The Travels of Stevie Franchise

Steve Francis's carreer just entered in twilight zone mode when he was traded to the exact franchise he detested back when he was still a freshman college standout and the Grizzlies was still located in Vancouver.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3792265



I was to create a piece about this news but the truehoop posted an archived article which i guess best says my thoughts on this news

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-37-102/Digging-Through-the-Archives.html


I still remember asking myself "how can this guy detest a franchise just for being located in a cold place and he considers too far from his home. He'll earn miliions of dollars playing the game he so loves and the city would love him for it, while others struggle to make ends meet". My thinking was "this guy has absolutely no respect!". The guy reminded of Danny Ferry, who
after being a college standout at Duke University, refused to play for the Clippers. ( Ironically Francis's NBA batchmate Baron Davis was once asked the Clippers to draft him as the 1st pick, being a UCLA alum, but the Clips choosed Elton Brand instead)

I sincerely hope that Stevie gets lots of playing time to prove that he still deserves the nickname "Franchise".

Penny as an NBA Coach

Here's a link on some discussions of possible future roles for my man, Penny Hardaway in the NBA.

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/dec/07/theres-a-place-for-penny-in-nba



I really hope it pans out for the guy as he was talented as hell but was nagged by recurring injuries. I remember him scoring back to back 40 pointers to force a game five in a playoff series against Miami Heat. That was simply awesome!

There Can Only Be One

If I can have one more wish for Christmas, it would be a Celtics loss to the Lakers. (And 10 more losses for the season.) I don't really hate the Celtics. It would even be OK for me if they win back-to-back championships. But I would really hate it if they win 70 games this season. For me, the 1996-97 Bulls is the only one deserving of that accomplishment.

What is the logical reason for me not wanting the Celtics to reach, the what was once thought to be impossible goal, 70 wins? I have no logical reason. I think it's just natural for us basketball fans to be protective of such unique records. We never want these records to be "just another record." We want them to be immortalized.

... In the end, there can only be one.

Father and Daughter

Browsing thru ESPN.com, I was able to chance upon their piece on Julius Erving's (aka Dr.J) relationship to his out-of-wedlock daughter Alexandra Stevenson (who gained fame with her tumultuous run for Wimbledon championship)

Alexandra's story doesn't end like a fairy tale. Her father doesn't claim her as his (very uncharacteristic of vintage Dr. J), her championship run comes to a halt and currently comes to grip with injuries forcing her game to suffer.


The video is worth the watch especially the part wherein Dr. J meets her daughter face-to-face. It just shows you that Superstars do "human" things as well. This doesn't make her less of a basketball great though, but I'm glad Dr. J really had the class to accept Alexandra, as we know he'd do all along.

http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/videopage?videoId=3785179

Betting on a Lucky Penny

I once thought that the defining factor that will set apart a supercool elementary student from the cool enough ones has got to be having a collection of NBA cards. But this cannot be more untrue. You cannot be one of the cooler ones if 95% of your whole batch has a collection of NBA cards of some sort. Collecting NBA cards has almost become mandatory for any teenage boy.

Basically you need to set yourself apart from all those so-called collectors. You have got to add this "personality" to your collection. And then I thought that I can do this by picking a certain NBA player that will set you apart (you cannot get Michael Jordan since everyone collects Jordan cards) and then maximizing either the volume or value of your collection. And so I placed months worth of (gradeschool) allowance into getting Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway cards.

Penny was the virtual 1st pick of the 1993 draft. He is a 6-7 point guard that was touted as the next Magic Johnson and I quote "...one-half of one of the most dominating inside-out-dise combinations in the league". Man, I can still remember the Shaq-Penny days. You really cannot go wrong betting your collection's "personality" on Penny. And him having a small trash-talking mannequin as an alter ego is more than a reassurance for me.

And so I tried to get as many Penny Hardaway cards as possible (maximizing the volume). I didn't try that hard to maximize the value though I did get a couple of of cards which are on a different value-level than the others. I believe I still have some lying around somewhere at our house.

Unfortunately, 4 knee surgeries brought down the value of the whole collection to a little more than just a several hundred pennies. Well, at least I didn't bet on the 11th pick of the 1993 draft.

Vladrad Trillion

Vladimir Radmanovic went from starter, to DNP-CD, to a member of the trillionation!  He officially registered a trillion with today's game against the Timberwolves.

Random Throwback: Ed Pinckney

While eating breakfast, with the lack of news papers to read (which was a cost saving measure I initiated at our home), I was reading an guitar related magazine and out of nowhere, Ed Pinckney's name just popped out of my head. I remember Ed being a member of the Boston Celtics during the decline of the Bird/Demise of Reggie Lewis era.

Checking his bio, he won NCAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player leading the Villanova Wildcats to the championship over Patrick Ewing's Georgetown Hoyas. He also participated in the first tip-off for the Toronto Raptors Basketball Franchise! Now how many players can claim that?!?

Priceless

Before anything else, congratulations to the Archers for taking the PCC championship over Ateneo. Not that I think it would've mattered, but guess where Chris Tiu was in all of this? In Vegas watching the Pacquiao fight! Though I probably would've done the same given a choice.

Anyway, today future Knick LeBron James broke the Cavs record for steals held by brainiac PG Mark Price, and Big Z broke Brad Daugherty's record for rebounds. For those who don't remember who Mark Price is, he's probably the second smartest point guard ever (next to Stockton), and I think once held the league record for 3-point accuracy (before Steve Kerr came along).

The early Run-N-Gun arcade game actually feature a white PG wearing #25 for Cleveland with uncanny marksmanship. I always thought that was based on him.

Here's a little trip down memory passing lane. I actually prefer the powder blue Cavaliers uniform I don't know why.



(The song is Soul Asylum's Black Gold. Nothing says basketball like folk-tinged acoustic rock.)

It's sad that the only Cavalier people will remember from that era is Craig Ehlo.

Worst Free Throw Stance or NBA Player with the Least Confidence?

Just saw a couple of videos of Chuck Hayes taking some free throws. He must have had a traumatic experience to really shoot horribly like that. Other NBA players cannot stop giggling watching him. His Rocket teammates were all cheering him on but it may have had more of a negative effect than a positive one.



It would really be bad if he get's waived because of his shooting stance. I was even surprised that he's still on the Rockets roster after seeing videos of last season.

College Try

It's the PCCL semi-finals between La Salle and San Beda, and the vaunted Green Archer defense has limited the Red Lions' offense to just 11 points with 1:33 left in the first.

Unfortunately, they still haven't scored. At all.

Ok update, they ran off six straight points just now. Never mind.

I saw the end of the Ateneo-Letran semis yesterday, and with the Blue Eagles leading 61-60 with Knights' ball, not one, but two consecutive jump balls ensued. I did not know that a jump ball results in an automatic turnover for the team on offense, meaning the ball is awarded to the team on defense. Is that only if the jump ball happens in the last two minutes? And why the hell is it still called a jump ball?

Big Baby Glen Davis Acts Like A Baby

Glen Davis is one of my favorite characters in the NBA. He seems to be a likeable guy. Here's a clip of him showing his raw emotions after getting a dose of choiced words from Kevin Garnett!



Part of the video, i believe, was taken from an ESPN highlight reel which is also available at the ESPN website.

AWESOME JOB, CRICKET!

Great job with the banner and layout changes, Cricket!

Pero kilala mo ba yung mga players na nasa pics?

Paul "Bong" "Mr. Excitement" Alvarez?
Alvin "Captain Lionheart" Patrimonio with Ramon "El Presidente" Fernandez?

I don't the player showing his butt while pointing at something.

PBA Import

I just had to post this here.  I saw this somewhere on the net, must have been taken years ago when the cool cat[1] was still in Alaska.  It's just funny, and well photoshopped!

I guess theoretically this can probably happen, when Yao Ming's around 42, 43 years old already?

[1] Yes, I still researched that.  I know I'm not the best person to ask about PBA nicknames[2].
[2] Yes, I know I used to think that Big J was Abdul Jabbar.

Big Al Needs An Reality Check!

From observation, it seems that Big Al Harrington is always asking to be traded. He was first not good enough with the Pacers as it's 6th man and wanted a starting role so he was traded to the Hawks. He was the big dog in ATL until Joe Johnson came in. He wanted out by that time that Joe Johnson was stealing his thunder. He found his way back to Indiana and was traded to Golden State.

I had feeling that he had a great stint with Golden State with my favorite NBA player Capt. Jack! But lo and behold he wants out again. I' m not really sure if it's his ego or anything, as I don't personally know the guy. But I guess he's a king in NY for now and that's good enough for him.

I believe that Al Harrington needs a reality check and realize that he's not that great of a b-ball player really. He's good, but he's not marque player good. He can be a vital player in a play-off team and could be a possible Finals MVP even, but he's not just star player quality that's all.

Hoosier Daddy

Pacers overcome a 15-point 4th quarter lead and beat the Lakers with a tip-in at the buzzer. Who does Troy Murphy think he is, Rik Smits?

This is probably as interesting as it will get for the Pacers all season.

First Post Nonsense

1st!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What's with all the users trying to post the first comment in blogs?! I really didn't get it until I got the opportunity to be the first one on this Yahoo Sports blog. I felt this pressure to not let a once in a lifetime opportunity pass by and post something that will forever change the landscape of basketball blogging (ala butterfly effect).

And so I tried to think of something witty/funny but all I managed to say is how lame #10 is (Kobe's behind-the-back pass). And I consciously decided to be a little conservative so as not to get too much backlash from the Kobe fanatics out there. I still think it's definitely better than all those "1st!!!!!!!!!!!!" nonsense.

PCCL, Anyone?

For those who do not know, there is an on-going tournament called the Philippine Collegiate Championship League (PCCL).  It is, and I quote:

...the upcoming national collegiate basketball championship tournament in the Philippines.  It is sanctioned by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, the country's national basketball federation. It's format is similar to the one used in the United States' NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship, with 250 teams coming from nine different regional areas nationwide. The champion of this tournament will represent the Philippines in the Universiade (World University Games) basketball tournament. [1]

The format is a single elimination round, meaning one loss and you're out.  It started with 250 teams, and now it's down to 6 - Ateneo being one of the survivors, and the others are: DLSU, San Beda College, Letran, FEU, and Arellano University.

At present, Ateneo and La Salle have claimed the first two seats of the Final Four, awaiting the results of the FEU-Letran, and San Beda-Arellano matches respectively.

I haven't been paying much attention to this league before, but I am getting a bit excited now because there is a huge chance that Ateneo will be going up against La Salle again for the championship, or even better, against the San Beda Red Lions who used to be their arch-rivals during the NCAA days.

Notes:  Ateneo is currently defending the PCCL crown this season (meaning they won it last year).  Ryan Buenafe, arguably the second best offensive player of the Blue Eagles, hasn't been playing in this league because "he hasn't been getting enough practice time due to his studies." -- Coach Norman Black.  UE, the 2006 PCCL champion, just got eliminated in a close game by La Salle last Sunday, November 30.

Go ATENEO!

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_Collegiate_Championship

New York Crazy!

I was reading some articles regarding Stephon Marbury's antics and it's repercussions in Knick-dom when I chanced across this comment in the blog postingandtoasting.com.

User SamH posted this:

From ESPN.com: "With Marbury absent — as was Tim Thomas, who was excused for personal reasons — and so many others injured, five of the Knicks’ six healthy players had to go though a drill Friday matched against a team comprised of assistant coaches Herb Williams, Dan D’Antoni, Phil Weber, Kenny Atkinson and assistant general manager Allan Houston. "

I can't find the epsn page he got this from. But if this is true, this tragedy borders on comedy. Though this might be a good news for Alan Houston fans!

PBA Live '90s

It's been years since I last watched a PBA game (live or even on tv). I cannot even remember what channel they were on since the PBA kept on switching, from IBC to ABC to PTV to TLA.

My grandfather always had free tickets to every San Miguel game (and so I was a SMB fan). But my grandfather just watches the games on tv while my Dad and I go watch the game at Araneta or Cuneta Astrodome. We always had two Special Ringside tickets plus 2 Lowerbox tickets. We just sell the lower box tickets to scalpers so that we'll have our dinner and snacks for that night (I always buy a hotdog between games).

What I'll always remember is the couple of times I was asked to do this obstacle contest. (Yes, I was asked twice on different game dates!) The objective was simple: From one end of the court, go around the obstacles, make a layup, go back down, and make another layup (in 30 seconds IIRC) while wearing this oversized PBA shirt. I'm sure there was a cash prize, I think it was Php500 per make. Guess how I did, I was 0 for 4!

I'm thinking of the possible things why I won nothing:
1) I was so nervous and I was not able to handle the pressure of making layups in front of thousands of spectators.
2) The layup was not my best shot since I think of myself as a perimeter guy.
3) Damn oversized shirt, getting in the way of my shooting arm!
4) I'm a natural non-jock.
5) All of the above.

Lebron Calls Barkley Stupid! We Already Know That!

According to reports (of couse we're guys from manila, we would admit that we don't have any personal knowledge of what happens in the NBA), Lebron reacted strongly to Barkley's comments regarding the circus that has been happening dubbed as the Lebron free agency race that'll kick off in 2010.

From Yahoo.com, "“He’s stupid. That’s all I’ve got to say about that,” Lebron said regarding Barkley's comments for Lebron to stop commenting on his 2010 free agency as this is disrespectful to the Cavaliers.

Honestly I agree with Charles Barkley on this point, that Lebron is being disrespectful on handling this. It would be a better if he just refused to comment on this and let his game talk (err... he has been making his game talk, ala-MVP). I just hope that Lebron handles this free agency team a little better.

I've read somewhere a quote from Lebron that he's going to do what's best in his interest. Is his best interest the big bright lights of NY? I don't think so. I see his posters in the streets of Manila so i would assume that his posters are in NY as well. Is he after the big bucks? I don't know, but i don't see him getting better treatment than what he has right now in Cleveland. In Cleveland, he's a basketball god. In NY, he'll just be a celebrity with great basketball physique and skills.

Start Spreading The News

Chris Duhon made a statement game today (the Knicks over the Warriors 138-125 in a scoring fest), that statement being "Even if I take 30 shots a night from here on out, it won't matter 'coz the only thing people will remember is that I own the Knicks record for most assists in a single game (22)".

Now I haven't seen a lot of Chris Duhon, but I'm pretty sure "assist king" didn't come to mind when I watched him play in Chicago. Some soundbytes from Foxsports.com:

"That's what a point guard's supposed to do, is get their team involved," Duhon said. "If I can do that every night I would love it. I love sharing the ball, I love getting those guys involved. The main important thing is that we got the win."

Riggght. Here's another one:

"I think Duhon is the story tonight. Wow, what a player," Warriors coach Don Nelson said. "Been watching him on film and seeing him on videos, but seeing him in person is another story. Guy's got the whole package. He looked like Steve Nash out there. Unbelievable performance."

Mr. Nelson, don't encourage him. The next thing you know, Quentin Richardson will think he's, uh, Quentin Richardson.

Yahoo Sports > NBA.com

Is it just me or has NBA.com been showing a lot of bugs recently?

This season, I've given up on the live game updates in NBA.com and turned to Yahoo Sports' version of it.  Plus, the latter gives game recaps faster as well.  The only advantage I see of NBA.com over Yahoo is their post-game videos.

Stephon Gets Suspended For Refusing to Play

What do you to a student who doesn't want to go to school? Ask him to go to school!
Now what do you to to Stephon Marbury when he doesn't want to go out and play. You order him to go out and play!

But when Stephon refused to play at a time when the Knicks only had two healthy guards, the Knicks decided to suspend him instead.

Maybe Stephon will play in the next game. Oh, Err... you just suspended the guy.

I understand that Steph has his own principles , but at a time when your team mates need you to play Steph should play! I would if i was in the same situation!

Since the Knicks are paying him, i wonder if the knicks can file insubordination... hmm

NY Heart LBJ

Late last week the Knicks traded away their top two scorers to clear cap space for LBJ in 2010. I dismissed the move as stupid out of habit.

Lakers to Win 70

I know that I am not alone when I say that the Lakers will win 70+ this season - if they can remain to stay injury free.

Off to a 12-1 start, and a winning margin of 7 or more in all 12 games (most of which were in double digits by the way), we really can not avoid talking about the '95-'96 Chicago Bulls.  But of course, the comparison stops there.  We all know that the league is more competetive now and a lot of players from all around the world have "leveled-up" and gathered in what can be argued as the best basketball league.  But so far, the odds are with them.

They get to play Golden State (5-10, 0.333), Sacramento (5-11, 0.313), Clips (2-12, 0.143), and the Suns four times this season, and as we can see, majority of these teams are not even close to the 500 mark.  With Kobe only averaging around 30 minutes per ball game, even at nights when he goes 5-17 the Lakers are still able to showcase their talent, even beating their opponents by 24 points.

So let's just see.  It really is too early to be talking about 70 wins, but I have confidence on my team - they will get 70 or more, if they remain healthy*.  I am willing to bet P300.00 each to anyone who thinks otherwise, any takers?

P.S.: I'm really looking forward to the NBA Finals rematch this Christmas.

* By healthy I mean no devastating injuries, similar to what happend to Andrew Bynum last year.  By healthy I do not mean any pinky problems, stomach flus, and what-not.

Unbeata-Bull****

Someone on Bekshoot (guess who) believes that the Lakers will win 70 games this season. That's effing ridiculous.

Kobe does an MJ

I'm not the biggest fan of Kobe (that's Cricket). And definitely I'm no Kobe-hater (that's Arvil). Kobe had done a lot of "on-court brags" before such as blowing on his fingers or pulling his uniform show and snapping it back. (I still need to find out the official slang term for these moves.) Kobe may have used up his list of brags with all his highlights that he decided to just imitate others' moves (particularly a move by MJ taunting Mutombo).

Bek-Bek... Bek Shoot!

This is it! The intial post from Bek Shoot Basketball! You might wonder what Bek Shoot basketball is all about and we ourselves are wondering as well.

Bek Shoot was an idea we came up with during our usual discussions in the office (during work hours mind you). It stems from the idea of several basketball blogs that have cropped up ushering in a new era of basketball journalism. Now with the fact that people behind Bek Shoot believes that more than half of basketball bloggers are regular joe's like ourselves we decided to get into the fray and be involved in this discussion. (We also believe that basketball journalism here in the Philippines needs a big JOLT)

In Bek Shoot, we would be discussing what we talk about regularly during our breaks from work. We stand by our opinions and we don't necessarily label them as right or wrong, but take it as it is... opinions from regular basketball joes or as we call it "non-jocks".