- Phil Jasner of the Philadelphia Daily News quotes Doc Rivers on his advice to Rajon Rondo: "'I've told him that every decision he makes has to be for the good of the team, not for any one of them. If he makes his decisions on that basis, he's never wrong. He can't worry if Ray has it going and Paul hasn't touched the ball, or vice versa. And, anyway, my preference is always to throw first to the post. In our case, we've got the three of them at the right time; they really don't care who scores. Especially Kevin; he passes almost to a fault. Because of that, Rajon gets a lot of 'hockey assists,' making the pass that leads to the pass that leads to the basket. I give him credit, because a lot of young players feel they have to make plays. I say it's important to make the action. Get the ball to guys like Ray, Paul and Kevin, and they can make plays themselves.'"
- David Waldstein of The Star-Ledger reports: "The Nets are the model of mediocrity, .500 team at best, and for some reason, that's okay with Jason Kidd. 'That's who we are,' he said, 'We're the Nets. I can't sit here and explain to you and make something up. That's who we are. There's nothing wrong with that, as long as we know who we are. It's not a bad thing.' ... In taking a page from Bill Parcell's credo that you are what your record says you are, Kidd just accepted the gray reality that the Nets aren't a championship-caliber team."
- Ronald Tillery of The Commercial-Appeal reports: "Lionel Hollins watched Seattle take on the Los Angeles Lakers the other night, and what stood out was a moment when Sonics rookie Kevin Durant stared down the barrel of Kobe Bryant's defense along the perimeter. Durant, in an instant, elevated, then hoisted a shot over an unsuspecting Bryant and scored. Fearless."
- Brian Windhorst of The Akron Beacon Journal reports: "In March, Nike will be releasing a special version of LeBron James' Air Zoom V shoe in New York that's dedicated to his love of the Yankees. The shoe will be in Yankees colors complete with pinstripes and likely be sold only in the New York area. 'They're hot,' James said. 'I like them a lot.' As with all of his signature shoes, James' consulted on the design, which includes his No. 23 on the tongue in the block lettering used for Yankee uniforms. On the underside of the tongue is James' name inserted into a popular Yankee Stadium cheer: 'Le-Bron Ja-mes, Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!'"
- Eric Koreen of the National Post reports: "On Tuesday evening in Auburn Hills, Mich., before the Raptors took on the Pistons, an unsuspecting local reporter asked Toronto coach Sam Mitchell how his former teammate, Chauncey Billups, went from ordinary to all-star. That is all it took for Mitchell to start going off on how the league often eats its young."
- Sekou Smith of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports: "Al Horford is ready for the storm that's sure to come from 17,000 screaming fans tonight when the Hawks face Toronto at Air Canada Centre. The Hawks' rookie center spent three years touring some of the most venomous environments in basketball during his All-America career at Florida. So he's been in an uncomfortable place or two. 'I've heard some pretty nasty things over the years, about myself and my family and just about anything else you can think of,' Horford said. 'I've never been one to play to the crowd or let them get to me, and I won't start now, no matter what's being said or done.' The ill feelings toward Horford in Toronto stem from his foul on Raptors point guard T.J. Ford late in the Hawks' Dec. 11 loss. The flagrant foul resulted in Ford spending the night in a local hospital and Horford being suspended for one game."
- John McGrath of the Tacoma News Tribune reports: "On Thursday, the Sonics fell behind the Huskies -- the Huskies football team -- and that was strange and exhilarating and remarkable all at once. The University of Washington -- needing $300 million for the renovation of Husky Stadium -- announced Thursday it will ask the state Legislature to earmark $150 million toward a stadium upgrade. Money for the project would be taken from an existing King County hotel-motel, restaurant and rental tax. Lawmakers are expected to grant the request, which should add further crevices to the perpetual frown on the face of Sonics owner Clay Bennett."
- Jesse Spector of the New York Daily News reports: "Joe Pietrangelo, a marble and granite craftsman from Staten Island license plate puts him in the running to be the city's angriest Knicks fan. Pietrangelo, 27, drives a 2005 Acura with a Knicks vanity plate bearing a special message to the team owner: 'FDOLAN.' '(James) Dolan is a piece of garbage, obviously,' Pietrangelo said. 'He doesn't really care about the Knicks -- he just cares about money. He's not a fan, he's from Cleveland.'"
- According to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer, Gerald Wallace has a passion for the Patriots: "It's called simply, The Patriots Room. It's filled with memorabilia: A helmet, of course, and various jerseys. Everything inside -- the bedspread, the paint on the walls, even the ceiling fan -- screams New England Patriots blue and red. A shrine, pretty much. This must be some 12-year-old's bedroom in Worcester, Mass., or Providence, R.I., right? Wrong. It was a present from the wife. Gerald Wallace's spouse redecorated a spare bedroom to celebrate her husband's passion for the premier team in the NFL."
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