When the NBA returns — and it actually will return, suggests Chris Sheridan — Glen Davis will be a free agent rather than a member of the Boston Celtics. And he actually knows where he’s going to play next:

Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

No, Davis isn’t joining a new NBA team that will play its home games in Baton Rouge. Rather, he will compete in the Baton Rouge Pro-Am Classic this weekend with a number of former pros. (Green Street, WEEI)

Big Baby will join Louisiana State University alumni Marcus Thornton (a restricted free agent), Anthony Randolph (Timberwolves) and Ronald Dupree (D-League’s Utah Flash) as well as a host of other NBA talents in the Baton Rouge Pro-Am Classic on Saturday and Sunday.

Grizzlies O.J. Mayo and Zach Randolph, Bucks swingman Stephen Jackson and retired four-time NBA All-Star Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway are also expected to participate in the tournament, scheduled to tip off at 9 a.m. on the Baton Rouge Community College campus. Proceeds from the $5 to $15 tickets will benefit the BRCC men’s and women’s basketball programs.

When last seen playing basketball during the NBA playoffs, Glen Davis was doing his best impression of a disappearing man. Now, his future with the Celtics is in question as they must determine whether he’s worth market value.

On another note: remember when Penny Hardaway wanted to make a comeback last season? Yeah, that worked well. Also, for safety reasons, inviting Zach Randolph and Stephen Jackson to play in the same charity game is not advised.

Head-body, head-body, head-body. That’s what Micky Ward, or at least Mark Wahlberg playing Mickey Ward, preached would take down opposing fighters.

I’m not sure if Tony Allen used the head-body, head body technique. But it sure sounds like he beat the living bejesus out of O.J. Mayo. (TrueHoop)

Allen, regarded as one of the toughest guys in the league, tried to avoid a confrontation, but Mayo trash-talked Allen for roughly 15 minutes, criticizing his game, bragging about how he was a better basketball player than Allen, about how he was a lottery pick.

Allen was especially bothered by Mayo’s chatter because they have a friendly relationship. Zach Randolph tried to play peacemaker, telling Mayo to stop ribbing Allen, but to no avail.

Finally, Allen had enough and struck Mayo in the face. He then landed a succession of blows to Mayo’s eye, mouth, shoulder and the side of his head. Mayo was able to get off a swing, but Allen ducked to avoid it and then clocked Mayo once more for good measure.

As Apollo Creed said to the young upstart Rocky Balboa, “Ain’t gonna’ be no rematch.”

What the report failed to mention was that TA took a quick break to foul a three-point shooter and overdribble in the paint.

P.S. – Whenever Zach Randolph plays peacemaker, you know you’ve got some serious issues.

I wasn’t surprised to hear that a teammate fought Tony Allen. Hell, if I were his teammate I’d want to fight him too. The only surprise was that the fight didn’t come after a moronic turnover or a fouled three-point shooter; it came after a game of “Boo-Rah,” the same card game that ended in Gilbert Arenas’ gun play.

According to reports, Allen beat O.J. Mayo pretty easily. Which means that, since Allen entered the NBA, two nights ago marked the first time he contributed to a win. I only kid, folks. Though watching Tony Allen caused my hair to gray and my blood to boil, he actually did contribute to a fair amount of wins. A fair amount of losses, too. And a fair amount of heart attacks.

Speaking of Tony Allen, I had a conversation that related to him yesterday. I watched a high school game my friend was coaching, and one of his players was confusing. Why was he so confusing? Well, he worked harder than anybody else on the floor. That was obvious. He was one of those kids with a million-dollar motor. But he was just dumb. He shot when he should have passed, passed when he should have shot, and was never in the right spot on the floor. He tallied a lot of points and rebounds, mostly because he worked harder than everybody else. But he also single-handedly destroyed everything the team was trying to accomplish.

So my friend asked me, “What do you think about Confusing Player X?”

I responded merely, “The Tony Allen conundrum.”

“The Tony Allen conundrum?”

“Yup. You’re going to want to kill Confusing Player X thirty times per game. But does what he offer your team help more than it hurts? If so, play him. If not, sit him on the bench.”

“I have no idea whether he helps more than he hurts, though.”

“I know. Me neither. Thus, the Tony Allen conundrum.”

Speaking of Allen, please read this article’s title: “Tony Allen is becoming unlikely Memphis Grizzlies hero.”

I guess you’re a hero when you punch O.J. Mayo in the face, then step into his position and miss five layups, but somehow still come away 19 points, three steals, two blocks, a game-saving three-pointer, and half a Walker Wiggle. Yes, half a Walker wiggle.

Back to where I started, I’m not at all surprised T.A. fought a teammate. It was bound to happen sometime. And I’m not at all surprised T.A. beat the piss out of his teammate, either. If you could only use one word to describe Tony Allen (and “turnover-prone,” heart-attack-inducing,” “out-of-control,” and “entirely-erratic” weren’t allowed), it would be scrappy, or tough.

Whether you like Tony Allen or hate him, you have no choice but to admire his grit. And to acknowledge the Tony Allen conundrum.

After exercising surprising frugality while trying to sign draft pick Xavier Henry, the Memphis Grizzlies have been fielding trade offers for the 12th pick in this year’s draft. Do the Celtics have enough assets to get in on the bidding? (Memphis Commercial Appeal)

The Grizzlies have fielded several trade offers from teams looking to acquire the rights to unsigned rookie Xavier Henry — interest mostly derived from a contract stalemate between the team and the NBA’s 12th overall draft pick.

But Griz owner Michael Heisley insisted Wednesday that the team is only interested in signing Henry to a deal that will have him play in FedExForum this season.

“I’m not looking to trade him just to trade him,” Heisley said. “I’m not angry with him. I expect him to play. He’s going to have an opportunity to play a lot, and we need him. So my reaction to this is I’m expecting we’ll get something done and he’ll play for us this season.”

Call me crazy, but it makes a whole lot of sense for the Grizzlies to trade Henry away. First of all, he probably hates the organization already for low-balling him like an em-eff-er. Second of all, the Grizzlies already have O.J. Mayo, Rudy Gay, Tony Allen and Sam Young, who played pretty well last season. They’re pretty stacked at the wing position.

If they do trade him, could the Celtics possibly have enough to trade for him? Because Henry would be just about perfect. I know he’s only a rookie, but he’s got the size and strength to deal with bigger small forwards and on top of that he can shoot the hell out of the ball. He doesn’t scream “SUPERSTAR,” but he’s got “solid role player” written all over him.

Sadly, I just don’t think a package of Semih Erden and a couple picks is enough to get it done, not unless the Celtics are willing to pony up two first rounders as part of that package. Then the Grizzlies MIGHT bite. I don’t know about you, but I’m down for that. Unfortunately, I don’t even know if that trade actually works. ESPN’s damn trade machine has picked a bad time to falter on my computer, but I’m still pretty sure the trade is legal.

What do you Townies think?

One of the cuts?

With the United States looking to trim its roster down from 19 players to 15 for a training camp in NYC, three of the four cuts are expected to be Tyreke Evans, O.J. Mayo and Gerald Wallace. (Fanhouse)

It’s not looking good for Tyreke Evans, O.J. Mayo and Gerald Wallace.

Sources close to the situation told FanHouse on Tuesday they’re expected to be among the cuts when Team USA on Wednesday reveals the 15 out of 19 remaining players who will be invited to New York for the Aug. 10-16 training camp in preparation for next month’s World Championship in Turkey. As to who might be the fourth cut, sources said that was still being debated.

Could that fourth player be Rajon Rondo? Perhaps. Danny Granger and Eric Gordon were both considered to be on the bubble and both have reportedly survived the first cut. I don’t have to tell you this, but every player that makes it pushes Rondo one step closer to getting snipped. One other player who could get cut is JaVale McGee, but Coach K and Jerry Colangelo are reportedly thinking about bringing all three centers to NYC.

Scenario 1: You come off the bench behind two certain Hall of Famers. You have the opportunity to win a championship. You play with the players you have come to love as brothers. You relish in the love of a fanbase that has finally embraced you. You play 20 minutes a game as a defensive stopper and transition finisher.

Scenario 2: You come off the bench behind two guys who have never made an All-Star team. You definitely don’t have an opportunity to win a championship. You play with a bunch of guys you barely know. You have to fight for the love of a new fanbase. You play an undefined amount of minutes in an undefined role.

If it was you choosing between those two options, what would you have picked? Call me crazy, but I’m guessing scenario 1.

Tony Allen thought differently. He went for door number two. He was tired of being overshadowed by stars. (ESPN)

“Ultimately, it was the way [the Grizzlies] embraced me, the way they reached out to me and let it all out,” said Allen. “They let me know I was needed. In Boston, I was kind of overshadowed by those guys — Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. Here’s a ball club that’s on the rise and a lot of guys can make names for themselves. It’s a coming out party for a lot of guys on this team.”

“I don’t mind embracing the [defensive] role, but there is more to my game; let’s not get that twisted,” said Allen. “Whatever I can do to win ballgames — if that’s just passing out Gatorades or flashing towels or giving somebody a high-five, I’m willing to do that.”

Yeah, TA, you were overshadowed by Pierce and the better Allen. They’re great players. And now you’ll be overshadowed by O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay — two decent ones — while you fight to make the playoffs, knowing that even if you do miraculously make it to the postseason you’ll be ousted in the first round. Do you realize how dumb your decision was, Tony? Not yet, I’m sure. But at some point it’s going to come back and slap you straight across the face. You’ll be wearing your warmup suit, watching Mayo and Gay get blown out by a true contender in front of a half-full FedEx Center, and you’ll finally realize it: That situation you had in Boston wasn’t so bad after all.

And yes, Tony, we know you can do more than embrace a defensive role. You also pile up turnovers like a madman and shoot one of the brokest jump shots in the history of the universe.

Damn it, Tony. I had learned to love you, my man. I had even learned to almost trust you on the court. And I still wish you well in Memphis. I just think you done fucked up. There’s very little in the world that compares to the bond formed by loving your teammates and succeeding with them. Why you would flush that down the toilet for a similar role in Memphis, I may never understand.