September 25, 2013 – Page 2 – NBA Blog

Shaq happy to mentor DeMarcus Cousins

DeMarcus Cousins

Still developing, in multiple ways

O’Neal, formally introduced Tuesday as a new minority owner of the Kings, said he’ll be available to help Cousins reach his potential on the court and transform the Kings back to the franchise that challenged his Lakers teams for championships.

It’s monitoring Cousins’ development as a player that O’Neal will concentrate on most.

“I understand everything that (Cousins is) going through,” O’Neal said Tuesday. “We have similar backgrounds. I understand everything he’s going through, and I speak his language. That’s why my conversation with him is going to be easy.”

Critics chided O’Neal for making movies and rap albums while his teams weren’t winning titles. O’Neal said it was a conversation with Lakers and Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson that changed his direction and led him to championships.

Reported by Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee

New Sacramento NBA arena may have interesting twist

The Sacramento Kings introduced their new celebrity part-owner Tuesday and pulled back the curtain on an “indoor-outdoor” concept they’re planning for the team’s new downtown arena.

At a news conference dominated by new partner Shaquille O’Neal, majority owner Vivek Ranadive dropped tantalizing hints about the design of the $448 million arena that’s supposed to open at Sacramento’s Downtown Plaza in 2016. While declining to release details, he said fans would be able to see certain events from outside the building.

Ranadive and O’Neal’s sometimes comical news conference kicked off a day’s worth of developments surrounding the Kings. Hours later, the City Council agreed to let the Kings accelerate repayment of their $62 million debt to the city by imposing a 5 percent surcharge on tickets at Sleep Train Arena, where the Kings now play. The council also OK’d a deal that would let the team reimburse the city for certain pre-development costs at the new building.

Reported by Dale Kasler, Ryan Lillis and Tony Bizjak of the Sacramento Bee

2015 NBA All-Star weekend will be split between Madison Square Garden, Barclays Center

The 2015 NBA All-Star weekend will be split between two New York arenas, with Madison Square Garden to host the game, two people with knowledge of the plans said Tuesday.

Barclays Center in Brooklyn will host the Saturday skills events, the people confirmed to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the plans were to be announced at a press conference Wednesday.

Commissioner David Stern, Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg will attend the press conference, along with officials from Madison Square Garden and Barclays Center…

MSG is one of the most famous arenas in sports and has undergone a three-year renovation project. The $1 billion Barclays Center opened a year ago and has quickly landed many top entertainment events.

Reported by the Associated Press

New Milwaukee Bucks court design

Tonight at the Milwaukee Art Museum, the Bucks unveiled a new design for their new state-of-the-art playing surface at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

A renowned pop artist famous for his “LOVE” artwork, Indiana created the design for the Bucks court that was used at the MECCA Arena from 1977-87. Indiana’s original floor, with bright colors and a giant “M” flanking each side of the midcourt line, is recognized as one of the largest pieces of pop art ever produced and brought international recognition to Milwaukee as a progressive, forward-thinking city that appreciates art as much as it does sport.

The Bucks’ brand new home court at the BMO Harris Bradley Center takes inspiration from Indiana’s original pop art design, reproducing the world-famous “M’s” bracketing the midcourt line – this time in two shades of hand-stained Wisconsin hard maple – along with the simple, yet unmistakable “Milwaukee” adorning each baseline, just as in Indiana’s iconic work of original art. At center court is the Bucks logo, stripped down to the aggressive image of the eight-point white tail buck head that represents the powerful and focused approach of the team. Painted surfaces of the court are almost exclusively green, tying together all eras of the Bucks’ 46-year history.

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