The NBA Slam Dunk Contest Has Lost It's Luster

The 2012 NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest was one of the worst things I think I've ever watched when it comes to sports, and it's by far the worst dunk contest I've ever witnessed. The reason? No superstars. For goodness sake, Jeremy Evans won. Who? Yeah, I didn't know who he was either until I googled him a few days before the competition. He's a small forward on the Jazz who averages 1.7 ppg in less than six minutes per contest. The other competitors were 3 point shooting white boy Chase Budinger, first round pick Derrick Williams, and honestly, as I write this, I can't remember who the other competitor was.

And therein lies the problem. People don't pay attention because they aren't seeing the best-of-the-best in what is one of the most fun spectacless in all of professional sports- when it's done right. The Slam Dunk Contest isn't going to be big again until we see LeBron James in it. He's the most high profile athlete in the NBA, and has yet to compete. Blake Griffin didn't even defend his title. Here's my ideal "NBA Slam Dunk Contest" lineup, if I had to make one right now. I want to see the best of the best:

LeBron James- He's easily the most athletic player in the NBA, and would bring the house down with his speed and power on his dunks.

Russell Westbrook- Arguably the fastest and most athletic guard in the NBA, Westbrook has no problem throwing down with creativity at any time.

Blake Griffin- As long as I reference Lob City, you should know what that encompasses. Blake Griffin is big, strong, and throws down with incredible force and does it regularly. He's a physical beast.

Josh Smith- J-Smoov needs to rep the ATL in a Slam Dunk Contest. He's one of the most athletic players in the NBA and can throw down with the best of them. He needs to redeem himself after his poor performance in the 2005 Slam Dunk Contest.

That's who I'd like to see, but it's just as much about the format of the contest as it is who is in it. This year, the NBA decided to take away the judges and make it a 100% fan vote. I don't know about the rest of you, but I liked seeing what the judges thought of the dunks. They set a sort of benchmark for the viewers to agree or disagree with, which made it a lot more fun to discuss and talk about as a fan.

The Slam Dunk Contest also repeatedly changed formats in the past few years. In 2007, each dunker had two dunks in the first round, with the two highest scoring dunkers moving to a final, where they had two more dunks, with the highest judged score as the champion. In 2008, the NBA completely shifted it's voting and put the champion in the fans hands. While I'm all for fan-voting, this was a bad decision in my opinion. It took away from the "expertise" that the judges possessed, and put it into the hands of fans who are swayed as much by presentation as they are the actual dunk.

This was evident in 2009 when Nate Robinson beat out Dwight Howard despite Dwight's perfect scores in the first round and an awesome one handed jam off the side of the backboard. Robinson dunked "over" Howard for his final dunk, pushing off of his back and bending Howard forward. However, the fans were swayed by "the short guy" and picked Robinson, who's night wasn't nearly as impressive. I'm all for a return of the judges and omitting a fan vote.

The current format of the Slam Dunk Contest allows for repeated misses on attempts. I get tired of seeing the same dunk attempt where the competitor keeps missing over and over again; the dunk loses it's luster, even if they do final get it in. The Slam Dunk Contest used to make for competitors with much more precision, making the dunks more fun to watch and more impressive. Let's go back to the "miss it and you're done" format. Make it, or sit down.

Lastly, the dunk contest has now become just as much about before the dunk presentation as the dunk itself. Last I checked, it's called the NBA Slam Dunk Contest, not the NBA Before the Slam Dunk Contest. Blake Griffin, I'm looking at you. I don't need a show choir to hype your dunk over a car up any more. It wasn't even that impressive. Show me something more creative than catching an oop and putting it in. At least get a windmill in or something. I want to see creative.

The NBA needs to look back at what made it's slam dunk contests fun to watch in the first place:
1) Superstars competing against other superstars
2) Simple voting by a knowledgeable panel
3) No repeat dunk attempts
4) Making it about the dunk, not the presentation.

Once we see these return, I think people will actually start caring about one of the most fun spectacles to witness in pro sports.

“Linsanity” and the Best Nicknames in the NBA

Jeremy Lin’s sudden success has sparked a great number of nicknames in the short time that he has come on to the scene, which brings up one of the more fun columns I’ve ever written. What are some of the best nicknames in the NBA? Let’s take a look at some of my favorites.

Jeremy Lin – “Linsanity”, “The Lin Dynasty”,   “The Asian Sensation”, “Super Lintendo”: Linsanity is the most popular, it’s a blatant rip off of Vince Carter’s “Vinsanity”. Cheers to the more creative nicknames I’ve seen; a few are listed above. He’s burst on the scene, and can hopefully keep up his productive play. He’s captured audiences around the world, so much so that people were waking up early in China to catch Lin play the Raptors on Tuesday night. Despite his success, he admittedly has to reduce his number of turnovers. I don’t want to call him “ButterLINgers”, but he’s averaging 6.0 turnovers in his five starts. Here's a little more Linsanity for you, as if you haven't seen this 1000 times on ESPN over the past 24 hours.

LeBron James – “King James”: LeBron James is arguably the best player in the NBA, and he’s proven it with his stats. Always a triple double threat, LeBron been one of the most complete players in the NBA since his arrival on the scene in 2003. Back when he was still on the Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron won 2 NBA MVP awards, the Rookie of the Year award, and was twice the MVP of the NBA All-Star Game. Not to mention he’s an 8-time NBA All-Star.

Andre Kirilenko – “AK47”: Definitely the most fitting nickname, and perhaps the most punny of all, Kirilenko holds one of the most functional nicknames in the NBA. His cleverly chose the number 47, and is from Russia, so a fitting nickname of AK47 was born. He came into the league known as a deadly shooter (pun intended), never a physical guy, despite his length; He’s a full 6’9”.

Kobe Bryant – “Black Mamba”: Kobe Bryant explained the self-proclaimed nickname to ESPN, saying “The mamba can strike with 99% accuracy at maximum speed, in rapid succession. That's the kind of basketball precision I want to have.” Yep, that sounds like Kobe. 

Dwight Howard – “Superman”: Did he steal it from Shaq? I don’t really care, because after this dunk the name stuck.

No one has gone further to make themselves a nickname than Dwight Howard did, going into the phone booth and changing into his Superman cape, then dunking on a 12 foot rim, something no one else in the NBA can do. Superman. 

Nate Robinson “KrypoNate”: After Dwight Howard changed into his Superman cape at the 2009 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, Nate Robinson came out in a full green Knicks Jersey, complete with Kryptonite green sneakers and a kryptonite colored basketball. He then dunked OVER Dwight Howard, all 5’9” of him.

Brian Scalabrine – “White Mamba”: No white guy in the NBA gets more fan love than Brian Scalabrine. He’s one of the worst players in the NBA, averaging 1.3 ppg and barely ever plays, unless it’s garbage time. However, when he does come in, the Chicago (or wherever he plays at the time) fan base goes berserk for the White Mamba. His NBA highlight video is complete with a few generic assists and layups—pretty stellar.

Serge Ibaka – “Iblocka”, “Air Congo”: Shotblocker (n): see Serge Ibaka. He’s easily the best shot blocker in the NBA, and has twice racked up 10 blocks in a game this season. Both in February, in fact. When he blocks a shot, it’s not uncommon to hear “IBLOCKA!” From people in the crowd at Thunder games. “Air Congo” comes from his incredible leaping ability, like his dunk from the free throw line in the 2011 NBA Slam Dunk Contest:

Chris “Birdman” Andersen: One look at the tatted up man with the spikey hair and the nickname stuck. Birdman has tattoos over his entire body, and his Mohawk really enhances that feel. He’s a physical, tall guy, and plays with a tough demeanor. He’s not the type of guy you’d want to meet in the back alley behind your local bar, let’s just put it that way. 

Vince Carter – Vinsanity: Sorry, Jeremy Lin, he was here first. But that was back when he a perennial All-Star… No one really calls his 10.6 ppg and 3 rebounds in 2012 “Vinsanity”.  From 1999-2009 though, Carter still averaged well over 20 points per game, as one of the best pure scorers in the NBA.

Ron Artest aka Metta World Peace: He changed his name to reflect “World Peace”, but Ron Artest is hardly the best advocate for such an issue. A more fitting nickname would be “Mr. Malice” after his actions during the Malice at the Palace Brawl, where he attacked a fan in the stands during one of the most scarring events the NBA has ever been associated with. It’s kind of fun to hear Mike Brown yell “World Peace! World Peace!” on the sidelines of Lakers games, though.

Did I miss one? Comment with some of your favorite nicknames if I didn't mention them!

Follow Jimmy on twitter @jimmymichaels1 and @sportisphere

State of the AL West: Say Your Prayers, Mariners Fans

Jimmy Michaels & Alex Gallant

When all of the t’s are crossed and the i’s dotted, Albert Pujols is going to be kicking it in the 90210 with a brand new, 10 year, $254 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels.

In deals that came out of nowhere on day four of the MLB Winter Meetings in Dallas, the Angels quickly stole the show, signing Pujols to the above deal and Texas ace C.J. Wilson to a 5 year, $77.5 million deal.

Signing two all-stars to their roster, the Angels are quickly becoming a favorite in the division. They now have an enormous amount of flexibility with the young players left on their roster, including Kendrys Morales and Mark Trumbo. One can assume that the Angels will likely employ Morales at DH and find a trade for Abreu.

Broxton Agrees to $4 million Deal with Royals

Former Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton has agreed to a 1-year/$4 million deal with the Kansas City Royals, pending a physical. Broxton, who spent six years in Los Angeles, appeared in 386 games for the Dodgers, tallying 84 saves and a 3.19 ERA in the process.

Broxton, 27, had just hit his stride in 2009, where he collected 36 saves and held a fantastic 2.61 ERA. In 2010, his numbers dropped slightly, where he blew seven saves in 64 appearances with just 22 saves and a 4.04 ERA. In 2011, Broxton was demoted to setup man, and finished the season with a 5.68 ERA and seven spot saves.

He will go to the Royals where he will back up closer Joakim Soria, who, at just 27 years old, has emerged as one of the top closers in the league.In just five years, Soria has 160 saves, including an incredible 2010 season in which he made 43 saves with a 1.78 ERA.

Broxton will setup for him, and hopefully begin to ressurect his career which has faltered in recent years. With this addition, the Royals could have one of the best late game bullpens in the league, along with former University of Missouri pitcher Aaron Crow also in relief. As a rookie, Crow threw 62 innings in 57 appearances, with a 2.76 ERA and 65 strikeouts.

Conference Realignment Shakes Up College Sports

In a guest-post to Sportisphere, Steve Goldberg outlines his thoughts on conference realignment: 

It’s September, and the smell of college football is in the air on every campus across America. As a student, you live for spending your Saturday afternoons cheering your team to victory.

However, turn on ESPN for just a few minutes and you will soon realize that the focus is not on the usual upsets and early BCS predictions. Instead, rumors are constantly circulating on television and the Internet about schools headed for new conferences.

My Top Pump Up Jams Before a Game

Whenever you go to a game, you always need a little music to hype it up. There's always music going on during the pre-game, getting the players pumped. Here's a list of songs, whether you are playing in a game or just being a fan, that are my favorite pump up songs. Most of the videos (for some reason) can't be played here, but I figure you recognize most of them anyway. 

Lose Yourself - Eminem

Till I Collapse - Eminem

X Gon Give it to Ya - DMX

Champion - Flipsyde

My Time - Fabolous feat. Jeremih

Let it Rock - Kevin Rudolph feat. Lil Wayne

All I Do is Win - DJ Khaled

All the Above - Maino

We Takin' Over - DJ Khaled

I Made It (Cash Money Heroes) - Kevin Rudolph

Welcome to the Jungle - Guns N' Roses

The Show Goes On - Lupe Fiasco

Stronger - Kanye West

Heart of a Champion - Nelly

Joker & the Thief - Wolfmother

Have I missed any of your favorites? Post your favorite pump up songs in the comments! 

Seahawks Sign Safety Atari Bigby

Age: 29 (Born in Jamaica)
College: University of Central Florida

The Seahawks signed former Green Bay Packers safety Atari Bigby today. This is big news for the Seahawks, who were planning to start former Virginia Tech Safety Kam Chancellor at safety for the season.

With the signing of Bigby, the Seahawks gain a lot of experience and a veteran presence in the secondary. Bigby, a three year starter, started 33 of 46 games while on the Packers. Known as a hard hitting safety, Bigby should pair well with Seahawks safety Earl Thomas, who is more of a coverage safety. In his best season, 2007, Bibgy started 16 games and racked up 86 tackles, with 5 interceptions. 

In 2010, Bigby played in just 4 games and totaled just 4 tackles. Hopefully Bigby won’t suffer any injuries this season, as Seattle could use a big hitter like Bigby as a presence in the secondary. 

Bigby’s impact went past the defense though, as he helped on special teams as well. Bigby will get plenty of the same in Seattle, where he will probably end up covering punts and kickoffs.

If Bigby can stay healthy, he can surely find a way to help the Seahawks, one way or another.

More coming this week when I cover the Seahawks position previews for safeties.

Seahawks Position Previews: Wide Receivers

Starting WR: Mike Williams 6’5”, 235

Wide Receiver 2: Sidney Rice 6’4, 202

Slot Receiver: Golden Tate 5’10”, 202

Fourth Receiver: Deon Butler 5’10” 182

Fighting for spots: Ben Obamanu, Isaiah Stanback

The Seahawks come into this season with Mike Williams and Golden Tate once again, but have also brought in Pro Bowler Sidney Rice to help their cause.

Wide Receivers on the Seahawks have long had a stigma of being very injury prone. It seems every year, the ‘Hawks are searching free-agency or deep into their backups to find receivers capable of filling in for their injured starters. The key to this season is going to be staying healthy on the Seahawks end, and Tarvaris Jackson giving the passing game time to develop before breaking off the play. That being said, here's a look at each of the Seahawks receivers and how they can help.

Seahawks Position Previews: Running Backs

The Seahawks come into the 2011 season with the same core of running backs as last year. Spearheaded by Marshawn Lynch and Leon Washington, the Seahawks new zone-blocking scheme favors their runners and should translate to consistently better play than last season.

Starter: Marshawn Lynch, 5’11” 215, Age 25

Fullback: Michael Robinson, 6’1” 223, Age 28

Second String: Leon Washington 5’8” 203, Age 28

Third String: Justin Forsett 5’8” 198, Age 25

Fighting for spots: Thomas Clayton (Kansas State), Chase Reynolds (Montana)

Seahawks Position Previews: Quarterbacks

Tarvaris Jackson, new Seahawks QB
Image courtesy of Elaine Thompson (Kansas City Star)

Starter: Tarvaris Jackson, 6’2” 225lbs, Age 27
Second String: Charlie Whitehurst 6’5” 225, Age 29
Third String: Josh Portis 6’3” 211, Age 24

The Seahawks came into this offseason not knowing what was going to come of the Matt Hasselbeck situation. This lead to a lot of rumors of possible trades/signings of Kevin Kolb, Vince Young, or Carson Palmer. Well, as we all know, none of that happened and the Seahawks signed former Vikings QB Tarvaris Jackson to be their signal caller.

In five seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Jackson played in 36 regular season games, averaging a passer rating of 76.6 over that span. In his five seasons, Jackson only threw 603 passes. Compare that to Saints QB Drew Brees, who threw the ball 658 times in 2010 alone. Jackson will have to pass a lot more in Seattle, now that he is the definitive starter as they head into their preseason and eventually the regular season.

My 2011 National League All-Star Picks

This year's all-star ballot looks a lot different than in previous years. As we look at who should be an all-star in 2011, we see a lot of first timers and newcomers into the league that have proven they know how to play. You saw my AL picks, now here are my NL All-Star choices.

Read more »

My 2011 American League All-Star Picks

This year's all-star ballot looks a lot different than in previous years. As we look at who should be an all-star in 2011, we see a lot of first timers and newcomers into the league that have proven they know how to play. With that being said, I'm going to get right into it and start with the American League, just like the ballot.

Sportisphere: Weekly National Roundup 6/12/11

This week in sports was filled with a lot of playoff action, with the NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Playoffs going on. In addition, there were some coaching changes across the nation.

John Clayton of ESPN visits EC Journalism

John Clayton visited my high school, Eastside Catholic, where I got to interview him.

On May 26, NFL Hall of Fame writer John Clayton visited the Eastside Catholic campus to talk to the journalism students. Speaking on the topic of journalism as well as sports, Clayton entertained an audience of about 40 students from the two journalism classes, as well as others who just wanted to drop in. He gave pointers to all of the students, as well as many stories of his time as an upcoming journalist.

Clayton, a writer, radio broadcaster, and NFL analyst for ESPN, grew up in Pennsylvania near Pittsburgh. He attended Duquesne University, where he held as many as 25 paying jobs throughout his college career, working on and off for many sports media companies. Before he had even graduated from Duquesne, he had experience at companies such as The Associated Press, Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News, ABC, NBC, and CBS.

The session was a question and answer session in regards to journalism.  Clayton spoke about himself and his extensive experience, stories which were entertaining and filled with helpful advice to becoming a successful journalist. All of them included valuable information for all of the students listening.

2011 NBA Playoffs: How James Harden Secured a Starting Role for the Thunder Next Season

It was a crushing defeat that ended the Oklahoma City Thunder's fantastic season, but in all of the agony, the Thunder discovered what they are going to do to improve for the 2011-12 season: Start James Harden.

Harden's performance in this season's playoffs showed Oklahoma City exactly where he belongs in the rotation: Starting. You could begin to see the plans for next season when in game 5 versus the Dallas Mavericks, Harden played 34 minutes and netted 23 points. Seeing that, it was clear Harden was ready for an increased role.

Upcoming EXCLUSIVE Interview With John Clayton of ESPN

Next Thursday, esteemed sports journalist John Clayton will be visting my school, Eastside Catholic High School, to speak to the journalism students, a once in a lifetime opportunity. Needless to say, I'm thrilled. When I found out he was coming, I freaked out. When I found out that of everyone in our class, I get to interview him, I was blown away.

How did our school manage to get John Clayton, of all journalists? Well, our college counselor has known him since his time back when he was at school with Clayton at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. He and I had been talking about Clayton during our semiannual college counselor meeting between the student and counselor, when I revealed my plans to become a sports journalist. That's when he told me about his relationship with Clayton, and we talked for about ten minutes about him. I told him Clayton was one of my idols, because Clayton knows everything about sports. That's why he's "The Professor with No Successor". And then a week ago, at approximately the same time you are reading this, we were informed he was coming, due to my counselor. 

So that's the story behind him coming, but now is the important part.

Since I get to interview him, it's the opportunity to make a huge impression. If I do well, I have a potential high profile contact. But in order to do well, I'm obviously going to need questions. I have plenty I'm working on, but I would like to know, of all you who look at this, do you have any questions you would like asked? 

It can be anything to do with how he became a journalist, current sports topics, journalism ethics, basically anything! Shoot some ideas in the comments if you want anything asked. If you need a little background for the questions, here is some info:

Clayton graduated from Duquesne University, so he is a big Steelers fan. While being a Steelers fan, he also knows the Seahawks inside and out, being that he lives up here in Renton, WA and covers the Seahawks. He has a weekly sports radio show on AM 710 ESPN Seattle from 9-12 in the morning every Saturday. Clayton was inducted as a member of the writer's wing of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2007, honoring his work as a writer covering the NFL. 

ASK AWAY!

PS, tell your friends about Sportisphere!!!

The Kings and Their Court

Amidst the chaos of the NBA Playoffs, the Sacramento Kings discreetly made one of the most important decisions in the NBA this year. The Kings aren’t moving to Anaheim, or Seattle, or anywhere- at least not for one more year. They have decided to remain in Sacramento for the 2011-12 season, in a last ditch effort
to stave off relocation.

“One more chance.”

That is the message the Kings are sending to Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson, a former NBA All-Star and one of the key figures in this final effort to keep the organization in town. For 13 years, the Kings organization has been trying to work with the city of Sacramento to get a new arena. They currently play at Power Balance Pavilion, more widely remembered as ARCO Arena. Built in 1988, the arena seats just 17,317 people, the second smallest arena capacity in the NBA. In addition to the small arena, Sacramento is the NBA’s 10th smallest television market. Being so small, the Kings organization has found it hard to secure funding for a new arena, especially in such a trying economical time as it is.

One and done: Why the College Basketball Landscape Needs a Makeover

Terrence Jones #3 (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

Over the past few years,  the number of college freshman entering the NBA draft after one year in the college environment has increased drastically. This year’s NBA draft has been properly dubbed “The Year of the Freshman”, as it is projected to see 13 freshmen go in the first round, more than the previous two years combined. But while it’s great for the NBA to see this large influx of talented teens, it’s ruining the college landscape. 

From First Four to Final Four: Virginia Commonwealth's Impossible Title Run

PG Joey Rodriguez and the VCU Rams have gone from cinderellas to contenders
(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

On Selection Sunday,Virginia Commonwealth head coach Shaka Smart wasn't even watching the selection show, because he admitted he didn't even think they would even be considered for an NCAA Tournament bid. Needless to say when they were selected, Shaka was in shock. His 23-11 VCU Rams were in the tournament, but not without a challenge ahead of them. They had been selected as one of the inaugural First Four, the NCAA's new first round because of the reconfigured 68-team bracket. From there, they have gone on to playing spoiler in this year's NCAA Tournament, reaching the Final Four for the first time in school history.

Faced With a Lockout, Players and Owners Are at Odds

The owners and NFLPA aren't getting along in regards to the new Collective Bargaining Agreement

On April 6, a Minneapolis judge will decide the fate of the the season for the NFL in 2012. As of now, the NFL faces a lockout because there is no new collective bargaining agreement (CBA), since the owners and NFL Players Association (NFLPA) failed to reach a consensus on numerous issues that need fixing. Many suspected that the two sides were close to completing a deal at the March 11 deadline, but sources indicated that in reality, they weren't even close.

Many different issues were the cause of failure by the two sides in making a new CBA, including revenue sharing, retirement benefits, proposal of an 18 game season, and rookie wage scales. Part of the real problem is the complete lack of trust between both sides, especially suspicions by the players that the owners are not complying because in the players opinion, it doesn't matter to the owners if there will be a season in 2012- they are already rich and face no financial consequences if a lockout happens.