Not only has the NFL overtaken the NBA in regards to the negative perception among its athletes, but according to Forbes, the value of the NBA soared last season, TV ratings skyrocketed, and several teams saw an increase in the value of their franchise.

Here’s a surprise: The three highest-valued teams in the league are not only from major metro cities, but two of them haven’t been good in quite some time: 1) New York Knicks, 2) LA Lakers, 3) Chicago Bulls. Last? Milwaukee Bucks.

Even though the unofficial start to the NBA season is Christmas Day, we anticipate interest picking up Monday since College Football’s regular season ends Saturday, and nobody cares much about the sport until the end of the first week of January.

Big weekend on the hardwood: Oden and the Blazers attempt to win their seventh game in a row tonight when they travel to Boston to play the defending champs. LeBron visits Jordan in Charlotte Saturday, and we get a look at just how good Derrick Rose is when he takes on Chris Paul and the Hornets. The Celtics visit the Pacers Sunday, and clearly, they’ll be looking for payback.

The best NBA news of the day? Greg Oden is a fan of Gossip Girl!

Then in New York i just like it, me and Steve Blake went out to dinner and i got to see some of the places that were on this weeks episode of Gossip Girl.

If it wasn’t official earlier this season, it certainly is now: He’s our favorite player in the league.