Missing practice is their habit

To quote Allen Iverson, “We’re talkin’ about practice, man.”

It’s clear that if top professional athletes could talk their way out -- or buy their way out -- of training camp and practice, plenty would.

New York Giants defensive end Michael Strahan strategically ended his holdout Monday, less than a week before the Giants’ opening game Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.

“I took the time to sit back and say, ‘Is this really what I want to do? It’s going on 15 years and do I really miss the game?’ It turned out, at the end of the day, I missed the game,” Strahan said on FSN’s “Best Damn Sports Show Period.”

He just missed it more after two-a-days were over.

“Who wants to go to camp?” Strahan said.

Closer to home, the Ducks’ Scott Niedermayer hasn’t announced whether he’ll return after winning his fourth Stanley Cup. But he isn’t planning to be there for the beginning of training camp, and he has little interest in a transatlantic trip to open the season in London. He’s leaving the door open for an in-season return, however.

We refer again to Iverson:

“Listen, we’re talking about practice. Not a game, not a game, not a game. We talkin’ about practice.”

Trivia time

Who was the last team to repeat as Stanley Cup champion?

Kobe’s dream team

Fresh off Team USA’s Olympic qualifying victory, Kobe Bryant headed for Asia on a Nike promotional tour, where he has looked relaxed, encountering lots of excited fans and few tough questions.

Asked during a stop in the Philippines what players he would surround himself with if he were Lakers owner Jerry Buss, Bryant had a more diplomatic answer than he did earlier this year, the Associated Press reported.

“Can I assume I’m Bill Gates too?” he said. “All of the USA basketball team.”

That’s V-Rod, sir

The New York Times recently reported a little-known fact: Yankees star Alex Rodriguez has a half-brother 15 years his elder who is a decorated officer in the Air Force.

Lt. Col. Victor M. Rodriguez, 47, oversees the requirements on more than $10 billion in new weapons programs at Langley Air Force Base in Hampton, Va., the newspaper reported.

And few dare call him V-Rod.

“They do it in a very respectful way,” Rodriguez said. “They find the right occasion and the right context.”

Of note

A list of talking points billed as those used by Michael Vick to apologize for his role in a dogfighting scandal are for sale on EBay.

The bidding passed $10,000 Thursday, with more than a week to go in the auction.

Proceeds will go to the Humane Society of the United States, which said an employee found the note while picking up a microphone after Vick’s news conference.

Although the Humane Society cannot prove the authenticity of the notes, Vick could be seen carrying a piece of paper before he spoke, and he didn’t appear to have it when he walked away.

A spokesman for Vick’s camp said the notes were not written by Vick, but would not tell the Associated Press whether someone else wrote them for him.

The notes, scrawled on a piece of hotel note paper:

“1. Apologize for what I’ve done.

“2. Apologize Commissioner, AB, Petrino, Ashamed, Disappointed.

“3. Young Kids I acted immat.

“4. Forgiveness + Understanding.

“5. Take Full Responsibility For my Actions.

“6. We All Make Mistakes. I’ve made mistakes in judement (sic).”

The latest mistake? Leaving that scrap of paper behind.

At least it’s going to a worthy cause.

Trivia answer

The Detroit Red Wings won in 1997 and ’98.

And finally

From reader Alex Kaseberg:

“In sad news, Shaquille O’Neal is getting divorced after five years of marriage. The truth is that Shaq tried to throw his marriage away before, but he kept missing.”

--

robyn.norwood@latimes.com