INDIANAPOLIS — Derrick Godfrey has been named the new chief executive officer of iHoops, the youth basketball organization of the NCAA and NBA, it was announced Monday by the iHoops board of directors. As CEO, Godfrey, who most recently was vice president of International Business Development for Major League Baseball Advanced Media, will lead iHoops on its mission to provide structure and create programs to improve the quality of youth basketball in the United States to enhance the athletic, educational and social experience for millions of boys and girls, parents, coaches and officials.

“I am eager to build on the success iHoops has achieved. Basketball, at its core, is about teamwork — and the game and its principles have shaped my life,” said Godfrey. “I am honored to lead iHoops, particularly to add some new and exciting angles to our grassroots programming along with our mobile and digital efforts. Everything all comes back to the kids, and fostering a continually better environment for them as they play the game they love that we all love, too.”

A former All-Bronx high school basketball player, Godfrey is a 1984 graduate of Colgate University, where he was team captain as a senior, and is also a graduate of Georgetown Law School. Among his professional highlights, Godfrey handled corporate acquisitions and built and managed online and television properties for Black Enterprise Magazine from 1996 to 2007. At MLB Advanced Media, he was responsible for expanding properties such as MLB.com through new technologies and strategic partnerships.

“Derrick’s leadership skills, digital expertise, and diverse work experience, combined with his passion for the game of basketball, make him well suited to advance the values and objectives of iHoops,” NBA Commissioner David Stern said.

With basketball America’s No. 1 participatory team sport, iHoops provides emphasis on teaching the values and fundamentals of the game, and promoting opportunities for the 23 million boys and girls who play the game. Since iHoops’ inception in 2009, partnerships have been formed with key youth basketball stakeholders including Nike, adidas, Spalding, USA Basketball, the Amateur Athletic Union, and the National Federation of State High Schools (NFSHS), among others. Additionally, grassroots skills programs such as the iHoops Division of Hoop It Up 3on3 have been developed and informational resources have been provided to thousands of student-athletes and their families on balancing academics and athletics and navigating the recruiting process.

“Derrick’s knowledge and enthusiasm make him a logical choice to continue the stewardship of iHoops,” said NCAA President Mark Emmert. “With the infrastructure we have created and the leadership Derrick will provide in his new role, iHoops is poised for even greater impact in the future.”

iHoops’ extensive online community has become a networking center for young players, parents, coaches and event organizers and will continue to play an important role in the sport’s long-term development. As CEO, Godfrey will oversee the expansion of original content on iHoops.com, which currently provides supporting services and resources including skills training, educational programming, events registration, instructional videos, blogs, live streaming, and social media, highlighted by iHoops’ 300,000 Facebook fans and 11,000 Twitter followers. Averaging 750,000 visitors and nearly four million page views monthly, iHoops.com launched new efforts in 2011 including a mobile-enabled site, its first iPhone application, an online retail store, and, in partnership with the NFSHS, an innovative coaches certification program with mentoring lessons, best practices and instructional videos featuring college basketball coaches such as Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, Michigan State’s Tom Izzo, Kansas’ Bill Self, and North Carolina’s Roy Williams.

Board members for iHoops include Krzyzewski, NBA Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver, NCAA Chief Operating Officer Jim Isch, NBA Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Stu Jackson and NBA Executive Vice President of Social Responsibility and Player Programs Kathy Behrens.

About iHoops

Jointly established in 2009, iHoops is the youth basketball organization of the NCAA and NBA committed to providing a structure and creating programs to improve the quality of youth basketball in the United States to enhance the athletic, educational and social experience for the sport’s millions of participants. iHoops offers participation programs for players ages 6 to 18, parents, coaches, officials, teams and event organizers.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/21/ihoops-godfrey/index.html?rss=true

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Bradley Center has a new name and, perhaps, a more specific expiration date.

BMO Harris Bank announced Monday that it bought naming rights to the home of the Milwaukee Bucks and Marquette men’s basketball, which will now be known as the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

It’s part of a six-year, approximately $18 million partnership with several businesses, including Harley-Davidson, Kohl’s, Northwestern Mutual and Rockwell Automation. Specific contract lengths and contributions were not disclosed.

The deal comes as Milwaukee Bucks owner Sen. Herb Kohl is pushing for a new arena. And if a new building isn’t in place by the time the new sponsorship deals run out, the Bucks’ future in Milwaukee will be in doubt.

“That would not be a good place to get to,” Kohl said. “I can’t anticipate what would happen, but that would not be a good place to get to.”

Kohl acknowledged that Monday’s announcement was a step toward establishing a more firm timeline to put a new arena in place.

“Yes, there is a timeline here,” Kohl said. “We’re talking about five years, an extension for five years here, and there is a recognition on the part of all parties that by then, something positive is going to happen.”

The Bradley Center opened in 1988, making it one of the NBA’s older arenas.

The 77-year old Kohl, who is retiring from the Senate, has pledged a “significant” contribution toward the construction of a new arena out of his own pocket, but has said he believes the project probably would need contributions from the public and the local business community.

And while he is confident it will happen, he knows that won’t be an easy sell.

“It’s a heavy lift,” Kohl said.

The Bucks have made the playoffs once in the past six seasons. Their average attendance last season was 14,718, fifth-lowest in the league.

“It’s always better if you’re winning,” Kohl said. “We understand that. It drives attendance, it drives revenue, it drives success.”

The Bradley Center was funded by a $93 million contribution from philanthropist Jane Bradley Pettit, who named it in honor of her father. Her children, David and Lynde Uihlein, issued a statement of support; the family previously had opposed selling naming rights to the arena.

Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce president Tim Sheehy called Monday’s announcement a “bridge” to a new facility.

“All good things have a lifespan, and at some point, the Bradley Center is not going to be able to support the economics of the games that are played here,” Sheehy said. “So we’re going to have to look to the future. So by a bridge, we’re talking about a six-year bridge that gets this community in a position to discuss the future of NBA basketball and other events. The clock is ticking. And this is a great milestone, but it’s one brick in the road toward our future, and our future is going to include a new facility at some point.”

The deal also establishes a special seating section for Bucks games and other events that will be available to not-for-profit organizations.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/21/bradley-center-naming-rights-change.ap/index.html?rss=true

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The Magic fired coach Stan Van Gundy and split with general manager Otis Smith on Monday, the culmination of a season in which Orlando was ensnared in a long-running soap opera with Dwight Howard and made another first-round playoff exit.

“It’s time for new leadership and new voices,” Magic CEO Alex Martins said in a statement. “The disappointment of getting eliminated in the first round of the playoffs these past two seasons played a primary role in our decision, as we feel our momentum towards winning a championship has paused.”

Smith and Van Gundy’s problematic relationship with Howard weighed down the team all season after the All-Star center requested a trade.

Orlando went 37-29 in the regular season but was eliminated in five games by Indiana after a rash of late-season injuries that included back surgery for Howard. Orlando went 5-12 without him.

In early April, Van Gundy said top-ranking team officials had told him that Howard had asked management to fire Van Gundy as a condition for the center signing a long-term contract beyond 2013. Howard denied it.

Van Gundy coached the Magic for five seasons. He finished with a 259-135 record, going 31-28 in the playoffs.

Smith departs after six years. He was the architect of Magic teams that made it to the playoffs in each of those seasons, winning the Eastern Conference title in 2009.

The day after the Magic’s season ended with the loss to the Pacers, Smith said that he needed a few days to decide if he wanted to return, calling it a “50-50″ chance.

Van Gundy said at the time he wanted to come back and was hoping the ultimate decision would be about performance solely.

“When you’re talking a professional relationship, what matters — at least to me — is the results,” Van Gundy said. “I don’t care if it’s a business relationship where two people at work are driving a business to make money, or if it’s a sports relationship, where the object is to win games.

“Those kinds of professional relationships should be based on results, not on do we like each other or whatever. So to me, the relationship was great. There’s a lot of wins and everything else.”

But both have acknowledged that this season was trying not only for the players but the organization as a whole.

“This season, and we’ve been digesting it all year, has been the longest, shortest season that we’ve had,” Smith said. “But it’s something that you have to go through. Most sports franchises at some time go through a little bit of uncertainty and this is our time.”

Howard alluded to the strain in his relationship with Smith that dated to the previous summer. Howard said he and Smith didn’t speak at all for a week after he made his trade demand. The pair eventually did sit down to talk. Howard promised to keep private future dealings between himself and Smith.

Still, stories swirled all the way up to the trade deadline in March. Howard said he had given up his opt-out clause and would remain under contract through the 2012-13 season. Smith said at that news conference that had Howard not opted-in, trading him was a scenario he and upper management had laid out.

Smith certainly had success since becoming general manager in 2006, but he was no stranger to criticism. He signed Rashard Lewis to a six-year, $118 million contract in 2008, making the forward among the five highest-paid players in the NBA. The move contributed to the Magic’s payroll ballooning to the second-highest in the league.

Smith also raised questions the following summer, after a loss in the NBA finals, when he traded Rafer Alston, Tony Battie and Courtney Lee to New Jersey for Ryan Anderson and 33-year-old Vince Carter. He also chose to not match an aging Hedo Turkoglu’s contract offer from Toronto.

Carter never really panned out and he was traded in December 2010 with Phoenix in a deal that brought in Jason Richardson and Earl Clark, but also the return of Turkoglu and his weighty contract from the Raptors.

Smith drew even more flak for a deal with Washington in which Lewis was traded for oft-injured Gilbert Arenas, who was in the middle of a $111 million guaranteed contract. His time in Orlando was also short-lived. The team used the new amnesty provision in the new collective bargaining agreement to waive him and wipe his contract off their books.

Van Gundy was a fiery presence during games. He was not a favorite among referees and was annually among the coaches with the most technical fouls. In a March 2011 Sports Illustrated poll of NBA players, Van Gundy was voted the most annoying coach in the league by a wide margin.

Howard often joked about Van Gundy’s grumpy demeanor on the floor, but also acknowledged it was at times counterproductive.

This past summer, Smith met with Van Gundy and pledged to make improvements. The coach conferred with a Stanford psychology professor on becoming a better leader. There was surely one positive result — Van Gundy had just one technical during the shortened season.

Van Gundy arrived in Orlando in the summer of 2007 following the Magic’s failed attempt to hire Florida coach Billy Donovan. Donovan had second thoughts days after signing his contract and eventually went back to Florida. The Magic scrambled and wooed Van Gundy, who was in line for the Sacramento job but called Orlando his first-choice.

Then troubles reached the basketball court — first with Turkoglu’s facial fracture surgery and then Howard’s back surgery. Turkoglu returned in time for the playoffs but Howard missed the final 17 games of the season, including the entire series against the Pacers.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/21/magic-van-gundy.ap/index.html?rss=true

MIAMI (AP) — On the plane ride home from Indiana, Miami guard Dwyane Wade was watching a LeBron James highlight tape. It was otherwise known as Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The Heat were still marveling Monday at James’ effort the previous day in Indiana, when the NBA’s reigning MVP had 40 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists – “video game-like,” was how Wade described it – to help his team knot its East series with the Pacers at two games apiece. Game 5 is Tuesday night in Miami, and the Heat know they probably can’t expect James to fill the box score that way again anytime soon.

After all, no one had done that in a playoff game since Elgin Baylor, 51 years ago.

But if nothing else, the home-court advantage is back with the Heat, who trailed by 10 points in the third quarter Sunday before the game — and maybe the series — swung Miami’s way, with James doing the conducting.

“You know what, I’ve played in this league for nine years and I’ve seen some amazing things,” Wade said. “But I’ve never really played with a guy where I’m amazed at some of the things he can do. I’m used to kind of not being the one being in awe sometimes. Some of the things he does, I’m like, `How did he just do that?”‘

Those things James did Sunday – he played 44 minutes and grabbed nine rebounds in the fourth quarter alone, matching what anyone else on the floor did in the entirety of Game 4 – took a toll. As James finished shooting free throws on the Heat practice court Monday, he looked toward assistant coach Bob McAdoo and yawned. He walked around slowly. Then he yawned again.

So, LeBron, how were you feeling after Game 4?

“I don’t have any,” James deadpanned. “It’s definitely going to be a recovery and mental day for me.”

It was pretty much the same thinking Monday in Indianapolis, where the Pacers spent time before their flight to Miami lamenting that they wasted a chance to take command of the series, but at the same time finding some solace in the fact that they have already won once on the Heat home floor in these playoffs.

The Pacers lost by 35 in Miami in January, and have been outscored by a total of eight points in three games there since.

“We’re ready to go,” Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. “We still have a great deal of belief. They haven’t beaten our best.”

The Heat could say the same thing, after losing Games 2 and 3 without Chris Bosh, who is still rehabbing his strained abdominal muscle and will miss his fourth straight game Tuesday, with no return yet in sight. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said it’s “too early to tell” if Bosh could return later in this series.

But clearly, the Pacers saw the MVP’s best on Sunday.

James and Wade scored 38 consecutive Miami points in one stretch. A series with plenty of bravado to that point – Indiana’s Danny Granger has gotten technicals in three straight games, Pacers reserve Lance Stephenson riled the Heat by making choking signs that were captured by television cameras in Game 3 and Heat forward Juwan Howard approached Stephenson before Game 4 to let him know Miami didn’t appreciate the gesture – was taken over by a star.

Wade finished with 30 points and nine rebounds, a huge bounce-back effort after his disaster of a Game 3. Udonis Haslem scored 14 points and needed only six field-goal attempts to get there, then needed nine stitches to close a gash over his right eye.

Big games for both. Next to James’ line, they were practically afterthoughts. James scored or assisted on 62 of Miami’s 101 points.

“We had two days to prepare,” Howard said. “We had an opportunity to watch a lot of film and see some things as a team that we did wrong, what we could do to do better. Then I’m sure (James and Wade) had a chance to look at it individually … but you give us two days to prepare, two days to rest our bodies, then I’m not surprised by their performance.”

The Pacers did their part to help Miami’s comeback on Sunday.

Roy Hibbert finished with 10 points and nine rebounds, but the 7-foot-2 center also was slowed by foul trouble, as was forward David West. That, and Indiana’s defense slipped at the absolute worst time: The Pacers entered Sunday having allowed only nine 30-point games all season, but by day’s end, that list had 11 entries with James and Wade both getting there.

“I thought we’d been doing a good job,” West said. “Yesterday was the first time they got easy stuff. Wade got easy dunks, easy layups. LeBron the same thing. I thought up to that point they were scrapping and fighting for those … It’s just a lot of self-inflicted wounds that are correctable.”

If the Pacers are going to pull this series out, those corrections will need to come in Miami against a team that finished the regular season tied with San Antonio for the NBA’s best home mark.

“I think we’re really not worried about home-court advantage,” Granger said. “We’re a good road team, and we’re going to go down there and try to get the win.”

There was some consolation for Indiana in that it took phenomenal efforts from James and Wade for Miami to win by eight points in Game 4. A Heat team that scored 75 points in both Game 2 and Game 3 got nearly that many from two players Sunday.

The Pacers don’t expect that to happen again. Neither does James.

“All the great players, if they could do it every night, they would do it every night,” James said. “If you could have 40 and 20 and 10, you’d do it every night. But it’s not realistic.”

Still, it was the reality on Sunday. And that’s why Miami’s reality on Monday was that the reigning East champs need only to hold home court to advance.

“We expect their best and their best is good enough to win,” Wade said. “We’ve seen that. … It’s a big game — for both teams.”

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/21/pacers-heat.ap/index.html?rss=true

WALTHAM, Mass. (AP) — The Celtics player who needs a break the most this postseason isn’t 34-year-old Paul Pierce, who’s nursing a knee injury. Or 36-year old Ray Allen, who’s got bone spurs in his ankle. Or even Kevin Garnett, who turned 36 on Saturday but is playing like he did a decade ago.

It’s Avery Bradley, 21, who is determined to stay on the court despite a left shoulder that has popped out of its socket four times so far during the season.

“He is a guy who wants to be out there; a guy that wants to win and do anything he can to help,” Pierce said. “A lot of young players would probably sit down and worry about their futures or careers or contract situations. … Hopefully he doesn’t have any long-term injuries due to the fact that he’s playing.”

A first-round draft pick who did not appear in the playoffs as a rookie last year, Bradley moved into the starting lineup when Allen was injured and remained there even after the future Hall of Famer returned. Bradley dislocated his shoulder in Game 3 of Boston’s first-round series against Atlanta, but has not missed a game because of it.

“He’s dealing with stuff and it’s tough,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said on Sunday before practice, which Bradley sat out. “A lot of people would not be playing, and the only reason he is is because he wants to. I am concerned at some point that he may not be able to anymore. We don’t know what game that is. … Tomorrow could be his last game.”

The Celtics resume the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers with Game 5 on Monday night. The series is tied 2-2 thanks to the Sixers’ comeback from an 18-point, third-quarter deficit to win Game 4 92-83.

“It’s a swing game, but it’s a swing game for both teams,” Rivers said. “Game 5s and Game 7s are pretty much the same.”

Game 6 is Wednesday in Philadelphia, with a seventh game back in Boston on Saturday, if necessary.

With two days off between the fourth and fifth games, Rivers gave his aging team the day off on Saturday before returning to practice on Sunday. Bradley did not participate in the workout, but Allen was on the court shooting jumpers 30 minutes early and Garnett joined him soon after.

Rivers said Bradley’s shoulder has popped out at least four times during this season. On Friday night, it popped out but popped right back in.

“It’s crazy,” Rivers said, adding that the injury is keeping Bradley from driving to the basket. “Listen: It’s a tough thing that he’s going through. A lot of players would not be playing.”

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/20/celtics-sixers-game-5.ap/index.html?rss=true

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — For the fourth time in four games, the Miami Heat have changed their starting lineup against the Indiana Pacers.

Mixing and matching with All-Star forward Chris Bosh out with an abdominal strain, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra started center Ronny Turiaf and forward Shane Battier in Sunday’s Game 4 up front with LeBron James. Dwyane Wade, hoping to bounce back from the worst playoff game of his career, is in the backcourt with Mario Chalmers.

Turiaf is making his second start of the series, and Battier is starting his second game in a row.

In Game 3, Spoelstra started seldom-used center Dexter Pittman, who missed two shots and played just three minutes.

Spoelstra has had to juggle his lineup to make up for the loss of Bosh, who is not expected to return in this series.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/20/heat-lineup.ap/index.html?rss=true

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Former NBA star and 1960 Olympic gold medalist Bob Boozer has died. He was 75.

Ella Boozer says her husband died Saturday of a brain aneurysm after becoming ill Friday night.

Boozer was a two-time All-American at Kansas State in 1958-59 and played 11 years in the NBA after the Cincinnati Royals drafted him No. 1 overall. The 6-foot-8 forward retired after winning the 1971 NBA championship with the Milwaukee Bucks.

He played with Jerry West, Oscar Robertson and Jerry Lucas on the 1960 Olympic team, which dominated the competition while going 8-0.

Boozer averaged 14.8 points and 8.1 rebounds in his NBA career with six teams.

He returned to Omaha after his playing days and worked as an executive for the telephone company.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/20/bob-boozer.ap/index.html?rss=true

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Miami Heat have dramatically juggled their lineup for Game 3 against Indiana.

Forward Shane Battier and seldom-used center Dexter Pittman were added to the starting five, joining LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Mario Chalmers.

Coach Erik Spoelstra has been forced to try new things with star power forward Chris Bosh out with an abdominal strain and likely to miss the remainder of the conference semifinal series against the Pacers.

Battier will start at small forward over struggling Udonis Haslem, and Pittman moves in for Ronny Turiaf, who started Game 2.

Before the game, Spoelstra said with Bosh out “everything is on the table.”

Haslem is just 2 of 9 in the first two games. Pittman didn’t play in the first two games of the series.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/17/heat-lineup-change.ap/index.html?rss=true

 INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Pacers reserve guard Lance Stephenson has apologized to his coach for making a choking gesture toward LeBron James during Indiana’s Game 3 win over Miami.

After James missed a technical foul in the second half, Stephenson wrapped his hands around his throat to mock the league MVP. Pacers coach Frank Vogel said Saturday that Stephenson told him he was sorry about his actions. Vogel said Stephenson “knows it was wrong and I agreed with him 100 percent that it was wrong.”

Vogel said Stephenson knows “he was over the line and made a mistake.” Vogel likes his players to be enthusiastic on the bench, but doesn’t what them “to go over the top.”

The Pacers have a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series heading into Sunday’s Game 4.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/19/stephenson-apologizes-gesture.ap/index.html?rss=true

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Dwyane Wade says the Miami Heat have moved on from Game 3 when he had his public spat with coach Erik Spoelstra.

Following the team’s practice Saturday, Wade chalked up his heated sideline exchange in the third quarter of a 94-75 blowout loss to the Indiana Pacers with Spoelstra as “emotional and in the heat of the battle.” Wade said it wasn’t his first exchange with Spoelstra “and it won’t be the last.”

Wade said the Heat “are a family, a team” and have moved past any turmoil as they get ready for Game 4 on Sunday.

The Heat didn’t practice Friday. Wade, who scored just five points in Game 3, took advantage of the time away from the floor to visit Indiana coach Tom Crean, his college coach at Marquette.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/19/wade-heat-regroup.ap/index.html?rss=true

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — A 12-year-old Texas boy who was suspended from school after shaving his head to resemble the face of Spurs forward Matt Bonner scored tickets to a playoff game and props from his favorite NBA player.

Patrick Gonzalez was suspended for a day from Woodlake Hills Middle School because the district deemed his $75 haircut a distraction. He returned to class Thursday after reluctantly shaving his head.

Gonzalez says Bonner is his favorite player, noting they’re both redheads.

Bonner, whose mother is a teacher, says the school could have just moved Gonzalez to the back of the room. Bonner sent Gonzalez a message, saying: “Keep supporting us redheads in the NBA.”

Gonzalez’s story prompted the Spurs to give him and his family tickets to Thursday’s playoff game — against the Clippers.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/17/haircut-suspension.ap/index.html?rss=true

NEW YORK (AP) — Lakers guard Steve Blake and his wife received multiple online threats after he missed a big shot late in Game 2 of Los Angeles’ second-round playoff series with Oklahoma City.

Blake has contacted the Lakers’ security team about the threats, the backup point guard said Friday during shootaround for Game 3.

Blake barely missed a potential go-ahead 3-pointer with about 3 seconds left in the Lakers’ 77-75 loss to the Thunder on Wednesday night. The third-seeded Lakers already had blown a seven-point lead in the final 2 minutes of regulation, and they fell into a 0-2 hole in the series.

“I let our security people know about it, and kind of kept a record of what was said just in case, but other than that, try not to make a big deal out of it,” Blake said.

Blake said he and his wife, Kristen, were besieged on Twitter by curses, threats, and “people saying things I don’t even really want to repeat. It’s an unfortunate situation, but it’s the mental side of the game. You’ve got to be better than that.”

Blake rarely tweets, but his wife is a frequent user of social media. The family has three young children.

“I hope your family gets murdered,” read one post that Kristen Blake re-tweeted with the comment, “Wow.”

Blake was a Lakers hero when he hit a huge 3-pointer during a victory over Denver in Game 4 of the first round, and he scored 19 points in Los Angeles’ Game 7 victory over the Nuggets. The veteran guard was taken aback by the online vitriol directed at him for just one shot.

“It is the unfortunate side of pro sports,” said Blake, who won an NCAA title at Maryland. “Everyone is criticizing, and sometimes people cross the line. But you’ve got to move past it, be the positive person, and I think that’s the approach me and my wife are trying to take with it.”

Kristen Blake tweeted that she blocked 500 people from viewing her account. She tweeted Friday: “I am deeply grateful humbled by the outpouring of love, support, most of all prayers for our family in light of recent events-THANK YOU!”

Steve Blake said he isn’t worried about the threats affecting his three sons. The oldest, Zachary, is only 5 years old.

“They don’t know what Twitter is,” Blake said. “There’s nothing that will stop me from protecting my kids no matter what. We’ll move past it and take the positive approach no matter what.”

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/18/los-angeles-lakers-steve-blake-twitter-threats.ap/index.html?rss=true

NEW YORK — Pau Gasol of the Los Angeles Lakers has been voted the 2011-12 winner of the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, named after the second commissioner of the NBA and presented annually by the Professional Basketball Writers Association and given annually to the player, coach or trainer who shows outstanding service and dedication to the community.

Gasol has been a tireless worker worldwide on behalf of various UNICEF causes. He has been a UNICEF Ambassador for seven years and traveled the globe working with programs aimed at nutrition and education for children.

“Pau’s work epitomizes all that is good about NBA players and their charitable works not only in their own communities but around the world,” said Doug Smith of the Toronto Star and the president of the Professional Basketball Writers Association. “Working to help children realize their potential and to provide them with opportunities they might not otherwise get truly characterizes outstanding service and dedication.”

The PBWA comprises approximately 150 writers for newspapers, Internet services and magazines, who cover the NBA on a regular basis. Its members nominate finalists for the award; the other finalists this year were Josh Smith of the Atlanta Hawks, Jason Terry of the Dallas Mavericks, and J.J. Redick of the Orlando Magic.

ALL-TIME NBA J. WALTER KENNEDY CITIZENSHIP AWARD WINNERS

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/18/citizenship-award-release/index.html?rss=true

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Miami Heat canceled practice and their media availability one day after a blowout loss in Game 3 to the Pacers.

The team gave no immediate reason for Friday’s decision, which was announced on the Heat’s media telephone hotline.

The Heat lost 94-75 on Thursday night and trail Indiana 2-1 in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Miami’s latest defeat was magnified by a sideline confrontation between star guard Dwyane Wade and coach Erik Spoelstra. The two exchanged words during one of the worst playoff games of Wade’s career. He scored just 5 points on 2-of-13 shooting and refused to discuss what happened with Spolestra.

Wade has been slowed by injuries. The Heat are also without power forward Chris Bosh, who has an abdominal strain.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/18/heat-practice.ap/index.html?rss=true

ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Hawks have committed to Larry Drew for one more season.

The team announced Friday it is exercising its option on the coach’s contract for next season. Asked if apprehension comes with the contract not being extended beyond the 2012-13 season, Drew said: “What do you think?”

Drew would prefer a longer commitment from the team.

“You know, you can look at it one of two ways,” Drew said. “Certainly, is it the perfect situation? No. I’ve had a lot of dialogue with my representative about the situation and at this point we’re just going to move forward.”

After advancing to the second round three straight years, the Hawks were eliminated in the first round by the Celtics.

Drew earned praise from Hawks general manager Rick Sund for leading the team to a 40-26 record despite being without All-Star center Al Horford for all but 11 games of the regular season. Horford returned in Game 4 of the Celtics series.

“Larry did an outstanding job this season in guiding our team to the fourth-best record in the Eastern Conference, despite a condensed schedule and unfortunate injuries,” Sund said.

“The Hawks have reached the postseason in each of his years on the bench, and we feel Larry’s experience, expertise and dedication to the game were a key ingredient to our success.”

The Hawks also lost Joe Johnson, Zaza Pachulia, Kirk Hinrich and other players for stretches of six or more games. Pachulia missed the Celtics series with a chipped bone in his left foot. Third-string center Jason Collins started the first four games of the series.

Drew acknowledged the Hawks should no longer use excuses for failing to advance deep in the playoffs.

“We can’t be satisfied with every year making it to the playoffs,” said Drew, who joined the Hawks staff in 2004 as Mike Woodson’s top assistant before taking over for Woodson as head coach.

“Once upon a time, that was the feeling, having gone from a team that my first year won 13 games to every year trying to improve to eventually make the playoffs,” Drew said. “We’re beyond that now. We’ve got to ask ourselves, with what we have now can we get to the next level?”

The Hawks have an experienced nucleus of Horford, six-time All-Star Johnson and Josh Smith, who is entering the final year of his contract. Marvin Williams, point guard Jeff Teague and backup center Pachulia also are under contract.

The other nine players are free agents.

“We are going to eventually get over the hump,” Drew said.

“I do think it is time we take that next step, but to do that we do need some help in here.”

Drew said his team at full strength could compete with any team still playing in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

“The unfortunate part about this thing is the injuries we had to endure, but we should come back certainly a much more confident team,” he said. “If you look around, all the teams that are there in the playoffs, with us being healthy, certainly we can compete with any team there at a very high level.”

When asked last week to evaluate his season, Drew said he and his staff did a good job of keeping the team playing hard.

“We can only control so much, but the one thing we tried to control is that those guys when they come to that gym they come out and play hard for you every single night, and I thought we got that,” he said.

Drew is 84-64 in two regular seasons and 8-10 in the playoffs. The Hawks were 17-16 on the road this season, the team’s first winning record away from Atlanta in 13 years.

Sund’s contract expires on June 30.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/18/hawks-drew.ap/index.html?rss=true

NEW YORK (AP) — NBA appoints new Competition Committee

Coaches Doc Rivers of Boston, Rick Carlisle of Dallas and Lionel Hollins of Memphis have been named to the NBA’s Competition Committee.

Formerly made up of the league’s 30 general managers, the committee now is comprised of three coaches, two owners, four GMs and one representative from the NBA players’ association.

Cleveland’s Dan Gilbert and Golden State’s Joe Lacob are the owners, joined by GMs Bryan Colangelo (Toronto), Sam Presti (Oklahoma City), Mitch Kupchak (Lakers) and Kevin O’Connor (Utah).

The committee recommends rules changes for owners to vote on. It will meet regularly, with its first meeting set for next month’s NBA finals.

The old committee of GMs has been reconstituted as the General Managers Committee and will meet annually to discuss the state of the game.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/16/competition-committee.ap/index.html?rss=true

NEW YORK — NBA TV will celebrate the 20th anniversary of USA Basketball’s iconic team, which captured the attention of fans around the globe, when the network premieres NBA TV’s “The Dream Team” presented by Right Guard® on Wednesday, June 13, at 9 p.m. ET.

Narrated by writer/director/producer Ed Burns, the film will be the definitive documentary of the historic 1992 USA Basketball team, featuring recent interviews with all 12 members, including Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Charles Barkley.

The 90-minute documentary will showcase never-before-seen footage and untold stories of how the most dominant team ever assembled returned USA Basketball to glory, while turning basketball into a global phenomenon.

The world had rarely seen a frenzy as the one the Dream Team created when it arrived in Barcelona, Spain, in July 1992. The Dream Team featured 11 future Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame players and three future Hall of Famers on the coaching staff, including head coach Chuck Daly.

NBA TV’s “The Dream Team” presented by Right Guard® will take viewers on a behind-the-scenes journey into the selection of the team, the dynamic personalities, the legendary team-building experiences in training camp and exhibitions, and ultimately its rock-star-type unveiling in Barcelona.

NBA TV’s “The Dream Team” presented by Right Guard® will include:

• Exclusive one-on-one interviews with the entire Dream Team: Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Clyde Drexler, Patrick Ewing, Christian Laettner, Karl Malone, Chris Mullin, Scottie Pippen, David Robinson, and John Stockton, as well as assistant coaches Lenny Wilkens, Mike Krzyzewski, and P.J. Carlesimo

• The Team’s only loss, as documented through rare footage from USA Basketball’s film library, and the untold story behind what has become part of basketball legend

• The Story of the greatest game never seen, featuring exclusive footage from 20 years ago in Monte Carlo when Magic and Jordan went head-to-head in practice

• How The Team was chosen: the story behind the selection process for the Dream Team’s roster

• Many other exclusive interviews with those connected to the team.

NBA Digital is the NBA’s extensive cross-platform portfolio of digital assets jointly managed by the NBA and Turner Sports. This robust offering includes NBA TV, NBA.com, NBA LEAGUE PASS, NBA LEAGUE PASS Broadband, NBA Mobile, NBADLEAGUE.com and WNBA.com.

Right Guard® is the official deodorant and body wash of USA Basketball. RIGHT GUARD®, the high performance antiperspirant and deodorant brand since its launch in 1956, is currently depended on by millions of people worldwide for providing unbeatable odor and wetness protection. Right Guard® brand advertising in the early nineties featured Dream Team members Charles Barkley and Scottie Pippen with the tagline “Anything less would be Uncivilized.”

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/17/dream-team-release/index.html?rss=true

DENVER (AP) — The Nuggets’ three-pronged plan for the summer is to redo Ty Lawson’s deal, sign restricted free agent JaVale McGee and keep veteran point guard Andre Miller in Denver.

That last item seemed a bit of a stretch after Miller indicated over the weekend that if he were going to remain a backup at this point in his career, it might as well be with a championship contender.

The Nuggets don’t fit that bill just yet, but they are a team on the rise, growing with a young core of players that includes Lawson, McGee, Kenneth Faried, Danilo Gallinari and Arron Afflalo.

Theirs was the youngest team to reach the Western Conference playoffs, where they pushed the star-studded Lakers to seven games.

General manager Masai Ujiri said Thursday that Miller, an unrestricted free agent who will be entering his 14th season in the NBA, told him he wants to stay in Denver.

“I had a great meeting with Andre Miller a couple of days ago and he told us plain and simple, he wants to come back and he wants to play here,” Ujiri said. “I think Andre’s comments are more he wants to be respected as a veteran, which we feel he has to be respected as a veteran.”

Which means, showing him the big bucks. Miller’s $7.8 million salary in 2011-12 was tops on the team.

“I think he means that he’s played in the league 13 years and he’s been a starter,” Ujiri said. “So, I don’t want to go into details there, but I think Andre does not want to be disrespected in terms of, I don’t think it’s his teammates, I think he loved the role that he played, so I think it’s contract. And we’ll figure it out.”

Ujiri said Miller came to embrace his role coming off the bench and running a more freestyle tempo, which, it turns out, worked great with Faried and McGee, who was acquired from Washington in a deadline deal for center Nene.

Miller told him that splitting time with Lawson kept some wear and tear off his 35-year-old body, Ujiri said.

Miller averaged 9.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 27.4 minutes during the regular season. All of those numbers ticked upward in the playoffs, when the Nuggets turned to Miller and Al Harrington for veteran leadership against the Lakers.

Other than redoing Lawson’s deal and working out deals with Miller and McGee, Ujiri said he expects a rather uneventful offseason.

“Yeah, there will be one or two changes here or there. We don’t know if it’s going to be little, but our goal here is to be patient now and let this team grow and have some continuity and see how it pans out,” he said. “Collectively, we feel we’re on the right track.”

McGee made less than $2.5 million last season and is in line for a big payday this summer, especially after a couple of outstanding performances in the playoffs that left L.A.’s 7-footers Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol flustered and helped fuel Denver’s thrilling playoff series with the Lakers.

“We were happy, but there’s still a lot of work to do” for the big man to capitalize on his superior size and athleticism, Ujiri said. “… There’s some bad habits we’re going to have to change, but that’s coaching and that’s mentoring and we feel like we’re in a position where we can help the kid.

“So, we saw him a certain way, that’s kind of why we were intrigued by bringing him here. The style of play I think also favors him, running, the lobs, the rebounding, blocking shots and creating opportunities for our team. I think he’s showing that a little bit. The contract, that’s our job. We have to figure out a way to do it.”

Ujiri had no update on Chris “Birdman” Andersen’s situation. Andersen’s lawyer said he believes allegations that led to a search of the center’s home last week involve a spurned female fan. A Douglas County sheriff’s task force that investigates allegations of cybercrime against children is reviewing property seized from Andersen’s suburban Denver home.

“We don’t have a lot of information for now, so I think we are going to stay away from that,” Ujiri said. “We’ve been in touch with Bird and I will have an exit interview with him, but in terms of what happened, there is limited information and that’s where we are with it.”

Andersen, who has two years and about $9.3 million left on his contract, had seen his playing time dwindle as Faried and other youngsters gobbled up minutes over the last half of the season. He didn’t play at all in the playoffs.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/17/nuggets-future.ap/index.html?rss=true

LOS ANGELES (AP) — If the Los Angeles Lakers can just shake the memory of the disastrous final two minutes of Game 2, they’ll find plenty of reasons in the first 46 minutes to be encouraged about their chances this weekend against Oklahoma City.

After blowing a seven-point lead and the chance to steal homecourt advantage from the powerful Thunder on Wednesday night, the third-seeded Lakers’ fate will be decided rapidly at Staples Center, with back-to-back games Friday and Saturday.

The Lakers have now lost four of their last five playoff games since taking a 3-1 lead in the first round against Denver, but they imposed their favored style on Game 2 until their late collapse.

Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks emerged from the thriller excited about his young team’s resilience.

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/17/lakers-thunder.ap/index.html?rss=true

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Kevin Garnett turns 36 on Saturday, a youthful age for any man, except for the rare ones with nearly 55,000 punishing minutes absorbed on an NBA floor.

Garnett knows all the ageist labels attached to the Boston Celtics. How they’re called The Over The Hill Gang, and the wisecracks about flashing AARP cards before they check into a game, and how each crucial postseason game raises questions about The Big Three’s last hurrah.

The Celtics have known since training camp a championship run centered around Garnett, 36-year-old Ray Allen, and 34-year-old Paul Pierce was on its last legs.

Aging legs, yes.

But far from finished.

Garnett displayed dominant proof in Boston’s Game 3 rout against the Philadelphia 76ers. He scored 27 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to help the Celtics snare a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The Sixers under-25 crew had no way to slow down Garnett.

He made 12 of 17 shots in Game 3 and is shooting 63 percent overall in the series.

Let others get nostalgic for the stretch run of Boston’s terrific trio. Garnett only cares about winning the next game, the next series, and another championship to pair with the one The Big Three clinched in 2008.

“I’m focused on the playoffs,” Garnett said Thursday. “I haven’t given much thought to it. I’m definitely aware of it. We know what the possibilities are. But at this point, right now, it’s the playoffs.”

Garnett heard a few screams of “We love you, Kevin!” from passing fans as he answered questions alongside Pierce outside the Four Seasons Hotel.

The chants should be more antagonistic in Game 4 Friday in Philadelphia.

Garnett will tune them out the way he’s zoned out the light attempts at defense the Sixers have thrown at him. Even at 35 (or 36), Garnett is still more mobile than Philadelphia’s frontcourt combo of Spencer Hawes and Elton Brand. Lavoy Allen’s foul troubles have limited his guarding Garnett.

“You have to do a better job early,” Sixers coach Doug Collins said. “You can’t let him get such deep position. You can’t let him run underneath the rim, turn and face the basket. You have to meet him at the free throw line.”

Pierce was slowed by an MCL injury in his left knee, until a gutsy 24-point, 12-rebound outing in Game 3. Allen scored only three points and has been secure enough in letting Garnett, Pierce and Rajon Rondo handle the scoring load that he turned down KG’s offer to get him more touches.

Garnett told Allen: “We’ve got to do whatever we can to get you open.”

“I looked at him and said, `Kevin, you’re the guy getting shots. You’re the guy that’s scoring. We just won by 20. I don’t need to, for the sake of my ego, do anything like that. We just keep doing what we’re doing. If they keep guarding us this way, then you’ve got to keep doing what you’re doing.”‘

Garnett and Allen are free agents at the end of the season. A championship run that seemed blocked by young-gun All-Stars eased up with Chicago out of the picture. The Miami Heat are without Chris Bosh indefinitely. And the Sixers showed in Game 3 how vulnerable they are when a top team is clicking.

Pierce realizes the sense of urgency to win a championship with the trio playing their final games together. They want to make it last.

“We’ve realized that from Day 1. I think pretty much the last couple of years we’ve been feeling like that,” Pierce said. “But the influence is to try and win another championship, regardless of if this is going to be our last time together. Who knows what the future is going to hold for all of us?”

The Sixers, meanwhile, are trying to find a way to slow down the old guys.

They looked totally lost after the first quarter. The Sixers weren’t hitting shots and the defense couldn’t bail them out with key stops. Starters Brand, Hawes and Evan Turner combined for only 11 points.

“It was a little embarrassing because you don’t want to put on a showing like that, and definitely at home,” guard Jrue Holiday said. “At the same time, it’s motivation to not do it again.”

Collins showed the Sixers game film from the first half on Thursday and the reviews weren’t pretty. What they saw was a team that never had a grip on their defensive assignments. The Sixers offered little resistance once Garnett got hot in the second quarter (13 points) with a flurry of 10- to 16-foot fadeaways and open jumpers.

“I never considered them old,” Collins said. “They sure looked pretty young to me. Garnett’s playing great.”

Just how the Celtics like it.

“I don’t know if I’m surprised. It’s in him,” coach Doc Rivers said. “He’s feeling pretty good. he’s at a great place mentally. That’s always nice. I think our guys understand how important he is to our team. He understands that as well. It’s just great. I’m happy for him.”

Source: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/05/17/celtics-76ers.ap/index.html?rss=true