Hooped Up

It was mission accomplished for the Redeem Team yesterday, with a 118-107 victory over Spain for the gold medal on the final day of the Beijing Games.  Carmelo Anthony who was one of four members of the current US squad who was also a member of the 2004 Athens squad. Called the Beijing victory a “blessing” .  

Carmelo also said “We were at the lowest point. Today, we’ve done a hell of a job and put U.S. basketball back on top of the world.”  

Dwayne Wade led the US with 27, followed by Kobe Bryant with 20. LeBron James added 14, and Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony each had 13 points.

Rudy Fernandez led Spain with 21, Pau Gasol had 21, and Juan Carlos Navarro added 18. Carlos Jiminez scored 12, Marc Gasol 11, and Felipe Reyes 10.

With the bar set high for the 2012 London games, will other countries catch up to the US?

The Hornets are definitely a team on the rise and Chris Paul is going to sell a lot of jerseys as he climbs the elite latter. Earlier this week, they unveiled their new slightly updated logo and uniforms.  

What do you think about the new duds?

A great find by Brandon Hoffman over at Ballerblogger.com. Chris Paul shares the adoration he had for his grandfather who was a huge influence in his life.

Superstar guard Chris Paul has signed a three-year extension with the New Orleans Hornets.

Lance Young, Paul’s agent, had travelled earlier this week to New Orleans in hopes of working out a deal quickly, and Thursday he announced the agreement had been reached.

Paul will get a total of $68 million US during the life of the deal, one that includes a fourth season at the team’s option.

The guard, who has one year remaining on his current deal, was outstanding last season, leading the NBA in assists (11.6 a game) and steals (2.7), while finishing as the Hornets’ top scorer with a 21.1 average.

CBC

Team USA is official and here are the members selected by the USA basketball comitee.

Carmelo Anthony
Carlos Boozer
Chris Bosh
Kobe Bryant
Dwight Howard
LeBron James
Jason Kidd
Chris Paul
Tayshaun Prince
Michael Redd
Dwayne Wade
Deron Williams

This is an awesome squad but, who is going to take a back seat to who and who leads this team?

The NBA hit the nail on the head again in marketing their game to the world with the “Their Can Only Be One” series of commercials. Last night was maybe the final commercial of the series and did it ever hit.

Bruce Bowen of the San Antonio Spurs has been suspended one game without pay for striking Chris Paul of the New Orleans Hornets with his leg, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice-President, Basketball Operations.

The incident occurred following a foul call on Paul with 5:15 remaining in the third period of the Spurs’ 100-75 loss to the Hornets on Wednesday, March 12 at New Orleans Arena.

Bowen will serve his suspension tonight when the Spurs visit the Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills.

New Orleans Hornets point guard Chris Paul had a screw inserted in his left foot Monday and will likely be unable to participate in camp with the U.S. basketball team this summer, his agent said.

Paul was to have a follow-up visit with doctors on Tuesday after having the screw inserted in his fifth metatarsal, said Lance Young, Paul’s agent.

ESPN

Hornets point guard Chris Paul will need surgery on his left foot after an exam Wednesday revealed a stress reaction, Hornets Coach Byron Scott said Thursday. Paul, however, has been cleared to play in the final 18 games of the regular season, including the team’s March 23 game against the Los Angeles Lakers at the New Orleans Arena. “He’s going have to put a screw in there, period,” Scott said. “If we did it tomorrow or a month from now, he’ll be all right for training camp next year.”

New Orleans Times Picayune

The New Orleans Hornets raised $22,000 for charity through the auctioning of autographed, red jerseys that the team wore on Valentine’s Day.

Proceeds will go to the American Heart Association and Hornets Charities.

Chris Paul’s autographed jersey drew the largest bid at $5,550, and David West’s drew $3,800. Both were easily higher than bids drawn for autographed All-Star jerseys auctioned off by the NBA. Jerseys from two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash ($2,425) and Gilbert Arenas ($2,275) got the highest bids in those auctions.

ESPN