Day: May 1, 2014

New Atlanta Hawks secondary team logo

It’s back!

The Atlanta Hawks have today unveiled the club’s new secondary logo, an evolved interpretation of the iconic and classic team mark that was used from 1972-95 and is recognizable by NBA fans around the world.

The new logo will make its worldwide debut tonight during the Hawks vs. Pacers First Round Game 6 contest at Philips Arena, as all fans in attendance will receive a red t-shirt featuring the logo.

While the team’s primary logo will remain unchanged, the secondary mark will appear on Hawks clothing, caps and other fan gear.

Nets rally but still lose Game 5 to Raptors

Here’s the New York Daily News reporting on the Nets, who are now in trouble against the Toronto Raptors and must win Game 6 in Brooklyn tomorrow or they’ll be eliminated from the first round of the NBA playoffs:

The Nets traded their future for Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to rise in these moments. They held press conferences and dedicated thousands of words to reiterate that these guys bring leadership, they bring the moxie that’s required during crunch time of pivotal playoff games.

The price for that luxury? Three first-round draft choices. As the team slogan indicates, the Nets were going “All In” on two aging future Hall of Famers.

But for an entire fourth quarter in the biggest game of the season Wednesday night, with the Nets staging a miraculous comeback behind Joe Johnson, Deron Williams and Mirza Teletovic, Pierce and Garnett were just cheerleaders, bystanders.

When the Nets needed a big stop in the final minute, Jason Kidd never summoned Garnett. When they needed a big shot, Pierce never took off his warmup shirt. The result was a 115-113 loss in Game 5 for the Nets, in a roller-coaster of a game that ended when Andray Blatche threw a pass way off target for a turnover with one second remaining.

The Nets, the most expensive team in NBA history, plunged to the brink of elimination with that pass and with most of their playoff experience on the bench, falling into a 3-2 deficit in the first-round series heading into Friday’s Game 6 in Brooklyn.

Brooklyn Nets Twitter account calls out their own fans

On Wednesday, the Brooklyn Nets visited the Toronto Raptors for Game 5 of their first round playoff series. Although the Nets went wild in the fourth quarter, scoring 44 points, it wasn’t enough, and Toronto won 115-113 to take a 3-2 series lead.

Raptors fans have been loud, wild and engaged during the series, and even gathering in massive crowds outside Toronto’s arena to enjoy the action. While Nets fans back in Brooklyn tend to be on the… quieter side. The Nets are still new in Brooklyn, and while attendance is great, and tons of fans are terrific, some others are on the casual side of things. It’s a great situation — all that’s missing is a bit more loudness from some in the crowd.

Anyway, during last night’s game, Nets team website reporter Lenn Robbins was running the official Nets Twitter account as a guest of sorts, and one of his tweets called out Nets fans. Check it out:

Bold move, calling out the fans. But if it works, that’s all that matters.

Stars lining up as potential buyers of Clippers

If Donald Sterling is compelled to sell the Los Angeles Clippers, the list of potential buyers has more stars than their roster.

Oprah Winfrey is contemplating a bid. Sean Combs is a Knicks fan, but he wants in.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. wants the whole team. Matt Damon wants a tiny piece.

Billionaires, entertainers and athletes alike announced their intentions to pursue the Clippers with varying degrees of seriousness Wednesday, proving the longtime losers will be quite a prize if the NBA is able to wrest control of the team away from Sterling after his lifetime ban for racist remarks.

Winfrey led the list, and the media mogul is already bringing in her friends.

“Oprah Winfrey is in discussions with David Geffen and Larry Ellison to make a bid for the Los Angeles Clippers should the team become available,” spokesperson Nicole Nichols confirmed in an email.

— Associated Press

Spurs beat Mavs for 3-2 series lead

Tony Parker was nursing a sprained left ankle and playing a critical playoff game on no sleep only hours after the birth of his first child.

It was the perfect formula for a resurgent performance from the San Antonio Spurs point guard.

Parker had 23 points and five assists and San Antonio never trailed in a 109-103 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night, taking a 3-2 lead in the first-round series.

“Coming into the game I told him this is perfect for you,” Spurs forward Tim Duncan said. “This is what he does in situations like this where he doesn’t get a lot of sleep or is in a stressful situation. He always seems to play better. I somewhat expected it from him.

“He was really excited before the game. Obviously, he was really excited to have his son here and wanted to get this game really badly not only for his son but for the situation and the timing of it. He was really focused and it was good for us.”

Parker’s rebirth put San Antonio on the verge of closing out a tense series against its intrastate rival with Game 6 set for Friday in Dallas.

Vince Carter scored 28 points on 10-for-16 shooting for the Mavericks.

— Associated Press