Results tagged “NBA,” from Robert Littal Presents The Infamous BlackSportsOnline

Editors Note: I know the summer is not over, but all the important moves have been made and anything after Odom resigning isn't front page news...Well other than Boozer being traded...which still isn't that big of deal....

Professional basketball fans across the nation were able to enjoy a pretty active Off-season for their beloved NBA. Certain franchises felt the need to improve, while others decided to pursue mediocrity for various reasons.

So, here are some things that I took from the summer that was.....

There is a golden rule in #manlaw that you do not break when engaging your enemy in the 'Art of War' and that is don't talk about his momma or wifey.

In attempt to resuscitate his career gagging on the days when he use to rock shows with the general 50 Cent and the G-Unit army, The Game has been reduced to attempts to make 'songs cry' in imaginary beef inducing freestyles in front of crowds in Paris,France and Madrid,Spain while in Europe on his Lamborghini Tour. After "letting Jay-Z's old ass slide" for calling him out in a bar during a show in Vegas, The Game decides to up the ante with a few bars taking shots at "Gay-Z" and wife, Beyonce and a bevy of NBA and NFL teams.

The conversation via Third Quarter Collapse, after the jump.

Before you read my final thoughts about Kobe Bryant to truly understand what I think we have to go back in time. To see the true evolution of Kobe through my eyes via snippets of my most famous Kobe Bryant articles.

"This is a make or miss league"

Jeff Van Gundy

Such an obvious and simple statement, yet one of the realest things ever spoken by a NBA commentator. Sometimes the games are so over analyzed and dissected that the obvious is missed. If Courtney Lee makes a lay up (albeit a difficult one) at the end of game 2 are the Lakers still in control of this series? Analysts, to justify their salaries, always come up with reasons beyond the obvious such as weak side defense and pick and roll offense. But it really just comes down to MAKING shots.

In game 1 of the NBA finals the Magic group of Rafer Alston, Michael Pietrus, Courtney Lee and Jameer Nelson shot a combined 13-41. All we heard was how the Lakers had stepped up their defensive intensity. Oh these are the Lakers that can't be beat when they play defense like that. I went back through the game and saw that group of players along with JJ Reddick missed 21 open shots. Yeah, maybe a late close out by a defender but in general good clean looks at the basket. The Lakers basically stated their game plan was to leave Alston open. So their stated defensive plan to leave the 4th best shooter on the team open is brilliant?

Game 3 of the NBA Finals gives me an opportunity to go in detail about a phrase I use a lot, but never explained the true meaning of. It is called:

Kobe Bryant is one of the two most polarizing figures in sports (the other is Terrell Owens). There is absolutely no middle ground with people (media and fans) when it comes to Bean. Either there is extreme hate or extreme love.

Here is an example of what I mean. Last night while I was Twittering (http://www.twitter.com/BlkSportsOnline)I made this comment:

"I am only hard on Kobe because he is so great. But in the 2nd half he did not play well."

Pretty mundane statement consistent with what I was saying throughout the 2nd half (more on that later). I received ten replies to that statement five saying I was hater and five saying I was a Kobe lover. You are starting to understand what I am saying.

Opportunity is like a female that both you and your friend have been wanted to get with for a very long time. Luckily for you this time she knocks on your door first, but you are sleeping or cutting the grass in the backyard and don't hear the door. Unfortunately opportunity is impatient and quickly moves on to your friend who is more than happy to take care of her.

Right now the Orlando Magic are watching opportunity play some "Bed Gammon" with the Los Angeles Lakers.

We thought we had seen the last of them, but Lil Dez' isn't done yet. Check out Dez clowning Lebron.

Kobe Bryant is, at worst, the second-best player in the NBA. In thirteen seasons, he's won three NBA Championships (yes, they're HIS, too), an MVP award, two scoring titles, been an eleven-time All-Star, and owns all kinds of NBA records. He is universally recognized as the best closer in the game, and is three wins away from another NBA Championship (and first Finals MVP, if they win).

Yet, Kobe Bryant is probably the most hated player in the NBA, and has been for some time.

Since he's come into the league, he's been accused of being aloof, arrogant, vain, self-centered, out for dolo, and every other way that a player can be described as "selfish." People say he shoots too much or that he's not a good teammate; people throw in his face that he's not Michael Jordan. And they're right. Michael took way more shots than Kobe did.

If you are the Orlando Magic the one thing you can not do is panic. Yes you were embarrassed last night, but losing game one doesn't mean you have lost the series (actually if you are playing against a Phil Jackson team it does, but work with me here).

Your fans are losing their minds, you coach looks like he rather be shooting his next porno than coaching and you looked like a deer in the headlights under the bright lights of LA, but all is not lost.

Unless you've slipped into a slight coma for the past week or so, you know all about the crushing upset the Orlando Magic pulled over the Cleveland Cavaliers, or, as most sports announcers would rather call them, the LeBron James'. You've probably also seen the Los Angeles Lakers, or, as Jerry West would like to call them, the LeBron James', pull out their respective Conference Finals' win over the Denver "Knucklehead" Nuggets.

Disappointments aside, forget about whom you'd rather see, take a moment and celebrate the NBA in all its glory. The Magic has proven that you don't need a bandwagon full of supporters to throw it down on your way to the Promised Land, and Kobe has proven that even a habitual complainer and a borderline scientologist (sorry, his press conferences remind me of Tom Cruise's interview with Matt Lauer) can prevail--to a point--without the Big Nickname mumblin' and stumblin' under the basket.

What we're going to witness, hopefully, is a full seven-game series of pure, unadulterated, highly entertaining basketball, with the winner being able to achieve the feat with gamesmanship, grace, and only three flagrant fouls per game.

For all the gambling types out there, this one may be too close to call.

The referees in the playoffs have been bad. And everyone all over the country has complained about it. Usually the losing team coach, players and fans are the loudest. A lot of it is the whole confusion about what is a flagrant 1 or flagrant 2 that is confusing from the NBA. And the fact that there are playoff games with road teams that aren't aggressive (the Lakers) shooting 45+ free throws should be an embarrassment to the league. And the refs missing the flopping (Anderson Varejao) in the league has become such a problem that they had to come up with a penalty for flopping. But I'm taking the refs off the hook a little bit and putting a lot of the blame on the players.

So the Lakers DO have the energy of someone younger than 60 years old.

For most of these playoffs, we have watched the Lakers sleepwalk through games like a team that has already won three or four championships. Luke Walton had me thinking he was actually a spy from the other team, and I wasn't sure Lamar Odom was even alive anymore.

Then, the Denver Nuggets smacked LA clean in the mouth during a 120-101 loss in Game 4. They had to stomach watching J.R. Smith tap-dancing, mean-mugging, and generally being a stereotype as they went down in flames in Denver. Not only that, they let a guy who actually answers to "Birdman" shut them down.

Maybe that was enough to finally wake the Lakers up. Lord knows I was tired of seeing them play like they'd automatically be in the Finals just because it's been prophesied by the Kobe/LeBron commercials. I think for most people, escaping Houston like they did would be enough for a team to realize that it's not gonna be a cakewalk.

If I had $500 in my pocket right now (which I don't) and I needed to get advice on who to bet that money on for an NBA Playoff game who would I go to?

Not the great RJ Bell at Pregame.com.
Not anyone on ESPN (some please shut down their NBA Shoot Around show ASAP).
Not Lee Cordova (it is best you don't know who he is or what he does).

I would go straight to:

I am going to be honest I am a little tired of the Lebron/Kobe debate. It has been overkill as of late especially considering they are two totally different players at two totally different times in their career.

But I was Twittering it up this morning (http://www.twitter.com/BlkSportsOnline) with my friend mrsFAB (http://www.twitter.com/mrsFAB) about Lebron/Kobe which she made an interesting point that got me to thinking. She was pointing out how she would like Lebron to get his ring, but she thinks Kobe will. I think that is the sentiment of a lot of people and since a lot of people ask me all the time what do I mean when I say they are totally different players and different times in their careers it inspired me to write the comparisons in terms that everyone could understand.

Was Dwight Howard wrong for calling out his coach after the Orlando Magic's Game 5 loss to Boston? We can debate that forever and in truth, he probably was. After all, it's not like he did anything to step up to stop the bleeding during that fourth quarter collapse. Plus, calling out people is the press isn't for everyone, because he's not Phil Jackson.

But I do believe that this is a step in the right direction in the evolution of Dwight Howard. It wasn't that long ago that he planned on converting all of his teammates.

Dwight Howard has always been accused of being too nice. He's always joking, smiling, and laughing; enjoying himself. What's wrong with this guy? He's out there, having fun playing basketball, when he needs to get serious about this kid's game that he's paid millions to play. He should have never let Nate Robinson jump over him to win the slam dunk contest. He should have put his boot heel on Robinson's throat to assure that he won this exhibition that will do as much for his career as it did for Harold Miner's. The kid's just got no killer instinct, no competitive drive. He's just having too much fun.

That nameless kid in Orlando wasn't the only one hurt during Glen Davis' celebration Sunday night in Orlando. Dwight Howard's and Rashard Lewis's feelings were hurt by all of the celebrating and joy on their court because none of it was theirs.

Lost in the controversy surrounding Glen Davis' flying shoulderblock on a kid standing courtside in Orlando is Dwight Howard's and Rashard Lewis's distaste for post-game celebrations. Dwight Howard was shown with his face all frowned up and calling for a technical, while Rashard Lewis said the following:

"It most definitely adds fuel to the fire," Lewis said. "We don't like that type of stuff. You have to be professional about the game of basketball. We're a professional team and we expect them to be the same way.

"Those guys were jumping up and down, waving their hands at us, saying bye, but it's not over yet; it's just 2-2," Lewis added. "We could have done the same thing when we won on their court, but we're more professional than that. They still have to win ballgames. The series ain't over yet."

I remember back in the days of playing ball at the playground and we had that rule in one-on-one where if one guy got up 7-0 over another guy to start a game, the game was over. We called it the "7-0 Skunk." I'm sure everyone is familiar with this rule, and if not, I don't know where you played ball.

The point of the rule was to clear the court for the next guy, because what's the point in watching a guy fail to come back from an 0-7 deficit? Everyone watching knew he wasn't going to back a 10-7 run. If a guy gets up like that on you, the point is made. He's killing you. So let's get to the next game. Do we really need to sit here and watch you keep losing?

It's a rule that the NBA could stand to adopt to help speed things along sometimes. Clear Cleveland's court to make room for the Celtics or Magic.

As I type this, the Cavs and the Hawks are playing Game 4 of their semi-final playoff series. The Cavs are on fire right now, while the Hawks are simply outclassed. The Cavs have won all seven of their playoff games by double digits and are playing on another level than the Hawks. It's not the Hawks' fault, because there isn't much they could have done to stop the beating that they're catching right now.

Photo Courtesy of Getty Images

"Mile High Thugs"? To hear Mark Cuban tell it, that's just what the Denver Nuggets are and now Kenyon Martin's mom,Lydia Moore knows that includes her son too. Reportedly after a Carmelo Anthony sinked the game winning 3 pointer putting the Nuggets up 106-105 after an overlooked foul by Antoine Wright with 1 second left in regulation, Cuban stormed off the court and upon seeing Lydia Moore implied her son was a "thug." Cuban admits he told Ms.Moore "That includes her son" after hearing fans yell out that the Nuggets were "thugs."

While the Mavs spoiled billionaire owner denies it, Martin's agent claims Cuban hit K-Mart's mom with a "Your son is a punk!" slap to the face gram just a day before Mother's Day.

This report is from Saturday May 9th we have another report coming from Friday and Sunday.

SkyHigh & Haneef in Atlanta for the Sprite SlamDunk Showdown

With the help of Lebron James, the NBA and Sprite teamed up together and brought out the best amateur dunkers in Atlanta on Saturday May 9, 2009. The contest was held at Atlanta's own, Sweet Auburn Festival. This annual celebration was held in the heart of Atlanta's African American community.

1st Round Record: 6-2
Overall Record: 6-2

#1 Los Angeles Lakers vs. #5 Houston Rockets

I know a lot of people think that the Rockets will give the Lakers problems I do not. This version of the Rockets are no longer 1st round virgins, but they beat an inexperience and young Portland Trail Blazers team by brute force, but that won't happen with the Lakers. They will try to get under the Lakers skin and make it into a dogfight, but it simply will not happen. The Lakers are too skilled of a team from top to bottom to be bothered by the Rockets.

4-1 Lakers

#2 Denver Nuggets vs. #6 Dallas Mavericks

The Mavericks took out an old San Antonio team, but handling Denver will be a whole different story. Chauncey Billups have given the Nuggets a ton of confidence and in a way I believe they would prefer to play the Mavericks over the Spurs because the Mavericks still have a reputation of being soft. As long as the Nuggets keep up their hot shooting they should win a fairly competitive series.

4-2 Nuggets

As I type this, the Cleveland Cavaliers are mercifully taking the Detroit Pistons out behind the barn to put them out of their misery. It's about as merciful as a 20 point blowout can be.

It's the kind of game that makes me wonder if there's any hope that the NBA will take the playoffs back to a five-game series in the first round, because there's no need to even play this game. In fact, the only reason why I'm still watching it is because my remote is too far away from my computer.

Really, from Game 1, the Pistons have played like they didn't even want to be here. I understand that Tayshaun Prince and Rasheed Wallace are hurt, but they haven't even really tried to win this series. The only reason to keep it going is because there's always the chance that LeBron is going to give the NBA some more highlights to play in slow motion, but when a lower-seeded team is down 0-3 in the first round, they should be given the option to save face and forfeit instead of suffering another blowout. After all, they're not coming back, because if ESPN has taught us nothing, it's that 85% of teams down 0-3 lose the series.

It's a little hard to watch...ok, it's extremely difficult to watch, but I guess he's got to do something in the off-season to keep busy, yeah? It's not really the Hills, though he says it is, just CB4 trying to entertain...I don't think he does a very good job.

Anybody want to go go-karting with Calderon?

The series is 1-1, but the Boston Celtics couldn't be in more trouble.

I know, I know; The Celtics did something like this last year, and that was with a healthy Kevin Garnett. They went to seven games with the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks, of all teams, right? Why, they might as well have played the Washington Generals. And they still came out of it with a championship.

Thing is, that Hawks team last year is better than this year's Bulls team. I would like to say that it's hard to say that, being a Bulls fan, but the truth is, this is a Bulls team with a rookie point guard, an undersized shooting guard, and no post scoring. These Chicago Bulls should not be in this position. Garnett or no Garnett (Gar-nott? *rimshot*), the Celtics are still the World Champions.

And yet, here we are with a series at 1-1, that could have easily been 2-0, going back to Chicago on Thursday. The Chicago Bulls are playing the Celtics in Boston better than anyone in last year's playoffs did.

If everyone is really honest with themselves they know the NBA Finals will be the Cavaliers vs. Lakers, but I am going to pick every round of the playoffs because I know that is what the people want and I am being harassed on Twitter about it (http://www.twitter.com/BlkSportsOnline
.
1st Round Record: N/A
Overall Record: N/A

Eastern Conference:

The NBA Playoffs are upon us and although the majority of us, including your sexy model-writer, are salivating at a clobbering in Cleveland and a looting in LA showdown between the Cavaliers and Lakers, the NBA has other plans in store. Mr. West and the NBA have paired up to give you something so amazing with a NBA playoffs commercial featuring the song "Amazing" from Yeezy's hit album 808's and Heartbreaks.

From Dwyane Wade's reverse layup to a Dwight Howard monster jam to LeBron catching an alley-oop and a buzzer beater by Kobe, prepare to witness amazing happening this year. Let the playoffs begin!

NBA Playoffs begin Saturday, April 19th

Written by Qiana M

I love Stevie Wonder...I feel as if I'm in the majority when I say that. 'Isn't She Lovely?' 'Superstition.' 'Living in the City.'

Brings me back to my youth. At halftime of a game last week, the Chicago Bulls brought out a segment dedicated to hearing the city's favorite basketball team (let's face it...DePaul and Northwestern don't cut it...) sing some of your favorite tunes.

How did they fare?

See for yourself after the jump...

Is it me, or does Ray Allen take a huge cheap shot at Anderson Varejao...and Sideshow Bob doesn't flinch, one bit?

This Eastern Conference Finals match-up is going to be great.

There is not much not to like about Lebron James. He is a beast on the court doesn't have any off the court drama and specifically because of him we added two new phrases to the BlackSportsOnline lexicon:

For more of the what is in the BSO Lexicon follow me on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/BlkSportsOnline

But if there is one thing I beg of Lebron to change is his penchant to go "Vince Carter" on the smallest bit contact. He has a bad habit of anytime he is hit to lay on the court like he has been shot by one of the guns T.I. was trying to buy. Vince Carter is known for this. Paul Pierce did an Oscar level performance of this during the NBA Finals.

Mega stars do not do this even if they are hurt. How many times do you remember Jordan laying on the court? Kobe Bryant dislocated his finger in a game against the Cavaliers earlier this season in the first quarter. His finger looked like the letter L. He called a time out had it popped back into place and hit a jumper on the next possession. That is how big time stars react to getting hurt.

Even with that being said it wasn't a big enough gripe to write about until today when Lebron ran over a referee in his game against the Mavericks. The video shows the 6'9 270 pounds Lebron barreling into the ref but amazingly the 47 year old ref gets right up and Lebron acts like he has run into Superman.

With the new rules being introduced by the 'No Fun League', it got me to thinking; are the NFL and NBA higher ups turning them into The League of Extraordinary Cup Cakes? Growing up as a Bad Boy and 49ers fan, I enjoyed seeing a safety crush a wideout. Is it only me and Rasheed Wallace that think that there is now more contact in the WNBA than the NBA?

With the way the rules are now, would the Bad Boys ever have been two-time champions? I love Tony Parker's game, but sometimes it turns my stomach to see how teams continuously let him get to the rack for uncontested lay-ups. Could somebody please enforce the paint! Then again, if somebody trips and accidentally brushes up against a player, it's a flagrant foul. What ever happened to no blood no foul?
With no hand checking, defensive 3 sec. and the arc in the paint, Jordan would have easily averaged 40 points a game.

It seems as if Mr. Stern is trying to tinker with the rules in order to make a more exciting and appealing brand of basketball. I'm from the school of thought: if it ain't broke don't fix it. All I want is my brand of the NBA where Parrish punches Laimbeer and doesn't even get called for a foul.

Videos after the jump. You guys decide...which one is better?

Ask anyone about a deadbeat dad and you will get a mixture of responses. Some, tinged with the hurt, bitterness and resentment of a mother, daughter or son left forlorn and abandoned from a immature and heartless "man" concerned more about his own self-interests than raising his child while others share a story of an upstanding man attempting a life of shared custody only to be bombarded with accusations of being a deadbeat simply because he has no desire to be in a romantic relationship with his child's mother. Both scenarios are all too common and although the single parent household epidemic knows no color boundaries, it has hit no racial group harder than the Black family.

These days, the two parent household is a rarity. With a 50% divorce rate, there's a 1 in 2 chance that a romantic relationship ending in marriage will not eventually wind up in divorce court. Studies have concluded that children that are a by-product of a fatherless home often fare worse in life than those in a two parent home and are subject to greater bouts of depression, violent behavior, emotional stress and earlier experimentation with drugs, alcohol and sex due to poverty (Ketteringham: Associated Content 2007)

READ MORE ON THE AFFECTS OF SINGLE PARENT HOUSEHOLDS ON CHILDREN

So when Litall text me about Chris Bosh, affectionately nicknamed CB4 Chris Bosh, face of the Toronto Raptors' Chris Bosh, being sued by his former live-in girlfriend, 28 year old Allison Mathis, for child support, I was initially confused.

We've all heard the names before. "Ball hog", "Arrogant", "Selfish." The only thing is the "haters" were right. The Lakers most recognized player, jersey number 24 (formerly known as 8) was all those things however that was pre-MVP Black Mamba. While you can count on Kobe to be the go to man and put up 50+pts on a given night to carry his team to victory (see the 61pt record setting performance he dropped on the Boston Celtics at the Garden back in February) you can also rest assure that he will dish the ball out to you to let you get your shine on (ahem, see Lamar Odom, Trevor Azria and Paul Gasol game performances of late).

There's valid hate then there's hate from disgruntled ex-Lakers' players jobless or otherwise. Ask former Lakers' guard, Smush Parker. "Tell em, why your mad son! tell 'em why you're mad!"

Lebron continues to amaze me with his performance on and off the court. If you havealready witnessed his underhanded half court shot he banked before going on to kill the Memphis Grizzlies 99-78, I know you feel me 110%.

Joe Johnson thinks he can take a shot at seizing King James crown for half man, half amazing shots with a sit down three pointer that defies a little gravity of its own. The ease at which both men throw up the rock is equivalent to the urge to throw the Roc sign up when you hear Jay-Z "Give It To Me" or "Roc Boys"

Throw in Dwight Howard's Half Court Shot and Lebron got some serious contending to do!

THE CHALLENGER: JOE JOHNSON

Like Jay's What's Happening Rog fro and blue blocker shades along with Beyonce's Ugh My Breath Smells Like Sh*t face courtside at a New Jersey Nets game, sometimes some of our favorite celebs get caught slipping in a moment of leisure cheering on their favorite teams. Oh sure it happens with Jacko all the time and I don't mean Jackson. This time R&B hottie turned fashion disaster Christina Milian was all the rage for all the wrong reasons for her "new look" last Tuesday at the Cavs vs Hawks game. I know it's important to stay relevant and reinvent yourself in the entertainment industry but since when did Smurfette meets California Happy Cow come in fashion? Maybe I missed something here.

You Tell Me. Is this the same chic?

Everyone has that friend who can't take it when someone calls them out. Everyone has that friend who takes it too far after someone dared be critical of them, whether it's good-natured teasing or pointing out a mistake they've made. Usually, this friend gets abandoned at some point, because it's no fun having that person around. Or, one of his friends might pull him to the side and say, "Is your period over yet, sweetie?"

The problem with Shaquille O'Neal is, he's 7'1" and 350 lbs. If he ever had a friend who was that brave, that friend is probably no longer with us. But just because that friend was obliterated by Shaq's gargantuan rage doesn't change the fact that Shaq is as sensitive as most men right after your girlfriend brings on that "special feeling."

When Shaq starts overreacting like he did, it makes me forget that he's a grown-up, because he lalways crosses the line. He can't just do "verbal jousting," or even admit that he had it coming. No, his pride is wounded, so he responds to the criticism of his flop from Stan Van Gundy by essentially saying, "You contribute nothing to conversations and no one will miss you when you die." Couldn't he have just pointed out that he looks like Ron Jeremy like the rest of us do? Was all of that really necessary?

Shaquille O'Neal is about to be 37 years old and in the past two games he's scored about 800 points and grabbed 500 rebounds. Have we seen a resurgence of the Diesel? Of course not, because the man is 37 years old and the last time an elite-level athlete fought off Father Time and returned to a prior level of greatness, the world said he was on steroids.

Pistons 105, Celtics 95. That right there should put the "Iverson experiment" to rest, with the Pistons starting a two game win streak against two of the NBA's best in his absence.

It wasn't Iverson's fault, because he's not coaching the team. I don't know what Michael Curry's reasoning was for benching Richard Hamilton because Larry Brown was the last Pistons coach worth listening to. It could have been because he looked into Iverson's soul and saw angels flying in it. It could have been because he was afraid Iverson would have thrown a chair at him for the demotion. Either way, it didn't do anything to improve chemistry on the floor.

No, his career's not over, but his career in Houston pretty much is. All the Rockets need to know is if he can play well enough to have trade value when he comes back from microfracture surgery. All they need is for him to be able to resemble the old Tracy McGrady is six minute bursts, just long enough to trick some less-intelligent GM into giving up two good players, a draft pick, and an expiring contract. The Rockets have discovered the kind of team they want and it's the team that dismantled LeBron Jesus and the Disciples on Thursday.

This Rockets team has a record of 12-6 whenever McGrady's out, which is better than the 20-15 record they have when he plays. That's strike one. They've been decent, but struggling to find an identity. They don't know whether they want to be a finesse team or a rough-and-rugged team. Lucky for Houston that Tracy McGrady's knee decided it needed to be cut open, because his fragile leg made all of the tough decisions for them.

Just last year I was killing Wade around these parts for quitting on his team. Bailing out and not playing hard because the Heat was garbage. I don't know maybe he was just following Riley who also quit on the squad. It was unbelievable to me because just a couple years ago the same D-Whistle that effectively stole the Dallas Mavericks Championship. Well not only is Wade dogging entire squads this year, it looks like he's channeled that same Finals Wade that killed the Mavs. He not only has reached that inner MVP, getting the refs whistles to work those whistles but he has his show on cruise control. His Olympic experience definitely had to inspired him. I guess playing next to Bron and Bean will do that to anybody. But maybe Wade really needs to be thrust into that arguement. I think he just has to figure out, much like Lebron has and A.I did before him, how to get an average group of characters to play at a high level. With the Wade Show going full throttle If Jermaine O'Neal can ever find the old J.O. maybe... just maybe.

Now back to Wade, he has the fake crossover pull up working like Stevie Franchise when he was on top of his game. You might of thought he was running through the NFL combine how he's weaving in and out and around helpless defenders while they are foolishly trying to draw a charge. His off balance jumper game is on some ol' Summer League/01 A.I.-ish. Not to mention that sneaky explosiveness, you know the one straight out of the Kobe Bryant transcripts. Just when you thought he burned his man for a nice little lay up, he dunks on a big.

I questioned his TLC band-aid under his eye and his suspect fashion sense at the all-star game. But I gotta give the man credit for the show he's been putting on since Beijing. As a self proclaimed hoops nut, I must confess that there's no more space left on my tivo because of Wade's assault on the league.

In this video, Alicia hangs out at the T-Mobile Party, visits the Dwyane Wade All-Star Luncheon for charity and interviews DWade, Alonzo Mourning and American Idol winner Jordin Sparks, catches up with Jason Terry from the Mavericks at the Phoenician and chats with Common on the red carpet.

Once again remember every time you visit the MissionG website Gatorade gives a dollar to charity. So you not only checking out the coolest website not named BlackSportsOnline, but you are also helping out a good cause.

You know the deal for those who don't have TNT you can watch the NBA 2009 All Star Game here free on BlackSportsOnline. Donations would be greatly appreciated via Paypal:

BSO Writer, Scott Koral started the dialogue about Nike shoes at this year's All-Star game. (see article here.) So let's go off of that and detail who's wearing what this year.

I went through most of my sneaker blogs last night and have compiled a pretty good list.

So for all the sneaker heads out there, much appreciated.

Check out Lebron's and Kobe's special edition kicks after the jump.

Former Los Angeles Clippers vice president Elgin Baylor is suing the National Basketball Association club, the league and Clippers owner Donald Sterling for age and race discrimination.

The lawsuit claims that Baylor was "discriminated against and unceremoniously released from his position with the team on account of his age and his race" and that he was "grossly underpaid during his tenure with the Clippers, never earning more than $350,000 per year, when compared with the compensation scheme for general managers employed by every other team in the NBA."

Baylor also charges that Sterling had "a pervasive and on-going racist attitude as expressed to then NBA player Danny Manning during contract negotiations." The lawsuit, which was obtained by The Los Angeles Times on Wednesday night, alleges that Sterling once said of Manning: "I'm offering a lot of money for a poor Black kid."

While not to discredit the merit of Baylor and his case, this whole thing seems a little strange to me.

So we are to believe that Baylor worked for this man for over 20 years knowing that he was a racist. Furthermore, while knowing of his attitudes towards minorities he continued to stay on board. Only when he is fired after almost single-handedly running the Clippers into the ground does he say something.

On the same token, Sterling himself has been more than a little aloof with his players and the team as an organization. Add that to the fact that in August 2006 the U.S. Department of Justice sued Sterling on charges of refusing to rent apartments to black families and families with children. The Feds said Sterling and his wife, Rochelle, and their family trust not only refused to rent to prospective tenants of color, but also treated those of color they did rent to poorly and misrepresented the availability of apartments to them in the city's Koreatown section.

So who do you side with; an owner with a checkered history when it comes to minorities, or the jaded former employee? This situation definitely merits some attention.

The NBA gods just aren't being helpful the past few weeks. Just a week after Ray Allen was selected to replace Jameer Nelson for the All-Star game this weekend, he may end up not playing after all.

In tonight's game against the New Orleans Hornets, Allen hyper-extended his thumb, and did not return to the game. No reports on whether he will play or not, but if he does decide to sit, who gets called up? New York's David Lee has had 16 double-doubles in a row, and is hustling night in, night out. I've always believed that the stat-stuffing players on terrible teams should not be picked, but if Devin Harris and Danny Granger are on the team, you might as well put David Lee on there.

More on this as it develops.

It took a Cleveland outcry, a removal of a historic triple-double, a first home loss and a kick in the face, but it's finally here. Mo Williams was selected today as Chris Bosh' replacement.

Chris Paul fighting a groin injury is still considering whether or not to play this Sunday as well. If he doesn't...does Steve Nash or Deron Williams get the nod?

As basketball fan, a lot of these pending trades have us baffled, but as I have said before, its always business with what we see transpire in the various leagues.

David Aldridge provides insight as to the real m.o. behind some of the rumors we are hearing.

http://www.nba.com/2009/news/features/02/09/aldridge/index.html

It happens every year around this time. Everyone wants to see what shoes the NBA All-Stars are going to wear...at least, the Nike athletes (if I had some adidas contacts, I'd show you those).

I got the goods for you, and I'll give you a preview of one now, but there are two different shoes, so, as I always say...

More after the jump...

Talk about a crazy week in the NBA. Today, league offices announced after reviewing the game tape that one of Lebron's rebounds actually belonged to Ben Wallace.

That being said, Lebron only had 9 rebounds while Wallace ended up with 2. The rebound in discussion was at 39.3 seconds left in the fourth quarter. The recorded rebound was awarded to Lebron, when Ben Wallace was the real recipient of the rebound.

Lebron's official stat line ends up being 52 points, 11 assists and 9 rebounds.

In tonight's loss against the Lakers, Chris Bosh sprained his knee, an injury similar to Andrew Bynum last weekend. No word on the extremity of it, but this could put Bosh out the rest of the season. Results will come out tomorrow, but this might put him out of his 4th All-Star appearance, and pave room for another Eastern Conference forward? Or maybe both Ray Allen and Mo Williams?

Or does Vince Carter get the nod?

In other CB4 news, homeboy has been complaining about the lack of respect he feels he is getting as the fans in Toronto have begun to boo the Raptors in blowout losses. And there's a lot of talk going around saying that Bosh isn't happy with the situation in Toronto and might leave? Isn't that what always happens to stars in Toronto anyway? They are the go-to player in Canada, and then they leave for more money and another team... so that means Bosh is on his way to being another star that rarely gets out of the first round (a la T-Mac, Vinsanity)? Granted he's a free agent after next season, I don't think he is going anywhere.

I don't think the boos are going to stop either.

With Jameer Nelson dislocating his shoulder last night in the loss against Dallas, who does David Stern pick as a replacement for him? Does he go with one of the defending champions and pick Ray Allen, a player that some say deserves to be on the All-Star team more so than Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce? Or does Stern go with Cavalier Mo Williams, who has already publicly said he was disappointed that he didn't make the team, citing that that is how his career has gone.Side note: With Chris Paul injuring his groin last night against the Blazers as well, it may open up a spot for a back-up guard, and possibly push Blazer's guard Brandon Roy into the starting lineup. Or maybe Phil will start Shaq with Yao and Duncan.

My pick? Mo Williams. As much as I love Ray Allen and that jumpshot of his, I think Williams has been more key to his team than Jesus Shuttlesworth has been to the Celtics.Jeff Van Gundy's Pick? Al Jefferson. The City of New York's pick? Stephon Marbury.

We already know the starters for the NBA All-Star game this year. But let's re-cap:

West:
F - Amare Stoudemire (PHO)
F - Tim Duncan (SAN)
C - Yao Ming (HOU)
G - Kobe Bryant (LAL)
G - Chris Paul (NOH)

East:
F - Lebron James (CLE)
F - Kevin Garnett (BOS)
C - Dwight Howard (ORL)
G - Dwayne Wade (MIA)
G - Allen Iverson (DET)

Reserves have been announced today by the NBA, via TNT & ESPN.

West:
F - Dirk Nowitzi (DAL)
F - David West (NOH)
F - Pau Gasol (LAL)
C - Shaquille O'Neal (PHO)
G - Chauncey Billups (DEN)
G - Brandon Roy (POR)
G - Tony Parker (SAN)

East:
F - Danny Granger (IND)
F - Rashard Lews (ORL)
F - Paul Pierce (BOS)
C - Chris Bosh (TOR)
G - Joe Johnson (ATL)
G - Jameer Nelson (ORL)
G - Devin Harris (NJ)

Some regulars like Tracy McGrady, Vince Carter and co. aren't on the team this year, and is Carmelo Anthony an all-star snub? Lebron James thought that teammate Mo Williams was a sure for the All-Star game. There's a lot of talk that players on bad teams (Granger, Bosh and Harris) shouldn't be an All-Star because their teams aren't doing anything...out in LA, they called it the Elton Brand curse. EB rocked it year after year, but because he was on the Clippers, and there were so many other power forwards on the West in front of him, he never made it.

Other possible snubs: Andre Iguodala, Hedo Turkoglu, Kevin Durant, Al Jefferson, David Lee, Steve Nash, LaMarcus Aldridge, Antawn Jamison, Marcus Camby, Rip Hamilton & Ray Allen.

Oh yeah, Stephon Marbury is the biggest snub of the year.

Just kidding.

Besides being personally invited to the inauguration by President Barack Obama himself, what does All-Star Dunk Champion, Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic have going for himself that other All-Star team members don't? How about the most votes by any player in All-Star game history! Of the 66 starters and reserves, Howard shattered All-Star ballot records by being the first player to reach the 3 million vote mark in All-Star game's 58 year history! Howard had a whopping 3,150,181 votes, followed by Lebron at 2,940,823 votes, Kobe at 2,805,397 votes, D-Wade at 2,741,413 votes and Tim Duncan at 2,578,168 votes to round out the top five most voted players.

People weighed in around the world to cast their vote for their favorite player(s) for the Eastern Conference vs Western Conference showdown aka NBA All-Star Game taking place Sunday, February 15th in Phoenix.

In case the words "Superman Dunk" don't mean anything to you, you might want to check out these highlights from last year's dunk contest. You might just learn something!

Dwight Howard 2008 NBA All-Star Dunk Contest - "Superman Dunk"

You see that vertical? SUPERMAN! Dan-dan-da-duhhhh, dun-dun-da-da-duhhhhh, dan-dan-da-duh-duh-duh-da-duhh!!!! (*playing Superman theme music)

It is no breaking story that NBA poster child, Dwyane Wade has soon to be ex-wifey troubles and pending legal woes, in fact its late breaking news. Thanks to my job hunt and life's trials and tribulations dealing with personal and business relationships, this economy and other concerns, this model-writer has been swamped with strategizing and plotting the best course of action to not only improve her own life but ultimately the lives of those around her. After careful thought on whether to even post this and what angle I wanted to take, all I could come back to was what's stopping me from posting this and just how bitter Dwyane's estranged, ex-wife Siohvaughn Wade seems.

I first got wind of this story on websites Deadspin.com and BallHype.com last week. Allegedly, Mrs. Wade told the Miami Herald that Dwyane:

"...Abandoned his children, committed adultery, and infected her with an unspecified sexually transmitted disease. She wants the names of ''all of his sexual partners'' during their six-year marriage.

Dwyane, named a ''Father of the Year'' in 2007 by the National Father's Day Committee, has gone ''months'' without seeing his boys, Siohvaughn says. His ''failure to spend time with them . . . has resulted in the children at times being afraid of him; in fact, Zion . . . does not recognize or know Dwyane.'' She wants sole custody, and support.
She also says she has suffered ''grievous physical, emotional and mental injury'' from the STD, diagnosed in the fall of '07. (The infection is not HIV or a ''killer thing,'' sources say.) Dwyane and his ''paramour or paramours'' are liable," she claims.

Being a woman, of course if any of this is true I can empathize with her. I can only imagine being married to a mega-star athlete can be taxing on the mind and spirit with grueling playing schedules, opportunities for groupie love at every twist and turn at home and on the road and having to get creative with the time you spend together as well as communication in general however there are red flags here that scream "when a woman's pissed off" more so than "when a woman's fed up."

Charlotte Bobcats forward Gerald Wallace has been taken to a Los Angeles hospital where he will likely spend the night while being tested for a possible collapsed lung and fractured rib.

Wallace was injured in the fourth quarter of the Bobcats' double-overtime victory over the Lakers when center Andrew Bynum laid out Wallace on to the floor on a drive to the basket. Bynum was called for a flagrant foul, and Wallace had to be helped to the locker room by teammates.

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- As everyone knows, the Miami Heat are lobbying hard to get rid of Shawn Marion. Its not like the matrix has been stinking up the place, it's just that he does not mesh well with D-Wade. The Heat may be looking to land Brad Miller and Kenny Thomas from Sac-Town for Marion. The trade looks good on paper and the Heat do need frontcourt help right now. The kings would be looking to add help for swingman Kelvin Martin and it would clear $17 million off their cap for the next season. Keep a look out for this one.

- With that in mind, look for the Cavaliers to stand pat on their roster...for now. There have been talks about the Cavs moving Wally Szczerbiak for Brad Miller as well. However, with how well the team has played up to this point, a move seems unlikely.

- Once again Reggie Miller's name has come up in talks of him suiting up again. Reggie Miller told the Dan Patrick Show that the Celts want to know if he's interested in coming out of retirement to play. "We love it all," said Doc Rivers after yesterday's brief practice. "I mean, we're going to call Magic (Johnson), Larry (Bird) and Michael (Jordan) next - Cooz (Bobby Cousy), (Bill) Russell." While the Marbury situation has been ongoing, Miller's comments came as a bit of a surprise. "No, we contacted Cheryl," Rivers said of Reggie's sister. "I wanted Cheryl to come back, not Reggie. Listen," the coach added, "whenever I see him, I always tell him, 'Reggie, any time you want to come (back)...' I say that, but as far as what him and Danny have said, I have no idea. I don't get involved in that."

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Yeah, he's soft. Yeah, he's still immature. Yeah, he has been known to shy away and become non-existent when he is needed the most. And yes, the first time he played Shaq, Shaq dunked on him so hard, he will forever be on one of Shaq's greatest posters.

But Andrew Bynum is still also, only twenty-one years old, a baby to some. So sure, he's soft, and sure he gets tired and will make some careless mistakes with the ball. But if you haven't seen Andrew Bynum play basketball, then you truly are missing out on something special.

True, Pau Gasol is the second option on the team, and is the most consistent Laker on the team this year. And anybody believes Bynum will never amount to anything more than an average center int his league will be quick to point out Bynum's stat line against bigger, more physical centers like Orlando's Dwight Howard (3 rebounds).

But believe it or not...Andrew Bynum is slowly becoming the player the Lakers had truly hoped for. Andrew Bynum...is slowly evolving.

Into an idea called greatness.

According to the Toronto Sun, there's buzz that Amare Stoudemire might be the first big-name player to be traded in the next couple weeks before the trading deadline. Stoudemire, once the face of the Phoenix franchise and the self-proclaimed "Black Jesus," has slowly become non-existant on the Suns this year. Destined to be in contention for a championship this year (will you look at their freaking roster?), the Suns have proven to be a complete disappointment this year, Amare being one of big proponent of that.

At the beginning of the season, Stoudemire caused a little bit of stir, saying he wants to be the "man" on the team, and that he is ready to be the go-to player and a defensive menace to be the best big man in the league. Since then, clearly he has looked like an unmotivated player with nothing to truly play for.

Averaging 21.1 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.1 blocks a game, Stoudemire has had only two double digit rebounding games in Phoenix's last fifteen games. In a recent loss against Boston, when one would expect Stoudemire to get up for a big game like this, he wound up with 3 points and 1 rebound in 30 minutes. While he did have a good game last night against Washington, let's keep in mind that the Wizards are plagued with injuries and their starting power forward was Dominic McGuire (who?).

It's hard to tell where the man who calls himself Standing Tall And Talented could go for equal value, but players like Toronto's Jermain O'Neal are on the block. Maybe Joe Dumars has something in mind. Should be an interesting story as it develops...