Archive - 2008 - Article
July 28th
2008 Las Vegas AAUs: Day 5
By Nick Prevenas, Borko Popic, and Aran Smith
After five days of wall-to-wall AAU basketball action, we managed to catch nearly every big-time high school recruit participating in the three major Las Vegas tournaments.
July 27th
The Superstar Theory: Revisited and Supercharged, Part 2
By Robert W. McChesney
NBADraft.net
July 27, 2008
July 25th
2008 Las Vegas AAUs: Day 4
By Nick Prevenas
John Wall
[img_assist|nid=1594|title=John Wall|desc=|link=none|align=right|width=300|height=395] The North Carolina phenom is putting his stamp on the Reebok Summer Championship, submitting yet another dominant effort in D-One Sports’ 84-77 win over a game Grand Rapids squad on Friday afternoon.
State of the Cap: Orlando Magic
7/25/08
2008/09 Orlando Magic Payroll: $58.8 million
2008/09 Estimated NBA Salary Cap: $58 million
Roughly: $0.8 million over cap
The Good:
July 24th
2008 Las Vegas AAUs: Day 3
By Nick Prevenas
Wall or Favors?
That was the question everyone was asking heading into Day 3 of Las Vegas’ AAU hoops gathering. Who is the top player in the class of 2009?
July 23rd
Role Players Cashing In Abroad
It’s official – the NBA has a big problem on its hands. This problem goes beyond dress code and player image, fixed games, gambling, and officiating scandals.
[img_assist|nid=1581|title=Josh Childress|desc=|link=none|align=right|width=300|height=450] The NBA is losing players to Europe, a huge dilemma for the League as a business and as a product on the court.
2008 Las Vegas AAUs: Day 2
By Nick Prevenas
Day 1 of Sin City’s AAU extravaganza opened with a bang. Some of the America’s best high school talent -- from John Wall to Kenny Boynton to everyone in between -- took to the floor with fire and intensity. The level of play exceeded expectations, setting the stage for what could possibly develop into a special week of basketball.
Was Day 2 able to match the standard set by the opening games? In a word, no.
The Euro Effect
[img_assist|nid=1563|title=Josh Childress|desc=|link=none|align=right|width=300|height=429] By now, you might have heard that Brandon Jennings has elected to spend a post-graduate year in Europe prior to embarking on an NBA career.
While the short-term ramifications of such a decision hold some interest to casual basketball fans, the genuinely intriguing aspect will be how recruiters handle a new batch of competitors.
July 22nd
2008 NBA Summer League: Top (Non)Rookies
Aaron Brooks 16.8 pts/ 7 ast/ 2 rebs
Displaying the quickness and mentality necessary to run an NBA team, Brooks was impressive throughout the summer league. His size has always been an issue, but an explosive 1st step combined with his ability to effectively attack pick and roll situations could be more than enough to make up for it. What may end up being a determining factor for his future is his ability to keep the defense honest by consistently knocking down outside shots.
Ramon Sessions 15.3pts/ 7.3 ast/ 5.3 rebs
2008 Las Vegas AAUs: Day 1
By Nick Prevenas
Typically, a trip to Las Vegas begins with dreams of wealth beyond comprehension and ends with empty wallets.
This week, more than 6,000 high school hoops stars hope to see the opposite happen.
Nearly every major AAU team is in Sin City this week, along with representatives from every college basketball program and the holy trinity of shoe companies (Reebok, adidas, Nike) to form the summer's biggest amateur basketball event.
