NBA AM: Who’s Playing in Las Vegas? Malcolm Lee is.

Some choice cuts from Alex Kennedy's post on HOOPSWORLD. To read the whole thing, click here.


NBA AM: Who’s Playing in Las Vegas?

By Alex Kennedy
NBA Writer, HOOPSWORLD
Updated: September 7, 2011, 6:49 am ET


Impact Basketball is working out the final details for their two-week competitive training series, which means NBA stars are beginning to flock to Las Vegas. The league’s rosters won’t be released until Thursday, but over 50 players have already committed to play in next week’s games.

John Wall, Rudy Gay, Zach Randolph, Stephen Curry, Kyle Lowry, Stephen Jackson, Chauncey Billups, DeMar DeRozan, Tayshaun Prince, Al Harrington, Jermaine O’Neal, DeAndre Jordan, Mo Williams, J.J. Hickson, Austin Daye, Jared Dudley, Marreese Speights, Dahntay Jones, Courtney Lee, Chase Budinger, Omri Casspi, Eric Maynor, C.J. Watson, Ryan Gomes, James Anderson, Avery Bradley, Melvin Ely, Armon Johnson and Shawne Williams are among the players that are expected to participate.

The Impact CTS will also feature a number of rookies including Iman Shumpert, Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler, Jordan Williams, Malcolm Lee, Josh Selby, Trey Thompkins, Travis Leslie and Shelvin Mack.

With no summer league or offseason workouts, these first-year players will use the two weeks to build chemistry with their new teammates and adjust to the NBA’s style of play.

Several former NBA players will also compete including Jamaal Tinsley, Bonzi Wells and Damon Jones.

Blake Griffin remains a possibility, but he may not be able to play for the entire two-week period due to his busy schedule. If the lockout continues and September’s series is a success, Impact will hold another two-week session during the month of October, which Griffin would participate in.

The list is subject to change and other players will be added throughout the course of this week. Impact is hoping to have 64 participants so that the eight teams will feature eight players. Some players – such as Leonard – won’t be able to stay for both weeks so having extra bodies to take their place is important.

The games will be streamed online for free and they will also be open to the public. Five hundred tickets will be sold each day and the proceeds will go to charity. Nike has designed jerseys for each of the eight teams and other sponsorships are being discussed. Statistics, standings and more information will be updated on Impact Basketball’s website.

Unlike many other summer leagues, the Impact CTS won’t resemble streetball. Organizers are encouraging players to treat these games as if they were part of the NBA’s regular season. There will be an emphasis on defense and NBA rules will be enforced by referees.

This is the closest thing to the NBA that basketball fans will be able to watch for quite some time. As the NBA’s players and owners continue to meet and iron out a new collective bargaining agreement, the Impact CTS will provide you with a basketball fix.


News and Notes: Here are some items from this week’s news and notes bin.

• Jimmer Fredette is organizing two rookie exhibition games with all proceeds going to his charity. The games will be played in Salt Lake City (9/21) and Provo (9/22) and will feature Kemba Walker, Kawhi Leonard, Chris Singleton, Nolan Smith, Malcolm Lee and Isaiah Thomas among other players.

The NBA's worst-kept secret: UCLA

The NBA's worst-kept secret: UCLA

By Steve Ritea
UCLA Today
Aug 30, 2011

Lakers forward Ron Artest (center), who's petitioned to change his name to Metta World Peace, plays a pick-up game at the Student Activities Center, a favorite, low-key place to practice for dozens of all-stars during the off-season and current NBA lockout.




It’s a poorly-kept secret just about everyone in the NBA knows: If you’re looking for a casual, off-season pick-up game, there’s only one place to go — UCLA.


On any given weekday afternoon, dozens of professional basketball players can be spotted wandering past Ackerman Union and the Bruin statue, and disappearing into the Student Activities Center (SAC) for an informal, all-star game that most fans can only dream about seeing.


On a recent Thursday, the sneakers squeaking on the floors of the second-floor gym belonged to Ron Artest of the L.A. Lakers, Andre Miller of the Denver Nuggets and Elton Brand of the Philadelphia 76ers … to name just a few.


Bruin players were out on the floor, too — shooting, dribbling and guarding them in pick-up games that have become a decades-old tradition at UCLA, stemming largely from its reputation as a basketball powerhouse.


This year, in fact, UCLA will have more alumni in the NBA than any other university, Bruins Assistant Coach Scott Garson said. "There’s no better pick-up game anywhere in the country," he said of the unannounced games.

Philadelphia 76ers forward Elton Brand, formerly of the L.A. Clippers, aims for the basket.

At the former Men's Gym basketball courts, hoops history is all around them — even Coach John Wooden’s original chalkboard as well as the very gym floor where he trained Kareem Abdul-Jabbar back when the towering player was still Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. In fact, the courts, located on the second floor of SAC, used to be where the Bruins played before crowded bleachers until Pauley Pavilion became their home court.


Today, only a few spectators watch from the sidelines.


But Brand said there’s something very raw and appealing about getting to play away from the crowds and the ever-present cameras. "It’s a great, pure feeling," he said. "You’re just playing for the love of the sport. … There’s not even anyone to tape knees."


That also makes for amazing basketball moments never captured on camera, left only to linger in the minds of those who played that day.


"Yesterday Russell Westbrook did some amazing dunks against really aggressive defense," Artest said after a recent pick-up game, sweat still dripping from his brow. "There’s not many games like UCLA in any other city."


The games also function as an informal way to study up on your opponents’ moves. Miller said he might step into an NBA game and suddenly recognize someone with whom he played months earlier back at UCLA. "You pick up on other guys’ habits," he said.


Those "other guys" might soon include Bruins' Point Guard Lazeric Jones — a talented player with his sights set on the NBA. For guys like Jones, playing against the pros at SAC was intimidating at first, but it turned out to be an invaluable experience that’s preparing him for the next step in his career.

While the rules are few at SAC, there is one that the pros take to heart. At least one student has to be included in every game.

"This is one of the reasons I came here," Jones said. "This is a legendary place. … I’ve talked to Baron Davis and Earl Watson, and they’ve taught me a lot."


Including Bruin players in their pick-up games is actually one of the few rules at SAC. At least one student player has to be included in every game, said Mitchell Butler, a former Bruin who went on to play for the former Washington Bullets. On good days, there are up to three games going on simultaneously.


"We were all young pups, and the older players would share their knowledge with us, and we turned around and shared it with Baron Davis and others," Butler said. "Today, Baron’s helping young Bruins like Reeves Nelson."


With the NBA lockout delaying preparations for any upcoming season, the pick-up games, which would normally be over by now, are now likely to extend into early September.

UCLA's No. 1 class no guarantee of success

UCLA's No. 1 class no guarantee of success

By Diamond Leung
College Basketball Nation Blog
ESPN.com
September, 6, 2011 2:52 PM ET




UCLA coach Ben Howland told Andy Katz that guard Jerime Anderson will miss a few games after being arrested in July in connection with the theft of a laptop. While that means Anderson is expected to be sidelined for more than the team's regular-season opener, as had been previously announced, it also puts the senior on track for possible reinstatement by the time the Bruins leave for Hawaii to play in the championship round of the Maui Invitational and open with Chaminade.

That will be big for a team that is short on guards. But discussion of the suspension status of the last remaining member of the nation's top-ranked recruiting class of 2008 heading into the senior year was far from what was expected.

When UCLA brought in five top-50 recruits coming off a third straight Final Four appearance, there were expectations that more big-time success was on the way for Howland.

Thus far, those recruits have combined to win two NCAA tournament games, and the two McDonald's All-Americans in the group -- Jrue Holiday and Malcolm Lee -- ended up becoming NBA draft picks.

But Holiday left after one so-so season, and Lee perhaps bolted too early and became a second-round pick rather than bolster a Bruins roster for this coming season.

Drew Gordon clashed with Howland and left the program midseason before transferring to New Mexico. J'mison Morgan was dismissed from the team and went to Baylor.

Anderson had been a disappointment for UCLA because of his inability to hold a starting job, and it's his off-the-court incident that generated bad offseason headlines.

It was a long time ago when the five-player class looked so cheerful the day it posed for pictures for a feature story in UCLA Magazine called "Hoop Dreams."

When asked a serious question about team goals, however, all five freshmen adamantly agree: Nothing short of a Pac-10 championship, followed by an NCAA national championship, will do.

"That's the goal here at UCLA, period, for any sport to win the national championship, you know? It's not just us," Anderson says. "I want to see that happen for the seniors, who've been there three times in a row. Definitely, that's what I want to see."

Now it will be left up to Anderson, who after serving his suspension will get one final chance at achieving what the group originally set out to do.

Howland on UCLA: 'We have momentum'

Howland on UCLA: 'We have momentum'

Andy Katz Blog
ESPN.com
September, 6, 2011 2:07 PM ET



UCLA coach Ben Howland snuck away over the weekend for a fishing trip to Jackson Hole, Wyo., one last attempt to clear his mind before the grind of the season begins again.

Once back on campus this week, Howland can begin to prepare for one of the most unique seasons in program history.

The Bruins will be a nomadic bunch with Pauley Pavilion undergoing a thorough renovation that is expected to transform the historic facility into a much more modern entertainment venue. Pauley had become outdated, with very few perks for coaches, players or fans.

UCLA will be out of the building for practice and games, playing four games at Anaheim's Honda Center and 14 games at the Los Angeles Sports Arena, the former home of USC and the Clippers. The road slate stretches from competing in the loaded Maui Invitational to playing at St. John's in mid-February.

It'll be a challenge, but the Bruins do seem to be a more focused group, and at the very least, are more experienced.

Howland is as pumped for this season to begin as any since UCLA played in its last of three straight Final Fours in 2008.

"I'm really excited and I think this team has a chance to do something really good this year," Howland said. "And we're going to have to be tough without playing a true home game on campus. But I'm really looking forward to this."

The Bruins are two seasons removed from not making the NCAA tournament in 2010 with a stunningly pedestrian sub-.500 record overall (14-18) and in the Pac-10 (8-10).

While the talent influx didn't change dramatically a season ago, the mentality did, and the Bruins were able to finish second in the Pac-10 (13-5, 23-11 overall) and then knocked off Michigan State in the NCAA tournament before losing a tight one to Florida in Tampa.

The good vibes were stunted a bit in the offseason when two players who would have likely been studs this season (Tyler Honeycutt and Malcolm Lee) opted for the NBA draft -- and were both picked in the second round. Then in July, guard Jerime Anderson was arrested for computer theft. Howland said Anderson will miss a few games as a result.

Still, despite the departures of Honeycutt and Lee and Anderson's arrest, the Bruins are trending upward, according to Howland. So much so that the ninth-year coach fully expects them to be in the mix for the new Pac-12 title with Cal, Arizona and Washington (toss in dark horse Oregon if you'd like).

The reason is that the Bruins have their deepest and best frontcourt of the past three years, certainly since Kevin Love left for the NBA.

Potentially dominating low-post threat Josh Smith returns as a sophomore, and he'll have plenty of help inside with North Carolina transfers David and Travis Wear (a gritty pair of forwards), joining Reeves Nelson and Anthony Stover. Nelson doesn't mind hurling his body around, while Stover is more of a defensive presence.

Howland said he might play one of the Wear twins at the 3 to have a taller and even more frontcourt-oriented starting lineup.

"We will put the best five players on the floor and four of the best players [may be forwards]," Howland said. "[The Wears] are really good passers, good shooters, and Josh can really manage a lot of the attention and open up a lot of opportunities for the other players. The Wears are really improved, physically and athletically. They're going to be really good."

Had Honeycutt and Lee stayed, the Bruins would almost certainly have started the season in the top 10. Still, UCLA should be a fringe top-25 preseason team and will likely be in the mix shortly thereafter unless Maui turns out to be a disaster.

The backcourt will lean heavily on point guard Lazeric Jones to push tempo with Tyler Lamb, freshman Norman Powell and JC guard De'End Parker -- who will quite simply be asked to make shots -- as the four starting the season in the rotation. Anderson will factor in there once he's off a to-be-announced suspension.

Howland has former North Carolina point guard Larry Drew II sitting out this season and working out with the team. Drew II quit on the Tar Heels in February in the middle of the ACC season, but apparently he's been committed to UCLA since he arrived and has shown no signs of unhappiness.

"He's so glad to be home," Howland said of Drew II. "He's very quick and has great quickness. He's been well-coached and has been really good with our guys. I'm excited that he's here."

Of course, this is a lot of the same preseason talk we hear every year from all corners of the country. But the Bruins didn't have the same sort of mojo the past two seasons. The timing of the Pauley renovations should be fine for the Bruins because this roster is better-suited to handle the disruptions. A new tape room, weight room, floor, state-of-the-art scoreboard and refurbished concourse are much-needed and welcomed in Westwood.

UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero, keenly aware that UCLA fans don't like to travel much -- let alone down the 405 in traffic -- will at least alleviate some of the problems by offering bus service from Westwood to the games in Anaheim and downtown Los Angeles. The fans will still be in traffic, but at least they won't be in their own cars.

What they'll see on the court when they get there might not be a national-title contender, but it should be a squad that has the goods to contend for a Pac-12 title. And that's the first step toward building the Bruins back up after three straight trips to the Final Four were followed by a combined two NCAA tournament wins in the next three seasons.

"There's no question we have momentum," Howland said. "I'm really looking forward to this season."

Shabazz Muhammad DESTROYS Summer Competition; #1 Ranked Player In Nation! Summer Mixtape

Shabazz Muhammad DESTROYS Summer Competition; #1 Ranked Player In Nation! Summer Mixtape

Added by Arek Kissoyan
ballislife.com
September 3, 2011 at 5:19am


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Shabazz Muhammad Showing OUT at Boost Mobile Elite 24!

Shabazz Muhammad Showing OUT at Boost Mobile Elite 24!

Added by Arek Kissoyan
ballislife.com
August 29, 2011 at 2:24pm

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Exclusive: Muhammad, Anderson Talking about Combining at UCLA

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Exclusive: Muhammad, Anderson Talking about Combining at UCLA

A pair of Five-Star rated 2012 standouts mull decision of becoming future teammates

By Adam Zagoria Special to Fivestarbasketball.com
August 26, 2011 2:47pm ET

Will superstars Kyle Anderson and Shabazz Muhammad combine forces at UCLA next fall?

Shabazz Muhammad and Kyle Anderson are together this weekend at the Boost Mobile Elite 24 game in Venice Beach, Calif.

And if you don't think the two elite prospects have talked about playing with one another in college, think again.

"We're thinking about it a lot," the 6-foot-8 Anderson from St. Anthony said Friday afternoon by phone from the event. "I mean, we're thinking about it. I don't know how far it will go, but there's a definitely a possibility it could happen."

Asked if UCLA was the only potential landing spot for both players, Anderson said, "Yes."

Muhammad, a 6-6 shooting guard from Las Vegas Bishop Gorman ranked No. 1 in the Class of 2012, also said the dynamic duo have developed a strong friendship and have discussed playing together with the Bruins.

"Kyle, me and him really want to play together in college," Muhammad said. "Just building a relationship with these guys, trying to build up a team for college. We need guys to go with me so our team can be a national championship contender."

Asked about the UCLA possibility, Muhammad added, "Yeah, I think it's an option. We've been really talking about that. Pretty much he's like my best friend now, so I'm always hanging around with him. We're just talking about UCLA, what other schools he likes, what other schools I like."

Anderson lists UCLA, Seton Hall, St. John's, Georgetown and Florida and is due to announce Sept. 20.

A source close to Anderson recently said that UCLA and St. John's "stand out" because of where they're situated.

"Yes, because of their location," the source said. "Both being in large media markets."

Still, publicly, Anderson won't give anything up.

"I don't have any favorites," he said Friday.

Anderon's older sister, Brittany, checked out the UCLA campus earlier this week en route to the Boost Mobile game, but Anderson himself did not go. He has already been there twice.

Muhammad and Anderson shared a recent visit to UCLA with 6-8 Shaq Goodwin of Atlanta and 6-5 UCLA pledge Jordan Adams of Oak Hill Academy.

UCLA coach Ben Howland has talked to the group about forming a potential monster 2012 recruiting class for the Bruins.

"Yeah, yeah, he does," Anderson said. "He definitely does. He tells us every time we come into the office. Just a great class we could have with us four and how the arena's going to be renovated by the time we're freshmen so he definitely talks about it a lot with us."

Muhammad echoed those sentiments from Howland.

"Yeah, he talks about it all the time," Muhammad said. "He talks about that all the time. Coach Howland's a great guy. He's trying to really get good players, and he's already got guys who are good already, Jordan Adams [and Findlay Prep point guard Dominic Artis]. He's gotten guys in there, he's working on more. He's a really good coach, and I really like UCLA and their program."

Still, Muhammad said as many as 13 or 14 schools are currently on his list, with USC, Arizona, Duke, Kansas, Kentucky, Memphis, Texas and UNLV among those in the mix.

The only official visit he has set is to Kentucky for Big Blue Madness Oct. 15.

"I haven't cut it yet," Muhammad said of his list. "My list is pretty big. I'm probably going to cut it in a couple weeks, to seven."