Hi everybody!

Just got home after a hard practice. It was one of the first ones after losing for the first time in 26 games. We lost on a last-second shot against Valencia. It is the way it is. We didn't play at the beginning of the game and those results can happen. It was a good shot for them. I realy didn't agree with all the calls at the end of the game... But I kind of try to forget about it now. Things happen. It's part of basketball.

Now we're focused on the Euroleague's Top 16. I remember last year when I played with Caja Laboral... We weren't able to do what we needed to do. I got a lot of experience, though. We let Roma, Olympiakos beat us at home when we had a great team. Without those two wins, we didn't have home-court advantage in the quarter finals. It really made a difference.

Playing at home means everything. The energy from the fans... Just look at the NBA Finals. In the last 10 years, only the '06 Heat and the '04 Pistons won the title without the home-court advantage. You know, the advantage depends on what team you're playing for. Some teams have a great, great, great home-court advantage. The fans are wild, they are very hostile towards the other team. The fans can make the other teams nervous. All the drums, the chanting, the enviroment... Those things can make them a little nervous, make them speed up a little.

When you're playing at home, all the noise you hear doesn't matter because you know everybody is with you. And there's only 12 players and the coaching staff against the whole gym. There's a big difference when you know that in the back of your mind.

In the NBA, I've always liked Boston. A legendary stadium, great team, a defensive team and their fans. The way they've been playing the last two years, if they are healthy they can win it again. You know, when you're at home you really feed off the crowd. You can hit one shot and then you get that rythm and you go from there.

TONI OF ILLINOIS

When somebody raises the question about who's the best European player that has ever played in the NBA, I have to say somebody who I actually got to watch. I know that a lot of people will mention Drazen Petrovic and others, but I was a little young when they played. I would say Toni Kukoc. For me, he's right up there. I'm from Illinois. Growing up in Rock Island, I can understand what he meant to the city of Chicago and what he meant to the Bulls organization. Kukoc was great. You talk about a guy who is 6-10, maybe taller, being able to handle the ball, shoot the ball, stretch the defense... And all that at a time where it wasn't very common for European guys to come to the NBA and make a big impact. When Michael Jordan left, Kukoc was the man! People forget that he was the man. Scottie Pippen was like "This is my team, too," but you know... It's not. It's Tony's. He won three championships and played a key role on all of them.

Kukoc was a big key to the second threepeat. He made a lot of big shots. Also, to be able to stretch the D, take that pressure off Jordan. You had a guy like Toni in the screen-and-roll with MJ. MJ would penetrate or take the mid-range spot, where he loved to shoot and you help on him too much he had Kukoc wide open to hit the three-pointer.

Barcelona fans: I know he used to kill our team in the 80's. I still love the guy.

WHITE HOUSE, COURT HOUSE

Two sides of basketball. The Lakers were in DC meeting President Barack Obama, and former Laker Javaris Crittenton was pleading guilty to a misdemeanor gun charge. Prosecutors agreed to drop a second misdemeanor, so at the end he got a good deal. He's a young guy and he's learned a lot. This issue might actually help his career out a lot. It could motivate him and get everything on track. Everybody makes mistakes. He did the right thing by telling the truth, and now he can focus on basketball and get his life back together. Sometimes when things happen to you when you're young it motivates you for the rest of your career.

That's all for now.

Visca Barça and Visca Catalunya!