• Roy's Sore Butt Doesn't Stop Blazers. Portland dispatched of Utah despite having to make due without their leader for most of the game. Brandon Roy was forced to the sidelines by his bruised tailbone but Martell Webster and LaMarcus Aldridge were aided by a huge performance from the bench (43 points). The Jazz couldn't take advantage of their weakened opposition, possibly because they were without a starter themselves in Andrei Kirilenko. Deron Williams was efficient but Carlos Boozer was horrendous, the final was 103-89.

• New Orleans Is Boss. Chris Paul took things into his own hands and led the Hornets to a huge 118-113 win over Steve Nash and the Suns. Paul put up a line of 28/10/5 and all four other starters scored at least 19 points each.

OK, I was really just looking for an excuse to post on the topic here this weekend. I didn't have an agenda in mind, but I suppose if you insist...

I'm not willing to assign some sort of "she demeans women athletes" or "she empowers women's fitness" angle to what - more than anything - is simply her own attempts to cash in on her place at the nexus of hotness and sports. I don't condemn her for that. That's the playing field.

I would, however, seriously question whether she is, as the cover claims, "the world's sexiest athlete." Now that is a hell of a debate.

(A quick aside: Is it me, or is she just not that pretty? Her face is a little too "Elway.")

I do like that "sexy" is equated to an athletic build. I married a former elite swimmer, so that's my type. A-Rod has his type (perhaps a wee bit, eh, bulkier). Tom Brady has his type (assless). We've all got the physical qualities that turn us on, hopefully matched with a few decent non-physical qualities as well.

The Comments question on the table, of course, is this: Who IS the sexiest athlete? And I'll be assigning extra points for novelty. (No, Rags to Riches doesn't qualify.)
— D.S.

Amanda Beard Q&A [SI.com's Richard Deitsch]