It’s been called a courtship of rivals.  The love/hate affair between Magic Johnson and Larry Bird in the 70s and 80s gave life to the entire NBA and legitimized its place as one of the big four sports leagues in America.  According to Variety:

Aiming for Broadway in 2012, the latest from “Lombardi” scribe Eric Simonson will follow the competitive relationship between Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, two of the defining figures of basketball in the 1980s. Both Johnson and Bird will participate in the development of the script, meeting with Simonson for interviews that will feed into the six-character drama.

Sports-themed play follows in the footsteps of this season’s “Lombardi,” a production that has never logged B.O.-busting sales figures but nonetheless has proven steady enough to outlast a number of fellow offerings from the fall lineup. Production opened in October with Dan Lauria in the role of influential football coach Vince Lombardi.

Dan Lauria.  Man I loved that guy on “The Wonder Years”…classic 60’s middle-class father.  Anyway, the producers of Magic/Bird are seeing sports subjects as a possible “legitimate” genre for Broadway.  Hey, who wouldn’t love to see a musical about the complicated relationship between Lawrence Taylor and Joe Theisman’s knee.

[PhotoSource: Variety]

Being from the Midwest, I’ve heard story after story about Tommy Morrison.  The fights in Kansas City area bars, sexing up multiple women every night, the drugs and the dumb ass ‘I’m the Champ’ attitude he displayed to everyone he met.  There was a time in the late ’80s and early ’90s when ‘the great white hype’ was extremely popular.  My high school girlfriend’s mom actually had a huge poster of Morrison sitting in her room.  Not my girlfriend, mind you, her mom.  A little creepy, but okay.

Today, Morrison is the shadow of the man he once was – both physically and mentally.  Once on top of the world, he’s no longer allowed to fight in the ring due to the HIV he contracted years ago during one of his many love fests.  He still trains, however, hoping to get one more chance at a championship.  And every couple of years, someone does an interview with him just to hear the crazy sh*t that comes out of his mouth.

This time around, Morrison claims that HIV doesn’t exist.  No, he’s not talking about his HIV like it doesn’t exist, as if it were miraculously cured by self-actualization or some wonder drug.  He’s talking about HIV in general.  Oh, and teleportation.  Confused yet?  The Kansas City Star’s Sam Mellinger explains:

Tommy wants to talk to you about HIV. It’s a farce, he says. An invention by a scientist who wanted to make money, a lie kept alive by a government that wants to scare people. He doesn’t have HIV, never did, and besides, it’s not the deadly disease it’s been made out to be.

What he says sounds crazy, but there is an obvious and undeniable fact sitting in front of you: Tommy Morrison is still alive and apparently healthy, 15 years after testing positive for HIV. Magic Johnson tested positive five years before Tommy, but Johnson has wealth and the very best medical care.

He speaks with such certainty, such conviction, and even has a negative HIV test from last year to show you. That test has been disputed. It could be someone else’s blood, and his name is on failed tests, too. Still, it’s hard not to wonder enough to call a doctor.

Joel Gallant is a professor at Johns Hopkins University and one of the leading HIV specialists in the country. He says there are slow progressers, people who do fine without treatment, so Tommy’s apparent health “doesn’t tell you much one way or the other,” and that “he’s not cured; that’s not one of the possibilities.”

Regardless of the good doctors words, Morrison takes it a completely different way.  There seems to be some odd filter in his mind that turns logical, straightforward information into crazy.

“You have just confirmed to me that there does not exist a test that confirms or dispels whether I or anyone has the HIV VIRUS 100%,” he writes to Gallant.

It’s interesting to note that Morrison has a steady girlfriend with whom he practices unprotected sex.  Well, there’s something to be said for sticking to you’re convictions.  I just don’t know what in this case.

Morrison is ready to fight, or so he says.  He’ll never get the chance.  But in his mind, he’s almost as healthy as he was at 24 when he won the WBO Heavyweight title.

“I think about boxing more now. I’m better,” he says. “They’re not used to that. A white guy that has hand speed, power, charisma, and can talk in complete sentences? (Shoot). Sounds like a gold mine to me.”

He also claims he once teleported out of an area bar.  Pretty cool, if you ask me, but I doubt that statement is going to help him much with the boxing commission.  I wonder what Morrison will have to say in another couple of years.  He hasn’t yet played the ‘abducted by aliens’ card.

[Photo Source: KC Star]

My favorite video basketball game from my childhood, and the most popular arcade basketball game of all-time, NBA JAM is coming back this fall for the Wii, Playstation 3, and Xbox 360.

The game will be sold as NBA JAM for the Wii and will be included with and part of NBA ELITE 11 for Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

Each NBA team on the game will have three to four active players to select from each team to play with along with a team legend or mascot.

Here is a look at the complete 2011 NBA JAM Rosters:

Eastern Conference NBA JAM 11 Rosters

Atlanta Hawks

• Current Players: Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Mike Bibby
• Legend/Mascot: Dominique Wilkins and Spud Webb

Boston Celtics

• Current Players: Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo
• Legend/Mascot: Larry Bird and Kevin McHale

Charlotte Bobcats

• Current Players: Gerald Wallace, Stephen Jackson, Tyrus Thomas
• Legend/Mascot: Rufus Lynx

Chicago Bulls

• Current Players: Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah
• Legend/Mascot: Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman

Cleveland Cavaliers

• Current Players: Mo Williams, Antawn Jamison, Anderson Varejao
• Legend/Mascot: Mark Price and Brad Daugherty

Detroit Pistons

• Current Players: Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Charlie Villanueva, Ben Gordon
• Legend/Mascot: Isiah Thomas and Bill Laimbeer

Indiana Pacers

• Current Players: Danny Granger, Mike Dunleavy, T.J. Ford
• Legend/Mascot: Detlef Schrempf

Miami Heat

• Current Players: LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh
• Legend/Mascot: Glen Rice and Rony Seikaly

Milwaukee Bucks

• Current Players: Michael Redd, Andrew Bogut, Brandon Jennings, Corey Maggette
• Legend/Mascot: Bango The Buck

New Jersey Nets

• Current Players: Devin Harris, Brook Lopez, Courtney Lee
• Legend/Mascot: Kenny Anderson and Drazen Petrovic

New York Knicks

• Current Players: Amar’e Stoudemire, Al Harrington, Danilo Gallinari
• Legend/Mascot: Patrick Ewing and John Starks

Orlando Magic

• Current Players: Dwight Howard, Vince Carter, Rashard Lewis
• Legend/Mascot: Nick Anderson and Scott Skiles

Philadelphia 76′ers

• Current Players: Andre Iguodala, Elton Brand, Evan Turner
• Legend/Mascot: Julius Erving and Allen Iverson

Toronto Raptors

• Current Players: DeMar DeRozan, Andrea Bargnani, Jarrett Jack
• Legend/Mascot: The Raptor

Washington Wizards

• Current Players: Yi Jianlian, John Wall, Gilbert Arenas, Andray Blatche
• Legend/Mascot: Manute Bol

Western Conference NBA JAM 11 Rosters

Dallas Mavericks

• Current Players: Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Caron Butler
• Legend/Mascot: Mavs Man

Denver Nuggets

• Current Players: Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Kenyon Martin
• Legend/Mascot: Rocky The Mountain Lion

Golden State Warriors

• Current Players: Monta Ellis, Stephon Curry, David Lee, Andris Biedrins
• Legend/Mascot: Tim Hardaway and Chris Mullin

Houston Rockets

• Current Players: Kevin Martin, Yao Ming, Trevor Ariza
• Legend/Mascot: Hakeem Olajuwon and Kenny Smith

Los Angeles Clippers

• Current Players: Baron Davis, Blake Griffin, Chris Kaman
• Legend/Mascot: Danny Manning

Los Angeles Lakers

• Current Players: Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Lamar Odon, Ron Artest
• Legend/Mascot: Magic Johnson and James Worthy

Memphis Grizzlies

• Current Players: O.J. Mayo, Rudy Gay, Zach Randolph
• Legend/Mascot: Bryant Reeves

Minnesota Timberwolves

• Current Players: Al Jefferson, Kevin Love, Michael Beasley, Jonny Flynn
• Legend/Mascot: Chuck Person

New Orleans Hornets

• Current Players: Chris Paul, David West, Peja Stojakovic
• Legend/Mascot: Larry Johnson

Oklahoma City Thunder

• Current Players: Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Jeff Green
• Legend/Mascot: Rumble The Bison

Phoenix Suns

• Current Players: Steve Nash, Grant Hill, Jason Richardson
• Legend/Mascot: Dan Majerle and Kevin Johnson

Portland Trailblazers

• Current Players: Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden
• Legend/Mascot: Clyde Drexler

Sacramento Kings

• Current Players: Tyreke Evans, DeMarcus Cousins, Jason Thompson, Carl Landry
• Legend/Mascot: Mitch Richmond

San Antonio Spurs

• Current Players: Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili
• Legend/Mascot: David Robinson and George Gervin

Utah Jazz

• Current Players: Deron Williams, Andrei Kirilenko, Mehmet Okur
• Legend/Mascot: Karl Malone and John Stockton

NBA insider Marc Stein released the rosters earlier this week on ESPN.com

Los Angeles Lakers star Lamar Odom and reality television star Khloe Kardashian are getting married this weekend according to sources close to the couple.

One sister is pregnant, one is losing her infamous bootylicious behind with a reckless diet and the other is getting married!! It has been a crazy summer at the Kardashian household.

Odom and Kardashian have only been dating for a little bit over a month.  Lamar has often been cited for his impulsive decisions over the course of his up-n-down NBA career.  Khloe on the other hand has made a career of riding on the coattails of her star sister Kim Kardashian and others.  Beware Lamar!

Khloe has dated other pro athletes including Derrick Ward and Rashad McCants.

[photo: Twitpic of Odom with fellow Laker greats Magic Johnson and James Worthy]