given the controversy surrounding the whole ordeal, now.

Speaking of controversy: TrueHoop has a post up about Dirk’s stance on boycotting the Olympics, which he got from here.

Abbott argues that Dirk saying sports are “non-political” is a dangerous stance, given that athletes have achieved a sort of super-celebrity status nowadays. I agree and disagree.

Athletes do have the power to do good through their celebrity, and should — African relief efforts are a great example of this.

However — and this is the point I think Dirk is trying to make — the Olympics themselves have always been a sort of extra-political event that transcends traditional political squabbles. There were the same sorts of boycott threats going on in the days of the Soviet Union. In a lot of ways, the ability for athletes to compete despite disagreements is what makes the Olympics special.

The Mavs stand to have their fan base effected by having a team move into Oklahoma.

Regardless of what he says, that’s why he voted against it.

they were great fans to the Hornets last season, and the NBA has done well going into small markets without a major sports team and getting great results by being the only game in town. (Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, Orlando, and Portland have all been successful. We’ll ignore Memphis for a moment.)

What I don’t understand is why the Sonics were picked as the franchise to move. I know their stadium situation, but it seems like that could’ve been resolved if the NBA and team ownership had really wanted it to be resolved.

Memphis seems ripe for relocation (though they’ll probably be the team that moves to Seattle in two years when Seattle gets a new team), and it’s absolutely ridiculous that New Orleans has an NBA franchise. That city is just plain not big enough to support them. They’ll never make ends meat there without a subsidy from the league.