NBA 24/7 365

Did I spell that correctly?  Jonas Valančiūnas? If not, blame it on the Youtuber; I copied and pasted.

Anyway, as the title points out, Toronto’s prized Lithuanian rook recently came through with a slam-dunk spectacle fit for any highlight reel.  Maybe you’ve seen it—the video began circulating around the internet at least 12 hours ago—but hey, some of us have been busy.  So, for those of you who spent half your day in a van like I did, here’s what you need to see (via BDL):

As much as I love my dude Nikola Pekovic, you don’t see a whole hell of a lot of this in European basketball.  As a matter of fact, you don’t see a whole hell of a lot of this anywhere.  I mean, off-the-glass dunks, sure… those happen from time to time… but off-the-glass dunks with a defender involved? That’s an entirely different story.  The last one I can recall was executed by Earl Watson and Russell Westbrook back in ’09, and before that… Jason Richardson, I guess?  I don’t even know what year that one was, but I can tell you it was way back… like when Baron Davis was good.

Dunk rating on the Starbury Nastiness Scale:

9/10 Starbury Nasty Faces

You know something about Iceland?  All the ice is actually in Greenland.  According to my grade school teacher Mr. Kasper, Leif Erikson is responsible for the confusion.  He called Greenland Greenland because he wanted people to show up and colonize.  I can only imagine the disappointment of the settlers.  Must’ve been somethin’ kinda like drafting Kwame Brown.

I think I’ll call Kwame “Greenland” from now on.  Kwame “Greenland” Brown.  Does that work?

If there’s anything cool about getting old I imagine it’s seeing stuff from your youth come back to be presented in a glorious light.  While we ’80s babies aren’t exactly old, we’ve finally reached a special benchmark in our lives: this coming NBA season we’ll get to see some throwback jerseys from our younger years, and I’m not even talking about Mitchell & Ness.  According to Uni-Watch.com, the NBA plans to outfit 12 of its teams in Hardwood Classic uniforms, but rather than last year’s ABA theme the league has elected to go with something more modern—a mid-to-late ’90s bonanza!

Here’s the entire report from Uni Watch…

Uni Watch News Ticker: “I saw the Spring 2013 Adidas NBA Catalog and there are some new on-court offerings,” says Chris Blackstone. “There are new jerseys for Christmas Day and for home weekend games during the second half of season, called the Winter Court jerseys. They’re monochrome like the all-black Miami uniforms from the past couple years, but in team colors. Also, there are Hardwood Classic jerseys for Indiana (home from 1997-98 through 2004-05), Milwaukee (late ’90s), Chicago (mid-’90s alternate), Atlanta (late-’90s road), Miami (late-’90s alternate), Sacramento (mid-’90s alternate), Phoenix (1990s alternate), Philly (early-’90s road), Cleveland (mid-’90s road), Toronto (late-’90ss home), Houston (late-’90s road), and Utah (late-’90s road).” No word on whether the NBA plans to put ads on throwbacks in 2013.

Ads or no ads, this is going to make watching those mid-season battles between the Bucks and the Raptors super-duper exciting.  I mean, sh!t, all we’ve got to do is pretend DeMaR DeRoZaN is prime Vince Carter and it’ll be just like old times!

Yeah, I’m definitely most excited about those Dino Raptor joints.  If they put authentics up for sale I just might have to end my personal jersey boycott.  I’ll probably be tempted by the Hawks, too.  For those of you who don’t have vivid childhood memories of all the aforementioned masterpieces, The Basketball Jones created the following guide: Pacers, Bucks, Bulls, Hawks, Heat, Kings, Suns, Sixers, Cavaliers, Raptors, Rockets, Jazz.

I’m sure there will be at least a little variance from those pictures to what we actually see on the floor, but I reviewed all of their links and I think they’ve made the proper assumptions based on Uni Watch’s report (with exception to the Bucks, unfortunately… I think we’ll actually get these).

I suppose my only real gripe here is that the league elected not to bring these back (and Stromile Swift along with them!).  Other than that, I must admit, I’m pretty freaking pleased.

Every summer Jamal Crawford hosts a tournament in his hometown of Seattle.  It tends to feature all the usual suspects from the talent-rich region that is the Pacific Northwest—guys like Nate Robinson, Spencer Hawes, Terrence Williams, and Isaiah Thomas, just to name a few.  The presence of these players alone makes for some pretty intriguing games of what is essentially pickup basketball, but this weekend’s Brandon Roy sighting is what really piqued my attention.

As you know, Roy will be making an NBA comeback this season with the Minnesota Timberwolves, who drafted him sixth overall in 2006 before trading him to the Portland Trail Blazers.  Unfortunately, it’s been quite some time since we’ve seen the former All-Star on the court.  Although Jamal Crawford’s pro-am league pales in comparison to the NBA, it’s still a basketball game in which Brandon Roy recently participated.  The following video covers about five minutes of virtually-unedited game action with the camera focused on Roy…

I must admit… I’d hoped too see a little bit more explosion.  Not once in the entire video did he toast someone on his way to the rack, and never did he even create a whole lot of separation.  Knowing that it was basically a pickup game, hopefully he was just taking it easy.  Come to think of it, having witnessed a summer of lockout basketball I’d say it’s probable that he was in cruise control.

Anyway, there’s your Brandon Roy update.  Oh, and here’s a video of other league participants such as Jeremy Pargo, John Wall, and host Jamal Crawford taking advantage of an apparent lack of defense…

Jeremy Pargo’s really got the highlight game on lockdown lately, doesn’t he?  Thank you, Mars Reel.

It’s only Summer League?  Yeah, I hear you, but did that make the rim any larger for second-year Grizzly Josh Selby?  If not, then consider me nearly as impressed as whoever it was that gave him a third-place vote for Rookie of the Year.  I don’t give a sh!t what league you’re playing in… to shoot 55.7% from the floor over a span of five games whilst averaging 24 a night with professional basketball players guarding you is something to write home about.  And, more importantly, to make 27 of 42 three-point shot attempts (64%) is a sign of improvement from a player whose NBA career has seen him go 2-15 from downtown.

For his remarkable efforts, Selby received Co-MVP honors of the Vegas league (along with Damian Lillard).  In the following video you can watch him drain shot after shot, mostly from long range.  Note that he buries ‘em off the catch, off the dribble, from nearly mid-court, and while falling to the floor.  Also note that Jerry Stackhouse is on TV, but will be playing for the Nets come November.  I’ve heard of a player-coach, but a player-analyst?  Interesting.

My assessment?  Clearly, the man can stoke it when feeling confident.  Memphis has a fair amount of depth at the guard positions, so he’ll have to find a way to maintain his swagger as his role is determined by coach Lionel Hollins.  If he can stay focused and prepare to do whatever it is the Grizzlies ask of him then the shooting should carry over.  He’s got a quick release, and last I checked the three-point arc in Las Vegas is every inch as deep as the one in Memphis.

Whether it works out or not, I see a third-place MIP vote in Selby’s future.  Alright, alright… all jokes aside, way to shoot the ball, young man.

Note: Co-MVP Damian Lillard averaged 26.5 PPG on 43.8% from the floor and 37.9% from downtown.  He was also third amongst rookies in assists.

Damian Lillard, having been one of the most impressive players (if not the most impressive player) in Vegas this summer, watched his Blazers demolish the Heat from the sideline today.  Lillard, who averaged 26.5 points through his first four games, will have to hope what he’s already accomplished will be enough to earn him MVP honors over Memphis’s Josh Selby, who leads all scorers thus far at 29 PPG (Selby has two games left).

In Lillard’s stead, Dee Bost and Will Barton were given an opportunity to run the show for the Blazers… and run the show they did!  Bost and Barton had already scored the majority of their combined 41 by the time the middle of the fourth quarter rolled around, but they saved the best for last.  Ladies and gentlemen, the cherry on top of Portland’s 81-55 victory:

I can dig it.  I think the only person who couldn’t was Miami’s Dexter Pittman, who ended up laying a nasty flagrant foul on Barton when he drove to the basket a little later on in the game.

A flagrant foul in Summer League, Dexter Pittman?  I don’t care how hard they’re styling on you… that’s just uncalled for.

So apparently Jason Williams, Scottie Pippen, and others have been playing exhibition games in Asia.  It’s almost 2 AM right now and I don’t really have the energy to research this matter, but I had to share with you the return of the legendary elbow pass, an incredible feat of ball handling originally pulled off by young J-Will over the 2000 All-Star Weekend.  Here are both videos of the nearly-identical passes; first 2000, and second the one from a few days ago…

Well I’ll be damned… Scottie Pippen’s out there dunking at age 46.  F@cking Raef LaFrentz couldn’t do it at the age of 23.

In all seriousness, to see the elbow pass finally finished the way it should’ve been all those years ago… that brought a big smile to my face.  What also helped bring that smile to my face was the realization that I haven’t seen this pass from anyone in all of these 12 years.  When you bust a move that ridiculous and no one can even play copycat for over a decade, you’ve done something truly remarkable.

Speaking of things that are truly remarkable, I’m pretty sure Williams threw that ball over his head and into the basket at the end of the second video.

As I shared with you earlier today, the NBA recently decided to allow advertisements on jerseys.  While the league will only permit the sale of one 2-inch-by-2-inch space (a patch, basically) for the time being, I think we all know damn well that this is just the beginning of a uniform transformation that’ll have NBA jerseys lookin’ like Nascars.

As a collector of jerseys and someone who loves what pure aspects of our game that still remain, I’m not a fan of this move.  Still, I couldn’t help but consider a few potential sponsorships when the hashtag #NBAAds began to trend on Twitter (shout-out to @NBAStreets).  While I’m sure each player will have to promote the same product as the rest of his teammates, here are some partnerships I’d suggest (photoshops included) in the case that the league ever allowed brands to cut deals with specific athletes.

Earl Boykins—MaxTall: Earl Boykins was a solid NBA player at 5’5”.  Imagine what he’ll be capable of when he and MaxTall team up for a comeback at 5’8”.

Kendrick Perkins—McDonalds: McDonald’s… the fast food chain that’s about all things happy.  Kendrick Perkins… the basketball player who has never cracked a smile, ever.  There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the irony of this partnership would draw attention to McDonalds’ product.

Tim Duncan—Powerade: We know damn well Timmy doesn’t like Gatorade, and his squeaky-clean image would make him an excellent brand ambassador.  This is a no-brainer.

Kurt Thomas—AARP: ‘Cause the dude is f@cking old.

Dwight Howard—ADT Home Defense Systems: Aside from hiring Dwight Howard to guard your home, ADT is the best thing going!

Russell Westbrook—LensCrafters: “Were you able to find any frames that suit you, Mr. Westbrook?”  “Uh, yeah… I’ll take the red ones, but hold the lenses.”

Jeremy Lin—P.F. Chang’s: They could make up some story about how Lin was subsisting solely on P.F. Chang’s frozen dinners as he crashed on Landry Fields’ famous couch.  Or maybe they wouldn’t have to make it up.

Dwyane Wade—Revlon: Dudes are dressing more and more like women by the day.  Revlon ought to capitalize on this trend by inking a deal with Dwyane Wade, who would make it cool for men to paint their nails.

Greg Oden—Hoveround: I think it’s pretty clear that Greg Oden will never live up to his draft position, but imagine the marketing possibilities for Hoveround if they could help the former college superstar overcome injury and play NBA basketball in one of those things?

Chris Bosh—The Land Before Time: Do they still make those movies?  I remember being in grade school when the teacher would be like, “alright kids, we’re going to watch a movie today… the Land Before Time!“  Hearing that sh!t was like finding out you’d won the lottery.

Got your own partnership idea?  Send it to me on Twitter (@NBA247OFFICIAL), or leave a comment.

It begins as a bunch of 2-inch-by-2-inch patches.  Ten years later, NBA uniforms look like this.  Can you dig it?  I know I can’t.  NBA owners certainly can, though, because the little patches alone are expected to generate up to $100 million per season, according to Adam Silver.  The following courtesy of ESPN.COM…

Come fall, it’s highly likely you’ll see a small 2-inch-by-2-inch sponsorship patch stitched on the shoulder of your favorite player’s game jersey.

“I think it’s likely that we’ll do something, implement something, some sort of plan for the fall,” NBA deputy commissioner Adam Silver said. “I think it’s fair to say that our teams were excited about the opportunity and think there is potentially a big opportunity in the marketplace to put a two-by-two patch on the shoulder of our jerseys.”

How big an opportunity? In 2010, the 20 teams in the English Premier League generated $178 million in revenue from shirt sponsorships. Granted, a 2-by-2 insignia probably won’t fetch anywhere near what an EPL team gets for draping a sponsor’s logo seam-to-seam across the chest of its players, at least not initially. But even a fraction of $178 million has to be enticing to NBA owners.

“Our view is we think, on an aggregate basis, league-wide, our 30 teams could generate in total $100 million by selling that patch on jerseys, per season,” Silver said.

See, I’d be alright with it if I knew the advertisements would never expand beyond the 2-inch patch.  However, I think we all know damn well that this is just the beginning.  Once advertisers get their collective foot in the door I expect that the league will slowly allow them to buy more and more space on players’ jerseys.  While I fully understand that this league is a business and that adding an extra $100 million in revenue is a good thing for any business, I can’t help but not like the thought of a crispy-clean Boston Celtics jersey with the word “Yahoo!” scribbled on it.  Sorry.

Also, the league plans to expand instant replay.  From the same article…

Next season, we’ll see an expansion of instant replay. All flagrant foul calls will go for immediate review to determine whether they constitute a “Flagrant 1,” the more egregious “Flagrant 2,” or a garden-variety foul. During the last two minutes of regulation and the entirety of overtime, officials will consult video to confirm the accuracy of a goaltending call and to determine whether a defender was inside or outside the restricted area on a block/charge call.

I think I’m okay with this.  I remember how upset I was when the Blazers lost to the Thunder last season as a result of a bogus goaltending call, so to say I’m not okay with this would make me a hypocrite.  I just fear the NBA becoming like the NFL, where it seems that every single play is put under a microscope.  I suppose that’s not an option with basketball, though, as there’s no stoppage in play after every single possession.

Man, I feel like sports were simpler when I was a kid.  Maybe that’s because I was a kid and everything seemed simpler.  I don’t know.  Whatever the case may be, I liked things better when Allen Iverson was MVP and Jay-Z was big pimpin’.

I’m too damn nostalgic for all of these changes.