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Hakim Warrick trying to set up Philly vs Baltimore basketball game

As NBA players realize that sitting around bored is no way to spend the summer, some really fun exhibition games loosely pitting city against city have emerged. Wish there were more of these games? Same here.

If Hakim Warrick gets his way, another good one should come soon.

Marc Stein of ESPN reports:

After watching Carmelo Anthony host some of the game’s biggest names for a glitzy summer-league game in his hometown, Phoenix Suns forward and Philadelphia native Hakim Warrick is trying to arrange a Philly-versus-Baltimore showdown against Anthony’s crew.

Warrick told ESPN.com that he and Anthony, former college teammates at Syracuse, spoke Wednesday and have tentatively arranged to stage an exhibition game in Philadelphia before the end of September.

“I was trying to do a Philly and Baltimore game awhile ago,” Warrick said. “Then when I saw Drew League vs. Goodman League and Team Melo vs. Goodman [on Tuesday night], I was like, ‘Man, let me go ahead and set this up.’

“I told [Anthony] that we want to play them next and they have to come up to Philly. And he said he’s with it.”

Warrick says he’ll try to recruit Philadelphia-reared stalwarts such as Sacramento’s Tyreke Evans, Orlando’s Jameer Nelson and Detroit’s Richard Hamilton to play on the Philly squad. Other players Warrick expects to play include Houston’s Kyle Lowry, Sacramento’s John Salmons, Minnesota’s Wayne Ellington, Charlotte’s Gerald Henderson, veteran NBA guard Ronald Murray (who finished last season in Turkey) and recent draftees Markieff and Marcus Morris, who were selected in the first round in June by Phoenix and Houston, respectively.

In the ideal world, we’d have a game like this every week, all summer long.

Of course, in an even more ideal world, there’d be no lockout, and we’d be previewing the upcoming season.

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Sixers players work out in Los Angeles

It’s perfectly logical for NBA players during the lockout to meet up with friends or teammates and, well, play basketball. And work out. And do other stuff, too.

The latest to do this are most of the Philadelphia 76ers players.

Dei Lynam of CSN Philly reports:

For those of you familiar with destination weddings, consider the Sixers’ weekend in Los Angeles, where eight current team members met to practice, a destination basketball workshop for family only. These pick up games were not about having as many NBA players participate as possible, rather about having as many Sixers be in attendance as possible.

“The guys came out. We are having a great time together, bonding together. That’s what it is about,” said Elton Brand who, along with Lou Williams, organized the gathering.

“I think that creates a winning environment, having each others back out there,” Brand continued. “So you have to care, you have to grow, you have to know where someone likes the ball. When a guy can’t play defense or can’t show as well on a pick you have to know that. You have to know that. You have to be there to help your guy and have their back.”

Along with Brand and Williams, in attendance were Andre Iguodala, Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner, Jodie Meeks, Spencer Hawes and Craig Brackins. That list includes last year’s starting five, their sixth man and a rookie who will likely earn a starting spot whenever the upcoming season does get underway.

I would think other squads should aim to do this as well. Why not?

Houston lands 2013 NBA All-Star Game

Mark Berman of My Fox Houston reports:

NBA sources told FOX 26 Sports the Houston Rockets and the City of Houston landed the NBA All-Star Game in 2013. The game will be played at Toyota Center on Feb. 17, 2013. NBA All-Star week will be Feb. 15-17. The Rockets and Toyota Center also hosted the game in 2006.

Click2Houston reports:

The entire NBA All-Star Weekend will be in the Bayou City from February 15-17, 2013. Hilton Americas Marketing Director Janice O’Neill-Cox spoke with Local 2 Sports Wednesday afternoon, saying, “We played a key role in working with the league to make sure availability was in place. It’s a big boost for our city to land the game, and we’re excited about it.”

InsideHoops.com editor says: I don’t get why Houston is getting the game again. They just had it in 2006. Meanwhile, other teams haven’t hosted it in a long time. Also, Madison Square Garden renovations will be mostly complete in time. And the new Brooklyn Nets arena will exist by mid 2012. Unusual call to send the big weekend back to Houston so soon.

NBA Rookie Transition Program postponed

The NBA Rookie Transition Program, scheduled for August 9-11, has been postponed. The program, which provides first-year players with the skills and information necessary for a successful transition to the NBA, is run jointly by the NBA and the Players Association.

“Without a new collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players’ union, we will be unable to hold RTP as originally scheduled,” NBA Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver said. “This is an important educational program for our incoming players, and it will be rescheduled once the parties agree on a CBA.”

Billy Hunter tells InsideHoops that NBA lockout meetings may not resume until August

By Jeff Lenchiner

Wednesday evening in New York City I paid a visit to Dyckman Park for some streetball action. It was a big matchup of some top teams that has been anticipated for weeks, so the park was packed. Included in the crowd were rapper Jadakiss, Denver Nuggets forward Al Harrington, and the head of the NBA Players Union, Billy Hunter, among others.

Before the game, Hunter, bravely attempting to communicate as some top-notch rap music blasted from the park’s booming speakers at full volume, gave InsideHoops.com a very quick update on the current NBA lockout situation:

InsideHoops.com: What’s the latest?

Billy Hunter: We’re trying to find some way to re-open the negotiations. We’re not making very much progress. It looks like we’re going to be where we are, I would assume probably [until] August before we actually end up getting back together.

InsideHoops.com: How long might the lockout last?

Hunter: It’s unpredictable. It’s hard to say how long it’s going to go.

It sounds like NBA fans should not hold their breath waiting for positive developments just yet.

Union plans player meetings as NBA lockout drags on with no progress

Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated reports:

There will be labor-related meetings in the near future.

They just aren’t the kind that typically lead to collective bargaining progress.

According to sources close to the situation, the National Basketball Players Association is planning a series of player sessions in as many as six cities over “the next month or so,” as a way to help with its planning during the lockout and update players on the state of negotiations with the NBA. Unless things unexpectedly change, there won’t be much to report on that front.

While mid-level staffers from both sides met on Friday to finalize the numbers related to basketball-related income (BRI) for the 2010-11 season, no negotiating sessions involving commissioner David Stern or NBPA executive director Billy Hunter have been scheduled. Sources said the BRI numbers were not finalized Friday and more similar sessions are forthcoming to that end, but the union is focused on fortifying from within rather than exchanging proposals with the owners, who are pushing for a hard salary cap as part of a drastic overhaul to the current system.

InsideHoops.com editor says: Basically, the two sides are considering their various options and possible proposal changes, amongst themselves. There’s no way of knowing if either side plans to make any changes the next time they make offers to each other, when they do eventually meet again. I’m just guessing here but it sounds like the earliest the NBA lockout could even possibly end is early August. But that’s not expected, because it sounds like both sides remain pretty far apart.

Rumor: Heat want Dalembert, Battier

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports:

The Heat has strong interest in Samuel Dalembert, a better rebounder and defender than Curry, but Miami will be in the mix for Dalembert only if there’s a mid-level exception in the new labor deal. Regardless, the Heat again will check on Curry after the lockout, then decide whether to offer him a minimum-salary deal.

Curry, drafted fourth overall in 2001, averaged 19.5 points and 7.0 rebounds for the Knicks in 2006-07 but played in just 10 games over the past three years because of injuries. He was out of the league last season…

Regardless of whether James Jones re-signs (and there’s mutual interest), we hear forward Shane Battier will be very much on the Heat’s radar after the lockout. The Houston Chronicle, after interviewing Battier, said “don’t be surprised” if he signs with the Heat or Bulls.

The Heat long has admired Battier and fellow free agents Tayshaun Prince and Grant Hill, but the question is if any will take less money to sign here. Hill told The Arizona Republic “it would be nice” to re-sign with Phoenix. Detroit wants to keep Prince.

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Comcast-Spectacor reaches agreement to sell the Philadelphia 76ers

Comcast-Spectacor today announced it has reached an agreement to sell the Philadelphia 76ers basketball team to a group led by Joshua Harris, Co-Founder of Apollo Global Management, LLC. Terms of the agreement, which is subject to approval by the National Basketball Association’s Board of Governors, were not disclosed.

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, sources have put the value of the deal at $280 million for full, 100 percent team ownership.

The acquisition does not include the Wells Fargo Center or the Philadelphia Flyers, which are owned by Comcast-Spectacor. The team will remain a long-term tenant of the Wells Fargo Center and will have a long-term cable broadcast agreement for its games with Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia.

“We are honored to have the opportunity to be affiliated with this storied franchise,” said Harris. “As a basketball fan who attended college in Philadelphia, and with family roots here, I have always felt a strong connection to this City and the 76ers. We look forward to helping the 76ers organization build on this past season’s accomplishments in the years ahead. The ownership group also looks forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship with Comcast-Spectacor.”

The new ownership also includes David Blitzer, a Senior Managing Director of The Blackstone Group, who commented, “We are excited to become associated with this iconic team and to have the chance to serve the great City of Philadelphia and its loyal basketball fans.”

Other members of the investor group include Art Wrubel and Jason Levien. Harris, Blitzer and the other investors are making personal investments; Apollo and Blackstone are not involved in the transaction.

The transaction is expected to close later in 2011, subject to NBA approval and customary closing conditions.

Comcast-Spectacor is the Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment company which owns the Philadelphia Flyers; the Philadelphia 76ers; the home for both teams, the Wells Fargo Center; and four Flyers Skate Zone community ice skating and hockey rinks. In addition, Comcast-Spectacor is also the principal owner of Global Spectrum, the fastest growing firm in the public assembly management field with more than 100 facilities throughout the United States and Canada; Ovations Food Services, a food and beverage service provider; New Era Tickets, a ticketing and marketing company for public assembly facilities; Front Row Marketing Services, a commercial rights sales company; and Paciolan, the leading provider of venue enablement, ticketing, fundraising and marketing technology solutions.

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Elton Brand to co-produce Tupac movie

The Philadelphia Daily News reports:

Elton Brand won’t accept failure.

Even if it has the propensity to lighten his already deep pockets.

That’s probably why the Sixers forward is trying his luck in the movie industry again, this time signing on as a co-producer for the upcoming film “Tupac,” a biopic on the life and death of the West Coast hip-hop artist.

This isn’t Brand’s first venture into the movie game. While in Los Angeles as a Clipper, Brand co-founded a small production company called Gibraltar Entertainment. According to a 2006 report from the Los Angeles Times, Brand’s outfit was hit with four separate lawsuits in a year span. Though none alleged any wrongdoing by Brand specifically, the report also claimed Brand dropped $250,000 out of his own pocket to settle a lawsuit.

However, with “Tupac,” Brand is merging with powerhouse Morgan Creek Productions. And the flick is being directed by Antoine Fuqua, of the Oscar-winning film “Training Day,” and Afeni Shakur-Davis, Tupac’s mother, will serve as executive producer. The film has not been rated, but production is under way in Los Angeles, New York, Georgia and Las Vegas.

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Darius Songaila signs in Turkey

The Philadelphia Daily News reports:

His NBA future uncertain because of the lockout, 76ers free-agent forward Darius Songaila signed a 1-year, $1.5 million contract with Galatasaray in Turkey, according to his agent, Mark Bartelstein.

Published reports say that his deal includes incentives, but has a no-escape clause in the event the lockout ends, so he will play the entire season in Turkey.

Euroleague.net reports:

Songaila’s only Euroleague season to date was in 2002-03 with CSKA Moscow in which he averaged 12.8 points and 3.9 rebounds per game to help the team to the 2003 Barcelona Final Four, the first of eight in a row that would follow for CSKA. Since then he has played a total of 516 games for Sacramento, Chicago, Washington, New Orleans and Philadelphia in the NBA. Songaila’s best individual season was in 2005-06 in which he averaged 9.2 points and 4.0 rebounds in 62 games for Chicago.

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