These are my links for February 14th through February 15th:

• Your Nightmare Defender: Alvin Robertson Edition – In his time, Robertson was regarded as the peskiest on-ball defender in the league. He led the league in steals three times, and averaged 3.7 steals/game in his second season — 2.7 over his ten-year career. Stats aside, Robertson was known as a defensive hound who took it as a personal affront if you beat him off the dribble. A troika of former guards explains:
• Tom Jones’ NBA midseason report – Wasn't this team supposed to challenge in the Eastern Conference? Instead, it is last in the Atlantic Division, fired its coach (Sam Vincent) and traded its best player (Jermaine O'Neal). Yep, the Raptors are even worse than the Knicks.
• Miami Heat president Pat Riley looks ahead to 2010 free agent crop – ''The horror nightmare that I have,'' Riley said, "is Dwyane going somewhere else. If that were to happen, we have enough room for two max free agents. That was very important. We're building a team around him, but we also have to protect ourselves.''

  The Heat figures to pursue Chris Bosh or Amare Stoudemire in 2010 and would seem to have a realistic chance of signing one, plus keeping Wade. Among others potentially free in 2010: LeBron James, Yao Ming, Tracy McGrady, Dirk Nowitzki, Joe Johnson, Manu Ginobili, Steve Nash, Al Harrington, Richard Hamilton, Michael Redd, Charlie Villanueva, Marcus Camby, Mike Miller, Raja Bell, Luis Scola, Ray Allen, Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Roger Mason.

• NBA’s Eastern Conference takes notice of Miami Heat day after acquiring Jermaine O’Neal – 'That move they made, it definitely makes them a contender,'' said Johnson, whose Hawks sit three games ahead of the Heat in fourth place. “It's another team in the East you'll have to look out for.

  “They're going to make a real nice push on everybody in the second half.''

  That was the sentiment throughout the league Saturday, a day after the Heat bolstered its frontcourt by trading Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks to Toronto for O'Neal, forward Jamario Moon and a future conditional first-round draft pick.

• Upsets reign on all-star Saturday – "Valentines turned out to be bad," said Kapono. "Ash [his wife, Ashley] wanted me to come through for the three-peat. Maybe I shouldn't go home."
• First-Half Story Lines – In addition, Toronto's trade for Jermaine O'Neal, which added his $21 million contract to the payroll, was such a flop for the Raptors, they dealt him Friday to Miami.
• Heat’s Daequan Cook wins Three-Point Shootout –
• Heat’s Cook wins 3-point Shootout –
• All-Star Talk With Chris Bosh – In part two of my conversation with Bosh, he gave me his thoughts on Mo Williams (who got in because of Bosh's injury), the H-O-R-S-E competition and which one of his teammates has the best trick shots. We discuss it all, after the jump.
• Miami Heat and Toronto Raptor Deal: the Breakdown – The Raptors receive cash considerations in this deal, and Miami has received a conditional first-rounder sometime between 2010-2015. The pick is lottery-protected, meaning the first time that the Raptors make the Playoffs after this year, their first-rounder will go to Miami. The Heat also received 4.2 million in trade exception, which will be vital cap room.

  Though O'Neal and Marion's All-Star days are over, hopefully these teams can keep them and really have them thrive.

• No trade zone – And what about the Jermaine O'Neal-Shawn Marion trade? I like this deal (a lot) for Toronto. O'Neal's a great guy, but let's face it, he has Jell-O brand gelatin for knees and just isn't the same player he used to be. He and Raptors star Chris Bosh didn't mesh in the low post. O'Neal should fit much better alongside Dwyane Wade in Miami. The same goes for Marion with Bosh.
• Jason Kapono: Anonymous Sharp-Shooter – One of the main events at All-Star weekend is the Three-Point Shoot-Out. Sharp-shooter Jason Kapono isn't one of the league's most recognizable faces, but his spotlight is this contest, which he's won two years in a row. In this video we talk to him about going for a third title, and you'll be surprised who in Phoenix Jason is worried about. We also hear from Kobe Bryant and Mike Bibby.
• O’Neal fills need for Heat, on and off court – But the bigger off-court impact figures to be in Miami, which has committed to O'Neal for this year and next. Moving Banks, who is signed through 2011, was vital for Pat Riley — he made it known around the league that any deal including Marion would have to include Banks, which was one reason a deal with Phoenix for Amare Stoudemire was not going to work. The team now is virtually uncommitted to any contracts in the summer of 2010, though they'll obviously keep Michael Beasley, and probably Daequan Cook and Mario Chalmers, too.

  The payroll, though, is packed for next season, which means the Heat won't be players on the 2009 free-agent market. That's bad news for Utah forward Carlos Boozer, a free-agent-to-be who had been rumored to be a target of Miami's since last summer. (Sorry, Carlos, South Beach ain't happening.)

• All-Star: Kapono To Make History? – Jason Kapono may not be the biggest star on All-Star weekend, but when it comes to Saturday night's festivities, there is none better. Kapono is the two-time defending champ and is looking to be the first player to even win it three times in a row. Craig Hodges of the Chicago Bulls is the only other player to have won it three times, though non-consecutively. With that in mind, we asked Kapono to share his insight into how he wins the shootout.
• Marion has struggled with injuries while playing for Heat – It was the second time in a week that Marion was hit in the same eye. He caught an inadvertent elbow from Allen Iverson in the first half of a loss at Detroit on Feb. 4. Marion was taken to the locker room but returned shortly to finish the game, according to the report.

  The incident at practice on Wednesday was the latest in a line of freak injuries Marion has sustained this season.

  He wore a protective mask for several games after he broke his nose in a Nov. 1 game at Charlotte. Then he missed six games because of a strained left groin in a loss at Houston on Jan. 17, and he also has missed time because of back spasms.

• Putting The Shawn Marion-Jermaine O’Neal Swap Into Perspective – For instance, if the Raptors don't re-sign Marion and Parker, they have the opportunity to trade a first rounder to a team for a disgruntled player whose team is feeling the pocket pinch.

  Tyson Chandler is on the the market for that very reason right now. What's better than an expiring contract like Jermaine O'Neal? No contract. Ultimately, you can do far more with 15 million dollars cap space in terms of a trade than you could with a 23-million dollar expiring contract.

  But Raptor fans seem to be quite unhappy with this trade for some reason.

  Before you throw Bryan Colangelo under the bus for trading away Jermaine O'Neal, Jarmario Moon's bargain contract and a conditional first rounder to the Miami Heat in exchange for Shawn Marion, Marcus Banks, and about 3 million dollars in cash, why not evaluate which direction the Raptors are headed?

Related posts:

1. Toronto Raptors Linkage for February 13th through February 14th
2. Toronto Raptors Linkage for February 15th from 07:18 to 12:33
3. Toronto Raptors Linkage for February 15th from 18:35 to 23:02
4. Toronto Raptors Linkage for February 14th from 04:39 to 14:08
5. Toronto Raptors Linkage for February 10th through February 11th