June 2011 – Page 16 – NBA Blog

Fake DeShawn Stevenson Facebook pages causes confrontation with Rick Carlisle

Tim MacMahon of ESPN reports:

DeShawn Stevenson does not have a Facebook page.

That’s newsworthy because somebody who claims to be Stevenson posted on Facebook: “I told em Lebron is Overrated but did they listen? swag.”

Coach Rick Carlisle caught wind of that and confronted Stevenson, telling him to stop talking trash about LeBron James. Stevenson, whose history of taking verbal jabs at King James goes back several years, was confused and told his coach that the latest comment didn’t come from him.

“There’s like 37 people that are acting like me on Facebook,” Stevenson said. “I mean, if you look at me and look at all these tattoos, do you think I’d be sitting on the Internet and typing? C’mon, man. Sometimes you’ve got to look at a person. I would not be in my house on a computer typing nothing about anybody.”

Dwyane Wade says hip will be fine for NBA Finals Game 6

Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports:

Two days after bruising his left hip in Thursday’s Game 5 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in these NBA Finals, Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade was back on the court at practice Saturday at AmericanAirlines Arena, moving without visible discomfort.

Wade shot 3-pointers with teammates during the portion of practice opened to the media, wearing no additional padding or bracing on the hip.

Coach Erik Spoelstra said Wade did not participate in contact work Saturday.

“He went through the walkthrough part of our practice,” he said.

Wade said it was a collective decision to hold him out of the contact portion of practice.

“Just another day to get in treatment and getting rest,” he said, “but I’ll be totally fine when it comes to tomorrow.”

Jason Terry has an NBA championship trophy tattoo

The AP reports:

Jason Terry put his faith in these Dallas Mavericks in ink. On the inside of his right biceps.

With one more win, he’ll get to keep his tattoo of the NBA’s championship trophy – plus have the real thing.

Terry had his title hopes injected into his arm in October, during a get-together at teammate DeShawn Stevenson’s house. At the start of the playoffs, Terry vowed to have it removed if the Mavericks didn’t win it all.

Thanks largely to him regaining his shooting touch in that inked-up arm, Terry and the Mavs flew to Miami on Friday closer to a title than ever before in franchise history. It could belong to them as soon as Sunday night.

“We put ourselves in the situation we wanted, to go back there with this opportunity,” center Tyson Chandler said. “But we can’t get too ahead of ourselves. We can’t get caught up in all the hoopla.”

Mark Jackson talks big as new Warriors coach

The AP reports:

Declaring that “the Bay Area will never be the same,” Jackson promised sweeping changes Friday to the perennially underachieving franchise. He was introduced by the Warriors at a swanky San Francisco hotel across the bay from where the team plays in Oakland that had all the flair of the area’s new coach.

The Brooklyn native and former New York Knicks point guard said the Warriors will make the area “New York City West” in NBA circles, attracting the coveted free agents the franchise has always struggled to sign. He even predicted championship banners would follow.

“When you look at the success of the teams in this area, the A’s have had theirs. The Niners have had theirs. The Giants have had theirs. The Raiders have had theirs. And now we’re looking forward to ours,” Jackson said. “So, therefore, it’s about time. Sorry it took so long, but now we’re at the party.”

Well, not quite.

The Warriors have made the playoffs just once since 1994 and haven’t won an NBA title since 1975. About the only success the franchise has enjoyed is that fans in the basketball-crazy Bay Area regularly sell out Oracle Arena and can be as vocal as any in a market saturated with sports teams…

“We’re not going to accept mediocrity,” Jackson said, slipping into his Brooklyn accent and friendly slang that made him a broadcasting favorite. “You might as well hitch onto the bandwagon because things gone be a changing.”

Mike Dunleavy awarded $13 million in court case vs Clippers

Lisa Dillman of the Los Angeles Times reports (via blog):

An arbitrator has awarded former Clippers general manager and coach Mike Dunleavy slightly more than $13 million in compensation.

The Clippers had quit paying Dunleavy immediately after firing him last year, on March 8, and he was forced to take the organization to binding arbitration. He had been owed $6.75 million on the contract, $1.35 million for the remainder of the 2009-10 season and $5.4 million for the season just completed.

His case was finally heard almost two months ago before the Arbitration and Mediation Services in Santa Monica. Additional briefs were filed by both sides afterward.

Nate Robinson charged with public urination

Richard Liebson of Lohud.com reports:

NBA point guard Nate Robinson made quite a splash on Main Street early Friday when police said he was spotted urinating on the sidewalk outside the City Center.

The 5-foot-9 member of the Oklahoma City Thunder, who has also played for the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics, was arrested shortly before 2 a.m. after cops said he was seen doing his business outside the Barnes & Noble store at 230 Main St.

He was taken Police Headquarters where he was issued a ticket charging him with a public urination violation.

InsideHoops.com editor says: At least he wasn’t jumping 28 feet in the air and trying to dunk while doing it. Because then bystanders might have gotten an unwanted souvenir from the experience.

Nets Dancers to perform at NBA 5 United Tour 2011 in Moscow

The New Jersey Nets Dancers will perform at the NBA 5 United Tour 2011 in Moscow, Russia tomorrow and Sunday, June 12. NBA players Dwight Howard and Andrei Kirilenko will also attend the event at Luzhniki Stadium.

The NBA 5 United Tour 2011 is a grassroots tour that combines competitive outdoor 5-on-5 tournaments with fun interactive basketball elements.

The visit to Moscow continues the NETS Dancers’ global tour, in which they have performed during the past year in China, England, and Mexico.

“We are thrilled for the NETS Dancers to perform in Moscow, as we strive to be Russia’s ‘home’ team,” said Petra Pope, the NETS Senior Vice President of Event Marketing, who oversees the team’s entertainment division. “This trip is a great opportunity to continue the goal of expanding our reach and globalizing the NETS’ brand.”

Spurs strength and conditioning coach Mike Brungardt is retiring

The San Antonio Spurs today announced that long-time strength and conditioning coach Mike Brungardt has elected to retire from his position. His last day with the Spurs will be June 30.

“All of us will miss Mike a great deal,” said Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich. “He has been an important part of the Spurs success over the last 17 years. He built our strength and conditioning program from the ground up and remains one of the best in the business. He has the respect and admiration of everyone in the organization, from players to coaches to front office staff. On a personal note I hate to see Brungy leave. He is a good friend and a wonderful man.”

Brungardt was hired as the Spurs strength and conditioning coach in the summer of 1994. He is the only strength and conditioning coach in the history of the franchise. A graduate of Central State University in Oklahoma, Brungardt has more than three decades of experience in the strength and conditioning field. After wresting and playing baseball in college, he spent nine years as a high school wrestling coach at Grand Island Northwest High School in Nebraska before becoming a highly-respected fitness consultant in Aspen, where he also played rugby. Brungardt, along with his brothers, Kurt and Brett, has co-authored five books in the strength and fitness field.

“This was a very tough decision,” said Brungardt, whose first involvement with the Spurs occurred in 1990 when he served as a consultant, working with David Robinson. “I’ll certainly miss working with class athletes like Tim, David, Sean, Manu and Tony that this organization has always been noted for. But after 17 seasons, this feels like the right time to take everything I’ve learned from the Spurs, especially from Pop, and move into the next chapter in my life. I would like to thank all of them, and the entire Spurs organization for the many special memories, and wish all of them continued success and happiness.”

Brungardt will still work with athletes from various sports on an individual basis, and will do consulting both in the United States and overseas.

Raptors guard Leandro Barbosa considering playing in Brazil

Michael Grange of the Globe and Mail reports:

The Toronto Raptors may get an unexpected break as they try to remake their team in the wake of a 22-60 season.

Brazilian veteran Leandro Barbosa is considering opting out of the final year of a contract scheduled to pay him $7.6-million for 2011-12.

According to his brother Arturo, the shooting guard is receiving feelers from some top club teams at home who want to bring back the top Brazilian player of his generation.

“The situation is this: it would not be responsible of me as his brother to not consider the Brazil option,” said Arturo Barbosa. “Leandro loves Toronto he loves the fans and the relationships with everybody, but business is business. An athlete’s career is short and there are a lot of sponsorship opportunities [in Brazil] especially with the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016.”

The leading candidate for Barbosa’s services, apparently, is Flamengo, Brazilian basketball champions in 2008 and 2009 who play in Rio de Janeiro. The club’s soccer side recently brought soccer star Ronaldinho back to the fold to finish his career after his run in Europe.

Mavericks overcome LeBron triple-double, take 3-2 NBA Finals lead over Heat

The AP reports:

Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks finally have the lead in these ultra-close NBA finals, and now it really is “now or never” for LeBron James and the Miami Heat.

Nowitzki scored 29 points, driving for the go-ahead dunk with 2:45 remaining, and the Mavericks beat the Heat 112-103 on Thursday night to take a 3-2 lead in the NBA finals…

James, who called this game “now or never,” responded from his worst playoff performance with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, and Dwyane Wade battled through a sore left hip after a first-quarter collision to finish with 23 points…

The Mavs shot 60 percent through three quarters, briefly gave up the lead in the fourth, then controlled the final few minutes, just as they had in thrilling comebacks in Games 2 and 4…

Terry scored 21 points and J.J. Barea had 17 for the Mavs, with Nowitzki briefly throwing both arms in the air as he walked off the court surrounded by a sea of blue fans who hope he’ll bring home a championship trophy if they can pull out another victory in Miami…

The Mavs tied it at 100 on Terry’s 3-pointer with 3:23 left, and after James missed, Nowitzki drove for a baseline dunk and a 102-100 lead with 2:45 to go. James was called for an offensive foul and missed a 3-pointer on Miami’s next two possessions before Kidd drilled a 3-pointer to make it 105-100, sending the crowd into a delirious chant of “Beat the Heat! Beat the Heat!” …

Wade walked gingerly to the locker room with a left hip contusion with about 3 minutes left in the period after colliding with Mavs reserve Brian Cardinal on a drive to the basket, and didn’t return to the bench until more than 3 minutes into the second. But the Heat hung in while he was gone, even taking a 31-30 lead when the Mavs turned it over on their final possession and Mario Chalmers threw in a heave from just inside midcourt to beat the buzzer, nearly a duplicate of the finish of the first quarter in Game 3 that stunned Dallas.

Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald reports:

The Heat shot 53 percent in the third quarter but was outscored 24-22. Barea provided the spark for the Mavericks in the third quarter, leading his team with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting and 2 of 3 from three-point range. Dallas was 4 of 7 from three-point range in the third quarter.

Wade remained in the locker room after halftime and didn’t emerge until less than five minutes remained in the period. He entered the game with 4:33 left in the quarter but managed to contribute a field goal. Wade entered the fourth quarter with 13 points while Bosh, James and Mario Chalmers each had 15.

The drama of the first half simply seemed like an extension of the exciting conclusion of Game 4. Mario Chalmers, of all people, kept the Heat in the game. His three-point shooting—4 of 6 from behind the arc — nearly matched the Mavericks’ effort as a team (5 of 7).

Chalmers, underappreciated among the Heat’s veteran roster, has played better than any point guard in the NBA Finals, including future Hall of Famer Jason Kidd. Chalmers finished the first and second quarters with clutch three-pointers, including a 40-footer at the first-quarter buzzer.