Posted by Ben Golliver

Everything was proceeding normally until LeBron James decided to jump over somebody.

The Heat's All-Star forward jumped completely over Chicago Bulls guard John Lucas III to complete an alley-oop from Heat guard Dwyane Wade during Sunday's matchup between last year's Eastern Conference finalists. With the Heat leading 14-7, James used a back screen from Heat guard Mario Chalmers to run mostly free on the baseline. Lucas, a 5-foot-11 guard, switched in an attempt to defend James once the lob action developed. James simply hurdled him completely, catching the pass with one hand above the rim and somehow managing to finish the dunk cleanly. Upon re-entry to Earth, James turned around and barked at Lucas, letting him know exactly what had happened.

"It's a great pass by D-Wade," James said in a televised postgame interview. "Without the pass, I don't finish the shot. Give all the props to D-Wade. I just went to go get it."

"Give all the credit to D-Wade," James repeated in a postgame interview posted on ESPN.com. "He threw it, I can't let him down and not go get it. It was a great play out of the timeout, D-Wade threw it and I was able to finish it... We're not 'Lob City' but we're doing OK." 

Simply ridiculous. Here's the video of LeBron James jumping over a defender to finish an alley-oop against the Chicago Bulls.
 

Posted by Ben Golliver

Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng will not play during Sunday's showdown game against the Miami Heat due to an ongoing wrist injury, according to the Chicago Tribune. Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau reportedly told reports that Deng is "very close" to a return, but it will not come in the first 2011-2012 match-up between last season's Eastern Conference Finalists.

The Bulls announced this week that Deng suffered a torn ligament in his left hand/wrist. Deng had circled Sunday's tilt with the Heat, who eliminated the Bulls from last season's playoffs, as a possible return date. The game is set to tip at 3:30 EST at American Airlines Arena in Miami.

Deng, 26, is averaging 15.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 steals in 38.3 games for Chicago this season. He missed three games with the wrist injury this week and last played against the Charlotte Bobcats on Jan. 21.

The paper also reported that guard Richard Hamilton is a gametime decision with a groin injury and that guard C.J. Watson would sit out with a wrist injury. The Associated Press reported just before tip that Hamilton will start for Chicago.

Posted by Royce Young

UPDATE: After some confusion, Dwyane Wade wil play tonight against the Knicks, reports the Sun Sentinel.

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Dwyane Wade will miss his seventh straight game because of a sprained ankle according to ESPN, sitting out the Heat's game at home versus the Knicks Friday.

However, the Palm Beach Post reports that Wade is still a gametime decision. I'll guess we'll officially know at gametime, then.

Wade sprained his ankle during a Jan. 14 game against the Denver Nuggets. Without Wade this season, the Heat are 7-1.

Miami will likely just continue doing what it has done over the past four games, putting the ball in LeBron's hands more while using a committee of James Jones, Mike Miller, Norris Cole, Mario Chalmers and Shane Battier to fill Wade's time.

Wade, 30, is averaging 19.6 points, 5.4 assists, 4.3 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.7 blocks in 35.1 minutes per game this season.

Miami next game after tonight is the big one Sunday against Chicago, which I'm sure Wade is eager to play in.

Posted by EOB


Getty Images

Matt Moore and Ken Berger go over Kevin Love's extension, where Dwight Howard stands with the Magic and the huge game Sunday between Chicago and Miami.

Posted by EOB

LeBron matched against Rose could be the most interesting matchup in Bulls-Heat. (Getty Images)

3-on-2 Fast Break is a weekly feature here on Eye on Basketball where our intrepid bloggers tackle two questions, comparing two elements. This week, we focus on Sunday's showdown between the Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat. Follow Eye on Basketball on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

1. Heat-Bulls on Sunday, and Luol Deng wants to try and play. Considering the long-term goals of the Bulls, shouldn't they at least not rush him back into a game versus, you know, LeBron James?

Ben Golliver: I'm not going to play doctor, but I'm in the "better safe than sorry" crowd this season, especially as we've seen other coaches use extra caution in sitting their players and/or extending the timelines until they return. The Bulls are in a position, given their record and their talent base, where this isn't anything approaching a must-win. Follow the trainer's advice, don't push it and exercise an extra measure of caution. There are no statement games in late-January this season. This should be a relatively simply risk/reward calculation.

Royce Young: If you're healthy and CAN play, I say you play. It's one game and it really doesn't mean a lot in the grand scheme, but as long as you're not risking long-term damage or something, go for it. It's the type of thing where if Deng re-injures it playing 46 minutes against the Heat, everyone will blame Thibodeau for rushing things back. But these guys want to play, especially in marquee games like that. How are you really going to tell Deng to take it easy if he's ready and willing to go?

Matt Moore: Deng's toughness is admirable. But the Bulls have a goal of a championship and there's no reason to throw out Deng against one of the most physical covers in the league just to try and win a regular season game. It may make them feel better to get a win against the Heat after the kick in the pants Miami gave them in the Conference Finals, but not if it winds up keeping Deng out longer. The shortened schedule is already forcing them to play Derrick Rose with that toe injury which sounds like it hurts like all get out, and they may or may not be short Taj Gibson. Finally the Heat aren't the team with injury issues.

2. What's the matchup to keep an eye on?

Golliver: Eddy Curry continuing his revenge tour against his old teams, of course. I'm expecting double-doubles against both New York on Friday and Chicago on Sunday and I'm not talking about In-and-Out Burgers. But, really, Rose versus the Heat's defense is the match-up. He left the Eastern Conference Finals with a taste in his mouth and he made it clear this week after the Pacers game that he's taking names and making a mental list of those who slight him. How that plays out after LeBron James decided the East Finals by locking him up will be must-see TV.

Young: Derrick Rose vs. LeBron James. That defensive switch really made all the difference in the playoff series last year. LeBron completely shut down Rose's ability to penetrate and because of his size, Rose couldn't even settle for a clean jumper over him. The addition of Richard Hamilton is supposed to help with taking a little of the stress off Rose in those circumstances, but this game will come down to the stars making plays. Will it be LeBron or Rose? Unfortunately for Rose, he's going to have to do it with big No. 6 in front of him.

Moore: Carlos Boozer vs. Chris Bosh. Bosh shocked some people by coming through huge for the Heat in this series, and he's off to an even better start this year. He's figured out where to fit in the Miami offense and he's been more aggressive for once. Boozer's Boozer. He's going to get his but how he plays defensively will be a bit more important. The Bulls can't afford for two of the Big 3 to get going. Wade may be shaky coming back from injury, and who knows how LeBron James will respond in a big game like this after the last six months. But if Bosh gets it going, that's going to create havoc for Chicago, especially with Taj Gibson possibly out or not at 100 percent.

Carmelo Anthony is out Friday vs. Miami. (Getty Images)

By Matt Moore

Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni announced Friday that forward Carmelo Anthony would miss both the Knicks' game against the Miami Heat in Miami Friday night and against the Rockets Saturday night. Anthony has been battling left hand and wrist, and right wrist injuries. 

Anthony has played through the injuries in the last few games but commented after the Knicks' loss to the Nuggets last week that the may need to sit a few games to heal. More damage done during the Knicks' loss to the Cavaliers likely sealed the deal. The Knicks' sole bright spot in the last week and a half has been their play vs. the Bobcats, a game in which Anthon was a non-factor, hardly shooting compared to his normal rate. If the Knicks were to somehow get the win over the Heat in Miami, the questions about Anthony's role on the Knicks will reach an even higher temperature.

Anthony said he "tried to be a superhero" and play through the injuries but that he should have rested recently.  

The Knicks will also be without Baron Davis for yet another game. Davis has been out with a bulging disc in his back and trying to get into playing condition. Josh Harrellson is also out for the Knicks, which means their frontcourt is going to be very thin against the Heat. Bill Walker will get the start for New York in place of Anthony.  

By Matt Moore

Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade participated in shootaround, before the Heat's game vs Detroit, and went through some drills, but Erik Spoelstra announced before the game he will not play. It is the sixth consecutive game Wade has missed with the injury. Not that it's hurt much, the Heat are 5-1 without Wade. 

It does appear as if Wade is set to return sometime this week, however, and with the floundering Pistons not posing much of a challenge, it makes sense to sit Wade one more game. 

Kobe Bryant is the NBA's top earner. (Getty Images)

Posted by Ben Golliver. 

The Los Angeles Lakers are back on top as the NBA's most valuable franchise and All-Star guard Kobe Bryant retains his crown as the league's top earner.

The latest evaluation from Forbes Magazine estimates that Bryant will earn $53.2 million in salary and endorsements this year, well more than his closest competition. Miami Heat All-Star forward LeBron James is No. 2 at $49 million.

Bryant’s following has allowed him to amass an endorsement portfolio of global brands including Nike, Smart Car, Panini and Turkish Airlines that pay him $28 million annually. Factor in his league leading $25.2 million salary from the Lakers and Bryant is the NBA’s top-earning athlete at $53.2 million.

Bryant’s Lakers salary is $3 million greater than any other NBA player thanks to the idiosyncrasies of the NBA’s maximum salary rules on individual players. 

Bryant, 33, is a 5-time NBA champion and 13-time All-Star. He is currently leading the NBA in scoring, at 30.5 points per game and is currently the Western Conference's leading vote-getter for the 2012 All-Star Game. Entering this season, Bryant had earned more than $196 million in salary during his career, according to Basketball-Reference.com.

In December, Vanessa Bryant, Kobe's wife, filed for divorce. She will reportedly receive up to $75 million in the divorce settlement, including three California houses owned by the couple. 

The rest of the top-5 NBA earners, according to Forbes: Orlando Magic All-Star center Dwight Howard (28.9 million), Miami Heat All-Star guard Dwyane Wade (27.7 million) and New York Knicks All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony (26.5 million).