching the Bobcats for 31 points and a career-high 24 boards on Saturday as the Suns ran their win streak to a league-high six games. Marion became the first Sun to score 30 or more points and grab at least 20 rebounds in a game since Charles Barkley (34 points, 26 rebounds) in March 1995. He has double doubles in nine of 10 games, running his league-leading total to 42 for the season.

WHO'S DOWN - Isiah Thomas, Knicks…So far the Steve Francis trade is going over about as well as President Bush's decision to turn over those ports to Dubai. The Knicks president is being ripped for adding another big contract to New York's league-leading payroll without any apparent regard to the team's chemistry. It doesn't help that the Knicks have lost both games since Stevie Franchise arrived, making it 19 defeats in their last 21 games. Meanwhile, that sexual harassment lawsuit hasn't exactly gone away. At this point Thomas might jump at the chance to take the soon-to-be-vacant Indiana University coaching job.

RUMOR MILL - Bulls to waive Tim Thomas? The Bulls are working on a potential buyout of veteran forward Tim Thomas, who was sent home in November because he didn't fit into Chicago's plans. The 6-foot-10 sharpshooter, acquired by the Bulls from the Knicks in the Eddy Curry trade, is in the last year of a contract that pays him $14 million this season. If the Bulls waive him, they would still be on the line for the rest of the deal. Thomas, meanwhile, would be free to sign with any team for the pro-rated veteran's minimum (around $1 million). However, Thomas has to be waived by March 1 in order to be on any team's playoff roster. Thomas has said he is interested in joining the Nets, Sixers, Spurs or Heat. However, Bulls GM John Paxson has said he would be reluctant to waive Thomas if he were going to sign with an Eastern Conference team battling with the Bulls for a playoff spot (i.e., the Sixers). If the Bulls can't get assurances from Thomas' agent, Arn Tellem, that his client won't sign with Philadelphia, they might not agree to let him go. Chicago probably would not have an issue with Thomas' signing with the Nets. New Jersey, in fact, traded Marc Jackson, Linton Johnson and $100,000 cash to the Hornets for Bostjan Nachbar, in part to clear some salary room under the luxury-tax threshold so they can sign Thomas if he becomes available.

GRUDGE MATCH OF WEEK - Thurs., March 2: Mavs at Spurs (9:30 p.m. ET, TNT)…Home court advantage in the Western Conference playoffs could be at stake when these Texas and Southwest Division rivals meet for the third time this season. The teams split two games in Dallas, the Mavs winning 103-84 on Nov. 5 and the Spurs taking a 92-90 decision on Dec. 1. Because of the way the NBA seeds teams for the playoffs, the division runner-up can't get higher than a No. 4 seed, so a lot is at stake. Throw in the fact that Dallas coach Avery Johnson is returning to San Antonio for the first time this season, and Spurs swingman Michael Finley is waiting to welcome his former Mavs teammates to town, and it should make for a spicy affair all around.

THREE SECONDS - The Raptors are showing real commitment to go after Suns president and GM Bryan Colangelo as the team's next architect. They reportedly have offered Colangelo a deal worth almost $3 million per year, or three times more than his current salary, with greater control over personnel decisions. No surprise, Colangelo is expected to take the job. The Knicks' master plan to bring Garnett to New York next summer seems more than a bit optimistic. For one, it assumes the T'wolves will be looking to move KG, which is still a big leap. For another, several teams appear to have better assets to offer Minnesota -- including the Lakers, Celtics and Bulls. Meanwhile, New York might want to be careful or it might find itself charged with tampering. Kings GM Geoff Petrie pulled off a coup last Thursday when he sent seldom-used forward Brian Skinner to Portland for Vitaly Potapenko and Sergei Monia. By shedding the rest of Skinner's contract (two years, $10 million), Petrie got the Kings' payroll just under the $61.7 million luxury-tax threshold. Meanwhile, Monia is a decent prospect.

AROUND THE RIM - USA Basketball chief Jerry Colangelo is expected to announce later this week the 25 players selected for the Olympic tryout camp this summer.... Phoenix's 136-121 victory over the Bobcats was the NBA's highest-scoring regulation game this season. At one point in the first half, Charlotte coach Bernie Bickerstaff pointed out to the officials that the 24-second shot clock had not been working for the previous two possessions. Suns coach Mike D'Antoni told Bickerstaff, "We don't use them anyway. We turned them off." ... The Suns, by the way, will be without center Kurt Thomas (stress fracture in his right foot) for at least the next six weeks. Without him, their defense might have more nights like it did against the Bobcats.... The Raptors blew a 17-point fourth-quarter lead in Saturday's loss at Dallas, wasting one of the most balanced games in franchise history. Toronto had four players with 20 or more points (Chris Bosh 29, Mike James 25, Charlie Villanueva 23, Morris Peterson 20) for the first time since Nov. 1996.... Hawks rookie Salim Stoudamire was suspended for two games for conduct detrimental to the team. The rookie guard has clashed with coach Mike Woodson repeatedly this season over playing time issues, sometimes showing outward signs of disdain when being removed from games.... Veteran guard Tony Delk, waived by the Hawks, is expected to sign with the Pistons.

4) Chris Broussard of ESPN.com is right no the money:

Cavs fans crazy to boo LeBron

As someone who finished high school in Cleveland, someone who lived there for 13 years, someone whose parents are Cavaliers season ticket holders, let me say this to the fans at Quicken Loans Arena: What in the world are you thinking? You booed LeBron James? When I first heard it, I didn't believe it. I thought, "There's no way they could be so dimwitted, not the folks in C-Town." ABC ran with the story Sunday in Detroit, reporting that LeBron told Stuart Scott, "It makes you wonder ... '' That made it sound like the whole building was jeering, but after checking it out for myself, I understand it was just a smattering -- though a noticeable, unmistakable one. Still, even a smattering of boos is too much. So he shot 0-for-8 in the second half of a loss to Washington. So he missed eight foul shots and scored just four points in the final two quarters. So what?You don't boo LeBron James in Cleveland. Not when he can walk out the door in less than two years and destroy your historically pitiful little franchise in the process. Do you realize how many people, both inside and outside of the NBA, would love to see LeBron go to a bigger, sexier market? Do you realize he could go to Orlando and play with Dwight Howard or to Toronto to play with Chris Bosh for the next 15 years? Do you realize that 20 years from now, this will be known as the beginning of "The LeBron James Era," that all of the other great youngsters -- D. Wade, Bosh, Howard, Carmelo, Tony Parker, Chris Paul, Amare -- will be viewed as supporting actors in his blockbuster, like Barkley, Ewing, Malone, Stockton, Olajuwon, Robinson, etc. are in relation to Jordan? Do you realize that no one outside of Ohio would blame him for leaving what many regard as Podunk for the bright lights of Chicago, or elsewhere, as a free agent? Luckily for you, LeBron hasn't been listening to the whispers. He's from tiny Akron. He's fine at Cracker Barrel; he doesn't need a five-star Zagat's-rated restaurant on Broadway. He wants to turn the hometown team into a winner, a champion. But you just gave him a reason to at least consider listening to those who sing the praises of the large market, those who are eager to remind him that the modern-day greats, the icons on and off the court, didn't hang out in Cleveland, Sacramento, Portland, Milwaukee and places of that ilk. They were in L.A. (Magic, Shaq, Kobe), Boston (Bird) and Chicago (Michael). Still, you booed him. You of the 17 wins the season before he arrived, you of the seven straight seasons outside the playoffs, you whose most memorable moment -- "The Miracle of Richfield'' -- took place in 1976. In the first round! You boo LeBron for a bad half? Is he not averaging 31, seven and seven? Even in the boo game -- one of the worst performances of his career -- he finished with 25, nine and seven. If he has a bad game, even a bad week, you don't boo him. If he has a month of 35 percent shooting, 10 Ls, and 16 ppg, then maybe you boo him. But he won't put up numbers like that until he's about 40 years old, so it's a moot point. I hope you haven't been jaded by the recent and senseless hype about LeBron not being a closer. First of all, entering Friday's game, he was leading the league in FG percentage (.560) in the last two minutes of play. Secondly, he's only 21. I remember Magic Johnson costing the Lakers a game in the NBA Finals by absentmindedly dribbling out the clock. I remember Isiah Thomas costing the Pistons a game and perhaps the Eastern Conference title by throwing a last-second pass into the hands of Larry Bird. I remember Kobe launching air balls in the playoffs against Utah. Can we give LeBron a little time before we expect him to be as clutch as MJ? And please don't start hating because LeBron refused to be in the dunk contest. In case you haven't noticed, as great as LeBron is, he's not as graceful and artistic as Michael, Vince, Dominique and Kobe. He's a heck of a game dunker because of his power and vertical, but when he's on the court by himself, his dunks won't be as pretty as those of the legendary sky walkers. There's no shame in that. Where does it say you have to win the dunk contest to be an all-time great? How many times did Magic or Bird win it? How many times did Oscar throw down on someone? LeBron knows he's not the best dunker out there, and if he won the contest, it would only be because of his name. So why enter? Look, you're paying customers, and you can do what you want, but please take this advice from one who would love to see you enjoy a Bulls-like run: Make last Friday the last and only time you reserve such treatment for LeBron. Otherwise, you may end up with plenty of chances to boo him in the future -- when he returns to the Q in a visitor's uniform.