Thursday Bolts 8.25.11
Ken Berger of CBSSports.com with an interesting column: “Better yet: If I were the players? I’d seize control of the bettering-the-game dialogue and become the lone voice in the wilderness talking about issues fans care about. Clearly, the average fan doesn’t want to hear about owners and players griping about money. But what if the players, as part of their September pro league in Las Vegas, convened a committee of All-Stars, mid-level players, Hall of Famers and other legends for a meeting of the minds on how to make the game better? It might result in some viable ideas, and would put the players in the position of discussing the game instead of their opposition to a hard cap and the elimination of guaranteed contracts.”
Remember ATDHE.net? Well the person doing it is facing serious jail time.
A pretty awesome Thunder boat.
Everyone made a big stink about KD’s tattoos. Well, here’s why, maybe: Panthers owner Jerry Richardson actually asked Cam Newton if he had any tattoos. When Newton said no, Richardson replied, “Good, let’s keep it that way.” Some out there are a bit delusional when it comes to this stuff.
Joshua Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel is ranking arenas and The Peake checks in sixth: “Simply put, the Thunder have perhaps the best fans in the league, and their enthusiasm makes this building one of the NBA’s top venues. Fans are attentive, and they’re loud, giving the arena almost a college-basketball feel (sans the live band, of course). . . . It helps that Rumble the Bison is the league’s top mascot. Rumble is more of a cheerleader than a goofball; he precedes games by banging on a drum at center court, and the sound approximates the sound of thunder sweeping across the Plains. . . . The top of the scoreboard is blah, but the bottom of it features an additional screen that is specially angled for fans who sit courtside. . . . The people who work inside the arena are friendly and courteous. . . . Finally, Chesapeake Energy Arena’s downtown location is a short walk to Bricktown, an enclave of nice restaurants and bars.” He points out the negative of the boring exterior. Totally agree in that regard.
Mo Evans says the players are ready to negotiate.
Matt Moore of CBSSports.com on lockout winners and losers: “Kevin Durant: Won the Drew-Goodman showdown. Continues to pour it on in every street park and Pro-Am he shows up for. Talking to foreign teams. Expanding his brand. Durant’s done more than enough to bolster his reputation as a cold blooded killer during the lockout and is making himself into more of a name. He’s backed up every endeavor with stellar play and has yet to be scored on by an Asian amateur. So he’s got that going for him.”
The Painted Area’s EuroBasket preview:
Debating what the most important position in sports is.
Zach Lowe of SI on Wilson Chandler’s intriguing Italian deal: “There’s also an issue Henry Abbott of TrueHoop raised recently with Aaron Goodwin, a high-profile agent who represents (among many others) Kevin Durant: The idea that NBA players who sign with overseas teams might be able to negotiate individualized merchandising deals giving them a much fatter chunk of the proceeds from merchandise sales than they get in the NBA. Goodwin brought up other licensing deals players might strike, deals that could make up some of the difference between NBA and international salaries and allow some lucky players to hold out a bit longer once they start missing NBA pay checks. Does Chandler’s deal include any of that? I hope to find out.”