Since Nike basically funds the entire NBA, it was only natural that the company that makes shoes for kids…by kids…in poverty-stricken third world nations, create a giant advertisement with arguably the NBA’s most popular player.  So enjoy.  And remember, “Product placement gives us a bigger budget.  Bigger budget, more explosions.”

Best line of the entire film:

Mr. Suave: Black Mamba…helluva name.  What, your mom lose a bet or something?

Classic.

The Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers.  They…well, they don’t like each other very much.  So when Boston’s Ray Allen broke the record for career 3-pointers early in the game, LA wasn’t exactly going out of their way to congratulate him.  In fact, it might have given the Lakers that little burst of motivation they needed to power past their cross-country rivals to a 92-86 final score.  According to Yahoo Sports:

Allen became the NBA’s career leader in 3-pointers in the first quarter, but Bryant later put him on the bench in foul trouble during his big second half that rallied Los Angeles from an early 15-point deficit.

…Allen hit two 3-pointers to pass former Indiana Pacers star Reggie Miller (2,560), who was sitting courtside calling the game for TNT. But Allen made only one more and had 20 points after scoring 12 in the first quarter.

“I almost felt a little embarrassed because there was so much attention surrounding this 3-point record,” Allen said. “It was so overwhelming, but it was a great moment. I’ll remember this for the rest of my life.”

He’d probably remember the game even better if the Celtics had won.

[Photo Source: NBA Dunkers]

It’s a situation that has been getting “curiouser and curiouser” by the hour.  Over the past several days, almost half of the NBA has been involved in trade talks with unhappy Denver Nuggets‘ forward Carmelo Anthony.  Teams appear to be playing one against another.  And according to Howard Beck of the New York Times, the rumours are taking their toll on the entire league:

At least 12 teams — 40 percent of the league — have been snared in the Anthony intrigue at some point in the last six months. It has rained havoc on locker rooms in Newark and Detroit, New York and Chicago and, of course, in Denver. More than 20 players — Nets and Knicks, Pistons, Bobcats and Timberwolves — have seen their names attached to a rumored Anthony deal.

To be eliminated from the chase is to find peace.

“The rumors are over,” Derrick Favors, the Nets’ prized rookie forward, told reporters last week. “I don’t have to worry about them.”

Favors and the Nets’ Devin Harris acknowledged being unnerved by the reports. The Nuggets’ Chauncey Billups, who wants to finish his career in Denver, was also bothered.

The rumors have appeared to take a mental toll on the Knicks’ Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari.

The Pistons are still dealing with the fallout from an aborted three-way trade with the Nets and the Nuggets. At the peak of the talks, Detroit benched its onetime star Richard Hamilton, deepening a rift between them.

This isn’t at all as ridiculous at Lebron James‘ “Decision”.  James’ ego nearly consumed the entire NBA for months.  Anthony is just unhappy with the Nuggets and looking forward to a trade – especially since he has another year on his contract.  But this kind of drama is not what he needs, not if he wants to escape with his reputation intact – unlike “King” James.  Then, again, Anthony is currently doing all the right things. Namely, keeping his mouth shut.

[Source: AM Basketball]

Kevin Garnett is simply amazing.  No current professional sports figure is as adept at alienating other players, teams and fans as this man.  According to CBS, Garnett is staying true to form:

After yesterday’s Lakers/Celtics game, both Yahoo’s Marc Spears and ESPN’s J.A. Adande tweeted that when asked for his autograph, Garnett told a Lakers ball boy “you’ve got a better chance of catching Bin Laden.”

If you’re desperately trying to take offense to the comment itself, don’t. There’s nothing wrong with it. It was clever, really.

But this is just another example of what a jerk Garnett is. I know you’re thinking, “Well, it’s the Lakers and the Celtics hate the Lakers.” No, it’s every team. Andrew Bogut tweeted about Garnett’s comment saying, “Little better than what he told one of our ball boys.” And having a couple friends that are ball boys in Oklahoma City, I have heard similar stories about Garnett telling off autograph seekers in a not nice way.

I guess it says something about Garnett not caring about image in any way, shape or form. Obviously, he doesn’t care what we think about him. I suppose that’s admirable in some weird way. It also says he’s a mean person to anyone that’s not a teammate, family member or friend.

Nothing really new.  Just another example of an over-paid player treating the rest of the world like it continues to owe him something.  And Garnett seems to be playing that role to perfection.  Hmm…I wonder if Larry Byrd ever acted like that.

[Source: freewebs]

After the Los Angeles Lakers blew out the Cleveland Cavaliers 109 – 87 at the Staples Center Tuesday night, Lebron James had this to say on Twitter.

Crazy. Karma is a b****.. Gets you every time. Its not good to wish bad on anybody. God sees everything!

Obviously, King James had taken exception to the way he was treated when he and his new team, the Miami Heat, last visited Cleveland.  Knowing his ego, it was probably impossible for James to take the high ground.  And given the time signature, it looks like he sent the tweet before the game even ended.

[Source: Bitten&Bound]

My favorite video basketball game from my childhood, and the most popular arcade basketball game of all-time, NBA JAM is coming back this fall for the Wii, Playstation 3, and Xbox 360.

The game will be sold as NBA JAM for the Wii and will be included with and part of NBA ELITE 11 for Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

Each NBA team on the game will have three to four active players to select from each team to play with along with a team legend or mascot.

Here is a look at the complete 2011 NBA JAM Rosters:

Eastern Conference NBA JAM 11 Rosters

Atlanta Hawks

• Current Players: Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Mike Bibby
• Legend/Mascot: Dominique Wilkins and Spud Webb

Boston Celtics

• Current Players: Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo
• Legend/Mascot: Larry Bird and Kevin McHale

Charlotte Bobcats

• Current Players: Gerald Wallace, Stephen Jackson, Tyrus Thomas
• Legend/Mascot: Rufus Lynx

Chicago Bulls

• Current Players: Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah
• Legend/Mascot: Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman

Cleveland Cavaliers

• Current Players: Mo Williams, Antawn Jamison, Anderson Varejao
• Legend/Mascot: Mark Price and Brad Daugherty

Detroit Pistons

• Current Players: Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Charlie Villanueva, Ben Gordon
• Legend/Mascot: Isiah Thomas and Bill Laimbeer

Indiana Pacers

• Current Players: Danny Granger, Mike Dunleavy, T.J. Ford
• Legend/Mascot: Detlef Schrempf

Miami Heat

• Current Players: LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh
• Legend/Mascot: Glen Rice and Rony Seikaly

Milwaukee Bucks

• Current Players: Michael Redd, Andrew Bogut, Brandon Jennings, Corey Maggette
• Legend/Mascot: Bango The Buck

New Jersey Nets

• Current Players: Devin Harris, Brook Lopez, Courtney Lee
• Legend/Mascot: Kenny Anderson and Drazen Petrovic

New York Knicks

• Current Players: Amar’e Stoudemire, Al Harrington, Danilo Gallinari
• Legend/Mascot: Patrick Ewing and John Starks

Orlando Magic

• Current Players: Dwight Howard, Vince Carter, Rashard Lewis
• Legend/Mascot: Nick Anderson and Scott Skiles

Philadelphia 76′ers

• Current Players: Andre Iguodala, Elton Brand, Evan Turner
• Legend/Mascot: Julius Erving and Allen Iverson

Toronto Raptors

• Current Players: DeMar DeRozan, Andrea Bargnani, Jarrett Jack
• Legend/Mascot: The Raptor

Washington Wizards

• Current Players: Yi Jianlian, John Wall, Gilbert Arenas, Andray Blatche
• Legend/Mascot: Manute Bol

Western Conference NBA JAM 11 Rosters

Dallas Mavericks

• Current Players: Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Caron Butler
• Legend/Mascot: Mavs Man

Denver Nuggets

• Current Players: Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Kenyon Martin
• Legend/Mascot: Rocky The Mountain Lion

Golden State Warriors

• Current Players: Monta Ellis, Stephon Curry, David Lee, Andris Biedrins
• Legend/Mascot: Tim Hardaway and Chris Mullin

Houston Rockets

• Current Players: Kevin Martin, Yao Ming, Trevor Ariza
• Legend/Mascot: Hakeem Olajuwon and Kenny Smith

Los Angeles Clippers

• Current Players: Baron Davis, Blake Griffin, Chris Kaman
• Legend/Mascot: Danny Manning

Los Angeles Lakers

• Current Players: Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Lamar Odon, Ron Artest
• Legend/Mascot: Magic Johnson and James Worthy

Memphis Grizzlies

• Current Players: O.J. Mayo, Rudy Gay, Zach Randolph
• Legend/Mascot: Bryant Reeves

Minnesota Timberwolves

• Current Players: Al Jefferson, Kevin Love, Michael Beasley, Jonny Flynn
• Legend/Mascot: Chuck Person

New Orleans Hornets

• Current Players: Chris Paul, David West, Peja Stojakovic
• Legend/Mascot: Larry Johnson

Oklahoma City Thunder

• Current Players: Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Jeff Green
• Legend/Mascot: Rumble The Bison

Phoenix Suns

• Current Players: Steve Nash, Grant Hill, Jason Richardson
• Legend/Mascot: Dan Majerle and Kevin Johnson

Portland Trailblazers

• Current Players: Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden
• Legend/Mascot: Clyde Drexler

Sacramento Kings

• Current Players: Tyreke Evans, DeMarcus Cousins, Jason Thompson, Carl Landry
• Legend/Mascot: Mitch Richmond

San Antonio Spurs

• Current Players: Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili
• Legend/Mascot: David Robinson and George Gervin

Utah Jazz

• Current Players: Deron Williams, Andrei Kirilenko, Mehmet Okur
• Legend/Mascot: Karl Malone and John Stockton

NBA insider Marc Stein released the rosters earlier this week on ESPN.com

We will continue to make picks throughout the year and compete head-to-head to see who can correctly predict the most NBA games against the line.

Sportscasm’s 2009/10 NBA Award Predictions

We will continue to make picks throughout the year and compete head-to-head to see who can correctly predict the most NBA games against the line.

Sportscasm’s 2009/10 NBA Award Predictions

We will continue to make picks throughout the year and compete head-to-head to see who can correctly predict the most NBA games against the line.

Sportscasm’s 2009/10 NBA Award Predictions

We will continue to make picks throughout the year and compete head-to-head to see who can correctly predict the most NBA games against the line.

Sportscasm’s 2009/10 NBA Award Predictions