Per the USA Basketball Official Site:

Fans will be able to bid on each jersey worn by the USA Basketball Women’s Senior National Team in their victories over China on Aug. 11, and Spain on Aug. 15. Two sets of jerseys from the USA Basketball Men’s Senior National Team also will be up for auction. The jerseys are from the team’s games in the USA Basketball International Challenge against Russia on Aug. 3 and Australia on Aug. 5.

Wait a minute, the Olympics didn't start until August 8. So they're actually auctioning off game-worn jerseys from before the actual Olympics started. That's kind of diabolical of the USA Olympic Committee. The bastards. Also, since the NBA is auctioning the jerseys, where do the proceeds go? Shouldn't it be to a charity of some sort? The article doesn't say.

US Basketball giving fans a chance to own a piece of history [USA Basketball Official Site]
Auction Site [NBA]

“We would’ve been already thrown out of the Olympics,” he told Yahoo! Sports. “At least, we wouldn’t have been able to come back to the U.S. …There would be suspensions.”

And for his European peers, well, Kidd suggested, “They won’t do anything to them. It’s a double standard.”

Think Jason Kidd is the only person associated with the NBA who believes there's a two-tier system at work here? Well, at least one NBA GM agrees. “The simple question is, ‘Would Stern and the league hold the American players accountable?’ And I think the answer to that is yes...So why wouldn’t he hold the ‘other’ NBA players accountable – unless the rules only apply to the American players.”

Because in David Stern's globalized NBA it's not just Americans who his players have to avoid offending.

To remind: he made $4.3 million for not filing his papers.

The Mavs and Nets needed Van Horn, whose new contract will pay him $75,439 per day over the final 57 days of the regular season, or $148,275 for each of the Nets' final 29 games. Before the NBA would approve the deal, league officials had to be convinced by agent David Falk and his client that Van Horn would report to New Jersey and make an honest attempt at a comeback.

See, now, that's a nice gig. We also have not filed our retirement papers and encourage any NBA team looking for salary cap relief to call us. We will make an "honest attempt" to make the team.

This completely screws up the ESPN Trade Machine, by the way. Being able to just sign random retired players for whatever amount you want is pretty difficult to simulate.

Jason Kidd Trade Good For Van Horn [St. Lake Tribune]
Doing The Deal And Dishing The Dirt [Blog Maverick]

Devean George went scoreless in the first half, missing six shots from the floor (three 3-pointes) and a pair of free throws. He did contribute a couple assists and a steal to the Mavs' cause. Maybe George is trying to prove to the Mavs' brass that he can shoot like Jason Kidd.

Pretty much. Far be it from us to tell Mark Cuban how to do his job — oh, crap: Did we just do something unethical by mentioning his name in a place other than GQ magazine? We hope not — but if this deal is unable to be reconstructed, we think this might ultimately be for the best. And not just because it's a big pain in the ass to transfer a spousal restraining order from New Jersey to Texas.

Who Needs Kidd When You Have George? [DallasNews.com]

• Great Moments In Mustacheland. Jason Kidd, seen here with shit on his face, became the first player since Grant Hill in '97 to record three straight triple-doubles. The eight-time All-Star racked up his 97th one with 13 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds in New Jersey's 115-99 loss to Charlotte. But more importantly, the American Mustache Institute, an advocacy organization fighting discrimination against mustached Americans, have taken action to defend Kidd's "new and rather delicious mustache" from the scrutiny of ESPN and Vince Carter. Hilarious stuff.

• McGrady SchmcShmady. It hurts someone to say this — probably McGrady — but the Rockets are honest-to-MJ a better basketball team without T-Mac in the lineup. They push, drive and pass the ball so much more. It's actually refreshing to watch. Luther Head's season-high 24 points and Skip to my Lou's double-double led Houston past Washington 92-84, the Rox third consecutive win. Yao scored 21 points for Houston, which is now 5-2 since McGrady went down with a knee injury.

• Kobelias. 'Lil Derek Fisher scored 26 points in the Lakers' 117-101 victory over the Grizzle, making 10 of 11 shots from the hardwood. Or so the stats read. "He was actually 10-for-10," Kobe Bryant chimed in. "They need to take away that one miss they gave him. That was a lob to Andrew (Bynum). It wasn't a shot." Bryant added 25 points in the Lakers' 13th win in 16 games. I mean, 125. Kobe scored 125 points ... in the Lakers' 43rd win in um, 12 games. Yeah, that's it.

• No Bull. Former Chicagoans' Eddy Curry and Jamal Crawford scored 29 and 24 points, respectively, as the Knicks rallied to beat the Bulls 105-100. Stephon Marbury, who finished with 18 of his own, sealed the deal with a straightaway three to snap the Knickerbockers' seven-game slide into oblivion. Luol Deng missed his second straight contest with Achilles' tendinitis.

• What's Wrong With Those Bulls? Where were you when the NBA's Jamario Moon Era dawned? Chris Bosh had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Moon had a career-high 15 points to lead the Raptors over the Buls 93-78. It was Chicago's fourth straight loss.

• They're Not Booing ... Carlos Boozer had 36 points and 11 rebounds and Deron Williams — who apears to be fully recovered from a toe injury — had 21 points and 14 assists to lead the Jazz over the Pistons 103-93. Discuss.

• Timaaay! Tim Duncan's 26 points offset his team's slow start as the Spurs beat the Oklahoma City Seattle SuperSonics 116-101.

"If we got into a fight, who do you think would win?" the 6-foot, 4-inch superstar allegedly said to the plus-sized brunette, the sources claimed.

Kidd supposedly grabbed the woman's crotch at 2:30 in the morning on October 10. The woman keeps being referred to as "plus-sized," which is a nice touch. When you file a police report about a man trying to take hold of your unmentionables and then threatening to punch you, it's nice when you're repeatedly referred to as "tubby."

We think we know who might be able to help her in this regard.

Kidd Now Accused Of Fight Threat [New York Post]

According to Joumana, Kidd has engaged in extramarital affairs with "several different television reporters," as well as strippers in Arizona, Sacramento, Miami, Dallas and Indiana, a Nets season ticket holder, a Nets' employee, and a cheerleader in New Orleans. Joumana also contends that she recently discovered a prepaid cell phone of his containing text messages and naked photos sent by various women. Joumana portrays Kidd as a masochistic binge drinker and excessive gambler who began beating her even before the pair's 1997 marriage. She claims that Kidd assaulted her while she was pregnant with the couple's first child and has struck her with everything from a large rock to a cookie. Once, after Kidd kicked her in the stomach causing blood to appear in her urine, Joumana alleges that he told her, "I don't give a fuck."

Uh, yipes. The court blacked out the names of the couple's children in the document to protect them, and yeah, well, they should be totally fine now.

Wife: Jason Kidd A Serial Abuser, Adulterer [The Smoking Gun]

For years, every time he went to the free throw line, Jason Kidd has blown a kiss into the air as a symbol of his love for his wife. Now that the marriage is over, though, Kidd is apparently sending the kisses somewhere that he feels needs the love a little more ... his own asshole.

Romantic guy, that Jason Kidd.

Jason Kidd's New Free Throw Routine [True Hoop]

"Around the organization, they believe Joumana plans to deliver damaging information on Jason and possibly his teammates. This could test the limits of locker room peace and the rush of a resurgent Nets season. This is going to get messier and nastier and ultimately test the staying power of this franchise." and later...

We don't mean to jump to conclusions here — we're a blog; we'd never do that — but it kind of sounds like that whole gay Net story, doesn't it? Joumana Kidd — who has been banned from Continental Airlines arena — might be a disaster to the New Jersey Nets and Jason Kidd ... but she sure is going out in a fun way. This is going to be difficult not to enjoy.

Hurricane Joumana [Yahoo Sports]
Anonymous Web People Claim There's A Gay Net [Deadspin]

(UPDATE: The New York Daily News picked this up today too.)

According to the complaint, Joumana Kidd used the couple's 8-year-old son on Dec. 27 to sneak into the Nets locker room and rummage through Jason Kidd's locker to find his cell phone. After looking up the names and numbers on it, the complaint said she left her son to behind as she went upstairs to take a front row seat, where she shouted insults at Kidd throughout the game.

The papers accuse Joumana Kidd of kicking, hitting, punching and throwing household objects at her husband as she became "increasingly controlling and manipulative" in the last few years of their union.

First off, this gives those free-throw line air-kisses a somewhat different meaning (though it makes them no less annoying). We love the idea that Joumana was screaming insults at Kidd from the stands; if Kidd ever starts dating Kendra Davis, those two are destined for a fight in the stands.

Jason Kidd Files For Divorce [True Hoop]
Jason Kidd Accuses Wife Of Abusing Their Kids [NorthJersey.com]

NBA Wives [Lipstick Alley] (via YAY!Sports]

(Aren't you proud of us for not making a single Doug Christie joke, by the way?)