High flying Spurs are Parker’s team now
Spurs coach told Parker it was up to him to carry the team now
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Royce White doesn’t report to Rockets camp, cites fear of flying
Royce White is working out a deal with the Houston Rockets that would allow him to bus it to some road trips.
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NBA Draft 2012: 10 Best Prospects Flying Under Lottery Teams’ Radars
Every year, the draft has its favorites.
It isn’t hard to tell who they are, there’s a mock draft on every web site.
But the real question is who will be selected amongst the later picks that will set the world on fire.
We have seen those top picks flame out, while late-round selections turned into All-Stars.
There really isn’t a set in stone philosophy, only great scouting.
Here are 10 players who are flying under the top pick’s radars.
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Portland Trail Blazers Are Flying Under the Radar in the Western Conference
Lob City. Reining championship Dallas Mavericks. Aging Los Angeles Lakers. The new favorite team to win the West: Oklahoma City Thunder.
With the beginning of the NBA season on Christmas Day came a lot of hype in the Western Conference surrounded only these topics. These were the big stories that captivated headlines everywhere.
After five games, however, the 4-1 Trail Blazers are the new team making noise. But don’t tell anyone—it’s seems as if they thrive flying under the radar. The preseason buzz around the Blazers had most analysts picking Portland to finish near the back end of the West playoff teams.
And with the news of Brandon Roy retiring two weeks before the season, Greg Oden still suffering from injuries and a surprising heart surgery on star forward LaMarcus Aldridge, it had seemed as if the Trail Blazers were on the decline.
But now after their latest 103-93 win in Oklahoma City, it’s obvious the Blazers have arrived as a top-tier team, looking to contend for the West crown when playoffs come around in April.
Yes, it is early in the season with many games still to come, but with the West being so wide open, it looks like the Trail Blazers may be a new team to keep an eye on going forward.
The Blazers have a very strong lineup, including a new acquisition in Jamal Crawford, in what seems to be the biggest steal of all free agents signings this past offseason. A nice addition coming off the bench supporting the already solid nucleus of the starting five.
Against the Thunder on Tuesday, the Trail Blazers performed brilliantly getting key contributions from Aldridge and Wesley Matthews (combined for 46 points). But the real story was defense down the stretch getting key stops when it mattered most. The play of Gerald Wallace specifically against MVP favorite Kevin Durant was huge, holding the superstar to 8-for-26 shooting from the field.
Nicolas Batum also showed up huge without producing huge numbers, but providing a strong defensive performance getting key blocks, rebounds and offensively, hitting threes consistently throughout the game.
This win against Oklahoma City has been their best performance this season playing what seems like the strongest team in the West in the Thunder.
While Portland may not be a contender in the eyes of the media, the Blazers have several play makers that can beat you in so many ways, and are continuing to prove this from the outcome of their early games.
As this shortened 66-game season wears on, it looks as if the all-important team chemistry will only grow for the Trail Blazers, a key factor that should propel the Blazers into the elite teams in the West, and further on into the playoffs.
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Will The Xinjiang Flying Tigers Waive Kenyon Martin?
Those of you who have been following my CBA reports already know that Kenyon Martin has been a disappointment for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers thus far. According to a report by ESPN’s Marc Stein, the team is strongly considering parting ways with the underacheiving power forward. As a matter of fact, the article states that only serious sanctaions threatened by the CBA have “stopped Xinjiang from making the move already.” Via ESPN…
The Xinjiang Flying Tigers in China are giving strong consideration to releasing star forward Kenyon Martin, according to sources close to the situation.
If Xinjiang goes through with the move, it would be the test case for established NBA players who signed in China during the lockout to possibly return to the NBA sooner than expected.
Sources told ESPN.com that only the threat of serious sanctions from Chinese league officials for releasing a player of Martin’s stature in-season, including the potential forfeiture of games, …
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Illinois and Top 10 Teams Flying Under the Radar so Far
In college basketball as in college football, sometimes a team can do everything right and it’s still not enough. A number of outstanding squads haven’t gotten nearly the attention they deserve this season from fans or pollsters.
Unbeaten Illinois is a prime example of the phenomenon. The Illini are 10-0 with wins over Richmond, Maryland and Gonzaga, yet they can’t even climb as high as 8-2 conference rival Michigan in the national polls.
Herein, a closer look at Illinois and the rest of the best teams that haven’t gotten enough hype in 2011-12.
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Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries Wedding: Justin Bieber Flying Solo?
While pop-sensation Justin Bieber is expected to be in attendance, he won’t have a girl on his arm for the proceedings:
It is reported that even though Justin Bieber will allegedly be attending, his girlfriend, Selena Gomez, won’t be able to make it due to a scheduled performance, states Hollyscoop.
It has already been reported that Kelly Ripa and Pia Toscano also won’t be able to make it, but considering her guest list, there will be plenty of other stars to fill the space.
We can guarantee you that Joel McHale, he of “The Soup” and NBC’s Community, most certainly won’t be on the guest list. Here’s an excerpt from McHale’s interview with Just Jared:
JJ: Has The Soup had any backlash with people that have been joked about on it?
JM: “I know the Kardashians don’t like me. No one has said ‘how dare you,’ reality stars without exception have come up to me and have said ‘Thank you for making fun of me.’ We made so much fun of Jake Pavelka, and he responded by coming on the show. With the Kardashians we’re not allowed to say they have a sex tape anymore because the network flips out.
I have a feeling the Kardashian proceedings could use a bit of levity, but they won’t be getting it from McHale, that’s for sure.
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Carmelo Anthony Flying Solo Against Boston’s Big Four
The Knicks and Celtics series has taken a twist as two of New Yorks big three have gone down with injuries. The Knicks are used to playing without one of their three in most cases as the majority of their games have been played with one missing. However they haven’t been limited to only one player remaining until this series with Boston. Billups went down in game one with an ankle injury and Stoudemire went down in game two with back problems.
Melo has done all that he can to keep the Knicks in the game but overcoming these odds will be rather difficult as he takes the floor with four guys that no one else in the league even knew before this season.
Everyone knew that Melo would not be held to a minimal 15 points all series as he is an offensive machine, but it is apparent that the Knicks may need to adapt to what they have and just attack the rim. The lack of production in the post is going to require them to attack to keep pressure on the defense, otherwise Boston&rsq…
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Flying high…The Hawks defeat the Magic 103-93
The Orlando Magic quest for a championship began on Saturday night and left the team searching for answer to some familiar questions. Who will help Dwight Howard? What is it going to take for this team to play defense consistently? The Atlanta Hawks continue to confound the Magic opening up the series with a 103-93 victory. The Hawks overcame a historic night from Dwight Howard who finished with a mammoth 46 point, and 19 rebound effort in the loss. Atlanta rode the hot shooting of Joe Johnson (25 points) and Jamal Crawford (23 points off the bench) to create a balanced attack and steal the home court advantage from Orlando in the series. The points by Howard tied an Orlando Magic playoff record matching Tracy McGrady’s 46 point outburst in 2003
Dwight Howard has grown weary of the talk about Jason Collin’s perceived ability to defend him. The two players are not even in the same galaxy in comparison but Howard did admit that Collins and Kendrick Perkins are the toughest defe…
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Manu Ginobili Avoids Flying Bat (Video)
Manu Ginobili has been known to do some crazy stuff in games, such as make out with a teammate, or swat a bat. Yes, a year and a half ago he swatted a bat out of mid air at the AT&T Center during a game. I guess the eight rabies shots he had to undergo [...]
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