The plot in the world of basketball this season has been so twisted, so convoluted in terms of performances of some players as well as some of the news about particular players, it has made it an exciting game to follow.

In this article, I intend to look at both the good and the bad, the highlights and the lowlights of the 09 to 10 season.

The first thing we should recognize is some of the teams that have come out of nowhere and established themselves as very respectable basketball teams. There are two that stand out to me more than any others, and these were both two of the worst teams in the league last season.

First is the Oklahoma City Thunder, a team that people believed had a bright future but never thought they would be competitive this quickly. Thanks to superstar Kevin Durant, the team has suddenly morphed from one of the worst in the league to one with a winning record this season.

The Memphis Grizzlies may be an even bigger surprise. While people knew that the Thunder had the potential to be a good team, everyone had written off Memphis entering the season.  Read more...

Vince Carter has, for a number of years now, been one of the most widely known and respected names in the leagues of professional basketball. Much of this fame started back in 2000 with the world famous Vince Carter Slam Dunk Contest.

The Slam Dunk Contest is one of the most popular NBA contests and the crowd was utterly blown away by Vince Carter’s impressive first performance back in 2000 when he made the first 360 ever, even windmilling the ball in the process. Leaving the crowd absolutely amazed by his performance, especially as it was his first attempt at a Slam Dunk Contest, the game has gone down in history since as one of the finest moments in professional basketball.

The Slam Dunk Contest of 2000 was Vince’s first attempt at this particular contest which made it even more impressive. Most notably, Vince made the first ever full 360, also windmilling the ball, utterly amazing the spectators.

The show certainly impressed the crowd something amazing and as a result he has become one of the most widely respected players in the world of basketball. Since then, many famous videos and pictures of this epic moment in the history of basketball have started to appear and a quick search of YouTube will show you this.  Read more...

Strengthening your legs and their fast-twitch muscle fibers can add inches to your vertical jump. Increasing your jump can help you in numerous sports including basketball, volleyball or football.

Here are several simple actions to enhance your game and jump higher.

*Begin every exercise session by warming up your muscles after which it performing extensive leg stretches. Mainly because you will be creating muscle fibers that are utilized for explosive activities including jumping, stretching is with the utmost significance.

*Jump rope for its excellent cardiovascular conditioning. This stage must never be skipped, because it will be an significant contributor to your results.

*Incorporate sprints into your routines. This builds muscle, that will add to your jumping capability.

*Run stairs in your toes. Start by running up a flight, a single action at the time. Stroll down and operate back again up, taking two steps at the time. Repeat as quite a few times as it is possible to manage.

*Do sets of elevated jumps

*Do sets of explosive jumps

*Do sets of double jumps

*Rest your legs no less than two days a week. Results will come from sustaining the workout routine, not performing it aggressively for a few weeks after which slacking away from.  Read more...

Searching for the most effective vertical jump program can type of be a frustrating expertise merely simply because you can find lots of them available saying that they are the best.

Visit the web sites on the Jump Manual, Vertical Mastery, the Vertical Bible, the Vertical Project, and so on. and I guarantee you that they will say they’re the best vertical program.

So, when you’re ready to purchase one of these packages, how are you possibly supposed to select? In our exploration, we have observed that you will discover usually Three dishonest schemes to watch out for:

One. Monthly coaching

Does the process have month to month coaching? Most of finest vertical programs do have month-to-month coaching, and some of them are legitimate. But the legitimate ones should only be $10-$20 per thirty days. On the other hand, be mindful of the types that 1) are expensive (there are some which have been over $150 per month) and 2) aren’t upfront about their regular fees.

As disgusting as it can be, some with the kinds which have been clearly not the finest vertical programs will charge you a regular fee for “coaching” and will only let you know this in some quite smaller print whenever you buy their system.  Read more...

Out of the entire history of the NBA, only 11 people have won Most Valuable Player awards multiple times. Steve nash rookie card is one of these people. He stands at six-foot-three and weighs less than 200 pounds.

In his first two seasons playing with the Phoenix Suns, things were not the best for him. It was in 1996 that he had arrived from Santa Clara and was met with Jason Kidd on the team, who did quite well at that time. Within this time he averaged less than 10 points a game and three assists.

In 1998, he was traded off to Dallas. While playing in Dallas, his game took a turn to all-star status. In 2004, listed as a free agent, he decided to go back with the Suns. The Suns now, would and could not imagine playing without him.

In 2004-05 and 2005-06, Steve Nash grabbed hold of the MVP title. A lot of this accounted to the improvement in his game. He became much better at layups and three pointers, which seemed to have a lot to do with Mike D’Antoni.  Read more...

In basketball, height is might. In a game where a ball must go through a hoop that is ten feet above the ground, the reason for this is obvious. However, height is not the only thing that matters in the game.

You also need to have strength, speed, and the ability to jump high. How to jump higher in basketball is therefore something all basketball players would like to know.

There are many drills and exercises that coaches force their players to carry out. These range in their level of intensity and duration, and most are require the assistance of a trainer and teammates to complete. However, it does not mean that you cannot get yourself off the ground higher if you are training on your own.

To give you a hint of what will be required to be able to jump higher off the ground, here are some of the basic exercises that you will need to do…

The most basic one is jumping rope. You will no doubt have heard of the benefits of this before, but have, none done it since you were a child. This is not a problem as you will re-learn it soon enough.  Read more...

The name Savannah Brinson might sound familiar to you if you have been paying especial attention to celebrity news recently, but if it does not then you do not have to worry too much. She is better known as LeBron James girlfriend.

The couple are high school sweethearts and have been together for a long while. This goes against the norms in celebrity circles and even more so is the fact that they work closely together in the LeBron James Family Foundation. This is a charity organisation that helps out those who are less fortunate.

The couple has two sons, LeBron James Jr. Who was born in 2004 and Bryce Maximus James who was born in 2007. In July 2009, rumours are ciculating that Savannah is believed to be pregnant with their third child.

While there are usually certain disadvantages to being the girlfriend of such a high profile athlete, there doesn’t seem to be much news in the tabloids about the couple or LeBron James’ girlfriend. They have successfully managed to keep their everyday lives relatively private and often only end up on the glossy pages if they have attended a function or event. One wonders if they have made a conscious effort to stay away from the media because of the children or if they have learnt from the mistakes of other celebrities who have made their lives so public.  Read more...

The press has had a field day with Dirk Nowitzki girlfriend news. Dirk is trying to keep quiet about the whole matter but the fact of the matter is no one else is feeding into his silence.

What we do know is that Dirk Nowitzki was involved with a woman by the name of Cristal Taylor. The two were seen together often and looked like two kids in love as many of Dirk’s friends would later go on to explain.

Apparently Nowitzki bought 37 year old Taylor a $250, 000 engagement ring and the two were supposed to wed sometime soon. However, it was not a happy ending for the couple. In fact Dirk Nowitzki girlfriend drama began shortly after the star asked Taylor to marry him.

Dirk’s friends insisted that before the star commenced in the wedding ceremony that he should get an extensive back ground check on his girlfriend. The background check proved that Taylor had a dark and dreary past.

Taylor was arrested in May for two outstanding warrants that she had, and in fact Taylor was also previously married which she had never bothered to tell her future husband about either. Taylor actually forced her previous husband to file bankruptcy and put him into $330, 000 in debt.  Read more...

The NBA rookies who began this season have been quite outstanding in their performance. Usually, lots of seasons come and go before a rookie becomes really good and they appear jittery at first as well as need to do a lot of learning with regard to the league.

This season, we’ve been fortunate enough to enjoy the presence of some exceptional rookies who have the poise and demeanor of veteran players. This bodes really well for their long term potential.

Here we will talk about five of the NBA’s top choices to get rookie of the year for the current season. Here they are, in no particular order.

Brandon Jennings just may have been the #1 choice one or two months ago. The game that took place in November where he scored 55 points was the highlight of quite an awesome beginning for him this season.

The down side is that because Jennings has only been doing about 30% over this last month, he is not in the running at the present time.

The new favorite at this point is Tyreke Evans, the Sacramento Kings guard being credited for turning around last year’s worst NBA team. He is a star in the making, and his averages of over 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists are just phenomenal.  Read more...

Veteran point guard Jason Williams is returning to the NBA after a season away from basketball. Williams announced that hes re-entering the league this season, and will do so in an Orlando Magic uniform. Williams is tentatively slated to be the backup for starting playmaker Jameer Nelson.

Williams signed a one year NBA contract to play for the Los Angeles Clippers in 2008, but walked away from it without playing a game. At the time, his wife was facing some complications during her pregnancy with their third child and Williams wanted to be able to spend time with her and his family.

When the Clippers relinquished their rights to Williams earlier this summer, he became an unrestricted free agent. Ultimately, he settled on Orlando due to its proximity to his home in nearby Isleworth, Florida and the role the Magic wanted him to play on a championship contender. Magic General Manager Otis Smith provided these comments on the signing:

“Jason provides depth and leadership to our backcourt. He is a veteran point guard that knows what it takes to help us reach our ultimate goal.”  Read more...