LeBron James (photo. Mannion)
What constitutes “news” these days? It was already getting hard to tell after the past week of one million made-up rumors and random speculation, but then this LeBron-on-Twitter thing hit yesterday and further confused the situation. If you haven’t heard, LeBron officially signed onto everybody’s favorite social media toy, and that development was actually reported by the Associated Press and other major outlets like a real-life “news” story. (Not that we’re claiming superiority; we’re all following @KingJames too.) At last count LBJ was up to 202,000-plus followers, and he’s only posted one tweet … This brings up a question one of our guys asked months ago: If Barack Obama (or any leader of a major country) had a Twitter feed that they legitimately updated with real info and insights, how many followers would they have? Obama would crack eight figures easy … Tuesday’s big free agent move was Chris Duhon agreeing to a four-year, $15 million deal with Orlando. So yeah, it was a slow day. Duhon could be a solid backup for Jameer Nelson. He’s not terrible, he just wasn’t cut out to be starter in a high-pressure situation like New York when his coach needed the next Steve Nash … Before LeBron is expected to announce his decision Thursday night (during a one-hour special ESPN program), we hear ‘Bron, D-Wade and Bosh will talk to each other today to see where they’re at. People are already bashing LeBron for the TV gimmick, but is that any worse than high school players announcing their college choices on TV? … And you know what the dumbest part of this whole thing has been? People complaining about how long LeBron is taking to make up his mind. Think about it: This is a major life decision with potentially billion-dollar implications. This is where LeBron and his girl and his two young sons are going to live and work and go to school for the next 3-6 years. This is the next phase of his life. So why again is he supposed to rush his decision? Instead of “making us wait,” maybe he’s really trying to make the right decision for himself and his family. And remember, he’s only 25 years old taking a huge step … Day 2 of the Orlando summer league saw the home team lose again, and the running story is becoming how much Daniel Orton is struggling. Against the Jazz yesterday, Orton went 0-for-6 from the field, finishing with 2 points and 2 rebounds in 17 minutes while his counterpart, Kosta Koufos, went for 13 points, 11 boards and 4 blocks in 20 minutes … Two games in, and we’re already liking Pacers’ rook Paul George for the dunk contest at All-Star Weekend. If Indiana is running he’s going to get a lot of breakaways, and George is the type whose instinct is to please the crowd with something beyond a basic dunk. Plus he can take a hit and finish and-ones. Even if he’s not in the contest, George is gonna destroy somebody in the Rookie/Sophomore game … George had 10 points, 8 boards and 7 steals, but missed all seven of his three-point tries in Indiana’s loss to New Jersey. Lance Stephenson had 15 points and 3 assists for the losers, while Damion James led the Nets with 21 points and 11 boards, and Terrence Williams posted 24-7-7 with nine turnovers … Bobcats/Thunder came down to the last play. Charlotte was down one with about five seconds left, and — in case you forgot this was summer league — called Jeremy Pargo‘s number. Jannero‘s little bro got into the lane very Derrick Rose-like, spun and put up a floater that dropped at the buzzer to win it … Gerald Henderson put up 21 points and 8 boards for the ‘Cats, while James Harden scored 19 points (10-10 FT) for OKC … Don’t look now, but the Sixers have a good young core that could be a problem in a few years. Jrue Holiday (10 pts, 5 asts), Evan Turner (13 pts) and Marreese Speights (12 pts, 11 rebs) all looked good in Philly’s win over the Celtics, and even Jodie Meeks (18 pts) got buckets … Speaking of JV teams, the Clippers have reportedly decided on Vinny Del Negro as their next head coach. That’s not a bad move. Del Negro took a young, talented Chicago team to two postseasons in two years, and the Clips have a lot of young talent. If management gives him some leeway, Vinny could do alright in L.A. … We’re out like Friendster …