David Stern would never openly admit it to us. Nope, no commissioner would ever even publicly hint at a sense of displeasure, anger or absolute frustration regarding which franchise just received the number one pick in the upcoming draft – especially when that pick is projected to be an absolute can’t-miss superstar the way Kentucky’s Anthony Davis is.

But let’s be real about this; the New Orleans Hornets winning the NBA Draft Lottery on Wednesday night was Stern’s worst nightmare come to life.

If you compound the never before seen sequence of events that took place involving the Hornets and their elite point guard Chris Paul just before this abbreviated 66 game season got underway with the all-time historically atrocious struggles of the Charlotte Bobcats during 2012, nothing could make Stern look shadier to the league’s ever so skeptical fan base, which is now crying out conspiracy.

It all began way back in early December when Stern – thinking not as the impartial commissioner, but rather as the Hornets owner due to the league having control over the franchise at the time – shockingly pulled the plug on a blockbuster three team deal between New Orleans, the L.A. Lakers, and the Houston Rockets for what he justified as “basketball reasons.”

The trade would have sent Chris Paul to the Lakers, seven foot forward Pau Gasol to the Rockets, and forward Lamar Odom, guards Goran Dragic and Kevin Martin, forward Luis Scola and the Rockets’ 2012 first round draft pick to the Hornets.

Stern expressed that the transaction was “not in the best interest of the Hornets,” but given that the pieces offered included an immediate first round pick and four players that have proven that they possess very solid NBA talent over the years, no one cared to buy that explanation.

The Lakers said they would work to sweeten the deal in order to completely appease New Orleans; however, Los Angeles’ other basketball team, the Clippers, began to show interest in acquiring Paul.

And from that very moment Stern’s level of trust amongst viewers has inevitably taken the mother of all nosedives.

At this point fans everywhere knew that if the Clippers – the most insignificant team in the Los Angeles sports scene since moving to the city only a handful of decades ago – went on to win this battle, it would be for a reason. What would it be exactly? To finally make them relevant and actually add some spice to a Lakers-Clippers ‘rivalry’ that has always been conquered by the Kobe Bryant-led purple and gold.

So when the Clippers did get Paul for guard Eric Gordon, center Chris Kaman, forward Al-Farouq Aminu and the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 2012 first round draft pick, that only added fuel to their argument. How does that trade sound any better than the one the Lakers and Rockets put together? Oh, that’s right, it doesn’t. Not to mention the fact that the Hornets had to ship off two future second round picks of their own in this deal.

All that did was give the appearance that Stern was attempting to rig the power balance in the West for years to come. The Clippers had their best season in franchise history, finishing fifth in the conference at 40-26. Meanwhile, the Hornets closed out the season with a record of 21-45 – tied for third-worst in the entire league.

Gordon did only participate in nine games all year long with a bone bruise in his knee, so it’s unsure how the team would have performed with him out there consistently. However, he can leave the team this offseason as a free agent, something that should have kept the Hornets from desiring him in the first place.

Farouq Aminu only averaged an inadequate six points and 22 minutes per game this season, and Kaman’s struggles got to a point where the team discussed sending him home or releasing him.

There’s a great likelihood that the team would not have had such turmoil had they just gone through with the initial Paul trade. Odom did have the worst season of his career in 2012, as a result of personal issues stemming from both being a trade piece and a rough offseason, but other than that, Martin, Dragic, and Scola averaged 17.1, 11.7 and 15.5 points per game, respectively.

The Rockets also missed the playoffs by a mere two games, as they posted a 34-32 record.

On top of all this, the team with the worst winning percentage of all-time, the Bobcats at .106, didn’t win the draft lottery? You’re kidding, right?

Too bad Stern can’t force the Hornets to give the pick to the Bobcats. He definitely wanted to after the process made him look like a complete sham.

The article Hornets Landing #1 Pick is Terrible for Stern’s Image and He Knows It appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Sirius XM Radio announced today that it will broadcast SNL on STERN, a five-part original series hosted by Howard Stern that offers an uncensored, backstage history of Saturday Night Live as told by the show’s cast, guest hosts and writers from three decades of memorable appearances on The Howard Stern Show.

SNL on STERN premieres on December 19 and airs through December 23, beginning at 6:00 am ET daily on Howard 100 and 6:00 am PT on Howard 101. SNL on STERN will air in five original installments, with encore performances all day and throughout the weekend on Howard 100.

A lifelong fan, Howard’s entertaining and in-depth interviews with the cast, writers and guest-hosts of Saturday Night Live have provided some of the most entertaining radio in the show’s history since his first, with Gilda Radner in 1983.

SNL on STERN features interviews with nearly fifty former and current SNL stars, including Chris Rock, Bill Murray, David Spade, Chevy Chase, Tina Fey, Jimmy Fallon, Dan Aykroyd, Jim Belushi, Jim Breuer, Dana Carvey, Billy Crystal, Robert Downey Jr., Julia Louis Dreyfus, Jimmy Fallon, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Al Franken, Gilbert Gottfried, Darrell Hammond, Phil Hartman, Victoria Jackson, Chris Kattan, Colin Quinn, Fred Armisen, Jon Lovitz, Ben Stiller, Norm MacDonald and Lorne Michaels, SNL’s creator and executive producer.

Highlights from SNL on STERN include:

• Chevy Chase opens up about his backstage brawl with Bill Murray
• Classic Stern Show interviews with the late Phil Hartman
• Gilda Radner’s disastrous 1983 interview with Howard
• Darrell Hammond shares his experience meeting former President Bill Clinton
• Norm MacDonald recalls his bizarre firing from the “Weekend Update” desk
• Jim Breuer gives the behind-the-scenes scoop on Joe Pesci and Robert DeNiro’s famous cameos
• Audition horror stories from Jimmy Fallon, Kevin Nealon and Gilbert Gottfried
• Robert Downey Jr., Ben Stiller and Sarah Silverman discuss their short stints as cast members
• Stern’s commentary on Ashlee Simpson lip synching and other infamous moments in show history

The article Sirius XM to Air Howard Stern’s ‘SNL on STERN’ appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Crystal Harris publicly stated she is not turned on by Hugh Hefner; the man she dumped almost at the alter. Crystal Harris was Playboy magazine’s Miss December 2009 and said she is not turned on by the founder of the Playboy adult entertainment empire.

“I was over it. I just like, walked away. I am not turned on by Hef. Sorry”, Harris said.

Questions and confusions have come up as to why the runaway bride had suddenly stopped the wedding at the last minute. Harris insists there was a lack of sex and attraction.

“Hef doesn’t really take off his clothes. I have never seen him naked”, Harris admitted to the radio presenter Howard Stern. She also disclosed that she left Hefner and his Playboy Mansion because they only had sex once during their two year relationship and the old man only lasted a really short time.

The Playmate has already spent her fake wedding day partying in Las Vegas. She also tried to sell $90,000 engagement ring that Hefner let her keep. Press said that Harris gave the ring to a jeweller to get it appraised in California, but after a party weekend she returned to the Playboy Mansion and tried to give the ring back to Hefner who still told her to keep it.

Harris opened a floodgate of a huge controversy and created a big scandal when she called Hefner a “two second man” on Howard Stern’s radio show.

Everybody started defending the Playboy’s owner, even his former girlfriend and Girl Next Door Kendra Wilkinson. Kendra said, “She just totally made herself look like crap. She looks like trash. I mean, it’s disgusting. She needs to keep her mouth shut, and be a bigger person. ” She believes Crystal Harris has no chance to affect Hefner after all the drama he has been through. She prays for her mouth to shut.

After becoming the object of a lot of criticism, Harris made an apology via Twitter which Hefner accepted.

The 85 year old magazine mogul has been married twice before. Despite his efforts to make people believe that he is actually heartbroken, the press had discovered his brand new girlfriend, Shera Bechard, a 27 year old model who was Playboy Miss November 2010.
Joe Seer / Shutterstock.com

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