July 16: What You Missed

THE LEAD:

Does the date December 3, 2007 ring a bell? That’s the last time Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway appeared in an NBA game, but that’s not stopping him from wanting to make a comeback. Which team does he want to play for? Take a guess…

We brought Penny on “The Kevin Calabro Show” today to tell us why he all of the sudden wants back in the league, and how he thinks he can help “The Big 3” win in Miami next year. (As if they’re going to need any help.)

On wanting to join the Heat:
When LeBron and Chris Bosh made the decision to go and join D-Wade [in Miami], I instantly though about wanting to do the same thing, especially when they have to get rid of the entire team and they have to go out and get veteran free agents.

On whether he has talked to Pat Riley yet about this:
I haven’t spoken to Pat Riley. My agent spoke with coach, and of course I wasn’t on his list because everybody thought that after I left the Heat I was just going to retire, but I just kind of stayed in shape because I love the game. And then when [LeBron and Bosh decided to go to Miami], I instantly called my agent, and he called Pat, and Pat, I guess, just said he would think about it.

On how he can still be effective at the age of 39:
When you’re a veteran, and when you’re healthy, you understand how to play the game, and you understand how to cut the corners that a lot of young guys don’t know how to do. And we’re talking about a very minimal role, we’re not talking about going in and averaging 38 minutes a night and trying to average 20 points like I did back in the day. I really feel like, at my age with the talent I have, that I still can go in and play a small role-play 10 minutes a night, 15 minutes a night, no minutes a night-and just be on the bench just being a mentor and helping that team win. I really feel like I know a lot about the game and that I can help that team win.

You can listen to the entire interview with Penny Hardaway here:

IN OTHER NEWS:

ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio does not like Pete Carroll. In the latest in his series of attacks against the coach, Florio writes that Carroll’s recent comments expressing interest in Albert Haynesworth could be construed as tampering.

Here’s the comments in question made by Pete Carroll:

“We were interested in the thought of [Haynesworth] because he’s such a fantastic player, but if he wants to play the game. That’s what you have to figure out. Where’s the love of the game in all this? And where does this all fit in? Because if you’re getting a guy that’s, regardless of what you’re playing him at, if his heart isn’t in it 1000 percent, he wants to be great and part of a great team, then you need to get another guy. It just depends, and I would look deep into it and we started the process because we thought maybe they weren’t gonna be able to come to a deal and they were gonna make him available, but it didn’t work out that way.”

ESPN’s John Clayton joins the show and weighs in on the matter, defending Pete Carroll and not hiding his anti-Florio sentiments.

On whether Carroll’s comments should be construed as tampering:

It’s a complete misread by Florio, but that’s not a surprise. … When you start to mix history with opinions and all those different things, there was not one thing that was out of line with in what Pete Carroll said. … He’s talking about past tense as opposed to present tense, and for anything to be construed as any type of tampering, it would have to be in present tense, which isn’t the case in these comments.