|  | | David Stern thinks the referees need improvement, too. |
No, the Finals won't be lopsided. Yes, the lottery will be on the level (as always despite what consipracy theorists think). And will there be an age limit of 20 years old? Maybe. NBA commissioner David Stern covered those topics and more during his conversation with ESPN.com's Marc Stein in his weekly report.Juwan's payday | Here's to you, Mr. Robinson
Marc Stein is the senior NBA writer for ESPN.com. To e-mail him, click here. Also, send Stein a question for possible use on ESPNEWS.
| |
| STEIN SIDELINES |
MALE OF THE WEEK
 Kenny Thomas
The Sixers are only 5-4 in their past nine games, but Thomas -- an undersized power forward at 6-foot-7 -- has posted double-doubles in seven of them. He's averaging 13.2 points and 11.7 boards in that stretch, after posting just seven double-doubles all season before this run.
E-MAIL OF THE WEEK
 "How can Ron Artest get hit by a coin and there's no talk of the Cavaliers being punished? I know you love the English Premier League, and if this incident had occurred there the Football Association would probably fine the home club, enforce empty stadiums for a number of home games or even move home games. I agree Artest was out of line giving fans a "double bird," but what about the Cavs' fans being out of line?"
Mark Decker
Sydney, AustraliaSTEIN: English soccer authorities certainly can and have imposed those kind of sanctions, but they rarely go as far as you suggest. Especially when only one fan is responsible. But I'm with you. Even though it's the second time Artest has been punished for inappropriate gestures, you can't help but feel some sympathy for someone who gets a coin hurled at them. I do know that when offending fans are found in England, they are typically banned from the stadium for life. I'm sure the Cavs wish they could have identified the responsible party in this case and you can only hope we don't see a repeat in the playoffs, since fans are bound to try stuff in hopes of rattling Artest.
Send Stein a question
SPEAK OF THE WEEK
 "I'd rather play them than the Spurs right now."
— Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, referring to the Lakers on the Dan Patrick Show last week.
STAT OF THE WEEK
.628
That's Shaquille O'Neal's free-throw percentage this season, marking the first time in his career he has ever been over 60 percent from the line.
STAT OF THE WEAK
.596
That's Chris Webber's free-throw percentage this season, including those two crunch-time misses in Boston on Friday night before his redemption from the 3-point line.
|
|
|
|
|
