Marvin Williams: This is Marvin William’s sixth year in the NBA at just 24 years old. After being drafted second out of North Carolina, he has not lived up to expectations. This season his numbers are at all time lows. He has experienced knee problems this year that have caused him to miss four games in early November. Although William’s may have disappointed some fans, he is certainly no slouch. He is still a super athletic, over sized, small forward who starts on the Atlanta Hawks. They are a team that is always playoff bound. Williams is averaging 29.3 minutes, 9.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists so far this season.

Jamal Crawford: After winning the sixth man award last year his averages are slightly down. This is nothing to be alarmed with and has more to do with cold shooting than any loss of athleticism in his tenth season. Jamal Crawford’s a consummate professional who has averages this season season of 30.3 minutes, 15 points, and 3.5 assists. All star Joe Johnson has been out the last few games with injury. Jamal Crawford has stepped into the starting lineup and his numbers have been crazy.

Jon Brockman: In his second season with as many teams, Jon Brockman’s minutes are down to 9 a game. Everyone knew that when Jon Brockman signed a four year deal with the Milwaukee Bucks it was to be a role player. This has not stopped Brockman from making two starts already this season. Jon is as steady as we all remember from UW and is providing the Bucks with some high level rebounding and defense.

Brian Scalabrine: Yes, he is from the Seattle-Tacoma Area. After a long career with the Celtics, Scalabrine signed with the Chicago Bulls this offseason. Brian Scalabrine was in the rotation at the beginning of the season when Carlos Boozer was injured. After getting decent minutes the first five games he has been relegated to a few scrap minutes off the bench here and there.

Luke Ridnour: Ridnour’s assists are down this season but this can be attributed to the low quality teammates surrounding him in Minnesota. Luke is having one of the best shooting seasons of his career. Luke Ridnour’s field goal percentage is at an all time high coming of 48%. His shooting numbers are up across the board with a shooting three’s at 47% and free throws at 92%. Luke Ridnour has started almost every game for the Minnesota Timberwolves and has displaced Jonny Flynn who is now in the D League.

Spencer Hawes: The Philadelphia 76er’s acquired Spencer Hawes this off season to solidify the front line of a young team in the process of rebuilding. Although Hawes has started every game this year, his production and minutes have taken a dip. Spencer Hawes is growing a reputation of being a soft big man in the NBA. His averages in 22 games this year are 6.4 points and 4.9 rebounds a game. Hopefully Spencer Hawes can improve and get more crunch time minutes in the future.

Terrence Williams: After a promising rookie campaign last season, the New Jersey Nets sent Terrence Williams to the D League for a stint. William’s averaged twenty minutes per game before the demotion. His last game in the NBA was at the beginning of November when he put up 7 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists against the Heat. It appears that Terrence Williams was sent to the D League for off the court reasons. Reports surfaced that he was late to multiple team meetings, practices, and shootarounds. As of December 7, Terrence Williams was recalled to the Nets after playing just three games with Springfield.

Jason Terry: This crafty veteran holds the largest role of any Seattle basketball player for the best team. The Dallas Mavericks have the third best record in the NBA at 18 and 4. Jason Terry is up to his old tricks averaging 16.1 points and 4.5 assists. Jason Terry along with Jamal Crawford are two of the best scoring players who come of the bench in the league.

Martell Webster: The Timberwolves have determined Martell Webster to be damaged goods after recieving him in a trade from Portland and they are not happy about it. Martell Webster has not recorded a minute so far this season and continues to struggle from back issues.

Nate Robinson: The Boston Celtics have the second best record in the league and they have have been able to tame the explosive Robinson. Nate has had a great season coming off the bench this season. Robinson is playing behind the all star Rondo so his minutes are quite limited. Recently Rajon Rondo has had some injury problems and Robinson stepped up. Nate Robinson’s best game this season was last week when he posted a 21 point, 6 assist, and 6 rebound game. Nate’s percentages are up from the past and he has been a productive member of the Celtics bench.

Avery Bradley: Playing along side Nate Robinson for the Celtics, Avery Bradley holds the position of third point guard. Bradley was held out of action the first month this season after ankle surgery. If Avery Bradley continues to develop, he is poised to take the back up position from Nate Robinson when his contract is over in two years. Avery Bradley is more advanced than Rajon Rondo was at such a young age and he has the talent to be a star in the NBA.

Brandon Roy: It is clear that Brandon Roy is not the same player he used to be. Both his knee’s have had several operations to the point where he has very little meniscus left. Brandon Roy’s averages are down across the board. It looks like Roy will miss the all star game for the first time in three years. Roy is still a productive player for the Portland Trailblazers. The same way Kobe Bryant could be one of the best point guards in the league if he lost all his athleticism. Roy’s game is so complete that he can score in the mid range and long game’s without punishing his knees. Brandon Roy is averaging 18 points with 3 rebounds and assists a game. Although his points have taken a dip, the most substantial drop are in the other numbers. Brandon Roy is averaging almost two rebounds and assists per game less than previously in his career. Roy still has the knack to completely take over the game at crucial points. This leads us to believe that he might return to his former status with some more time to recover from surgeries. This medical blog suggests that Brandon Roy’s to return from knee surgery after just eight days is unheard of. Hopefully his early return for the playoffs last year is not the reason for his decline in performance.

Rodney Stuckey: This is the third season with Rodney Stuckey anchoring the point guard position for the Detroit Pistons. His number have climbed every single year but this is overlooked by the poor team performance. Stuckey took over the point when Chauncey Billups was traded. The Pistons frachise has been tanking ever since. Detroit lacks offensive firepower so despite Stuckey’s inefficiency, nobody will tell him to stop scoring. Rodney Stuckey’s averages are 16.7 points, 5.2 assists, and 3.4 rebounds a game.

Aaron Brooks: The Houston Rockets have struggled this season and that has not been helped by their star point guard Aaron Brooks being out of the lineup. Brooks injured his ankle after five games this year and has been out ever since.

Quincy Pondexter: Even though Pondexter is not a homegrown Seattle basketball talent, I thought you would be interested in his progress. The New Orleans Hornets have started the season much better than anyone expected. They are a deep team and the first month of the season, Pondexter recorded more DNP’s than floor minutes. Quincy Pondexter has since earned a spot in their rotation . The last six games he has been very productive. In other news. It looks like Seattle is the leading candidate to land the Hornets franchise since they were sold to the league. It would be quite nice to have Quincy Pondexter suit it up in Seattle along side CP3.

Links:

I know it is still football season so if you are interested, check out this great fantasy football blog.

If you like University of Washington basketball, this Husky Men’s basketball blog is a great resource.

Final Note: After winning two championships with the Lakers, Adam Morrison has fallen out of the NBA. Morrison was waived by the Washington Wizards at the end of training camp.

This has easily been the play of the preseason thus far. It also serves as a reminder that the basketball season is right around the corner.

Wroten Donned an all red outfit and pump faked to the Louisville hat before choosing a black University of Washington hat. Hopefully Pitino and the rest of Louisville nation were not insulted by the gesture. The four hats that Tony left on the table were Seattle U, Louisville, Villanova and UConn. It appeared from the beginning of the recruiting trail that Tony was either going to choose University of Kentucky or Washington. Wroten decided not to commit right away to Kentucky and in that time, four other highly touted recruits snapped the offers they had recieved. Wroten claims that he is actually committed unlike both Enes Kanter and Terrence Jones who both made verbal commitments to Washington but later reneged to Kentucky.

Tony wants to win right away and joining a good team was a major factor in his decision to come to University of Washington. Lorenzo Romar says that that Washington will be bringing in five new scholarship players including Wroten. The two other commits include Hikeem Stewart who plays with Wroten on Seattle Rotary, and Jernard Jerreau a 6’10” forward from New Orleans. Kevin Davis from Tacoma Community College has also committed but it is still unsure whether he has the grades to transfer this year or he will joining with the 2012 class. Davis is a potential one and done candidate to the NBA. The Huskies will likely fill out their last roster spots with either one or both of the highly rated forwards from California in Angelo Chol and Norvel Pelle.

Wroten will fit right into the starting lineup at Washington. Nate Robinson claimed on twitter that Tony Wroten is good enough to play in the NBA right now. This past summer Tony Wroten Jr. was named the MVP of the Seattle Pro-Am League over all the other current NBA players from the area. The Huskies will likely play with a three guard lineup which will fit perfectly with Wroten’s style of getting up and down the court by really pushing the ball. The lineup when Wroten comes in next year is largely dependant on the potential NBA departures of Isiah Thomas and Abdul Gaddy. Wroten will be able to guard the 1, 2, or 3 positions at a very high level. Wroten projects as a pure point guard at the next level. It will be fun to see the legacy Wroten leaves in Seattle. Hopefully Washington continues to get commits in the future from the states top talents like younger guys Anrio Adams, DJ Fenner, and Jashaun Agosto

Photo credit: Seattle Times – Ellen M. Banner

Phil Heath

After graduating high school, Phil Heath left play to play division one basketball at the University of Denver on a full scholarship. Phil played both the point guard and shooting guard positions in Denver. Heath was known for his speed getting up and down the court and also for his defense. Standing at just 5’10” Heath could easily dunk when he was younger but his offensive game relied heavily on the three ball.

Phil was always a very muscular basketball player. After graduating from college and while looking for the next thing to do, Heath realized his body was more impressive than his body building friends. It was at that time that he decided to dedicate himself to the sport of body building. Phil switched to a more rigorous workout regimen and began eating six or seven meals a day.

Heath enjoyed immediate success being named Mr. Colorado in 2003 after graduating just a year before. Phil has completely transformed his body as a professional body builder. After his basketball career at University of Denver, Phil stood at only 195 pounds. Now Phil Heath competes at 240 pounds and is one of the best heavyweight body builders in the world. 2008 was Phil’s first time competing in Mr. Olympia. Phil finished third and it was the first time since 1993 that a rookie finished in the top three.

In body building most competitors do not reach their physical prime until their thirties. Phil has been respected as one of the top body builders in the world ever since his mid to late twenties. Heath’s body is famous for the size of his muscles in comparison to his tiny joints. The ease in which he rose to the top of the body building game and his super low body fat percentage is the reason he was given the nickname, Phil “The Gift” Heath. Heath finished second this year in the 2010 Mr. Olympia competition. Phil Heath will surely be one of the best body builders in the world for years come.

Be sure to subscribe to future posts from Seattle Baller’s by entering your email address in the appropriate field at the top of this page. Check out these Phil Heath videos.

Here is part one from the state championship game. Phil Heath gets introduced at the one minute mark and knocks down the first three of the game. Check out Jamal Crawford’s haircut. The entire game can be found if you are interested.

1. Tony Wroten, Senior, Garfield, 6’5”, G

Tony Wroten

2. Anrio Adams, Junior, Franklin, 6’3”, G

Anrio Adams

3. Gary Bell, Senior, Kentridge, 6’1”, G

Gary Bell

4. Hikeem Stewart, Senior, Rainer Beach, 6’3”, G

Yes, this is the younger brother of Loderick and Roderick Stewart.  Hikeem has already committed to Washington as this time around all the brothers advised him to stay home after their underwhelming careers.  Being an undersized shooting guard, Stewart has really had to work hard to climb the recruiting charts.  Hikeem is ultra athletic and can really stroke the three.  He jumped at Lorenzo Romar’s offer from UW and is currently their only committed recruit.  Stewart had some real breakout performances with Friends of Hoop AAU in Vegas this summer.  Look for him to become one of the better players in the Pac 10 by the time he is done. I could not embed this video on SeattleBallers but click here to see a highlight reel of Hikeem Stewart balling at Rainer Beach.

5. Brett Kingma, Senior, Jackson, 6’1”, G

Brett Kingma

Honorable Mention: D.J. Fenner (moved to Maryland), Dustin Watts and Davonte Lacy.

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Tony Wroten Slaming

Tony Wroten Jr. has long been the crown jewel basketball recruit of Seattle.  Wroten was ranked as the best player in the country his freshman and sophomore years by most recruiting services.  This all changed before his Junior season when he tore his ACL playing defensive back on the football team at Garfield High.  His knee had almost completely recovered six months later when the basketball team made the state tournament.  But Wroten made the careful decision to not rush his knee back into basketball activities fearing any setbacks.  During his year long absence from the national AAU circuit with Seattle Rotary, his player ranking fell to as low as 26th in the nation by Rivals.

It is safe to say Tony Wroten is back and as dominant as ever on the national basketball scene.  He was chosen to the U 17 USA National Team in San Antonio and recently won a gold medal with them in Germany.  His knee is almost back to 100% but it appears he already has more bounce than before his injury, this is likely the product of his body continuing to grow and mature.  The game seems to slow down for the 6’5”, lightning fast, pass first, point guard.  Wroten looks to be taking form as the top recruit in the country again.  He has yet to decide where he will be attending college but his top two choices are Washington and Kentucky.  Wroten expressed his displeasure in John Calipari at the Fab 48 Vegas tournament on twitter. Noting that Calipari did not attend all his games like Lorenzo Romar had.  It was in this Vegas tournament that Wroten solidified himself as the best player in the country again.  He terrorized the competition and took over the scoring load for his team when they needed it.  If you are not already following Tony Wroten on Twitter, you should be. He makes a lot of brash statements, but in general his twitter provides quality entertainment. Wroten recently tweeted “#ToBeHonest. If I’m not top 5 in the country then there shouldn’t b any rankings. Not being cocky just telling y’all how I feel.” He seems to be cut from the same cloth as Seattle’s own Brandon Roy and Jamal Crawford who both mentor him.

Video of Tony Wroten with Seattle Rotary at the Vegas Fab 48:

Martell Webster was raised from the time of his mothers death on by his grandmother. The first time he was contacted by his father came after he signed his first NBA contract as the 6th overall pick out of high school. The man who drafted Martell Webster was the great Seattle philanthropist, Paul Allen. Of all the children left alone after their Mothers were taken by the Green River Killer, it is safe to assume that Martell Webster is one of the few success stories. Martell is a perfect example of how it takes a village to raise a child. Martell received support from extended family, friends and coaches who all helped him on his path to stardom. It was very lonely for little Webster growing up with no parents and that is why he needs even more fan support. There should be plenty to cheer for as Martell Webster is embarking on his first season away from Portland after being traded to Minnesota where he should carve away a substantial role.

Here is the original story on Komo News with 4.8 million views:

Here Isiah Thomas and Jamal Crawford take their turns with Jashaun 1 on 1:

Isiah Thomas looks tired like he just finished working out so Jashaun keeps blowing by him. It was good to see Jamal Crawford clowning the little kid but Jashaun still held his own by shooting over him. I would be more surprised if Jashaun falls out somewhere along the line than if he has a successful career whether that is just in college or professionally also. Let me know in the comments if you think Jashaun Agosto is going to be a bust or not.

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Lateral Shuffle with Resistance Bands

Resistance Band Walking Lunge with Med Ball

Overhead Med Ball Toss

Dumbbell Squat to Press

Dumbbell Box Jumps

Split Squat Jumps

Dumbbell Clean Pull

These videos are all courtesy of Brandon Roy’s Official Site. The layout there makes it difficult to navigate back and forth between the videos which is why I linked them all here.

Make sure to follow me on twitter as I tweet there about Seattle Basketball more than posting here.

Next season Luke Ridnour will be given the starting spot for the Minnesota Timberwolves. This is not a bad thing as Luke serves to be an upgrade at their point guard position from last season. Luke backed up Brandon Jennings last season for the Bucks but Jennings is in a class above fellow second year player Jonny Flynn. Luke had arguably his most efficient season ever last year with the Bucks. Although coming off the bench, Luke was considered a much more reliable option and defensive upgrade over Jennings. Its seemed that every few games Jennings did not have his head in it for the night and was sat down for Ridnour’s defensive consistency. Look for the Wolves to have a better season this year. They added Michael Beasley and Darko Milicic to strengthen their front court. An even more substantial improvement was made on the wing with the fourth pick in the draft, Wesley Johnson. The Timberwolves even traded for Seattle’s very own Martell Webster who should be a major impact player on this Minnesota’s roster.

Luke Ridnour is entering his physical prime for his eighth season in the NBA. This will be his second team since being drafted by his hometown team the Seattle Supersonics. Luke played five years in Seattle and another two for Milwaukee before signing with the Timberwolves. Luke was raised in Blaine, Washington but decided to leave the state for college at the University of Oregon. His success as the Pac 10 Player of the Year and becoming the 14th pick in the 2003 NBA draft is what lead to the another great Seattle point guard, Aaron Brooks leaving for U of O.