The uncomfortable puns. The awkward embrace of opera and basketball. The just looking at Pau Gasol of it all. This was a pretty strange moment in the history of human-interest halftime segments. It was partially redeemed by a splendid editing job at the end, where Pau’s caveman yell was overdubbed with Placido Domingo’s soaring tenor.
Now, on another note, after all of the Kobe-ness of the last few weeks, take a moment to remember the man we drafted ahead of him. The draft is coming up, you see. And while I don’t expect the Dubs to screw up the draft this famously, take a moment out of your busy day to remember the name: Todd Fuller.
Nonetheless, kudos to the Lakers for getting it done. Game recognize game and all. And I think I’m starting to find something to like about them even. Trevor Ariza is a baller.
Turman
PS. Why did Magic Johnson get himself a supersized Goldmember suit? Dang.
Even though FTB’s Meschery actually works for the arm of PBS that is airing Baron Davis and Stacy Peralta’s documentary, local programming still calls the shots sometimes. Thus, while much of the nation enjoys Crips and Bloods: Made in America, we in the Bay Area have to wait until May 27th.
But fear not. With minimal finagling, we are able to offer up something to hold you over. Baron and company have done a fine job of promoting the film down to recruiting an all-star lineup of hip-hop heavies to record a mixtape as an homage to the film. And here’s the link. You’ve got your Snoop, your Weezy, The Game, Kurupt, Raekwon, Freeway, and others. That’s why we’re here. The film will air soon enough. The beats are here today.
I had the pleasure of being present for this interview as it was something of a work-related production. I work for the public media organization that produces the PBS Series “Independent Lens,” and Terrence Howard is the host for the series which will be presenting the Baron Davis-produced documentary “Crips and Bloods” on May 12th. So, that’s how the dots connect.
The interview was great and both Baron and Terrence were good sports. The whole production was smooth sailing. I guess for dudes like Baron and Terrence, doing taped interviews is the equivalent of me going to a staff meeting. Really, the only thing that stood out was everyone seemed to be intrigued by Terrence Howard’s cane-sword. Probably because it gave him that English Gentlemen meets Gentlemen of Liesure vibe, if you catch my drift, and well, there’s not too many people walking around The Hollywood Hills with cane-swords I imagine. Anyway, both Baron and Terrence had similar upbringings in Los Angeles, so this was a nice opportunity for them to reflect on their experiences growing up in a world of Crips and Bloods. Enjoy.
For all of you Hater Tuesday fans out there, I’m going to ask you to take a day off from the hate. Instead, participate. This Tuesday night, The Independent Television Service (ITVS) will be hosting a screening and panel discussion of the Baron Davis-produced film “Crips and Bloods: Made In America (premiering on PBS Tuesday May 12th). The panel will be held in LA and will feature filmmaker Stacy Peralta, Deputy Mayor of Gang Reduction and Youth Development Rev. Jeff Carr and community organizer Skipp Townsend. BD won’t be there, but you can, by joining the live webcast and chat at 8:15pm being hosted on the ITVS blog, Beyond The Box
You can also join the discussion online instantly and in real time via live chat or Twitter using the designated event hashtag #itvscc. Simply include #itvscc anywhere within your tweet.
Let’s face it, watching a panel discussion online has to be more exciting than watching the ‘08-’09 Warriors (sorry couldn’t resist a little bit of hate). See you in the chat.
A new friend of mine in the Great White North wrote a few days ago to say that he was compiling a list of some of the lesser-known nicknames of the NBA. Dutifully, I sent him a list of lesser-known Dub nicknames for publication in his fine blog Hoops Head North.
But you wouldn’t be reading Fear the Beard if you thought I wouldn’t check his list and then follow it up with a little ‘vestigatin, now would you? So, granted, I didn’t dig deep. But as it turns out, Wikipedia has a fascinating and somewhat exhaustive list of hoops handles. Which is where I found a rather disturbing entry. One conveniently omitted from HHN’s fine list. That being the entry for none other than Chris Bosh: “The RuPaul of Big Men.”
Now while I have no idea where that entry could have gotten its start, the lists at HHN and on Wikipedia provided a wealth of other brilliant “noms de hoop.” A top ten? Of the one’s you ain’t knowin’? Sure.
10. Brook Lopez, New Jersey Nets: “Brookie of the Year”
9. Joel Przybilla, Portland Trail Blazers: “The Vanilla Guerilla”
8. Nenad Krstic, Oklahoma City Thunder: “Krispy Nads”
7. Jamario Moon, Miami Heat: “Apollo 33″
6. Mike D’Antoni, Coach New York Knicks, “Pringles” (because he looks like the man on the can)
5. Ryan Gomes, Minnesota Timberwolves, “The Barometer” (as he goes, so does the team)
4. Eric Gordon, Los Angeles Clippers, “Hobbit”
3. Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder, “Kid Delicious”
2. Dominic McGuire, Washington Wizards, “The Taser”
1. Baron Davis, Los Angeles Clippers, “Black Moses”
We’re still awaiting confirmation on that last one, although I do know to what it refers. But seriously, go to the sources for more. There is fun for hours to be had. Add your favorites in the comments.
I stayed clear of Twitter for a solid couple years after I found out about it. Of course, back then, I can’t say that my life was all that interesting - certainly not worth blogging about, not even “micro-blogging” about. My life wasn’t even “micro-interesting.”
However, NBA Players such as Steve Nash, Chris Bosh and Baron Davis have more follower-worthy lives than most of us, so I guess once I finally arrived on Twitter, I shouldn’t have been surprised to find these dudes on there. After all, these are the most social media, tech savvy, fan-connected players in the league. But for all the rest of you NBA Players out there who are not yet breaking off some tweats, I’ve listed Five good reasons why you need to get down with Twitter.
Five good reasons why NBA players should Twitter:
1. Damage Control: What better way to quickly squash a rumor or let your girl know that obviously you weren’t out with nobody else because you Twittered from the airport at exactly 1:38 AM.
2. Shameless Self Promotion: Needs no explanation.
3. Vegas Baby Vegas: It’s nice every once in a while to give a little real-time, locker room heads-up to your friends in Sin City.
4. Do It For The Kids: The kids are going crazy for this Twittle thing!
5. 140 Characters Is All You Need: Ballers are busy people. Have you ever tried to fit two radio interviews into a day of going to practice then um, you know, doing stuff, and then playing a game that night? Well, it’s not easy. So, being short and sweet is the best way to stay connected to your fans.
Is this the same guy that dated Tara Reid? Seriously, Carson Daly appears to be genuinely engaged in a smart conversation. It helps that he’s interviewing an extremely smart dude, Stacy Peralta, who is something of a legend for most Southern California white boys of a certain age - the definition of an OG for anyone that ever put two feet on a skateboard. So Carson, no doubt, knew he had to bring his A Game and in this case, he played up to his competition. Peralta still had to school Daly, but Daly held his own, even dropping “J. Edgar Hoover” on the crowd.
Yes, most of the questions to Peralta regarding the Boom Dizzle-produced documentary that he directed, “Crips and Bloods: Made In America,” weren’t deep, but from a guy whose show is called “Last Call” we can’t expect the conversation to go all Cornel West on us. I mean, c’mon, Joey Fatone was the guest a few nights before. At least we got an honest conversation about racism and violence in this country from two white dudes on a mainstream talk show. That doesn’t happen enough. Kudos to Carson and the Crips and Bloods: Made in America team for making it happen!
Harrington’s blunder, Davis’ three help Clippers top Knicks in OT
Baron Davis hit a crucial three-pointer in the closing seconds of overtime and the Los Angeles Clippers took advantage of a costly technical foul call on Al Harrington near the end of regulation to beat New York, 128-124, securing their 10th straight home win over the Knicks
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Randolph’s tough shot in the lane brought LA within 108-107 with 47.1 seconds left, and Harrington got an offensive rebound at the other end and jammed with two hands with 25 seconds remaining. But after dunking, Harrington pulled himself up on the rim and then used both his hands to slap the backboard.
D’Antoni was clearly upset at Harrington after a technical foul was called, and Novak sank the ensuing free throw.
Randolph then tied the game with a left-handed shot in the lane with 11.2 seconds left, and the game went into overtime after Robinson’s runner caromed off the rim.
The Clippers scored the first five points of overtime, but the Knicks came within 123-121 when Robinson made a layup with 29.5 seconds left.
Davis then stepped back and drilled a three-pointer over Jeffries with 7.5 seconds left, but Robinson’s three-pointer with five seconds later tightened the game again. Fred Jones sealed LA’s win by sinking two free throws with 3.9 seconds left.
I am well known for resisting the alleged allure of the purple and gold. And that goes double for the Black Mamba himself, Kobe Bean Bryant. So, if you see this video here, it must be worth noting. Even Spike Lee had to say something.
I’ll even say this. Kobe even seemed more gracious than usual, waving to the crowd when he was done. And so did the New York crowd for that matter, knowing as they surely did that he was setting an all-time Madison Square Garden record. Jordan’s 55: vanquished. Bernard King’s 60 as a Knick: history. But alas, that second number is still one of my favorite old-school memories from a one-time Warrior.
But damn. Try as I might, I really can’t hate too much. Watch and you’ll see why I can’t. Even with an unknown number of annoying tongue flicks, and no video of the misses dude went 19 for 31 from the field and 20 for 20 from the line. I’m not sure I could get those numbers against fifth graders.
