For those of you wondering why this place has suddenly gone silent, let me reassure you that I have not fallen victim to some horrible calamity. I haven't fallen into a hole, been carried away by giant man-eating pigeons, or been kidnapped by Spurs fans. I have, however, been buried neck deep in work to the point there has been no (and by "no", I mean absolutely zip, zero, nada) time to sit down and write anything resembling a coherent post for the past several days. And it hasn't been the end of the world really, because honestly, knowing that I sacrificed valuable blogging time for the sake of my job will make it that much easier to reverse things a little once the season starts. (Just kidding, Boss! Really. I mean it).

So while I'm off doing the workaholic thing, anyone disappointed by the recent lack of new material at Bright Side of the Sun can find enough NBA-related reading for at least the next couple of days with the plethora of stories available in the latest Carnival of the NBA. A special thanks goes to Steve Weinman who not only knocked it out of the park with his first ever hosting of the Carnival, but also said some really nice things about my "Superman" post from a couple of weeks ago. (And don't worry, Steve, compliments are always welcome, even those that use the word "sir").

Here are a few other quick news bullets before I return to my "dungeon":

• Amare Stoudemire has officially made Team USA. The final cuts were done yesterday as Kevin Durant and Nick Collison were sent home. The 12-man roster includes Amare, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Jason Kidd, Chauncey Billups, Michael Redd, Mike Miller, Tyson Chandler, Tayshaun Prince, and Deron Williams. For more about who they're up against in the upcoming Tournament of the Americas, see here and here. By the way, how do you know when you're becoming way too obsessed with the Suns? When your fingers keep wanting to type "Amare" instead of "America"!
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• Speaking of Amare and obsessions, Suns.com newcomer Stefan Swiat has posted a nice article about how hard Amare is working during the offseason to improve his body and his game. "I can't stop playing basketball", Amare is quoted as saying. He's looking to improve his ball handling and three-point shooting among other things. Hopefully, he's working on his bench-sitting-during-an-altercation move as well.
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• It's too late to fix what happened with Tim Donaghy, and too late to change the outcome of Suns-Spurs 2007, but in hopes of avoiding a repeat of history--or maybe just to reassure fans--the NBA is subjecting its gambling policies and referee program to a review led by a former federal prosecutor, Lawrence B. Pedowitz. While gambling is specifically mentioned, hopefully the review will extend to other issues such as the implication by Donaghy that referees play favorites with certain players and teams. To say that the problem is just about gambling is far over-simplifying things in my book. Here's hoping some good can come out of all this yet.
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• Speaking of Donaghy and hoping for better things to come, here's an article by Eddie Johnson that was brought to my attention by Bright Side reader, Lori Ann. It's a nice take on the subject from the perspective of someone who actually played in the NBA. Also, be sure to catch Lori Ann's poignant, heartfelt comments underneath the article (look for the words "TIME OUT !!!").
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• Lastly, rest in peace, Eddie Griffin. A tragic end to a sad life.