Los Angeles Lakers Blog – Page 112 – NBA Blog

Two stars from Psych on USA network give InsideHoops shoutouts

The show Psych on USA Network is an InsideHoops.com favorite. I watch it, and tons of our message board members love it as well. Several pro-Psych forum discussions exist and it’s almost all positive. The general consensus is that it’s an extremely fun show.

So it was cool when InsideHoops.com was recently invited to cover a USA network event called “Psych Fan Appreciation Day,” celebrating the upcoming new Psych season with dedicated fans of the show. We were treated to an advance preview of the season premiere, and met virtually the entire cast.

We’ll post some interview quotes in the next day or two, but right now we’ll jump right to the extra good stuff and present video clips of two Psych stars welcoming you to InsideHoops.com:

—–

Kobe Bryant to appear on Extreme Makeover Home Edition

According to a post on the UC Irvine athletic department’s Facebook site, Bryant plans to appear on an episode of ABC’s Extreme Makeover Home Edition, during which he will help coordinate rebuilding efforts for residents in the Joplin, Mo., area. A reported 160 people died from a tornado that swept through that region on May 22 and has been considered the seventh deadliest in U.S. history.

It remains unclear when filming will take place.

— Reported by Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Times

Under new coach Mike Brown, Lakers offense will change

Mike Brown envisions an offense called “strong corner.”

“At the start of the shot clock, it will be ‘four out, one in,’ meaning that if we get the ball down the floor quick enough, we’ll have four guys along the perimeter and one of our bigs in the low post,” he said. “If the ball does go in at an early point in the shot clock, hopefully that big will have a chance to go to work without the double team.”

It certainly isn’t Jackson’s triangle offense.

Brown also plansto use assistant coaches differently than Jackson, who designated a defensive coordinator and gave the other coaches specific positions to monitor (forwards, centers or guards).

Brown’s assistants won’t have specific on-court responsibilities. He wants them to “just coach the game of basketball. Whatever they see offensively, speak up. Whatever they see defensively, speak up.”

— Reported by Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times

Team in Italy now willing to sign Kobe Bryant for just one game

Claudio Sabatini, owner of Virtus Bologna, confirmed at Radiofuturoshow Station that he had another conference call with Kobe’s agent and that it is real the hypotesis ‘one game’ for Bryant. ‘Last night we had another conference call with Bryant’s agent. Now we just have to wait the contract. We accepted his financial request and we submitted him two different proposals, for one game or for 40 days. Now the decision is up to him. We thought about the one game option to speed up the negotiations. He could land on Sunday, play the game against Benetton Treviso next Wednesday and maybe stay longer with us.

— Reported by Sportando

Doctor who treated Kobe Bryant claims he can cure arthritis

Kobe Bryant’s $3 million possible deal to play 10 games in Italy during the NBA lockout was aided by a former physician to Pope John Paul II who treated the Lakers star this summer with a pioneering blood treatment.

Bryant traveled to Dusseldorf, Germany, in June for treatment, as previously reported. ESPN The Magazine has learned that he was treated by Dr. Peter Wehling, an influential but little-known molecular orthopedist who insists he’s having breakthrough success repairing aging joints by manipulating his patients’ blood.

According to a source familiar with Bryant’s treatment, his blood was treated to isolate growth factors that attack inflammation, and then cultured with chemicals to increase their potency before being injected into his arthritic right knee.

Wehling declined to confirm or deny that he treated Bryant. But in a rare interview about his work, he told ESPN The Magazine, “I am the only one to have found a way to cure arthritis.”

— Reported by Shaun Assael of ESPN The Magazine

Kobe Bryant MAY have verbal agreement to play in Italy during lockout

Nothing is official, and verbal agreements to sign a contract pending the ability of the team owner to actually get the money to make it happen aren’t set in stone. But Kobe Bryant is now pretty close to actually signing in Italy. Wait and see if it materializes.

UPDATE: Already, this report is being shot down. It may not be true. Apparently the owners need a lot of magic to make this thing happen, and it probably won’t. But here’s the earlier report:

The AP reports:

Italian club Virtus Bologna has reached a verbal agreement with Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant to play in Italy during the NBA lockout.

The sides have settled on a $3 million contract for the opening 40 days of the Italian league season, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press on Friday.

Bryant, who spent much of his childhood in Italy, was in the country for sponsor appearances over the past two days but was flying back to the U.S. for labor talks with the NBA on Friday.

Bryant will get a work visa and return to Italy next week, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal has still not been signed.

Virtus had been due to open the season Oct. 9 against Roma, but schedules now need to be reworked after Venezia was added to the league as a 17th team.

Tickets for Drew League vs Goodman League rematch go on sale Wednesday

Pedro Moura of ESPN.com reports:

Tickets for the much-anticipated rematch between the Goodman League and Drew League, scheduled for Oct. 9, will go on sale at midnight Wednesday, Drew League commissioner Dino Smiley confirmed to ESPNLosAngeles.com.

The game will be played at the Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, where the Long Beach State 49ers play basketball and volleyball games. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 9, with doors opening at the arena at 4 p.m. and a 5 p.m. celebrity game featuring still-to-be-determined participants…

Capacity at the Walter Pyramid, including standing-room only, is 5600, Smiley said. The original Drew-Goodman game in August was played at the 1600-seat gymnasium at Trinity University in D.C.

Tickets, available through the Long Beach State ticket office, will start at $25 for assigned seating and go up to $100 for courtside seats.

Following the game, there have also been preliminary talks to hold a home-and-home series with Jamal Crawford’s Summer League in Seattle, Smiley said, which could be as soon as later in October.

Lakers guard Steve Blake not looking to play overseas

Dave McMenamin of ESPN LA reports:

Lakers reserve guard Steve Blake won’t be adding any stamps to his passport anytime soon, however.

“If we’re not having a season then I’m going to take the time to enjoy my kids and be with my wife and spend more time in Portland at my regular home, and just use the opportunity to just continue to work out and improve myself,” Blake said in a recent phone interview. “I’ve prepared myself for this financially, so I don’t need to go overseas and do it for the money.”

Blake and his wife, Kristen, have three young boys — Nicholas, Jamison and Zachary — but if he were a less-attached man he could see himself traveling the globe to continue to play basketball.

“More power to those guys,” Blake said. “Let them go play basketball, the game they love, and make some money doing it. If they don’t want to let us play here, they’ll play somewhere else. If I didn’t have three kids and wife, I’d probably go play somewhere as well.”

NBA postpones training camps, cancels October 9-15 preseason games

The NBA announced today that player training camps for the 2011-12 season have been postponed indefinitely because a new collective bargaining agreement has not been reached with the National Basketball Players Association. Training camps were scheduled to open on October 3.

In addition, the league canceled all preseason games scheduled from October 9 through October 15.

“We have regretfully reached the point on the calendar where we are not able to open training camps on time and need to cancel the first week of preseason games,” said NBA Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver. “We will make further decisions as warranted.”

Read NBA fan reaction or share your views in this basketball forum topic.

Spain and France advance to EuroBasket championship game

The AP reports:

Defending champion Spain and first-time finalist France will compete for the European basketball title on Sunday and have qualified for next year’s Olympics in London.

Juan Carlos Navarro scored 35 points in a performance his coach called a “masterpiece” as Spain beat Macedonia 92-80 in the first semifinal on Friday.

France got 22 points from Tony Parker to beat Russia 79-71 in the late game. Nicolas Batum added 19 points for France, which reached the championship game for the first time.

“I’ve been chasing this for 11 years and I’m very happy that I can finally say I’m going to the Olympics,” Parker said.

France won a silver medal in 1949 but the tournament was played in a different format and did not have a final.

France went on a 10-2 to finish the third quarter and pull away. Going into the fourth, the run was 16-4, with eight points coming from Ali Traore.

Pau Gasol had 22 points and 17 rebounds for Spain.

Navarro scored 19 points in the third quarter to break open a close game. Spain coach Sergio Scariolo did not hold back in praising his point guard.