• Transcontinental, redeye flight to the capital of the world (New York) + new laptop = late, short update.

• NFL, MLB GAMBLING SCANDAL WOULD DWARF NBA WOES: The same people who think that Tim “Hard G” Donaghy is the only NBA official (or major sports league or college official for that matter) who has mussed the outcome of a game also probably buy into the myth that daily Dodger results matter to Angelenos.

According to the Vegas sportsbooks, the gambling handle for NBA games is a considerably less than that of NFL and MLB games. THOSE are the leagues which would suffer catastrophic consequences if a point-Norelco’ing brouhaha broke.

As we’ve seen with teevee viewership and dipping attendance figures, the NBA is already COMPLETELY off the radar screens of non-league markets. One rogue ref (at least according to the turnip-bodied Stern) will have more of an impact on Jay Leno’s late-night monologue than ticket sales.

The NBA’s issue now is more about retaining sponsors and broadcast partners than it is worry about fan retention, since the erosion of interest in the league in North America can’t get any worse already.