76ers Do It Right

Andre Miller (above R), Samuel Dalembert (below L), Kyle Korver (R), Louis Williams, & Willie Green of the Philadelphia 76ers didn’t spend yesterday looking at the photo of Shaun Livingston’s knee injury, they were out educating kids. From 3:30 to 5:30, the beasts took 20 lucky 7th & 8th grade students to three African American historical sights in Philadelphia.

After watching the special about Oprah’s Academy that she opened in South Africa, a friend said to me “Yeah, it would be nice if she did it here.” Agreed, but let’s not forget about hotties who try to change and inspire kids in different ways. During their tour, the 76ers stopped at the Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, the Civil War and Underground Railroad Museum and the Atwater Kent Museum of Philadelphia.

If you check out the 76ers site, you’ll find that these guys are busy, year round, helping kids, while playing some wicked ball during the season. On February 15th, Korver was hawking bobble-heads for his foundation, and has, to date, collected more than 2,887 new coats for kids through his Kyle’s Coat Drive efforts. And just when I thought he couldn’t get any hotter, I read his ‘review’ from an October 2006 Basketball Without Borders trip to South Africa. “I remember there was one little boy who just wanted me to hold him (yes), to hug him (yes), to love him (Yes!). They don’t feel that [in their situations]. For 35 minutes, he wouldn’t get off my lap (Can you blame him?) When you leave, your heart goes out to them. You like to think you’re helping out, having a positive impact. They see us, they light up [even though] they don’t really know us. We’re just a bunch of tall guys.” Oh Kyle, you’re much, much more than that.

FRANCESCO TOTTI

No, I’ve been ignoring him by any stretch of the imagination. Just waiting for his digit to find its way to his mouth. Francesco Totti, who is the Series A leading scorer this season, kicked in season goals 15 and 16 to help the AS Roma beasts rally for a 2-2 draw against Chievo Verona today. The thumb-sucking celebration was replaced with a double-de-licious cop-a-feel-of Simone Perrotta, and for that Mr. Totti, you can take a bow.

CEDRIC MAXWELL: MENSA REJECT

Why the Celtics aren’t firing this guy is beyond me. Celtics radio commentator Cedric Maxwell will apologize during the team’s game tonight against the Knicks for saying female referee Violet Palmer should “go back to the kitchen” during Monday’s game. Over the airwaves, the former Celtic ordered female referee Violet Palmer to vamoose after she made a controversial call, and followed it up by saying “Go in there and make me some bacon and eggs, would you?” Sources said that Maxwell “won’t face any disciplinary action besides making the public apology.” This guy reminds me of a local broadcaster in San Diego who once said, “Women have no place in baseball” after the Yankees hired a female to call their games. It’s Rejects like this that set woman back in the sports industry, and a simple “I’m sorry” doesn’t cut it with me. Its defamatory, bigoted, outdated, and an obvious indicator of Maxwell’s limited intelligence. Until the team fires this idiot, I won’t give the Celtics any love, and I certainly won’t be making this asshole breakfast anytime soon.

OUCH

I thought long and hard about posting this photo, but it’s the talk of the town right now and we all love a good “Ouch” every now and then…The infamous LA Clipper Shaun Livingston shredded the hell outta his knee, ripping ligaments left and right and will miss the remainder of the season, most likely in bed with a stock pile of Vicodin. Glad it isnt me…

RAFAEL NADAL VIDEO FROM DUBAI

Currently, our Spanish delicacy is battling against Igor Andreev at the Dubai Open, and while searching for any live-video from the event, I came across (pun intended) this video of Rafael enjoying the Wild Wadi Water park rides and photo-shoots. If you wanna see our Tapa, topless, emerging from the water as he shakes his hair like a mythological creature from our fantasy banks, you gotta check it out.

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com

VAMOS RAFA

Our wettest import, Rafael Nadal got by Marcos Baghdatis during their second round of the Dubai Duty Free Open. Our Spanish delicacy stumbled in the first set, but rebounded something fierce in the second before clenching the victory in the third. “I was coming out of a long break, and it showed in the first set,” Nadal said. “Even though I was practicing hard in the last couple of weeks, it took me some time to get my rhythm on the court.” Yum.

HONDA GOES GREEN

Props to Honda for unveiling the first Formula One car free of sponsor logos. The RA107 will replace logos with an image of the earth to highlight Honda’s environmental commitment. Visitors to www.myearthdream.com can have their name placed on the car, pledge to improve the environment or make a donation to an environmental charity. My Earth Dream certainly includes Honda driver Jenson Button, who assisted in unveiling the car at the Natural History Museum in London. “Formula One and the environment may not seem exactly bedfellows,” team boss Nick Fry told reporters at the unveiling, “There will always be that last few percent of cynics but we found very strong support right across the world to do something in this direction. The global reach, the number of people we can talk to, is immense, so we can change minds. We are going in a more environmentally-friendly direction with the systems we put on the car and Formula One is really a laboratory for road car technology.” The team said, through the Web site www.myearthdream.com, that anybody could have their name on the RA107 car by making a donation to an environmental charity. “Under the concept of ‘our car is your car’, each name will form a tiny individual pixel which will help build the image of planet Earth on the car,” it said. “Each name will be visible on the Web site when you make the pledge or under the microscope on the car.” So start donating and help save the world!

JETER GETS BUSH AND MANTLE ON TOPPS CARD

A Topps employee with a great sense of humor, inserted images of Mickey Mantle and President Bush in the background of Derek Jeter’s ’07 cards. A uniformed Mantle “is shown handling a bat in the dugout, while behind Jeter, walking through the lower box seats, is a waving President Bush.” Topps spokesperson Clay Luraschi: “Someone was having a little fun between the final proofing and the printing process.”

MLB ALL STAR WARM UPS

The MLB All Star Game will roll into San Francisco on July 10th, and preparations in the form of pimp-the-hotties is heating up. Mets babes Carlos Beltran, Superfine Jose Reyes and David Wright gave new meaning to San Francisco treats as they filmed a commercial for FOX Sports promoting the 2007 MLB All-Star game.

JOHNNIE WALKER CLASSIC

Poor Yum-Yum…animal abuse is everywhere, but somehow Yum-Yum seemed to have herself a good time. Maybe she got a few nippers of Johnnie Walker Red in her before molesting golfers Colin Montgomerie, Chinarat Phadungsil or Retief Goosen (R). The golf kats posed with the four-year-old Thai elephant during a photo call to launch the 2007 Johnnie Walker Classic on the beach at the Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket Hotel today. The 2007 Johnnie Walker Classic will take place this weekend, and rumor is that Yum-Yum will be Retief’s caddie.

SIMIAN PRESIDENT TAINTS HEAT
I don’t care why they were there, but the Miami Heat can no longer be one of my favorite teams. Shaq and Wade, laughing it up with Him is far worse than any interaction Tiger may have with R-Fed.

And I thought it would be fun to post some of the transcript from the chimps welcome speech: PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Please be seated. It is such a joy to welcome the NBA champs, the Miami Heat, to the White House. Glad you’re here. This is the Miami Heat’s first NBA championship. I congratulate you on a tremendous achievement, even though you beat a Texas team I can assure you, however, then Governor Bush, the Governor of Florida, was thrilled, as were a lot of Florida fans. We’ve got a lot of members of the congressional delegation…blah, blah, blah. Most importantly, we got members of the Miami Heat family with us today. I’m really proud of Micky Arison and Madeleine, who is with us, as well as Nick. As you know, I used to be in pro sports (YEAH RIGHT). I never had the pleasure of winning anything. (Including the election?) Must be pretty cool.

I welcome Pat Riley…blah, blah, blah…(insert finger down throat) I want to say something to the spouses of the players. Welcome. You’ve got a tough life in many ways with your spouse on the road all the time, and you deserve as much of this championship as they do. (not) And so we welcome you here to the White House, as well. All the fans who are here, thanks for coming. These players did something that they weren’t supposed to do. Remember, they went into the Eastern Conference championship as the underdog. Nobody thought they could win. (Uh, yeah we did) And then they get against the Mavericks, and they’re two down, and 13 points behind with minutes remaining, seven minutes remaining in the third game. (Wow, great research by someone).

Blah, blah, blah…Dwyane Wade led the team in scoring Most Valuable Player in the finals. (not anymore) He was on the Sportsman of the Year for Sports Illustrated. All it said was, Dwyane Wade plays to win. (And his endorsement fee goes way up) Unfortunately, he hurt his shoulder. I know a lot of NBA fans, whether they like the Heat or not, are pulling for Dwyane to get back into action. We wish you a speedy recovery, Dwyane. (Brown nose much?) Or take Alonzo Mourning. A lot of folks here in D.C. remember Alonzo Mourning. I don’t know if the people understand it, but Alonzo had a kidney illness that a lot of folks said, well, he’ll never get back on the court again. He not only got back on the court, he blocked a lot of shots which helped this team become the NBA champ. (Champ or Champs) And then, of course, probably one the most well-known figures in the United States of America is a fellow that’s hard to miss, a fellow Texan (and bitter MVP loser), big Shaq. He scored his 25,000th point in his career last night, or recently. And we congratulate you for that, last night, yes, last night (read your cards please). And but he was an important figure in seeing to - seeing this team to the championship. But as Coach Riley gave me — he said, just remember, the motto wasn’t, each star matters; the motto was, “15 Strong.” In other words, it was a team effort that got these men here to the White House (kinda like you did?). They had the stars, (you don’t) everybody knew who they — who the stars are, but it was the capacity to play together, to put the team ahead of themselves, that enabled them to be here at the White House, saying, congratulations NBA champs. And I appreciate very much — so they asked Dwyane Wade — he was the fellow that was the Sports Illustrated man (yeah, we got it the first time you said it ten seconds ago)– he said, “We did this together.” In other words, he recognized, in spite of the fact that he had a fine series, that he couldn’t have done it without his teammates. Pat Riley had a lot to do with this team playing as a team. A team requires a good, solid leader in convincing people to put the team ahead of themselves. (like you did to our country?) And that’s exactly what Pat Riley has done. I’d say he’s accomplished. After all, he’s won seven NBA rings, that’s all. They asked him about this ring, and I think it’s interesting what he said. He said, “I would have traded them all for this one.” (and I’d trade you for another ‘leader’ in a second) He cares about this team. And obviously, the players responded to his leadership. But what impresses me the most about the Miami Heat is their work in the community. That’s what impresses me about them. I mean, I’m in awe of their athletic skills. Standing next to Shaq is an awe-inspiring experience. But I want to share some of the stories of these players, and what they have done in their communities. (Because you cant find the funding to do it yourself?) Alonzo Mourning dedicated his entire salary from the Heat to charities that help low-income kidney patients and underprivileged youth. It wasn’t 10 percent. I would suggest not popping up on every story because you’re going to be tired. (What?) This is a giving team. (Unlike our government) Antoine Walker founded the Eight Foundation, to provide education and sports opportunities for inner-city kids in his hometown of Chicago. (Because our government won’t) He came from Chicago; he’s putting something back in the community from whence he came. Dwyane Wade has given a lot of his salary to his church. He donates basketball shoes to a youth sports program at his alma mater, which happens to be Marquette University. He founded Wade’s World Foundation, which gives children educational and social opportunities, such as the chance to spend a day at Disney World. And then, of course, you’ve got the big man, Shaq. He works as a reserve police officer with the Miami Beach Police Department. (LOL) He gives new meaning to the phrase, “the long arm of the law.” Heat players volunteer their time in all kinds of causes, ranging from reading to drug prevention to youth basketball. This is a championship team on the court, and this is a championship team off the court, and it is my high honor to welcome to the White House as the NBA champs. END and vomit.

“Guess it shows how much Americans care about soccer” – A guest at the Elton John AIDS benefit on Oscar night, on a private soccer lesson from David Beckham being the lowest-selling lot at the auction, going for $70,000

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com

SWISS MISS

Roger Federer was given a cake and a traditional Arabian khaniar this morning in celebration of his accomplishments, making me wonder if we should just rename February 26th as R-Fed Day? Today’s official ATP rankings have confirmed that the Swiss Miss has reigned supreme for 161 weeks, one upping Connors record from 1977. The painfully humble Federer, who shuns the limelight like a Gremlin on acid said: “I have been counting the days…this record is something special to me. Even if I lost it tomorrow it would still take somebody more than three years to beat it…I’ve never come close to losing it apart from when I played Andy Roddick in the 2004 Wimbledon final. It’s quite an amazing streak I am on,” he said. Tonight, the tennis master begins a quest to win one of the few trophies he failed to capture last year, ya know the one-its sitting in Rafa’s house right now- the Dubai Duty Free Open. Look for the next R-fed holiday when he breaks the all-time record of 286 weeks on top of the world, held by Pete Sampras.

GIANT IDOL

Prior to their spring training workout this morning, the SF Giants held their second annual ‘Giants Idol’ competition. Modeled after our favorite guilty pleasure, American Idol, Giants’ outfielder Randy Winn played Randy Jackson, first baseman Rich Aurilia was Simon Cowell, and this year’s Paula Abdul role went to Barry Zito. (Last years Paula was Barry Bonds). The event stretched on for two days and featured hot rookies performing in front of the whole team.

Hotties who vied for the Idol title included pitchers Tim Lincecum, as Frank Sinatra, Osiris Matos, Oscar Montero, Ivan Ochoa…

Second baseman Kevin Frandsen rocked it as Will Ferrell, and outstanding performance came from outfielder Eddy Martinez-Esteve, who shook his inflated ass while busting out a questionable version of “Baby Got Back.” For more info, and to see who won, check out the Giants website.

CHELSEA BITES BACK

They came, they saw, they conquered, and they fought. Our fabulous Chelsea beasts in blue beat Arsenal 2-1 in the final at the Millennium Stadium yesterday, in a match which produced possible disciplinary action from the English Football Association after a massive brawl broke out.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho pulled some testosterone outta his exceptionally fine ass and took the field in an attempt to stop the fight. During the second half, the match was stopped twice…John Terry was kicked in the head and knocked unconscious. (Terry is fine and was able to rejoin the team for their victory celebration) and then the fight, which produced three red cards.

Beast of my heart, striker Didier Drogba scored twice, and Frank Lampard was on-point with his praise of my baby: “He’s special, he’s the best in the world at the moment. He does it week in, week out and on the big occasions.” This big occasion also elicited some fantastically ripping remarks by heartthrob Mourinho: “We showed character, I don’t think we played a great game. Arsenal played well, they have a great team and a great coach but football is about winning and the cup belongs to us.” For a minute-by-minute blow of the match, read more here.

NBA BAD BOYS

In 2003, Gary Payton (L), Sam Cassell (M) and Jason Caffey (R) were charged with assaulting a male stripper outside of a downtown Toronto strip club. Last week, Justice William Bassel ruled that Payton likely sparked a dispute with foul language and taunts, but that his “offensive conduct” was not on trial. The judge said that the testimony of the dancer and his stripper fiancé was riddled with exaggerations and inconsistencies and cleared the three playas of any wrongdoing. In January 2005, Caffey was caught up in a nasty lawsuit involving a former San Francisco prosecutor who had been accused by State Bar officials of bilking the retired baller out of more than $2 million and cheating him in the sale of his Oakland hills. Now, the 6-foot-8 forward, who played pro basketball from 1995 to 2003, is in trouble again. This time, a press release was issued and it looks like we have a Mensa reject in da house: ‘Former NBA veteran and two-time NBA Champion Jason Caffey was ordered arrested and incarcerated today in Fulton County Superior Court for his failure to pay over $77,000.00 in child support and attorney’s fees. The Order goes on to say that he shall remain in jail until he pays the full amount and proves that he has medical, dental and life insurance for his child. Randy Kessler, lawyer for the child’s mother notes that, “Mr. Caffey just isn’t taking this seriously. He doesn’t support or communicate with his child. Hopefully, now that he must face real consequences, he will realize the severity of the situation, and will live up to his obligations.” Jason Caffey won two NBA Championships while playing with Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in 1996 & 1997.’

I NEED A WAX
David Wright’s stellar physique has been immortalized in wax. The sexy Met posed for his wax likeness, which will be displayed at Madame Tussauds around Opening Day…note to self, time to loot Madame Tussauds.

I’M SKY-HIGH

I love me some Kanye West and I love me some Nike…now, I can have the best of both worlds. Nike announced that it has commissioned a song from some prominent hip-hop hotties including Kanye West, Nas and KRS-One, to mark the 25th anniversary of its Air Force 1 sneakers. Nike “paid the artists for their work, will own the copyright to the recordings and even supplied the song’s theme, perseverance.” The company will “donate all sales proceeds to youth programs in Baltimore.” Nike will promote the song to radio stations and I will promote the song to my hormones. (N.Y. Times, 2/26).

DAVID BECKHAM AND HIS CONTRACT
Love this report regarding David Beckham and his alleged $250M contract. According to reports, Beckham’s playing contract with the MLS Galaxy is worth “about $27.5[M] in base salary over five seasons, a fraction of the $250[M] income figure floated for [Beckham] when he agreed to the deal last month.” Beckham’s spokesperson, Simon Oliveira, “would not confirm the figure but didn’t dispute it.” Oliveira: “That is only one element to his salary and package, which had to be disclosed in accordance with MLS guidelines.” Sources said that Beckham’s contract is a “complex and probably unique arrangement” that gives him a “percentage of club sponsorship, merchandising and uniform sales contracts” and also includes promotional arrangements. Which means, if you do the math, that Beckham is estimated to earn $25M a year in off-field endorsements etc, and yes, this is believable, at least for now.

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com

RAFAEL NADAL

Dear God help me…does Rafa have any idea of what kind of wet ride my libido is on after seeing him like this? Rafa, topless on a water-ride, are you kidding me! If he never picked up a racket again I would be okay with it as long as he went to theme parks such as the Wild Wadi Waterpark. This doesn’t mean I’m not counting down the minutes until our beast starts swinging at the Dubai Championships tomorrow, where Rafa faces a tough draw.

Last year, Rafa ended R-Fed’s three-title sequence at the event, and this year, Rafa and his biceps are poised to defend. As the returning champ, Rafa has to get by a very difficult first round opponent, hairy beast Marcos Baghdatis. The match will played be on Tuesday at 7pm local time (4pm CET, 10am EST, 2am Sydney). As Federer seeks his revenge on our Spanish treat, the Swiss-miss will overtake Jimmy Connors’ record of 160 consecutive weeks as world number one, and I’m sure we wont stop hearing about it.

BAD BOYS

I have absolutely no idea who this treat is, but I do like his style of play. Spaniard Nicolas Almagro fell on the court during a Telmex Cup quarterfinal match last week, and thankfully, decided to share his injury with us…

..and on Friday, Andy Roddick gave us some feisty-love as he broke his racquet with those big, strong hands of his after losing a point. A-Rod went on to spank British babe Andy Murray at the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships in Memphis, before he faced a greedy Tommy Haas, who served Andy a mojo-quashing 6-3, 6-2 spanking in the Final.

CAW-CAW

Although I really don’t enjoy rugby games, I would never turn a blind eye to its hotties, especially when Russell Crowe is involved. On 19 March, 2006, the voting members of the South Sydney Rabbitohs National Rugby League club voted to allow Crowe and a buddy, to purchase 75% of the club. Since then, Crowe has been a major supporter of the Rabbitohs rugby team and is often seen decorating the sidelines. Even before Crowes partial ownership of the team, he made them the first club team in Australia to be sponsored by a film when he negotiated a deal to advertise his movie Cinderella Man on their jerseys. Yesterday, Crowe was on hand to watch the NRL trial match between the his hotties and the Cronulla Sharks in Gosford, Australia. Check out the website for a full roster of Crowe’s boys.

BRONCOS CURSED?

The Denver Bronco’s have lost another hottie. Running back Damien Nash mysteriously collapsed and died after a charity basketball game in suburban St. Louis on Saturday. Nash collapsed shortly after participating in the game benefiting a foundation named for older brother Darris Nash. The foundation raises money for heart transplant research and was established last month, after Darris Nash, received a heart transplant. My condolences to the Broncos and Damien Nash’s family, especially Darris, whose new heart is surely breaking.

LADAINIAN TOMLINSON’S FATHER

NFL MVP LaDainian Tomlinson is also nursing a broken heart after his father was killed Friday. Oliver Tomlinson was killed at about 1:30 p.m. after the pickup truck he was riding in blew a tire and flipped on a Texas highway. The driver, Ronald C. McClain was rushed by ambulance to Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center, where he later died. The 48-year-old McClain is believed to be a relative of Tomlinson’s, possibly a brother. Witnesses reported that a tire on the 1969 Chevrolet truck blew, causing the truck to swerve out of control and flip over near an intersection east of Waco near Asa. Both men were thrown from the truck. Again, condolences to LaDainian, his mother and his family for this tragic accident.

THREE STRIKES LAW?
Darrent Williams was killed in a drive-by shooting; the Cincinnati Bengals had nine players arrested in the last year; in December the bodyguard of a Chicago Bears player was shot and killed; Titans cornerback Pacman Jones was involved in a Las Vegas shoot out; Rams backup tight end Dominique Byrd will go to trial July 9 after pleading not guilty to charges that he assaulted a man; St. Louis Ram Leonard Little, was involved in a drunk driving accident killed a woman in 1998…and so on and so forth. So how do ‘we’ control these outta control players? Well, the NFL is throwing around a Three-Strikes-Your-Out-Policy. “The one thing that I thought that was surprising to me is the (players) are sort of moving in the direction of having penalties similar to drug policies — that at some point you’re out,” said Gene Upshaw, executive director of the NFL Players Association. “You can’t continue to keep violating policies. You can’t be in the wrong place three or four times. One time, two times maybe, but three or four times in the wrong place at the wrong time? They didn’t like that.” I’m 100% in support of this ‘new law’. These men are supposed to be examples and role models, with plenty of kids and Athlebrity lovers looking up to them. Their off-court antics and shootings do nothing except tarnish the leagues/teams reputations, and really, we’ve got way too many good guys out there to waste our time with the Mensa Rejects. Yank ‘em and spank ‘em I say. And in terms of the bad boys in the NBA…sure, we got some gun slinging and strip bar brawls on the books, but nothing in comparison to the NFL. Rumor on the street is that the NBA is compiling a list of bars that NBA players are prohibited from visiting. Not sure how this will play out legally, as it seems to me that this would be a violation of a players rights off the field, where as the three strikes law is a better way to go in terms of the legal repercussions.

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com

The U.S. Open and Australian Open have done it for years. Even the French Open jumped aboard last year, and now, finally, Wimbledon will pay equal money to the men and women who compete at the June 25-July 8 grass-court championships. “I knew it was just a matter of time,” defending Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo said. “They resisted the longest they could. They have made the right decision and they really had no choice.” R-Fed, the 2006 champ earned $1.17M and Mauresmo earned $1.117M. So, it came as a huge surprise, that the negative comments regarding the prize money didn’t come from R-Fed, but from Tommy Haas.

”What is there to say?” Haas said. ”Personally, I don’t think it’s really fair. I think the depth of men’s tennis is much tougher than the women’s, plus we play the best-of-five sets. ‘On (a) grass (surface), you might think it’s not as brutal, but you have to be in unbelievable shape on grass as well. Even though the points are shorter, the ball stays lower. The top (women) obviously train very hard and are very good tennis players, but in general, I don’t agree with it.” When asked if the prize money should have remained as it was, Haas replied: “Yeah…It’s not really a big deal at the end of day,” he said. ”Like I said, I think my statement says it all. I think the men do a little bit more out there than the women, especially in the Grand Slams. I don’t really agree with it.” LOSER! While Haas may have the oomph in the looks department, he has lost serious hot points for his “statement”. Obviously, this right-handed German beast is driven greed. Haas is currently earning his paycheck at the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships in Memphis. The purse for the men’s first place finish is $128,000, compared to the women’s prize of $28,000.

Other the other hand, we’ve got sexy Brit Andy Murray, who dominates Hass in the intelligence category. “I think it’s obviously great for women’s tennis,” Murray said. “It’s probably the only sport in the world where women are making the same money as men. That can really only be a good thing. Guys are obviously going to be annoyed if you go and play a five-hour match and then the women play a 45-minute match and they are getting the same money. But that’s not really the point. Bar some of the top females, a lot of the guys get very good sponsorships. In the smaller tournaments, there’s more money on the men’s side, so apart from the grand slams, I think there are more tournaments on the men’s tour as well.” Most recently, Murray spanked the mojo outta Andy Roddick at the SAP Open in San Jose.

TRADE OR NO TRADE

While NHL fans keep an eye on Tuesday’s trade deadline, every national sports television and radio network in Canada will devote hours to the trades, real or imagined. According to the Sports Business Daily, Sportsnet has spiced it up to fill the long, dull periods when no players are actually being traded. Sportsnet is dressing up the women from the Canadian version of “Deal Or No Deal” but instead of suitcases the panel of hockey experts will be shown hockey sticks with players’ names on the blade and they will debate, “Trade or no trade.”

A RAY OF LIGHT FOR LANDIS

It’s just a matter of time before people begin to make up their own minds and not be clouded by the bitter French lab that has been accusing our hot cyclists of cheating. Now, documents show the French lab that produced positive doping results against ‘06 Tour de France winner Floyd Landis “may have allowed improper access to [his] urine samples,” and this is just one of a number of errors that could jeopardize the alleged case against Landis. The lab committed a similar error in ’05, which resulted in doping charges being dismissed against Spanish treat Inigo Landaluze. Two Mensa reject technicians from the lab “were involved in both the original urine analysis and a second, validating test” according to a report in the LA Times. Int’l standards prohibit technicians from doing both tests, but it certainly doesn’t surprise me that they bent the rules in their favor.

NBA CARES

NBA Cares has posted a plethora of hottie related, autographed items up for bids. An Allen Iverson autographed jersey has a current bid of $575.00, in comparison to Kobe’s signed jersey for $1083.24, but if you’re on a budget, you might still be able to win the Jason Kidd jersey which is only at $300.00. (maybe if 5-0 signed it the bids would go up?) Those of you with deep pockets can also bid on an All Star signed basketball currently clocked in at $1,525.00. My favorite item is the Timberwolves Team Autographed Authentic Locker Room Player Chair; current bid $275.00 (too bad you can cuddle up with it). And for all you Raptors fans, how about the carpet from the locker room? Due to the renovations last summer, the carpet is a piece of history with the signatures of the entire 2006-07 Toronto Raptors. The auction runs through February 26th and benefits Community Partners.

WHAT AND WHY?

Following the footsteps of Athlebrity-dating queen Alyssa Milano, actress Scarlett Johansson has launched her own line of clothing, courtesy of Reebok. Creatively titled Scarlett [heart] Rbk, the line will launch next Thursday and features “brightly colored sneakers, short-sleeved hoodies and tees with heart-shaped cutouts.” I’m not sure how or why this is happening, but Scarlett best keep herself on the big screen. We’ve got enough wanna-be crossovers in the sports world already.

SPORTS BABES BOMB
Anyone else out there catch wind of this Internet show called Sportsbabes? The online video program debuted February 14 and the hosts are five “sports-obsessed” women who sit around and “talk sports” via a 3-minute, rehearsed, not funny and bo-bo-boring roundtable discussion. The show features MTV’s Lauren Bergfeld, former Speed Channel reporter Vicki Johnson, model and actress Keriann Kada, and MarieSam Sanchez and Marisol Salguero of the L.A. Times sports desk. Considering the resumes of these women, I expected much more. I’ve even had better conversations with a bathroom stall than these women have with each other. Sorry ladies, you gotta beef it up a bit, because I don’t imagine your looks alone can sell this idea. Predicted shelf life? 6 months tops.

IAN POULTER

Like I said before, I just can’t get enough of Ian Poulter and his flashy, sexy silhouette attempting to tap it in the hole.

BARRY ZITO A GIANT

I may redact my previous ‘Barry Zito is too fem for me’ comments after checking out he and his lips during Giants Spring Training….

STEVE NASH GQ PARTY IN VEGAS
I just found this great video of the Suns in Vegas and a double de-licious interview with Steve Nash as he arrived for the GQ Party. (Click on video dated Feb 17th, Nash Party.)

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com

FRESH MEAT

Once again, East Coast Correspondent Elena has pulled through and proven that she has an eye for all things hot and Columbian. Case in point: Jose Manuel Garrido. Our new Athlebrity golf beast was born in Columbia on 6-9-78, a fitting birth date I would say. He has swung his clubs at the Champion I Saw Open, Q-School European Tour, Opened Champion XXI of Golf, Coffee Opened Champion XXIX of Golf, Opened Champion LV of Golf, CC Manizales, Champion 45 the Open International of Golf and numerous other tourneys. As Elena so eloquently wrote: “He makes Camilo look like an ant.” Camilo is indeed a super-fine ant, but I must say Garrido definitely belongs in the anthill. As of now, news is scarce on Garrido and his activities, but fret not my little sporn-kats, we’ll be seeing much, much more of this sexy Columbian beast very soon.

MORE FRESH MEAT

I’ve got your Formula 1 right here…Yes, I’ve been ignoring the NASCAR and Formula 1 babies for far too long, so lets rev up our engines and say hello to Nico Rosberg. This German-born beast has a year of Formula One racing under his belt, a highly motivated team, and rumor is, this is his year. This 20-year old blonde beauty is managed by his father, Keke, a former world champion driver. “I was about 10 years old when I first understood how complex and difficult the whole father-son thing is for us,” Nico said. Well, it cant be that difficult, because goldie-locks here was the fastest driver on the final day of Formula One testing at Valencia in Spain. Look for his yumminess as he starts his second season racing with the British team. Hotties bio can be read here and an interview can be read here.

NY METS

Ya know I base my ‘teams’ on hotness, and I dare say that there isnt a hotter team warming me up during Spring Training right now than the NY Mets. Double-de-licious Mets creatures David Wright (L), Lastings Milledge (M), Jose Reyes (R) and Jason Vargas (Far Right) are just a few that make my libido sing. Wright earned some major hot points for playing in a charity golf tournament to benefit the Southfork High School baseball team prior to spring training. He’s up…I’ll be watching these precious boys all season, so get used to ‘em.

FLASH KAT IAN POULTER

I can never get enough of Ian Poulter and his sexiness. The plaid, purple and white were busted out as my (yes I admit it) favorite golf-kat took the course during the WGC Accenture Match Play Championships. And I’m proud to announce that Ian and his flash did us all proud by beating Bradley Dredge during the tourney.

BURN HIM
**Note- this story is disturbing** This guy makes me sick and I have NO trouble saying that I would love to douse him in gasoline and drop a lit match nearby. Falcons defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux. Here a partial reprint of the police report: ‘Gwinnett County Police said officers were dispatched Sunday evening to the Animal Emergency Center, where the staff told them that 24-year-old Blair Anderson had arrived with a pit bull mix that was dead upon arrival. Police said Anderson told them she and Babineaux, 25, had argued at their home. She said she went to the movies, and upon returning found Kilo, her year-and-a-half old dog, in “severe physical distress.” Police say Babineaux gave them a story that was inconsistent with the injuries Kilo suffered. Babineaux was released on a $2,300 bond.’

Cant say I feel any better about Falcons owner Arthur Blank who indicated he would not cut Babineaux before his trial, saying, “There’s this thing called the legal process that’s even above the NFL and sports. Are we concerned? Yes, we are, and we’ll deal with the issue.” But Blank said that the team would not make Babineaux a “sacrifice to public opinion.” Blank: “That would be the worst possible thing we could do. It would be a slap in the face to the judicial system. Making the concession of throwing somebody on the fire would be the worst thing for our organization and the worst thing for Atlanta.” NO it would not. If the Falcons don’t dump this poor-excuse-for-a-human-being, I will never forget it. Hopefully, there are some Falcons fans that feel as strongly about this as I do about this….Where’s PETA when you need them?

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com

I WANNA KISS

All our clean cut, fresh, sweet beasts have been busy while I was AWOL. The WGC Accenture Match Play is underway in Arizona, and what better way to warm up for it that the new PGA Ad? In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, the PGA Tour broke the new ad called ‘First Kiss’ during coverage of the Nissan Open on Golf Channel and CBS. By the way-mad props to my boy Charles Howell who, after going 4 ½ years and 127 starts on the Tour, finally came, saw, and conquered a victory at the Nissan Open. When he tapped in the 3-footer to win, he closed his big beautiful eyes, tilted his head back, hugged his caddie and in my mid, thought about me.

But back to the Kiss…In the spot, Tour babies Adam Scott, Camilo Villegas, Sean O’Hair, Zach Johnson, Dean Wilson, J.J. Henry, Lucas Glover and Aaron Baddeley fawn over the inaugural FedExCup trophy. Adam Scott kills me as he opens with a “I will be the first to kiss her” in his oh-so sexy Aussie accent. Lucas Glover: “You may not conquer with a sword, but you’re conquered by a kiss.” Baddeley concludes: “I’d fly to the moon and back, if she’d be my baby!” The spot closes with an image of the FedExCup trophy and the line, “Who will be the first to kiss her?” My only complaint about the spot is the absence of Camilo. This could be the first round of these ads, so Ill keep my libido honed in on any further developments. In the mean time, Wonder Twin powers need to activate me in the form…of…the…Trophy.

FootJoy’s SignBoy is also back with new TV ads featuring our Camilo Villegas, Adam Scott and Davis Love III. The spots will run yearlong on Golf Channel and network tour telecasts. On their congested website, FootJoy also launched an online sweepstakes through March 15 where fans can view the spots, provide feedback and enter to win ReelFit and Classics Tour golf shoes. I attempted to ‘view’ the spot but like I said, the FootJoy site isnt working too well right now, so keep checking for this delicious spot.

CHELSEA GETS TUBED

Our Chelsea hotties have become the first Premiership football club to strike a deal with YouTube. Delivering all the must see footage of Drogba, Terry, & Shevchenko, Chelsea’s games will appear on a tailored page on the site. A Chelsea spokesperson said that no money was yet involved in the tie-up and that the team could consider adding advertising in the future.

PAULO MALDINI-FIED

Sexy AC Milan captain Paolo Maldini has become only the fifth player, and first Italian, to notch up 100 Champions League appearances when AC Milan began their first round first leg match against Celtic on Tuesday. But wait-do I sense a little Federer-style attitude? “Obviously it’s a big honor for me,” Maldini told reporters on Monday. “But I used to play in the competition when it was not called the Champions League and I feel I have made more than 100 appearances.” Maldini undoubtedly has made more than 100 appearances, on the field and in my dreams, so keep it up my fine Italian beast, and we’ll forgive the ‘diss.

JOSE CAN YOU SING

The finest player on the NY Mets, SS Jose Reyes, has recorded two reggaeton tracks called “La Rompe Discoteca” and “Encen,” which can be heard at www.myspace.com/rickycash. This super-fine beast, who’s been hailed as the hottest-short-stop by many astute fans, has actually been using his own song as he takes his at-bats during the games. Ya know I usually prefer Athlebrities to keep it real and not try to bust out with a CD…BUT, Reyes has made my libido sing, dance, and shake as I listened to his funky Caribbean-style-hip-hop-reggae–flavored tunes. Check ‘em out, I think you’ll jump aboard the Jose Reyes has-it-going-on-bandwagon.

STEVE NASH: GOOD GUY
People can bitch about Stave Nash and his injuries all they want, but off the court, he is one of the good guys. Nash has agreed to appear in print and billboard advertising for watchmaker Raymond Weil’s RWSport Line, but instead of accepting money for the endorsement, Nash will have the money donated to the Steve Nash Foundation. Raymond Weil also agreed to donate an extra $60,000 to the foundation. And its not like this is the first time Nash has done something outstanding off the court. A few years ago, he was approached by an Auto company (might have been Cadillac) and he turned down their endorsement offer because their cars weren’t “environmentally friendly”. Now this is how a hottie earns a ‘What a man, what a mighty, mighty good man’ nod.

NIKE PRO COMMERCIAL
Dear god these men are fine: Nadal topless, Thierry sweating it up…this pretty much sells me on anything Nike.

VEGAS PART TWO
“David Stern seriously needs to consider moving the event out of the country for the next couple of years in hopes that young, hip-hop hoodlums would find another event to terrorize. Taking the game to Canada won’t do it. The game needs to be moved overseas, someplace where the Bloods and Crips and hookers and hoes can’t get to it without a passport and plane ticket.” For each and every details of who was where and what they were doing, check out Norm Clarke’s review. He’s hit the nail on the head with the above quote. Yesterday I omitted all the gunfire from my blog until confirmed reports came in from Vegas. My cell phone was off the hook with reports. ”Did you hear Young Jeezy and his posse got into a shoot-out at the Wynn? Did ya hear about the shooting at the MGM? Did you hear about the shoot-out at Caesars? What about the shots fired at the Aladdin? Oh my god, Pacman was in a shoot out at Minxx” And so on and so forth. What I find really interesting is that reports are either: “The NBA was great for Vegas” or “We feared for our lives with all those thugs in town.” So which is it? In Las Vegas, Antonio Planas reports:“All-Star Weekend revelers have transformed the league’s midseason exhibition into the new millennium Freaknik, an out-of-control street party that features gunplay, violence, non-stop weed smoke and general mayhem. But there were multiple brawls, at least two shootings, more than 350 arrests and a lot of terror in Vegas over the weekend.” The only terror I felt while in Vegas was the inability to get my paws on Melo. Yes the crowds and traffic were out of control. Getting from one venue to the next took a lot of patience and at times was impossible. Gridlock prevented hotel-to-hotel party-hopping. Even if you had a car it would have taken an hour to drive one block. Planas also writes that: “There were so many fights and so many gangbangers and one parking-lot shootout at the MGM Grand that people literally fled the hotel in fear for their safety.” Come on people, it wasn’t that bad! Considering that estimates put the crowd at 250,000, two or three shootings isnt so bad, especially considering all the ‘gangs and possee’s’ which were apparently “terrorizing hotel guests.” Admittedly, we didn’t walk the strip, but we did drive it. Sure, it wasn’t the friendliest crowd I’ve seen. It was dark and scary and I can see how unsuspecting Chinese New Years celebrants were skiddish. Many hotels actually reported that a lot of high-end clients checked in and then immediately checked out…too bad for them, they missed all the fun!

PRINCE: 3121 CLUB

Here’s some fodder for all you Prince fans. As you know we hit up 3121 more than once. 3121 is just about the best club I’ve ever been to. It has an intimate nightclub vibe, with giant video screens playing some of the best music accompanied by video’s of happy, happy people dancing and just having fun. Friday night, Prince opened with favorite 1999 B-Side “Something In The Water U Drink.” We certainly weren’t drinking water as the Artist ran through the club giving handshakes, sweaty towels, passing off his guitar to fans and pulling people on stage. (Other songs that night: 3121, If I Was Your Girlfriend, Pink Cashmere (Prince said “now THIS is my JAM!), Lolita, Black Sweat (He pulled up 2 BIG beautiful hot sista’s to work up a serious sweat on the stage), Kiss, and Let’s Go Crazy. As mentioned before, Gnarls Barkley performed ‘Crazy’ while Prince rocked out, mid-crowd, on his guitar. Another surprise cameo came from the late great Nat King Cole’s Daughter, Natalie Cole. The after show guests included: Michael Jackson, Macy Gray, Bobby Brown, Paul Wall, Natalie Cole, Will.i.am of the Black Eyed Pea’s, Gnarls Barkley, Doug E Fresh, Barry Bonds, Queen Latifah (on the mic telling all the ladies to “stand up and make some noise”) and yes, Dave Chappelle was in da house, looking hot, healthy and ready to party. Inside the ya-gotta-know-where-it-is Club, the music room was dark and packed. The band shouted: “Do you love live music?” and the fun began. I couldn’t possibly give you a minute-by-minute blow of how awesome it was to see Prince jamming with these various artists in an intimate setting. Check out Prince.Org to read some excellent reviews by die-hard Prince fans that live and breathe for this Artist.

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com

HOW THE WEST WAS WON

I don’t even know where to start, except to say that the following events are true. Some names have been changed to protect the naughty, the nasty and the nice. So let’s get started…recap part one.

Upon arrival in Vegas, our first shoe-to-shoe meeting was with Darryl Dawkins at the airport. This tall, beautiful man had heads turning at the baggage claim as he chatted with a friend. Fortunately, Debbie and I are not shy and Mr. Dawkins was more than happy to oblige our request to chronicle the journey of our ‘shoes’.

As we jumped into our car, we asked the driver if he knew what was going on this weekend. We told him we had heard “there was a basketball game” and he said he had heard that the NBA was in town. Had heard? How could anyone miss it? Life sized hotties were advertised on any and all available space. Massive Kevin Garnets, Dwyane Wades, Tim Duncans, Tracy McGradys, and Dwight Howards decorated every inch of the town from buses to billboards to hotels. It was like being in heaven. After the obligatory stop at a liquor store for Jack and Belvedere, we checked into our suite at the New York. Our 1600 sq foot room, located within earshot of the roller coaster, was begging for a party. Bottles were opened, the girls were ready and the hunt for hotties began.

Within 30 seconds of exiting the elevator we encountered a fine posse of men. After a round of introductions, we had ourselves free tickets to the Kanye West show. It’s important to keep in mind, that everyone in Vegas claims to be “someone.” Although this particular posse claimed to belong to a famous recording artist, we couldn’t be sure. Pirates were abound as much as the real thing and our guard was up. (* A Pirate is someone looking for booty under the guise of a VIP)…we left this posse and headed for the Aladdin.

Entering the Aladdin, we were transported to yet another world. I can’t tell you how many tall, fine, blinged-out men decorated the hotel. Two exceptional specimens came in the form of twins. Wonder Twins extraordinaire! These boys were in Vegas for a modeling gig, so I was able to acquire a new poster-child and get my new man to model a prototype of the soon to be released Athlebrity t-shirt. I’d say the shirts will they sell themselves and heads up readers, these twins are actively seeking more work, so spread the word.

Next up, we hit the MGM Grand. To name just one baller we saw would be impossible (Yes I know impossible is nothing, but add some vodka to the mix and it’s a tough call). One fine baller, who refused to be photographed (or named), indulged in our shoe journey and posed with his alligator kicks. We then got a call from our New York posse, telling us to meet them at the Kanye West show. They were waiting for us at the entrance with VIP tickets, no strings attached, and escorted us into the show before cutting us loose. Kanye rocked the hell outta that place and we send a massive thanks to this particular posse of classy men who guard (sorry cant name him) a certain performer.

Thursday’s tip-off began at the Wynn. The Boost Mobile Zo and Magic’s 8-Ball Challenge celebrity pool tournament was going off. Magic Johnson, Alonzo Mourning, Queen Latifah, and Ludacris hosted this popular event which filled the Wynn with Athlebrites. There was a lot of attitude at the hotel. LA style attitude, which means no one wanted to be bothered. We ogled for about ten minutes before getting the hell outta there in search of a friendlier event.

Friday night-lights: where do we go? LeBron’s party at Light? The Nike party at Tao in the Venetian? The ESPN party at Tryst Nightclub? The McGrady-Diddy party at Jet? The Jordan party at the MGM Grand? Kenny Smith’s All-Star Bash at the Empire Ballroom? Our options were overwhelming. First stop was the Palms. Because it was the official player hotel, the place was jammed with fans, cops, bodyguards, news cameras, and yes, our boys. Nash, Duncan, Garnett, James, Melo, Shaq, Wade, etc…they were all there. Problem is, no CAMERAS allowed in the casino area. My heart raced, sank, and broke as Melo was standing next to me (surrounded by about ten armed guards) and I couldn’t even get a photo with him. A very sexy Kenyan Martin seemed a bit bored and lonely as he waited for a friend outside the 24/7 café in the Palms. He initially came-off as ‘irritated’ and I asked him if he was fed-up with the photos yet because it was only day one. He laughed and said, “Ya know, sometimes I just wanna relax and have fun”. What-you’re not having fun with us!!! This got him to bust out laughing and broke the ice. Props to him for keeping it real. Also outside the café was someone we heard called “Keenya” or something like that. If anyone out there knows who he is, let me know. He was beautiful, nice and funny.

After a while at the Palms, and getting our fill of eye candy, we went back to the Rio. We figured because all the ‘fans’ were at the Palms, some players would be over at the Rio to ‘relax and have some fun’. The Rio did not disappoint. First up. Allen Iverson. (Remember, no CAMERAS in the casino). The Answer was at a reserved blackjack table, with a bottle of champagne and a gaggle of gun- slingers keeping us at bay. In his white do-rag, flashy shades, and phenomenal aura, we watched the beast play for a while. As he was leaving, I gave him a “I love you Allen” to which he turned to me and said “Love ya too baby”. Bull’s babe, P.J. Brown thought he would slip by the girls, looking super fine in his Deuce McAllister jersey. No such luck…we spotted, we conquered, made him laugh and took off.

Friday night we went to the Prince show. Debbie is maybe the third biggest Prince fan in the world. The top two fans were in line every morning at 3121 waiting for that evenings performance, which translates to waiting in line from 8AM until 10PM. Gotta say, I’m glad we had tickets ahead of time, but if we didn’t, I certainly would have waited. Prince’s show lives up to the hype and then some. Gnarls Barkley made a surprise appearance, and we were lucky enough to meet and squeeze this cuddly man after the show. The real action was at the VIP after party, of which we will review for you tomorrow. Everyone was at this show- Queen Latifah, Dave Chappelle, Doug E Fresh, Will.I.Am. (Black Eyed Peas) and yes, even Michael Jackson! Saturday’s spectacles were numerous. The biggest event was the NBA Players Association All-Star Gala at the Mandalay Bay. We were invited to this party and Jamie Foxx’s private party by a posse we met at the Rio. We slammed a few drinks with the boys before turning down their strings-attached offer. Wasn’t sure who they were at the time, but later found out the posse leader is married to a very famous R&B singer.

The biggest disappointment was the event billed as the So So Derty Experience. We were promised Carmelo Anthony, Nelly, Lil Wayne, a VIP table, and free drinks. Ha, what a joke! After getting through all the metal detectors, coke dealers, and clouds of burning blunts (yummy), we were escorted into a gymnasium with no tables, no free drinks and some of the dirtiest ‘ho’s’ I have ever seen. After complaining to the event coordinator, and informing her that we weren’t the only ones complaining about NO TABLES for VIPS, she told us “Well, you’re just going to have to learn how to mingle better”. We mingled our way outta there so fast, and I urge all of you not to attend or support any events put on by Loose Cannon Productions.

Luckily, we got a car, fought the traffic and made our way back to the Rio. We were en route to a party at Tao, but one of my girls called and told me they shut the event down. At this point, we just wanted the sanctity of our Rio casino. And boy, did it do us right. Here’s a tip for all you star-chasers…camp at the elevators. Actually, ride them for a while…waiting in line for a shot of espresso, we noticed a posse of bling with boxes and boxes of Sean John clothing. As we took our eyes off the merchandise, we noticed Allen Iverson among the group. Now dressed in black, the Answer made his way with the posse to the elevator. Luckily we overheard what room they were headed for, and as luck would have it, they were just down the hall from us. We slammed our coffee and headed up to 1210. As we got off the elevator, we could already hear the music and smell the ganja. We passed the room, for shits and giggles, but did not interrupt the party. While Iverson is exceptionally hot, he was also extremely unapproachable. Not to say it’s a bad thing, he didn’t have attitude, he was just in his own little world. We respect everyone’s privacy and space and left Allen alone. As we left the 12th floor, several of his posse members met us at the elevators. No names needed. These guys were cool, friendly and reeked of cash. Again, an invitation was extended to attend a party with them, but we already had too much on our plate.

We hit the casino, played some dice and spotted a cutie. Thad Luckinbill from the Young and the Restless looked restless indeed! I had no idea who he was, but he was too cute not to be someone. After chatting with him for a few minutes, I flashed back to my wonder twins and asked Thad if he happened to have a twin brother- his answer floored me. “Yeah, and he’s here, I just can’t find him.” We invited Thad to join us at the craps table, which he accepted, until a flock of Y&R fans spotted him. We left him alone to do his “thing” and attempted to find Thad and his bro later, but got sidetracked by the Prince after party…

I know most of you were expecting photos of all the fine ballers we met. Unfortunately, due to the restrictions on camera use in casinos, this was extremely difficult. There are some aspects of the trip that fall under the ‘what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas’ category, and out of respect for all the fine ballers who let us into their lives, I gotta keep some stuff in the vault. Also, our Cirque performer was not a part of the half-time crew. Because she stars in KA at the MGM, so she was too busy there to be pulled away for the game. Thanks to her for the VIP tour and tickets to the show. If you ever get a chance to see KA, I highly suggest it.

Much, much more on Vegas tomorrow, as well as all the shootings and stray bullets we dodged. I couldn’t possibly fit the entire week into one blog. Photos that I could share have been uploaded to Shutterfly. All others are in the vault.

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com

***D&D’s All-Star Week in Vegas Activities will be posted on Tuesday…we have some great stories to share about playa’s, posse’s, parties, Prince, and far too much Belvedere. We also have a new Athlebrities Posterboy that you do not wanna miss!***

Tomorrow, D&D arrive in Vegas. As our list of must-do events continue to grow, so does our anticipation. Adidas is rolling out the red carpet for the NBA All-Star’s first-ever visit to Sin City, and has “fan and player activities throughout the week.” Adidas will continue its season-long marketing efforts with a heightened presence during the week. Everywhere that fans go during All Star they will be greeted with the message, “nobody gets here alone” as they bring the Impossible is Nothing brand attitude to life in basketball. We, on the other hand, will bring the Impossible Is Nothing attitude to all aspects of our trip.

Echoing our ‘In Our Shoes’ efforts, I quote Erich Stamminger, President and CEO of adidas: “NBA All-Star is a chance to celebrate the game of basketball and to tell an important Impossible is Nothing message. At adidas we aim to inspire and enable all athletes to attempt and achieve their impossible. We recognize that the NBA All-Stars may have accomplished their impossible, but we also know that they didn’t get here alone. We want to celebrate the journey and everyone who plays a role in making it all possible.” And that is also what we aim to do. Celebrate your journey with us by sending us your All-Star week photos. We’ll be posting our journey as it unfolds…via our cool sneakers and sexy heels…watch as our shoes walk the red carpets, parties, games, jam sessions and concerts. Share your stories with us and let’s all establish that Impossible is indeed nothing.

NASHED POTATOES

So now Suns hottie, Steve Nash has withdrew from Sunday’s All-Star game because of a nagging injury in his right shoulder…the league’s two-time defending MVP has missed the last 3 1/2 games because of the injury…blah, blah, blah…said Monday he won’t play at Seattle…blah, blah, blah…means Nash will have had two weeks to rest…blah, blah, blah…treat the shoulder… coach Mike D’Antoni said…blah, blah, blah…YES…Nash will attend the All-Star festivities in Las Vegas, the team said. Whew…

And how cute is this? Two tiger cubs born on December 30 at Phoenix’s Wildlife World Zoo have been named Nash and Raja after Suns’ beasts Steve Nash and Raja Bell. The little cubs met their namesakes today at the US Airways Center. As part of the NBA Cares initiative “Read to Achieve,” the event will also feature a reading to about 50 elementary school students of Maurice Sendak’s “Where the Wild Things Are” by former NBAer Mark West.

JUST MAKE A ROSTER AND STICK TO IT ALREADY!

With Nash out, a replacement will be named for him in the NBA Skills Challenge on Saturday. Nash was going to face LeBron, Princess Kobe and D-Wade in the challenge. What’s a challenge to me is keeping up with the roster…D’Antoni, who is coaching team West, has replaced injured starter, Yao Ming, with my baby Carmelt-in-my-mouth-Anthony. Utah’s hottest beast, Carlos Boozer is injured and replaced by a not nearly as hot Josh Howard.

BRING IT ON

Christina Aguilera, Toni Braxton, and Mary J. Blige, will headline the entertainment for the All-Star Game. Aguilera and Braxton will headline the halftime show (Sunday, Feb. 18 at 8 p.m. ET) with Christina rocking the house as she performs “Ain’t No Other Man” and “Candyman.” Mary J will kick-ass and take names as she sings “Be Without You,” and then the rock goddess will pay tribute to NBA Cares with a special performance of her rendition of the U2 original hit “One.” Footage from some of the hundreds of NBA Cares events, featuring current and former NBA beasts working in communities around the world will be thread into the performance.

Like I said, our schedule changes on a daily basis, but I’m proud to announce an Athlebrity exclusive. News reached us today that artists from the show ‘KA’ will perform a dynamic display of acrobatic martial arts from the opening act of KA, the gravity-defying production presented at MGM Grand. And that’s where the exclusive comes in…we are going to have a guest blogger from KA tell us her experience as a performer in this incredible show. Our personal Cirque girl will also be on hand with us for part of the week, so look for D&D with an acrobat balanced on our shoulders…

SURVIVAL KIT

It’s taken hours of research and a plethora of personal experience, but we’ve finalized the contents of the D&D Survival Kit. Things no girl should leave home with if she wants to be comfortable at all times…a detox facial kit, q-tips, waterproof bandages, insoles, Love My Straps for your shoes, Visine, breath-mints, hand sanitizer, mouthwash, band aids, moisturizing face wipes, Pepcid, disposable shoes (these fit nicely into your purse, simply replace your high-heels during long walks to remain comfortable and blister free), a first aid kit, a sewing kit (in case you bust a button), Chaser Plus hangover cure, and last but not least, baby oil.

SEE YA IN VEGAS!

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com

It’s hard to belive that NBA All Star Week is finally here. If you’ve never been to Vegas, you should go. If you love hot ballers, you should go. If you love hip-hop, you should go. If you read my column, you should go. And if you really don’t care, then you should. At least for the next week or so because I’m ignoring my usual list of non-NBA hotties till then.

Sin City has been infiltrated by some of the hottest Athlebrities, all of who are hosting parties every night this week leading up to Sunday’s game. (Game? What game?) Aside from the obvious eye-candy, the parties are sure to attract some scandalously behaving hotties, which Debbie and I hope to capture for our sporn collection. I couldn’t possibly list all the must-go-to events…Ya got parties and events by Jamie Foxx, the Black Eyed Peas, My Melo, Akon, Allen Iverson, and personal favorite Prince. During our party hopping, Debbie and I plan to behave like angels during the So-So Derrty Experience featuring Kanye, Nelly, Melo, Lil Wayne and others. For a complete listing of events, please visit: www.vegasallstarweekend.com

There will be plenty of Anheuser-Busch flowing in Vegas. Today, the company announced a multi-year extension with the NBA to keep Budweiser and Bud Light as the league’s official beer sponsor. A commemorative, and appropriately sized 16-ounce aluminum bottle featuring the ’07 NBA All-Star Game logo, will be released at the events this week.

T-Mobile today unveiled the Sidekick 3 D-Wade, designed by Dwyane Wade and his lips. The Sidekick comes in white to reflect Miami’s South Beach, paired with tan and copper accents to emulate the look of high-end cars. (Copper is high-end?) And Wade’s No. 3 appears in gold to refer to the Heat’s ’06 NBA Championship trophy. “My T-Mobile Sidekick is a part of me. I don’t go anywhere without it because it keeps me in touch with the most important people in my life,” said Wade. “I really wanted to design a Sidekick that meant something special to me – one that reflects my own personal style and inspiration.” The phone hits retail February 21 for $299.99. Love the marketing for this Sidekick…I requested the room directly behind Dwayne’s lips on the giant banner which graces the side of the Mandalay Bay. (Wish me luck)….During the NBA All-Star Jam Session, fans will be treated to an interactive walk through “T-Mobile’s Mind of D-Wade.” The two-story exhibit creates a figurative walk through Wade’s world to experience his life and dreams as a basketball player, the inspiration for his Sidekick, and the history of the T-Mobile Sidekick. Wade will also make a special appearance during the Jam Session, which will be held adjacent to the “Mind of D-Wade” exhibit, to host a basketball clinic for fans. I can only wonder if the entrance to Wade’s World is a giant pair of glossy, plump lips? And Hot Points to Marc Cuban, who bitched slapped Dwyane…“Your coach sat players for being fat. I guess you couldn’t lead them away from the buffet” – Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban, in his blog, responding to Heat G Dwyane Wade saying that Mavericks F Dirk Nowitzki’s lack of leadership was the reason his team did not win the NBA Championship last season.

Think It, Belive It, Become It. Indeed.

Carmelo Anthony always finds a way to make my heart beat faster. After Melo finally got a nod for the All Star game, he is now making his C1.5 Extreme Energy drink available for the first time. IMG, the company behind C1.5 Extreme Energy Drink, has signed on with a local Vegas beverage distributor to launch the drink during the week. In addition to the launch, Intervest Media Group has launched a web store www.c15energy.com that sells the drink, as well as some (sorry Melo) boring apparel.

Looks like I may fly to Phoenix for the day because Suns babes Boris Diaw, James Jones and Jumaine Jones, among others, will direct planes, make boarding calls, unload luggage and take boarding passes at Sky Harbor Int’l Airport in Phoenix as part of a Southwest Airlines promotion. But really, I should have gone over the weekend, when hotties hosted the Suns & Stars Gala. Grammy Award-winner Seal was on hand to perform, and received an autographed team ball and jersey from TV analyst Eddie Johnson. Hotties Raja Bell, Kurt Thomas, Marcus Banks, Boris Diaw, Leandro Barbosa, Pat Burke and Sean Marks lined up for a yummy group photo.

And one Suns hottie who is reaching out is Amare Stoudemire. According to the Arizona Republic, AMARE “plans to promote his mentor foundation — ‘EACH ONE, TEACH ONE’ in opposing cities.” He also “plans to star in a documentary about his hardscrabble beginnings, to be used as a inspirational tool for troubled children.” Stoudemire published an eight-paragraph letter in the Denver Post last week before the Suns played the Nuggets, in which he wrote he wanted to “encourage everyone to become mentors to young people, even if it’s for a couple hours a month.” Stoudemire said, “One of my pet peeves is education. It goes back to the days of slavery, when Black people weren’t allowed to read or to educate themselves. Now, we have all these opportunities, and we’re still not educating ourselves.”

All Star Line-Up

Your Eastern Conference All Stars: Chauncey Billups, Chris Bosh, Caron Butler, Vince Carter, Richard Hamilton, Dwight Howard, Lebron James, Jason Kidd, Jermaine O’Neal, Shaq, and Dwyane Wade.

And your Eastern Conference babes are: Josh Howard, Princess Kobe, Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Allen Iverson, Shawn Marion, Tracy McGrady, Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker-Longoria, Amare Stoudemire, and Carmelo Anthony. So who will win? Don’t care! Both have phenomenal rosters but if I had to choose, my moneys on the East…

IN OUR SHOES: COUNTDOWN 2 DAYS
Follow along in our footsteps as D&D take Vegas by storm. Countdown: 2 days. If you are going to be in Vegas for All-Star week, we wanna see what you’re doing. Send us a photo of you and your shoes…take us on your journey, while we take you on ours. We’ll attempt to update the blog daily, giving you up close and personal access to wherever our shoes go. Red carpets? Prince at 3121? Private parties? Perhaps a stroll along some healthy abdominal muscles…who knows…. but we wanna follow along with your stories too! D&D will be just about everywhere, so look for us in Las Vegas beginning on the 14th, we’ll be giving away lots of Athlebrities merchandise, so we hope to see you there.

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com