Piaad 3 Basketball

Congratulations to those players seleted for the United States Men’s Olympic Basketball Team from Coach Jamaal of Boise’s Jamaal Al-Din’s Hoops 227- the everything basketball website!!! This year the Olympic Summer Games are being held in Beijing, China…the home of “chow Mein,” lo Mein, ans Coach J’s favorite- szchezwaun beef!!! The USA Basketball Executive Committee is responsible for the selection process and let’s just say it’s great to select from the NBA who plays host to the most extraordinary basketball talent in the world!!!

Mike Krzyzewski of the storied Duke University NCAA basketball program in Durham, North Carolina (ACC), is the Head Basketball Coach of the United States Olympic Basketball Senior Team. Nate McMillan, Mike D’Antoni and Jim Boeheim of the Portland Trailblazers, New York Knicks and Syracuse Univerity, respectively, are USA the Olympic Basketball Assistant Coaches for the 2008 Olympic Games held in Beijing, China.

Team members include these National Basketball Association stars!

Carmelo Anthony- Denver Nuggets; the explosive Carmelo Anthony is a versatile NBA talent from Baltimore, Maryland and Syracuse University. With an NCAA basketball championship he’s now paired up with Allen Iverson (“The Answer”) in Denver with hope of bringing a title to the Mile High City! 

Chris Bosh- Toronto Raptors; Chris Bosh is a phenomenal leaper with unparalleled basketball skills in the paint. Chris Bosh’s athleticism makes for exciting NBA dunks and “rim shakers!” NBA basketball at its finest and will be fireworks to see him paired up, on the basketball hardwood, with the likes of Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) and LeBron (“King”) James (Cleveland Cavaliers)!

Michael Redd- Milwaukee Bucks; Michael Redd’s terrific long range game is TOPPS in the NBA and during Olympic play it will be enteresting to see him play bombs away against international basketball teams. Michael Redd played collegiately at Ohio State University.

Deron Williams- Utah Jazz; Deron Williams has both a strong basketball inside game and outside jumper. Slashes his way through opponents with penetration similar to a vibrant “Rookie” basketball version of Gary Payton (The Glove- from Oregon State University). Deron Williams played collegiately at the University of Illinois (Big 10/NCAA)

Chris Paul- New Orleans Hornets; Chris Paul had arguably the best season of all National Basketball Association (NBA) players and and some basketball fans, writers and critics, feel as though he should have won the NBA’s MVP award. Chris Paul is a versatile Point Guard with a knack for penetrating the lane and creating havok for defenders, as big men in the middle have to converge, leaving wide open jump shots for Chris Paul’s (CP’s) teammates in New Orleans. The New Orleans Hornets are having an exciting time with NBA basketball and Olympic basketball fans will be watching one of the best point guards in the modern NBA! Chris Paul played for the Wake Forrest Demon Deacons of the NCAA’s Atlantic Coast Conference (notable ACC basketball programs: Duke University, University of Maryland, North Carolina State University, Florida State University and University of North Carolina).

Tayshaun Prince- (Coach Jamaal’s)! Detroit Pistons; Tayshaun Prince is a wirey, smooth shooting guard with great touch. Coach Jamaal Al-Din of Jamaal Al-Din’s Hoops 227 grew up as a Detroit Pistons fan, watching Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Bill Laimbeer, John Salley, Mark Aguire and Dennis Rodman. It will be basketball heaven to watch Tayshaun Prince teamed up with guards like Chris Paul (Wake Forest Deamon Deacons/ New Orleans Hornets) and Deron Williams (University of Illinois “Fighting” Illini/ Utah Jazz). Tayshaun Prince played NCAA basketball at the University of Kentucky (“Wildcats”) for Coach Tubby Smith. 

Dwight Howard- Orlando Magic; an extraordinary physical basketball talent who is quickly making his mark on the entire National Basketball Association (NBA). Dwight Howard (see 227′s You Tube- Dwight Howard), is a physical inside player who rebounds and scores with the best basketball centers and forwards in the NBA. Look for Howard to control the paint like SHAQ (Phoenix Suns) and dominate Olympic play. Noted for his famous U Tube (YouTube, you tube, utube) “Superman” dunk, Dwight Howard came into the NBA right after high-school, like his NBA counter-part…Kobe Bryant (of the 81 point performance, which can be seen on YouTube)!

Dwayne Wade- Miami Heat; D-Wade of the marketing NBA creatives, is a slashy, creative, shooting guard witha championship ring to go with the exceptional performance he put on during the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. Dwayne Wade’s game is versatile and should flourish during Olympic style basketball play. Dwayne Wade played collegiately at Marquette University (NCAA). 

Kobe Bryant- Los Angeles Lakers; Kobe Bryant… well, Kobe Bryant, need I say more. An 81 point scoring outburst and a phenominal 2007-08 season with the Los Angeles Lakers which culminated in a Western Conference Championship. Kobe will be a special basketball treat for all Olympic basketball fans. Kobe entered the NBA right out of high-school, similiar to the legendary Moses Malone (“4, 4, 4″) and Darryl Dawkins “Chocolate Thunder!”  Kobe is a product of Philly.

LeBron James- Cleveland Cavaliers; the most electrifying dunker of modern NBA basketball  and arguably all-time. LeBron’s strong game of dunk-you-very-much and power has took the National Basketball Association by storm! LeBron is only a blink away from establishing himself as the epitome of NBA shooting guards with strength and power to go along with his basketball intelligence which is unmatched! LeBron James came into the NBA, right after high-school and was regarded highly as everyone’s McDonald’s Basketball All-American, from Ohio.

Carlos Boozer- Utah Jazz; the former Duke University Blue Devil is a fierce inside presence and has a soft touch, he’ll be an asset teamming up with Deron Williams, as they’re teammates with the Western Conference Utah Jazz in the NBA.

 

Some of the basketball members of the United States Men’s Basketball (USA) Team have had experience with FIBA Basketball, and the World Championships. Stay tuned and watch the best of the best USA basketball talent during the Olympics in Beijing, China. Coach Jamaal Al-Din of Jamaal Al-Din’s Hoops 227 says “Good Luck, red, white and blue!” Jamaal Al-Din is a former player of Olympic scoring record setter, Ed Palubinskas, who played at BYU-Idaho (formerly Ricks College) and LSU. Coach Palubinskas is a member of the Australia Basketball Hall of Fame. Jamaal Al-Din’s Hoops 227- the everything basketball website!

10 Tallest Players in NBA History



1.) Manute Bol

Height: 7’7”   Weight: 225 Pounds

Manute Bol played 10 seasons in the NBA (1985-1995). He played for four different teams: Washington Bullets, Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat, and Philadelphia 76ers. He averaged 18.7 minutes played per game over his career, but only 4.2 rebounds and 2.6 points per game. Considering all he has to do is catch the ball and lay it into the basketball without jumping, how come he only averaged 2.6 points per game? He was known for his blocked-shot ability. He set a rookie record in his 1985-1986 rookie season blocking 397 shots. He is also tied for the most blocked shots in one-half with eleven and is tied for the most blocked shots for one quarter with eight, in which he accomplished twice. He still holds the record for most blocked shots per minute with (.176). He also played with Muggsy Bogues during the Bogues 1987 rookie season pairing the tallest and shortest players in NBA history in one season. He is also the only player in NBA history to block more shots then he has scored.





2.) Gheorghe Muresan

Height: 7’7”   Weight: 303 Pounds

Gheorghe Muresan played only 6 seasons in the NBA (1993-2000). He played for two different teams, the Washington Bullets and New Jersey Nets. He averaged 21.9 minutes per game over his career, but only 6.4 rebounds and 9.8 points per game. Another big man, yet a fairy low rebounds/per game average. Some of you might remember Gheorghe Muresan from the movie “My Giant” (1998), where he starred with Billy Crystal and Kathleen Quinlan.                                         





3.) Yao Ming

Height: 7’6”   Weight: 310 Pounds

Yao Ming played 6 full seasons and is still currently in his 7th season in the NBA (2002-Present). He has played for the Houston Rockets his whole career in the NBA. He averaged 32.6 minutes per game, while ripping down 9.2 rebounds and scoring 19 points per game till this day. Unlike the 2 tallest centers in the NBA, Yao Ming has been a workhorse and knows how to tally a stat sheet and is the only player in the top 10 tallest NBA players that is still playing.                                                                     





4.) Shawn Bradley

Height: 7’6”   Weight: 275 Pounds

Shawn Bradley played 12 seasons (1993-2005). He has played for three different teams:Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, and Dallas Mavericks, where he spent the majority of his career. He averaged 23.5 minutes, 6.3 rebounds and 8.1 points per game during his career. Although he did average 2.5 blocks per game over his career, he has been known for a “Giant” who got dunked on many time.



5.) Chuck Nevitt

Height: 7’5”   Weight:250 Pounds

Chuck Nevitt played 9 seasons in the NBA (1982-1994). He did not play in 3 seasons over the 12 years of his career. He played for five teams throughout his career: Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls, and San Antonio Spurs. He did not play more then 45 games in any season and just averaged 5.3 minutes, 1.5 rebounds, and 1.6 points per game throughout his career. Throughout his career he basically got play time during garbage minutes meaning his team usually had a big lead or was down to much to make a comeback, especially in Detroit. While in Detroit, the fans called Detroit’s blow-outs, when Nevitt was able to get his minutes, “Nevitt Time”. His nine seasons of minutes played totaled up to be about the length of 18 full NBA games.                  





6.) Slavko Vranes

Height: 7’5”   Weight: 275 Pounds

Slavko Vranes only played three minutes in one game with the Portland Trailblazers during his entire NBA career (2003-2004). He was drafted by the New York Knicks in 2003, but was released during the season, not playing one minute of any Knicks game. The Portland Trailblazers signed him a month after his release from the New York Knicks to a 10-day contract, where he played his only three minutes in the NBA.



7.) Mark Eaton

Height: 7’4”   Weight: 290 Pounds

Mark Eaton played 11 seasons in the NBA (1982-1993) and spent his whole career with the Utah Jazz. He averaged 28.8 minutes, 7.9 rebounds, and 6.0 points per game throughout his career. Mark Eaton was known for being a monster on defense averaging 3.5 blocks per game over his career and during his third season in the NBA he averaged a whopping 5.6 blocks per game.



8.) Rik Smits

Height: 7’4”   Weight: 265 Pounds

Rik Smits played 12 seasons in the NBA (1988-2000). Just like Mark Eaton, Rik Smits played his NBA career with one team, the Indiana Pacers. He averaged 26.6 minutes played, 6.1 rebounds, and 14.8 points scored per game during his career. Similar to Ralph Sampson and Mark Eaton, Rik Smits has had very a productive career.                                            





9.) Ralph Sampson

Height: 7’4”   Weight: 235 Pounds

Ralph Simpson played 9 seasons in the NBA (1983-1992). He played for four different teams: Houston Rockets, (where he spent the first half of his career), Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, and Washington Bullets. He averaged 29.8 minutes played, 8.8 rebounds, and 15.4 points per game throughout his NBA career. He was teammates with another 7-foot player ,Hakeem Olajuwon, they were nicknamed the “Twin Towers”.Throughout the middle of his career he battled knee injuries because of his big frame and when he was traded for the Rockets he was never able to stay healthy for a full season of games battling with knee and back injuries.                       





10.) Priest Lauderdale

Height: 7’4”   Weight: 325 Pounds

Priest Lauderdale only played 2 seasons in the NBA (1996-1998). He played one season with the Atlanta Hawks and one season with the Denver Nuggets. During his two-year career in the NBA, he averaged 7.1 minutes, 1.9 rebounds, and 3.4 points. After he left the NBA, he went to play basketball in Bulgaria.

The Houston Rockets and the Washington Wizards will both be trying to pick up a win on Tuesday night at 7:00pm EST when they battle at the Verizon Center in a game that can be seen on Fox Sports Net Houston. NBA betting odds makers currently have the Rockets listed as 4-point favorites versus the Wizards while the game’s total is sitting at 199.5.

The Rockets lost to the Detroit Pistons 110-107 in overtime as 1.5-point underdogs in NBA odds on Sunday. The combined score went OVER the posted over/under total of 197.5. Kevin Martin led Houston with 27 points and Aaron Brooks had 25 points. Heading into tonight’s game, the Rockets are 31-31 straight up on the season, 28-34 against the spread as NBA betting favorites and 4-6 after playing the Pistons. Bet the Rockets -4 as road underdogs in against the Wizards with up to 155% in total bonuses and a 110% poker bonus.

Houston is 5-1 against the spread in their last 6 games when playing on the road against Washington, 5-1 straight up in their last 6 games when playing on the road against the Wizards and 7-1 straight up in their last 8 games when playing Washington. The NBA betting total has gone OVER in 4 of the Rockets last 5 games on the road.

The Wizards lost to the Boston Celtics 86-83 as 12-point underdogs in NBA odds on Sunday. The combined score fell UNDER the posted over/under total of 193 at online sportsbooks, for free stuff payday loan