Kobe Bryant medically cleared for Lakers return

NBA superstar Kobe Bryant has been medically cleared for all basketball activities when the Los Angeles lakers open training camp this month, US media reported Thursday.

Bryant, who suffered a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder in January, appears to be right on schedule in his recovery from a third straight season-ending injury.

His original prognosis called for a nine-month recovery after surgery.

ESPN.com and Bleacher Report cited league sources in reporting Bryant had been cleared to play.

The 37-year-old is entering his 20th NBA season, but it’s been some time since he completed a campaign.

An Achilles tendon injury cut short his 2012-13 season, and a knee injury ended his 2013-14 campaign.

Since he was granted a two-year, $48.5 million contract extension by the Lakers in 2013, he has played only 41 games.

But the Lakers insist they don’t regret a deal that will pay Bryant a league-leading $25 million this season, with club president Jim Buss saying in August that the aging superstar “deserves the money.”

Bryant has said he’ll decide after this season if he’s ready to retire, with Buss suggesting in August that the Lakers would be prepared to keep him on.

“It’s his decision,” Buss said, although he acknowledged that Bryant might have to accept a reduced role.

Bryant has played for the Lakers his entire NBA career, winning titles in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009 and 2010.

The 17-time All-Star is a two-time NBA scoring champion, and also a two-time Olympic champion with the United States.

source: interaksyon.com

Michael Jordan's Chicago home to be sold at auction

CHICAGO - Basketball great Michael Jordan's luxurious Chicago mansion will be sold at auction next week, his agent said Friday.

The sprawling estate in the upmarket suburb of Highland Park had previously been offered with a listing price of $29 million but failed to sell.

Dubbed Legend Point, the nine-bedroom home sits on 7.4 acres and features a regulation-size NBA-quality basketball court, a pool pavilion, a tennis court, a putting green and a guest house.



"I have so many amazing, happy memories of my life in the house over the years," Jordan said in a statement. "It's where my kids grew up. It's where I lived during my championship years."

But despite the business interests which still tie Jordan to Chicago, he said the house is too big now that his children are grown.

Remodeled in 2011, the 'family area' features floor-to-ceiling windows, a built-in aquarium and a fireplace.

The lower level of the home has a card and cigar room, a wine cellar and a fully-equipped beauty salon.

The gate is adorned with the number 23 in the same design which marked his Chicago Bulls jersey.

The modern 56,000-square-foot estate will be sold at auction with no reserve on November 22.

source: interaksyon.com

Knicks guard Jeremy Lin named to Time’s 100 Most Influential list

New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin, who captured the world’s imagination earlier this season with his Cinderella run for the struggling NBA team, has been named by Time Magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World.

Lin, an Asian-American product of Harvard University, overcame long odds to become a cult hero for fans of the struggling Knicks. United Stated education secretary Arne Duncan, a fellow Harvard alumnus and also a former Crimson basketball player, wrote Lin’s profile for Time.

“He’s dispelled the idea that Asian-American guards somehow couldn’t hack it in the NBA,” Duncan said, “and that being a world-class athlete on the court is somehow at odds with being an excellent student off the court.”

Left undrafted by NBA teams last season, Lin was signed to a two-year deal by the Golden State Warriors after an impressive performance in summer camp. But he was unable to get any significant playing time with the Warriors, and was cut twice in his second season — first by Golden State and then by the Houston Rockets — before being picked up by the Knicks.

Lin was on the verge of being cut by the Knicks when former coach Mike D’Antoni took a flyer on the untested guard, and he responded by stringing along several memorable performances, leading the team to wins without stars Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire.

But Lin’s amazing year was cut abruptly after he suffered a knee injury. He underwent surgery in April for a lateral meniscus tear, which rendered him out for the season.

source: interaksyon.com

Acer bids for Jeremy Lin as brand ambassador

Computer vendor Acer Inc. is bidding to have rising NBA superstar Jeremy Lin as its global brand ambassador, the company's chairman said Tuesday.

Acer Chairman and CEO J.T. Wang told an Acer corporate social responsibility forum they expect Lin to choose one PC maker and endorse that brand globally.

"We have submitted a proposal. Based on our understanding, there might be about four to five PC makers around the globe that have made proposals to Lin," he said, according to a report from Taiwan's Central News Agency.

Acer's proposal came after it announced a marketing partnership with the Knicks on March 14.

The partnership will allow Acer's logo to be featured courtside at the Knicks' home games for the rest of the 2011-12 NBA season.

But Wang declined to disclose how much Acer is offering Lin, first NBA star of Taiwanese descent.

He said Lin will discuss the matter with his family and agent before making a choice.

The Acer-Knicks partnership will give Acer mileage among the nearly 20,000 spectators at Madison Square Garden, and to TV and Internet viewers following "Linsanity."

Last January, Acer, the world's fourth largest PC maker, announced world's No. 1 female golfer Yani Tseng of Taiwan would act as its global spokeswoman.

It also disclosed it had renewed its contract with Major League Baseball Washington Nationals pitcher Chien-Ming Wang of Taiwan, who will be the brand's spokesman in Taiwan.

Meanwhile, Wang said Acer will build a pavilion at the at the London Olympics Games to host visitors and feature its products.

He said they will launch Olympics-related products in the second quarter of 2012, although the volume of the new models will be limited due to Acer's losses in 2011. — TJD, GMA News

article source: gmanetwork.com