Ron Artest is a rather odd individual, and his taste in music goes with his overall personality. Per The Big Lead, he was spotted at a Britney Spears concert, which isn’t the type of ghetto, routy, intense-rap concert I’d expect him to be in attendance of. I guess it’s hard to imagine a guy charging the stands in Indiana, wildly throwing punches in an attempt to kill the guy that threw a paper cup at him, and then singing “Hit Me Baby One More Time” at the Britney concert the next evening.

[The Big Lead]

[Ron Artest is a Man With Eclectic Taste; For Instance, He Attended A Britney Spears Concert Last Night]

The latest Power Rankings are out, and since I’m too lazy to do one myself, I’ll just link you to theirs. A couple of notes:

• The Celtics are back to No. 1. Yay. I just love the Celtics, with overglorified players like KG, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce. Please, LA or Cleveland, please beat them in the playoffs.
• The Nuggets are No. 6. How is it that one good point guard can change a team around so much? No AI, insert Chauncey, and this team is rolling.
• At 23-19, the Heat are No. 10. I know they’ve been surging, but c’mon. No. 10?
• In the same conference and same division, and three games up on the Heat, the Hawks are No. 11. This is the power Dwyane Wade has on a team.
• Beware the 76′ers, who sit at No. 12. After their terrible start, they’ve come on strong and are looking like the playoff threat they were last year.
• At No. 30, is there really any hope for the Kings? They don’t have the worst record, at least, which belongs to No. 26, the 9-35 Thunder.

I don’t have anything to link it to, but the ESPN Ticker is announcing that Jermaine O’Neal has been sent to the Raptors for TJ Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, and a first round draft pick. I’ll follow up with more as it becomes official, but the early indicator is that Toronto got the best of this one — they’ll have one of the best front-lines in basketball with Bosh and O’Neal, and they’ve got plenty of roleplayers off the bench who can come in and contribute at the point. More on this later.

I don’t know enough about players who were in college for one year, so I won’t attempt to make a mock draft that will only belittle my sports knowledge. But I will link you here, where ESPN has their 2008 NBA Mock Draft.

While I won’t make my own list, I will ask a couple of questions about this one.

• First and foremost, how in the hell do the Bulls have the No. 1 overall pick? There’s been conspiracy talk for years, and my God, just let us see the freaking ping pong balls drawn. That way, when a team that was supposed get No. 9 actually gets No. 1, we don’t feel like we’re being Tim Donaghy’ed.
• That said, the Bulls have to take Michael Beasley. Derrick Rose will probably be the best player, but they just re-signed Kirk Heinrich to a five year deal.
• Which means, in short, the Heat won, because they’re going to take Rose, and he and Dwyane Wade — barring the guy can stay healthy for a year — will be totally sick.
• No. 3 pick, Brook Lopez. Say hello to Darko Milicic.
• OJ Mayo to Minnesota? The guy will be the worst pick in the NBA Draft. He’s got no sense of what a team is, and he’s one of those guys that will never realize that athleticism will only carry you all the way in high school.
• If the LA Clippers get Russell Westbrook with the seventh pick, they’ll get the steal of the draft.
• Kevin Love to the Bobcats: Charlotte just keeps wanting to add to their list of big name college players that just don’t pan out. Sean May got fat. Love already is fat. May not be the best selection.
• DJ Augustin to the Pacers would fit nicely with Jermaine O’Neal.
• Roy Hibbert to Utah makes more sense than anything, given that Utah plays slow and, well, Roy Hibbert is really slow.

The picture here is Stephen Jackson, who’s not known for his good citizenship, chugging a bottle of the Belv, probably ready to beat someone’s ass soon after. I don’t really care when the NBA season is over; it’s not something I watch often, and it pretty much just means we’re closer to the start of the NFL season. That said, Indiana not making the playoffs was a good thing — it gives guys like Stephen, J-Tinsley, and Ron Artest an early jump on ruining their image during the off-season.

This is a video of last night’s Wizards/Pacers no-playoffs-for-you-Indiana game, and there was a rather scary moment for one Antawn Jamison’s boys. He takes one right in the balls, and there’s that always-awkward moment where the commentators are trying to figure out how to best put it. “It looked like he maybe got hit in the groin or in the stomach. . . oh, he took it where it hurts.”

So fifth grade. He took a shot in the balls. His stomach now hurts like shit. Just say it.

It’s not so much that the playoffs are set — teams can still win and lose and change their seeding — but we know who will be in there. Based on the two scores below, the Hawks and Nuggets have assured themselves a spot in the Final 16 (Sweet 16?). The Nuggets won their way in, while the Hawks kinda just lost less. That’s kind of a simple theme here in Atlanta.

Indiana Pacers 110, Washington Wizards 117: Thanks to the Washington Wizards, the Hawks will visit the playoffs for the first time since 1999. The last time the Hawks made the playoffs, they had Steve Smith, Dikembe Mutumbo (still in his prime, and not quite 50), and Mookie Blaylock. Yes, it’s been a while. Thank you, Washington. Thank you. To make Indiana fans feel sick, listen to this stat: The game in which they were eliminated from playoff contention, Washington’s starting five scored a combined 47 points. The Wizards got 70 points from their bench. The Pacers bench scored 22 points.

Golden State Warriors 116, Phoenix Suns 122: It’s a sad day for the Warriors, who were last year’s upset darlings, and who won’t be participating in the ‘08. With 48 wins — compared to the Hawks 30-something — the Warriors won’t be making the trip to play LA/New Orleans/San Antonio, while Atlanta will be making the trip to get swept by Boston (I’m hoping for just one win; give me one home win, and let it be the game I’m attending, and I’m cool with this season’s effort).

Toronto beat Miami, assuring them of the six-seed in the East and not playing Detroit in the first round, while also assuring that Miami will have the No. 1 pick. Other than that, there’s still some stuff up in the air, which will be resolved over the last couple games of the season.

Charlotte Bobcats 107, Indiana Pacers 103: This probably isn’t the highlight of everyone’s NBA Saturday, but it was mine. With the Hawks gripping a two game lead in the East for the final playoff spot, their last three games are against Boston, Orlando, and Miami. Indiana, who’s two games back, has Charlotte at home, at Washington, and New York at home to close the season. The Hawks lost to Boston, and beating Orlando will be tough. Thankfully, though, Indiana seems to be worse down the stretch than the lowly Hawks. The Pacers had Charlotte at home, a perfect opportunity to gain one on the Hawks, and choked it up. Danny Granger had 37 points for the Pacers, but it wasn’t enough to stop a well balanced Bobcats team (that almost sounds like an oxy-moron), who were led by Jason Richardson’s 26 points. Jermaine O’Neal played 20 minutes for the Pacers, getting seven points and five rebounds. The Hawks magic number is now down to one.

Boston Celtics 99, Hawks 89: When you look at their final three games, and figure how they’re going to clinch, you don’t really chalk this one up as a W. I’m a Hawks fan, and I’ve been stuck with many, many years of terrible teams, so this year I’m not getting any hopes up for the playoffs; that said, I can’t blame them for losing to a team that has far better talent and players. All five Hawks players scored in double digits, led by Joe Johnson’s 21, but KG had 24 points for the Celtics, and Sam Cassell came off the bench to add 20. It was Boston’s 64th win of the season.

Denver Nuggets 97, Utah Jazz 124: A couple of days ago, Denver had a two game lead after beating the Warriors. A couple of days later, their tied with the Warriors, and what was looking like their playoff spot to be had suddenly looks like something they’re losing their grip on. It was a three point Jazz lead at the half, but Utah outscored Denver 62-38 in the second half, showing why they’re one of the best teams in the NBA when they’re playing at home. Carlos Boozer, Ronnie Brewer, Mehmet Okur all finished with 20 points for the Jazz, and Deron Williams finished with 19. Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson combined to score 50 points in the losing effort.

New Orleans Hornets 91, Sacramento Kings 94: The loss puts the Lakers and Hornets tied for first, and the Spurs are only half a game back. I can’t remember the last time three teams were this close to winning the West this far into the season, but it’s making the NBA season fun to watch.

LA Clippers 116, Golden State Warriors 122: Read above about the Warriors and Nuggets: They’re now tied for eighth place, though Denver does take the tiebreaker. Let me ask you this: If you’re LA, New Orleans, or San Antonio, and you finish first in the West, who would you rather play: The Warriors, who beat the Mavs in Round 1 last year, or the Nuggets, who often choke in the playoffs?

Atlanta Hawks 98, Indiana Pacers 112: Mike Dunleavy dropped 28 points for the Pacers, and Jermaine O’Neal had 10 points in his return, as the Indiana Pacers beat the Hawks to help avoid playoff elimination. Both teams have four games left; the Hawks play Boston, Orlando, New York and Miami, and Indiana faces off against Philadelphia, Charlotte, Washington and New York. It’ll be hard for Atlanta to blow this, but don’t put anything past them. They are, after all, the Hawks.

Utah Jazz 77, New Orleans Hornets 66: Chris Paul had four points and nine assists on 2-11 shooting. Peja led all Hornets players with 15 points. The Hornets shot 36 percent from the field, and only 21 perecent from beyond the arch. With the loss, the Hornets still hold the best record in the West, and can avoid having to play Dallas in the first round, which, I assure you, will give San Antonio serious problems should they meet then.

Boston Celtics 107, Milwaukee Bucks 104: Go, Boston, go. Next up for the Celtics: Chewing through the Hawks in Round 1 of the playoffs like they’re some kind of super buzzsaw.

Phoenix Suns 127, Memphis Grizzlies 113: The Suns are starting to win with Shaq, and like the ongoing theme in the West, are going to make the third ranked team seriously mad that they’ll have to play these guys in Round 1. If you’re the No. 1 seed, you play Denver. No. 2 seed, you play Dallas. No. 3 seed, you play Phoenix. Compare that to out East, where the No. 1 seed gets Atlanta, the No. 2 seed gets Toronto, and the No. 3 seed gets Philadelphia. The question of “Who’s more battle tested?” when they get to the Finals won’t be a hard one to answer.

Sacramento Kings 132, Golden State Warriors 140: Nelly’s still alive, and so are his Warriors. The game didn’t feature a whole ton of fundamental defense, but it did feature a lot of up-and-down game with multiple guys scoring multiple points. Both teams featured six players in double digits, led by Baron Davis’ 33 points. Golden State is tied with Denver, but the Nuggets hold the tie-breaker.

Denver Nuggets 117, LA Clippers 99: Keeping pace, Denver. Keeping pace.

Toronto Raptors 120, Atlanta Hawks 127: The Hawks have won five straight games, and are now four games ahead of the Indiana Pacers and New Jersey Nets for the eighth and final spot in the Eastern Conference. With eight games left, and considering the teams trying to catch them, this one may be locked up. That said, this is the Hawks, who aren’t very good, so let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

Indiana Pacers 77, Boston Celtics 92: Boston got its 60th win and tied the best ever turnaround in consecutive seasons in NBA history. Paul Pierce and 13 points, Kevin Garnett 20, and Ray Allen chipped in with 15 for the Celtics, who are just waiting to tear my hometown Hawks apart in the first round of the playoffs. There’s that part of me that wants to say, “Hey, we’ve got a chance.” But then there’s that other part of me, the logical, gambling part, that says ride the Celtics through.

New Orleans Hornets 106, Miami Heat 77: When the Heat traded for Shaq, they made a statement that they were going to win then, and then only. They’ve traded him away, lost D-Wade for the season, and here’s the result: A 13 win team that looks helpless from every angle you can look at. Chris Quinn led all scorers for the Heat again, dropping 18 points, but the rest of the team. . . well, not so great. When Chris Quinn has 18, and the rest of your team has 69 points combined, there’s a problem. David West and Tyson Chandler combined for 42 points for the Hornets.

Golden State Warriors 86, Dallas Mavericks 111: Return of Dirk! Return of Dirk! The MVP was back and, to be frank, was still a little pissed at last season’s first round collapse. Everyone’s favorite German had 18 points, and Jason Terry (31) and Josh Howard (28) helped the Mavs to victory. With the win, Dallas is seventh in the West, and has a two game lead over Golden State, who is one game back of Denver (who holds the eight spot — that was a lot of explanation).