After a rude welcome, a still-dangerous forward just looks to fit in
The NFL
How long can Mike Vick stay in one piece? • Drew Bledsoe revives his career in Dallas • The decline of LaVar Arrington
College Football
Texas Tech is 6-0 thanks to an innovative offense • SEC foes slow Florida's spread option • Will Rutgers go to a bowl?
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October 23, 2005
NBA Preview
Lots of championship experience--just none at the pro level
Infamously flammable Ron Artest would seem to have little in common with Larry Bird, yet the most iconic Hoosier of them all says he sees plenty of himself in his most intense young star
In Antoine Walker, Miami acquired a flashy forward with a penchant for jacking three-pointers and gambling on defense--not exactly what Shaquille O'Neal would have ordered
Here's why these pairings could strike magical sparks--or send their teams down in flames
Those stat guys are at it again, and now the Moneyball math of baseball has come to the NBA. Armed with dazzling equations, NBA front offices are finding entirely new ways to quantify a player's talent and judge his real value
What contenders need to have happen, what will happen and whom you'd want on your team (real or fantasy)
How They'll Finish
They still have a tough trio despite a changing of the (shooting) guard
Healed and remodeled, a shooting star will hit the court running
To keep up on the boards, they need their center to grow up fast
Life after Larry Brown won't be bad, especially for an underused bench
The full-service superstar gets an assist by recruiting scoring help
They finally won a playoff series. Can a new guard take them further?
For the team to improve, a forgotten man must have a year to remember
Despite recent bad reviews, a new coach and center bring star power
Can a goal-oriented wunderkind inspire a return to the playoffs?
They're counting on their forward of the future to deliver right away
A big man finally arrives, but a winning record is still too tall an order
It's nice to finally get a top free agent--even if he isn't a good fit
The top pick could be a pleasant surprise. The season will not be
Less money, fewer minutes? Sounds perfect, says a Mavericks castoff
The key to George Karl's up-tempo offense is no small wonder
A star is hurt, but the dynamic offense isn't slowing down for anyone
With a new point guard to launch the attack, this team is ready to run
Read the writing on the wall: The coach is demanding better D in Big D
A rugged forward needs to catch, shoot and worry about misses later
The overhauled roster is older and wiser, but will it be any better?
A flop in his debut, a leading man is better prepared for Year Two
Elementary geometry: Can the new big man pick up the triangle?
They finally have some real selling points, but a playoff berth? Not yet
Too much of a good thing? That could be the case at point guard
A turnaround is tied to how quickly all the young players develop
They've already suffered their worst loss, but many more are to follow
Lineup
Air and Space
SI Players: Life On and Off the Field
BILLS RUNNING BACK
WITH Steve Foley, Chargers Linebacker
The White Sox reached their first World Series in 46 years thanks to a staff that threw four straight complete games and a catcher who seemed to be in the middle of every key play
Baseball
The Astros were on the brink of a pennant before Brad Lidge, the dominant reliever of the postseason, fell victim to Albert Pujols
Pro Football
A night of debauchery aboard two yachts is the latest scandal for the Minnesota Vikings, a once proud franchise that has become a rudderless ship
Motor Sports
A year after the plane crash that took his son and nine others, all family members or close friends, NASCAR owner Rick Hendrick has his drivers behind him and another title in his sights
College Football
There were nail-biters galore last Saturday when No. 1 USC stunned Notre Dame with :03 left and five other games with BCS implications were decided in the last 30 seconds or in overtime
USC beat the clock for the most dramatic ending in college football last Saturday, but the five teams who scrambled to win these down-to-the-wire intraconference showdowns weren't far behind
Inside
Life of Reilly
Departments
Six years after he quit managing--for good, he thought--Jim Leyland is back with the woeful Tigers
Not content to represent other Olympians, Patrick Quinn is trying to become one, at age 39, in luge
How and why an SI writer reported a rules infraction that got Michelle Wie disqualified from her first pro tournament
USA Basketball moves away from the NBA by picking Coach K for the 2008 Olympics
With the NHL finally playing his kind of fast and loose hockey, a superior scorer retires
Do you want to watch a ball game--or the Zapruder film?
The 23-year-old U.S national soccer team star is currently playing in Holland for PSV Eindhoven
What to watch and watch for
