Universe

You are making it seem like he's desprate for money. The dude played his best hockey when he was earning his pay and once he got it, his antics began. Also, he had guys in the locker room before that couldn't help him because he's pretty much Sean Avery but in net.

Hired his son too, ahah.

Vince Carter isn't a quiter or injury prone as the labels of the past but he sure in the hell is a hard player to root for on your team. He can do the most amazing things possible but then other times you just have to question what in God's name he is doing. This is one of the most talented teams he has been on so maybe those mistakes won't be as frustrating as they were watching him in a Nets jersey but there is a large chance that it turns out worse than what many are expecting.

Yeah last years pairings were AMAZING. Now we even lost Michelle Beadle! http://i37.tinypic.com/f3gzt5.gif

Nice work dude.

http://insideblog.easports.com/cfs-filesystemfile.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Blogs.Components.WeblogFiles/inside_5F00_ea/EA_5F00_KINGofCOURT_5F00_02.jpg http://insideblog.easports.com/cfs-filesystemfile.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Blogs.Components.WeblogFiles/inside_5F00_ea/IMG_5F00_0537.jpg

Holy hell.

You guys already have the steal of the offseason in Pronger.

More of a thing just to make it seem like we are still "trying". Would make more sense to put an offer like that to Millsap.

http://i27.tinypic.com/153mys0.jpg It is rare that in professional sports you find a bond so close to what a high school basketball coach and a student reach together. In San Antonio, Gregg Popovich and Tim Duncan have had that bond since day one. It started out months before the draft when Spurs had the lucky bounce of the lottery and won the overall top pick. The clear cut favourite for the top spot was Duncan and they looked no where else. Popovich visited Duncan in his hometown Christiansted, located on the coast of the Virgin Islands. Popovich was a new coach himself looking for a player to take him and the team to the next level alongside another talented big in David Robinson. After a couple days on the beach, it was clear the direction the Spurs were heading and Duncan was on board. “I know what I am. I don’t know how else to explain it.” Duncan stated. On 25 June 1997 in Charlotte, the package was secure. Duncan was the newest member of an up and coming group of men. Popovich said with a grin on his face, “He’s one of the most unbelievable competitors I’ve been around.” It was not an easy beginning for Tim Duncan as his father got sick and was hundreds of miles away from home. He turned to his coach who then turned into his personal mentor. Duncan felt comfortable talking about situations with his new coach which grew an even tighter bond. Duncan had a shoulder to lean on in the tough times, but also someone who knew how to push him to the limit on the court. Rarely seen in the NBA is a bond between a coach and player that is almost father-son like. We have the Marburys and the Larry Browns who cannot last a season together while Duncan and Popovich can spend a summer together. What that brings has equaled success for a Spurs team that dominated the past decade winning four out the last ten championships. The duo is a model of what almost all franchises pray for. A Coach of the Year candidate every year and a two time MVP who actually loves his coach. What makes the duo so successful? They get each other. The players feel they can talk to Duncan who then can have a conversation with the coach and have it openly discussed due to the friendship. They also watch Duncan get rode in practice and in games which makes them realize how it takes everyone to run the machine. That machine is often called boring and dirty as the league nits and picks what they want to hear about the Spurs. Fans enjoy seeing failure but the city of San Antonio has been lucky enough not to worry about that. Four championships later, Duncan and Popovich look for their first back-to-back championship in franchise history as they have a group of guys willing to bond into champions. Duncan knows that it’s on his back to win and silence the critics for saying he is too old and too sloppy. Popovich smiled and summed it up perfectly, “Some nights he's going to stop somebody, some nights it won't happen. But he's going to be effective in some way, shape or form every night to help us win. He’s done it four times now and often goes untalked about but I’m sure he does not mind. Not even the greatest of the great get here alone.”

http://i32.tinypic.com/15cxzqt.jpg While the NBA is one of the toughest challenges to achieve, a certain few make the task look simple and meek. Jonathan Bender was one of the few coasting down what seemed like easy street, until his priorities were shifted, as the 6’11 forward had a career-ending knee injury which allowed him to make a difference outside of the basketball court. Bender, now 28 years old, grew up in the small town Picayune, MS, where he learned all he had to know in basketball. His father would take him on trips to New Orleans where he eventually began playing basketball. It was there that Bender found his adopted home and fell in love. At age 12, Benders father passed away leaving a hole where a father figure was needed. It was then Bender met a man who had been around the world six times in Billy Ray Hobley. The Harlem Globetrotter took Bender under his wing. It was with Hobley that Bender learned about the less fortunate and to take nothing for granted as Hobley was not only a basketball player, but a great person for his community. His game plan was never forget where you came from and always give back and Bender could relate with the quick success he was receiving as he scored 31 points in the 1999 McDonald's High School All-America Game and was a hot topic among college recruiters. Bender made a verbal commitment to his hometown school, Mississippi State University but then quickly hired an agent and entered the NBA draft. The same year he also made the move to New Orleans to be with Hobley before having to move to Indiana as he was the fifth overall pick in the 1999 NBA draft. His career began slow only averaging 2.7 PPG in his rookie year while fellow forward Elton Brand tore up the league with many other names from that draft class as well. His second year wasn’t much better either seeing limited time on the court in limited games played though the Pacers saw the young forward as potential, not giving up on him and it payed off as Bender put up a personal best 7.4 PPG, 6.6 PPG and 7 PPG over the next three years. It was then Benders troubles began. He began to have chronic knee pain that had bothered him in years before but had now become unbar able to play with forcing Bender to play nine games over his next two years leaving Bender with a decision that would ruin his dream of NBA glory. In February of 2006, Bender announced his retirement from basketball having only played in 237 games and being the young age of 25. The labels came out quick as he was called a bust and critics were onto him faster than they praised him. The talk of potential had now faded as he was considered a washed up, injury prone basketball failure. Though the love of NBA fans faded, his love for his adopted hometown grew stronger. Hurricane Katrina had devastated New Orleans and Bender knew he had to help. Rather than living off the millions he made in his short stint in the NBA, he put money towards reestablishing New Orleans by fixing up homes to the less fortunate. Bender didn’t stop there as he adopted elementary schools, built real estate ventures, offered free finance classes for some of New Orleans' poorest residents and ran free basketball clinics for teens in the New Orleans region. Bender thanks Hobley, who died in 2002, for giving him a hometown and also for giving him a heart for the less fortunate. He taught him that life isn’t all about basketball and it paid off for Bender in more ways than one. Even though his hype never was filled on the basketball court, his heart has filled many off of it.

http://i29.tinypic.com/m8jjhu.jpg Labeled defective and risky, a man who has only known one home will look to prove the doubters wrong as he enters his dream of the NBA Thursday night a lot further down than expected. DeJuan Blair grew up in Pittsburgh in literally walking distance of his former college school. He was the youngest and smallest of four children, but that soon changed as he began to grow. By the time Blair entered Schenley High School; he stood 6’7" and had a punishing body to go along with the tall frame. The three-time Pittsburgh City League Player of the Year was a highly-regarded prospect coming out of high school where he fielded many offers. Florida, Tennessee, and even smaller schools like Rutgers and Miami all pushed hard for the young talent. Blair’s parents wanted him to leave the state to go to college, but it was for his grandmother that Blair chose Pittsburgh. With the team losing starter Aaron Gray to graduation, his grandmother, Donna Saddler, recognized the chance her grandson had at starting on a talented local team, and so he went with coach Jamie Dixon’s team. Blair became the starter, and also the terror, as he lead the Panthers to a Big East Conference tournament win over schools such as Syracuse, Georgetown, and Connecticut. Blair also won the Big East Rookie of the Year, as he put up nearly 12 points per game and just over nine rebounds. In his second year, Blair tore up the field even worse, winning the Big East Player of the Year award with fellow NBA hopefully Hasheem Thabeet. Blair’s 12.3 RPG were one of the best in the country, as he was linked in NBA mocks to go top-10 with fellow Big East star Thabeet. The consensus First Team All-American decided to place his name in the NBA draft, hiring an agent just a day after stating his decision, forcing him out of the NCAA. It was then things began to go downhill. Blair had ACL surgery on both knees in high school, but suffered no setbacks in college. NBA general managers seemed worried about his future, as past mistakes of Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Allan Houston were still fresh in many minds. Blair went from workout to workout, even calling himself a “lottery pick” in an interview, as he felt he impressed each city he entered, and with his toughness and hard work, the Pittsburgh native looked to make his dream a relativity. The night came, and Blair spent it with his family, waiting for his name to be called to an NBA team. They began to wait patiently, as players who hadn’t even scored above 10 points per game were being drafted ahead of him. The man who he shared the Big East Player of the Year went second overall, and Blair was left waiting. Blair waited all the way until the 37th overall pick, where the San Antonio Spurs decided to take a risk on the talented 20-year-old. The Spurs had a busy week, trading for Richard Jefferson while losing two valuable bigs in Kurt Thomas and Fabricio Oberto, leaving the door open for him to prove what many didn’t believe 36 picks ahead of him. Chad Ford has already called him the steal of the draft and a possible starter for a team that many say has brought itself to second overall in season previews. Blair knows what he has to do, as many labeled him defective, even though he has the hardware and resume to prove otherwise. Blair will be one of the players that every general manager will be watching in April—maybe not dominating the way he did in college, but playing the role asked by new coach, Greg Popovich, and with that, his ring fingers might be filled up quicker than others in his draft class. http://www.alldaynba.com/sanantoniospurs/fall-from-heaven-the-dejuan-blair-story

http://i25.tinypic.com/68zkhg.jpg With the college basketball season creeping closer and closer, Syracuse basketball is entering a new era of play. Armed with little to no NBA talent, Jim Boeheim will have his hands full putting together a winning roster for 2010. It started off when sophomore Jonny Flynn declared for the NBA draft as he was extraordinary for the Orange the past season as he helped them start off undefeated and then make it to the NCAA Tournament. The Orange also lost Paul Harris and Eric Devendorf as they entered this year’s draft but were not as lucky as Flynn as both went undrafted while Flynn was picked up early by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Devendorf is looking out for his family as he must support his young daughter and he also has received his college degree. Harris was also in the same situation as he has a four year old son to take care of as well as he will be joining Flynn on the Minnesota Timberwolves Summer League roster trying to make the NBA while Devendorf is looking at options to play overseas. Also, one of the few bodies with height, Sean Williams, transferred to Cal State Fullerton as he only logged just 49 minutes of playing time in 16 games over the past two seasons. Instead of having a dangerous roster of Donte Greene, Jonny Flynn, Eric Devendorf and Paul Harris, Boeheim will have to hit the pavement and recruit some of his under the radar type players and hope for the best. The 2009 Syracuse recruit list includes three players that are rated three stars by rivals.com. Brandon Triche is the leading freshman coming into camp having already signed his letter of intent. The 6’3 guard has been tearing up the King of Kings summer basketball league where fellow team mates, Mookie Jones, Scoop Jardine and Rick Jackson are playing too. Triche will have to have an instant scoring touch to fill the role of Flynn as the opportunities will be there; he just has to be there as well. The other two have only given there word but it looks promising. DaShonte Riley stands 6’11 and could make an immediate impact for the ‘Cuse while James Southerland will be the replacements of Devendorf and Harris as they look for a young guard that can make a name for himself in his four years. There are plenty of positives this season as well. After a year of waiting, transfer Wes Johnson will be hitting the court. Johnson has been working out with Vince Carter in the LeBron James Skills Academy improving his game. Johnson had averaged 12.3 points and 6.1 rebounds for Iowa State in two seasons and is looking forward to hitting the floor for the Orange. With the team losing its three top scorers, a lot of pressure will be put on Johnson as well as Andy Rautins and Arinze Onuaku, the only other players who averaged over 10 points a game. Other key contributors are going to have to step up like Canadian Kris Joseph and as well as Rick Jackson. Jim Boeheim looks to find himself in a tough situation where his best players are bigs compared to the abundance of forwards he is use to from Anthony to Greene, Boeheim will now put his faith in Jackson and Onuaku. With that being said, little hope is being put on the 2009-2010 season due to the lack of name power and experience as Syracuse will dress four seniors and will have a roster full of potential 10 points per game scorers which isn’t going to cut it in the Big East. Though A.J. Price, Hasheem Thabeet, Dante Cunningham, DeJuan Blair, Sam Young Terrence Williams and Earl Clark has all found their way into the NBA, their former team mates Greg Monroe, Kemba Walker, Stanley Robinson, Lazar Hayward, Luke Harangody and DaSean Butler all returned to their respective schools meaning they can wreck havoc on this unproven Syracuse team. While many fans sit and wait for the team to find a direction, they won’t be sitting down pouting for more than a year as Boeheim secured three of the four star athletes on rivals.com for 2010 in C.J. Fair, Baye Moussa Kieta and Dion Waiters. Though the wait might be hard, it’ll give time to reflect and respect how spoiled the program has been over the years making Big East runs as well as National Championship runs which really all comes down to a giant pat on the back to none other than Jim Boeheim.

It's called a joke. Heaven forbid!

Only if he used his left nut on only his wife. OH.

5-year, $128 million dollars.

He's from Canada so he knows what a effed up indivual Emery is too.

It was at the end of the game and it wasn't really a fight. It was pretty stupid on his part if they were only down by 1.

http://hockey.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/6393/20090715/canadiens_sign_latendresse_belle_to_one_year_deals/

Really good IMO. Graphics are still iffy but the Road to Glory is better than ever.

Got it but haven't played it yet. Hopefully it's half decent.

The only thing I'm sad about Vince leaving is not getting to watch Max's Nets videos. The Sean Williams one is my favourite mix of all time.

If they took the pay cut, why would he still leave?

Any Steve Begin or George Laraque fight.

Hey, I root for the Jackets.