Rajon Rondo will reportedly compete in The South Florida All-Star Classic, a charity game at Florida International University on Oct. 8 at 7:00 p.m. hosted by Lebron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. The F.I.U. basketball team is coached by none other than the greatest NBA executive of all-time, Isiah Thomas.

A number of NBA players are slated to join the Miami trio on the court, including fellow Heat teammate Mario Chalmers, the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, the New York Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, the New Orleans Hornets’ Chris Paul, the Washington Wizards’ John Wall, the Atlanta Hawks’ Jamal Crawford, the Houston Rockets’ Jonny Flynn, the Los Angeles Clippers’ Eric Bledsoe, the Dallas Mavericks’ Caron Butler, the Memphis Grizzlies’ Rudy Gay, the Boston Celtics’ Rajon Rondo, the Philadelphia 76ers’ Lou Williams, the Golden State Warriors’ Dorell Wright, and the Portland Trail Blazers’ Wesley Matthews and free agent Eddy Curry.

Cleveland Cavaliers first-round picks Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson also are possible participants in the game.

The squads will be headlined by Brand Jordan players (Wade, Anthony, Paul) vs. Nike (James, Bosh, Durant). Comedian Kevin Hart, who has appeared in Brand Jordan commercials with Wade, is expected to coach the Jordan team, while Miami-based rap star Rick Ross is expected to coach the Nike club.

If those players all compete like the game means something, this game has the chance to become legendary. Alas, players treat charity games like they are And1 Streetball games, so the game will probably be as watchable as Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star.

And please, don’t let Isiah Thomas meet Eddy Curry again. Looking at an overweight, excessively lazy center, Thomas may be struck by the desire to offer another $60 million contract. And that, my friends, would be against NCAA rules. Unless the recipient of the contract is Cam Newton.

After the Miami Heat’s loss to the Dallas Mavericks yesterday, the Heat staged a players-only meeting. Lebron James said he and his teammates aired their thoughts about the team’s 9-8 start. Chris Bosh told Yahoo!, “We were just looking at each other and being honest.”

They were honest? Well, the truth hurts. The following account of last night’s meeting may or may not be fabricated.

*****

Bosh: “First, guys, I just want to apologize. I know I’m not who you thought I was. I’m a little bit of a fraud.”

Joel Anthony: “I want to apologize, too. I’m not a fraud, but I am a thief. The pay me $18 million and I can barely make a layup. Also, I’m a 6’9 center who averages 3.1 rebounds per game and has no chance defending a halfway-decent big man.”

Dwyane Wade: “Fall down seven times, stand up eight. And after you stand up that eighth time, make sure you surround yourself with superstars who make you play worse.”

Bosh: “Are you calling me a superstar?”

Wade: “Ah, right. I meant ‘surround yourself with a superstar’ — singular — ‘who makes you play worse.”

Bosh: “Alright, that’s more like it.”

Lebron: “What should I do, Dwyane? Should I shoulder-bump Erik Spoelstra? Should I call Mo Williams and tell him I’m sorry? Should I be who you want me to be?”

Carlos Arroyo: “What are you guys all upset about? This season’s going perfectly. I’m shooting 61.9 [bleeping] percent from three-point range!”

Udonis Haslem: “Oh, Carlos.You clowns are a whole bunch of studio gangsters.”

Eddie House (giving himself the middle finger): “I told everyone before the season, middle finger to all the haters. And I’m a hater — I HATE playing with you bums.”

Erick Dampier: “Never fear, Erick Dampier is here! I am your savior!”

Lebron: “Ericka, we’re only speaking the truth in this meeting.”

Dampier: “Oh. Well, in that case, at least I’m better than Joel Anthony.”

Anthony: “Touche.”

Lebron: “What should we do? Should we fire Spoelstra? Should we beg Riley to return to the bench? Should we just clear the deck and start over? What should we do?”

Haslem: “I vote fire Spoelstra.”

Wade: “Yeah, me too.”

Team (in chorus, except Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who remains quiet): “Fi-re Spoel-stra! Fi-re Spoel-stra! Fi-re Spoel-stra!”

Lebron: “Big Z, what’s wrong? Do you actually want Spoelstra to stay?”

Ilgauskas: “God no! Who would want that? I’m just worried by a comparison I’ve heard a lot recently. I don’t look like Voldemort from Harry Potter, do I?”

[Team remains quiet]

Ilgauskas: “Guys?”

[Silence remains]

Ilgauskas: “GUYS?”

Wade: “So, umm, we’ve decided to fire Spoelstra. We’re making progress. The next step: learning how to play together.”

Lebron: “I don’t want to play with you anymore. Playing with you is like playing getting the kiss of death from a dementor. It just sucks the life right out of me. I miss Anderson Varejao and Anthony Parker, and Mo Williams. And I don’t want to be a point guard. And I don’t want to be a power forward. And I don’t want to play 44 minutes against the Boston Celtics. I just want to laugh and have fun. Is that too much to ask for?”

Bosh: “Yeah, this isn’t what I bargained for either. [Bosh pauses, thinking about what the season was supposed to bring.] Maybe I should have stayed in Toronto.”

Wade: “Yeah, that would have been better. Then we could have picked up Carlos Boozer, or kept Michael Beasley, or actually signed a point guard who’s worth a damn.”

Arroyo: “But I’m shooting 61.9% from threes!”

Wade: “File one under ‘fluke’.”

Mario Chalmers: “I’m not half bad, Dwyane.”

Wade: “No offense, Mario, but this is for players only.”

Lebron: “What should we do? Should we remind you we’ve never done this before? Should we pretend we still have confidence in each other? Should we tell you we don’t deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as the 1996 Bulls? Hi, Mike. [Lebron winks, eats a Ballpark Frank.] What should we do?”

Wade: “We should hope Pat Riley has answers.”

Udonis Haslem: “No, guys. I’ve got a better idea. Voldemo– I mean, Zydrunas: We need the elder wand.”

It's all smiles for these three for now.

Ira Winderman, reporter for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, reports that the Heat’s roster is a lot closer to being finalized than we think. Here is Winderman’s list of the 15 players he expects to play for the Miami Heat next season: Read more »

Is that a Heisman pose?

Lebron James is probably headed to Miami to form a super-team, say reports published by Newsday, ESPN and Yahoo! Here’s ESPN’s report:

All indications are that LeBron James is leaning toward signing with the Miami Heat on Thursday night, according to several sources with knowledge of the situation.

Barring a late change of heart, sources say James has decided to join fellow All-Stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh to form a potential NBA powerhouse. 

James will make his announcement from the Boys and Girls Club of Greenwich, Conn., during an hourlong special called “The Decision” on ESPN at 9 p.m. ET Thursday. Sales of sponsorship for the program will go to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

Chris Paul, one of James’ best friends, has urged him to stay in Cleveland and let new Cavaliers coach Byron Scott coach him, according to sources. With such strong sentiment around him to not go to Miami, it’s possible James could alter his decision.

James’ family and friends are divided over his decision to play in Miami, according to sources. Opinions range from understanding his desire to play with All-Star teammates, to feeling he is selling himself short by joining Wade’s team, to concerns that playing on such a power-packed squad will hurt his brand even if he wins championships.

James worked hard to help the Cavaliers improve their roster, sources said. He tried to sell Bosh on the idea of going to Cleveland, but the 6-foot-11 forward was adamant he did not want to play in northeast Ohio.

While sources close to James insist his heart is in Cleveland and remaining with the Cavaliers was his preferred choice, they say he had concerns about signing a six-year deal there and ending up “31 years old, with bad knees and no title.”

A few thoughts:

1) I’ll believe this when Lebron announces it tonight. Lebron and his camp are fully capable of leaking false news in order to create more hype about “The Decision.” As if it needs any more.

2) I could never imagine Lebron at 31 years old with bad knees and no title.

3) If Lebron does sign with Miami, the Heat are going to have to surround the newest Big Three with veteran minimum guys. People are going to clamor that the team might not be deep enough to win a title. I’m here to remind you that it won’t matter.

Assuming Bosh doesn’t have a sign-and-trade coming, the Heat would have a starting lineup of Wade/James/Bosh/Beasley/Chalmers. The backups? Who cares. Sign me, my three dogs and my grandmother as a second unit and we couldn’t blow the leads Wade and James will get. But if they sign Kurt Thomas, Kyle Korver, T-Mac, Anthony Carter and Juwan Howard or five guys similar to that, all of a sudden that bench ain’t too atrocious. And ”not too atrocious” is all the bench would need to be.

If Lebron actually signs in Miami, I’ll undoubtedly have nightmares all offseason. But if I lived in Miami-Wade County, I wouldn’t count my Lebron before it hatches.

P.S. – Stephen A. Smith is reporting that Stephen A. Smith might have been right all along.

High fives all around.

This one was getting ugly.  Boston was dominant.  Doc Rivers was pondering how to defend Lebron James. Dwyane Wade was — for him, at least — dormant.  The Celtic lead became twenty.

And then it was gone.  But not all of it.  The Celtics would hold on to the victory, playing just well enough down the stretch to escape with a 96-86 victory and advance to the second round.

A third-quarter Celtics lapse, occurring mostly as a Heat zone disrupted the rhythm of Boston’s second unit, briefly helped Miami make this one interesting, but Boston’s lead was too much for Wade and his overachieving troop of scrubs to overcome. A barrage of jumpers from the Big Three, including an especially hot display from Ray Allen, ended Miami’s quest to extend its season one more game.

Allen finished with 24 points on 5-6 three-point shooting, Paul Pierce scored 21 points, and Kevin Garnett added 14 points and 8 rebounds, hitting two big shots midway through the fourth quarter to help drive a dagger through Miami’s heart.  While the Big Three provided most of the scoring, it was Rajon Rondo who was again the best Celtic.  He was dominant on both ends in the first half with 12 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals, and ended the game only two rebounds short of a triple-double (16 points, 12 assists, 8 rebounds, 4 steals).

For Miami, only Mario Chalmers — who broke out in a big way with 20 points and some three-pointers that helped key Miami’s third-quarter run — joined Wade in double figures.  As expected, Wade (31 points, 10 assists, 8 rebounds) led the way but — for the first time all series — Boston kept Wade’s field goal percentage down, making him work for his shots.  Constant double-teams, good rotations, and a perennial hand in Wade’s face helped contain him.  He wasn’t stopped, not by any means, but the Celtics can live with a 10-24 shooting performance from the superstar.

For two and a half quarters, the Celtics really looked like they were going to run away with this one.  Only another warm batch of Celtics turnovers and questionable officiating (I really thought tonight was going to be the night Tommy finally got a mid-game heart attack) kept the game from being a blowout at halftime, and the crowd threatened to blow the roof off the Garden as the lead ballooned to 20 in the third.

But it wasn’t meant to be that easy, not that the amount of ease matters.  All that matters is that the Celtics are now in the second round.

Hey Lebron, you’re next.

*****

Game Notes:

• If the Cavs finish off the Bulls tonight, Game One will be on Saturday.  If not, it won’t be until Monday.
• Jermaine O’Neal had a couple nice dunks, and that’s about all you can say about the positives he brought to the table this series.  Well, I guess you could say he blocked Glen Davis a few times, but even my dog could block Glen Davis.  For O’Neal, the offseason couldn’t have come at a better time.
• Quentin Richardson played like an actress.  Actually, I think even Julia Roberts could have outplayed Richardson on this night: He played 38 minutes and tallied 4 points, 3 rebounds and 0 assists.  Enjoy watching the second round from home, Q.
• Michael Beasley was benched for a large portion of the second half (the whole second half?).  Erik Spoelstra had clearly seen enough of his new haircut… well, that and his half-hearted play.
• Rasheed Wallace only played 9 minutes and notched 2 points and 3 rebounds, but looked more alive than he has in a long time.
• Glen Davis, and his dance.  I cannot attempt to describe it.  I will try to find a video of it for tomorrow.

The Celtics have gotten rid of their morning walkthrough, but that doesn’t mean we have to. Here are a few Celtics links, and maybe even an NBA link or two, to help wake you up and get you focused for the day.

The glorious taste of heart-wrenching defeat.

Bob Ryan, Boston Globe – “‘In the regular season, if something happened the way it did tonight in the fourth quarter, it would have been, ‘Man, you’ve gotta do this, you’ve gotta do that,’ ‘ said Allen. ‘Now we’re all helping each other.’ Winning Game 3 when you’re up, 2-0, is huge, and it’s something the Celtics haven’t done since defeating Indiana in a best-of-five in 2002. ‘I’ve got to tell you,’ Rivers said. ‘In the first quarter, I said, ‘I don’t know if we’re going to win or lose, but we’re here.’ ‘ Welcome back, boys.”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “‘And it’s coming at the right time,’ Perkins said. ‘At the start of the season, we had kind of . . . we were trying to send a message.’ Message sent. ‘Those are great players that have been in a lot of playoff games and pressure games and made those shots before,’ said Heat guard/forward Quentin Richardson. Added Dwyane Wade: “This team is good. They have a lot of veteran guys who step up to the billing and do it. They all do their job. It’s unfortunate and it hurts.’”

Chris Forsberg, ESPNBoston – “‘I was ready for them to come foul and I was going to try to get a shot up, but they didn’t come,” said Pierce. “I just got to my little sweet spot on the right elbow and got a good look at the rim. It was a tight game and I was feeling pretty good about my game, especially in my mid-range. I just wanted to have the ball in my hands and be aggressive.’ Said the 6-foot-9 Wright: ‘I gave him some space to close out on, but he made a tough shot.’ Pierce’s teammates felt good with the game in his hands. ‘We put our faith in his hands that last shot,’ said Allen. ‘He came through for us. It’s great to have somebody that can make shots like that at the buzzer.’ Echoed Kendrick Perkins: ‘That’s the Truth. He lives for games like this. I expected him to do that tonight. He was attacking and his jumper was falling.’ But those winning shots hadn’t fallen in a while for Pierce. Not since 2006 say the statistics. But his coach never lost faith. ‘He is a star,’ said Rivers. ‘He never loses his confidence. The play before that Ray missed, Paul glanced over and you could tell he wanted the ball. You always like when your players do that. … He hasn’t played great in the first two games, but you could feel before this game he was starting to get his rhythm. And when he gets his rhythm. He is really good.’”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “‘He was huge – that’s the Truth, he lives for games like this,’ Celts center Kendrick Perkins said. ‘I expected him to do that tonight. He was attacking, and his jumper was falling.’ And there was nothing that Wright could do to stop it. ‘He’s a big-time player, and I definitely knew he was going to take the last shot,’ the Miami swingman said. ‘I just tried to give him the best defense I could. It’s definitely hard, especially when they make shots like that. But give it to Paul. I played him the best I could.’”

Israel Gutierrez, Miami Herald – “Just watching the Celtics run their play, there were terrifying options everywhere. Would Allen shake free of Mario Chalmers and hit yet another jumper? Would Udonis Haslem help too much off Kevin Garnett and leave him to take the final shot? Would Rajon Rondo create havoc off the dribble with Quentin Richardson forced to defend him while Wade was being treated on the bench? Pierce knew he’d have one defender on him. And in the NBA, one-on-one normally means murder for the defender. Pierce got Wright slightly off balance, stepped back and released. It was his comfort shot. Wade didn’t get that privilege. Hence the results. It’s the way it’s supposed to end, really. Because a Heat win Friday would’ve been provided nothing but false confidence.”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “‘Obviously my scoring’s been down,’ Pierce said of his production the last three years. ‘I’ve tried to do other things and bring to the game what the game needs that day. Obviously they didn’t need me to score 30 points in Game 1 or Game 2. I had to do the other intangibles to help my team win. Tonight it was just one of those nights. That’s what I try to do night in and night out: just figure out what role I’ll play that night. It’s not going to always be my scoring. Those days are over with for putting the load on my shoulders and having to score 30 every night. I just try to pick my spots and give the game what I feel like it needs. Tonight I felt like it did need my scoring, and I filled it. We were on the road, and I decided to be a little bit more aggressive. And it paid off.’ It’s even more rewarding for Pierce, in that this comes in a season when he’s been drawing down his bodily debit card. He’s had his knee drained, his ankle and foot bruised and his twisted left thumb pulled from its mooring. ‘This has been one of my more trying seasons, man, to tell you the truth,” Pierce said. “I’ve never been injured this much in my career. I had a surgery. It just seemed like it was coming back to back to back. After my knee surgery, I had a sprained ankle then right after that a sprained thumb. It was very trying because I’ve been used to playing through a lot of injuries. And at this point in my career, this age, I don’t heal as quickly as I used to. I learned a lot about myself, a lot about my body this year. I learned to take more rest, because I’m not the 24-25-year-old Paul Pierce who can bounce back as quick. I just have to allow myself to heal. That’s why I struggled and had so many inconsistencies in the middle of the season.’”

Chris Perkins, NBA.com – “‘The Celtics are starting to play well,’ Boston center Kendrick Perkins said. The fact that Celtics forward Paul Pierce hit a 21-foot jumper as time expired to deliver a dramatic 100-98 Game 3 victory at AmericanAirlines Arena Friday only tells part of the story of how Boston has taken a commanding 3-0 lead in this first-round playoff series. ‘We’re a veteran team,’ said Pierce, whose step-back jumper over Miami’s Dorell Wright was good as soon as it left his hand, ‘and we don’t get rattled, especially in crucial situations.’”

Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “‘I got on Perk a little bit because I just told him to remember who he is,’ Rivers said. ‘You’re playing great defense and you’re rebounding. So what, you’re missing layups. Just don’t let that take you out of your job. You could see his shoulders slumped. Everybody was like, ‘C’mon man,’ because he’s so important for us when he plays well. And it’s tough to play when your spirit is down. I was glad to see him on the floor and he made some great defensive plays for us.’”

Chris Forsberg, ESPNBoston – “Wade spilled to the floor clutching his left knee area after the cramps intensified when he missed a 3-point attempt in a tied game with 11 seconds to go. Boston hauled in the rebound and called a timeout to draw up a final play. Wade was attended to by trainers, then carried off the court, putting no weight on the leg. ‘I was just cramping up the last five minutes of the fourth [quarter],’ said Wade, who Spoelstra said sweat through two jerseys during the game and could be seen getting his left leg massaged near the bench during the final frame. ‘I was trying to hold it off as much as possible. When I bent down to shoot the shot, it came. It was a bad cramp. I couldn’t even bend my legs. I didn’t step on [the defender's] foot. It’s nothing serious, just cramping.’”

Michael Wallace, Miami Herald – “No team in NBA history has come back to win a series after losing the first three games. The Heat might not even have the legs to rally in Game 4 on Sunday at AmericanAirlines Arena. That is because Heat guard Dwyane Wade didn’t have the legs to finish Friday night. Wade had 34 points and eight assists, but left the game with 11 seconds left because of severe cramps in his left leg. Wade fell to the ground after he missed a three-point attempt from the top of the key with 13 seconds left. He was helped off by trainer Jay Sabol and center Jamaal Magloire and didn’t return. ‘I wanted to attack, and I wanted to be aggressive,’ Wade said. ‘I had nothing. I was trying to fight through it. The basketball gods were with [Boston] because I wasn’t able to put pressure on it.’”

Have a link I might want to look at? Send it my way by email (jayking@celticstown.com) or Twitter.