The Phoenix Suns’ (NBA) Amar’e Stoudemire Foundation organized a five-day basketball Camp aimed to support young basketball players all over Bamako city, the Malian capital city. Some young men were incredible when they had been called by the local organizer the coach Alkaya Toure, to take part in this five-day basketball camp, because initiatives like this are rare in the country. It was true! After about eight hours travel from United States of America to Mali, a West African country, one of the poorest countries in the world, the Coaches Travis King, Marcus McGee and their collaborators Mr. David Zimmerman and William Becket meet the 23 young kids for the first training part in the Stade Modibo Keita Gym. Concerning the U16 kids, the general manager of the Amar’e Stoudemire Foundation Basketball Camp, The Coach Travis King explained “This Camp is about the humanitarian actions of the Phoenix Suns player, Amar’e Stoudemire, through which he wants to help poorest Kids by giving them a chance to get to high level in Basketball and at school too. After the Camps in different part in the USA, we are decided to bring this project in to Africa, and I’m very happy to be here.” At the end of the Camp some of the best ones will be selected for the elite centers in the USA so they can get to top and be able one day to support other young Men from the continent. Over the young kids, the Amar’e Stoudemire Foundation has a vision to support the Malian Basketball which is among the best in the African Continent. All the Kids benefited Nike Basketball Shoes with Tee-shirts and Shirts of the Amar’e Stoudemire Foundation.
Garnett and Jose Calderon exchange unpleasantries earlier this season. Photo: intentionalfoul.com.
I should preface this by saying I absolutely despise the Boston Celtics and hope the Knicks beat ‘em by 30 tonight (Pardon my bias, but likely won’t happen anyway.) And as I write this, I realize I will likely face the scorn of some of my fellow Bounce aficionados. But I for one am getting sick of Kevin Garnett and the praise he receives for playing with intensity that derives from the streets. Read More »
Listen at 2:10 into “The mind of Stoudemire” – Playground Mentality
As the Phoenix Suns transition from a run-and-gun team to a more traditional half-court one, All-Star Amare Stoudemire is riffing about Coach Terry Porter’s system. According to Daily News columnist Mitch Lawrence, Stoudemire stated “you want to have some type of playground atmosphere where everybody is having fun.” See Stoudemire’s full comment and Pat Riley’s thoughts on NBA “Small Ball on page 3.” Amare is built to run and make moves in space and its obvious that he’s having a tough time adjusting to Porter’s ideas of making Phoenix play-off ready.
More playground? Is that good or bad for the NBA? Amare wants it and the New York Knicks are improving by it. They have already won 18 games this season after winning only 23 last year. They have 2 wins against Boston and have defeated Detroit, Utah, New Orleans and played L.A. on the road tough losing by only two points. Read More »
In 2006, Bounce produced a two-on-two winner-take-all contest called Truth, Dare, Consequence – (TDC), at Kingdome in Harlem. The winners of the 32-team contest were Darren “DP” Phillips and Junie Sanders. They received $2,000 dollars for one day of good work. We’re thinking about bringing it back on the pro and amateur levels! The two-man game is one of the leading indicators coaches use to evaluate players. It is also a great way for all players to display their shooting, ballhandling, and passing talent in space. TDC rewards players for offensive and defensive execution. It is built to make players go equally hard with and without the ball. A steal and block counts as much as a bucket inside the three-point line. The game within the game is what makes TDC appealing. Imagine watching Amare Sy go up against one of the top defenders in the city. Who would that be? One person that comes to mind is Gold Gym’s Maniac. Who would win a game to 5 if Maniac had tips, steals, blocks and charges as points to go along with regular offense? Could a team win just on defensive points? Real interesting game.
On the amateur level, we’ll have other ways to show love and give shine. So if your in junior high or high school and ready to show your rachet, chop, and no-look, hit us back and tell us your strategy to win. In the meantime, get some prep from Indiana Pacer Assistant Coach Lester Conner on the Pick and Roll. Check some Steve Nash/Amare Stoudemire and Chris Paul/Tyson Chandler execution and let us know who you think is the best pick and roll combination. My pick:Stockton/Malone.
