NBA Teams Stock Up on Veterans

P.J. Brown is back in the league. Yesterday, the 6' 11", 240 pound Brown (who had previously been out of the league this season) signed with the Celtics.

Brown attributes his decision to play for the Celtics to the urging of Paul Pierce and Ray Allen:

"They just pulled me over and said, 'Man, we'd really love to have you on the team,' " said Brown before last night's game against the Cavaliers. " 'With your experience, we think you can help our young guys and add some stability to our team. As a player, we still think you can play. Your defense and rebounding fits in with what we're trying to do."

And P.J. Brown isn't the only veteran big man who has caught on with a playoff bound NBA team in the last couple of days. Jamaal Magloire just joined the Dallas Mavericks.

According to the 6'11", 265 lb. Magloire, the decision to go to Dallas was easy:

"I've admired the team and the organization," he said. "I had a chance to come here and jumped at the opportunity. I've worked tremendously hard, even not playing in New Jersey. I'd be the first one in and the last one to leave and I hope I'm able to show that out on the court.

"Everything pointed in the right direction. There were other teams, but I thought this was the best fit. What also made the decision easy is this is a team that does have an opportunity to win a title. And to be a part of that is special."

And the Detroit Pistons are looking into the possibility of bringing back veteran forward Dale Davis:

"Former Piston Dale Davis could re-sign with the Pistons as early as Thursday, according to his agent.

"We're in pretty serious talks with them," said Chubby Wells, Davis' agent. "We hope to have something done soon."

Davis needs to sign with a team by the end of this week in order to be eligible for the playoff roster.

"He'll be signed in time for that," Wells said."

Every year, playoff bound teams look to add playoff tested veterans, especially big men. Don't be surprised to see a few more late additions to teams before playoff rosters have to be set.


On A Side Note:

Isiah Thomas has indicated that Stephon Marbury may have played his last game as a Knick. According to the New York Daily News, Thomas told reporters:

"Going into next season, we're still going to need another guard," Thomas said. "There's certain things that Nate (Robinson) and Jamal (Crawford) are extremely good at, but to have them do it for 48 minutes a night, you still need a third guard to kind of come in and help with some ball-handling and do some other things. And Fred (Jones) has done a good job. But we need to get better back there."

When asked if Marbury could be that guard, a suddenly nervous Thomas replied: "Let's talk about the Bobcats. Can I get a question about the Bobcats?"

Marbury is out for the season after undergoing ankle surgery. But Isiah has told him to stay away from the team:

"Marbury, who has appeared in just 24 games, decided to have season-ending ankle surgery last month. He no longer attends games and, according to one team source, Thomas has told Marbury to stay away.

Marbury will earn $22 million next season, his final year under contract."

Not that Marbury is likely to be too upset about not having to play for the rest of the season. After all, since he's recovering from ankle surgery, he's probably enjoying having a legitimate excuse for hanging around the crib all day, high on drugs (prescription painkillers, of course).

Aww hell, who are we kidding? It's not like Marbury actually needs Vicodin or Oxycontin. That cat smokes more weed than Snoop Dogg.

Stephon Marbury is one of the most perpetually blazed dudes in the league.

Check out this video of an obviously baked Marbury appearing on the local sports show, "Mike'd Up," on NBC Channel 4 in New York.

The video is kind of long (about 9 minutes), but it's well worth watching it all the way through. The weed seems to kick in harder as the interview unfolds. By the 5 minute mark, he's clearly losing it. By the 8 minute mark, he's really, really fkuced up.

But the most amazing part of the video isn't Marbury's obvious altered state, but rather the amazing professionalism displayed by the show's host (especially when confronted by Marbury's erratic behavior near the end of the segment).