TSNs Jack Armstrong offers his thoughts on the return of Stephen Jackson, the play of Goran Dragic and the surprising Suns, the impact of Brook Lopez and Deron Williams with the Nets, Danny Grangers impending return in Indiana and the key to the Spurs success. Jerseys Black Friday 2014 . 1. STEPHEN JACKSON (Clippers): He departed the Spurs last year under cloudy circumstances yet, in the right situation in certain seasons, he has proven to be both a valuable and very productive/winning player. In my book, worth the risk. With JJ Redick out of the lineup right now, you need offensive firepower and shooting and if hes right, he can bring both. Hes played on good teams and made those teams better. Most importantly, you need a leader/coach that he respects and will hold him accountable. Doc Rivers is that guy. If Jackson wants back in the NBA, hes got the chance now yet hell be expected to do it right and this environment is a good returning spot for him. 2. GORAN DRAGIC (Suns): Did you check out his performance vs. the Lakers Tuesday night? 31 pts and five assists. He ate them up; they couldnt guard him. Hes a crafty guy who is very adept at changing speeds and turning the corner and getting into the lane on you and does a wonderful job keeping his dribble alive to make plays. High energy guy who is always fun to watch. The Suns are 12-9. If the season ended today, theyd be in the playoffs - in the West! No, not the East, the West! Amazing!! 3. BROOK LOPEZ and DERON WILLIAMS (Nets): Amazing what good players can do for you (combined for 49 points on 20-29 shooting vs. Boston). Jason Kidd looks a whole lot more capable when he has these two guys in his lineup. Also nice to have Paul Pierce back on the court. Bottom line, in the weak Atlantic Division/Eastern Conference, as bad as things have been for the Nets with injuries/drama/expectations, if they can get and stay healthy, theyll be a playoff team. And if the chemistry were to ever come around, they could be a pretty dangerous team to play against in an early-round series. 4. DANNY GRANGER (Pacers): Has only played in five games over the past two seasons for a team that has become one of the elite 3-5 teams in the NBA. Hoping to return this weekend. Hes always been a lead actor in Indy. Paul George is that guy now. Can his ego stay in check and is he willing to sacrifice whatever it takes to help his team in whatever role his coaches devise for him? He can be a huge plus for them if hes willing to do what it takes. Obviously, sitting on the bench and watching his team be one of the best in the league has to humble you a bit yet make you hungry to get out there and do what it takes to be that finishing piece to help your team win a title. His presence on the floor will define how the Pacers chemistry evolves from here. If hes right mentally, they can become really dangerous on every level as a title contender. His scoring ability will make their depth even more of a strength. 5. SAN ANTONIO SPURS: An amazing series of facts about this team were pointed out to me by a few folks Tuesday night. Yes, we all know they have a Hall of Famer/franchise #1 pick in Tim Duncan. Some of the other pieces on the floor in Toronto Tuesday night vs. the Raptors include six second round picks, an undrafted player, a 30th Pick and two 28th picks. Remember what I said a few weeks back about the draft pedigree of the Indiana Pacers, sure you need a really good player but beyond that you MUST have GREAT leadership in the coaching area and the scouting/player evaluation and projection component. Its no secret that the Spurs define that and its a shame more franchises dont stay disciplined and use that model. Many swing for the fences with name guys that dont win for you. In a world of tank nation talk (I respect that you must have elite talent to win), it still comes down to the substance of what you put around an elite player that defines success. Too often, we look for the glitzy big name and reach for the bright lights and the style. In the end, it comes down to so many pieces meshing in an operation and it all comes back to the leadership of your owner, president, GM and coach. You get a good horse with a lousy jockey and hell underperform. Yes, youve got to have the horses, yet you better have the right folks leading the way. It all goes together. Ga... Graham Jersey .C. - Olympic skicross athlete Julia Murray is retiring from the sport following a long recovery from knee injuries. ... McCoy Black Friday Jersey . Dwight Howard had 29 points and 18 rebounds to lead Orlando to a 99-94 win over the Bulls on Thursday, snapping Chicagos eight-game winning streak. R... Staubach Black Friday Jersey . -- Hector Santiago shut down the Royals punchless offence for a career-best eight innings, and the Chicago White Sox roughed up Kansas City starter Jeremy Guthrie in a 9-1 rout Friday night. Black Friday Carolina Panthers Jerseys Deals . -- Its unusual for the Trail Blazers to talk about being frustrated with a win.PHILADELPHIA -- The Los Angeles Dodgers are happy they dont face Cole Hamels more often. Hamels struck out nine in eight strong innings and Ryan Howard homered to lift the Philadelphia Phillies to a 2-0 win over the Dodgers on Wednesday night. Hamels (8-2) allowed six hits and walked none while lowering his earned-run average to 2.58 and continuing his mastery of Los Angeles. He improved to 3-0 with a 1.18 ERA in five career regular-season starts against the Dodgers. He also is 3-0 in three career post-season starts against them. "Thats the best Ive seen him," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "He was really sharp. We knew wed have to battle to get runs." Hamels said there is nothing special about the Dodgers and reasoned that his record may be different if he had more starts against them. "You dont face them as much so I think if I faced them 30 times like I face the Mets, the record would kind of be different," he said. "Ive been able to capitalize so far." He dominated Los Angeles with a mixture of fastballs and changeups that kept Dodgers hitters off-balance. Asked what his best pitch was, Hamels replied, "All of them." "I felt good, felt strong and let the pitches go," he said. "Its just a matter of making pitches in the right area." The left-hander, who didnt get a decision in his last start despite allowing one run and one hit in eight innings against the Pirates, got just enough run support from Philadelphias sputtering offence this time. The Phillies finished with just five hits and went 16-for-90 (.178) in the three-game series. "We definitely have to get more offence than weve been getting," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. But one of those hits was Howards sixth-inning homer, his 13th, to right off Hiroki Kuroda (5-7) that gave Philadelphia a 1-0 lead. The Phillies had gone a season-worst 65 1-3 innings without a home run, and Howard had been 0-for-13 with six strikeouts previously against Kuroda. "It was a bad pitch to Howard," Kuroda said. "It was a cutter inside but it wasnt inside enough." Howards homer was a boost to Hamels, who cruised through most of the game with his only trouble coming in the seventh. Mi... Irvin Jersey. Andre Ethier doubled to lead off and moved to third on Matt Kemps hard-hit single to right. Hamels got Juan Uribe to pop to second, struck out Marcus Thames and induced a pop to shortstop by Rod Barajas for the final out. "He had to pitch out of a jam and did a tremendous job," Manuel said. "He pitched a heck of a game, really good." Ryan Madson pitched a scoreless ninth to earn his 14th save in 14 chances. Kuroda gave up a run, four hits and three walks in 5 1-3 innings. He struck out seven. "I cant be satisfied," Kuroda said, "because Im out there to win and we didnt win." The Phillies squandered a chance to score in the fifth off Kuroda, leaving the bases loaded when Domonic Brown flied out to right to end the inning. Kuroda was cruising along to that point, having retired 14 of the 16 batters he faced through 4 2-3 before Michael Martinezs two-out triple to right. Kuroda then walked Hamels and seemed to lose the strike zone. Hamels went to second on a wild pitch that went behind Shane Victorino. Martinez started down the line, but retreated to third. The Dodgers then elected to intentionally walk Victorino, bringing Brown to the plate. After working the count to 3-2, Brown lifted the ball to right that was caught by a charging Ethier. Kuroda threw 28 pitches in the inning. Philadelphia tacked on a run in the seventh off reliever Matt Guerrier on Browns fielders choice that scored Victorino, who had tripled. The Phillies Jimmy Rollins missed his fourth straight game with a bruised right knee, but Manuel said the shortstop could start Thursdays game against the Cubs. NOTES: Philadelphias Chase Utley sat out Wednesdays game after playing a season-high five straight. Utley spent the first 1 1/2 months on the DL with right knee tendinitis before being activated May 23. ... Despite a game-time temperature of 34 C, Philadelphia recorded its 155th consecutive regular-season sellout with a crowd of 44, 751. ... The Phillies presented tennis legend Billie Jean King with a jersey in an on-field ceremony prior to the game. ' ' '