Amare Makes The Cover of SLAM

Amare Stoudemire graces the cover of SLAM Magazine's 147th issue, its a two cover issue, him on one and Blake Griffin on the other.

Here's some from SLAM Online:

'The last time a Knick was on SLAM’s cover? SLAM #36, almost 12 years ago!) The longer you speak with Amar’e—which I did, about all of this stuff, after our shoot—the more you realize that as much as Stoudemire has done for the city and people of New York, the city and people of New York have done equally for him.'

Check out the rest HERE

Danilo Gallinari Doesn’t Want Stardom

via slamonline.com

The myth — constantly pushed by fans and media in and outside of Gotham — is that playing in New York can bring great athletes untold riches, fame and happiness. These are things that most players want, naturally, but it’s not often that you hear an athlete publicly shy away from them.
For the Knicks‘ Danilo Gallinari, despite his burgeoning play of late, the burden of stardom is something he’s not quite ready to face yet, if ever.
Gallo tells the NY Times that despite growing expectations, he’s by no means a star:

On Tuesday night, Gallinari helped spearhead a furious second-half rally in a loss in Denver. On Wednesday, he propelled the Knicks to a victory in Sacramento. He was dynamic, confident, crafty — everything the Knicks hoped he could be when they made him the sixth pick in the 2008 draft.
The expectations have at times been too much to handle. Gallinari has embraced the spotlight, but he is weary of the scrutiny and the questions that accompany every subpar game. This season has had more than its share. So after six breakthrough quarters, in which he looked very much like a potential star, the 22-year-old Gallinari swiftly punctured the notion of his stardom.
“I know you expect a lot from me, and people expect a lot from me,” Gallinari said late Wednesday night, “but I’m not a superstar, I’m not an All-Star, I’m not LeBron, I’m not those great players. I’m an important player of the Knicks. And that’s what I’m trying to do, to help the team every time. Sometimes, can be these type of games, sometimes not. But as long as we win, it’s all good.”

It’s a smart move on his part, a coy attempt to deflate the pressure and keep expectations at a reasonable level.

Read more HERE

HEATHATERS: Miami Heat Ban Anti-LeBron Writer

via slamonline.com

Pro tip for any of you aspiring hoops scribes out there: repeatedly calling one of the L’s biggest stars “the whore of Akron” in print probably isn’t the wisest career move. Just ask this Esquire writer: “Everybody’s a critic. At 4:01 P.M. yesterday, I get this e-mail from Tim Donovan, head of media relations for the Miami Heat: ‘Scott: You are no longer welcome at our building and will not be credentialed moving forward. Tim’ That’s it. That’s the whole e-mail. So I send back an e-mail at 4:04 asking why. No reply. I suspect that Tim objected to something I wrote yesterday. I referred to LeBron James as the Whore of Akron — maybe that was it.”

Read More HERE

HEATHATERS: LeBron James Thinks He Played Too Many Minutes

via slamonline.com

“For myself, 44 minutes is too much,” James declared. “I think Coach Spo knows that. Forty minutes for D-Wade is too much. We have to have as much energy as we can to finish games out.” There you go, Coach Spo. Get to know him well.

Two days earlier, James had done nothing in overtime and ultimately decided the difference was a Hall of Fame coach, Jerry Sloan, who knew exactly what the Heat were going to do. James never takes responsibility, never says, ‘I’m the MVP and I need to do more.’ He didn’t do it in Cleveland, and he’s never going to do in Miami. Now, 44 minutes in a grudge game with the Celtics is too much. Always an out, always an excuse.

Slam Magazine Larry Johnson Q + A

via Slamonline.com

SLAM: How’d you first get involved with Fila?
Larry Johnson: I was with Fila my first year with the Knicks after I had a bit of a falling out with Converse. It was professional. Then I wore the shoe here today while I was with New York. The people at Fila were first class and they treated me great.
SLAM: They’ve tied in the four-point play too, right?
LJ: It was my biggest play in New York. I can’t get by without anybody asking about it.
SLAM: Why do you think that play has become so iconic?
LJ: Because it happened in New York, and it happened against Indiana and Reggie Miller in the Playoffs. In the Playoffs, at that point, you only have four teams going, so everybody is just watching those four teams.
SLAM: What else have you been up to since you retired?
LJ: I have seven children, four boys, so that’s a whole lot. I mess around with them a lot. I went back to UNLV in 2007 to get my degree in communications. I mess around with the team every now and then and show them some post moves, and I hang with my sons. I also have this bottled water company. We do spring water, an energy drink called Hydro Power and a sweat tea. So I’ve been keeping busy.
SLAM: Do more people remember you for that four-point play or being Grandmama?
LJ: There are women 40, 50 and 60 years old who don’t know anything about basketball, and I tell them I played Grandmama, and they go, “Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.” So I would say Grandmama.
SLAM: What do you remember from doing that commercial?
LJ: When I signed with Converse out of college, they told me we were going to do a commercial with me, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. They said they would have me on a gurney sleeping and covered up so you don’t see me. Larry Bird was on one side and Magic Johnson was on the other. They were doctors. They were creating the best basketball player. So then they say we have to name it. Larry Bird was going to say, “His name should be Larry,” and Magic was going to say, “His name should be Johnson.” Then they would go back and forth saying “Larry” and “Johnson.” Then I would raise up. So then I signed with them. Then they come back two months later after I spent the money and bought my mom a house, and they say, “We’ve got another idea. We want to put you in a dress.” That was Grandmama. [Laughs]
SLAM: So, what you’re saying is that wasn’t exactly by choice?
LJ: I spent the money so I had to do it, but if they came to be right out college and said, “We want you to do Grandmama,” I would have never done it. [Laughs]
SLAM: And then what do you remember from bringing it back for Family Matters?
LJ: You know Jaleel [White] can really play. He’s tall, but he just fell into that Urkel role.
SLAM: As I’m sure you know, you were on our first cover. What do you remember about that?
LJ: When I got on the magazine cover, I was hurt. You guys had the magazine out with me on the cover for about three months, and I wasn’t even playing. I did a press conference on when I was going to come back, and you guys held up the magazine, and the first question you asked was, “We got you on the cover of our magazine, when are you coming back?” I was a little offended because I was hurt. I didn’t give him the benefit of the doubt. If you’re on the cover of the magazine, they want you playing. I was a little offended, and I would like to apologize.
SLAM: Do you think some pride in having that distinction of being on the first cover?
LJ: I take a lot of pride in that. I have it laminated and everything. I didn’t know SLAM would be like this back then.