There’s no one that screams training more than Bo Jackson. And tonight, the man himself is inviting you to celebrate the athletes, the designs and the art of the new Nike Trainer 1.2 with the release of the limited Edition “All For One” pack. Retailing for $350, the pack includes one pair of player edition shoes in a premium footwear box, as well as framed artwork that ties back with the players. (Only 12 prints of each athlete poster were made.) Check out the shoes and art below for Brandon Roy and Amar’e Stoudemire, as well as artist statements about their work. Read More »

In an NBA offseason where certain fan-friendly stars — e.g. LeBron, Carmelo, Chris Paul — have had their images altered in public opinion via free-agent moves and rumored trade demands, the last guy you’d expect to cross over to the “me” side is Brandon Roy.

The franchise superstar of the Portland Trail Blazers has been one of the NBA’s signature “good guys” ever since he burst onto the scene as the 2007 Rookie of the Year and brought his team back to prominence and likability following the “Jail Blazers” era. Read More »

As NBA training camps get underway, we preview the upcoming season with the “Highs and Lows” system — predicting the respective ceiling and basement for each team.

Added: Wes Matthews, Luke Babbitt, Elliot Williams

Lost: Martell Webster, Juwan Howard Read More »

Pretty much every wing player — i.e., a two-guard or small forward, typically someone who can play both — in the NBA is athletic. It’s one of the job requirements. And if they’re not very athletic, they can at least compensate by shooting your face off. So simply being able to do a YouTube-friendly dunk or knock down a rack’s worth of threes isn’t always enough to make an impact in the League.

The key is expanding your game. Here are five wing players who have added pieces to their original arsenal and are poised for a breakout season in 2010-11: Read More »

It’s never fun to be the last player in the green room on Draft Day. As a hooper, you grow up dreaming of that one moment where you will stand up proudly on stage at Madison Square Garden and pound knuckles with David Stern for the first time. Being invited to sit as a green room attendee is fun, but it can sometimes turn into a schoolyard kickball game; waiting anxiously to hear your name called by the captain. And that’s just what happened to Nevada sophomore Luke Babbitt. Read More »

It’s easier when your team sucks. At least it’s easier for the GM/executive/owner in charge of hiring a new head coach. When an NBA team sucks (Clippers, 76ers, Nets) just about anybody who’s different from the previous coach is a good hire. If he’s got a solid resume and some name recognition? Gravy.

But when a team is replacing a coach who was relatively successful, the process becomes tougher. Read More »

The Blazers organization has been one of the most stable over the last few NBA seasons. They had young building blocks in place (LaMarcus Aldridge and Brandon Roy), a great GM (Kevin Pritchard) and stability at the head coaching position (Nate McMillan). But now chaos is starting to reign supreme in Portland.

During the season, the Blazers fired Tom Penn who was Pritchard’s right hand man in the front office, and now word is that Pritchard may also be on his way out of town. In addition to the front office troubles, the Blazers’ coaching staff is also in a bit of turmoil. Monty Williams recently left to take the Hornets head coaching job, rumors are flying that Dean Demopoulos may be on his way out, and according to Dave D’Alessandro of The Star-Ledger, Joe Prunty appears on his way to New Jersey to join Avery Johnson. Read More »

By the numbers, Rudy Fernandez‘s second year in the NBA was pretty identical to his first. His scoring was only down one bucket per game (8.1 ppg), his shooting percentage only dropped a few digits (37.8% FG), and his rebounds, assists, steals and blocks were almost exactly the same as his rookie year, when he was a second team All-Rookie pick and impressed some folks at the Dunk Contest.

Beyond the numbers, though, Rudy’s second year was a step back. Read More »

All at once, it seemed every allegation of being soft, of having no heart, of choking under the bright lights was coming true for Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavericks. When the Spurs scored the first seven points of last night’s do-or-die (for Dallas) Game 6, then went ahead 22-8 to end the first quarter, then pushed the lead by 21 in the second quarter while Dirk had four first-half fouls hanging over his head, it looked like it would go down as Dallas’ worst bed-wetting since the ’06 NBA Finals … It was easy to see why the Mavs were getting smoked: Read More »

So it wasn’t exactly Willis Reed or Daniel LaRusso, but the scene in Portland when Brandon Roy stepped back onto the court yesterday was pretty amazing nonetheless. After the Blazers got bass-taped by Phoenix twice in a row, they activated their superstar at the last minute for Game 4, about a week following his knee surgery. Clearly far from 100 percent and all but dragging his leg around, Roy (10 pts, 4-10 FG) still gave the team and the crowd an emotional lift and managed to play a key role as Portland pulled even in the series … Read More »