NBA Sunday: 24-second clock

He's a young, popular sports star with Florida ties, with endorsements ranging from Gatorade to cell phones, who had a seemingly perfect family — wife, two children — before ugly accusations about an affair grabbed headlines.

Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade is no Tiger Woods. But his squeaky-clean image also got smudged this year — hit by a messy divorce that was quite public.

So his case makes for an interesting study in reputation management. During Wade's public problems, he stayed in touch with sponsors and fought back against his wife's accusations. His career today is hot — he's one of the NBA's leading scorers — and so is his endorsement potential. He stars in a new round of NBA-centric commercials for T-Mobile, part of a long-running and popular campaign featuring him and former player Charles Barkley doing some verbal jousting. Wade also has deals with Pepperidge Farm goldfish crackers, Nike's Jordan brand and Gatorade.

"I've dealt with my own personal issues, and my sponsors have been on board with me the whole time," Wade said in an interview with the New York Times. "They understand that we're in the limelight and there are some things that are going to come up to be negative, some positive."...

Are things so bad for the Washington Wizards that they need coaching help from fans?

ESPN.com is carrying a contest that asks readers to submit a diagram of an inbounds play the Web site says the "Wizards will try to use during a game." The deadline for submissions is Dec. 23. ...

Former NBA center Chris Dudley has formally announced he is running for governor in Oregon. The 6-foot-11 Yale graduate told supporters Wednesday he wants to slow the growth of the state budget and considers his lack of political experience a plus.

"I believe it is a strength, not a weakness, that I have not spent the last 30 years in politics," Dudley said.

Dudley, 44, played 16 years in the NBA, including two stints with the Trail Blazers. ...

According to the Philadelphia Daily News, 76ers "guard Allen Iverson, who is battling an arthritic left knee that had to be drained twice (last) week, could be out of the lineup until the Sixers start a West coast trip in Utah on (Saturday)." ...

The Golden State Warriors announced that ex-Jazz big man Mikki Moore is expected to be sidelined for a minimum of three months after undergoing surgery Friday to remove bone spurs in his right ankle.

— Compiled from staff and wire services