Smart Links: Playing Percentages on Onside Kicks

Best of the Web. No weak links here:Brian Burke, Advanced NFL Stats, on onside kicks and expectations: With 4 minutes left in the first quarter of last week’s Cardinals-Seahawks game, Arizona’s Neil Rackers booted a short but high ‘pooch’ kick that was quickly recovered by the kicking team. The kick recovery was worth a very considerable +0.12 WP. The Cardinals went on to score a touchdown, taking a 14-0 lead. How smart are onside gambles like this?Mike Tanier, Football Outsiders, on how subpar

What Football Teaches Us About Risk Management

Eddy Elfenbein submits: Brian Burke runs the excellent Advanced NFL Stats blog. He combs through mountains of data to uncover interesting aspects of the game. Burke recently completed a big study looking at fourth downs and the advantages of going for it versus kicking or punting. As it turns out, football teams ought to go for it on fourth downs far more than they do. Complete Story »

Fourth Downs: Kick, Punt or Go for It?

Brian Burke runs the excellent Advanced NFL Stats blog. He combs through mountains of data to uncover interesting aspects of the game. Burke recently completed a big study looking at fourth downs and the advantages of going for it versus kicking or punting. As it turns out, football teams ought to go for it on fourth downs far more than they do. After crunching tons of data, this is the chart Burke came up with showing the recommended option of what to do on fourth down. The chart

Streetball Classics Vol 2

Streetball Classics Vol 2

Streetball Volume 2, real street ball, real moves, the absolute TRUTH!!! Streetball has always been about controlling your court, having a rep and who is the next hottest kid on the block. It is about fire hydrant and summertime in NYC. It is about your love of the game. It is about the one thing you can’t buySKILLZ! SBC Volume 2 features the hottest Streetball players in the Big Apple: Bone Collector, Headache, Cross Country, Kareem Reid, and the amazing Mike Green (aka No Exception). Hot dunks, ankle breaking crosses, nasty dimes and more are featured in this second installment of the Platinum selling Streetball Classics Volume 1.

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How Nick Van Exel once had 23 assists in a game

Per Deadspin… Not long ago, we brought you the story of a stat-padding NBA scorekeeper who, one day in 1997, awarded 23 assists to Lakers guard Nick Van Exel, mostly for the hell of it. That was Alex. (He is now an officer in the Navy and asks that I not use his last name.) From 1995 to 1998, he headed up the Vancouver Grizzlies’ stat crew. Alex quickly found that a scorekeeper is given broad discretion over two categories: assists and blocks (steals and rebounds are also open to some int

Julius Erving NBA Legends

Julius Erving NBA Legends

Revealing how he went from the playgrounds of Long Island to basketball glory, the story of Julius Erving is the story of basketball’s first slam-dunking superstar–who singlehandedly changed how the game is played.

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Gunnin for That 1 Spot Special 2 Disc Set

Gunnin for That 1 Spot Special 2 Disc Set

Studio: Oscilloscope Pictures Release Date: 10/21/2008 Run time: 92 minutes

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars I liked it
This movie was pretty cool. I liked how it showcased the backgrounds of several players, showing how hard they work to be as good as they are. My 8th graders can learn a thing or two on how to become a great player by watching some of the things these guys go through. The music was awesome. My wife was inspired as we have two daughters (2 and 5) who she would like to see play basketball. She was wondering if there’s anything comparable for girls basketball?

The game itself was just okay. The guy kept saying “and they’re playing defense” but the D was a joke, seriously save for a few swats and a couple steals. Blue was giving up the longball all day, no rotations to help, too much one on one. Still, you got guys who can’t risk injury, guys trying to build a rep at the Rucker, so that’s what you get. Could’ve done without so much slow motion in the game, and the triple replays. Some of it was done on to some mediocre plays, and some just lasted waaaay too long.

Overall it was a good watch. I’ll be showing it to all my ball players and the kids I work with who play ball.

3 Stars .
It’s almost hard to believe that this kind of film, so focused on the livelihood and future of a couple of teenagers, could actually ignore emotion completely. A very important topic, not completely neglected, just not focused on as much as I thought was necessary. I just thought it numbed how much emotion is actually put into these basketball players’ games. From what I perceived from the film, basketball was most likely going to be these kid’s main means of support. So what was to happen if they lost? Without the emotion of the players how are we supposed to relate to the film and genuinely understand how much basketball means to them? Not a complete miss, the characters were well explained otherwise, with statistics and coach support, also explaining how competitive High School basketball is. As a documentary you are allowed to get so personal with your subject, which is something the film COULD have accomplished easily.

3 Stars Hip-Hop Real-Life Hoop Dreams of Prep Stars …
If you are a basketball player or fan, chances are you will enjoy “Gunnin’ for that #1 Spot.” This chronicles an elite group of 24 high school ballers who are invited to play an exhibition game in Harlem’s famed Rucker Park.

All these kids are “beasts” in their respective orbits around the country, but here they get to test their mettle against other elite players. You learn the back-story on eight specific players, some of whom - like Kevin Love and Michael Beasley - have already jumped to the NBA after a one-year college “career.” You also get some perspective on Rucker Park and its iconic status in American basketball.

The movie is not all hype job, though. It touches upon some darker issues in the scholastic hoop frenzy, such as:

* Elite players are scrutinized closely and often can’t live just a normal life

* Some prep rating services are glorified cut and paste jobs, more concerned with generating subscription revenue than anything else

* Sneaker companies drilling down as far as promising 5th, 6th and 7th graders to “brand” their shoes and build brand loyalty

* College coaches who text players they have never met three times a day to say, “I love you and can’t wait for you to come play here …”

* The lack of loyalty among some players; to wit, in high school, Michael Beasley attended four different schools in four years.

* Concerns about whether perfecting highlight dunks on Sports Center may eclipse emphasis on other aspects of the game . (I’m not saying team defense is dead, but the final score of the exhibition game is something like 131-128 - judge for yourself.)

If you like hip-hop music and rap, you will also enjoy this movie!

5 Stars Bull’s Eye
When I read New York Magazine’s recommendation of Gunnin’ as their top pick of the 300+ flicks at TriBeCa Film Festival, I took a couple days off from work just to check it out. It turned out to be a magical trip. The audience at Tribeca talked to the screen the way any good congregation does on a Sunday morning. Neal Usatin, the film’s lead editor, got a particularly good reception when his credit floated on a ball across the screen. (Makes me think I should keep my eyes on his work.) I loved it so much I went back to NYC for its theatrical premier, just down the street from the Rucker in Harlem, to see how it had been tweaked. And I’m not even a basketball fan.

This film fits the way I think. It’s fast, and like good comedic timing, presents the player’s stories in a way that left me wanting more — if I’m interested, I’ll look it up. The imagery goes from Redacted-style website searches, to fisheye trips over and through NYC, VHS-quality home video, to YouTube footage and HD slow-mo. It’s like every photographic and film experiment ever discovered, sampled and flashed before my eyes. On that level, it’s the ultimate style collage.

I bought an educational license and showed it to my high school varsity basketball team. They rolled at Bobbito’s nicknames (Shampoo!) the way only those who live it know how it sounds. In fact, they loved the soundtrack so much, I’m buying a copy so they can warm-up to it.

The stand-outs in my book are the bird’s-eye, fisheye tour of New York to the smooth sounds of “Let’s Do it Again” (on loop). The lens makes Manhattan seem like it’s half the world. I love chapter 16’s fisheye tour at ground-level; especially when the beat hits on the pigeon and taxi moving in opposite directions. Chapters like this in a movie make for perfect party background pieces. I show them to my friends who don’t have time to see the whole movie, but know a good visual over a beat.

You could rent it, but this is also a great example of the artistry of packaging. It’s a stand-out example of graphic design gone fine art. From the paper and ink choices, to the colors and the trading cards. (Would have been cooler if they’d been actual cards. Maybe an add-on purchase soon?), this is one of those instant classics that deserves to be in any film-lover’s permanent collection.

4 Stars hoopin’ it up
This isn’t an important film by any stretch of the imagination, but sports nuts and especially basketball fans will find it a fun watch. In September 2006 the top 24 high school basketball players in the country gathered in Harlem to inaugurate the first annual “Elite 24″ all-star competition. The game is held at the legendary outdoor playground court in Harlem’s Holcombe Rucker Park, where for sixty years many of basketball’s greats lit up the score board in front of a raucous urban crowd, hecklers, urban rap music, and trash-talking announcers. This is a venue where you would never presume to give yourself a nickname; your opponents do that after you prove your mettle. The documentary focuses on eight high schoolers in particular, interviewing their families, coaches, and scouts. An interesting sub-text is how the attendant media, shoe companies, professional rankers, recruiters, and sponsors all point toward one thing — money that results from basketball stardom. By the way, the final score was 141-139, but you’ll have to watch the film to see which team won.

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Nba Power Conditioning Basketball

Nba Power Conditioning Basketball

Put more power, strength, and quickness into your game! Now you can, with expert training information from 10 top NBA conditioning coaches

NBA: What will Warriors do with late-game scorer Crawford next season? (Honolulu Advertiser)

OAKLAND, Calif. — Say what you want about guard Jamal Crawford. But if he's not on the roster next season, the Golden State Warriors will no doubt be short some firepower, especially late in the game.

Lowly Timberwolves end Warriors’ little streak (Berkeley Voice)

OAKLAND — Say what you want about guard Jamal Crawford. But if he's not on the roster next season, the Warriors will no doubt be short some firepower, especially late in the game.