Since moving from Portland, Oregon to Nuremberg, Germany seven months ago and continuing to cover and write about basketball both back at home and overseas, I’m constantly intrigued by the amount of basketball-centric stories going on around the world.

Many of these stories go unnoticed. And for those who know me, I’ve always been a writer who enjoys telling or sharing the stories not being told.

The latest discovery: “The Iran Job”.

Mention the name Viktor Khryapa in NBA circles and the first notion that comes to mind for many people is, “that one Russian kid who played in Portland right before the rebuilding years”.

But ask about Khryapa to anyone familiar with his success playing for CSKA Moscow and the Russian National team and you’re likely to get a detailed lesson about how the 6-foot-9 forward helped CSKA win the last four Russian Championships (2008-2011), VTB United League Championship (2010) and Euroleague Championship (2008), with CSKA now gunning for another title this season thanks to Khryapa.

A lockdown defender and powering scorer, Khryapa has come into his own since leaving the NBA in 2008 and returning to CSKA.

Last Summer our National Team from Belgium -- which is named the Belgian Lions -- managed to qualify for the first time since 1993 for the European Championships for countries, better known as Eurobasket 2011, held in Lithuania.

I was more than proud to be part of this success because it gave basketball in Belgium a long needed boost.  The last game of the qualifiers, a do or die against Poland in front of our own outrageous fans, is still very high on my list of most memorable games.

So hopes were up for the actual tournament last summer.  

We went all the way to Dallas, Texas to prepare ourselves, stopped on our way back in Toronto, Canada for some friendly games vs. Team Canada and we had the feeling this was going to be our year.

Things eventually turned out completely different and quite dramatic.

Wandering the corridors of the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena during the UCLA Bruins defeat of Eastern Washington the other night brought back many fond memories spanning over 20 years.

The Sports Arena is one of my favorite venues, and not for its lovely décor.

For me it is the place where I knocked down a last-second, game-winning finger-roll from 12-feet to win the Southern California Regional Championship in high school. Versus Miles Simon and the Mater Dei Monarchs. Eat your heart out.

It is also the site of four consecutive wins during my collegiate basketball career at UCLA, versus the USC Trojans. Perhaps my fondest memory of this L.A. landmark was a 157-game stretch that spanned three seasons in the mid-80, when my father (Marques Johnson) was the starting small forward for the Los Angeles Clippers.

Update (Wednesday):

Less than 24 hours after the Denver Nuggets acquired Rudy Fernandez and Corey Brewer from the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for a future second-round pick, Fernandez has apparently had a change of heart about his NBA future.

Instead of seeking a buyout and returning to play for Real Madrid, one phone call helped put Fernandez back together again.

According to Eduardo Schell of Marca.com, Nuggets' head coach George Karl called Fernandez at 5am before Fernandez boarded his flight to Denver from Madrid, Spain. Karl assured the Spanish swing guard he would be his 6th-Man this season.

Now Denver bound, Fernandez tweeted this morning: Destination: Denver!! You have to expect surprises with the NBA.so now to enjoy having fun with my teammates and working hard.

"My return to Madrid is very difficult, because out of there with a" buyout "is very complicated. Now I owe to Denver is the team that has trusted me and I will give everything for the Nuggets," Fernandez told the Spanish site.

"I felt a bit like Pau in the last hours, we are like stickers. I do not understand is that a player like Pau, with everything you've done and all that has earned its path these things happen."