- 6,227
- 2,339
- Joined
- Apr 16, 2007
Shannon Brown hopes to give fans something to scream about on Feb. 13.
Harry How/Getty Images
[h1]Lakers' super-dunker Brown has backing from on high[/h1]
Posted Feb 2 2010 1:15PM
ShannonBrown, backup guard for the Los Angeles Lakers, has the respect andadmiration of both a reigning king and The Leader of the Free World.
Scene:The Cleveland Cavaliers' locker room a couple of weeks ago. LeBronJames, The King to whom we referred, was assessing the field in thisyear's Slam Dunk Contest at NBA All-Star Weekend, but had blanked onone of the contestants.
[table][tr][td] [table][tr][td]
[/td][/tr][tr][td]
Tune in to TNT Feb. 13, at 8 p.m. to see how
Shannon Brown fares in the Sprite Slam Dunk.
[/td][/tr][/table][/td][/tr][/table]
"Do I have oddson who's going to win? I dunno. Who's the fourth participant again?''James asked. Told that it was Brown, the Cavaliers' star perked up."Wow. I like Shannon. I like Shannon. He's good. We'll see.''
Scene:The White House a few days later. During a private ceremony tocommemorate the Lakers' NBA championship last June, the currentresident of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. shook Brown's hand and wished himluck in the dunk contest Feb. 13. Then, at a public version not longafter that was covered by global media, President Obama did it again.
Brown's reaction? Startled by the former, humbled by the latter.
<p>Your browser does not support iframes.</p>
"When he didthat, I didn't know what to do, man,'' Brown told reporters. "I waslike, 'This dunk contest needs to hurry up.' I got kind of juiced. Ineed to be out there now.''
Perhaps in honor of the nation'sFirst Hoops Fan, Brown put on a little dunk showcase of his own thenext night against the Wizards, right there in Washington. All in thesecond quarter of L.A.'s 115-103 victory, he threw down an alley-oopfeed from Lamar Odom, finished a fast-break with a one-handed jam, thenused two hands for a slam-back of Andrew Bynum's missed free throw.
Coincidentally,when the Lakers packed for their extended eight-game road trip andcoach Phil Jackson dispensed this year's stack of books for to hisplayers, the title he gifted to Brown was a copy of Obama's, Dreams From My Father.
Kismet?Hard to say. But with the President throwing his support toward Brown,it makes you wonder if Nate Robinson, Gerald Wallace, DeMar DeRozan andEric Gordon -- the others vying for the dunk title -- might respond byleaning a little to the right on their initial attempts.
"He justadded a little bit of pressure,'' Brown said. "That's well-worth-itpressure. I'd rather have pressure from the president than anybodyelse.''
Brown seems to be the people's choice, not unlike Obamawas about 15 months ago. At least among people savvy in dunk historyand skills. Orlando's Dwight Howard, a past champion, recently said ofthe Lakers guard: "He's a great, unbelievable dunker. He's awesomeabove the rim. He's in the category of Vince Carter, Michael Jordan andDominique Wilkins.''
TNT analyst Kenny Smith pounced on Brown ashis favorite to win the 2010 title. "Nate Robinson cannot do thingsthat Shannon Brown can do,'' Smith said during a telecast. "ShannonBrown will win the dunk contest, he's the best athlete in the field.''
James'respect for Brown stems from their slam showdown in a dunk contest whenboth were seniors in high school. "A lot of people don't realizeShannon almost beat LeBron in a McDonald's contest,'' said DeRozan, whowill compete with Gordon in a new dunk-in round on Friday of All-StarWeekend. "I know he's going to come with something.''
<p>Your browser does not support iframes.</p>
ExplainedBrown: "What it was, LeBron won it fair and square. I missed a dunk andhe made all his dunks, so he accumulated more points than I did. Ithink everybody liked the '360' that I did though.''
Then thereis Kobe Bryant, another former champ and longtime electrifying dunker.When asked what advice he had for his younger teammate heading towardthe event, Bryant said: "Do it old school. Don't bring out props andstuff like that. Go out there and showcase your God-given athleticism.I mean, his chest is over the rim. That's good enough for '50' [aperfect score].''
Brown, despite putting up a Web site to touthis candidacy as a dunk contestant (DeRozan did the same in response),has been keeping his ideas to himself. All he would tell me after arecent Lakers game was: "I feel like every dunk pretty much has beendone in this league. There's nothing new that anybody can do but becreative with things. I think that's going to be what gets it done --creativity of the individual.''
The Lakers, naturally, are moreinterested in the team and what Brown does for them off the bench.Through Monday, he was averaging 7.5 points, 1.9 rebounds, 1.1 assistsand 18.7 minutes, with an efficiency rating of 7.27. He reached doublefigures in points seven times in January, including a career-best 22against the Magic, and 16 times this season. There's been someinconsistency but, on most nights, Browns enters the Lakers' games likea hypodermic of energy and activity.
It's a nice role, especiallyfor a guy who bounced through seven teams in less than three years.Drafted by Cleveland with the 25th overall pick in 2006, Brown loggedminutes with Albuquerque, Rio Grande Valley and Iowa in the NBADevelopment League. He was lumped into the massive, 11-player,Cleveland-Chicago-Seattle trade in February 2008, landing with theBulls. The following summer, Charlotte signed Brown as a free agent,but traded him to the Lakers last February with Adam Morrison forVladimir Radmanovic.
Brown got himself a championship ring fourmonths later; the native of Maywood, Ill., and three-year player atMichigan State averaged 4.9 points in the Lakers' title run. Now he'strying to earn a second.
"He's a young man who's very diligentabout his work,'' Jackson said. "He puts in the effort and it's payingoff for him. I think it's maturity. I think it's opportunity andresponsibility.''
Said Brown: "People see what I do out on thecourt. I just try to have fun. Some people consider me a dunker, butI'm a guy, I try to bring my all-around game out. But when it's time todunk, I don't hold back.''
That was evident when Brown got theball in the open court at Cleveland two weeks ago. As the crowd bracedfor a glimpse of his dunk abilities, Cavaliers' forward Jawad Williamscut him off, thwarted the attempt and sent the Laker guard to the foulline.
Admitting that he was about to flush down somethingspecial, Brown smiled. "That was a good foul,'' he said. "He was verysmart.''
So, it seems, is your money if it's on Brown on All-Star Saturday.
http://www.nba.com/2010/n...dex.html?ls=iref:nbahpt1
