First, continuing to make a point of emphasizing the good that some athletes are doing, especially on a day in which some of the top stories includes Pac Man Jones (again) and a Cincinnati Bengal getting arrested (again)  And you can't even blame the overzealous Cincy police for running back Quincy Wilson's arrest, as the arrest took place in West Virginia. 

Also, since I did take a tongue-in-cheek mainstream media-esqe blast at both Carmelo Anthony and Gilbert Arenas in the comments section of the Stephon Marbury post from yesterday, I thought it would be a good idea to cheer some good info on their charitable contributions.

Every blogger's favorite NBA player, Gilbert Arenas, who had some experiences with being homeless as a child, has a foundation called Zero Two Hero Foundation.  That foundation recently teamed up with Freddie Mac's Hoops for the Homeless to raise $900,000 via a 3 on 3 basketball tournament.  You can read about it here in the Washington Post, and also here.

Carmelo Anthony, whose internet fame centers around his appearance in the "Stop Snitching" DVD and who is still considered a "thug" by too many biased reporters and "fans", also happens to be not only one of the most generous NBA players, but entertainers overall.  Found via this Nate Jones post is this list of the Top 30 Entertainers in terms of public donations, according to the Giving Back Foundation.  

Now keep in mind that "public" donations aren't the only kind of donations an individual can make - indeed, most rich people prefer to make their donations through a private foundation.  Some also do it anonymously.  Mayor Mike Bloomberg is famous for this, as his annual donations are both in the tens of millions and usually very guarded.  Private foundations by billionaires like Bill and Melinda Gates, George Soros, Ted Turner, et al give away hundreds of millions every year.

That having been said, this list of entertainers is very interesting.  First, note that there are quite a few minorities in the top 20: Oprah Winfrey is #1; Tiger Woods is #5, Carmelo Anthony is #8, The Rock (Dwayne Johnson) is #12, and tied for #20 are Tiki and Ronde Barber and Denzel Washington.  Gloria Estefan also cracks the list.  

Carmelo gave over $4 million in 2006, including a large chunck to supporting Youth Centers in urban Baltimore, one of the most impoverished urban areas this side of Detroit. 

Okay, general NBA updates:  Pau Gasol, who Darko Milicic seems to consider "soft", seems to have had enough of Memphis, according to his own blog.  This post, loosely translate, seems to say pretty much what Kobe has been saying in LA - either we get some help here, or trade me.  Pau Gasol seems a great fit for the Lakers, if for no other reason than he would defer to Kobe in the clutch, but provide much needed front line support, and also improve the defense, which is what the Lakers need to work on the most (seriously, they need to take a page from the Mike Brown handbook in Cleveland - play hard defense, let Kobe and the triangle carry the offense).   

Here's my shoddy translation of what this post says: Pau Gasol, Spanish player on the Memphis Grizzlies, asked today that if his club so wants him on the team, they should make a power play to get another strong player on the team.  "If they want to retain me so much, they should do the necessary effort to put to capable players around me so that we can compete at the maximum level...".

Sounds like Pau and Kobe got much in common already.

Finally, found this on You Tube - it's from 1994, and it's a NY1 (!) interview with high schooler Stephon Marbury, talking about his future plans and the weight of expectations placed upon him.  A long time ago, before he made it to the pros, made it college even, NY basketball fans knew about Stephon.  Nah, you know what... I'm gonna make this it's own post.  Here's the You Tube, more to follow:  

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