Tag: will selva (page 2 of 3)

Coming Home

imgres-3Two players were traded at last weeks NBA trade deadline. One was a bit of a surprise while another was expecting a buyout or trade to a contender. I’m talking about forward/center Kevin Garnett and forward Tayshaun Prince. The Brooklyn Nets dealt Garnett and his expiring contract to the Minnesota Timberwolves, where his career began, for 26 year old forward Thaddeus Young. Tayshaun Prince, who was already traded once this year from the Memphis Grizzlies to the Boston Celtics was dealt to the Detroit Pistons, where he won a championship in 2004, for forward Jonas Jerebko and guard/forward Luigi Datome.

Kevin Garnett returns to Minnesota where he was the 5th overall pick in the 1995 NBA Draft. He spent 12 seasons in Minnesota until he was ultimately dealt to the Boston Celtics. He was the 2004 NBA’s Most Valuable Player and a perennial All-Star for much of his time there. As Garnett approaches the age of 39 in May, many expect him to ride off into the sunset for the rest of this season on an expiring contract with the franchise that gave him his start but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Rumors say Garnett is expecting to sign a two year extension with the Timberwolves. He’s obviously not the franchise player that he once was, but how much left does Garnett have left? Garnett has plans in the future to buy the Timberwolves, possibly along with current head coach and President of Basketball Operations Flip Saunders. Perhaps is Garnett sticking around due to his love of basketball and the paychecks needed to make such a purchase?

Tayshaun Prince was hoping to work out a buyout with the Boston Celtics and join a contender like the Los Angeles Clippers or Portland Trail Blazers. Instead he was dealt to the Pistons, where he was drafted in 2002 23rd overall. Prince spent just under 11 seasons with the Pistons but they’re currently in 9th place in the weak Eastern Conference playoff picture. With Chris Bosh now out of the season in Miami, there may be room for Detroit to make the playoffs but the bottom of the East playoff picture don’t really stand a legitimate title chance. Prince had really hope to land with a top 4 team in the Western Conference. The Detroit Pistons have made it clear they do not plan to buyout the final year of Prince’s contract.

The State of The Brooklyn Nets

It was not too long ago, that Billy King, General Manager of the Brooklyn Nets was able to pull off the unimaginable. During the their final season in New Jersey, the Nets finished an abysmal 12-70. However, during the 2012 offseason, King was able to lock up his very own “Big 3.” With Brook Lopez still on his rookie deal but playing like an All-Star, King convinced then All-Star point guard Deron Williams to stay and then traded for All-Star Joe Johnson by giving up essentially no big pieces. With Lopez, Williams, and Johnson all on the squad, it looked like Brooklyn was ready to make a run for an NBA title.

imgres-6After an unsuccessful attempt, Brooklyn moved even closer to all in sacrificing many future 1st round picks for Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Jason Terry who while all were close to the end of the line in their career, still had something to offer. During the 2013-2014 season, Terry tried rushing back from injury and ultimately his play suffered. He was shipped to Sacramento and once again the Nets had nothing significant to show for the season losing to the Miami Heat in the 2nd round of the playoffs despite taking care of Miami in the regular season.

Paul Pierce left via free agency and landed with the Washington Wizards and the Nets now find themselves in the 9th spot in the East with a record of 21-31. Even if the Nets end up in the playoff picture, it looks as though they won’t go far having been inconsistent all season long. Point guard Deron Williams has been injured and even when healthy, Williams has not played close to the All Star caliber level he once played at. Joe Johnson has been discouraged by a lack of effort from his teammates and Brook Lopez has been in head coach Lionel Hollins dog house due to his defensive efforts at times. With the trade deadline just days away, all three of these players have been made available. Former All-Star Kevin Garnett has hinted at possibly being bought out to play for a contender but he has since shot those rumors down.

Allen Making His Announcement

imgres-8One of the NBA’s most prolific three point shooters may be making a comeback following the All Star break, and no I’m not talking about Reggie Miller. Ray Allen, who last played for the Miami Heat last season is ready to make a decision following the All Star break. At age 39, Allen has been working out and staying in shape to make another title run in his 19th NBA season should he choose to do so.

Allen, the 5th overall pick in the 1996 draft out of the University of Connecticut averaged 18.9 points per game during his 1,300 career games in the NBA. He has hit 2,973 three pointers at a 40% clip which is good for first all time in three pointers made. Any team would certainly benefit from adding Allen to the mix. While they won’t expect him to play 30 minutes a night. He can certainly help a team and play 15-20 minutes a night while knocking 2 threes down and creating floor spacing for others.

Many teams are interested in Allen’s services. The list includes the Washington Wizards, Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers, and the Atlanta Hawks. Allen proved to be effective and had something left in the tank last year with the Miami Heat. He averaged 9.6 points, 2.0 assists, and 2.6 rebounds while shooting 44% from the field and 38% from three point land in 26.5 minutes a night. Allen’s three point shooting is just the surface of his value to teams today. Not only has he already won a championship, he also provides great floor spacing for other players to get open. You can’t provide the type of help defense you’re supposed to when covering Allen. If you sag off of him too much, he’ll find the ball and knock down an open three with ease. Stay tuned for the Ray Allen sweepstakes as I’m sure it will heat up in the final hours.

Good News, You Can Stream the Super Bowl this Year

Don’t worry about paying for cable this month just to watch the Super Bowl. According to a report from Tech Crunch, NBC will provide an 11-hour video stream of the game on its website. You can tune in for the pre-game coverage and  the half-time show all from your laptop or tablet, but don’ try watching on your iphone… NFL has given the rights to live-stream on smartphones to Verizon Wireless solely. For you young city dwellers who have cancelled their cable subscriptions, this means you won’t need to camp out at your friend’s apartment or a loud bar to enjoy the game. You can begin streaming around noon on game day and finish watching at 10pm.

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NBC’s effort to live stream the event corresponds with an ongoing attempt to encourage widespread support for “TV Everywhere” in the industry. NBC seems to be in the forefront of this campaign with the Super Bowl stream. The network is working on live streaming content across the NBC stations. For the network, offering a live stream of the Super Bowl is one way to promote and advertise this new feature on a large scale. The reach here will be enormous.

But let’s talk more about the actual Super Bowl. This year, we will witness the Patriots play against the Seahawks in Glendale, Arizona. The Patriots have been to the Superbowl 7 times and the Seahawks have made two Super Bowl appearances so far.  A few basic facts about these two teams…

Patriots 

Head Coach: Bill Belichick

Owner: Robert Kraft

Home Base: Greater Boston Area

Super Bowl Championships: 2001 (XXXVI), 2003 (XXXVIII), 2004 (XXXIX)

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Seahawks 

Head Coach: Pete Carroll

Owner: Paul Allen

Home Base: Seattle

Super Bowl Championships: 2013 (XLVIII)


World News Videos | ABC World News

Inspiration of the Week

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The AP Top 25 Poll: 4 Tops Teams This Week

The AP Top 25

What You Really Get in Carmelo Anthony

The Knicks, Lakers, Bulls and Rockets are furiously elbowing each other out of the way to get Carmelo Anthony’s signature on a contract. The unflinching and relentless pursuit by these teams for Anthony’s services is mostly warranted. He brings instant name recognition and knows how to fill out the stat sheet as evidenced by his scoring title.

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As pointed out by Elias, the 30 year-old star is averaging 25.3 points per game in his career, the 2nd-highest average in NBA history by a player who has yet to get a whiff of the NBA Finals. You wonder if the teams doggedly chasing Carmelo truly realize the impact his signing will have on overall chemistry.

With the high volume of scoring you get with Melo comes the reluctance on his end to share the ball. He needs touches. Lots and lots of them and it comes at the risk of clogging the offensive flow. He’s not one to distribute the ball like LeBron James does. It’s true that he’s never had the strongest of supporting casts, but if he goes to one of these teams, who’s to say that he’ll be OK playing second banana? Besides, Melo does not elevate the play of other teammates. He doesn’t make them better, a staple of a true superstar. If that was the case, maybe one of his teams would’ve gone further in the playoffs. Asking him to buy in for the greater good of the team seems a bit of a stretch at this point in his career. His defense is practically non-existent. Always has been. Always will be. Just ask his former head coach George Karl. I understand teams going crazy for Melo, but buyer beware.

(Youtube)

Why USA Should Feel Good vs Belgium

The U.S. Men’s National Team is playing with house money right now. This is not too say that they should feel content to just make the knockout stage of the World Cup. No, they’ve proven to be rugged, gritty and determined enough to get through the Group of Death, a reality nobody expected to come to fruition in Brazil. That’s why if the Americans fail to get past Belgium on Tuesday, it shouldn’t be seen as a failure, but rather a positive step forward to where it wants to be: an upper echelon soccer power. Now to the actual game versus the Belgians. This was a side considered to be a darkhorse to win the World Cup. A young, talented yet inexperienced bunch. They’ve started off slow in games only to crank things up later. Belgium has relied heavily on Chelsea star Eden Hazard, who has not disappointed, but he is just one player.
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Romelu Lukaku has struggled, failing to score in this World Cup. If you’re the U.S., you hope this pattern continues. The defense has been solid, but could be missing Vincent Kompany, who’s doubtful with a groin issue. Kompany is considered a world-class defender. As for the Red, White and Blue, forward Jozy Altidore could be back on the pitch for the first time since sustaining a hamstring injury early on in the win over Ghana. Boy, is his scoring punch sorely needed. Clint Dempsey is up front as the lone striker and needs the midfield to do something. So far, Michael Dempsey has not gotten the job done despite his tireless energy thus far. Even he admits that he must step up for the U.S. to have a chance to advance. Still, the outlook is bright for the USA, no matter the result on Tuesday. That’s what happens when you play with house money.

(CBS News)

Will Selva: Videos

Below you will find videos of influential Hispanic athletes as well as the top college football stadiums to visit!

Famous Hispanic Athletes from Will Selva on Vimeo.

Best College Stadiums from Will Selva on Vimeo.

College Stadiums Part 2 from Will Selva on Vimeo.

Top College Stadiums To Visit from Will Selva on Vimeo.

Brain Cramping On LeBron

As soon as LeBron James went to the bench for good toward the end of Game 1 of the NBA Finals, it was on. The Twitter haters were springing up like fast-growing weeds in the backyard. You couldn’t pull them out fast enough as the Crampapocalypse was officially upon us, creating such gems as the Twitter handle @KingJamesCramp, which at last check, had over 100 followers.

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While some of the images and messages admittedly provided a hearty chuckle for their sheer absurdity, what I found astonishing is this snap judgement about LeBron’s desire and motivation. He had a cramp. A really bad one that obviously precluded him from continuing to play. Any athlete will tell you that it is extremely difficult to play through it. I can’t explain why he was the ONLY player to develop a cramp when all the players had to deal with the AC being off.

The Celtics and Lakers, by the way, would always play in sweltering conditions like that at the Garden. What’s lost in all this talk about LeBron’s cramp is that as soon as he went out of the game, Dwyane Wade was invisible. A measly 7 points in the 2nd half on 3 of 10 shooting. That can’t happen. Neither can a relatively silent bench. If this is what happens when LeBron goes out or suffers a major injury, then the Heat are doomed. The Spurs, on the other hand, hold a vibrant bench that is much deeper than Miami’s, helping to end the game on a 16-3 run. Manu Ginobili continues to show that no matter the situation, he’s clutch whether he’s starting or coming off the bench. An true energizer bunny that keeps going. Now we must suffer through countless nauseatingly, gut-wrenchingly long debates on LeBron’s psyche heading into Game 2. No thanks. I’ll just chew on a giant shard of glass until then.