HallPass client, LA Lakers Coach Mike Brown has partnered with Santa Monica Audi for the upcoming 2011-2012 season. HallPass secured the agreement as Coach Brown and his staff will enjoy a courtesy vehicle program with the luxury automaker and participate in an exclusive outing with company executives in 2012.
No one inside the Knicks’ locker room was running from Mike D’Antoni’s declaration that the franchise is in position to compete for a championship.
Not Amar’e Stoudemire, who on the day he arrived in New York said the Knicks were back. Not Mike Bibby, who played on a team that reached the NBA Finals last season and certainly not Tyson Chandler, who helped the Dallas Mavericks win their first title six months ago.
“That should be the goal,” Chandler said following the Knicks’ 92-83 preseason win over the Nets on Saturday at the Rock in Newark. “I understand that when they make a statement like that, people will take it any way they want to. But we’re professionals. This is what we get paid for. The goal should be a championship.”
On Friday, D’Antoni went on two local radio shows and said that the Knicks, who haven’t won a title since 1973, were good enough to compete for one. The Knicks, however, will be taking a huge jump considering the organization hasn’t won a playoff game since 2001.
“I’m not trying to say ‘oh wow, look at us,’” D’Antoni said on Saturday. “I think we have a lot of talent that will have some question marks going into the season. Almost every team has those question marks. Miami had it last year.
“I think our talent level is up with anybody. That’s why we should compete. Again, you have to get in the trenches and solve the problem of guys playing with each other and is our depth OK and all that stuff. Those are questions that are legitimate and we’re going to work to overcome that. But I can’t see us going out against anybody and saying we don’t have a chance tonight. That just doesn’t exist.”
Read full article: www.nydailynews.com- NY Nicks embrace Mike D’Antoni’s title talk
On a crumpled piece of paper lies the Lakers’ foundation.
Lakers Coach Mike Brown pulled it out of his pocket after Tuesday’s practice, dangled it before the cameras and then quickly put it back in as if he were protecting confidential documents.
They’re his practice plans. Brown didn’t make photocopies for everyone to study and dissect, but the few seconds he took that paper out of his pocket allowed enough time to notice a few nuggets. He lists every offensive and defensive set he wants to run in the time allotted and writes out the different lineup combinations he wants to see. And as first noticed by ESPN/Los Angeles’ Arash Markazi, the paper features this statement at the top of the page: “Chemistry = Trust.”
This approach could prove to be nothing more than a mindless mission statement, particularly if the Lakers’ front office doesn’t secure any of the so-called “big deals” General Manager Mitch Kupchak claims the team is pursuing. But it helps explain why the players have immediately latched onto Brown’s practices.
“It gives you a great deal of confidence that you know he’s put in so much work and so much time to sit there and plan the entire practice from drill to drill, from minute to minute,” Lakers guard Kobe Bryant said. “Everything is specifically what he wants us to do offensively and what he wants us to do defensively and he plans those accordingly.”
The result: a practice that’s full of high-intensity drills emphasizing defensive rotations and pushing the ball so that it reaches the time line within the first 10 seconds. “Attacking the clock,” Brown calls it, and it appears the Lakers coach himself attacks practice just as aggressively.
Brown, seven assistant coaches and four D-Fenders not only pace the sidelines, they’re on the court with them in the drills, whether it’s with the big men working on post moves, with the guards working on their shooting or in full-court scrimmages. During these drills at a recent practice, Brown often interrupted them to tactfully point out mistakes and then provided positive reinforcement.
He acknowledged that it’s unrealistic to conduct such intense practices all the time, considering the 66-game schedule and injuries could make that counterproductive. But for players who often publicly and privately complained of the lack of personal instruction last season, Brown’s hands-on approach could make a difference.
“We don’t want to leave before the players leave,” Brown said. “Then I feel like we’re cheating Dr. Buss.”
And that approach starts with the detailed crumbled piece of paper in his pocket.
via Mark Medina- lakersblog.latimes.com
DALLAS – After acquiring Vince Carter and Lamar Odom in a whirlwind 24 hours, coach Rick Carlisle was excited about what the Dallas Mavericks had done off the court.
“We’re going to be a very good team. We’re going to be a dangerous team and our goal is to mold into, once again, a championship team,” Carlisle said Sunday. “Those things take some time, but I’m excited about this group and I don’t think we’re done yet.”
The Mavericks have one remaining roster spot open, barring a trade or some other transaction. But the two spots that will be filled shortly once Carter and Odom arrive quickly refreshed what appeared to be a weakened champion with the departure of Tyson Chandler and others.
The Odom deal, in particular, is stunning. It arose from the ashes of the smoldering Chris Paul trade debacle and was consummated in a matter of hours, Carlisle said after Sunday’s morning practice.
Carlisle is a big fan.
“Right now, for me, having Odom, Dirk Nowitzki, Shawn Marion, we may have the best forward trio in this league right now. And that’s exciting,” Carlisle said. “Lamar Odom is a guy we have great respect for as a person and as an all-around player in this league. We feel he’s going to add so many different dimensions for us — length, playmaking, scoring, experience, championship experience.”
Full article via Jeff Caplan ESPNDallas.com
It’s hard enough to replace any coach who has held a position for almost a decade, let alone replace a legend like Jackson who has won the most championships as a coach in NBA history, while simultaneously keeping your new team focused as three of its top four players are dangled in trade rumors. But Brown has done his best to just be himself, and so far that has been good enough.
“He’s very detail-oriented, passionate and a hard worker,” Kobe Bryant said after the team’s first practice under Brown on Friday. “I can respect that. I think his attention to detail will win the rest of the guys over.”
Full article via Dave McMenamin ESPNLosAngeles.com
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