ARLINGTON, TX – SEPTEMBER 3, 2011: ESPN College GameDay built by The Home Depot. College GameDay guest picker Mark Cuban with the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy on the remote on-site set of College GameDay at Cowboys Stadium prior to the Cowboys Classic regular season game between the Oregon Ducks and the LSU Tigers (Photo by Phil Ellsworth / ESPN)

Mark Cuban chatted with Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson on Scoop B Radio. Press Play Below To Listen.

Before Mark Cuban was majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks and star of Shark Tank, he flipped two investments: the sale of startups MicroSolutions and Broadcast.com in the 1990s.

To quote DJ Khaled, ‘business was booming’ for many who investors in that era. Those who stuck it out, reaped the benefits..

Cuban, worth an estimated $3 billion, believes a similar boom is soon coming. “There’s a couple different things,” Mark Cuban told me on Scoop B Radio. “There’s deep learning, machine learning, there’s machine vision, bio analytics, biomechanics, virtual reality to a lesser extent.”

English writer Aldous Huxley predicted the advancement of technology in his novel, “Brave New World.”

But the next wave? Cuban is observant and excited. “I don’t think that’s going to be quite as successful as people think,” he said.

“Sensors, you know, technology is just getting so much tinier and computer capacity; so much faster and the ability to intelligently sort through data and spit out things so much better, that we all were born too soon. It’s going to be crazy 20 years from now.”

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The post Scoop B: Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban says analytics & virtual reality will mirror 90s, 2000s dot-com boom appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Boston Celtics guard Shane Larkin. Photo Courtesy of Yahoo Sports

Boston Celtics guard Shane Larkin chats with Boston Celtics guard Shane Larkin about small ball on Scoop B Radio. Press play below to listen.

On Friday, Boston Celtics guard Shane Larkin was an unlikely hero in helping the Boston Celtics win their first game of their young season.

Larkin arose from the bench and scored 10 points, eight which came in the fourth quarter of Boston’s eventual 102-92 win at Wells Fargo Center against the Philadelphia 76ers.

The last time that we heard from Larkin, he was in the U.S. playing for the struggling Brooklyn Nets. Now? He’s on a Celtics team that is giving him steady minutes alongside Jaylen Brown and Kyrie Irving.

Two point guards shooting at will? Say it ain’t so! “I do believe small ball is here to stay for a while,” Shane Larkin told me on Scoop B Radio.

Boston Celtics guard Shane Larkin shooting a jumper over Philadelphia 76ers Joel Embiid. Photo Credit: Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports

But why?

“Because the game always evolves,” Shane Larkin told me on Scoop B Radio.

“If it was 15 years ago you would see everybody throw the ball into the post, mid-post isos, cutting off the post and a lot of stuff like that. But over the last couple of years it’s turned into a lot of ball screens and dribble drives and things like that.”

Larkin believes that there’s a science behind it all. “So I think small ball is the new ‘wave’ in the league since the Spurs won the championship when they had Boris Diaw running the four,” he said.

Larkin added:

“Or even when Dallas won the championship in 2011. So the last few years, all the champions have had bigs who can stretch the floor and versatile wings who can guard multiple positions.”

Facts only. Respect the shooter named Shane Larkin!

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NBA vet Charlie Villanueva, Dory Kranz CEO of the National Alopecia Areata Foundation and Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson. Photo Credit: The Brandon Robinson Brand

September is Alopecia Awareness Month. Last Friday, NBA veteran Charlie Villanueva guest hosted the National Alopecia Areata Foundation’s Cheers for cHARity fundraiser at  the Manhattan hotspot DOUX (formerly The Vanity NYC).

Villanueva  has been a spokesperson and advocate for Alopecia awareness since he was drafted out of UCONN in 2005.

Alopecia is an autoimmune disease. As per webmd: alopecia is a type of hair loss that occurs when your immune system mistakenly attacks hair follicles The damage to the follicle is usually not permanent. Experts do not know why the immune system attacks the follicles.

Charlie Villanueva. Photo Credit: Dallas Morning News

Alopecia areata is most common in people younger than 20, but children and adults of any age may be affected. Women and men are affected equally.

“I have always said my purpose in life has been to inspire people,” said Villanueva. “I hope my presence at such a prestigious event will continue to encourage people to always follow their dreams no matter the circumstances.”

Villanueva actually inspired me. Last year I woke up seeing clumps of my hair laying on my pillow.

After a series of tests at the doctor’s office,  I was diagnosed with alopecia areata, No it’s not contagious! Being around the game of basketball for a long time all I could think of was Villanueva’s fight as a champion for alopecia.

I didn’t know how to handle it and I kept it to myself.

My perspective would change when I’d meet rising Chicago artist, Keya Trammell. She encouraged me to share my story.

After attending Charlie Villanueva’s event in Manhattan and meeting Dory Kranz CEO of the National Alopecia Areata Foundation I was encouraged by how well the foundation is doing and I shared my story via instagram:

#SwipeLeft ⬅️ They say beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder, right?! Okay, well here goes my truth: last year I woke up seeing clumps of my hair laying on my pillow. What was wrong with me?! I went to the doctor and after a series of tests I was diagnosed with alopecia areata, an auto immune disease. No it’s not contagious! Being around the game of basketball for a long time all I could think of was @cvbelieve, a champion for alopecia. Those closest to me are aware of my condition, but I asked them to keep it private. Believe it or not, I’m a pretty private person…but I pride myself on being authentic in everything that I do. But I felt weird walking around with a bald head and when asked what made me do it, I’d reply with: ‘it’s just for style.’ It didn’t feel right to lie about it. I was embarrassed! My perspective would change when I’d meet @giftedkeys in Chicago in April. She’s doing great work as an advocate for alopecia. She’s often encouraged me to share my story. She called me last week and told me that September is Alopecia Awareness Month. That’s a thing??? Apparently it is! I got an email last week from @byrobertoelia inviting me to his brother, Charlie V’s @cheersforCHAIRITY fundraiser in Manhattan over the weekend. I was encouraged by meeting people both young and old telling their story. While there I met, Dory Kranz CEO of the National Alopecia Areata Foundation ( @alopeciaaaaf ) and was encouraged by how well the foundation is doing. Over the weekend, I sat and thought, spoke to those closest to me and they all agreed that my decision to make my story public was encouraging in a social media world where everything seems perfect. So here I am, Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson, a rising star in my field with a platform, encouraging others like myself to keep on keepin on despite this disease. I’m confident enough to share with you during Alopecia Awareness Month that not only do I have it, I’m fighting it! If you have it, you can fight it too! #AlopeciaAwarenessMonth #cheersforchairity #whatisalopecia #alopecia

A post shared by ? Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson (@scoop_b) on Sep 18, 2017 at 9:12am PDT

I’m confident enough to share with you during Alopecia Awareness Month that not only do I have it, I’m fighting it! If you have it, you can fight it too!

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The post Scoop B: Charlie Villanueva’s Candidness About Alopecia Made Me Go Public About Battling With It Too appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Former Orlando Magic guard Darrell Armstrong talks about playing career, Tracy McGrady and Penny Hardaway on Scoop B Radio. Photo Credit: Outside The Hype

Click Here To Check Out Darrell Armstrong, the NBA’s 6th Man of the Year and Most Improved Player of the Year With the Orlando Magic Who Checked in With Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson & Scoop B Radio.

Dallas Mavericks assistant coach Darrell Armstrong has one of the diverse and impressive basketball portfolios out there.

Winning a ring as an assistant coach with the  2011 NBA Champion Dallas Mavericks, Armstrong’s accolades as a professional from 1991-2008 as a player were surely something to write home about.

Going undrafted out of Fayetteville State in 1991, Armstrong got his first gnaw at the NBA during the 1994–95 season where he played the last 3 games of the regular season for the Orlando Magic. While he manned the court as a floor general, Armstrong wowed the crowd and Magic management with his scoring ability.

As a member of the Magic, Armstrong simultaneously won the NBA’s Most Improved Player of the Award and the league’s Sixth Man of the Year Award in 1999. “After being in the league for three years, still on waiting on the opportunity and the chance,” Armstrong told me on Scoop B Radio.

“Putting in so much work, you know; to not only be a better player,  not only shooting the basketball, but also getting stronger in the weight room, helping me to be quicker and faster and stronger all those things adds up to one.”

 

 

Darrell Armstrong during Orlando Magic days. Photo Credit: Alchetron

Armstrong would end up sticking with the Magic through the 2003 season.

I first interviewed Armstrong when I was a Nets kid reporter and he was a member of the Orlando Magic during the 1997-98 NBA season.

Then and now, a few things stood out to me about him:

a). At 6 feet tall, he probably had the most hops imaginable for someone his size.

b). He’s a huge gospel music fan, with Fred Hammond and Kirk Franklin at the top of his list of his faves.

c). During his tenure with the Orlando Magic, Armstrong has had the distinction of being teammates with two of the most transcendent guards in the NBA not named Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. Armstrong teammed with both Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway and Tracy McGrady.

With McGrady being inducted into Springfield, Massachusetts’ Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame this weekend, one can’t help but think about the excitement that was T-Mac, the scoring machine in the city that Walt Disney built.

Armstrong and T-Mac were on a team that included Grant Hill and coached by Doc Rivers and were supposed to make noise in the NBA’s Eastern Conference in the early 2000s. Grant Hill was starting at the point guard, Armstrong slid to the two-guard with McGrady staring at the 3 alongside Drew Gooden and John Amaechi at the 4 and 5, respectively.

That squad was loaded! Heck, Mike Miller came off the bench!

Man that team was potent, but Grant Hill couldn’t stay healthy. That is when Tracy McGrady took over with his scoring galore! “Tracy was very special,” said Armstrong. I’m fortunate enough to have that opportunity to wear that jersey; the Magic jersey alongside him and Penny. You know, I’m fortunate to be their teammate because, I mean every night you got the chance to see some type of greatness, some type of unbelievable scoring from both of them.”

Tracy McGrady. Photo Credit: NBA.com

Added Armstrong:

“With T-Mac, a lot of people don’t know or would know that T-Mac was a decent player when he left Toronto and he got the opportunity with that one playoff game where they played New York and Vince was being covered so much by all the guys on New York that T Mac started to get off. And people started to see T-Mac’s talent during the playoffs that year. That is when we went and got him and that is when he came to the Magic that next year and what he did from there was just amazing because that is what he was suppose to be doing when he got to Toronto. But it didn’t happen like that for his first two years and then people started to say: ‘okay this is what they were talking about.’ And he put in the work and he dedicated himself everyday when he got into the game that he was going to be one of the top players in the league and he did it. It was fun to see him and Kobe Bryant go at each other, Michael Jordan go at each other.  I was just amazed by it, the things that he could do. But he was something special.”

In 938 games, McGrady averaged 19.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.4 assists. In 704 games, Penny Hardaway posted 15.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5 assists.

So who was the better player? Tracy McGrady or Penny Hardaway? “Both of them could play defense and both of them could score,” said Armstrong.

“Definitely Penny was the better passer because  Penny was a point guard. Mac could still pass the ball as well, that is hard to say Scoop. They both did it in their own way and in their own style; the only thing I will say, that Penny was better than T-Mac was passing the basketball. Like I said, they both could shoot the basketball, they both could score the basketball, that is a tough one to say. Penny went deeper in the playoffs,farther than T-Mac has ever been; besides being with T-Mac with Spurs, but he didn’t play. But when he played, you know Penny and he in the playoffs, Penny, you know Penny lost in the championship as a starter. So I mean it is hard to say if there is any edge the edge I give to Penny over T-Mac is that he was a better passer than he was.”

Fair enough.

Darrell Armstrong is one of the Dallas Mavericks’ assistant coaches. Photo Credit: Dallas Mavericks

Armstrong is an assistant coach of the Dallas Mavericks. In a game of shoulda-coulda-woulda, if he were currently an NBA head coach, who would he pick to start his team in today’s NBA? “Damn Scoop, once again you give me another tough one,” said Armstrong.

“I say: oh man you can’t go wrong with either one of them. Penny played a one and T-Mac played a two. So that is why I say it is so different. S**t Scoop, I would probably take Penny because the reason I say I take Penny is because Penny would be ready to run the offense as a point guard, knows how to play the point, but also you can just knock the ball with two points. Mac wasn’t a point guard. T-Mac never ran the point guard, so T Mac was more of the two/three player. I would probably have to say Penny I have a bigger guard that would cause a problem at the point guard position because he would be different.”

In addition to talking about T-Mac and Penny Hardaway, Armstrong also chatted about his time playing at a historically black college in Fayetteville State. “I was playing because of the tradition of so many people knowing and so many athletes from the Charles Oakley to Earl ‘The Pearl’ Monroe to Rick Mahorn,” he said. “And you know now, even Stephen A [Smith] played  for Winston Salem State. Ben Wallace and myself, so it was amazing with the athletes and the fans always love to hear the Black National Anthem [Lift Every Voice And Sing] whenever they sang it”

Armstrong even weighed in on the notion Tim Duncan would join he, T-Mac, and Grant Hill in Orlando via free agency, summer 2000.

Grant Hill and Tracy McGrady signed with the Orlando Magic during free agency in 2000. Photo Credit: Orlando Magic

According to Armstrong, the probabilities of Duncan coming to Orlando were zilch, zip, zero, stingy with the dinero. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich thought it was for real though! “It was a nerve-wrecking time,” Popovich admitted in an interview. (H/T CBS Sports’ Matt Moore)

Added Popovich:

“It was hell. You get close to a player and you don’t want to see him leave. I never let myself believe he was going to stay. I was just getting myself prepared, for sanity reasons. It’s no fun.”

“It also seems like it takes forever to resolve. That’s the worst part of it. We made our pitch to him and let him be, let him make up his own mind.”

Darrell Armstrong tells a different story on Scoop B Radio: “Tim wasn’t going nowhere,” he said.

“I mean where Tim played at and finished at, that was where Tim was going to be. Tim wasn’t going to go nowhere. We all love to entertain and see who is going to be out there. I don’t even believe he even thought about leaving San Antonio especially after winning some Championships. So I mean, no he wasn’t going anywhere. Sometimes you call the guys when free agency starts and you call them and talk to guys and they wanted me to call and I was sitting there like I am not you shouldn’t even call this guy he isn’t leaving.”

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The post Former Orlando Magic 6th Man of The Year Darrell Armstrong Says He’d Pick Penny Hardaway Over Tracy McGrady If He Were Starting An NBA Team   appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.