Andrew Bogut has instituted a tradition in Milwaukee whereby he gives away lower level seats to the rowdiest fans to get the Bucks crowd going. The group has been dubbed Squad Six. Of course, we expect nothing less from the big Aussie, in the true Australian style of helping out "the little guy".
The auditions for season tickets in Squad Six were held recently and there was certainly some enthusiasm on show. Check out this pirate, who secured himself a spot through this display.
no commentsFollowing on in the NBA 2010/11 Previews series, today we have the Pacific Division, as opined by the bloggers that know the teams best.
Clippers: Clips Nation | SBNation Recap
Kings: Sactown Royalty | Cowbell Kingdom | SBNation Recap
Lakers: Silver Screen and Roll | Forum Blue & Gold | NBAtipoff | SBNation Recap
Suns: Bright Side Of The Sun | SB Nation Arizona | ValleyoftheSuns | SBNation Recap
Warriors: Golden State of Mind | SBNation Recap
Recaps: All Previews
(Tardy) Knicks Preview: Straight Bangin'
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WIN: A copy of NBA 2K11 on PS3 or X360! Enter our contest.
Today comes the not-altogether-surprising (or disappointing) news that EA Sports have made the decision to delay the release of NBA Elite 11. The new title from EA, a rebadging of the NBA Live series, was due to release next month. Instead, we now have an indefinite release date that will fall sometime during the 2011 calendar year.
The developers took on feedback from the gaming community after the recent release of a demo version of the game brought constructive criticism. EA Sports President Peter Moore felt that the team needed more time to get the game "right".
no commentsBack in the good old days, Doug Christie was stealing the ball for the Toronto Raptors (with the express consent of his wife) and Vince Carter was throwing down dunks. Here is one such example from 30 December, 1999.
no commentsLeBron James has a new iteration in his range of Nike shoes -- the LeBron 8. Due to drop next month, the shoes are in the Air Max format and will be released in a number of colourways and country-styles.
Previous versions -- particularly the early models -- of LeBron's Nikes have been heavy and clunky and quite honestly did not appeal to me one bit. The design of these ones on the other hand I much prefer. Basically, they're a lot more old-school looking.
Take a look at this teaser trailer which proclaims that "transformation is unstoppable", showing the way LeBron sneakers have developed and evolved over the past seven years.
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The shifting balance of power in the NBA has been well documented this summer. Players have started to act in their own best interest, with loyalties to fellow players proving to be stronger than those with teams and executives. The Trio in Miami is the case that first comes to mind, but Amar'e Stoudemire going to the Knicks could very well be the first piece of another trio with Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul potentially joining forces in the Big Apple in the coming seasons.
Not to discount the intelligence of any one of these players, or any professional athlete for that matter, the majority of them have surrounded themselves with incredibly intelligent agents and advisors in an attempt to maximize not only their athletic potential, but in an attempt to promote themselves in as many ways as possible.
Professional agents in particular are some of the most controversial actors in the sports world today, as they generally operate behind the scenes, but their influence is monumental. Leon Rose, Arn Tellem and Dan Fegan are among the most powerful agents in basketball today, with hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts for their respective clients secured in recent years. While it is unclear if any of them act similarly to Ari Gold, it is clear that their influence within the sports world is similar to Mr. Gold's in fictional Hollywood.
Less than a week ago, the National Basketball League launched its new television advertising campaign to promote the commencement of the 2010/11 NBL season. The campaign features an amusing, irreverent and ultimately surprisingly controversial commercial. The spot shows a number of stars from across the league infiltrating a family home to presumably portray the message that the NBL is entering your household in a big way.
Sounds smart. Sounds innovative. Sounds good -- right?
Well, according to a few former league legends, the answer is no. Leroy Loggins, Cal Bruton and Darryl McDonald claim that the ad is tainted by racism, as it shows American import Taj McCullough jumping into bed with a married couple.
no commentsThe Australian Opals are ready and in fine form, leading into the 2010 FIBA World Championships of Basketball for Women, to be held in the Czech Republic. Yesterday, they defeated Spain 85-64 to take out the Salamanca Invitational Basketball Tournament -- this without Lauren Jackson (WNBA commitments), Abby Bishop (WNBA commitments), Penny Taylor (back injury), Marianna Tolo (ankle injury) and Kristi Harrower (ankle injury), forcing the Opals to suit up only nine players. Prior to the victory over Spain, the Aussies defeated Team USA, amounting to some solid preparation for the World Championships.
Jackson, the WNBA 2010 MVP and Bishop will join the squad after winning the WNBA Championship with the Seattle Storm. Taylor joined the Opals camp recently after her team was pushed out of the Finals race.
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As the NBA season approaches, check out season previews from those closest to the teams -- the blogs that obsess over them on a daily basis. First up we have the Atlantic Division.
Celtics: CelticsBlog | Celtics 24/7 | Celtics Central | Celtics Hub | CelticsLife | Gino's Jungle | RedsArmy.com | SBNation Boston | SBN Recap
Knicks: Posting and Toasting | Bandwagon Knick | KnickerBlogger.Net | SBN Recap
Nets: NetsDaily | NetsAreScorching | Fanway | SBN Recap
Raptors: Raptors HQ | Hoops Addict | Hip Hoop Junkies | SBN Recap
Sixers: Liberty Ballers
Recaps: All Previews
no commentsThe following is a post I wrote for the Official FIBA BBall app -- available via Nokia's Ovi Store.
Dance to the beat of the drum...
In my last post you read as I lauded both the Argentinian and Lithuanian crowds as they pushed their teams to wins over Brazil and China respectively. Well, it's amazing how things change, yet they stay the same. Once again, crowd support had a massive impact in this match, between Argentina and Lithuania, however this time the fans in blue and white forgot to show up - figuratively speaking of course.
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