Last week at the NBA’s trading deadline, the Cleveland Cavaliers re-created their team.

Within an hour, the Cavs traded Isaiah Thomas, Channing Frye, Jae Crowder, Derrick Rose, Iman Shumpert, Dwyane Wade and their 2018 first-round pick.

In turn, they added youth, grit and shooting by nabbing George Hill from the Sacramento Kings, Rodney Hood from the Utah Jazz and coupled them with Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. from the Los Angeles Lakers.

At the end of the day it’s all love ?

A post shared by Bleacher Report (@bleacherreport) on Feb 11, 2018 at 3:07pm PST

Yesterday afternoon, the NBA’s national television audience got a glimpse at the new-look Cavaliers when they Kyrie Irving-led Boston Celtics.

The Cavs won the game 121-99. LeBron James finished the road win with 24 points, eight rebounds and 10 assists. Jordan Clarkson  had 17 points.

Can a newly cemented Cavaliers team take on a Golden State Warriors team in the NBA Finals in June?

Press Play above to hear my discussion with the Bud and The Manchild Show.

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The post Scoop B: Cleveland Cavaliers create team in LeBron James’ image, beat Kyrie Irving’s Celtics, spoil Paul Pierce’s return appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

The first few days of the week have been eventful. It began with news in the midwest that the Milwaukee Bucks had fired their head coach and future Hall of Famer, Jason Kidd.  

Kidd went 139-152 during his 3 ½ year tenure as coach of the Bucks. During his tenure in Milwaukee, Kidd guided the team to two NBA Playoff appearances.

But that wasn’t enough to keep Bucks brass happy. Upon his firing, the Bucks were an eighth seed with a 23-22 record despite the pretty consistent play from their All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo and recent trade with the Phoenix Suns which shipped speedy guard Eric Bledsoe to Fear The Deer nation.

Speaking of Antetokounmpo, ESPN’s Ramon Shelburne reported that the Greek Freak offered to take his grievances to Bucks management and fight Kidd’s firing. Giannis loves his coach and didn’t want to see him go.

But, business is business, right?

Jason Kidd tells ESPN that Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo called him about 15 minutes before Kidd was officially notified he’d been fired by the Bucks and offered to help save his job.

— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) January 23, 2018

Joe Prunty took over as the Bucks’ interim head coach. He and the Bucks got a win Monday night against the Phoenix Suns.

Prunty is no stranger to hoops, comes highly recommended and is another disciple from San Antonio Spurs head coach, Gregg Popovich’s coaching tree. Prunty began as a video coordinator with San Antonio before becoming an advance scout and assistant coach for nine seasons, beginning in 1996.

Speaking of San Antonio, they’ve made headlines in the last 48 hours. A multitude of NBA league sources indicate that Spurs forward, Kawhi Leonard and his reps are disconnected from the Spurs organization.

Last Wednesday, the Spurs announced that Kawhi Leonard would be out of action for an “indefinite period of time” as he’s been dealing with a lingering quad injury that has burdened him since the NBA Playoffs last year.

Leonard’s right quadriceps tendinopathy recovery has carried over into this season, causing the one time NBA Finals MVP to miss the first 27 games of the season.

Retired NBA vet and ESPN analyst Jalen Rose told ESPN’s First Take yesterday that Leonard doesn’t want to be in San Antonio.

According to Rose, Leonard wants out because the Spurs have been ‘unable to attract elite-level, all-NBA-caliber free agents to come play with him.’

Added Rose:

“Players talk about wanting to win and wanting to be a champion, but ultimately they want to do it on their own terms,” Rose said. “And when you go to San Antonio, guess who is the CEO of that organization? Gregg Popovich. It’s going to be his way.”

Before the Spurs’ 114-102  home win over the Cleveland Cavaliers last night, Popovich rebuffed confusion or the Spurs being a soap opera. “Some people wrote some articles. I understand it, but soap opera? It’s a soap opera if we talk about it every day, I guess,” Popovich said.

“I don’t get it. We won’t talk about it. There’s nothing to talk about other than what we’ve already said.”

As for the Cavs, the Oklahoma City Thunder scored 148 points on them on Saturday without Kevin Love who called out sick.

That got folks talking. Was Love really sick? Some of Love’s teammates reportedly called Love out in a team meeting.

Cleveland is 3-7 in their last 10 games. During their last 10, Isaiah Thomas has returned from injury, J.R. Smith has struggled, the talk of LeBron James leaving at seasons end has resurfaced along with the debates on whether Cavs head coach Ty Lue should lose his job.

Mind you, the Cavs currently hold a 27-19 record and are sitting in third place in the NBA’s Eastern Conference.

Ashley Nevel says it best

The Cavs will get it together. Don’t push the panic button just yet!

Kemba Walker is apparently on the trading block. A Bronx, New York native, a return home as a member of the New York Knicks is what anybody from the 5-boroughs would want.

The Milwaukee Bucks were reportedly in preliminary talks before the Kidd firing and the usual suspects, teams in the NBA Finals hunt like the San Antonio Spurs and Cleveland Cavaliers have made calls.

“Kemba Walker is a player that can come to a team and score you points. If he came off the bench he could be a Lou Williams Jr. He can help a team win.” @ScoopB has high praise for the @hornets point guard. Which team should go out there and make a trade for the UConn alum?

— Bud and the Manchild (@Budandmanchild) January 23, 2018

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski says that Charlotte has been encouraging teams to make offers and appears eager to discuss attaching Walker to a larger trade in which another team would take on one of the Hornets’ several less desirable contracts.

Not so fast; Hornets majority owner, Michael Jordan is not trading him unless he’s shipped out for something really good.

“It’s not like we are shopping him,” said Jordan.

“We would not just give him up. I love Kemba Walker. I would not trade him for anything but an All-Star player.”

Walker would be a nice addition to any team. He can score in volume and will be a scorer for hire like the Los Angeles Clippers’ Lou Williams and Minnesota Timberwolves’ Jamal Crawford.

Be on the lookout for where he goes next!

RESPECT Magazine’s Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson checking out Bangkok, Thailand’s Temple of the Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho . Photo Credit: @Scoop_B Instagram.

Check out all of my commentary on the going ons of the NBA on Syracuse, NY’s Bud and the Manchild by pressing play at the top!

While on Bud & the Manchild, I also discussed my recent 15-day vacation to Thailand where I visited the Temple of the Reclining Buddha.

If you’re a Street Fighter 2 fan, Sagat’s battle stage is in front of the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, which is located at Wat Pho.

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The post Scoop B: Milwaukee Bucks, Jason Kidd part ways, Cavs, Spurs & Kawhi Leonard drama & a trip to Thailand appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson analyzes a potential LeBron James move to Philadelphia 76ers in 2018 NBA free agency. Photo Credit: Youtube

Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson discusses the novelty of LeBron James joining a young Sixers team while on 900 AM WURD’s Chris Murray Report radio show. Press play below to listen!

While it is widely believed that free agent-to-be, LeBron James would leave the Cleveland Cavaliers for the bright lights of Los Angeles to become a member of the Los Angeles Laker in the summer of 2018, don’t sleep on the city of Brotherly Love.

The coolest part? Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and James could all become teammates.

Aside from James and Simmons sharing the same agent in Rich Paul, mathematics surely make sense.

The Philadelphia 76ers will have tons of cap space this summer and could come pretty close to James’ max of $34 million.

Amir Johnson’s $11 million contract will be off the Sixers’ books and he’d join a young Sixers squad that includes Ben Simmons (21), Joel Embiid (23), Markelle Fultz (19), Dario Saric (23), and Robert Covington (26).

Despite criticism, J.J. Redick has earned on signing his one-year $23 million deal this past summer, if he continues to play well, him re-upping with the Sixers would be a perfect re-sign for Philadelphia because James plays well with shooters.

RESPECT Magazine’s Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson discusses the 2017 Philadelphia 76ers on CNN.

LeBron James and Ben Simmons worked out together during the offseason. Photo Credit: Liberty Ballers

While you’re in suspense for the possibility of this actually happening, you’ll be able to see James and the Sixers on the court at the same time soon. The Sixers and James’ current team, Cleveland Cavaliers play Saturday night at Quicken Loans Arena.

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Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James and Toronto rapper Drake. Photo Courtesy of BET

The NBA season started a couple of weeks earlier and it has been exciting to watch. The new-look Celtics are exciting to view, the Houston Rockets are flourishing and the Sixers are still…well…trusting the process.

Then there’s the Toronto Raptors, who at 4-3 are battling for one of the top seeds in the NBA’s Eastern Conference.

Speaking of Toronto and the Raptors, October’s very own, Drake celebrated his 31st birthday at the end of October.  The Raptors’ ambassador is probably one of the biggest hoops fans you’ll find.

The rapper/actor who has brought you hits like “Started From The Bottom,” “Hotline Bling,” “Work,” and “Find Your Love” also has a fan in one of the game’s biggest stars: Cleveland Cavaliers forward, LeBron James.

“I’m a huge Drake fan,” James told me.

“He’s a brother of mine.”

On Drake’s birthday last week, James shouted him out with a post on Instagram saying: Happy G-day to my brother @champagnepapi!! Whenever u get back off tour we’ll link so we can celebrate your day! #OctobersVeryOwn #SixGod #LiveLaughLove❤️

Happy G-day to my brother @champagnepapi!! Whenever u get back off tour we’ll link so we can celebrate your day! #OctobersVeryOwn #SixGod #LiveLaughLove❤️

A post shared by LeBron James (@kingjames) on Oct 24, 2017 at 9:05am PDT

Hosting parties together, appearing on red carpets and conversations in between plays while Drake is sitting courtside, James and Drake are a mainstay in hoops and pop culture.

Million dollar question: With all of the top hits that Drake has made, can the King of Akron name his top five?

“It’s too many for me to name just five honestly,” said James.

TORONTO, ON – NOVEMBER 25: Singer Drake talks to LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers during an NBA game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Toronto Raptors at the Air Canada Centre on November 25, 2015 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

Through eight games, the Cavs are 3-5 and are currently in 13th place in the NBA’s Eastern Conference. They’ll play a Washington Wizards team that is coming off of a home loss to the Phoenix Suns.

Many have questioned the Cavaliers’ slow start after the Cavs added Dwyane Wade, Derrick Rose and Isaiah Thomas in the offseason. “It’s too long of a season,” James said Sunday.

“And I’ve been a part of this too many times. So, I’m the wrong guy to ask. I’m too positive right now.”

 

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Golden State Warriors’ Klay Thompson and Steph Curry posing with championship rings in 2015. Photo Credit: CSN

Celebrity jeweler Jason Arasheben appeared on Scoop B Radio and checked in with Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson. Arasheben discussed designing the Golden State Warriors’ championship rings. Press Play Below To Listen!

The Golden State Warriors are champions of basketball after defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals this past June.

Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Warriors head coach Steve Kerr may not be visiting U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House to celebrate their momentous occasion, but the team will be honored by the NBA with championship rings before taking on the Houston Rockets during opening night on Tuesday October 17.

Los Angeles-based jeweler Jason Arasheben designed the Warriors’ rings after their first title win in 2015.

The celebrity jeweler and owner owner of Jason of Beverly Hills has worked with any and everyone from the late Michael Jackson, to music’s Mariah Carey, Rihanna and Lil Jon. He’s also worked Warriors arch rival and Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James and the Saudi Royal family. After the Warriors title win this year, Jason of Beverly Hills is at it again and charged with the task of replicating what he started in 2015. 

In a Q & A with me on Scoop B Radio, Jason Arasheben discussed the process of designing the team’s ring and the input he received from Warriors players Draymond Green, Steph Curry and Andre Iguodala.

Golden State Warriors’ 2015 championship ring designed by Jason Arasheben and Jason of Beverly Hills. Photo Courtesy of PR Newswire

Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson: Jason the Warriors second championship in three years and you define something pretty stylish back in 2014 I thought it was a sleek look what was the inspiration for the first championship ring back in 2015?

Jason Arasheben: Well when we did the ring back in 2015, we really wanted to change the game. I wanted to come out with something that didn’t look like all the rings that came out by our predecessor. I mean, every ring has had that traditional look with lots of verbiage on the front and letters and it let like the industry as a whole got stale. Listen we have over two hundred NBA players that are currently playing, personal clients of ours and we know what the players want and we know what the players like and we wanted to find a ring for the players [that they] actually like. So we wanted to come out with something in 2015 that was sleek and minimalist and that is exactly what we did.

Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson: So the Warriors weren’t the first championship ring that you designed.What other rings did you design?

Jason Arasheben: We did the 2009 Lakers championship ring, we did the 2010 Lakers Championship ring, we also did the World Series of Poker bracelets. We did the Chelsea soccer club in the UK, so we have had some success doing championship rings and this is the fourth NBA championship ring we have done in nine years.

Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson: What hints can you give us about the ring that drops this season when the Golden State Warriors are crowned champions?

Luxury jeweler Jason of Beverly Hills celebrated the recent grand opening of its Miami store in the Design District. Photo Credit: World Red Eye

Jason Arasheben: Listen, I obviously because we have an embargo on details on the rings as far as the look and the design and everything, I can’t say a lot. You are going to have to leave it up to the imagination it will be released Tuesday night the 17th for the world to see. But let’s just put it this way: of all my rings I feel like we topped them all.  This is something that is truly spectacular this is something that will go down in the history books in more ways than one. This is by far the best sports championship ring ever created in history across all four major sports.

Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson: And there is no similarity between the 2015 ring and the 2017 ring?

Jason Arasheben: Listen, you know every team has their own ideology on how they want to design the ring and the Warriors wanted to keep in line with the brand and the look of the 2015 ring. But they wanted to take it a step further and that is exactly what we did. The ring kind of has a similar look to that of 2015, but when you take a look at it, you will notice an immediate difference. There is a difference but it maintained a similar look and style of the 2015 ring just significantly upgraded.

Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson: Here is a direct question: how much input did any of the players or management have in the design of the ring?

Jason Arasheben: With the 2017 Warriors ring, the players and management have a lot input. Listen, I have a bunch of guys on the team that are personal friends and clients of mine like Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala  and Klay Thompson. So naturally, I reached out to the players and tried to get their ideas and their thoughts on what they would want in a ring. And you can imagine their opinions where all across the board and there was definitely a divide between management wants and what players want and it is kind of up to me to design a ring that is going to satisfy everyone. Not everyone is going to be happy obviously, but I think all in all we definitely created a ring that everyone is going to love. Listen are some players more boisterous than others? Absolutely! Draymond Green voiced his opinion on more than one occasion and let me know what he wants in the ring and what he doesn’t want in the ring. He wants me to build it, so we spent a couple of nights together with Draymond just going over design and stuff like that, so he was very very involved. Other players like Klay and Steph [Curry] said: ‘You know what? We trust you guys, we know that you are going to come out with something spectacular.’

Golden State Warriors’ Kevin Durant accepting 2017 MVP award. Photo Credit: Sports Illustrated

Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson: Last question. 93 percent of NBA GMs predicted or picked that the Golden State Warriors will repeat as champions. This time next year, would you be excited to design another ring for the Golden State Warriors?

Jason Arasheben: Absolutely. I would be super pumped to do that. Listen, they are heavy, heavy favorites. Here the west is stacked. The Warriors are bringing back everybody and still added Swaggy P and a few other guys. I think right now, it is tough to think any team winning the championship outside the Warriors. Listen, I love what they are doing in Houston, but they aren’t the king. The Warriors are still the Kings. They are still sitting on top of the mountain and somebody needs to dethrone them in order for them to come down. I just don’t see it happening.

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The post Warriors’ Championship Ring Designer, Jason Arasheben Says Golden State’s ’17 ring is ‘best sports championship ring ever created in history’ appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

NBA 2K18’s alternate cover featuring Kyrie Irving in a Boston Celtics uniform. Photo Credit: Sporting News

NBA 2K’s Ronnie Singh dropped by Scoop B Radio and Chatted With Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson about a myriad of topics like Hoodie Melo and changing NBA 2K 18’s cover after Kyrie Irving was traded to the Boston Celtics for Isaiah Thomas. Press Play Below To Listen.

In late August the Cleveland Cavaliers struck a deal with the Boston Celtics that shipped Kyrie Irving to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, the Brooklyn Nets’ 2018 first round pick and and the Miami Heat’s 2020 second-round pick.

While that was great in the NBA world, there was one significant problem: NBA 2K18 had been promoting Kyrie Irving as the game’s cover athlete and he was donning Cavs garb.

For years, folks talked about a ‘Madden curse.’ Now it seems that a NBA 2K curse is ‘a thing’ for cover athletes too!

It all started in NBA 2K14 when Irving’s former teammate LeBron James leaves the Miami Heat to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2014. The following year Kevin Durant graces NBA 2K15 and goes to the Golden State Warriors in 2016. Paul George lands on NBA 2K17’s cover and heads over to the Oklahoma City Thunder this summer. And then enter Irving gracing NBA 2K18!

Here’s the million dollar question: How difficult is it for NBA 2K brass to switch covers?  “I think it’s more of a headache than a lot of people think,” NBA 2K’s Ronnie Singh told me on Scoop B Radio.

NBA 2K 18 has amended the cover of the game with Kyrie Irving now donning a Boston Celtics uniform. Photo Credit: 2K Sports

Singh, better known to 2K gamers as Ronnie2K believes that the offseason trade and the need to update an NBA 2K cover is all in good fun. “The manufacturing doesn’t happen overnight,” he said. “We don’t turn on a switch and the games are produced. There is a lot of effect to retail, you know? Like there is signage that will  be there that is going to be Cavaliers.”

Meanwhile, Irving has had a decent NBA preseason. His best preseason game was his third against the Philadelphia 76ers.  Irving posted 21 points, and 3 assists in 25 minutes. Uncle Drew also went 5-7 from downtown. “He was such a focal point for the NBA this offseason,” said Singh.

“That’s a huge conversation piece. It is nice that people relate that huge transaction in the league to thinking about how it affects a 2K cover, so all in all it’s a good thing. But yeah, obviously there are procedural things that are difficult about it, but nothing that we are challenged by. We make it work.”

Forbes’ Brian Mazique reported late last month that 2K tweeted out the link to print out the new inserts that can be used to replace the outdated cover showing Irving in a Cleveland Cavaliers jersey.

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Deron Williams sporting Autism Awareness Month Air Penny V sneakers. Photo Credit: Gemini Keez

New York-based photographer Gemini Keez, shoots photos of some of your favorite kicks that NBA players don on court.

Cleveland Cavaliers superstar, LeBron James is a fan of Keez’s work.

According to COMPLEX, Keez is so good that LeBron James once asked Brooklyn’s Barclays Center security to remove every member of the media except Keez from his space so that Keez could shoot photos of him during layup lines.

“My focus is the shoes, what the pros wear,” Keez recently told YES Network” [They were] pretty much suffocating him, and he was telling the security guys, ‘Get these guys out of the way, except for him, I know what he does,'” Keez said. “But it was just LeBron and I… LeBron doesn’t just talk to anybody. He ignores me, but he also knows what I’m doing, and he gives me the OK.”

Gemini Keez shooting photos of Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James. Photo Credit: Complex

James is not the only fan of Keez. James’ former Cavaliers teammate Deron Williams showed tons of love to Keez during his time as a member of the Brooklyn Nets.

“The Keez Cam is because of Deron Williams,” Gemini Keez told me on Scoop B Radio.

Check out Gemini Keez on Scoop B Radio

“When I was reporting I was doing interviews the same way that you do Brandon. I would have my camera on me and always used to acknowledge the shoes on the players, but just from a fan standpoint. Like: ‘hey those are some really nice shoes.’ I was teetering on if I really wanted to do this anymore because I had been doing it for a while and I think it was like I gave it another week and said I was just going to focus on the shoes.”

Gemini Keez luck would change at a Nets game when Deron Williams would notice his work.

“There was this one game that I did it for and I was at the following practice the next day and Deron Williams walks up to me as I was taking pictures of the shoes and he just points at me and says: ‘I need your email address!’ So, I’m just like sure and I gave him the email and he had worn these autism shoes.”

Deron Williams’ Penny V’s. Photo Credit: Gemini Keez

Those autism-themed shoes were blue and black Penny Hardaway retro sneakers that had Autism Awareness Month themes with blue puzzle pieces.

The rest is history.

“The next day, websites like Sole Collector, Nicekicks, Sneaker News had all found Keez’s work and gave him photo credit on social media and in article. “It was like a big thing,” said Keez.

“My phone was going crazy. People were sending me text messages telling me my work was on these sites with real big write-ups about autism.”

Gemini Keez was recently featured by YES Network’s Matt Stucko. See Below

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The post Nets Photographer Gemini Keez Says Deron Williams, Air Penny V’s & Autism Awareness Boosted His Brand appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.