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Arizona forward Kevin Parrom stable after being shot

Diamond Leung of ESPN.com reports:

Arizona junior forward Kevin Parrom was the victim of a shooting during a trip home to New York City this weekend, the school and police confirmed Sunday.

A New York Police Department officer said the shooting followed a dispute that occurred around 1 a.m. Saturday at a residence in the Bronx. Parrom was shot once in the right leg and taken to a local hospital in stable condition after suffering gunshot wounds to his left hand and right knee, Officer Chris Pisano said.

No arrests have been made; the investigation continues.

A native of the Bronx, Parrom went home to visit his mother, who is in the hospital, Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne said in a statement.

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.”

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Marcus Camby arrested on marijuana charge

The AP reports:

Former Knicks forward Marcus Camby is free on bond after police in suburban Houston arrested him on a charge of marijuana possession.

Camby was in a Porsche pulled over Monday for what police called an equipment violation. Pearland police Lt. Onesimo Lopez says an officer detected the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle and they found less than two ounces of the drug inside.

Camby and another person inside, Kendal Johnson, were arrested and charged with misdemeanor possession of marijuana in a drug-free zone because the arrest occurred near a school. Both were released on individual $2,000 bonds.

Springfield Armor holding open tryouts in October

The Springfield Armor, the official NBA Development League affiliate of the New Jersey Nets, today announced that the team will hold open tryouts for the 2011-12 season on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 22-23 at Springfield College located at 263 Alden St. in Springfield, MA. The local tryouts will be limited to the first 125 registrants.

Open tryouts present an opportunity for players to showcase their talents and be evaluated by the Armor coaching staff while they compete to earn a spot in the Armor’s training camp in November. The Armor have a strong track record of discovering players who have made the team through open tryouts. Tre Whitted, who made the team through the 2009 open tryout, is the second leading scorer in franchise history. Five players have made the Armor’s opening night roster through open tryouts in the team’s two seasons.

“I am really looking forward to our open tryouts on October 22 and 23 in Springfield,” said Armor Head Coach Bob MacKinnon, Jr. “Each player will have two days of drills and scrimmaging to show us their abilities. We utilized this format previously and have been able to find players out of our camps that gained roster spots and furthered their careers in the league.”

Registration and check-in on Saturday begin at 8:00 a.m. with the first session set to begin at 9:00 a.m. Check-in for the second session on Sunday begins at 9:00 a.m. with the second session set to begin at 9:30 a.m.

Applicants must be eligible to play in the NBA D-League and must submit the official registration, release, disclosure and background check forms. A pre-registration fee of $150 is due prior to 5:00 p.m. on Wed. Oct. 19. After Oct. 19 or on the day of the tryouts, the registration fee is $200. Tryout forms are available online (armorhoops.com) or at the Armor office (One Monarch Place, Suite 220 Springfield, MA).

Danillo Gallinari reportedly close to rejoining Italian team

The AP reports:

Former Knicks forward Danilo Gallinari is reportedly close to rejoining his former Italian team Olimpia Milano during the NBA lockout.

Both sides are working out insurance details before Gallinari signs a contract, the Gazzetta dello Sport reported Tuesday.

Gallinari has already agreed to travel with Olimpia to a preseason camp in Spain on Thursday, according to the Italian sports daily.

Olimpia spokesman Flavio Suardi told The Associated Press that no deal had been finalized yet.

Olimpia’s new coach is Sergio Scariolo, who guided Spain to the European Championship on Sunday in Lithuania. Along with fellow NBA players Andrea Bargnani and Marco Belinelli, Gallinari was on the Italy squad that failed to advance to the second round.

Amare Stoudemire working out with Isiah Thomas at FIU

Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reports (via blog):

Amar’e Stoudemire has been spending some quality time with Isiah Thomas.

ESPN reported that Stoudemire was working out at FIU which happens to be the school Isiah coaches when he isn’t serving as a de facto GM of the Knicks.

There were several NBA players working out at FIU, including Atlanta’s Joe Johnson. None of this is surprising since FIU is located in a favored city among NBA players: Miami.

Plus, Isiah continues to share a close relationship with some of the league’s top players. That would including Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e and more importantly, Chris Paul.

This is the reason James Dolan continues to lean on Isiah for advice, even though Isiah doesn’t have an official position with the Knicks. (If he did, Isiah would be in violation of NBA bylaws for having contact with players during the lockout).

LeBron James plays touch football game in NYC park

Sam Gardner of Fox Sports Florida reports:

When Brian Eduardo took the field for his weekly flag football game Monday night at Chelsea Park in New York City, he expected it to be just like every other Monday night, and it was.

That is, until LeBron James showed up.

Eduardo was one of about 40 people playing in a New York City Social Sports Club league that had just wrapped up their games for the night when the 6-foot-8 Miami Heat forward happened to walk by and asked if he could play.

“Our games were done,” Eduardo said. “We were putting our flags away and he stepped up to everybody and said, ‘Hey, are you guys done?’ and we looked up and we were like, ‘Oh my God, that’s LeBron James. No, no, no, we’re not done, we’re not done.’ ”

Minutes later, two of the four teams in attendance — the Untouchables and WRTL — were on the field for a two-hand touch game with LeBron.

James played on Untouchables side of the ball and Eduardo played for the WRTL team as the other two squads watched from the sidelines. LeBron played quarterback, wide receiver and defensive back, and — as you might expect — he did just fine.

Golden State Warriors will retire the jersey of Chris Mullin

The Golden State Warriors will retire Chris Mullin’s jersey, #17, in a special ceremony on January 20, 2012, when the team plays host to the Indiana Pacers at Oracle Arena, it was announced this evening. Plans to retire Mullin’s jersey were first made public tonight by Owner Joe Lacob, who broke the news to a crowd of the team’s Season Ticket Holders that were gathered at Oracle Arena for an exclusive Season Ticket Holder event.

“We are looking forward to adding another former Warriors’ icon, Chris Mullin, to our exclusive list of players who have had their number retired,” said Lacob. “Our history has been dotted with many terrific players who have had an incredible impact on our franchise over the years and Chris certainly falls into this prestigious category. His contributions to this organization – both on the floor and in the community – are quite impressive and have certainly made him one of the most beloved figures in Bay Area sports history. His recent Hall of Fame induction solidified his role as one of the greatest players in the history of the game on a global scale and we hope that this deserving honor on January 20th will help ensure that his many outstanding accomplishments are never forgotten here at home.”

Mullin, who spent 13 years of his 16-season NBA career as a member of the Golden State Warriors, will become the sixth player in team history to have his jersey number retired, joining Alvin Attles (#16), Rick Barry (#24), Wilt Chamberlain (#13), Tom Meschery (#14) and Nate Thurmond (#42). Chamberlain’s jersey was the last to be retired by the organization, as the former Warriors’ great and NBA legend was honored posthumously on December 29, 1999.

The jersey retirement serves as just the latest honor celebrating Mullin’s illustrious NBA career, as the Brooklyn, NY, native was inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on August 12, 2011.

“This is certainly a tremendous honor and one that I will cherish, especially when you consider the few, elite gentlemen who have preceded me,” said Mullin. “I consider it a huge privilege to join the likes of Al Attles, Rick Barry, Wilt Chamberlain, Tom Meschery and Nate Thurmond and I appreciate the fact that Joe Lacob and the Warriors’ new ownership group have asked me to be a part of this select group. I look forward to the night and sharing this honor with the great Bay Area fans, who have been so supportive and inspirational to me over the years. In my mind, this night will be just as much for them as it will be for me and my family.”

Originally selected by the Warriors in the first round of the 1985 NBA Draft (# 7 overall), Mullin spent the first 12 years of his NBA career in Golden State. A five-time NBA All-Star (1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993), he averaged a career-high 26.5 points during the 1988-89 season, the first of five consecutive campaigns in which he averaged 25-plus points (a feat matched by only Wilt Chamberlain in franchise history). He currently ranks among the club’s Top-10 all-time leaders in nearly every statistical category, including games played (first at 807), steals (first at 1,360), free throw percentage (second at .862), points (fourth at 16,235), assists (fourth at 3,146) and scoring average (10th at 20.1).

Prior to re-joining the Warriors for his final NBA season in 2000-01, Mullin spent three seasons with Indiana (1997-98, 1998-99, 1999-00), helping the Pacers advance to the 2000 NBA Finals. He concluded his 16-year NBA career boasting career averages of 18.2 points and 4.1 rebounds in 986 games.

Jamal Crawford seeks new agent

Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reports:

Jamal Crawford, who could love nothing more than to rejoin the Knicks when a new collective bargaining agreement is finalized, will apparently have new representation when he officially becomes a free agent.

According to a person close to the former Knicks shooting guard, Crawford has parted ways with his longtime agency, Goodwin Sports Management, and is seeking a new agent.

The Goodwin brothers, Aaron and Eric, have maintained a good relationship with the Knicks, particularly when Isiah Thomas was in charge. It was Thomas who orchestrated a sign-and-trade with the Bulls to originally acquire Crawford. Thomas also made a draft day trade for another Goodwin client, Nate Robinson.

Kemba Walker insists he is a point guard

Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe reports:

Scouts questioned whether Walker was a pure point guard or just an undersized shooting guard. That is not an issue with him.

“I’m a 1 – there’s no question that I am a point guard,’’ said Walker, who averaged 24.6 points last season, primarily as a shooting guard. “I can just score the basketball, that’s it.

“Why can’t I do both? Why can’t I do everything? Pass, score, rebound. That’s what I have been doing my whole life. I’m an all-around player.’’

The Bobcats are in desperate need of a signature player. They traded Stephen Jackson and Gerald Wallace last season, leaving the opportunity for Walker and 19-year-old rebounding menace Bismack Biyombo to become cornerstones.