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When the NBA schedule was released in early August, the Bulls' first trip to Miami on Dec. 26 jumped out as a game not to miss.

History will be on the line Thursday for the Boston Celtics, who dispatched Los Angeles in six games in June for their 17th NBA title. With a 20th straight win, the Celtics can surpass the 1999-2000 Lakers on the list of all-time winning streaks.

JAN HUBBARD Describing Brandon Roy as an overachiever is a bit of an insult to Roy because it suggests that he is not a superior talent.Yet when you consider some of his accomplishments, which have led a few Blazers fanatics in Portland to give him the ultimate compliment by comparing him to Blazers legend Clyde Drexler, it’s apparent that Roy has excelled in some unlikely and impressive ways.Consider his rookie season of 2006-07. Because of heel problems, he missed 25 games, which meant that he did not play enough to qualify for the official league leadersYet he still was the overwhelming choice for NBA Rookie of the Year.While it’s true that rookie class was not one of the more impressive ones in recent years, it still is uncommon to recognize a player who had missed 30 percent of the season.Fast-forward to last week. In a game against the Sacramento Kings, the 6-foot-6, 210-pound guard played despite a torn ligament in his right pinkie finger on his shooting hand. He al

Everyone has got a DeAngelo Williams story this year, as well they should. The Carolina running back was like a speedy Santa Claus, coming out of nowhere and delivering a lot of gifts - four more touchdowns against the Giants Sunday in many fantasy owners'...

By JEFF CAPLAN In the NBA, days of the week are mostly irrelevant. It’s either a game day or a non-game day. Holidays included.For the Dallas Mavericks, today, Thursday, Christmas, is a special day, yet just another game day to start another important three-game road trip. While your children revel in wrapping paper strewn about, the Mavs will be running morning drills at the Rose Garden in Portland. As your good tidings wind down for the night, the Mavs and Trail Blazers will just be tipping off in the last of five nationally televised games on three networks spanning morning to midnight.It’s just the second time the Mavs have played on Christmas Day, the first coming in 2003 at Sacramento.'I look at it as a positive now because if you’re playing on Christmas Day, you’re a good team,' Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. 'They don’t schedule mediocre teams on Christmas Day. You’ve got to look at it as an honor.'Mavs owner Mark Cuban will watch from hi

Mavericks at Trail Blazers9:30 tonight, Rose Garden, Portland, Ore.TV: TNTRadio: ESPN/103.3 FM, KFLC/1270 AM (Spanish)Records: Mavericks 16-11, Trail Blazers 18-11What to know: Portland owns the second-best home record in the NBA West at 10-2. Everyone knows by now how good Brandon Roy (22.9 points) is and the strides former Texas Longhorns star LaMarcus Aldridge has made. Now the Blazers are excited about rookie guard Rudy Fernandez. The dynamic, 6-foot-6 Spaniard is averaging 10.9 points and 3.3 rebounds in a reserve role. Seven-foot center Greg Oden is also making an impact. Although coming off a poor game Tuesday, he’s shooting 63.6 percent (21-of-33) in the past five games.Injury report: Trail Blazers — G/F Martell Webster (foot), out; Raef LaFrentz (shoulder), out. Mavericks — G/F Jerry Stackhouse (right foot), out.

By JEFF CAPLAN Jason Kidd turned to one of the most overplayed sports clichés in the book when talking about the Dallas Mavericks taking on Portland and Utah the next two days at two of the NBA’s tougher venues to sneak out of with a win.'We have to make sure that we bring our 'A’ game,' the point guard said. 'This is an important week for us, the last week of December. On the road or at home, we can improve.'The Mavericks are 14-4 since a dreadful 2-7 start. They haven’t posted many gems while surfacing from the abyss, but they have positioned themselves to make a push at the top half of the Western Conference with a favorable schedule ahead.At 16-11 and within only two games of all five teams ahead of them — excluding the West-leading Los Angeles Lakers — Kidd and others said it’s time to raise the bar on their performances.'I think this road trip is going to help us do that,' Kidd said. After the Trail Blazers and Jazz, the Mavs move on

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The high-riding Los Angeles Lakers host NBA champions the Boston Celtics in a Christmas Day cracker on Thursday when the long-time rivals will have the league's biggest prize uppermost in mind.

Here are complete fantasy football rankings based on this week's matchups for all the major positions and speculation on which teams and players will have more incentive to play hard in the final week of the regular season.

There is a reason most fantasy leagues end on Week 16. Week 17 is often a mess, and this year is no exception.