The Brawl at MSG was not too bad, although the Carmelo sucker punch was absolutely gutless and cowardly…Stern should give him 15 games and make him change the name on the back of his jersey from Anthony to “bitch”…Apparently, Isiah Thomas, who was angry that the Nuggets were still playing four starters despite being up 19 with under 2 minutes left, told Carmelo that he should stay out of the paint -- pretty much a warning that a hard foul was coming…cue the suspension…

If you know NFL football history, you have to read this article…just fascinating to read about what happened to Jake Scott, the MVP of the Superbowl during the Dolphins perfect 1972 season:

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/columnists/sfl-hydeonjakescott,0,319102.column?coll=sfla-sports-business

What? The Suns are now in the mix for Iverson offering Marcus Banks, Kurt Thomas and draft picks…

Speaking of the Iverson trade saga, Paul Pierce, had the line of the week in explaining why he'd love to play with Iverson: "I think it would work out with the two of us. I played with the biggest jacker in league history in Antoine Walker, didn't I? He was just jacking up shots. At least Iverson might go hit them at a higher clip and get to the free-throw line."

Gilbert Arenas had 60 points Kobe Bryant’s 45 last night in the Washington Wizards' 147-141 overtime victory. Arenas had 16 points in the 5-minute extra period, including 14 in a row for the Wizards during one stretch. His scoring total was the most against the Lakers in 40 years since Wilt Chamberlain, who played for the Warriors in Philadelphia and San Francisco and then for the 76ers before joining the Lakers, scored 60 or more points against them multiple times, the last a 65-point outing in 1966. Arenas went 17-of-32 from the floor, including 5-of-12 from 3-point range. He made 21 of his 27 free throws and had eight assists and eight rebounds. Forty-three of his points came after halftime. Had Arenas been better than 21-of-27 at the line or 5-of-12 from the arc he could've had 70…The previous franchise high was 56 by Earl Monroe on Feb. 13, 1968 -- also against the Lakers in overtime -- when the Wizards were the Baltimore Bullets. "It was bound to happen," Arenas said. "I'm a scorer, so I was going to have one of those days where I was clicking. Most of the time when I've scored 46 in three quarters, we were blowing the other team out, so I didn't get to play in the fourth. "But tonight was that time. It was a close game and I stayed in. I found the rhythm, especially in the fourth quarter and in overtime, and I never looked back." Arenas' previous high was 47 points, against Miami last Dec. 30.

For Posterity here’s the list of all-time 60-point games in NBA history…noting that Wilt has 32 of the 54…which is bananas…

Points Player, Team Opponent Date
100 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia New York 3/2/1962
81 Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers Toronto 1/22/2006
78 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia LA Lakers 12/8/1961 (3OT)
73 David Thompson, Denver Detroit 4/9/1978
73 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco New York 11/16/1962
73 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia Chicago 1/13/1962
72 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco LA Lakers 11/3/1962
71 David Robinson, San Antonio LA Clippers 4/24/1994
71 Elgin Baylor, LA Lakers New York 11/15/1960
70 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco Syracuse 3/10/1963
69 Michael Jordan, Chicago Cleveland 3/28/1990 (OT)
68 Pete Maravich, New Orleans New York 2/25/1977
68 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia Chicago 12/16/1967
67 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco LA Lakers 1/11/1963
67 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia New York 2/25/1962
67 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia St Louis 2/17/1962
67 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia New York 3/9/1961
66 Wilt Chamberlain, LA Lakers Phoenix 2/9/1969
65 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia LA Lakers 2/7/1966
65 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia St Louis 2/27/1962
65 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia Cincinnati 2/13/1962
64 Michael Jordan, Chicago Orlando 1/16/1993 (OT)
64 Rick Barry, Golden State Portland 3/26/1974
64 Elgin Baylor, Minneapolis Boston 11/8/1959
63 George Gervin, San Antonio New Orleans 4/9/1978
63 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco Philadelphia 11/26/1964
63 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco LA Lakers 12/14/1962
63 Jerry West, LA Lakers New York 1/17/1962
63 Elgin Baylor, LA Lakers Philadelphia 12/8/1961 (3OT)
63 Joe Fulks, Philadelphia Indiana 2/10/1949
62 Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers Dallas 12/20/2005
62 Tracy McGrady, Orlando Washington 3/10/2004
62 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco Philadelphia 3/3/1966
62 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco Cincinnati 11/15/1964
62 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco New York 1/29/1963
62 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia Syracuse 1/21/1962 (OT)
62 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia St Louis 1/17/1962 (OT)
62 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia Boston 1/14/1962
61 Shaquille O'Neal, LA Lakers LA Clippers 3/6/2000
61 Karl Malone, Utah Milwaukee 1/27/1990
61 Michael Jordan, Chicago Atlanta 4/16/1987
61 Michael Jordan, Chicago Detroit 3/4/1987 (OT)
61 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco St Louis 12/18/1962
61 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco Syracuse 12/11/1962
61 Wilt Chamberlain, San Francisco Cincinnati 11/21/1962
61 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia Chicago 2/28/1962
61 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia St Louis 2/22/1962
61 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia Chicago 12/9/1961
61 George Mikan, Minneapolis Rochester 1/20/1952 (2OT)
60 Gilbert Arenas, Washington Los Angeles 12/17/2006 (OT)
60 Allen Iverson, Philadelphia Orlando 2/12/2005
60 Tom Chambers, Phoenix Seattle 3/24/1990
60 Larry Bird, Boston Atlanta 3/12/1985
60 Bernard King, New York New Jersey 12/25/1984
60 Wilt Chamberlain, LA Lakers Cincinnati 1/26/1969
60 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia LA Lakers 12/29/1961
60 Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia LA Lakers 12/1/1961

Too funny…PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) took credit when the NBA dropped its leather ball and last week wrote an open letter to NBA players mocking the paper cuts the new ball allegedly produced as a justification for going back to killing cows…of course, this was not from the PETA of Wanatah, Ind., which proudly states it stands for People Eating Tasty Animals…

1) Paul Forrester of SI.com wonders about Danny Ainge and other things:

Perimeter shooting - Celtics' growing pains and more leaguewide nuggets

Danny Ainge had seen it before. He'd seen his Celtics build a commanding lead only to watch it steadily evaporate until what appeared to be a certain victory quickly became a matter of avoiding a stunning loss. "We blew 20-point leads many times when I was playing in the 1980s," Ainge recalled. "We had defensive lapses and messed-up offensive execution. The difference was we had the talent to overcome that and still win the game by three or four. Talent wins." And like those old Celtics teams, the Boston team Ainge watched on Monday night at Madison Square Garden withstood a furious Knicks charge -- New York cut a 30-point lead to three in the final minute -- to win by seven. But that's where the similarities stop. An 8-13 start attests to that. Therein lies the problem Ainge and the Celtics organization face in trying to rejoin the league's elite. Boston doesn't have the luxury of, for example, a Nets team in which every winning season is a feather in an otherwise beaten-down cap. The Celtics, and more important, the city of Boston, measure progress by trophies. And in an era when no team can stockpile talent a la Red Auerbach or buy whatever talent it wants, building a championship team is more science experiment than front-office wisdom. "Our first objective in trying to build a team is to accumulate assets," Ainge said in a recent phone interview. "[We're] not necessarily [looking] to find a point guard or find a '2' guard. That's a hard process if you start drafting based on what you need rather than drafting the best players you have available. We have talent, but it is a lot of potential talent." Though Ainge has been the man acquiring the pieces for a team with an average age of 24.6, the club's failure to turn that potential into wins has been laid at the feet of coach Doc Rivers, whose frequent lineup changes and unpredictable personnel rotations have left many fans and media members scratching their heads. Add in blown leads of 25 and 15 (twice) this season and one can understand the frustration of a fan base that often has taken to calling for Rivers' firing at games. Truth be told, Rivers doesn't have many options but to live and die with the often ugly learning process most young players experience. "Our young guys have to play -- we don't have a choice," Rivers said. "It's not like we're playing the veterans and sneaking the young guys in. We're playing them to win the game. But [games like that in New York] are our games every night. We're either out of it -- the other night we were down by 15 with 2:30 left and we tied the score -- [or we blow a big lead]. We are a circus act." For now, these Celtics are anything but the smooth professionalism of a Ringling Bros, as even some of this act's most talented performers admit. "We've got to be more focused on things," second-year forward Gerald Green said. "We've got to take our time, execute the offense, execute the defense, especially at the end of the fourth quarter." Indeed, time is the key to the team's present and future, and Ainge isn't about to let a preoccupation with the former alter his options for the latter.
"When people start criticizing a substitution here, a last-second play there, a rotation element here," Ainge said, "it doesn't even matter now. ... Everybody can put a timetable on it, but ownership and management have to take each day just like the players. ... I can't wait for the time when I can say wins and losses are all I care about; we're not there yet. There are a lot more things that I'm evaluating -- individuals in the organization, our leaders, our players -- more than the results of the game." In light of Ainge's recent defense of Rivers to the media and the team's not-so-secret interest in dealing for Allen Iverson, Boston fans can only infer that the front office values Rivers as much, if not more, than it does its players. "Doc is a relentless worker and I see him as a man who has a good basketball mind and who is trying to find some answers for a team that has a lot of moving parts," Ainge said. And those parts are likely to keep moving: "We like all the individual pieces on our team but we don't like the mix or the fit," Ainge said. "So we're just going to see who we like the most as we develop the young guys. But we definitely need to do some things." Now into Year 4 of the Ainge reign, those "things" need to happen sooner than later if the Celtics hope to stem the diminishing crowds (the Celtics rank 18th in league attendance at 16,866 a game) and the increasingly caustic reaction of those who do show.

If I were ... 76ers GM Billy King…I would hit the brakes on trading Iverson. Not stop it, mind you -- Iverson's agent-filtered request set that ship sailing -- but slow down the momentum my owner set in motion by telling the nation A.I. was for sale.
What's the rush? To help foster some sense of retribution for Iverson's betrayal? That may work in the movies, but in business, especially one as cold-hearted as professional sports, discretion is the key to making a deal that allows everyone to keep their jobs next year. Further, there isn't a season to save. Iverson Chris Webber both played close to full campaigns last year and it still wasn't enough to reach the postseason. This year isn't any more promising with a 5-12 start with Iverson in the mix. So take some time, give interested teams a chance to start squirming and let them sweeten their initial offers. After all, you're selling a former MVP; those don't come on the market too often. Just as important, take a page out of the Pacers' playbook in trading Ron Artest and make it clear you're willing to let A.I. sit out the rest of the season and more if need be (he's under contract through the 2008-09 season). If A.I. doesn't want to play for the Sixers, that's his choice; if the Sixers don't want to trade him until the deal is right, until some club offers a palatable combination of young talent and a draft pick or two, that's the Sixers' choice. And if the season goes up in flames as the clock ticks, so what, there may be Greg Oden waiting come June.

The Top 10: Second (and third) bananas…Among the theories regarding Allen Iverson's struggles to make the Sixers into a consistent title contender is that he has rarely had the luxury of a Robin to his Batman, a secondary leader to ease the pressure. In fact, the Sixers were usually more productive with lesser-known supporting players than higher-profile ones riding shotgun. As the defensive rankings show, Philly didn't find success when Iverson's teammates scored, but when they stopped others from scoring.

10. 1999-2000 Supporting player(s): Tyrone Hill (seriously), Toni Kukoc Record: 49-33 (defensive rank: 4th in the NBA)
With Larry Brown making Hill the second scoring option, one has to wonder if Brown was trying to drive A.I. out of his mind, if not Philly. Brown relented a bit in dealing for Kukoc with about 30 games left. Again, though, it was the Sixers' defense that helped Iverson reach the second round of the playoffs.

9. 2000-01 Supporting player(s): Theo Ratliff, Dikembe Mutombo, Eric Snow Record: 56-26 (defensive rank: 5th)
Tellingly, Iverson reached the Finals for the first and only time in his career with perhaps his worst offensive support staff. What this team lacked in firepower, though, it had in terms of chemistry: big rebounders to retrieve many of the 26 shots a game A.I. fired, an ego-light point guard willing to feed Iverson the rock again and again, and an active, hard-nosed defense.

8. 1998-99 Supporting player(s): Matt Geiger, Theo Ratliff Record: 28-22 (defensive rank: 5th) Geiger and Ratliff combined to average about 25 points a game in the lockout-shortened season. However, they did help the Sixers hold opponents to fewer than 98 points a game. The recipe helped Iverson reach the playoffs for the first time in his career.

7. 2003-04 Supporting player: Glenn Robinson Record: 33-49 (defensive rank: 10th) The wheels came off quickly in the Randy Ayers era, as Big Dog Robinson succeeded in, well, little more than averaging 16.6 points a game when he wasn't missing almost half of the season with ankle and elbow injuries.

6. 2002-03 Supporting player: Keith Van Horn Record: 48-34 (defensive rank: 12th) Part of the trick in playing a complementary role to a great player is earning his respect. And while skills help in that cause, attitude -- and a tough one at that -- is even more important in keeping a star's ego in check. But when your skills are diminishing and you're soft, well, you're meat like Van Horn.

5. 2001-02 Supporting player(s): Matt Harpring, Derrick Coleman Record: 43-39 (defensive rank: 3rd) No team can do it on defense alone, as the Sixers learned when Iverson missed more than a quarter of the season and the team's offense ranked among the seven worst in the league. Coleman, technically, was the team's second-leading scorer with 15.1 points a game, but Harpring and his 11.8 points showed up for a team-leading 81 games.

4. 2004-05 Supporting player: Chris Webber (sort of) Record: 43-39 (defensive rank: 10th) After treading water with rookies Andre Iguodala and Kyle Korver in addition to an offensively challenged cast that included Kenny Thomas and Marc Jackson, the Sixers took a swing with Webber, who, upon arriving at the trade deadline, almost immediately started doing what he does best: complain about his role in the offense. At least his 15.6 points per game somewhat made up for the fact he can't guard anyone.

3. 1997-98 Supporting player(s): Coleman Record: 31-51 (defensive rank: 19th) The first year of the Larry Brown era in Philly saw the team ship Jerry Stackhouse to Detroit while bringing in Ratliff and Snow, presaging a shift in focus toward defense. Excuse us, did we forget D.C.'s 18 points a game? After "playing" through another injury-shortened season, so did the Sixers.

2. 2005-06 Supporting player: Webber Record: 38-44 (defensive rank: 25th) The Sixers got 75 games out of a player in Webber who hadn't played that many in seven seasons and they still stunk. Hell, Webber even chipped in 20 points and 10 rebounds a night. Of even greater impact, though, was Webber's simmering unease with having to take a backseat to Iverson in the team's offense and his inability to cover anyone faster than a sign post.

1. 1996-97 Supporting player(s): Stackhouse, Coleman Record: 22-60 (defensive rank: 25th) In many ways this was the best of offensive-help times for the then-rookie from Georgetown. Stackhouse and Coleman combined to average more than 38 points a game. D.C. even felt like rebounding this season, pulling down more than 10 a game.

Were They Worth It?

Money Well Spent - Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings…On a team that shoots a mere 44 percent from the floor, Kevin Martin is a throwback to a Kings culture that valued scoring as much as defending. And that's sort of the point of basketball, isn't it? The third-year swingman is averaging 21.6 points a game, shooting 50.7 percent from the floor (and more than 70 percent of his attempts are jump shots, according to 82games.com) and chipping in 1.35 steals a night. All that for $1 million this season. No wonder the Sixers want Martin included in any deal for Iverson.

Need A Refund - Nenê, Denver Nuggets…Coming back to full strength from ACL surgery takes time, but one would like to think that with a year of recuperation time and a new six-year, $60 million contract signed over the summer, the Brazilian big man would produce a bit more than six points and 4.1 rebounds. Maybe as he gets more time on the floor -- he returned last week after missing 12 games with a bruised knee -- he'll help ease the loss of Kenyon Martin, but maybe he'll also remind us why we were all so perplexed at Denver's largesse in the first place.

Scout's Take - Through Thursday, the Knicks' Eddy Curry had scored 20 or more points in eight straight games and was averaging career highs in points (18.3) and rebounds (7.6). Has Isiah Thomas finally tapped the potential many expected from the former No. 2 overall pick? SI.com checked with an opposing advance scout for his thoughts. "Players can have good nights, good weeks, maybe even a good month. But ultimately you're going to be judged on what you do over time. Thus far, at the very least you'd have to say the jury's out on it. To this point I think you can say he's had one really successful season, which was his contract year in Chicago. You can look at it any way you want; that's the reality. Outside of that I think you would say his seasons have been filled with inconsistency. The whole key is his conditioning and motivation level. I wouldn't want to be the team that he's getting a new, long-term contract with. If he's in the last year of his contract, I probably like him a little better because I probably know what his motivation is going to be. "When he is motivated and driven, he is a difficult guy to contend with for an opposing team. Let's face it, low-post scorers in the NBA are at a premium and there's a very small minority of them. And he's one of those guys. He's pretty mobile and nimble for a big guy and is a definite presence in the low post. When you prepare for the Knicks you have to consider, 'What are we going to do with Curry in the low post?' There are a lot of big men out there you don't have to ask that question about. "He's never going to be a great shot-blocker; he doesn't have that length and that nimbleness. [With better] commitment he probably could rebound better defensively, block out and go get the ball -- there are not a lot of guys who are going to go and steal it away from him. On the offensive glass, although he has shown some ability, I wouldn't exactly call him a quick leaper. I don't think [he'll ever be] a dominant rebounder. However, I would be disappointed if he doesn't score."