Shocker: Jordan Reached Out To Rodman

After hearing Michael Jordan criticize LeBron for joining forces with D-Wade and Chris Bosh, something about his statement struck me as odd.  Not only did he compare D-Wade and Bosh to Bird and Magic, but he insinuated that he never needed or recruited anyone to help his cause in Chicago.

I instantly recalled the summer of 1995 at the Jordandome, a basketball complex constructed on the lot of Warner Bros for Michael to train, while filming the movie Space Jam. I was entering my sophomore year at UCLA, and we had just won the NCAA Championship. Jordan invited several of the UCLA players to the runs at the Jordandome, and I rarely missed a day.

The pick-ups games there were stuff of legend and I was competed against the best players of that era.  Grant Hill, Reggie Miller, Patrick Ewing, Larry Johnson, Rod Strickland, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman were regulars at the runs, and I was privy to all of their interactions with each other.

There was a rumor within the players circle that Rodman would be joining the Bulls the next season, and his presence and interaction with Jordan fueled those suspicions. Rodman was traded to the Bulls in October, the video footage above is circa July/August of that summer.

Misquoted Dwyane Wade Blown Out Of Proportion

When I first heard about D-Wade’s WTC comments, I was in disbelief, awe-stricken at yet another public relations snafu on behalf of the Miami 3:16. Wade was quoted as saying if the Heat lost 2-3 games in a row this season, it will be like the World Trade Center coming down again.

Initially I was suspicious of such an insensitive and egotistical statement from Wade, but refused to engage in malicious character assassination, unlike my counterparts on Twitter and Facebook. Several reputable sites ran the misquote, until Fanhouse issued a retraction a few hours later.

His official statement is much tamer and appropriate, albeit a direct shot at the media at-large for their sensationalism. Here is Wade’s actually quote according to the actual interview transciption:

We’re going to be wearing a bullseye. But that’s what you play for, we enjoy the bullseye. Plus, there’s going to be times when we lose 2-3 games in a row, and it seems like the world has crashed down. You all (media) are going to make it seem like the World Trade is coming down again, but it’s not going to be nothing but a couple basketball games.

After re-reading his official quote, I don’t have a problem with him invoking 9/11 to make his point. The media is infatuated with professional basketball, and dozens of columns have been devoted to it. Practically all month the saga of Miami 3:16 has been front-page news, 24 hours a day….

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Jesse Jackson Calls Out Gilbert On LeBron Letter

Besides getting fined 100 stacks by the league for the inflammatory letter directed at LeBron James following his departure from the Cavs, owner Dan Gilbert is also getting heat from the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who correlated the letter to the slave master mentality. Whilst Jackson’s comments may have been a little over the top, they were fairly accurate in describing Gilbert’s blasting of LeBron’s decision to take advantage of his free agency for a better option.

NBA Commissioner David Stern weighed in on the entire LeBron situation, calling Gilbert’s letter a poor decision and fining the Cavs as a result. Stern also tried to be PC on the Jackson comments, calling Jesse a friend but quickly pointing out that he was mistaken in his assertion. The fact is that in his scolding remarks of the Cavs former star, it did appear that Gilbert felt that the Cavs owned King James and quickly bashed the star for making his free will to make his next move his best one.

Video of both Jesse Jackson remarks and David Stern on fining Gilbert after the jump…

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What Would You Do If You Were LeBron?

You can dog LeBron for going to Miami, but if you were him, what would you have done?

Bosh signs with Miami, so you can’t go back to Cleveland because they don’t have the ability to sign any big free agents. You could go to Chicago, but LeBron probably doesn’t want to deal with Joakim Noah in the locker room on a daily basis, and who knows how LeBron feels about Carlos Boozer after Boozer left LeBron and the Cavs after Bron’s rookie year for “greener pastures” in Utah.

You played with Wade and Bosh on the Dream Team and you were probably rolling with them from the minute the 3 of you were on the same court. You probably joked around about joining forces when the three of you became free agents. So why wouldn’t you go join your boys and form your own version of a Dream Team.

Why not play together and have a legit possibility at beating the Bulls single season record of 72-10 in your first season together? Why not?

In The Face: Dwyane Wade Does It Again!!!

Dunk Score: 9.8

The only preventing D-Wade’s dunk from getting a perfect 10 was KG tapping out and refusing to contest once realizing that it was a done deal. You really can’t be mad at Garnett, he didn’t want to end up like Anderson Varejao did in the beginning of the season (still the best dunk thus far in 2009-10) although he still got demoralized by the notorious Dwyane Wade quick-jump. After getting banged on and fouling Wade, all Garnett could do was raise his hand in embarrassment and mumble a few of his trademark expletives under his breath. Garnett should get the last laugh though, as his C’s lead the series 3-1 and head back to Boston for Game 5.

Video of D-Wade demoralizing KG after the jump…

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Sick Shot: Kobe Bryant’s Game-Winner Vs The Heat

The bank is always open.

Double Fight Night: L.O. vs O’Neal, Noah vs LeBron

Friday night provided a few almost scuffles around the NBA. Lamar Odom and Jermaine O’Neal nearly came to blows during the Lakers-Heat game and Odom was eventually ejected for pushing O’Neal. This fight might be a result of a little saltiness over the fact that O’Neal not only tea-bagged L.O., but also gave his boo Khloe some chin nuts not too long ago as well. Mrs. Odom was on hand to witness her boo boo getting shat on by O’Neal, which probably brought back memories of when he use to give her the “D” like a 2-3 (zone).

Video of Bulls center Joakim Noah calling LeBron’s dancing corny after the jump…

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Get Buckets: B-Easy’s Game-Winning Dunk At Orlando

This might have been basket interference on Michael Beasley, but the refs didn’t call it, so it wasn’t. After watching the video about 30 times, there is not enough visual evidence to overturn the ruling, so tis tough Magic.