Out of Bounds

	Meet the new odd couple -- Yao Ming and Nia Long. AP; Johnny Nunez/WireImage.com

• We're not sure how much validity there is to this rumor, but it's so fun we couldn't ignore it. According to mediatakeout, Nia Long is dating ... Yao Ming! The Web site reports that Yao grew up watching Long on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and tried repeatedly to get her to go out with him before she finally agreed. But then, Long also has been linked to Reggie Bush and 50 Cent. And it also may be news to Yao, who has been in a lengthy romance with Chinese women's hoops player Ye Li. But if the K-Feds of the world can hook up with Britney Spears, if only briefly, then who's to say?  

• Gilbert Arenas threw the birthday party to end all birthday parties last week in Washington. The party, hosted by Diddy, reportedly cost a cool $1 million to put together and required a special "Arenas Express" card to attend. Though we weren't lucky enough to receive an invitation, AOL Sportsblog had a Q&A with one of the party's guests, who gave an excellent account of the festivities. If you don't trust a second-hand account, see what Arenas himself had to say about the party on his blog.

• As part of the All-Star festivites in Las Vegas, the NBA needs your help in picking the 2007 All-Star Dance Team. Fans can choose one representative from each of the 30 teams on NBA.com. Among our favorites are Lindsey (Utah), Gina (Phoenix) and Ione (Portland).

Funny Money

• Dwyane Wade and his wife, Siohvaughn, are being sued for $152,000 by a developer who claims he wasn't paid for ''improvements and additions'' he made to the couple's six-bedroom, six-bath Miami home. The Wades countersued, claiming the contractor hadn't completed all the work when the family moved into the home and that the guest house was constructed without proper permits. The trial is set for March.

• Allen Iverson was fined $25,000 for criticizing referee Steve Javie following last week's Denver-Philadelphia game. Iverson's $17.18 million salary pays him $4,873 per minute played (he averages 43 minute a game), which means it takes him just over five minutes of action to match the amount of the fine.

• LeBron James is joining the Prostate Cancer Foundation in a campaign to raise money for research. James and 17 other NBA stars and legends, including Wade, Oscar Robertson, Steve Nash and George Gervin, are selling wristbands with the player's team colors, name, signature and uniform number for $3 each at participating arenas.

Scanning the Blogs

Pistons fans show their displeasure with Ben Wallace for leaving Detroit for more money in Chicago. Photo courtesy of Amy Ippolito

• Some Detroit fans let old friend Ben Wallace have it when they visited Chicago to say hello to the ex-Piston. Luckily, our friends at NEED4SHEED were kind enough to lend us this photo (right) of the event.

• Wanna check out Shaq's digs in Miami? THE REAL ESTALKER has some nice pictures of the Diesel's 19,440-square-foot mansion, which has eight bedrooms and 11 full and 3½ baths. The going rate: a mere $35 million.

• Who is Elie Seckbach? Right now, he's about the most entertaining NBA reporter out there. After all, who else could get Seattle's Chris Wilcox to admit he'd dump his wife for Oprah or Dorrell Wright to sing Hava Neglia?

Say What?

• "But that's coward basketball. That's what they play, trying to talk the refs into calling flagrant fouls and [coach Jerry] Sloan lobbying for a flagrant foul at half court."
-- Jerry Stackhouse to the Dallas Morning News on Wednesday after he was ejected late in the third quarter agaist the Jazz for receiving his second flagrant foul.

• "I tell you, I'd like to wipe that smirk right off Damon Jones' face."
-- Longtime Celtics announcer Tommy Heinsohn after he saw Jones smiling after hitting a three-pointer during the Cavs-Celtics game last week.

• "We've got an obligation not only to ourselves and our teammates, but also to the fans. I know if I buy a ticket to Bob Seger, I want to see a performance the first night the same as I get the last night. We are entertainers, too."
-- Flip Saunders to Pistons.com on the team's inconsistent play.