They call the sense of welcome you get when you arrive in America’s Far North “Minnesota Nice.” It’s the sense that, even as an outsider, don’t cha know, you’re an insider. Adrian Peterson and Ricky Rubio aren’t like the rest of us — and they certainly aren’t Minnesota natives — but it turns out they’re just as Minnesota Nice as anyone else. Here’s Peterson, on pace for an NFL record for rushing yards this season after tearing his ACL, giving the Timberwolves’ point guard some credit for coming back from his ligament tears last March. Read More »

Even with Vince Carter‘s ankle keeping him sidelined for his latest return to Toronto (where he could get booed in an Orlando uniform this time), there were more than enough ready-made story lines going into Magic/Raptors: Hedo Turkoglu‘s first game against his old squad, the next chapter in the Dwight Howard vs. Chris Bosh rivalry (quietly and consistently more exciting than Deron Williams vs. Chris Paul), and the intrigue of seeing which players would be visibly sleep-walking for a 1 p.m. EST tip-off the day after Halloween. So you can understand why nobody was ready for J.J. Redick to become the headliner. Read More »

If the Nike Air Trainer 1 collaborated with Anthony Carter, it would officially be the greatest shoe of all time. Right now, it’s on the cusp. Nike has already created exclusive makeups for some of the sweetest athletes in the universe: Manny Pacquiao, Adrian Peterson, Brandon Roy, Larry Fitzgerald, and Troy Polomalu. Add AC in there and it’d be a sealed deal. Read More »

And now for your daily dose of Damn-I’m-old pills: This year marks the 20th anniversary of Nike’s famous “Bo Knows” ad campaign. Yeah, that was TWENTY years ago. You remember Bo Jackson in those TV spots, dominating on the football field, in the hockey rink, even on the Indy car track. But what you may have forgotten is what product was actually being pushed. That would be the original Nike Air Trainer, the first “cross trainer” sneaker to make an impact on the market. Read More »