NBA Blog: The NBA basketball news blog section of Inside Hoops
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LeBron James is constantly being compared to Michael Jordan.
And if James’ dreams come true, you’ll be able to compare their acting skills on top of everything else.
On Sunday, James was fielding questions from his Twitter followers, when one asked if the three-time MVP loved the movie, Space Jam.
James offered this reply: “I love that movie. Wish I could do Space Jam 2!”
— Reported by CSN Philly
Scottie Pippen understands the magnitude of the challenge facing the Chicago Bulls while Derrick Rose recovers from ACL surgery, but Pippen believes the opportunity presents a silver lining.
“He’s going to be a bigger, better, stronger player,” Pippen told Comcast SportsNet Chicago on Friday. ” I think it’s great to have something like this happen if it’s going to happen at a young age (23). He’s going to heal fast, and he’s going to push himself now to be better than he probably would have ever been.
— Reported by ESPN Chicago
The U.S. Embassy said Sunday that four ”sports envoys” will be in the country this week as part of a U.S. State Department-sponsored program ”to emphasize the importance of academics, cooperation, and respect for diversity.”
The group will conduct several sports workshops with local youth before leaving Friday. Three of the envoys arrived this weekend and the last one is due to fly into Yangon later Sunday.
The group includes Charlotte Bobcats basketball team manager Richard Cho, a Myanmar native who migrated to the United States. Also traveling are Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Darvin Ham, former Women’s National Basketball Association player Allison Feaster and former NBA player Marty Conlon.
— Reported by the Associated Press
In the summer of 2014, the Magic will have roughly $36 million in cap space. The prospective free-agent class is stunning: Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Carmelo Anthony, Dirk Nowitzki and Paul Pierce.
None of those stars (several aging) are expected to leave their teams, although Pierce might go exploring. The Heat trio has the option to terminate its contracts…not likely.
Other ’14 would-be free agents: Pau Gasol, Amar’e Stoudemire, Zach Randolph, Andrew Bogut, Danny Granger and Andrea Bargnani. None of them — other than Granger, a good but not great player — seemingly fit the Magic plan.
The Magic will have even more cap room in the 2015 offseason, depending on what they do the next two summers. And there are some free-agent jewels: Rajon Rondo, Marc Gasol, LaMarcus Aldridge and Kevin Love.
— Reported by Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel
Collins doesn’t seek the subject, but when asked during this weekend’s reunion of the ’72 team about whether he would like to be the Olympic coach, he showed typical candor while also professing a desire to stay with the Sixers long-term.
“It’s a tremendous honor that somebody would even throw my name out there,” Collins said. “It’s four years down the road and I understand in this business you hope you are an active coach at the time.”
Which means obviously with the Sixers.
“I am hoping that I am still active and I would like to coach four or five years in Philadelphia,” he said.
So much for the assumption that Collins was taking things in Philadelphia on a yearly basis.
“I feel good about our team and I love my staff, what we are doing and where we are headed,” Collins continued. “The ownership, Josh [Harris], has been so good to me, so I feel really good about that.”
— Reported by Marc Narducci of the Philadelphia Inquirer
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To a degree, Wade said it is essential that he, James and Chris Bosh continue to evolve, that each add enough nuance to their games that it forces Spoelstra to reach the level of creativity he achieved last season.
“You never know what player is going to start off and be playing a certain way and you switch things up a little bit,” Wade said. “But we have that luxury, because we have not only three marquee players, but we have a lot of other players on our team that’s very capable, highly capable, and very good.”
And there will be decisions to be made, from how to maximize [Ray] Allen’s role in the rotation, as stressed during his recruitment, to where to play [Rashard] Lewis, with length suited for the power rotation but a frame more befitting a perimeter player.
“So our plan to come out,” Wade said, “is, let’s get together as a team, let’s get our team defensive concepts down, let’s get our offensive continuity down and we’ll see what comes out of that.”
— Reported by Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel
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When Blake Griffin injured his knee on July 11 while training with Team USA, his chance to represent his country at the Olympics ended.
Griffin had surgery on July 16 to repair torn cartilage in his left knee and it has healed to the point where he is working out.
“I came back after surgery and started rehabbing and getting back into it. I’ve been shooting and lifting [weights] and all that for a while now,” Griffin told the Los Angeles Times on Friday. “So, I’m pretty much back at 100%, been back at 100% for a little bit. So I’m good.”
— Reported by CSN Philly
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The Nets have yet to play a single as a game as a Brooklyn franchise – or unveil their uniforms, for that matter – but they’re already targeting a championship in Year 1.
Cornerstones Brook Lopez and Joe Johnson set the lofty tone in recent interviews, buoyed by the Nets’ expensive offseason.
“Obviously our main goal is no question the NBA championship. I think it is realistic for us,” Lopez told the Philipine Star during his NBA goodwill tour of the Philippines. “We’re already a good playoff team so with the addition of other pieces, we can target the ring.”
Johnson echoed that sentiment to Sports Illustrated, continuing his confident evaluations of his new squad. During Johnson’s introductory press conference in July, he declared the Nets were “definitely” already better than the Knicks.
— Reported by Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News
The Golden State Warriors have hired Ellen Warner as Vice President of Development, it was announced today. In this role, she will serve as the development manager for the team’s proposed privately financed sports and entertainment complex on Piers 30-32 and Seawall Lot 330 in San Francisco and will oversee planning, design and construction of the project.
“We are thrilled to add Ellen to the Warriors organization in this critical role,” said Joe Lacob, the team’s Co-Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Her skills and experience make her a perfect choice to lead our project.”
A San Francisco resident, Warner has more than three decades of experience successfully managing large and complex real estate projects, with budgets totaling $1 billion, including public buildings, hospitals, medical campuses, and office buildings.
“Joining the Warriors organization at this pivotal time is incredibly exciting,” said Warner. “I look forward to helping the organization bring a new world-class sports and entertainment complex to San Francisco.”
Prior to joining the Warriors, Warner was a partner at David S. Taylor Interests, Inc. in Sacramento, where she was directly responsible for the development of several of Sacramento’s most prominent buildings. Her portfolio includes Sacramento City Hall, which was named “Best Public Project” in 2005 by the Sacramento Business Journal, and US Bank Tower at 621 Capitol Mall, which the SBJ named “Best Office Project” in 2009.
Warner is a licensed architect and a licensed general contractor, with LEED accreditation. Her experience in the real estate development industry also includes nine years as the Assistant Manager of Facilities Design and Construction at the University of California Davis Medical Center, where she and her staff of architects, engineers and construction inspectors managed a $500 million capital improvement program for the hospital campus. Warner also previously served as the Regional Project Director for National Medical Enterprises, an international health care company. She began her career in various architecture offices, including the San Francisco firm Kaplan McLaughlin Diaz.
In 2007, the SBJ honored Warner with their “Women Who Mean Business” award, which recognizes Sacramento-area women for their exemplary career achievements and entrepreneurial accomplishments. From 2008-2012, Warner served on the Board of Directors for WEAVE, a non-profit agency in Sacramento with a mission to end domestic violence. Warner attended Cornell University and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Architecture from Washington University in St. Louis.
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Knicks unrestricted free agent Baron Davis will remain with the team in “some capacity,” his agent Todd Ramasar told ESPNNewYork.com on Thursday.
The Knicks won’t re-sign Davis as a player because the 33-year-old point guard suffered a horrific right knee injury in last season’s playoffs, and it’s likely he could miss the entire 2012-13 campaign. But since the spring, the Knicks have treated Davis like one of their own. The team has allowed him to do physical therapy with their training staff, and most recently, management has approached him about staying on board this season.
Ramasar said Davis is very excited about the opportunity, but it won’t involve a job title or him sitting on the bench during games. Instead, it will likely be more of a mentorship role behind the scenes and during practices.
— Reported by Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York