When a life gets snuffed out prematurely the way Sean Taylor's was by some cowardly thug in Florida, everybody takes notice.

The Wizards, preparing for a meeting with the Suns today, took time out from practice yesterday to express their sympathies.

"My thoughts and prayers go out to Sean's family, friends, teammates and the entire Redskins organization," forward Antawn Jamison said. "While I did not know Sean personally, I felt a connection because we represent the same community. I was a big fan of his and thought he was a tremendous football player. This is something that is very hard to swallow. This is going to be difficult to move on from, so we are going to have to continue to pray for him and his family."

Caron Butler also expressed his sympathy.

"My thoughts and prayers are with Sean's family, his teammates, the Redskins organization and the fans," Butler said. "He was a very talented player and a really good person. He always had a smile on his face on the couple occasions that I saw him. This is a terrible tragedy, and I am really saddened by this loss."

-- John N. Mitchell

Took a look at the NBA's All-Star ballot yesterday and I have to admit that right now the absence of Brendan Haywood's name from that list - going strictly off what he's done so far - is far and away the most glaring omission.

No, I don't think anyone suspected Haywood to be playing as well as he's playing right now - his five double-doubles are just two shy of the seven he posted last season - in fact, a lot of people probably thought that "Brenda" wouldn't even be here in Washington at the start of the season.

But Haywood has taken advantage of the unfortunate circumstances concerning Etan Thomas' heart surgery and made the most of him. In fact, it's safe to say that Brenda these days is playing a whole lot more like Brutus, which is a good thing.

Haywood has been on the ballot before and hasn't performed, which is probably why the folks who draw up the ballots passed on putting his name on it.

With a double-double tonight, Haywood will notch his second string of three straight double-doubles this season, after not recording three consecutive games with at least 10 points and 10 rebounds in his first six professional seasons.

That long-running beef between Haywood and Wizards coach Eddie Jordan last season? Remember that? Well, if Brendan keeps going at teams the way he has through six games you'll see nothing but love between the two.

--- John Mitchell

The official announcement comes tonight in New Orleans, but the NBA already has its All-Star ballots ready, if not yet online.

The Wizards got their 'Big Three' on there: guard Gilbert Arenas and forwards Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler.

I've always wondered how they decided who to put on the ballot, so this was interesting to learn (from the official release):

One hundred twenty players -- 60 each from the Eastern and Western conferences -- are listed on the NBA All-Star ballot, with 24 guards, 24 forwards and 12 centers from each conference comprising the list. Voters select two guards, two forwards and one center from each conference. The 120 players on the ballot were selected by a panel of media experts who regularly cover the NBA. This year’s panel included Ric Bucher (ESPN the Magazine), Rick Bonnell (Charlotte Observer), David DuPree (USA Today), Ernie Johnson (TNT), Jack McCallum (Sports Illustrated), Mike Monroe (San Antonio Express News) and Sam Smith (Chicago Tribune).

The game will be held at New Orleans Arena on Sunday, Feb. 17, 2008. Online voting ends Jan. 20.

-- John Taylor