Each weekday morning, BDL serves up a handful of NBA-related stories to digest with your Mr. T cereal.

Jason Quick, The Oregonian: "If there has ever been a finer performance at the Rose Garden, somebody find it, because no one who was in attendance Thursday night will ever believe there was a greater game played than that of Trail Blazers guard Brandon Roy. Roy scored 52 points — the second highest in franchise history and the most in Rose Garden history — to lead a 124-119 win over Phoenix, ending an 11-game losing streak to the Suns. [...] 'This is the best game I've played,' Roy said. 'I've never scored (that many), even in little league.'" [...] Roy fell two points shy of tying the franchise record of 54 points set by Damon Stoudamire at New Orleans in 2005."

Frank Dell'Apa / Marc J. Spears, Boston Globe: "Coach Doc Rivers confirmed yesterday the Celtics were interested in free agent center Dikembe Mutombo. But he predicted Mutombo would return to Houston. Asked if he had talked with Mutombo, Rivers replied, 'Always. He's a good friend. He's going to come back. I talked to him last week — he will come back. We're over the [salary] cap so it's tough for us to do a lot of stuff, but we're looking at everybody.' Yesterday, Mutombo attended a United Nations presentation of a Ben Affleck-directed film about refugees in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mutombo's home country. 'I told [Affleck] that I might play in his hometown,' Mutombo said in a telephone interview. 'He said, 'Come, we'd love to have you.' He's a really nice guy.' Mutombo said he plans to sign with a team after Christmas."

Kate Fagan, Philadelphia Inquirer: "Later that night, Brand went off-site for an MRI. Yesterday, the Sixers confirmed the details of his injury: fracture of the humeral head (bone), tear of the labrum. In layman's terms, that means the Sixers' leading scorer is pretty badly hurt. The estimated recovery time is about a month because the Sixers' doctor, Jack McPhilemy, said he did not believe the injury required surgery at this time. Stefanski said that McPhilemy conferred via telephone with a shoulder specialist, and that both agreed on the course of action. Brand began rehabilitation yesterday and did not travel with the Sixers to Washington, where they play the Wizards at 7 o'clock tonight."

Charles F. Gardner, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "Charlie Villanueva takes pride in his ability to handle the ball, and he attributes it to growing up in Queens and on the playgrounds of New York City. If you didn't have a handle, well, you didn't stay on the court very long. So it's no huge surprise that at 6-foot-11, Villanueva still can be fairly fluid with the ball when he goes up against the other big men in the National Basketball Association. [...] 'I used to play point guard back in high school,' the 24-year-old Villanueva said, flashing back about 10 years. 'I grew 7 inches over that one summer. My freshman year I was 6-foot tall and backing up Smush Parker. Then my sophomore year I grew to 6-7. That was brutal on the knees and the back, man. I remember being 14 years old and icing my knees; it was crazy.'"

Real GM: "The Sacramento Kings announced they are retiring the jersey numbers worn Chris Webber and Vlade Divac. Webber, a power forward who played seven seasons with the franchise, will have his #4 retired Feb. 6 when the Kings host the Utah Jazz. On March 31 when Sacramento takes on the New Orleans Hornets, the #21 jersey of Divac will be hung on the rafters as well."

Larry Millson, Globe and Mail: "'If I wanted to get booed, I'd go on the road,' forward Chris Bosh had said after the loss, in which his team held a 13-point first-half lead. Yesterday after practice, Bosh talked about how he sees the importance of fans. 'Fans, whether they know it or not, they dictate a lot,' he said. 'They're a major, major part of the game. You know walking into other buildings, it's tough to play sometimes if the fans are being supportive, if they're loud.' [... But] at 10-15, the Raptors are not reaching the level of the expectations for them. 'I understand high expectations,' Bosh said. 'If the fans are frustrated, how do you think I feel? That's what you have to remember. If we lose a game, I don't like to lose. I play to win every time.' Asked how he would react if his favourite team were not meeting expectations, Bosh said, 'I don't know, just sit there, I guess.'"

Ken Berger: "While the Warriors' reported interest in Ray Felton makes sense on some levels, it doesn't make sense to the Warriors. This from a person with direct knowledge of the team's thinking: Golden State would not trade a 6-10 forward with huge upside for a point guard. And it doesn't matter whether the 6-10 forward's name is Anthony Randolph or Brandan Wright. The Warriors 'wouldn't even consider that in any way, shape or form,' the person said. The thinking is this: The Warriors just made a trade for a combo guard (Jamal Crawford), and if they're trading anybody, it would be an established veteran whose upside is known. Randolph and Wright both have played sporadically, and the Warriors need to see what they are — especially Randolph, who is only 19."

John Denton, Florida Today: "Out of action the past 10 games with a torn ulna collateral ligament in his right thumb, Pietrus is trying to get in all the extra work that he can in hopes of returning Saturday when the Magic host the Los Angeles Lakers. Pietrus returned to practice Wednesday, but was held out of Thursday's game as he works to improve his conditioning. Orlando signed Pietrus to a five-year, $23 million free-agent contract in the offseason with the intention of having him guard players like L.A.'s Kobe Bryant. Pietrus' role in the Magic's defense has been a work in progress, but he surprised Orlando with his shooting (47.5 percent overall, 36.5 percent from 3-point range and 84.8 percent from the free throw line) and scoring (12.9 ppg.) before injuring his thumb."

Ivan Carter, Washington Post: "Antawn Jamison had his strained left thumb wrapped in protective tape as he got ready to leave Verizon Center yesterday, and the veteran forward, who did not practice and is listed as a game-time decision for tonight's game against the Philadelphia 76ers, said he is going to do whatever he can to play. 'It's sore and bruised pretty badly, but I've got some medicine on it right now and I'm a pretty fast healer so we'll see how it goes,' said Jamison, who has not missed a game this season. 'You know me. I'm going to try to be out there.'"

Fred Kerber / Brian Lewis, New York Post: "For 6½ seasons, Kidd was the heart, soul, spleen, small phalanges of the New Jersey Nets. He promised he would do things — get them to the playoffs, make them superior to the New York Knicks , make his teammates better — then he did them. The parting did not go smoothly - Kidd wanted a contract extension, was refused, then he wanted out. The Nets obliged. His only regret was no title. 'I did everything I could,' Kidd, 35, said after Mavs practice at Baruch College. 'I played every night. I made my teammates better. There wasn't anything else I could have done. If I was still here, I would still be playing hard. The trade makes New Jersey a young team and the future is what they're looking for with the move to Brooklyn. They're trying to set themselves up for that class of 2010.'"

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