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Every Monday, John Bennett previews the games he’s most looking forward to. Looks like he’s going to be a busy man tonight and Friday.

1. Oklahoma City @ Utah, Monday.

Utah is coming off an unbelievable road trip where they beat Miami, Orlando, Atlanta and Charlotte in comeback wins all in the span of 5 days. The Bobcats game may not mean a lot but, after starting 2-3, Sloan has these guys rolling.

Paul Millsap’s monster 46-point game against the Heat was ridiculous. This, especially the trio of late three pointers, will never happen again. Overall, though, the big man is shooting over 60% from the field and has helped ease Al Jefferson into the Jazz frontcourt.

Kevin Durant’s 8 points to close out Portland in a 10-0 run was very impressive. I have a feeling the kid’s finding his groove. That being said, Westbrook has been some fantastic basketball, averaging 23.7 points, 6 rebounds, and 7.8 assists. Oh, and he’s 5th in the NBA in PER. Not too shabby for a “number two option.”
The last time the Thunder played Utah, OKC got destroyed 120-99. Jefferson and Millsap combined for 53 points, 26 rebounds and 7 assists. Ibaka will need to slow down one of these big guys for OKC to win this game.
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AP Photo / Nick Wass

Recorded on Thursday (my apologies for the late posting), we start off all pissed off with Colin Cowherd’s ignorant comments about John Wall. Then, we get to Andrea Bargnani and the Raptors, Steve Nash and the Suns, the Joakim Noah/KG thing, Paul Millsap’s awesomeness, the public perception of Kevin Durant, and our weekly features.

It’s just Julian, Wagman, and I this time. John was sick. Get better, John.

Click here to listen to the podcast.

Note: Julian dares to say “schadenfreude” out loud at one point. None of us were sure about the pronunciation.

…and if you missed the Joakim Noah at-home interview with ESPN from back in October, here ya go:

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In this episode, we begin with the Raptors and Suns after witnessing their 51-point pre-season blowout. Then, Julian rips into Charlie Villanueva, all of us discuss Michael Beasley’s inconsistency, and we briefly attempt to talk about the Lakers/Barcelona game we barely watched. Eventually we get to the two Wizards pictured above.

We finish off by examining the recent GM survey and playing “Who he play for?” with Wagman.

Runtime is 47:49.

Click here to listen to the podcast.

Recommended links:
Unconventional NBA’s Nick Flynt on Michael Beasley – Part 1 and Part 2
NBA Playbook’s Sebastian Pruiti on Beasley’s inconsistency
Dave McMenamin of ESPN LA – Kobe Bryant: FCB could compete in NBA
NBA.com – 2010-2011 GM Survey: Player Predictions
Jason King of Rivals.com – An old, but great article on John Wall
The Basketball Jones – Gilbert Arenas “Also Still Here” Poster
Kelly Dwyer and Trey Kerby on “Emo Gil.”

…and here’s Luke Babbitt doing the Dougie:

Hat tip: Ben Golliver of Blazersedge

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Tuesday night, Julian and I chatted about all things NBA. Or, more accurately, some things NBA. Like the Raptors, Nets, Hawks, Thunder, Warriors, Magic, Bulls, Bucks, and Bobcats. And Joe Johnson, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Omri Casspi, Kevin Martin, Vince Carter, Courtney Lee, and Vinny Del Negro. And, y’know, a bunch of other stuff. Totally forgot to talk about Darko’s weird, expletive-laden interview, though. Next time.

And next time, Eric Wagman will join us. We were kidding about him hurting himself.

Click here to listen to the podcast.

It’s been a little while, hey? Nothing from me since the podcast. Time to recap what’s gone on since then. Continue Reading

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Hey heyyy, it’s the first BfB of 2010. I’m a bit pissed at myself for letting so many days go by without an update here, but at least I’ve been really active on Twitter, right? Right? Hope that’s okay. Anyway, 4 games on the schedule last night. There’s stuff to talk about. Continue Reading

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Another seven games on the schedule on Tuesday night and I’ve got a lot to talk about. My eyes were focused mainly on Cavs/Hawks, Thunder/Wizards, and Lakers/Warriors, but I’ve done my best to cover everything. Continue Reading

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Oh, it has been far too long since the last BfB. Holidays and all, you know. I can promise these will be more frequent now, though. Anyway, seven games on the schedule last night and three of them turned out to be fairly big upsets. Fun! Continue Reading

I took a break from daily recaps last week, but trust me when I tell you I didn’t take a break from watching ball or reading about it. There’s no way I can let a week of action go by without sharing my thoughts, so here’s a mammoth recap. Continue Reading

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I’m eschewing the normal BfB format at least for one day. It might just be the spazzy band I went to see last night, but I’m feeling a bit ADD and want to ditch the normal structure and just give some thoughts about the games I watched on Saturday and Sunday. Continue Reading