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— Philadelphia 76ers (@Sixers) September 10, 2013
Want to join us as a social media correspondent for the team's 2013-14 Media Day? Here's your chance: http://t.co/Sy0X3lRHyk
We've made no secret of our issues with the Sixers' social media accounts... and that's exactly why someone reading this should be given the opportunity to be the team's social media correspondent on Media Day.
I urge everyone reading this to enter the contest - you never know what might happen. I threw my hat into the ring this morning, but after authoring untold editions of the Sunday Morning Shootaround, I'm fairly certain that Lennay Kekua has a better chance at manning the Sixers' Twitter feed.
Just so you know: Nothing much will happen at Media Day. The players will pose for pictures in their uniforms (which is a good thing given the fact that we don't know who half of them are yet), the coaching staff will give canned answers to stock questions, and everyone will deny that the team plans to tank this season. So if you do win the contest, it's probably best if you don't use the #WinlessForWiggins hashtag. Any and all references to @LibertyBallers are perfectly acceptable, however.
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(Cont.) There should be WAY more then 3-4 premiere R&B artists. @theweeknd @MiguelUnlimited #FrankOcean... There's some others also but...
— Royce White (@Highway_30) September 11, 2013
No one really talks about it, but Royce White is 100 percent correct: There aren't that may high-profile R&B acts anymore.
At this very moment, the top 4 male artists on the Billboard R&B charts are Robin Thicke, Drake, Chris Brown and Justin Timberlake. The problem, of course, is that none of them are R&B singers in the traditional sense (Thicke is probably the closest approximation, but he made more of a turn toward pop music on the "Blurred Lines" album).
The dearth of R&B singers isn't limited to solo artists - the same goes for groups as well. In the '90s, there was Boyz II Men, New Edition, Jodeci, 112, Guy, Blackstreet, Shai... and that's just in the male category (Destiny's Child, TLC, SWV & Total ruled the day for the women). These days, there aren't any notable groups to speak of, unless you want to count that abomination known as TGT (Tank, Ginuwine and Tyrese).
So, unless R. Kelly channels the "12 Play" version of himself on his upcoming album, Frank Ocean, Miguel and The Weeknd are the LeBron, Wade and Bosh of the R&B game until further notice.
Help us, Jon B. You're our only hope.
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Matt Moore said on the latest EOB podcast that the Sixers were purposely tanking LAST season. Strongly disagree.
— Bill(a)Self(ia) (@mrdangdang) September 14, 2013
Congratulations to the CBS Sports' Eye On Basketball podcast for perfecting time-travel technology that allows them to tape/re-broadcast shows from 12 months into the future.
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Lavoy Allen's best attribute? "Handsome". You heard it here first. #BeyondSport
— Beyond Sport (@BeyondSport) September 11, 2013
When asked what his weaknesses were, Allen reportedly answered: "It's a five-way tie between toughness, consistency, shot selection, self-motivation and Cranium."
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http://t.co/Xgr5T836iQ: Nerlens Noel Set to Sign With Reebok http://t.co/kuYTEcWniD @NerlensNoel3 @ReebokHoops
— SLAM Magazine (@SLAMonline) September 13, 2013
Big men don't sell shoes, but don't tell that to Reebok after the adidas subsidiary landed a sneaker deal with Sixers' rookie Nerlens Noel.
Since John Wall bolted for adidas in January, Reebok basketball is struggling to gain market share in a crowded footwear marketplace. Re-releases of Allen Iverson's past shoes are the company's best-sellers - understandable when your primary endorsers are Jameer Nelson, Jason Terry, Isaiah Thomas, Andre Miller and Willie Green.
According to Slam Magazine, Reebok is in the midst of revamping their basketball line, and Noel is just the first domino to fall in the company's reboot. For what it's worth, whatever sneakers Noel winds up wearing - and I hope he gets to rock those butter-soft Questions - are guaranteed to look better than those monstrosities that Evan Turner puts on his feet every night.
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"@Michael_Levin: GUYSGUYSGUYSGUYSGUYSGUYSGUYSGUYSGUYS #HanginWithSpencer pic.twitter.com/EuhYn4UDU4" #unblocked
— Spencer Hawes (@spencerhawes00) September 14, 2013
Well... this actually happened.
A little background: Early last week, a young man named Mike Levin mentioned that he was planning to make a trip to the Seattle area with the goal of meeting Spencer Hawes. And through the power of mutual friends and cellular telephone technology, the EIC of Liberty Ballers and the tallest member of the Washington Huskies' fan club hugged it out in a non-descript sports bar somewhere in the Great Northwest.
Of course, Mike hasn't told anyone the details of said trip (he's still in the midst of what we like to call "the afterglow"), so you'll probably have to check out this week's edition of the Rights To Ricky Sanchez podcast to find out how the #HanginWithSpencer movement ultimately played out.
Just to be clear, if you thought that Hawes's peace agreement with Levin means that we'll refrain from ripping the 7-footer here on LB, you would be sadly mistaken.
(By the way, our long national nightmare is over: Hawes has apparently unblocked Levin on Twitter. Between that and Syria, it's been hard for me to get a good night's sleep over the past few weeks).