In an attempt to make up for the week, OK, nine days, I did not blog at all last week here are some very interesting links which are worthy of your perusal.

Ridiculous Matt, who I know as just Matt and is becoming as prolific as Wilt Chamberlain in the blogosphere, from Ridiculous Upside told me before summer league started that he was going to get some one on one time with Elton Brown from the Nuggets summer league team.  I was really excited not only to read what he discovered, but also to link to it so you all could enjoy it too.  Well, I am about a week late throwing out the links to the very insightful series.  Brown may never be a Denver Nugget, but if he is not at least invited to camp it will be a crime.

You owe it to yourself to check out Matt’s three part post called Breaking the Ceiling featuring Elton Brown. 

Part one...

Part two...

Part three...

If you have found yourself in this portion of the post yet you have not clicked on all three of the above links, go back and do it.  You obviously have the time if you are here in the first place.

Scoop Jackson has a very good interview with Carmelo Anthony looking back to the 2004 Olympics and ahead to the 2008 games in China.

My favorite (or I guess least favorite) part was when Scoop asked Melo about how he will be able to defend other power forwards and Melo starts talking about how well they can space the floor on offense.  I guess defense just does not register with our young superstar.

In case you did not see it, this video should endear Renaldo Balkman to every Nugget fan (thanks to Posting and Toasting for the link).  You can also check out the universal sadness of Knicks fans surrounding the Balkman trade at both P&T as well as KnickerBlogger. 

One other Nuggets related note before we shift to some general links, there is a new Nuggets blog that has joined the Internet called Powder Blue News.  Check it out and see if Sean tickles your fancy.

In other league wide news Tim Donaghy is going to timeout for 15 months.  I hope they have him referee some prison league games.  Just imagine the issues that could arise there.

Inmate:  Hey Donaghy, here is a pack of smokes to make sure Cell Block D wins tonight’s game.

Donaghy:  Sorry, I already have an offer on the table from Block B.  A couple of guys there are going to protect me from getting passed around like a bong in Boulder, CO during shower time.  That trumps your pack of smokes any day.

Nearby Prison Guard:  Just make sure the guards win the championship or you are gonna get moved to a cell with a couple of large lonely and motivated cellmates.

Donaghy:  Mommy….

It seems to me that this scandal has been dragged out for so long that it is difficult to care about it anymore.  All that really came out of it was two fan bases (Sacramento and Phoenix) who believe they have been screwed by the referees in the past just have a little more ammo to include in their diatribes.

The NBA is preparing a report which they claimed they would release once Donaghy was sentenced, but now have stated that it is not ready for public consumption as of yet.  All I want to know is what games Donaghy officiated where he admittedly influenced the outcome of the game.  What we will get from the NBA is more self glorifying drivel proclaiming how they have the best officials in professional sports.

We interrupt this post for some breaking news, Ron Artest has been traded to the Houston Rockets in exchange for a first round draft pick, summer league sensation Donte Greene and cap filler in the form of Bobby Jackson’s expiring contract.  You can read reactions to this trade from some of the best bloggers in the business at The Dream Shake and Sactown Royalty.  

My two cents is this reminds me of the Allen Iverson trade for the Nuggets.  Houston is bringing in a player who likes to have the ball in his hands.  It is not a clear cut situation where you can look at it and say, yes this will work or it will be a disaster.  Artest certainly brings scoring ability and can still play very good defense when he is motivated.  Western Conference coaches have more sleepless nights ahead of them as they try to devise a way to score on a team with a 7’ 5” center guarding the paint along with Shane Battier and Artest patrolling the perimeter.  The other added benefit of this trade is Artest will be able to carry some of the offensive load when McGrady or Yao Ming are on the shelf.

If it works, Houston will be a serious contender next season.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled crap.  Oh, I guess there is no more crap left.

This little compilation of links is a travishamockery because there is so much more out there.  Make sure you check out all the great SB Nation NBA blogs and now that baseball season is heating up and NFL training camps are kicking off make sure you visit your favorite teams’ SB Nation blogs in those sports as well.