Each weekday morning, Ball Don't Lie serves up a handful of NBA-related stories to digest with your single malt scotch.

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald: "Glen Davis' season has taken a bad turn in an entirely regrettable incident. The third-year forward could be lost to the Celtics for an extended period after injuring his right thumb in a private altercation with a friend, according to sources. The Celts were saying officially yesterday that Big Baby had suffered an undetermined hand injury and had been sent for X-rays. But sources said there is some type of fracture in the thumb and that he will have to undergo further testing with specialists to determine whether there is greater damage that could necessitate surgery. The injury occurred Sunday night during the incident between Davis and a former teammate, who had flown up from Louisiana, sources said. According to sources, Davis was defending himself at the time. The Celtics were, in fact, aware of the situation at the time, and it is clear neither they nor Davis are happy the team and player have been put in this situation."

Marcus Thompson II, Contra Costa Times: "The estimated 4,000 in attendance for Monday's open-to-the-public practice at Oracle Arena got a preview of a rotation Warriors fans might see often this season. Big man Ronny Turiaf(notes) played power forward for long stints with Blue Team, which is usually the starting lineup. Coach Don Nelson still may start forward Corey Maggette(notes), whom Nelson said he would lean on because of the team's inexperience at the position. But Nelson said to expect to see Turiaf on the floor with starting center Andris Biedrins(notes). 'We like that lineup actually,' Nelson said. 'And you'll see that, the big lineup.' Nelson started Turiaf next to Biedrins against the Los Angeles Lakers on Oct. 20 in Ontario. But shortly thereafter, Nelson announced that Maggette would be starting at power forward over Turiaf and second-year forward Anthony Randolph(notes), leading many to believe he was going to a small lineup primarily. Nelson also expressed uncertainty about how many minutes Turiaf can play and how much offense the team would be sacrificing. Monday's practice showed Nelson is leaning toward going big. Some players certainly like the idea. Swingman Stephen Jackson(notes) called it his dream lineup."

Joe Freeman, The Oregonian: "The Trail Blazers' season of great expectations was dealt a sobering dose of adversity Monday, roughly 24 hours before the start of the first game, when the team announced that Nicolas Batum(notes) would undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. Officially, a timetable for Batum's return will be established after his surgery on Friday. But after practice Monday, Batum said he had been told he would miss between three and five months, putting his return no sooner than the beginning of February. 'This is a big disappointment for me,' Batum said. 'I think it's the worst thing for a basketball player to go sit on the bench and watch your teammates and your team play, and play good. It's going to be tough for me.' Although Blazers coach Nate McMillan refused to name Batum's replacement in the starting lineup, Martell Webster(notes) drew the assignment during Monday's practice and multiple players said Webster would inherit the role. Travis Outlaw(notes), who was supposed to play almost exclusively at power forward, is expected to serve as Webster's primary backup and see time at both forward positions."

La Velle E. Neal III, Star Tribune: "When Al Jefferson(notes) takes the court Wednesday — and he is determined to — he will wear a black sleeve over his left lower leg to help loosen up a sore Achilles' tendon. The aching tendon kept him from practicing for about a week, but he scrimmaged Monday at Target Center with no problems. Wolves coach Kurt Rambis said the team will have to monitor Jefferson's injury into the season, which was relayed to Jefferson. 'I guess so,' he said. 'I'm still playing on Wednesday, regardless.' No doubt? 'No doubt,' he said."

Steve Buffrey, Toronto Sun: "It's all but certain that rookie DeMar DeRozan(notes) will start tomorrow at the shooting guard spot, marking only the third time in team history a rookie started in the opener (Damon Stoudamire(notes) in 1995 and Joey Graham(notes) in 2005). Triano said while DeRozan deserves the start, he wasn't pushed that much in training camp because of all the team's injuries. 'The one thing I always said, I don't want him to have this position by default. (But) he's played better than anybody else to warrant the spot. So I don't take anything away from him. It's not like by default. He has done a great job, he has worked hard everyday, he is very coachable. And I think he is getting better every day,' [Jay] Triano said."

K.C. Johnson, Chicago Tribune: "On a day the Bulls announced their symbolic leaders in captains Kirk Hinrich(notes), Luol Deng(notes) and Lindsey Hunter(notes), their floor leader continued to garner the most attention. Derrick Rose(notes) participated in his second straight full practice Monday. But the guard admitted the tendon behind his right ankle is sore until he gets loose. And with the season opening Thursday with back-to-back games against speedy guards Tony Parker(notes) of the Spurs and Rajon Rondo(notes) of the Celtics, Rose admitted playing major minutes could be unrealistic. 'It's going to be tough, I'll tell you that,' Rose said. 'I'm like an old man. I gotta wait 20, 30 minutes into practice to get loosened up. And it gets stiff when I stop playing.' Pressed on how many minutes he thought would be realistic, Rose backtracked a bit into vagueness. 'At least 20,' he said. 'I just want to play more. I don't care if it's 5 or 10. I just want to be out there. It's up to (the medical staff). Right now, I'll play whatever minutes they want me to play.'"

Ronald Tillery, Memphis Commercial Appeal: "The Grizzlies added star power to their roster in the offseason with Allen Iverson(notes). Now, they might be on the verge of hiring a Hall of Famer for the coaching staff. Legendary NBA center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar sat in on the Grizzlies' practice Monday morning. The NBA's all-time leading scorer will entertain joining the organization, several sources confirmed. Grizzlies management had no comment about Abdul-Jabbar's presence. Memphis, however, asked for and received permission from the Los Angeles Lakers to speak with Abdul-Jabbar. Abdul-Jabbar, 62, is under contract with the Lakers after having tutored Andrew Bynum(notes) over the past several seasons. But the Los Angeles Daily News reported earlier this month that Abdul-Jabbar's interaction with Bynum would decrease and he'd take a lesser role with the Lakers this season."

Kate Fagan, Philadelphia Inquirer: "[Eddie] Jordan, who first ran [the Princeton offense] with the Sacramento Kings in the 1996-97 season, loves the way it incorporates every player on the floor. He also employed the offense as an assistant coach of the New Jersey Nets and as head coach in Washington. But do the Sixers understand it? Are the players buying in? Why even learn such an intricate system? Realistically, in the first 10 games, if the Sixers are going to win while running the offense, they will need to run it as little as possible. Such is the case not because it ultimately won't work — no one is sure of that yet — but because, as in years past, the team is most effective in transition. At first, that aspect of the team's game will be paramount. Through the first month, in their half-court sets, the Sixers figure to look as if they're learning a foreign language. There will be a lot of pointing, nodding, miscommunication, and guys looking a little lost and then often ending up in the wrong spot. The offense is a framework, a set of principles. From that foundation comes a nearly endless amount of options, depending on how the defense plays."

Dave D'Alessandro, The Star-Ledger: "... can [Devin] Harris look at his own game objectively? So far, the answer is yes: In recent weeks, he has admitted he had been a substandard defender the last two years, he has conceded that he must figure out why Yi Jianlian's(notes) numbers always increase when another point guard is in the game, and he now endorses the coach's vision of playing a smaller, three-wing lineup. The first test will be when Frank criticizes his defensive commitment in front of the group - his group. 'Devin's a very very bright guy,' Frank said. 'He gets it. He knows what he needs to do. For us to be the type of team we want to be, we need everyone to commit on the defensive end. As the best player, it starts with him.'"

Related: DeMar DeRozan, Anthony Randolph, Derrick Rose, Yi Jianlian, Rajon Rondo, Ronny Turiaf, Joey Graham, Andrew Bynum, Martell Webster, Al Jefferson, Andris Biedrins, Luol Deng, Travis Outlaw, Kirk Hinrich, Tony Parker, Corey Maggette, Stephen Jackson, Allen Iverson, Lindsey Hunter, Los Angeles Lakers, New Jersey Nets, Sacramento Kings, Suicide lines