http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/4778 Recent articles about Jason Williams en-us Zach Harper, Brandon Gallawa, and Andy Eisner welcome Erick Boenisch from 2K Sports to discuss the latest installment of the best basketball video game franchise on the market. The NBA 2K series has been the highest rated basketball video game across the board for the last seven years and we discuss the new additions and wrinkles that ensure that this will be the eighth straight year. Here's the breakdown of the segments for our 23rd episode: 1. Jason Williams Retires - What was our favorite Jason moment? How will he be missed? What is Jason Williams legacy? Did he bring basketball back in 1999? 2. NBA 2K9 Interview with Erick Boenisch - Association 2.0: What are the new features for this mode? How has the Collective Bargaining Agreement been implemented? How do player personalities and play ambitions affect your franchise team? - Living Rosters: How will this be updated into the game? How often will it be available? How do you get it? - Realism: Is Kobe unstoppable? Is Stephon Marbury and his head tattoo crazy in the game? How many different Vince Carter fade-away animations will there be? - Pick 'Em: In the game -- Kobe or LeBron? Amici's pizza or the field? Plus many more! Be sure to listen, tell your friends, and continue to Support the Habit. Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:01:44 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/344215 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/344215 G: Spud Webb G: Mitch Richmond F: Lionel Simmons F: Chris Webber C: Vlade Divac And coming off the bench ... Jason Williams Wayman Tisdale Antoine Carr Walt Williams Olden Polynice Brian Grant Corliss Williamson An ugly team, to be sure. But better things were around the corner for this team ... Wed, 01 Oct 2008 16:31:04 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/342596 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/342596 The player known as "White Chocolate" early in his NBA career, has decided to retire. The "Los Angeles Times" has reported that Los Angeles Clippers point guard Jason Williams announced he is ending his ten year career in the Association. Williams who played last season for the Miami Heat signed on with the Clippers as a free agent this Summer. Mon, 29 Sep 2008 00:18:37 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/340867 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/340867 Jason Williams retires before suffering the indignity of suiting up for the Clippers. A quick look back at the West Virginia-born J-Will's career with a 4 minute mix tape. Sun, 28 Sep 2008 01:06:25 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/340349 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/340349 Wow, this really comes as shocking news. The Clippers confirmed that he's retiring, no reason so far. Williams signed with the L.A. Clippers less than a month ago and was one of the most exciting PGs to ever play. He played for Kings, Grizzlies and won a championship with the Heat. A look back. Fri, 26 Sep 2008 20:27:10 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/339734 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/339734 Screaming Sports' Zach Powell breaks out another Screaming Sports original. With so many valuable fantasy studs going down with offseason injuries, Zach decided it was time to take a look at several replacements. So if you're one of the many fantasy GM's who have had your potential draft plans changed because of an injury, then this piece is exactly what the doctor ordered. Tue, 09 Sep 2008 07:23:32 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/330260 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/330260 For anyone who follows the Phoenix Suns, it appeared that headed into this offseason, the number one goal for this team was to acquire a backup point guard. Someone capable of spelling the aging Steve Nash for 12 to 15 minutes per game. There's even been talk of having said backup point guard start up to 12 games this... Fri, 08 Aug 2008 16:23:06 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/303188 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/303188 Well, it looks as though Shaq wasn't able to sway the Phoenix Suns' management into signing Jason Williams ... Fri, 08 Aug 2008 09:22:47 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/302977 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/302977 Back from a few much needed days off. While I was gone, Paul Pierce hit the news for his non-DUI stop in Vegas. I'd say that he's had enough celebrating and should get down to getting ready to defend the title. After every season, win or lose, Larry Bird would be training the very next week. It will be very hard to repeat if Pierce is still celebrating his ring up until training camp. He's had his fun and run at celebrity and being the best player in the world. Time to get to work. #17 was great, but #18 would be even better. Time to get serious and work on conditioning and your game Paul. The schedule was also released and the Celtics will raise banner #17 to the rafters along with getting their rings on October 28 with LeBron James looking on. Talk about giving LeBron incentive. He has to stand there and watch the Celtics getting their rings while he knows that with a little help he could be getting a ring as well. The Cavs have until 2010 to improve and give LeBron that shot at a ring or he could be going elsewhere. We all have watched with interest the teams such as the Knicks and Nets clearing cap space for the summer of 2010 to make a run at the LeBron sweepstakes. The Cavs have let it be known that they won't let him go without a fight as well. Now, it may all be for nothing as a couple of European teams have contacted James with possible offers of $50 million a year or more. And, LeBron has said that he would consider going to Europe for that kind of money. He could play a year or two and then come back to the US and sign with a contender since money won't be an issue any longer. Something interesting to watch, for sure. Whatever LeBron decides to do, there will be several teams with a lot of cap room to make a splash on the free agent market. Not only is LeBron talking Europe but now, Kobe Bryant has said that he would probably leave the NBA to play in Italy if they offered him in the area of $50 million a year. Kobe spent a large part of his childhood growing up in Italy while his father played professional basketball there and speaks fluent Italian. In 1999, he also acquired a 50 percent ownership of the Olimpia Milano of the Italian Professional Basketball League. Does that mean that he could offer himself a contract? Anyway, he would love to play in Italy and no NBA team could match that kind of money. Kobe has the rings and so it may be about the money and a new challenge at that point. He proved last off season that he doesn't have much loyalty to the Lakers organization so if he gets an offer from an Italian team he may just go. Besides the basketball, there is a whole new country of women for him to go after who may not have heard about his sordid past in the US. The signings have slowed down, but the Clippers are still at it as they acquired Steve Novak, a forward who will give them some perimeter scoring, in a deal with the Houston Rockets. In return, the Rockets will have the option to exchange second-round picks with the Clippers in the 2011 NBA draft. Don't you love all these teams getting players for next to nothing? Must be nice to have all that cap space. The Clippers also signed free agent point guard Jason Williams on Thursday. He joins former Heat teammate, Ricky Davis, on the team. There had been some rumors that the Celtics were looking at Williams before House was re-signed. The Clippers had been looking to re-sign Shaun Livingston but the Williams signing closes the door on that. Livingston is an intriguing point guard at 6'7" but still hasn't been cleared for basketball after the knee injury he suffered last season. This gives the Clippers 10 new players for the upcoming season and 14 total under contract. The Celtics started last season with 9 new players and they didn't have any chemistry problems, but then again, they had Kevin Garnett and just the right mix of players. The question for the Clippers may be which Ricky Davis shows up. You also have to question how much 2 players from a roster that produced 15 wins will help. At a time where head coaches often don't last more than one season, it is simply amazing that Jerry Sloan is about to celebrate 20 years as head coach of the Utah Jazz. The Dec. 9 anniversary game for the longest-tenured coach in American pro sport will be played against the Timberwolves in Minnesota. Sloan will begin the season with 995 victories as the Jazz head coach. No coach in NBA history has won 1,000 games with one team and Sloan can make history as he will definitely eclipse that mark early in this season. The NBA's Web site all but confirmed Thunder would be the nickname of Oklahoma City's NBA team when they released the schedule on Wednesday morning. At first, NBA.com linked to a page that listed the "Oklahoma City Thunder schedule" but by Wednesday afternoon, all mentions of Thunder were removed. Now that the cat's out of the bag, it's about time they make the announcement and make it official. Allan Houston is planning to make another comeback attempt and it is possible that he could get a second try with the Knicks. The 37-year-old Houston told Newsday Tuesday that his agent has been in touch with a few teams and is in preliminary discussions about a training camp tryout. Houston tried to make a comeback last pre-season when he showed at Knicks training camp, but lasted only a week. Houston played 6 minutes of garbage time in a preseason game against the Celtics but put an end to his comeback shortly thereafter. The Heat signed Denver Nuggets' free agent Yakhouba Diawara. He will give them some experience and scoring from the wing. The Cavs have signed former Grizzlies' guard Terrance Kinsey to give them backcourt depth. They still haven't come to terms with Delonte West. It may come down to Delonte accepting the qualifying offer and becoming an unrestricted free agent next year. I'd really love to have him back with the Celtics for both his toughness and play and his sense of humor. Who can forget the Wire Hanger or the Valentine's Day bits? I miss Delonte. The Lakers and Chinese point guard Sun Yue have agreed to terms on a two-season contract, the team confirmed Thursday. Sun is known as the Chinese Magic Johnson because of his eye-catching playmaking ability and will face his future teammate Kobe Bryant when China plays the United States on Sunday in Team USA's opening game. Sun will compete with starting point guard Derek Fisher and backup PG Jordan Farmar for playing time and can also play some shooting guard. Both Fisher and Farmar were ineffective against the Celtics in the playoffs. The Lakers are hoping that Sun Yue's size will give them an advantage. Reports are that the Bucks have reached a verbal agreement with former Spurs and Sonics' free agent center, Francisco Elson. If they do sign him, he will give the Bucks good depth behind Andrew Bogut at the center position. Some early reports had him headed for Boston, but you wonder how that would work out after Elson called KG gay when he was a rookie with the Nuggets. Word is that the Spurs are one of three teams believed to have offered Pargo a deal that would start at $2 million next season. The other teams in the Pargo sweepstakes remain unclear, though it is presumed the Denver Nuggets might be one of them. The Hornets appear willing to let him go and aren't reported to be in the mix for Pargo's services. He is instant offense off the bench and a very good 3 point shooter and would replace what they lost in Brent Barry when he went to the Rockets. I would say that the Heat desperately need help at the point guard spot since after Jason Williams signed with the Clippers, Marcus Banks is their only PG. The Suns thought that he would be the answer to back up Steve Nash and passed on Rajon Rondo because of it. They soon found out that his speed isn't everything. If he would ever get the right attitude, he would be a decent point guard, but so far, he still hasn't gotten his head straight. With Williams gone and Banks as the only PG, it could open the door for a return by restricted free agent Chris Quinn, who finished last season as the Heat's starting point guard. Of course, much of the buzz these next couple of weeks will be about the Olympics as Team USA finally has the chance to redeem themselves and bring home the gold. Games start on Sunday when they face China. The game will be televised at 10:15 am on NBC tv. The women tip off on Saturday as they face the Czech republic. Go USA!!! Fri, 08 Aug 2008 09:14:16 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/302972 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/302972 Ok... the Clippers made a move today to pick up free-agent point guard Jason Williams... Thats right, White Chocolate in a Clipper uniform... This is actually a good pick up for them in the light of not resigning Shaun Livingston... and with players goin' overseas and all... So to date the Clippers have picked up Baron Davis, Marcus Camby, Rick Davis, Jason Hart, Brian Skinner, Steve Novak, and of course their first rd draft pick Eric Gordon... But even with all the new additions...can they recover from the lost of Corey Maggette and Elton Brand? Now, they are going to have a nice year and make the playoffs... but my burning question is: Did their moves come a bit too late??? Thu, 07 Aug 2008 19:18:14 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/302768 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/302768 The Phoenix Suns have an all-but-complete roster... Mon, 04 Aug 2008 13:58:08 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/300670 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/300670 The Cavaliers were interested in Sixers free agent Louis Williams but on Thursday, Williams signed a 5 year contract that is worth a reported $25 million with the Sixers. Williams has come a long way since he was picked No. 45 overall pick in the 2005 draft as he became the first high school player selected by the Sixers since they chose Darryl Dawkins at No. 5 in 1975. Jason Williams is talking to several NBA Teams but Maccabi Tel Aviv has reportedly offered him a contract to play overseas that he is seriously considering accepting. But word out of Israel from at least one source familiar with Tel Aviv's negotiations is that Williams is seeking a deal with an annual salary of at least $3 million. The Israeli team is thinking closer to $1.5, which is similar to what any NBA suitor might offer. Former Celtic, Sam Vincent, had a very short lived coaching job with the Charlotte Bobcats as he coached just one year before being replaced by the vagabond Coach Larry Brown. Less than three months after Vincent was dismissed by Jordan, who has a history of sticking with coaches for just one season, Vincent was named the new head coach of the D-League Anaheim Arsenal. The new Oklahoma City team is still making news as it was announced that they will become the 3rd NBA team to own their own D-League team. The Oklahoma City team is in the process of purchasing the Tulsa 66ers. Clay Bennett, the majority owner of the Oklahoma City team, said that by purchasing the D-League team, Oklahoma City will be able to better develop Oklahoma City's younger players who are sent there. Lakers center Andrew Bynum's continues his rehabilitation with a lot of running, lifting weights and jumping. He hasn't yet been cleared for any contact drills, so he is not allowed to play in any pickup basketball games. He hasn't played any basketball for 6 months now, but Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak is hopeful that Bynum will be 100% by training camp. The Lakers are counting on a front court of Bynum, Gasol and Odom will be dominant and lead them to a championship. I am not so certain. It may be enough to conquer the West, but even when Bynum was healthy and playing, Kendrick Perkins totally owned him. The legal battle between Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and former coach Don Nelson is finally over. Nelson, a Celtics legend, as well as current Golden State coach, won about $6.3 million Thursday in his arbitration case against Cuban. The suit centered on Nelson's claim that the Mavericks owed him more than $6 million in deferred salary from when Ross Perot Jr. owned the team. Things got even nastier between the two when Cuban filed a counterclaim in 2007 alleging that Nelson used inside information to lead Golden State past the Mavericks in the first round of the playoffs. Gee, I wonder what excuse Cuban used last year? Several teams, including the Pistons, Bulls and Jazz have said that they are no longer looking at free agents but that they would consider a trade. This may leave some good free agents looking for the minimum salary at the end of the off season. We may also see some interesting trades with possible big names changing teams. The Los Angeles Clippers signed free agent forward Brian Skinner on Thursday. Skinner was originally selected by the Clippers as the 22nd pick in the 1998 draft. He played last season with the Suns. He gives them both size and depth in the middle," The Bulls are still reported to be far apart on negotiations with Ben Gordon on a new contract. Gordon wants more than Deng is getting since he has been the Bulls leading scorer for the past several seasons. The Bulls are offering him much less. According to sources, the Bulls are offering an average salary around $8 million while Gordon is looking for something in the $12 million range which would be slightly more than Deng's deal that averages $11.8 million. The Bulls are seriously looking at trades and Andres Nocioni has been mentioned in trade talks. On Thursday, they also released JamesOn Curry, who spent most of last season in the D-League. Celtics got a look at their second round draft pick on Thursday as Team USA played the Turkish National Team with starting center Semih Erden. He looked pretty good in spite of shooting just 1-7 from the field. He finished with 5 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and just 1 turnover. Danny Ainge said in today's Globe that he may sign another free agent late in the summer if someone doesn't get what he wants but he is not chasing anyone. So, it looks like the excitement for Celtics' fans is pretty much over for this summer. Danny still needs to sign the assistant coaches and the two draft picks but the team may be pretty much set for now. But then again, there was that bit that Danny was offering a sign and trade for Delonte. You never know. Fri, 01 Aug 2008 08:35:54 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/299224 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/299224 It's been 10 years since Jason Williams was the #7 pick for the Sacramento Kings, when he was one of the most exciting players at the time. After winning a championship with the Miami Heat 2 years ago and dropping to the worst record with that same franchise, J-Will's looking to come around full circle. To the team that he played for first. Williams turns 33 years old this November and had 10 years under his belt. In 679 games played, he's started in all but 30 of them, but he's certain to come off the bench for starting point guard Beno Udrih, who they just locked up with a 5 year full mid-level exception. Even though the Kings locked up a point guard for the long term and drafted rookie Sean Singletary, whose defensive intensity has been impressive in the summer league, Williams' agent, Dan Tobin, has been working to reunite Williams' with his former team even before Udrih agreed to return with the Kings within a day of negotiations. Williams was traded to the Vancouver Grizzlies for Mike Bibby in 2001 after having his worst season in 3 years before ending up as the starting point guard for a championship team in Miami. Even though Kings GM Geoff Petrie has said that he's likely to be done free agent shopping with a full roster, Tobin commented in the Sacramento Bee, "We're looking for a specific type of situation where Jason can help elevate a team to that next step. That's what he's been really good at." Williams' wasn't even their second option if Udrih didn't re-sign. The Kings contacted Chris Duhon as a back-up plan. They also have a full roster of 15 players and are right at the threshold of the luxary tax. If they do get him, all they can afford is the bi-annual exception after he made $9 million last year, but it would fill in their need of a vetran point guard. It'd also wouldn't interfere with the 2010 free agency class. Even though he averaged career lows near 9 PPG, 2 RPG and 5 APG, they can use desperate help in the assist category because they're second to last in the league Getting Williams would also be an upgrade from Anthony Johnson, who recently signed with the Orlando Magic. The Kings can also have a spot open in the near future if they cut 2nd round pick Patrick Ewing Jr., who has scored only 2 points in 4 summer league games. J-Will's still got handles, dishes out alley-oops, would be a solid veteran back-up and could help Sean Singletary adjust to the NBA game. If Udrih got hurt, Singleary wouldn't be ready, but Williams' will. It'd also be a great way to end his career in the city that first embraced him, like former Kings' draft pick Corliss Williamson did with the Kings a year ago after he won a championship with the Detroit Pistons and traded to the Kings from the Philadelphia 76ers'. Seeing #55 back in Sactown would be cool, and if he can help the Kings with their long term plans for a short term, it'd be even better. Sun, 20 Jul 2008 12:22:58 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292820 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292820 Rotoworld.com is a great resource for breaking news, but I often disagree with their NBA analysis. So here are a few examples of how my fantasy basketball opinions differ from Rotoworld's (I will continue to update the original post over the summer). My intentions are not to simply badmouth Rotoworld's fantasy hoops content, but to point out the differences between their analysis and mine. I should first thank them, because if it wasn't for an email that they sent me 5 years ago, I wouldn't be here today. You see, I purchased Rotoworld's "Fantasy Basketball Draft Guide" in 2003, and was very disappointed with their "expert" analysis and stat projections. I sent them an email citing examples of projections that did not seem very logical to me, and they responded by saying something like: Clearly, you are knowledgeable and experienced in fantasy basketball, but our draft guides are geared towards more novice players. I was extremely offended by that email. Why would someone sell a guide (of ANY kind) without putting maximum effort into it in hopes that even the most experienced person could gain some kind of knowledge or insight from it? Since that day, I've been on a mission to create my own Fantasy Basketball Draft Guide to the best of my ability. Over the last 5 years, I've won over $15,000 playing fantasy basketball, which is no easy feat considering the lack of high-stakes hoops leagues. After years of keeping my rankings and projections to myself, I released my first comprehensive Draft Guide last year on 82games.com, to much acclaim (see below). So before you purchase Rotoworld's 2008 NBA Draft Guide, perhaps you should take note of the differences between Rotoworld and RotoEvil. My 1st update includes differences of opinion regarding: Kevin Love & Minnesota's frontcourt, David Lee's trade prospects, Jason Williams' fantasy value, Brandon Rush's player comparisons, and whether or not Chris Duhon is really an NBA player. Click on the link to compare for yourself! Thu, 17 Jul 2008 20:07:28 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291945 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291945 In recent seasons the Suns have tried to sign John Salmons, Joe Johnson, Chris Duhon, Anthony Johnson and Tyronn Lue. A grand total of zero of them have wound up on their roster. Instead they choose to head to basketball meccas such as Sacramento, Atlanta, New York, Orlando, and Milwaukee. I never thought I'd see a day when [...] Thu, 17 Jul 2008 18:50:24 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291916 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291916