Top 5 New York Ties to the NBA Finals

As the city of New York aches with anticipation at the prospect of LeBron James signing with the New York Knicks this summer, there are several reasons why New Yorkers should be tuning in to the NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Upon closer examination, no pun intended, of the pageantry and hype surrounding this year’s Finals match-up, it should become evident that a rich cast of New York alumni have their respective hands on the renewal of, arguably, the best rivalry in professional sports history.

And the list of New York natives and former Knicks players is an illustrious one indeed. So if New York City has been looking for a single reason to take their eyes off the reality television drama that has become the life of LeBron James, here are five for their consideration.

5. Boston Celtics head coach Glenn ‘Doc’ Rivers

Prior to head coaching stints with the Orlando Magic and the Boston Celtics, ‘Doc’ Rivers was an All-Star point guard for the Atlanta Hawks.

After seven quality seasons in Atlanta (1983-1991), playing alongside Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins, and one forgettable one with the Los Angeles Clippers (1991-1992), Rivers was shipped in a deal, that included Bo Kimble and Charles Smith, to New York for Mark Jackson prior to the 1992-93 season.

Although a member of the Knicks for only two seasons, Rivers would be part of the teams that went to the Eastern Conference Finals and the NBA Finals in consecutive years.

4. Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson

Phil Jackson’s ties to New York are also rooted in his playing days with the Knicks. Like Rivers, ‘The Zen Master’ was a second round draft pick but, unlike Boston’s head man, Jackson was selected by New York, where he would go on to play 13 seasons.

In addition, Jackson, as a top reserve and fan favorite, was a member of the Knicks’ first championship team in 1970 and its last championship squad in 1973.

And speaking of free agents, whether he leads the Los Angeles Lakers to their second straight NBA Championship or not, Jackson will hit the open market this summer as he is in the final year of his contract with the Lakers; a fact that the Knick front office should not overlook while finalizing their agenda for the next few months.

3. NBA on ABC broadcast team (Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy & Mark Jackson)

All three men responsible for telling the story of each game of the NBA Finals have strong ties to the New York area.

Play-by-play commentator Mike Breen was born and raised in New York City and graduated from Fordham University in 1983.

Breen, a 14-year NBA broadcasting veteran, is also the main voice for New York Knicks games on the MSG Network.

Breen’s color commentating broadcast partner, Jeff Van Gundy, served as a Knick assistant coach for six seasons before becoming the head coach in March of 1996.

During Van Gundy’s five-year tenure, the Knicks would make the playoffs every season and an NBA Finals appearance in 1999.

Van Gundy, a graduate of Nazareth College in Rochester, New York, would resign as Knicks head coach nineteen games into the 2001-02 season and, in the nine seasons since, New York would make the playoffs only once. In light of this, there is something to be said about getting out when the getting is good.

The third member of the aforementioned broadcasting triumvirate is Mark Jackson, who has the most ties to New York of them all.

Jackson was born and raised in Queens, New York and gained a reputation as one of the nation’s elite point guards while attending Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn.

Jackson’s New York basketball legend only grew when he blossomed into a star at St. John’s University, which resulted in him being selected with the 18th pick in the 1987 NBA Draft by none other than the New York Knicks.

After averaging 13.6 points and 10.6 assists per game in his first season, Jackson was named the 1988 Rookie of the Year; and, along with Hall of Fame center Patrick Ewing, Jackson would help the Knicks become perennial playoff contenders for the next four seasons.

However, Jackson’s run in New York would come to an unceremonious end when he was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers prior to the commencement of the 1991-92 season.

But even though Jackson would also play for the Indiana Pacers, the Denver Nuggets, the Toronto Raptors, the Utah Jazz and the Houston Rockets before retiring in 2004, he will always be a New Yorker at heart.

2. Los Angeles Lakers forwards Lamar Odom & Ron Artest

The games of the versatile Lamar Odom and the defensive-minded Ron Artest were shaped on the tough playgrounds of Queens, New York, with Artest being born and raised in the Queensbridge Projects, the largest housing project in the United States, and Odom being brought up in South Jamaica, Queens.

From their humble and poor beginnings, Artest and Odom, like hundreds of NBA players before them, would use basketball as an escape and, in their early years, would be teamed on the same Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) team after becoming stand-outs in high school; Odom with Christ The King Regional High School and Redemption Christian Academy and Artest with La Salle Academy.

After gaining fame playing in some of New York City’s high-profile summer basketball tournaments at Nike Pro City, Hoops in the Sun in the Bronx, and Dyckman Park in Washington Heights, Artest would follow in Mark Jackson’s footsteps by becoming a stand-out at St. John’s; where he helped the Red Storm get to the Elite Eight in the 1999 NCAA Tournament.

Both Artest and Odom were first round draft picks in the 1999 NBA Draft and have taken circuitous routes to get to Los Angeles, while along the way establishing themselves as two of the most enigmatic players in the league.

And there is no doubt that the Queens natives must put their best feet forward in order for the Lakers to triumph in the Finals.

1. Boston Celtics reserve point guard Nate Robinson

After living in obscurity on Boston’s bench after being dealt by the Knicks at the trade deadline, Nate Robinson has reminded the basketball world why he was such a fan favorite in New York.

Robinson’s ‘13 points in 13 minutes’ performance in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Orlando Magic inspired the Celtics to victory in a game they needed to win to close out the series to avoid a Game 7 in Orlando and the potential of blowing a 3-0 series lead.

For an encore, Robinson scored 12 points in 17 minutes off the bench in a pivotal Game 4 of the NBA Finals, and played crucial minutes in the fourth quarter, to help lift the Celtics to victory yet again to even the series with the Lakers.

And, at the rate he’s going, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Robinson place his unique imprint on another one of the upcoming games in the Finals; which goes to show that a liability for one team can easily become an asset for another.

What can also be said is that New York is definitely in the house at the 2010 NBA Finals.

Click here to read the original article on Examiner.com, which includes relevant links and videos recapping Game 4 of the 2010 NBA Finals.

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How the NY Knicks helped the Boston Celtics get to the NBA Finals

It’s been a season of memorable highs and forgettable lows for one Nathaniel Cornelius Robinson.

After enjoying his best season in 2008-09, where he averaged 17.2 points and 4.1 assists per game and won his second Sprite Slam Dunk Championship, Robinson re-signed with the New York Knicks for one year and his star appeared to be on the rise.

But on December 1, 2009, Robinson’s world took a drastic turn for the worse when he became persona non grata in Knicks head coach Mike D’Antoni’s playing rotation. The 25-year-old Robinson would not see a single minute of action for 14 consecutive games due to irreconcilable personality differences between player and coach.

When he made his return on New Year’s Day 2010, Robinson helped snap the Knicks out of a funk, in which they lost 3 of 4, by coming off the bench to score 41 points, dish out 8 assists, and snare 6 rebounds in a 112-108 overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

Robinson, the 21st overall selection in the 2005 NBA Draft, would lead the Knicks in scoring four more times in the month prior to 2010 All-Star Weekend, in which one of the highlights was Robinson winning a record third Sprite Slam Dunk Championship.

However, just five days later, Robinson’s 4-year tenure in New York would come to an end, largely due to the organization’s effort to clear salary cap space for this summer, when President of Basketball Operations Donnie Walsh traded Robinson and Marcus Landry to the Boston Celtics for Bill Walker, Eddie House and J.R. Giddens.

And in an average of 14.7 minutes of spot duty over the final 26 games of the regular season, Robinson averaged 6.5 points and 2.0 assists per game.

In the playoffs, Robinson saw his minutes drop by more than half, along with his scoring average, as he and the rest of the country watched Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo blossom into a superstar.

But with Boston in desperate need of closing out the Orlando Magic in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Celtics got an unexpected spark from Robinson who, in only 13 minutes of action coming off the bench, mostly in the second quarter, scored 13 points and electrified the TD Garden doing exactly what made him a crowd favorite at Madison Square Garden.

Robinson hit two 3-pointers in a span of 90 seconds to lift Boston to a 15-point lead over the Magic and completely turn the tide of the game and the series in the Celtics’ favor.

So, in barely over 10 minutes, the Knicks’ garbage, figuratively speaking, became the Celtics’ treasure and Nate Robinson went from the outhouse to the penthouse.

In addition, this week, while New York comes up with new and innovative ways to grovel at the feet of LeBron James, Robinson will be playing in the NBA Finals.

Shake and Bake!

Click here to read the original article on Examiner.com, which includes a visual look back at Nate Robinson's inspiring Game 6 performance off the bench in the Eastern Conference Finals.

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KryptoNate Coming to Boston

"LOS ANGELES -- The Celtics have acquired Nate Robinson and Marcus Landry from the New York Knicks in exchange for Eddie House, Bill Walker and J.R. Giddens, who were thrown into the deal to match salaries.

The Celtics are waiting for NBA approval and the deal may not be announced until later this afternoon.

Robinson, a high-flying sparkplug guard, has been coveted by the Celtics for months and is expected to give the Celtics scoring bunch off the bench and a legitimate backup to Rajon Rondo. Robinson averaged 13.2 points and 3.7 assists in 30 games with New York, spending most of the season being banished by coach Mike D'Antoni.

Robinson earns $4 million this season but since he was a base-year compensation player (which prevents teams from signing unwanted players just to trade them for equal value the same season), his contract was worth just $2 million on a salary cap, forcing the Celtics and Knicks to add other players to make the transaction work."

KryptoNate is certainly no Monte Ellis or Kevin Martin, but at least we already know he balls hard in green.  On a side note, we still leave Sugar Ray with a chance to catch fire NBA Jam style and carry our asses to banner 18.  On an even sider note, the chance I go see a Maine Red Claws game is absolutely shot now that Billy Walker and J.R. Giddens are headed to the big apple.  

Follow Nate on Twitter (Caution-- he's a tweetaholic)

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Hath No Fury like a Nate Robinson Scourned (I.E. Nate blocks Shaq)

Over the weekend, the New York Knicks were beaten pretty soundly by the Cleveland Cavaliers but there one highlight that Knicks fans most certainly enjoyed.

Diminutive guard Nate Robinson was block by Shaq on a previous play where it appeared that there should have been a foul called.

Well, Nate got his revenge on a subsequent play.

No matter what you say about Nate Robinson, he got hops!

(Courtesy of NY Knicks Beat)

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Where's Your Head At Nate?

What was Nate Robinson doing shooting at the wrong basket? Yes the Nets are winless, and probabaly could of used the help, but the luckily the time just expired before the shot goes up.

D'Antoni, maybe you need to see if Nate knows what team he plays for.

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NBA Free Agency: Party Like It's '09

With NBA free-agent signings set to commence Wednesday (12:01 am if any GMs are really enthusiastic), it seems the appropriate time for OtB to bring you the top 30 players who might be moving in the coming months. With 30 quality players possibly moving and 30 NBA teams, it only makes sense to match each player with a prospective team, even if it most certainly won't shake out that way.

A quick update, before we get into the list. The teams with the most cap space are the Memphis Grizzlies, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Portland Trailblazers, and the Detroit Pistons. The teams with potentially the most players to lose to free-agency are the Lakers, Utah Jazz, and Pistons. Do the math, Detroit stands the change the most significantly this summer. You can check out ESPN's list to see all the players eligible this summer and next. It's been pointed out that big name teams are positioning to have loads of cap space next summer. Therefore, for smaller market teams like the Grizzlies, the time to make significant acquisitions might be now or never. Teams that have already made some serious moves this summer include the Orlando Magic, San Antonio Spurs, and Cleveland Cavaliers. On to the list!

1. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers: The best of this crop, Kobe can opt out this summer, but leaving the Lakers now couldn't do anything for his reputation or title hopes.
2. Carlos Boozer, Memphis Grizzlies: The Grizz don't have a history for making firebrand moves, but they are looking, as well they should be, to fill that power forward slot. The Grizz discussed a (failed, thankfully) trade for Zach Randolph, so Boozer would be a big pick up.
   
3. Ama're Stoudamire, Golden State Warriors: Though Don Nelson seems to be messing with Steve Kerr, the Warriors are still looking at STAT. There've been murmurings that Ama're won't be as effective after rehabbing his...eye.
4. Ben Gordon, Minnesota Timberwolves: Minny just traded away two shooting guards. The Brit would fit perfectly here.
5. Paul Millsap, OKC Thunder: Millsap is a restricted free agent, but OKC has been talking shop. He'd be great next to Durant, but the Thunder already have Jeff Green and are thin at the center spot. Perhaps a trade with Memphis for Marc Gasol? If the Jazz retain Millsap, teammate Okur could also be available. Just speculation here, though.
6. Josh Smith, Washington Wizards: Smith is not a free agent, but teams have been salivating over mention he might be available. Washington's Antawn Jamison is also rumored to be up for relocation. Swapsies?
7. Ron Artest, Houston Rockets: The Rockets have been getting it right lately, and though the team looks drastically different without Yao, they will most likely put a premium on brining Artest back.
8. Trevor Ariza, Cleveland Cavaliers: Ariza will most likely be back with the Lakers, but for the purposes of this exercise let's take note of the Cavs fleeting interest, especially because Cleveland would love to take a piece away from the Lakers.
9. Chris Anderson, Heat: The Heat boast plodding big men Udonis Haslem and Jermaine O'neal up front, but Dwayne Wade needs some horses to run with. The Birdman would be a perfect example. The Heat also have long standing interest in Boozer.
10. Lamar Odom, Indiana Pacers: Lamar loves the Lakers and vice versa, but if he can't get back Indiana would love to snap him up. Mike Dunleavy Jr. is out for the start of the season and Lamar would work perfectly as a complement to Danny Granger.
11. Jason Kidd, New York Knicks: Kidd might re-up with the Mavs, but New York and Mike D'Antoni (and Darko) have shown interest. Kidd could also take the mid-level to go play with Lebron and Shaq.
12. Hedo Turkoglu, Toronto Raptors: The Magic took on Vince Carter, and thus will not be able to pay Hedo what he wants. Also interested are the Pistons and Spurs, but something tells me Hidayet is going North of the border.
13. Rasheed Wallace, Orlando Magic: Orlando, however, is not staying still this offseason. They're looking to blow this weapons race out of the water by picking up the former Piston.
14. David Lee, Milwaukee Bucks: Lee could end up anywhere needing a good rebounder, including Memphis or, yes, New York. Milwaukee looks for the pick up by not extending a qualifying offer to Charlie Villanueva. Lee is a restricted free agent though, so could stay in NY.
    
15. Shawn Marion, New Orleans Hornets: CP3's team needs depth everywhere but pg and pf. Peja Stojakovic has been tailing off, so they need to pick up someone to play the 3.
16. Nate Robinson, Sacramento Kings: Though the Kings just picked up Tyreke Evans, Krypto-Nate has shown his ability to play with other points-guards, even behind them, just not in D'Antoni's system. Robinson is also a restricted free agent.
17. Kyle Korver, Utah Jazz: the Jazz stand to lose the most this summer, but they should hold on to at least some of their free agents, of which Korver is one.
    
18. Charlie Villanueva, New Jersey Nets: Powder's just 24, so would complement New Jersey's youth movement nicely, and would play well next to Brooks Lopez.
19. Brandon Bass, Chicago Bulls: The Bulls have needed a banger ever since Elton Brand left town. Bass would fill that void. Orlando also seems interested.
20. Marcin Gortat, Boston Celtics: The Celts were so desperate for depth up front that they signed Mikki Moore last season. They'd much prefer the Polish Hammer.
21. Allen Iverson, Charlotte Bobcats: I have no idea what the future holds for the answer. The only straw to grasp on now is word that Iverson wouldn't mind playing for Larry Brown again.
22. Andre Miller, Philadelphia 76ers: Similarly, I have no idea where Miller will end up. Someplace that needs a back up pg? Let's just say he goes back to Philly, since I can't imagine Jrue is really ready to be the full time distributor.
23. Mike Bibby, Portland Trail Blazers: I'm looking to Portland to make splashes through trades rather than free agency, and then perhaps make an impact next summer. Though really I have a feeling they might fumble all that talent they've stockpiled. They've been looking for a point, and Bibby can be off the ball enough to play with B-Roy.
24. Drew Gooden, San Antonio Spurs: If the Spurs don't pick up any of the bigger name big men this summer, look for them to retain Gooden.
25. Antonio McDyess, Detroit Pistons: Dumars strikes me as a guy moving through trades, so I'm not looking for big acquisitions this summer in free agency. McDyess will probably retire if he doesn't get resigned by the Pistons, so we'll put him here.
26. Grant Hill, Phoenix Suns: See above, McDyess. Substitute Kerr for Dumars.
    
27. Zaza Pachulia, Dallas Mavericks: I originally included Zaza on this list just because his name is awesome. But The Mavs don't have much beyond Dampier at the 5, so Pachulia could be a good hire.
28. Von Wafer, Denver Nuggets: The Nuggets should really stand pat this summer and just focus on re-signing the Birdman, but if they lose him Von Wafer could be a nice scorer behind Billups. Anthony Carter might not return for back up duty.
29. Stephon Marbury, Atlanta Hawks: The Hawks are thin pretty much everywhere, and need to not start Maurice Evans on one of the wings, but after acquiring Jamal Crawford, the Hawks just have to figure out what's really good with Josh Smith. Starbury could be back with the Celts, but House will probably return too.
    
30. Zach Randolph, Los Angeles Clippers: Randolph makes this list simply because the Clippers need to get rid of Z-bo and make room for Blake Griffin. Randolph's not a free agent, but their failure to move him will simply confirm that the Clippers continue to be the worst franchise in the history of sports. How did they get Boom Dizzle to sign last summer? Geez.

Honorable mention: Wally Szczerbiak, who doesn't make the list because without his albatross contract still set to come of the books, he loses a whole heap of value. Maybe Larry Bird will pick him up. Just kidding.

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Nate Robinson shakes and Will Ferrell bakes....

Nate Robinson last night dropped a 41 point performance in the Knicks victory over the Indiana Pacers. One of his biggest fans was there in movie star Will Ferrell and it looks like that Nate is returning the feelings.

It was noted in a post-game interview that Robinson gave Ferrell the "krypto-Nate" jersey from the Slam Dunk Contest.

Is this the next bro-mance? Let's wait until Nate Robinson sings, "Love Me Sexy."

(Courtesy of Total Pro Sports)

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Nate Robinson makes an appearance on Letterman

With the NBA tradeline officially over, we can now go back to actually talking about the game. Specifically, Knicks guard Nate Robinson making an appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman.

Robinson made an appearance last night where he slammed over Letterman's right-hand sports correspondent Biff.

It's nice to see that the Knicks still have something to cheer about even if it is the hops of a undersized guard.

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NBA All-Star Slam Dunk 09 couldn't live up to the hype....

While watching NBA All-Star Weekend, I had some sinking feeling that it was not going to live up to the hype of last year.

That sinking feeling was correct as the marquee events of the three point shoot-out and the slam dunk contest left something to be desired.

The slam dunk contest at the beginning was a relative snooze-fest with Rudy Fernandez and J.R. Smith just trying to prevent a finals match-up between Dwight Howard and Nate Robinson.

The highlight of the night was when Dwight Howard went into the phone booth and dunked on the 12 foot rim. Howard's performance after that was decent but Robinson stole the show by dunking over him.

With the performance that Howard put up in 2008, it was going to be tough to duplicate. Slam Dunk had the hype, just couldn't live up to it.

Postscript: Lebron James allegedly tossed his hat into the ring for Slam Dunk 2010. It is tough to tell if Lebron is serious or not but we will have to wait and see about that.

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