Ron Artest guarantees Lakers will win 2012 NBA championship

Ron Artest

Earlier today, I guaranteed to myself that I would walk across the street and buy two bagels and an iced coffee.

And, I did it.

Some guarantees are easier to fulfill than others.

Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Times blog reports:

Ron Artest guaranteed to ESPN Los Angeles’ Stephen A. Smith in a 40-minute interview Wednesday that the Lakers will again pop the champagne bottles after winning the 2012 NBA title. Assuming there’s a season of course.

“Win it all,” Artest said when asked what will the Lakers do in the 2011-2012 season. “Win the whole thing. That’s a guarantee.”

Artest didn’t sound as confident about guaranteeing that he and his dance partner,  Peta Murgatroyd, would win in “Dancing with the Stars,” admitting “that’s going to be a problem.

The Lakers definitely still seem like a title contender. Although they got smoked by the eventual title-winner Dallas Mavericks in last year’s playoffs, on paper the Lakers continue to be as good as anyone out West.

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Exhibition basketball games coming to Salt Lake City and Provo in September

The state of Utah has some basketball fun coming later in September thanks to a couple of NBA players setting up a pair of exhibition game battles.

Brian T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune reports:

jimmer fredette

Jimmer Fredette and Kemba Walker matched up against each other June 15 during a pre-draft workout for the Jazz in Salt Lake City. Now, the duo will team up for two charity events based in Utah while the NBA is stuck in a lockout.

Walker was confirmed Wednesday to participate in two exhibition games hosted by Fredette. Walker, a rookie guard and former Connecticut standout, was selected by the Charlotte Bobcats with the ninth overall pick during the 2011 NBA Draft. Fredette was taken No. 10 by the Sacramento Kings.

“I have always been a big fan and have a lot of respect for Kemba,” Fredette said in a press release. “We had the chance to work out together before the draft and have become friends.”

The charity games will be held Sept. 21 (Salt Lake City) and 22 (Provo). Other participating players will be announced during the coming weeks.

Hey Jazz fans: Go hit the games! It may be the best basketball you catch in the near future.

Hakim Warrick trying to set up Philly vs Baltimore basketball game

Hakim Warrick

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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Siena team reportedly hopes to sign Andrea Bargnani

michael redd

As reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport, Montepaschi Siena is interested in Andrea Bargnani for the upcoming season, at least until NBA lockout ends. Il Mago has never talked about the possibility to return overseas during the lockout postponing any decision after Eurobasket where he is playing with Italian National Team. Toronto Raptors star is receiving a lot of proposals to play in Europe also by European top tems but Siena is ready to make a big offer for him when NBA will officially put off the beginning of the NBA season. In the meantime, Bargnani is thinking to extend his insurance even for the period after Eurobasket to get ready for a proposal to play overseas if he decides to play somewhere else during the lockout.

— Reported by Sportando

Tony Parker not signing in France, yet

michael redd

Tony Parker, star of San Antonio Spurs, has denied straight away his signing with ASVEL Villeurbanne during the NBA lockout. “I did not sign any contract with ASVEL. I am not saying I would not like to play with ASVEL during the lockout but the problem with the insurance is very difficult to solve. And now everything is stopped because I am playing with French NT. I am asking to the media to stop talking about me playing in France during the lockout. I don’t know if we will be able to fix the issue with insurance and I don’t want people mad at me because I won’t play in ASVEL even if all the media reported something different one month earlier” said Parker.

— Reported by Sportando.

Javaris Crittenton reportedly robbed of $55,000 worth of jewelry in April

Javaris Crittenton

A former NBA player who is accused of shooting an Atlanta woman to death appeared to be retaliating for being robbed of $55,000 worth of jewelry, police said.

Javaris Crittenton, who was suspended from the NBA along with his ex-teammate Gilbert Arenas for having guns in a locker room, was arrested late Monday at a Southern California airport. He has been charged with murder in the Aug. 19 shooting death of Jullian Jones outside her house in Atlanta, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said.

Crittenton’s attorneys have said he will exonerated.

Crittenton told police he and a friend were leaving a barbershop around 10:50 p.m. April 21 when two teenagers surprised them as they returned to their car, according to police report released to The Associated Press.

One teenager held Crittenton at gunpoint and ordered him to “give me what you got,” he told police. He said he handed over a $25,000 black diamond necklace, a $30,000 black diamond watch, an iPhone and $25 cash, according to the report.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Bruce Pearl chooses working for wholesale grocer over Texas Legends

Former Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl has turned down owner Donnie Nelson’s offer to coach the D-League Texas Legends, citing a desire to remain with his children and enter the private sector in Knoxville.

The Knoxville News Sentinel reported early this afternoon that Pearl accepted a job as vice president of marketing with Tennessee-based wholesale grocer H.T. Hackney Co.

The company’s chairman, Bill Sansom, formerly sat on the board of trustees at Tennessee, which fired Pearl in March after he admitted misleading NCAA investigators who were looking at recruiting irregularities at the school.

“I’ve known Bruce Pearl for years — his leadership, competitiveness and understanding of marketing is a great fit for our organization,” Sansom said in a statement released by the company.

— Reported by Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News

Over 61,000 fans bounce basketballs at the same time

As EuroBasket 2011 was officially launched with the Opening Ceremony in Lithuania’s capital city of Vilnius on Monday, thousands around the country helped make it a memorable day by helping set a new Guinness world record.

More than 61,000 fans bounced a basketball simultaneously for a period of five minutes in six cities that play host to the EuroBasket.

The record needs to be verified by the Guinness Record committee that oversees such attempts, something which was expected to happen on Tuesday.

— Reported by FIBA Europe

Javaris Crittenton arrested in California

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The sad saga of former NBA player Javaris Crittenton continues.

The AP reports:

Former NBA player Javaris Crittenton, who was suspended from the league for having guns in a locker room with teammate Gilbert Arenas, was arrested Monday in Southern California to face a murder charge in a deadly Atlanta shooting, an attorney said Monday.

Crittenton was taken into custody at about 8 p.m. at John Wayne Airport in Orange County after checking in for a Delta Air Lines flight to Atlanta, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said.

Eimiller said he was arrested without incident by FBI agents with assistance from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.

Authorities were trying to determine whether Crittenton will make an initial appearance in federal court, or be taken directly to Atlanta to face state charges there.

“He offered to turn himself in,” Lawyer Brian Steel told The Associated Press earlier Monday. “He’s not guilty. We look forward to getting it to the courts.”

We at InsideHoops.com continue to hope that it turns out Javaris didn’t do it, and is found innocent.

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Wilson Chandler signs with basketball team in China, no NBA-out clause

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Wilson Chandler said he has signed a contract with the Zhejiang Guangsha of the Chinese Basketball Association, a move that would essentially preclude him from participating in the 2011-12 NBA season if the lockout ends and the games begin.

The Chinese Basketball Association will not allow players with existing contracts to sign with its teams, so playing in China is only an option for free agents such as Chandler, a restricted free agent who finished the 2010-11 season with the Denver Nuggets.

In addition, the CBA will not allow escape clauses that would allow players to leave the Chinese league in the event the NBA resumes operations. So Chandler would not be a part of the NBA if the season begins on time or even with an abbreviated schedule starting in January or February.

“Maybe I’ll lose out,” Chandler said. “But I think it can be a great experience. I haven’t been in any [labor negotiation] meetings. I can’t call it. I’m just taking a risk, at the end of the day.”

— Reported by J.A. Adande of ESPN

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