WizardsBullets 3 - 12

Distractions for pro athletes are everywhere. A stripper here, a bookie there. Maybe a creepy, large, mustached man with binoculars sitting outside of the players' parking lot with 12 photos of you and wearing a signed game jersey.

In the NFL, of course, we can't escape the news about soon-to-be ex-New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress, who was so busy concentrating on his preparation for last Sunday's game against the Redskins that he shot himself in the leg . You know how we feel about Plaxico and his ilk, and my co-people Patty Imig mused about him as well, but it was just another reminder of how prevalent the knucklehead factor can be in today's sports landscape.

In the NBA, Allen Iverson skipped out on a Thanksgiving Detroit Pistons practice, allowing us to revisit this plumb moment in his NBA career. And while we should be careful to not blow Iverson's absence out of proportion, don't neglect the example it sets for Detroit's youngsters like Rodney Stuckey and Co. It also can't sit well with Motown's other veterans as Iverson was the only Detroit player to skip the holiday workout. But give the little tiger this - he seemed to take responsibility for his actions and then was able to make light of it in a pretty amusing way.

Surprisingly, the same can't be said for LeBron James, who from the time he entered the NBA as a teen has carried himself like a true pro. But Bron-Bron's constant talk - as well as the onslaught of media coverage - about where he will go when his contract expires in 2010 has been nearly as annoying as horse coverage.

Surprisingly, even the Cavs owner seems to have his head buried in the sand. But the questions are swirling. Will he play in New York, New Jersey, or New Dheli? You name it - it's been discussed - and James is fueling much of it himself.

"I think July 1, 2010 is a very big day," he said after a recent game, referring to the first day of free agency after his contract expires.

And we're pretty certain his Cavs teammates don't appreciate it either, as Charles Barkley - still one of the thickest, chunkiest, and most entertaining broadcasters around - noted last week.

"If I was LeBron James, I would shut the hell up. I'm a big LeBron fan (but) I'm getting so annoyed he's talking about what he's going to do in two years. I think it's disrespectful to the game. I think it's disrespectful to the Cavaliers."

Amen Chunky Beef. But James didn't agree, responding to the remarks by saying, "He's stupid."

Who is your distraction of the year?

In the Mix

• Speaking of distractions, the Stephon Marbury saga keeps growing more entertaining, yet dumber, by the day. Thank you Steph for simply being Steph and referring to Steph by name, whenever you talk about Steph, who we all know is just Steph being Steph.


• Oklahoma's Blake Griffin looks like this year's Michael Beasley. Expect to see him in next year's NBA draft lottery.


• Derrick Rose does not look like a rookie.


• Tracy McGrady is hurt....again. Expected to miss three weeks this time.


• Our friends at IntentionalFoul.com had a fine piece recently about great NBA mustaches which you can see here.


• The New Jersey Nets' Devin Harris is going off like a 50-year-old man hopped up on Cialis. Brutha tossed in 47 against the Suns on Sunday and is now averaging 25.3 ppg and 6.4 rpg on the season.


• Last week I wrote that Bullets coach Eddie Jordan had been ousted. He was replaced by Ed Tapscott, who you may recall in 1999 drafted Frederic Weis 15th overall for the Knicks. Weis is the guy that Vince Carter did this to.