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Since the sport largely lacks the physicality of football, one of the few times basketball players get to display savage-caveman-like aggression is when they take it to the hole and dunk. I’m not talking about those sissy Dwight Howard dunks where you put on a cape and throw the ball in from 4ft away, I’m talking about those freight-train-running-over-your-mama-because-I-want-my-40-acres-and-a-mule LeBron James dunks. The good shit.

The good folks at Clemson University devised a system that measures the force of the dunk, and displays the data on the overhead screens instantly for everyone to see.

“Ray Sykes had a nasty dunk at the East Carolina University game,” said Jonathan Cox, one of the students working on the project. “It peaked at a little over 30 g’s, one of the highest recorded so far. That’s awesome when you consider an earthquake’s ground motion produces accelerations around point five and one g.”

If this system is ever implemented in the NBA… I’m sure the networks will create an easy-to-understand graphic called “The DUNK ‘O METER” or something equally lame.

I would have loved to see the force of Shaq’s dunks.. but 26 year old monster Shaq that tore down the rims.

[Source = Engadget]

Snoop Dogg stopped by in a guest appearance on ESPN’s “Around The Horn” with J.A. Adande this afternoon. Snoop weighed in on LeBron James possibly leaving Cleveland to go play for Jay-Z’s soon-to-be-Brooklyn Nets and encouraged the move. Woody Paige offered a spirited rebuttal and said Snoop should leave the show (jokingly)…. Snoop laughed and then left.

It was a brief encounter, but it also showed how much BETTER this show would be if they mixed in personalities other than Jay Mariotti and Woody Paige. Check the video….

Michael Irvin (of all people) dropped knowledge:

“”What a historical moment that was last night. … From an African-American standpoint, I watched my people — watched my people — celebrate the not guilty verdict of O.J. Simpson. They were so hungry for a victory of some kind that they celebrated — we celebrated — the verdict of O.J. And I was thinking to myself, ‘Two people are dead. Two people are dead’ Now, I’m not talking about my people, I’m explaining them here. They were just so hungry to say ‘We have a victory.’ And I cringe when I even think about that.

“But last night I watched a celebration. A real celebration. A real celebration, and it was a celebration for everybody, and everybody celebrated, and they kept showing this shot, and I was watching, of this little black girl and this little white girl, just sitting there crying together, and I thought, wow. I thought about Martin Luther King and his ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, and I thought about him saying, black kids and white kids playing together. …

“Last night we removed all differences and became just one, and I thought that was a beautiful thing. It was just a beautiful thing. I stood here with my kids, we watched it and we cried and we prayed.”

And in the video below, you’ll see reactions from Tony Dungy, LeBron James, George Karl, Donovan McNabb, Lovie Smith, and Doug Williams.

Magic Johnson had this to say:

“Johnson smiled when asked the first thing he did when it was announced Tuesday night just after 8 p.m. in California that Obama had won the presidency.

“Jumped up for joy, we were hollering and screaming,” he said. “And then we started crying. As African-Americans we’ve made great strides. I think what this says is you can really become anything in life you want to become. It’s really a wonderful thing that we can be able to witness this.”

Johnson said he believes Obama is prepared to do the best possible job.

“He’s a motivator. He has a plan,” Johnson said. “One thing Barack can do, he can come in a room, command a room. Everyone will listen to every word.”

More reactions below … Read the rest of this entry »

The league-wide crusade continues. Today’s NBA report turns our attention to the teams in the meat-and-potatoes Midwest. Here’s what’s on tap this season with the teams that comprise the Eastern Conference’s Central Division:

(33-49) Chicago received the ultimate gift and curse when they locked down the number one pick in the NBA Draft this year. After much debate about Michael Beasley, the team chose to ride with prodigal son Derrick Rose. Pooh will generate some excitement in a town that desperately wants a return to respectability, while getting to play with cool hand Luol Deng. Our favorite ponytail Joakim Noah should have a strong sophomore season, and Ben Gordon will be gunning for his life after holding out so long when his contract negotiations failed to go the way he wanted. The real problem this team faces is that it carries way too many guards. Trying to find enough playing time for them all will be like too many heads trying to smoke one little doobie. It’s just not enough hits to go around. The Bulls will battle for a playoff spot this year but there simply are no guarantees at press time

(59-23) The Detroit Pistons are like Buddy Revell in one of my old school favorites, Three O’Clock High. They clearly are the class bully in the East every year but once they got their bell rang by LeBron for 48 points in 2007, the nerds just aren’t scared of them anymore. Rasheed, Chauncey and Rip remain dangerous, but teams like the Cavs and Bulls know they can beat them on any given night. And the Pistons don’t have enough to punk Boston’s Big Three ensemble even though Jason Maxiel will be in beast mode this year. New coach Michael Curry will put the fire back in the Pistons game but I am not convinced it will be enough to detour a second round playoff exit. And that is not acceptable with all the talent in the Motor City. Read the rest of this entry »

If they’re walking around half naked then it’s fair game.

[Image snagged at Blog Xilla]