ALL BALL NERVE CENTER – Big thanks to the NBA’s official YouTube channel, where they posted the following video of the Golden State Warriors getting ready for last night’s game in San Antonio. Obviously nobody knew the game was going to turn into an instant classic, but it didn’t stop them from preparing for the game by breaking into an impromptu dance-off. So you think you can dance? Don’t challenge rookie Kent Bazemore, who winds up the center of the circle. Obviously prepped him for making his game-winner that wasn’t quite enough. -
This isn’t something people noticed in retrospect. If you were watching the game, it was pretty much impossible to miss:
EXCITED FEMALE SPURS FAN IS GETTING EXCITED AGAIN!!!!!— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 07, 2013
Find the shrieker and escort her out. Won’t be hard; it’s the section where everyone’s ears are bleeding.— (@netw3rk) May 07, 2013
This screaming lady is doing her best to ruin a great game in San Antonio.— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 07, 2013
Screaming lady turned a nation of viewers against the Spurs #AmexNBA— Lang Whitaker (@langwhitaker) May 07, 2013
This woman — well, I’m assuming it’s a woman, although I suppose it also could have been a man with a really high voice — kept it up down the stretch and as the Spurs won the game in the second overtime.
As of now this fan has not been identified. But she’s certainly been noticed. -
ALL BALL NERVE CENTER – We know it’s going to take a special performance for the Warriors to beat the Spurs in the Western Conference Semifinals. In fact, you could say it will take a superhuman effort. And if that’s the case, Golden State has just the man for the job, at least according to Warriors forward Draymond Green, who tweeted a photo of Stephen Curry wearing a suit of armor. Or at least a suit of armor that’s been printed on a t-shirt …
(I’m no comic book expert, but I’m pretty sure Tony Stark didn’t wear team-issued sweatpants as part of his suit.) For his part, Curry responded by complimenting his own superhuman physique…
ALL BALL NERVE CENTER — OK, so maybe the headline is a little misleading. I mean, there is a point in this video where ESPN’s Rick Reilly, the 11-time NSSA Sportswriter of the Year, walks on camera wearing only a net, which thankfully covers the stuff nobody wants to see. Golden State G Stephen Curry eventually joins in as well, though he chooses to wear his net in a more modest toga-esque configuration.
How does all this come about? Reilly challenges Steph Curry to a shooting contest, with a wrinkle: Reilly shoots threes, Curry shoots from halfcourt. I think you can guess how it ends up.
Anyway, the key part of the headline is the phrase “Nothing But Nets.” Today is World Malaria Day, and it’s a perfect time to get the Nothing But Nets campaign on your radar. Nothing But Nets is a terrific organization dedicated to fighting malaria, which is a leading cause of death among children in Africa. Nothing but Nets wants you to give $10, which goes for “the cost of purchasing a long-lasting, insecticide-treated bed net, distributing it, and educating communities on its use.”
Take a few minutes, laugh at the video, then make a difference in someone’s life…
A sad day in the NBA, as Ricky Rubio‘s sensational rookie season comes to an end thanks to a freak knee injury suffered at the tail end of Friday night’s loss to the Lakers. Rubio has been even better than advertised in his rookie season, and his dazzling passing and infectious enthusiasm will be sorely missed.
This has been a tough season for all the players due to the compressed schedule, and we’ve seen many good players go down with injuries as a result. And as sad as I was when Hawks’ C Al Horford went down, for example, I don’t think any player’s misfortune has been as widely met with dismay as Rubio’s has. Just take a look at the outpouring of support on Twitter from some of the NBA’s zeitgeist when the news broke today:
LeBron James (@KingJames) — S/O to Ricky Rubio! Have a speedy and successful recovery
Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) — Praying the Ricky Rubio has a speedy recovery!
Dwyane Wade(@DwyaneWade) — Ricky Rubio’s injury isn’t 1 that any basketball fan wanted 2 C. He’s had an amazing rookie season & has brought life back 2 a franchise. Chris Paul (@CP3) — Prayers out to @RickyRubio9 and hoping for a speedy recovery!
Kevin Love (@kevinlove) — Love my teammate and friend @rickyrubio9. Here’s to a quick recovery. We will miss you.
The recovery time for Rubio’s injury usually takes 6-9 months, which means he will likely miss this summer’s Olympics as well — a big blow to the Spanish national team’s chances. His Spanish mates chimed in as well:
Pau Gasol (@paugasol) – All my support to my friend and mate @rickyrubio9 after knowing the hard news about the results on his knee injury. Rudy Fernandez (@rudy5fernandez) — All my support to my friend and mate @rickyrubio9 Jose Calderon (@josemcalderon8) — All my support to my big friend and teammate @rickyrubio9. Hard news about his knee. He’ll be back stronger
Several other NBA players offered their prayers and condolences:
Stephen Curry (@StephenCurry30) — Prayers to Ricky Rubio. Keep your head up and hoping for a speedy recovery. #Classof09
DeMar DeRozan (@DeMar_DeRozan) – A speedy recovery to Rubio! Mario Chalmers (@mchalmers15) — prayers goin out to @RickyRubio9. No NBA player wants to go thru that. keep ya head up and get that knee stronger Baron Davis — (@Baron_Davis) Rubio smh. Damn ! Praying for you! Wishing you a speedy recovery. You will be stronger than ever!!!! DeAndre Jordan (@deandrejordan) — praying that @rickyrubio9 has a speedy and complete recovery… Greivis Vasquez (@greivisvasquez) – Que triste la lesion de Ricky Rubio, le deseo una pronta recuperacion. Anthony Tolliver (@ATolliver44) — Praying for @rickyrubio9 ! Extraordinary healing is coming your way! Keep your head up
There aren’t many players in the league with the kind of court vision and offensive creativity that Rubio possesses. Here’s to a complete and total recovery, and hopefully a full season in 2012-13.
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As everyone knows by now, the compressed NBA schedule will force every team to play three games in three nights at least one this season (42 times in total). With only 66 games to stake a claim to a playoff spot or seed, how teams perform during these killer slates could have a large impact on how their seasons turn out.
With that in mind, we’re going to keep track of each of the 42 three-plays to see which teams take advantage and which teams fall apart. Up next, the Portland Trail Blazers, who played three straight from Jan. 23-25.
Every time I see a fan base start to complain about bad luck, or how nothing ever works out for them, I think of Portland. That is not to say that I think Blazers fans whine all the time; on the contrary, I think of the incredible adversity and horrible luck with injuries that franchise has faced in the past few years and how despite that, they’ve still managed to make the playoffs and contend where I believe others would have folded up the tent and gone home.
When this season started with the announcement of another Greg Oden injury setback and then the retirement of Brandon Roy, I assumed Portland was done for. And though it hasn’t been easy, here they are again, keeping their heads above water and competing for the playoffs. If they have the fortitude for that, I’m sure the three-play will be a piece of cake. Let’s go to the scoreboard and find out:
Game 1: Blazers 101, Kings 89 - When you have three games in three nights, it’s great to have a guy like Jamal Crawford available, who on the right night can get hot and carry the team by himself. This was one of those nights, as Crawford sprung for a game-high 26 off the bench to lead the Blazers to an easy win. 2 points (1 for win, 1 for +10 margin)
Game 2: Blazers 97, Grizzlies 84 - So far so good, as Portland picks up another seemingly easy win, this time against the Grizzlies. Marcus Camby did his best Ben Wallace impression in this one, pulling down 22 caroms while scoring only three points. 4 points (3 for win, 1 for +10 margin)
Game 3: Warriors 101, Blazers 93 - Finally away from the friendly confines of the Rose Garden, the Blazers fell short to the Warriors in the final game to fall short of becoming the third team to sweep their three for all. Normally you’d like your chances against the Warriors when Monta Ellis scores only four points, but on this night he dished out 12 assists and Steph Curry picked up the slack with 32 to deny Portland perfection. 0 points
The Blazers finish with 6 total points, which in some ways doesn’t do them justice for their performance (with two +10 wins), but that’s why the third game is so important — it’s the hardest to win, home or away.
Up next: The Detroit Pistons play three straight Jan. 30 – Feb. 1 as they take on the three-play challenge entirely on the road: at Milwaukee, at New York, and at New Jersey.
If you read this blog, it’s safe to assume you are an NBA fan (or my mother). Therefore, it’s logical to assume you’ve seen the NBA’s Encouragement ad campaign this season, taking real footage of various NBA stars from when they were younger and having people from the future talk to them about what’s in store for them. Like Amar’e Stoudemire. Chris Paul. Kevin Durant. Stephen Curry. And Steve Nash.
If you’re like me, you’ve seen these spots and wondered, “How did they do that???*”
Your amount of question marks may have varied.
Well wonder no further, as NBAE released this behind-the-scenes footage of how the Nash one (generally considered the best) got produced. Roll it!
Pretty cool stuff.
Also, courtesy of Suns.com, here is the original Nash footage that the commercial is based on:
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I don’t know Steph Curry as a person at all, but I’ve always had the feeling he was kind of a gym-rat type, the kind that really doesn’t have much personality because they are so focused on hoops. So glad to be proven wrong. I didn’t have any preconceived notions about Ekpe Udoh and Charlie Bell — though I have seen Udoh do the dougie — but they all seem to be having a good time, or at least a better time than the poor woman in the backseat.
Most importantly though — robot sighting!
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The Celtics beat the Heat for the second time this season, this time with a 112-107 victory on Miami’s home court. There are many other places on the webernets where you can read about What This Game Means, but I want to focus today on the hero of last night’s win, Ray Allen, who hit his first seven 3′s on the way to a team-high 35 points.
Allen is most definitely on the downslope of his terrific career, and while I feel certain he’ll eventually be a Hall of Famer, the consensus around the office this morning is that it probably won’t happen on the first ballot, and that makes me kind of sad (even though it really doesn’t mean anything), because Ray is the finest shooter these eyes have ever seen.
Allen’s performance last night was vintage. It was at once remarkable and ordinary. Remarkable because it takes an amazing amount of talent and dedication to reach his level of success as a shooter, and ordinary because making seven 3′s is just what Ray does — it was the 22nd time he’s done it in his career.
It also made me feel old. I literally said to myself last night as he continued to pour in jumpers, “They really don’t make them like him anymore.”
Who is Allen’s heir when he retires in the not-too-distant future? What NBA player has worked on their jumper to the fanatical extreme the way Ray has, to the point where he only needs thismuchroom to get off a picture perfect shot no matter where he is on the court or which way his body is leaning. The only person I can think of is Stephen Curry, but that has more to do with aesthetics than game, as I assume he’ll remain as much a facilitator as scorer deep into his NBA career.
Allen doesn’t have a ton of time left, and when he leaves, I don’t think people will notice his absence as much as they should. But when he does, it will always be nice to look back on nights like last night and marvel at the artistry, and remember that as easy as he made it look, he worked pretty hard to make it so.
UPDATE: Courtesy of a check of Basketballreference.com, Allen’s 22 games with seven 3-pointers is by far the most in NBA history (keeping in mind, of course, that the 3-point line wasn’t installed until 1979). Reggie Miller had 13, which is tied for second best with Nick Van Exel and Quentin Richardson. Thanks to John Donovan for the heads up.
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Catch up on every single game-winning buzzer beater during the season and see how it rates on the Horry Scale.
