With his passion for the game, his will to win, and his overall "I get buckets!" mentality, TPC OFFICIALLY welcome's Kemba Walker to Team Jordan and to Charlotte, NC!!!
Oh, and just in case ya'll forgot...
Being a sneakerhead myself, you can see from the selected pics below, that Kemba has been an unofficial member of Team Jordan via his sneaker game for a while now. So it was only right that MJ pulled the trigger to bring Mr. Walker to the QC!!! And when the jerseys go on sale, YAK I'm coppin, like YAK!!!
Last night, I even Tweeted Kemba to let him know that I'm already lobbying to DJ his "Welcome To Charlotte Party" like YAK YAK and more YAK!!! Promoters holla at me!! @TPClikeYAK
Last nights NBA Draft was boring to some, but very interesting to me. I thought there were a lot of question marks coming into the draft that set the stage for it to be "surprise"-ready all night! From a handful of teams having multiple picks within the first round, to several unseen players being mentioned as valued prospects, I was just curious to see how things were gonna shape up, and which GMs would make the right calls.
Even beginning with the 1st Pick of the Draft, NBA fans were still skeptical to see if the Cavaliers would decide to rebound from the ongoing Lebron saga by drafting "NBA-ready", Derrick Williams, or would they gamble by putting their chips on the exaggerated "NBA-potential" of Kyrie Irving. As the pick was made, I think it was clear that Cleveland got their guy. The same guy that only played 11 collegiate games, but was giving autographs and shaking hands with the owner's son on the night of the Draft Lottery back in May... salute, Mr. Irving...
All in all, the NBA Draft is always intriguing to me, and I love trades on Draft night!! So, in no particular order, here's my quick analysis of who I believe were the initialwinners in this year's draft: Minnesota Timberwolves || Utah Jazz || Washington Wizards
Minnesota followed Cleveland with the 2nd pick and did YAKxactly what they were supposed to do... they drafted the BEST PROVEN PLAYER in this year's draft class. Not to say Irving won't be great, but baring injury, Derrick Williams seems like he can get any team 15pts, 10rebs, 2blks, TONIGHT!!! Now, the only question the T-Wolves have is how will they get him on the court with the likes of Michael Beasley, Kevin Love, and Wesley Johnson? The verdict is out, but hey... I'd much rather have too much talent than not enough!! Not to mention the fact that Spanish sensation, Ricky Rubio (1st Round pick from 2009) is finally coming over to add some spice to what should be a very flavorful brand of Mid-west basketball next year...
At the #3 pick, The Utah Jazz found themselves in a promising position, very similar to Cleveland - either go with a potentially good guard such as Brandon Knight or Kemba Walker OR grab a hard to find big man such as Turkey's, Enes Kanter - and they chose Kanter. Having a later pick at #12, I thought this was a good move because there were several quality guards that could easily drop beyond the top 10. Of course, neither Knight, Walker, nor the BYU "legend", Jimmer Fredette made it that far, but Colorado's scoring guard, Alec Burks can definitely find a way to put the ball in the basket. His minutes may be minimal at first, but I like the young talent of Burks, Kanter, Gordon Hayward, and Derrick Favors coming off the bench behind solid starters! Watch out for Utah to sneak a few wins from teams ranked higher than them throughout the regular season...
And finally, The Washington Wizards were able to add a few pieces that can get out and run with John Wall. The size of Chris Singleton will give Andre Blatche some much needed competition at his position, and Shelvin Mack fits the mold of what an NBA coach is looking for in a solid backup PG. To be honest, similar to an Earl Watson or even a Beno Udrih, I can see Mack maintaining a role on somebody's NBA roster for at least a 10 year career.
But the true reason I'm saying "DC Stand Up", is for the acquisiton of Jan Vesley!!! Those who know me also know that I regularly question drafting European players within the lottery - not because they aren't good - but simply because the NBA game is different from the European game that most of them are used to. Therefore, it's rare that Euros are able to quickly adapt to the NBA pace and physicality, so once they get in their prime, it's usually time for them also to get traded or sign with another team for more money. So again, I'd normally pass on them, but Jan Vesley may be different!
I watched some clips of Jan last year thinking he may have entered the draft then, but he spent another year overseas getting stronger and perhaps even more aggressive. He's "tougher" than most Europen players are perceived to be, and buddy has BOUNCE!!! As a result, he was the #5 pick last night, like YAK!
Check out this footage and you might become a Jan Vesley fan too:
Welcome Kemba and Bismack to Charlotte!!!
You all are officially members of Team Jordan now...
I can't make it without GOD!!!!!!! SMH, and truth be told, neither can you!!!
Have a good day and be blessed good people, like YAK!!!
Proverbs: 3:5-6
5. Trust in the LORD with all thy heart and lean not unto your own understanding;
6. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your path.
Just a few classic pics and kicks I've come across that deserved to be shared...
Of course those were just a few images to get you started... check out this link below noting some of the best and the worst kicks ever laced up on the NBA hardwood... like YAK!
The charismatic icon became more than just a "rapper", and in both good and bad ways, he is unquestionably considered one of the most influential figures the 90s Hip Hop era! Due to his versatility in lyricism, and sometimes brash delivery, he was able to make his listeners feel YAKxactly what he had experienced himself. He was real!
He was a genius in story telling! He could go from giving us a full narrative in "Brenda's Got A Baby", to an encouraging messages for ladies to always "Keep Ya Head Up"... he knew how to have the OGs "Toss It Up", while the pimps lived out their personal lives through the lyrics of "I Get Around"... he prompted us with "All Eyes On Me", while warning us of those "Ambitionz of a Ridah"... all in all, he had fellas getting stomach tattoos and kids, as far east as Japan, twistin up their fingers, screaming "West Siiiiide!"... Influence!
Summertime is the best time for family reunions, cookouts, and classic Tupac records!!! Somehow, his lyrical/musical intellect was savvy enough to make your crazy uncle unconsciously break out into an old school two-step with a beer in one hand, and a fried chicken leg in the other, just by hearing the first beats of "California Love". Then a similar effect would happen hours later as people find themselves toasting to the good life at the bar and taking the club experience to a whole-nother level on the dance floor once the DJ cuts up those classic tunes!! Brilliant!
Even as I reminisce today about my own musical influences, I can remember letting my mother hear Tupac's open letter of "Dear Mama" on a Mother's Day afternoon as a youth. Ironically, that moment actually influenced her enough to BUY me the $4.99 single CD for my Walkman as we prepared for a road trip to the beach that following weekend. WOW! Multiple generations influenced by a 4 minute song... SMH, Memories!
Even outside of music, Tupac had movie roles ranging from "Poetic Justice" to "Above The Rim" to (my personal favorite) "Juice"!! With that resume' alone, it is no wonder why the ladies still love him and the fellas definitely still rock with him til this day!! It's 2011, 15 years after his death, and all they still screamin is "Tupac YAK!"... Relevance!
Congratulations to the Dallas Mavericks for winning their first NBA Championship!!
I'm not even a Mavericks fan like that, but I like good basketball, and REAL recognize REAL. So unlike most talking heads and media outlets, let me first start by saluting the Dallas Mavericks for simply playing like the better team in the NBA Finals. While others seem to rely on condemning the Miami Heat, and specifically Lebron James, for what they/he didn't do, I believe Dallas was more consistent in the majority of key areas that made the difference in 4-out-of-6 games.
Dirk showed up in the clutch, the role players effectively played their roles, the shooters made the shots they needed to, the bigs crashed the boards, their overall team-defense was solid, and the veterans managed the late game situations with leadership, experience, and poise throughout the entire series. So in my opinion, it was much more a showcase of how "Dallas WON" rather than how "Miami LOST". But then again, I'm not that much of a critic either...
In a post-game interview on NBA-TV, Dallas Owner, Mark Cuban finally took his muzzle off and voiced his opinion about the playoffs. When asked about the fan support, Cuban quickly cited the array of blue shirts that were witnessed througout the Miami crowd exclaiming, "OUR FANS punked the H3LL out of the Miami fans!" That was hilarious...
In a later comment to C.Webb, Cuban also stated his opinion that "rings are done!" - not like they've finished making them already, but instead - eluding to the notion that the same way the "Fab 5" changed the game by bringing baggy shorts into college hoops, the Dallas Mavericks may consider switching up the played out celebratory hardware for the NBA. I'm just interested in seeing what Cuban has already thought up...
Special shout outs to the veteran Jason Kidd, arguably one of the TRUEST PGs of all-time... I'm proud he finally got him one.
Welp, that concludes another great NBA season, and I hope the threat of a potential NBA-lockout during the 2011-2012 lacks the foundation to become a devastating reality. But in the meantime, I'll let my man Rasheed take us out from here... hahaha classic, like YAK!
YAK DJs keep the dopest footwork in the game, so it's only right that DJ Dexter Dynamite tries to keep up with a few gems of his own. This past spring, DJ Dexter Dynamite became 1/4 of the newly formed sneaker crew known as The FRESH!MEN.
With a lot of brainstorming and various efforts to highlight the sneaker culture in North Carolina, The FRESH!MEN presented "The Queen City Sneaker Showcase" on April 30th, 2011 in Charlotte, NC. Check out some of the video footage below and stay tuned for more upcoming events from The FRESH!MEN at http://www.wearethefreshmen.com/ like YAK!
Basketball is my favorite sport and the NBA Playoffs definitely mark one of my favorite times of the year to be a sports fanatic. Even if My MAGIC got bounced out in the first round, the Finals have been great this year!!! Very competitive, very close, and as the homie, Rasheed "Roscoe" Wallace puts it, "both teams played hard!" hahaha CLASSIC!!!
All in all, in the beginning I couldn't decide between going with Miami in 6 or Dallas in 7, so the only prediction I felt comfortable in making was that, "the first team to 90pts. would win every game of the Finals." I was right in Game 1, but not in Game 2 (after Miami got stuck on 90 for the majority of the 4th and allowed Dallas to come back from 15pts. down!! SMH)... and in Games 3 and 4, neither team met the threshold... so tonight is Game 5... a very pivotal game, as I believe over 70% of the teams who win Game 5 of the Finals, also go on to win the Championship...
Visit http://www.nba.com/ for the latest highlights and analysis, and grab your popcorn, because it's about to get good like YAK!!!
The Electronic Retro Blue Foamposites simply can't drop soon enough for me!!
The summer of 2011 is definitely slated to offer some of the hottest releases of the year, and thanks to the Nike Electronic Retro Blue, aka "Sub Zero" Foamposites, some cool relief is on the way!
Like every other critic of the Nike Foamposite Pro model, I also think the Nike Swoosh plastered on the outer side panel, ironically, takes away from the shoe. Isn't it funny how you would think the addition of the Nike signature logo would add credibility to a shoe, but in this case, it simply takes away? SMH
Nevertheless, even as a die hard fan of the standard Nike Penny I (without the Swoosh), I still can't pass up on this colorway!! Nike definitely won with the choice of hue, but lost with the model selection. In any case, I've been waiting on this release since I heard about it last fall, so YAK I'm coppin like YAK!!! haha
