This past weekend an Atlanta Hawks fan got the opportunity to make a half-court shot for a cool grand. Somehow his shot landed on the back of the rim and literally didn’t move. I had to watch the video a few times because the odds of that happening have to be astronomical. I hope the Hawks organization felt sorry for the guy and gave him the cash because his feat has to be harder. Check it out!
What is Up with Big Men in the NBA?
December 16, 2010 by
Forget whoever Portland drafts as their center of the future will eventually get hurt and generally in their rookie year. Also, forget that Yao Ming was one of the tallest and most versatile players we have seen in the NBA in years. Where have all the true centers gone?
It’s almost like the Heavyweight Division in boxing because what has really happened since Mike ‘the Bite’ Tyson left? The sport went out the window just the centers have done in the NBA.
OK Dwight Howard you say? The guy can’t hit a jumper further than 5 feet from the rim. Pau Gasol maybe? He gets muscled out of the paint by Big Baby Davis. So where are the studs that dominated the paint like Shaq, Kareem or even Patrick used to do?
The NBA has become a guard oriented league with little regard to the front court. With all of the slashers and jumpers getting drafted as ‘Athletes’ this sport can be hard to watch. I’m not sure if the game will revert back to true big men, but in my opinion it really needs to do so.
4, 3, 2, 1, Happy Free Agent Day!!!
June 30, 2010 by
As the NBA gets closer to the hour that we have been waiting for, for over 2 years, the 2010 free agent signing period is here and I want to throw out some ideas on what will happen in this free agency extravaganza.
Let’s start with back-to-back NBA Champs the Los Angeles Lakers. Everyone will be trying to stock up in order to dethrone them. No matter what other teams do a healthy Andrew Bynum along with Kobe, Pau, D-Fish and Ron Ron still are still the team to beat. The Lakers will have to deal with the possibility of losing back up PG’s Jordan Farmar and Shannon Brown along with end of the bench big men in Powell and Mbenga. Look for the Lakers to add a scorer like SF John Salmons to fill in for Artest and a PG like JJ Redick or Nate Robinson. Don’t be surprised if there are overtures for Ray Allen or Brad Miller.
The Celtics are happy to hear that Coach Doc Rivers is staying, but are worried that Paul Pierce is testing free agency. If Pierce he leaves then expect Ray Allen to bolt as well. Rasheed is gone and KG is aging before our eyes so look for Boston to look at Brandon Haywood, Luis Scola and Dirk Nowitzki. Each of these players would fit the system especially a stud like Nowitzki.
The Cavs absolutely have to keep LeBron and without that they might have to pick up Craig Ehlo, Mark Price and Larry Nance to garner any attention. If King James does stay in Cleveland then look for Joe Johnson to join him and the other cast of characters plus either Byron Scott or Brian Shaw will become the head coach.
Dallas will be the darlings of the free agency period. Aside from one fine that was merely pocket change to Cuban he has been keeping his mouth shut on the possible signing of LeBron James. Cuban knows Dampier, Matt Carroll and Shawn Marion are not the guys to bring a championship to Dallas. If the Mavs are to win it all this very well could be the year. Dallas is looking for a big free agency season which will need to start with trying to re-sign Dirk. Jason Kidd, DeShawn Stevenson and Caron Butler are not a bad nucleus so if they can land Amare or Rudy Gay along with a scorer like Ray Allen they could really do something next year.
The long shots of the free agency period are the LA Clippers. Baron Davis, Chris Kaman, Blake Griffin, Eric Gordon and incoming rookies Al-Farouq Aminu and Eric Bledsoe provide an incredible opportunity for the right free agent to come in and take advantage of all this talent. But who will be the coach? Looks like Vinnie Del Negro is topping the list at this time. He is a players coach and might not have to deal with the upper level management issues he encountered in Chi-town. Why not bring on So Cal natives like Shaq to spell Kaman, Paul Pierce (Inglewood native) for the guard scoring punch or Matt Barnes for his lock down defense.
The losers will be the NY Knicks. The Knicks won’t sign anyone of real value because they put all their focus on signing LeBron who won’t be signing and David Lee is leaving town. Tracy McGrady, Jonathon Bender, Al Harrington, Danillo Gallinari, and Eddie House could be your starting five. Ouch! Also on the losing end will be the NJ Nets. Jay-Z and the new Russian billionaire owner will not sign the big names that have been rumored.
These are my predictions and they are based on nothing except my gut which of course has been wrong for several years. I once said while watching LeBron play live in high school that he would be a bust like Kwame Brown. There ya go!
When did the Refs become the game?
June 18, 2010 by
Yes, I’m a Laker homer, but that doesn’t mean I can’t sit here and celebrate with a little angst. The NBA refs in Game 7 were absolutely atrocious and let’s not forget Game 7’s don’t happen often in the NBA. The last one was over 20 years ago so when it does happen and of all teams the Celts and Lakers are the matchup you have to be cognizant of how much this game means. OMG, it was absolutely painful to watch. Stern, please make sure this kind of referee dominated game never happens again.
Now that I have spoke my peace it’s time to remind everyone the Lakers are back-to-back and they beat Boston. Nuff said!
St. Louis Whoppers Will Happen
August 1, 2009 by
You laugh now, but I think someday there is a real probability you will see a professional team sell out to a company in full. As soon as one prominent team takes the leap by placing Dell on the front of their jersey it will only be a matter of time before others follow suit. The need for other revenue streams during the current economy woes has the NBA and NHL already taking steps to have corporate sponsorships for game uniforms.
Starting this year the NBA will let teams sell ads on their practice jerseys and per league officials they are continuing to explore the idea of placing ads on actual game jerseys. NHL COO John Collins says the league would consider placing advertisements on game jerseys for the right price. At this time the NFL and MLB aren’t looking at jumping on the money train, but things can change. I’m 100% against US professional teams mimicking European Soccer standards, but at the end of the day it’s a business so they are in it for the cabbage. Look for this to happen in the NHL first since they are the lowest performer of the top four American professional sports leagues. So be prepared to purchase your Carolinna Home Depot, Dallas Dick’s Sporting Goods, Chicago IBM and Atlanta Time Warner jerseys’.