Posted on 23 February 2011.
Amare Stoudemire looks at his knees as he slowly walks towards the bright lights of the Madison Square Garden. Yes, it’s the same knees that not so long ago underwent microfracture surgery. The same knees that made him missed all the regular season in 2006 because of ongoing stiffness. It was also the knees that brought him to New York, when the Phoenix Suns won’t give him a guaranteed contract.
It’s walking on a different swagger now. It looks like it sipped all the youthfulness on the fountain of youth… It’s back… it’s definitely back.
Amare has been the Knicks mercurial leader. He had carried this team in spite his unstable knees. Leadership is getting everybody from where they are to where they have not been. He carries the promise of a championship, a glimmer of hope from a franchise that hasn’t gotten to the playoffs since 2004. But he knows basketball is still a team game. He still needs all the help he can get.
The Knicks gave up almost half of their roster (Wilson Chandler, Danilo Galinari, Raymond Felton, Anthony Randolph, Timothy Mozgov, Eddy Curry with New York’s first round draft pick in 2014, second round draft picks in 2012 and 2013 with cash) just to get Carmelo Anthony, Chauncy Billups, Anthony Carter, Renaldo Balkman, Shelden Williams and Correy Brewer from Minnesota.
The new and revitalized roster opened up a lot of possibilities to the Knicks. They have the one-two punch in the offensive side with Amare and Melo. Then they have a good backcourt general in Billups.
Many questioned about the Knicks decision. They could have waited much longer and sign Carmelo in free agency giving up less in return. However, there is no perfect time than now. They knew the New Jersey Nets have been offering a much lucrative and similar deal. However, like a game of Chess, the Nets have already been checkmated long before they made their first move. The promise of Amare, weighs much bigger than any of the Nets offer.
The Knicks are done with rebuilding. They have now Melo and with the right pieces to the puzzle everything seems to be possible.
Amidst all the debates and questions about Amare Stoudemire’s knees it seems to be working perfectly fine now. The Knicks could go deep into the playoffs and maybe just maybe into the finals.
Amare walks in a different swagger, because he knows everything has fallen into the right places. He doesn’t have to focus more on carrying the team…
It’s all about winning now.
Related Blogs
Posted in Basketball, NBA, NBA files, sports, Uncategorized
Posted on 20 February 2011.
It was a brutal TKO win by Nonito Donaire Jr. against Fernando Montiel Download now the HBO version… This file is in .asf it’s a much smaller file and easier to download… Play this in VLC or simply your Windows media player…
DOWNLOAD NOW! : MEGAUPLOAD 72.41 MB ONLY
Related Blogs
Posted in boxing, boxing download, Pinoy sports, sports, Uncategorized
Posted on 18 February 2011.
The sound of swish can be heard on an empty court with bleachers already cleaned from all the trash loitered on the Milwaukee Bucks last game. The sweat-filled Michael Redd is practicing his shooting touch. One-two dribble then concluded with a pull-up jumper. Swish as the deafening noise echoed the empty stadium, like a seasoned shooter on a target practice hitting nothing but the net, with deadly precision.
Michael is preparing for his comeback with the Bucks after two straight years of suffering an ACL and MCL in the same knee. It has been a long rehabilitation and with his contract expiring. It’s becoming a mandatory obligation for him to really get back. It has been two seasons, and Milwaukee seems to move on pretty well. Andrew Bogut has since came out from his shell giving the Bucks a double-double output (points and rebounds) and shot blocking presence. However, Michael really wanted to get back and has worked doubly hard on his rehabilitation. It’s not about the money or contracts. It’s about trying to prove to everyone that he still can be deadly from beyond the arc, and he still can contribute to the team. It has been a Cinderella career for him after being a second-round pick to becoming an all-star and playing in the U.S. Olympic team. He wants a happy ever after ending.
However, Milwaukee seems not too eager to see him back. The Bucks continue to get the insurance money that covered 80% percent of Michael’s 18.3 million salary. It really helps the franchise, especially if you are paying someone who is not playing at all. If Michael is healthy enough to play the Bucks remaining games it will cost the team some millions of lost insurance payments.
Redd has been a step slower now and even while he was still healthy his defense was always a suspect. But it was no doubt, he has been carrying this team on his back for years. He has been loyal to this franchise and all he needs is just a second chance, one last ditch of effort before calling it a career.
The sound of swish once again echoed around the empty bleachers, around the empty arena. Michael Redd perfects his shooting touch with one-two dribble and a pull-up jumper…. Swish! It’s the sound of net being murdered over and over again but beyond that, it sounds like a determined player wanting to get back.
Related Blogs
Posted in Basketball, NBA, NBA files, sports, Uncategorized
Posted on 15 February 2011.
Gary Neal stared at the ball intently while watching it roll over on the ground during their basketball practice. His basketball career had been more like a ball, gyrating up and down and sometimes moving towards another direction, making a different path. However, no matter how high or low it always comes back right into the person guiding it.
Gary could have been part of the 2007 NBA draft. He was always the ever reliable combo guard who could distribute the ball and the same time shoot way beyond the arc. However, he came out undrafted and had to play three seasons overseas. He knew if he was in the NBA, he could have cut his career short. It was like going to war without enough ammunition or going to an exam with an unsharpened pencil. He could have been D.J. Strawberry or Javaris Crittenton, who had tons of potential but never got the opportunity they’ve wanted. There are a few who are born to be there on the top and the rest it’s just finding the right niche or the right pieces to a jigsaw puzzle. A team only needs two or three superstars, and the rest can be called role players. It’s just finding the right team with the right place which is more like finding a needle on a stack of hay.
Gary knew his role when the San Antonio Spurs signed him to a three year contract. When speed and athleticism clearly belong to Tony Parker, George Hill and Manu Ginobili, Gary is there to provide the consistency. The spot-up shooter who could distribute the ball and to ease up the scoring load on their aging veterans. It was always his shooting touch that got him to where he is now. His solace, whenever things don’t go the way he wanted it to be. He literally shoots his way out of everything.
The Spurs still cruise their way to the NBA, topping the standings with a 46-9 record. It’s not just about Duncan, Parker and Ginobili. It’s all about playing as a unit and finding the right mix. Gary Neal will be their dependable scorer. He would be there when the team needs him to be.
He knows he had been through a lot, but it was all worthwhile. After being undrafted, and going through different teams it was always a welcome experience. It was the right sharpener to get him ready for a bigger test ahead.
Gary Neal smiled as he picked up the ball and dribbled it.
Life could take you up or down but it’s always reassuring to know, you still control your own destiny…
Related Blogs
Posted in Basketball, NBA, NBA files, sports, Uncategorized
Posted on 12 February 2011.
Jerry Sloan walked out from the Utah Jazz as head coach during their loss to the Chicago Bulls yesterday. Everything happened abruptly, Sloan never really like putting himself in the limelight. He doesn’t want too much attention.
It was a decision he had been contemplating for years now, but he was just waiting for the perfect time.
There were a lot of speculations about Sloan’s altercation with Deron Williams during halftime. However, for the past 23 years as the Jazz head coach, it was always part of his usual routine. There are a handful of games you can count without Sloan shouting at his players.
Deron seems to be his prototype, a fiery point guard who loves to win and would do everything to keep his team winning. Jerry would never leave a franchise just because of someone. He is too proud and too hardheaded to do that. He never changed. He is the same old disciplined and emotional coach as he always was.
Yet, when the only constant in life is changing, the sport evolves into a much different genre. Players learn to speak for themselves. They let everybody know if they disagree on something. Times have changed and while the sport, and everyone else, continuously evolves and go through the process, Sloan remains as he is.
Twenty-three years of chasing that elusive NBA championship, and twice he almost made it. Now he is just tired of catching up. The thrill is slowly fading and the enthusiasm about getting to work is becoming monotonous for him. He knew he would just wake up one day and feel it’s time.
Deron would never be the reason for him to quit. It would never be part of his vocabulary. An ever-disciplined and physical coach never backs down. Everything changes, but he will remain as he is.
It’s not the first time he walked out. He had trouble drinking and smoking before, and walked out in order to get clean. However, it also provides a lesson: When this Hall of Hame coach and one of the greatest in the NBA walks out, he never comes back.
Related Blogs
Posted in Basketball, NBA, NBA files, sports, Uncategorized
Posted on 08 February 2011.
Kevin Love towers everyone in the Timberwolves locker room. Even though the two twin towers Darko Milicic and Kusta Koufos (both seven-foot tall) are two inches taller than him.
He is in a different level, a different groove, a man on a mission even though his team dwells in the bottom part of the NBA standings.
Kevin grew up watching all the instructional videos and countless tapes of great passing big men in NBA history. And one thing that instills on his mind… those NBA centers never gave up.
Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson and Wes Unseld carried their teams to NBA championships, but they never jump on the bandwagon going to other teams to get it. It wasn’t much about loyalty, but it was how well you carry the team from day one all the way to the championship.
It’s a measurement of greatness. And Kevin Love already knew his role when he was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves. He knows he is not there to win as many games as he wanted to. He is there to make an identity to the team.
The great passing big men in the NBA have one common denominator, and that is being unselfish. Love doesn’t count his rebounds or his scoring. He is happy to set screens, grab the loose balls and contribute to the team, even if he has limited minutes.
He was never been through the All-stars. He wasn’t even part of the line-up on the rookie challenge way back in 2008. But he wasn’t even thinking about it. He’s just too focused and too drawn to the fact of making his mark in the NBA. Making those tiny little steps that could turn someday into one big leap.
Kevin Love got the spot of the injured Yao Ming in the upcoming NBA All-stars. He’s making noise lately with 30-30 (points and rebounds) game a feat that was last accomplished way back in 1982 by Moses Malone. It’s a product of hard work and being an old school player.
Yes Kevin Love towers everyone on the Wolves’ locker room. In fact, he towers all over Minnesota. He thanks his father former NBA player Stan Love for all the values and the videos he grew up watching. Slowly, but surely everything is falling into place. It’s not about his all-star selection, not that it doesn’t matter to him. 12-39 isn’t much too proud of but at least. Somewhere, somehow he got the recognition. Recognition he has been focusing since day one.
Rightfully, he towers everyone because he is slowly becoming the face of the franchise an old school player who finally transformed the team’s identity.
Related Blogs
Posted in Basketball, NBA, NBA files, sports, Uncategorized
Posted on 04 February 2011.
Monta Ellis could barely watch the banners that honor all the All-stars in franchise history. Golden State has been on the record of 14 straight years without having an All-star with Latrell Sprewell as their last, way back in 1997.
With the recent announcement of All-star reserves, it looks like the drought will be in for another year, another setback with an added pile of a mountain of frustrations to the franchise.
Monta was their only chance, a glance or a flicker of light to a team hovered with dark clouds. The Warriors needed the boost. They knew how good Ellis is. He can shoot and drive to the basket at will. They couldn’t count the times Monta single handedly saved them on crucial baskets. He is number 6 in the league in points (25.1) with 5.6 assists per game. But still they wondered how the league failed to recognize such a scoring threat. Maybe because the Warriors struggled mostly this season like Kevin Love in Minnesota that average a double-double with 21.4 points and 15.5 rebounds which leads Dwight Howard in the rebounding department. And still Love’s team dwells in the bottom of the Western conference with only 11 wins with 38 losses.
Kobe Bryant and the West coach Greg Popovich had acknowledged Monta’s offensive power. They knew how hard it is to play Ellis in the open court. Year after year Ellis puts up an All-star performance but year after year they still continue to snub him. It sometimes mind boggling knowing the definition of an All-star is “made up entirely of outstanding performers”. There are many deserving players and certainly Monta leads that pack.
Monta Ellis knew that time will come his name would be right there on the reserved list on the All-star. No more drought and with his name etch on a banner beside the legendary names of Rick Barry and Wilt Chamberlain.
I don’t know if 2012 would be the end of the world… but I know for sure Monta Ellis would be an All-star rightfully and deserving so.
Related Blogs
Posted in Basketball, NBA, NBA files, sports, Uncategorized
Posted on 02 February 2011.
Blake Griffin last year saw Tyreke Evans won the rookie of the year awards. It was supposed to be his placed….His destiny.
Blake worked so hard on the preseason but his career got derailed by a broken knee cap. He wanted to be the best; he wanted so much to prove to everybody that he was the right choice for the overall number one pick on the draft. But it was never meant for him. It was not his time yet.
Even on the draft, Blake was the hands down number one pick. He was a no-brainer choice. With an NBA ready body that can score and play defense. From Brandon Jennings all the way to Hasheem Thabeet, there’s nobody that comes close to Griffin. Not even a comparison.
February 18 will be the NBA All-star rookie challenge. Although it’s a non bearing game, but for Blake he still means business. He will be facing his familiar 2009 draft achievers against a freshmen team he is leading now with John Wall, Demarcus Cousins and Derrick Favors. He will be facing the former Rookie of the year Tyreke Evans. The 6-foot-6 point guard Evans was the fourth NBA player in history to average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in his rookie year.
Blake would love the challenge… He would love the thought of winning against a sophomore team. The team where he was supposed to be…
Blake Griffin will not be a mere spectator this time. At still half the season it looks like it’s already a landslide win for the rookie of the year awards. This is his time now… his destiny… and not even John Wall or DeMarcus Cousins comes close.
And not even a comparison….
Related Blogs
Posted in Basketball, NBA, NBA files, sports, Uncategorized
Posted on 30 January 2011.
Phil Jackson has said it over and over again that this would be his last season with the Lakers. This is his last and final stand to an unprecedented 12 NBA championship.
It was always the challenges that drawn him back. Each season comes with a different challenge, a different drama that usually ends with a very intriguing finale. Basketball has been a constant fixture on his life, a comfort zone that time and time again became his fall back.
There is always something about Championships for Phil. Beyond those glittering gold trophies and extravagant celebrations, it was never about the competition. It was always the thought of overcoming all season’s obstacles and failures before they triumphed. Each wins is always an added experience a growth and maturity to a team. Just like Vince Lombardi always said “Winning isn’t everything, but the will to win is everything.”
There are still a lot of challenges left. A lot of mountains left unclimbed. However, the thrill and excitement seem to slowly die down. He had done so much for basketball. Won championships, coach of the year awards and have coached the NBA’s greatest players in Michael Jordan, Shaq and Kobe. He had been in basketball for too long and had won games more than he could imagine. He always has a game plan for everything and retiring is one of them.
The Lakers this season so far has been on some tumultuous games. They have been blown out by the Milwaukee Bucks for almost 20 points on their home court. They lost to the Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs and recently to the (11-33) Sacramento Kings. The Lakers still holds the Western conference number two spot. However, they have a problem of being consistent this season. This would be the ultimate challenge for Jackson to pull this off. However, regardless if they win a championship this time, he already made up his mind. This would be his last season… last and final climb.
“Like life, basketball is messy and unpredictable. It has its way with you, no matter how hard you try to control it. The trick is to experience each moment with a clear mind and open heart. When you do that, the game–and life–will take care of itself.”
For Phil Jackson, there is always a life after basketball…
Related Blogs
Posted in Basketball, NBA, NBA files, sports, Uncategorized
euce of Davenport
Stumble it!
Twitter
Digg
Bleacher report
StumbleUpon