AGRI Biz

As 2009 winds down, the NBA is starting to give us a clear picture of what the intriguing storylines are for the rest of the season. Can the Lakers keep up the torrid pace? Can the Celtics stay healthy until June? Can the Hawks maintain their place as one of the top three teams in the East? Can the Nuggets or Mavericks possibly beat the Lakers? These questions and more will be ...

According to sports writers, there is only four legit possibilities for LeBron James in the summer of 2010: the New York Knicks, the New Jersey Nets, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and lately the Miami Heat. Now, you can't blame them for speculating, but seriously, two of those options are just ridiculous. If James cares about winning titles (which might be still up in the air), then there's no way he signs with the ...

Josh Howard made his triumphant return to the Mavericks against the Phoenix Suns, showing the Mavericks what they were missing without him, and reviving a team that was reeling from a two-game losing streak in which they looked increasingly stale on offense. But Josh Howard didn't start the game, where last season he was the NBA's second-leading scorer in the first quarter. Instead JJ Barea provided that spark, and Josh came ...

Despite the relative lack of attention that is given to the Tim Donaghy scandal as opposed to Tiger Woods, Michael Vick, Plaxico Burress or steroids, it is the most serious of all. After all, it doesn't condemn players for their choices as much as it completely undermines the very fabric of competitiveness that makes up the game itself. For basketball conspiracy theorists, reading the published allegations is like having your ...

It was too good to last. The Mavericks had avoided losing back-to-back games thus far in the season, which is a great way to keep a high seed in the playoffs. But no more. I don't know if I should blame myself, since it was the first two-game stretch where I didn't see a single minute of either game. It's easy to blame ourselves. Or the refs. Or the rims (were they ...

We're more than a month into the season, and we're seeing early returns on offseason maneuvers and healthy people coming back (unless you're the Spurs), so this seems like a good time to break down how the league is looking at this point. Right now, there look to be four teams that can easily make a case that they can win the title this year. There are other teams ...

The first month of the NBA season can be called a success for the Dallas Mavericks. Besides a slip-up on opening night and a loss to the six-deep Warriors, the Mavericks have done everything they needed to do on the court, and their second place standing in the West is a testament to that. Simply put, these Mavericks aren't repeating the mistakes of teams past (yet), in that, they're showing up ...

Everybody loves a good story. The problem with a good story in these days of the 24-hour news cycle, is that a good story quickly becomes an old story, beaten to death by countless talking heads for hours, days, weeks. Welcome to this world, Brandon Jennings. After getting ripped by the "experts" in the pre-draft conversations for A) Not being mature enough; B) Not having a good jump shot; and C) ...

The Dallas Mavericks are making a strong defensive stance this season. Previously, they lived and died by their jump shotùwhen it was cold, they lost; when it was falling, they won. Instead, when the Mavericks shoot poorly, they still manage to keep it close. When their shot is falling, they're damn near unstoppable. That being said, they still have some defensive weaknesses, namely defending quick, smaller point guards. Chris Paul and Tony ...

When the Dallas Mavericks announced the sign-and-trade that brought Shawn Marion to Dallas, I was quite excited. Whatever else the Matrix might be, he's an exciting, athletic defender and an explosive scorer, and I was glad to see him coming to Dallas. I wish I could have said the same about two newcomers, Tim Thomas and Drew Gooden. Those two seemed like a dangerous mix for the Mavericks and their team chemistry, ...