Category: Entertainment Blog

Entertainment blog

John Wall loses bet with Bradley Beal, must wear pajama onesie to practice

Here’s the Washington Post blog with a fun report on some serious betting action between a pair of Wizards players. Kids, don’t try pajama onesie-based bets at home:

john wall

A few hows before he hurdled G-Man for his unforgettable reverse dunk to claim the dunk contest, Wall made a peculiar bet with Bradley Beal about last Saturday’s college basketball game between his 18th-ranked Wildcats and Beal’s second-ranked Florida Gators. Wall declared that the loser would have to wear a footed pajama onesie of the opposing school to practice.

“He know what’s up with me. He might not want to want to see me,” Wall said on Saturday morning. “You know how that is, you’ve got a big rivalry going on. He got to wear that Kentucky onesie if we win. I have to wear that Florida onesie if they win. He don’t know that yet. That’s what I made. I’m the big brother so I make the rules.”

Wall never shared those stakes with Beal, whose Gators defeated the Wildcats, 69-59, around the time that Beal was finishing second in the three-point shootout and Wall was preparing to lead the Eastern Conference to a dunk contest win.

After scoring 12 points in his all-star debut for the victorious East, Wall said he still planned to make good on his essentially self-made bet.

Michael Carter-Williams to star in basketball documentary

Any time a new basketball movie or documentary comes out that might be worth watching, I consider it good news. And this qualifies. Here’s the Philadelphia Daily News reporting:

Before he was the front-runner for Rookie of the Year, Michael Carter-Williams struggled through Summer League with the Sixers.

Now, thanks to a CBS documentary entitled Summer Dreams, we will have an opportunity to follow Carter-Williams’ journey first-hand.

CBS plans to air Summer Dreams, a two-hour long documentary about NBA rookies and fringe free agents competing for spots in Summer League, on March 15, just in time for March Madness.

“With unprecedented access, we’ll witness hopes dashed and dreams coming true right in front of our eyes,” executive producer Mike Tollin said in a statement about the film.

In addition to Carter-Williams the program features three other rookie prospects – Shane Larkin (of the Dallas Mavericks), Romero Osby, and Dwayne Davis, as well as NBA referee hopeful Lauren Holtkamp and D-League coach Joel Abelson.

Tracy McGrady, baseball player

Here’s the Washington Post blog reporting on Tracy McGrady, who has retired from the NBA and now reportedly focused on playing baseball:

Tracy McGrady

Tracy McGrady is serious about this baseball thing — so serious about pitching that he’s enlisted assistance from Roger Clemens.

McGrady, a seven-time NBA all-star who played mostly for the Houston Rockets, is working out with the Sugar Land Skeeters, the team with which Clemens made his brief comeback in the summer of 2012. Like Michael Jordan when he took a hiatus from the Chicago Bulls to try his hand at baseball, McGrady spoke in terms of a “dream.”

“Just having a tryout for a minor league team is more fulfilling than anything I can imagine as far as baseball,” McGrady told ESPN.com Tuesday. “I’m just going to train as hard as I can and pursue my dream. Where this takes me, I don’t know. I’m doing this for the love of the game. I’ve made money. The Atlantic League doesn’t have salaries like the major leagues. So this is a kid who’s trying to fulfill his dream. This isn’t a gimmick. I’ve played baseball. I know the game of baseball. And I’m going after what I’ve always wanted to do.”

Historical Michael Jordan letters found in storage, up for auction

Here’s ESPN.com on some historical Michael Jordan letters that can be yours, if the price is right:

A storage locker bought by a man in North Carolina has never been featured on a popular television reality show, but its contents, including some unique documents related to Michael Jordan’s college career, are going up for auction.

New Jersey-based auction house Goldin Auctions acquired two 1980 North Carolina Tar Heels recruiting letters — one from assistant Bill Guthridge, and another from coach Dean Smith — from a consigner.

The documents, which had changed hands twice, Goldin Auctions founder Ken Goldin says, were some of the personal items Jordan gave to “Michael Jordan’s 23,” a restaurant that opened in Chapel Hill, N.C., in 1999.

Goldin says that when the restaurant closed in November 2003, some of the items on the wall went into a storage locker, which became property of a lucky man after a storage bill wasn’t paid.

LeBron James, Kevin Hart to star in comedic basketball movie called Ballers

Here’s Deadline.com reporting on LeBron James and Kevin Hart teaming up to try to make you laugh:

lebron james

Kevin Hart is signing on to star with LeBron James in Ballers, the basketball comedy for Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment. Brian Grazer and Michael Rosenberg are producing.

Hart will first co-write the comedy along with his scripting teammates Joey Wells, Chris Spencer and Harry Ratchford. He’ll then star as a man who lives in the shadow of his NBA superstar brother (James), but gets a chance to prove himself when he and some pals attend a weekend fantasy basketball camp in Miami. Hart is certainly dominant in the stand-up arena, but posting up against this screen sibling could be dangerous. Hart is under 5’3″ while James is a towering 6’8.” That kind of sibling size differential hasn’t been seen since Danny DeVito and Arnold Schwarzenegger starred in another Universal comedy, Twins. They’ll sign a director when Hart and his cohorts turn in the script. The plan is to start production next summer when James has time off.

NBA TV hires Stu Jackson as contributor

NBA TV has added former NBA executive and head coach Stu Jackson as a contributor on league-related topics including rules clarifications, discipline, and general league operations. His first in-studio appearance is scheduled for NBA GameTime on Friday, Dec. 13.

In addition to serving as a resource for NBA TV, Jackson will also contribute across NBA Digital’s portfolio, including answering questions from fans via Twitter – @StuJackson32 – and providing insights on NBA.com. His first Twitter chat will be Friday, Dec. 6.

Starting Tuesday, Dec. 10, Jackson will contribute monthly on the Hang Time podcast, co-hosting a segment alongside TNT analyst Reggie Miller and NBA.com’s Sekou Smith.

Jackson spent nearly 13 years as the NBA’s executive vice president of basketball operations, in charge of all oncourt and international basketball operations, including game rules, conduct, discipline and analytics. He served as chairman of the NBA Competition Committee, which recommends rules changes to the NBA Board of Governors, and on FIBA’s Competition Commission and USA Basketball’s Board of Directors.

A veteran of four decades in professional and collegiate basketball, the New York Knicks made Jackson the second youngest head coach in league history in 1989. In New York, he totaled a 52-45 record, highlighted by the Knicks’ upset victory over the Boston Celtics in the first round of the 1990 playoffs.

In 1994, Jackson was the first person hired by the Vancouver Grizzlies, serving as general manager and helping to shape all facets of the organization, eventually becoming the team’s head coach during the 1996-97 season. Before joining the Grizzlies, he coached at the University of Wisconsin, leading the Badgers to their first NCAA Tournament berth and victory in more than 45 years.  He also was an assistant coach at Providence College, Washington State and the University of Oregon.

Jackson previously worked in the league office as director of basketball operations during the 1990-91 and 1991-92 seasons.