Each weekday morning, BDL serves up a handful of NBA-related stories to digest with your nog.

Joe Freeman, The Oregonian: "In a game that was equal parts depressing and exhilarating, the Trail Blazers overcame yet another significant injury to a key player to secure one of the most impressive victories this franchise has seen in a long time. [...] Joel Przybilla(notes) suffered a ruptured right patellar tendon and patella dislocation and is out indefinitely. He is scheduled to fly back to Portland today for further testing and, eventually, surgery, after which doctors will determine how much time he will miss. [...] The injury was eerily similar to the one Greg Oden(notes) sustained Dec. 5 against the Houston Rockets. 'I knew it was pretty severe when it happened,' said Przybilla, who was smiling and positive after the game. 'My leg was stuck in a funny position. It really didn't hurt, but I could tell something wasn't right.' For the Blazers, who entered the game with just 10 healthy players because of a rash of injuries, losing Przybilla is a surreal and disheartening blow. 'We just couldn't believe that someone else went down,' LaMarcus Aldridge(notes) said. 'We all stopped and said, 'Please tell me this ain't real.'"

Eddie Sefko, The Dallas Morning News: "The frustration is building in Dirk Nowitzki(notes). He sees his team holding opponents to 85 points and not winning. He's not happy about it. 'It just feels like, at home, I've got to make every shot down the stretch to win,' he said. 'That's how it feels. ... So we got to figure out something.' There were too many people misfiring for Nowitzki's impressive night to cover up. Jason Terry(notes), Shawn Marion(notes) and Jason Kidd(notes) were a combined 3-for-26. No way that translates into a win. Whether it's up to the players or the coaching staff, Nowitzki knows the Mavericks are wasting good defensive efforts by shooting 30-some percent too often. He knows Terry will come around. But until the offense perks up, Nowitzki feels like there's just not enough help."

Chris Tomasson, NBA FanHouse: "The Denver Nuggets have a made a multiyear contract extension offer to coach George Karl, but sources said the sides remain a good bit apart when it comes to finalizing a deal. Sources said the offer is for three years for a total amount a little more than $11 million, but the third year hasn't been guaranteed at this point by the Nuggets. The average amount per year is similar to what Karl, earning a $3 million base salary plus incentives in the final year of his deal, is currently making but is less than the average coach's salary in the West of a little more than $4 million. Indications are Karl and the Nuggets are a few million dollars apart on the total value of the deal. And there also are questions regarding how much of the third year might be guaranteed. Bret Adams, Karl's attorney, would not comment on any specifics regarding negotiations. All Adams would say is that the sides are talking. 'Both parties are working hard and trying to use the end of the year as a point of a soft deadline,' Adams said."

Benjamin Hochman, The Denver Post: "The Nuggets are one of those high school exam questions that made you wonder about the strength of a GED. When the Nuggets pass more, they win more. But their offense is built around attacking the rim more than any other NBA team, and leading scorer Carmelo Anthony(notes) gets to the line more than every NBA player not named Dwight Howard(notes). How can the Nuggets stick to their offensive philosophy but also make sure the team comes first? Tricky, huh? Such is the delicate issue that coach George Karl, his coaches and players face. 'There's no question that the pass and our offense go hand in hand,' said Karl, whose Nuggets are 19-9. 'Maybe we have to make more adjustments to get the gaps more open, to get the spacing better and to continue to try to get 30 layups and 30 assists (per game).'"

Kate Fagan, Philadelphia Inquirer: "Because of injuries, losses, and the free-agent addition of point guard Allen Iverson(notes), the starting lineup has been shuffled like a deck. Last night against the Wizards, coach Eddie Jordan decided against returning point guard Lou Williams to the starting lineup, preferring to stick with a backcourt of rookie point guard Jrue Holiday(notes) and shooting guard Willie Green(notes). Playing 32 minutes, Williams scored 12 points in the 105-98 loss. Green finished with 16 points and Holiday with five. Williams, the team's starting point guard for the first 14 games, missed the next 12 with a broken jaw suffered in a loss to the Wizards on Nov. 24. 'I talked with Lou,' Jordan said before the game. 'I know starting is important to him. ... But I don't want it to be a shock to the system, to our starters, to have Lou in the starting lineup. Eventually, he will be in the starting lineup, but Willie has been playing well, Jrue has been playing well. ... There is a good chemistry about them.'"

Mark Berman, MyFoxHouston.com: "NBA sources told FOX 26 Sports the Houston Rockets plans to re-sign free agent guard Von Wafer(notes) fell through when Wafer did not pass his physical Tuesday night. Sources told FOX 26 the Rockets may re-visit Wafer's situation soon. With Wafer no longer an option the Rockets signed forward Michael Harris from the team's NBA Development league affiliate, the Rio Grande Vipers. Harris was at the Rockets game with the Clippers Tuesday night just to watch the game and then he got the surprise of his life. 'It's a very big day,' Harris told FOX 26 Sports. 'I was just coming to the game and they hit me with this. It's a very good Christmas present.'"

Barry Jackson, The Miami Herald (scroll down): "Credit Michael Beasley(notes) for how maturely he has handled often being on the bench late in close games: 'I'm used to it. If that's the lineup, I'm perfectly fine with it.' Defense is one reason why Udonis Haslem(notes) plays more late in games than Beasley. 'Sometimes it's the flow of the game or the matchups,' coach Erik Spoelstra said. 'It's a lightning rod topic. More people ask me about Michael than anyone else.' According to 82games.com, in the last five minutes of the fourth quarter (or overtime) when the Heat is ahead or trailing by no more than five points, Haslem has played 79 percent of the time, and the Heat has outscored teams by 22 with Haslem on court in that situation. Beasley had played 32 percent of those minutes, with the Heat being outscored by nine."

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe: "Kevin Garnett missed last night's 103-94 win over the Pacers at TD Garden because of a right thigh bruise. The news came as a surprise to teammates, who didn't know they would be taking the court without their defensive leader until about 20 minutes before tip-off. 'I didn't want them thinking,' Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. 'I just wanted them to go out and play.' Garnett had been playing with the injury since sustaining it Dec. 14 in a victory over Memphis. 'He said that's where he got hit,' Rivers said. 'And, of course, he hadn't told anyone until, I think, today.'"

Jeff McDonald, S.A. Express-News: "About 75 minutes before tipoff Monday night, we were gathered in a hallway outside Gregg Popovich's office at the AT&T Center, convened for the coach's pre-game media session. Not long after the Qs and As started flying, we saw a familiar face approaching from the other end of the hall. Familiar, but bearded. It was Michael Finley(notes), a player none of us in the Fourth Estate had seen since he limped off the floor at the AT&T Center on Dec. 5. Finley grinned as he passed through the media horde on his way to the training room, covering his face in a futile attempt to scoot by incognito. Oh yeah. That guy. Out of sight, out of mind. That has been Finley's fate for the two weeks he's been recovering from a left ankle sprain. He hasn't yet begun to participate in basketball activities, meaning it could be another two weeks before he returns. Of course, that begs the question — returns to what? At the time of his injury, Finley was receiving steady minutes off the bench at the 2/3. In the time since, the Spurs have moved on without him. Roger Mason(notes) Jr., who briefly lost his own spot in the rotation when he strained his groin in late November, has assumed the bulk of Finley's minutes and is playing well. Popovich's rotation has begun to take shape, and Finley isn't in it. It's hard to envision how he fits into the mix once he comes back."

Marc Berman, New York Post: "Veteran guard Jerry Stackhouse(notes), who tried out for the Knicks last summer and never got a contract offer, blasted Mike D'Antoni over his treatment of Nate Robinson(notes), calling him 'so stubborn' and 'a control freak.' 'I know Nate has to be obviously frustrated,' Stackhouse said on his regular spot on Chris Russo's radio show on Sirius. 'To be an NBA coach, you're a control freak. You really are a control freak just because you think about all the things coaches have to manage — from the players, to practice, to the media ... And with any type of personality, you have your extremists. And I think D'Antoni is just an extremist. He's just a guy who's so stubborn, such a control freak and wants to make an example of this kid (Robinson). It's not fair to him.'"