6.12.2009
The Nike 'Hyper' Series
If you know anything about Nike Basketball, you know about the Nike Hyperdunk.
Nike shoved them down your throat (PAUSE), so I'm not really gonna talk about them. The Hyperdunk was a good product, the advertising campaign was string, Nike released like 78 colorways, so I'm sure they got wanted out of the shoe.
On to the next installment, The Nike Hypermax. Check the specs:
"The Nike Hypermax was created for the player looking for maximum cushioning and support in a lightweight basketball shoe. Nike's new definition of power. Nike Flywire technology provides maximum support with the least amount of materials. Tensile fibers add support while minimizing weight. Full-length maximum Air-Sole® unit coupled with Phylon™ midsole offers ultimate cushioning. Traditional herringbone pattern outsole made with flex grooves to deliver natural motion. Wt. 18.4 oz."
I definitely like the Hypermax, but I think Nike is STUPID for leading with this ugly colorway:
These below are the Hypermax NFW (No Flywire), and they look type wild to me. The tennis ball colorway would definitely break necks on and off the court.
The best colorway BY FAR, would be the McFly Hypermax, releasing soon. The inspiration is "Back to the Future" and the lead character Marty McFly.
These are the shoes Marty wore in the movie, and they're a MAJOR collector's item. Not that many exist, and they can fetch thousands of dollars.
Anywho, check these McFly joints, you're gonna love 'em. And if you don't, I don't care lol.
Check this for more on the shoe.
And keep coming back for more new ball kicks.
The Utah Jazz
6.11.2009
Nike Fusions...
FP stands for Fun Police.The Nike ‘Fun Police’ advertising campaign included young stars from 1998 like Kevin Garnett, Jason Kidd, Gary Payton and even the aging Tim Hardaway. Tom Gugliotta (y'all are probably thinking "WHO?", but he was a pretty decent player before injury)and NBA legend Moses Malone to round out the bunch. An enjoyable campaign all around, the Fun Police rolled up on unsuspecting ballers, ensuring that they were playing the "right way".
I don't remember the Fun Police but it sounds like something good. Anywho, a decade later, Nike commemorates this group with the Nike Zoom FP (Fun Police) basketball shoe.
Prominently featuring elements from the Air Garnett III, Kidd’s Zoom Flight series and Hardaway’s T-Bug along with the Zoom Glove series, the Zoom FP is a clear throwback to the late nineties.
Getting to the shoe, I have mixed feelings. In some colorways, like the AG3 one, I like them a lot. In others, they look AWFUL.
Nike has been putting out a lot of fusions/hybrids in the past few years, and some of them have been real winners. The Zoom FP is a decent effort, check out some more colorways below, including the HORRIBLE "White/Black/Electrolime."
I'll be back with more ball kicks updates.
P.S.: LEC Varsity Point Guard Quameek Daniels plays in the Zoom FP, so they must perform pretty well.
6.10.2009
The NBA's Next Superstar
Love of the Game.
Passion.
Good Teeth.
Good Number.
Boyish good looks.
Speaks English.
Danilo Gallinari has all the makings of a star. Let's check out his vitals shall we:
New York Knicks – No. 8 | |
Small forward | |
Born: August 8, 1988 (1988-08-08) (age 20) Sant'Angelo Lodigiano, Italy | |
Nationality | Italian |
---|---|
Height | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) |
Weight | 225 lb (102 kg) |
League | NBA |
Draft | 6th overall, 2008 New York Knicks |
Pro career | 2004–present |
Former teams | Casalpusterlengo (2004–2005) Edimes Pavia (2005–2006) Olimpia Milano (2006–2008) |
Awards | Italian league All Star Game 3-Point Shootout Champion 2007 Euroleague Rising Star Award 2007-08 |
Profile | Info Page |
So..there it is. By the time next season starts, he'll be 21, with 6 years of pro basketball experience. He's waaaayyy far ahead of any rookies, which he'll basically be, because he only played in 28 games and averaged under 15 minutes per game. Check his stats for his first season.
Y'all gonna read this post and think I'm crazy, and I don't care. Gallo, his nickname meaning "The Rooster" in Italian, is gonna blow up sooner than later. He was drafted for a reason, and he would've gotten a lot more burn last season if he didn't have his lingering back problems. (This bear-lookin' dude Tractor Traylor tried to flatten Gallo in his first summer-league game, and he had surgery on it this off-season.)
As I highlighted in the last post, the Knicks are moving forward, and dropping players with no regard (which is fine by me). Wilson Chandler and Gallo are the only two players I'd be willing to guarantee are with the team for the 2010-11 season. So, Gallo is going to get a lot of run next year, to develop, and to shine.
He plays with flair, which I've only seen from Pau Gasol in an international player. He has a good personality, a good rapport with the media and has become a fan favorite.
Even if I didn't convince you with this post, just watch out for Danilo in summer-league when he's twerking unsuspecting defenders..
My Favorite Team
During last year's draft lottery, when the Knicks got the 6th pick, I punched the wall. This year, I took the 8th pick easier, because I have faith in the President. I want the Knicks to trade the pick, because outside of the top tier talent (which is slim), I don't think any players are worth it. There's been talk of us moving up, but trading the pick would allow us to avoid signing another player, get rid of a bad contract, and bring in veteran player(s).
In closing, I want to give a shout-out to two people. One is J'Quan because he is a die-hard Knicks fan too. The other is ...
..Gonna be in my next post so stay tuned...
5.31.2009
"Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown..."
The Cleveland Brons, excuse me, Cavaliers, finished the regular season with a 66-16 record, the best in the NBA, earning them home-court advantage throughout the playoffs - the first time had ever done these things.
With their performance throughout the season, the Cavs seemed primed for a legit Finals run. Looking at the Eastern Conference playoffs team, I figured the Cavaliers would only hit a wall in the Finals. For the first two rounds my assumption was correct, as Bron and his sidekicks swept the Pistons, then the Hawks.
I even anticipated that the Magic style of play would hold them back against the Cavs, outweighing the defensive matchups where the Cavs had their shortfalls. I know, being a Knicks and Nuggets fan, that teams that shoot a lot, usually lose whenever they had bad shooting games.
Looking back, not only did the Magic shoot well for the series, Dwight Howard was virtually unguardable at points throughout the series. The Cavs starting center, Zydrunas Ilguaskas, couldn't put the clamps on Dwight Howard to save his life because he's so slow. The duties fell, for the most part, to Anderson Varejao, who probably wouldn't start on any other NBA team.
So, the Cavs lost the series 4-2, and of course the topic of discussion went straight to 2010 and LeBron's plan. From my point of view, I think that if the Cavs DON'T win the 'ship next year, LeBron is gone. His team had a great chance of winning in the Finals and to fall short the way they did is a HUGE disappointment.
LeBron was angry, deciding not to speak to the media postgame, and now the attention shifts to the Cavs front office. The Eastern Conference finals and the 2007 Finals proved LeBron's greatness, but also that he cannot do it himself. The same thing happened with the Michael Jordan Bulls of the late 80s - Jordan would drop big numbers, and lose.
LeBron needs teammates that can get the job done along with him, as opposed to some of these jokers. The Cavs need a post player that can get it done on both ends, and a distributor, as opposed to a streaky shooter with limited point guard skills.
If the team does not improve, LeBron is as good as gone. He owes nothing to the team, as they've had nothing but time and opportunity to give him a good supporting cast.
5.28.2009
Nike Zoom Soldier III
Here you can see Boobie Gibson wearing them, and he usually wears Nike Hyperdunks for every game. Mo Williams wore adidas his whole career before coming to Cleveland, but this season he's worn Hyperdunks, and now he wears LeBrons.
5.26.2009
Lakers - Nuggets Game 4
The Nuggets led throughout Game 3, but Kobe and the Lakeshow took over the game in the fourth, and the series lead. The Lakers regained the home-court advantage they had lost in Game 2 in LA.
Last night, Carmelo Anthony had his worst game of the playoffs, but it did not matter. He shot horribly, was injured, threw up before the game, and received an IV at halftime. The second half was much better than the first, where he struggled to even complete a field goal. He played with much more strength and purpose which helped motivate his team.
Although he has not been shooting as well as he did during the season, JR Smith has been proving himself as a very valuable player in the Nuggets organization. He has been showing great court vision and surprising every one with it. He is feeding the Nuggets bigs with great efficiency. His alley-oop with Chris "Birdman" Andersen last night reminded Jeff Van Gundy of one of Chris Paul's to Tyson Chandler. JR is a very good player, but with him finally breaking out this season, his fifth, proves that he should've went to school.
Kobe and Pau Gasol have been playing well all series, and Andrew Bynum finally broke out of a slump last night, but that was pretty much it from the Lakers. The Nuggets speed and intensity was simply too much last night. Hopefully they can carry it over to Game 5, as the series shifts back to Los Angeles...
5.19.2009
2009 NBA Draft - Thoughts So Far
The draft lottery was last night and this is the perfect time to get into some draft talk. Check for the info and draft order.
The Clippers, who had the 4th best shot at the first pick, won the lottery, and will obviously draft Blake Griffin with the first pick. As you can see here and below, Clips President Andy Roeser had already predicted the team's draft plan - picking first, and taking Blake Griffin. The Kings dropped from 1 all of the way to 4th, the Grizzlies will pick 2nd, and the Thunder have the 3rd pick.
The Thunder will be a playoff team by the 2010-11 season, if not sooner. With there three stars still having room for improvement, and the third pick this year, this team is set for big things. In my opinion, the Thunder should trade the pick to bring in some proven talent. Blake will be gone, the Thunder don't need Rubio, Jordan Hill plays the same position as Jeff Green, and James Harden is a pure scorer, something they already have in Kevin Durant.
The Clippers will be faced with a dilemma, because with Blake Griffin automatically going there, the Clips have four big men, who can all start on an NBA team - Chris Kaman, Zach Randolph, Marcus Camby, and the rookie. At least one, if not more, will be traded by the start of next season. As a Knicks fan, I would like to see the Knicks explore acquiring MC.
The Knicks are the only lottery team I have a vested interest in, and I want us to trade the 8th pick. Ricky Rubio could be the PG of the future, but there is no way he'll be around at 8. All the superior talent in this draft will be gone by 8, and the rest of the picks will be based on achievements in college or just potential.
This draft class is WEAK, which is why we see so many upperclassmen coming out. Some players that go first round this year would be second rounders any other time, and second rounders from 2008 would move up into the first.
All in all, I'm not going to put too much focus into this year's Draft. Mostly because it's the same time as graduation...
5.18.2009
Sunday's Game 7s...
and some prom stuff...By the time I got home, it was halfway through the second quarter, and the game was already out of hand. It was a blowout throughout, and Pau Gasol went to work! With Yao out, the Rockets had no answer for the Lakers' size and strength inside, and the overall quickness of the team is going to make beating them tough for their upcoming opponent, the Denver Nuggets.
The Celtics-Magic series was a real snoozer, and I decided only to watch the fourth quarter of this game. When I tuned in, the Magic were up 9, and started building on their lead. Soon enough, the lead was double-digits and I tuned out of that game as well.
Now...the Conference Finals are starting Tuesday night and these stand to be two GREAT matchups. Will Nene, Kenyon Martin, and Birdman be able to contain the Lakers' frontline? Will the Lakers be able to contain the explosiveness of the Nuggets?
How will Big Z, Varejao, and Ben Wallace and the rest of the Cavs frontcourt respond to the athleticism of the Magic? Will the Magic be able to defend The Beast, also known as LeBron James?
The answers will become more apparent after the Game 1s on Tuesday and Wednesday...