Reality TV beef with Steve Nash and Shaq; The Elite 24 is here
At least Steve has one more of these than Shaq...
Are you ready for the dumbest NBA feud since Cheryl Miller and Scot Pollard got into a deathly intense, impromptu pissing contest in the “NBA Gametime” studio a few months ago? This one’s between Shaq and Steve Nash, and it started over Shaq’s reality show that nobody we know is currently watching. As the story goes, sometime last year when they were still teammates, Nash told Shaq about an idea he had for a reality show where he’d take on famous pro athletes in their own sports — a.k.a. the exact same concept of Shaq’s new show. (Which totally sounds like something Nash would do. He might even take a crack at some of those X-Games guys, and could play hockey with no danger of breaking the ice.) So when Nash found out about Shaq’s show, he confronted Shaq about stealing his idea, which led to Nash getting a lawyer and eventually being given an executive producer credit on the show and some money to go with it … Is there still some animosity, though? Nash gave his typically diplomatic “It’s all gravy” answer when pressed by an Arizona Republic reporter, but then another source close to Nash said, “Steve was pissed. He couldn’t believe Shaq’s lack of integrity.” By the time the Suns and Cavs play each other for the first time — if “Shaq Vs” hasn’t been canceled by then — will this play itself out on the court? It’d be like a grizzly bear swatting at a salmon, but Nash can pull one of those John Stockton tricks and catch Shaq with a well-placed elbow in a not-nice place … Two questionable quotes from Baron Davis in a recent Sports Illustrated interview: (1) “I’m young enough to still dominate,” and (2) “Coaching is definitely something I probably want to get into when my career is over.” (1) At 30 years old, Baron can still be The Man on a team like the Clippers. But what about on a good team? Where do you think he ranks among the League’s best point guards? (2) Baron is a boss off the court in a lot of business ventures, but we’re definitely probably not seeing the coaching thing happening. Then again, if Kenny Anderson and John Starks can do it, why not Baron? And if he doesn’t have to pay his dues coaching Slamball!, good for him … Some readers questioned why we would choose to re-run our Dime #50 cover story on Derrick Rose on the site yesterday, the same day it became official that the University of Memphis would have to erase its ‘08 NCAA runner-up season from the record books, primarily due to Rose’s SAT controversy. Honestly, we planned to run the D-Rose feature a while ago, and really, does anyone truly care about those after-the-fact NCAA record-book punishments? If you grew up watching the Fab Five at Michigan, did you erase it from your memory that C-Webb and Jalen and the rest went to two Final Fours just because the NCAA erased it from the books? And in Rose’s case, he wouldn’t have had to go through the whole SAT thing in the first place if the NBA’s age restrictions hadn’t basically forced him to go to college for a year. So ultimately, the SAT thing doesn’t mean a whole lot to us … The Elite 24 is tonight at Rucker Park, and one of the annual highlights is the high schoolers getting blessed with their own playground nicknames via our man Bobbito Garcia. We’ve handed out unofficial nicknames for years within the office — one of our favorites was a guy who played in one of our regular runs who we called “Five Years Ago,” because he was clearly VERY good in his prime, just too out of shape to get it done now — and yesterday we asked readers for some of the best handles they’ve heard. adpin submitted “Chicken Run” and “Dead President” (’cause the guy was money), while nosmelone said his boy Morgan is called “Big M, little Organ.” But That’s Whats Up had the one that made us laugh out loud: “I played with a dude who called himself ‘Deuteronomy.’” … If you missed it, as promised, we ran the recap, photos and video we got from Wednesday’s secret midnight run at MSG involving some of the Elite 24 players, Brandon Jennings and Kevin Love. Dime was the only media outlet in the building for the occasion … While Tony Wroten Jr. and Josh Smith (who we included in our “50 For the Future” feature in the current issue of Dime) are in NYC for the Elite 24, we learned that both of them will be playing high school football for the first time this year. At Kentwood H.S. (Wash.), Smith will likely play on the O-line; imagine him standing between you and the QB at 6-10, 280 pounds (former Dallas Cowboys legend Ed “Too Tall” Jones was 6-9). Wroten, a 6-5 guard whose dad played tight end in the Pac-10, is expected to play receiver and defensive back at Garfield H.S. in Seattle. Our Seattle rep, Dime’s Austin Burton, has this to say: “General reaction out here is surprise that Tony and Josh’s parents let them play football when they obviously could make millions down the line playing basketball. Remember when high schoolers played multiple sports ALL THE TIME and turned out OK? Jackie Robinson played like six sports in high school and college, and he survived.” … If you were the parent of a high schooler with a million-dollar talent in one sport, would you be OK with them playing another sport, especially one with as much injury potential as football? … We’re out like Coach Boom Dizzle …
August 21st, 2009 at 3:49 am
billbone says:
The thing about the memphis and michigan comparisons are that the fab five totally destroyed michigan for like 10 years because of loss of scholarships, probation and not being allowed to make the tournament and memphis basically gets off free.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:55 am
BRUCE says:
John Starks — 2-17 shooting and The Dunk! The former rules over the latter.
August 21st, 2009 at 4:07 am
sh!tfaced says:
Shaq can now call himself “The Big Plagiarism” or “The Big Hypocrite”. What did he say about Dwight Howard ’stealing’ his Superman shit?
August 21st, 2009 at 4:12 am
Gunner J. Matthews says:
For whatever reason, I honestly couldnt sit through Shaq Vs.
August 21st, 2009 at 5:37 am
luckylester says:
“stealing” - “HIS” superman shit… that’s rich! I think Shaq was the first one to claim Superman. Forget all those comic books and shirts and movies and shit. I mean hell, I wore a Superman pajama set when I was 3 - Shaq owes me big time.
I think Baron Davis, when he’s on, is one of the better players in the league. But dude needs to take 1000 3s a day in the summer or stop it. His 3pt shooting percent is gross. When he’s on, though, who is shutting him down?
August 21st, 2009 at 5:50 am
BRUCE says:
Boom Dizzle worked on his weight last off-season. This off-season he might work on his stroke!
August 21st, 2009 at 6:29 am
Greg says:
I actually liked Shaq vs. I find trash talking very enjoyable and Rothelisberger and Shaq were great at it. I didn’t really want to like it since I find Shaq to be kind of a prick but I thought the show was very funny. I’m looking forward to the other shows.
August 21st, 2009 at 6:46 am
Sebastiano says:
Never thought i’d say this but i’m going to enjoy watching a Clippers game this season.
August 21st, 2009 at 7:27 am
JOB33 says:
Maybe Shaq thought they couldn’t tell the difference since Nash and him got those wandering eyes?
August 21st, 2009 at 7:27 am
Shrink This says:
Shaq lacks integrity. Big surprise.
August 21st, 2009 at 7:28 am
JOB33 says:
Any day now Nash is going to drive the lane and disappear, only to reappear on the side of the backboard catchin flies outta the air with a long, nasty tongue. the Chameleon man cometh!
August 21st, 2009 at 8:39 am
dc says:
“And in Rose’s case, he wouldn’t have had to go through the whole SAT thing in the first place if the NBA’s age restrictions hadn’t basically forced him to go to college for a year.”
That is possibly the dumbest, most irresponsible line from a “sports writer” in a long time. Just because the NBA instituted an age restriction doesn’t mean it’s okay to cheat on a standardized test. Now, I like Derrick Rose as a player. I don’t know him at all as a person. But if he’s not smart enough to hit a minimum requirement on the SAT, he should have pioneered the “wait one year playing Euroball” phenomenon instead of Brandon Jennings. I don’t believe for a minute that this kid didn’t have advisors or some agent guiding him through this process so he should have told them he wasn’t gonna do well on the SAT and find another option for him than college.
August 21st, 2009 at 8:44 am
FK in T-Oh says:
Baron Davis is still a legit point in the NBA, but he’s not top tier…
CP3, D-Will, Parker & Billups are probably upper echelon.
Dizzle is in tier 2, somewhere in the rankings around Nash, Arenas, JJ, Kidd, Rondo, Calderon, Nelson.
August 21st, 2009 at 8:49 am
CJ says:
Man, that’s low. the guy just burns bridges everyone he leaves, makin enemies out of everyone. no class.
but the show is better suited for shaq. seeing a seven foot freak show compete against the world’s elite is a lot more interesting than a skilled 6-footer doing the same. reminds me of those “man vs horse” type races.
August 21st, 2009 at 9:06 am
Kevin says:
Are you kidding??? I don’t care if my kid is the biggest basketball prospect in the world, if he wants to play football, of course I’d let him play. That’s like asking if you love your kids.
August 21st, 2009 at 9:16 am
blah says:
ok dime where’s the cheryl miller/scot pollard footage?
August 21st, 2009 at 9:46 am
Dennis Castro says:
You think Shaq might be a little pissed that Nash has 2 MVP’s and he only has one? I’m just saying…
August 21st, 2009 at 9:46 am
Fraz says:
Win Win for Nash and Shaq. Nash gets an exec. producer credit and a hit show, Shaq gets the star role and DELIVERS to Nash a hit show. Its been said already but its true, as a novelty Shaq makes this show interesting. Nash doing the same things would wind up on the Outdoors Network or YouTube.
August 21st, 2009 at 9:58 am
Chicagorilla says:
Seriously, who cares if Derrick took the test or not. It’s not like any of you actually about his academic status. It’s not like you are aware of him because he is such a stellar kid academically coming out of one of the worse areas Chicago has to offer. No, you know him because he’s 6′3 and moves like a cheetah and jumps like a kangaroo. Stop the unnecessary hating, acting as if he took a scholarship from a kid trying to become a doctor at northwestern. No he didn’t take shit, he actually gave that school Millions of dollars by taking that team to the final four/championship game. The NCAA should be thanking him, not trying to erase all memory of him like they are Mariah Carey and he’s Em.
August 21st, 2009 at 10:03 am
Chicagorilla says:
@Blah
I was watching that episode of Gametime when Cheryl got on Pollard. That was Pollards last time on there BTW. Scott basically tried to clown her because she was a female basketball player and she played 20 something years ago. She told him something along the lines “you better Google me”. Then she ends up challenging him to a game of one on one or something. Saying that he was a scrub his whole career and she is the GOAT of her sport. It was funny as hell. I think Pollard at one point even flashed his Celtics ring or something. It’s like Joe Buddens says “You can tell a dude I spit better than you, but he’ll say I’m richer for whatever I do”.
August 21st, 2009 at 10:38 am
d says:
@DC your comment was so on point.
Look, Rose is a great talent with a lot of potential. And I loved that Memphis team. But come on dime, you could have done a better job of validating the whole thing. While the NBA age requirement is something a lot of people (including myself) disagree with, it doesn’t validate cheating on a test.
There WAS an age requirement, and he HAD to take the SAT to get into college. So if he hadn’t allegedly cheated, where would he be today? Would he have gone the euro route? Who knows, but regardless, cheating, in-part, got him to where he is today. I say without memphis, he doesn’t go to the NBA
August 21st, 2009 at 10:53 am
Simon says:
There is only one true way to settle the Nash vs. Shaq beef. Have the two of them compete against each other. It has season finale written all over it. If they want to get ratings they need to exploit this story by building it up in the media. Then have them face off in a 5 sport challenge or something like that.
August 21st, 2009 at 10:58 am
Yoooo says:
Dudes who play football AND basketball tend to be the best athletes
August 21st, 2009 at 12:13 pm
Big V says:
Shaq is a slimeball.
August 21st, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Mack Brownee says:
BD is a top 5 point guard in the league, no ?. when he’s on top of his game, he can compete w/ the best of them
August 21st, 2009 at 12:29 pm
LakeShow84 says:
When BDizzle is on he is DEFINETELY in the top tier.. Shit in my opinion when he is on he might be the best PG PERIOD.. Dude can drop 30+points and 10+dimes when hes feeling it..
Unfortunately he is only on 10-15 games out of the required 82..
August 21st, 2009 at 12:48 pm
mosduff says:
“So ultimately, the SAT thing doesn’t mean a whole lot to us”
fail. epic fail Dime. You need to think of the impressionable young readers who check this site.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:28 pm
POPPI GEE says:
Yea I missed that one. Can we get some footage on the cheryl miller/scot pollard feud? That is bananas.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:51 pm
doc says:
If any young readers got the game of D Rose,do what you gotta do to get where you gotta get.Number 1 pick Rook of the year,look like getting a stand in for the SAT was one of the best choices he made in his life to me.BoomDizzle is top tier when he wanna be.I think he coming back strong this year.And give me D Rose over any of them second tier dudes.And in this season coming up he fighting for that top spot like the other Fab 4.And if you dont know who they is go back and watch some games.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:58 pm
luckylester says:
@ “FK in T-Oh says:
Baron Davis is still a legit point in the NBA, but he’s not top tier…
CP3, D-Will, Parker & Billups are probably upper echelon.
Dizzle is in tier 2, somewhere in the rankings around Nash, Arenas, JJ, Kidd, Rondo, Calderon, Nelson.”
Come on. You must be Calderon’s brother or something, please don’t put him in the same class as any of these guys. I think your “tier” system is a bit of a joke, but in the “what name doesn’t belong” game, you’ve answered correctly if you picked Calderon.
Good lord.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:59 pm
Chitown 23/33 says:
@21
If you think for a second that Derrick Rose is not in NBA without Memphis you should quickly put down whatever you’re smoking. This kid was on NBA radar when he was 16. I agree he is not likely the #1 pick if he doesn’t go to college, but to say he’s not in the NBA you’re dreaming! Its not like he was one of these out of the blue prospects like Ty Thomas or JaVale Mcgee, who had late growth spurts and parlayed potential into high draft status. He was the National Player of the Year. If he sat at home for that whole season playing Xbox full time he was still getting picked up.
August 22nd, 2009 at 3:53 am
S-SiN says:
Dime, can you guys please tell me why “honoring John Stockton” videos are all over nba.com?
I thought the dude passed away for a sec with so much “honoring” stuff on him there..
Stock is a perfect example of a baller u hate when he plays and miss the hell out of him when he’s done with the game. that’s sorta going back to what u fellas posted here about five days ago. how we should appreciate watching Shaq, Kidd, Grant Hill, Allen I and KG while they are still at it..
Peace
August 22nd, 2009 at 1:40 pm
White Jesus says:
Best playground nickname ever-Lamar Scrotom. Big Lefty, thought he could shoot and handle the ball. Obviously terrible.
August 22nd, 2009 at 11:04 pm
S-SiN says:
by the way thanx Dime. ur answer was just as much as i can handle..