Tuesday Red-Fronted Tinkerbirds

Good morning! It is raining. I hope you are sufficiently sheltered from the rain, assuming you are a rain-averse person. If you like getting rained on, then have fun out there. For the rest of us, here are some links:

- Tinkerbirds such as the Red-Fronted Tinkerbird are tiny African barbets (relatives of woodpeckers and toucans) of the genus Pogoniulus. They're called "Tinkerbirds" not because they resemble Tinkerbell-- which is what I'd hoped-- but because they make little tink-tink-tink sounds like a tinker hammering away at metalware.

- This second half of Jared Zwerling's interview with Beno Udrih has been sitting in my browser for a while, mostly because of this:

"I chose No. 18 because I played in Israel before I came to the NBA. I found out that the meaning of No. 18 in Israel is 'life.' To me, it means basically a new opportunity in my life, a new chapter. I chose No. 18, too, because my nickname is '1B.' So if put them together, it's No. 18."

Why is your nickname 1B, Beno? Unless you've got a really good reason, that's quite a bad nickname.

- Amar'e Stoudemire trains on a tiny football field!

- Zwerling put together a good list of pretty much every free agent left, should the Knicks want to bring in a somewhat proven guy for training camp (or just sign a 15th man outright).

- Alan Hahn provides an update on what J.R. Smith is doing rehab-wise these days.

- Speaking of which: Speedy recovery, Earl Monroe!

- After KnicksNow did their list of most anticipated Knicks match-ups of the season, Charlie Widdoes follows with what one might describe as the least anticipated Knicks match-ups of the season. Really, though, these are not games to be overlooked. Really really, I anticipate them all equally.

- Jonathan Topaz hopes of the Knicks will have the health, manpower, and foresight to avoid letting Tyson Chandler get beat into a pulp by season's end again.

- Beckley Mason expounds on something we've been discussing for the last week: The Beno Udrih signing is key in allowing Mike Woodson to play point-guard tandems like he did so successfully last season...you know, if he wants to do that.

- Jerry Lucas, who is just the best, is auctioning off lots of treasures from his athletic career. This one's worth a click just for the photos. Those old rings and the 1960 Olympic gold medal are all gorgeous.

- Tim Hardaway Jr. and Mason Plumlee talk about rap and shoes and stuff.

- We already knew about this, but word of that Michelle Obama health campaign hip-hop album thing featuring Iman Shumpert is making the rounds again.

These are the links. As you were.