Listen up Yardbarkers,

Rudy Gay came up with a great idea for the fans to get involved with this year's dunk contest. He's actually going to do a dunk based on what he believes will win. Listen to Rudy's promotional advertisement and submit a video. I think this is a great idea. Personally, I've been wanting somebody to do either a 720 or a 360 (the wrong way) with an under the legs tomahawk. Can that even be done?

The Mitchell Report forgot one person according to Jose Canseco...... guess who?

As a personal golfing buddy of Jose's, I can definitely say that he speaks his mind all the time (although his mind and the truth can be two separate things). Here's the latest article with regards to the allegations of A-Rod.

Oh man... this interview is freaking hilarious.

If you were to interview Los Angeles Clippers point guard Sam Cassell, this is not the way to go about it.

Imagine if LeBron or KG played ball in the 1950s...

This article was written last year, but I still laugh my butt off at what Chris Sheridan wrote.

"This is a little disgusting, but it's true: Some of these teams stink, literally. Players on international teams travel to and from the arenas in their uniforms, and many players forsake showers as a result. I got a really close look at Argentina during the Worlds in Indianapolis, and I do not believe Fabricio Oberto, Luis Scola or Andres Nocioni bathed during the entire tournament. BO may be repulsive, but it also keeps defenders a few extra inches away."

Yi, the sixth overall selection in the NBA draft in June, signed a standard rookie scale contract with the Bucks in Hong Kong on Wednesday.

Chinese basketball player Yi Jianlian signed here Wednesday a multi-year contract with Milwaukee Bucks to kick off his career in NBA.

Yi became the fourth Chinese basketball player signing into an NBA team following Menk Bater, Wang Zhizhi and Yao Ming.

"We are very excited to associate ourselves with Alian (nickname for Yi Jianlian). He is an extraordinary person and a great basketball player," said Herb Kohl, owner of the Bucks, at apress conference after the contract had been signed behind doors.

The Miami Heat signed free agent guard/forward Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway on Thursday. Terms of the contract were not disclosed.

The 36-year-old Hardaway last played with the New York Knicks in 2005-06 when he appeared in just four games due to injury.

"Penny is a player who has been an All-Star and has enjoyed an illustrious career," said Heat president and head coach Pat Riley. "We have been impressed at his hard work and dedication this summer to get back in shape and return to the NBA. He is a skilled player who can help us in multiple positions."

In 13 seasons with Orlando, Phoenix and New York, Hardaway has averaged 15.4 points, 5.1 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game.

NBA star center Yao Ming has got married to his long-term girlfriend Ye Li in their hometown Shanghai on Monday.

Yao, 27 and 2.26-meter-tall Houston Rockets star, and his bride Ye, a 26-year-old, 1.9-meter-tall player on China's national women's basketball team, received their official marriage certificate in Shanghai's Xuhui District on Friday.

A few months ago, he was faulted for taking too much time off to recover from the NBA season, as well spending too much time planning his wedding and making appearances for the Special Olympics and Beijing Olympics.

Hey China.... STFU!!! In my opinion, Yao Ming had a right to retaliate to whoever was coming down on him. Let the man live his life!

After the accident that left me crippled for four months, I've managed to rest the torn ligaments in my foot and finally made a full recovery! I made a special Rocky montage for you guys, showing that anybody can overcome adversity if they put their mind to it. Don't let injuries get you down.

If this doesn't inspire you to go out there and work out, at least I hope you get a good laugh out of it!



Tell me what you guys think.

David Beckham made an uneventful 12-minute debut for the Los Angeles Galaxy last night in an exhibition against Chelsea. Beckham came into the game in the 78th minute replacing Alan Gordon, only to enter an atmosphere full of loud cheers and a sea of camera flashes from the sold-out crowd of 27,000. "The atmosphere is incredible," he said after Chelsea's 1-0 victory.

His first action is to attempt a raking 60-yard pass to Kirk that has the fans in awe. Nobody seems to mind that it wasn't that good of a pass.

The midfielder, still feeling the effects of an ankle injury, got to take a corner kick in added time.

Saturday's game, a sell-out, was the Galaxy's second-highest grossing fixture since the MLS side hosted Real a year ago, with Beckham playing for the opposition.

I don't know if you guys know this about me, but I had two recurring extra roles on the show "Scrubs." For those of you that don't know what Scrubs is... it's been on for about six seasons and it's on NBC, usually been rerunned on Comedy Central as well. Anyway, I feel compelled to share this clip with the Yardbarker nation.



I'm the lead ninja surgeon that Donald Faison kicked first.

If I can find the Man Show clip that I'm in as well, I'll post it.

Steve Francis is going home.

After three years of struggles in Orlando and New York, the former All-Star guard will return to the place of his greatest glory, the Houston Rockets.

Francis was in Houston on Thursday to sign a two-year contract worth roughly $6 million with the Rockets. The club will announce the signing at a newsconference on Friday.

"It's great opportunity, I'm definitely excited," Francis told Houston's Fox 26 Sports. "This is a pretty astonishing moment right now. I am still caught up in the hype."

He was sent to the Knicks in early 2006 and played for them until he was traded to Portland last month in a draft-night deal. The Trail Blazers bought out his contract for a reported $30 million last week, making him an unrestricted free agent.

"We're extremely pleased that he's going back to Houston," Fried said. "Houston has always been home for Steve since he entered the NBA."

Fried said the buyout from Portland allowed Francis more freedom in choosing a team based on factors other than money. He would not release terms of the deal, but said other teams offered more lucrative contracts.

Miami, Dallas and the Los Angeles Clippers were interested in the 30-year-old guard.

In case you guys missed the ESPYs, this was supposedly the highlight of the night. "Stop all this hating and buy my shoes." - Lebrobby Brown.

Winners at the 15th annual ESPY Awards presented Wednesday:

Male Athlete: LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers



Female Athlete: Taryne Mowatt, University of Arizona softball

Team: Indianapolis Colts

Coach-Manager: Tony Dungy, Indianapolis Colts

Breakthrough Athlete: Devin Hester, Chicago Bears

Game: Boise St. defeats Oklahoma, Fiesta Bowl

Record-breaking Performance: LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers

Championship Performance: Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts quarterback, Super Bowl

Play: Boise St. defeats Oklahoma with a two-point conversion using Statue of Liberty play

Moment: New Orleans Saints return to Superdome for first time since Hurricane Katrina and defeat Atlanta Falcons

Finish: Los Angeles Dodgers defeat San Diego Padres, Sept. 18, 2006, after tying the game on four consecutive home runs before Nomar Garciaparra's homer wins it in 10th inning

Upset: Golden State Warriors defeat top-seeded Dallas Mavericks in first round of NBA playoffs

Sports Movie: "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby"

Male College Athlete: Kevin Durant, Texas basketball

Female College Athlete: Taryne Mowatt, Arizona softball

Women's Collegiate Team: Tennessee basketball

Male Action Sport Athlete: Travis Pastrana, motocross

Female Action Sport Athlete: Sarah Burke, skiing

Male Athlete With A Disability: Casey Tibbs, track & field

Female Athlete With a Disability: Jessica Long, Paralympic swimmer

Male International Athlete: Roger Federer, tennis

Female International Athlete: Maria Sharapova, tennis

Baseball Player: Derek Jeter, New York Yankees

NBA Player: LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers

WNBA Player: Lisa Leslie, Los Angeles Sparks

NFL Player: LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers

NHL Player: Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

Bowler: Norm Duke

Driver: Jeff Gordon

Fighter: Floyd Mayweather, boxing

Golfer: Tiger Woods

Jockey: Calvin Borel

MLS Player: Landon Donovan, Los Angeles Galaxy

Male Tennis Player: Roger Federer

Female Tennis Player: Maria Sharapova

Track and Field Athlete: Jeremy Wariner

Outdoor Athlete: Dean Karnazes, marathon

Arthur Ashe Courage Award: Trevor Ringland and Dave Cullen, PeacePlayers

Jimmy V ESPY for Perseverance: Kay Yow, North Carolina State women's basketball coach

Like Nothing Else Award: LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers

Undeniable Award: Tennessee women's basketball team