Ian will be a regular contributor on Heels on Hardwood going forward. He originally began by winning a contest to Photoshop Charlie Villanueva with hair that turned into this and has since been working on multiple animations involving the Raptors. I am really excited to have him on board so look out for more original stuff coming up in the future.
Animation by Ian Cartoons
Special thanks to @stackmack and @TasMelas for inspiration
A little background…
During the so called “off-season”, I relied on Twitter to get my basketball fix. Along the way I came across @Vulcanoboy who had won a contest run by Charlie Villanueva. We get to talking and he informs me that he is a cartoonist in his down time. With that said, I came up with the idea to run a series introducing the Toronto Raptors and here is the start of what I hope becomes something epic. The plan is to have the Raptors staring 5 introduced and if all goes well we will try to bring you once each month recapping how the team does on the court.
Shaq’s new reality show became the inspiration for this installment of “Listmania”. If you didn’t catch the first episode of Shaq v/s, Lang Whitaker over at Slam did a solid job of recapping it. With the premise being Shaq challenging other athletes at their own sport, I decided to take a look at the NBA and see which players would dominate another sport aside from Basketball.
Steve Nash – Soccer
This one was a no-brainer. His passion for the game has been well documented, and he happens to be quite crafty with his feet as seen in the video and head as displayed at All-Star weekend a few years ago.
Nate Robinson – High Jump
The NBA has a plethora of high flying acts but ‘lil Nate gets the spot. His added flair makes him the perfect candidate to succeed at an individual sport.
Ron Artest – Boxing
They guy may have his issues on the basketball court, but if there was one NBA player I would bet on in the ring it would be Ron Ron.
Rasheed Wallace – Football (QB)
That arm! Rasheed Wallace may have found his calling when he threw up a 3/4 court Hail Mary. Has the QB skills and the ability to switch it up with some blocks for his men.
Shaquille O’Neal – Diving
He may be trying out things like beach volleyball and football but his real talent is diving. He has mastered the landing with minimal damage and makes it look more graceful each time.
Didier Mbenga – Judo
The strongest man in the NBA? Mbenga is a Black belt in Judo and from the looks of it he was ready to try out some of his moves on Chris Mihm.
Monta Ellis – Motocross
He may have been riding a moped, but the injuries he incurred lead me to believe he must have been trying some fancy tricks on that bad boy.
Vladimir Radmanovich – Snowboarding
He sure thought he was a pro when he decided to hit the slopes. Unfortunately it turns out he needs more practice.
TJ Ford – Track
His last name is sure giveaway for the Hemi engine that seems to power him. End to End there may not be a faster guy in the NBA. Or is there?
Jordan Farmar – Poker
He is new to the game and may not have a poker face yet but he had a great showing at the 2009 WSOP. Wouldn’t advise him to quit his day job, but it may be in the cards for the future.
The NBA puts some of the best athletes in the world on the court but sometimes its not always about the game. I put together 10 random moments on and off the court from last season that got me to raise and eyebrow, do a double take or just left me speechless….
Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow…
Allen Iverson: All star weekend is usually about everything but the game and this year was no different. All-Star regular, Iverson showed up in the team locker room rocking a new do. Gone were the braids that had become his trademark, and were replaced by a fresh buzz with a #2 blade. It was a long overdue change but one that had everyone doing a double take.
Random Acts of Shaqness
Shaquille O’Neal: Shaq has a larger than life personality and it took on a whole new form this season with the help of twitter and a group of masked men. During the all-star game, the Big Shaqtus stole the show as he joined dance group Jabbawokeez in a choreographed routine to introduce the players. (Video) It didn’t stop there as Shaq ventured into the Twitterverse and starting connecting with fans, having them go on Shaq hunts around different cities. One of my favorite stories of an Act of Shaqness came from two guys who met him at a diner.
Lights, Camera, Action!
Lebron James & Shaquille O’Neal: They may be teammates now but last season they had a rather unique duel going on. Who can put together the best pre-game intro’s. Pre-Game rituals have been a part of the game for a while – the dancing in a circle & the chest bumps but Lebron and Shaq took it to another level. Family Photos, Bowling pins, I can only imagine the creativity next season as they will star in the same intro.
Revenge on the Rookie
Jason Thompson: Rookie hazing is pretty common in the NBA, and most rookies get subjected to some level of humiliation during the season. Enter Jason Thompson of the Sacramento Kings, who one day forgot to come through on his rookie duties and well he paid for it. (Video) My favorite part – “Well now you have something to snack on while you driving”
Baby Mama Drama
Chris Bosh: This is one guy who worked hard to create an image. He was the geek, who made a video to gain some votes for a popularity contest. He embraced technology and when he went on twitter and sent out some subliminal messages no one blinked. Late last season that image was marred with the news that he was a “deadbeat” dad. While stories of this nature come out all the time in pro sports, it was a shocker to see who was linked to it this time.
Animal Instincts
Kevin Garnett: Kevin Garnett is a beast. When he steps on the floor, its with a take no prisoners attitude. His competitive edge is great attribute to have but at times last season we saw him go out of control. I for one was pretty disgusted…
Kevin Garnett Barks at Bayless (Video)- Kevin Garnett Gorilla Defense on Calderon (Video)
Tattoo-gate
Marcin Gortat: When speaking fo the Orlando Magic, Gortat is a role player who just happens to have given himself one of the coolest nicknames in the NBA. During the playoffs last season, the “Polish Hammer” got a call from the people at Reebok (who happen to provide him with his shoes) asking him to cover up the Jordan tattoo at the back of his leg. Gortat’s response was a classic – “I don’t think they are paying me enough to take it off.” He never did listen and so along with his new contract came a new shoe deal- this time from Nike.
I Salute You
Nate Robinson: With all the talk about young players throwing up signs during games, Nate Robinson threw up one of his own early in January. It was a salute to his online gamer friends to prove that it was really him playing them. (Photo)
Faux-Hawk Phenomenon
A bunch of players: I can’t recall who the pioneer was, but the Mohawk trend began spreading like wildfire through the NBA last season. Who rocked it best? Greg Oden. He had it right while others look like they just ran off the barber’s chair before he could finish up the job (see: Amare Stoudamire) Really though… it’s not a good look. Come next season I hope the trend has gone to die following the path of grown men wearing pantyhose under their shorts.
Hibachi Gone Cold
Gilbert Arenas: While Arenas wasn’t producing much on the court he was still entertaining his fans over at his blog. It became a place where fans went to embrace his persona and bash it at times, but it kept him relevant through his time away from the court. Just as the season kicked off, he told the press he was shutting down- there was talk about blogging being like a double edged sword and so on but it seems he had bigger plans in store. A book! Score Like Agent Zero – by Gilbert Arenas will be hitting bookstores in Feb 2010 (Via Gilbertology)
