Jock Jerseys’ Flash

The Houston Rockets, fresh off a 12 game winning streak, will be without the services of their All-Star Center, Yao Ming, for the remainder of the season.  Yao suffered a stress fracture in his foot and will miss the rest of Houston’s basketball season.

Already sitting in the 7th playoff seed position w/ Yao, the Rockets will be hard-pressed to keep that position.  The Western Conference is already tight as can be; this latest injury will certainly help clarify the playoff positioning.  I guess it’s good to be a Denver Nugget or Golden State Warrior about now (currently 8th & 9th seeds, respectively).

Houston is on it’s way to a 13th straight victory tonight (this one without Yao Ming), but it is against the struggling Wizards, so they should win it with or without Yao.  There’s really no one to step into the Center position except Dikembe Mutombo (he’s like 60 yrs old) and a few Power Forwards.  Fantasy owners of Yao are seriously hurting today… there are virtually no players on the waiver wire who can match Yao’s shooting, rebounding & block stats.

Even after the Lakers, Suns and Mavericks made trades to strengthen their chances of going to the NBA Finals, a flurry of NBA trades change the landscape across the league.

The Western Conference is still the dominant force it has been all season (for a few seasons actually), but the Eastern Conference has also changed significantly.  The Celtics and Pistons are still the favorites to get the Finals for the East, but Cleveland’s monster 11-player trade may just get Lebron & Co. back to the championship game for a 2nd year in a row.

Cleveland made arguably the biggest move of the season, as part of an 11-player trade involving the Bulls and the Sonics.

• Cleveland got: Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak & Bulls 2nd round pick in 2009
• Chicago got: Drew Gooden, Larry Hughes, Shannon Brown & Cedric Simmons
• Seattle got: Ira Newble, Donyell Marshall, Adrian Griffin &

This move was obviously made to appease the King (James), so that he doesn’t bolt in 2 years when his contract is over.  The problem w/ the trade, however, is that they are now locked in for 2 more years w/ the current roster, which includes several new players that other teams are not going to be seeking.  It’s make it or break it for the Cavs…

Ben Wallace adds defense and rebounding, but nothing else.  Joe Smith adds a reliable scoring threat & rebounder (that’s more than you can say for Gooden) and Wally Z & Delonte should help the Cavs shoot better from the outside.  Had Gibson not turned his ankle, this would be a pretty dangerous squad immediately, but they’re going to struggle to mesh.  Look for Lebron to carry the team and show them how to win… just not all the way to the Finals.

The best move in my opinion, which is still developing (as far as chemistry), is the acquisition of point guard Mike Bibby by the Atlanta Hawks.  Atlanta has been short on PG play for years, but management has finally addressed that issue.  It will be interesting to see how Bibby fits in w/ the other players.  They got beat hard by the Lakers in Bibby’s first game, so tonight’s game against the Warriors could be a better gauge of how well the team is going to wrap up the season.  I see them making the playoffs and being a threat in the first round, but they aren’t advancing (unless they play Orlando or Cleveland).

Some smaller transactions occured including Bonzi Wells (Hornets), Gerald Green (Rockets) and Juan Dixon (Pistons).

Still, the move that may have the most impact is the Lakers’ trade for Pau Gasol.  Memphis basically gave him away to LA, without getting anything back in return (thanks Jerry).  The trade instantly made the Lakers championship contenders in a tight Western Conference.  They are big, they are agile, they are quick, they can adapt, they are confident and they have Kobe Bryant… what else do they need.  Even after adding Shaq to their lineup, the Suns couldn’t even handle the Lakers, who have dominated PHX all year long (watch out in the playoffs).

In his first race since joining Hendrick Motorsports this racing offseason, Dale Earnhardt Jr. (#88) passed Tony Stewart (#20) with a few laps left to claim the Budweiser Shootout.  Granted, the win doesn’t count towards points, but it has to feel good for Dale Jr. to get out of DEI and enjoy a win in his first start w/ a new company.

Dale Jr.’s issues w/ DEI are well documented, so I won’t get into them here.  What counts today is that Earnhardt scored a victory in his first race of the 2008 season (for Hendrick).  He got some help after a late caution from new teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon; their teamwork allowed Dale Earnhardt Jr. to pass Stewart and win the Budweiser Shootout.  The victory was Earnhardt’s first in the past 2 years.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is with a new team (Hendrick Motorsports), has a new number (#88) and new sponsors for the next few years (National Guard and Mountain Dew AMP).  All of you fans still wearing Budweiser red (from his old #8 car) will want to score some of the new merchandise so you look the part at the track (or in front of the TV).  Here’s a quick list of items you should consider:

Dale Jr. and the rest of NASCAR’s driver pool are now looking forward to next week’s Daytona 500 - the season’s first race & arguably it’s best.  Look for all of Hendrick’s cars up front (Gordon, Johnson & Earnhardt Jr.), DEI (Truex Jr., Martin) and also some new Toyota rides (Stewart, Hamlin).  Any driver could win, but you have to think these drivers are the favorites due to their previous restrictor-plate race results. 

Whatever your taste (hats, official racing jackets, license plate covers, etc.), you’re sure to find something to help show your love for NASCAR’s most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr.

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The NBA’s Western Conference is a mess right now, with a number of acquisitions, trades and power moves by the NBA’s elite teams.  Pau Gasol was traded to the Lakers, Damon Stoudamire was signed by the Spurs and rumors are still buzzing about Jason Kidd being moved to the Mavs.

Of course, these moves all pale in comparison to the season’s first blockbuster.  The Phoenix Suns traded fan-favorite Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks to the Miami Heat for future Hall of Famer, Shaquille O’neal - yes, the big Shaq daddy, Diesel, Big Cactus (whatever you want to call him).

Jock Jerseys is proud to be one of the first places online where you can get a Shaq Suns jersey… he’s only been a member of the team for about 72 hrs, but his Suns jersey is already on sale in purple, white and the alternate orange colors.

Shaq brings to Phoenix 15 straight All-Star appearances, a streak which was just broken a couple weeks ago when he missed this year’s cut.  Of course, he also brings a regular season MVP award, 3 NBA Finals MVP awards, 4 NBA Championships and his extremely charismatic attitude.

It’s unclear how well O’Neal will mesh with the Suns fast pace, but as has been pointed out by many observers… “it doesn’t take 5 guys to run a fast break”, so Shaq doesn’t have to run for the Suns to keep up their frenetic pace.

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If you don’t see the Shaq jersey you’re looking for, submit a comment below and we’ll help you find what you’re looking for.