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I was wondering, what ever happen to Jason Gardner, he was doing amazing at Arizona and then suddenly I never hear of him again. Do you know what happened to him? - Jamal, NYC

Actually, I do. Jason Gardner is currently playing for Telindus Oostende of the Belgian League, and averaging somewhere in the neighborhood of 13-15 points a game. Telindus Oostende's a favorite to make a run at the Cup this year, but they'll have to get past the powerful squads in Charleroi and Pepinster. I think they match up well against Pepinster's soft interior... just kidding, I don't know a damn thing about Belgian basketball, man. Other than the fact that Jason Gardner's playing there and my favorite member of the Oostende dance team is Desoete Kitty. Seriously. She's awesome. If you wanna know more, or you want to pick your own favorite member of the Oostende dance team, and your German's fairly solid, you can check out www.bcoostende.be. There's even a Jason Garnder wallpaper available for download there.

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Since you could so easily name the league's most unattractive men, why not show us how much man you really are and give us The All Most-sightly Team?? I'm sure there's a list of men any man's man could say are the league's best looking. I dare you! - Sharman, Philly

I know that you think you're gonna get over on me, but I've got news for ya. I'm about to squeeze you, Sharman. You will not find an NBA writer more secure in his masculinity than me, so I've got no problem listing my All-Dapper Team.

G - Allen Iverson. A smile that just won't quit.
G - Jalen Rose. He's all about style.
F - Rick Fox. If he shaves his head again, he disappears from this list.
F - Chris Webber. Clean and classical.
C - Ben Wallace. Masculinity personified.

And the reserves...

Vince Carter, Wally Szczerbiak, Brian Grant, who's hair I've always admired, and Fred Hoiberg, who looks like someone you could ask for help with your math homework.

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I have been an avid hoops fan since the late 70's and a die hard Laker fan since Magic was jumping on Kareem's back after game one of his first season. I was hoping you could settle a long running debate between my friends and I. How the hell did Larry Bird get drafted a year early by the Celtics? I know there was an option of declaring "hardship" status but I also know, whatever that loophole was, it has since been closed. Did Auerbach cheat? Lakers 4-Eva. - Ron Strom, Los Angeles

The deal with Larry is that he originally went to Indiana, but quickly left, then he went JuCo for a couple of months, and then he went home. The next year, he went to Indiana State, but because he transferred, he had to sit out a season. So he played two years at Indiana State, and was then eligible to be drafted because his original high school class had graduated.

At least I think that's how it went down. If anyone else can correct me, or knows more about the situation, feel free to let me know.

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I think that it is ridiculous that if the Sixers don't trade AI it is because they won't sell as many tickets. Sure if they do attendance may go down but they aren't going anywhere with him! I am a die-hard Sixer fan and I love AI but I am ready to cut the cord. The whole sit out situation really did it for me. What cemented it? When Tim Duncan came back he came off the bench for at least a game. He didn't complain or spout off a resume of what he had accomplished. Send AI somewhere that will deal with him and let us rebuild finally! - Russ Smith, Rexburg, ID

I agree with you on the attendance issue. AI puts asses in the seats, sure, but there is something that always puts even more asses in the seats. They're called wins. If the Sixers organization feels like their basketball team is better off without Iverson, but they're reluctant to trade him because he sells jerseys and tickets, that's weak. The committment should be to winning. When the wins come, the money works itself out.

I also kinda feel you on the Duncan/Iverson contrast, but I wouldn't be too quick to judge the situation on what we see on the surface. I'd have a hard time believing that Gregg Popovich just sat Tim Duncan on the bench without consulting him first. We don't know what was said between Pop and Dunc, and we don't know what was said between AI and Chris Ford. If Pop said to Duncan something like, "Hey, we already had a lineup and a game strategy prepared for this game without you, so would you mind coming off the bench" and Ford said to AI something like, "You're sitting because I said so," would your opinion of the situation change? And I'm not saying either of those things happened, but I am saying that we probably don't know the entire stories behind each incident. More on the Sixers below...

*** Hey, I was wondering if the 76ers cap would allow someone like Tracy McGrady to sign with them. I mean, I think Tracy and Allen would be a perfect match. - Jennifer, Lancaster, PA

If the Sixers are going to acquire a stud this offseason, it's going to be in a trade for Allen Iverson, not in addition to Allen Iverson. The only expiring contracts they have are for guys that aren't really making a lot of money, and unless they find a GM with a serious LSD habit to take the contracts of Glenn Robinson and/or Derrick Coleman, they're pretty much capped out. Aaron McKie and Eric Snow make both in the $5 million per range, but they may be movable.

It's nothing more than a hunch, but I do think AI has played his last game in a Sixers uniform. I think it's best for the Sixers to move on at this point. Not because I think Allen Iverson can't be built around, but because the Sixers haven't been smart enough to do it. It'll be interesting to see if they'd try to keep guys like Snow and McKie and try to add a more compatible scorer, or if they'd blow the whole thing up.

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MJD, I need to vent. For years I've been saying that the problems with the league are more the fault of these poor NBA GMs and coaches than the players. I need no further proof of my theory than this week's Mcdonald's All Star Game. Let me state first that I love High School Hoops (any hoops for that matter). I also graduated from Det. Renaissance High where All Americans Joe Crawford and Malik Hairston play. I've watched Joe and Malik for years now through their seasons and summer leagues. They are amazing talents and great ball players and not once have I thought that they could go pro right now. So I was eager to see the guys that scouts and GMs have said can go to the league. Hold on, here's my point. I know it was an All-Star game but I didn't see anyone on that floor who should be going pro. Not Telfair, Smith, Livingston or Howard. I can't believe that GMs that make six figure salaries and are considering drafting guys who can do some amazing things but obv!iously DON'T KNOW HOW TO PLAY BASKETBALL. There will never be another Kobe or KG and Lebron's talent and understanding of the game at his age will never be matched. And save the "he's got too much potential to pass on" speech. Does anyone honestly think that Telfair will ever be better than a solid baller like Dwayne Wade. All of these GMs are just trying to find the next phenom that they missed. If you sleep on something, you just slept, get over it! Trying to find the next Lebron or Dirk leaves the league with too many Diops, Miles, Chandlers and worst of all Darkos and Skitzawhateverhisnameis! And most coaches just complain about the guys not knowing how to play instead of teaching them how, but playing them in games the whole time. The result is the destruction of the game that I fell in love with as a six year old kid while my father dragged me from one crowded Lansing, MI gymnasium to another to watch Earvin Johnson. Thanks for listening! - Youngin', The D

I appreciate the letter, and I agree with a lot of what you're saying, but I think you're overstating when you say the result is the "destruction of the game." It definitely weakens it, but I the NBA is still fairly strong.

You're right, the fault does lie with the GMs, all of whom say that drafting young players is a big risk and bad for the overall product, but none of whom have the restraint to hold back. In the NBA, having a good big man is the key to success, and if there's an 18-year-old big who might someday be good, scouts and GMs just can't resist. Joe Dumars knew damn well that Carmelo would be infinitely better than Darko this year, but look around the NBA at guys who lead their teams to title contention, and the list looks like this: Shaq, Garnett, Duncan, Webber. A dominant big man pretty much gaurantees success, and that's why teams see drafting young raw players as being worth the risk. Right or wrong, it's a trend that isn't going to change, but the damage it does could be minimized by a true minor league system.

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Ben Handlogten should be on the all ugly team. Can't believe you missed this one. - Travis

Excellent call. I can't believe I missed that one. Guy looks like an evil muppet.

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Now was Popeye Jones just too ugly to list? He's got to be much uglier than any of them! - Elge, Rockville, MD

Y'know, I thought about Popeye, and I've marveled at his grisly face for years, but I left him out because I thought he was out of the league. I didn't know he was still with Golden State. My bad, but I do hope that Popeye's a reader and he got a boost of self-confidence by being left off the list.

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Hey Mighty MJD: I can excuse you for pounding on Starbury--whose not in the same class as CBooth or, God forbid, Tyrone Hill--and for leaving Popeye "nosferatu" Jones off your list, but I still can't see how you missed Tim "pterodactyl" Thomas... Sure, he sometimes rocks the tight Aaron Mckie-type beard, and straight-on everything seems alright, but wait till he shows you the profile: the long beakish nose and, more importantly, the bony point that juts out of the back of his skull. We now know why he used to sport the lumpy 'fro--to cover over the defect. If my man takes a Karl Malone 'bow to that glass jaw (or groin) of his, the whip of the neck might make him the first living organism to be impaled on his own skull in, say, the last 50 million years.... ps. excellent column! - tyrannosaurus rex, LA.

"The first living organism to be impaled on his own skull..." I thought that needed to be heard. Thanks.

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Hey! You really think Scottie Pippen is uglier than Nick Van Exel? Guess there's no accounting for taste. - P Ang, Manila

Don't get me wrong, by leaving Nick Van Exel off the list, I'm not implying that he's a handsome man, by any stretch, but uglier than Scottie? Come on now. When Scottie retires, he can open up his nose as a ski resort.

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M.J. Darnell runs www.themightymjd.com.