Archives › Kurt Helin
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One summer double scoop of Ron Artest coming right up. Bless the people at ESPN, who not only came up with the idea of Ron Artest interviewing Ron Artest, but had the technology to put it together. (Thanks to Trey Kerby at Ball Don’t Lie for finidng this.) Because you can never get too much …
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What happens in Vegas… ESPN pulls unflattering LeBron James story
Jul 28, 2010, 3:48 PM EDT
UPDATE: 3:48 pm: CNBC’s Darren Rovell got this comment from ESPN: ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz tells us why the LeBron Vegas story was pulled: “The story should have never been published. The draft was inadvertently put on the server before going through the usual editorial process. We are in the midst of looking into the…
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It went down pretty much exactly as Rob Mahoney told you earlier today. Tyreke Evans, Gerald Wallace, JaVale McGee and O.J. Mayo have been let go, bringing the roster down to 15. Three more guys will be let go after camp in New York and before the team heads to Turkey for the FIBA World…
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Will Bynum returns to be scoring spark off the bench for Pistons
Jul 28, 2010, 2:01 PM EDT
Will Bynum may be a better pure point guard than Rodney Stuckey. That doesn’t mean he should be starting in Detroit, but it means he has value. Good passer (he had a 20 assist game against the Wizards last season), can attack the rim, is a quality spark off the bench guy. All of which…
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You jonesing for real basketball? A fix courtesy Suns highlights
Jul 28, 2010, 1:30 PM EDT
We all miss some real basketball. And few things are more entertaining than watching Steve Nash dish, Amare Stoudemire dunk and the Suns run. So here are their top 10 plays from last year. Enjoy.
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Prokhorov has a plan, it involves making a lot of money in Brooklyn
Jul 28, 2010, 11:47 AM EDT
Mikhail Prokhorov is about making money. Do not ever forget that. He’s also good at it. He has a plan. Prokhorov spoke with Forbes Russia and laid out his plans (which the New York Daily News translated): “When you’re talking about the business of sports, you can’t leave out passion and love. That’s why, in…
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Orlando Magic keeping Stan Van Gundy, Otis Smith around a few more years
Jul 28, 2010, 10:48 AM EDT
Bombs away, Orlando. The system of Dwight Howard in the paint and host of guys chucking up threes around him is not going anywhere soon — the Orlando Magic have extended the contracts of coach Stan Van Gundy and General Manager Otis Smith through 2013, according to the Orlando Sentinel. Smith is now the president…
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The Lakers had the highest payroll in the NBA last season — and you get what you pay for. They won. They got to have a parade and go on late-night talk shows. Ron Artest got validation and Kobe Bryant relaxed for nearly 24 hours. Next season the Lakers may have an even higher salary…
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Portland still trying to trade Rudy Fernandez, at least his agent thinks so
Jul 28, 2010, 9:01 AM EDT
Rudy Fernandez has gone where Chris Paul can’t — he has basically demanded a trade. The man wants out of Portland and away from Nate McMillan as fast as he can. Fernandez wants the ball in his hands, he envisions himself to be a playmaker. Portland already has those and McMillan just wants him to…
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Lakers still think they can sign Shannon Brown but Cavaliers have interest, too
Jul 27, 2010, 11:15 PM EDT
Shannon Brown opted out of a $2.15 million deal for next year, thinking that his role on back-to-back NBA championship teams could earn him a little raise and a longer term deal. It may not work out that way. Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak told the Los Angeles Times he still wants to sign Brown.…
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Greivis Vasquez has a chance to get significant minutes as a rookie backing up Mike Conley as the Memphis point guard this season, if he can get a few things worked out. One of those things was worked out Tuesday — he had surgery to remove bone spurs from his right ankle. The team announced…
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Three thunder players on Team USA, tired legs come February? Coach isn't worried.
Jul 27, 2010, 8:03 PM EDT
Kevin Durant is the face, the front man, the Bono to Team USA’s U2. He is going to Turkey. Russell Westbook impressed at camp in Vegas and is a lock, and Jeff Green may go as well. That’s three players logging a lot of extra practice and games in the offseason. Does that worry coach…
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Jannero Pargo is about to become the least popular Golden State Warrior. He has reached terms with the Warriors for a two-year, $2.4 million deal, according to Marc Spears of Yahoo. Why is Pargo about to be unpopular? Because he will be the backup point guard, the guy behind Stephen Curry and in front of…
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For Wizards games, you might want to eat before you get to the arena
Jul 27, 2010, 4:47 PM EDT
Among those hundreds of things Ted Leonsis was going to get around to fixing, not giving anyone food poisoning should be at the top of the list. Every single foot vendor at Verizon Center — home of the Washington Wizards and NHL counterpart the Capitals — were found with a critical violation in the last…
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Al Jefferson says Minnesota a couple years away from winning, so he likes Utah better
Jul 27, 2010, 3:32 PM EDT
There is some talent on the Minnesota roster. Kevin Love can ball. Michael Beasley was a No. 2 overall pick for a reason. We’ll see what Wesley Johnson can bring as a rookie. We’ll watch Luke Ridnour get them the ball. Okay, not that much talent, and it is all being assembled in a haphazard…
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Magic Johnson picks Lakers to win the title, Heat will get theirs later. Who didn't see that coming?
Jul 27, 2010, 2:26 PM EDT
San Francisco is cold in the summer. Mad Men is the best show on television (and is best enjoyed with a scotch in hand). BP will be the butt of late-night talk show jokes well past when it is funny. Justin Bieber is annoying. Some things are just givens. Same with this: Magic Johnson, part…
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Dirk Nowitzki: I would have considered Miami if LeBron, Wade had asked
Jul 27, 2010, 1:08 PM EDT
Nobody thought Dirk Nowitzki was going anywhere. He was technically a free agent but he loves Dallas and Dallas loves him. Especially Mark Cuban, and he had the biggest vote. So this was all a fait accompli… Or not. Nowitzki said he would have listened to offers where teams were closer to a title than…
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Jerry West. Magic Johnson. Wayne Gretzky. Superstar players usually make bad coaches or managers. Players who can just do rarely have to study the game in detail like a coach. There are exceptions, like Pete Rose had a pretty good managerial record… well, there was that whole betting on baseball thing. We’ll go with Larry…
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Ain’t no reason to play no more games… Rajon Rondo thinks there is. Same with Dwight Howard. And do you even need to ask Kobe what he thinks? The Heat will be very good. But they are going to have to earn a title. And it will be harder than they think.
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Boston is looking for some bench players, and thanks to the rose-colored-glasses of time, they remember how great Eddie House was in the finals in 2008, and since they are getting the band back together anyway…. The Celtics are in discussions to bring Eddie House back to the Celtics next season, according to the Boston…
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Yes, that is Ron Artest playing with Team Zankou Chicken in a Los Angeles dodgeball league game (thank you Brothers K at the Land O’ Lakers for finding this). Don’t believe me, follow the link to his entrance. Yes, that is Ron Artest getting eliminated by a skinny guy with a beard and a sidearm…
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Raptors GM Colangelo insinuates Bosh mentally checked out at end of last season
Jul 27, 2010, 10:30 AM EDT
Discrediting and ripping the big star that left town is a tradition in Toronto that goes back to the time of Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady. But old traditions are sometimes the most comforting, the thing that is needed. Take for example Raptors General Manager Bryan Colangelo insinuating Chris Bosh was already mentally checking out…
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Dwight Howard on the Heat: "They're not going to be the best team in the NBA next year"
Jul 27, 2010, 9:27 AM EDT
Dwight Howard and Rajon Rondo have been sharing notes in class, apparently. No shock that the top teams — led by the top competitors — see what happened in Miami and want to take it on. There’s no shortage of people around the league that want to knock the Heat down a notch or…
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Sadly, this is where Tracy McGrady has fallen to: He wants to go to Chicago, even calling the team “we” in interviews. Then he went in and worked out for them and his shot looked fine but his movement was stiff, his once-formidable game remains a memory. Following that, afterward Bulls officials called the chances…
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Video: Health woes make Heat vulnerable
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Video: Good news for Sacramento, Kings stay
