Lots going on in the atmosphere surrounding our favorite professional basketball franchise. To wit:
- Mario Chalmers and Michael Beasley have apologized for and attempted to explain the drug-related incident they were involved in at the NBA rookie orientation program. Chalmers was dismissed from the program and fined $20,000; Beasley was fined $50,000 after his presence was later confirmed. Beasley called the situation a "wrong-place, wrong-time type thing," and Chalmers, clearly tired of talking about it, said "it was over and done with."
- The AP seems to believe that Beasley's stiffer penalty was purely the result of the fact that he was "not forthcoming" with the league about his involvement. That makes sense, because a big part of Chalmers' punishment was his dismissal from the symposium, and by the time Beasley came clean, that was obviously impossible. I'll admit that my mind wandered into darker places when Beasley's huge fine was announced, and if it was merely a panicky "I don't want to get caught" kind of response, that actually puts me at ease a bit. This quote seems to indicate just that: "I would say that's where my immaturity played a factor...I'm 19, so I kind of tried to be a kid and get away with it. ... But it was kind of eating away at me, just to watch my teammate go through so much and be basically hiding behind the lights. I just felt it was the right thing for my team, and just to stand by my teammate."
- Dwyane Wade, predictably, expressed no lingering concern over the behavior of his new rookie teammates. But he does lay into them a bit, which is awesome to see from the veteran superstar: "I'm not worried about it...I think it could carry over, but from being around them the last few nights, I can see that they're not going to be a problem. Mario knows he has an opportunity to compete for a starting spot. Beasley knows the same thing. They have an unbelievable opportunity in this league, and they need to understand the culture of the Heat and how we do things. They didn't have that this summer."
- The Herald contributes more Beasley/Chalmers quotes, and brings news that Beasley has agreed to an endorsement deal with adidas despite firing his agent earlier this month.
- Alonzo Mourning and his wife Tracy appeared at three Florida colleges Wednesday in support of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. The Orlando Sentinel's Sports Celebrity! blog interviewed Zo after his stop at the University of Central Florida (my alma mater!), and Mourning responded thusly to a question about his potential return to the Heat: "God will reveal it to me." Joel Anthony anxiously awaits your decision, God.
- Here's the new laundry you'll be rooting against in a month or so: fellow SB Nation blog Third Quarter Collapse covers the hell out of the Magic's new uniforms.
- D.J. Mbenga, a candidate for the Heat reserve center spot eventually awarded to Jamaal Magloire, has signed with the Lakers.
- The Blazers have apparently passed on free agent point guard Shaun Livingston. No word yet on if Miami is still a potential suitor.
- Stephon Marbury continues to twist in the New York wind, but he did take time to bring the crazy in a TV interview. I really don't want this guy.
- Via Ridiculous Upside, the results of the 2008 D-League Expansion Draft. I love the DL and all, but I'm hoping for a less prolific relationship between it and the Heat this year. You'll also note the drafting of former Heat outpatient Mike Gansey.
- Self-link alert! Self-link alert! Do not read past this point if you have moral or ethical objections to the practice of self-linking...I've got a new blog. It's called The Trade Journal, and it is already one of my two favorite NBA-related blogs on the Web. Please stop by and have a look.