Love and Basketball

"The same streets that raised you, can age you..." - Common - U, Black Maybe

Sports are a metaphor of our everyday lives. It's the reason why some people will defend their teams tooth and nail, or an athlete will push themselves to become the best they can be. My first love was and always will be basketball. Even now long after my playing days, I still find joy in the game that taught me a wealth of life lessons.

Live and Learn

A picture is worth 1,000-words, and while I'm not going to write that many things about the photo above, allow me if you will to shed some light on the subject. When Kobe Bryant declared for the NBA, he unexpectedly received a ton of backlash and hatred. Everyone felt that a 17-year old wasn't able to make such a bold decision, and that he should attend a major college or university like most high school graduates.

Bryant remained determined and on June 26, 1996, he was selected with the 13th-overall pick. Five-years later the Lakers defeated the 76ers in Philadelphia, and not only was Kobe right in following his heart, he emerged an NBA champion, to silence his critics.

As I look at the image, it reminds me to be totally honest with myself and everyone around me, stay the course, and remember that sports have and will continue to take me far.

I'm thankful for the game, the experiences, and the people it has bought my way.

Life is good.

Words: @axgilbert

Photo: Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE

LIN-sational

"The struggle of just being you..."

Common - U, Black Maybe

Things happen everyday around the world that change and shape our outlook. The same goes for sports, as they are often a mirror of what life is all about.

Gains and losses

When you love something or someone, the objective is to give it or them your all. However nothing is perfect in this world and opportunities come and go. In the case of New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin, three things have remained constant for him and that is why he succeeds. At the core he is centered in his faith, family, and love of the game. When he couldn't attract a scholarship to play basketball in college, he didn't give up, when he didn't get drafted by an NBA team his roots kept him strong, and when he was cut by 2-different teams before joining the Knicks, he continued to stay in the go mode.

If you work diligently toward something or someone, understand that everyday will not be the absolute best thing ever, but what happens over time is that your foundation is fortified through adversity, and once the moment arises to shine, it's not a big deal, because you have been preparing for it years in advance.

Words: @axgilbert

Photo: Chris Trotman/Getty Images

Legacy

"Never looking back, or too far in front of me, the present is a gift..."

Common - Be

Video: @axgilbert

Photo: US Presswire

One More

"You gotta go the distance..."

Common - The Game

The Lakers have extended the NBA Finals to a Game 7...and the rest will be history come Thursday evening.

Tomorrow Never Dies

The Lake Show earned an 89 - 67 victory over the Celtics Tuesday night in LA, and they did it playing as a team. In the last two losses, the Lakers failed to hustle, fight, and rebound...nevertheless everything changed in Game 6.

The Celtics lost their starting center Kendrick Perkins to a knee injury, and they succumbed to the Lakers defense and grit.

As with any win or go home situation, anything can happen...so both teams will have to play with heart, and intelligence. The stakes are at their highest, and with the Staples Center playing host...the home court advantage could prove positive for LA. Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett will not go quietly into the night, as this upcoming matchup can easily go either way.

Before the Finals began, I wrote that both teams are evenly matched...and that this series will go the distance. Will Kobe stop at nothing for his 5th championship ring, or will the C's bounce back, and win on the road?

The team that rebounds and defends walks into the history books, while the other will vow for revenge just as the Lakers did in '08.

Photo: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Mr. Do It All

Chosen

"They tried to box me in like Cassius..."

Common - The Game

The Cavs made some moves via free agency, and the NBA Draft this summer, however after 2-games they are sans victories.

The League

The NBA's regular season is 82-games deep, so what are my thoughts on Cleveland and their addition of Shaq, Jamario Moon, and Anthony Parker? Well I'd have to revisit the top of this sentence and say that 2-games don't make a season.

In basketball the saying goes, it's not how you start...it's how you finish, and while the Orlando Magic jumped all over the 76ers case last night, and the Celtics look amazing with Rasheed Wallace...I firmly believe that the James Gang are down (this week), but they are far from out.

It's going to be an interesting season, and I have my first interview with LeBron on November 18th...which is more than enough time for the Cavs to right the ship.

James is a New York Yankees fan, and I look for him to mirror the resiliency and calm that the Bronx Bombers have, as they all know that it isn't over until it's over.

Photo: David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images

By Any Means Necessary...

"No matter how much I elevate, I kiss the floor..."

Common - Forever Begins

Home Base

MVP

"It's the good life like TI said..."

Common - Play Your Cards Right

The Philadelphia Phillies won the National League Pennant Wednesday night, and unlike last year...I was on hand to participate in baseball history.

Memories

My afternoon began with a purchase of a pair of Ken Griffey, Jr. Nike sneakers...I then went home to get ready for Game 5 of the NLCS...fast forward several hours later, and I'm on the field with the Phillies enjoying the celebration. The best way I could soak it all in was to congratulate the players, take pictures, and shoot some video.

Soon after I interviewed NLCS MVP Ryan Howard in the media room. I had a feeling that my question would be the one answered on the ESPN live feed, so I did my best to make it good. Here is the score from the question and answer:

Talk about when you first came up through this organization, winning the World Series last year, and then getting back on that stage this year?

"You know, first coming up, this organization was considered to be a losing organization. And when I first got called up and saw kind of the pieces to the puzzle...where we kind of fell short in 2005, we fell short in 2006, got over the hump in 2007, and then had a quick exit. I just gained a lot of experience over those three or four years going into 2008, and then into this year.

As a team, I don't think I've ever played on a team that's been so fun. It's one of the funnest teams I've played on. Great group of guys. We all get along. Great chemistry, and we all have a lot of fun. To be able to make it to this point again, it's definitely something very special, because a World Series isn't guaranteed to anybody.

For what we did last year, that was something special. But to get back to this point, to have the opportunity to try to do it 2-years in a row...that's even more special."

Photo: Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images, Anthony Gilbert/AXG

Creativity

Merry Christmas

GAME TIME

Classic

Subtle

Style

"Body moving...showin', proving...stylin'...and being fly..."

Common - Universal Mind Control

Beginning Christmas day, Nike iD gives you the opportunity to create your own version of the new Zoom Kobe IV. Earlier in the month we had an opportunity to catch up with Kobe about his new shoe, and now the power is in your hands, and within your mind's eye to customize his signature shoe...making it all your own.

For details log onto Nike iD

Watch this interesting video with Kobe, Mike Epps, and DJ AM:

It takes 5ive

Intelligence, strength, honor, heart, and intensity

"If revolution had a movie, I'd be theme music..."

Common - The 6th Sense

Donovan McNabb is the second coming of Randall Cunningham. So much so, that its ironic that he plays for the Philadelphia Eagles, and has developed a thick skin to shield himself from the media and fans alike.

I used to work for the Eagles, and in my time with the 'birds had an opportunity to befriend several people on the team and sidelines. My supervisor was Harold Carmichael who is a legend in his own right. Nevertheless, he used to call McNabb "Fluffy" because of his big afro. I would never call him "Fluffy" to his face, only with my boss. Whenever I would see Donovan, I just called him 5. Most of the offense go by their number, and not their name. Its interesting, and often times I felt more like a member of the team, than an office worker.

I attended the game yesterday against the St. Louis Rams, and not only did the Eagles click in every facet, they made an example of the Rams, making a statement to the NFC East and the rest of the league.

Below are the press conference quotes directly from Donovan McNabb to you:

On getting going early and starting off well on the first few drives:
“Well, I think it was important for us to start that way. You know, coming off of a good preseason, and obviously a great training camp, to start out early was very important to be able to set the tone early and in previous years we weren’t able to do that. We had big plays and the drive and also being able to run the ball and pick up some yards to capitalize on the touchdown obviously does well for the confidence factor. But we were able to bounce back again on the second drive and pretty much do the same thing and do it consistently throughout the whole game.”

On tempering the expectations of WR DeSean Jackson after his solid performance this game:
“Same thing, he’s still a rookie. And I think, like I’ve always said, just be patient. We haven’t hit the bump in the road yet and we’re gonna do that and I just try to prepare him for that and you know through my duration of being here, I’ve seen it happen. And you know, you just don’t want him to hang his head when it does happen. You want him to continue to stay strong and be confident with it. But that goes for all of us. You know, we all have to continue to battle. You know, watch the mistakes we made this game and be able to bounce back against the Dallas team that’s pretty experienced. It’s not going to be pretty much as easy as it was today.”

On not being sacked this game and being healthy going into the season:
“Well it’s always big when you don’t get touched too much. But I think a lot if it is getting the ball out and letting the guys outside work. They did a great job creating a little bit of separation where I could just put the ball out and let them compete. The offensive line did a wonderful job today. You know, I reward them and commend them but we gotta come back out there and keep doing the same thing.”

On Jackson’s first game and if he’s ever seen a rookie have a game as good as that:
“It’s just one game. I mean he played well, he played well. Don’t discredit that. But I’ve seen a lot of rookies play well throughout the season in one game. He’s a guy that’s willing to work and willing to get better and that’s an important factor that you have to have playing this game. Have a short term memory, put that behind you know matter how well you played or how bad you played. Move on to the next week and hopefully have a great game.”


On whether he thought the Eagles were trying to trick the Rams on the drive with two straight handoffs backed up deep and then the play action pass to Hank Baskett:
“Not necessarily. They brought the pressure, which [RB Brian] Westbrook had to come inside and block and I kept my eyes downfield and on the coverage and the pre-snap reads that I had. And once they blitzed I was able to get my eyes back out. Jason did a good job of grabbing the safety which led to Hank being wide open down the side line, and I took the air out of the ball and tried to put it in a position where he could catch it and protect himself in case the safety fell off on him. He ran through the tackle and picked up big yards for us.”

On his initial reaction to that play call and whether he was surprised they weren’t running down the clock:
“Well, you gotta be aggressive and we’ve been doing it all through the whole game and there’s no reason to stop now. I thought it was a great job on [Eagles Offensive coordinator] Marty [Mornhinweg] and [Eagles Head coach] Andy’s [Reid] part of just taking a shot and it paid off. But we’re gonna have to do that this year. You know, we’re gonna have to keep defenses on their heels wondering what we’re gonna do because we just can’t keep running, running, running the ball and not giving the guys on the outside the opportunity to make plays for us and they did that throughout the whole course of the day and good things happened for us today.”

On what it says about the receivers, since there were three players with at least 100 yards today:
“Well they work hard. Like I said in the offseason, like I said in interviews that I’ve had, in order for the guys to be successful and guys to make plays for you, you have to call plays for them. We called plays for each and every one of those guys and they made plays for us and throughout the whole game we were able to spread the ball around and get everybody involved. [TE] L.J. [Smith] had a good day today. Westbrook had a good day, [WR] Jason Avant played well, [WR] Hank Baskett, you know, DeSean Jackson. When things are rolling like that, when you spread the ball around and getting everybody involved, it does wonders for your offense.”

On what he expects about the atmosphere on Monday night in Dallas:
“Well, I’ve been watching Hard Knock life. Who hasn’t been? It’s been on. They’re a confident bunch. They’re an experienced bunch. There’s a reason why they won 13 games or whatever last year. So we know that it’s going to be a battle. Every time we play in goes to the wire somehow. So we have to prepare ourselves to go out and give up a good fight. We know what their defense kind of entails with [LB] DeMarcus Ware and [LB] Bradie James and know you’re talking about adding Pacman [Adam Jones] involved in the secondary. You know, it’s going to be a challenge for us. The same goes for the offensive side, there’s a reason [QB Tony] Romo had a great year last year.”

On the red zone being an issue last year and how L.J. Smith’s is making his presence felt this year:

“I said that...I said that last year. Good ends do a lot more. Teams have to focus in on the tight end position and when you have a guy like L.J. where you can do different things with him, spread him out, run him from the down position, put him in motion to try and create a mismatch. Now they have to focus in not just on Westbrook and just playing a base coverage, but there are other guys that have to get involved. But again it’s just one game. We gotta continue to focus in on our red zone, you know, play and do that and be consistent on the field.”

On whether he thinks next week will be a challenge against Dallas in prime time:
“We’re looking forward to it. We’re gonna look at it as a test to see where we’re at because no one knows how they played against Cleveland. So I mean, in this particular time of the season it’s important that we try to master the fundamentals, make sure the chemistry is where it needs to be and the timing and the run game and the pass game and the same on defense. And just being able to execute if there’s opportunities there and take full advantage of it. And you know in this game I thought we did that and we need to do that next week and the same the following week so it’s a growing process for all of us.”

On having success on opening weekend:
“You know, for an opener or whenever, it’s hard to get wins in this game. People can look at other teams records and say, well, they weren’t that good last year but things could be different this year. So you have to take full advantage of the wins that you do have and be able to feed off of that. I thought we did that later in the year last year. So to start out the season the way we did this year, it’s important that we feed off of that and continue to push yourself, to challenge yourself in practice to do better. No matter how good you played or if you played bad. You have to do better and get better each week.”

On the receivers’ play:
“I think they played great. I think they played great and we’re going to continue to work together.”

Showtime

All-Star MVP

Lessons from Jellybean

Control

Speed

"Waiting for the Lord to rise...I looked into my daughter's eyes, and realize I'm learn through her..."

Common - Be (Intro)

I first met Nikki Teasley during the 2002 WNBA Draft. I was working with the NBA League Office in New York, and since I have always enjoyed women's basketball, I volunteered to work the event. Everyone knew Sue Bird would become the number 1 pick overall, but what we didn't realize was how much of an impact Teasley would have during the forth coming season.

My job that day was simple, once my player was drafted, I accompanied her to the media availability, and helped to answer any questions she or her family had. She entered the draft with a lot of negativity from the media, but I didn't think about any of that. I approached her with a clean slate and through that encounter we eventually became good friends.

Five years ago I was looking to break into the magazine industry as a journalist, so I interviewed Nikki for a story that I would later use as an example of my work. I'll never forget that day, as I was traveling home from New York to Philadelphia on the New Jersey Transit train. Since that train doesn't go into Pennsylvania, I had to catch a different train in Trenton, NJ. Once I found my seat on the connecting train...my phone rang. It was Nikki Teasley, and I was briefly unprepared. I stalled the conversation by asking her how things were going, as I pulled out my notebook and pen...before long I was ready to go, and the following is an example of hard work, and friendship.

Purple Rein

Born Michelle Nicole Teasley on March 22, 1979, she has excelled in basketball on every level. Basketball to say the least, she is exceptional, however; it is not the only thing she is concerned with not to mention good at. For example, if she were to ever think about another sport, billiards would be the perfect choice. Teasley navigates the cue ball across the soft green velvet with the same precision that she graces the hardwood floor giving the opposition migraine headaches. When asked who is M. Nikki Teasley, she replied “Michelle Nicole Teasley is more of the friendly type. Sweet, laid back, kind, and generous. I am just the everyday person next door. Nikki… on the other hand is the rough neck basketball player with a fierce game and determination.” All-Star point guard, pool shark, and the girl next door all rolled in one. She is many things, but most importantly she is history in the making, that is the future.

Teasley was selected in the 2002 WNBA Draft by the now defunct Portland Fire, with the 5th pick overall. Selected ahead of her were Sue Bird, Seattle Storm (first pick overall University of Connecticut), Swin Cash, Detroit Shock (second pick overall University of Connecticut), Stacey Dales-Schuman, Washington Mystics (third pick overall Oklahoma University) and Asjha Jones, Washington Mystics (fourth overall pick University of Connecticut). Sue Bird became the Rookie of the Year, while Swin Cash has emerged to become one of the premiere players of the WNBA. Dales-Schuman has added a nice one/two combination to All-Star Chamique Holdsclaw, and Asjha Jones has provided a solid all around performance. As for Teasley, she just so happened to get traded two hours later from the Portland Fire to the Los Angeles Sparks. By the end of the season she was the rookie with the bragging rights. Her team won the 2002 WNBA Championship over the New York Liberty in the best of three series 2-0.

Nikki had one thing on her mind when she was drafted after a stellar career at the prestigious University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. “I was just happy to hear my name called. Just to hear my name was good enough for me. I knew Sylvia Crawley (San Antonio Silver Stars and University of North Carolina Women’s Basketball assistant coach 2000-2002), so going to that team [Portland] made me very happy too.”

The unique thing about the trade to the Los Angeles Sparks was that they had just won the 2001 WNBA Championship and they had the best player of the league in Lisa Leslie and at the helm of the Sparks ship is Head Coach Michael Cooper. Speaking of Coach Coop, “he is more than a coach to all of us, mainly me. He is a father figure to me. He does a lot for me not as a player but as a person. He is a player coach.”

“I watched Magic on ESPN Classic and I look at what he has done…”

Comparing this season to last year helps Nikki understand how far she has come. “Last year I was just coming in and getting my feet wet. I had to learn how to be a pro and I was becoming an adult and abiding on my own. This year I am just very confident, more than I have ever been in my career.” Exclaimed Teasley, as the sun has set on the Southern California cool and clear night, like the credits going up the silver screen at the end of a favorite movie. This is Hollywood right? Swimming pools and movie stars, not too mention a little magic. Not Magic Johnson of the famed Los Angeles Lakers but “Lady Magic”, Nikki Teasley as referred to her by Head Coach Michael Cooper, whom played along side Magic Johnson with the Lakers. “I watched Magic on ESPN Classic and I look at what he has done in comparison to me, and Coop (Coach Cooper) thinks that I am a mirror image of him because of my versatility and passing ability. I just pray that I can live up to it.”

Prior to the success of the WNBA she did not always enjoy the serenity that she has today. As a matter of fact many “experts” saw her as a problem child athlete with basketball potential through the roof. Proceed with caution was the warning. “I never shy away from my past. It has made me stronger. I was at a big university with even bigger classes than I was used to. A lot of things were building up inside of me, because I was quote on quote gifted as an athlete. I began not to want to play basketball or go to school.” After taking a year off from school entirely, she explains that, “taking a year off made me see how important basketball and school was. Besides I got a taste of the real world and it really helped me appreciate everything I had in school and sports.”

Ironic how this once “problem” became not only a savoir for her team but for the WNBA as a league. She has been very active within the community and on the basketball stage. Winner is more like it. Not only does she have a WNBA Championship but with 10 points, 6 assists, 6 rebounds and 5 steals in the 2003 WNBA All-Star game she walked away with MVP honors in just her first appearance.

Many felt that Teasley arrived when she made the game winning three point shot in the 2002 WNBA Championship. The Sparks as a team and their management knew that she was something special way in advance. The winning shot was the icing on the cake. As Nikki recalls that day, she explains that “the play was designed for Lisa (Leslie) on the strong side of the post. They (New York Liberty) played great defense, I give them credit. Teresa Weatherspoon thought I was going to pass so she played in between Lisa and I, and I saw the clock and just shot it.” The rest is her success.

M. Nicole Teasley has her roots deeply planted in her family. As the girl of the family she has made everyone proud. She admits in her usual cool demeanor that “I have so much going on. I am focused on family. The ability to enjoy time away from the game and give back to the community is important. Autographs and speaking engagements make me feel special. I do not think about it often, but when I do think about the hope that I can give other young people, not just black people, but young people in general are a means to my happiness.” Hard work is always rewarded as you can see. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. And if your coach assigns you to guard Nikki Teasley make sure you bring your best because you know that she will.