NBA maps: New '30 Home Games' Facebook wallpaper

NBA Map Facebook wallpaper - City listings

Proudly presenting a new wallpaper for use on the new Facebook interface. Enjoy!

1) Northwest Division
Colorado | Minnesota | Oklahoma | Oregon | Utah
2) Pacific Division
Arizona | California
3) Southwest Division
New Orleans | Tennessee | Texas
4) Atlantic Division
Massachusetts | New Jersey | New York | Ontario, Canada | Pennsylvania
5) Central Division
Illinois | Indiana | Michigan | Ohio | Wisconsin
6) Southeast Division
Florida | Georgia | North Carolina | Washington DC

30HG Destination Spotlight
- Wieden + Kennedy, Nike Kitchen (Portland, Oregon)
- Troublemaker Studios (Austin, Texas)
- Pixar Studios (Emeryville, California)
- WrestleMania 29 and Indy Wrestling (MetLife Stadium. East Rutherford, New Jersey)

Update:

NBA Map Facebook wallpaper - Ball logos

- Update 2014: Find the new versions featuring the Brooklyn Nets and New Orleans Pelicans here
- Update 2015: New versions featuring the Atlanta, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, Toronto and the LA Clippers

Lebron James wins his first NBA Championship - Kills the Vampire!

Lebron James rocks Vampire shirt at Championship party - courtesy WorldRedEye.com 

Let's have some fun. You must do the following simultaneously:
1. Absorb the Video
2. Read the compilation of quotes
3. Be high. On psychedelics with Bill Walton but preferably on life.

VIDEO: Joe Rogan & Duncan Trussell - Kill The Vampire

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Remember you should only be reading this once you've gotten yourself in the right condition, the above Video should be playing on split screen.

In their own words: 2012 NBA Finalists 

LEBRON JAMES: It took me to go all the way to the top and then hit rock bottom basically to realize what I needed to do as a professional athlete and as a person.

DWYANE WADE: You know, two years ago, putting this team together, obviously we all expected it to be a little easier than it was. But we had to go through what we had to go through last year. We needed to. And as much as it hurt, we had to go through that pain and that suffering. To get to this point of this season and the rest of our careers together, we'll take nothing for granted.

CHRIS BOSH: I think it did that to all of us, where we couldn't even see the light of day because it hurt so much.

JAMES: The best thing that happened to me last year was us losing The Finals, you know, and me playing the way I played, it was the best thing to ever happen to me in my career because basically I got back to the basics. It humbled me.

WADE: We had a group, a team meeting, and for the first time I heard LeBron James open up, and he kind of let us in on what it's like to be LeBron James. None of us really know. I said as one of his close friends, I said,"Wow, I don't deal with that." And I deal with a lot.

BOSH: Nobody in the world can understand what he's went through this past two years, since the moment that we came here.

JAMES: I dreamed about this opportunity and this moment for a long time, including last night, including today. You know, my dream has become a reality now, and it's the best feeling I ever had.

ERIK SPOELSTRA: We have a brotherhood now that you don't necessarily have unless you've been through the fire together, and two years of it made us all more closer, and it makes this moment that much more gratifying.

WADE: Last season I felt that it was too much questions in our mind, in our head, and guys looking at each other and not wanting to step on each other's toes. This year I know I'm playing with the best player in the world, and that doesn't take anything away from me at all.

BOSH: I know a bunch of people made fun of me and said I was soft, but you can't be soft playing this game, especially at that five, you know what I'm saying? We wanted it so bad, I just wanted it so bad, I didn't care what anybody said, I didn't care what anybody thought. All I thought about was pushing forward to get that trophy...

Guest posting on 'Couple of Sports' - How I won personalised sneakers in Lisbon, Portugal

<< crossposted on the 'Loz in Translation' blog

My Portugal Tribute corner and the kicks I scored

Thank you Jackie and Mark, the sports mad pair from 'Couple of Sports' for hosting my Guest post on their awesome blog. The post details how I managed to win personalised sneakers on my 3rd day in Portugal. The young husband and wife team are living the enviable dream of chasing Sports across America for the year. With the help of Kickstarter they've pimped up an RV, gained a supportive following and have made news with their ambitious caper

Understandably this is quite the inspiration for me. I will be needing their sage advice for my own mission to visit the 30 Home Cities of the NBA. Thanks guys, may your journey live out like a Sports fairy tale. Hope to catch up with you when I'm stateside.

CoupleofSports.com - Pied Piper in Portugal

Find other Portugal related sports stories:
- Trigger: Day 114 - An NBA day in Portugal
- The Greatest blog ever sold: Please pimp, promote, like and sponsor this blog!
- Tudo Bom: The first 3 days in Portugal (2 of 3)

Read other sports stories below:
- Limerence: Snowboarding, Skating, Surfing, Christmas and Love
- All 'Sports' related posts

Find my other Guest Posts:
- Nod n Smile: Things that make you go hmm in Portugal
- The Facial: Finding Basketball around Europe and the ’30 Home Games’ mission
- Couple of Sports: How I won personalised sneakers in Lisbon, Portugal
- Nomadic Samuel: The many faces of the South of Spain, Andalucia

NBA Finals Respect angle: Wishing Kevin Durant and Lebron James go the Hogan/Warrior finish

Respect angle finish - NBA Final 2012 and WrestleMania 6:
Kevin Durant and Lebron James / Ultimate Warrior and Hulk Hogan

I want to see a wrestling finish to the NBA Finals

@30HomeGames All I want is for the Finals to go to 7 Games. That way Durant and LeBron can do the Respect angle hug a la Ultimate Warrior and Hulk Hogan.

Tim Legler: Miami Heat had all there fun in the line for the Rollercoaster

The Miami Heat happy in anticipation of the ride.

Former NBA star and ESPN analyst Tim Legler in a recent episode of NBA Today postulated that the Miami Heat would be exhaling BIG once these Playoffs were over, no matter what the outcome. Legler offered this theory when Miami were facing elimination heading into Game 6 in Boston.

NBA Today (June 7, 2012) - Download  MP3 here
Cassidy Hubbarth, Adam Stanco and Tim Legler break down how the Thunder eliminated the Spurs. Plus, they discuss all the issues on the Miami Heat. 

(42min) TIM LEGLER: There is so much talk of their offense, its just so heavy. They don't look like they're having any fun. If they win it they'll be the only team in NBA History to win the NBA title and just walk off the lot, walk off the floor.
(room laughs)
Thank God! Thank God that's over. Like a 7yr old on a rollercoaster that was just taller than the clown and barely got on the ride and hated it. And got off it and was like "God! That was awful". That's how I feel about them and I'm just like "Man, Have fun!". The Thunder, the exuberance man. The fun is there. I don't see any fun with the Miami Heat 

ADAM STANCO: The only fun was when they were in line
LEGLER: That's it. The fun was in line. The anticipation of the ride. Once they got on that ride, "This is terrible". Where are the teacups?

VIDEO: LeBron James harassed at Amusement Park

Interestingly Lebron used the amusement park analogy to describe the last few years of his life.

LeBron James Says His Life Has Been Like an ‘Amusement Park’ 

‘Everything,’ he said. ‘Appreciate it.’ Then he got up and walked off... and he laughs at the very idea of what his life has been like these past two years. ‘You ever been to an amusement park?’ he says. ‘That’s what my life has been like. Twists and turns. Up and down. Uh-oh, here we go, the roller-coaster is going into the dark hole again. Where’s the light? There’s the light. Up and down. Back into the dark hole. Back in the light. That’s what my life has been like.’ 

The ups and downs Lebron has endured is not unlike the rollercoaster that Dirk Nowitzki rode to glory last year, denying Lebron. 

Thunder, Heat, Celtics and Spurs: Comic Book NBA Conference Finals

NBA Conference Finals: Superteams

Miami Heat are 'The Avengers'
An assembly of superheroes with something prove

• The beloved Captain and All-American Hero (Dwyane Wade is Captain America)
• One man army capable of devastating cities especially when he's not thinking. You wouldn't like him when he's angry. At his weakest is very human.  (Lebron James is The Incredible Hulk)
• A deadly weapon with a fragile heart  (Chris Bosh is Ironman)

Oklahoma City Thunder are the 'Justice League of America'
Fighting for Justice and the American way

• A clean cut hero with out of this world abilities. (Kevin Durant is Superman)
• Always in motion and at full speed. (Russell Westbrook is The Flash)
• No special powers but an elite hero who knows how to use his tools. (James Harden is Batman) 

San Antonio Spurs are the 'Defenders of the Earth'
A formidable squad often overlooked for the fresher, more glamorous Superteams

• Young leader of an old fashioned hero squad (Tony Parker is Flash Gordon)
• Confuses enemies with his Razzle Dazzle (Manu Ginóbili is Mandrake the Magician)
• Indestructible legend still playing at an elite level, Ghost who walks (Tim Duncan is the Phantom)

Boston Celtics are the 'Fantastic Four'
Extraordinary people forged into Heroes after reaching the ultimate heights

• The team Leader with long arms (Rajon Rondo is Mr Fantastic)
• Quiet resolve, can carry the team but has been invisible (Ray Allen is Invisible Woman)
• A Freak always in Freak mode (Kevin Garnett is The Thing)
• Brash hero with the ability to catch fire at any moment (Paul Pierce is the Human Torch)

SuperHero Conference Finals

Philippe Petit and Lebron James: Man on Wire and Game 7

The pinnacle

Spent the day captivated by Lebron James leading the Miami Heat to the NBA Finals after winning a nailbiting Game 7 against the Boston Celtics.

Afterwards I watched Philippe Petit and his merry band achieve the impossible in 'Man on Wire'. The documentary detailing the unbelievable coup to tightrope walk across the Twin Towers was the film of the Week for my Local Library's Movie Club.

I was the youngest person in attendance as most were at least double my age.

Both stories are about people finding immortality through a defining moment.
Comedian Daniel Kitson says 'Everything in life is impossible until its inevitable'. The documentary and Lebron's torturous path to Coronation are stories of certainty that tease us with the dance of uncertainty.

As I write this, I'm in the dark as to what happened in the Manny Pacquiao fight.

VIDEO: The BIG game 7 in South Beach!

VIDEO: Philippe Petit: One Man Show - Philosophy on Life

PHILIPPE PETIT: Personally I don't believe you are born the greatest... in the world... I think to become the greatest at something you have to be passionate... If you are passionate about something... you're going to want to do it day and night... You're going to be tenacious and relentless... not taking No for a answer, even your own No.

Lebron James in full beast mode in Game 6 VS Celtics - "I'm always angry"

Dwyane Wade: I think now is the perfect time for you to get angry.
Lebron James: That's my secret Cap, I'm always angry.

Still pushing the Avengers analogy. This 45 point, 15 rebound effort will go down as one of Lebron's legacy games. Much like Jordan's "Flu Game", Game 6 will forever be remembered as the "Anger Game".

I'm actually in the process of creating logos for all the superhero squads of Conference Finals. Stay tuned!

Justice League of America VS The Avengers = Oklahoma City Thunder VS Miami Heat

The Avengers VS Justice League of America =
Miami Heat VS Oklahoma City Thunder

I'm gonna update this and expand on the analogy but I don't want to spend too much time on it prematurely lest it doesn't come true.

I didn't want an ISO Talent #NBAFinals but now I just want to see @KingJames at least get a chance to protest the @KDTrey5 coronation
- @30HomeGames

See the Comics Superteam Conference Finals 

Props to Undrcrwn and their basketball nerdiness

UNDRCRWN: 40 T-Shirts - 40 Nights

Just wanted to give props to Dustin Canalin and Undrcrwn for being the best at nerding out to Hoops.
Check out the Dustin Canalin and Undrcrwn blog.