James would elect unlikely opponent

If Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard and Jordan Crawford appeared in a “Jeopardy!” question, the correct answer would probably be, “Who are the people NBA star LeBron James would like to dunk on?”

Bryant won the 2009 NBA championship instead of James. Howard was denied a handshake from James after the Orlando Magic eliminated the Cleveland Cavaliers from last season’s playoffs. And Crawford dunked over James this summer at his skills camp, sparking more attention after Nike initially confiscated the video evidence.

But that answer is incorrect.

Maxim magazine recently asked James, “If there was one guy on the planet you could dunk on, who would it be?”

His response might produce as much reaction on Capitol Hill as on the basketball court.

“If it doesn’t have to be a basketball player, George W. Bush,” James said. “I would dunk on [him], break the rim and shatter the glass.”

Trivia question

Who delivered the hit that sidelined New England Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe in 2001, resulting in Tom Brady’s leading the Patriots to a win in Super Bowl XXXVI?

A coach, a ref and a rabbi

You’ve heard the joke about a referee, a coach and a rabbi walking onto a basketball court, right?

Wait, this isn’t a joke. This actually happened.

Rabbi Yitzchak Dovid Grossman intervened between referees and Maccabi Tel Aviv Coach Pini Gershon in an exhibition game Sunday against the New York Knicks. Gershon had been ejected for receiving two technicals, but he refused to leave the court.

Grossman was in Los Angeles on Tuesday for Maccabi’s exhibition against the Clippers, second in a series of games benefiting Migdal Ohr, the world’s largest orphanage that Grossman founded and that houses 7,000 orphaned, abused and underprivileged children.

And Grossman acknowledged he gave Gershon advice on how to avoid a second ejection.

“I said to him, ‘Please try today to be OK and don’t go out of your mind,’ ” Grossman said. “ ‘See that everything will be peaceful. The children from Israel and people from all over Israel are watching. I want this to be an example of friendship, not of fighting.’ ”

It seemed to work: Gershon didn’t get a technical in the Clippers game.

Holiday spirit

UCLA fans had better hope their USC neighbors aren’t like Clark Griswold, the character in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” who decorated his house with 250 strands of lights.

That’s because CollegeHighlites announced Wednesday a licensing agreement to sell “Cardinal and Gold lights and wiring” that “embody the spirit of Troy, as well as the spirit of the holidays.”

Trivia answer

Bledsoe’s collision with then New York Jets linebacker Mo Lewis caused Bledsoe to suffer internal bleeding, which opened the door for Brady.

And finally

The Sporting News’ Dave Curtis on the legacy of Florida State Coach Bobby Bowden: “In the short term, Bowden’s in trouble. Big picture, he remains a legend.”

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